by Coralie Moss
“Let me call James,” said Wes.
Walking around the druid and into the house, I surveyed what I could see of the shadowed interior. The kitchen table was too small for all of us to gather. The sitting room was stuffed with formal furniture dating from the nineteen-hundreds. The room was spacious, however, and the floor was covered with rectangular hooked rugs. We could move the furniture against the walls. Perfect.
“Let’s work from here,” I said, pointing past the hallway and entering the room on the right. I stepped around the rugs on my way to opening the curtains. “I have another call to make. I’d like to see if Alabastair’s available. He’s a Portal Keeper. He could move people out quickly or…” Remembering how he’d whisked me away from Doug and Roger reminded me of Alabastair’s physical strength.
My musings were met by silence. I was the only one in the room. The rest were clustered in the doorway and into the hall.
“What?” I asked.
Peasgood wiggled through to the front, took one step into the sitting room, and raised an arm. “If I might speak?”
“I’ll take any input right now. Anything at all.”
He cleared his throat. “Peasgood and I know this property better than anyone, aside from Gramp and Grams, and we have some ideas about how to utilize that knowledge.”
My stomach gurgled, letting me know the sandwich the guys had ordered for me was still in its wrapper, in my bag. “Okay.” This time around, we wouldn’t have Tanner or his ability to smash rocks or his wolf. “How about we meet here in fifteen minutes? Can you two contact your parents while they’re in transit?” I pointed to the sisters. “And can they even get here today?”
“Portals,” Wes said. “We can get them here through the portals. Kaz?”
Kaz squeezed through the crowd.
“Go check the status of the known tree and locate other possibilities,” said Wes. “Belle? With your connection to the LaFleur clan, I’d like for you to stay close to Néne and Sil. Is that acceptable?”
They all nodded. Sil spoke up, “The Fae took our jewelry, which is what allows us to contact our parents. But we phoned our cousins this morning. They can get another message out.”
“It would help if your parents were not coming in and expecting a fight with us,” I said. “And why are all of you standing in the hallway?”
That broke the tension. Kaz peeled away. Belle, Néne, and Sil converged on the couch and hovered over a cell phone. Wes caught my gaze then beckoned me into the hall and out the front door.
“Do you want me to try to reach Tanner?” he asked.
“You know he’s on his own search-and-rescue mission in France,” I said.
“Then I need to survey what each of us can do and figure out how our skills can work together. Kaz and I have been a team for as long as I’ve known him. River too. We have to get this group battle-ready within the next few hours.” Wrinkles mapped Wes’s forehead and the outer corners of his eyes. My predicament was responsible for at least half of them.
“I’m terrified, Wes,” I admitted. “The night of my party? What we pulled off feels like a fluke, and if Meribah comes for us again, she’ll come pre-loaded to combat whatever we can throw at her. At them.”
“Then it’s our job to fight smarter, fight with our heads.” He put his hands on his hips, looked at the trees crowding the sides of the long driveway, the cloudless sky, scuffed his toes in the dirt under our boots. “People we love are our blind spots. Meribah—and Doug—will count on you to lead with your heart. Instead, I want you to use your heart. Connect with every natural element on this land that responds to you. You’re Calliope Jones, Earth Witch. Pull on your Blood Blessing, pull on the vines that do your bidding. Use your connection to the very ground we are standing on.”
Wes’s observation struck a chord that resonated into my marrow. It was incumbent upon me to embrace what I was becoming. I was playing the part of the frantic mother, but I was more than that, more than who I used to be.
He scratched at his head. “These Fae, the Flechettes, they’re after land. They want access to the portals. If they take this orchard and the one near Brooks Farm, they’ll have access to the tunnels, more natural resources, more commerce, more Magicals. River, Kaz, Tanner, and I have been watching the earth’s magic get drained away—if not destroyed—at the hands of those who don’t understand or choose to ignore that when you take without putting back something of equal or greater value, resources dwindle. We’ve been chasing land grabbers, Calliope. And it turns out your ex’s family is one of the big ones here on the West coast.”
I added excessive greed to the list of my ex’s shortcomings and chuffed out a breath. I was no longer tied to the Flechettes but I was on the Magical clean-up crew, and I was okay with that.
Wes scuffed at the ground again, drew a mangled rectangle with the toes of one boot, and placed a rough X near the edge. “The four of us and other druids and Magicals have been pouring our energy into a massive Magical working. We are attempting to hide sections of Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon and Northwest Territories from the big industries. Shifters like your grandfather need wild places to live and train the coming generations. In order to do that, we need constant—and consistent—access to places that recharge our magic. This island is one of those wells, and this orchard, with its portals and tunnels, has got to be kept in magic-friendly hands.” Wes looked at me head on and clamped his hands to my shoulders. “I would give my life to this cause, Calliope, but I would much prefer to stay alive.”
Chapter 21
There was much to be gleaned from Wes’s words.
“Did you know my father, Benôit?” I had to ask.
Wes gulped as he fought to maintain eye contact with me.
“I did,” he said. “He was a good man. And that’s all I want to say about him right now. We have a fight coming, and I have knives to sharpen.” He wiped an eye. “Metaphorically speaking. We’ll talk about Benôit later.”
“Thank you for explaining all that to me, Wes. I’m going to plug in my phone and sit in my car and eat.”
He patted my shoulder and headed around the house. I started my car and backed as close to the porch as I could without crushing Abigail’s flower beds. I had seen two outdoor outlets near the front door. My car could recharge while my phone’s battery and my belly did the same.
Windows open, birds doing their full-throated best to lighten the mood, I plugged everything in and unpeeled my surprise lunch. I was swallowing the first bite of a roasted vegetable sandwich when my phone rang. I tapped to answer and put Kerry on speaker. My hello was impeded by the need for something to wash the food down.
“Calli, is that you?”
“Mm-hm,” I said, feeling under my seat for a water bottle. “It’s me. I’m eating lunch.”
“Any word on your boys?” she asked.
“Not yet.”
“Then I won’t keep you. I wanted you to know a Rose de Benauge was here. She said you sent her. I gave her the kit with the soil samples.”
“Thanks, Kerry,” I said, unscrewing the top to the warmed metal bottle I’d located.
“There’s another thing. A package arrived marked personal, for your eyes only. I gave the package to Rose because she said she would be seeing you soon.” Kerry snorted. “She’s a little intimidating, Calli. I hope what I did was okay.”
“Rose is a friend, Kerry, and you did great.”
A package. I wondered if Jack could sniff for poisons. Or a bomb. I dialed Rose’s number.
“Calliope,” Rose started. “L’Runa and I are at her laboratory. Your office assistant gave me a package to deliver to you.”
“Yes, that’s one reason why I was—”
“The package contains books. Or something book-like. I will bring it to the Pearmains’ when we’re done here. Excuse me a moment.” Rose was silent, and I heard L’Runa’s voice in the background. “L’Runa is asking if you have any bears in your family.”
/> “Not that I know of, Rose, but I didn’t know I had a grandfather who was a gyrfalcon until a few days ago.”
“Well. I look forward to meeting him. And L’Runa would like you to know the first reading she has off the sample is definitely bear. But…please wait, Calliope.” Rose returned after moment. “There are traces of an ursine presence in the soil, not in the blood. I’ll leave it to you to decipher what that might mean.”
I had no idea, and I didn’t bother saying goodbye to Rose. I knew better. As I went to tap my phone, Rose asked, “Calliope? Are you still there?”
Color me shocked. I removed the corner of the sandwich from my mouth and responded, “Yes.”
“Your sons are going to be fine. We will see to that.” She hung up before I could choke out a surprised “Thank you.”
I managed to finish the rest of my lunch without interruption. Balling up the waxed paper wrapper, I winced when one of my father’s rings pinched my skin. I couldn’t forget that if the situation warranted, I could summon Christoph to me with the feathers he’d plucked for that purpose.
Summon. I could summon a gyrfalcon, and I could summon vines. Could I do the same with my sons?
I held my breath as I opened the driver’s side door and tugged off my left boot. Taking Wes’s admonition to pull out all the stops and use my heart, I stuck my toes into the fertile soil of Abigail’s flower bed and sent out a call to Harper and Thatch.
Where are you?
I pictured the smiling faces I had seen this morning. I pictured the warm, pink light I had been surrounding my boys with since they were babies. I pictured that light travelling through the mycelial layer, fungi to fungi, strand by strand.
Where are you? I asked again, strengthening the cords of light, making their color denser, more concentrated. Like blood.
Mom!
Thatcher! My leg jerked in surprise, severing the connection. I growled at the loss. Pivoting in the seat, I tore off my other boot and knocked my elbow against the door in my hurry to get to my knees. I dug both hands and all ten toes into the turned soil and sent every ounce of magic I had into images of Harper and Thatcher’s faces connected to me through ropes of pink, vibrant, blood-borne light.
Boys, I’m here, I whispered. I’m here.
Confusion. Rows and rows of fruit trees. A roar of frustration. Not sure if it was mine or Doug’s. I opened my eyes to the sight and scent of coreopsis as bright yellow flowers bumped my cheeks. Bees, startled by my shout, backed away from gathering nectar and buzzed off.
Doug had taken the boys to another orchard. I’d been coming to the Pearmains’ long enough to distinguish the layout of their apple trees from others’. The trees in my vision were stone fruits, probably plums and apricots. Who on the island grew lots and lots of plums and apricots?
Still on my hands and knees, I let my spine sag and my head hang.
“We’re not ones to mandate supplication.” A feminine voice came from my right.
I growled again, this time loud enough that anyone in the kitchen should have heard me. I ducked and peeked under the bottom of the car’s door, debating whether I could ignore the rose red toenails connected to the voice.
“Please, do stand,” she continued.
I sat back on my heels, wiped my mucky hands on the broad leaves of a nearby comfrey plant, and fumbled for my car’s opened window. Footfalls in the house had me glancing toward the screen door as I stood. I tried to not gawp at the two unfamiliar, magic-infused beings.
“Mama! Papa!”
Némophilie and Silène skidded to a stop at the top stair and quickly composed themselves, curtsied, and fluttered the eight steps to the ground. They did not acknowledge me.
I turned, closed the car door, and beheld two ridiculously beautiful adult Fae.
The most striking difference between these Fae and Meribah’s version—aside from the fact they did not seem intent on killing me, at least not yet—was the hue underlying their skin. Under Meribah’s pale white skin were currents of icy, distant blue. Underneath the dusky surface of these Fae, the veins and lighter-skinned areas ranged from pale green to the palest lavender-pink, like liquid tourmalines.
“Are you ready to return home?” asked the mother.
The young women shook their heads and pointed to me. “Calliope Jones, Earth Witch, we recognize we owe you our lives. Mama, Papa, this witch needs to be rewarded.”
“Is this true?”
Both Fae looked at me.
I nodded. “I had help from a necromancer and a cat, but yes.”
“Name your price.”
If ever there was a time for me to pull the drama card, this was it. I might not ever have another chance. “I found your daughters and delivered them from certain death. Help me rescue my two sons from those who dared to capture your daughters, and I shall consider the debt paid.”
No one lifted an eyebrow in surprise. Or coughed. Or laughed. The two sisters and their parents turned their heads as one, toward the path leading to the older section of the property. A squad of twelve similarly-hued Fae materialized, marched close, and stopped.
“If you would follow me, I would like to wash up.” I swept arm toward the farmhouse. “We can speak over lemonade or iced tea?”
I was acutely aware of the contrast between these Fae and my grubby work pants, dirt-caked soles and hands, and the exposed part of my lower back. My shirt had come untucked—surprise—and stuffing it in my waistband would only spread more dirt.
Belle met us at the screen door and held it open. Before crossing the threshold, Mama Fae raised her arm and signaled to her squad. They turned as one and moved toward the back side of the farmhouse.
My savior and Plant Witch proceeded to exude an excess of charm. The way Belle poured her verbal ministrations over the newly arrived guests was a lesson in magical etiquette I wished I could stay to witness. I ducked into the half-bath across the hall from the sitting room and tried to make myself presentable. Scraping off dirt and taking a wetted washcloth to the remaining stains took longer than anticipated.
There were a lot more Magicals than before gathered on the back porch, down the steps, and under the big leaf maple tree. Belle and the Fae sisters were carrying ice-filled pitchers of drinks when I got to the kitchen.
“We’re really doing this?” I asked, keeping my voice to a whisper.
The three nodded, and into the afternoon light we went.
“Calliope, may we introduce you to our mother, Primevère LaFleur, and our father, Vadim. Our other father, Skandar, chose to remain at home, along with our sister, Heli.”
“Someone has to guard the court,” said Primevère before turning her gaze to me. “We know Meribah Flechette and her sister, Adelaide, and we are aware of their aspirations. Meribah had hopes her twin sons would make suitable partners for our daughters.” Distaste washed over their faces. “Vadim, Skandar, and I were not willing to promise our girls to anyone, especially as these two were toddlers at the time.”
Vadim hissed and muttered, “Gauche. Utterly, utterly gauche.”
Primevère patted his knee.
“Oh, it gets better,” she continued. “A messenger sent by the Flechette clan notified us two days ago they knew the whereabouts of our daughters and would be willing to enter into negotiations on our behalf in order to free the girls and see them safely back to Court. All they asked was for us to show up at their estate. Without our entourage.” She struggled not to laugh. “And reconsider the offer they’d made—what was it, eighteen years ago? Can you imagine?”
Harper was born eighteen years ago. I shook off the implications.
Vadim leaned forward. “As soon as we received their missive, we reached out to our spies, who could neither confirm nor deny Meribah’s claims, as it seems the entire staff at the Flechette estate was, as one put it, ‘in quite the uproar over ruined statuary.’”
He looked at Primèvere, and together they sent questioning looks to their daughters.
“As they were delivering their reports,” Vadim continued once his daughters confirmed the question in his eyes, “the daughter of one of my brothers informed us she had news of the girls’ true whereabouts. Our niece used our daughters’ code word, the one that would let us know they were safe and unharmed. We were debating our next step when this same cousin let us know Néne and Sil wished to speak with us. Here,” he said, sitting up straight. He took his time surveying the grounds. “In this rather quaint setting. And because Skandar, their mother, and I know these two young women rather well—more than they give us credit for—we await the other shoe’s dropping.”
The tourmaline hues under both girls’ cheeks sped to the rosy side of the spectrum.
It was my turn to steer the conversation in the direction that would ensure their help.
“Primevère, Vadim. My sons, Harper and Thatcher, have been taken by their father, Douglas Flechette. I was married to Doug for fifteen years.” I took a cooling sip of lemonade. “Four days ago, Meribah attempted to trade these two young men, Hyslop and Peasgood Pearmain,” I pointed to the hidden folk, “for my sons. My ex-mother-in-law is extremely interested in acquiring Harper and Thatcher, now that their magic has begun to manifest.” I explained the rest of the details as succinctly as I could. “Our plan is to draw Doug and whoever else is involved in my sons’ kidnapping here, to this orchard.”
“Where do we fit into this plan?” asked Primèvere.
Wes stepped closer and introduced himself. “We would like you to visit with Meribah and accept her help recovering your daughters. When you end up here, there will be many more of us than them.”
We hoped.
* * *
Vadim and Primevère headed for the portal. Kaz accompanied them and would provide each with a portal key. The Fae’s dozen guards were tasked with seeing to Néne and Sil’s safety and assisting the rest of us with what I was calling battle prep. We managed to gather everyone in the sitting room.
