“I have my own methods of travel.” The Hedge-Witch’s voice sounded like sugar and poison. “I can get you across. But once there, they will need you for protection. They will need you to get them into the Coven to complete their task. Can you do this?”
Eli nodded, but inside she was less sure. What would happen if they were caught? She would be unmade for sure, and Cam and Tav would be killed. She swallowed. The spit scraped her throat.
But if they made it, Eli might be able to discover who had ordered her last mission. That was worth the risk. And she couldn’t stay trapped in the City of Ghosts, waiting for the Coven to track her down. They didn’t tolerate failure. She had to do something.
She glanced nervously at Tav, who was playing with their hair spikes. She told herself they knew what they were getting themselves into. The Hedge-Witch would have prepared them, warned them about deadly magics. Surely, Cam had seen what Eli was capable of and understood what all of this meant. They knew the risks and were ready for the danger.
But deep down, she didn’t believe it.
“The rest of you — stay safe and stay alert. The Sun is always open to you if you need shelter. We know that hate groups are becoming bolder and that the human cops are not on our side. But they will not win, and soon we will be strong enough to fight back.”
Across the room, Tav’s face had hardened. Their pupils glittered like black onyx, and Eli felt a chill deep in her bones. She looked away, uneasy. As the noise around her resumed, bravado and drinks and worry spilling over the tables, Eli realized what was so unnerving about Tav’s expression.
It was the look of a person who was ready to fight.
Sixteen
The smell of burnt maple trees bowing before her, cities flattened in an exhale. Whatever was inside her body was coming out, breaking through the bone.
The pain was unbearable, and Eli reached down with bloody claws to tear the badness away.
She was being unmade.
Eli woke on the lumpy pullout sofa in Cam’s apartment, her heart fluttering restlessly. She imagined a delicate lace net of moth wings in her chest cavity, faintly glowing redpink with lifeblood. The nightmare lingered. Eli curled in on herself and told her heart to stay. She prayed that the magic would not leave her, ripping through her skin like paper, leaving her a crumpled pile of parts. She touched herself, soothed her body’s fierce frantic jerks and shudders. There, there. I’m here. We’re here.
The first time she had the nightmare, she had woken in her bare room, the floor sticky with the trails of slugs and her own saliva. Even then, she had known not to wake Circinae, not to venture into the guts of the house that let them live there — for now. Eli had looked out the window where a glimmer of bluegreen cut through the opalescent sky. She had sat up. She saw it again — like a scrap of fabric, a flag, waving at Eli from outside the house.
Eli had climbed out the window and followed it. As she came nearer, she saw that it wasn’t a flag but a single brilliantly coloured balloon, bobbing gently in place. She felt it had been waiting for her.
Eli reached out a hand to touch it, and the balloon rose a few inches above her head. It started drifting backward, away from Eli, away from the grabbing hands of needy children. It blinked out of sight as if losing colour and shape, only to rematerialize a few feet away, half-hidden behind a giant oak.
A game! Eli followed quickly, tripping over roots and scraping her hands and knees on bark studded with stones and spiky black thorns. The balloon led, and Eli followed. She followed it deep into the heart of the ancient forest, her head dusted with charms and curses the way humans pick up bacteria. The magic was so thick in this part of the forest that she could hardly breathe.
The balloon stopped.
Slowly, cautiously, Eli crept toward it. Her bare feet tiptoed over velvet moss and scalloped rock with edges sharp as a surgeon’s scalpel. She reached out a hand. The balloon quivered once but did not move.
Eli’s hand brushed the strange round thing. It was surprisingly soft. The balloon popped suddenly, spilling a bluegreen liquid like paint down to the earth that vanished when it touched the ground.
In the sky, however, the blood of the balloon creature hung in place, marking an invisible door in the middle of the woods. Without hesitating, Eli had walked through it and found herself in the Labyrinth for the very first time.
“Coffee?”
Cam’s voice interrupted her thoughts. He walked into the living room in an oversized white tee and a pair of grey sweatpants. Gone was the dapper boy with the coiffed hair and the perpetual smirk. He looked like shit, which made her smile.
“I want to shower first.”
“Sure. You know where it is.”
“Your roommate didn’t come back last night.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Eli waited for Cam to say more, but he didn’t.
She ducked into the bathroom and reminded herself to breathe.
We believe you have a human mother whose DNA was used in your making. If you help us, we may be able to find her. The Hedge-Witch’s words came back to her. Eli was drowning in half promises and threats and the electric shiver that sparked through her body when confronted by Tav’s challenging gaze. She had gone with Cam looking for answers, but last night had only raised more questions.
The memory of the ghost brought a bitter taste to her mouth, and Eli leaned over the sink and spat it out. Black bile sizzled in the bowl. Eli turned the tap on.
In one night, the Hedge-Witch had managed to ensnare Eli in a dozen different nets: the promise of belonging, the hint of knowledge, a passage between worlds tied to the vulnerable bodies of two humans. It had been a trap, and there was only one way out now: the mission. A chance to lose herself in movement and magic and death. She breathed easy for a moment. The question of her making and parentage would come later — if there was a later. If she proved herself to the rebels, if she earned a place here … but she let the thought dissolve into mist and shadow. Everything hinged on that if.
She checked the mirror and walls for cameras or witch-bugs, angry at herself for being so careless the night before. It seemed clean. Made sense: no witch, even an outcast, would trust dangerous magic to a human. Eli had no doubt in her mind that the Hedge-Witch’s alliance with the humans was only temporary.
Eli could hear Cam moving around the apartment. He crashed into something and cursed. She guessed he was hungover. She stepped into the steaming shower, and the hot water made her skin turn red. Last night she had been quick and anxious, rinsing off the caked blood and dirt; now, she took her time. She scrubbed at her body ferociously, wincing when she touched the purple and green bruises on her legs — souvenirs from falling out of the sky. She scrubbed until her skin was raw, trying to erase the memory of human blood on her face. Eli breathed in the chemical scent of chlorine, burning out the lingering scent of death. Then she tipped her head back, closed her eyes, and let the water trickle over her forehead and mouth. Her mind conjured up an image of Kite, her long hair flowing across Eli’s face like water, silky and damp. Kite had to be alive. She just had to be.
When her body was sore and the steam was starting to make her head spin, Eli stepped out of the shower. She dressed and replaced her pendant. It lay pressed against her sternum, safely hidden under her shirt. A headache blossomed at the base of her skull and she wondered if she had drunk too much last night, too.
Eli pushed open the door and took the few steps between the bathroom and the main area Cam used as a living room and kitchen. “What were you saying about coffee?”
“Christ, yes.” He ran his fingers through his hair, somehow managing to make it even messier.
“Great look on you,” she said.
“You don’t look so hot yourself,” he said, nodding to yesterday’s outfit, which she had slept in and was now splotched with water. “I see you’re sticking with the whole ‘fell out of the sky all bloody and dirty’ look.”
“I could still impale
you with your umbrella.” Eli couldn’t muster the energy to make the threat sound plausible.
“Then who would make you coffee?”
“I’d wait until after.”
“Smart move.”
Eli found herself exploring the details of Cam’s apartment as if planning a heist — flicking through books, feeling for the absence of dust on surfaces, testing the windows for thickness and durability. This familiar routine helped to clear her head, to calm her agitated body. But it was a small space, and the water still hadn’t boiled when she was finished, so she shoved the sofa bed back into couch shape and collapsed in the middle. The smell of freshly ground beans filled her mind with promises. One of Eli’s human concessions — Circinae frequently despaired of the little addiction. Eli claimed it made her fit in better, but maybe she was more human than she realized. Guilty pleasures.
Her thoughts wandered as she waited, always coming back to the questions she wanted to ask and didn’t know how to broach. She waited until he brought over a cup of strong, bitter coffee to finally break the comfortable silence.
“How did you meet Tav?” she asked, surprising them both.
Cam settled down on the sofa beside her. “Oh, the same way everyone meets Tav. At a queer roller derby amateurs’ night. Did you know their hair glows under black light?”
Eli took a second to digest this information. “Tav roller skates?”
“Oh god, no, they were terrible. They skated right into me and spilled their drink all over my new shirt. I threw my drink at them, and we decided to be friends.”
“Cute.”
“We are. We’re different in a lot of ways, but hey, queers of colour have to stick together, you know?” He glanced over at Eli. “Maybe you don’t know. Anyway, a week later, we were playing Super Mario Kart on this couch, and they turned to me and asked if I believed in ghosts. I was going to make fun of them for being superstitious, you know, buying into that occult shit, but when I saw their expression, I knew. I knew they had seen one. I knew they were like me — they’d been touched by magic.”
“Humans can’t see ghosts.”
Cam shrugged. “Tav can. That’s why they’re the Hedge-Witch’s favourite.” His tone held no spark of resentment and more than a candlewick of pride. He turned to Eli with a gleam in his eye. “Why so curious about Tav? You didn’t say anything to them last night.”
“We didn’t leave on the best of terms.”
“I have a feeling that’s you with most people.” Cam took a sip and then sighed. “Hello, caffeine. I missed you.”
Eli sipped her coffee and thought about a boi on a bike and a girl who smelled like the sea.
“My turn,” said Cam, setting the mug down on the coffee table. “Why did you say yes?”
“I have to get back to the City of Eyes.” The answer came automatically.
“How do we know you won’t leave us the second we cross?”
“That’s your problem, not mine. I didn’t tell you to trust me.”
Cam watched her for a minute. “I don’t think you’ll leave us,” he said quietly.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Dread pooled in her belly again, a shadow gnawing at her flesh. How was she going to get them into the Coven without being discovered? She played with the handle of the mug. “Look, Cam, what we’re about to do — it’s dangerous. Really dangerous. I swore an oath, so I’ll take you, but I think it’s a mistake.”
“Won’t be the worst one I’ve made.” He fluffed his hair, but under his carefree demeanor was a current of darkness.
“Yes, it will be.”
Cam shook his head, a gleam of sadness in his eyes, but said nothing. Eli replayed his questions in her head. Why had she said yes? Because she had no other option. Because she wanted to. Because she didn’t know what she wanted.
Childhood fantasies of running away with Kite flooded her body with nostalgia and loss. They had discussed it many times, making elaborate plans, drawing maps, imagining new worlds. Sometimes they decided to flee to the human world. Sometimes they went back to the Labyrinth. Sometimes they trekked into the unknown, fleeing the City of Eyes for distant galaxies. Anywhere, as long as they could be together.
Until. Until Kite stole her name from the human world on her coming-of-age quest and joined the Coven. Until Eli had become the deadly ghost assassin she had been designed to be. Then the dreams and plans stopped. One day, Kite would rule the world. One day, she would be the person Eli was running from, instead of to. The ache in Eli’s chest grew.
“Any final questions?” The lightness had returned to Cam’s voice, although he kept his eyes on his coffee. “What kind of moustache wax I use? Why I have a Darth Vader night light in the bathroom?”
She turned the mug around in her hands. It had a picture of a walrus on it and read “You Arctickle My Fancy.”
“Why do you need to get inside the Coven?”
“I’m sorry.” He looked down. “I can’t tell you.”
“Another hex?”
He shrugged sheepishly. “The Hedge-Witch doesn’t trust you.”
“Smart woman.”
Back to the City of Eyes, to the Coven, to the truth about her creation, and maybe her future. The knives at her waist glittered with anticipation. She shouldn’t have been excited, but she was.
“Fuck,” she said and finished her coffee. Cam was smiling. He felt it, too. “You may not be able to tell me your goal, but I want to know your plan up front,” she said, turning to face him. “Any surprises, and I’m out. I may just be a weapon, but I’m a nearly flawless one, and I know this world. You don’t. I want all the details you can give me. And once we’re in the City of Eyes, I’m in charge. I’m not following your orders.”
“Understood.”
“Good.” She rose and took Cam’s half-finished cup of coffee from him. She could get used to having coffee every morning. To giving orders instead of taking them. The thought made her dizzy with possibility — she was strong and alive and a little out of control. Focus, she told herself. “Take a shower. Get dressed. And then we let you make your mistake.”
Seventeen
Tav was waiting for them at an all-you-can-eat sushi bar.
“I ordered two of everything,” they said.
Cam grabbed the tablet and tapped rapidly on the screen. “You know I only like salmon rolls.”
Tav rolled their eyes. “You better eat fast.”
“Don’t I always?”
The server was already bringing over trays of food. Eli stood, feeling awkward and out of place under the bright lights of the restaurant. She was amazed at how much time humans spent eating. Their organic bodies needed a lot of energy to survive. Eli ate sometimes. But she also suspected parts of her body photosynthesized while other parts just existed.
“Sit,” said Tav to Eli. “I promise I won’t make you take a blood oath.”
“Just a saliva one with a runaway witch.”
Tav shrugged. “She makes great espresso.”
“Where did you stay last night?” asked Cam between mouthfuls.
“The Hedge-Witch let me crash. She thought it might be a little tense at our place.”
“Wait,” Eli broke in, glaring at Cam. “This is your roommate?”
“Only for the last eight months or so. Great place, right? So much character.” Tav smoothed their spikes into place.
Understanding dawned on her. “You don’t work for the Coven.”
“No.” Cam had the decency to pretend to look ashamed.
“The Hedge-Witch sent both of you to recruit me. It was a trap.”
“Hey, you could have said no,” said Tav. “It’s not like we kidnapped you.”
“Well, you could have told me the truth last night,” she told Cam. “Or this morning.”
“I thought you’d be less angry after you ate,” he said. “Salmon roll?”
Eli pushed the plate away. “You caught yourself a witch’s pet. Congrats. So, what’s your pla
n?”
“Do you have the key?” asked Cam, glancing at Tav.
Tav leaned back, putting their hands behind their head. “Have I ever let you down?”
“Well, there was that time at the poetry reading —”
“That was one time!”
“We were tracking a ghost.”
“She had a full leg tattoo, Cam.”
“My point exactly. You get too easily distracted by pretty people.”
Eli didn’t like where this conversation was going. “Then I guess it’s a good thing none of us are particularly pretty,” she said. “The key to where?”
Cam reached for another salmon roll. “To where? To your world, of course.”
“Of course.”
Tav leaned forward, elbows on the table. They were wearing the same scuffed leather jacket. It had tassels. On anyone else it would have looked ridiculous. Eli found herself leaning in to catch the sound of their voice.
“The Hedge-Witch doesn’t think we’re being tracked, so the Coven won’t be expecting us. Were you followed?”
“Please.” Cam popped a piece of fish into his mouth.
“Did you bring the supplies?”
Cam nodded.
Tav turned to Eli. “Do you have everything you need?”
Eli smiled. She thought of the bone and pearl blades that resonated with the sound of her body. They were glamoured to be invisible, but the weight on her hips and waist was comforting. She felt the affinity between things, the meeting of the animate and the inanimate. She felt power humming through her bloodstream. “I am everything I need.”
“That’s the look,” said Tav, “that drew me to her.” They spun their keys around their fingers once, a flash of silver, and then gone. It felt like a sign.
Eli’s heart was racing in her chest. It was like the first time she had killed a ghost. Back when her understanding of death and heroism was shaped by reading Harlequins and Sailor Moon manga the children stole from the human world.
“Can we go now?” Cam’s plate was empty.
“Not yet. I have questions for the assassin.”
The Girl of Hawthorn and Glass Page 7
