I allowed them to hustle me up another flight of stairs to the room Baxter had allocated us the first time we’d stayed over. Edwin helped me inside, where I kicked my way out of my trainers and tottered over to the bed, still clinging firmly to the bottle of lager. Edwin wrestled it from me as I made a nosedive onto the pristine sheets. “I think perhaps you’re a bit more than tipsy,” he remarked, sounding amused. “Trace, give me a hand?”
I cracked open my eyes which had fallen closed again, to see Trace standing hesitantly in the doorway. “C’m’in and shut the door,” I slurred. Jeez, the walls were blurry. I’d been throwing back the booze like I had a tolerance for the stuff when the truth was I’d never had the spare cash to get bladdered, and my limit was probably a single measure of anything.
I lay like an amenable rag doll while Edwin removed my clothes and directed Trace to find pyjamas in my overnight bag. When Trace expressed surprise that said pyjamas were the sort to cover me from neck to ankles, Edwin said with a hint of impatience, “James is slender and gets cold easily. My vampire skin temperature makes that worse. Get some clean socks aswell, please, and his hoodie. He always wears one of those too. Keeps his neck warm.”
“He’s so fussy,” I mumbled to the room at large. “Could jus’ use a blanket, y’know.”
“You’re my friend and my shadow,” came the sharp retort, “and I’ll bloody well look after you how I see fit.”
“I like you bossy. You’re not likehim.He hurt me.”Oh no, don’t think about him, James. Bad idea.
“Baby, I know he did. I killed him so he can’t ever hurt you again. I wish I could resurrect him to kill him all over again for what he did to you.” Edwin hauled me into his arms and I went limp in his embrace, pyjamaed and safe from the outside world, the only sound I needed the slow thump of his undead heart against my cheek.
“D’you call mebaby?”I giggled. “’M twenny-three.Not a baby.”
He sighed. “Good lord, you’re pissed as a newt.” He kissed my forehead. “I’m going to get you into bed, then turn off the lights.” He lifted me like a feather, arranged me carefully on the pillows, and pulled up the covers.
“Don’ leave me.” Even in my inebriated state I heard the whine in my voice. I cringed.Liability.
“Nobody’s leaving you, James.” Trace, his hand coming to tentatively close over my wrist. “Eddie’s just gone to brush his teeth.”
“He only lets people he likes call him Eddie.” I frowned. What point was I making here?
“He told me I could. Is that okay with you?”
“’S a grown man. Course it is.”My head aches.“Means he likes you.”
“I like him too.”
“Hmm.” I drifted until Edwin returned. Trace stood up and I frowned again. “Where’s he going?”
“To bed, love. It’s past dawn.”
“Oh.” I was definitely falling asleep. “He can sleep here. Jus’, not on my side, ’kay? That’s for me an’ you, Eddie.”
“You sure?” Edwin switched on a lamp, and the overhead light went off. Only a soft glow remained behind my eyelids.
“Yeah, ’m sure. Y’said he can call you Eddie.” I yawned, then blinked into unconsciousness.
“James…James.”A soft shake on my shoulder had me bolting upright in the dim light. I blinked, then saw Trace perched on my edge of the bed. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.
“What’s up?” Edwin was out cold, literally, his body the creepy stillness that overtook him when he slept. Every day, it gave me a jolt to realise how different he was from me, and how not-human, whatever I’d said to him earlier.He’s still a man.
Trace shook his head. “Nothing’s wrong. Isher has offered to help me rebuild the inside of the wagon and he’s been given the go-ahead to do it magically. We’re heading off now to make the most of his time down south. I didn’t want to leave without saying goodbye.” His gaze slid across to Edwin. Ahh.
He must have seen where my thoughts were headed. “Absolutely do not wake him,” he said firmly. “There’s no emergency. It’s not even really important, but I didn’t want either of you to think I was sneaking off. It’s just, if I can get some kind of real home set up, it gives me more time to prepare the ground and to move my plants in. I don’t want to be beholden to that awful Filey any longer than necessary.”
I recalled the bare, empty structure of the second railway carriage and understood. In Trace’s shoes, I too would havewanted to install some basic comforts. “I get that,” I said. “Isher can magic you a new home?”
“Not entirely, but he can advance the situation to where I could move in and be more comfortable than I would be if I tried as it is now.” He smiled at me and held out a glass of murky-coloured liquid. “I thought this might benefit you. You seemed a little the worse for wear last night.”
Oh God.Embarrassment slicked my skin with cold sweat as I struggled to remember what I might have said or done. My mind was a blank. In a panic, I took the glass with a mumbled thank you, peering at it with a frown. “Erm…”
“I promise you, you’ll feel a lot better with the contents inside you. Remember, I’m a witch. I’m good with herbs and potions. Here,” he motioned for it back, “do you want me to try it? To show you it’s not poisoned.”
I gave him my best defiant glare. “You wouldn’t fucking dare. Edwin would have your bollocks if you harmed a hair on my head.” I tipped the glass up and took a huge draught of the gloopy liquid. My eyes widened. “It tastes of sunlight.”
Trace looked startled, but he quickly covered it with another smile, this one as bland as a Rich Tea biscuit. “That’s one way of putting it,” he agreed smoothly. “I thought you were going to say ‘grass’ or ‘lawnmower clippings’. People usually do.” He eyed me warily. “But I don’t think you’re ‘most people’, James Wilson.” He pulled a chain from his trouser pocket. I was gobsmacked to see it had an old-fashioned fob watch on the end. “I’d better go. Don’t want to keep Isher waiting. Tell Edwin I’ll be in touch very soon?”
