Dominic's Nemesis (41 page)

The knife hovered mid-air between the ceiling
and floor, along with its mistress, keen and ready to strike.
Lillian stalked with the cold, predatory stance of a cobra. Her
eyes were black pits with no iris. Her elegant neck moved in
trance-like undulations.

Ethan’s gaze riveted to the spill of crimson
below her on the floor. “You said it wasn
’
t that serious.”

“I said it was
fixable
.” Cael tossed
over his shoulder, before addressing Stephan. “Are you sure you can
handle this?”

“Why ask questions you already know the
answer to.” He replied.

Cael turned back to his older brother.
“Ethan-”

“
If we
don
’
t do
something, she
’
ll kill
him.
” Ethan pointed out. “With
that
wound, how long
do you think he can stay in the astral realm? If he passes
out—”

“Ethan
’
s right.” The blade stabbed out into the air
missing his good eye, but slicing the lid open. More pain, so much
pain… Dominic dipped and dodged, the bloody mess making it
difficult to see even out of his good eye.

“Dom, are you all right?” Ethan aimed at
him.

“Fine.” The tip of the blade nicked his
shoulder that time.

“Keep still you fiend!”

Stephan stepped forward wordlessly,
brandishing a hand out front.

“Be ready.” Cael advised.

A wave of heat rolled over the room. The
candles adorning the Pentagram liquefied into five puddles of gooey
wax. The next instant flames burst forth, sending trails sprawling
in all directions. Most so weak and aimless that they winkled out
within seconds. The strongest strain, a scarlet-yellow plume, ran
across the floor like a swift-fleeing rodent and connected the
empty space between the pentagram
’
s points, creating a circular wall of flames.

Lillian toppled off her throne of air. The
knife, too, clattered to the floor. Dom wiped the veil of blood
from his eye and watched with half-vision while his mother shrieked
and writhed. She darted this way and that. The blazing heat swayed
whichever way she went, a taunting shadow licking at her flesh. She
screamed an inhuman howl of madness, clawing at herself in a frenzy
to elude the flames.

“Astral now!” Ethan ordered. “We think
it
’
s the chanting that
strengthens the pentagram, creating the barrier.”

Self-preservation propelled him back onto the
astral plane. Agony dogged him even the short time required to
close the distance between him and his brother
s
. He materialized only semi-conscious
behind Ethan, just short of the chamber door.

“
Leave
…now. Circle broken.” One hand over his ruined
eye, he fumbled for the doorknob, his free hand slick with blood
from his good eye. It took him several tries before Cael reached
around him.

Cael caught him under his shoulders,
steadying him. “
Stephan,
we
’
re
leaving.”

“Go!”

“Remember, she has to breathe.” Ethan
emphasized. “For all we know if she dies, so does Miss
Prescott.”

“Be quick. Without Eden, I cannot keep it
level for very long.”

The library still lay in chaos. A charred
pile of bricks where the fireplace once stood, blackened
half-melted glass shards littered the floor on one side of the
room. Someone had covered the hole where the window had been with a
tarp.

“Stop. Ethan, do it now.” Weak but
determined, Dom shook off Cael
’
s steadying arm and stumbled to the ash-covered
sofa and sat. “Who
’
s
idea was it anyway to pit Stephan against her?”

“His, and for what it
’
s worth, we don’t like it anymore than you
do.” Cael stated as he moved aside to let Ethan by. “We
couldn
’
t think of
another way. Stephan
’
s
the only one of us with an aggressive gift.”

Dom dropped his hand and let Ethan exam the
damage. He rested his head against the back rim of the couch and
breathed easier as the soothing waves of Ethan
’
s gift swept over his injuries. “Let us
hope she doesn
’
t gather
her wits enough to thwart him before we return with Greyson.” A
blurry image began to flicker in his injured eye. He tried to raise
his head only to be pushed back down. “Ethan?”

“Almost done, lie still.”

“
You
cannot
be serious.” Cael stared at Dominic incredulously.
“You
’
re too weak to
shimmer two and then shimmer back three. Plus, how do we even know
Greyson can help?”

“I don
’
t bloody know!” Dom snapped back. “You
’
re the one who’s been extolling
his praises as the foremost expert on adeptness and psychological
science.”

“That was before our deranged mother
possessed your fiancée
’
s
body and started knife-wielding from beyond the grave.” Cael
returned dryly.

Just then there came a discreet knock on the
crumbling shards of wood still passing for a door.

“What?!” Dom called out.

He heard several planks fall to the floor.
“Ahem, Master Ambrosi forgive me for disturbing you. A guest has
just arrived. I was obliged to-”

“Get rid of whoever it is.” Dominic waved a
hand, the torn bloody sleeve of his nightshirt dangling off his
forearm.

“That was my first inclination sir, but-”

“Hell and damnation, Renfred!” His head
snapped up despite Ethan
’
s protest. The butler had stuck his ancient face
just within the threshold. He could make out enough to know that
Renfred was his usual portrait of refined dignity. Dominic cringed
at the thought of his own appearance. “Do I look like I can spare a
moment to entertain just now?”

“Of course not, sir, and I do hope the injury
is nothing serious, but your brother insisted.” He stood aside to
reveal someone standing behind him.

“My—-what?!” A towering blur appeared where
Renfred had been. “Ethan, my eyes—”

“Should clear in just a moment.”

“Where are his spectacles?”

That voice.

“Gabriel?” The next instant he found himself
staring at Muse resting in the crook of his brother
’
s elbow, and the falcon perched
over his right shoulder. “What the devil are you doing here?
You
’
re supposed to be
comatose in Italy.”

“Nice to see you, too, Dominic.” Gabriel
quipped as he let the cat down and tilted his head to the bird. The
falcon gave a quarrelsome squawk. “Gideon is being difficult. I am
not at all certain he will grace us with his presence. But then,
you know how he is about carriages.”

“Lillian
’
s back.” Dominic stated baldly.

“Yes, I know.” The taller man did not flinch.
“I am relieved that her attempt on your life was unsuccessful. We
had hoped to arrive in time to prevent it, but no matter, all is
well.”

“
Not
quite. Didn’
t you see—”

“I saw nothing beyond your death. It was a
nightmare I could not shake off until recently. By the by, where is
Stephan? I had thought to see him while we were here.”

“They will have to fill you in. Enough
Ethan.” Dominic batted the doctor away, stood and held his arm for
the falcon. The bird alit his shoulder instead. “Gideon will
accompany me. That way I
’
ll only have to shimmer two back. Is that an
acceptable alternative, Cael?”

“I suppose it
’
ll have to be.”

“For propriety
’
s sake, at least don a dressing gown before you
go.”

Only Ethan would be concerned with decorum at
such a moment. Dominic accepted the gown the doctor removed from
his own shoulders, delaying just long enough to shove his arms in
the sleeves. The falcon protested being upset.

“Simmer down, we
’
re going.”

* * *

Greyson
’
s essence wasn
’
t difficult to locate. He remembered it well from
his one glimpse. Thankfully, the essence seemed fairly isolated,
although Dom noted that there was an unusual density of souls in
the not-so-immediate vicinity…more than could be explained away as
servants. No one man, living alone, would require so numerous a
staff as this.

He slid off the astral in what appeared to be
a gentleman
’
s dressing
room. Light shone in from the partially opened door. The falcon
vacated his shoulder. Dom felt rather than saw his
brother
’
s
transformation.

“Nice of you to join me, Gideon.”

“Dom, this room is the size of a coffin.”

“We will not be here long.” He inclined his
head to the neatly hung rack of shirts and trousers to their right.
“It might make our convincing him to come back with us easier if
you were wearing more than a fig leaf.”

“Why do we need him?” The rustle of clothing
mingled with his words.

“We have to evict Lillian from
Eden
’
s body before she
does irreparable damage. Cael thinks he could help.” Dominic took
the opportunity to creep closer to the adjoining door while he
waited for the rustling to stop.

“Are you suggesting an…
exorcism?
”

Being reminded of the countless tortures he
endured in the name of the process, he too flinched away from the
idea. “If Greyson cannot offer an enlightened approach I
don
’
t see any
alternative.”

The gentleman in question did not react in
the shocked manner Dominic had expect at being confronted with two
uninvited guests breaching the sanity of his private chambers.

Greyson sat propped up in a massive
four-poster bed of dyed-black wood. He calmly put aside the volume
in his lap and stood. “Conte Ambrosi, this is a surprise.” The
professor took in the second man with a cursory glance.
“
I don’
t believe we have
met.”

“Uh, this is Gideon–” Dominic supposed he
ought to at least solicit his willingness before he sank to
kidnapping. “My brother. Forgive me, but we haven
’
t the time for pleasantries. There is a
situation that requires your assistance. Help me and I will grant
you the audience you requested.”

“And if I choose not to?”

“I
’
ll have to insist.” Gideon stepped forward. The
floor-skirting grey robe he
’
d chosen only heightened his sinister hint of
violence.

The professor seemed to take the threat in
stride. “Let me just get dressed and we
’
ll take my carriage.”

“No time for carriages and fancy dress. As my
brother explained, time is in limited supply. You will accompany
us,
now
.”

Dom did not miss Gideon
’
s shudder at the mention of a
carriage.

“Very well then. Just let me collect my
journals and we
’
ll be
off.” The professor waved away Gideon
’
s protest with an impatient hand, and strolled
forth. “They are imperative if your problem is of a psychic nature.
It
’
s where I document
the whole of my knowledge and research. An encyclopedia of psychic
phenomena, if you will.”

Much too easy. Dominic had to wonder at his
willingness. “You
’
re not
even curious how we plan to transport you or how we managed to
elude your vast staff to gain entry to your bedchamber. “

“
I
won
’
t be coy. I
know that you are adept…and I suspect that it runs in the family.”
He eyed Gideon warily, as he came to a small writing desk situated
in the corner. “That is why I wished to speak with you. I have
committed to a great task, part of which includes identifying and
classifying psychic abilities and their associated cognitive
abnormalities. When I
’
m
done, there will be a taxonomic and nomenclature system for the
science of psionics, a factual guide to the—”

Dominic looked to the three leather-bound
tomes Greyson collected from the desktop. “Is that them?”

“Yes.”

“
Good.
Let
’
s go.”

* * *

It was a testament to his stubbornness that
he did not collapse when the threesome materialized, to his
surprise, outside his bedchamber door. Gideon didn’t need to be
shielded because unlike other animals, he possessed a soul even as
the falcon, so piggybacking him was effortless. It was the energy
he
’
d extended masking
Greyson
’
s books that had
drained him. Shielding inanimate objects always proved
difficult.

Cael and Ethan rushed at him. The falcon
squawked testily and flew to join Muse at Gabriel
’
s
side.

“That
’
s it. No more astraling tonight.” Ethan
declared.

“Where is Gideon?” Greyson looked around,
tensing at the site of Gabriel several yards away. He fumbled with
the books in his hands, trying to open one whilst holding on to the
other two. “How did he…Yes, of course, I have documented several
cases-”

“Gideon’s mood has not improved.” Gabriel
lifted a hand to accommodate the bird, before acknowledging the
newcomer. “I am
Gabriel
. Though we are identical, people do
not often confuse us. Since we have only just met I will overlook
it.”

“I am Professor Greyson.” Greyson returned,
bewildered and still battling to keep hold of all three books. “Uh,
forgive me. I did not realize there were two of you…that you were
twins, I mean. I meant no offense.”