***
When we made it to the Mayfair district in the London area, we checked into Brown’s, much to Richard’s consternation. It didn’t even cheer him up to learn that the Prime Minister had arrived earlier, and was staying in his usual suite. Richard phoned MI6’s London office and asked Neal to come meet with us. They seemed to exchange a few words over the phone, then Richard’s face tightened, and he hung up. His dislike for Neal Warren probably stemmed from the time Neal had asked Stella out on a date; even though it was obvious Richard had his heart set on her. When we made it to our suite, he began complaining.
“Who does he think he is, telling us which room and on what floor to stay in? SOE should’ve never absorbed Section D—those MI6 agents finger more paperwork and doilies than they do weapons.”
I helped him with the luggage. “Come on, he’s not that bad.”
Richard took off his coat and slung it over a chair. He loosened his black tie and headed over to the bar to mix a drink. “Of course not. It’s none of my business if the bloke looks like he just stepped out of a rake novel.”
“Forget I said anything.” I went over and opened the double doors that led to the bedroom. A faint stream of sunlight fell through the bedroom window, but receded when the clouds in the sky closed in.
“I brought you a change of clothes.” He pointed to the suitcase sitting in the corner.
“Thank you.” I went over and took out the clothes, but decided I’d wait until after this monstrous gold collar was off my neck.
“I hope your friend Warren shows up. He’s got twenty minutes, then we have to go.”
“He’s not exactly my friend.”
Although Neal and I had trained at the Gray Tower around the same time, and we were on speaking terms, I knew better than to allow him to be a confidant. And, I didn’t mind keeping it that way. However, I sought his help because, as a Philosopher who also specialized in enchantments, he had the knowledge and skills necessary to unlock the collar. If I could be confident in one thing about him, it would be the fact that he was always willing to assist a member of the Order without hesitation.
I heard a knock on the door, just as I downed a glass of cool water. Richard went over to answer, but I gestured for him to head for the chair in the corner. The last thing I wanted was for them to aggravate one another.
I opened the door and stood face-to-face with Neal. He wore a black trench coat and carried a small black case with him. He wore his dark hair slicked back and had apparently started growing a beard since I last saw him.
“Good afternoon,” he said.
“Hi, Neal. Come in.” I grabbed his hand and led him inside.
He spotted Richard in the corner, pretending to read a newspaper. “Lieutenant Carr, good afternoon.”
Richard gave a quick nod and glanced back down at the newspaper, but suddenly stood and followed us when he saw us go into the bedroom. I sat on the edge of the bed and began unwrapping the scarf that concealed the imperium collar.
“Can you help me take this off?”
“Well, this is going to be interesting.”
“The collar, Neal...” I pulled away the last of the scarf and tilted my head back so he could see the gold band.
“Now, how did you get into a situation that would force you to let someone put this ghastly thing on you?” He approached and stood over me, running his finger along the band. Richard stood in the doorway with his arms crossed, probably not sure of what to say because he knew it had something to do with magic.
“A Spanish spy who went by the codename Galeno. It was either this, or let another SOE agent die.” I had seen enough people lose their lives, and I just couldn’t stand there and watch Adelaide bleed to death.
“Was he a warlock?” Neal opened his black case and took out a small knife whose blade faintly shimmered with colors. I grew uneasy at the sight of an unassembled sniper rifle in there as well.
“No, but he was obviously in league with warlocks. Someone in SOE is a double agent, and if we can find this person, then we can find whoever hired Galeno.”
“Why do you think it’s important to find Galeno’s employer?” He made gentle scrapes along the band with the knife. He uttered a Word. I never understood what Philosophers said when they spoke like that, but I always imagined it as the opposite of the infernal language of the Black Wolves.
“They know who I am, and, because of that, it blew my cover and cost lives. Galeno said his employer had eyes and ears in many places. It’s in our best interest to find out exactly where these eyes and ears are—especially if they extend to the Gray Tower, don’t you think?” I sucked in a quick breath when the collar heated up on its own in reaction to Neal’s counter spell. It burned like hell.
He went around the circumference of the band again with the knife, and I could feel energy flow from the blade into the band. “This could be worth looking into.”
“Are you all right?” Richard asked, now pacing back and forth.
My eyes watered from the pain. “Yeah. We’re almost done.”
“There we are...” Neal loosened the collar and then pried it open far enough to slip it off.
“Thank you.” I rubbed my neck. He placed the band inside a warded bag and tossed it into the case.
“That’s what it means to be part of the Order, Isabella. We help one another.”
“Don’t start with me...”
He looked at his wristwatch and then took off his coat. He reached for the rifle parts in the case. “Excuse me, can you give me just a moment?”
“For what?” I eyed him in astonishment as he assembled the rifle and then went over to the window.
“Three assassins are staying across the way. They were sent by the Nazis to go after the Prime Minister.” He opened the window and gazed across the interior courtyard to the other building that also made up part of the hotel.
“You’ve been tracking assassins this whole time?” Richard went over to get a better view of the courtyard.
“We intercepted a message last month hinting at an attempt on the Prime Minister’s life, and we knew to expect them, but no one knew when they’d come or where they’d go. I took into account the little information we had, the likely profiles of the assassins, and calculated all of the possibilities and determined with nearly one hundred percent accuracy that they would be rooming here at Brown’s, today, in that room across the courtyard, and, from there, would try to strike.”
“Seriously?” Richard asked.
“Seriously.”
“What if you’re mistaken?” I asked, eyeing the window his rifle was trained on.
“I’m not.”
We saw a man in all black, with gloves on and his own rifle in hand. He cracked his window open and took aim at a lower level window on our side, completely unaware that we were watching him from two floors above. Neal fired his shot. The sniper went down. When his partner came into view, he took a bullet as well.
“All right hotshot,” I said. “What about the third assassin?”
“If he’s as good as I suspect he is, then he’s already on his way here.”
“What? You mean he’s coming to our room?” Richard reached for his gun.
“Excuse me.” Neal gestured for Richard to stay in place. He got up, headed toward the door, and then just stood there. He counted a few seconds before opening the door, he caught the assassin by surprise when he tried the knob, and the assassin came stumbling in. Neal grabbed his wrist and twisted it, so that he’d drop his revolver. He spoke another Word, and then the man fell unconscious.
Richard ran over and closed the door behind them, picking up the assassin’s weapon. Neal dragged him over to the closet and threw him in.
“Is he dead?” Richard asked.
“No, this one I’ll take in for questioning. He won’t wake up for another eight hours though.”
Richard handed him the gun. “Well...good job.”
“Thank you.”
He wen
t back into the bedroom and grabbed the rifle. He disassembled it and placed everything back into his black case. I went over to the bar and poured another glass of water. I drank it before taking a seat on the couch. Neal came over, placed his case on the coffee table, and eased on the seat next to me.
“Now that I’ve helped you,” he said, “I think you know what I want as a token of gratitude.”
“All right...” I bit my lip and thought about what I wanted to share. Richard shook his head and went back over to the bar to finish his drink.
“And it has to be something more profound this time,” Neal added.
I took a deep breath. “I almost killed my would-be fiancé. I was so certain he was corrupt or had betrayed me, that when he tried to propose to me, I almost stopped his heart from beating. I was a paranoid mess.”
“Bloody hell,” Richard said.
“Fascinating.” Neal leaned back and gazed at me.
“What, are you a psychologist too?” Richard quipped.
I faced Richard. “When Neal and I had first met, he said I had an unusual mind. He swore some kind of enchantment had been placed on me, but no one else could detect it. I think he only said that about me because he couldn’t figure me out.”
Neal leaned forward, never taking his eyes off me. “And it drives me mad to not figure you out. I can project and anticipate what every person in this hotel will do the rest of the day, but you—you’re like a nebulous cloud.”
“Thanks,” I said. “So, whenever he does me a favor, I repay him by sharing one truth about myself.”
“And most of them are shallow truths by the way,” Neal said. “You should’ve had that enchantment lifted years ago, Isabella.”
I shook my head. “You’re the only one who thinks I have one.”
“Now, let’s follow this line of reasoning and see where it goes. Who would place such a powerful enchantment on you? One that is apparently innocuous, yet meant to obscure your mind. Daddy, perhaps?”
I cringed on the inside, but kept my composure. “Richard, why don’t you go downstairs and have breakfast. I’ll join you shortly.”
“Breakfast is over.”
I glared at him. “Please.”
“Fine.” He went for the door and threw me a slightly anxious look before leaving.
When I felt certain that Richard had gone down the hall and wasn’t listening at the door, I asked, “What do you know about my father?”
“I know enough.”
“Do you know who he is?”
“Yes.”
“Are you...one of the seven?”
“Seven what?”
“Don’t play games with me. Are you one of the seven?”
“No, I’m not.”
My gut instinct told me not to believe him. “Who are the seven wizards tracking my father?”
“Obviously Brande Drahomir couldn’t hide this from you if you know there are seven. Such a task would have been given in secrecy.”
“Can you take your prisoner and get out of here?” I should’ve known better than to get into a tangle with a Philosopher.
“Don’t you want to know who gave Galeno that imperium collar?”
“Okay...I’m listening.”
“After I broke the collar, what did you taste in the metal?”
“Mostly gold, a little silver, copper, and even a bit of bauxite.”
“That particular combination has been consistently used by a certain buyer on the black market, whereas other buyers overwhelmingly opted for pure gold.”
“Who?” I decided not to ask why he snooped around the black market.
“Who’s our favorite Russian spy?”
“Praskovya? Does she even have the money for that?”
“If there’s one thing I’ll credit her for, she loves to work, and she gets paid well for it.”
“The last time I saw her, we were in a lab that I blew up. I can’t say for certain she’s dead.” And if she wasn’t, then I knew I’d have to take precautions.
“I wonder if Galeno was going to hold onto you for her.”
“That would’ve been a disaster.”
“Just try to be careful, Isabella. Believe it or not, it would pain me if you were killed.”
“Thank you, Neal. I’ll...see you around.”
He grabbed his case and headed over to the closet, pulled out the unconscious assassin and doubled him over his shoulder. He spoke a Word, and disappeared in a flash. By this time, my stomach ached and my limbs felt weak. I knew I needed to have some food. I quickly dressed and then went down to join Richard for a meal, relieved that he didn’t ask about my exchange with Neal.