A Shadow of Crows

by Yasmine Galenorn

  Herne snorted. “You can always use caffeine, woman. I swear, the next time you get cut during a fight I want to collect some of that blood and test it. My guess is that it’s pure coffee. Hurry up. We don’t have much time, so we’ll stop at Starbucks and you can grab a sandwich and coffee at the same time.”

  As we headed toward the freeway, my coffee and sandwich in hand, I glanced at him. “So, Danielle’s really going to the island of the Amazons?”

  He nodded, looking serious. “She’s excited. She loves the idea of learning her people’s ways. Since her mother has no objection, I’ll send her off this weekend. It’s really better this way.” He sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than me. “Danielle’s not going to learn a whole lot from me. This way, she’ll have education, physical training, whatever she wants. She did ask to come back and spend spring break with me.” He glanced at me. “Do you think I’m a horrible father?”

  I shook my head. “No, I don’t. You’re putting her needs first. She needs more than just a place to stay. That’s all she had with her mother, and that’s what she has with you. This will give her a purpose in life. Funny thing is, now that she’s going, I think I’m sorry. I know we didn’t hit it off but I think after a while we could have become friends. At least now that I know her background.”

  “It’s been an eye-opening experience.” Herne paused again. “I just want to say how much I appreciate the fact that you stuck by me during this period. Reilly would have been out the door at the first breath of trouble. None of the women that I knew would have even tried to understand. Thank you, for not giving me an ultimatum.”

  I took a bite of my sandwich and swallowed, chasing it down with a slug of coffee. “What kind of person would I be if I had done that?” I decided to change the subject, because really, there wasn’t much more to say. “You promise to take it easy on Yutani when he comes back?”

  Herne nodded. “I gave you my word, and I’ll keep it.”

  As he shifted gears, merging into the left lane and speeding up as we headed out on the 520 bridge, I glanced out the window.

  The rain was heavy and cold—that bone-chilling cold that only drenching rain can bring. The skies were overcast and it was forecast to rain through the night and the next few days. I leaned my head back against the seat, my thoughts drifting. So much had happened in the past couple weeks that it felt like life had become a whirlwind, a vortex sweeping up everybody in its path, including me.

  I was approaching the Cruharach, and while I was still nervous, I wasn’t as afraid as I had been. I was feeling stronger as both my mother’s and father’s sides had risen in me. As my father’s blood rose, my mother’s had ebbed some, but they were both still there and they seemed to have made peace. Morgana and Marilee had reassured me that the transformation would just make me a stronger version of me, and I hoped they were right.

  “What are you thinking of?” Herne asked after a few minutes.

  “This, that, a little bit of everything. I was thinking about Yutani and Raven. And the Cruharach. It seems like during September the world picks up pace. Even before I came to the Wild Hunt, it felt like that. Autumn seems to bring a renaissance, a renewal of sorts. My energy always has risen during the autumn months and now I know why—it’s because of my father’s blood. I’m attuned to the season.”

  “That you are,” Herne said. “So, changing the subject…I know you love me. But if you had it to do again, would you still get involved with me? Given everything that’s happened?”

  I laughed. “You have to ask? Herne, you’re one of the best things that’s ever happened to me. Granted, you’re also a pain in the ass, but sometimes you can’t have one without the other. Which reminds me, I need to call the hospital and ask them about Ray. I don’t want him knowing I called, but I need to know if he came through surgery, for my own peace of mind.”

  Herne said nothing as I pulled out my phone and gave the hospital a call. I got hold of one of the nurses who had been looking after him, and asked her how he was doing.

  “Mr. Fontaine came through his surgery without incident. But he’s going to be in the hospital for at least another month. There were extensive internal injuries. Are you sure I can’t tell him you called? He’s been asking every day.”

  “No, please don’t. Did you take me off of his chart as his next of kin?”

  She checked. “I see the request but it doesn’t appear that your name has been removed. I can take care of that if you like.” She sounded unsure, as though she was trying to give me a second chance to think it over again.

  “Please, remove it. I’m not his next of kin. We aren’t related and I’m not his girlfriend.” I thanked her, and hung up.

  “What are you going to do about him? If you won’t let me take a baseball bat to him, then you have to do something.” Herne didn’t sound pleased.

  “Marilee is working on a spell to counter his obsession with me. That should take care of any remaining problems.”

  Herne turned onto a back road, and before long we pulled into the driveway of a small house in Woodinville. He cut the ignition, and unfastened his seat belt.

  “We’re here. Let’s go talk to Hassa.”

  As we headed toward the house, I hoped that Hassa could provide us with something that would lead us to the murderer.

  Chapter 16

  THE FIRST THING I thought when Hassa opened the door was that he could have been Ulstair’s twin. He was tall, with red hair and a runner’s body. He glanced at me, frowning for a moment, but said nothing as he let us in.

  His house was small but tidy, with everything in its place with neat precision. Even the magazines on the coffee table were stacked with the edges matching. He motioned for us to take a seat on the sofa.

  “If you’ll excuse me, I was making tea. Would you care to join me?” His voice was higher than I would expect, but even timbered.

  “Yes, please,” Herne said, and I indicated the same with a nod.

  Hassa vanished through the archway and we heard the clinking of china. I glanced around the room. It was small, but the built-ins made it easier to store all of his books. Other than the archway leading into the kitchen, there were two doors. From the size of the house, I assumed they led to a bedroom and bath. Hassa returned, carrying a tray with a teapot, three china cups and saucers, a sugar dish and creamer, and a plate of what looked like whole-grain cookies.

  “I wasn’t sure if you took lemon, but I’m out, so I apologize if you do.” He seemed like a serious young man, but given the fact that he’d almost been abducted, I wasn’t surprised. An attempted kidnapping had a way of sobering the mood.

  “Did the police tell you that we would be investigating?”

  He nodded. “Officer Erica said you would probably be by. She said you are investigating a case where several men have been abducted?”

  Herne nodded. “Yes. Actually, several men had been murdered after they were abducted, so consider yourself fortunate. It’s important that we gather as much information as we can.”

  “Why didn’t the cops talk to me more then?”

  “The men who were murdered are on Saílle’s…list, if you get my meaning.”

  I was glad Herne answered, because I wasn’t sure how to be diplomatic about it. But Hassa seemed to understand.

  “I hear you loud and clear. So while the cops took my complaint seriously, they aren’t working the other aspects of this case given the nature of the victims?” He rolled his eyes. “I’m not going to comment on that, given you never know who’s listening, but I’m glad somebody’s on the case.”

  “Why don’t we get down to facts? You were running in UnderLake Park, correct?”

  Hassa nodded. “Yes, I was headed down the Beach Trail when I tripped over a wire. I didn’t see it, obviously. The moment I fell, a figure rushed out of the bushes. It was a man, and he seemed pretty strong, but he wasn’t as quick as I am. He tried to attack me with
a stun gun, but I managed to roll out of the way. I scrambled up, and he tried again. I don’t think he expected that I was carrying pepper spray, but I always do because I’ve been attacked by stray dogs on occasion. I keep it clipped to my belt when I run. I sprayed him in the eyes. He screamed, and I managed to dodge around him and get away. He tried to come after me, but that pepper spray is really concentrated. I managed to get back to my car and drive off.”

  Herne and I glanced at each other. Hassa had saved his life thanks to his foresight.

  “Be grateful you had that spray,” Herne said. “Can you tell us anything about your attacker? Anything at all that you noticed about him. You said he was big and burly. Can you estimate how tall he was? How much he weighed?”

  Hassa took a sip of his tea.

  “I got a good look at him, actually. He was about five-ten, and I’d say he weighed around 175 pounds. He had a lot of muscle—I could tell by the way he moved. I can also tell you that he’s Dark Fae. He had some strange tattoo work on his face, and from what I could tell, also his hands.”

  “This is very helpful. Do you by chance remember what the tattoos were of?” I asked.

  He nodded. “Not the ones on his hands, but he had a crow tattooed on his right temple, curving around his eyebrow, and he had some strange markings on the left side. I remember thinking they looked like a series of triangles. His hair was light brown, down to the nape of his neck. He was wearing a black sweatshirt and a pair of torn jeans. I saw the tattoos on his knuckles when he tried to stun me, but I can’t tell you what they were.” He paused, then added, “Oh, the tattoo of the crow was black, and the arrow-like tattoos were red. The tattoos on his knuckles were black and red.”

  Herne paled. I could have sworn a light went off in his head. He leaned forward.

  “You said a series of red arrows? Or red triangles? And that the man had a crow tattooed around his temple?”

  “It could have been a raven. It’s hard to tell.”

  Herne sat back, and I glanced at him. He closed his eyes, shaking his head.

  “You recognize something?” I asked.

  He nodded. “We’ll talk about it later.” He glanced at the man. “Is there anything else you can tell us? You said he used a tripwire to catch you?”

  Hassa nodded. “Is that important?”

  “It could be. Tell me, do you go running on that trail on a regular basis? Would someone recognize you if they watched the trail every morning?”

  “Actually, yes. I go running there four times a week. I always run on the same days because it correlates with my work schedule. You mean that he’s been watching me?” Hassa blanched. “Should I worry that he’s going to come to my house to finish the job?”

  Herne chewed on his lip for a moment. “I’d like to say no, since all the abductions happened in UnderLake Park, but I’d be careful for a while. Vary your routine. Try not to go out alone, and don’t go running for a while. Lock your doors and windows. I really doubt that he’ll come after you. That’s not his MO. But for the sake of caution, take some extra care.” He glanced around the room. “Do you live here alone?”

  Hassa nodded. “Yes, just me.”

  “You might go to one of the local magic shops and ask for a protection spell. As I said, it isn’t this man’s MO to hunt his victims outside of the park as far as we know. But we aren’t dealing with someone who’s sane. His pattern could change at any time. Chances are he has no clue what your name is or where you live, but err on the side of caution.”

  “Can you tell me why I was targeted? Is it personal?” Hassa paused, then added, “It couldn’t be, could it? Not if he confines his hunting to the park.”

  “No, it’s not personal. You fit the physical type that he’s looking for. We’re not sure why he’s targeting men who look like you, but you’ve given us a lot to go on. The fact that you remember what his tattoos look like helps a great deal. Is there anything else? Any nuance that you noticed? Every single thing you can tell us will help us find him faster. Did he say anything? Even under his breath?”

  Hassa took a moment to think. Then, he straightened. “There was one thing. He said something when he jumped out at me. I thought it was garbled, but maybe it was a name. He yelled out ‘garrison.’ That’s all I can remember him saying. He cursed when I got away and when I sprayed him with the pepper spray he yelled, but it was more grunts and swearwords. That’s everything.”

  I thought of a question. “Can you tell us where the tripwire was? You said it was on the Beach Trail, but do you remember the spot?”

  Hassa nodded. “Yes, actually. It was by the side of a ravine that slopes up. I know that sounds vague, but it looked like there had been activity there recently. A lot of the undergrowth had been brushed aside, and looked like it had been bent and folded.” He then went on to describe what sounded a lot like the place to me where we had gone off the path to find the bodies.

  Herne and I thanked him for his time, and Herne gave him his card.

  “If you think of anything else, or if you need to call on us for any reason, here’s my number. My forwarding number is on there as well. As I said, I don’t think you’ll have any more trouble from him again as long as you stay away from the park. We’ll let you will know when we find him. Hopefully, we will find him.” And with that, we headed out.

  Once we were in the car, I turned to Herne. “All right, what is it? You recognized something when he was talking about the tattoos. What is it?”

  “We have a serious problem on our hands, Ember. When we get back to the office, I’ll drop you off and then I’ve got to go see my father. I’ll give you a rundown that you can tell the others. There’s not much more we can do today, but tomorrow I want you to be prepared to go meet one of the gods.” He began to fill me in, and my heart sank.

  HERNE DROPPED ME off, and immediately headed out again. I hustled myself into the elevator, and the minute the doors opened into the waiting room, I motioned to Angel.

  “Into the break room. I’m going to grab Talia and Viktor.”

  Angel blinked, but jumped up. I headed back to Talia’s office, poking my head through the door. Viktor was there, and they were going over something that she was showing him on the computer screen.

  “Break room, now.” As I poured myself some coffee, Angel and the others trickled in. I motioned for them to sit down. Carrying my coffee to the table, I settled in.

  “Herne will be back in a while. For one thing, we have to prepare for Charlie’s party. But we found out something important from Hassa. This could be the break we need in the case.”

  “That would be helpful, given we have nothing else to go on.” Talia shook her head. “I still can’t believe the cops. Four dead men, and they aren’t doing anything. But then again, the powers behind the local police aren’t always out for justice.”

  “True that,” I said. “All right, here’s the thing. Hassa remembered what the man looked like. According to Herne, his would-be abductor has the markings of a priest of the Morrígan.” I told them everything Hassa had said, adding, “Herne recognized the description of the tattoos right away. He dropped me off, and he’s on his way to talk to Cernunnos. He wants to set up an appointment with the Morrígan tomorrow. She’ll know all of her priests. We also know that the man is Dark Fae, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to pinpoint suspects.”

  “Crap. The Morrígan? A priest of the Morrígan is going to be one hell of an opponent. I wonder if she knows about this? The Morrígan doesn’t require sacrifices. Not in that sense.” Viktor scratched his chin. “Did Herne say anything else?”

  “Yeah, he said to get things ready for Charlie’s party. Which means basically somebody has to go to the store and bring back a bunch of goodies.” I glanced at the clock. It was going on four-thirty. Charlie would be arriving in about three hours. “Viktor, run out and pick up a bunch of snacks, please. Don’t forget bottled blood. Talia, if you could dig up some information
on the Morrígan, and on her priests? And Angel, is there anything else we need to deal with?”

  “I’ve got three messages from potential clients. I’m wondering when I should schedule them for meetings with Herne. Two of them seemed fairly simple and straightforward, but one might be somewhat convoluted.”

  “Why don’t you schedule them to come in on Thursday and Friday? That will give us a couple days to deal with this matter, and Herne can reschedule if need be.”

  She nodded. “Sounds good.”

  And with that, we headed back to our respective desks. Viktor signed out money from petty cash, and took off for the store. While Talia was researching the priests of the Morrígan and Angel returned calls, I sat at my desk, putting more paperwork to bed.

  BY THE TIME Herne returned, Viktor was back. He had picked up a fruit tray, a vegetable tray, a cheesecake, some chips and dip, some premade sandwiches, and a six-pack of bottled blood. Angel helped him set up in the break room, while Talia and I followed Herne back into his office.

  “The Morrígan will meet with us tomorrow, Ember, you’ll go with me. It’s vital that you be on your best behavior,” he said, looking straight at me. “The Morrígan doesn’t mess around, and she doesn’t have the best sense of humor. Get it?”

  “Got it,” I said, suppressing a smile. I knew when to mind my manners, but sometimes people had to remind me. “Is she coming here?”

  “No, but neither are we going into Annwn. She’ll meet us at my place.” He paused, glancing at Talia. “Did you find out anything about the priests of the Morrígan?”

  She nodded. “They have a code of honor they’re supposed to live by. They’re an intense group and they deal, of course, with death. But they don’t mete it out. As you know, crows are scavengers. Morrígan picks up the dead from the battlefield and carries them off. So she’s not the one who hands it out, and her priests aren’t required to make sacrifices or anything of that sort. If it is a priest of the Morrígan committing these murders, then he’s really fucking up.”