Brittle Midnight Page 19

  ‘Where are you going?’ Lizzy asked, catching up. Anna was right beside her.

  ‘Julie’s house,’ I bit out. ‘Even if she’s not there, there might be some clue or some evidence about what she’s done. These deaths are tied together. I can’t see how or why, but they’re linked somehow.’

  Monroe joined us, his features as dark as my thoughts. ‘You think she might have persuaded Philip to go after Valerie?’

  ‘Perhaps. Maybe she helped him and that’s why every last drop of Valerie’s blood was gone.’

  ‘There was only one set of puncture wounds,’ Anna reminded me.

  I shoved my hands into my pockets and walked faster. ‘Perhaps it was all Julie. Perhaps she killed Valerie and pinned the blame on Philip. He was a loner. He would have been a convenient target to take the fall.’

  ‘And the scratches on Philip? What about those?’ Monroe asked. ‘Or Maggie? What about her?’

  ‘Maybe Julie manipulated Maggie into killing Philip. Julie is an actress – and a very good one. Maybe she managed the crime scene and planted the idea of the scratches into our heads.’

  ‘And then,’ Monroe questioned, ‘she manipulated that guy back there to go with her to Boggart Hole to kill Nimue? She’s on a random murder spree and is getting others to join her as she goes along?’

  I stopped suddenly in my tracks. Damn it. There were far too many leaps of logic. ‘It doesn’t make any sense,’ I admitted.

  ‘No,’ he agreed. ‘And people don’t like Julie. They hold her responsible for a lot of what’s happened. You’re just about her only friend. To imagine that she managed to get these others on her side and follow her into committing these crimes … it doesn’t seem credible.’

  ‘It doesn’t fit together, either,’ Anna interjected. She looked at me sternly. ‘The first rule of any investigation is to focus on the hard evidence, not to fill in gaps with ideas and conjecture. Stop speculating. Let’s focus on what we know and use that as the basis to work out what we don’t know.’

  I passed a hand over my face. That made sense. ‘Okay,’ I said. ‘Okay.’ I was letting my wild thoughts take over and joining dots where perhaps there weren’t any dots to join. I sighed. Jumping to conclusions wasn’t going to help anyone. But unfortunately neither could we ignore what facts we already had. ‘Right now, it looks like the deaths are connected. Julie is the only suspect we have who’s alive, other than Maggie. We have to find her.’ I glanced at Anna. ‘Agreed?’

  She smiled at me. ‘Agreed. You’ll make an excellent detective yet, Charley.’

  I certainly bloody hoped not. I never thought I’d miss the day when all I had to deal with were petty squabbles and complaints over gluten-free cereal bars. I managed a smile. Just about. ‘At least we’re getting somewhere,’ I said. ‘We have more information now than we had an hour ago. Whatever is going on here – and whatever we’re dealing with – we have more of the puzzle pieces.’

  ‘That’s my ray of sunshine,’ Monroe murmured. He smiled at me but I could see the sadness in his eyes. Once this was done, I knew with absolute certainty that he would cut all ties with me. He’d already decided there wasn’t any choice. I reckoned I only had until these deaths were solved to change his mind.

  I set my jaw. I wasn’t alone. I could do this. All of this. The alternative wasn’t worth thinking about.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  There was nothing to go on in Julie’s house: it was empty of both the vampire actress and any clues that she was involved. Unless vast quantities of gin could be counted as a contributing factor to murder.

  I wasn’t sure whether I should be relieved or dismayed at lack of hard evidence. ‘Monroe and I will have to go to the north and see if we can find her there,’ I said decisively. ‘Maybe she’s still with Cath.’

  Monroe coughed. ‘I’ll go alone.’

  No way. I had the distinct feeling that if he did, I’d never see him again. ‘I’m not arguing with you,’ I told him.

  ‘Good,’ he began.

  ‘I’m coming with you.’

  Icy fire sparked in his blue eyes. ‘Stay here. From the revelations about the magic and the reactions of your people, you’ve more than enough to deal with.’

  ‘Anna and Lizzy can stay. They’ll keep the peace at this end.’

  ‘Actually,’ Anna said, ‘I was going to come too…’

  ‘No,’ I said. ‘Monroe and I will deal with the north. And Julie.’

  ‘The north is mine. I’ll go alone.’

  I glared at him. ‘Julie is mine. I’ll go with you.’

  ‘She’s a vampire.’

  I shrugged. ‘So? She’s still part of this community. And if she’s not actually involved in any of this – and the evidence so far is purely circumstantial – it’s better that I’m there to avoid any hotheads prevailing.’

  He regarded me coolly. ‘So far, I’ve been remarkably calm. You’re the one who’s been the hothead.’

  I pretended that I hadn’t heard him. He did have a point. ‘Either way,’ I said, ‘you can’t stop me from coming with you.’

  Monroe growled. ‘Yes, I can.’

  No, he couldn’t. ‘What’s the worst that could happen?’

  A deep snarl rumbled in his chest. ‘You’ve proved that the magic in the city has affected everyone. All those people who never had anything supernatural about them before have been touched by it, fundamentally changed by the atmosphere. It stands to reason that if that same magic is affecting vampires and werewolves, I could turn on you at any second. I might not be able to control myself. Not only that, you’ll be walking into a part of Manchester that’s filled with other predators. I won’t allow it.’

  ‘You’re not my boss,’ I said.

  Lizzy nervously put her hand into the air. ‘Um, what’s going on? How is the magic affecting vampires and werewolves?’

  ‘We’re all more powerful than we used to be,’ Monroe explained.

  Lizzy considered this for a moment then nodded. ‘I’m a bunyip,’ she said quietly. ‘Every day I feel it more.’

  Monroe’s head jerked towards her. ‘You’re right.’ He stared at me. ‘Lizzy can come with me. You can stay here.’

  I rolled my eyes in irritation. I knew exactly what he was thinking. Sometimes the man was a complete idiot. ‘Lizzy wouldn’t attack anyone.’

  She started. ‘What? Why would I attack anyone?’

  ‘The magic isn’t just making us stronger,’ Monroe said. ‘It’s speaking to our natural predatory instincts and causing reason, logic and emotion to fly out of the window. It explains why a vampire, whether it was Philip or Julie, would drain Valerie of all her blood and why a werewolf like Maggie would kill Philip. The magic is growing within us to a point where we can’t control ourselves.’

  ‘It’s only a theory,’ I bit out. ‘And not a very good one.’

  Lizzy frowned. ‘I don’t feel like killing anyone.’

  ‘I wasn’t feeling like that but I’m starting to feel rather murderous now,’ Monroe said, directing his words at me.

  I smiled serenely at him. ‘I’m coming with you,’ I said, ‘whether you like it or not. If you turn into a wolf and rip my throat out along the way, then you’re absolved of any responsibility. I have my big girl pants on and I know what I’m getting into.’

  He snorted. ‘Big girl pants?’

  ‘Lacy. Pink. Delicate. They’re very pretty.’ I paused. ‘Would you like to see them?’

  Monroe’s eyes darkened and he turned away. ‘No.’

  Just as well. They were actually cotton, grey and very holey.

  ‘We’re going now,’ Anna said hastily. ‘We’ll leave you to it.’

  ‘Lizzy should come with me to the north,’ Monroe grunted.

  ‘Lizzy is staying here,’ I told him.

  Lizzy grabbed Anna’s arm and started to walk away quickly. ‘Lizzy is leaving!’ she called out to us. ‘Don’t kill Julie unless you really have to! Good luck!’

  Mon
roe sniffed. ‘Now look what you’ve done.’

  ‘I haven’t done anything.’ I grabbed his shoulders and forced him to look at me. ‘You know me, Monroe. You know what I believe in. I want to protect everyone and keep them safe. If I thought Lizzy was a threat, I wouldn’t let her waltz over there to hang out with everyone else. She’s not going to hurt anyone. Neither are you. You’ve already changed a lot of your ways. You’ve been calmer, you’ve been thinking of others. Lately you’ve been far more thoughtful than I’ve been. Those aren’t the actions of someone who’s about to flip out.’

  ‘We’ve been through this. You make me calmer.’

  I threw up my arms. ‘All the more reason for me to stay with you!’

  He shook his head. ‘It’s not worth the risk.’

  ‘It’s my risk to take. Besides, I can protect myself. Even against you.’

  ‘You couldn’t.’ He looked down at me, his eyes narrowed. ‘Not if I really wanted to hurt you.’

  ‘Try me,’ I said.

  His head dipped lower and he bared his teeth. He let out a low snarl and yanked himself away from me. ‘We can’t do this. I can’t let myself hurt you. We don’t have to separate from each other for good, but we need to do it until your theory has been disproved.’

  I was certain that if Monroe’s pack were still alive and this had come up as an issue, he’d have laughed in my face at the very idea that his wolf side would take over his other instincts to the point where someone would get hurt. He’d lost far more than just his family when they were all killed. I dropped back and considered. I had to be smarter about this. If this was all about base instincts, perhaps those were what I should be addressing. This was about Monroe wrestling for control with himself.

  ‘Do you know what?’ I said thoughtfully. ‘Upon reflection I think you’re right. We should stay away from each other. You’re a predator and you’re dangerous. Once we’ve established what’s really going on with these killings, we should avoid each other for good.’

  Monroe’s eyes narrowed. He seemed to think I was toying with him. Which I was. ‘You changed your tune quickly enough.’

  ‘It’s for the best. Maybe we should build a wall between the south and north to avoid any further complications.’ My eyes dropped deliberately to his lips and then lower, travelling slowly down his body. ‘And temptation,’ I husked.

  Monroe blinked. ‘I’m glad you finally see the light,’ he said stiffly.

  ‘I do,’ I told him cheerfully. ‘And despite how much I feel for you, there are plenty more fish in the sea. There are still lots of good-looking men hanging around the city. Now we know they all have magic, I can enjoy any number of powerful partners.’

  Monroe’s expression darkened and I thought for a moment that I’d taken things too far, but he simply turned on his heel. ‘Let’s solve these murders so you can get on with your love life then,’ he spat.

  Behind his back, I smiled. He was perfectly happy to have distance between us when he was the one putting it there, but when I did the same thing his natural instinct was to fight against it. There really was something left of the old manipulative poker player inside me. Monroe didn’t appreciate how good I could be at bluffing when I tried. But was I also a winner – and this was one match I was most definitely going to win.

  ***

  We found Cath in the hospital, chattering away to the same doctor as the night before. She hadn’t seen Julie since the morning, and she was so bright-eyed and enthusiastic to be finally learning from a real medical professional that I didn’t want to distract her and ruin her day with the details of what Julie might have done. Relieved that she was safe, I told her to stay put.

  Monroe and I went off to search the rest of the district. Julie wasn’t hiding from the afternoon sun in any of the vampire-friendly pubs and she wasn’t in any of the public buildings. And when we arrived at the vampire enclave, the new guard at their barricade denied having seen her. ‘Look,’ he said, ‘I know what happened the last time we helped you out. I’m not protecting that bitch, though. If I knew where she was, I’d tell you. She doesn’t come here.’

  There was nothing that suggested he was lying. Julie didn’t have a lot of friends, even amongst her own kind. While facing the fact that she might be some master manipulator with a penchant for corpses, I felt the need to defend her.

  ‘Listen,’ I said to the vamp, ‘I appreciate that she could have caused the end of the world but you weren’t there at the time. You came to Manchester because the power in the magic makes you feel powerful. It was a similar thing with Julie. She had a moment of madness where she almost helped to bring about the apocalypse by forcing too much magic into the city because she was tired of being hunted and feeling like prey. What you have to remember is that the world didn’t end. And she feels really bad about what she did.’

  He looked at me curiously. ‘Is that why you think I don’t like her? I’m not bothered about what happened there. We’re all allowed our moments of madness.’

  Are we? I raised an eyebrow.

  He tutted. ‘Whatever this world is now, whatever this city is, until the apocalypse occurred our kind had to hide. Do you have any idea what it’s like to be so alone that you can’t tell a single soul what you are?’ He gestured at Monroe. ‘We’re not like werewolves. We don’t usually live in packs like this. Most vampires are only living here together because we have the wolves to contend with, and this is the time for a display of might and numbers. It won’t last.’ He shook his head. ‘No. Until all this occurred, even the faintest hint of our true nature could bring vampire hunters to us. They don’t just kill us – they want to capture us, keep us alive, study us.’ A pained expression crossed his face. ‘You’ve not experienced what it’s like to feel you’re a monster until you’ve seen the bodies of your parents after they’ve spent a few years being tortured by the hunters.’

  I felt an overwhelming desire to hug him tightly but I doubted he’d appreciate it. ‘Julie experienced the same thing. She’s like you. She had to hide from them, just like you did.’

  ‘She was an actress.’ The guard spat on the ground as if it were a dirty word.

  I scratched my head. ‘Uh…’

  Monroe got it. ‘Broadcasting her face to millions on a daily soap opera. Doing interviews. And not growing old.’

  ‘Exactly.’ The vampire folded his arms and nodded. ‘Sooner or later some clever bastard on the internet would have worked out that there was more to her longevity than Botox. It was only a matter of time. Because she wanted to be famous, she risked exposing us all. There weren’t many vampire hunters because there weren’t people who knew about our existence.’ He sniffed. ‘But imagine an entire world knowing you’re out there. Looking for you.’

  ‘The entire world knows you’re here now,’ I pointed out.

  He shrugged. ‘Perhaps. But they’re out there and we’re in here.’ He glanced again at Monroe. ‘Dealing with wolves is far preferable to the life we had, the pitiful existence that Julie Chivers threatened.’ He set his jaw and I knew the conversation was over. There was deep-seated pain and trauma amongst all the vampires. Yeah, every single one of us was messed up in our own way.

  Monroe and I walked away. ‘The vampire is right, you know,’ he said. ‘Julie’s desire to be on television put all of them under threat.’ He grimaced. ‘If any werewolf tried to do the same…’

  I wrinkled my nose. ‘Why weren’t hunters after you guys? I mean, you’re supernatural too. In theory, werewolves should have also been a target.’

  ‘We live in close-knit packs. We don’t have the unnaturally long lives that vampires do, so we don’t draw as much attention to ourselves. And when someone gets too curious, we’re excellent hunters and trackers.’

  I stared at him. ‘You’d kill someone who discovered your true nature?’ I asked, aghast.

  ‘It never happened,’ he said quietly.

  ‘But if it did?’

  ‘Then, yes. For good of my pac
k and the others out there, yes, I would indeed do that.’ He stopped walking. ‘You know I’m not lying.’

  I shivered. Unfortunately I did.

  ‘I told you, Charlotte,’ he said softly. ‘I’m dangerous. It’s a good thing that you have all those other fish in the sea to choose from.’

  Shit. ‘Monroe, I…’

  He held up his hand. ‘Don’t.’ He raised his head and scented the air. ‘I don’t think Julie is here. There’s no trace of her. I know her scent and her presence is not usually difficult to locate. I don’t think she’s here or in the south.’

  This did not bode well. ‘There’s no one else who might know where she’s gone. From the way that guy was talking, all the vampires feel the same way about her. They all hate her.’

  Monroe stilled. From the look on his face, he’d thought of something hugely important.

  ‘What is it?’

  He clicked his fingers. ‘You might be onto something.’ He grinned at me so suddenly that I was taken aback. ‘Good work, sunshine.’ He took off in the opposite direction, jogging away. ‘Come on, then!’ he called to me.

  I gazed after him for a moment. ‘Please let us find her,’ I whispered to myself. Then I ran too.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  I was some distance behind Monroe. When I entered the pub he’d disappeared into, he already had Carter, the barman, by the collar and was yanking him over the counter. ‘Monroe!’ I yelled. ‘She’s not here! We’ve already checked this place!’

  He paid me no attention. ‘I’m looking for two vampires,’ he snarled in Carter’s face. ‘Both of them are tall, thin and balding. One has a scar on his cheek. The other is a Metallica fan.’

  From the way Carter’s pupils flared he was scared, but he was doing a good job of standing up to Monroe. ‘I was never a fan of doggy breath,’ he spat. ‘Get your face out of mine.’

  Monroe tightened his grip and shook him. There was an odd snapping sound and, for the briefest moment, Monroe’s face changed into a wolf’s muzzle. With a wolf’s teeth. Then his features smoothed back to their human form. ‘Believe me,’ he said, ‘I can give you more than dog breath if you keep this up. Tell me where I can find them. You know exactly who I’m talking about.’