Arno took a deep, shuddering breath. Composing himself.
‘I don’t know what’s going on here, but I’m not falling for it. What? I’m supposed to cry like a baby now, because you found somebody who sounds like one of my… Somebody I knew?’
‘This is no trick, Arno. I’m right here.’
‘Sure. If you’re right there, why can’t I see you?’
‘Are you sure you can’t see me, Arno? Look closely.’
Blunt’s stare hopped wildly around the room. There was no one else in there. No one. He was certain of it. But there was a patch of air in the corner of the room that seemed to be bending light, like a floating mirror.
‘Ah, you’ve spotted me.’
‘I’ve spotted nothing,’ said Blunt shakily. ‘All I see is a heat blur. Maybe from a vent or something.’
‘Oh, really?’ said Butler, throwing off the cam foil. To Blunt it seemed as though he had stepped from the air. The bodyguard stood abruptly, catapulting his chair against the wall.
‘Oh, God! What are you?’
Butler bent his knees slightly. Ready for action. He was older now, true. And slower. But the fairy magic had bolstered his reaction time, and he had so much more experience than Blunt. Juliet would have liked to handle this job for him, but there were some things you had to finish personally.
‘I am your guide, Arno. I’ve come to take you home. There are a lot of people waiting to see you.’
‘H-h-home?’ stammered Blunt. ‘What do you mean home?’
Butler took a step forward. ‘You know what I mean, Arno. Home. The place you’ve always been headed. The place you’ve sent so many others. Including me.’
Blunt pointed a shaky finger. ‘You stay away from me. I killed you once, I can do it again.’
Butler laughed. It was not a pleasant sound. ‘That’s where you’re wrong, Arno. I can’t be killed again. Anyway, death is no big deal, not compared to what comes after.’
‘What comes after…’
‘There is a hell, Arno,’ said Butler. ‘I’ve seen it and, believe me, so will you.’
Blunt was utterly convinced; after all, Butler had appeared from nowhere.
‘I didn’t know,’ he sobbed. ‘I didn’t believe it. I never would have shot you, Butler. I was just following Spiro’s orders. You heard him give the order. I was just the metal man; that’s all I’ve ever been.’
Butler laid a hand on his shoulder. ‘I believe you, Arno. You were just following orders.’
‘That’s right.’
‘But that’s not enough. You need to clear your conscience. If you don’t, I have to take you with me.’
Blunt’s eyes were red with tears. ‘How?’ he pleaded. ‘How do I do that?’
‘Confess your sins to the authorities. Leave nothing out, or I will be back.’
Blunt nodded eagerly. Prison was better than the alternative.
‘Remember, I will be watching. This is your one chance to save yourself. If you don’t take it, I will be back.’
Blunt’s teeth popped from his open mouth, rolling across the floor.
‘Don’ worry. I’ll confesh. I promish.’
Butler lifted the cam foil, concealing himself completely.
‘See that you do, or there’ll be hell to pay.’
Butler stepped into the corridor, stuffing the foil inside his jacket. Seconds later, Sid Commons reappeared with a security badge.
He caught sight of Arno Blunt standing stunned in his cell.
‘What did you do, Butler?’ he said.
‘Hey, it wasn’t me. Check your tapes. He just went crazy, talking to thin air. Yelling how he wanted to confess.’
‘He wants to confess? Just like that?’
‘I know how it sounds, but that’s what happened. If I were you, I’d give Justin Barre a call over at ScotlandYard. I have a feeling that Blunt’s statement could clear up a lot of outstanding cases.’
Commons squinted at him suspiciously. ‘Why do I have a feeling that you know more than you’re telling?’
‘Search me,’ said Butler. ‘But feelings aren’t evidence, and your own surveillance tapes will prove that I never set foot in that room.’
‘Are you sure that’s what they’ll show?’
Butler glanced at the patch of air shimmering above Sid Commons’s shoulder.
‘I am positive,’ he said.
CHAPTER 12: MIND WIPE
FOWL MANOR
THE return trip from Heathrow took over an hour, thanks to some particularly strong turbulence and an easterly wind over the Welsh hills. When Holly and Butler finally touched down in the grounds of Fowl Manor the LEP was busy humping their mind-wiping gear up the avenue, under cover of night.
Butler unclipped himself from the Moonbelt, leaning against the trunk of a silver birch.
‘You OK?’ asked Holly.
‘Fine,’ replied the bodyguard, massaging his chest. ‘It’s this Kevlar tissue. Handy if you get shot with a small calibre, but it’s playing havoc with my breathing.’
Holly sheathed her mechanical wings. ‘It’s the quiet life for you from now on.’