The Hidden Court

by Vivienne Savage

  “Gonna let me see you do it?”

  “Maybe. Not today though. I’m gonna take a nap before class.”

  “Oh.” I frowned. “I’m sorry for getting you up early.”

  “Nah, it’s cool. See you tomorrow?”

  “Yeah.” Without thinking, I popped up to my toes and kissed his cheek. “Thanks for today. It was really great.”

  He blinked, and for one second, he lost his usual cocksure attitude and looked as startled as I felt by my unexpected gesture. He tucked my hair behind my ears.

  “After everything that’s happened, you deserved a fun day.” He dropped his hand away. “You put on a strong face, but I know you have to be hurting about Dedrik.”

  “Is it wrong that I’m more pissed than anything? He and I barely had the chance to get to know one another beyond a single dinner out and some shared workouts. What happened to him isn’t fair.”

  “Death never is. He was a good guy.” He paused a moment, then added, “Sebastian is attending the funeral tomorrow and bringing a few of us. We’ll be traveling to Germany by faerie circle, and I’m willing to bet he’d let you come too.”

  I sucked in a deep breath and held it, wondering if it was even my place to attend. Dedrik wasn’t my sentinel. He hadn’t even been my boyfriend. But he was a friend, and that was enough to be there.

  “Yeah,” I said finally. “I’d like that.”

  “All right.” He checked his bag and pulled out another box of ammo. “Want to squeeze off a few more before we call it a night?”

  “Well, if you insist.”

  This time he didn’t give me any help while I started the tedious process of loading the clip.

  “Here!” a woman’s shrill voice cried, echoing down the narrow chamber. “They’re both in here!”

  Mrs. Hansford swept into the room with Simon and Sebastian on her heels. I fumbled the clip and bullets bounced everywhere.

  “You see? Blatant disregard for school rules. I knew these two were up to something.” Mrs. Hansford put her hands on her hips and stared down her nose at me. Sebastian folded his arms and took his usual stance, while Simon gave an exasperated sigh.

  “You again, Miss Corazzi?”

  My heart leapt into my throat and started a spastic sort of rhythm against my ribs. Ducking down, I scrambled to retrieve the runaway bullets rolling across the floor. “He was just showing me how to shoot a gun, that’s all. We weren’t trying to break the rules.”

  Gabriel crouched beside me to help. “Actually, there’s no rule against it. The range is open to any student so long as a qualified shooter is present.”

  “You are not an instructor, Mr. Fujimoto. Wizard Bostwick, I demand disciplinary measures to be taken against your night school student for this infraction.”

  Sebastian coughed. “Fujimoto may not be an instructor, but he is at the top of our class and qualified to use the range at any time he pleases to tutor other students.”

  Mrs. Hansford whirled on him. “I didn’t ask you. I’m speaking to your handler.”

  Gabriel’s eyes bugged out of his head, and Sebastian stiffened.

  Oh, shit.

  Simon placed himself in front of Mrs. Hansford in a step. She looked like a toy doll beside him, and she must have realized the gravity of her mistake, because she turned sheet white and shrank back a step.

  “I’m sorry,” Simon said, voice smooth and controlled, although there was a kind of fury broiling off him in palpable waves I’d never detected before in a member of the faculty. “I must have misheard you. I know you didn’t just slight a colleague and insult my partner?”

  “I… well…”

  “Because if you did, I’m sure the provost would appreciate knowing about the discriminatory, bigoted attitude cultivated by her senior staff. I’d certainly be happy to tell her.”

  Her face mottled, and I worried for a moment that she might explode. Or pass out. Simon had a way of sounding terrifying without raising his voice.

  “I misspoke, and I am sorry,” she bit out. “But we still need to deal with these two.”

  “I don’t see any problems here.”

  “But it is inappropriate!” Mrs. Hansford spluttered. “These two have been sneaking around after hours, and I have it on good authority it’s been occurring for several months.”

  Simon shrugged. “The provost is well aware of their activities, as are we.” He cut his gaze toward me and winked. “You still clench your fists when you run. Watch that.”

  “Good hustle on the tire course though,” Sebastian added, as if we were having a pleasant conversation rather than a teacher standoff.

  “Um, thanks.”

  “We’ll see about this.” Wearing a scowl sour enough to curdle milk, Mrs. Hansford stalked from the range and didn’t look back. Even Sebastian released a quiet sigh of relief once she was gone.

  “You two return to what you were doing. You won’t have any more trouble from her,” Simon said. Then he glanced at my silhouette and murmured. “Damned decent,” before he and Sebastian filed out the room too.

  I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry after everyone left, so I settled for picking up the remaining scattered bullets. Gabriel crouched down to help, and he was the first to break the silence, falling back while laughing.

  “Did you see her face? I thought she was going to have a stroke.”

  “I thought she was going to run in terror when Simon faced her down like that. He was really pissed.”

  Shared laughter felt good after everything that had happened. Once we cleaned up, Gabriel encouraged me to shoot at one last target. This time I managed to keep all my shots in the torso, even if they weren’t all clustered together in a tight circle.

  Afterward, we settled in at his place, rented an action movie to watch with Ama, and ordered pizzas on my dime because Gabriel was more than a bag of meat assigned to my protection. He was a friend, and I hoped one day I’d have the courage to stand up to someone for him the way Simon had for Sebastian.

  19

  Not a Real Date

  A little Google searching taught me about Japanese Valentine’s Day culture and resulted in Liadan helping me in the kitchen Wednesday afternoon. By the time we finished, I had a dozen presentable candies and three times as many that resembled smooshed cow patties. We ate those, because it was a crime to waste chocolate, even if they were ugly as hell.

  She tapped a few sheets of printer paper with her wand and transmuted them into a dozen glossy sheets of pink and white candy wrappers. We arranged them into a heart-shaped box and tied a red ribbon around it into a bow.

  Half an hour later, my gift to the best sentinel on campus was tucked away in my purse in Gabriel’s back seat while he drove me to check in on Sharon.

  Her boyfriend had a whole night planned. A whole night. And while, technically, he wasn’t my charge, the little line of fate between them guaranteed I had the wiggle room to make their evening problem free.

  The night’s work began in her bedroom where I reminded her to take condoms just in case Oliver forgot.

  “Take three, girl. Don’t leave it up to chance.” After a moment, as she eyed the box she’d stashed in her underwear drawer, I whispered, “Actually, put the entire box in your purse.”

  She tucked the package into her clutch and flushed with excitement.

  “Don’t forget the gift you got him,” I said when she turned toward the door without the gift bag. Sharon doubled back for it then hurried downstairs as Oliver pulled up outside.

  “Bye, Mom!”

  “Bye, sweetie. Have fun!”

  “Everything good?” Gabriel asked once I was back in the car.

  “Hope so. She’s not gonna be without protection at least. Girl bought a whole box.”

  Gabriel laughed. “Are we gonna follow them?”

  “Well, I figured we may as well enjoy dinner out too, right? I’m not saying we should pull a Monica, but…”

  The raven raised both of his heavy br
ows. “We?”

  “Yeah. Did you think I was going to make you stand outside in the cold?”

  “Well, no, I just thought—Thanks.”

  Gabriel’s open appreciation pissed me off, not because I didn’t value his gratitude, but that it was even a big deal at all.

  We tailed them to a fancy, high-class Japanese grill and parked at a nearby garage after the valet took Oliver’s little red coupe away. I grabbed my purse from the rear seat and tucked it away into Neverspace just in case I needed it. Then Gabriel and I walked on foot, made wiser by Monica’s goof last time.

  There was a big crowd in front of us clustered into the lobby, and each time someone reached the front of the line, the delicate hostess sent them away.

  No tables left.

  As we neared the front, I leaned close to Gabriel and lowered my voice. “Crap, we’ll never get in without a reservation, and I’m not that great with Persuasion glamours, but I guess I’ll have to try.” Otherwise we’d be waiting outside. Without food.

  He caught my hand before I could lift it toward the hostess. “Allow me.”

  “Um… okay?”

  Gabriel stepped up to the podium and struck up a conversation in Japanese. The hostess’s eyes lit up and her polite smile widened. He gestured to me once as their conversation carried on. The woman touched his arm, they laughed, and then she plucked two menus from a shelf in the podium and waved us to follow her into the restaurant.

  We passed Sharon’s table. She and Oliver were deep in quiet conversation while looking over the menu.

  The hostess took us to a quaint table for two on the upper level, positioned near the rail overlooking the ground floor. I had the perfect view of my charge.

  “Please enjoy,” the hostess said. She set down the menus then walked away.

  I opened one and skimmed the appetizers. “So, how did you manage this?”

  He grinned. “The Watanabe family are raven clan. My dad and Minako’s father were roommates back during their PNRU days.”

  “Oh. That explains it.”

  “Why? What did you think I did?”

  “I dunno. You can be charming when you want to be, and she was smiling a lot.”

  “Is that a compliment?”

  “Maybe. Now, tell me what’s good since I’m assuming you’ve been here before.”

  With Gabriel as a culinary guide, I stepped out of my comfort zone and had more than the usual teriyaki chicken and spicy tuna roll I always ate at these kinds of places. We ordered a pot of jasmine tea, Kobe steak, squid, and the most amazing ahi tuna tower to ever be constructed in a sushi restaurant. Down below, my charge glowed golden with happiness and the thin red line between her and Oliver glittered like a fluorescent ribbon.

  She was so going to get boned hard tonight.

  Gabriel finished his tea and glanced over the rail. “Oliver is calling for the check, so I guess we should too.”

  The waitress’s timely arrival with the check made me wonder if everyone who worked here was a shifter.

  “Did you enjoy your meal?” she asked.

  “Oh, yeah. It was wonderful—” The $179.31 bill choked the remaining praise from my mouth. Thank goodness for all the Christmas money I’d received.

  Gabriel pulled the book out of my hand. “That’s with the friends and family discount. I’ll cover it. My last client tipped generously, and all this extra cash has me feelin’ like a baller.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He waved me off and tucked his card beside the check. The waitress took it away and returned for his signature.

  “Thank you, Gabriel. You didn’t have to.”

  “I know, but I wanted to. Shall we?” He rose and offered me a hand, and when his warm fingers curled around mine, I told myself Gabriel only wanted to blend in with the rest of the moon-eyed diners.

  Outside, lights from adjacent businesses and restaurants lit the busy intersecting streets congested with evening traffic. Couples walked hand in hand down the sidewalks. We loitered a few feet down the way and waited until Sharon and Oliver came out and passed the valet their ticket. I took advantage of the lull to give Sharon some last-minute encouragement and good sense.

  “She’ll be fine,” Gabriel said as we watched them drive off. “She’s got a good godmother watching over her.”

  “Thanks. Now what? You’re probably itching to get back to campus.”

  “Actually, I was thinking we could have a little fun. The zoo is only a few blocks down.”

  “Yeah, but it’s closed,” I said.

  “So? As long as we don’t vandalize anything, no one will care. Places like zoos love when fae drop by. Your presence makes the animals happy.”

  “But I’m only half fae.”

  “Eh, close enough. C’mon, it’ll be fun.” He took my hand again and tugged me a few steps. “Consider it stealth training if it makes you feel better.”

  So long as he held my hand, I’d be up for anything.

  We crossed over to Stockton Drive and made our way south, ambling along at an easy, leisurely pace. It was almost romantic, making me wonder if I should present the chocolates now before I lost the nerve.

  “Hold up a second,” Gabriel said. He’d come to a stop, his body tense and his face turned into the breeze.

  “What is it?”

  “We should head back to the truck. There’s—”

  Two snarling growls echoed through the air. I’d heard the sound before, once when I snuck out and watched the night classes practicing combat in their shifted forms. A bright flash of chromatic green, blue, and purple exploded between the trees ahead, illuminating playground equipment and two enormous four-legged silhouettes before fading back into darkness.

  “That’s fae magic!”

  This time I was the one who tugged on our joined hands, pulling Gabriel toward the altercation instead of away from it. He swore in Spanish but didn’t argue or jerk me back. I hit the 7-line on speed dial, and we ran together toward the fight.

  Moving closer to the battle introduced me to whatever Gabriel smelled, and because of his impromptu lesson, I recognized the stink of wendigo before I saw the source.

  A female werebear had been cornered by the wendigo, though they were almost evenly sized. Large and bony knobs protruded from the larger wolf’s shoulders and spine, splitting wet seams in the skin. Its pelt was going mangy in some places, the bare flesh raw and flaky, and its huge yellowing teeth glistened pink.

  Behind the bear, a young man with green-streaked hair huddled with his back against a slide. Red patches stood out against the pristine snow beneath him.

  “Grab Jordan and get out of here,” Gabriel ordered. I didn’t even question how he knew the fae’s name. He tossed me his keys and pulled out his gun from a holster beneath his left arm.

  “But—”

  “Just do it, Sky.”

  Gabriel moved forward at an angle, strafing the wendigo while firing. Steam arose from the bullet holes and thick, black blood welled from the wounds, though each shot seemed to affect it as much as a mosquito biting an elephant.

  The rounds had to be silver bullets. Only silver could kill a darkling shapeshifter, whether it was a wolf, bear, or raven originally.

  As the two sentinels took on their quarry, I dashed to Jordan’s side and crouched beside him.

  “Jordan, right? I’m Skylar. C’mon, let’s get you out of here.”

  “But Felicity—”

  “Would want you safe. Gabriel is helping her.”

  “Okay.” When he accepted my help up from the ground, I slipped beneath his arm and let him lean on me. He limped because his thigh had been shredded.

  Every step killed me a little inside. I hated leaving Gabriel to fight, even if he wasn’t alone. Even if it was his job. He herded the wendigo away from Jordan and me with clever shots while Felicity kept between us, snarling and grappling the beast each time it tried to break through her defense. It was so damned fast most of the shots missed.


  “I’m going to try to shadowstride us out of the park, okay? Think you can keep up?”

  “Yeah, I think—”

  A cloaked shape stepped out from the trees ahead of us. “And where do you think you two are going?”

  Jordan stumbled back, nearly pulling me down to the ground.

  “Two tasty fae for mistress. She’ll be pleased with me.” The nosferatu had completed the change, bald head and angular, feral face as white as the snow beneath us. He licked his uneven fangs and advanced. I darted my gaze left and right, searching for a possible escape.

  “Just leave me,” Jordan pleaded.

  “No.”

  Concentrating on our destination at the edge of the park, I dragged Jordan across the Veil into the Twilight realm. A murky, thick mire greeted us instead of the usual shades of vermillion, turquoise, and violet, resistant to my attempt to shadowstride with a passenger. I may as well have been pulling him and me through wet metaphysical concrete. It stank of musk and burning incense, rotting grass and foulness, like essential oils gone rancid in the bottle.

  “I’m dead weight, dude. Just leave me.”

  I pushed again, swimming through air with oatmeal viscosity. “No!”

  Hard fingers grabbed me from behind and yanked me back from the Twilight. The vampire tossed us through the air as if we weighed nothing. Jordan hit the ground first, striking the metal leg of a swing set, and some part of his body made an audible crack. He cried out, writhing on the snow.

  Tucking into a roll brought me back on my feet again by some stroke of luck and maybe a few years of childhood gymnastics and tumbling lessons too. I yanked my coat sleeve from my wrist to expose the crucifix charm bracelet, keeping myself between the creature and Jordan.

  The nos hissed at me. As we circled around one another, I caught a glimpse of the fight between the shifters. Both Gabriel and the bear were still on their feet, but they both looked worn and streams of blood poured down Felicity’s broad shoulders, staining her honey-brown fur. She heaved heavy, ragged breaths, and sweat ran in rivulets down Gabriel’s face. The wendigo turned on him, swinging its powerful claws.