“It’s not the same,” Ward replied. She always bit at such comments, and Letty always shared a knowing smirk with Pax when she did. Obvious enough for the Ministry lady to notice, otherwise where would be the fun? Ward caught them smiling and said, “Well you’re getting much better, anyway. We only stopped once this time.”
“When I get all the way up in one,” Pax said, “do we get to never do it again?”
“Grow a pair,” Letty said. “Hark at Ordshaw’s champion, eats fireballs for breakfast but runs scared at gentle inclines.”
Pax went to poke her and Letty hopped out of the way, staying close enough to punch playfully back at her finger. The fairy floated up in front of her face.
“In all honesty,” Ward said, “I hope you’ll stick at it. You’re doing so well. You know how much potential you have?”
Pax eyed her warily. Another veiled suggestion that she delve back into the life that had left her twice burnt to a crisp. Made her a murderer of monsters and fairies and a deposer of corrupt regimes. Given her some kind of psychic gift, now dormant, and a modest drip of disability pay that was close to dry. As if being able to climb a hill would make her more likely to survive any easier in future.
“I’m thinking about it,” Pax said. And it was true. She was considering that she definitely did not want a boss, nor to wear a suit to work, nor to write reports for anyone or do any work for people who would knowingly withhold information from her. Nor did she want to stick to work hours, or be expected to be somewhere at certain times, or talk in a certain way or anything like that. But the problem was, she also found it hard to sit at the card table, day in and day out, without her mind wandering. Like, maybe making a living wasn’t enough. And Ward assured her of compensations: leeway with certain workplace demands, and a steady pay she could shove in Dad’s face. But much more than that. Answers. More excitement than hitting a Royal Flush. People cheering her name, desperate for her to save them?
Part of that made her cringe, but then it also gave some queer warm feeling.
She’d saved this city from something no one understood. She’d visited a city of Fae. Where did you go from that?
Letty’s visits to her apartment frequently reminded her of that conundrum. Letty had responsibilities of her own, what with the Fae expanding underground, with new towers going up and new enterprises emerging. That kept her from having too much time to spend goading Pax, but it also peppered their drinking sessions with weighted comments like, Making a difference feels orgasmic, doesn’t it?
“What you want to do,” Letty told Ward, “is not to keep asking what she wants. It’s to just give it to her. She doesn’t know what the fuck she wants.”
“I know what I don’t want,” Pax countered.
“Bullshit, you don’t even know that.”
Ward looked thoughtful, warming to Letty’s idea. “Well. There’s a few cases that might interest you, Pax. I know you’ve got questions.”
“That’s why we’re out here.” Pax flapped a hand to dismiss the surrounding beauty of nature. “I always get you to spill fresh gossip to tide my curiosity over.”
“But that only works when I have the answers. I need you to figure out some for us. If you’d grace us.”
“Hey,” Letty said. “I think we’re exposing the snark in this square.”
“Thanks.” Ward took it as a compliment. “Pax, the blue screens are gone, as far as we know, but we still have explaining to do. We don’t know that they were confined to Ordshaw. We haven’t explained the apparitions that Apothel and Barton reported, things we’ve never seen or understood. The drummer horse and the invisible proclaimer?”
“What happened to Rik Greivous?” Pax brought up a bugbear, lightly.
“Exactly!” Ward said. “And we don’t know how you came to sense novisan, or what really affects that. Your reactions to Fae dust . . .”
“Those experiments are on our to-do list, trust me,” Letty said, and Pax smiled. She did not intend to try dust again any time soon. Eventually, maybe . . .
Ward turned to take more inspiration from the view. “And Duvcorp’s experiments really trouble me. Their technology intersects closely with ours, and we’re on their radar as much as they’re on ours, now. And they’re not the only ones. Mogami Industries, Warlowe, Raystaten – they all have projects we’re not privy to, and Management insists I leave them alone.”
“I’m not going to war with multinationals,” Pax said. “That’s much scarier than what we’ve been through.”
“You wouldn’t be alone,” Ward said. “And it brings its own rewards, I’m sure. An international agent just yesterday requested permission to visit Ordshaw regarding Mogami. He’s been to Detroit, Tokyo, Berlin, and now he sees an angle to pursue here.”
“Sounds like he’s bullshitting you to get a round-the-world ticket,” Pax said. Ward didn’t look amused, so she added, “That’s my thinking at work, Sam. You want me on board, you’d better believe I’ll hold your jet-setting international agents to account.”
“I would like that,” Ward insisted, seriously. “And if you’d put joking aside I think you’d see you want it, too.”
“But if we put joking aside,” Pax groaned loudly, “what have we got left?”
Ward went quiet. Letty gave Pax a mock sad look. The fairy drifted down onto Pax’s shoulder and whispered, “You’re a cruel, hard person, Pax. How much longer are you gonna keep her waiting?”
Pax stared at the back of Ward’s head. Letty knew it as well as her, of course. She couldn’t walk away. Had no intention of walking away. She said, “Until I can run a bit faster and further, at least. If we’re gonna take on the world, it’s not going to be with me bent double vomiting.”
Letty gave her an assaying look. “You poor, deluded fool. It’s going to be so much worse than that.”
A Note from the Author
Thanks for sticking with me through the Sunken City Trilogy, and I hope you’ve enjoyed the ride. As you might have guessed, there’s more to come – and you can return to the world of Ordshaw right now with the next book in the series, The City Screams.
And fresh from reading The Violent Fae, please take a moment to leave a review online (even if it’s short – to be concise is a virtue, after all). As an independent author, a few positive words from fans like you make all the difference in spreading the word! You can review The Violent Fae on Amazon here, and on GoodReads here.
I love to hear from my readers and do my best to keep everyone informed on my progress; you can find me on various platforms below. For special offers, and to be the first to hear about Ordshaw and related news, join my mailing list via my website.
www.phil-williams.co.uk
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About the Author
Phil Williams is the author of the Ordshaw, Estalia and Faergrowe series. Living in Sussex, UK with his wife, he also writes screenplays and spends a great deal of time walking his impossibly fluffy dog, Herbert.
Acknowledgements
The Violent Fae is the culmination of a project that started long before Under Ordshaw, and I must repeat the thanks that were due in the first two books. Once more, this book has been perfected through the careful attention of my editor Carrie O’Grady, and without her you would’ve had a much more meandering opening to this novel. (Though if you’d have liked to have seen Pax wandering around empty tunnels and having pointless chats over dinner with the Bartons, sorry!)
Massive thanks also to the readers, reviewers and fellow writers who have inspired me to continue through their warm reception of and support for my work. My advance readers throughout these books deserve great praise, Brian Busby, Eric Crawford, Lea Pert, Stephen Fielding, Ami Agner, Jan Drake, Yvonne Evans and Heathyr Fields. Bloggers who have been excellent supporters include Maddelana fro
m Space and Sorcery, Steph from Bookshine and Readbows and Hayley Hart of Paperplanes Reviews. And extra special thanks to Lynn Williams from Lynn’s Books who first gave Under Ordshaw a chance under the SPFBO contest. All these blogs are well worth checking out, give them your patronage!
In the course of writing the Sunken City trilogy I’ve also developed an excellent network of supportive authors who’ve helped me along the way, including Phil Parker, Jon Auerbach, Dave Woolliscroft, Carol Park, Josh Erikson, Travis Riddle, Kayleigh Nichol, Devin Madson and Scott McKinnon.
If I’m missing anyone you have my massive apologies and I’ll include you in the next one; there’ll certainly be plenty more.
Finally, repeated thanks to my brothers Nick and Alex who diligently read my most pointless nonsense, and above all my wife, Marta, who every day keeps me from receding into the despairing depths of the fantasy mind.
Also by Phil Williams
ORDSHAW SERIES
UNDER ORDSHAW
BLUE ANGEL
THE CITY SCREAMS
Tova’s getting her hearing back. She’s going to wish she wasn’t. Alone in Tokyo for experimental ear surgery, she discovers a voice in her head telling her it’s where she comes from that makes her special. Can she survive long enough to find out why?
ESTALIA SERIES
WIXON’S DAY
Marquos drifts through the cloud-concealed Empire of Estalia, searching for hope of a better future. In the Deadland of the North, they say the sky is clear, and the stars shine. But Marquos is about to find out how dark the world can be.
BALFAIR’S CONFINEMENT
Deni dreams of escaping her arduous life. When her master drags something from the swamp and excludes her from his secretive project, she finally sees her chance. She will do whatever it takes to break free – even if it means trusting in the war-mongering Guard.
AFTAN WHISPERS
When Tyler meets a girl with enemies in the highest places, his life gets complicated fast. Deni isn't afraid to kill, and she’s got a secret that could tear open the sky. Tyler soon discovers that the Empire’s guardians are their most dangerous foe.
Copyright
Copyright © 2019 by Phil Williams
The moral right of Phil Williams to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All the characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Warning: attempting to recreate the activities of this book, such as purging tunnels of monsters or meddling with fairies, could prove dangerous to your health.
All rights reserved.
This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover design by P. Williams
Published by Rumian Publishing
The Violent Fae Page 33
