And then a cell door slammed.
The sudden sound shocked the sphinx into silence. Her small head turned, her
tongue flickering, tasting the air.
Another door boomed shut.
And then another.
And another.
The sphinx spun away, claws striking sparks off the floor. Who s there? Her
voice screeched off the damp stones.
Abruptly, all the cell doors in the upper gallery rattled open and closed in
quick succession, the sound a rumbling detonation that vibrated deep into the
heart of the prison, causing dust to rain from the ceiling.
Snarling and hissing, the sphinx bounded away, looking for the source of the
noise.
With an icy smile, Perenelle swung her feet back up on the bench, lay back
and rested her head on her laced fingers. The island of Alcatraz belonged to
Juan Manuel de Ayala, and it looked as though he was announcing his presence.
Perenelle heard cell doors clang, wood thump and walls rattle and knew what
de Ayala had become: a poltergeist.
A noisy ghost.
She also knew what de Ayala was doing. The sphinx fed off Perenelle s magical
energies; all the poltergeist had to do was to keep the creature away from
the cell for a little time and Perenelle s powers could begin to regenerate.
Raising her left hand, the woman concentrated hard. The tiniest ice white
spark danced between her fingers, then fizzled away.
Soon.
The Sorceress closed her hand into a fist. When her powers had recovered, she
would bring Alcatraz tumbling down around the sphinx s ears.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
over Josh s head. There was a time when he d compiled a list for a school
project of the Ten Wonders of the Modern World. The metal tower had been
number two on that list, and he d always promised himself that someday he d
get to see it.
And now that he was finally in Paris, he didn't even look up.
Standing almost directly beneath the center of the tower, he rose on his
toes, turning his head left and right, searching for his twin among the
surprisingly large number of early-morning tourists. Where was she?
Josh was scared.
No, more than scared he was terrified.
The last couple of days had taught him the true meaning of fear. Prior to the
events of Thursday, Josh had only ever really been afraid of failing a test
or being publicly humiliated in class. He had other fears too, those vague,
shivery thoughts that came in the dead of night, when he found himself lying
awake wondering what would happen if his parents had an accident. Sara and
Richard Newman both held PhD s in archaeology and paleontology, and while
that wasn't the most dangerous line of work, their research sometimes took
them into countries in the midst of religious or political turmoil, or they
conducted their digs in areas of the world ravaged by hurricanes or in
earthquake zones or close to active volcanoes. The sudden movements of the
earth s crust often threw up extraordinary archaeological finds.
But his deepest, darkest fear was that something would happen to his sister.
Although Sophie was twenty-eight seconds older, he always thought of her as
his baby sister. He was bigger and stronger, and it was his job to protect
her.
And now, in a way, something terrible
She had changed in ways he could not even begin to comprehend. She had become
more like Flamel and Scathach and their kind than like him: she had become
more than human.
For the first time in his life, he felt alone. He was losing his sister. But
there was one way to be her equal again: he had to have his own powers
Awakened.
Josh turned just as Sophie and Scathach appeared, hurrying across a broad
bridge that led directly to the tower. Relief washed over him. They re
here, he said to Flamel, who was facing the opposite direction.
I know, Nicholas said, his French accent sounding stronger than usual. And
they re not alone.
Josh tore his gaze away from his approaching sister and Scathach. What do
you mean?
Nicholas inclined his head slightly and Josh turned. Two tourist buses had
just arrived at the Place Joffre and were disgorging their passengers. The
tourists Americans, Josh guessed by their clothing milled around, chatting
and laughing, cameras and videos already whirring while their guides tried to
gather them together. A third bus, bright yellow, pulled up, spilling dozens
of excited Japanese tourists out on the pavement. Confused, Josh looked at
Nicholas: did he mean the buses?
In black, Flamel said enigmatically, pointing by lifting his chin.
Josh turned and spotted the man in black striding toward them, moving swiftly
through the holiday crowd. None of the tourists even glanced at the stranger
weaving his way among them, twisting and turning like a dancer, taking care
to not so much as brush against them. Josh guessed the man was probably about
his own height, but it was impossible to make out his body shape because he
was wearing a three-quarter-length black leather coat that flapped about him
as he walked. The collar was turned up, and his hands were pushed deep into
the pockets. Josh felt his heart sink: now what?
Sophie raced up and punched her brother in the arm. You got here, she said
breathlessly. Any trouble?
Josh tilted his head toward the approaching man in the leather coat. I m not
sure.
Scathach appeared beside the twins. She wasn't even breathing hard, Josh
noted. In fact, she wasn't breathing at all.
Trouble? Sophie asked, looking at Scathach.
The Warrior smiled, tight-lipped. Depends how you define trouble, she
murmured.
