Page 144 of The Simurgh

‘Bastard thing tried to eat me.’ Tyvain rubbed at the back of her head.

‘Are you all right?’ Silas moved to the soothsayer but she waved him off.

‘Will take more than a plant to put me two feet under.’

‘Silas.’

He turned at Jane’s voice, her scent reaching him as he did so, his heart thrumming at sight of the elemental running across the church yard towards him. Forgetting he had the boots on still, he almost dashed straight past her, pushing skid marks into the damp ground to halt himself.

‘Jane.’ He opened his arms.

She drifted off her feet, sweeping up to him, her shortened skirt over trousers enabling her to wrap about him easily.

‘Oh gods, Silas.’ She peppered his cheek with kisses, but did not forget the daemon standing nearby. Jane held out her hand, reaching for Pitch. ‘Tobias. It is so, so good to see you. But the state of you both…where are your clothes?’

‘I don’t recall the last time I wore a full set. I wish I could say I enjoyed it, but its been fucking vile,’ Pitch said. ‘Tell me you brought a chest full of lace and corsets and fine silk, Jane.’

‘We did not, I’m sorry to say, but we shall find some for you at the earliest convenience.’

Pitch gave her a tired smile, and took her offered hand. Silas gathered him into the embrace, much to Pitch’s horror. ‘A bit much really.’

Silas rested his cheek against her silken hair, feeling all the more putrid for how clean she was. ‘Where is everyone else, Jane?’

She tensed.

Pitch pulled back, eyeing her nervously. ‘What is it? Silas told me she is alive.’

‘Oh, she’s alive, just not…well, it’s been a difficult few hours.’ She tugged out of Silas’s lingering embrace, drifting like a falling autumn leaf back to the ground. ‘This is the graveyard of one of the Pendle Hill witches.’ She glanced towards the west corner of the church where the brambles jutted out over headstones. ‘Sybilla was superb, Silas, she used the magick in the bones to reach her own magick in the cockaigne. She was able to pry open the gateway long enough for the Dullahan and Old Bess to wedge it so it could not close on you. There are some of your teratisms here too, it has been a group effort.’ Jane’s gaze slipped to Pitch. ‘Sybilla will be so happy to see you. She was so frightened for you when she felt her magick begin to fade. We all were. You gave everyone quite a fright, Mr Astaroth, when we thought we might lose you.’

The daemon was very quiet, and quite adorable for how astonished he seemed.

‘Ease up, Jane. Don’t be swellin’ ‘is ‘ead. Vain enough as it is without knowin’ we give a shit about ‘im.’

‘Silas, will you come with me to Sybilla?’ Jane said. ‘She’s being terribly stubborn about walking to the carriage, Isaac’s practically having to sit on her to keep her resting. And everyone agrees she should be carried. Come, this way.’

Without waiting for an answer she turned and ran through the headstones, disappearing around the corner of the church, swerving to avoid the jut of bramble thorns.

‘Vassago, damn you. Tell this creature to open the blasted door.’

Silas had almost forgotten the King of Daemonkind was with them.

Lucifer stood by the carriage, which waited outside the low stone wall surrounding the church yard. Phillipa waved from where she perched alone on the driver’s seat. Silas returned the wave with vigour.

‘Mr Mercer, sir,’ she said, ‘this gentleman is quite insistent about getting into the carriage. Is he a friend of yours?’

‘You do not need the ankou’s permission to do as I say. Open the door, now.’ Lucifer’s fingertips danced with sparks. ‘Before I burn the blasted thing open.’

‘What is wrong with you?’ Pitch said.

‘The simurgh, you imbecile. Where is it? What have you done?’

‘What have I done?’ Pitch returned, incredulous. ‘What have I fuckingdone? It is what was done to me that’s at issue here.’

‘Oh gods, are you still harping on about that?’

Silas groaned, and Tyvain blew out a long breath. ‘Oh, here we feckin’ go.’

‘Am I still harping on about being stuffed full of a fucking rainbow bird that everyone would slice me into a million pieces to get their hands on, including you? Yes, Daddy, I am.’