Until Death

by E. A. Copen

  My heart leaped into my throat when I saw who stood on the other side. Remy rode a white horse that was almost invisible in the snow. Dressed in her scratched armor, a crown on her head and a purple cape at her back, she looked like she’d come to the North Pole to take some heads. The army at her back was equally as angry looking.

  Klaus frowned at the fae before his gate. “What business does the Summer Court have here?”

  “We are more than the Summer Court,” Remy replied.

  Declan broke from the line on his brown mare, moving slightly ahead of Remy. “You speak to the future High Queen of Faerie. Show some respect.”

  “And you speak to a Kringle, boy,” Klaus snapped. “Know your place.”

  “As a Kringle, I must remind you that you are beholden to the peace accords,” Remy shouted over the howling wind. “Any attempt on the life of a sitting monarch will be seen as an act of war. Kidnapping a monarch is also an act of war, Kringle, so you’d better have a damn good reason for dragging my father all the way up here, and pray I’ve arrived in time to stop you from doing anything stupid.”

  Jack tapped Klaus on the shoulder and whispered something to him.

  Whatever they were planning, I didn’t want to be a part of it. Remy had come to my rescue, and I’d be damned if I didn’t take advantage of that. I charged forward, pushing my way between Jack and Klaus. “Remy, I’m here!”

  Klaus stomped one boot and a line of candy canes jutted out of the ground, sharpened like spikes. One of them came close to impaling me. Would’ve if I hadn’t stopped in time. The fae on the other side of the gate drew their weapons and put arrows to bowstrings, drawing them taut. Remy held up a fist.

  Jack grabbed me by the collar and forced me back behind him. “Your father is a dangerous criminal.”

  Remy bristled. “He is a hero and a king. You’ll release him at once.”

  “Or what?” Jack sneered.

  “Or the snow will run red with blood that stinks of peppermint and evergreen.”

  “Try it and see how far you can get when your people are dying of frostbite.”

  Guy passed by me, stopping to pat my shoulder. “What my friends meant to say was that I’m sure we can come to some sort of understanding if we just put all the sharp objects away.”

  Remy shifted in her saddle. “And who are you?”

  “Guy Smith, Eldritch Investigations. I’m a freelancer, but in the interests of full disclosure, I’m currently under contract with these mooks.” He pointed to Klaus with a thumb. “A contract they will void if they lay another finger on your old man. Voided contract means I don’t get paid. I get grumpy when I don’t get paid. Pretty sure these guys don’t want to see me get grumpy.”

  Remy glanced at Declan, who shook his head. “Thank you for your honesty,” she said. “You seem a reasonable man.”

  “I’m a man with a price, sweetheart. Reason doesn’t really factor in.” He stopped to light a cigarette. “There are forces at work here you don’t fully understand.”

  “If anyone understands Mask, it’s Remy,” I said. “You’re looking at the woman who delivered the killing blow to Mask in Faerie. She was also there when I restored the seal in New Orleans. She knows him better than any of us, except maybe Finn.”

  “Mask?” Remy frowned at me. “What does any of this have to do with him?”

  Jack started to whisper something to Klaus again, but Klaus waved him away. He stomped his boot, and the candy cane stakes retreated into the ground. Klaus placed his mittened hands on the gate lever and pulled. The giant iron portcullis opened, clearing a path for Remy’s people.

  “We can’t afford a war with the fae. We’ve already got a fight on our hands, Queen Remy,” he said. “If you agree to a mutual pact of non-violence, you and your people may enter. I have beds, warm food, and more eggnog than I could drink in two lifetimes. Your people will be welcome to it all while the rest of us come to an agreement.”

  Remy glanced at Declan again. He nodded. She dismounted, strode through the gate, and offered Klaus a gloved hand. “You have yourself a deal, Kringle.”

  Chapter Eight

  Despite the talks, I was apparently still a prisoner. Jack and the elves escorted me to the side entrance to a big house, far from where Remy and her procession could see. I thought for sure he was just going to kill me anyway, but he cuffed me and brought me through the side door.

  Just inside the door was a comfortable living room with a big, red sofa, a crackling fireplace, and a drooping Christmas tree.

  Jack escorted me to the sofa and pushed me down. “Wait here. There are guards outside every door. If you attempt to leave, they are authorized to shoot on sight.”

  “You won’t shoot me,” I growled, tugging on the handcuffs. “You’d start a war.”

  “Not if you’re the aggressor. We’d be well within our rights to defend ourselves. Don’t give us the excuse.” Jack folded his hands behind his back and strode out of the room, leaving two elves at the door on the inside.

  I sighed and looked around. There wasn’t much to work with, especially with my hands cuffed and the AK-47 wielding elves guarding me. My best bet was to sit tight and hope Klaus and Remy came to an agreement, but who knew how long that would take? At least it was warm in there.

  I had just stretched out on the sofa to pass the time with a nap when the double-doors opened again and a round, heavyset woman in her mid-forties backed in. She carried a silver tray piled high with cookies, two cups, and a steaming kettle.

  The elves moved to stand between her and me. “No one’s allowed to visit the prisoner.”

  She gave them a stern look. “I’m not no one. I’m the lady of the house, and you’d do well to remember who you work for. Stand aside.”

  The elves exchanged glances and scurried out of her way.

  “Damn elves,” she muttered and came to place the tray on the big coffee table in front of me. “Klaus has them so wound up, they sometimes forget their manners. And speaking of, where are mine?” She stood, tucked a stray hair behind her ear and smiled, extending a hand to me. “My name is Mrs. Edwina Klaus. You can call me Eddie.”

  I flashed my cuffed hands. “I’d love to shake your hand, ma’am, but I kind of can’t.”

  “Ridiculous. Unacceptable. Here, let me see.”

  I held my wrists out to her. She tapped her fingers on the middle chain and both ends of the handcuffs released at once. “I trust this will stay between us?” She winked and turned over the two teacups. “Now, how do you like your hot chocolate, Lazarus?”

  “You know who I am?”

  “Of course, I do. I’d be a poor hostess if I didn’t know all there was to know about my husband’s guests. Not a soul comes or goes through this door who I don’t know nearly everything about. Klaus won’t say it, but you’re the most interesting visitor we’ve had in a very long time.” She poured dark, creamy liquid into each cup, then opened a small container to shake some marshmallows into them before handing one to me.

  I took a sip and almost died. I’d had hot chocolate before, but not like that. That stuff, whatever it was, it was magic in a cup. It took me back to one of the few happy memories from my childhood: Christmas. No matter how bad things got, there were always Christmas trees and at least one present under it waiting for me. At six, I was still young enough to get away with waking my parents up at the ass crack of dawn, running down the stairs in footy pajamas, and excitedly searching for the one box with my name on it. That year, I didn’t find a wrapped box under the tree, but a puppy with a big red bow on his head. I’d been so happy, I cried until Mom handed me a cup of cocoa she’d made from the leftover chocolate chips we got from the food pantry. It was the best day of my life.

  Eddie smiled. “It’s magic, isn’t it?”

  I sniffled. My throat had grown tight with the memory, a situation that called for one more gulp of steaming hot chocolate. “Not real magic, though, is it?”

  “The best magic is the magic
of the heart, not willpower.” She smoothed her hands over the bottom of her red dress and sat. “That’s what makes you special, Lazarus. I’ve been watching you. We all have. It’s so good to see you’ve come so far. Tragedy has made you strong, but it’s love that’s made you powerful, isn’t it?”

  I nodded and placed the cup back on the tray. “I know what they’re saying about me. It’s true, and it makes me feel sick, knowing that somewhere inside of me is the evilest monster I’ve ever faced. I’ve been feeding him all this time, but I don’t want to give up. I know I can beat him. I just need Guy’s help.”

  “The situation is complicated, isn’t it? I believe you want to do good, but no one is certain how much control you have over what’s going on, or how long that will be the case. At any moment, Mask could take over and kill us all. My husband would be beside himself if he knew I was here with you. Even now, I’m in danger.”

  “Then why come at all? Why risk your life to talk to someone you don’t even know?”

  She smiled and offered me a cookie. “Because I still remember the boy who cried when he got a puppy. I remember the ten-year-old whose only Christmas wish was for his parents to stop fighting, the young man who would’ve traded every Christmas, past and future to negotiate just one more for his sister.”

  I swallowed and lowered my head. “You know all about that?”

  “We Kringles hear all the Christmas wishes of children from around the world. It’s our gift.”

  “Like gods hear prayers.” I raised my head.

  She nodded. “Try the cookie.”

  I did. It was just as good as the hot chocolate. Love and sugar in a flat disc. Nothing would ever beat it, of that I was sure.

  Eddie smiled warmly. “I know the kind of person you are. Mask made a mistake when he decided to incubate inside you.”

  “I don’t see how,” I grumbled. “I have no idea how to get him out without killing myself. I don’t want to die, Eddie. I want to marry the woman I love and get back to my life. That’s all I want.”

  She nodded sympathetically. “I understand that, sweetie, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that happens. But you’ve got to understand that sometimes we don’t get what we want. Sometimes, what we want is impossible.”

  I lowered the cookie and narrowed my eyes. “Are you saying that removing Mask without killing me is impossible?”

  “I’m saying that I don’t know. No one does. The people that Mask has inhabited in the past have all either died or disappeared with only a few exceptions.”

  “That’s not true. Foxglove survived it.”

  She shook her head. “His situation wasn’t the same. Mask had possessed his body, his mind. Removing him would’ve been closer to spitting out a bad seed. In your case… Well, it will be more like separating conjoined twins. He can’t survive without you, and the way you put your soul back together, you can’t live long without him.”

  I thought for a long time, chewing on the cookie and listening to the fire crackle behind me. “Death isn’t always the end for someone like me, you know? Maybe if I died, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. I’ve walked through the underworld before.”

  “There is no guarantee that, if you died, Mask wouldn’t immediately gain control over your body and your magic. Not unless your brain were destroyed, and there’s no coming back into your body after that.”

  I pushed up to stand, which made the elves at the door nervous. They swung their guns up and pointed them at me until Eddie waved for them to put them down.

  “I think I know a way to make sure that doesn’t happen. It’s dangerous, and I’ll need help, but it should work.”

  She nodded, wiped her palms on her dress, and stood with me. “You should know I came here to fetch you. Your daughter was very insistent that she be allowed to see you before negotiations could continue. She’s very tough. I like her.”

  That made me laugh. “Sounds like Remy.”

  “Come,” she said, holding out a hand, “I’ll take you to the meeting hall.”

  The elves didn’t move as we approached.

  Eddie gave them a hard look. “Move, or I’ll see to it that you’re put on toy duty for the rest of your unnatural lives.”

  Both elves squeaked and moved aside.

  She pushed open the doors, and we strode through into a narrow but comfortable hallway. Pictures hung on the wall of her and Klaus together, all smiles. No children, no dogs or pets. Just them, the elves, and the occasional reindeer.

  “It must get lonely all the way at the top of the world,” I said as we passed another framed picture of the two of them together.

  “I wanted to fill these halls with the laughter of children. Instead, the war came. It consumed my husband until he’d nearly forgotten the meaning of joy.” She swept around to stand in front of me, placing her hand on my chest to stop me. “This place may seem homey and comfortable, but it’s not safe here. It hasn’t been safe here for years. Do not let your guard down, and trust no one.”

  “Not even you?”

  She smiled sweetly. “What do you think?”

  “I think you’re just like everyone else. You’ve got your own agenda. Helping me is part of that somehow. I’m happy to play along, so long as no one gets hurt.”

  “Wise man.” She patted my shoulder and turned to lead me through the house.

  The meeting room was more like another living room, this one larger and less festive. There were no Christmas trees in it, no brightly colored decorations on the wall. If anything, I’d have called the room Spartan. The wood cabin walls stood nearly bare, stripped of everything except for topographical maps, radio equipment, and the occasional hanging weapon.

  Klaus stood over a large table where another map had been spread out, several places on the field of white circled with numbers attached to them. Jack stood next to him, a permanent frown fixed on his face.

  Remy waited, arms folded, directly across from Jack. She turned around when the two of us walked into the room, but she wasn’t the first to rise and greet me.

  “Laz?”

  “Emma!” I broke away from Eddie to run to her and hug her tight. “What the hell are you doing here? Didn’t I tell you I had everything handled?”

  “Then you disappeared for two days,” she murmured into my chest, clutching me tight. After a moment, she took a step back and punched me in the arm.

  “Ow, what the hell was that for?”

  “For making me worry about you.” Emma grabbed my face and pulled my lips down to hers. “And that’s for showing up alive.”

  “You’re confusing me again. Are you mad at me or…?” I trailed off because Remy had stepped away from the table. I let Emma go and held a hand out to my daughter. “Thanks for coming to get me, kid.”

  Remy ignored the offered hand and hugged me. “It’s good to see you alive. You scared us all.”

  I leaned back and gave her a skeptical look. “Enough that you brought your whole army to the North Pole to declare war on Christmas? How did you even know I’d be here?”

  “That’s a question I’d also like answered,” Jack said. “My agents were careful not to be followed or listened to.”

  “Nowhere with a shadow is out of my reach,” Remy said firmly.

  Finn then. Finn must’ve walked through a shadow somewhere and figured out I was here, then gone back to report to Remy. I’d have to remember to thank the asshole when I got out of here.

  Klaus held up a hand. “It doesn’t matter. We’re all here now, and we need to get on the same page. Lazarus is dangerous. We’re all risking our lives just by being in his presence.”

  “You’re worried Mask is going to take over,” I said.

  Klaus nodded gravely.

  “No.” Emma shook her head. “I know Finn said it was true, but I still don’t believe it. How could Mask have gotten so attached to your soul that he can’t be removed?”

  “Easy,” said Guy. He’d been so quiet I
hadn’t even noticed him sitting in the big blue armchair in front of the fire. He picked up a teacup and saucer, sipping from it delicately. “When Lazarus shattered his soul to fuel the spell that restored the seal in New Orleans, Mask must’ve found one of the pieces and attached to it. Weakened by the damage you’d done, there wasn’t much of him left at first, so no one noticed. But he’s a subtle bastard. It took him a month to get strong enough that people started realizing something wasn’t right. A month...and this book.” He held up the book he’d taken from me.

  Jack narrowed his eyes. “Are you sure that’s wise? Having the book in the same room as the creature?”

  Guy stood with a grunt. “Trust me when I say if he wanted to take this book from any of us, there’d be nothing we could do to stop him. Even without whatever boost Mask is probably giving him, Laz is a powerful guy. We’re lucky he’s on our side.”

  “I’d like to stay on your side,” I said. “I think I might have a plan, but first I’ve got to know exactly what’s going on here. Guy told me why the Yule Cat and Krampus were after me, but why the hell are Santa Claus and Jack Frost getting in on the action? You guys mentioned a war before, and the fall of Earth. I need to know what’s at stake, so I know what I’m walking into.”

  “Everything is at stake!” Jack growled, uncrossing his arms.

  Klaus put his arm down in front of Jack, cutting him off. “It started a few months ago. The sky ripped open, and those things just came tumbling through. We fought them back, and we were able to close the portal, but we took heavy losses. It’s been happening more frequently, and we lose people every time. Our numbers are so few now that if there’s another attack, we won’t survive it. The portal would remain open, and those creatures from the Nightlands would pour through, invading Earth. We’re the last and only defense against that happening. So, in the interest of saving my people, I hired Guy Smith to find out why this was happening.”