The Secrets We Keep
"Zac!" Topaz's voice sounded from above the water. He grabbed his brother by the hair and dragged him upwards towards the stairs leading into the kitchen. "What?" He snapped angrily, tossing his brother up the stairs before him. He was done with the interrogating. It was clear he wasn't going to get anywhere with questioning him. "What're you doing?" Topaz asked. She was standing in the doorway of the kitchen with her arms folded, her lips pursed, an eyebrow raised. She had her hair in a high bobble, a plain brown maxi-dress emphasizing her height. She looked so much like their mother it shocked Zac. He shoved his brother up the stairs before him, the pair drying and dressing as they got further away from the water. "I was trying to get an answer out of him." Zac sneered, shoving his brother forwards through the kitchen. "And?" Zac shrugged. "A wall would've been more helpful." Aden was coming downstairs as Zac pushed his brother into the conservatory. "Where're you taking him?" Topaz asked as she and Aden followed Zac and Robert. "I'm locking him in the outdoor cellar."
"There's an outdoor cellar?" Aden asked, shocked. "Yeah I didn't know granny had one of them..." Topaz mused. "Yeah, it was rarely used."
"You can't lock him in there, Zac, he's our brother." Zac shook his head. "About that..." He saw the look of dread on Topaz's face and knew it was best to discuss this after they'd rested and after they'd locked Robert in the cellar. "Got the key on you?" Zac asked Topaz as he slid open the conservatory doors, taking them out into the back gardens. Topaz unhooked the key from the chain around her neck and gave it to her brother unwillingly. "You wait here, it's too dark out." Zac was unsure of what might be lurking outside. If their brothers had been able to track them to Ireland, right down to the party and the house the were at, then the Angel knows who else could be tracking them.
Alice's head hurt badly when she awoke the following morning. Zac wasn't laid beside her, and the room hung cold and dark without him. She was still wearing the plum coloured bodycon halter-neck Topaz had chosen for her the previous night. Climbing out of bed the memory of what had occurred at the party the previous night flooded back to her and she spun, unfurling her wings quickly and seeing the fading pink line across her right wing. She fluttered them out and felt no pain. Relief flooded through her and she turned towards the shopping bags shoved in front of the wardrobe, realising she'll have to carry these with her whenever they travel due to the lack of backpacks she'd brought to the Dark World. Choosing a pair of grey skinny jeans and a plain blue t-shirt, she dressed casually and headed downstairs after pulling a brush through her semi-frizzy, semi-straight hair. The noise of laughter rushed towards her from the kitchen as she headed downstairs and she smiled. She was pleased that the rest of the household hadn't frozen in despair after last night's attack. They'd just been loosening up when the Nightingale brother's had attacked them. The last thing they wanted was to go backwards when they were just beginning to go forwards. "Good morning." She smiled when she entered the kitchen to find Topaz and Aden sitting extremely close at the breakfast bar, Zac smiling proudly as he held a mug of coffee and stood leaning against the kitchen counter. "Good morning." He grinned surprised as she wandered over to him. "How're you feeling?" Topaz asked happily. She looked beautiful this morning in a pressed plain beige trouser suit with matching chiffon blouse underneath. The jacket was slung over the back of her chair, and her semi-curly hair swung from a bobble. "Much better, thank you." Alice smiled, taking Zac's cup of coffee. "Robert's in the outside cellar." Aden said around a mouthful of toast. Alice choked on her sip of coffee and Topaz hit Aden over the back of his head. "Wow Aden way to go!" Zac cheered sarcastically. "I told you that she'd find out eventually, might as well tell her now."
"Yeah I was waiting for an opening in the conversation..." Zac mused defensively. "Wait, what? Robert's in the outdoor cellar. I didn't even know there was an outdoor cellar!" Alice squealed. "I was the only one old enough to remember..." Zac mumbled as he poured a fresh cup of coffee. Alice shrugged. "So have we got to the bottom of the attack yet or...?" Topaz shook her head. "Zac tried last night and again this morning. Even in water Robert won't say a thing, it's as if he's transfixed, or programmed, or robotic or something... It doesn't make sense." Alice made a face. "Maybe he's under a charm."
"What?" Aden blurted confusedly, pushing his empty plate away. "Maybe someone's put a charm on him, so he's only programmed to attack us and not spill on who charmed him." Zac nodded his head and gently elbowed Alice. "That's a good thought Al, I didn't think of that one." Alice smiled happily. "But if that's the case, why didn't Franklin pick up on it last night?" Alice shrugged, "I dunno who Franklin is, but if he's a warlock, then maybe it's a strong charm that only highly powerful witches or warlocks can pick up on."
"But Franklin's the best in the city Bennie said." Aden reminded them. "Well Bennie's said a lot of things in the past that haven't been true." Topaz snapped moodily. Aden looked at her questioningly, but she merely shook her head. Zac cleared his throat and looked shiftily at Aden. "I have an idea..." He began, looking at the Angel. "No. No way, Zac, I know what you're going to say." Topaz said defensively, looking at her brother with fire in her eyes. "But c'mon Paz, it's the only way-"
"Don't Paz me, Zac, do you not remember what happened to him last time? Just because he found her then, doesn't mean he'd be able to find her now."
"But you'd be with him."
"WHAT?!" Topaz's hair was blazing auburn now, and yet Zac wasn't backing down. He knew how angry she was and yet he didn't seem the slightest bit fazed. "You heard me," He was saying. "You and Aden can track Jemima and we'll join you with Robert and get him de-charmed. Find out who charmed him in the first place, and why, and then we'll all go looking for them." Topaz was shaking her head violently. "I'm not doing that, that is not happening, Zac. Not while you and Al get to lie back here and relax while we do all the hard work, you know how difficult it is to track a witch, that isn't fair." Zac narrowed his eyes and slammed his coffee cup down on the counter. "I am your brother and this is what's happening whether you like it or not, Topaz. You and Aden will go to Jemima and once you get there you will contact us and we will join you to get Robert de-charmed. I don't care if you're not happy with that idea and I don't care if it isn't fair because I am sick of constantly running and fighting and this is where it stops!"
"I'm sorry we can't stick to our deal." Topaz whispered to Alice as they said their goodbyes at the front door later that day. Topaz wasn't talking to Zac; she couldn't even look at him. He was endangering not just her life, but the life of Robert and Aden and Topaz was infuriated that this was all just so he and Alice could 'have some quality time together before they went off to find the person who charmed Robert'. And what if Robert hadn't been charmed? What if he was just refusing to talk to them? He'd done it before. Albeit not to these extents, but that's what siblings were like. They fought, they bickered, and then they made up. Once all this was over and they'd caught their parents' killers, they'd laugh about this. All five of them.
"Don't worry about it." Alice smiled, helping Topaz with her heavy backpack. "As long as you're protected, that's all that matters." Topaz smiled slightly. "At least you understand that." Topaz shot her brother an angry look across the entryway and Alice smiled. "Your brother's only trying to look out for you, you know. There's got to be a reason he doesn't want you staying here. But you've got to remember that he loves you, and he's only doing this to protect you." Topaz rolled her eyes. "I wished I saw things like you, Alice." The Angel laughed. "That, Paz, you really don't want to wish for."
Aden sat in the driver's seat of the car Zac had acquired for their journey. "Now you know how to drive?" Aden nodded his head. He might be an Angel from the most law-abiding World there is, and he may be in the Dark World for the first time in his life, but he knew how to drive a car. That was a basic. "Okay, well, the documents are in the glove compartment if you need them, you're full of petrol and your ferry tickets are in with the car docs. You sure you'll be alright?" At that Topaz threw open the passenger door and slid into the neat black upholstering. "If he's not, I will be." She was in her fighting gear, as was Aden, and she'd never looked so deadly. "Alright, well..." Zac took a step back from the car to join Alice on the pavement after she'd packed Topaz's bags into the boot of the car. "Good luck." Topaz rolled her eyes and nodded her head. "Just drive Aden." She asked of the Angel. With one last wave he pushed the button on his door and his window went up, his signal to drive off making the Worlders on the pavement tense and wave after them. Neither of them waved in return.
Topaz pushed her seat back, propped her booted feet on the dash and stared out the window, watching as the trees alongside the motorway blurred as Aden drove. He was a better driver than she'd expected. Locked in the light World for your whole life appeared to be better than Topaz had first imagined.
The drive was silent, just as Topaz wanted it. She was lost in her own thoughts, trying to separate what she wanted from what she thought she wanted and how she felt from what she thought she felt. So far, it wasn't going well.
Aden shoved their documents out his open window at the guard before the barrier went up and he drove onto the ship. He felt comfortable behind the wheel, in control, superior. He knew a lot about cars, despite the fact he'd grown up in a World which had abolished such things. The only mode of transportation in the Light World was portals. And your feet. "You okay?" Aden asked as him and Topaz made their way upstairs to the heart of the ferry. The mermaid nodded her black sheet of hair. She looked distant, lost in her own thoughts. He didn't ask and she didn't say. He left it at that and headed to a table at the very end of the dock. He threw himself down on the metal chair and looked out at the excited Irishmen chatting amongst themselves at the edge of the ship, pointing down into the sea and exclaiming at each other. He smiled. If only they knew what was really in those waters. Rogue mermaids killed fishermen at night by singing to them... Aden wondered if he'd ever be able to hear Topaz sing to him, or if he'd just end up locked in her power forever that way. She sat down opposite him silently, sliding down into the metal chair and absentmindedly lifting the car keys he'd set down when he'd arrived at the table. He watched her stare out at the ocean as the ferry travelled away from Ireland and towards Scotland. He watched the blue irises fade darker and darker in on themselves as her thoughts deepened and darkened. Her lips were a hard line of concentration, her skin taught and paler than normal. Aden didn't ask her what she was thinking about. Even thought he wanted to, he didn't. He couldn't. If he asked, she'd never tell. Instead he sat watching her, longing to hear her thoughts, or even her voice telling him that she was alright. He knew that the mission they were now on was a dangerous one. But he barely cared. The fact he was on it with Topaz made it all the more tolerable.
When they arrived in Scotland Topaz's stomach growled fiercely, making Aden laugh. "Is there someplace you'd like me to stop at for dinner?" He asked her with a smile. She didn't even look at him as he pulled away from the port. "I don't mind... Whatever..." Her voice sounded off, distant. She was so deeply engulfed in her own mind that she felt like she was drowning in a sea of her own wants and desires. She felt succumbed to her wishes, the dreams she longed for so desperately. She'd never felt like this before. She'd barely even noticed Aden had pulled into a car park until his fists slammed on the steering wheel. "For the Angel's sake Topaz will you just say something!" Aden yelled at her, making her jump. She blinked her eyes rapidly, making them water from the amount of time they'd been glazed over in thought. She turned them onto Aden's fretting face and felt her heart stutter a little. He was angry... But he was also worried. "This morning you were happy to be around me, to talk to me, to even act like we were together and now..." He shook his head. "Now you won't even look at me." Topaz twisted in her seat and reached out. She gently touched his white knuckles gripping the steering wheel fiercely. "I'm sorry," She whispered, peeling his fingers off the wheel. "I'm just thinking, that's all..." Aden sniggered as he laced his fingers through hers. "If this is what happens when you're thinking, it's no wonder you never do it," Topaz's face cracked into a smile and Aden cheered. "At last, it returns!" He cheered sarcastically. Topaz gave a short laugh and looked at Aden. "I really am sorry, you know." She knew the Angel wouldn't know why she was apologising after saying those words moments before. But she knew why she was saying them. And to her, that's all that mattered.
"So basically I found some witches at the train station and tracked them... That's the only reason I ended up finding Jemima when I did." Aden explained to Topaz as they settled into their hotel room after dinner. "I think we should go on patrol." Topaz suggested with a swift nod of her head. She'd removed her leather jacket and was re-stocking her weapons belt as she spoke. "Yeah, good idea we might be able to get ourselves killed by some Scottish Rogue Worlders why we're here, why didn't I think of that?" Topaz scowled at Aden with an eyebrow raised. "You know that's not what I meant..." She tied her belt around her waist and let her hair out of its plaited bun. "I think we should patrol the local area for any witches, see if we can tail them to Jemima, or even find Jemima herself..." Suddenly Aden came up with an idea. "Maybe there's a nightclub nearby." Topaz laughed. "I didn't know you were up for a party, why didn't you say earlier? I could've packed more clothes." Aden ignored her sarcasm and explained, "If we find a nightclub, there'll be witches there... Witches we could trick into telling us where Jemima is..." Topaz raised an eyebrow and a mischievous grin whipped it's way across her face. "Aden, Aden, Aden," She was shaking her head, making her way over to him. "I really don't understand how an Angel," She locked her arms around his neck. "Could possibly be so wicked." Aden smirked and looped his fingers through her belt-hoops. "I wonder what makes you say that." Aden smirked, lowering his head to hers.
Lips millimetres apart, Topaz's phone started ringing in her back pocket. Her slender shoulders jumped slightly, startling them both and making Aden groan in defeat as the mermaid pulled back and looked at her phone. She groaned too as she read the caller ID. She passed it to Aden. "It's Zac, tell him our plan, I'll get changed." She headed off into the bathroom with her holdall, and Aden stared after her as she went.
Topaz emerged wearing a skin-tight deep red long-sleeved lace dress with matching killer heels and lipstick her black hair dangling down her back. Aden was sitting on the bottom of his bed waiting on her when she emerged. He was wearing a short sleeved black boyfriend t-shirt with skin-tight black jeans and boots. Topaz still hadn't gotten used to seeing this stunning Angel with his golden six-o'clock shadow and his ruffled blonde waves wearing such body-complimenting black clothes. She'd never seen an Angel wear black before Aden. "You ready?" He asked, sanding his hands and getting to his feet before turning to her and almost falling backwards onto the bed again. "Wow, Paz," She turned towards the bathroom and flicked the light out, her cheeks growing hot but not blushing. "You look great." Topaz instead smiled at the Angel and said, "Not so bad yourself, blondie, let's go."
The Scottish air had a sharp bite to it that the English and Irish air didn't, which made Topaz gasp as soon as it hit her skin. She was pleased she'd decided on sleeves tonight. A heavily jewelled chain was around her neck, and silver bracelets jangled on her wrists, all of her jewellery her weapons this evening, as well as the knives in the waistband of her underwear and the tiny clutch bag she held. If they did find Jemima tonight it would simply be to observe and not approach. They'd go nowhere near the witch without her brother.
Aden walked with his hands shoved deep inside the pockets of his jeans, and Topaz walked with her arms folded tight across her chest, her clutch tucked firmly under her arm. They didn't say anything, because they didn't need to. There was no tension or awkwardness between them, just the cars that drove past, the music from the city flats, and the laughter of people as they walked through the town. Topaz's heels were the only noise between them when eventually they reached the heart of the city centre, and began looking for the nightclubs. There were a lot at first, but none Topaz knew of as being Worlder bars. Worlders knew which nightclubs were their own by the name. "The doghouse?" Aden's voice interrupted Topaz's thoughts as they trudged up a hill with shops lining either side. Topaz looked up and followed Aden's gaze to a dark nightclub on the opposite side of the hill, towards their right. A dark stream of Norants eagerly waited outside, held back by black ropes, a large bouncer keeping them at bay. The neon sign above alerted Topaz of what this club really was. "Aden, you Angel." She smiled. Aden gave a short laugh. "Well, if that's you just noticing we might want to go get you checked out." Topaz hit him lightly on the arm and hurried over to the door of the nightclub. Aden watched on in wonder as Topaz reached up to the bouncer and whispered something in his ear, sliding something into the back pocket of his trousers. A moment later, he swept his arm back, allowing the two Worlders inside. "How do you do that kind of stuff?" The Angel asked as they headed downstairs to the Worlder part of the nightclub. Topaz turned to Aden and flashed him a grin. "That, dear Angel, is the secret we keep." She winked and fluttered her eyelashes, her self confidence radiating off of her as she pushed through the Worlders towards the bar and ordered two cocktails. "Remember, we're here to work." Aden said, reaching her at the bar. "I know that," Topaz grinned as she hoisted herself onto a barstool and pulled Aden against her. "Just don't you be forgetting that."
Okay, so, Aden had gotten distracted. A little. He'd let Topaz order more and more cocktails and drag him onto the dance-floor after their fifth. He'd let her dance around him, thrilled in the closeness of their bodies, the pound of their beating hearts, their task lost in his mind. Their lips were millimetres apart on too many occasions, never touching but always lingering. Topaz brought her hands up Aden's chest, biting her blood-red lip, her excited eyes a few centimetres from Aden's. She leaned closer so their lips were almost touching, their breaths pooling together. Aden parted his lips, leaning in to kiss her before she whispered, "There, over by the bar." Aden frowned and Topaz bit his bottom lip to snap him out of her engaging sensuous trance. He spun with his index finger and thumb pinching his bleeding lip, to look over at the bar behind him. Topaz kept on dancing, swaying her hips and running her hands through her hair. But, with an electric jolt like no other, he realised that Topaz had been right. There, by the bar, chatting exuberantly among other witches was no other than Jemima. "How did you know that was her?" Aden rounded on Topaz with shock plain on his face. "I didn't, but I heard a couple of witches talking about a witch called Francis while they were dancing earlier, and now they're talking to an older witch with grey hair."
"But they're talking with other witches too." Topaz thrust herself against Aden with an angry amount of force. She shoved her face into his, her lips brushing his furiously before shaping the words, "When you were out you were mumbling about grey hair. The Angels you killed all had blonde, obviously, which meant that Jemima-"
"Had grey hair." Aden finished before cramming his lips on the mermaid's. "Whoa easy tiger." Topaz cackled, pulling back and falling back onto the balls of her feet after tiptoeing to Aden's height. Even her five inch heels didn't help her much. And Topaz was tall, for a girl. "I thought I was an Angel?" Aden laughed as the song change had Topaz squealing in glee.
Heading to the other side of the bar Topaz hoisted herself onto a barstool and Aden stood close with his back to Jemima so Topaz could watch the witch carefully without making anyone suspicious. "She's leaving." Topaz said after a while of watching the witch. They'd been talking about the Scottish weather, and the difference of the Irish climate compared to their latest stop-off-point. "Do we follow or...?" Topaz finished her drink. "Finish that," She said to Aden, pointing to his beer. "And then we'll go," Aden cocked an eyebrow and Topaz smiled her best smile. "Trust me, we don't want to follow her too quickly, otherwise, we'll raise suspicion."
"You mean more than what we already do?" Aden began chugging down his beer as Topaz laughed and slid off her stool. "Exactly."
Alice had tried interrogating the charmed mermaid but as they both expected, she got nothing. Settling down in bed, laughing and joking as normal, her phone began ringing loudly from the bedside. Checking the clock on his own bedside Zac told the Angel it was well after midnight. Panicking, the Angel sat up and checked her called ID. "It's Aden..." She said gravely. "Maybe it's a butt-dial." Zac shrugged humorously, trying to lighten the suddenly grim atmosphere. "Aden is-" Alice was cut off by Topaz's girlish giggle. "Hey sis!" He slurred, clearly drunk. "Guess who we found?" Alice rolled her eyes and lolled back on her pillows next to Zac. "The Queen of Sheba." Alice said sarcastically. "No you, silly. We found Jemima Lucipher. She's in Glasgow."
The two Worlders slunk back against the concrete wall of the nightclub in the alleyway, giggling drunkenly and slumped to the ground, Topaz's heels in her hand while Aden clutched at her bag as she fell onto his lap. They'd lost track of the witch down this alley, but at least they knew where she was. For now. Which is why they'd started laughing. If Topaz hadn't of fell up the stairs (which was Aden's fault in the first place) they wouldn't've lost track of the witch as she hurried down the lane outside. "They're on their way." Aden breathed as he wiped laughter tears from his cheeks. "I'm sorry we lost track of her." Topaz giggled, her hands fists against Aden's chest, her heels abandoned on the mucky concrete beside them. "It wasn't your fault." Aden sniggered, dialling for a cab on his phone. From the very end of the lane a drunk homeless man began staggering towards them. "Maybe we should go..." Topaz said, sobering a little. The cold air had hit them like they'd run into a brick wall, knocking them for six, the alcohol truly going to their heads in more ways than one. As Aden asked for the taxi he gathered Topaz's heels in his hands and with her bag on top of them he gently slid her off his knee and stood. "It's on it's way, it'll pick us up at the bottom of the hill," Aden informed the mermaid as the homeless guy at the end of the alley started shouting towards the pair, asking for spare change. "So c'mon, we better go." He said, looking down at the mermaid still slumped on the cold mucky ground. "But I can't walk that far in those heels." Aden's mouth fell open in shock. "Topaz Nightingale unable to walk in heels, I highly doubt that." Topaz gave a small laugh. "No, silly, I mean in my current state." She gestured to her intoxicated body and Aden bit his lip. "Alright, I'll give you a piggy-back, how about that?" The homeless guy was reaching the bins a few feet from them now, beginning to curse at them for not answering or acknowledging his presence. "A piggy back from an Angel, now that I didn't know could happen!" Aden grabbed Topaz's hands and pulled her to her feet. "Here, take this." He said and passed her the clutch-bag. He then bent and hurriedly slid her feet into her heels before turning his back on her and bending slightly so she could clamber on. He held her strong calves tightly at his sides and tried not to get too turned-on as she pressed herself tightly against him, her cheek pressed against his and her arms draped across her chest. "Let's go then, Angel." She whispered in his ear. Just as the homeless man was staggering up to them, Aden turned and hurried off out of the lane and down the hill, away from the Worlder-slash-Norant nightclub and the drunken homeless man's angry shouts.
After piggy-backing Topaz all the way to their hotel-room, Aden flopped backwards onto the bed, squashing Topaz and making her laugh uncontrollably. "Get off me!" She squealed, laughing, hitting and kicking at him. Laughing, he rolled off her and got to his feet. But the mermaid was quicker and pulled him back down, rolling on top of him and sitting there pretty with a leg on either side of his stomach. "Not so fast Angel, d'you like how it feels?" Aden raised an eyebrow. "You really want me to answer that?" The mermaid blushed. Topaz Nightingale blushed. Aden's mouth fell slack as the mermaid leaned down, giggling and brushed her lips lightly across his before rolling off and padding barefoot to the bathroom. Just as the door clicked shut behind her, Aden sat up incredulously. Had he just said something to actually make Topaz Nightingale bashful? He put the heat in Topaz's cheeks down to the fact that she was a little drunk. But deep down, the Angel knew that the pair had grown that little bit closer.
Zac hated waking Alice, so he didn't. He decided to stay in the car on the ferry to Scotland. Robert was unconscious in the back of the car with the sleeping tablets Zac had given him when Alice was packing to leave. They'd left right away, without a moment's thought. They needed answers, and they needed them now. He knew that by the time they got to Glasgow, it'd be the following morning and his sister and the Angel would've sobered up. Zac just hoped they hadn't done anything stupid in the meantime. Whether together or in other ways, Zac didn't really care. What he did care about was the niggling sensation in the back of his mind. The niggling telling him that he'd never be able to look at Aden the same again, now that he knew how the Angel felt about his sister. He knew Topaz deserved better. He wanted more for his sister. She was so special, so important. Zac stopped right there. He put his mind on pause for a moment. Why was Topaz so much more important than his other siblings? They'd gone missing and he hadn't so much as batted an eyelid and then they'd turned up to kill them. He knew that if Topaz had gone missing he would've raised Hell in his search for her. But he didn't know why he felt so different about his siblings. After all, they were all related, the same blood ran through their veins. But Zac knew, deep down, that it didn't matter why, it only matter that he loved Topaz, and that he'd do everything in his power to protect her. From everything.
Jemima knew they were looking for her. She was the leader of the witches, it was her duty to know that sort of thing. Glasgow was her headquarters, the place where everything happened. North was where she liked to go in order to hold meetings, to share her plans. She knew that it was a little harder to get tracked in Glasgow, it was bigger than the North, it was busier than the North. She'd sent a message to the Worlders, telling them where and when to meet her. She knew they'd come, they'd have to come. And she knew what it was about. She was conscious of the fact that the papers she'd translated a few days previous had been stolen, and yet she knew that wasn't the Worlders' reason for visiting her. The doorbell chimed throughout the house and Jemima rose from her chair, folding her glasses onto the side table and heading out into the hall to answer it. There, in her doorway, on her doorstep, stood a sight she'd never have expected to enter her house. "Jemima Lucipher," The eldest spoke in a husky Irish accent. He had dark spiky hair and contrastingly bright sharp eyes. "I am Zac Nightingale, this is my brother Robert and my sister Topaz, and our friends Alice and Aden Lightingale. We need your help." Jemima nodded. "I know what you need." She said, and stood aside to let them in.
Alice observed the beautiful historical ornaments surrounding she and her brother in the old-fashioned living room. Jemima had taken the Nightingale's into the cellar to question them before de-charming Robert. But still Alice wasn't sure. Her stomach was rolling with nerves as time tuck by ever-so-slowly. "Alice...?" Aden asked inquisitively after a long and heavy silence. "Yes...?" Alice was unsure of her brother's curious tone. Their eyes met. He smiled, "Nothing." And continued inspecting an old comic. "No come on, what's up?" Alice asked, switching from the old pink fabric armchair to the floral upholstering of the sofa Aden was sitting on. "Well..." Aden looked unsure. He broke away from her eyes and folded his comic back into the rack next to him as he asked, "Mum and dad... How... How are things between you three?" Alice swallowed. "What d'you mean, how are they? You know they're pretty awful Ade." Her brother smiled. "I know but... I've been curious... How did they contact you...?" Alice frowned in confusion. "What d'you mean?" The Angel smiled patiently. Angels were fantastic with patience. It never wore off. Ever. "Well, when they came to take you home, what did they say? What did you say? What happened?" Alice smiled. "Wow, one question at a time!" She laughed, throwing her hands in the air jokingly. "Really, nothing exciting. They sent Abi and Anna down to get me and I said we weren't finished investigating. That's it really." Aden raised an eyebrow. "We both know that's not all that happened." Alice sighed and put both hands between her knees, her expression grave. "Basically I saw mum in a bathroom mirror and told her about Zac and me... I expected her to flip but instead..." The beautiful Angel shook out her locks, her eyes glazed over at the memory. "She warned me about what happened to Angels if they didn't follow the law... They got their wings stripped from them." Aden swallowed loudly. "And you didn't tell me before?!" Alice shook her head. "I knew you'd react like this. I knew you'd be angry and didn't want you overreacting. I'm fine. You're fine. We're all fine. Isn't that what matters the most?" Aden shook his head. "But we're not fine, can't you see that?" The Angel got to his feet, dodging his sister's touch. "As long as mum and dad are after us, we'll never be fine!"
"But they're not after us Ade, they're only after me!"
"Oh and you know that do you? How d'you know they're not searching for me right now?" Heat flooded Alice's face and Aden raised an eyebrow. "They are looking for me, aren't they?" When Alice didn't answer Aden threw his hands in the air. "Didn't you consider the fact that I might want to know this? Our family are looking for me, they could be down here already, hunting for the both of us, and you didn't think this was something I should know?" Alice didn't say anything. She knew he was right. And she was sorry. "I really can't believe you, Al... I thought we were supposed to be in this together?"
"We are Ade!" Alice leapt to her feet. "We are, I promise you. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I was only trying to protect you."
"Protect me?!" Aden jumped away from Alice's touch, his angered eyes shining tearfully. "Can't you see that by protecting me, you've only endangered me more?" Alice bit her lip and looked down at her feet. "Is everything alright in here?" Topaz asked from the doorway. "Aden are..." Topaz began making her way over to the Angel but he held up a hand. "I'm fine, Paz, just fine." And at that he turned and left the room. The front door closed behind him, and Topaz followed.
Zac and Topaz weren't allowed in the cellar while Jemima worked her spell on Robert. There was a very good possibility that the spell could latch onto one of the mermaids if they stayed. Topaz went to check on the Angels as shouting erupted from the living room. But Zac stayed. He had things he had to ask Jemima. Things no one else could be present to hear. He had to know more about the Dark World, more about Angels and mermaids. He'd been researching them for days now, and then weeks before Alice had come. But he needed more, he had to be certain. "It's done. He should be awake in a few moments. Then you can go down and see him." The Scottish witch told him, closing the cellar down behind her. "Thank you," Zac gushed gratefully. Jemima smiled and dried her hands on a kitchen towel, stepping away from the sink and turning to leave the room. "Actually," Zac said, putting him infront of the door way and closing the door after checking no one was out there to eavesdrop. "There's something I have to ask you, if you'd mind...?" Jemima smiled and settled down on a dining chair. "I know what you're going to ask me, Zachary. But there's nothing I can do..." Zac frowned. "How could you possibly know what I have to ask?" The witch smiled and beckoned him closer. "I have stronger powers than your tiny fishy mind will allow you to imagine. I've been on this planet for hundreds of years, and I know more about you and the company you keep than you yourself would like to allow." Zac swallowed loudly. "What do you know about me?" Jemima smiled and with a wave of her hand the teapot sat infront of her began pouring two cups of tea. The witch began stirring the tea with a gentle swirl of her finger and sat back with an entertained smile, watching the mermaid over her half-moon spectacles which folded onto her neck from their chain when she inclined her head forwards slightly. "I know that for the past twelve years you've been fighting a love strong enough to blind the eyes of the Archangels and hang the Demon spirits in Hell. I know that when fate chose you as one of their slaves, you were still just a boy, arrogant and gullible. I know that now you're fighting a war that'll never weaken, never end, and always continue. You're trying to outrun fate and break a love that'll never cease. You can't just stop loving someone when fate has sewn its web. You're a victim of fate's desires, and because of that there is no escape..." Zac was confused, and Jemima knew this more than anyone else. "What I am telling you, Zachary, is that you will never stop loving Alison. You may think you want to, but you don't. Once you've fallen, you can't ever get up. The only way to break the bond of fate is death, and even then the web of fate will spin way beyond the grave...
"The question you so desperately want answered is if there is a way you and the Lightingale Angel can ever be together." Jemima took a long sip of her tea, Zac's heart pounding painfully in his chest. Abruptly their conversation was interrupted by Topaz bursting inside the kitchen. "Oh," She breathed in surprise. "Am I interrupting something?" She closed the door behind her and clicked over to the table to stand behind Zac. He couldn't even look at her without spitting blood. "Not at all dear..." Jemima smiled. "Just you carry on; your brother will be ready now." Jemima gestured towards the cellar door and Topaz smiled. She looked at Zac questioningly who sneered, "In a minute, Topaz." The mermaid rolled her eyes and made a face, clicking over to the cellar door and throwing it open. She slammed it closed behind her. "Don't be too harsh on Topaz, Zachary; she is a very delicate soul." Zac sniggered. "I'm sorry, but, did you just call my sister delicate?" Jemima looked at the mermaid in confusion for two long heartbeats before she realised he meant Topaz. She smiled and sipped her tea. "Topaz is in the early stages of what fate calls 'the recruitment term'," Jemima gave a short laugh and sipped her tea. "You can't say they don't have a sense of humour." Zac shook his head in confusion, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry but... Can we get back to what we were talking about please?" The witch nodded her head apologetically and sighed. "You've been searching for a while for the answers to your brothers, in search of a way that you and Alison can be together..." Zac nodded his head vigorously and subconsciously leaned closer to the witch, desperate to hear her next words. "But unfortunately there is no way on God's Earth that is easy for you to love each other freely. This is a sinister World we live in, whether Light or Dark. You aren't welcome in the Light World for you'd burn as soon as you're through the gates. And Alison is not welcome beside you in the Dark World, for the Angels would hunt her and strip her of her wings."
"So, are you saying the only way for us to be together freely is if she's stripped of her wings?" The witch smiled sadly. "If only it were that easy," She sighed. "Zachary," She pushed her empty teacup aside and leaned closer to the mermaid across the table. "If Alison were to be stripped of her wings, the process would most likely kill her. Few Angels survive a stripping, especially Angels as fragile as Alison. The only ones to survive are the ones with menace and shadows of evil already present in their souls. If she were to survive, she'd be vulnerable enough for all manners of evil to attack her, even take over her body. She'd become one of the fallen, weak enough that you'd have to fight in order to keep her. Alison would not remain as the Angel you have fallen in love with."
"Isn't there any other way? Somewhere we could go, an island with others like us, fate's victims, somewhere we could be together?"
The witch smiled sadly and covered Zac's clasped hands with her own. "If there was a place like that," She whispered softly. "You would have already discovered it."
Topaz's heels resounded on the concrete stairs as she descended into the cellar. She could hear Robert struggling against the metal handcuffs they'd attached him to the metal chair with. There was no way he could escape. He was strong. But not as strong as she or Zac. He didn't have the tainted mind he needed to escape the cellar. "Robert," Topaz called out clearly, flicking on the light and illuminating the small cellar. "Stop struggling." She told him. "P-P-Paz, what're... What're you doing here?" Robert was squinting at her, trying to see her properly as she approached him. "Never mind that," She told him, stopping a few feet away. His wrists were cut and bleeding from where he'd tried to squeeze them through the handcuffs. "Just stop struggling and tell me what you need to."
"If you're going to ask me what the Hell I'm doing here then I'd like to know that too." The mermaid shook her head. "You're here because you'd been charmed to attack and kidnap us, we brought you here to de-charm you."
"I was charmed?" Topaz nodded. "But, by who? To kidnap you? That doesn't make any sense." Topaz scowled. "Yes, well, it's the truth, now think." Robert threw Topaz an angry look. "Why should I anyway? Where's Nate and Lou, where's Zac? Shouldn't they be questioning me rather than you?" Topaz raised an eyebrow. "Now, now, brother, we both know that I'm more than capable of asking you a few questions." Robert narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Just because I'm the youngest doesn't mean I'm not capable of hurting you." Robert swallowed loudly, the memory of the several times he'd fought Topaz - and lost - returning to his mind. "But I don't remember anything!" He whimpered. "Nah, I don't believe that, c'mon Robbie, think I know you know something!" Her brother continued to struggle in the chair, sweating and whimpering. "I don't, please Paz, just let me go." Topaz shook her black hair. "I'm not letting you go anywhere until you tell me who charmed you." Robert shook his head. "I don't remember!" He whimpered. Topaz groaned and spun on her heel, marching to the shelves of potion bottles. She admired the beautiful ornamental bottles moulded into different shapes and sizes, vibrant Indian colours of emeralds and pinks, golds and blues. They were positioned in alphabetical order, so it wasn't difficult to find the truth charm. She collected the charm book from the bottom shelf and flipped to 'truth'. Holding the bottle in her hand and the book in the other she marched back to her brother, who by this time was whimpering and crying, begging her not to charm him. "I'm more than capable, Robbie, you know that." Topaz lied. She wasn't going to charm him. She merely wanted him to think she was. The only Shape who could charm others was the witches, but other Shapes could use simple healing charms. Zac was exceptionally well at those, but Topaz had never tried. Zac had never let her. Topaz stood behind her brother with the bottle - still closed - tipped upside down above his head. The thing with charm-bottles was that the essence inside was never actually there. You couldn't touch, feel, or see it, unless you were a witch. Everything looked different through witch eyes. Topaz began chanting the truth charm in it's Latin form before Robert yelled, "ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT, I THINK I REMEMBER SOMETHING!" Topaz grinned and closed the book with a loud slap. "Go on...?" She smiled smugly as she clicked around to face him. "There were a few groups of mermaids; we'd all been captured in La Ville Souterraine. They wouldn't let us go and they all wore black masks. I didn't recognise any of their voices, but I was with Nate and Lou. This guy stepped forward and began shouting at us. At first I thought he was just shouting but then I realised why I couldn't understand, he was chanting Latin and he put us under this weird charm. I didn't know mermaids were able to do charms until he did... I dunno who he was, because he wore a mask too... They told us all that we had to find you and take you too them, and then they took Nate, Lou and me aside and told us that we had to listen to what you were doing and act as normal as we could. We were there we just couldn't break the charm. Then, they called for us and told us it was time to capture you. We were told that if we didn't return with you, we'd be killed." Topaz swallowed loudly. "So they programmed you, but you remember everything?" Robert nodded. "And you couldn't tell us?"
"We couldn't even talk to you, Paz, we were under a charm." Topaz remembered how weird her brothers had been acting after they'd left LVS and she realised now how blind she'd been to not have realised before. "Oh Robert," She sighed and put the book and bottle down on the floor. "I'm so sorry I didn't realise before." She approached her brother and hugged him tightly. "I'm just pleased we didn't take you to them..." Topaz smiled and pulled back before a wave of dread overcame her. "Oh no," She gasped and turned on her heel. "ZAC!" She yelled, remembering her two brothers knocked out in the entryway at Bennie's party. "Topaz, what is it?!" Robert called after her, but Topaz couldn't stop, she had to get to Nate and Louis, before they returned to the original gang and was killed.
Even from outside the house Aden could hear Topaz's yell of horror. He leapt to his feet and pushed through the house, volleying himself inside the kitchen where Topaz was running for her brother at the table. "We have to get back, now, Robert, the gangs; we've got to get to Nate and Louis!" Zac was staring up at Topaz in shock. "What? Topaz, what're you talking about?"
"THE GANGS ARE GOING TO KILL LOUIS AND NATE IF WE DON'T GET TO THEM FIRST!" Things seemed to slow down before Aden as he processed what Topaz was saying. "Robert remembers that the gang who charmed him ordered him to take us back to them, and if they returned without us, they'd kill them." Topaz explained. "But, what makes you think they'll have killed them by now?" Zac asked, despite the fact he was slowly getting to his feet in shock, his mind working ahead of his words. "Because we left them at Bennie's! They would've went back to LVS to report that we'd taken Robert!" Zac turned and locked eyes with Alice standing in the doorway leading into the dining room. "Paz, call Bennie and ask him where our brother's went. Aden, help me get Robert in the car, Alice, pay Jemima. We're leaving. Now."
"But Zac, I'm not going to run anywhere, I'm your brother, I'm back." Robert was struggling hard against Aden and Zac as they fascined him into the car, handcuffing him to the door-handle and putting on the child lock so there'd be no way of his escape. "I'm sorry Robert but I can't take that risk... They could still be in control of your mind. The Angel knows what sort of power they have." Zac slammed the door closed and Aden clambered into the driver's seat. "I'll drive." Zac said from the open car-door next to Aden. "It's alright, I've got this." Zac opened his mouth to protest but Alice slammed the door behind her and leaned over her brother to get to Zac. "Trust me, Zac; Aden's a better driver than you think."
Top was squashed between her two brothers in the back of the car, all doors locked and packed as Aden floored the car down the motorway, the fastest and slickest driving Topaz had ever witnessed. She was reminded of a movie about a race-car driver who'd let fame get to his head. There'd been a racing car accident and the driver had been set on fire. The whole movie was based on a true story. She shivered and focused on getting to her brothers before the gang who charmed them. They'd probably be in a hotel room somewhere, laughing and eating, play-fighting as they competed against each other on the Xbox. They'd laugh and call their siblings stupid for fretting. But Topaz hadn't seen the carefree, youthful side to her brothers since before her parents' death. Since then they'd been glazed over with some sort of cold hard blankness. She'd assumed it'd only been grief, but now, she knew otherwise.
Before long she'd fallen asleep on Zac's shoulder, the comfort of her brother holding her, the smoothness of the car's speed relaxing her. She trusted the people around her. She liked them. Topaz had never trusted anyone before she'd met the Angels. She thought she'd hate them, was convinced they were only there to judge her. Little did she know at the time she met them that she'd soon fall in love with one of them and discover the other was already in love with her brother... Zac pushed her gently awake when they were back in London. The sky was as black as coal, the clock on the dash telling her it was past three in the morning. She hadn't eaten since breakfast, and her stomach growled as she climbed out of the car. "No," Zac said, pushing her backwards to the car. "You wait here with Robert, in case he wakes up and tries to get out, or in case someone comes for him." Topaz felt as if Zac had physically slapped her over the face with a shovel. "What?" She gasped, blinking her sleepy eyes wide. The Angels were already out of the car and checking their weapons. They were parked in a dark alley of the Dark World, beyond the park next to them, was La Ville Souterraine. Topaz's home. "You heard, it's too dangerous for you to come down here. The Angel knows what'll be waiting for us." Topaz frowned. "I'm not staying here, Zac... You're not going down there without me. Simple as. I'm not a kid." Zac raised an eyebrow. "You're waiting here, Topaz, and that's an order." He had that authoritarian tone about him, warning her plentifully. She narrowed her eyes more. "Why can't Aden wait here with me?" She asked as she folded her arms and cocked her head to the side, playing on Zac's irritations. "Because we need him."
"Oh and you don't need me?" Zac looked like he'd given himself a mental slap. "We do need you," He said. "To wait here with Robert. And we need Aden to come underground and make sure everything's alright. You know how much he's progressed, Paz." Topaz shook her head in disbelief. "Just go, Zac." She climbed back inside the car and slammed the door, flipping him the finger when he tried to apologise. Before long, they set off without her.
Alice's hand on Zac's shoulder made him pull back and turn away from the car and his sister. "C'mon," He told the Angels, tapping the witch blade and illuminating the alley before them. "Let's go." He lead the way through the park and beyond the trees, down through the echoingly empty concrete tunnel. The stark darkness made goose-bumps rise on his arms, raising the hair at the back of his neck and making him stomach roll with nerves. Normally, there were lanterns lit every few feet down these tunnels. Now, they were nothing but dark. And empty. "Zac..." Alice's whisper came behind Zac's left shoulder. "I know," he whispered. "I know." Aden's footfalls behind Zac's right shoulder were light and quiet; Zac was surprised by the Angel's skill. He'd forgotten how well Aden had fought against those Angels. When he'd found them, they were slaughtered in a way Zac was proud of. He and his sister had taught the Angel well. After a few weeks, Aden had become a much more skilful fighter than the one he'd been upon arrival to the Dark World. He still had a lot of work to do, but he'd made a start. A start Zac was extremely proud of.
The witch blade illuminated the ocean of water in front of Zac. "You can't come under, but I won't be long. Watch my back and make sure nothing comes under after me." Zac told the Angels. "Zac, are you sure it was a good idea to leave Topaz in the car?" Alice asked, watching as Zac passed the witch blade to Aden and yanked the biggest dagger from his belt. Zac smirked at Alice and kissed the air towards her. "I can handle this Al," He stepped into the freezing water, silently shocked by the cold temperature. "I won't be long." He said before he walked in the rest of the way, gritting his teeth and flexing his muscles, horrified by the freezing water.
As his eyes adjusted to being under the sinister water, the darkness engulfing him, ringing warning bells in his ears, he wondered why the water wasn't illuminated like it usually was. He felt oddly naked with merely one blade in each hand, his tail feeling bare on display. He swam deeper and deeper, feeling lost in the darkness of the water. Eventually he reached the centre of the underground city. And there, presented to him, was a scene so horrific and terrifying that stole his breath and movement. Hovering in the water of the city he'd lived in for years, Zac took in the scene before him. The shops were smashed and destroyed, the windows blown out, the torches and lights smashed, the contents of the shops floating out about the water, everything crunched and shattered, cracked and destroyed, his city ruined. "WHO DONE THIS?!" He hollered in rage to the broken city. There was no reply; he hadn't expected one in the first place. But still the resounding ruins hurt him, like a burn of fire charring his heart.
Topaz's fingernails rattled against the dashboard, her brother's snores irritating her beyond belief. Her battery had died, so she had no music to play through her earphones, and she'd painted her nails red twice already. There was nothing left for her to do but sit and wait, and that she was already bored of. She contemplated headed out in search of a food-shop but she didn't have the energy for that. Instead she waited, and after a further hour, the glow of the witch blade illuminated the alleyway behind the car. "Eventually," She called out the window, climbing out the car to greet them. "What the Hell took you so long?!" The look on the three Worlders faces had Topaz frozen to the spot, her words and rant lost in the back of her throat. "Topaz..." Aden began first, extending his hands to her and rubbing her upper arms. "Your brothers aren't down there..." He said slowly. Relief flooded Topaz. At least there was still hope. "Then why are you looking like you've seen a ghost?" She whispered to Aden. He was avoiding her eyes, but still managed to whisper, "It's the city..." He said. "The whole place," He shook his head. "It's destroyed."