He strode forward into the church, bowed slightly to the Lord of Thorns, nodded to me, and smiled easily at Larry.
“Hello, little brother. Sorry I couldn’t make it to your funeral.”
“Not many did,” said Larry, staring openly at his older brother. “I ended up having to put flowers on my own grave. There wasn’t any body in it, of course; I’m still using it. But our parents wanted a grave and a headstone and flowers, so that’s what they got. Hell, they miss you more than they do me. Would it kill you to visit them once in a while?”
“I have duties and responsibilities,” said Hadleigh. “And my time isn’t always my own.”
“Do you know where Tommy is?” said Larry, blunt and to the point as ever.
“I’ll get to that,” said Hadleigh. “But first things first. Starting with you, Mr. Taylor.”
Larry looked surprised for the first time. “You know Taylor?”
“I know everyone,” said Hadleigh Oblivion. “Whether they know it or not. Hello, John. I’ve been watching you for some time.”
“Okay,” I said. “That’s actually quite creepy, but moving on ... What brings you out into plain view?”
“You. And Walker.” Hadleigh paused, seeming to consider his words carefully. “Something important is going to be decided, very soon, something that will affect the whole Nightside. I’m here to prevent certain outside forces from interfering. On either side.”
“So you didn’t come back to help me find Tommy,” said Larry. “I should have known.”
“I’ll help if I can, while I’m here,” said Hadleigh. “I would have come back for Tommy eventually, but ...”
“Yeah, I know,” said Larry. “Duties and responsibilities.”
“You have no idea what I had to give up, what I had to turn my back on, to become what I am,” said Hadleigh.
“Was it worth it?” said Larry.
“Ask me another time,” said Hadleigh. “We have business to be about. Let’s deal with the Lord of Thorns first, before he explodes from rage and frustration.”
“Suits me,” I said. Some of those lightning bolts had been getting really close. “What’s the connection between Walker and the Lord of Thorns?”
“He sabotaged me!” said the Lord of Thorns, and his voice was flat and harsh and vicious. “To prevent me from ever using my power to overthrow his precious status quo. As long as I still slumbered in the World Beneath, I was no danger to him or the Authorities. But once you awoke me, Taylor, and I ascended into the Nightside again, everything changed.”
“Somehow I knew this would all turn out to be my fault,” I said.
“I went walking through the streets, and I saw how much had changed,” said the Lord of Thorns. “Whole place had gone to hell without me. And then Lilith arose, and all her monstrous offspring, and I went out to face her, to guard and protect you all. It should have been my finest hour. But Walker and his Authorities were fearful.”
“Of what?” said Larry.
“That I would take up my function as Overseer again and dispense judgement and punishment, as is my right and duty.”
“What put you to sleep in the World Beneath in the first place?” I said.
The Lord of Thorns smiled grimly. “I was persuaded that it was for the best. That the Nightside had changed from what it used to be, and I didn’t need to be in touch with everything and everyone, all the time. And I listened, because I had been Overseer for centuries, and I was tired of people and their endless problems. So very tired ...”
“Who persuaded you?” I said.
“Who do you think?” said the Lord of Thorns. “The Authorities, of course, and their Man. I was so very weary, and I thought a few years of rest would do me good. But they put powerful wards in place, to keep me sleeping, and guards to keep anyone from interrupting my sleep. Even that wasn’t enough. The Authorities were taking no chances. In case I should escape from the trap they’d tricked me into, they had a contingency plan. A vile, appallingly simple scheme, passed down through the centuries, from Authorities to Authorities.”
“I knew about it,” said Hadleigh. “From when I was the Authorities’ Man. I never approved, even then. I always meant to do something about it. But there was always so much that needed doing ...”
“Duties and responsibilities,” I said.
“Yes ... When I was gone, the details of the scheme were passed on to Walker. And the Lilith War presented him with his best opportunity to ... defuse the Lord of Thorns. Break his spirit, make him harmless.”
“But ... didn’t Walker need the Lord of Thorns’ power, to help him defeat Lilith?” I said.
“The Authorities feared the Lord of Thorns more,” said Hadleigh. “After all, Lilith only wanted to destroy the Nightside; the Lord of Thorns wanted to change it. That’s Walker for you; always taking the long view. Just as I taught him ...”
A quiet chill ran through me, as I remembered that, for all his apparent youth, Hadleigh was at least twenty years older than Walker. He looked strong and sharp, in his prime; but I had to wonder what it was he gave up to become the Detective Inspectre. How much of Larry’s older brother was still in there? Was he still human; or was he pretending, for his audience? For his brother? People say many bad things about the Deep School; and a lot of them are true.
“Long and long ago, the Authorities made a deal with the Street of the Gods,” said Hadleigh. “Those jumped-up poseurs were always scared of the Lord of Thorns because he was the real deal, and they were only pretenders. So the Beings pooled their power, waited for the right opportunity, and channelled it through Walker’s Voice, to shut down the Lord of Thorns’ power, when he went head to head with Lilith. She could never have defeated him otherwise. And so he lost his confidence, and he lost his faith; and without those, he was nothing. He crawled away and ended up here: broken, confused, and no threat to anyone.”
“What did the Street of the Gods get out of it?” said Larry, practical as ever.
“They got left alone,” said Hadleigh. “Free to do as they would, as long as they stayed on their Street and didn’t upset the tourists too much.”
“That’s why you came here,” I said to the Lord of Thorns. “To the one place where prayers are answered. But then ... why did you have to wait for Hadleigh to come and tell you the truth?”
“Because it was my crisis of faith,” said the Lord of Thorns. The interior of the church was quiet now, the lightning gone, and his presence returned almost to that of a man. “I lost my faith, so I had to find it again. And I did, here, day by day, serving this place and the stricken people who come to it. You have to fall all the way, before you can rise again. Nothing like being in charge of everything and everyone for centuries to make you an arrogant prick.” He laughed quietly at the expression on my face. “I am the Lord of Thorns, but I’m still a man, with a man’s failings. Any judge forgets that at his peril. I found my faith again, long before Hadleigh turned up to tell me what I needed to know.”
“So why blow your top?” said Larry. “You all but blasted this church off its foundations and slammed it down again facing in a different direction.”
“Just blowing off some steam.” The Lord of Thorns frowned. “There is justice waiting to be done, and there shall be smiting. I’ve been gone too long. The people I’ve seen here, begging for help, telling of terrible things ... The Nightside was never supposed to be like this! So mean, so cruel, so casually evil...”
“I know some people who would agree with you on that,” said Hadleigh.
“Hold it, hold it,” I said. “As I understand it, and I’m perfectly prepared to be told that I don’t ... there’s supposed to be a balance in place these days. You must have heard what happened when the Walking Man tried to lay down the law here. You need to get out and about in the Nightside, Lord, and talk to people, see how things really are, before you start making any decisions. Especially about the smiting.”