The Returned

by Bishop O'Connell

  She closed her eyes and saw it again, the Order slitting Ovation’s throat and his lifeless body falling to the stone floor. And all for nothing more than the crime of knowing her.

  “I’m sorry, Ovation,” she whispered to herself, for possibly the millionth time.

  When she opened her eyes and wiped the tears away, the singer’s dark green eyes met hers and held them as he sang. It was like he didn’t just see her pain, he knew it and was singing as much for her as for himself.

  She could only stare as his music and her emotions threatened to overwhelm her.

  When the song ended, the bystanders broke into uproarious applause, and the hat on the ground began to fill with singles and fives. Wraith joined the clapping, if a few seconds after the fact. When the crowd began to disperse, the singer smiled at her.

  “All right, chere?” the singer said with a drawl that Wraith could only guess was local.

  Wraith wiped at her eyes again, feeling incredibly self-conscious. “Yeah, I’m okay.” She drew one of the twenties Brigid had given her and dropped it in the hat.

  “Big thanks,” the singer said. “Glad you liked the song.”

  “It was amazing,” Wraith said. “How long have you been playing together?”

  “A few weeks now,” the singer said.

  “That’s it?” Wraith asked. “It sounded like you’ve been together for years.”

  “We just pass a good time,” the singer said and offered his hand. “I’m Curtis Benjamin Saunier, at your service. Just call me Benji though.” He pointed to the mandolin player then the drummer and other guitarist. “That there is Joker, Bones, and Matchbook.”

  Wraith nodded to each as they were introduced. “Nice to meet you.”

  “You a traveler, darling?” Joker asked.

  Wraith nodded. “Yeah, but not the typical sort.”

  Benji eyed her a little closer and sniffed the air, then he smiled and laughed “Ah, yeah, you’re a slinger.”

  Wraith blinked. “Did you just smell me and figure that out?”

  Benji laughed again. “It ain’t nothing like that, chere. We been getting a lot of you folk down this way lately.”

  Wraith narrowed her eyes and looked over the symbols and numbers that drifted around and through Benji—his quantum information. His glamour slowly dissolved. His dark green eyes shifted to an almost luminescent yellow, his brows grew thicker, and thick side burns—that made her think of Wolverine—were suddenly visible.

  “You’re a fifty,” Wraith said, then looked to the others. Joker looked much like Benji, but her eyes went bright blue and her hair had a brownish color. She looked to Bones to find his amber eyes were slitted like a cat’s and his hair was dusty brown with black spots and stripes. Matchbook was the oddest looking. His bald head was wide and flat, his skin grayish-green and loose around his neck. His eyes went solid black, and his mouth became wide and toothless. “You’re all fifties.” She shook her head. “But not like any I’ve ever seen.”

  They laughed.

  Benji stepped over to her and lowered his voice. “Yeah, chere,” he said. “We’re rugarou. Though we’re different tribes.”

  “I have no idea what that means,” Wraith said.

  “Y’all thirsty?” Benji asked his friends.

  “You know I’m always thirsty if you’re buying,” Bones said.

  Benji turned to Wraith and motioned with his head. “Come on, chere, let’s walk and talk.”

  Wraith followed him down Orleans Street.

  “Where you from?”

  “Kansas originally,” Wraith said. “And I recently spent some time in Seattle.”

  Benji stopped. “Seattle? You there for that mess happened a while back?”

  Wraith looked away and scratched at her head. “Um, yeah, you could say that.”

  “Dis donc!” Benji said. “That was you, wasn’t it?”

  “I’m sorry?” Wraith said as her face flushed in embarrassment.

  “We got word even down here,” Benji said. “You know it don’t take long for stories to spread. Especially when they’re about a slinger girl what took on snatchers and the FBI too.”

  Wraith felt her cheeks flush. “That’s not exactly what happened, and I didn’t take on the Order, the snatchers, by myself.”

  “Oh, sure,” Benji said. “I know the tale gets bigger the further the fish swims. But the fish is still a fish.”

  Wraith chuckled. “This is so not what I expected to find.”

  Benji nodded. “You’re friends of the fae up north, yeah?” he asked. “They tell you all about us scary First House folk?”

  “Did you smell that on me too?” Wraith asked.

  “Yeah, sure I did.” He waved to a street kid walking the other way.

  “They just said the Rogue Court wasn’t allowed down here,” Wraith said. “I don’t want any trouble.”

  “Oh, chere,” he said and shook his head. “It ain’t like that. We get plenty of fae and changelings coming through here. No one cares one bit. It’s just a matter of making clear this is our home, that’s all. Not too different than asking to come inside your house.”

  Wraith nodded. “I hadn’t thought it about that way.”

  “Council is all friends now,” Benji said. “Course, that don’t mean there ain’t still trouble aplenty.”

  Wraith’s stomach twisted a little. “What do you mean?”

  Benji looked around, then stepped close to her. “New Orleans can be a bad place, and there’s bad going round right now.”

  She swallowed. “What kind of bad?”

  “All kinds of dark hoodoo in the air,” he said. “The voodoo queens are working overtime cranking out gris-gris to keep them in the know safe. Tribes are keeping to themselves extra tight.”

  “Any idea what it is?”

  Benji shook his head. “I got no skill with the hoodoo, but I know it’s big and bad.”

  Wraith ran her hands through her hair and took a deep breath. Then she reminded herself that Caitlin and Edward were here on their honeymoon. If they left their hotel at all, they’d be seeing the sites and having romantic dinners. They wouldn’t get caught up in something dark and nasty on the bayou. Would they?

  She looked at Benji. “Is the city safe?”

  He shrugged. “Near enough in the places the tourists fill,” he said. “Quarter has some alleys and corners best not to walk down, but you keep to the main streets, you’ll be all right.”

  Wraith shook her head. “I’m not worried about me. I’m here to look after some friends.”

  He shrugged. “So long as they don’t go too far west of the Garden District, and not many tourists do, they’ll be all right too.”

  Wraith let out a sigh, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was about to step into something bad.

  “You look like you ate some week-old oysters.”

  “Just got an uneasy feeling,” Wraith said.

  “Come on, then,” Benji said and kept walking. “You need a drink.”

  “I’m, um, actually underage,” Wraith said. “So I really shouldn’t—”

  “It’s awful bad luck to turn down someone buying you a drink.”

  Wraith smiled. “I’ve heard that.” She thought about it as they turned down Bourbon. Edward and Caitlin had just gotten to town today. No way would they be out and about tonight. “Well, I suppose one drink couldn’t hurt.”

  “Ah, yeah, there you are,” Benji said and winked at her.

  They turned down another side street and into a hole-in-the-wall bar. In fact, Wraith had never seen a place more aptly described as a hole-in-the-wall. It was little more than a bar countertop, with just enough space to stand at it without being on the sidewalk.

  “Hey, baby,” the bartender, a friendly looking woman, said and smiled wide. “Y’all taking a break?”

  “Let me get five Southern Storms,” Benji said and dropped some cash on the bar.

  The bartender went to work, mixing drinks and fill
ing plastic cups.

  “They can’t call them Hurricanes,” Benji said. “Pat O’Brien’s owns the name or something.” He leaned in close but spoke in a loud whisper. “But they use real juice here, not some Kool-Aid mix.”

  The bartender nodded. “You know that’s right.”

  “Why are you being so nice to me?” Wraith asked and surprised herself with the abruptness of the question.

  Benji looked at her. “I was wondering when you might ask me that.”

  “And?” Wraith asked.

  “Maybe I got a soft spot for blue-haired Yankee slinger girls who are looking after friends?”

  Wraith smiled. “That’s a pretty specific soft spot.”

  The bartender rolled her eyes as she set the cups down and took the cash.

  Benji handed one to Wraith.

  “The upside is, it ain’t easily manipulated,” Benji said and tapped Wraith’s cup.

  She took a sip and was surprised by how good it was. The juice tasted fresh, and it was sweet, but not overly so. “Is there any liquor in this?” she asked.

  Benji and the bartender laughed.

  Over the next several hours, Wraith hung out with Benji and his pack, taking turns making drink runs. Between the music, the good company, and the awesome fruit punch they called a Southern Storm, she lost track of time. Wraith didn’t drink often, and she might be tall, but she was thin. These factors combined to make her a serious lightweight. It wasn’t until the fifth or eighth Southern Storm—she’d lost count—that she realized she was drunk.

  “I think I’m drunk,” she announced from her spot on the ground, back to the wall. Despite putting her hand against the ground and her attempts to will it otherwise, the city kept slowly spinning.

  Benji and his crew laughed and continued their drinking and playing. It might’ve been the booze—okay, it was almost certainly the booze—but Wraith thought they were playing even better now. It occurred to her that it might not have been the best idea to get drunk in a strange city with people she didn’t know.

  “Drink this, hawt,” Joker said and pushed a cup into Wraith’s hand.

  She drank it without thinking, and she was glad to find it was just water. Then it occurred to her that might not have been the smartest thing to do.

  “You got someplace to go tonight?” Joker asked.

  Wraith nodded. “Yeah.”

  “You need some help getting there?” Joker asked through a laugh.

  Wraith shook her head, then wished she hadn’t. It didn’t go well with the already-spinning city and unease in her stomach. “I think I need to go to bed.”

  “That’s a smart plan, darling,” Joker said. “Up you come.” She slipped her arms under Wraith’s and gently lifted her to her feet.

  Wraith was surprised how strong she was, but that thought was quickly pushed aside by her laser-like focus on the thought “don’t puke on her.”

  “Drink more water,” Joker said. “And keep drinking it.”

  Wraith nodded and did as she was told. When the cup was empty, she chewed on the ice and spent several minutes taking long, slow, deep breaths.

  “I think I’m good,” she said.

  Joker took her hands away and nodded when Wraith managed to stay on her feet.

  “You sure you don’t need no help, chere?” Benji asked.

  “Trust me,” Wraith said, “you don’t want to be anywhere nearby when I stride.”

  “Whatever that means, we’ll take your word for it,” Benji said. “You just be careful now.”

  “You too. Watch out for hoodoo,” Wraith said and wiggled her fingers in the air.

  Everyone laughed, which set her to laughing, though she wasn’t sure why what she’d said was so funny. She started walking down the really twisty sidewalk, only to realize it wasn’t. A few more steps, and the world’s spinning slowed enough that she was able to walk—relatively—straight. All she needed was a place out of view of the mundanes and she’d stride back to her place and sleep this off. When she passed an alleyway on her right, she turned down it and made her way between the tall gray stone buildings on each side of her.

  “Looks like someone had themselves a good time,” a rough voice said from up ahead of her.

  “For true,” said another voice.

  Wraith lifted her head and saw two looming forms ahead of her. She tried to focus, but her eyes didn’t want to cooperate.

  “We can see you safe through this here alley,” this first one said. “It’s gonna cost you though.”

  “What?” Wraith asked, comprehension not quite making it through the fuzz around her brain.

  “He said you best hand over what cash you got,” the second one said.

  “No,” Wraith said without thinking. Her mind started to turn as it finally dawned on her she might be in a dangerous situation.

  One of the men waved something in the air that glinted in the light. “Bad things happen to stupid girls who wander down the wrong street. We’re trying to keep you safe.”

  “Y’all best leave her be,” said a familiar voice from behind her.

  “If it ain’t the he/she,” the first one said.

  Wraith turned and saw Benji about ten feet behind her.

  “Hey,” Wraith said. “What’s happening?”

  “You’re getting mugged by some local trash,” Benji said calmly. “It’s a common tourist adventure, but not one I recommend.”

  “Oh,” Wraith said and turned back to the men. “Well, shit.”

  “You best be on your way, freak,” one of the men said. “Before I show you just how much a girl you still are.”

  “Hey,” Wraith said. “Don’t talk to my friend like that!”

  The men laughed.

  Wraith lifted her hand and pointed her finger gun at the men. It took longer than she was expecting and even longer to get the formula pieced together.

  “Bang!”

  An unseen ball of force hit the cast iron fence of one building, tore it from the stone, and sent it sliding down the alley in a mangled ball.

  “Damn,” Wraith said. “I missed.”

  The two men just stared with wide eyes.

  Wraith took aim again, then smiled and let her fingers lower until they were pointed at the crotch of the bigger man. “Must be because I got such a small target.”

  Benji laughed.

  The two muggers charged her.

  “Bang!” she said, but too late. The shot hit but managed only a glancing blow on the man’s leg. It didn’t even slow him down.

  There was a roar behind Wraith, and something blurred past her.

  There was a cry of panic from one man as Benji, now covered in dark fur and sporting a muzzle-like mouth full of sharp teeth, picked up the other and threw him against the wall.

  The mugger hit hard and fell to the ground unmoving.

  This got the other mugger reengaged. He lunged at Benji with a knife.

  “No!” Wraith cried out and sent an equation hurling at the mugger. It hit the knife blade and quickly increased its mass until it weighed about the same as a midsize car. It fell to the ground with a heavy thunk, cracking the cobblestones of the street.

  The mugger tried to pick it up.

  Benji kicked him in the face as he did and sent the would-be assailant into the air a few feet until he landed hard on his ass and smacked his head against the wall. He also lay still.

  “Thanks, chere,” Benji said as his features went from very canine-esque to the normal face she’d seen all night.

  “Just paying back you saving my drunk ass,” she said. “Thanks, by the way.”

  “I figure it was only right, since I was the one what got you drunk.”

  “Hey, that’s right,” Wraith said and smiled. “It’s okay. I appreciate you not trying to take advantage of my compromised judgment.”

  “That wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me,” Benji said and winked.

  “I don’t think you’re really much of a gentleman,” Wraith said
through what she thought was a sly smile.

  Benji’s smile vanished.

  “No, that’s not what I meant,” Wraith said. “I just—”

  “It’s okay, chere.” His smile returned. “I know what you meant.”

  “Want me to drop them off someplace?” Wraith asked. “I could leave them at the north pole or something.”

  Benji laughed. “That’s all right, but I appreciate the offer.”

  Wraith shrugged. “I’m going to leave them in a nearby swamp, then. Least they deserve.”

  “Far be it from me to stop you getting yours for what they tried to do to you.”

  “You okay to get where you’re going?” Wraith asked.

  “I try to avoid alleys when I’m on my own.”

  “That’s really sound advice.” Wraith looked at him. “Maybe I’ll see you tomorrow?”

  “That’d be nice, chere,” Benji said, then held out a bottle of water. “Take this. You’ll thank me tomorrow.

  Wraith smiled, took the offered bottle, then stepped over to the two unconscious men.

  “You better step back a little bit.”

  Benji did.

  “See you later,” Wraith said and, with a little more effort than usual, drew the entropic equation around her. Reality spun, and she stepped into the universal junction point, leaving New Orleans behind. Before returning home, she dropped her passengers off at a small island she thought was in a nearby lake. Or, it could’ve been off the coast of Madagascar; she wasn’t really sure.

  She stepped into her room, fell onto the sofa, and was asleep before she touched it.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Edward awoke to a soft kiss on the cheek. When he opened his eyes, Caitlin was smiling at him.

  “Good morning,” she said, her green eyes twinkling.

  “Yes, it is,” he said. “How long have you been up?”

  “Not long. I didn’t want to miss calling and checking on Fiona.”

  He smiled and wrapped her tighter in his arms, running his hands over her back. “So, room service for breakfast?”

  She gave him a wicked grin. “Tempting as that is, let’s go out and get some coffee. I want to walk around a bit and see at least some of the city. But hold that thought.”