Aaron and Silas Leave Prydan and Connaught dealing with their bomb shell.
“If anything that makes it easier doesn’t it?” Silas observes as they head up the hill towards the cross.
“How?”
“Well if most of these crosses lead to realms which are Daemonic, that makes the whole murder thing a doddle. Grab the girl and jump. She didn’t have to be aiming for a particular world at all.”
“Unless she had a particular Daemon in mind.” He shrugs. “Mind you if was she headed into shades anyway….” Aaron shakes his head. “ohh.” He stretches. “This is getting to me.” He confesses. “Something is gelling but it’s not quite right.”
The watch have set up a barricade round the cross to prevent people bumping into it. A high chain link fence with concrete feet. Silas stares at it sadly.
“Is that really necessary?”
“Probably health and safety regulations.”
“Looks like it’s in a cage.” Silas protests. “It shouldn’t be in a cage.” Suddenly he feels angry without really knowing why. It’s almost as if some one has imprisoned a good friend.
He turns out the shout of his name. A woman is running down towards them, her long fair hair streaming behind her. She is smiling, obviously pleased at having found him. She is dressed in a long light cotton dress with a black silk coat over it. He tries to smile as he looks at her and then it hits him.
“This shouldn’t be in a cage. This is a memorial Aaron. This is every Caester that died. Every person who fell to the Daemons. Like Gemma’s brother.” He gestures to the woman approaching them. “Like Amy. You can’t let them do this.”
Aaron looks at him. Then he looks at the cross.
Gemma reaches them. “Hi Silas, Hi Dr Mellor. I’ve been looking for you.” Then she stops and looks at the cross, a frown on her face as she sees the fencing. Her dark eyes look up at Aaron questioningly “What’s going on?”
Aaron opens his mouth to answer but Silas gets there first. “Some fool thinks it’s dangerous.” There is venom in his words.
Gemma steps back. “Wooo Silas, it’s only a statue.”
He turns and looks at her. “No it’s much more than that. Much much more.” His face takes a determined expression. “And I’m going to make sure they know that.”
He turns round and heads back down the hill to the garrison.
Gemma goes to go after him but Aaron reaches out to stop her. “No.”
She turns and looks up at him confused.
Aaron opens his mouth and takes a breath in, collecting his thought before speaking. “This is his fight.”
“What is?”
He looks at the cross and then back at Gemma. He gestures to the cross. “Silas lost some one recently. Like your brother.”
“The Daemons?”
Aaron nods. “We just worked something out. Something about the cross. It relates to the worlds the Daemons took.”
Gemma looks at it. “Yeah.” She breaths softly. Something in her manner makes it clear she is not overly surprised. “I came here a lot after Alan died. Some how it made me feel closer to him.”
“You are not the only one.” Aaron confirms softly. Then he looks at her. “What did you want him for anyway?”
“There’s a party tonight at Cloisters. 8:30. I was wondering if he wanted to come?”
Aaron smiles. “Yeah he will. He needs a bit of R&R.”
“Well if you can get him there it would be great to see him.”
“Oh I’ll round up some wild horses if I have to. Thanks Gem.”
+*+
”Darling how the fuck am I meant to give the head back as part of our negotiations if you have sucked the bloody thing dry?”
“It annoyed me.” Paul states simply There is a dark edge to his voice, almost as if it’s a warning that it might not be the only thing to face that fate in the near future.
Rae makes as if she is going to hit him. And then she turns and walks away, putting her hands up to her face.
“Crap now what are we going to do. We can’t give it back to them in that condition.”
“Just tell them it was destroyed.”
“But I was going to use that as a bargaining chip to find out what they were doing there in the first place.
“They were on a mission sent by some one high up. Maybe one of the gods.” He responds flatly.
“Paul!” She shouts at him.
“It doesn’t fucking matter Rae.” He replies. “It doesn’t matter who sent them what matters was why they were sent. I talked to Jerry.”
“And what did Jerry say.”
“Why Didn’t They Kill Silvia?”
“Well that’s helpful.”
“Yes it is now stop and answer the fucking question.
“I don’t know!”
“You do. They didn’t kill Silvia because they did not want her dead. The Urox were looking for some one that they fully expected to be in that room. Mr Stone house. But they found Silvia. They didn’t think ‘May be this is him’ and take her any way. They didn’t kill her anyway. They just left.”
She stares at him.
“The head is not something they want. They would like it but they don’t want it. Not like they wanted what ever they expected to find in that house or right now we’d be shooting nuke’s in our own back garden. What they want is Mr Stone house.”
Paul’s Eye brows twitch. She knows the expression all too well.
“And we know where Mr Stone house is don’t we.”
Rae sits down. “We can’t do that Paul?”
“Why?”
“Because he’s family.” She replies
“Since when?” He challenges
“Since….” She stops herself, trying to justify out loud what she feels. “Since Suki said he was.”
Paul sighs and sits back. “Crap.” He knows he has no defence against that one.
“You can’t just hand him over to the Bulmäs Paul. They’d kill him. He’s a Half breed.”
Paul clicks his fingers. The other half of Jerrys questions hitting his mind.
“May be not. May be this is one of those things that have to be.”
“What the fuck are you talking about, Paul?”
“We need to talk to Silas. And I mean We because I can’t take him to the Bulmäs but you can.”
“This is insane.”
“No it’s not. But you are right we can’t just hand him over. He has to agree to this. I made that mistake before and I really don’t want to get a dressing down off Suki again.”
+*+
Silas is on the dance floor with Sally. She is dancing with a fierce energy, her long dark hair whipping round and her green eyes closed as she looses herself in the fast music. Her ‘clubbing dress’ barely covers anything ands they are getting quite a few looks from jealous bystanders. But in the last year or so that they have been a couple he has got used to such looks. If anything they make him feel lucky.
He had complaining loudly when Aaron told him he had accepted a party invite on his behalf, but now he realises how vital the down time it is. Besides time spent with these guys helps to keep him focused on what is normal rather than being lost into all the Wyrd shit.
Gemma is laughing at Roland, a large ginger haired man with rugby player shoulders, who is trying to balance empty beer cans on the head of the statue of the monk that gives the club it’s name. Whilst his much smaller and dark haired brother Clive is trying to persuade the DJ to play a track from their band. Surrounded by his friends he is finally beginning to relax and forget about all the crap that his happening, for the night at least.
And then he sees a face in the crowd that he really does not want to see.

Paul grins at him as he heads towards them on the dance floor.
“Go away I’m having a good time.” Silas complains.
Sally looks over at him confused for a second thinking that he is talking to her. Then she sees Paul.
“Don’t worry Rae is getting the drinks in.” He assures him.
Paul gins at Sally.
She looks at him suspiciously. “Do I know you?”
“I work with him.” Silas states.
“Oh.”
Gemma waves at them, beckoning them to come over, Sally start to move but Paul catches Silas’s arm.
“We need a chat.” He states his face serious.
“Ok but not here and not now.” Silas pleads,
Paul shrugs.
“Ok.”
Rae joins them with drinks, handing one to Silas. He takes it.
“Silas wants to party tonight.” Paul informs her pointedly.
“Yeah and?” She responds. “You still owe me a night out.”
“Do you think your guys would mind if we joined them?” Paul asks
Silas looks at the group laughing together, thinking about the way Sally reacted.
“No.” Rae solves his dilemma. “Have a good time Silas. We’ll catch up in the morning.” She drags Paul away.