Chapter 5
1102 Words
Chapter 5
The world gradually came back to Ciaran as he opened his eyes. Ayana’s voice still echoed in his head, “Are you sure her soul is virtuous?” Ciaran wasn’t sure if he had forced Madeline into a dead end. He was a bit afraid of another one of Juliette’s scenarios.
Had Madeline killed before? he wondered.
It wasn’t just any killing, but the killing of an innocent that he worried about. He couldn’t see signs of such violence in her. But if she had killed someone, surely she wouldn’t have accepted what Richard had offered.
Ciaran gazed at the ceiling of his bedroom at Mon Ciel for a few minutes to regain his bearings. Suddenly, his view was pleasantly obstructed by the gorgeous green eyes of Jo looking at him.
“Hey, White Knight, you’re back!” She grinned and slid her arm underneath his back to help him sit up in his bed. It surprised Ciaran how strong Jo was given her petite physique.
“How's your shoulder, Jo?”
She shifted the shoulder that had been dislocated during the fight at Fountains Abbey and smiled. “See? No need for a sling. Let me get you some water."
She got up to get the water from a jug sitting on the side table.
Ciaran took the glass of water. "Thanks. Where’s Madeline?"
"Down at the library, talking things over with Tadgh. Strategies. Important matters. Things that happened at the cemetery."
Ciaran nodded.
"Aren't you thirsty?" Jo pointed at the glass of water that he still held in his hand.
Ciaran laughed. "I know they asked you to drug me when I woke up. But you’ll have to be a bit more subtle than that to fool me, Jo."
"Damn it," Jo muttered.
He turned the glass of water around in a circle. “How long have you known Madeline?”
“As long as I can remember. I think we met at school. Why do you ask?”
Ciaran smiled. “You’re Madeline’s friend. I’d just like to get to know you a bit more.”
“You want to know me? Or Madeline?”
Ciaran chuckled. “Both. Do you like Tadgh?”
Jo sat down at his bedside, looked straight into his eyes, and answered without even the slightest squirm, “He’s not my type.”
Ciaran nodded. She didn’t even sugarcoat it. Jo intrigued him. Strong-minded. Strong-willed. Just the type that would stupefy his brother. Ciaran shifted his body to get off the bed. Jo stood up, hands on her hips.
“I wasn’t able to drug you, but I’m very sure I can knock you out. Lie down, Ciaran.”
Ciaran smiled. “I need to get to my computer. It’s very important.”
“Can’t let you. Doctor’s orders.”
“Or Madeline’s?”
“Same thing. She can be pretty scary when she’s pissed off.”
“All right. Here’s the deal. You either let me work on my computer or simply answer my questions. Then I won’t need to move.”
Jo bit her pouting bottom lip. “As long as the questions aren’t too tricky, shoot.”
“Does Madeline have a criminal record?”
Jo laughed. “No.”
“Does she have any record of committing violence against others?”
“Of course not. Give her a white dress, and she’d turn into Cinderella. Or a nun. Why are you asking? Honestly?”
“What about off the record? I’m asking for your opinion here.”
The smile faded from Jo’s face. She stared at Ciaran and said nothing.
“I love her. You know that by now. Do you think I’d do anything to harm her?”
Jo shook her head. “I know you wouldn’t. But it’s not you that I’m worried about. It’s Madeline herself.”
His blood ran cold, and fear pounded in his head. He was suddenly afraid that his gut instinct had been right, that it couldn’t be as easy as making a promise to be a successor of Sciphil One to solve the problem Ayana had presented.
“I don’t know. I want to know the answer to that, too,” Jo said.
“Why, Jo?”
“Because I want to know if I was responsible for making her do the unthinkable. I can’t make her talk. Why don’t you try, Ciaran? Ask her what happened in Australia ten years ago.”
“You think she might have killed someone?”
“As I said, I don’t know what happened. I was there with her. And when I woke up, those people were dead.”
“Why do you think you’d be responsible if Madeline killed them?”
He stood up to go to the computer. Jo didn’t stop him this time. “Don’t bother looking up the records, Ciaran. There’s nothing to find. I wiped it. That was the only time I hacked into any system.”
He turned around and looked at Jo. There was the gleam of tears in her eyes, but she didn’t let any fall.
“I’m sorry about what happened to you, Jo. And I’m sorry I had to ask about it.”
Ciaran reached out to embrace her, but she stepped back. She looked him square in the eye. “The man was trying to rape me. He knocked me unconscious. When I came to, it was already over. Everyone was dead, and Madeline was there. So ask her if she killed them because of me. I need to know.”
She couldn’t hold back any longer, and tears rolled down her face. “Everything was burned to the ground. All Madeline told me was that there had been an accident, and she only had enough time to drag me out. But I know she was lying.”
“I’ll ask . . .”
Suddenly the migraine hit him in a tremendous wave. Ciaran grabbed his head and slumped to the floor. A distant voice pierced his mind, stabbing his brain like shards of glass. He’d heard this voice before, but this time it wasn’t the usual robotic monotone voice. It was one with an Irish accent.
“We’re finally connected, Ciaran,” it said. “It’s about time you come back to us to fulfill your duty.”
“Who are you?” Ciaran asked. The person didn’t seem to hear his question. The static noise continued, and the voice kept ranting.
“Thirty-three years I’ve been waiting, Ciaran. It’s time.”
The voice was so distorted that Ciaran couldn’t make sense of what he was trying to say.
Jo held Ciaran’s shoulders. “Ciaran, look at me. Ciaran . . . Take this water . . . Who are you talking to?”
“Speak clearer,” said Ciaran. “I can’t hear you, goddamnit. What is Sciphil? What does Madeline have to do with any of this?”
“Madeline . . . Madeline . . . she’s the key . . .” The voice faded away.
“No, no! Don’t go! What’s Sciphil?” His vision was blurry. He tried to hang on to the sound of the voice as much as possible, but it seemed to have gone completely away.
“You’re bleeding, Ciaran.” Jo wiped the blood that trickled from his nose. “Not another Sciphil. I have had enough of this . . .”
Ciaran blinked. “What did you just say, Jo?”
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