The Maebown

by Christopher Shields

  “Bring it but a little closer,” Hathor whispered with a husky, feminine voice, pulling against her bindings. “And I will separate your head from your body.” She stood straight, filling her chest with air, jutting her breasts out against the material of her robe, and hissed like a panther.

  “Is it out of your reach, Pyksie?” Aphrodite cooed.

  Hathor narrowed her black eyes, the muscles flexing in her statuesque body. “Not anymore, Gorgon.”

  I felt Hathor’s mind connect with the energy and the two of them struggled for control. The ball stretched oblong, twisted, and then disappeared. Caorann stood a short distance away.

  “Aphrodite, leave her alone.”

  She glared at Caorann, and then turned and strutted the opposite direction. Hathor began laughing. Each sound coming from her chest grated on my nerves, so I was sure Aphrodite was fuming. The laughter continued, growing louder.

  “Shut up,” I snapped.

  Hathor glared at me. “You are a fine group of fairies, allowing your filthy pet to bark at me, unmuzzled, like a rabid she-bitch.”

  I laughed. “You’re what, four million years old, and that’s the best you can come up with? Pathetic. Are all the Jinn as dull-witted?”

  Hathor stopped smiling, and her face went completely blank. Like a wax museum Cleopatra, she appeared completely lifeless, her eyes fixed on me.

  “How is it possible that all of you know Clóca?” I asked, walking toward her.

  She remained completely frozen and silent, so I turned to Saccimi, the Ometeo who I’d spared a few hours earlier. His big, brown eyes shot to Hathor before fixing on me.

  “Please, Saccimi, tell me?”

  He hesitated, glancing back at Hathor. “We—”

  Hathor lashed at him with Quint, but I caught it and pulled control of the Fire element away from her. She vibrated with anger, spitting a curse in a language I didn’t understand.

  “Don’t worry about her,” I said.

  “We were taught,” he said.

  “By whom?”

  “Ozara,” Bastien interrupted. “She taught them. Hoped they’d slip in unnoticed and take your life. She taught all of them—a band of assassins.”

  Great, I thought. I liked the world a lot better when only a few Fae knew how to make Clóca.

  “Only a few of us could master it. We were selected to come here—a diversion—a suicide mission.”

  I looked at Hathor. “You’re loyal to Ozara? She was trying to get rid of you.”

  “Ozara has my allegiance because she has my clan’s allegiance. I was…outvoted,” she said, with a bitter tone.

  “Voting against Ozara…fatal mistake, apparently. She punished you for not falling into line,” I said.

  “This was only the first phase, the second is already—” Saccimi gasped as a strand of Quint formed in his side. Hathor had nearly managed to cut him in two before I stopped her.

  “Traitor,” she growled at him while writhing against her bonds.

  Bastien struggled to heal the wounded Ometeo, but before the gaping hole would close, Saccimi collapsed into a small white sphere and popped into nothingness.

  Hathor spit where his body disappeared, and then smiled at each of us with a smug expression.

  “I have made my decision on your fate, Hathor,” Caorann said, clamping Aether around her mouth. “Do any here want her spared?”

  Aphrodite, standing beside Zeus, looked to the Fae around us. When none answered, she blew Hathor a kiss and then smiled. Hathor died fighting, but she died quickly. After her flash abated, Caorann turned to the two remaining Alliance Fae. One she called Pancha Camaq, the white wolf, and the other, Shalel, the tiny Fae who Sara had defeated. She questioned them for a half-hour, but neither had any information.

  “They are young. Ozara has not trusted them with her plans,” Caorann said. “Too many have died today, so I ask that we set them free.”

  A moment later, both were released. Within minutes of their departure, the consciousness returned. I mentioned “Aether” to Caorann, the signal. The bickering began. The Olympians squabbled with the Kobold and the Kobold with the Sidhe. Tse-xo-be and Bastien tried to sooth nerves. It was a convincing show. Forty minutes later, the consciousness hovered near Candace for a moment and then disappeared. I hoped Ozara bought it.

  TWELVE

  FRAGILE

  “What happened between you and Sara?” Gavin asked, when I set an Air barrier in place around us.

  I walked to the bedroom window and pulled the curtains shut. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Maggie, if you won’t talk about it with me, then whom?”

  I walked past him, closing the peeling bedroom door. “I don’t want to think about it, either,” I said, anger stirring my chest.

  His hands found my waist. “Okay, I can wait.”

  I twisted in his arms, pulling him close. “Gavin, why didn’t Ozara come after me today?”

  “I’ve been giving that a lot of thought. Honestly, I think she’s afraid of you. You may be the only one who can kill her.”

  It was strange to hear that, but it made sense. She fled from us in Germany and clearly knew where I was staying. Yet she didn’t attack. The Alliance could have overwhelmed us just a few days ago, when only the Kobold and Ohanzee had joined the Sidhe. Now, even though the odds were still against us, the addition of more clans made getting to me more difficult.

  “She’s going to wait me out, isn’t she?”

  Gavin nodded. “That is possible. The second Fae war lasted two hundred years. Dagda didn’t confront Ozara directly until they met—not far from here, actually. The Seelie had taken terrible losses, and the Unseelie were here trying to convince Dana and the Sidhe to join him. Dagda and Dana were old friends—he was a Sidhe elder at one time. Dana led him into a trap, though, and your forefather, Aeden, destroyed him.”

  “If I were Ozara, I’d avoid me for the next fifty or sixty years. It really is that simple. I’ll die and she’ll only have Caorann to deal with.”

  “Yes.”

  “Gavin, the Coalition won’t last that long, will it?”

  He shook his head. “No. It’s fragile. If we don’t force Ozara into a confrontation soon, it will crumble.”

  “If the Coalition breaks up, Caorann doesn’t stand a chance, does she?”

  He shook his head. “By herself, Caorann will fail.”

  I knew what he was going to say before he said it, but hoped for a different answer anyway. He led me by the hand to the bed and I collapsed on the covers.

  “I guess we should get this over with so that I can get some sleep.”

  “Sorry, I know you’re exhausted, but this really can’t wait.”

  Even with the Air barrier up, I felt like we were being watched by a thousand sets of eyes. “I wish they’d give us some privacy.”

  “Ignore them.”

  “When we’re done, can we hide from them—just for an hour or two?”

  “Anything you want. I promise.”

  “I want to go someplace amazing, someplace serene and peaceful.”

  Gavin climbed in next to me and I pressed my body to his. “I have just the place,” he said.

  I nodded and put my head back on the pillow. “Remember, keep the room filled with energy. You’ll be able to feel it if they try to get to me again.”

  He nodded. The warmest smile settled on his face and he brushed my cheek with the back of his fingers. “Happy hunting.”

  I closed my eyes and let the barrier of air drop. I couldn’t see them, but I knew the Coalition Fae were tuned to every beat of my heart. I floated with Wakinyan’s face in the front of my mind and shot away.

  * * *

  A little after midnight, Arkansas time, I found them. “Wakinyan? Billy?”

  Back in their underground hiding place, Wakinyan and Billy stood in a projected amusement park. It was more disorienting than ever.

  “What’s this?” I asked.

  �
��Your brother wanted to ride roller coasters,” Wakinyan said with a tone of annoyance.

  “What’s wrong? Don’t you like amusement parks?”

  He shook his head. “No offense, but only a human would scrape away acres of perfectly good forest to create twisted, ugly metal contraptions for the sole purpose of scaring themselves.”

  Billy laughed. “Ignore Wakinyan—his feelings are hurt. He offered to take the shape of a velociraptor and chase Mitch around the cave, but Elena vetoed the idea.”

  “Is that a dinosaur? Like in the movie Jurassic Park?”

  “Hardly. Spielberg got their coloration completely wrong and he left off the feathers”

  “A dinosaur with feathers?”

  Wakinyan rolled his eyes. “Yes, I remember them quite clearly. I was here one hundred million years before they were. Would you like to see one? I could transform—”

  “No, no, I’ve seen you do one bird too many.”

  “Now who has lost her sense of adventure?” Wakinyan asked, finally smiling.

  I spent about twenty minutes explaining everything that had happened.

  “So, Hathor is dead. That will not sit well with the Jinn,” Wakinyan said.

  “No, it won’t,” Billy agreed. “Maggie, you said Ozara is using Chloe Fontaine?”

  “Yes. Is there anything you can do?”

  “No, Maggie, there is not,” Wakinyan said before Billy could answer. “If I drop the barrier, your family will be at risk.”

  “What about when Ozara leaves Chloe alone, even then?”

  “It is a terrible risk—the Alliance is searching for your family. It is my belief that Ozara picked Candace’s mother for your benefit. She knew you’d discover it—Ozara does nothing randomly.”

  It was as if Wakinyan had flipped a switch in my head. “Of course she picked Chloe on purpose. She expects me to find her, and to tell you. And if you mount a rescue—”

  “Exactly. I cannot keep your family hidden and free Candace’s family at the same time. If I stay here and send Billy, Tadewi, or Faye, they will walk into a trap, or lead the Alliance back here. If I go after Candace’s family, I leave yours exposed. Your family is what Ozara is after.”

  “Wakinyan is right, Maggie. Ozara is waiting for us to slip up,” Billy said.

  “What do I tell Candace?”

  “Tell her nothing,” Wakinyan said.

  “That won’t work. She knows.”

  “As long as Chloe Fontaine is of value to Ozara, she’s safe. Tell Candace that as soon as the situation permits, I will see to her family.”

  “Thank you, Wakinyan.”

  Billy focused on the ground, his muscular arms crossed against his chest. “Maggie, you said that the Fae who attacked you in Ireland were cloaked?”

  “Yes, and we asked them about that.”

  His eyebrows pressed together, wrinkling the tan skin on his forehead. “Ozara showed them.”

  “Yes.”

  Billy pressed his palm to his forehead and grabbed at his sandy brown hair, mashing his eyes closed.

  “Yeah, I know,” I projected, “it’s scary.”

  “More than you think. If she can teach a Fae like Shalel, who is younger than me, to form Clóca, then what is she teaching the older and more powerful members of the Alliance?”

  “You don’t think?”

  “No, not Aether. Not even she is that foolish. But Quint and Plasma? Why not? Those substances don’t pose a danger to her personally, but they turn young Fae into serious weapons that might further dim our chances,” Billy said.

  Wakinyan nodded. “That is possible, but I doubt it. Her control over many of the clans rests on brute force. Clóca is purely defensive. She would not risk giving too much power to those she does not trust. If she has taught any Fae how to create Quint or Plasma, it is probably limited to those who have followed her for centuries—former Seelie who remained loyal.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  Wakinyan’s broad mouth twisted into a grin. “So do I.”

  I could tell by Wakinyan’s body posture, and Billy’s expression, that hiding in a cave in the Ozarks was painful. They didn’t have to tell me. I knew they wanted to be standing shoulder to shoulder with Tse-xo-be, Sinopa, and the rest of their clan, and as the third oldest Fae, the Coalition needed Wakinyan. Tse-xo-be commanded respect, he was a natural leader, but Wakinyan inspired confidence. Bigger than life, even Zeus had referred to him with complete reverence. Faye and Drevek were struggling to cope with being away from the clan. Faye was no longer the carefree person I’d met back in high school, and Drevek seemed antsy. Only Tadewi, the Fae who’d been willing to sacrifice herself to save me from Cassandra, seemed like herself. Caring and patient, she’d become my mother’s confidant, a friend to my grandparents, and a surrogate big sister to Mitch.

  My grandparents had maintained their youthful visage, the one the Fae had given them in Washington D.C., but Mom and Mitch had asked to be changed back. While I wasn’t actually in the cave with them, it gave me strength to talk to them through Wakinyan. It also filled me with guilt. Candace’s mother was in danger. If I was honest with myself, I couldn’t imagine her surviving and I didn’t know how I could tell Candace. Being more than a little selfish, I didn’t know what I would do if Candace blamed me. I needed her and Ronnie more than anyone.

  Leaving them was always painful, and not knowing whether the Alliance would find them before we could return tore at my heart, but I had responsibilities. The family depended on me. Everyone did. That was terrifying and empowering at the same time. I couldn’t afford to make any more mistakes. I said goodbye to them and searched for Ozara.

  I cleared my mind of any anger as I shot away. A few seconds later I hovered near a black panel van, headlights beaming, travelling down an interstate highway. The few cars around it bore Texas tags. Even in the dark I could see the landscape was flat and dominated by scrubby grass—I guessed the van was heading to west Texas. The thought filled me with dread when I recognized the passenger. Inside, Ozara sat with a large African-looking Fae in a black suit. I didn’t recognize him. Candace’s mom, dad, and little brother sat in the darkness, eyes open but glazed. Ozara didn’t react to my presence. She simply sat there quietly, communicating telepathically with the large Fae.

  He was handsome with prominent facial features, and built like a swimmer, with long muscular limbs. I memorized his face to show to Caorann. Miles later, and after telling him to protect them at all costs, Ozara shifted to Naeshura and moved further west. I followed her for miles as she blazed across the terrain. The clouds disappeared. The unobstructed moonlight cast a bluish hue on everything below us. I didn’t have a watch, but I guessed it was three or four in the morning. Gradually the grass disappeared, and the topography became more rugged. I knew Ozara headed to the Alliance base.

  We passed an area of weathered stone and deep shadows that looked familiar. Fae guarded the area at half-mile intervals, forming a ring around a central point that lay several miles in the interior. Inside, she slowed and shifted into her red-haired form near a place in the ground that seemed to vibrate with energy—a Seoladán. I couldn’t accurately count the Fae, but I knew there were somewhere around three thousand. Over half of them were somewhere else. Probably chasing down the Ancient Ones.

  In the middle of several dozen Fae, I spotted Zarkus. White-headed and regal as always, he didn’t acknowledge her approach, but stayed focused on those around him. They were conversing telepathically about “a strike,” and using the terms, “the event.” When Ozara walked to Zarkus, I sensed tension. The Fae around him shot Ozara nervous looks, and those looks grew even more noticeable when Zarkus and Ozara exchanged curt greetings. Were they actually angry with each other? It’s a façade—they’re playing to an audience, aren’t they? Of course they were—they had to keep their pairing a secret.

  “Are you ready?” she said with a cool tone.

  “Waiting on your command. They are in place, and so
far, undetected. Shall I send word?”

  “No, I will oversee it myself,” she snapped.

  Oversee what?

  “Everything according to plan?” he asked.

  “Yes, according to plan,” she said.

  Why so cloak and dagger—tell me what you’re up to. Come on, just a little hint, that’s all I need.

  “The Rogues?” he asked.

  I assumed he was talking about the Coalition.

  “Confused and bickering, just as I suspected. Zeus, Apollo, Poseidon, Athena, and the rest of the Olympian Elders have joined, and predictably, strained the bonds.”

  “The Ancient Ones have gone to ground, it appears.”

  “Yes, and away from their territory. They’ve left the government in Bejing vulnerable. Her-Lang compelled the leaders into passivity and stopped the offensive. Dija is taking care of that.”

  I had no idea what she was referring to. My mind whirled with possibilities, trying to decipher the information. Were they going to start a war after all?

  “And the girl?” Zarkus asked, a slight frown taking shape on his face.

  The muscles in Ozara’s jaw twitched. “Long overdue for a visit. She is in Cnoc Aine, with the rest of them.”

  “And the Fontaine woman?”

  Ozara exhaled, her nostrils flaring. “Nothing you need to worry about, Zarkus. She is in transit as we speak. When she gets here, make certain she is kept safe.”

  Zarkus stared into the distance like a scolded child unwilling to look his mother in the face. “Whatever you say.”

  It was more acting. I was sure.

  “The family?” he asked.

  “Do not harm them. She will not lie to me as long as I have her son.”

  “Very well,” he moaned.

  “When we have finished in Iran, I will return.”

  Iran, that’s it. I had to move fast and figure out a way to keep her in Texas. I had an idea, but it would have to work perfectly—if she knew I was watching, she wouldn’t dare lead me to her army. I snapped back to my body and set up in bed screaming, “Half the Alliance is headed to Iran—it’s big. Ozara will be there, but I’m going to try to delay her. Please hurry.”