Corey shooed me and Selene out so he could help Lawrence dress. Sir Raleigh stayed in the room with the two men, and he served as an unexpectedly good spy. I heard every word through his little cat ears.
"What happened?" Corey asked.
"Not sure," Lawrence replied. "Hit me like a dose of swamp gas. When I shifted back to human, I felt like my guts were being twirled around by a giant, burning fork."
"Is it one of the secret protocols?" Corey then asked.
I raised my eyebrows. His voice grew louder, and the rumble of a purr started in the background. Clever kitty—he was asking for pets so he could get closer and I could hear everything.
"I don't think so. I'll have to ask Bev about it. She's the one who's been working on shift disruptors. But how could someone have gotten it?"
Corey's reply came through, clear and grim. "The same way someone got the vector. It's got to be the same culprit. Who have you been with or near that could have sneaked something into your food or drink?"
"That's the weird part," Lawrence said. "I've been very careful to only eat or drink around our core group in case something like this would happen."
"Do you think it's the Fae, then? She's definitely hiding something."
I bristled. Weren't we all?
"No." Lawrence sounded all too confident. "I'd be able to tell if she meant me harm. I should be able to tell if anyone did, but humans are murky. They've got so many layers of thought energy, it's hard to sort through all of them."
"So, what about Kestrel? Have you been able to read her yet?"
I smiled. So, I wasn't the only one willing to use another's powers to snoop on someone's feelings.
"Not yet. She's been too close to Reine the last couple of times. The Fae's energy masks everything around her."
"Interesting. Could our culprit be using that?"
"Maybe."
"Speaking of Fae, better shoo the cat back into her room. She'll be pissed if he's gone."
Sir Raleigh reappeared, looking very pleased with himself and I rewarded him with a nice ear rub. In the end, I decided I needed more evidence, which I could perhaps get at the Equinox gathering.
20
As it turned out, rather than Lawrence sleeping in the chair in my room, I slept on the other side of the bed in his. Otherwise there was no way Corey would leave.
Six-thirty came way too early.
"Where are we going?" I asked Lawrence as we pulled out of the hotel drive. I clutched my tea, but it hadn't hit my brain yet.
"To the Equinox gathering." Apparently, the sarcasm was strong in this one no matter what happened.
I refrained from rolling my eyes—barely. "Yes, I'm aware. I mean, where is it going to be?"
"Stone Mountain. Some of the members have an in there."
I remembered the picture that had flashed up on my computer screen, and I clutched my crystal talisman in my pocket. Could I draw enough power there to contact my mother to ask her about the soul-eater? It would be worth a try. But then how would I stick close to Lawrence and John and see what they were up to? I'd have to find a way to do both.
"What are you planning?" he asked. He glanced sideways at me.
"Nothing. Keep your eyes on the road." It depended on what kind of ceremony the witches performed and how savvy they were. Surely they wouldn't mind me syphoning off some of their power? It was for a noble cause, after all.
"I don't know if I believe that," he teased, a slight curl to the corner of his mouth I could see.
"Well, you know us Fae. Always up to something."
His expression hardened, and he muttered, "Don't I know it?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing. Hang on. I need to figure out this traffic."
His phone's screen alerted him to an alternate route. So, not much for him to figure out, but I got the hint—he didn't want to talk about it. It seemed that he, too, had negative gargoyle/Fae history. Something to do with a guardian gone wrong? Or—and it should have occurred to me earlier since I knew my own people—a Fae betrayal? I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. Normally a few hours' sleep sufficed, but so far away from home and my source of strength, I found my energy waning. Until…
As we approached Stone Mountain, a granite knob that rose from the rolling hills around it, I tasted mineral at the back of the roof of my mouth. We parked, and I took a deep breath. Although we hadn't come that far from the city, the air felt clearer, the atmosphere greener. The trees whispered their welcome, and Lawrence scowled. Right, he disliked tree noises, something about nightmares. Well, he could deal. With each step, I felt stronger and younger, more like myself.
Sir Raleigh mewed, and I placed him on the ground and rolled my shoulders. I swear, he'd grown another half inch and half pound, and now he could hop along after us and keep up without any trouble. I scooped him up again when we got to the cable cars and walked inside. I looked out of the window once we were seated and let out a little groan.
Someone had defaced the granite mound with giant carvings of men on horseback. "Who are they?" I asked.
Lawrence looked at me, his eyebrows raised. "Confederate generals. Right, I forgot you wouldn't know."
"Why would I?" I whispered an apology to the hill. A slight tremor shook the gondola, and Lawrence grabbed my forearm.
"What was that?" he asked.
"I apologized to her. She said she appreciated it."
"She?"
"The spirit of the hill, a daughter of Gaia. There are still a few around."
"And you can talk to her?"
"Only in basic sentiments. Their language is even older than ours."
He pulled out his phone and made a note. I huffed, and this morning my mission seemed almost impossible. How could I be myself without giving the scientists any information about us?
When we arrived at the top, we walked through the little terminal and outside. Light streaked the sky, and warm gold limned the horizon. Although a chilly breeze ruffled my hair, I smiled. I might not need the Equinox ceremony to draw the power needed for my long-distance Fae call. Before I could make up an excuse and sneak off, Beverly and John found us. Kestrel followed, wearing a long white dress, denim jacket, and a sulky expression.
"We're so honored you could make it, Doctor River," Beverly gushed.
"Yes," John said. "It is a true blessing to have you here."
I refrained from asking, "Really?" Fatigue marked circles under his eyes—guilty conscience or fear of being found out, perhaps? But he didn't look surprised to see Lawrence. Not that he would have expected him to shift yet.
"I couldn't say no," I told them with what I hoped was a charming smile, then added before they could get too offended, "I'm glad to be able to celebrate the Equinox." There. Let them think they wasted a favor, that I might have come anyway with a simple invitation.
"We'll be over here." Beverly led us to an area behind the gondola terminal and down the hill a little ways.
There, a clearing in the trees held about a dozen people, all in long, white robes or dresses with jackets or sweaters over them. John donned his robe over his turtleneck and corduroy pants. Lawrence and I remained in our street clothes, and I felt like we stood out, but intentionally. Indeed, the curious glances of the coven members made my skin prickle. Lawrence's face had settled into its typical stony neutral expression, and I looked away before I could trace the line of his jaw with my gaze. I might or might not have done that while he’d slept that morning.
"We're not allowed to have a bonfire," Beverly told me. "It's been too dry this spring.”
"That's too bad. I'm sure you've got a backup plan."
"We do. Lots of candles." Her face lit with mischief, and I laughed.
"Letter of the law rather than the spirit?" I asked.
"Exactly. Oh, there they come."
Two other people, a man and a woman, entered the clearing and carried a box, from which they brought forth and assembled a large candelabra. Their
sure movements said they'd done it several times, and soon they had lit the twelve candles in the outer ring and five in the center ring.
The sun approached the horizon with the sensation of a rising wave, and I felt its nearness like a whispered good morning.
Could they feel the balance of light and dark tipping toward the light? My talisman vibrated with a subtle thrum—a summons coming through. Now, how to get away…
"We'll form the circle now," John said, his voice carrying clear and true. The timbre surprised me, and when I looked at him, I saw not a slightly disheveled and exhausted scientist, but a high priest, confident and assured in his power. Beverly joined him, looking every inch as regal. Kestrel stood beside her father, and he nodded at her reassuringly. She swallowed and dipped her chin.
What were they up to?
I stood beside Beverly, and Lawrence placed himself to my left.
John held up his hands and intoned, "Let us welcome the sun on this sacred day of Ostara. The world woke at Yule, then dozed as she nurtured the seeds and roots of life. Now she stretches, fully awake, and new life bursts forth from the tip of every branch. Let us sing of life and balance and healing for our planet and ourselves."
Something about his opening speech must have been off since the coven members exchanged looks. But no one said anything, and John began the chant in a language I knew and that made homesickness well in my chest—Gaelic.
Beverly grabbed my hand, and I squeezed hers.
"They weren't expecting him to ask for healing for ourselves," she said in secret conversation.
I almost dropped her hand but decided not to. "Who needs healing?"
"Kestrel. She cannot hold on to any of the powers that try to manifest in her. She could be a powerful witch, but they keep slipping away."
"Sometimes it takes time," I reassured her.
She didn't break her chant, and I caught her slight head shake in my peripheral vision. "Not this long. Never this long in either my or John's family. Can you help her?"
Ah, that's what this was about. "You do know it's dangerous to ask one of my kind for help."
She dipped her chin, and her lips tightened. "I am aware, but we are desperate, Princess. I am throwing myself on your mercy."
Her candor made my heart ache. When had my mother ever done anything so bold for either my brother or me? "Since you are being forthright, I will be as well. I don't know if I can help your daughter. I'm not in possession of my full power here."
Beverly's frustration flooded through her hand with surprising power, and I let go. My talisman continued to vibrate, and when the coven members closed their eyes and lifted their arms for a series of incantations, I slipped away.
Sir Raleigh and I crept out of the clearing and to a place where the granite was exposed. The sounds of the coven faded when I stepped on to the rock, and the atmosphere around me shimmered with rainbow light. The sharp chill of morning warmed to a softness scented with wildflowers that had never grown on Earth. For the second time that morning, I caught my breath with homesickness. I had found a doorway, although I couldn't feel any way to open it.
The air in front of me clouded, and my mother appeared. Or, rather, a transparent version of her.
"Greetings, Daughter, and blessed be."
"Greetings, Mother, and blessed be." Before she could launch into whatever she wanted from me, I added, "I have questions for you. I'm in danger."
She displayed nary a change in facial expression, just her same, haughty look. "You knew this mission wouldn't be easy, Daughter."
"I didn't know what to expect. You didn't give me any guidance." In fact, she'd never given me any, now that I thought of it. "I need your help, Mother."
"What do you expect me to do?"
"Can't you even ask about what the danger is? I don't know—act interested instead of like you're waiting for me to be done with a tantrum so you can say your piece?"
Sir Raleigh twined around my ankles, and his rumbling purr brought me out of the frustration and panic seeping through my chest. I picked him up and held him to me.
Her lip curled. Finally, a change to Miss Stoneface Fae, even if she expressed disgust. "I am concerned, Reine," she said. "But I know you can handle whatever is thrown at you. You always have."
"I don't know about this one. There's a soul-eater about. Do you know of anyone powerful enough to have summoned it? And anyone in Faerie who doesn't want me to succeed on my mission?"
She thought for about half a second, then shook her head. "No one. But you know that our court doesn't have contact with the dark Fae."
"What about the gray Fae?" I asked. There had always been rumors of a third court, one not as organized, comprised of Fae who refused to choose sides. While I chose to believe those rumors, others did not.
"They don't exist," she snapped.
Hmmm, that had been more emotion than I expected.
"But is it possible they could? That they could be interfering to make mischief for both sides, to cause another war?"
"They don't, Daughter. At least not in the way you think they do." She pressed her lips closed. Aha, so they did exist, and she'd said too much.
"So, what do I do about this thing? It's getting stronger and has already killed a human. And threatened to 'get' me."
"You'll figure something out."
I placed Sir Raleigh on the ground and stood to my full height to face my mother. "I don't want to figure something out. I'm asking for your help, Mother." I never thought I'd ask another Fae to not have confidence in me, but I found myself frightened. And not just for myself, but for my colleagues here. Dear Fae, could I call them friends?
No, Fae didn't have friends. And they certainly didn't have gargoyle lovers in spite of growing mutual attraction. I imagined Lawrence pulling out his phone to make a note—"Does not play well with others."
I knew when to give up. "What did you want of me, Mother?"
"I wanted an update. It's difficult to see what's happening at such a distance. It's fortunate you came to the Ostara ceremony, but our time together grows short. They'll soon notice you're missing."
"Progress is slow. Whoever leaked the vector covered their tracks well." In truth, I didn't know what to tell her. I needed to check with Selene to see how her interviews of the staff were going, to see if any information taken together pointed to someone. My money—human and Fae—was still on John Graves. He was definitely covering up something.
"You need to try harder, Daughter." That was the fourth time she'd called me Daughter rather than by my name. It brought to mind the dream I'd had about my grandmother and how she hadn't used the term.
Could my vision have been more than a dream? And could my mother have been lying to me all along?
Then she added, as though I could ever forget, "You know what's at stake."
"Right, my future." As the strange Fae gentleman had said. She faded, and the bite returned to the air. I walked back to the ceremony with more questions than answers, and one burned in my mind brightest of all—at this point, did I have more in common with human or Fae?
I slipped into the circle at the end of the chant, and Lawrence opened his eyes. He smiled when he saw me, but the dark curve of his eyebrows held a query. Had he seen me leave? I wouldn't be the only one with questions.
And the warmth his smile gave me made me doubt that I would cast myself as unequivocally Fae.
After the ceremony, Beverly thanked me with true Southern politeness, but she'd gone cold. I didn't blame her. She'd asked for help, and I couldn't give it to her. I respected her pragmatic streak and wondered if she'd been behind Kestrel inviting me to the ceremony. My mother would have cast aside a useless Fae as well, but at least Beverly loved her kid. I couldn't imagine her telling Kestrel to "figure it out" if faced with potentially lethal danger.
John thanked me more warmly, and he practically vibrated with exhaustion. Guilty conscience leading to poor sleep, or had the ritual drained him? Or had my foray an
d the power my mother and I drew for our contact done it?
Lawrence and I opted to take the path that wound down the side of the hill rather than the cable cars. Our little hike gave me more time to soak up earth energy. If I had a Fae battery, it would have been at a solid sixty percent by the time we reached the bottom and walked along the sidewalk to where he'd parked the car, sixty-five when we drove off. I promised the hill I'd be back. Although it wouldn't charge me to a hundred percent, I'd take what I could.
Once we got into Lawrence's car, he asked, "Where did you go?"
I snapped into innocent Fae mode. "When?"
"During the chant, when we all raised our arms. I felt you leave."
Oh, Hades. I'd healed him, and in spite of my weakened state, I must have accidentally made some sort of connection with him. That would make it difficult to lie.
"I went to talk to my mother. She summoned me."
He didn't look at me, but he nodded. "Your Faerie mother?"
"I don't have another one, unfortunately."
My bitterness must have come through because he asked, "Didn't go well?"
"Not at all. I was hoping she could tell us more about who may have summoned the soul-eater, but she didn't have any answers." I sighed. "She never does."
"And what did she want with you?"
Rather than his typical probing tone, he posed the questions gently.
"She wanted an update on the mission, on finding out who leaked the vector." I chose not to tell him about my true mission of keeping proprietary Fae information secret.
"Why does she care?"
"That is a good question." In truth, my being there made the possibility of the scientists gleaning information about us Fae more, not less, likely. Especially when it came to a certain curious gargoyle who already had some knowledge that he could test and tweak.
The Shadow Project Page 16
