by Leslie Chase
God this is embarrassing, he thought. Can't I even put this off until after I've dealt with my job? No one's ever affected me like this — I only spoke to her for five minutes!
Grumbling to himself, he found a hidden nook in a tree and undressed, pulling out a folded bag into which he could place his clothes and hide them away. He had to work this off, and that meant changing.
Relaxing, he let his bear rise to the surface, muscles shifting around bones as they cracked and reshaped themselves. With a groan of effort, he changed, his skeleton extending, twisting and bending until he landed on all fours, freshly covered in fur and muscle. The shift was a painful effort, but one which felt satisfying. With a pleased rumble, he loped off into the woods, looking for anything strange.
Mostly, though, he just wanted to run.
Hours later, he'd finally had enough exercise. The forests were beautiful, especially with the greater senses he had in his bear form. The smells, sounds, and sights were more powerful and intense than a human could ever appreciate. But all the information he'd gathered was negative.
There was no shifter clan near here, he could be sure of that. A pity, because they might have been able to tell him something. He hadn't found any hidden ritual places, anywhere a magician might be working their magic or summoning something. There was no sense of danger or foreboding in the woods, the kind of thing that might indicate a demon was present.
In fact, the only supernatural location he'd found for all that searching was the site by the river that the witch who'd reported the strange weather had been using to perform her magic. And that had been carefully cleansed after use, as best as he could tell. No one had disturbed it since she'd left.
There was something strange about the forest, though. Something in the smell. Cole couldn't place it, partly because he didn't know what this forest usually smelled like — he was a stranger here, after all. But it wasn't quite right, in a way that made him itch under his thick bear fur. The closest he could get to naming the feeling was that it felt like a storm was about to break, though the weather stayed bright and sunny all day. It was only as he was leaving that things changed, dark clouds starting to blow in at a surprising speed to blanket the sky in gray.
Finding his way back to his clothes, Cole realized just how much of the day had passed while he was out looking. The shadows were lengthening, and he was suddenly aware of the fact that he hadn't eaten since that stack of pancakes for breakfast.
Time to go check in and then get something to eat. The thought made him wonder if he should ask Fiona to join him, and that made him growl at himself. Not until I've at least made some progress on the investigation, he insisted as he shifted back, bones creaking and cracking until he was human again. Fortunately no one had found his little bundle of clothing. It wouldn't have been a disaster, but walking back to his car naked might have attracted unwelcome attention.
Double checking the address of the place Eric had booked for him to stay, he walked back towards the mall in the fading light. There'd better be a decent place to get a steak in Argent Falls.
4
The rest of the day was slow and less exciting for Fiona, and that suited her fine. Two interesting visitors were too much for one morning anyway. She found it difficult to keep herself from thinking about the big, tough-looking Cole whenever she didn't have something to keep her busy.
It made for pleasant, if a little embarrassing, daydreams. Fiona found herself imagining what his stubbly cheek would feel like under her fingers, or against her face, and blushing.
Even Mr. Jackson, usually oblivious to her mood, noticed that something was up and asked about it, which made things worse. By the end of the day, she was looking forward to getting out of the shop and home. She dreaded seeing Janet, though. Her friend would be only too keen to quiz her on her day as soon as she saw the strange mood it had put Fiona in.
I don't have to tell Miss Inquisition anything, she tried to tell herself. It wasn't entirely convincing — she knew Janet wasn't likely to give up easily, not after she'd seen Lightning or whatever his real name was. I know she means well, but sometimes it would be nice if my private life could be a little bit more private.
Thoughts about the strange day she'd had whirled around inside her head as she left the mall, wishing again that her car was working. Dark clouds gathered quickly overhead, and Fiona could feel the storm about to break. Wrapping her jacket around herself, she hurried through the parking lot and off towards the road home.
Before she could cross the almost empty parking lot, she realized she wasn't alone. And it wasn't the usual people she might bump into at the end of the day, either. None of the other workers were there, it was just her. Her and the strangers who stepped out from behind cars as though they were appearing from nowhere.
They all looked alike in the gray evening light. Tall, slender, moving with a casual grace, each of them reminded her of Meallan. There were a couple of women and four men, and Fiona realized that they were in a loose circle around her. Her heart began to race and horror stories started to play out in her mind as they stepped closer.
"I told you we'd meet again soon, Princess," Meallan Lightning said, stepping out from behind one of the parking lot's ornamental trees. Even as slender as he was, she couldn't work out how he'd been hidden behind it. It was simply too narrow to conceal someone. And yet, there he was.
Looking around nervously, Fiona backed away. The strangers all looked alike somehow: the same slender build, elegant movement, and strangely perfect looks. Is this some kind of gang? A gang for skinny models or something?
"I don't want any trouble," Fiona said as they closed in. The strangers kept far enough away that they weren't immediately threatening to her, but the circle was tight enough that they'd be able to grab her if she tried to run. And their leader was walking closer, the smile on his face much like a shark's. "Back off, okay?"
She meant it to sound calm, collected, but even she could hear the fear in her voice. The tall man shook his head and laughed, a strangely musical sound. His eyes flashed, and he spoke in a voice like thunder.
"Princess, you are coming with me," he said, reaching out for her. He had the attitude of a man not used to being disobeyed, and the casual confidence of someone who could hardly even imagine someone questioning him.
Fiona slapped his hand away, reaching for the cell phone in her jacket pocket and glaring up at him. The look on his face would have been comical at another time, a mixture of disbelief and outrage as he paused and stared. The idea that she might resist seemed to not have occurred to him.
"You'll regret that," he said, and above them lightning flickered in the clouds. Thunder rolled over them in a booming crash, almost as though it was emphasizing his words. "Seize her."
His gang of pretty thugs closed in quickly, and even as Fiona pulled out her phone one grabbed her wrist. The woman's hand was slender, delicate looking, but her grip was as inescapable as a vice and she plucked the phone from Fiona's fingers with a casual ease.
"My Lord Meallan," one of the others said, addressing the leader with the slightest hint of nerves in his voice. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"
He didn't seem to share his minion's doubts, towering over Fiona as the others held her arms. Lightning flashed overhead again, and the reflection in his eyes made his smile seem even more menacing. He reached out to stroke Fiona's cheek, and she couldn't pull away thanks to the goons holding her.
"You, young lady, need to learn some manners," he said quietly.
"Fuck off." It was hardly the best retort possible, but it was all that Fiona could come up with at the moment. Meallan frowned deeply, perhaps shocked by her crudity, perhaps shocked that she was resisting him at all. Good, Fiona thought, trying to hold onto her anger and use it to hold back the fear that threatened to overwhelm her. This kind of thing simply didn't happen in a town like Argent Falls.
Meallan raised his hand as if to slap her, and paused as lightning lit the scene
again. Before he could bring his hand down, a voice called out from the side of the parking lot.
"Hit her and I'll snap that hand off at the wrist."
The voice was low, rough, menacing. Entirely unlike the musical and almost playful tones of the men threatening her. Fiona looked into the gloom, heart suddenly pounding with hope.
Cole stood beside his car, glaring at Meallan with a look that was warning enough. His hands were balled into fists, and as the gang around her turned to look at him, Fiona saw him smile. It wasn't a pleasant smile, not at all, more like a predator baring its teeth before a kill.
Meallan laughed, shaking his head. "You think that you frighten me, do you? This is none of your concern. Leave now, before you find yourself in more trouble than you can handle."
Cole looked at him, weighing his words, and then nodded. It wasn't a nod of agreement.
"I'm going to go over there and collect the girl," he said, clearly and carefully. It sounded to Fiona as though he was making a great effort to keep himself under control, and she wondered what would happen if he snapped. She didn't think that Meallan would enjoy finding out. "If you're still there when I reach her, you're going to regret it. Now, let. Her. Go."
He stepped forward, and the girl holding Fiona’s right arm released her instantly. The man on her left gripped tighter, looking up to his leader for guidance. But Meallan just laughed again, turning away from her and stalking forward to meet Cole. His casual confidence belied the difference in their builds: Cole looked like he could snap the slender frame of her attacker with ease. And from the grin on his face, he was looking forward to it.
"Last chance to back off," he said as they closed on each other. Meallan didn't even bother to answer. Instead, he darted forward, moving faster than Fiona could follow, his fist striking Cole in the face hard.
Cole rocked backward, turning to let the punch glance off rather than hit straight on. His counter sent Meallan dancing away, dodging a blow that looked as though it would have taken his head clean off if it had landed. The two men circled each other, both looking a little surprised at the fact that the fight wasn't over yet, and then Cole closed again, rushing forward to send punches at Meallan's body. The thin man ducked around them, his grace making it look easy, but when he swung a punch of his own, Cole ducked it charged shoulder first into him.
The impact was solid enough that Fiona flinched watching it. It was almost as though she could feel the power of it, the force that Cole put into Meallan as the two men tumbled to the pavement.
Somehow, Meallan twisted as they fell so that he and Cole landed side by side. If he'd been beneath Cole's weight when they landed, Fiona felt sure that the fight would have been over then and there, but as it was they were still locked in a struggle. The two men traded punches, too close to each other to get real hits in but enough to make her wince.
Meallan was getting the worst of the exchange, and tried to pull away. Scrambling to his feet, Cole followed, but Meallan managed to get his feet under him first. As Cole rose up, Meallan grabbed him and lifted.
It looked impossible for a man so slender to heft Cole off his feet, but though it was clearly a struggle, Meallan managed to throw Cole aside. The big man landed in a well-practiced roll, coming up on his feet easily, but Meallan had managed to open the distance between them again. The two eyed each other warily.
"You can't win this," Cole said, and Fiona hoped that he was right. He'd certainly gotten the better of that exchange — Meallan was limping, favoring his right leg, and his perfect face was now marred by a bloody scrape above one eye. Cole didn't look as though he was worse than bruised.
"I have you outnumbered," Meallan spat. Aside from the one man holding her arm, his gang had spread out to watch, and now they started to close in around Cole. Fiona thought that they didn't look happy about doing that, though. She couldn't blame them. Cole looked like he'd take more than a few of them down with him, even if the weight of numbers was too much. "Back off, bear, this isn't your concern."
"It's the Agency's concern when you hassle a civilian," Cole said, pulling out something from under his t-shirt. A badge of some kind? Fiona couldn't see, but whatever it was it made the rest of Meallan's gang pause. They exchanged glances with each other, backing away slowly.
"You don't understand—" Meallan started.
"I don't care," Cole roared, an animal fury in his words. "Whatever you think you're doing, you can back the fuck off. Right now. The lady doesn't appreciate your interest, so go away or I will break you into little pieces."
The raw anger in his words was frightening, even to Fiona. The man holding her arm dropped it as though she were red hot, and muttered something apologetic as he turned and ran. The rest of them backed off too, quickly and quietly. Meallan alone held Cole's glare for a second, but when it was clear his men had abandoned him, he shook his head and stepped away himself.
"You've not heard the last of this, Agency man," he warned. "You shouldn't have gotten involved."
Cole didn't answer, just glared at him. Meallan, face flushed with a mixture of anger and fear, shook his head and ducked back behind the tree he'd appeared from, somehow slipping from view.
As soon as he was gone, the anger that Fiona had been using to sustain herself vanished too, and she felt her limbs start to shake. The whole world went gray, and as she lowered herself to the ground, heavy raindrops started to fall around her.
Cole rushed towards her, almost in slow motion. She tried to smile at him, tell him that she was all right, but before she could get the words out the world faded completely.
Cole leaped forward and caught Fiona just before her head hit the pavement. Great, now what?
Her attackers were gone, vanished away while he was distracted by her faint, and now the storm was breaking overhead with rare violence. He couldn't just leave her here, but where could he take her? The mall was closing, and he could hardly take her to the security guards there — they'd look after her, of course, but there was all too much chance that she'd tell them too much of the truth.
No, he had to be there with her when she woke up, so he could make sure she didn't talk too much. And so that he could find out if there was a reason she was being attacked by the fae.
Fae. That was a possibility he hadn't thought about, but the faeries who lived in their secret courts out of sight of the world could have weather control. It depended on the court. There were Summer fae and Winter fae, and he'd met a River fae at an Agency party once. Why not fae who could control the weather? But while they might be involved in his case, that wasn't as important to him right now as the fact that they had attacked Fiona.
He lifted her and carried her to his SUV. Better to get her out of the rain at least, he figured. The rest could wait for a bit, but there was nothing to gain by letting her catch a cold in this rainstorm.
Once he had her inside the vehicle, he looked around the deserted parking lot as the storm shook it. The wind was howling through the trees now, and thunder rolled in every few seconds. It was a wild storm, and a surprisingly sudden one — definitely not natural.
At least now he had an idea of what was causing the problems, or might at least know more. If there was a court of the fair folk hidden away in Argent Falls, then it was one of the courts that hadn't registered itself with the Arcane Affairs Agency. That was a relatively minor matter, usually, but not when they were causing problems for normal humans. And trying to snatch someone off the street was definitely not allowed.
I'll have to find them and have a word with their King or Queen, he thought as he stalked around the tree the leader had vanished behind. Hopefully that wasn't him. There was no sign of whatever fairy path he'd walked off down, but that was the way of things with the fae. They were hard to track at the best of times. The only thing he found was Fiona's phone, which he pocketed to return to her.
He pulled his own phone out, looking up at the approaching clouds again with a frown. The Agency should know about this.
Guess I'm going to get soaked, he thought. Can't call in while I'm in the car next to her, I'm not risking her overhearing something she shouldn’t know.
Eric answered after a couple of rings. "Caught a lead, Cole? Quicker than I'd thought."
"Got a bit of good luck and a bit of bad. First off, there is definitely something wrong with the weather around here," Cole said, watching the dark clouds overhead as the rain pounded down on him. "Second, I found a group of fae trying to carry someone off. They aren't supposed to be here, are they?"
He heard the rustling of papers as Eric looked through something. "There's no one registered in the area, no. I'd have told you before you went out there if there was."
Or have sent someone else, if you thought that there was something to find. But that wasn't a productive line of conversation, so Cole let it lie. "Any sign of someone unregistered?"
"Maybe," Eric admitted. "You know how it is with the fae, some of the courts don't like giving away where they live. Kind of like us shifters that way, and the Agency usually keeps out of their business as long as they keep to themselves. But there's something here from way back when the silver mines were busy: someone in that area was supplying nearby courts of the fae with silver swords. And there were some stories about the miners meeting fae underground."
Cole growled at that, and he could hear the snarl in Eric's voice. As shifters, neither of them had any love for silver weapons. But given how long the mines had been dry for, that wasn't exactly a solid lead.
"Could just be local myths, of course. Does give me somewhere to start, though," Cole said, nodding. "Thanks."
"No problem. What about the, ah, the abductee?"
Cole paused before answering, struggling to get his feelings under control. The sudden surge of anger at the fae who'd tried to steal Fiona away wasn't exactly professional. "She fainted after the attack, I've got her with me. Going to have to see how much she picked up from what happened. Hopefully not too much, and I can convince her it was just a gang. They didn't use any obvious magic, not that I saw."
