City of Magic: The Complete Series by Helen Harper (book club recommendations TXT) 📕

all they’ve given me to eat is some wrinkled apples.’ She clapped her hand to her mouth. ‘How are you feeling? You’ve got a hell of a bump on the side of your head.’

I gingerly pressed it with the tip of my fingers. Damn. That hurt. ‘I’ll be okay. Max was showing off and proving a point.’

‘What point is that?’

‘That he’s stronger than I am.’ I smiled slightly. ‘Don’t worry. He’s not.’ I stood up, wobbled alarmingly and sat back down again. Okay, maybe he was stronger than me. At the moment anyway. I glanced at my wrist. He’d taken my watch, probably for no other reason than to emphasise his absolute control. Bastard. ‘How long was I out for?’

‘They dropped you off about ten minutes ago but I don’t know how long it took them to get you here. You were out for the count. Completely.’ Lizzy’s eyes scanned my face. ‘Are you sure you’re alright? You look whiter than the vampi—’

I thrust my hand up, covering her mouth and muffling the rest of the word, then I shook my head in warning. Max would have at least one person listening in. We couldn’t afford to let him know that people like Julie existed. Not yet anyway.

Lizzy seemed confused but when I gave her a meaningful look a flicker of understanding showed in her eyes. ‘Watch this,’ she whispered. She held up her hand and flicked her wrist. Golden fur and long, lethal-looking claws sprang out. She shook her hand and they disappeared again. ‘I’m learning,’ she told me. ‘I think I can control it.’

‘Good.’ I patted her shoulder and made another attempt to get to my feet. This time it worked. I felt a bit dizzy, and quite possibly had some mild concussion, but it wasn’t bad enough to upset my plans. I had this.

On shaky legs, I walked over to the large windows and peered out. The furnishings indicated that my guess about Max using the Mayor’s old residence had been accurate but I wanted proof. I looked up and down the street. Although it was night, figures were still moving around, sawing at the many gnarled tree roots blocking the road and clearing away debris.

I exhaled. We were definitely in the right place. Score one for logic.

‘The windows are sealed shut,’ Lizzy said. ‘I’ve tried them all. I could break the glass and jump out, but it’s quite a drop down and there are always people out there.’ She turned. ‘The door is always locked as well. Someone comes by once an hour to check on me.’ She raised her shoulders helplessly. ‘Other than that, there’s nothing to tell you.’ She looked at me balefully. ‘He told me he was going to use me to bring you in. You shouldn’t have come, Charley. You should have left me here. Sooner or later, I’ll … change and get out of here. I’m so…’

‘If you say you’re sorry one more time, I’ll lock you up myself,’ I warned.

Lizzy smiled weakly.

I leaned over and whispered into her ear. ‘Besides, the last thing we need is for Max to realise that you’re even more magical than I am. He doesn’t know why this has happened to Manchester, but he thinks that he understands the full extent of it. He doesn’t realise you can change or that there are others like you.’

I gestured out of the window. I couldn’t use my watch to tell the time, but I reckoned Julie was a punctual sort of person.

As Julie sauntered into view and Max’s worker bees froze, I grinned widely. That meant it was now three o’clock. Show time! When the keening sound of a low howl began to reverberate through the house, I relaxed even further. This might even be fun.

Julie had dressed up for the occasion. She was wearing a long cape that billowed out around her, as if she were Dracula herself. The lady certainly knew how to make an entrance.

A young man with a saw darted over to her but she simply smiled at him. Her lips moved as she spoke; although I couldn’t make out her exact words, the man’s expression made it clear that he had recognised her. Others moved in, eager to make her acquaintance. It might seem like years ago since Manchester had gone into shutdown instead of merely a few days, but everyone still knew who she was. Her soap opera character had been beamed out to the country on a nightly basis, after all. Max wouldn’t be able to resist.

Monroe’s howl had clearly set Max’s minions on edge, but Julie’s presence was distracting enough that they focused on her rather than the more important fact that a werewolf was somewhere in the vicinity.

The crowd round her parted as Max strode out, an oily smile on his handsome face. He gave her a bow and, from where I was standing, it looked like Julie simpered back. He gestured behind him, obviously beckoning her indoors. I rubbed my palms. I loved it when a plan came together.

Monroe’s first howl had been somewhat muffled, but his second was far more powerful. This time it seemed as if the very rafters were about to blow off. There were frightened shouts from inside the building; he was definitely making his presence known. Lizzy jumped, her eyes wide.

I smiled reassuringly as the doorknob rattled and several people entered, each one with a forbidding expression that threatened certain violence.

The first, an older man who should have known better at his age than to hang out with someone like Max, was holding a pistol. I didn’t know much about guns but, from his confident manner, I assumed that he knew what he was doing. Julie might have distracted Max, and Monroe might be engaging plenty of Max’s henchmen, but the others up here on guard duty weren’t going to look away for a second.

‘Get down on the floor,’ the man instructed. ‘Face down with your arms stretched out.’ His attention