by Lauren Dane
She was unsettled.
There was something wrong. It could have easily been the situation with her sister. But she didn’t think it was only that. That was an inner, emotional thing and she’d been dealing with it in some part for most of her life. The last year especially had been challenging.
This was, she thought, the balance being interrupted. Her mother was a hippie. As hippie as they came when you were a witch too. She’d raised both her daughters to be in tune with the magickal balance of things.
So it was impossible to ignore the pitch and sway in her gut. It had been worse since she’d arrived in Seattle. Things were not right. Not in a magickal sense. Things were jumbled, tattered at the edges. Not quite smooth where they should have been.
She paused as a monorail train passed on the tracks above her head. Aside from that lone sound, it was quiet in this part of the city. Just a few blocks one way or the other and she’d find people again, but right there, she let herself stop and close her eyes.
Back home there was so much energy it was often hard to filter all the non-essential data out to just hear the magick. But here it was different.
Though she was several blocks and up a hill from the water, the scent of salt spiced the air. It was cold, but not brutally so. The sky was clear but for the occasional cloud passing over the moon and wisping away.
There was a flavor to the magick here. Different than the bite of Los Angeles. L.A. tasted bold. Vibrant. Her magick seemed to leap into her system when she called it. No matter that she could be on a freeway miles from the ocean or mountains, the earth still spoke to her. Los Angeles tasted confident and a little cocky.
Seattle was richer, like burnt sugar. Seattle was a redhead with a mist of rain like diamonds against her sweater. Lush and sensual. Nature didn’t just speak to her here, it seduced her. Reminded her where her magick came from. The different energies of the Others who populated the area was pronounced. The ambient magick just floating in the air was considerable.
Lark breathed it in, stretching her arms out at her sides and turning her face to the moon. Small birds had landed in a bush outside a nearby apartment building and they chirped at her. Nosy, small birds, they liked to know just exactly what was going on in their territory.
“Chill out,” she said and they settled a little. “I’m just taking a look around.”
There she stood on a sidewalk in the city and she could still easily feel the magick coursing through the earth below. This was her land too. Her territory and it recognized her. The joy of that helped her find her center as she fully opened up her othersight to take in the night all around her.
Magick had its own aura, created by the Other it had belonged to. All around her the colors of so many different kinds of paranormals seemed to float through the air.
Shifters. She saw those back in L.A. too. A sizable wolf pack as well as some jaguars and even a few lions. They had magick too. Wild, feral magick that coursed through the earth like fast-moving traffic. Vampires. Here, as in Los Angeles, their energy was cool but strong. Red like blood. Like life. Secrets. They weren’t out either, though Lark knew they were talking about coming out right then as they had their convocation in San Francisco.
And the occasional hint of something rare—Fae and those who came from the other side of the Veil. The Veil was the wall between this world, the world of Seattle and witches and monorails, and another. Tir na nOg where the Fae lived. Demon realms. Lycia where large, powerful werewolves were the dominant species and ruled their realm via a council of packs.
She smiled thinking of Simon. She’d known a few werewolves and had believed no male of any species could be more testosterone filled, masculine… and bossy than them. Until she’d met her first Lycian. Simon Leviathan made even the most alpha Weres she’d met look shy and retiring. Only he managed to pull it off with charisma and charm so he got away with it.
They couldn’t do spellwork with their magick, but they had it just the same. Shifting forms was magick. The way vampires took the blood of others and made it their own was magick.
So her othersight revealed many strains of magick, but all connected in some way, no matter how minor. That was how it was supposed to be.
But just on the edges there was something else. She wasn’t full-council, but she was a powerful enough witch to realize there was a threat just on the horizon. The mages and the turned witches were a problem. But, from what she’d seen so far, a surmountable, manageable issue if they could get a handle on who the players were.
So whatever this imbalance was related to, Lark didn’t think it was part of the mage issue.
Someone bumped into her, jostling her from her thoughts. He turned, his teeth sharp, bared in a snarl.
Not a human.
Automatically, she drew her personal shields up and balanced her stance, ready to defend.
“Watch where you’re walking.”
“Watch who you try to glamour, Faerie.”
He narrowed his gaze. “What’s it to you, witch?”
She rolled her eyes. “Really? Was your mom okay with you doing that to your teeth? ’Cause, ew.”
He jerked back as if she slapped him and it made her laugh. “Go on then. Scare someone else before I pop you one square in the face.”
“You and what army?” He leaned in closer and gave her a growl. A pretty scary one all things considered.
So she popped him one, square in the face, and he stumbled back.
Lark shrugged. “Guess I didn’t need an army. Just a solid right hook.”
He spit and straightened. “Who are you, then, witch?”
As if she was an amateur.
“No one you need to worry about as long as you leave me and mine alone.”
He looked her up and down. “You have enough trouble; I don’t need to be part of that.”
“Wanna tell me about it? I’ll buy you a coffee to make up for breaking your nose.”
Which is how she ended up sitting at a sidewalk café with a Faerie who had demon blood.
“So what’s your story then?” she asked before taking a sip of her latte.
“Shouldn’t drink caffeine so late at night. Keep you awake.”
She snorted. “This is midday for me. I’m a night owl. So back to you, Dr. Demon.”
When he looked back her way his teeth weren’t filed. He looked like an ordinary, well, close-to-ordinary guy. “Story?”
“Tell me about the trouble you referenced while your nose was dripping blood. Remember?”
“Only because you’d probably punch me again if I didn’t.”
“Don’t pretend you wouldn’t like it if I did.”
“You’re a saucy one, aren’t you? My name is Calder. You are?”
“Lark.”
He looked up, startled, and laughed. “Lark? Like the bird?”
“My mom loves birds. What can I say? So Calder, what’s the story? Come on, I bought you coffee and everything.”
“You broke my nose.”
“Still crying over that? Sheesh. If you don’t want to get popped, don’t scare a girl when she’s out for a walk. Anyway, you’re not from around here so let’s not pretend you were out looking for kittens trapped in trees to save.”
He snorted. “You look like you spend a great deal of time in a library and could talk about Star Trek episodes in an encyclopedic manner. But you’re not like that at all.”
“I am though. After we talk business I’d be happy to chitchat about Star Trek with you. Also, I should hasten to add that time spent in libraries means I’ve got a lovely vocabulary. You should try it.”
“Fine. There are a lot of down-and-dirty cats here in town lately. They seem to like the taste of witch magick. Can’t blame ’em, I like the way you guys taste too. I just use my tongue instead of my teeth.”
Surprised, she laughed and rolled her eyes. “Some mages in town. Working with turned witches and even some human anti-Other separatists.”
“Yeah.”
There was a pause and he shook his head and then shrugged her way.
“There’s more? More than just these turned witches and mages.” Even as she said it, it sank in and made sense.
He nodded. “There’s just been an odd dude, well, dude usually means human and this guy ain’t human at all. From what I hear, he’s scaring the shit out of the people I’d consider pretty scary. When scary people get scared, I get wary. Don’t know any more than that so don’t break anything else to get me to tell you.” He raised his hands as if he were swearing an oath. And given both the importance of such things to both the demons and the Fae, she believed it.
“If you knew more, would you be willing to share that information with me?” She pushed a business card across the tabletop and he pocketed it.
“Maybe.”
It was all she could ask for really. “Your time has been helpful.” She lowered her chin slightly in appreciation. You had to be careful when dealing with the Fae. Demons too for that matter.
They chatted until her phone buzzed in her pocket and she realized she was a lot later than she’d planned to be.
“I’ve got to run.” She stood and he did too.
“Me as well. It was my pleasure to meet you. Isn’t often I say that to women who’ve made me bleed.” He smiled. “Then again, more often to them than to women who don’t. I think that says a lot about me.” He turned and with a whistle, walked down the block in the opposite direction.
She texted Meriel that she was all right and on her way over and got moving.
LARK couldn’t lie. Heart of Darkness was pretty awesome. The human part of the club was fabulous. She stayed out there awhile, simply letting their energy wash over her and through her, recharging her batteries.
It wasn’t until Gage came through and danced with her that she realized she’d only made it halfway to her goal. Then again, Gage was smoking hot and he danced really well, all up in her business like he was meant to be there.
Not that she had any complaints about it. There was some chemistry there that could go either way. He could be the kind of sexy friend you flirt with but never do anything about. Or the kind of friend you have sex with sometimes.
Even if she never had sex with him, it wasn’t like she couldn’t, you know, imagine it. Especially with him being right there in front of her, his body so very close. He had a row of hoops up his ear. His hair was close-cropped but still thick, pale against the blue lights of the club.
He leaned in to speak in her ear, his hand at her waist. “You should come through. Meriel is worried about you and you need a drink. First round’s on me.” He held his hand out and she took it as they wended their way through the dancing people toward the go-between—the doorway between the human part of the club and the place the Others in town hung out. The magick of it was impressive. She paused to take it in; the beauty and absolute surety of the work stunned her.
Each spell was woven into the next, the magick was seamless, but also clearly the work of more than one witch. That connection between witches and magick pulsed with life, powerful enough to hide a doorway into a world these humans didn’t even suspect.
The go-between was, to the naked, human eye, simply a back door. The spells on it not only hid it, but it would broadcast enough disturbance that humans wouldn’t even want to be near it. To her othersight, the spells seemed to glitter with power.
“I’ve never seen anything this good. I recognize Meriel but is that Dominic’s work too?”
Gage nodded. “It’s the shit, isn’t it? That connection they have through the bond is intense.”
Once she’d stopped gawking, Gage steered her past the cleverly disguised bouncers and into the other space. Or, she supposed, the Other space. Clearly, she thought as she looked around, this was the prime hangout for the Other community in the Seattle area.
It was quieter back there and her ears took several long moments to adjust as she simply took the space in. Where the energy was very, very human out front, this part was thick with Other magick. Witches here, yes. Also some Weres, a tiny bit of that Veil magick so probably Fae, though perhaps Simon wasn’t the only Lycian. Vampires off in a booth in a far corner. Magick, warm and enticing, flowed through the space and she breathed deep.
“They’re already at the table.” Gage pointed to a table where Meriel, Dominic, Simon and a few others already sat. When Meriel caught sight of them, she waved them over.
“There you are. I was wondering if you got lost.” Meriel scooted over to make room for them to join the group.
“I caught her out front dancing.”
She shrugged with a grin. “I like to dance. Also I was out for a walk and bumped into someone. I’ll tell you about that when we’re not in public.”
Meriel’s attention sharpened as she leaned in. “Problem?”
“Potentially. If it was an emergency, I would have called you straightaway.”
Dominic stood and held his hand out. “We can discuss this in my office.”
Simon stood as well. “Your office just had new paint. It stinks in there. We can use mine.”
Lark wasn’t sure what she’d expected of Simon’s office. She’d been in his home so she knew he had good taste, but his office, like his home, was elegant and incredibly masculine.
“Nice.” She sat on a small leather couch and waited for everyone else before she recounted the story she’d heard from Calder.
“Calder? Filed teeth?” Simon asked.
“Yeah. He a friend of yours?”
“He’s sort of related. One of my half brothers, Cardinian, his mother is a demon. Calder is a relation.”
“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”
“Card’s mother, my second-mother, is one of the best beings I know. Not all her family is. She came to us after a long road of suffering. But Calder is one of us who lives here most of the time. Not to harm. Just to be away from the politics back home, if I remember correctly.” Simon knew exactly what that was like.
“He can be trusted then.” Meriel sat back, thinking.
Lark played with one of her earrings. “I don’t know that it’s anything for us to be alarmed at. I mean, clearly it’s alarming, don’t get me wrong. But we don’t know much more than what he said. I’ll spend some time down in the archives to see what I can find. Sheila knows her stuff.”
Dominic looked to Simon, catching his eye. “Is this something you might be able to speak to your second-mother about?”
A trip home. Longing filled him for a moment. “It might. I’ll try Calder first.” He turned to Lark. “You want to come with me? When I meet Calder?”
Her eyes widened. Funny how some women got that same face when they got jewelry or other baubles but hers lit up over interviewing someone. Odd woman.
“Yes, I’d really like that. He wasn’t all that bad once I broke his nose.”
He laughed. Odd, but endearing. “That’s like a mating dance in my culture.”
She grinned.
They moved back out to their table.
“I’d like a shot. What do you have, Simon?”
“Is that a challenge?”
“It wasn’t. But it totally is now.”
“You’re dandelion fluff. A sweet little pixie. I can drink you under the table simply because I’m a foot taller and a great deal heavier.”
She shrugged. “If you say so.”
One brow raised, he had a server bring over a bottle of tequila and some shot glasses.
“I’m hungry. Do you have food here?”
He also sent an order to the kitchen for a tray of appetizers to be sent over.
“Ready?” He poured two shots.
“I was born ready. Grr.” She saluted him and took the shot, licking her lips.
The tequila was top-shelf so it went down smooth and easy.
“Are you wearing socks on your hands? Why?” She was such a mishmash of styles and colors. It amused him.
She smiled and he liked the openness of
her features when she did. “They’re not socks.” She wiggled her fingers, the nails painted tangerine. “See? They’re like leg warmers only for your arms. Wrist warmers, they’re called. My mother makes them for me.”
Another shot and then one more and the food arrived. She didn’t appear any worse for wear, but she was small. He didn’t want to take any chances with her getting sick. That and he hated it when women puked.
“Man I’m going to have to run a few extra miles tomorrow,” Lark said as she loaded her plate. “I usually just run in my neighborhood back home but I don’t think I can here.”
“There’s a track on the fifteenth floor of the building our old place is in.” Meriel snagged an egg roll. “Use your key in the elevator and it’ll let you out there. Full gym too.”
“Oh, good to know, thanks. Someone told me Green Lake was a good place to run too. Is that so? The potential for shame if I punk out is better in public.” She winked.
“You can use my land if you like. Park in my driveway and if I’m not there, head east around the house and you’ll get to my gardens. Follow the main path a quarter of a mile or so and you’ll get to the trail. It’s still the forest, but if you stick to the path it’s been manicured well for running.”
“Really? Thanks. I love to run outside. Do you run, you know, as your other self? Here on this side?”
“Yes, when I can.”
“I’ve never seen a fully shifted Lycian. If you, well, you know, if you want to run with me, I’d be fine with that too.”
“All right. But not if you’re one of those people who are up at five.”
She poured them another round of shots. “I am serious about many things. One of them is sleep. I’m a night person. I’m far happier to be in bed at three and up at ten or eleven. The best stuff happens after dark.”
He looked her over carefully. She was tipsy, yes, but so was he. She wasn’t drunk though.
“Are you using magick to outdrink me? Not fair, little pixie. Not fair at all.”
Her eyes widened and she frowned. “I did not! I don’t need to use magick to outdrink anyone. It’s just something about me. I can drink most anyone under the table. I have a fast metabolism.”
Duly chastened, he leaned back and tried not to smirk.
