If I could sense it, the shifters certainly could, but perhaps they had dismissed it as a necessary evil.
Asher and Sherrie were on one side of the room leaning against the wall, glancing at the cuts on their arms. I thought they should have been healed, but perhaps not if there had been multiple cuts or a spell done to keep them from healing as quickly. Blood still pooled in a bowl on the table. Tabitha and Ezekiel weren’t looking at their cuts but looked in need of a seat.
“Are you all okay?” I asked the room but went to Asher whose head had bobbed down. He jerked to keep it up. Sherrie looked equally lethargic.
On our first encounter with Elizabeth, she had been dressed in a shirt and yoga pants. Sensing my disappointment that she didn’t look as I’d imagined or her moniker led me to believe, with a simple wave of her hand, she was donned in a different outfit, with a bracelet of an open-mouthed serpent. Now she wore a Victorian era–inspired outfit. Layers of black satin and lace made up the skirt of her dress. Eyes lined by thick liner and wine-colored lips made her look every bit the title she was known by. But it extended to more than her clothing. The serpent she wore as a bracelet before was now coiling and making sinuous movements on the table. It was the same length as the bracelet and had the exact same red eyes.
The Woman in Black had access to magic that most people didn’t have.
“It is done,” she announced.
“Did you check?” I asked.
She wore the insult of my inquiry heavily in the turn of her frown. “My work doesn’t need to be checked.” Then she looked at Asher and said with a stern voice, “I’ve met the requirements of our agreement. I know you will honor yours.”
Asher nodded and they pushed themselves from the wall. “It will be delivered tomorrow.”
“I trust that it will.”
Falling into step with Asher, I asked, “What was the payment?”
“The vault.”
“Everything in it.” I stared at him.
He beamed. “Yes, everything she saw in it, which was about half of what you did.”
Even half seemed like an extraordinary payment, but then again, the shifters were now immune to magic.
“Did she check to make sure you’re immune?”
He nodded.
With plenty of experience of deceptive practices, I wasn’t keen on not testing it. Cory must have felt similarly because magic swirled in the air and a silver ball of magic whizzed past my ear and drove right into Asher. It spread over him like a cloud of confetti before disappearing.
“Would you like me to change?” Asher asked once we were in the wooded area at the exit to our car.
I nodded and he and Sherrie undressed and shifted to their animal. Cory and Madison spent several minutes using aggressive offensive magic, earth magic, and disarming spells without avail. I decided to use elemental magic. Fire was fire, but did magical fire have the same effect? Sherrie wasn’t in a hurry to come near it, although her curiosity got the best of her. Seeing the inquiring looks of the Veil shifters, I got the impression they were similarly curious. Flames danced along my fingertips, but I hesitated, remembering what it felt like to go through the Mirra; I wasn’t in a rush to inflict that pain on someone else. Slowly Asher approached me. Steeling himself, he gave me a slow nod. I flicked the fire toward him, and orange-blue heat ran along his leg, leaving the fur unaffected. We decided then that cold and wind tests weren’t necessary.
Once they changed back, the shifters distanced themselves from us, although I made every effort to listen to their conversation. While they spoke, it was hard to ignore the acuity of the glances Ezekiel and Tabitha made in Mephisto’s direction. He made them uneasy. Tabitha’s eyes settled on him like a predator determining the hierarchal status of another predator.
When Mephisto’s dark eyes finally lifted to meet hers, she held his gaze but directed her words to me.
“Take us back,” she commanded.
Ezekiel and Tabitha looked pleased to be home, although the teenager with the bad attitude looked agitated after giving her unsolicited opinion about her trip to the land of the “boring” where she only got to meet unimpressive shifters and a “steampunk fae-elf hybrid.” I ignored most of her complaints but packed away the elf part to explore later. Could Elizabeth be a fae-elf hybrid? Being part of a powerful creature believed to be extinct would explain her magical ability.
Aunt Tabitha, who should have been canonized for being patient with Brayden, kissed her on the forehead, implicitly letting her know that her tirade was over. “Zeke” would take her home.
Once they were out of sight and, I assumed, what she really wanted—out of earshot—Tabitha turned a severe face to me. If she’d shown me that harsh a face when we first met, I would have thought twice about approaching her, let alone asking for a favor of such magnitude.
She regarded me with an acuity that hinted at her realizing there was more to me than met the eye, and I suspected it was because of the company I kept. Mephisto.
“I did what I agreed to do,” she said eventually, “and am satisfied with the outcome and the newfound relationship I have with shifters outside of the Veil. This doesn’t extend to you. What business we have is done. I ask that you never call upon me again, for anything, and that this be our one and only meeting.”
She didn’t wait for a response but simply turned and walked away from me. It was a nice way of saying “get lost and I never want to see you again.” But damn. I kept my feet rooted in place because nothing good could come of me running after her to ask why. But I was curious. Maybe she’d say it was her and not me. No, it was me. It was definitely me. And if it wasn’t me, then it was definitely Mephisto.
After leaving the shifters, I didn’t return home where I knew people, including Mephisto, were waiting for me. Instead I returned to Elizabeth’s. From there I started on a convoluted excursion that I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed about twenty-four hours later. I walked from her place to the closest restaurant from where I called a rideshare to take me to a bar where I stayed all night, hoping that by the time I got home at two in the morning, Mephisto would have given up on my return and left. I was right about him leaving. He wasn’t waiting for me, but early that morning, after the sun had barely risen, he was at my door. The look of disappointment on his face was etched in my memory. Instead of thinking about his look of displeasure, I clung to the memories of feeling complete. Sated. Whole.
I pressed my lips together, which still seemed to hold the warmth of his lips pressing against them, although that obviously wasn’t possible.
“I have to find your box,” I said. “Let me help you find it.”
He nodded once, his forehead pressed against mine, and I conceded to the knowledge that if it were Pandora’s box or released the four horseman or unleashed any number of destructive entities on our world, I would still do it for the benefit of having my own magic. To being complete. It hurt to know that was my truth.
CHAPTER 20
Kath appeared to live a rather simple life. She owned a modest ranch home, something she could afford with her three jobs as server and bartender. As long as you ignored the convertible Mercedes she kept in the garage, you wouldn’t know she was quietly reaping the benefits of working in an industry where often the staff is ignored.
She heard a lot. Over the years, she had become my most valuable, albeit extremely expensive, source of information. Her calling me to tell me she had a lead on a Xios had me rushing to meet her at her home.
Her fingers scraped her dark-brown hair away from her face. It was much longer than usual and kept forming a straggly curtain that she constantly pushed out of her eyes. But it wasn’t only her hair that kept her from making eye contact. She was obviously reluctant to do so.
“Thanks for coming,” she said nervously, locking the door behind me. She hadn’t done that before. Our visits were typically short, sweet, and direct. She gave me the information; I gave her the cash and added the expense to my
client’s bill.
Today, her home didn’t have its usual calming human energy, the comfort of a magicless interaction. And her fidgeting was unnerving.
“I heard about what’s going on with the shifters,” she said. “No one seems to know why they’re behaving like that. Is it a spell or something? People are really afraid—especially the humans. You know how we react when we’re afraid.” She poured herself a drink and took a sip before lifting the glass in my direction to ask if I wanted one.
“Just water,” I said, but quickly changed my mind. “Water and a drink, please.” She’d probably give me the water in a bottle and the vodka in a glass. I wanted glass. I took a quick inventory of my weapons; a Taser was always with me, but would I be able to get close enough to use it? A knife was sheathed at my lower leg.
When she handed me a tumbler, I held it in my dominant hand: my right. No amount of magic or high tolerance of pain can protect you from having a glass smashed into your face.
Inching closer to the door, I gave myself the vantage to flee if necessary.
“Ian, I know you’re here. You can come out,” I said.
His airy chuckle eased into the room before he did. Taking slow and measured steps, he entered from a room just to the right of the living room, cradling a small dog to his chest.
“I’d like this to be a civil conversation. Remove your weapons,” he demanded.
“I don’t have any.”
He scowled. “Surely you don’t still underestimate me, do you?”
He kept his eyes on me, sliding them over every inch of me, as if trying to see where I’d concealed them.
“Check her,” he instructed Kath. He stroked her dog around the neck, and it was hard to miss the threat in it when he did. “Take her glass away, too,” he added. He flashed me a cynical grin. “I’d hate for you to get creative with it. I’ve heard you tend to do that.”
Kath took my glass and returned it to the kitchen and, under his scrutiny, she removed the knife and the Taser and put them on the table near me. Responding to his reprimanding look, she moved them all across the room.
“Happy now?” I asked through clenched teeth.
“Very. I would hate to be shot by you again or nicked by those sharp stars you’re so fond of.”
Once he was satisfied that I had been properly divested of weapons and he was a safe distance away, he released the dog, which ran to Kath who had returned to where he’d sent her, near the door. Untrustworthy people tended not to trust others. The only weapon I had left was the small push dagger on a long chain around my neck. With just a two-inch blade, it wasn’t my best weapon, but I still had my most dangerous one: me. If I could get close enough, I could put him in death’s sleep.
“You used her dog to get to me? What type of asshole award are you vying for?” I ground out in disgust.
“Apologies for the method I used, but it was important to speak with you and even more important that we do it without violence,” he said, looking meek.
If I hadn’t seen the look on his face when he had the pack of shifters attack me or the malice that curled his lips at the chaos he’d caused in the park, I might have been fooled by his serene eyes and look of regret.
“What do you want?” I snapped.
“Such rudeness. Are we not capable of having a peaceful dialogue?”
I waited for a smile, a chuckle, something that would indicate he was joking. But nothing came.
“Admittedly, I probably did not make a good first impression,” he admitted, the corners of his lips lifted in a coy smile. I wasn’t buying that for one moment. There was nothing coy or earnest about this man. It didn’t take the perception of a shifter to see the thirst for power, deception, and untrustworthiness behind those dark eyes.
“First, second, third and fourth impression. The first time you met me you had shifters attack me. The second time I watched you use them to wreak havoc in the park while you sat back eating ice cream. You burned the bridge I was on during our third encounter. And the fourth time we met; you were trying to attack my client. And now that you held Kath’s dog hostage, I’m going to say you’re not doing so well with your fifth impression either.”
“My methods might be considered unsavory by some.”
Each time I tried to close the distance between us, he made sure it stayed wide. No quick moves would allow me to get close enough. He was cautious and perceptive, two things that didn’t work in my favor.
“I ask for your forgiveness, goddess—”
“Don’t call me that.”
Amusement shone in his eyes. It had been a test and I failed.
“Ah, so you do know who you are?”
My lips pressed firmly together, I refused to give him any more information.
He crossed his arms over his chest and started to walk the length of the room, occasionally glancing at Kath, who was holding her dog in the far corner of the room.
“Perhaps you should take your dog for a walk,” he suggested. She didn’t move immediately. “Now.”
Grabbing her leash and keys, Kath left after giving me another apologetic look.
Once she had gone, he returned his attention to me. It was a performance and he was making sure his audience was paying attention.
“If I had known who you were, I definitely never would have considered using you as an instrument to make my point with Asher. I needed to get his attention, and there wasn’t any better way than to let him see I had control of his pack. Adalia and Neri’s presence were signs that fate was on my side.”
“Was fate on your side when you decided to unleash rabid shifters on people in the park?”
He took a few moments before he replied. “No, it served its purpose. Initially it was to force Asher’s hand, but in the end, I got to meet you, and in turn, that led to Olis finding me. He’s part of your mother’s army,” he offered in answer to my blank look.
Remaining impassive, I cringed inwardly at the use of “mother,” something he obviously said to get a reaction. I wouldn’t give him one.
“They saw me with you. You know your mother’s little army has been keeping a close eye on you. But it was my display that day that made them aware of me, and they knew I was from the Veil.”
Even with all the effort I was putting into remaining emotionless, hiding my intention of letting him get closer, he remained overly cautious about the distance between us. He’d piqued my curiosity, and I wasn’t going to do anything until I got as much information as I could. Once I had it, I’d deliver the kiss, allowing him to slip in and out of the in-between. I would have magic, and it would give us the time we needed to find a way to send him back to the Veil and keep him there.
“You want to know more, don’t you?”
He wasn’t going to get any points for being perceptive. You don’t drop a bomb that one of the Immortalis had approached him, call me a god, and expect me not to be curious.
I waited in silence for him to continue.
“They approached me because they know I want to get back into the Veil. They’re quite confident that I will, by the way. And I think I will as well. I’ve made my desires known.” To punctuate the point, he exposed the markings on his arms, his face becoming flushed from a flare of anger. He left his arm turned so I could see the markings. “They want to go back to the Veil too. When you are created for the sole purpose of violence and war, life here is torture. They are without purpose, an army without a commander that could give them the violence they seek. Your mother gave them true purpose. No one has more thirst for control and no one revels in doing it by force more than your mother.”
“I wonder if she ever used shifters to attack royals or unleashed animals in a park, putting humans at risk.”
“Royals.” He spat out the word with contempt. “I’m stronger and more skilled. Far more deserving of their position than they are.”
“Fine, then get their position by petitioning for it. Go through the proper channels. Do you believe the
others will follow you because you obtained it by force when Adalia and Neri achieved it by campaign? They’ll consider your reign illegitimate. Is it arrogance or foolishness that makes you believe the fae would think otherwise? Taking over by coup will only ensure that you will be deposed the same way.”
He paused, but I made no effort to find out his angle other than it being his ego. After failing in the Veil, he needed to succeed here. Here, where his magic outmatched others, he felt entitled.
“There are other courts. Why this one?”
“It’s the largest with the highest status. The others look up to the royals. I did not make this decision without careful consideration. What I wasn’t expecting was their ability to retaliate against me.” He extended his arm again to show his mark. He might have done that to make a bold statement, but it made him look like a toddler showing me his ouchie. It was a struggle not to tell him.
“Get on with it. What do you want with me?” Not that it mattered. I had no intention of brokering any deals with him.
“You’re Asher’s emissary. Work on their behalf. Tell Asher and Sherrie they have nothing to fear from me. Their only goal is to find a way to remove my marks and all will be forgiven.” The aplomb that he displayed made me think he considered himself royalty already. “They found a way once, so they can find it again. No more time spent on trying to take away my control. It will be freely relinquished. They will have my word.”
His word meant nothing. He pledged fealty to his queen in the Veil, only to make an attempt for the throne. He made a deal with a demon to remove his aversion to iron, only to kill the demon once he was awarded it. I was positive that no deal he made with the shifters would be honored, and for that reason, I was glad he could no longer control them.
“Convince Neri and Adalia to step down. You’ve tried to stop me but without success. Stress that they won’t win. It’s the truth. If they see you as an objective observer and as one who has attempted and failed, they may be convinced, then this can stop. Abdication will ensure an easy transition.”
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