Belonging Read online

  Contents

  Title page

  Copyright

  Disclaimer

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Thank you

  BELONGING

  The Cog Chronicles Book 3

  by

  P.M. Cole

  Copyright © 2019 by Philip Maxey

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  First Printing, 2019.

  http://www.pmcoleauthor.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales, is purely coincidental.

  CHAPTER ONE

  I held the cloak tight around my shoulders, keeping my hands tucked in to keep warm. I was perched high on top of the Crystal Palace, as the sun rose somewhere in the east. The daylight was doing its best to warm my skin, but my mind felt as frozen as the pipe I was sitting on. Clumps of icy flakes gently fell from the grey heavens onto the dirigible landing area in front of me.

  My mother’s words kept playing in my mind, and each time I searched for a reason not to believe them, but on some level, I knew they were true. Hades was my father. Not an actual father, not a man that had any right to the name, but someone who was somehow part of me, and worse, I of him.

  But he wasn’t just a man, he was the god of the underworld. What did that make me? Daughter of the underworld?

  A ripple of laughter bubbled up but failed to make it from my lips as my mind fell back into bewilderment.

  And what about Gideon, my actual father? Did he know of my mother’s unfaithfulness? They argued a lot I remember that much. Maybe he did know, but either way he died trying to protect me. He deserved better.

  I looked at the large dirigible, straining against its ropes holding it to the roof. This one was similar in design to the one I traveled to Whitechapel in, but with a larger envelope and accommodation. As I studied its elements, other designs leapt into my mind, and I let them fly free in my imagination, creating more and more advanced versions, a welcome respite from my other thoughts.

  The ideas evaporated when the door to the roof opened and Daniel appeared, bracing himself against the wind. He walked and sat down on the same pipe I had found an hour earlier.

  “The others want you to come back in,” he said.

  I glanced at him, then back out at the frost-covered grass and trees of the park, now leaving their shadows behind.

  He looked in the same direction. “Are you going to tell them?”

  “Tell them what.”

  “You know what, that Hades is—”

  I whipped my head around, catching his gaze. “Do not finish that sentence! It is my secret to share and no one else’s.”

  He nodded.

  I relaxed my anger. “Did you know?”

  He shook his head. “No, none of us knew.” He sighed. “Another secret he kept from me.” He paused as in thought, then met my eyes with his. “I owe you an apology. What I said to you in your basement home and—”

  I shook my head. “You were under his spell as much as anyone. Even I, before the events of last night… I started to question everything I thought I knew before coming to Grayton manor. He said Mr Gladwell wanted me for revenge against him, that Mr Gladwell had tried to take all of you, and I was the only one he was not able to save…”

  “He told us the same stories. Now, I do not know which is the truth, and which are falsehoods.”

  “Mr Gladwell was one of the most honourable men I had ever known… But I sensed some element of truth in Hades' words. Perhaps Mr Gladwell did try to get to all of you, but not out of revenge but to save you from him?”

  Daniel nodded in agreement then waited again, finding more courage to ask his next question. “When we first returned, you said you tried to kill him, but couldn’t.”

  “Yes.”

  “I was there. I saw what condition he was in. I had weakened him. You could have done it, but you stopped.”

  His words were taking me back to the attic room, a place I did not want to be. “I… don’t think it would have worked if I tried. I remembered what Lucas had told me about undoing Chronus’s spell. That we needed Hades' blood, so I thought that would be a better…” It was a lie that I was also telling myself.

  “And you think that is possible? To send him back to the underworld?”

  “Lucas seems to think so. We have to try.” I looked at the young man next to me; his blond hair looking unruly, his chin full of stubble. “What will you do?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You said you’re a medical student, you have studies to attend?”

  He looked away in thought. “I can’t return to my former life; it will be too dangerous. Hades… might not be willing to kill you, but I doubt he will extend the same courtesy to myself.” He briefly smiled. “My medical career will have to be put on hold.”

  While being caught up in my own web of confusion I hadn’t given any thought to what Daniel must have been going through. The man he thought of as his father, who he looked up to, had been lying to him his entire life. I put my hand upon his. I regarded this tall medical student as more family, than the woman that birthed me. “You will be a doctor one day.” I pulled my hand back. “But… we will have to fight to get to that day. Did you hear everything Hades said to me?”

  “Not everything. But I saw the Prime Minister on the floor. I presume Hades killed him?”

  “Yes, if I had entered the room sooner… Maybe I could have done something… From what I heard Gladstone did not want to go along with Hades' plans. But I’m not sure killing him was what Hades originally intended.”

  Daniel sat up slightly, his eyes widening.

  “What if he says you, or we, killed him?”

  I hadn’t thought of that.

  “I don’t know…”

  “How will we run from Hades and the government? There will be nowhere safe for us!”

  My head ached. I had no answers to any of his questions and fatigue was starting to claw at me. I stood. “I need to get some rest.”

  *****

  People rushed past me, panic in their eyes. I tried to catch someone to find out what they were so afraid of, but everybody slipped from my grasp. The whole street was a sea of people: men, women, children, each one wanting to get away from an unknown terror.

  Then I heard police whistles, and horses galloping, not caring who their hoofs trampled. Someone bumped into my leg. I looked down. A grime-covered boy tried to pull away, but I grabbed hold of his arm.

  “Why do you run?” I asked.

  He stammered until eventually his words formed. “Death’s coming, miss!”

  He struggled and I let him melt into the fear around me.

  Omnibuses, carts, horses, people, the whole of London desperate to escape their fate. I didn’t know why, but I ran with th
em, scrambling, swept up in the wave. I jumped onto a cart, holding onto the back with others, and looked the same way everyone else was, back towards the dome of St Paul's Cathedral many miles off.

  I realised there were people crammed onto the back, lying on sacks. The hazel eyes of a girl looked back at me. She was saying something, but I couldn’t hear her in the din. Her lips seemed to be saying…

  ’Too… late…’

  The world turned white. A brief flash which enraptured everyone around me, until screams filled the air, and everyone started to move again, but it was useless as in the distance I saw the buildings crumbling, a wave of furious heat and wind devouring everything in its path. Above it a towering cloud rose high into the clouds.

  I jumped from the cart and ran, knowing there was no point. A rush of heat knocked me forward and I woke up.

  My heart boomed in my ears, as I scrambled backwards, sitting up against the headboard. Around me were bookshelves, covering the largely transparent walls, but providing me some privacy from the other similar rooms.

  The image of death hung in my mind, not allowing my senses to fully awake. I tried to blink them away, when my ears picked up voices outside.

  Due to the light from the window I could tell it was still daylight, but I had no idea how long I had been out, or even if it was the same day. I hoped it was.

  I swung my legs around. My torn golden dress was laid out in a far corner of the room, my person now being covered by a long black skirt and grey top given to me by Charlotte.

  For a moment, lost between my nightmare and the possible day ahead I felt lighter. Then, what happened at the factory, the last few days, the banquet… all came rushing back and I wavered, even though I was still seated.

  “I have to be strong…” I whispered, but my words slammed up against the memories. I clenched the edge of the bed frame, steadying myself then took a deep breath.

  Through a gap between the furniture that was pressed up against the wall, I glimpsed people and creatures moving past. The crystal bastion on the hill appeared to still be full of refugees.

  I got up and opened the door to a fury of noise. Those closest to me stopped their conversation, their faces full of expectation. I tried to smile at them, but instead it came out as something of a frown.

  Not wanting to be caught by any conversation, I hurried past them, through the long rectangular room and made my way to the main hallway which dissected the floor, then took a left, keeping my head down until I got to the meeting room. The doors were closed with two large-looking individuals standing outside, but on approaching, one of them pushed the door open. I slipped inside to an argument, which abruptly stopped when Lucas and Charlotte saw me.

  Lucas moved towards me, but Colin beat him to it. A number of movable chairs had now appeared around the fixed glass ones. He led me to one. “Did you sleep alright?” he said.

  I nodded. “What’s the discussion about?” I asked, then looked at Lucas, while sitting down. He exchanged a glance with Charlotte who was also seated, then both their eyes rested on a newspaper on the round table. Dax was also in the room.

  “She should be told,” said Charlotte.

  Lucas frowned and nodded, then pushed the newspaper over to me. My mouth fell open on seeing the front page.

  ‘Prime minster killed during Banquet! Young girl sought in connection with murder!’

  I slouched, the weight of the newsprint pushing me into my chair. I thought about going back to bed, at least that nightmare wasn’t real…

  “I had wondered if that might be the outcome of what happened in the attic room of the manor,” I said, trying to stop my voice from faltering.

  Lucas put his hand on my shoulder. “The truth will out… one day. Right now, we need to find a way to keep you out of Hades' and the authorities' hands.’

  “No one knows you’re here,” said Charlotte. “The palace has wards in place which hides its contents from magic users and casuals alike. And the park is closed due to the conditions.”

  “It seems pretty busy out there, how many are we looking after?”

  “A few hundred. They are not all on this floor, others are below us in the other sections of the building.”

  The elderly children came to mind. “What about those we rescued?”

  “They are comfortable, although unfortunately as with my own situation, I’m unable to change their physical state.”

  Heather's smiling face came to me. “Heather’s broken. I saw that for myself.”

  “The elderly children have given us a lot of useful information,” said Lucas.

  I went to ask about what, when a knock came at the double doors. One opened and a face appeared in the gap with a large smile across it. I got to my feet and threw my arms around Olivia. Bernard was behind her.

  “Ah, there’s my girl!” she said, hugging me in return. “Feeling better after a rest?”

  I pulled back. “I think so.” I moved to Bernard and embraced him as well.

  “Oh…” he said.

  We all moved back inside, and the door was closed.

  “Edgar Price is the new interim PM,” said Bernard, taking a seat.

  “Never heard of him,” said Charlotte.

  “No. Not many have. He has had a speedy rise through the ranks. But what’s worse is who he has appointed as his new Secretary of State for War…”

  I already knew the answer, as it looked, did most in the room.

  “Cannington,” said Lucas.

  “I’m afraid so.”

  Lucas sat on the edge of the table. “This has to have been his plan all along. Price must just be a puppet.”

  I let out a breath. “So now he controls the government.” It came out as a statement, but I hoped those around me took it as a question and disputed it. Unfortunately, everyone fell quiet, contemplating what it might mean.

  I had only told them snippets of what had happened during my time under the grounds in Hades' palace before exhaustion took me. Now was the time to tell the rest. After a lot of gasps and rueful looks I was done.

  “I’m surprised Athena would think the council could help,” said Dax. “From what I have been told, Chronus was being hunted by them.”

  “Athena must think some good would come from going to them,” said Lucas.

  “Even if we wanted too, how would we find them?” said Charlotte. She scoffed. “It is not like there is a map or anything!”

  Map…

  Auto’s chirps ran through my mind. I had completely forgotten the scroll I had found in the attic of the shop. “I… think I might have a way to find them.”

  They looked at me in shock.

  “I was trying to be funny, dear.”

  “I know. But I found a scroll hidden in the topmost room of the shop. To me it looked blank, but Auto kept repeating the word ‘Map’.”

  “This scroll is still at the shop?” said Lucas.

  “It should be, yes.”

  Colin got to his feet. “Me and Estelle will get it.”

  Charlotte looked at Lucas. “Go with him.”

  Lucas nodded. I was glad to not hear any protest from Colin.

  “I will go too,” I said.

  “No!” came from more than one person.

  “With all of London looking for you? Not a good idea,” said Charlotte.

  “I want… need to help. To set all of this right, somehow.”

  “And you can, but there are posters all over London, and people are looking for you, even more than before.”

  “I can take the tunnels.”

  Charlotte shook her head. “It’s too dangerous.”

  I sighed. “It’s under a loose floorboard in the attic room. Come up from the basement,” I said to Lucas and Colin. I looked at the latter as they moved to the open door to leave. “Be safe.”

  He nodded and they left.

  “Umm… where is Daniel?” I asked to those remaining.

  “On one of the lower floors, tending to the sickly,
” said Charlotte.

  “Well, if I can’t leave, I might as well put my gifts to some use. I think I can improve upon the dirigible you have on the roof, also I want to build another suit.”

  Charlotte smiled then looked at Dax.

  “You can do all of that, but first I have something for you, follow me,” he said. We left and moved through the busy crystal-walled rooms, then stopped in a space full of chestnut-coloured chests. He pulled one out, smaller than the rest and opened the top. Inside was a rectangular object covered in cloth. He removed it. It was not much larger than his hand. “He appears to have stopped operating, but I thought you might want this little fellow back.”

  “Auto?” I said in hope.

  Dax smiled and pulled the cloth from the mechanical bird, handing him to me.

  One of his legs was bent at a wrong angle, and there was a large dent in the back of his head. I looked into his glass eyes, but nothing living looked back at me.

  Dax pulled open the lid of another larger chest, then another and another. Each was full of springs, bolts, cogs, and pieces of metal of all sizes and shapes. I recognised the pieces from the automaton makers stall in the Factory.

  “There’s a lady who owns a stall. She brought all this stuff with her from the Factory. Said you might need it.”

  A tear came to my eye and I smiled at Dax then back down to my metal friend.

  “Can you fix him?” Dax said.

  I wanted to say yes. But the more I looked the mechanical bird over, the more I realised Auto needed more than just a replacement parts. My heart felt heavy, but then I had an idea. “Maybe. I want to try something. I don’t know if it’s going to work…” I placed my other hand on top of the bird's breastplate, and calmed my thoughts, thinking of the joy the little automaton had brought to me. As I did, a tingling rose from within, and suddenly a purple light emanated from between my palms. It briefly grew in intensity. Sparks flew from the back of Auto’s body, stinging my hand, and making me almost drop him. I quickly placed him on one of the flat-topped chests.