I wondered if slashing his tyres and delaying his arrival in Edinburgh would aid our cause. Probably not. It would be entertaining, though.
‘My vampires are already gathering,’ he continued.
Hugo’s gaze sought mine; they were filled with warmth, love and reassurance.
‘It will be a glorious night in Edinburgh. I have been waiting for this moment for a very long time,’ Athair said.
‘Master?’ Horace squeaked.
‘What is it?’
‘What will you do if she chooses not to join you?’
Athair’s footsteps reached the ground floor and once again I prayed that his eyes didn’t stray towards the oubliette. ‘My Daisy will make the right decision,’ he said. ‘She will be by my side before the next dawn arrives.’
‘But if?—’
‘Enough!’ Athair roared. There was a pained squeak from rusting hinges as he yanked open the door leading out of the tower. ‘If she chooses to remain as she is, there will be no choice.I will kill her – but not before I kill everyone she has ever loved. She will watch them suffer and then she will die. Painfully.’
He cleared his throat and his voice returned to normal. ‘That will not happen. She is not stupid. There will soon be another fiend joining our ranks.’ The tower door thudded closed. If my fiendish fucking father added any further dark promises, I didn’t hear them.
‘Is it too late to make a Will?’ Hester enquired once several beats had passed.
I forced a smile in her direction. There was nothing more for me to say; I didn’t even have any misplaced humour to offer her.
‘Whatever happens tonight, history will be made,’ Hugo said quietly. ‘People will be talking about this night for generations to come.’
I considered his words then I reached behind my neck and fumbled for the clasp on my pendant necklace. Once it was unfastened, I dropped it to the dungeon floor. ‘For posterity,’ I whispered. ‘And future treasure hunters who might venture through here one day.’
Hugo smiled and his dimple flashed. ‘Amen.’
We waitedfor as long as we dared before we conjured up enough air magic to boost us out of the oubliette. Although there was no time to celebrate, the relief I felt at escaping the dark hole was wonderful. I allowed myself a long luxurious stretch before I turned back and glanced down at William Hausman, bowing my head in brief, silent prayer. Only then did I speak.
‘We have to get out of here,’ I said. ‘And fast. Athair will already be on his way to Edinburgh and if we don’t hurry we’llbe late.’ The hours spent inside the oubliette had been necessary but they could cost us, lethally so.
‘I should be able to get a phone signal as soon as we’re outside,’ Hugo told me. ‘Slim will be waiting to pick us up. But we’ll have to take care – the sun will have already gone down and those bloodsuckers out there are a real threat.’
Hester blanched. ‘We can do this,’ I told her.
She swallowed. ‘Yes.’
We gazed at each other. Then, without another word, we ran for the stairs.
It was far easier to leave the tower than it had been to enter it. Hester and Otis swooped across to the front of the castle and quickly established that Athair had definitely gone so there was no longer any reason to worry about detection. We ignored the rope in favour of another blast of air magic then skirted the castle by avoiding the muddy quagmire at the front and heading for the open driveway.
By the time my bare feet hit tarmac, Hugo had already messaged Slim. In less than fifteen minutes, the battered Jeep stopped beside us and we jumped in. Slim gunned the engine and accelerated away. ‘I was beginning to get worried,’ he said. ‘I didn’t think you’d take this long.’
‘Neither did we,’ Hugo said. ‘But we got what we needed and we got out safely. That’s what’s important.’
‘You have the ring?’ Slim asked.
‘Yes.’
‘And?’
Hugo looked at me.
‘It’s what we expected,’ I said.
