“Regent,” Faolan said smiling. He was dressed in a dark green military-style uniform with a slender sword on one hip and a compact assault rifle in one hand. Then his eyes narrowed as he looked Dante over. Half a second later, his eyes went wide. “Your glamour!”
“We’ll get to that,” Dante said.
Faolan stepped back to let them inside.
“How did you get here?” Dante asked.
“Trails opened back up,” Faolan said as they walked to the main room of the club. “I kept Padraig posted near an entrance and had him checking it every hour, just in case.”
Dante stepped onto the dance floor and smiled as a wave of relief washed over him. Three dozen elves, all dressed in marshal combat gear, were gathered around various crates and boxes. Some were checking weapons, some were working on laptops, and others were talking into radios.
Dante gripped Faolan’s shoulder. “I’m glad to see you.”
Faolan smiled, but it was tempered. “And I you, but, um . . .”
Dante nodded. “Our missing glamour is a complicated story, and we’re on a tight schedule.”
“Okay,” Faolan said, then pointed to the form over Dante’s shoulder. “Who’s that?”
“Someone I hope will make it less confusing, if not less complicated,” Dante said.
Faolan whistled and waved over a couple marshals.
“Secure her,” Faolan said. “Ready her for interrogation.”
“I think she might be a wizard,” Dante said.
Everyone stared and the marshals took a step back.
“Get her inside a circle,” Dante said.
“You heard him,” Faolan said. “Move.”
The marshals straightened, then took the woman and carried her off.
When they were gone, Dante turned back to Faolan. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to step on your toes. Old habits die hard.”
“You didn’t,” Faolan said. “We’re here to support you.”
Dante noticed Faolan glance at Elaine. “You two know each other, right?”
Faolan smirked and his eyes almost twinkled. “We do. Nice to see you again.”
“And you,” Elaine said. “Especially without the cuffs.”
Dante glanced at Elaine and arched an eyebrow.
“It’s a long story,” she said.
“Another time, then,” Dante said and turned back to Faolan. “What’s the situation?”
“We arrived a little over an hour ago,” Faolan said and gestured to a forest giant talking to some marshals. “The chuhaister said you’d gone to follow a lead, so we set up a command center. Not long after, kids started streaming in, changelings of every court, and wizards too.” He shook his head. “I didn’t know there were so many.”
“How many are here?”
“Twenty-nine so far,” Faolan said. “Twelve wizards, seventeen changelings. We have them all upstairs in the rather lavish living quarters there. They were less than thrilled about it, but I assured them they were free to come and go as they wish.”
“I’m going talk to them,” Elaine said. “See if I can put them at ease.”
“Thank you,” Dante said.
“Stairway is over there,” Faolan said.
Elaine gave Dante a hug. “Thank you.” She kissed his cheek. “And I’m sorry for misjudging you.”
Dante hugged her back. Her hair brushed his cheek, like a whisper, carrying the smell of honeysuckle. He broke the hug and cleared his throat. “It’s forgotten.”
Elaine hurried toward the stairs.
Faolan was smiling.
“Don’t even—”
“I didn’t say a word, Regent,” Faolan said, smiling more.
“So, you arrived a little over an hour ago . . .” Dante said.
Faolan’s smile vanished and his tone was all business. “We tried calling you, but you didn’t answer. Then we saw the news report and started putting together a retrieval team—”
Dante took out his phone, pressed a button, and sighed. “It’s dead; must’ve have happened when she stripped the glamour.”
“Who?” Faolan asked.
“Later,” Dante said. “What’s the story the mortals are running with?”
“Terrorist attack,” Faolan said. “Some kind of hallucinogenic gas is the initial report from the officials.”
“More and more complicated.”
“They’re calling in Homeland Security.”
“And I thought it couldn’t get any better,” Dante said.
“They’re reporting a dozen casualties, most from cardiac arrest.”
Dante furrowed his brow.
“Scared to death by what they saw, I’d say,” Faolan said. “But there’s a report of FBI agents who were shot.”
Dante nodded. “Courtesy of our guest—she was their partner.”
Faolan’s face paled. “She’s an agent? A real agent?”
“I think they were all real agents,” Dante said. “But I think she’s a mole working for the—” He shrugged. “I don’t know what they’re calling themselves now, but I’m almost certain it’s the remnants of the dark magi.”
Faolan swallowed, then muttered a curse.
“My thoughts exactly,” Dante said. “I have no idea how we can do anything now.” He ran a hand through his hair. “Especially not looking like this.”
A female marshal with short dark-brown hair and keen lavender eyes approached, and Faolan nodded at her.
“The prisoner is secured,” the marshal said. “The wizard says the circle is solid and should keep her—
“The wizard?” Dante asked, looking at Faolan.
“We’ll be right there,” Faolan told the marshal, who then hurried off.
“Don’t tell me you brought him here,” Dante said.
Faolan shrugged. “Okay, but that’s the good news.”
Dante’s stomach twisted. “Do I want to know the bad news?”
“The queen mother is here,” Faolan said.
“What? Are you out of your mind?”
Faolan opened his mouth to speak.
“Where’s Fiona?” Dante asked.
Faolan looked down and bit his lip.
“You brought her too?”
“She’s upstairs playing Angry Birds,” said Caitlin in a calm voice from behind Dante.
Dante studied Caitlin for a moment, hardly able to believe she was the same woman who had stepped into a mysterious world to go after her stolen child. Had it really only been ten months? She still was the picture of Celtic womanhood: bright green eyes, red curly hair, and pale skin sprinkled with freckles. But she stood a little taller, more confident and sure of herself.
No, she wasn’t the same. None of them were. Caitlin had been thrown into a world she didn’t imagine could exist. Not to mention finding out she was a changeling, her father once the consort to the queen of The Dawn Court. And learning that the father of her daughter was the king of the Dusk Court. Those kinds of revelations can have a lasting impact.
“Eddy is watching her and helping with your guests,” Caitlin said. “Most haven’t seen a doctor in years, so we’ve been treating their various ailments.”
Dante nodded. “Thank you. Now you need to tell me what you’re doing here, all of you.”
Faolan started to open his mouth, but Caitlin cut him off.
“He didn’t have a choice. Eddy and I talked about it and figured something was happening. So when Faolan swapped out some of the marshals watching over us—”
Dante turned to Faolan.
“I wanted to make sure I left some of my best people with them,” Faolan said.
“We explained to Faolan that we weren’t going to just sit on the sidelines if there was something we could do to help,” Caitlin said, then smiled s
oftly. “Sort of like others did for me.”
Dante sighed and rubbed his forehead.
“They’re safer here than just about anywhere else in the world,” Faolan said.
Dante nodded. “I know. I’m just growing tired of constant complications.”
A door at the back of the club shook, then opened.
Everyone stared as a young girl in a long, oversized, hooded jacket walked in. She carried a young changeling girl and was followed by a young man with one hand covered in flames. His other arm, obviously broken, was held close to his body.
Dante’s breath caught when he recognized the girl. Then he saw a large coyote limp into the room and look around. His eyes went immediately to Dante.
“Ciye?” Dante said in disbelief.
“Please,” the girl said between labored breaths. “We need help.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
No one spoke or moved. Wraith stared at the elves, all of whom looked ready to invade a small country, except for one. He was eyeing her intently.
“Bugger me,” Con said softly behind her.
“Please,” Wraith said, pulling Sprout closer. “She’s hurt and I don’t know how bad. And my friend has a broken arm.”
A short woman with curly red hair and kind eyes started to move forward, but the elf caught her shoulder.
“What are you doing?” the woman asked, pulling herself free. “Those are hurt kids and I’m a nurse.”
“You don’t know—” the elf started to say.
“And I don’t care,” she said and walked slowly toward Wraith, hands up. “My name is Caitlin, honey, what’s yours?”
“Wraith.”
“Con.”
“I’m a nurse, and I’m going to help, okay?”
Wraith swallowed, then looked at Con. After moment they reached a silent agreement. Wraith turned back to Caitlin and nodded.
“What happened?” she asked, nodding to Sprout.
“Got tossed and hit her head,” Con said.
Caitlin eyed them both.
“Weren’t us, mum,” Con said. “Snatchers broke in and took our friends.”
Caitlin held her arms out. “Let me take her. I promise I’ll take care of her.”
Wraith looked at her. “Do you swear?”
Caitlin smiled, and it brought a sense of comfort to Wraith she’d almost forgotten. “Yes, I swear I’m going to help her however I can.”
“No hospitals,” Con said.
“I can’t promise that,” Caitlin said. “That might be the only way to help her—”
Wraith drew Sprout back.
“Okay,” Caitlin said. “No hospitals, I promise.”
Wraith reluctantly passed Sprout to her.
“Her name is Sprout,” Wraith said.
Caitlin looked down at Sprout with genuine concern.
“I need to take her upstairs,” Caitlin said. “Why don’t you two come along?”
“Go ahead,” Wraith said to Con. “Let her take care of your arm.”
“What about you?” Con asked.
Wraith looked at the elf. He was looking from her to Toto and back. “I don’t think I’m welcome here.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Caitlin said, then cast a glance back over her shoulder.
“You were at the market, weren’t you?” Wraith asked the elf.
He nodded.
“You saved me,” Wraith said. “She was going to shoot me, but you stopped her?”
Caitlin’s eyes went wide, and she looked from Wraith to the elf but didn’t say anything.
“I did,” the elf said.
“Thank you.”
“I don’t know what’s going on,” Caitlin said. “And I get the feeling we’re going to have a long talk when this is done—but right now, these two need medical attention.” She glanced at Wraith. “You probably do as well.”
“I’m fine,” Wraith said, then shook her head. “Well, relatively speaking.”
“You sure you’re okay, love?” Con asked.
Wraith nodded. “Go with her; stay with Sprout.”
Con nodded then opened his mouth as if to speak, but just shook his head instead, let the fire in his hand go out, and followed Caitlin.
“I’m sorry,” she said, too softly for anyone to hear.
When Caitlin and Con were gone, Wraith looked at Dante.
“I’ll go. I’m sorry for what I did.” She shook her head. “It wasn’t on purpose, I mean it.” She let out a breath. “Before I go, I need you to promise me you’ll take care of my friends, and my dog.”
Dante blinked. “Your dog?”
Wraith nodded and scratched Toto behind the ears. “His name is Toto.”
A tall, powerfully built woman all in black with tattoos on her neck stepped out from a hallway and into the room. Wraith recognized her immediately. The woman had tried to shoot her. Panic seized Wraith, and power rose up inside her.
“M’anam!” the woman said and reached into her coat.
“No!” Wraith lashed out with her gloved hand, entangling the weapon’s quantum information and increasing its mass exponentially.
There was a loud thunk as the gun tore from its holster and fell to the floor.
“Mo mhallacht ort,” the woman said, and reached around to her back.
Toto growled louder than Wraith had ever heard and stepped in front of her, teeth bared.
“Stop it!” Dante shouted.
Wraith noticed then that everyone in the room had drawn a weapon, but they were apparently unsure where to aim.
“She’s the girseach from the market,” the woman said.
“I know,” Dante said. “And she’s here on an invitation I made, offering sanctuary. And that,” he motioned to Toto, “is a member of the Cruinnigh.”
The contingent of elves exchanged glances then lowered their weapons.
Dante turned back to Wraith and approached slowly, hands out. “I’m sorry about that. This is a sanctuary, you’re safe here.”
Wraith shrugged. “It’s okay, all things considered. I’m just glad no one opened fire.”
He closed to within a few feet, giving a long look at Toto. “You said your name is Wraith?”
She nodded.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Dante.” He offered his hand.
She looked from it to him and back. Finally, she looked down at Toto. He was staring at Dante, almost longingly. “I think he really likes you,” she said and took his hand.
Dante shook her hand. “We’re actually old friends.”
Wraith looked at Toto and could’ve sworn he smiled. Not a doggie grin, but a real smile.
Dante knelt down and gently ran his hands over Toto’s flank and right front leg. “Someone beat the hell out of you, a rún,” Dante said.
“The snatchers,” Wraith said. “He helped save Sprout and Con.”
Dante smiled and spoke to Toto in a language she didn’t know. Then she recognized it as the same language Shadow spoke. Siouan, she’d said, right?
Toto looked into Dante’s eyes. Then, after a while, shook his head.
“You’re sure?” Dante asked.
Toto looked down almost as if in shame.
Dante kissed the top of his head and ran his hands along his back. “It’s okay, my friend. I’ll help however I can.”
Wraith stared. “You can talk to him?”
Dante smiled at her. “Sort of.”
“So you’ll help him?” Wraith asked.
“Of course,” Dante said, then carefully lifted Toto into his arms. “Come on, let’s go upstairs. We have food.”
Wraith shook her head. “I should leave.”
“It’s not safe out there,” Dante said. “Even for you.”
“I’ll mana
ge.”
“My point is you don’t have to. You’re safe here.”
“It’s not about safe. I’m not safe anywhere.”
“Where will you go?”
Wraith opened her mouth but realized she had no idea. When she remembered the drill, she stared at Dante. He looked back and she knew, somehow, that he could be trusted. “Is there some place I can go? I need to do something, and I need to do it alone.”
Dante looked from her to Toto. Wraith was amazed he didn’t seem to have any trouble holding him all this time.
The big dog looked at him, then huffed loudly.
“Okay, if you say so,” Dante said to Toto, then turned to another elf, who still had a hand resting casually on the hilt of a sword. “Faolan, is there a basement?”
“Not exactly, but there is the old first floor of the building,” Faolan said.
“The Underground?” Wraith asked. “That’s good.”
“Would you show our guest the way, please?” Dante said, emphasizing the word guest.
Faolan nodded, but shared a long look with Dante.
“I get it,” Wraith said. “You don’t trust me, and I don’t blame you.”
Both elves looked at her.
“It’s not about trust,” Dante said.
“Yes it is,” Wraith said. “I’m dangerous, unpredictable, and not completely sure of much of anything. But I plan to do something about that. I have friends that’ve been taken, at least two, maybe more. I’m going to get them out, but there’s something I need to do to find them. Once I do that, I’ll be gone and you’ll never see me again.”
“It’s not like that,” Dante said.
“Come on,” Faolan said and led her to a set of stairs.
Before descending, Wraith looked back at Toto. She couldn’t shake the feeling she’d never see him again. It was probably for the best. If she left him here, he’d be safe and with friends. That was better than with her. It still made a few tears slip from her eyes though.
“You coming?” Faolan asked from several steps ahead.
Wraith followed him down.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Dante found a private office and carried Ciye inside. He cast a quick glance into the residence and saw kids of all ages, none of whom were acting like kids. They were clustered in small groups, whispering and pointing to the large couch where Sprout lay. Edward and Caitlin knelt, examining the small girl’s injuries.
The Forgotten Page 21
