by Kal Aaron
There was no way she could complain about Samuel giving her work after all her complaints in October. Her eyes darted back and forth as she read the yellow Lemurian script that appeared on the cloudy surface.
“Huh.” Lyssa closed the mirror.
“What is it?” Serafina asked.
“Not sure, but this could be very good or very bad.”
Chapter Two
The mirror message had been clear, but the implications weren’t. Samuel wanted Lyssa at the Traveling Club the next day, but he didn’t specify why. “Mysterious Samuel” was the most annoying version of the man.
Lyssa hadn’t visited the place since her trip to Utah. This time the club was in eastern Washington, forcing her to go on an exhausting three-and-a-half-hour sorcery-enhanced trip through the western United States on her bike.
The message ordered her to come the next day at a precise time and stand in a specific location while facing east. She did so in front of an abandoned warehouse, facing a wall and a padlocked door that kept her from proceeding and occasionally glanced at her phone to check the time.
“Like it’d kill him to just come to my house,” she muttered.
Her phone beeped as her alarm went off, marking the specified time. The padlock unlocked itself and fell to the ground with a clunk, then the metal sizzled and flowed into the air as thick smoke.
Lyssa glanced around before opening the door. A dusty and empty warehouse floor was on the other side, but the pressure of sorcery was almost overwhelming. She took a deep breath and stepped through the doorway.
The warehouse floor vanished, and a sprawling ballroom replaced it. Four couples danced on the floor. All wore elaborate costumes.
While Lyssa recognized some as regalia, the background sorcery of the club made it hard to determine if everyone was Illuminated. She wasn’t sure Shadows were allowed in the club.
Glowing chandeliers floated overhead, slowly changing colors. Light classical music was played by a translucent ghostly string quartet sitting in real wooden chairs. An array of black tables stood opposite the dance floor. The scattered diners were eating what appeared to be glowing puffy balls.
A woman with light brown skin and elaborately braided hair wandered away from a table and toward Lyssa. Her low-cut flowing green dress and heels matched her black and green Venetian mask.
Despite the mask, there was no question about the woman’s identity. Opaque jeweled lenses in the mask, which matched her earrings, confirmed it. She was Kanya Suwan, bearer of the Questioning Hedonist regalia and owner of the Traveling Club.
Lyssa felt out of place. Her baseline Night Goddess appearance was better-suited for scaring criminals than hanging out at clubs in either its classy or bizarre decoration modes. Under normal circumstances, the Illuminated disapproved of altering their regalia’s appearance when they were socializing. It didn’t matter anyway. She wasn’t there to eat weird puffy balls or dance.
“Welcome, Miss Corti.” Kanya bowed over one arm. Her voice was warm and husky. “I wasn’t able to meet with you the last time you came. I prefer to personally greet new visitors to my club.”
Lyssa surveyed the room. Kanya using her name pointed to everyone being Illuminated or being so loyal to the Society that it wasn’t a risk.
“It’s a nice place you’ve got here.” Lyssa nodded at the dancers. “This is less weird than what I saw last time. I don’t feel like I’m on drugs this time.”
“Change is the only constant in the Traveling Club,” Kanya replied. “On some days, I embrace the avant-garde. Other days, I am a strict traditionalist. Repeating myself would be a disappointment both to my soul and to those who visit this place seeking refuge for inspiration or simple enjoyment. The only thing I disapprove of is being predictable.”
“That’s interesting,” Lyssa said. She hadn’t spotted Samuel yet. “But I’m not here for inspiration or enjoyment. I don’t know if I’m boring, but Samuel told me to contact him, and I assume it’s for work.”
“Torch work is rarely predictable, and I doubt it’s boring.” Kanya smiled.
“True enough.”
The hostess motioned at several doors on the other side of the room. “Follow me if you would, please.”
She moved away, her movements as graceful and serpentine as if she were waiting to pounce on someone and swallow them whole. Her slight glance behind and mischievous smile halfway to the door only intensified the illusion. Lyssa walked behind her, maintaining a steady pace until they arrived.
Kanya gestured at the door. “After you meet with the Elder, you should consider availing yourself of the club’s amenities. I think you’ll find that regardless of your tastes, there’s something here for everyone.”
“Do you have any strawberry ice cream?” Lyssa asked. “I’m a simple woman.”
“I could get you some,” Kanya replied. “There’s nothing wrong with simple, straightforward pleasures.”
Lyssa smiled. “Then I might take you up on that.”
Kanya bowed her head and slithered away in search of another victim. Something about the woman left Lyssa unsettled, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. Maybe it was just the difference between being a street-focused Torch and a bon vivant.
Lyssa knocked lightly on the door. “It’s me.”
“Enter,” Samuel called from inside.
Lyssa opened the door to a dimly lit room with two dark couches on opposite sides of a low glass table. Subtle striations of light passed through the table in waves. Samuel sat on a couch, but he wasn’t alone in the room. Theodora sat on the other couch.
“Hi.” Lyssa closed the door behind her and folded her arms. “Since you called me here instead of just sending me orders or having the EAA contact me, I’m guessing this isn’t a simple job.”
She glanced at Theodora. Lyssa had complained more than a few times about being called a witch, usually stating she didn’t have a pointy hat. She never thought much about other Sorceresses when she said it. Theodora wore a sparkly layered black dress complete with a black necklace, a pointed hat, and no mask—the Misunderstood Witch regalia.
Lyssa’s suspicions about the other Elder remained because of Theodora’s presence on the memory card and lingering discrepancies concerning the Houston job, but Theodora’s willingness to have Aisha help Lyssa recently and the lack of additional evidence pointing to corruption made Lyssa question her jump to judgment. Being a manipulative Elder was different from being a corrupt rogue. Maybe she really was a Misunderstood Witch.
Samuel gave a firm nod. “Yes. This isn’t a contract or a Society assignment. It concerns your request. I would have had this meeting at your home, but this was more convenient for Theodora due to prior business.”
Lyssa’s heart rate increased. She hesitated before replying, “You mean, my request to go to Last Remnant.”
“Yes.” Samuel kept his hands folded in his lap. “I was dubious about your desire to go there, and I remain dubious for various reasons, but I can’t deny you’ve earned the right.”
Had he told Theodora about her suspicions? Lyssa didn’t completely trust Samuel, but there’d be no advantage to him or the Society by telling Theodora. Oversight of non-Elders was handled by an Elder with direct supervisory responsibility unless something extreme happened.
“You’re also dubious about cell phones, the internet, and for that matter, TV,” Lyssa began, “and they aren’t going away either.”
Theodora put her hand to her mouth and laughed quietly, an amused glint in her eyes. Samuel scowled.
“Everything I do, I do for the Society,” he said. “That includes ensuring that the Illuminated under my supervision prosper. Despite what you sometimes seem to believe, Miss Corti, not everyone is out to get you.”
“No, just a lot of people.” Lyssa leaned against the door. “And they often have guns and shards.”
Theodora offered her a smile. “You’re right. It’s inevitable, darling, that a woman in your position will attra
ct enemies. You should be proud of that. It means the criminals and rogues you’ve defeated understand your power over them. One can’t cleanse the world without burning someone along the way.”
“I sleep fine at night.” Lyssa shrugged. “But I also watch my back. That way, I don’t end up getting eaten by monsters.”
Theodora laughed again. “You’re delightful. You remind me so much of Aisha.”
Lyssa wasn’t sure if she should be insulted. She decided to ignore the comment and turned to Samuel. “Can we get back to talking about Last Remnant?”
“Your recent success in the mine has been noted by other Elders and the Tribunal, along with your other successful contracts,” Samuel replied. “It’s unfortunate that we weren’t able to keep the news of the mine incident contained, but that wasn’t your fault. I’ve made strong recommendations that you be allowed to visit Last Remnant.” He nodded at his companion. “As has Theodora.”
“Really?” Lyssa turned to Theodora. “But I haven’t even done any work for you. Why do you care?”
“You’ve served the Society well in recent months and worked closely with one of my best Torches,” Theodora replied. “I have no reason not to support you in this matter.”
“Regardless of her reasons, two Elders unified concerning a reasonable request are hard to refuse,” Samuel said. “You’ve been approved for travel to Last Remnant in two weeks. Given the current number of Torches in my region of responsibility, I fail to see a reason you can’t go.”
“Thanks.” Lyssa pumped her fist. “Merry early Christmas to me.”
“Please note you might not find what you seek,” Samuel said. “I hope you keep that in mind. There might only be pain waiting for you, but you deserve your chance.”
“At least I’ll be able to move forward.” Lyssa shrugged. She nodded at Theodora. “I appreciate your support in this.”
“I’m glad to offer it, darling.” Theodora gave her a coy smile. “I’m sure Aisha has spoken about me to you.”
“A little.” Lyssa shrugged. “I can’t say it was a lot. She mostly focuses on the job and related details. That and insulting and threatening me.”
“Then let me make my case,” Theodora replied. “I value talent, and I also understand Torches need great autonomy to do what they do. I respect that autonomy.”
“Good to hear. What’s that have to do with me?”
Samuel scowled at Theodora and cleared his throat. “What are you doing?”
“I believe you are underutilizing Lyssa,” Theodora said with an easy smile. “Since her move, she’s demonstrated impressive skill at completing extraordinarily difficult jobs. I’m suggesting that she might be of more use to the Society in a different region.”
“That’s why you wanted to come along?” Samuel snorted. “This is inappropriate, especially with her here. You didn’t inform me this was your plan.”
Lyssa glanced between the two, unsure of what to say. She felt like a kid watching Mommy and Daddy fight.
“Why would I tell you beforehand?” Theodora put a hand to her mouth and laughed.
Lyssa felt a little bad for Samuel, getting blindsided. He didn’t seem as ambitious as other Elders she had dealt with, but every Elder, on some level, had ascension to the Tribunal in the back of their mind. Decades of jockeying with other Illuminated meant betrayals were inevitable, major and minor.
It was time to steer things back on track. She hadn’t driven to the club to watch Elders play politics.
“I’m still here,” Lyssa said with a shrug. “Remember?”
“Think about it,” Theodora said. “That’s all I ask. There are Torches in my region who intend to leave soon. We could use a Sorceress of your skill to ensure our depth of coverage.”
As much as Lyssa enjoyed the glare Samuel gave Theodora, she didn’t want to get wrapped up in Elder politics. He’d requested she move to Arizona, but if she’d outright refused, he wouldn’t have punished or harassed her. She couldn’t say that about every Elder.
Lyssa had her issues with Samuel, but he was a known quantity. It was good to know other people held positive opinions of her, even though she still harbored lingering suspicions about Theodora’s potential corruption.
“I’m flattered,” Lyssa said, “but I’m comfortable where I am for now. I don’t anticipate moving for at least a few years.”
Theodora let out a melodramatic sigh. “Oh, well. I had to try.”
Samuel looked relieved for a split second, then his face shifted to schooled blandness. The shift made Lyssa laugh to herself.
“Now that the matter is settled for the moment,” Samuel said, “I’d encourage you not to make any unnecessary scenes in the next couple of weeks. The monster incident has made the Tribunal more concerned about the safety and reputation of the Society. Anything that disrupts that might be used as an excuse to keep you from going to Last Remnant.”
Lyssa saluted with a grin. “I can stay out of trouble, and I’ll keep it easy and breezy unless you need me to shoot someone. This is one time I’d be happy if you benched me.”
“I can only limit your deployment as the regional situation allows,” Samuel replied. After shooting Theodora a dirty look, he added, “I will, however, do my best to facilitate a small reprieve. Note, Miss Corti, that I do this not out of friendship but as a reward for services rendered to the Society. You’ve earned it as a Torch.”
“Understood. I don’t have any problem with that.” Lyssa turned to the door. “And now I think I’ll go see how good the club’s ice cream is.”
Chapter Three
Lyssa sliced into her steak with gleeful abandon and a huge smile on her face. Two days had passed without incident, and there was nothing on the news from her region that suggested the other Torches were getting injured and couldn’t handle their jobs and contracts. Samuel and the EAA hadn’t sent her any messages, either.
The robust flavor of the steak heightened her already great mood. She’d been all but bouncing around her house since returning from the meeting with Samuel and Theodora and now had to resist the urge to do something stupid in the restaurant.
It was an odd reaction, being happy about traveling to Last Remnant to hunt the truth. She expected to either find proof of a conspiracy or the death of her brother, but hope had gobbled up her tension. More pain might come for her in the future, but it would be followed by other people paying the price.
Bill laughed at her from across the table. “You must have had a great day.”
Lyssa downed the juicy bite of steak before she responded. “Why do you say that?”
“There’s something about you today.” Bill shrugged. “You seem to have a lot more energy than usual. That’s all. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so unguarded.” He waved his hands in front of him. “Not that that’s a bad thing. I like your intensity, but now I’m seeing a little more of the woman who’d wear a unicorn shirt rather than the corporate troubleshooter.”
She’d worn a slinky blue dress for their steakhouse date, but now she wished she’d worn a Kawatsu-chan shirt. This was her fifth outing with Bill since her pathetic combination of date and spying attempt focused on the mysterious shard drive she’d found at the library in Phoenix during the Cochise County monster hunt incident. She had been surprised he wanted to see her again after her erratic behavior.
“A woman can’t be happy on a date with her boyfriend?” Lyssa asked. “That’s sad, Bill. I’ve been like this for a couple of days.”
“No, that’s fine. That’s not what I was saying.” Bill blinked. “Boyfriend? I’m your boyfriend?”
“You like ‘partner’ better?” Lyssa shrugged. “I can never get behind that. It makes us sound like we’re mismatched cops in an action-comedy.” She furrowed her brow. “I don’t know if you’re the uptight one and I’m the Devil-may-care, out-of-control one or the opposite.”
Bill laughed. “Boyfriend’s fine. And we don’t need to be cops.” He grinned. “And it’s great. I
just didn’t know things had advanced that far. I know what I feel, but it was hard to say. I figured I’d play it by ear.”
“Nothing wrong with that. That’s always a decent strategy.”
Lyssa was surprised by his reaction, considering they’d slept together after their last date. Her painful dating history predicted the relationship would crash and burn sooner rather than later, so she wasn’t sure what to make of her current situation. This was also the first time she’d dated a Shadow, and the fact that he still didn’t know she was Hecate was bound to cause problems later.
For the moment, she was trying to not let any doubts creep in. She liked Bill, and he was a pleasant diversion, but it wasn’t like he’d asked her to marry him. They could have fun together for a while and see where things went.
Just because she was a Sorceress who took on deadly men for a living, it didn’t mean everything in her life needed to be complicated or tied into some grandiose plan or conspiracy. At the same time, maintaining any hope for the future meant being honest when she could.
Lyssa took a sip of water. “There’s something I need to mention. I figured it’d be best to talk to you about it on our date.”
“Uh-oh.” Bill laughed, though there was a nervous look in his eyes. “I hope I didn’t graduate to boyfriend just to get dumped. That’d suck.”
“Not yet.” Lyssa smiled. “But you have to keep putting in the effort.”
“Aye, aye, ma’am,” Bill replied. “What did you need to tell me?”
“I’ve got some family stuff to take care of soon,” Lyssa said, marveling that she was technically telling him the truth. “It’s going to take me away from the state.”
“No trouble to shoot this time?” Bill asked with a grin.
Lyssa shook her head. “Strictly personal, but not only am I leaving the state, I’m also leaving the country in a little under two weeks. I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone. It could be a few days, but things might drag on.” She winced. “There’s no way it will take months. I hope.”
