by E. A. Copen
Ulmir’s eyes slid to the unconscious Fae behind me and he frowned. “It still doesn’t excuse how they’ve treated us.”
I shook my head. “No, it doesn’t, but I don’t believe in an eye for an eye. Not anymore. You hate them, they hate you and around and around it goes with everybody mad at each other for all eternity. That’s how wars get started. I don’t know about you, Ulmir, but I’d rather build a future than fight about the past.”
Ulmir nodded slowly. “You make a good point.”
“Good.” I extended a hand to Finn and helped him to his feet. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’ve got to go secure Foxglove in the walk-in freezer before he comes to.”
Chapter Five
Foxglove jerked awake when I dumped a glass of cold water on his head. He immediately strained against the duct tape holding him to the chair, his breath escaping in angry bursts of steam. For a minute I thought he might actually be able to break free, but even if he did, he’d have nowhere to go. We were sealed inside the walk-in freezer until someone opened it from the outside. Even if Foxglove somehow managed to get free and overpower me, he’d have to go through Finn and Remy, who stood on either side of me with their blades drawn. After that, he’d have Paula to deal with. She might not look like much, but Paula could put on the hurt if it suited her. After Foxglove wrecked her bar, it definitely suited her.
When he realized he wasn’t going to get free, he gritted his teeth and looked from me to Remy and then Finn. “You three?”
I kicked up my staff and balanced it on my shoulders. “Yep, us. You’re pretty well screwed so you might as well talk.”
“Or what? You’ll beat me up? Please. This man is more than just your friend. He’s your Knight and you…” He gestured to Remy with his chin. “He practically raised you. Let’s not kid ourselves. You couldn’t hurt him if you wanted.”
Finn hooked his foot under one of the front legs of the chair and jerked it forward. The chair tipped backward, and Foxglove crashed loudly to the icy floor. “I can.”
I grabbed Finn’s shoulder and pulled him back. “What part of ‘let me handle this’ didn’t you understand? Back off.”
“Okay, okay. Geez. I was just trying to make my point.” Finn raised both hands and took a step back.
“This isn’t that sort of interrogation.” I righted the chair with a grunt. “Tell me, are you all Mask or is he still in there?”
Foxglove—or rather, Mask— grinned. “Oh, he’s in here, and he doesn’t want to talk to you. The best part of all this? He handed control over willingly. It might’ve taken me weeks to break him, but when he broke, he shattered.” His eyes went to my clenched fist. “It angers you. Well, it should. You treated him like a commodity. Even knowing how he felt for your daughter, you kept him as your Knight, refusing to dismiss him from service.”
“He could’ve asked to be dismissed at any time.”
Mask threw his head back and laughed. “If that’s what you think, then you don’t know him at all. He would rather choke on his own tongue than risk being seen as a coward and a quitter.”
I clenched my jaw. It’s not true. That’s just Mask talking, trying to goad you into hitting him. You can’t let it work. “Here’s what’s going to happen. You’re going to release your hold on my Knight, or I’m going to do more than just eject you from him and from Faerie. I’m going to rip open a hole between Earth and the Nightlands. Then I’m going to find you and destroy you.”
He spat on the floor. “Big talk for a little necromancer.”
“I’m not finished.” I gripped him by the chin and forced him to meet my eyes. “I won’t just destroy your ugly tentacle-headed body. I’ll kill your boss too. I’ll burn the Nightlands to the ground and erase every goddamn one of you from history.”
“Impossible,” spat Mask. “You wouldn’t exist without us. Destroy one, and five more of us will rise to take his place. Even the gods wouldn’t be so vain as to think they could erase us from existence.”
“I’m not a god. I’m a Horseman, asshole. Gods fear me. You should too.” I let him go and stepped back to the walk-in door, gesturing for Remy and Finn to follow me.
Three knocks on the door in a pattern and Paula opened it from the outside. “Told you it wouldn’t be that easy.”
I stepped out into the kitchen. It wasn’t warm, but after being in the freezer for the last ten minutes, even the chilled air felt warm by comparison. Once Finn and Remy joined me, Paula shut the door and slid the padlock on.
“I looked at his soul,” I said. “It’s there, but it’s inside of some kind of black webbing. The black smoky stuff has practically snuffed out the rest of him.”
“Meaning?” Remy asked.
I sighed. “Meaning Foxglove is in there, but maybe not for long. Mask is choking the life out of him. Pretty soon, there won’t be enough of Foxglove left to save.”
Finn folded his hands behind his head. “Shit.”
I held up a finger. “But I do have some good news. Based on what I saw, I think what we’re dealing with is more like an advanced case of possession than an integration like we had with Emma.”
Remy frowned. “How is that a good thing?”
“Because if the magic were integrated directly into his soul, it would be really difficult to pull it out without killing him,” Finn said.
Paula looked from me to Finn. “Am I the only one who doesn’t get the difference?”
“Look, it’s like this.” I looked around for something to illustrate my point and settled on the bar on the other side of the swinging double doors. I went through the doors, gesturing for the others to follow, and got out two glasses, a can of Coke and a bottle of rum. “When Loki was controlling Emma, he was doing it with a spell that was woven through her soul so intricately that it was a miracle Finn got all the pieces removed. She was Emma, but she was also not Emma. Loki was in her head, literally, almost like a second personality, but every thought belonged to Emma.” I poured a little rum into the glass and added enough of the Coke to fill it. “Different, but still recognizable.” I handed it off to Paula.
She grunted, sipped the drink and frowned. “So they weren’t easily separated. Emma had practically become a whole different person, though there was enough of her true self to temper whatever Loki was doing.”
“Exactly,” I said and picked up a lime wedge. “This is Mask. The drink is now Foxglove.” I dropped the lime into the drink where it sank to the bottom. “Get the picture?”
“Ruined a perfectly good rum and Coke.” Paula fished the lime out and dumped the whole thing in the sink.
Remy leaned on the bar, drumming her fingers on the polished wood. “I assume it won’t be that easy to separate Mask from Foxglove?”
I shook my head. “No, not even close. Mask is going to fight like hell, which means we need Foxglove to fight even harder. We also need someone who knows how to handle a difficult exorcism. Luckily, I know a guy. Problem is, he doesn’t work for free. We need ten grand just to get him to show up.”
Finn shrugged. “Don’t look at me. I lost everything of value when Mask burned down my trailer. Asshole destroyed a fortune in art alone. I have a couple grand stashed for emergencies, but that’s it.”
“If I had access to the treasury, I’d offer,” Remy said. “But deposed as I am, all I have are Summer’s holdings here on Earth. That’s three thousand at the most.”
“I can throw in the bar’s petty cash and another grand of my own, but that still doesn’t add up to ten grand.” Paula snapped her fingers. “What about the nest egg you’ve been saving up, Laz? With all the extra work you’ve been doing and Samedi’s stipend, you have to have a few thousand at least set-aside. If we pool our resources, maybe we’ll have enough.”
I cringed. I did have savings, but that money was already spoken for as far as I was concerned. Besides, it wouldn’t be enough to pay Josiah’s fee. He’d want ten grand, probably more. I didn’t have that kind of money stashed away. “It’
s not really free for the taking, Paula. I need that money.”
Remy crossed her arms. “More than you need Foxglove?”
She was right. Spending the money on an exorcism for Foxglove was more important than paying for a wedding that I didn’t even know was happening yet. If we didn’t get Foxglove to tell us where he’d stashed the last Speaking Stone, and spill Mask’s plans, there might not be a New Orleans left to get married in.
I sighed and lowered my head. “Okay, fine. I’ll chip in the rest, but I’ll warn you. The guy isn’t the friendly sort.”
Paula snorted. “That’s the understatement of the century if you’re talking about who I think you are.”
“I’ll need you to pull your cash ASAP,” I told Remy and Finn.
“That won’t be until the banks open in the morning. What are we going to do with him in the meantime?” Finn gestured to the walk-in door.
I picked up what was left of the Coke and chugged it, thinking. We’d have to stand guard, but one guard might not be enough. Four was probably too many.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, so I fished it out to find I’d missed about twenty texts from Emma. Crap, I’d forgotten to check in with her all day, and I’d missed our lunch date too. She probably thought I was lying dead in a ditch somewhere. Next time I saw her, she was going to be pissed I’d blown her off, even though it was an accident. I’d gotten so busy getting set up for the court I forgot to have lunch altogether.
“Problem?” Finn raised an eyebrow and nodded to my phone.
I ignored him and Emma for the moment, tucking the phone away. “Someone needs to sit on him all night, make sure he doesn’t escape.”
Paula jabbed a thumb back toward the freezer. “That walk-in is lined with heavy-duty steel. High iron content. There’s a reason I don’t go in there unless I have to, and when I do I don’t stay long. Doubt Foxglove—or any fae, for that matter—could break through that much iron.”
“Just being in there the short time we were has left me with a headache.” Remy rubbed her temples. “But we shouldn’t dismiss the fact that he’s not entirely Foxglove. He’s mostly Mask. If Finn’s sister’s report is to be believed, Sir Malcom was able to lie.”
“Okay, first, you have a sister?” I pointed to Finn.
He shrugged. “Sort of. We don’t share blood, but she’s family.”
“Second, who is Sir Malcom?”
“One of my Knights.” Remy waved a hand dismissively. “A trusted advisor. It was how Mask infiltrated my court. I’d been sending Malcom on several excursions into infected land. It seems contact with blight just spreads the infection, allowing Mask to take over, though the takeover with Malcom seemed more complete than with Foxglove.”
“Maybe he didn’t fight as hard as Foxglove is,” Finn suggested.
I raised my hands. “Either way, we know that the infected fae aren’t entirely bound by the laws of fae physiology. They can lie, which means everything is in question. Until we know for sure that he reacts to iron, we can’t know for certain that walk-in can hold him long-term.”
“Okay, then.” Remy slapped on a yellow latex glove and held out her hand. “Your staff?”
I handed it over.
She jerked open the walk-in, my staff in her hands.
Mask smiled. “Back so soon? Decide to beat it out of me, did you? Well…” He broke off whatever he was going to say to grimace when Remy touched the end of the staff to the exposed flesh on his captive arm. The next thing out of his mouth was a string of expletives that I didn’t ever expect to come out of him.
When Remy pulled the staff away, he was sporting a brand-new ring of black, charred flesh. Remy turned and tossed the staff back to me. “It works. Iron still hurts him.”
Mask jerked on the chair, rattling it. “Dammit, woman. When I get free, I’m going to peel that pretty face right off your skull.”
“Good luck with that,” she said and left the walk-in.
I sighed and lowered my staff, leaning on it. “Iron works. That’s a start. Still, it’s like negative thirty in there. You can’t leave him in there overnight or you’ll have a Foxglove popsicle. We need somewhere more secure to put him.”
Paula shrugged. “Well, that should be easy. You are dating a detective.”
“Absolutely not.” I sliced my hand through the air decisively. “We’re not bringing Emma into this and asking her to use police resources. Mundane law enforcement will just complicate this.”
“Well then, you’d better think of something fast because I’m not staying here all night. I love my bar, but not enough to sleep here when I’ve got a perfectly good bed at home.”
I rubbed my head and resisted the urge to pull my hair out. What could be more secure than a freezer, made of iron, but wasn’t in the police station? It’d have to be large, at least large enough to hold a human-sized body, and secure enough we could guard it.
That’s it! I pulled my phone back out and dialed the second number on my speed dial. “Hey, Nate. Sorry to call so late. No, everything’s fine. I just… I need a favor.”
Chapter Six
Nate pulled open the stainless-steel drawer and spritzed it with cleaner from a spray bottle before wiping the inside down. “Usually we only put dead people in these drawers, you know. You have to swear you’ll collect him by seven-thirty sharp, Lazarus. If D.J. finds out I’ve got a live person in this drawer, I’ll lose more than just my job. I could lose my license.”
I shifted my grip on Mask’s torn t-shirt and glanced at the double doors behind me, though I was sure no one else was there. It was just before nine, about an hour into Nate’s twelve-hour shift at the morgue. “Seven-thirty’s too early, Nate. You know Josiah won’t have two shits to rub together about my problem until he’s got cash in hand.”
Nate paused as he wiped down the drawer to adjust his glasses. “Don’t you know any more reasonable exorcists?”
“Josiah may be an ass, but he’s the best at what he does. He helped me kill the Devil, Nate. Know anyone else with that kind of clout?”
“True.” He shrugged and went to a supply cabinet to retrieve a black square, which turned out to be a brand-new body bag. He spread it out over the bottom of the open drawer. “This should keep him from being in direct contact with anything iron so long as he doesn’t rip anything. I’ll leave the drawer cracked so he can breathe. Not ideal, but these aren’t designed for people who still need air.”
Mask tried to say something, but we’d been smart enough to put duct tape over his mouth, so no one paid him any attention.
I gripped his shoulder while Finn came forward and lifted his feet, which we’d also tied together. Between the two of us, we wrestled the squirming Foxglove into the body bag and zipped it as far as his neck. With all the duct tape and rope, plus the body bag, there was no way he was getting loose, but even if he did, the three of us had worked out a guard schedule. Finn would take first watch, Remy second, and I’d come to relieve her at around four.
Mask kept trying to speak, growing louder and more insistent as we zipped up the bag. Eventually, I had enough and ripped the tape from his lips. “What?”
He smacked his lips and flexed them before answering. “An exorcism, really? You think your friend is good enough to pull me out of Foxglove because he took on Lucifer Morningstar? Morningstar was infantile. I am—”
“Yeah, yeah. We get it, buddy. You’re a scary dude.” I moved to put the tape back on.
“Wait! I have information that can help.”
I stopped just short of affixing the tape. Something in his eyes had shifted, and his voice…it was different. Familiar. “Foxglove?”
He nodded emphatically. “Whatever you do, don’t untie me. Don’t set me loose. I don’t know how long I can…” He winced.
Remy was suddenly on the other side of the drawer, her hand on Foxglove’s shoulder. “Keep fighting him, Ethan. Just hold on.”
Foxglove shook his head. “Your daughter. I need to…She�
��s in danger.”
I met Remy’s eyes. He must’ve really been out of it. “Foxglove, Remy is right here.”
“No, not yours. His.”
“Jessica?” Nate swallowed. His eyes widened and he suddenly shot forward, gripping Foxglove by the shoulders and shaking him. “Where is she? Where’s my daughter, you monster? What’d you do to her?”
I pushed Nate back a step. “Easy, man. Mask doesn’t know the first thing about Jessica.”
“Oh, but I do.” Mask snickered. He was back in place of Foxglove. “Just ask Queen Remy.”
Remy squirmed under Nate’s gaze. “I left Jessica in charge of Summer under a glamour. No one knew it was her, but she was there when Summer fell. I don’t know if she’s alive or dead.”
Nate put his head in his hands, shaking it back and forth. “No, no, no! Don’t say that. You can’t say that!”
“I know,” Mask boasted. “And I’ll tell you…for a price.”
Nate suddenly surged toward the drawer, but I managed to keep him back. “Somebody get the tape back on his mouth. Stop it, Nate. Stop. Your best chance of getting to Jessica is to ignore him.”
He pushed my hands away. “She’s my daughter. My only daughter, Lazarus. Think of everything you went through for yours. What gives you the right to risk everything and not me? I have to know. Please, I need to know.”
I glanced at Finn who’d just finished securing more tape over Mask’s mouth. “And you will know, Nate, once we free Foxglove from Mask’s control. If you let him tell you now, you’re just going to play into his plans, and you have no guarantee that anything he says is true.”
“He’s right Infected fae can lie.” Remy hugged herself and turned away.
“Think about it, man,” I urged. “Look at how flying off the handle worked out for me. For Jessica’s sake, don’t make the same mistakes I did.”
“Easy for you to say. You got your daughter back. Mine doesn’t even know who I am. If she’s hurt…”
