It took a supreme effort for AJ to not show his shock when he heard Howi’s voice fill the room. Grief flooded not only over him, but echoed over from Brian as well. How on earth was that Howi’s voice? AJ’s brain focused on the words, listening to the message that was obviously a recorded phone call.
“911 Operator, how may I help you?”
“You’ve got to come out here.” Howi’s voice, sharp with worry. “He’s killing them. Oh, God, he’s killing them!”
“Where are you at, Sir?”
“God, oh God, I can hear it. I can hear them screaming. Please, you’ve got to come help them! So much blood. I had to run, I had to!”
“Sir, please stay calm. Help will be dispatched shortly. Where are you?”
Sweet Jesus. AJ stared blankly at the tape player as he listened to Howi’s voice rattle off the Littrell’s address.
“Please! I walked in to visit. He…he would have killed me too if I hadn’t run! He’s up there shouting at them. I heard him say Brian’s dead too! God, please help! AJ’s gone insane!”
“Help is on the way. Sir, are you safe? Can you leave the house?”
“I’m on my cell. I’m outside. I ran, I just ran! Why is he doing this? I have to go! I have to go before he finds me!”
The call abruptly cut off. Johnson reached out, pressing the stop button. The silence in the room seemed deafening. How could this be? How was it possible? Howi. Howi was dead. He’d killed him. Unbidden the image came to mind of Howi begging to die, of him telling AJ to do it. How proud he’d stood, wanting to die while he was still on his feet. The grief that had filled AJ as he’d taken the life of his friend, his onetime lover, his maker.
“I see you recognize the voice.” Johnson sneered at him. His hard voice broke through the silence, startling AJ out of his thoughts. “It must have pissed you off that he escaped. Who is he, AJ?”
Howi. Howi was dead! He’d seen him die! He’d killed him! How was this possible? Brian’s voice filled AJ’s mind, pushing away those dark thoughts, letting love flow in. ‘Your grief is blocking your thinking. This is an illusion on the part of our enemies. A set up, song of my heart. They are trying to neatly trap you here, to force you to not be able to travel to their world. The same agents that took our friends, that did this to my parents, they faked his voice and made the call. Let this grief go and let your mind open. Do not let them win.’
The logic of that was like cold water on him. Yes, a fake. They had faked Howi’s voice, not only trying to trap AJ, but trying to break him a little. Anger took the place of grief. How dare they do this to him? Who did they think they were up against? He forced his gaze to be steady, as well as his voice, when he looked up and spoke to the cops. “I did not kill them.”
“We’re just asking you if you know who that voice belongs to, lad.” Donnelly said soothingly. “Just take a minute and think about it. Anything you can give us helps.”
They were trying his patience. He did not have time for this. Playing a part was one thing, but this was messing with the fate of this world as well as another. Spine straight, AJ looked from one to the other. He worked to keep control over his magic. “Your good cop/bad cop routine isn’t going to work with me. One being hard, one being kind, will not make me confused so that I’ll say what you want. I will say this again. I did not kill them.”
Johnson didn’t miss a beat. “The coroner found coins in their mouths, AJ. Why did you put those there? One of our people looked it up. Apparently it’s an old Greek tradition, to help pay passage into the afterlife. If it isn’t paid then it’s believed the souls will float forever. Was this a sign of remorse on your part?”
Enough was enough. He did not have time to play games with these people. ‘This is taking too much time. Everything is tied up in a neat little bow for them. It looks like escape is going to be my only option. It’s going to destroy the image here. If we ever come back from this other world, AJ Mclean will be no more. I won’t ever be able to be him again.’
‘So be it, Alex. It’s as you said, we do not have time for this, and I will not leave without you. But let me come in. Let me speak with them! Maybe if I say that I was there when the killer was, that I saw them and ran and it wasn’t you, maybe they’ll let you go.’
‘That’s a big lie, Brian. We do not lie. We answer…creatively, sometimes. But we do not lie. Plus, who’s to say they’d let you free? They’d keep you for questioning and then they’d want to put a protective detail on you. Also, it would probably bring in the press. As is, it’s going to be bad enough if the press has caught wind of this already. That’ll make escape ten times harder. It’s already going to be hard enough with a magician in the midst. If they set him to guard me, he could catch me trying to escape.’
Almost no time had passed in their silent exchange. Thoughts travel so much faster than words. Knowing what he needed to do, AJ tipped his head to look at the two of them. He had to stall for time. This interrogation was done. “I think it’s time for me to call a lawyer.” He said softly.
Disgust marred Johnson’s face as he pushed his chair back and stood. “Take him to a cell for a while, Donnelly, and keep an eye on him. I want no one talking to him until his lawyer gets here. Put him at the end, where there’s no one else.” Those bright eyes turned to AJ. “This isn’t done, Mclean.”
AJ couldn’t resist smiling at the man. He said nothing, only smiled. It gave him satisfaction to watch Johnson storm from the room. But then Donnelly was beside him, detaching his cuffs from the chair and lifting him to his feet by his arm. He said nothing as he led AJ out of the interrogation room. They passed by plenty of cops, passed cell after cell until they all started to appear empty.
At the very last cell, Donnelly stopped. He used his key to open it, then pushed AJ inside. Not rough, but not gentle either. Once the door clanged shut, AJ turned to look at the man who still stood there. He said nothing, waiting for Donnelly to make his move.
He didn’t have to wait long. “You and I, we’re alike in some ways.” Donnelly said softly. He was exuding a soft magic, AJ could feel that. It was gentle, made to keep people away from them without them realizing and to block off what they might think they were hearing. They were as private as could be, now. “I am Mullen, and I am not a normal man. You weren’t lying in there, but I feel you weren’t telling the whole truth.”
“What you do not know would fill the ocean right now,Maolán Ó Donnghaile.” AJ said in the old Gaelic. He saw the start of surprise in Donnelly’s eyes at the use of the Gaelic version of his name.
Curious, he took a step forward. “You speak well.” He said in the same language. “There is much more to you than meets the eye or the senses. I believe you did not kill those people. But I believe you know who did.”
There was something refreshingly honest about this man. Despite the circumstances, AJ found he rather liked him. ‘I do too.’ Brian chimed in. ‘He seems honest. But, still, let us be cautious.’
‘I never would have guessed that on my own, heart song. Thank you so much for your sage advice!’ AJ teased him. The mental chuckle he got almost made him grin. Fixing his eyes on Donnelly, AJ tried to figure out what he dared say. He spoke cautiously and stayed in the old tongue. “I did not kill them. This oath I swear. But you will not catch who did. You cannot. None of you can.”
“You believe that you can?”
“I know that I will.”
The calm certainty of his words seemed to effect Donnelly strongly. He stared at AJ for a long moment as if weighing and measuring him. AJ stood still, allowing the man to look him over, not afraid to meet his eyes. Finally the young man spoke again. “I have a feel for sensing things. In fact, it is stronger in me than the actual doing of things, if you understand my meaning. I sense that you have subtle weaves around you, hiding something. What, I am not sure. I will respect that for the moment.”
Oh man, he’d been among the elves too long. AJ had to force his irritation down. This man would respect that for the moment? Who did he think he was, this little mortal magician?
Brian’s mind voice was tinged with humor. ‘The both of us have been among our own kind for long enough and in our roles as well that we have become used to the way we are treated there. In short, we’ve gotten a little used to being in respected positions.’
‘Too true, Brian my heart song. It almost feels…insulting for him to presume that he can act this way toward me. Even the role of trulion aside, in the world of magic there was always one rule. You respect those stronger in power than you. Except when they’re evil. Which I am not.’
‘Well, swallow your pride, oh great and wise trulion.’
Before he could stop himself, AJ snorted at Brian’s comment. That earned him a funny look from Donnelly. Oh well. He didn’t have to explain to this fellow. But he couldn’t stop himself from telling him “Respect is a good way to go, son of the Ó Donnghaile clan.”
“You should remember some yourself, Mclean.” He shot back. Before AJ could let loose the angry reply that sprang to his lips, Donnelly continued speaking. “Now, as my people have been charged from a time beyond your reckoning, I will ask you a question. How you answer is important.”
There was such a serious look on Donnelly’s that AJ held his tongue. Something about this moment seemed very important. Power swelled in Donnelly, testing the air around them, ready to test AJ’s words. The power laced in his voice as he asked “I ask you, AJ Mclean, to answer me one question. A question that has been passed down in the Ó Donnghaile clan for time without end. I ask you now; does the name Nellador mean anything to you?”
Shock coursed through both AJ and Brian. ‘How does he know that name?’ They thought together. AJ drew himself up to his full height, readying his own power to shield or defend if it became necessary. Maybe he had read this man wrong. Maybe he was an enemy. That didn’t seem likely, but AJ and Brian both had learned to play it safe. “How do you know that name?” He demanded.
“You know this name.”
“How is it that you know it? Who sent you here to me? Mark my words, young Donnelly, I too have ways of weeding the lies from the truth. Answer me now how this name is known to you and I may yet let you live.”
That seemed to throw Donnelly back for a moment. Then, to AJ’s utter surprise, Donnelly checked down the hall to make sure the coast was clear, then turning, he opened the cell door and stepped inside. Once in, he dropped to one knee, folding his hands over his knee and bowing his head. “For so long my family has been charged with finding the one who knew this name. One who knew the meaning. It was said that when this one was found, our family was to serve then and we would be returned to our home. The Ó Donnghaile clan was one of the mortal families that lived in Nellador and were brought to this world by the Goddess to wait for the time to come that we might serve our role purpose and assist the one who would bring us home again.”
Every word ran through AJ’s weaves, filtered to test for truthfulness. Not a one of them was a lie. At least, not in the typical sense. There was still the possibility that this person believed these things were true, though they may not be. Then, to him, they would be the truth, but in reality, they would be a lie. It was a complicated mess at best.
But AJ was inclined to believe him. This felt, right. It had the feel of ancient magic to it. “Rise, Ó Donnghaile. I accept your service.”
Donnelly instantly rose to his feet. “Thank you.” He snapped almost to attention in a way AJ had seen many a soldier do. This man had once been military, it looked, or raised with military standards. “I put the idea of this cell into Johnson’s mind for a reason, AJ Mclean. If you combine magic with me, we can move this wall to let us out into the sheltered alley back here.”
Amusement slithered over their bond from Brian. Trying to smother his own grin, AJ opened his senses and probed the cement wall in front of him, as well as the alley beyond. No, no one in sight. The wall itself was sound. This would be easy. “I see what you mean.” AJ said, looking over to Donnelly. “But relax, child, and do not fret. I will take us out.”
For the first time, true irritation lit up Donnelly’s misty Irish eyes. With obvious effort he smothered it down.
Curious, AJ raised an eyebrow. “Speak your mind, young Donnelly. Being in my service does not mean I expect total subservience. What is it you were going to say?”
That irritation came back to Donnelly’s eyes. “As you say, then. I give you respect by offering service, you could grant the same respect by not insulting me.” He snapped.
“Insulting you?”
“I am thirty four years old, older than you, yet you call me child. That is insulting.”
The insane urge to laugh bubbled up inside of AJ. To stave it off, he spun a shield to protect their magic not only from being felt, but to prevent anyone from hearing what he was about to do. It took barely any power for him to scan the area outside again and then to sink the whole side of the wall down into the ground underneath it.
He ignored Donnelly’s gasp and grinned through the opening at Brian, who stood patiently waiting for him. “About time. I was getting impatient out here.” Brian said teasingly.
“Yes, well, there were matters to be seen to as you well know.” AJ explained. He took hold of Donnelly’s arm, leading him out into the alley, giving him the moment to collect himself. With a jerk of his chin, AJ brought the wall back up, sealing it back into place. Then he released the shields inside. There. That ought to stump them for a while.
Testing the air around them, AJ realized that Brian had them shielded. “Sight or sound or both?” He asked Brian, meaning what kind of shield did he have up. The droll look Brian gave him had AJ chuckling. “Come on now, Alex. Have some faith. No one can see or hear us. Now, would you get over here so I can remove those cuffs?”
Oh! He had almost forgotten that he had them on. AJ directed a small weave into the locking mechanism of the handcuffs, twisting it until they sprang open. He let them fall to the ground. Let them find that. It would be another amazing thing for them to chew over.
Shaking his hands, AJ looked around. This wasn’t the place to stop and talk. ‘We need to get out of here. But it’s going to be tricky wherever we go, especially with this cop in tow. We need to take time to plan. Gather close, I’m taking us to the Black Mountain nearby. We will take refuge there for a short time until we figure out what we need to do.’
Brian easily stepped into AJ’s arms, relishing in his closeness and instinctively seeking that warmth that came with their bond. He reached a hand out, taking hold of AJ’s hand, letting their tattoos brush and intensify the bond at the same time that he linked them together, sharing power with AJ. They each reached a hand out, pulling Donnelly in close. Sensing the man’s panic, AJ sighed and reached over Brian, into his bag.
After pulling out a blanket, AJ used air to float it near them. He had intended simply on using air to carry them out but he sensed that Donnelly’s mind was already having a hard time grasping things. If they just started to float through the air, he might actually panic. So, this way was easier.
“Sweet God.” Donnelly whispered as he was assisted onto the blanket. Once the three of them were seated and Brian had spread the shield around them, anchoring it to them, AJ sent them off into the clouds. Donnelly’s gasp was swallowed by the rushing sound of air.
They broke through the clouds, putting them in the warm sunlight, the ground far, far below them. Donnelly spun, looking at them both. “How is this possible?” He exclaimed, looking like a child at Christmas. Both AJ and Brian felt the wonder rolling off of him. “This is amazing!”
Now that they were free, AJ indulged himself a little in things that he had wanted to say before. “You need to remember that there’s much you don’t know about me, or about us, child.” Deliberately he stressed that word. “You said in there that you are thirty four years old. That makes you older than my heart song here, but I had already lived for over three thousand years by the time you were born.” It was satisfying to watch Donnelly’s eyes grow wide.
Releasing the weaves of glamour, AJ let his ears and eyes return to normal, as did Brian. “I was made immortal at one time, but since then I have grown into my true heritage. I am Alyck o Tuian, grandson to Flreu, the current King of the Elves, and the one true trulion. The elf beside me is the song of my heart, my partner, my baka.”
Donnelly stared at them only a moment before his eyes rolled up in his head and he passed out onto the blanket.