Blood and Feathers Read Online Free

the room. Mallory grinned at her. “Oh, I know you don’t. But I do.” He took a healthy swig, watched by Gwyn, who sighed.
    “And that, Mallory, is precisely why you....”
    “Oh, no. No you don’t,” Mallory tucked the flask back into his coat. “We’re not talking about me. We’re here to talk about you.” He looked at Alice, who suddenly felt very small and alone.
    Gwyn sniffed, and lowered himself into a chair. “Tell me, Alice, what did your father tell you about what happened to your mother?”
    “He didn’t like to talk about her: she died when I was little. He didn’t tell me what happened, wouldn’t let me come to the funeral. Never even told me where she’s buried. He said she was with the angels, and that’s all I needed to know. That much, he was always very clear on.”
    Alice had the strange sensation that it was someone else talking, as though a stranger had borrowed her voice and was opening up a part of her that had been secret. She wasn’t sure whether or not the disconnection was a relief. Gwyn took in her words and steepled his fingers in front of his face, frowning. There was silence, and then he looked her dead in the eyes and said: “And did he never tell you which angels she was with?”
    Alice laughed. “Which angels she was with? Right. Absolutely. I should have thought to ask, shouldn’t I? He just didn’t think a six-year-old should know too much about how her mother died, and by the time I was old enough to want to know, he’d already decided he was done talking about it. The last couple of years, he hasn’t even let me mention her around him. So, no. He wasn’t specific about the angels.”
    The numbness released her, and now she heard the bitterness in her voice. She’d never heard herself sound like that before... what was happening to her? This wasn’t how she talked, certainly not to strangers, and above all not to strangers as strange as these. She caught the glance that passed between Gwyn and Mallory: Gwyn raising his eyebrows expectantly and Mallory shrugging. “Totally not my call,” he muttered, slouching back against the cushions and focusing very firmly on the toes of his boots.
    Gwyn sat forward, his eyes searching Alice’s face for just a moment too long, then got up and moved to the window.
    “I wish this were easier, Alice.” He folded his arms and a chill ran down her spine. She looked sideways at Mallory, but he was still staring at the floor and would not meet her gaze. “You have to believe me when I say this is all far from ideal. It’s not at all how I would choose to operate, but we don’t always get to make the easy choices. And nor do you.
    “We knew your mother, Alice. We knew her better than even your father did. And we know you. Now it’s time for you to know us.” He closed his eyes, and the edges of the room suddenly seemed sharper, brighter. Everything grew lighter, and there was a sound like the wind in the trees, faint at first, then louder and louder.
    As Alice watched, Gwyn unfolded his wings, and every bulb in the house blew out as one.

CHAPTER FOUR
     
    Ancient History
     
     
    A LICE HEARD LAUGHTER . It was light and high, a woman’s laugh, and she found herself looking around for its source. It was only when she saw Mallory’s scowl that she realised it was her, and she closed her mouth.
    The room should have been dark without the lights, but there was another light in the room, one which hummed and throbbed like a heartbeat. It was Gwyn – or rather, it was his wings.
    The narrow little room wasn’t large enough for him to open them fully, so they sat slightly folded behind him, sweeping down until the tips brushed the floor. They were white and they shimmered . All across the surface of the feathers, white sparks glittered and arced.
    “He doesn’t like it when people do that. Laugh, I mean. Makes him grouchy,” said Mallory. “Best act like you’re impressed, or you’ll never hear the end of