The Last Dance: An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure (Scions of Magic Book 8)

by TR Cameron

  She didn’t need to mention any of that to the woman across the desk. Empress Shenni was a political animal and had doubtless calculated all the angles before she allowed her to walk in the door. She smiled and nodded. “Congratulations, Matriarch Leblanc, on your victory.”

  “Why thank you, Empress. It’s too bad you were gone at the end. I would have enjoyed receiving your accolades then.”

  The woman waved a hand to dismiss the concern. “I have many demands on my time, you know. I would say the outcome would be enough to keep any of the rest of the Nine from challenging your house anytime soon.”

  “One can hope. I feel confident that House Cudon will be a strong ally going forward. I also hear that House Cormier has formed a new alliance.”

  Shenni nodded. “Yes, a man in the main line of my former house will join them. It should be a good pairing.” Her tone revealed that she’d been behind the move and was happy with its success.

  “May I ask you a question?”

  The Empress laughed. “Only one? Of course.”

  “Why did you have my parents killed?” She was proud of herself for asking it without screaming.

  Her hostess shrugged. “They were a nuisance. If they had stopped causing trouble when they left the city, they would have had no more retaliation from me. But they chose to oppose my efforts there as well so they earned my wrath.”

  Cali kept calm only by virtue of her connection to Fyre. The Draksa was perched on top of the palace and sent her calming waves, reminding her that she needed to maintain her poise as best she could. “Then why not kill me now and finish the job? Surely if you hated them enough to loan your family’s sword to destroy mine, and then hated me enough to do it again in the recent battle, you must want to.”

  The monarch laughed dismissively. “Let me speak frankly for a minute. I didn’t hate your parents. They were a problem and I solved it. I don’t hate you but you are also a problem. If it wouldn’t create a firestorm of unrest to kill you out of hand, be assured that I would. But, since that is the almost certain outcome, you get to live. For now.”

  “So that’s it? They were a problem so they died?”

  Shenni nodded, and Cali shook her head and stood slowly, wary of whatever defenders the other woman might have watching. “Well, then, I guess I can promise that I’ll be a problem for you too. But killing me will be harder since I have allies they didn’t.”

  Her adversary raised her glass in a mock toast. “To the game ahead, then.”

  Cali strode from the room, the seneschal on her heels. When she reached the entrance, she turned to the other woman. “Oh, I forgot to mention one last thing. Maybe you could let her know for me.”

  Gwyn nodded. “Of course.”

  “I collected the shards of her house sword and gave them away to folks who don’t have particularly good feelings toward her. Tell her I hope she has fun trying to find them.”

  She turned and headed home with a smile on her face. A game is it, you wench? Okay, Shenni. Let’s play.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Cali snarled in frustration. “Get the hell down from there before you break your head, idiot.” The atmosphere in the Drunken Dragons Tavern was particularly raucous for a Monday night. After the events in New Atlantis, she had felt the need to get away and be somewhere familiar. And, I have to admit, a drunken wizard standing on the table delivering lines from Hamlet is, unfortunately, familiar.

  Accompanied by a round of cheers for him and heckles for her, the white-bearded magical took her hand and climbed onto the floor. He patted her on the shoulder, sat, and began to talk to his friends as if nothing unusual had happened. Which, of course, was par for the course in Zeb’s establishment, where the strange was routine.

  She collected a tray full of empty glasses and headed to the front for refills. Tanyith and Kendra sat in their usual seats at the edge of the bar, and the detective kept the one next to her clear so that when Cali made it back there, she had somewhere to sit. She slid the tray to Zeb with a smile. “Get to work, old man. We have thirsty customers out there.”

  He shook his head and took the tray, grumbling something that was doubtless uncomplimentary under his breath. She turned to Kendra and grinned. “I don’t think I’ve thanked you yet for letting me borrow your boyfriend. He was very useful.” She wiggled her eyebrows theatrically so they wouldn’t miss the entendre.

  The detective rolled her eyes. “If I was still worried you might have designs on him, that right there killed it. No one I’ve ever met would have the patience to put up with you.”

  Cali stuck her tongue out at the other woman. Fyre’s laughter sounded in her head and she sent, You can shut up, lazybones, to him. A snort emerged from behind the bar but he didn’t otherwise react. She wondered if Atreo was with him at that moment and was entertained by their antics. It was a good thought and she hoped so.

  The tray returned fully loaded, and she headed into the crowd again. The rest of the night passed in a happy blur of work. Zeb stayed open a little late because his patrons seemed like they wanted to linger. “It’s a good sign,” he’d observed. “Things are getting back to normal around here.”

  “There’s nothing normal about you, buddy,” she’d quipped, which made everyone in earshot laugh.

  Now, with the customers shooed out the door and the locks thrown, Cali was able to fully relax for the first time in what seemed like months. Zeb pulled glasses of his special brew—a hard cider with hints of blackberry—put them in front of each of them, and took one for himself. “So, will you be up here doing your job a little more often from here on out?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I hope to. I’ll have responsibilities down there, of course, and once Atreo is up and moving there will be more, but I don’t want to leave this behind. I feel like myself here.”

  Tanyith grinned. “From waitress and student to noble matriarch. That’s quite a change. It would take some getting used to.”

  “Definitely. So what will you do? Go back to Trevilsom and serve out the rest of your sentence?”

  He snorted and coughed on his drink. “Uh, no, I’m good, thanks. I guess I’ll help Zeb out when you’re not around. And maybe have a conversation with the new leaders of House Cudon about their plans for the Malniets in exile. Someone has to keep an eye on those bastards.”

  She laughed at the image that jumped into her head of him on a horse with a big hat. “Sheriff Tanyith, huh? Keeping the citizens of New Orleans and New Atlantis safe from the outlaws.” When the others had finished laughing, she said, “Seriously, though, it’s a great idea. And you’re the right one to do it.”

  The conversation turned to other matters and eventually, Kendra and Tanyith took their leave. She swiveled to face Zeb. “Finally. Lovebirds. Ugh.” She made a gagging sound and the dwarf laughed. “So, is everything the same for you, boss? Are you gonna stay here, dish out stew and drinks, and be the voice of reason between the humans and the magicals?”

  He shrugged. “Probably.” She stared at him in silence until he sighed. “What?”

  “It seemed that joining us for those battles suited you.”

  The dwarf looked thoughtful and replied, “Yeah, you’re right. I did enjoy being out there fighting again. It’s a little more adrenaline-producing than tending bar.”

  Cali nodded. “You have good skills in that area. With practice, you could be at least above average. Are you thinking about hitting the road? I couldn’t help but notice that you’re more or less grooming Tanyith to fill in.”

  Zeb chuckled and pulled his pipe out, then took several minutes to complete his ritual of filling it and lighting it. After a few puffs, he admitted, “Maybe I am. It’s never bad to keep your options open. Speaking of which, will you really settle down in New Atlantis?”

  She grinned. “Well, I have to return Ikehara’s lucky charm to him in the morning, so I guess I’ll work here tomorrow night. After that, there are things to get organized for House Leblanc down there. But
once that’s all done, who knows? Maybe I’ll run for Empress.”

  He laughed. “I don’t think you ‘run’ for Empress.”

  “Which makes sense. No one would vote for Shenni. Whatever. The point is, New Atlantis needs a troublemaker and I’m the perfect person to fill that role. Along with Fyre, of course.”

  “Yeah, I can see that he’s the brains of the operation.”

  “Shut it.” She grinned at the dwarf, her heart filled with affection. “On second thought, the Dragons could use troublemaking too. So, when you’re here, you can plan on Fyre and I helping out more often than not.” She put her hands on the bar and vaulted over to wrap him in a hug. “Whatever I do from here on out, the most important thing to me is being with my friends and family, so count on getting tired of us hanging around.”

  He patted her back and squeezed her tightly. “That’s the best news I’ve heard in ages.”

  THE END

  Magic Ops

  If you enjoyed this book, you may also enjoy the first series from T.R. Cameron, also set in the Oriceran Universe. The Federal Agents of Magic series begins with Magic Ops and it’s available now at Amazon and through Kindle Unlimited.

  FBI Agent Diana Sheen is an agent with a secret…

  …She carries a badge and a troll, along with a little magic.

  But her Most Wanted List is going to take a little extra effort.

  She’ll have to embrace her powers and up her game to take down new threats,

  Not to mention deal with the troll that’s adopted her.

  All signs point to a serious threat lurking just beyond sight, pulling the strings to put the forces of good in harm’s way.

  Magic or mundane, you break the law, and Diana’s gonna find you, tag you and bring you in. Watch out magical baddies, this agent can level the playing field.

  It’s all in a day’s work for the newest Federal Agent of Magic.

  Available now at Amazon and through Kindle Unlimited

  Author Notes - TR Cameron

  May 9, 2020

  Thank you for reading the final book in the Scions of Magic series! I truly hope you enjoyed the ride as much as I did. The love among Cali and her friends was unexpectedly intense at the end. I didn’t see it building, and then, as I was writing, there it was. It’s always amazing to me how stories take on a life of their own during the writing process.

  Reading is a solace for me in difficult times. I’ve been cranking through rereads of a bunch of old favorites and trying out some new ones over the last couple of months, in between trying to keep my kid occupied and my partner steady. Fortunately, they return those favors in kind. If we have to be socially distant, at least we all (seem to) like who we’re stuck with. I hope you’re finding your own happy place, wherever it might be.

  We’re putting a temporary pin in the Federal Agents of Magic / Scions of Magic corner of the Oriceran Universe. There’s a lot of awesome Urban Fantasy coming from Martha and Michael, so I’m taking a detour into science fiction for a while. I invite you to come along: all the stuff you love from my books will be in those ones too. Lots of action, lots of snark, lots of humor. Plus spaceships! We’re currently in the planning stages, but I’m hopeful the first one will be out by July 2020.

  I tried playing Jedi: Fallen Order, and was once again reminded that I am terrible at dark-souls-style games. Just really truly awful. I’ll probably go back to it for the story after a while, but have jumped back into a replay of the Witcher 3, which I’m much better at. And the kid and I just restarted The Lego Movie videogame for the third time, I think, which is always a hoot. Looking forward to Birds of Prey (but not willing to pay $20 to rent it).

  Devs is turning out to be interesting. A little much in certain ways, but I’m intrigued. Picard took a little time to get started, but I’ve totally got the ST: The Next Generation feels going now. And Patrick Stewart is a treasure, regardless.

  I encountered a piece of small and unexpected wisdom yesterday. It was on Twitter, and I can pretty confidently say that rarely does anything that qualifies as “wisdom” happen there, on my timeline at least. But a reminder appeared that we are “Human Beings,” not “Human Doings.” Some days, the best we can achieve is to be, rather than do. And not only is that okay, it’s desirable. If you’re kind of type-A, like me, you’re probably feeling pressured by all the things you’re not getting done, with all the time you’ve suddenly got.

  To hell with that nonsense. Exist. Be. Do what you can, and accept that it’s enough. Focus on being kind to everyone, and remember that includes you, too. Tell that critical voice inside your head that it can just shut the hell up until it has your explicit permission to share again. My kid – nine years old – asked yesterday if we ever heard that voice in our head telling us that we were bad. We explained that it’s normal, and that voice lies.

  Don’t believe the lies. Give yourself a break. Maybe – dare I say – find a good book and lose yourself in it for a while! Take care of those who need you, including your own darn self.

  Okay, off my soapbox.

  Until next time, Joys upon joys to you and yours – so may it be.

  PS: If you’d like to chat with me, here’s the place. I check in daily or more: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTRCameron. Often I put up interesting and/or silly content there, as well. For more info on my books, and to join my reader’s group, please visit www.trcameron.com.

  Author Notes - Martha Carr

  May 29, 2020

  This is week 8 of a different world and it’s beginning to feel like we’re going to have a varying kind of new normal for the foreseeable future. If you’re reading these author notes in the very distant future (or past, which would be way cooler) there was a pandemic and we all retreated to the Victorian era and kept our distance from each other… for the most part.

  I’ve taken up a few hobbies like embroidery that I’m learning from YouTube and sharing with my neighbor over FaceTime (another Martha). I can only do one small piece at a time though or my stitches rapidly go south. I’ve also taken up cooking – and cooking gadgets are one of my fave things. Air frying is a new passion. But, and I’m not sure how this happened, I recently (accidentally I can assure you despite what the Offspring keeps saying) bought two different large ones. I really don’t know what the thinking was behind that other than huge sale, a little bored, they looked really different, and somewhat distracted. I told the Offspring it’s for a very big party once we can all gather together again. He said, “Whatever you need to tell yourself, Mom.” Apparently, you can even bake in these things. No one tell Anderle. I’ll never hear the end of it.

  Remember my quest to run a 5k? I was signed up for two different ones in April and May that were both cancelled. Now, the new thing is virtual races. A few friends of mine in Chicago are going to do one with me and then we’re going to do brunch over Zoom. Everyone knows that brunch afterward is the best part of running a 5k.

  I’ve also been ordering real books – mostly non-fiction. I have no idea why that’s suddenly grabbed my attention, but the latest is The Genius of Birds by Jennifer Ackerman. I love finding out weird stuff about nature like trees actually share nutrients even miles away. Whatever I learn about birds will of course be showing up in a book later.

  Tomorrow, my future daughter in law, Jackie Venson will be doing a concert from the garage – she’s a great blues guitarist and I hear will be on a magazine cover next month – and some neighbors will come and spread out on the sidewalk to listen.

  Besides writing as fast as I can and getting lost in magical worlds – this is life right now. It’s actually pretty good and weird and kind of fun in the middle of trying to be careful.

  That’s the thing about life. I do my best to fit myself to the present circumstances instead of insisting that circumstances fit themselves to me. When I remember to do that, very cool stuff keeps happening. Okay, I’m off to go fry up something really big. More adventures to follow.

  Other seri
es in the Oriceran Universe:

  SCHOOL OF NECESSARY MAGIC

  SCHOOL OF NECESSARY MAGIC: RAINE CAMPBELL

  ALISON BROWNSTONE

  THE DANIEL CODEX SERIES

  THE LEIRA CHRONICLES

  I FEAR NO EVIL

  THE UNBELIEVABLE MR. BROWNSTONE

  REWRITING JUSTICE

  THE KACY CHRONICLES

  MIDWEST MAGIC CHRONICLES

  SOUL STONE MAGE

  THE FAIRHAVEN CHRONICLES

  MAGIC OPS

  OTHER BOOKS BY JUDITH BERENS

  OTHER BOOKS BY MARTHA CARR

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