by Erica Ridley
“In case you’re wondering,” she said under her breath, “you’re not catching my family on their best day.”
“No worries.” He wished he could hold her hand. “At least I’m not the one destroying the house this time.”
A.J. jerked his head up at Trevor’s voice. “What’s he doing here?”
“He rescued Daisy from Purgatory,” Arabella called out as she scrambled up and over the coffee table like a cat. “And me, too.”
“Yeah?” A.J.’s eyes narrowed, momentarily distracted from the utter destruction of his home. “How come?”
“He was mad,” Daisy said at the same time Arabella answered, “He likes her,” and managed to singe the edge of Vivian’s gown.
“What are your intentions toward my daughter?” A.J. demanded, his wings unfurling like a hawk’s.
“We’ve already been through that today,” Daisy said. “Can we skip it for now?”
Arabella ducked behind the couch as Vivian’s wand liquefied the cushions. “Yeah, I asked him earlier.”
A.J. frowned. “Well, what did he say?”
“Nothing. Daisy wouldn’t let him talk.” Arabella army-crawled between the wall and Daisy and Trevor’s feet, hauling ass to the other side of the couch. She latched onto Vivian’s ankle and gave a hard tug, knocking the skeezy tooth fairy off-balance yet again.
This time when Vivian fell, she lost her grip on her wand as well as a heavy silk pouch that fell to the floor with a thunk.
“Ha! You did bring a Himalayan Lust Charm. You bitch!” Arabella leapt on top of her, one side of the pale blue gown ripping as her knees pinned Vivian’s flailing arms to the ground.
“I did not!” Vivian’s legs kicked up in the air. Her skimpy dress slid to her thighs, giving Trevor a direct view up her skirt at neon yellow panties. He shuddered.
“I think I might step outside while you two work things out,” he said, grabbing hold of Daisy’s elbow and dragging her toward the door before the damn thing melted off its hinges. He burned the tips of his fingers on the searing hot metal handle and swore under his breath.
“Go ahead and kick it down if you want,” Daisy said with a sigh. “We’ll have to re-conjure the whole thing anyway.”
Trevor hesitated, not certain he wanted to compound his negative impression in A.J.’s eyes.
Before he had a chance to make up his mind, the door caved inward, splintering into several jagged planks. Trevor threw his arms around Daisy’s waist and tumbled her to safety behind the couch as a no-nonsense army of trolls marched through what used to be the doorway.
A.J. stepped over the writhing women and cleared his throat. “May I help you?”
The trolls exchanged glances at the wreckage.
The spiral staircase dipped and sagged in a Gaudí-esque lump of rippling lava. What few walls remained popped and crackled with bits of fire and smoking embers. Arabella still knelt on the floor in her ragged gown, the scantily clad Vivian flailing beneath her like an overturned crab.
“Neighbors filed a noise complaint,” one of the trolls said finally, keeping his gaze on struggling duo on the floor. “’Fraid we’re going to have to ask you to come down for questioning.”
Trevor was beginning to think of himself as a High Court regular. He glanced at Daisy, and immediately pulled her to him. Her face was pale, her skin clammy. She swayed as if she could faint at any moment.
“They’re going to double my stint in Purgatory,” she whispered, eyes dull with horror. “They’ll lock the door and magic away the key.”
He held her tight, wishing to Heaven he had words of encouragement.
One of the trolls stepped forward. “Come along, ladies. Fight’s over.”
“I’m not going anywhere.” Vivian clawed at Arabella, who responded by slapping her across the face.
“In that case,” said the troll, “I’m afraid we’re going to have to haul you in ourselves.”
He motioned over one shoulder. Thick black netting seemed to fall from the ceiling, trapping them all in its scratchy web.
A dour-faced troll released them from their holding cell first thing Saturday morning. If the Elders thought an unsolicited overnight at the Nether-Netherland Regional Headquarters Containment Center would ease the friction between Vivian and Daisy’s family, they were dead wrong.
She followed her parents, her duplicitous mentor, and her could’ve-been boyfriend past the vacant courtroom benches. Her pleasure at seeing Vivian finally get a dose of karma paled at the thought that this might be the last time she ever saw any of them again.
Mr. Squatch broke away from a heated conversation with Judge Banshee and loped to her side.
“Urgh,” he said, his gurgling voice brimming with chastisement. “Urrrrrghhhh.”
“Well, it wasn’t my idea.” She doubted her lame excuse made much difference. “Besides, you never came to see me. I didn’t know what to do.”
Trevor leaned forward and stage-whispered, “What’s Chewbacca saying?”
“Urgh,” the big yeti grumbled, shaking a sheaf of papers in front of her face. “Urrrrrghhhh.”
“Oh.” She faced the questioning expressions of her family. “Mr. Squatch fought the charges and prepared an appeal. He says they were on their way to retrieve me from Purgatory for further testimony. But then I had to go and break out, which really is a punishable offense. So I might be going right back.” Daisy sighed, and turned back to her attorney. “Where’s D.A. Sangre?”
“Urgh,” he said, motioning the entire group up to the judge’s bench. “Urrrrrghhhh.”
“We’re not under arrest,” she translated over her shoulder as they trooped down the aisle to the bench. “Just brought in for questioning regarding the noise complaint. The only one of us in any danger of actual punishment is me.” The back of her head throbbed against her skull. “As usual.”
Without making eye contact, Trevor touched her shoulder. Slowly, his fingers massaged the tense muscles until she relaxed into him.
His palm slid backward, down the curve of her spine and over the swell of her hip to brush against her hand. Still facing forward, he laced his fingers with hers. Loosely. Tentatively. As if he half-expected her to jerk her hand from his grip and slap him.
She did no such thing.
In fact, her head stopped pounding. She curled her fingers tighter around his, cursing herself for taking solace in his mere presence.
He slanted her an unfathomable look and squeezed back.
“Arabella le Fey,” Judge Banshee began, giving the ripped hem of Mama’s dress a skeptical glance. “How do you explain the recent activity at your homestead?”
“It was nothing,” Vivian broke in. “A slight misunderstanding.”
“Nothing?” Mama repeated, her eyes glittering dangerously. “I suppose you ‘misunderstood’ that A.J. belongs to—”
“All righty,” Dad interrupted, stepping between the snarling women before the Elders’ High Court could turn into Lava Pit Part II. “I think we’re all clear on the situation. We’re very sorry to have caused a disturbance, Judge. It won’t happen again.”
“No, it won’t,” Mama agreed, “because Vivian will never be returning to my home. Isn’t that right, Vivian?”
Vivian’s gaze slid from Dad to Judge Banshee and then back to Mama. “Unless I’m invited.”
Daisy gagged at the mental image.
Her mother’s face went pink. “You’re not going to be invited, you back-stabbing piece of—”
“Relevant as that may be,” Judge Banshee shrilled, “I can’t help but notice the unauthorized return to Nether-Netherland of a certain human being. I don’t suppose any of you care to explain that?”
Daisy gulped.
Trevor’s fingers tightening around hers. “Believe it or not, I came on my own. And it’s my fault Daisy and Arabella escaped from Purgatory. I did it without asking.”
“You’re right,” Judge Banshee said with a snort. “I don’t believe you. And didn’
t I specifically say you were to be returned to your normal life? Somehow I doubt ‘normal’ human life consists of magical catfights and side trips through Purgatory.”
Trevor opened his mouth, but no words escaped. He was probably remembering how much better he liked the human world over Daisy’s.
And she couldn’t blame him.
“Actually…” Mama stepped closer to the bench, surreptitiously elbowing Vivian’s ribs in the process. “I believe you said there was a way that Daisy and Trevor could be together.”
His face jerked up. “What?”
Her blood pulsed faster through her veins. If Judge Banshee would grant the inter-dimensional relationship permit, perhaps there could be such a thing as Happy Ever After for unmagical wingless neurophysicists like herself!
“What I said was ‘no’,” Judge Banshee shrieked. “However, I’m willing to hear your argument. The provision states that under extraordinary circumstances, Nether-Netherlandians may choose to live on Earth, as long as they maintain the honor, respect, and secrecy of our world and its inhabitants. This means forgoing magical acts and visible accoutrements. Becoming, for all intents and purposes, human.”
Daisy frowned. That sure didn’t sound like Happy Ever After. “I’d have to give up magical acts and visible accoutrements like what?”
“Does it matter?” Trevor whispered, his eyes warm and shining.
“Living on Earth means,” Judge Banshee said with a shake of her gavel, “no pixie dust. No magic. No wings.”
Chapter 24
“No wings? Ever?” Daisy choked, staring up at the judge in horror. Fairy wings were the symbol of magical accomplishment. She’d never garner respect without them. Even for herself. “What’s my other choice?”
“The other option is to return the human to Earth for good this time, which is a task I no longer trust you with. In fact, young lady, don’t think for a second that you’re getting off scot-free. Your five years in Purgatory may have been reversed, but your initial sentence to probation has not. If I see you before this court again, you’ll wish you’d stayed in Purgatory after all. Understand?”
She understood, all right. And wasn’t thrilled with either choice.
Judge Banshee hopped on top of the desk and jabbed a finger at Mama. “You.”
“Me?” Mama staggered backward a few inches, running into Dad’s chest. “Me what?”
“You will return the human to his home. You will perform any spells necessary to erase all dangerous memories from his mind. You will not allow your daughter to accompany you or interfere in any way.”
Vivian gaped at the judge. “You’ve got to be kidding. You don’t trust Daisy, but you trust Arabella? She’s powerful enough to do what you ask, but she’s sneaky enough to ignore you completely.”
Mama shot her a dirty look.
“Fair enough. A.J. will go with Arabella to ensure she complies with orders.” Judge Banshee arched an eyebrow in Vivian’s direction. “I assume we can trust an angel of the Lord?”
A faint blush tinted Vivian’s cheeks. She snapped her mouth closed with a click and held up both palms.
“By the way,” Daisy added while she had plenty of witnesses. “I quit.”
“Please.” Vivian laughed lightly. “What are you going to do, strike out on your own? Without me, you’re still as hopelessly unmagical at twenty-seven as you were at seven.”
She turned back to the judge, dismissing Daisy altogether.
Daisy glared at the back of Vivian’s head in all its highlighted, over-teased glory. All she needed was one more day in the lab and she’d prove it.
Trevor’s fingers tightened on her hand. “Daisy can do anything she puts her mind to.”
Vivian trilled with laughter. “As long as she puts her mind to science, you mean. She can’t do anything useful. Judge Banshee has to send her parents to take you home.”
“Wait,” said Trevor, tugging Daisy close. “I thought you were coming home with me. What happened to that plan?”
Daisy’s insides churned.
Judge Banshee raised her gavel. “Miss le Fey?”
Trevor stared at her, watching, waiting, his eyes dark and uncertain. She smiled uncertainly. He was a good man. Smart. Sexy. Thoughtful. And she wanted him. She truly did. But at what cost?
Leaving everything she knew, everything she was, everyone she loved? She’d had plenty of boyfriends, but she’d never had respect. Some things were worth sacrifice. Her mechanical wands were getting more reliable by the day. Success, nine of out ten times! How could she give up after getting this close?
Mama speared her with a sharp gaze. “Think carefully, sweetie,” she said, her voice low, intense. “You won’t be able to change your mind.”
Daisy wavered, for a moment tempted to give up her lifelong dream of being important in her community and respected by her family, friends, and peers in exchange for a little more time with a maddening human.
Once she had the respect and the power, then she could find a way to be with Trevor. Making the hard choice now was the only way to have both. Wings were permanent. Once she had them, no one could ever take them away. She’d dedicated her life to this chance, and couldn’t walk away now. Not when she was this close.
“I can’t.” Daisy’s gaze snapped from the judge to Trevor. “I’m sorry.”
“What?” He dropped her hand, his eyes and tone dull and expressionless. “Why?”
“Nether-Netherland’s my home.” Daisy shivered, cold without his touch. “My family. My friends. My future. Earth is too far, too strange, too… unmagical.”
He drew a ragged breath through clenched teeth. “So you’re rejecting me for being human all over again. What’s so great about being magical?”
“Magic makes everything better.”
He laughed humorlessly. “Magic makes everything worse.”
She tried and failed to imagine a world without magic. “Maybe for you. You live on Earth, where it doesn’t matter.”
“You were just given the choice to live there too.”
“Without friends, without family, without everything I’ve ever worked toward achieving. I’m sorry, but I don’t like the terms.”
“Those are the terms you get,” Judge Banshee reminded her. “Take it or leave him.”
Daisy stared at her bare toes instead of Trevor’s stricken face, wishing like crazy there were some way to have it all.
“If you have nothing else to say,” he said quietly, “I’m ready to go.”
When she didn’t respond—couldn’t respond—he turned his back to her and approached the bench, eyes downcast.
The judge motioned to Daisy’s parents. “Go on, then. Take him back to Earth.”
No one moved.
Daisy’s mind raced, refusing to accept the judge’s decree or Trevor’s words. Her uneven breathing filled the frozen courtroom. She couldn’t give up her goals, her dreams, her entire life. That was too much to ask from anyone. She wanted him. She wanted to keep him. But she wanted him here, in her world, on her terms. And that just wasn’t possible.
Her parents reached forward, their fingertips grazing the sides of Trevor’s arms. He jerked, then allowed them to take his hands.
His leaving signified her life returning to normal. If she put things to rights, she wouldn’t have to go to Purgatory. Within hours, she could be back in her lab, well on her way to following her mother’s fairy godmother footsteps. So, why did her heart feel like it was shattering in her chest?
She should do something, she should say something, let him know what agony this was before it was too late and she never saw him again. She should tell him that she—
Judge Banshee’s gavel rang out amid the deafening silence.
“Now!” she shrieked at Daisy’s parents.
And then they were gone, leaving Daisy standing by herself, with an onslaught of could-have-beens racing through her mind.
She didn’t want him. She didn’t want him.
Tr
evor stood in front of his now-empty aquarium and exchanged awkward glances with his unexpected houseguests. How depressing was it that Daisy’s parents visited his house for the first time after their daughter refused to join him there?
Arabella kept sending him sympathetic looks, which could only mean Trevor was doing a shit job of acting like he didn’t care. The first thing he needed was that damn ForgetMe spell. The last thing he needed was pity.
“Go ahead,” he said to Daisy’s father, since Arabella was busy frowning and shaking her head. “Make me forget.”
“Can’t,” A.J. said. “Guardian angels do miracles, not magic. I’m here as enforcement. Arabella, would you please quit stalling?”
“We don’t have to do this, you know.” She turned to Trevor, silver wand in hand, face drawn. “I could let you keep your memories… if you want.”
His stomach twisted. Whether at the thought of keeping his memories or losing them, he didn’t know.
“Yes, you do have to do this, and no, you can’t let him keep his memories,” A.J. growled. “See? This is exactly why Judge Banshee sent me along. Vivian was right.”
“Don’t you speak her name.” Arabella jabbed him in the chest with the pointed star. “As soon as we get home, you and I are going to have a little chat about what it really means to love all God’s children.”
A.J. grabbed her hands. He pointed her wand toward Trevor, and backed up.
“I’m ready.” Trevor’s nerve endings twitched in revolt. He wasn’t ready. He might never be ready.
Arabella’s hands wavered, as if waiting for confirmation from Trevor before acting. “You’re sure you want to forget my daughter?”
A.J. didn’t interrupt this time, leveling his own fathomless gaze on Trevor.
What was the right response in this circumstance? Yes, I want to forget your daughter, because she trampled my heart beneath her red painted toes? Or, maybe, no, I don’t want to forget your daughter, because as it happens, I derive intense masochistic pleasure from torturing myself with her memory.
