The goblins do enjoy striking the gong. Maybe they only do it when it pleases them.
Also attached to the bottom of the fan blades were blue glow stones, the kind that were used for general lighting in place of lightbulbs. This was a creative positioning, the result being that the blue light, spinning with the blades, not only coloring the polished steel staircase but reflected off the steel and onto the surrounding walls. At once Amber was reminded of the magical aurora on Earth, and she was filled with a strong longing for home.
Don’t get too comfortable. There’s a ways to go yet. Lodum is not your home, and it never will be.
The goblin kind enough to show them to the reading room unlocked the door with an iron key. He did not step inside. “As much time as you want,” he said. He scratched his belly and made his way leisurely back down the stairs. Before going inside, Amber watched him take the pipe from where it had been held like a pencil behind his ear, raise it to his lips and puff on it, blowing the smoke out casually into the air. Wisps of it trailing up the fan blades where it was then thrown all around the high ceiling.
The reading room was a little library, a reading cave that Amber would have loved as a kid. Scratch that—I love this place right now. She could see herself easily coming to the room with a blanket and a hot mug of tea, and spending the day reading old history books and arcane tomes, learning about spells that had little practical utility but amused her, like finding a faster way to make cupcakes.
The ten of them went inside. Amber closed the door and spied wooden chairs that looked to be considerably less comfortable than the couch she had left behind, down on the main floor. She confirmed they were less comfortable when she sat in the nearest one, its hard wooden back little comfortable as she knew there were hammocks still untaken.
Seeing the reading room, Amber wondered just what the club was meant for. She still did not know its function, what the purpose was other than being a place of fancy relaxation. It could have been a spa, or getaway location for Lodum’s rich. But Suri knew so little about Faerie that she could only guess. She would not have been surprised to find a sauna in the next room, and above them an archery range and room for hot yoga. And the more she considered this, the more Amber was reminded of the way things were run in Lodum, how it was not a democracy, but a dictatorship. One that the inhabitants were more than happy to serve. Most of them, anyway. Amber wouldn’t judge them all. She was not going to stoop to the level of the fae who grouped all humans as undesirables.
Amber eyed a bookshelf and sighed. Propped her feet up on an empty wooden chair in front of her, and had them promptly removed by Paulie, who was looking for a seat.
“Don’t trust them,” he whispered to Amber.
“I’m not,” she answered back. She was having trouble keeping her eyes open. The taste of champagne lingered in her mouth. She wanted another glass, and then a bath, and then to fall asleep and not wake up for two days. “What a hellish day this has been,” she said.
“One day for you, many more for the rest of us,” Paulie said.
Amber almost rolled her eyes. She didn’t have to be reminded of the fact.
Paulie wasn’t lightening up at all. She was really beginning to worry about him, that he might do something crazy. She had even seen him watching the hosts with narrowed, suspicious eyes. She couldn’t blame him, but what was the point of bringing them to a safe house only to turn them over to their enemies again?
Amber was perfectly content to be relaxed, and to stay that way for the rest of the night. She knew from experience that it was a bad idea to stay stressed out and on edge all the time. After too long, it would burn anyone out.
For a safe house, the club was more than comfortable. It was ornate and exotic, and nothing like what Amber had imagined when running through the streets. She had expected a run-down place hidden away in a slum where no one would find them, not an establishment that was many times nicer than her apartment, or any hotel she had ever stayed in. It was like going on vacation. The benefit of being rescued by Black Gauntlet. Amber giggled to herself.
“Pay attention,” said Paulie.
Amber almost missed that the fae had started talking.
“Gryphons,” was the first word that Amber picked up from the conversation.
“The councilman was right,” the golden haired fae was saying. “We all agree on that. The question is how do we acquire them? There’s no simple way.”
“We’ve been over this a dozen times,” said another fae. “We have to act tomorrow. The wedding will not wait for us to come up with the perfect plan. We have to come up with something new tonight, or follow through with what we already agreed on.”
“So we walk in, kill the guards and take them?”
“Yea, pretty much.”
“Take what?” Amber asked sleepily, trying to clue in about what was being talked about.
The two fae glanced at each other as if they both came to the same realization at the same time. “I guess we’d better tell them,” said the pink haired woman.
“You tell them,” said the golden haired fae. “I’m tired.”
“Of course you are.” She turned to address the humans. “All of you are hereby inducted into the Black Gauntlet Guild. Congratulations.”
“Short on members, are you?” said Paulie.
“You could say that,” said the golden haired fae with narrowed eyes.
Amber face-palmed. “I’m sorry for my brother. He can be insensitive at times.”
“Insensitive my ass,” said Paulie. “They only rescued us so they could use us. What do you want us to do, fight your war for you? Rescue this city, when everyone in it tried to kill us?” He snorted. “Not likely. First thing tomorrow, we’re heading straight for the nearest way gate. No more messing around. I’m not risking my life for this place. I’m not going to spend another second in this foul realm that I don’t have to.”
“I strongly advise against that.”
“Oh you do, do you? Well, Raja,” said Paulie, using the fae’s name for the first time. They had evidently known each other from Paulie’s time cooped up in the Black Gauntlet headquarters.
“Speak for yourself,” said Amber. “I’m not leaving until I find out what happened to Suri.” The words came out a mumble, with none of the resolve that she felt. She was simply too tired to be arguing with her brother. She knew he would put up a fight and try to get her to go along with whatever he wanted. But that was not how it was going to go down. They could waste time and energy on it tomorrow; for now she was simply stating her position for everyone to hear. The reply was unexpected.
“Suri? How do you know her?” the golden haired fae asked, suddenly very interested in what Amber had to say. He leaned forward in his chair. Even the pink haired woman with the massive arms took new interest, drilling down with her gaze on Amber.
Amber felt the pressure and sat up straight. “How do I know her? How do you know her? She’s my best friend. We’re business partners. Gosh, we live together. Paulie here will tell you.”
“I see. He didn’t tell you.”
“Tell me what?”
Paulie muttered something under his breath.
Raja ignored him. “Suri was taken by Lord Korka. We do not know where she is at the moment, but tomorrow she will be married to him, right in the center of Lodum. That is the final act that will cement Korka’s rule. We have to find a way to disrupt the ceremony. That’s what all this is about. The survivors of the Black Gauntlet Guild are few in number. There’s not much hope for us if we can’t pull this off. We’re going to do it, or die trying.”
The woman with pink hair nodded gravely.
“Wait, wait, wait. You’re telling me that Suri is getting married? And you knew this, Paulie? You didn’t tell me? Why?”
He didn’t answer, kept his lips tightly shut and looked away.
“Because you knew that I wouldn’t want to leave,” Amber concluded, answering her own question. “You bastard.�
�
“The news is all over Lodum,” Raja confirmed.
His name had been itching at the back of Amber’s mind ever since Paulie had spoken it. “Raja…Ohmygod! You’re Raja!”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you’re the guy. You’re the…” Amber promptly buttoned up. “Nothing. I just heard about you, that’s all.”
So this is him, Suri’s secret boyfriend!
Amber sighed. It was too sad. Her best friend was set to be married to an evil King, and the love of her life was risking his life to rescue her. It was like something out of a fairy tale.
“Whatever you need me to do,” said Amber, “you say the word. We’re going to rescue Suri. That’s that.”
“Good, good,” said Raja. “I don’t know how you got here. You were not here for the fire. What happened?”
While the other humans, including Paulie, retired to sleep in two shared bedrooms on the top floor, Amber spent the better part of the next hour talking to Raja and the other Black Gauntlet members. She told them exactly what had happened to her, and the situation in San Francisco involving the necromancer and enforcers. She shared every single detail that she knew. At first she thought that the fae would not care about Earth, but they kept asking her information, prying for more.
By the time Amber finished she was collapsed on the table in front of her, resting her head on her arms.
“We’re sorry to keep you up like this,” said Raja. “This information is more valuable than you realize. I wish we had known earlier. The events on Earth are connected to Faerie. If only we knew how, and why.”
“It does not matter,” said the pink haired woman. “All we have to do is stop the ceremony. Lodum will not fully accept him without a Queen.”
“A half-blood Queen,” said Raja, in agreement.
“Can I sleep in the lounge?” Amber asked drowsily.
“Wherever you wish,” said Raja with a smile.
Amber left them and stopped at the top of the polished steel staircase, hand on the Baroque railing, looking down at all the steps she had to walk to get to the main floor where she could take one of the hammocks that the goblin cousins had looked so comfortable in. She did not know if she had it in her to make the distance. Maybe she could take a rest against the railing. Close her eyes briefly, just to gather her strength.
She was standing with a drooping head when she heard a wild shriek. She startled, and saw a monkey at the bottom of the stairs resting on the bannister, thin tail curled up behind its back. One of the goblin cousins appeared a moment after. His pipe was out of sight. He wore red-and-blue stripped pyjamas.
“You’re up late,” he said.
The club was quiet. Not even the noise from the promenade reached this far inside.
“Going to the lounge,” said Amber.
The goblin regarded her for a moment. He brought two fingers to his lips and whistled softly.
The response was not as quiet. There came the clomping of hooves against the hardwood floor as the centaur from before came into view. He held a toothbrush in his mouth. “What is it?” he asked.
“Our guest needs an escort down to the lounge. See to it, would you?”
“Of course,” said the centaur.
Holding the toothbrush in his mouth with his teeth, he bounded quickly up the stairs and turned in front of Amber. She was too tired to be nervous, and when he knelt down she was able to easily grab onto his smooth, short fur and climb onto his back.
The centaur trotted back down the stairs and to the lounge. Amber slid off his back and directly into the hammock sack, and as soon as she was settled in she dropped her eyelids.
Don’t worry, Suri. Amber’s coming for you.
9
Mona
“You gave us quite the scare, my dear.” Yonafrew swirled the blood in his goblet and gazed at Mona from the head of the large dining room table.
Five days had passed since Mona’s return. Although she had been walking the gardens, enjoying the solarium, sauna, and other amenities of the Hyde mansion while she recovered, Yonafrew had been busy all hours dealing with the crisis in Lodum. This was their first meeting, and Mona had made sure to choose the seating that hid her stump from Yonafrew.
Yonafrew was the head of his noble house, a vampire, and bearer of a behelit seed of his own. He was also Mona’s mentor, and the only person who had told her the truth about the behelit seed. His appearance was the same as when they had first met, right down to his spotless diner jacket and perfectly cut hair.
“I did not mean to,” said Mona, fidgeting her fingers under the tablecloth. “The attack was unexpected. It will not happen again.”
“No, I should think not. Augustus gave me the description of the prisoner who harmed you. She is a Wilder fae, a most troublesome breed. Not true fae, you understand. There are significant biological differences. That is why they cannot be civilized.”
“She was locked up for good reason,” said Lord Julius. He had accepted the regular invitation to dine with the Hyde family. Mona wondered if he had a family of his own, or if his allegiance to Yonafrew ran so deep that he would leave them to eat alone. “It is fortunate that you escaped with your life. Both of you,” he said, glancing at Augustus.
“The important thing is that you have returned, safe, if not sound. Your new arm will arrive any day now. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. In fact,” said Lord Hyde, setting down his napkin as an idea dawned on him, “your self-sacrifice will do us great good. Think of it: hell spawn attack Lodum, Gorgax’s wings darken the sky. And what does Yonafrew’s young apprentice do? She rushes off, into the mouth of danger! Bold, where Lodum’s nobles cower behind closed doors!” He shook his head. “Do not be ashamed, my dear. Sad as I am that you were hurt, what you did won us a great victory. Lord Korka will be most pleased.”
“Have you spoken with him?” Augustus asked.
Yonafrew nodded. “I have. Our alliance holds, for now. He heard both of your names from my mouth,” he said, looking at both Augustus and Mona. “Your actions have not gone unnoticed by Faerie’s new King.”
But I didn’t even know about the attack…I didn’t do anything to help! Mona caught herself chewing her bottom lip, stopped and took a bite of her roasted lamb. What did Augustus tell his father? Did he lie?
Mona didn’t dare speak up against Lord Hyde’s line of thinking. Loyal as she was, it would, under all circumstances, be most unwise to disturb his good mood. And if he could spin the failed defense of Turndour into a great victory, all the better for everyone. There was no reason for Mona to correct him.
“There may even be a couple of medals in it for you,” said Lord Hyde. He took a sip from his goblet. Far away as he was, Mona could have sworn she saw a twinkle in his eyes.
“Medals?”
“Yes, what do you mean, father?”
“Lord Korka is holding a ceremony in one weeks time,” Yonafrew explained. “The news is all over the city. He will wed his bride on the steps of the royal palace. The wedding ceremony itself will be little more than an hour, but the festivities will go on for days. He told me that he is looking for people to reward.”
Lord Julian snorted. “Heroes for the rabble.”
“Hush, Julian,” Yonafrew chided. “It is more than that. There is a new order coming to Lodum. My family is well-positioned to become the single most powerful house in this city. Honoring us at the ceremony would let everyone know that we are Lord Korka’s greatest ally.”
“What will happen to the seeds?” Mona asked. “Will Lord Korka take them for himself?”
“That is still being decided,” Yonafrew replied.
Mona spent the rest of the dinner in silence. A servant had cut her lamb into tiny, bite-sized portions before taking it out, so she was able to eat with ease. Yonafrew and Lord Julian shared gossip about the minor noble houses and arranged to meet again later in the day. Usually attentive to everything Yonafrew said, Mona found herself half-listening, drifti
ng off into thoughts of the night the necromancer attacked her house—dwelling on the regret of running away.
The dishes were cleared from the table, the last course eaten and everyone preparing to leave for their quarters. Mona was full, and in a dazed state wherein she felt that she could sit in her comfortable, cushioned chair for hours, staring off into nothingness, and mulling over the past. She took no notice when Augustus and Lord Julian excused themselves. Several times, she went to grab her glass of sparkling water with her non-existent arm. The stump ached and itched, but worse was the feeling that she still had her limb. It became a point of meditation.
Missing arm…Necromancer…Academy…Behelit…
The thoughts passed through her mind in no particular order, without direction or anything linking them together. Yet there is a missing link. It seemed to Mona that, if given the time, letting her mind sit on the strange incidents of her life would eventually make sense of them. Uncover a hidden meaning. It was a long moment before she registered Lord Hyde’s words.
“Lodum has been caught up in a whirlwind of events since your arrival, and I do not think it is a coincidence. I often think of how you came into possession of the behelit seed.” Yonafrew shook his head. “Most remarkable. You must be prepared, my dear, for what’s to come. There are many questions I cannot answer for you, yet we must move ahead with the ritual. You must become a vampire, if you want to be a true player in this game.”
Mona cleared her throat. “I understand,” she said. “I’ve been feeling…strange lately.” The stump of her arm throbbed, as if trying to remind her of something she’d forgotten. Nothing was as clear as it once was.
“You have been traumatized,” said Yonafrew, in a sad voice. “I hate to rush you into this, but the ritual must happen soon. The pieces must be put into place.”
“I…” Mona had been about to repeat what she already said. She became aware of the fact that she was operating in a daze. A trance, as if sleepwalking. All of a sudden the walls looked very strange to her. The black, shadowy painting opposite the portrait of Lord Hyde became ominous. What the hell is that supposed to be? Mona thought. It was as if she had never seen it before, or was seeing it through new eyes. And then she turned her attention to Yonafrew.
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