‘Yes,’ I said.
‘Oh God … But he was a professional!’
‘So am I,’ I said.
‘Yes,’ said Penny, trying for a smile. ‘But a professional what?’
‘That sounds about right,’ I said.
More light fell out of the drawing room. I took one last look around the empty hallway, pushed the door open, and went in, with Penny all but treading on my heels.
Just inside the door, half the room’s furniture had been piled up to form a barricade. It was pushed to one side now, to let Penny out. I pushed it further back, with one hand, as I entered. It felt solid and heavy enough, but I had no doubt Sylvia could smash right through it without even slowing. I’d always known that. I only encouraged the others to build a barricade because it would give them something to do and help them feel safer.
I closed the door. Firelight and candlelight gave the drawing room an almost cosy atmosphere. Someone had built up the fire, piling the coal and wood high. It blazed fiercely in the massive stone fireplace. I went straight over to the fire and stood before it, letting the heat sink into my body. I hadn’t realized just how cold I was, how much my time in the storm had slowed me down. Cold is insidious; it sneaks up on you. I turned around, letting the fire toast my backside, and looked round the room. Candlesticks and candelabras, big and small, stood on every surface. Warm, organic light to push back the shadows.
Leilah looked at me, and one look told her everything. She didn’t need me to tell her why Jeeves wasn’t with me. She seemed to fall in upon herself, looking suddenly old and tired … and then she slowly straightened up again, wearing her strength as armour, taking on her old authority again. Because that was the job; and that was all she had left, now. She met my gaze squarely. ‘Just … tell me he died well,’ she said.
‘He died fighting,’ I said. ‘Defiant, to the end.’
What else could I say to her? I couldn’t tell her the truth. That would have been cruel.
I deliberately looked away. Someone had picked Melanie up off the floor and put her back in her chair. She sat slumped, her head tilted back so that she stared up at the ceiling. Presumably someone had tried to close her eyes, but it’s often harder than you think to get them to stay shut. The wooden stick still protruded from her blood-soaked chest.
Khan stood off to one side, looking lost. As though he had no idea what to do. Probably a new experience for a man like Khan, who was used to being in charge and in control. He caught me watching him and saw something in my face. ‘It wasn’t the storm put the lights out, was it?’ he said. His eyes were wide and staring, like a deer caught in the headlights. ‘Is Sylvia back in the house with us?’
‘Looks that way,’ I said.
‘Why didn’t you kill the bitch?’ said Khan, his voice rising even more.
‘We did try,’ I said. ‘Jeeves died trying.’
‘It’s different for you,’ said Khan, defiantly. ‘You’re trained for weird shit like this. All I did at Black Heir was push papers around, remember?’
I turned away from him. ‘Penny; where’s the fuse box?’
‘I don’t know!’ said Penny. ‘How would I know something like that?’
‘It’s your house!’ said Khan. ‘How can you not know where your fuses are?’
‘Because I’m just visiting!’ Penny shot back at him. ‘This hasn’t been my home for ages! Anyway, do you know where your fuses are?’
‘Of course!’ said Khan.
‘Poor little rich girl,’ said Leilah, not looking round from lighting the last few candles, with a Zippo that was a match for her late husband’s. ‘Knows everything except for the things that really matter. Your fuse box is down in the kitchen. Though I don’t feel like going back down there at present …’
‘Hush!’ I said. ‘Listen …’
We all stood very still, not one of us moving a muscle. Hardly breathing as we listened, concentrating. Outside the drawing room, at the very end of the long hall, we could all hear someone slowly descending the long curving staircase. One step at a time, deliberately drawing it out. Every footstep seemed to last forever, the gap between each new sound tearing at our nerves. And then the footsteps stopped, at the bottom of the stairs. For a long time there was just a slow and steady silence. We all stood tense as statues, straining our ears against the quiet. The footsteps went back up the stairs again, one slow step at a time, all the way to the top. And stopped again.
I hadn’t realized how intent I was until I made myself relax.
‘She’s here,’ I said. ‘She wants us to know she’s here.’
‘Why?’ said Penny. ‘It’s not like she’s scared of us! It doesn’t make any sense!’
We stood close together, talking with lowered voices, as though Sylvia might be listening. And perhaps she was.
‘Maybe she wants to be with her victims?’ said Khan. ‘They’re still upstairs.’
Leilah sniffed dismissively. ‘She wants us to go up after her. Leave the one safe place we have to go upstairs. And be picked off, one by one. Yeah, right; like that’s going to happen. I’m not going anywhere.’
‘She’s taunting us,’ said Khan. ‘Playing games … because she can. We should push that barricade back into place. Stay here. Safety in numbers.’
Leilah sniffed again. ‘You’re just saying that because you’re scared to be left on your own.’
‘Of course,’ said Khan. ‘Aren’t you?’
‘I just want my best shot at killing her!’ said Leilah.
‘We can’t just stand around here, waiting for her to do something!’ said Penny. ‘We have to come up with our own plan!’
‘You’re right,’ I said. ‘We can’t let her take the advantage. We have to take the fight to her.’
‘In theory, yes,’ said Leilah. ‘In practice, how?’
‘I don’t know,’ I said. ‘I’m thinking.’
Leilah looked hard at Khan. ‘You worked for Black Heir …’
‘I was an accountant!’ said Khan. He glared at me. ‘You were the field agent, Ishmael! Do something!’
‘I’ll go after Sylvia,’ I said. ‘Barricade the door behind me.’
‘What?’ said Penny. ‘No! You can’t, Ishmael! You already tried once, with Jeeves. And she killed Jeeves!’
‘I know,’ I said. ‘But someone’s got to do it.’
‘Why does it always have to be you?’ said Penny.
‘Because I’m here,’ I said. ‘And because Jeeves isn’t.’
I looked at Leilah, and she looked back at me. I could tell she understood. That I felt responsible for not bringing Jeeves back alive. She nodded, quickly. She hadn’t forgiven me for coming back alive instead of him. But she understood why I was ready to go out again, and that would do.
I picked up a single lit candle, in a bulky silver candlestick. ‘I can see better than most people,’ I said. ‘Even in reduced light. Sylvia doesn’t know that. Should give me an edge.’
‘You don’t have to go on your own,’ said Penny. ‘I’ll go with you. Watch your back.’
Her gaze was steady, her voice less so. But she meant it.
‘No,’ I said.
‘Why not?’
‘Because I can’t protect myself if I have to worry about protecting someone else,’ I said.
Penny bit her lower lip hard, and then nodded, reluctantly. And then she turned away so she wouldn’t have to watch me leave.
I looked at Leilah. ‘Leave the door open a crack. Stand guard, keep a watch. If you see anyone coming down the hallway that doesn’t look like me, shoot it. Jeeves had a good idea, though he never got the chance to try it out: aim for the knees and the eyes. That might be enough to slow her down. I’m going to need a wooden stake … Where’s the other half of Walter’s walking stick?’
Leilah nodded to a side table, where the short length of splintered wood had been laid out, ready for use. I picked it up and hefted it. Such a small and fragile thing, to set against a monster. But it wasn’t as if I had anything else. I’d just have to hope this part of the legend was accurate. I went back to the door, holding the stake in one hand and the candlestick in the other. I eased the door open and peered cautiously out into the hall. Nothing moved. I took a deep breath, let it out slowly to settle myself, and went out into the hall.