Chapter 17

A ball of moist herbs clenched in her hands, one of Susie's silence spells, Sarah climbed out of the window, dropping to the low roof above the kitchen. Susie was ahead of her, agilely tiptoeing across the thick iron drainpipe that went around the side of the house to the trellis where she climbed down past the tall garden gate into the driveway.

Sarah breathed a glad sigh when her feet touched the ground. Susie was walking silently across the driveway to the shed at the side where the bikes were kept. "Do we use the bike lamps?" she asked in a low voice.

"Not until we're out of sight of the house," Sarah said softly, glancing back at the dark house. Susie twisted the combination lock, the lock clicked open and she deftly ducked under the low doorway into the shed and wheeled out one of the mountain bikes. Sarah took it, carefully laying it on the floor, trying not to disturb as much of the crackly gravel as possible as Susie wheeled out the second bike, handing it to Sarah before ducking back out of the shed and locking the door again.

Then they looked back simultaneously at the house and began wheeling the bikes to the gate. Sarah winced as the gate squeaked open, loud enough to wake the dead. When she looked back at the house, two figures were standing in the open doorway of it, the lights were all still off, but she recognised Rita's tired, hunched shape and Blade's tall, hardened physique.

"Bother," Susie muttered uneasily, anticipating Rita's threat of being locked in the cellar and magically bound, to be carried out immediately.

"Where do you think you're going?" Rita's voice was severe.

"For a midnight stroll," Sarah said lightly.

"Go back into the house," Rita ordered, glaring at Sarah and ignoring Susie. "I'm disappointed in you, girls."

"No, mother," Susie said quietly, finally.

"What did you say?" Rita whispered, astonished, and turned to face her only daughter.

"We're going to help find Kierlan," Susie said clearly.

At that, Blade burst out laughing; a bitter laugh. "You two think you can take on the Nightworld? A little witch and a human!"

"So we should just sit back?" Sarah retorted, glaring at Blade. "How can you say that! When we were together, if I'd been kidnapped, would you have sat back and left it to Thierry and everyone else to rescue me?"

"That doesn't matter," Blade said levelly.

"It matters to me," Sarah replied.

"I absolutely will not allow you two to go goddess-knows-where, to try and fight Hunter Redfern and his vampires," Rita snapped, her eyes steely. "Neither of you! And that's that!"

With that, she made a twisting motion with her fingers. The air tightened around Sarah and Susie. Susie drew a sharp breath, and for a second the air was violet. Then Rita was standing, frozen.

"What did you do?" Blade demanded, angry.

"I used what I like to call the threefold law," Susie said levelly. "Except the way I see it. She'll wake up in half an hour. And me and Sarah will be gone. What about you?"

Blade was silent for a moment. Sarah was astonished at Susie. "How did you get more powerful?" she asked, amazed.

"I practised," Susie said coolly. "So?" She turned to Blade, a challenge in her tone. "What are you going to do?"

"Your mother was just trying to protect you," Blade said, frowning. "Why turn on her?"

"She's protected me for long enough," Susie said briefly.

"I'll come with you," Blade said finally, not looking at Sarah. "Just so you don't get yourselves killed."

With that, he went to his car, unlocked the doors. "Hurry up," he said irritably.