Shifting Truth

by Francheska Fifield

  I look at the Fae lords ignoring the bowing and scraping going on around me. Even Jason and Brian go down. I can feel it, their power trying to push its way into my mind and make me bend down on one knee before them. Instead, I lift my hand and shoot Miss Secretary in the head. The power snaps back into them as they raise summoning maelstroms. I level my guns at them…yes, guns. I pulled out my second one.

  "She promised me no magic would be used on us. I know you used power to ensure the boys would kneel. I know because I felt it and ignored it. Next bullet goes into one of you and do not think for a second I will miss because of your special little powers. You don’t scare me."

  I get a few jaw drops, but Brian and Jason are on their feet with their guns pointed at our escorts.

  "The mixed breed does not lie lords."

  Well, they want to live. Though arguing with the great lords is not the way to do it from what I have heard…whoops.

  "We are here as a curiosity. I am just as happy to leave and let you guys to deal with your own mess. So what will it be? Do you pull those powers back into your asses or do we leave? Make no mistake, every iron bullet I have will go into your barrier and land on my way out. That might be enough to bring even you guys down…"

  The lords sit and I put my second gun away. The first stays trained on the youngest smallest Fae I have ever seen. Sure he looks inconspicuous, but I got the memo. He sits in the middle on a slightly raised dais and they all circle around him like bees to a queen. He is smiling, kicking his feet back and forth like a kid in an ice cream parlor.

  " I don’t know your names. So let's say we introduce ourselves. I want real names or at least partials. Starting with you little one."

  He laughs as the others gawk and start protesting. I shoot the wall behind them to shut them up. I am in a bad mood, this place puts me on edge, and I am losing the fight against this addiction I 'supposedly' no longer have.

  "You are everything I have heard and more Bethany."

  "You are a mite small to rule the most powerful creatures in the world aren't you? Shouldn’t you be begging for candy in a store?"

  I have no sense of self-preservation. His only response is to smile. He walks toward me and mist swirls around him. When it disperses he stands in front of me and is an adult. Inhuman eyes, swirling colors in a state of constant change, stare at me. They are the eyes of a predator. The smile is as well. The teeth are too straight, too white. A smile so beautiful it reeks of fakeness and insincerity.

  "Better?"

  The voice is like melted butter, rich chocolate, and a warm caress all in one. He isn’t even putting power into it. I can feel it is just his voice. I bet the girls in court get nothing done once he speaks. The kid voice at least makes you want to pinch his cheeks, which will probably go over as well as stripping.

  "Well, at least I don’t feel like I am talking to my nephew."

  I shrug off his effect on me. Keep it together Beth. He strokes my hair before I take a step back and raise my gun, which was at my side for some reason.

  "You are powerful in your own right. I see why you do not fear my subjects. I do wish you hadn't killed the court secretary though."

  "No mission with her ever goes off without a hitch and she pissed me off a lot."

  He steps back searching my face for lies. I’m not lying. He must find the honesty refreshing instead of insulting because he laughs and walks back toward his court.

  "My counsel tells me you have been treated by our doctors after an unfortunate drug made with Fae ingredients and black magic. Is this why you do not trust us?"

  "Well to start with your doctors are shitty at their jobs because I still have the anger side effects and the cravings. The vampire craves the violence. This is why I am fine if you decide I should just kill you all instead of doing this job. By the way, we didn’t talk rates. I am the best hunter in the U.S. I am not cheap you know."

  Brian and Jason come up opening their mouths. I hadn't told them about the cravings yet. This is my only chance to find out if the Fae know anything to help and I have a hunch that frankness will work best with this lord.

  "Hmm…that is interesting. Only the vampire side of you. Do you know why?"

  "No, but I know you do."

  He smirks at me before sitting and looking at me completely bored. It is a façade. He is interested. His court face is perfect, but I can hear the lilt in his voice, see the body language he is unaware of. Leaning slightly toward me.

  "Perhaps."

  "Spill and I will have my fee."

  "We can afford any price you set."

  "My price is for you to fix me."

  "And if we cannot?"

  "I do not finish what I start and I make you pay for what I have done with some other favor to be named at a later date."

  He taps his chin as the others sputter. Seems like both his side and mine are pissed. Well, this is between him and me now.

  "Deal."

  "Shake on it." I grab a knife and prick my palm then hold it out to him. You don’t shake on it with a Fae without involving blood so they have to keep their word. And written contracts are not done so this is it.

  He smiles and seems to float over to me. No rustling of his clothing, no hair out of place, no footsteps echoing in the hall. He grabs the knife and pricks. Blood wells up and we shake. The deal is sealed.

  "I need a historian to aide Brian in the library. Jason and I will be traveling so we need a Fae that can communicate back here without issues from around the world."

  "You shall have what you seek. My healers will need a vial of blood to test. One as an animal too if you want true results. In a state of anger for both."

  I smile and nod to the boys as I let go of the velvet smooth skin I am holding. "Let them come with me to chew me out for this deal and I can promise anger in my vampire state at least."

  He laughs.

  "Very well. Follow this young lady she will take you to the hospital. She is an air Fae and will travel with you. Her specialty is communication via birds and winds. She should be very useful."

  I nod. "Led the way girly."

  She curtsies not just to the lords but me as well. Either she is low on the totem pole or she is overly polite. That’s new. A polite Fae. Shocking.

  "This way mistress."

  "You can call me Beth. Mistress is so…domineering."

  "They tell me you are powerful and negotiated with the prince himself."

  Yeah, that sounds cooler than it had been. Brian and Jason look like they think so too. Am I the only one not impressed?

  "It wasn’t a big deal. What's your name?"

  "Brisa miss….Beth."

  That explains her not looking bright and light enough to be Fae. She has a Spanish relative. That means she is half human as well. No wonder she thinks everyone is above her. The half-breeds are treated like servants no matter the species.

  "You are half human as well aren't you?"

  She nods looking ashamed. "I am a half-breed as well. Neither side likes me or accepts me. We are the same."

  Her eyes widened and she almost trips. I am losing myself but I’m not lost so badly I am going to make this poor girl feel like crap for being half-human and half-Fae. She is an innocent. I’m not there…yet.

  "But you are so powerful."

  "I wasn’t always. I had to work very hard to get this way. You can too. Little breeze….a fitting name. Breezes can turn into hurricanes you know. Just keep your head up and keep practicing. Someday you will find your strength."

  She looks at me in awe. I want to blush, but what kind of bad-ass would I be if I blushed? So I just hurry her along. I want this part over with. Hopefully, she won’t get scared after seeing this. It’s not going to be pretty…

  We arrive at the hospital and I make Jason and Brisa stand back. They both protest as I knew at least one of them would do, but I insist. Brian thankfully backs me up.

  "Jason you are not going to be able to handle her when she loses
it. I've been seeing more and more of it lately. She tried to throw a knife in my head last time. She will kill you."

  The words hurt. I had thrown a knife, but at the wall near his head not at his head. A big difference in my world, but he is right. I am losing myself. He knew it, I denied it, and here we are. Brutal honesty was always my thing…hearing it from Brian directed at me hurts a bit.

  "He's right Jason. You can't try to hold me back and you cannot interfere with what Brian is going to do to bring the demon out."

  The problem is a lot of violence has been going on around me, allowing the beast with cravings to satisfy them. I can’t think of anything Brian could do to bring it out and make it crave more.

  He looks to the healer Fae.

  "We need guards not afraid of what she can do to them in here to hold her down so you can get the blood once she loses it. None of you will be able to and I can't alone."

  It had to hurt admitting he’s not bad-ass enough to kick my ass in a place we are seen as weak. It is like castrating him while everyone watched. I flinch. This is my fault. I should have listened to him before, but I knew the Fae wouldn’t help without a price. I hadn't been willing to pay it, even for my sanity. What they fix, they took in equal measure. This way we will owe them nothing but the completion of our job.

  "Beth, do you trust me?"

  I snap out of my thoughts as Brian looks at me, hesitation and a little bit of fear in his eyes. The guards have flanked me. I nod.

  "Do what you have to."

  He nods and looks back at Jason.

  "Brisa can you use winds to hold a person back?"

  She shakes her head. So her powers are strictly communication-based. Brian nods one of the extra guards to Jason.

  "He will need to be held back."

  They all look at me and I nod.

  "When I can't be in charge Brian is. Listen to him. He knows what to do and for a little bit after this, I won't be myself."

  They nod and follow his orders. Jason is already bristling, complaining about being held back when nothing is happening and how he won’t get upset doing what is needed. That changes when Brian walks up to me and punches me in the face. One of the guards grabs my arms, but he doesn’t need to. Brian was right to put the guard on Jason though. He tries to leap forward. He is yelling, Brisa is covering her ears with her hands and has her eyes closed. I do what I do when someone I loves hurts me. I retreat into myself.

  Brian is prepared for it. He punches again and again. My torso, my face, kicking my knees. The guards are holding me up and after fifteen minutes I am angry, but I’m still not attacking. So he does it. He has them chain me then he comes over and bites me. The voice inside my head unleashes with a fury. I see nothing but red and enemies and I launch myself at Brian, ripping away from my guards.

  I am on him in a flash, tearing a piece of flesh from the body and digging in with my claws. It is lucky I am weakened from taking a beating. The guards are able to pull me off. The blood drips down my face as I twist and growl. They hold me down and needles go into my arm. It only enrages me further. I see a body carried away and turn to focus on the one in my line of sight.

  There is talk going on around me, but I can’t understand any of it. Suddenly the man in front of me turns into an animal. A wolf stands in front of me. All brown and black with a bushy tail. It lays down and puts its head between its paws whining. Some part of me feels the call and next thing I know I am an enraged wolf.

  People jump at me and I evade, running around the closed off room. Growling and snapping at any fingers that dare get close. The bushy-tailed wolf jumps up growling back. His fur is raised making him twice as big as before. My hackles go up and I meet him growl for growl. Suddenly someone lands on me from behind. It is the bloody body from before. Needles shove into me once again before my head receives a blow and nothing matters.

  "Toss me another blood bag. She took a chunk out of my arm. It's going to take awhile to heal."

  Jason tosses me another as he paces glaring daggers at me. He is not impressed with my performance. Using Beth as a punching bag wasn’t my favorite idea either, but I needed her defensive and weakened for that to work. This deal had been her idea and she is counting on me to make sure it happens.

  "That was terrifying. What happened to her?"

  Brisa's voice is that of a squeaky little mouse at the moment. She had been horrified by my assault on Beth; she was terrified of the counter-attack.

  "She was tortured and drugged by the Fae partner she had and a warlock. The drugs did something permanent to her. That’s what happens when the cravings get the better of her. She didn’t attack you though so she's not totally gone. She only went for those of us threatening her."

  Brisa shakes and Jason goes over rubbing her back.

  "It's okay. The lords promised to fix her. It's okay."

  It sounds more like Jason trying to convince himself than be reassuring. I will let him hold onto that fantasy. I’m not sure if she can be saved. I have been doing so much research and found nothing. Still, the Fae have a history that none of the other races do. If anyone can find something it will be them…or me rooting through their ancient archives.

  Chapter Five

  It is two days before Beth wakes. When she does it is with a growl, groggy eyes, and elongated canines. She needs blood. I don’t free her yet, but I do cut my wrist and hold it out. She drinks a little wildly at first, but as the blood heals her system she wakes from her haze and rejoins the world.

  "How long?"

  "Two days."

  She tries to sit and can’t. She flexes and brakes the restraints. Well, that wasn’t supposed to happen.

  "Tell Jason to get his and Brisa's asses packed. We leave as soon as I get my coat and weapons."

  I don’t argue, only a fool would. She wants this over with and I myself am hoping this will have a happy ending. I leave the room. No sweet nothings whispered or anything. It is too much to hope I wil get that in this situation. Maybe next time.

  Brian leaves the room and I sigh. Man, I am so tired. I can’t let myself drag though. I can sleep while we travel to where Jason thinks we should start. Brisa will probably feel better the more I am out of it considering what she saw.

  "Beth you cannot be serious about leaving! You just woke from a two-day coma!"

  Oh, Jason….the silly man has no idea how this works.

  "Gear up. You better have done enough research while I was unconscious to give us a starting point."

  "Why the hell would you think I would spend any time researching while you were unconscious?"

  Of course not.

  "I did. Here's the paperwork with briefs on the culture and language."

  I smile at Brian walking over to kiss him full on the mouth.

  "See this is why I left you in charge. And why I love you so much. The sooner I get the hell out of the hill the better. If I had to wait for Jason to pull his head out of his ass someone would have died."

  Brian shrugs and smile. He knows me so well. He is way too good for me.

  "I know you will recover from your break down faster the further you are from here. I had to make sure you could leave as soon as possible once you woke. The jet is on standby. Once there Brisa can contact another air Fae that will be with me at all times for communication purposes. You can feed me information and I will look for the next step here."

  I hug him tight, finish lacing my boots, throw on my coat, and grab my bag of weapons and the folder Brian is holding. He is the perfect man.

  "Let's go, Jason. Pack it up. I leave with or without you and remember without you I will use force to get what we need."

  He looks shocked for a few seconds before he finally decides to be stunned later and move his ass now. Good because I’m not feeling very patient. Already the itch for more violence is coming back. This time I will be in an enclosed piece of metal in the air….yeah that would end well.

  He and Brisa follow with backpacks. I don’t n
eed anything but my weapons. Good thing we have a private jet…airport security would not have been happy to see me or my duffle.

  Once in the air, everything is awkwardly silent. I still have no idea how one can wake from a two-day nap and feel tired. I mean seriously only the things that have to work have been going. How tired could the body get doing nothing? Of course, I am not a sit and do nothing kind of girl.

  "The flight is very long so I recommend sleeping to anyone tired. It's really the only thing to pass the time."

  Well, the captain said so…

  Hours later, it feels like an entire year given how silent and awkward it is on the plane, we land. It’s not as hot as I expected. One would expect Israel to be hot and all sand. It is December though and the day is a solid fifty degrees.

  "Jason, you had a chance to look at Brian's research?"

  "Yes. We need to head into the Judaean Mountains."

  "Mountain climbing it is. It'll be impractical to use a sword so everyone carries a gun. No arguing."

  I toss each of them guns, small lightweight guns, but still guns. No one is going anywhere without protection. I am keeping my sword in my weapons bag. It is going with me everywhere.

  "We need to hire a guide."

  "Only to get us partway. No one goes with us when we get to the area Brian thinks the temple is located."

  Jason sighs. He’s been here before and he found ruins and artifacts. He also had guides and workers to help. I do my jobs alone or with a single partner if a pincer trap is required.

  "All right. How will we find our way back?"

  "I will remember it."

  He looks doubtful but doesn’t argue. Finally progress. Brisa just quietly watches it all waiting for instructions. She is slowly getting the hint that, though Jason is in charge of the where and what, I am in charge of safety and that overrules anything either of them think or say.