Chimes At Midnight (The Grimoire Chronicles Book 3)

by Phaedra Weldon

  They tingled for a few seconds and I felt something clamp down around my throat. I opened my mouth to talk, but nothing came out. I put my hands to my throat and looked up at her.

  She removed her mask.

  It was Sam.

  Only it didn't look like Sam. She looked wild and possessed, and her blue eyes were rimmed in red. I realized at that moment Brendi hadn't made Sam a Hunt hound. She'd made her into a hunter. She gestured, turned, and left. I was grabbed and hustled back down the stairs, unable to protest and say anything. I called mentally to the book and felt a soft whisper. It didn't sound like a plea for help but more of a…be quiet!

  Was I losing my mind, finally?

  I was half dragged through tall, empty hallways of black, then into a huge chamber. We skirted a huge hole in the floor as we made our way past bleacher-like seats to either side, down a narrow precipice to what was unmistakably a throne.

  And there, sitting on it, was Brendi. She wore a black gown with black feathers that trailed down over the chair to the dais below her. I was brought to her left and made to kneel beside her. I saw Sam at her other side, her mask in her hand, and a really large spear with a black blade in the other.

  The guards stepped away and Brendi help up her hand. "Tonight," she said, and her voice echoed in the chamber, "is the Wild Hunt."

  Cheers reverberated in the room and I put my hands to my ears. Good God! How did she stop from going deaf!?

  She raised her hand and the crowd quieted. "I have invited the other Kingdoms to participate. Tzariene from the Summer Court has accepted, yet Morgana and Oona have not yet replied." She smiled down at me.

  A commotion to my right and I saw Scylla being half dragged toward the center, in front of Brendi, by two guards. Scylla had been manacled at his wrists and ankles, and he looked bad. His face was a mottled mess of bruises, and where his clothing didn't cover him, there were even more. It looked as if Brendi had him beaten.

  "Scylla took advantage of my kindness and broke a deal with me."

  Gasps, murmurs of horror as he was made to kneel beside me. He looked at me and gave me a half smile that became a wince.

  "Yes, unbelievable, isn't it? Scylla has a body now. He no longer overshadows the human form, but is fused to it."

  More shouts of dislike and hisses.

  "Morgana went against tradition and fused Scylla to a body. A body I gave him, thus ridding me of my one hold over him."

  More hisses. Brendi then took a deep breath. "I choose Scylla as the new prey!"

  THAT brought the house down, and I would have asked Scylla what he did to generate such dislike. I mean…they were all cheering the fact he would die at the mercy of the Hunt.

  Brendi held up her hand and looked down at Scylla. "As prey, you have the choice of a second, someone who could help you on the Hunt, but be advised, they too would be in the same mortal danger as yourself. This tradition gives you the opportunity to bring an enemy with you. Who do you choose, Scylla?"

  I looked at the Incubus as he struggled to stand. The guard didn't hinder him, just let him make the attempts on his own. Scylla took in a deep breath and winced before he said, "I choose Dags McConnell."

  There were whispers. I blinked at him, not sure what he was trying to do. I mean…wait…if I went with him, that meant I would be released from Alfheim, wouldn't it? And given the conditions of the bond, it would mean I wouldn't be obedient to Brendi.

  "Who is this?" someone shouted.

  "We do not know this McConnell."

  I tried to say yes. Hell, I tried to say anything, but no matter how I moved my lips, nothing could come out.

  "Pick another," Brendi said.

  "Wait," came a Faerie in purple from the side. He held a book in his hand and knelt before the throne. "If there is such a name as this, and this person is in this hall, then he or she is the named, my Queen."

  "I don't believe you."

  "It's right here." He opened the book and pointed to something.

  I waved at him and jumped up and down. The guard beside me tried to shove me back to my knees, but the Faerie in purple pointed at me. "Are you Dags McConnell?"

  I nodded vigorously.

  "He is not to be considered," Brendi said.

  "I'm afraid the rules—"

  "Damn the rules, Toryn!" she screamed at him.

  The crowd started to make noise, and it wasn't a happy noise. Soon there were Faeries of all shapes and sizes standing, pointing, and shouting.

  "Your Grace," said Samantha beside her. "Perhaps the Goblin would say no?"

  Say no?

  Brendi looked at me. "You tell him no, Goblin, or I will kill Ivan and Mike myself."

  "You released the two humans, my Grace," Samantha said.

  I smiled at Sam. She didn't look at me, and I couldn't tell if she was on my side or just being honest while trying to encourage her queen to do the right thing. If for no other reason than to hear they'd been released, it was worth it.

  "Speak," the Toryn said to me. "You have been chosen. Do you accept this position?"

  I nodded vigorously.

  "We must have your verbal consent."

  I pointed to my mouth and throat, and then to Brendi and Sam. He looked at them and frowned. Brendi wasn't going to answer, but Sam did.

  "I was commanded to take away his voice."

  Toryn looked confused. "Whatever for? He's human, isn't he? And a guest I would imagine. Release his tongue."

  "I didn't command it," Brendi seethed.

  "I'm afraid it doesn't matter, your Grace. Tradition dictates it. Either he is given the opportunity to speak, or you, as the Sovereign, must take his place."

  I didn't know if that was true or not, but Brendi gestured to Sam, who snapped her fingers at me. I gasped and heard my voice as I croaked out, "I accept."

  I felt the spell break and the binding conditions ease as I was instantly removed from the throne room in a gust and found myself falling forward onto the grass of the Cairn in Gypsy Gardens in a spray of glass. Beside me Scylla pitched forward, still manacled and lay on his side. The sun was going down and the air was a bit chilly. I looked for the clover, but it was little more than a burnt and smoking spot on the stone.

  And the mirror…

  The mirror had shattered into a million pieces and lay on the ground beside us.

  "Can you…" Scylla said and held up his chained wrists and ankles.

  I called forth the Guardian Sword, which easily disintegrated the Faerie magic with a touch. Once he was free, he pushed himself up on his knees and nodded. "Thanks."

  "No, thank you." I dismissed the sword and stood so I could help him up. "So what now?"

  He leaned heavily on me and held up his hand. "We figure out how to stay alive until sunrise. The Hunt is coming, Dags McConnell. And it's coming for us."

  And then we weren’t in the circle of cypress anymore, but in a sphere of icy cold darkness. In a place where I couldn’t scream.

  Twenty-Five

  THE iDEA

  DAGS

  The darkness vanished around us just before I thought I would lose my mind. I pitched forward into the door of Sam’s shop. It opened and hands hauled both of us inside. I heard Mike's voice before I saw his face as he pulled me up on my feet and gave me a big bear hug.

  I couldn’t stop shaking.

  I spotted Levi and Kyle with fists drawn as they approached Scylla. "Don't hurt him. He got me out of Alfheim. Heal him, please."

  They hesitated, but eventually helped Scylla to his feet as they put him between them. Mike half supported me as well, as I tried very hard not to pass out. My legs had the stamina of wet noodles.

  We were escorted to the back and up the stairs. With Scylla on one of the sofas, I sat on the one Sam had slept on. Mike handed me a glass of water, which I drank all at once, very happy it wasn't cold enough to give me brain freeze. Kyle hovered over Scylla where he lay with his eyes closed. I sensed the Incubus was exhausted and in pain, but not
in any real danger.

  Not yet.

  Kyle's hands glowed as he moved them down Scylla's body, and when he looked back at Scylla's face, the Incubus was watching him. "I'm making sure you don't have any internal injuries."

  "I like your bedside manner," Scylla said in a soft voice.

  Kyle looked back at his hands and I got the feeling Scylla was interested in the Hedge Witch. I kinda wondered if Kyle had a boyfriend. And that made me think about Illiana. Man…she was gonna kill me since I hadn't checked in. I wasn't even sure where my phone was.

  Mike sat on the coffee table in front of me. Crwys sat beside him. "What happened?" Crwys said. "We knew you'd run off when we realized you weren't here. Snuck out of the apartment, didn't you?"

  "I went to the Cairn and made a deal with Brendi." I filled them both in, as well as Levi and Kyle, as to what happened in Alfheim at the Obsidian Queen's castle.

  When I got to the part where they hauled Scylla in, Crwys laughed and looked back at his nephew. "How in the hell did they catch you?"

  Scylla tried to push himself up on the sofa. Kyle helped him. "One of his cousins." Scylla thumbed at Levi. "Apparently he and the Hob are good friends."

  "Who?" Levi said.

  "Jason Lawrence."

  Levi whistled. "Wow…you got the big gun interested in you?"

  The name rang several bells in my own head. "You…you saw Jason?" I sat forward, looking at Scylla between Mike and Crwys.

  "Yeah." Scylla nodded. "And he's really interested in your safety. You know him?"

  "I do." I looked at Crwys and Levi. "Long story. Another life. But Jason and I go way back. I just didn't know he was in contact with Hob."

  "The Hob is like an information hub," Scylla said. "He's connected by networks through the ley lines. Those lines are the same in all realms. Hob gave Ripp'n Jack his new body and then sent us to Jason. It was Jason who made it possible for the Djinn to escape and for me to walk right into Brendi's hands." I heard the irritation in the Incubus's voice, but he didn't, in my opinion, seem as upset as he should have.

  "Wait." Crwys turned and stood as he faced Scylla. "Ripp'n Jack has a new body? Hob helped him take another person's—"

  "No," Scylla interrupted. "It was my wish. Hob actually created a new body from the remnants of your essence." He nodded to Mike. "It's not you, but what was left of you in him. So yes, like myself, Ripp'n Jack has a body now. "

  "And you're fused to this one," I said, remembering what Brendi had said.

  "Yes."

  "Fused?" Levi winced. "Ouch. That's serious shit, Scylla. That limits you, doesn't it?"

  "It makes me killable, if that's what you're getting at?" He looked up at Levi, then turned his attention to Crwys. "And like me, this also makes the Djinn killable as well. He's still a Djinn and he can set fires. But he's no longer immortal. He can't just…shuffle off this new mortal coil, Azazel. You can burn him, now."

  Crwys stared at his nephew. "Where is he?"

  "That I don't know. You'd have to ask Jason Lawrence. He's the one that let him go."

  Levi snorted. "Oh, if Jason said he let him go, I will almost bet that isn't the case. I can call him." He turned to the veranda doors as he pulled his phone from his pocket.

  Crwys turned back to me. "Did you see—"

  "She's there," I said. "She's not a hound though. Brendi made her into a hunter."

  "A hunter?" Mike said.

  I was still looking at Crwys and noticing the nuisances in his expression. Then I looked at Mike. "A hunter is one of the warriors sent out on the Wild Hunt. They're usually made up of the best of the kingdoms, and they compete to see who kills the prey first so they can win the honor for their queen."

  "And who exactly is the prey if she made Sam a hunter?" Crwys said.

  Scylla cleared his throat. "Me."

  All eyes turned to him. He shrugged. "I pissed her off. I got a body she couldn't take away and I decided not to bring her back the Goblin."

  "But you chose me as your second," I spoke up. "That means we have"—and I checked the kitty clock hanging over the stairs up to the apartment—"a little over six hours to come up with a plan."

  "You're prey too?" Mike did not like this.

  "I'm his second. Don't be mad at him. Scylla choosing me was what canceled out my deal with Brendi. You and Ivan were released…" I looked around. "Where is Ivan?"

  "He's asleep in the bedroom," Kyle said as he stood back and looked at Scylla, examining his patient. "But I get this feeling we're going to need him?" He turned to fixate on me. "’Cause given what Sam said about you, you already have a plan?"

  I smiled at him and ran my fingers through my hair. "I have an idea."

  "Good enough for me." Crwys held out his hands. "Where do we start?"

  Twenty-Six

  HOW SHE DiED

  SCYLLA

  Scylla showered and changed into the clothes Kyle brought him. They were about the same size and height, and there was something very innocent about Kyle that attracted Scylla. It was true, most everyone attracted him, but not in simple ways. With Kyle, it was in the way he half smiled, or even in the way he gave Scylla that wary, unsure look. After all, their first meeting had been him intruding on their home and defending himself against the Witch.

  He was pretty sure Kyle wasn't heartily convinced that Scylla wasn't a threat.

  And that was fine. He could always show himself in his actions, he supposed. Something Morgana had tried to teach him. "Folk know not in words, or pretty phrases, of deeds boasted with the scrape of an artist's tool, my dark prince. They know bravery and loyalty in action, in performance, in fulfilling promises. 'Tis why we Faerie hold most dear that of a promise, and condemn so fierce the breaking of one."

  It wasn't that he was different. Scylla had always known he was the calmer of the twins, the soft rolling water to Charybdis's churning maelstrom. It wasn't until he no longer lingered in her shadow that he realized there was more to this sense of being than following, and that sometimes making one's path was a much greater adventure.

  A light followed Kyle around, something Scylla was pretty sure no one saw but himself. And it was in that light that Scylla felt most at peace. Perhaps it was the young man's Earthly power as a Hedge Witch. Or perhaps it was just himself, simply Scylla, who for once, found himself choosing whom to look at and whom to entice with no other alternative, either overt or underhanded.

  He found Dags on the veranda, long after the sun had set. The breeze was almost cool as it traveled along the French Quarter. It wasn't until he was close that he saw the dark-haired man held a phone to his ear. Scylla hung back in the shadows, blending in as he listened in on the conversation.

  "…Wasn't there? …Oh…so she's okay? ...I see. No…everything's…" Dags gave a much longer pause with his head down. Then, "Jason…I don't know on this one. I have an idea, I just don't know if it will work… I will…oh, and tell Nona thanks for the advice? Sure…yeah…" He closed and slipped the phone into his pocket. "Scylla, I know you're there."

  That surprised the Incubus. Usually no one could detect his presence when he cloaked himself in shadow. He stepped out into the moonlight, basking in the power of the orb's full light. Kyle seemed very pleased with his healing ability, and Scylla felt…

  He felt thankful. And this was something he wasn't sure he liked.

  "Is it your Faerie abilities? Morgana always knew where I was in her castle."

  "I'm not sure. It might be the Grimoire." He shrugged. "I spoke to Jason Lawrence."

  "As I said, you seem very important to him."

  "Jason's a part of another life. One I'd nearly forgotten. He let me know they found Raven. Or what was left of her."

  Scylla pursed his lips. "And the First Born?"

  Dags turned his head to look at Scylla and the light of the moon illuminated his face. The boy's Faerie blood was evident in the way it enhanced his human appearance. Scylla knew the look Morgana had given him by the pool had be
en no more than a glamour itself. Dags's humanity kept him looking the way he did, camouflaged in a world that would hunt him down. Actually…two worlds. If those in the court of the Obsidian Queen had known this boy was a Goblin, a Daoine Sidhe, they wouldn't have let him go so easily. So he did find it interesting that Brendi would. Perhaps, as a child, she really didn't understand the significance of his existence.

  Dags smiled. "I haven't heard them referred to like that in a while. It's mostly just demon now. But Nyx was still there, lingering within Raven's core. They're calling the Wraith to separate the two so Raven can move on."

  "Ah, the Wraith." Scylla knew of this creature. A mix of Irin and First Born. A mistake, and a boon. "I wasn't aware Jason and his group knew of her."

  Dags snorted and leaned his elbows on the iron railing. "Long story, Scylla. And not one I wish to remember. Or can." He took in a deep breath. "So…" And he looked at Scylla again. "You agreed to take me to the Queen in exchange for the name of who killed your sister."

  "Yes." Scylla too leaned on the railing.

  "But you didn't bring me in."

  "No."

  "Why?"

  He shrugged. "I'm not sure…maybe it's Remi's lingering need to do right."

  "Remi?"

  "The name of the human whose body I now possess." Scylla looked up at the moon. "Remi Laborde. College student. All around good guy." He looked down. "Don't judge me for what I did in taking this body."

  "You're a creature trying to survive. Why would I?"

  "Seriously?" Scylla turned his head to give Dags a withering look. "All humans and creatures of the Other Realms condemn those of us from the Peripheral. Or, Alfheim."