by Sharon Joss
“What about the others? What about the wolves? Surely you can’t allow them to suffer.” Mike sensed that Nixese was conflicted; that he might actually let him go, if only he could convince him.
“They are not our concern,” Daneah hissed.
Nixese nodded in agreement. “In the eyes of your own government, lycans are neither human nor clan.”
“This is crazy,” Mike said. “Listen to me. I can bring out both your kinsmen and the wolves.”
“No!” Daneah was vehement. “This is none of his affair. He is not one of us. He works for the vampires! Choose your punishment, cousin,” she spat. “Imprisoned beneath the Tor or allowed to roam in a form of our choosing. Deliver the punishment and be done with it, Nix.”
“She’s right,” one of the others agreed. “We are not here to negotiate terms.”
“Florian, would it hurt to let the elders decide?” Nix asked. “You see he hosts the spirits of Xenotchi and Tehuantl within him. With magic of the First Jaguar behind him, perhaps there is a way to free our loved ones.”
Somewhat reluctantly, the others agreed.
Hope rose within him, and he prayed is wouldn’t take long. Every minute in that dungeon brought the wolves closer to death.
“Very well,” Nix said. He lowered his weapon. “We will present you to the court of elders to answer for your trespass. I warn you that they may not accept your offer. They could decide to inflict a harsher punishment.” Two of the warriors bound Mike’s arms behind his back, and looped a thread-like leash around his neck. He tried again to call the cat, again with no luck. He had no choice but to follow his captors.
They walked for hours. With each passing minute, Mike’s anxiety grew as he worried about the prisoners left behind in that cavern of horrors. The idea of leaving them to Ozzie’s abuse and neglect tore at him with every step.
As they travelled, the character of the woods gradually changed from native beech, alder, and maple to darker, older trees of hemlock, oak, and cedar. Beneath their feet, the lush green summer grasses thinned and dried beneath the forest canopy. The drone of cicadas faded, as did the quality of light and intensity of the sun. They were no longer in the High Tor Wilderness Management Area anymore, he realized. He doubted they were even in New York. He remembered the stories that his father and Taffy had told him about the Fae lands. The lands inside the Tor, they’d told him. This must be the place, he mused. Repeatedly, he reached for the cat, but the cat was nowhere to be found.
The hazy sun was past its zenith when they crossed onto a wider track. His captors picked up their pace and he was forced into a jog. After a couple of miles, they left the thickest part of the forest behind and the character of the terrain changed again. The land here consisted of low, rolling hills interspersed with dense copses of trees and woodlands.
Eventually, they reached a settlement clustered within a grassy clearing among the hills. The village consisted of hide-covered pavilions and low buildings built of log and stone. Pheasants and bronze turkeys wandered the unpaved streets with the same air as domesticated chickens. The air was cooler here, even in the hazy light of the mid-day sun. Lush vegetable and flower gardens flourished around each structure. Indian corn hung from simple wooden drying racks; apple trees, heavy with ripe fruit indicated that the seasons inside the Tor did not match up with the calendar year.
They left him in a storage barn, with the fierce woman, Daneah, to watch over him. He fidgeted uncomfortably, but the woman refused to release him. She seemed to enjoy his discomfort.
* * *
After what seemed like hours, Nix finally returned and brought him before the elders. They were seated at a low table located inside one of the long houses that seemed to serve as a general gathering place. Two women and four men; each brown-skinned, slim, and clad in the same soft patterned leathers that the hunters wore. Each also wore a length of woven fabric draped across their shoulders and held in place with a carved wooden clasp.
They were a handsome group, although none of them looked pleased to see him. Men and women alike wore heavy cuffs of polished silver around their upper arms. Mike knew their actual age was beyond reckoning. Time passed differently in the Tor, he knew. The elders appeared older than Nix and his companions. They looked to be anywhere between forty to sixty years in human years, but true Fae were immortal. They could change their appearance on a whim.
As a boy, he’d believed the stories and taunts he’d heard from the other kids at school. He and Striper Dave both carried the darker complexion of their Tor clansmen. People said that the Fae of the High Tor had lost the ability to have children of their own and so stole the children of humans from their beds at night. They hypnotized them with the magic of their music and honeymeade wine so that they would forget their parents and where they came from. None of the children kidnapped by the Fae were ever seen again.
“This is the son of Farley Bane.” Nixese announced. “He has knowingly trespassed a second time onto the Tor. We would have carried out his punishment, but he claims that the Van Cleves have been mistreating our people. He has offered to destroy the Earth Mage and return our missing clansmen.”
Instead of answering Nix, one of the women spoke to him directly. “I see you, Xenotchi. I see you, Tehuantl.” She bowed her head respectfully. “Why is the First Jaguar here? Why does he concern himself in matters between the High Tor clan and the undead?”
“Who is Xenotchi?” Mike asked.
The answer came from a man on the far left. The lower half of his face was covered with a stylistic blue tattoo. “Xenotchi is First Jaguar. Not of our clan, but legend. Always an honored guest in our lands. Tehuantl is his high priest.”
Xenotchi. Immediately, he felt the cat’s presence beneath the surface of his skin. Tehuantl’s too.
“Why have you agreed to destroy the earth mage, Gordon?” A woman wearing a silver toque around her neck asked.
“I didn’t say that I would kill him, but with your help, I will release the wolves and Fae imprisoned behind the Mythica wards.”
“You broke our laws. You trespassed on our land in human form,” the tattooed man said. “It is our right to punish you.”
“I was trying to get help, There are lycans and Fae being held captive in a cave beneath the Van Cleve estate. They’re being tortured. It’s been going on for a very long time.”
“Only mortals count the passage of time; it has no meaning for us,” said the woman with the silver toque.
“If you knew what was going on in there you wouldn’t say that. They’re starving. There is no water. They are forced to feed on corpses. Maybe your people can’t die, but they’re living in misery.”
“Don’t let him distract you, Torgh,” protested Daneah. “He works for the vampires. He came onto our land in human form.”
Torgh, the heavily tattooed elder pointed at angrily at Mike. “By crossing the wards, he has also broken our treaty with the vampires. No Fae may cross the wards.”
Mike struggled to maintain his composure. “You can’t have it both ways. If I’m Fae, I broke no law by entering the Tor in human form. If I’m not Fae, I didn’t break your treaty with the Van Cleves by crossing the wards. Don’t punish me for what I am or am not. Help me get those people out of there.”
“We cannot cross the wards,” the woman shook her head sadly. “And the passing of time means little here. Perhaps the magic of First Jaguar is greater than that of the blood wards. But we cannot allow the son of Farley Bane to thwart our laws a second time. You will remain within the Tor as our permanent guest. Are we agreed?” She looked at the others, each of whom nodded.
He fought to control his rising panic. “Wait a minute. What about Xenotchi and Tehuantl? Where I go, they go. They’ve broken no laws. You said they were honored guests. How can you keep them here against their will?”
“We are different clans of the same ancient tribe. Xenotchi and his priest will be happy here.”
What is wrong with these peopl
e? Couldn’t they see he was trying to help them? It was almost as if they’d rather see him punished than rescue their clansmen. Talking to them was about like talking to Internal Affairs. Their arguments didn’t go anywhere, they merely circled the drain. It didn’t make sense. Wasn’t it enough that they’d already taken Farley? He had to find a way to get through to them.
“Give me two days. I swear I’ll get your people out of there. What have you got to lose?”
The elders at the table all turned to the woman with the silver toque. “What say you, Altheah,” asked Torgh.
They made him wait in the barn while they discussed it. He paced; alternatively cursing his captors and praying they’d accept his proposal. Nix did not return until the next morning. In spite of Daneah’s angry protest, he was untied and released with a two-day deadline: “Release our people and we will reconsider your punishment.”
CHAPTER 31: PRIORITIES
Daneah and Nix escorted him through a portal which emerged directly into his back yard; the very tree which the jaguar Xenotchi used as a scratching post. Tom was right. The cottage was on Fae land. He realized with a start that Tom was being released today.
Or was he? The clock in the kitchen said 6:30am, but he was certain he’d lost at least a day out on the Tor. What day was it? He called the hospital and they told him Tom had been released the previous day. Dr. Sarah Powers had made the arrangements.
He called Tom but there was no answer. His uneasiness grew as he checked his messages. Vince, Silas, and Rafe had all called looking him. There. Tom had called less than an hour ago. As he replayed the message, his pulse pounded with every word.
“Hello Mike, Felix Tolland here. Tom is unavailable at the moment. Your stepfather and your girlfriend are currently enjoying our hospitality. Based on our previous conversation, I believe you are aware of our timetable and the overdue need for action on your part. As soon as the party in question is relieved of his duties, your loved ones will return from their little stay-cation. Should you delay further, or jeopardize our agreement in any way, I’m afraid we will have no other choice but to terminate your contract.”
He swore and threw the phone across the kitchen. He dragged his hand through his hair as he frantically tried to figure out what to do.
“Do you sleep in the cage or on the bed?”
He jumped. Behind him, Yolanda stood in the doorway, wearing nothing more than a smile and one of his old tee-shirts. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“I was waiting for you.” She came toward, him, her eyes smoldering, sleep lines on her cheek. “Where have you been? Everybody’s looking for you.”
He moved past her, down the hall to his bedroom. “I don’t have time for this.”
“Don’t you walk away from me. What was Felix talking about? Why didn’t you tell me you had a girlfriend?”
“I don’t.” He changed into jeans and a tee-shirt while she sat on the bed and watched. He ignored her as he reached into the closet and pulled a box down from the upper shelf. “You’ve got to get out of here. And don’t go back to Mythica, either. Leave town. Go back to wherever you came from.”
“Did you know Vince is married? Tell me.”
"What?" Oh jeeze. “Yes. But that’s not important.” He set the box on the bed and went into the guest room to get the key out of the desk.” She followed him from the bedroom to the guestroom and back again, her agitation growing with every step.
“Vince brought me out here on false pretenses. He told me I could be his. He’s been lying to me the whole time.” She tugged at his arm, her expression intense. “I would never have come here if I’d known he was married. He has no intention of leaving his wife. You have to do something.”
He twisted out of her grip. “I’ve found the missing wolves. They’re locked up in the old slave quarters, I think.” He unlocked the box and pulled out his service revolver. Automatically, he checked the chamber. Empty. Good.
“Vince needs to go. Trick is weak. I know that now. But you’re not. You’ve got plenty of juice; Beta pheromones don’t lie. I like you, Mike. We could be good together.” She moved closer and rubbed against his arm. Still warm from sleep, she smelled like heaven.
“Shut up.” He shook her. “Did you hear me? Ozzie’s got the missing pack members caged beneath the estate. He’s torturing them. They’re starving to death.”
Her expression changed to one of uncertainty. “Trick told me there’s something wrong with Ozzie. He overheard Ozzie and Cobb arguing about Ambrose. Cobb offered Ozzie a lot of money to leave the estate, but Ozzie told him he’s got something called ‘blood steward’s dementia’. He’s addicted to Ambrose’s saliva, but it’s eating his brain cells. If he leaves, he’ll die. Cobb told him that Ambrose already knew about it, and was planning to kill him. He said the only thing stopping him was his fear of retaliation from Vince.”
He shook her. “Is Trick absolutely sure about that?”
She hid behind her dark mane. “No. It happened when Trick was in solitary. Ozzie kept him doped up on ketamine most of the time. He wasn’t sure whether it was a memory or just a dream.”
“Does Vince know? Does he know that Ozzie is keeping the wolves locked up beneath the estate?” He selected the small box of silver ammunition from the bottom of the box and began to load his weapon.
She shrugged. “I don’t know. I haven’t been here long enough to know for sure. I didn’t even know he was married,” she added, bitterly. She looked so unhappy.
“Forget this place,” he told her. “Find another pack. Anyone would love to have you.”
Her face softened. “Thank you for that.” She seemed to notice the gun in his hand for the first time. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m still working on it. I’ve got to find Tom and Sarah.” If they were really gone, they hadn’t been missing long enough to file a missing persons report. Dixon wouldn’t lift a finger without a warrant. “And I’ve got to get everybody out of there.”
“Let me help you.”
“No. Look, I don’t know what’s going on. Once I find out, I’ll talk to Vince.”
“Take me with you.”
He slipped on his shoulder holster. “Ambrose hired me to challenge Vince for Alpha so they could replace him with Trick. You heard Felix. They’re holding my godfather and his therapist. They must think she’s my girlfriend. I don’t know if Vince knows what’s going on, but I’ve got to make sure Tom and Sarah are safe. And I’ve got to get the wolves and Fae out of the bestiary. That’s all I care about.”
“Well I’m not just going to sit around waiting.”
“I’m not asking you to. Go on, get out of here. This place isn’t safe for you, and neither is Mythica.” He slipped a light cotton windbreaker over his shoulder rig. “Get as far away from here as you possibly can until this whole thing blows over. I can’t risk something happening to you if things go badly. This is not your fight.”
CHAPTER 32: THE SEARCH FOR TOM
Yolanda agreed to let him borrow her Camaro. He dropped her off a mile from the estate with the keys to his truck. He had to make sure that Felix hadn’t been lying to him about Tom and Sarah.
Pedal to the metal, he raced over to Jolley’s Outdoor Outfitters. A white Toyota hatchback sat parked next to Tom’s SUV. He used his key to let himself into the back of the store, and checked the ground floor. Other than the new plate glass window in the front, there was no sign that anyone had been there. He crept up the stairs, his ears straining for the slightest sound.
The door to Tom’s apartment upstairs was ajar. With his heart pounding in his throat, he pushed the door open. A toppled-over lamp, a woman’s pocketbook, and two bags of groceries lay strewn across the floor. Whoever it was, they’d been waiting in the apartment for Tom. Sarah had probably been a surprise.
No doubt Felix was holding both of them at the estate. With a sinking feeling, he realized they’d probably be held in the Bestiary. The only other alternative would be the h
ouse, but he doubted that Felix would allow it. Not when the underground cavern was such a perfect hiding place.
He made a quick search of the apartment, then scooped up the keys to the Toyota and headed downstairs. Sarah’s car would be less recognizable than Yolanda’s. He left Yolanda’s key under the passenger’s seat of the Camaro, and called her cell phone. She didn’t answer, so he left a message telling her where she could pick up her car.
Ten minutes later, he was back at Mythica, where he parked the little white hatchback in the ‘Guests Only’ parking lot. Using the rows of planted vines as cover, he angled his way through the fields up toward the main house. He skirted the woods around the back and slipped into the sunflower field. As he’d done previously, he opened his senses to the cat and let the First Jaguar’s nose lead him directly to the warded entrance. Piece of cake.
He slipped inside and slid the door shut behind him. Early morning sunlight streamed through the windows. The place was as bright and spotless as a shiny new penny. But before he could make his way to the door leading to Ozzie’s clinic, he heard the distillery door slide open behind him. He debated whether to make a run for the clinic, but Gordon had already seen him. He’d have to play this one by ear.
“There you are.” He hurried forward to greet the Mage. “I’ve been looking for you.”
Gordon gave him an appraising look. “This building is off limits. How’d you get in?”
Mike pretended to be surprised. “Oh really? Nobody told me. Ambrose hired me as a security consultant. After that vampire got into the park the other day, Vince gave me carte blanche to search the entire estate. I was actually hoping you could tell me a little more about the wards.” He looked around the spotless room, as if for the first time. “Very impressive setup you’ve got here. I’ve never been in a distillery before.”
