The Anxiety of Kalix the Werewolf. Martin Millar

      The twins were mystified. Dominil should be around, telling them what to do, but she wasn’t. She had been trying to get them a spot on a tour, supporting some well-known band. The twins had been rehearsing to make sure they were ready, but they had no idea when the next rehearsal was.

      “Is it today?”

      The twins had an uneasy feeling that it might be. The rest of the band could be waiting for them in the studio. Beauty became angry at Dominil.

      “What’s the idea of not being here to tell us if we’ve got to rehearse? She knows we can’t remember things like that.”

      The twins looked hopelessly at each other. “The boys get really mad when we don’t turn up,” said Beauty.

      They sat on the couch feeling annoyed at Dominil, and wondered what could possibly account for her absence.

      “And we’ve run out of Monster Munch,” said Beauty, her voice full of sadness. “Everything is going badly. Dominil is the worst manager ever.”

CHAPTER 38

      Dominil hadn’t forgotten about the twins but she’d put their affairs to one side, as a lesser priority. She and Thrix were busy plotting the destruction of the Avenaris Guild. Each had tacitly agreed to ignore, for the meantime, all outside distractions. They sat now in Dominil’s stark room, the same room she’d occupied as a child. The walls were bare stone, undecorated save for two posters, one a reproduction of a painting by Mondrian and the other a chart showing programming commands. Though Dominil’s room was barely decorated, it was very tidy, with piles of old computer magazines Dominil had read as a child stacked neatly on shelves. The bed was covered in a blanket of green MacRinnalch tartan, very neatly arranged.

      “Explain to me the difficulties of locating the Guild’s headquarters with sorcery,” said Dominil.

      Thrix raised her palms. “I just get nowhere when I try. It’s hard to explain exactly why, because I don’t know precisely what I’m up against. There are a lot of hiding spells. If you don’t know which one has been used, it’s difficult to penetrate. I’ve been consulting Minerva’s books, and when I get back to London I’ll ask Malveria for help too.”

      Thrix frowned. “It’s strange, because the Guild doesn’t use much sorcery. I don’t think they have access to a strong sorcerer.”

      “They have been around for a very long time,” said Dominil. “It’s possible that some time in their history they learned a spell, or picked up a magical artifact, that hides them well.”

      “True. If they have a pendant of Tamol, it’ll make our life difficult. That’s what Malveria gave Kalix, and now she’s completely hidden from any inquisitive eyes.”

      “Is it likely they might have one?” asked Dominil.

      “I’d say not. They’re very hard to come by. But they’ve certainly got something powerful.” Thrix paused to sip whisky from a tumbler. The castle was full of fine crystal, but Dominil seemed to prefer the plainest type of glass.

      “I’ll find them eventually.” Thrix sounded confident, but she was frustrated. She didn’t want to spend weeks searching for the Guild’s headquarters. She wanted to attack them now.

      “I’m also facing difficulties,” admitted Dominil. “I used to be able to hack into the Guild’s files, but I can’t now. I worked my way past several upgrades, but they’ve finally employed someone who knows what they’re doing and I can’t crack their security.”

      Dominil indicated her computer screen. “I’ve been looking at the old messages I intercepted, trying to find out where their headquarters might be, without success. None of my geolocation is working. But there have been advances in that recently that I’m investigating. I’ve tried everything else I can think of, from examining the records at Companies House to the files of the Charity Association. But the Avenaris Guild isn’t listed as a company or a charity anywhere, or as anything else. I’m not giving up either. I’ll have revenge for Minerva too.”

      Dominil and Thrix both planned to return to London that night.

      “I won’t be sorry to leave the castle,” said Dominil.

      “Yes, you’re in disgrace,” said the Enchantress.

      Whether those regarding Dominil as a disgrace included Thrix was not entirely clear. Thrix hadn’t accused Dominil of being responsible for Minerva’s death. She hadn’t even referred to Dominil’s revelation about laudanum. But the Enchantress was so furious at the Guild that it was hard to tell if she was angry at Dominil or not.

      “My father and the Mistress of the Werewolves insisted I remain in the castle and receive treatment for my addiction from Doctor Angus,” said Dominil. “They are not pleased that I’ve refused.”

      “I’ve never seen Tupan so shocked.”

      “My father is very shocked, I acknowledge. But I need to get back to London. My laudanum problem will have to wait for a while, as will the affairs of the twins. My priority is to find the Guild.”

      “Mine too. Though I’m not sure that everyone else agrees. I sometimes get the feeling that nothing would rouse these barons.”

      “Markus will support us,” said Dominil. “When we find the Guild, we’ll need a large force to attack them. The Thane will authorize it.”