A Glimmer of Hope (The Avalon Chronicles #1)(71)
Remy coughed into his hand. “Screw you,” he said between coughs. “Sorry, it’s a terrible affliction.”
The sides of Tommy’s mouth creased upward. “Once you’re settled, I’d like to see you all in the drawing room. Let’s say in an hour.” He pointed to the left. “It’s through that door.”
“Just say in there,” Remy said snidely as he walked past. “Drawing room.” He tutted.
“Your father was a rich lord,” Tommy said, as Remy began to ascend the stairs.
“Yeah, but I like giving you shit. It gives me a sense of well-being.”
Kasey and Diana turned away from the group and chuckled, while Layla and Harry followed Remy up the staircase to the next floor.
It didn’t take long for Remy to show them to their rooms. They were right opposite each other, halfway down a huge hallway that ran off toward the right of the building. Layla had counted four doors before reaching the one to her room, and there were another four further down the hallway.
“Eight rooms on this side, and eight on that side,” Layla said. “This really was built for a king.”
“Someone who thought they would be. It didn’t end well for him. That’s the thing about the world you’ve found yourself in. You’re going to meet a lot of people with delusions of grandeur. And a lot more people who might not be so deluded in a lot of ways, but still have enough power to snuff us all out and barely break a sweat. There’s always someone else who needs stopping, someone else who’s allowed their power to go to their head. It’s never ending, and in many ways exhausting, but stopping them is better than letting them continue unabated.”
Remy opened Layla’s bedroom door. “I’ll leave you to get used to your new surroundings.” He walked over and opened Harry’s door too. “My advice: make a cup of tea or coffee, get it down, and get back downstairs. I get the feeling Tommy has a lot on his mind.”
Layla entered the room and sat down on the king-size bed, wondering who would have picked the Star Wars quilt cover and pillowcase. She flipped both of them over to check if the pattern was on both sides, and was just grateful that Jar Jar Binks wasn’t on it. He’d ruined enough things without ruining sleep too.
A green suitcase sat on the bed in which she found several changes of clothing and more hygiene products than any one person could possibly require. She needed a shower and would be grateful to have a clean pair of pajamas on at the end of the day.
The room was spacious and decorated in a similar manner to the rest of the building. There was an old wooden chest of drawers, on top of which sat a forty-inch television. A leather armchair sat in one corner of the room, next to the large window that overlooked the rear gardens.
Layla pulled up the window and stared at the incredible feat of gardening below her. Colorful flowers dominated the landscape, with apple and plum trees to one side, away from the flowers. At the rear of the property was a hedge maze. It reminded her of The Shining, and she had no intention of going anywhere near that maze. Or walking around the halls alone after dark.
On the opposite side of the room sat another chest of drawers made of the same dark brown wood as the first. A small fridge sat beside it, and she opened it revealing a pint of milk and several chocolate bars. She removed one, a Double Decker, and unwrapped it, taking a bite, before putting the kettle on. The coffee and tea was beside the kettle, along with two light blue mugs of completely different sizes. She picked the considerably larger one and poured herself some coffee, forgoing the milk, and walked over to the armchair to sit and drink in peace.
Layla looked out of the window as a peregrine falcon hovered briefly and then dive-bombed to the ground at incredible speed. She watched in awe as it vanished behind a hedge, before reappearing with something in its claws. She loved birds of prey—going to a falconry show with her parents was one of the few good memories that contained her father. She’d simply refused to let his presence in her memory spoil what had been a magical time for her.
The falcon vanished from view as it continued toward the forest at the rear of the property. She hoped that wasn’t meant to be a metaphor for her future.
She remained there for a few more minutes, finishing her coffee, then closed the window and made her way back downstairs to the drawing room. She got the feeling it would be better to hear whatever Tommy needed to say sooner rather than later.
26
“This does not appear to be going as smoothly as you suggested it would.” Nergal’s words stung Elias as if he’d been slapped. A cold anger settled inside of him.
“The blood elves—” Elias started.
“I did not expect the blood elves to be waylaid by a young woman who has had her powers for mere days,” Nergal interrupted.
Elias was beginning to regret ever using the computer to talk to Nergal. At least with a handset you could pretend you had lost reception. It was harder to do those things when the other person was watching you.
“Thomas Carpenter and his people were waiting for us,” Elias explained. “Diana was there.”
Nergal smiled. “Ah, Diana. She always was able to put her nose in places it wasn’t wanted. Fine, we’re no longer dealing with one scared woman; we’re dealing with a formidable opponent. I suggest you think of a way to get access to Layla without having to fight your way through however many people Thomas Carpenter has decided to guard her with. Do we even know where she is?”