side, directly opposite the Ladies. He had tricked me into thinking him upstairs.
Nice. Like the new look. He didn’t sound as if he liked it one tiny bit. He sounded fit to be tied down and given a dose of sedatives.
How did you find me?
Unique energy signature, remember?
I took a quick survey of my options. Back up and wait them out—but no they’d just come in after me. Go with them, and let the Seer hurt Tony tonight and then them when he came for me. Use my power on them—too many people and they would know to resist. A fourth option—make a fuss. They couldn’t haul a girl from a public place if I kicked up enough noise. Though I hated drawing attention to myself it sounded a pretty good moment to learn.
Don’t even think about it or Vick will have to do his thing on you, warned Yves, who must have read my intentions from my furtive glances around the foyer.
Then a fifth option arrived, one none of us had anticipated. Unicorn and Dragon walked swiftly up from behind the Benedicts and passed them before they knew it.
‘Phee, great to see you!’ Unicorn said with false friendliness. ‘I thought we’d be late for the concert. Come along.’ He hooked my arm on one side, Dragon on the other.
Now it had come, I wasn’t sure I wanted this rescue.
‘Who the hell are you?’ Yves made to intervene, but Vick held him back with a speaking look. A brawl in the Barbican was not a good outcome for any of us.
‘We’re her brothers.’ Unicorn squeezed my arm painfully. ‘You won’t see her again. Sorry if her light-fingered ways bothered you. She’ll be punished for it.’ So Unicorn thought this was about a steal that had gone wrong. That made sense: why else would the three Americans be chasing me through the Barbican. He whipped the skirt from under my arm and shook it out. ‘She’s not got the stuff on her so I suggest you check the Ladies. She’s probably stashed it there.’
Dragon wrenched my arm behind my back. ‘Say goodbye to your friends, Phee. Sadly she can’t stay to play.’
I said nothing.
‘Go on, say it!’
‘Bye.’ God, I was so tired of bullying men.
The gold bracelet around Dragon’s wrist began to glow with heat. ‘What the—!’ He let go of my arm and shook the band off. It melted into a flat disc on the tile.
Yves gave him a challenging look. ‘No one hurts Phee.’
Wrong. They did all the time. But Yves had made a mistake and revealed that he was a Savant, which propelled this confrontation into a new dimension. Dragon sent an arrow of a look at the metal and glass sculpture hanging overhead a little way behind the Benedicts. With a rattle of bolts coming loose, it fell diagonally towards them as he pulled it with his power.
‘Yves!’ I screamed.
The three Benedicts threw themselves out of its path as it smashed to the floor, losing shape like a beached jellyfish, a mess of splinters and wire. The resulting commotion of screams and officials running to the site of the incident allowed us to slip away. Unicorn and Dragon shot out of the entrance onto the underground street before the Benedicts had time to recover their feet. At Unicorn’s hail, a taxi peeled from the rank and stopped to let us get in. I felt the urge to laugh crazily— my second ride in the back of a cab, so fast on the heels of my first. Boy, was I living it up.
Yves, are you OK? I had to know.
Yes, just a few cuts. He sounded relieved that I cared. But, Phee, are you OK? Who are those men?
My brothers, maybe. I hunched in a corner, head against the window as the taxi pulled away. Goodbye, Yves. It would’ve been nice to know you. I’m sorry it didn’t work out.
There was no need to be told that I was in dire trouble. Dragon and Unicorn chose not to mention it before the taxi driver but they were seething. Some of their reaction might have been down to post-battle adrenalin, but I knew that I had added insult to injury when I had warned the Benedicts, spoiling Dragon’s attack.
Nice. Like the new look. He didn’t sound as if he liked it one tiny bit. He sounded fit to be tied down and given a dose of sedatives.
How did you find me?
Unique energy signature, remember?
I took a quick survey of my options. Back up and wait them out—but no they’d just come in after me. Go with them, and let the Seer hurt Tony tonight and then them when he came for me. Use my power on them—too many people and they would know to resist. A fourth option—make a fuss. They couldn’t haul a girl from a public place if I kicked up enough noise. Though I hated drawing attention to myself it sounded a pretty good moment to learn.
Don’t even think about it or Vick will have to do his thing on you, warned Yves, who must have read my intentions from my furtive glances around the foyer.
Then a fifth option arrived, one none of us had anticipated. Unicorn and Dragon walked swiftly up from behind the Benedicts and passed them before they knew it.
‘Phee, great to see you!’ Unicorn said with false friendliness. ‘I thought we’d be late for the concert. Come along.’ He hooked my arm on one side, Dragon on the other.
Now it had come, I wasn’t sure I wanted this rescue.
‘Who the hell are you?’ Yves made to intervene, but Vick held him back with a speaking look. A brawl in the Barbican was not a good outcome for any of us.
‘We’re her brothers.’ Unicorn squeezed my arm painfully. ‘You won’t see her again. Sorry if her light-fingered ways bothered you. She’ll be punished for it.’ So Unicorn thought this was about a steal that had gone wrong. That made sense: why else would the three Americans be chasing me through the Barbican. He whipped the skirt from under my arm and shook it out. ‘She’s not got the stuff on her so I suggest you check the Ladies. She’s probably stashed it there.’
Dragon wrenched my arm behind my back. ‘Say goodbye to your friends, Phee. Sadly she can’t stay to play.’
I said nothing.
‘Go on, say it!’
‘Bye.’ God, I was so tired of bullying men.
The gold bracelet around Dragon’s wrist began to glow with heat. ‘What the—!’ He let go of my arm and shook the band off. It melted into a flat disc on the tile.
Yves gave him a challenging look. ‘No one hurts Phee.’
Wrong. They did all the time. But Yves had made a mistake and revealed that he was a Savant, which propelled this confrontation into a new dimension. Dragon sent an arrow of a look at the metal and glass sculpture hanging overhead a little way behind the Benedicts. With a rattle of bolts coming loose, it fell diagonally towards them as he pulled it with his power.
‘Yves!’ I screamed.
The three Benedicts threw themselves out of its path as it smashed to the floor, losing shape like a beached jellyfish, a mess of splinters and wire. The resulting commotion of screams and officials running to the site of the incident allowed us to slip away. Unicorn and Dragon shot out of the entrance onto the underground street before the Benedicts had time to recover their feet. At Unicorn’s hail, a taxi peeled from the rank and stopped to let us get in. I felt the urge to laugh crazily— my second ride in the back of a cab, so fast on the heels of my first. Boy, was I living it up.
Yves, are you OK? I had to know.
Yes, just a few cuts. He sounded relieved that I cared. But, Phee, are you OK? Who are those men?
My brothers, maybe. I hunched in a corner, head against the window as the taxi pulled away. Goodbye, Yves. It would’ve been nice to know you. I’m sorry it didn’t work out.
There was no need to be told that I was in dire trouble. Dragon and Unicorn chose not to mention it before the taxi driver but they were seething. Some of their reaction might have been down to post-battle adrenalin, but I knew that I had added insult to injury when I had warned the Benedicts, spoiling Dragon’s attack.
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