Tide (The Sarah Midnight Trilogy) Read online

  “Whoever it was, why did they leave my grandmother’s letters? Why did they have them in the first place?”

  “Maybe they’d taken them from the house, and now they’ve returned them,” guessed Elodie.

  Sean shrugged his shoulders. “Why? And why now?”

  “Because they knew I was coming,” said Sarah, and looked at him, eyes large with fear.

  “Watch Sarah. I won’t be long,” Nicholas said suddenly, and before his words could register, he had raced across the room and jumped out of the window.

  “Not on your own! Nicholas!” shouted Sarah. But he was already running down the grassy slope that led to the beach.

  “I’ll go with him,” said Sean, and poised himself to jump.

  “Stay with Sarah,” Elodie overtook him and easily coaxed her agile, supple body out of the window and onto the grass below, giving Sean no time to stop her.

  28

  An Infinite Horizon

  Dark and light

  In an infinite dance

  Blessing all the shadows

  That come my way

  The sand was wet under Nicholas’s feet as he ran. He needed to call to his Elementals, to his father, and he didn’t dare do so from the house, in case someone picked up on it – particularly Elodie. She puzzled him. It was as if she could read some kind of subtext in everything that happened, a hidden story that no one else could sense.

  Who could have left those letters? Was it a demon’s doing, once again without his knowledge?

  The beach was vast, endless, a stretch of pale sand, damp with rain, and a whirl of sky and sea and wind all mixed together. Nicholas could barely see as dusk spread into the sky, slowly turning the short December day into night.

  When Nicholas felt far enough from the house to open his mind to his father he stopped and stood, eyes closed, calling – letting his thoughts calm and then dissolve, to make room for the invocation.

  And then he felt it.

  A vague, shapeless form inside his head, weak in comparison to the shadow voices and yet strong enough to enter his mind. He stopped the invocation at once, forcing himself to come back to the here and now, frozen by the intrusion. Who was it? He turned round, his eyes narrowed, searching, until finally he saw her, standing on a grassy dune. Elodie was a spot of white against the stormy sky, her long, blonde hair blowing in the wind. She was completely still, her arms at her sides, looking back at him, silent.

  She must know enough, he thought. Enough to harm him. He had to show her that nothing good could come from spying on him. He had to show her what happened to the Secret heirs in the new world created by him and his father.

  Nicholas’s ravens started dancing above their heads, endlessly circling the skies.

  Ignoring Sean’s protests, Elodie had run as fast as she could. Nicholas’s long strides were hard to keep up with, but she was fast and kept pace – at a distance. It felt strange to go against Sean’s will. He was a Gamekeeper, and she a Secret heir, but he’d always taken the lead in their small group – Harry was so often busy with the Sabha or on solo missions, and she and Mary Anne, Sean’s former girlfriend and fellow Gamekeeper, respected his authority. That wasn’t the natural order of things. It was uncommon for a Secret heir to defer as she did to Sean – but it seemed to have worked out that way between them.

  Since Harry had died, though, since their whole world had changed, she had felt a new strength, a new self-belief. Italy had made her tougher, she would make her own choices. Also, Sean’s judgement about Nicholas was clouded by his feelings for Sarah – of that Elodie was certain. But perhaps there was some truth in them too. She had to figure it out for herself.

  She kept to the dunes, out of sight, trying to let her mind reach out to the lone figure as he ran through the gathering gloom, trying to make out where he was going, and why. And where he had come from.

  Elodie ran on, keeping Nicholas in her sights, her face and hands moist with drizzle and sea mist. Suddenly, Nicholas stopped, as if he’d hit an invisible wall and looked round, frantic. Why? What is he doing?

  Elodie stopped too, and waited. Suddenly, her eyes widened, and then she blinked as a voice made its way into her mind – a voice calling. Nicholas’s voice. It had a strange resonance, an echo that disquieted her and filled her with fear. It called and called with an intensity that made her tremble, and then it was gone.

  Silence.

  But not for long.

  A distant cawing rose above the wailing of the wind and the sound of the waves. She lifted her head, wiping the soft drizzle from her eyes, trying to make out what was happening. A crow—no, something bigger. A raven. Two, three, four …a whole flight of them, circling above her head. She could hear the beat of their wings, the relentless cries.

  Nicholas’s ravens.

  Elodie felt a chill run down her spine. She looked across to Nicholas and saw that he was looking straight at her. The ravens made one last circuit over their heads. Then they landed, scattered in front of Elodie. Their beady eyes watched her as they hopped, their feathers ruffled by the wind.

  Elodie’s hand went to her throat, her fingers curling around her silver star. Sean had told her how the ravens had saved his life, but there was something about the way these birds were watching her, tipping their heads first to one side and then the other. Their beaks looked very hard, very sharp. They could peck somebody’s eyes out in a second.

  Elodie tried to pull her thoughts under control. They’re only birds. It makes no sense to be afraid of birds, does it?

  She started walking down the grassy slope, making her way towards Nicholas. She expected the ravens to fly off, as birds do when someone approaches. But these ones didn’t. They stayed put, and watched her.

  She froze, her lips instinctively turning blue. Something is going to happen. Something is going to happen this very moment. She could feel it.

  “Nicholas!” she called, and her voice sounded feeble in the roaring wind.

  Immediately, the ravens took flight as if of one mind, swarming over her, swiping her face with their wings, circling her like a feathery whirlpool. Elodie covered her face and screamed as she threw herself on the grass, curling herself into a ball. But the birds began to push their way under her arms, trying to reach her face, thrashing their way over her, submerging her. Any moment now she’d feel her flesh being ripped from her bones.

  And then, the voice again, speaking the ancient language, shouting it over the noise of the cawing ravens, of the wind, of her own blood flowing too fast and thundering in her ears. It was Nicholas, and he wasn’t just in her head. His calls resounded over the soft noise of the rain and the ebbing and flowing of the waves.

  The whirlpool gradually stopped and reluctantly the birds hopped off her body. Elodie lay shaking for a moment, peering between her fingers, barely able to raise her head from the shelter of her arms. At the foot of the dune stood Nicholas with his hands raised, still calling in the ancient language.

  The ravens were circling, circling over her head.

  “They won’t harm you, Elodie. You can get up.”

  Still, she didn’t dare move.

  “They’re going now. It’s safe.”

  “They’re still here!” Elodie yelled, a touch of hysteria in her voice.

  “They’re going … now!” Nicholas repeated, blue flames spurting from his raised arms, not high enough to reach the ravens, but enough to scare them. They flew away of one will, disappearing beyond the clouds.

  Slowly Elodie got up, still trembling, but her legs buckled under her and she fell again onto the soft sand.

  “Come on,” said Nicholas and ran up the dune to offer her a hand. But Elodie ignored it and once again rose to her feet, trying to steady herself and stop the world from spinning.

  “I’m sorry. The ravens, they misunderstood me. They can be quite … aggressive.”

  Elodie swept her hair away from her face. Was he warning her? Demonstrating his powers?

  “D
id you order them to attack me, Nicholas Donal?” she challenged.

  Nicholas frowned. “I … I stopped them,” he replied simply. He wasn’t lying. He couldn’t quite believe it himself, but he had, in fact, stopped them from shredding Elodie’s skin to ribbons.

  Elodie took a deep breath – her heart was still racing, and she was trying to calm her ragged breathing. She studied his face. He looks … he looks surprised. Yes, surprised. Bewildered by what just happened.

  “Why did they—” Elodie began, but she never finished.

  It happened in a split second – cawing, flapping wings, talons dancing in front of their faces, and Nicholas, his expression one of utter horror, raising his arms to protect himself. Elodie dropped to her knees, covered her face instinctively and shut her eyes.

  Silence replaced the noise of the ravens as suddenly as they had attacked. As fast as they’d come, the birds were gone again.

  Elodie turned to find Nicholas on his knees, his hands covering his face, blood dripping from between his fingers. She helped him up, and instinctively looked to the sky to make sure the ravens had flown away for good. But it was something else she saw – a strange figure twirling in the clouds, enormous leathery wings extended in the wind, like a monstrous glider.

  “Nicholas,” she whispered. “Look up.”

  Nicholas peered into the drizzly rain, his fingers feeling the slash in his cheek. My father must have been informed that I spared Elodie! He sent a Surari to kill her. “It’s a Surari I’ve never seen before. We need to run!” he said, grabbing her arm.

  “What? I’m not running! It’s a demon, I’m fighting it!” she insisted.

  Nicholas’s hold on her tightened. “Listen to me. I don’t know what that is.” And believe me, I know all species of Surari. “We need to run. Now!” He sprinted off, dragging her with such force she had no choice but to follow. She nearly fell in his impetus, but he held her up by the waist. They ran all the way back, catching glimpses of the sky, but the hideous bird was gone.

  29

  Turning Tide

  Red as blood

  White as snow

  Black as black is

  The wing of the crow

  “She’ll be fine.” Mike reassured Sarah, and a look passed between him and Sean. Sarah intercepted that look, and it told her all she needed to know. Her gaze went from Sean to Mike and back, her temper rising.

  “You’re worried about Nicholas harming Elodie! You still don’t trust him!”

  “Sarah. I never made a secret of not trusting him, did I?” his tone was hard.

  “You’re just—you’re just—” Jealous, she finished in her mind, but she couldn’t say. “Spiteful!”

  Mike intervened – the peacemaker, as ever. “Hey, Sarah. Listen.” Sarah shook her head, arms crossed. “No, no, listen to me now, girl.

  Elodie going with Nicholas kills two birds with one stone. We keep an eye on him, and Elodie helps him if there’s an emergency. Cool?”

  “Whatever!” said Sarah sullenly. “I’ll carry our stuff upstairs.”

  “I’ll help you.” Sean followed her into the hall where they’d left the rucksacks piled at the top of the grand staircase.

  “No need.”

  “What if whoever left the letters is hiding upstairs, Sarah? This is not the time to sulk!” snapped Sean.

  “Don’t dare tell me off! I’m not a child!”

  “Hey! Everyone! Guess what I found!” Niall emerged from the depths of the corridor.

  “Where did you disappear to, on your own?” Mike scolded him.

  “There’s a hundred rooms in this house. Seriously, it’s crazy. Anyway, I found a music room! With a piano and a harp in it!” Niall was beaming.

  “Yes. They were my grandmother’s,” said Sarah with a bout of regret for not having brought her cello with her. “Can you play?”

  “I can play anything, Sarah of mine!”

  “Brilliant. Let’s have a dinner dance,” muttered Mike, taking hold of a bag.

  Sarah threw Sean one final, scathing look, and lifted her suitcase. She stomped upstairs.

  “I’ll play for you,” whispered Niall, brushing past her on the stairs. Sarah rewarded him with a smile.

  They made their way onto the staircase, with its polished wood banister and carved stone steps. The wall beside it was full of portraits of long-gone members of the Midnight family, including the formidable Morag and Hamish, and on the landing, a huge stained-glass window coloured the light like a rainbow, tiny particles of dust dancing in it. An elaborate M in dazzling blue glass was at the centre of the window.

  “That’s beautiful,” breathed Niall. “We have a fine house in Skerry, but this is just amazing.”

  “Thank you,” said Sarah. “I always loved coming here.”

  Another corridor lined with wooden doors, parallel to the one downstairs, led to the depths of the second floor.

  “We have lots of bedrooms, as you can see. Share, or take a room each, it’s fine by me,” said Sarah. “I’ll be sleeping in my parents’ room,” she added in a small voice. She was daunted at the idea of seeing her parents’ things – at the same time, she couldn’t wait.

  Mike opened a random door and disappeared inside.

  “We should probably share. It’s safer,” said Sean.

  “What? I’m not sharing, man!” Mike called from the depths of the corridor. When Sean and Sarah reached him, he had thrown himself onto a giant four-poster bed. “Aaaah, paradise. Paradise!”

  “You’ve got to share with Niall. Keep an eye on him.” Sean’s piercing blue eyes were twinkling.

  “What? No way! I’ve been sharing with him for weeks! Give me a break! He’s always damn singing in his sleep!”

  “You love me, really, Mike. Oh look, one bed only! Oh well. Move over.” Niall sat beside him.

  “No way.”

  “You just hurt my feelings. Badly. I’ll take myself somewhere I can be alone.”

  “Shut up, Niall.”

  “Right, boys, enough!” Sarah interrupted them, a smile playing on her lips, in spite of herself. “There’s peat and briquettes in the kitchen. Feel free to light the fires Mrs McArthur hasn’t lit already. Sean, the room next door …”

  “I’m sharing with Elodie. Just in case.”

  Sarah froze. Sharing with Elodie? She glanced at him. He’s not joking!

  “Right. Sure, of course,” she said with what she hoped was a nonchalant tone. She strode into the room across from Mike’s. “This one, then,” she called to Sean, trying not to look at the lovely four-poster bed, covered in brocade covers and a multitude of pillows. “My parents’ old bedroom is the last one. Nicholas and I can share this one.” She swallowed. She didn’t really want to sleep in the same room as Nicholas, but she wanted to spite Sean.

  “Good for you.” Sean spoke in a staccato tone, and followed her into what was to be his room.

  “Yes. Well.”

  Behind Sarah, Mike sighed and rolled his eyes.

  “Will you be needing another bed in there, Sean? For Elodie?” said Sarah, a too-casual edge to her voice as she gestured to the bed-sit. “We have plenty. Of beds. Only if you want to, of course. Unless one is enough.” Sarah jabbered on, cursing herself with every word. Her cheeks were bright pink.

  “Yes, please. Lads, help me carry?” he said, his eyes glinting with mischief. Had he been winding me up? thought Sarah, furious.

  “Sure,” said Mike, a mocking smile on his lips.

  “Oh, actually,” Sean added, feigning innocence, “maybe I should check with Elodie if she’s OK to share with me. She’s a light sleeper. I’ll tell you what, we’ll take adjoining rooms.”

  Sarah breathed a sigh of relief that she hastened to hide. Mike chuckled quietly, straightening his face at once when he met Sarah’s frosty gaze.

  “We’re back!” a voice called from downstairs. Elodie.

  Sarah, Sean, Mike and Niall leant on the banister, looking down to the hall. Elodie and Nic
holas were standing in front of the door, their hair wet and windswept, their jackets shiny with a million little droplets.

  And then Sarah noticed the bright red stain on Nicholas’s face.

  “Nicholas!” She ran downstairs, and gasped at the sight of Nicholas’s bloodied cheek. “You’re hurt!” She touched his face softly and looked into his eyes, waiting for him to tell her what happened.

  “Just an accident. I’m fine.” The look in his eyes contradicted his words. He didn’t look fine. He seemed spooked.

  “The ravens attacked me,” Elodie began. “Had it not been for Nicholas … I wouldn’t have come back.”

  Sean bristled. “What? The ravens attacked you? But it’s Nicholas who controls them in the first place!”

  “Not this time, Sean,” said Elodie quietly.

  “What happened?” Sarah asked Nicholas.

  “I don’t know. They attacked Elodie, and I stopped them. So they …” He touched his cheek. Sarah covered his hand with one of her own. “Elementals can be … difficult,” he shrugged.

  Sean snorted.

  “Sean,” Elodie admonished him. “Nicholas saved my life. Do you understand that? Look at the facts!”

  “Better keep our eyes open from now on,” intervened Mike.

  Sean was looking at Nicholas. “I’m keeping mine well open.”

  “Any trace of whoever left the letters?” asked Sarah, holding Nicholas’s hand in hers.

  “No. We didn’t see anyone. Apart from a demon,” Elodie said darkly.

  “A what?” Sean barked.

  “A sort of bird. Huge. It was flying above us. We couldn’t see properly because of the rain. And then it disappeared.”

  “The demon-bird!” said Sarah. “The one that—that—” Words failed her, remembering Uncle Trevor’s words: You’re dead to us. Aunt Juliet had been killed by something – possibly that demon – and it was all her fault. And now the demon was back for more, to destroy more people she loved.