‘But that’s crazy, guys. He can’t be more powerful than the Estonian, can he?’ said Garik.
‘But why can’t he?’ Ilya asked without raising his head. ‘A couple of hours ago I thought I knew all four of the Moscow Dark Ones I couldn’t handle one on one. But now I’m not sure of anything.’
Anton slumped back against the fridge: the question on his tongue was still unspoken – the conversation was more interesting than he’d thought it would be.
And then Tiger Cub beat him to it:
‘Ilya! Why don’t you fill us in? About the artefact.’
Ilya stood up abruptly:
‘Briefly, Fáfnir’s Talon has been removed from the Inquisition’s vault in Berne. Two …’ he glanced at his watch ‘… no, three hours ago now. The Swiss department is in a panic. The Inquisition is fuming and thundering, but so far it hasn’t issued an official communiqué. The details are unknown, all we do know is that the Talon is at the seasonal peak of its power. In the Dark phase, of course. Simple calculations indicate that releasing even part of the power accumulated by the Talon in Central Russia is likely to result in powerful discharges, up to and including a localised Inferno breakthrough. And that’s how things currently stand.’
‘And Zabulon’s not in Moscow,’ Tolik drawled with slow emphasis.
‘You mean the Dark Ones are behind this?’
‘Well, we aren’t, are we?’ Ilya asked and his shoulders twitched as if he suddenly felt cold.
‘Does Gesar know about this?’
‘Of course. He was the one who told me. He ordered me not to worry, but just keep on working away.’
Ilya sat down again.
‘I don’t even know what to think,’ he said in a voice that was somehow both tough and helpless. ‘To be quite honest, when I heard about a Shahab’s Ring killing a Light One, I suspected the Talon was already here. There’s no point in setting up a Ring with such monstrous power – it’s just a sheer, unnecessary waste. I’d understand if it was to protect the Talon, but for a lousy few thousand dollars … it’s simply idiotic.’
‘A Dark One wouldn’t have left the Talon in his room without someone to guard it,’ Garik put in.
‘Of course not. That would be stupid.’
‘Yes, it would,’ Ilya agreed. ‘But we had to check.’
‘And what can we do now?’ Tiger Cub asked morosely. ‘Now Andriukha’s dead, and we can’t even punish his killer?’
‘Katya,’ Ilya said, looking at her sympathetically ‘it’s sad, but that’s the way it is. And now we’ve got a problem that makes Andrei’s death seem almost unimportant. The analysts have been following the approximate balance between the global power nexuses since four o’clock this morning. If the Talon is moved, the balance is bound to be disrupted.’
‘And have they come up with anything?’
‘Yes. About an hour ago it became clear that the Talon is either already in Moscow or due to appear here any time now.’
‘Hang on,’ Tolik put in again, ‘so the recurrences of poaching and unmotivated aggression by Dark Ones are down to the influence of the Talon?’
‘Probably.’
‘But the first incident took place on Saturday!’ Tiger Cub protested in surprise.
Ilya massaged his temples again; it was obvious that he was very tired.
‘The Talon is a very powerful artefact, Tiger Cub. The lines of probability extend far into the future. And the Dark Ones are more powerfully influenced by Dark artefacts than we are. So the small fry have already started running wild.’
‘If it’s so powerful, how come the Inquisition has mislaid it?’
‘I don’t know,’ Ilya retorted, ‘I wasn’t there. But I’m quite sure of one thing: if it’s possible to do something, sooner or later someone’s going to do it.’
‘Our people are coming,’ Garik remarked, changing the subject.
He was right, someone from the service section had arrived. Obviously Andrei Tiunnikov’s body had to be removed.
‘And what about this Dark One?’ Anton asked at last. ‘Do you think he’s connected with the thieves?’
‘Not necessarily.’ Ilya watched sadly as Tiunnikov’s body was zipped into a black polythene bag. ‘He could be distracting us. Or he might not even be aware of what he’s doing. That’s what it actually looks like most of all. The Talon is controlling him, or the person who now has it. And the Dark One has definitely become more powerful since our run-in with him last Saturday.’
‘Then shouldn’t we be following him?’ Tolik suggested. ‘If he’s connected with the Talon, isn’t he bound to lead us to the thieves?’
‘If he is connected, he’ll lead us to them.’
‘And if he doesn’t?’
Ilya just sighed.
‘Then we’ll have more surprises and emergencies. And that Dark One will be there all the time, just at the edge of our field of vision. He’s bound to be.’
‘Wait,’ Garik said tensely. ‘What if he’s intended for the Talon?’
‘That’s what I’m afraid of.’
Anton shook his head sharply. After the events of eighteen months before, for a while he had thought he could regard himself as an experienced and hardened Watchman. But now he felt like a beginner among virtuosos again. And he didn’t like having to admit it.
The phone rang – the local hotel phone. It felt odd to hear the ring of an ordinary phone after the trilling of all the mobiles.
‘Hello?’ Tolik picked up the receiver, listened for a moment and turned to Ilya. ‘For you. It’s Semyon.’
Ilya took the receiver and put it to his ear, then ran a piercing gaze over them all.
‘Let’s get going, guys. The boss is already in the office.’ Anton realised, with a vague feeling of weariness, that now he would see Svetlana again. And again he would feel the gulf between them widening with every second.
I didn’t stay at the Day Watch office for long after things livened up. I was dozing off where I sat, so I was sent off to catch up on my sleep. I didn’t object; I’d been on my feet for more than twenty-four hours and I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
As I fell into sleep I could faintly hear Kipelov’s singing coming from somewhere:
CHAPTER 3
I WOKE up when I realised I was being called. Called in the same way that vampires call their prey. Still not fully awake, I got up and fumbled for my clothes on the chair.
The Call was sweet and alluring, it enveloped me, caressing and urging me, it was impossible, absolutely impossible, to resist. Sometimes it sounded like music, sometimes like singing, sometimes like whispering, and in every form it was perfect, a reflection of my own soul.
And then, like a sudden blow just below the knees, came the jerk up onto the next step.
The Call instantly lost its power over me, although it hadn’t stopped. I dropped the trousers I was holding and shook my head quickly.
Oh, that hurt.
The sweet hypnotic syrup slowly drained out of me. Drained out and disappeared beneath the floor. Spent Light energy faded power.
I suddenly understood very clearly why vampires’ victims smile as they present their necks to be bitten. When the Call sounds, they’re happy. This is the sweet moment they have been waiting for all their lives, and compared with this, life is as empty and grey as the world of the Twilight.
The Call is a kind of gift. A release. Only it was still too soon for me to be set free.