Page 13

Story: Coerced (Tainted #2)

13. A Traitor?

Kerry

We decided to stick with the SUVs rather than fly, since Augusta was only two hours. We sorted through the camping supplies, ditching a lot of it, and settled Jax in the middle seat of one vehicle. Gigi climbed in and held his head while Gemma rode shotgun and I drove. Just after we started out, Travis called and I put him on speaker so he could share what he’d figured out about that weird summoning circle.

“I took photos of the entire site,” he started off, “for future reference. The weather had corroded some of it, but I could still make out a lot. What surprised me was the language of the inscription around the outside of it. It was more of a framework for a portal, not a summoning circle.” “Help me remember the difference again,” Tara said.

“A summoning circle is for pulling a single entity into it, so it is temporarily in this world, but bound in the circle. It can’t be released unless the summoner allows it to or else screws up,” he explained. “A portal is like opening a door. Anyone who wants to can walk in or out. There may be some limitations to access, depending on size and the permanency of the portal.”

“Why wouldn’t you just use a portal?” Gigi asked.

“That takes a lot of power and a great deal of sacrifice,” Travis said. “I mean blood-and-dead-bodies kind of sacrifice. A summoning circle doesn’t. Whoever made this wanted a quick and dirty doorway for the Diabolical.”

“No ideas who?” Clem asked.

“No, but I could make out where it opened.”

“Well?” I demanded. “Where?”

“It’s written in lines of latitude and longitude. I’ll need to look it up.”

“Give the coordinates to someone else,” I said. “They can search for it on their phone.”

He rattled off a slew of numbers, and we were silent as we waited.

“Um, it’s our Sanctuary.” Maddy sounded shaken.

“That explains how the gremlins entered on Halloween,” Clem muttered. “We wondered about that. The whole valley is so layered in wards, it shocked us when they all triggered that night. Shook us up that a harpy could get in, let alone a few dozen gremlins. We spent weeks afterward going through the defenses with a fine-toothed comb.”

“Judging by the extent of the decay around the circle, that would fit the time frame,” Travis agreed. “Did the wardens find anything in the vicinity of the playground when they investigated the incident with the harpy?”

“With that many dead gremlins, the stench was all over the place.” Clem snorted. “And I was busy interrogating the harpy, although I doubt I would have found anything more than the others did. On the far side of the playground, the stink was the worst. The portal or circle or whatever it was probably opened there for the harpy, and she left the gremlins to guard it on the other side. Either someone closed it before we found it or time ran out on it.”

“Coulda been other things, too.” I scratched my head as I thought. “A cricket or rabbit might have hopped across the circle on their side of things. Hard to control nature. Clem, what did you find out from the harpy?”

“That’s part of an ongoing investigation.”

I blinked.

Huh?

“Argaud’s trial is over. He’s been convicted and sentenced. How is it part of an ongoing investigation?”

He was silent.

“He can’t tell you, Kerry,” John said after a moment. “Wardens are sworn to secrecy until an investigation is over and the findings revealed at a hearing with the Council.”

“Can I make some guesses?”

“Be my guest,” Clem invited.

“She was ordered to provide Argaud with anything he wanted or needed to continue his research for the Master. She didn’t know much about the research, but she admitted to using that quick-and-dirty portal at least four times.”

“Four?” Gemma asked.

“Once to make first contact with Argaud. Once with the thrall necklace for Aspen Abernathy. Once with the thrall necklace for Travis. And the fourth time was the check-in we interrupted. Am I right so far?”

Clem didn’t say anything.

“Good.” I was sure I was right. “She couldn’t - or wouldn’t - tell you who the Master was, but you and I both know it had to be a prince or higher to have a harpy for a pet and be able to supply those kinds of artifacts.”

He still didn’t answer.

“I don’t think the portal has anything to do with this. Not directly. I think it was only a way to get her in and out of the Sanctuary without being caught. I think you can answer this one, Clem. Did the wards on the valley trigger because of the harpy or because of the gremlins?”

“The gremlins. As soon as their little green feet touched the ground.”

“Makes sense,” John said. “However many times she came to the Sanctuary, the harpy never touched the ground to set off any alarms. She just flew in and out of the portal. But why did she have the gremlins that last time? She must have known what would happen.”

“I don’t think they were supposed to come through.” I shook my head. “Just guard the other side. The circle we found out here in the woods. Like the Hellhounds were doing before they got restless and started tearing up the mountain. Either she called the gremlins when she saw us or they took the opportunity themselves. We probably looked like a feast to them.”

“Young, fresh meat?” Tara’s laugh was a little high-pitched.

“Pretty much.”

“So Reilly’s research was about something a prince would be interested in,” Maddy said. “There was a prince in your story last night, too, Kerry.”

“Hell has a lot of princes.” Clem chuckle was dark. “Let’s be careful about making assumptions.”

“One other thing.” I didn’t want to freak them out, but they needed to be aware of it. “Clem, you said we should avoid the Sanctuary right now. I feel that way, too. I don’t know your reasons, but I think someone there is still working on the Diabolical side.”

“A traitor?” Gemma looked over at me with wide eyes.

“Maybe.” I rolled my shoulders. “Lots of things are making me think that, anyway.”

Everyone was silent, and I realized I hadn’t been the only one with suspicions.

“Do you think it’s someone we know?” Gigi asked calmly.

“What do you mean? One of our classmates ?” Maddy wasn’t so calm. “That’s just dirty!”

“Or a warden.” Tara sounded grim. “Even worse.”

“Let’s not start pointing fingers,” Travis cautioned, “or going on a witch hunt.”

“That’s right.” I felt better now that I’d gotten the worry off my chest. “We have no way to find out right now, but we should stay on guard.”

“So we don’t contact anyone at the Sanctuary.” Clem read my mind. “Not any friends. Not any wardens.”

I’d been thinking the same thing. Even though I couldn’t think of Hank as a traitor, it was a possibility, and one I needed to be ready for.

#

When we got to the outpost, Clem took us straight to their field hospital and introduced us to a neph named Rihanna while the healers got Jax settled in a bed. She took a look at his wounds, then shook her head.

“I recommend we push him through the Hole so the Sanctuary people can take him to their hospital. They might have someone there powerful enough to stabilize him, but there is nothing we can do here.”

“Whoa. Wait. The Hole ?” I asked.

“Yes. The portal.” She tilted her head. “Do you call it something else at your outpost?”

“Uh, we’re from the Sanctuary,” John said. “What portal?”

“The one that connects the Sanctuary to all the outposts in North America.” She spaced the words out, like we were dumb or something.

“The door in the Repository!” Gemma grabbed my arm. “Remember, Kerry? The one you told Ms. Chapman was a permanent portal.”

“I remember.”

“The Council of Wardens learned the lesson after the first sacking of Rome,” Clem explained. “The outpost there was overrun and any neph who couldn’t fight, flee, hide, or shift ended up dead. By 500 AD, the wardens had retro-fitted all the Sanctuaries with portals that connected to outposts.”

“Like each Sanctuary was the hub of a wheel and all the outposts in that zone were the spokes.” Travis nodded. “Makes sense.”

“Enough of a history lesson.” I was getting impatient. I turned to Rihanna. “My warden, Hank Bishop, was supposed to leave a package for me with the medical chief. Where can we find—”

“You’re talking to her.” Rihanna’s dark face split open in a big grin that showed lots of strong, white teeth.

“Then you have it?” My brow came down. All this talking was taking time away from getting Jax back on his feet.

“Yes.” She reached into the pocket of her white lab coat and took out a little square box. “What is it?”

I took it from her, opened it, and dumped Ms. Chapman’s little tin into my palm.

“The Balm of Gilead.” I held it out to her and ignored the shocked faces around me. “Now go fix my friend.”