I was so disappointed. She had just got here, and I’d missed her so much. But, the signs of being overworked and overtired showed on her face. “Are you sure?” I asked and gave her a hug. “I miss you so much Aunt Tess.”
“How many times do I have to tell you!” she shrieked jokingly. “Aunts are old, I’m not old!”
“Says the girl who is leaving the party before nine,” I kidded.
Tess smiled and hugged me once more before heading out. I hadn’t realized just how much I really did miss her until tonight. I’ve been so wrapped up in my new found, and bizarre, life here in the city, that I let Tess and my home in the country slip to the back of my mind. Now, considering everything that is going on, I’d give anything for things to be as simple as they were then.
Chapter Twenty Seven-Consequences
A short while later, the party was still rocking, some people were playing games in the living room, others gathered on the balcony.
"Hey," Jules said. "All of the humans are gone for the night and Will's passed out in my room. We're going to drop our glamour’s and break out some real wine. Want some?"
"Oh, that would be perfect right about now," I answered with a relieved sigh, my mouth already watering at the thought of summer wine. "Hey, what about Jack and Celadine, is everyone okay with them?"
"Oh yeah, totally, I explained the whole situation, everyone's cool. Moya said she was fascinated the moment they showed up."
"Great! I'm going to let Lattie out of my room then. She's probably bouncing off of the walls.”
Lattie was so excited. She flew around the apartment, happy to be free and included in the gathering. I know she could glamour herself, but I don't think that my human friends would really understand a pet bird that could party.
Unable to contain myself after the wine warmed my veins; I danced around the kitchen, Jack and Celadine watching with amusement. I stopped for a moment to sip some more wine when I noticed the bathroom door open. Tess!
Panicked, I glanced around at the gathered fey, shimmering Maidens with their candy colour hair, the blue sprite flying about with a cookie in her mouth, and...Julie! How would I ever explain all of this to Tess?
I slammed my glass down and ran over to her, but it was too late. She saw everyone.
"Avery, what’s going on?" she nervously asked, not able to take her eyes off of the strange company I kept.
"Tess, I know this seems crazy. Just sit down, I’ll explain everything."
She continued to stare at the group of magical creatures in disbelief. But when she caught sight of Moya, her eyes all but popped out of her skull. "No, no. I need to leave. This is crazy," she claimed, shaking her head and made her way to the door as fast as she could.
I desperately ran after her. "Tess, please. It's okay, don't be freaked out. These are my friends."
She looked at me, her lips trembling and her eyes about to overflow with tears. She then glanced behind me at Moya and the others. "I have to go, I can't be here with...with this. This is crazy." And she left.
I stood there in the porch, not able to move. I wanted to throw up. Tess knows about my secret world. I had no idea how I’d ever tell her, but I always thought that she would be happy. Tess loved fairy tales so much, more than anyone in the world. Two arms wrapped themselves around my waist from behind and Jack kissed my neck.
"Don't worry Avery. She's just overwhelmed. You did the same, remember?" he assured me. "Just give her time. Call her tomorrow."
I just nodded slowly and faced him to bury my face in his iron chest where I often felt safe and, ironically, warm. But I quickly pulled away. There were others here, I was being rude.
"Sorry about that you guys. But I assure you, your secret is safe with her. She won't tell anyone, I promise.” I grabbed my glass of wine and chugged it back. This party was turning out to be very stressful for me.
"Avery?" inquired a soft voice from behind me. It was Moya. "Was that your Aunt Tess?"
"Yes, that was her," I replied. "I'm sorry for her reaction, she was just really shocked, as you could imagine."
"Yes, so it seems," she agreed thoughtfully. But there was something else in what she said, or how she said it. "Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that my sisters and I will be retiring for the night. Thank you for inviting us to your wonderful party. We had a lovely time."
"Oh, no problem, I loved having you." I hugged her good bye and waved to Aya and Brie. They didn't talk much but they seemed just as sweet as their sister.
After that, everyone else slowly finished their drinks and was on their way as well. Lattie had curled up in the big chair in the living room and Julie had joined Will in her room. Only two people remained.
Celadine looked to her brother like she was asking a question, which, now that I thought about it, she probably was. Then she looked at me a grinned.
"Well darling, I’m off for the night. I have lots of work to do tomorrow. Thank you for a wonderful time." And she pecked me on the cheek.
"No problem, I’m just glad that I could manage to get you out of the gallery for a night.”
"Only for you," she kidded back. "Goodnight."
"Night Celadine, see you on Tuesday."
Once she left, I ran to Jacks arms where I had been aching to be all night. He embraced me tightly as he planted soft kisses on my lips.
"Would you like to spend the night here?" I asked. "Or can you?" What would happen if he woke up in my sun lit bedroom? I knew he and his sister couldn’t go out in the daytime, but I also knew that Celadine worked inside all day long so I don't think they slept in coffins or anything.
"Well, I would love to spend the night with you Miss Quinn," he answered a bit mockingly. "And yes, I can," he grinned his Jack grin and scooped me up in his arms to carry me to my room.
A couple hours later, I rested my head on his chest and he played mindlessly with my hair. "So, what do you do during the day?" I asked.
I could tell that he was grinning without even looking at him. "Well, I don't burst into flames or anything, if that's what you're thinking."
"No, well, I dunno what I thought actually," I admitted.
"I can’t go into the daylight because it makes me very, very weak. Imagine having every bit of energy drained from your body all at once. So much so, that you could barely lift your leg to take a step. That's a vampire in the sunlight," he explained.
"Why though? It's so strange," I asked.
"I have no idea. We are creatures of the night; our senses are extremely heightened after dark, so I guess they are really weakened during the day."
"I suppose. So it's okay for you to wake up here then? Because I get the southern exposure, so it's pretty sunny in here," I rambled.
"Fine by me, just don't be surprised to see that I am not a morning person," he joked and snuggled me closer to his body.
"Okay," I said through a big yawn. I was so tired. This party took a lot out of me. The whole Max thing and Aunt Tess, I didn't even want to think about it. But there was one thing I had to find out right now.
"Jack, how do you know Max?"
"What? I have never met her before in my life."
"Are you sure? Why did it seem like you guys hated each other so much?"
"I just knew her from things that you told me before. I assumed that she was being herself and making things difficult for you, so I came over to let her know that she was not welcome here if she couldn't...control herself." He seemed to be telling the truth. What else could I say?
"Okay then. I guess it was just weird, that's all," I said. "I'll have to talk to her on Monday. She was convinced that you were a bad guy for me, maybe she was just jealous or something."
"Well, I am quite a catch. Just look at me," he kidded. I slapped his chest and moved myself up to meet his face and kiss him. I loved his soft pink lips. I love
d his hands in my hair. I loved his body in my bed. I loved him.
Chapter Twenty Eight-Max on a Milk Carton
Monday morning was here already. My weekend went by so fast, and I spent it dreading today. I had to go to school and face Max. I expected an angry phone call from her by now, but got nothing. She must have been super pissed at me.
I threw on a sweater and grabbed my purse as I made my way out to the kitchen where Julie and Lattie were already eating.
"Morning," greeted Julie. "Excited?" she added, sarcastically. I just shot her a please-don't-joke look. "Sorry!"
"No, it’s okay; I'm just being a baby."
"Do you think Max is still angry?" asked Lattie. She sat on an upside down mug and was nibbling on a pancake dripping with syrup.
"I hope not. But its Max, she'll probably milk it for a while." She looked confused by that comment, but I was too tired to explain it to her. "You ready Jules? I'm heading out now."
"Yep, I'm just gonna clean up and grab my bag. Meet you downstairs?"
"Sure." I hopped down off of my stool and patted Lattie on the head. "Bye sweetie. I'll be home right after school."
I approached the large double doors to the art studio, paused and took a deep breath before I entered. My eyes immediately went to Max's seat. I expected to see her sitting there all stiff and proper with her nose in the air but, instead, I found an empty stool. I searched the room to see if maybe she hadn't taken her seat yet, but she was nowhere to be found.
I slowly walked towards my work station, knowing I should be relieved that she wasn't here but couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. Max never missed class. She was Hitler when it came to attendance and all that.
My stomach was tightening and my heart was pounding as I sat down and began to work on my project. By the time lunch rolled around, I still hadn't calmed down. It felt like I was running on way too much coffee or something. I mindlessly made my way to the cafe cart where I always met Julie and Will for lunch.
"Hey Avery," called Will. "Over here." He and Jules had grabbed a bench just across from the cart. I searched the yard nervously as I walked over and sat down.
"Whoa, are you okay? You're so pale!" Julie cried as she felt my forehead. "Avery?"
"Max isn't here today," I said quietly.
"So? Shouldn't that be a good thing?" she asked.
"Yes, it should. But it's not. I feel...I feel like...I dunno guys. Something is wrong. Have you heard anything?"
"No, I haven't. You?" she looked to Will. He shook his head.
"Like what?" he asked.
"I have no idea. What's wrong with me? Why do I feel so nervous?" I asked, mostly talking to myself.
"You're just getting yourself all worked up over Max. And now you have to wait another day to talk to her, it's just making you jittery," Julie reassured me. "Don't worry. Here." She handed me a coffee.
"Oh no, I don't think my stomach could handle coffee right now."
"Well, you're definitely not feeling well if you refuse coffee!" she joked. That lightened me up a bit. The three of us sat there for the rest of our lunch break and, by the time it was ready to go back to class, I felt a little better and slightly calmer. I was being so ridiculous about the whole Max thing. So what if she isn't here? People miss school all of the time.
I took my seat in class; Mr. Vanner was lecturing this afternoon, so I just sat quietly and took my notes. About ten minutes into class, all my calm feelings were swept away when a knock came at the door. Mr. Vanner went to answer it and stepped out for a moment to speak with whoever it was. A second later, he returned and looked directly at me.
"Avery?" he asked. I just looked at him in acknowledgement. "You're needed in the hallway."
"Okay, thank you," I said with a trembling reply. Everyone was staring at me as I nervously got up and made my way to the door. Nothing could have prepared me for who I found out there.
"Hello Avery. I'm Mrs. Carmichael," she greeted sternly and shook my hand. "I'm sorry to have bothered you during school hours, but I didn't know how else to contact you."
"Um, it's...it’s okay. What can I do for you?" I didn't blink; I just stared at the woman standing in front of me with her white fur coat and oversized designer handbag. Her hair was just as blonde as Max's and her blood red lipstick was vibrant against her pale complexion. She appeared to be utterly perfect, just like her daughter, but her eyes shown that she had been crying. I was right, something bad has happened.
"Well, I don't want this to become public knowledge. So what I am about to tell you needs to be kept to yourself. Can you do that?"
I swallowed hard. "Yes, I can do that." Even though I had no idea what I was agreeing to.
"Max did not come home on Friday night. The last place she went was your apartment."
My stomach clenched so tight, like someone had punched me. Where could she have gone after I kicked her out of my party? What could have happened to her? Then I slowly realized who could have happened to her. This would be the perfect way for Evaine to get to me.
"Yes, Max was at my party, but she left pretty early Mrs. Carmichael. Do you think that maybe she went to another friend’s house?" I asked, hopeful.
"No. Absolutely not! Max does not have friends. We don't think it is...responsible for her to...socialize right now, with school and everything being the main priority. She had to sneak out just to get to your little party," she claimed with a tone that practically spit on me with disgust. This woman is worse than Max. But, no wonder she is always so angry, with a mother like this and not being aloud to have friends? That must have been what Max meant when she said she could never be friends with me. I thought that she was just being a bitch.
"No, I’m sorry. After Max left, I didn't hear from her all weekend. But if I do see or hear from her, I will let you know right away," I promised.
"Very well then, thank you for your time. Here is my card if you do run into her." She handed me a red business card that read Vivian Carmichael. She was a lawyer.
"Thank you. I will," I assured her with a nervous smile. She just gave me a slight nod, an awkward look and then turned to leave.
I stood there for a moment, unable to move or blink. What was I going to do? Max was missing and I may very well be responsible. I needed help, badly. Not bothering to go back to class, I just ran out of the building and out to the parking lot. I knew who I needed to talk to. Not Julie, not Celadine or Jack, but Moya. I needed Moya. She knew everything that went on in Faerie and Iron World, she told me. So if an Iron Worlder went missing at the hands of fairies, she would surely know about it. I hopped on my bike and sped off towards the apartment.
"Lattie?" I cried, bursting through the door. "Lattie?"
She came fluttering out of my room in a panic. "What, what's wrong?"
"Lattie, I need a favour. Can you find Moya for me? I need her help."
"Yes, of course I can. Avery, what's wrong?"
"Max went missing after she left here on Friday night. I think Evaine may have her."
"Why would Evaine kidnap Max?"
"Because it's leverage, if she has Max then she knows I will go with her to see the Queen in order to get her back." I slumped down on the couch; I needed to calm myself down or something. I was no good like this. "Lattie, can you just go find her? Please?" I begged.
"Yes, yes of course. I'll go right now." She kissed my cheek and then flew out the window. I just hope that Moya could give me the help I needed.
I paced around the apartment, for what seemed like hours. When I glanced at the clock in the kitchen, only twenty minutes had gone by.
I made myself sit down on the couch; I was practically burning streaks in the rug from pacing so much, and put my head between my legs to try and breath. The big scary problem that I thought could be avoided just became very unavoidable.
I
had to find Evaine in order to get Max. And if I went looking for Evaine then I knew seeing the Queen was inevitable. I just hope that she isn't as scary as the bat-like fairy, she couldn't be. Nothing was as scary and creepy as Evaine. The image of her tar dripping eyes flashed through my head and I jumped off of the couch like a crazy person.
"Oh, I’m sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," spoke Moya, appearing out of thin air.
"Oh Moya, I'm so happy to see you!" I cried and ran to give her a hug. "Thanks for coming."
"Well, Lattie said that it was very urgent. That you were in trouble."
"Yes, sort of, well my friend is in trouble, and I have to help her," I began. "Hey, how did you get here so fast? And how did you get in?"
Moya smiled. "Magic my dear, magic." She waved her hand as she spoke, leaving colourful waves in the air as she did.
"You never cease to amaze me Moya."
"I could say the same for you, Avery. Now, how could I possibly help?"
"Well, you know pretty much anything that goes on in Iron World or Faerie, right?"
"Yes, anything that is worth knowing."
"Remember my friend who showed up at the party on Friday, the one who I got into an argument with?" She nodded. "Well, she went missing after I told her to leave. I think Evaine may have taken her."
Moya looked very surprised. "Why would Evaine take your human friend?" she asked.
"Well, I told you about most of it before. She has tried on two occasions to take me to the Queen, but failed. Now, I think she is going to extreme measures."
"Well, for her, that would not be extreme. Trust me, it can be worse," she assured me. I shivered at the thought.
"Moya have you heard anything at all about the kidnapping of and Iron World girl, anything that could help me?" I begged.
"Hmm," she thought out loud. "I haven’t heard of anything unusual in the Seelie court, but I can see what I can find out from the solitary fey. Give me an hour."
"Okay. But what can you find out in an hour?" I asked sceptically.
Iron & Wine (The Iron World Series) Page 19