Chapter 584: Breaking And Entering
Gram finally pulled me to a halt in front of the bench next to the chapel. I knew this bench, spent a very uncomfortable few minutes fighting off my former bestie here during my first week at Harvard. Alison's ghost attacked me, wanting the vampire essence now living inside me. Guilt rose, as it always did when I thought of Alison. Tracking down the now tainted echo of who Alison Morgan had been wasn't on the top of my priority list, despite the fact my vampire worried the portions of her essence Alison stole turned the former cheergirl into some kind of vampire/ghost hybrid. I'd kept my ears and eyes open, but hadn't heard a whisper about Alison since the night the Star Club fell apart. The night Alison first tasted blood.
A shudder ran through me as Gram spun and pointed a sharp index finger my way. "You two stay close," she said. I caught Charlotte's sharp nod beside me and briefly considered trying to send her home. Like that was going to happen. My bodywere's wolf eyes met my gaze, no sign of calm and unassuming remaining.
Yeah. Charlotte was coming with us.
Okay, then.
Gram turned toward the bench and made a soft sound, kind of like she trilled the beginning of a song. Her hands came together in a sharp jerk, power sparking between them before she slowly drew them apart. The hair on my arms stood up as Enforcer magic bounced back from her. I quickly shielded what she was doing before anyone could react to it.
Gram didn't seem too concerned, all of her focus on the gap forming between her hands. The line of blue magic parted in the middle, a window into somewhere else shimmering to life. Turned out I wasn't the only one who could open a veil. Though this one felt nothing like the rubbery membrane I used to travel, the wall between my plane and Demonicon. It buzzed with life, humming back to Gram, welcoming her.
A stone hallway appeared as she drew her fingers apart, a slice through the veil as tall as she was vibrating around the edges, blue fire licking at her hands to match the border of the tear. By the time she was done, her song ended, a large opening in the fabric of this plane led to what amounted to a castle corridor on the other side.
"This entrance isn't used very often," Gram said, turning to meet my eyes. Sweat beaded on her upper lip as her chin trembled from the strain, though from the sparkle in her gaze she was having the time of her life. "So we should be fine. Now, everybody in."
Charlotte didn't hesitate, pushing past me, nose in the air, snuffling as she stepped through. I followed behind her, staying close, feeling the subtle sting of the veil brush against my hand as I touched the edge of the hole Gram made. She hissed behind me, practically pushing against my back until we all stood in the corridor, leaving the warmth of the sun for the dim coolness of the stone hall.
I turned just in time to see Gram bring her hands together again, the tear sealing shut with a slurping sound reminding me of something being swallowed. Gram panted, hands shaking as she grinned at me.
"Haven't done that in a while," she said with a broad wink. "Forgot how much fun it was."
Fun. Right.
I looked around, the scent of damp stone and distant wood smoke reaching my nose, the air chill with moisture. A blank wall stood where we'd come through, square stones sealed with dark mortar climbing well over our heads. A small window at least eight feet up showing only a dark and gloomy sky. Gram's hands reached into the air, small flashes of blue preceding the appearance of three black robes as she snatched them from nothing before tossing them to me and Charlotte. Her own draped across her thin shoulders, black hood coming up over her halo of white hair.
As if some kind of weird switch had been flipped, all of a sudden Gram looked like an Enforcer. Her spine straightened, a youthful vitality coming over her face as she did a happy tap dance on the stones under her feet, only the fuzzy socks she wore visible and giving away the fact she wasn't really one of the order anymore.
Or was she?
Her fingers brushed over my cheek, a tingle of magic passing between us as a foreign power integrated into my personal shielding. I recognized her touch immediately, but this was distilled, raw, as wild as any earth magic I'd felt from Galleytrot and his master of the Sidhe hunt.
Gram touched Charlotte too, before shuddering like a dog shedding water.
"Enforcer power," Gram said, voice deeper, steadier than usual. Without the edge of crazy I was used to. "It won't hold up under careful scrutiny, but I don't think anyone will bother us. No outsider has ever made it this far, so they have no reason to wonder. Or ask questions." She glared at me, one finger jabbing my chest. "Head down, follow close, and shut the hell up. Got it?"
I nodded even as my stomach fell to my feet, dread as heavy as the velvet folds of the stolen cloak I wore.
This was very bad. But I'd agreed to it, hadn't I? Impersonating an Enforcer. A new low, Syd.
But the joy in Gram's face, the way she turned from me and strode off with eager steps, stilled my bout of nerves. She wouldn't have brought us here if she didn't think it was important. And I agreed with her. Ameline had information I needed, information Mom already admitted the criminal witch would only give to me. Adopting her confident stride if not her attitude, I went after her, Charlotte trailing behind me.
"So where are we?" We'd passed through the veil, but this place wasn't familiar and I began to wonder just how many alternate planes there were. Considering the demon plane was a combination of hundreds of smaller ones bonded together, the possibilities really boggled.
"Nowhere special," Gram said with amusement in her voice. "Just a little place we like to call home." She paused. "They, I mean."
"Who they?" Though from the robes we all wore, I was beginning to understand why Quaid was so hard to find, why he seemed to disappear at times. Understanding dawned as Gram spoke.
"Welcome to the Enforcer stronghold," she said. "Training ground, quarters. Home of the High Council prison."
Prison?
Gulp.
Right. Ameline. Still. The word sent shivers through me as I walked behind my grandmother, just hoping this sneak visit wasn't a sign I'd find myself a more permanent resident in the future.
Wasn't holding my breath.
***
