Taste

by Claire Farrell

  He carried me up to bed, and my hope sparked again.

  ***

  I waited until he had fallen asleep to put away the weapons, counting like a prayer.

  He didn’t mention it the next morning, but he spent the day outside with Emmett and Dita, and every now and then, I caught him staring into the distance. Each and every time, my stomach dropped.

  My imagination went into overdrive, so I waited until Carl came over before I went to see Eddie as I had planned.

  “Keep an eye on him, okay?” I warned Carl at the door.

  “What’s going on?” He looked better lately, as if his body had finally begun to heal. Sometimes the scar tissue never healed.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. He’s going stir crazy, probably. Being here, not being out there.”

  Carl’s expression turned stern. “You mean he’s getting agitated because he can’t hurt something. Ava, I don’t like this.”

  “What’s not to like? We all go through things, Carl, and we’re all still here because we have each other to help us through the bad days.”

  “That’s not what I’m saying. I’m worried he’ll take it out on the wrong person. Maybe he needs to work off some steam.” He gave me a pointed look. “Before it’s too late.”

  I frowned. “What? Let him go back to what he’s been doing since Emmett was taken from him? Making enemies everywhere? He has his son to think about now.”

  “You’re making enemies.”

  I grinned. “But I’m making bigger allies.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we’ll see where that gets you. Eddie’s getting antsy, speaking of allies and enemies.”

  “Yeah, well, I get held up here sometimes. I haven’t been to the sanctuary all week either. Anything strange at the bookshop?”

  He shook his head and moved into the living room to sit down. “Marina’s been in and out. Doing something witchy, I suppose. Sometimes I think I can smell it. Ever since…” He shook his head. “I’m pretty sure she’s using magic at his place.”

  “Black magic.” I shivered. “Gross.”

  He raised a brow. “Because Helena told you so?”

  “Don’t talk about her like that. She helped me. She helped Emmett in Hell. It’s not her fault that her children and husband were stolen from her. I don’t blame her for anything she did.”

  “She tried to use you. You keep forgetting that bit.”

  “Everyone tries to use me. It’s figuring out what they want me for that’s the problem.”

  “You have issues,” he said. “You can’t live life expecting people to use you.”

  I stared at him blankly, and he threw his hands up in the air. Carl was like a brother to me, but he aggravated the crap out of me half the time.

  He sighed. “We seriously need to deal with this self-esteem thing. Stop trusting people who admit to using you.”

  I had a feeling we weren’t talking about Helena anymore. “Well, whatever,” I said. “I believe her about Marina. There’s something way wrong there.”

  “You think Helena never used black magic?”

  “She said she was Wiccan. That’s not black magic.”

  “She might have been Wiccan in theory, but she stole years. That’s time, Ava. Life. Can’t do shit like that without using black magic.”

  I made a face. “Stop trying to taint my memories, please.”

  He grinned, a flashback to the old Carl. He was the most resilient of all of us. No matter what he went through, there was a light-heartedness inside him that couldn’t be snuffed out. “Go see Eddie. Calm him down. He’s as paranoid as you.”

  “Funny. You gonna work with Emmett?”

  “Yeah, I’ve been thinking of new stuff to try. I’m actually enjoying it. Maybe I should have been a teacher.”

  “Okay, sir. Try to make sure Emmett learns something other than filthy limericks today, yeah?”

  His neck and ears turned red. “One mistake and it’s forever held against me.”

  I reached up to ruffle his hair. “Get a haircut, old man.”

  “Bitch,” he muttered, and I blew a kiss at him as I walked away.

  On the way to Eddie’s bookshop, I remained hyperaware. It had begun for real when Emmett arrived—that tense, permanently on edge feeling—and it hadn’t shown any signs of dissipating. I constantly watched out for ways the boy could harm himself, even ridiculously impossible ones.

  I held my breath as I entered the bookshop, preparing to be assaulted by the typical salt and smoke scents of magic. The Keeper of Gods watched as I approached the counter, his keen blue eyes taking in my mood.

  “Is something wrong?” he asked, sounding as if he already knew, which wouldn’t have surprised me.

  “Nothing new,” I replied, picking up an old book and flipping through it. I made a face at a particularly nasty-looking demon and dropped the book in a hurry. “Light reading?”

  He shrugged. “Bedtime stories help me sleep. Where have you been?”

  “You know, watching over the boys and all that. Any news?”

  “Yes, actually. You need to keep in touch more regularly. It wouldn’t do for you to get cold feet now.”

  “From my own idea? No chance.” A shiver ran down my spine nonetheless. Making a deal with Eddie Brogan to take down the Council had been brave, but not necessarily smart. “So what’s the news?”

  He smiled, brimming with excitement. Unusual for Eddie. “Turns out I’m not the only one irritated by the Council. You can add consultant number two to the list.”

  “Who? Reuben?” The creepy old vampire knew Eddie well, but I hadn’t assumed they were friendly.

  “Reuben’s gone. I doubt he’ll be back,” he said dismissively. “Not until there’s a clear victor either way.”

  “Between who?The Council and us, or the Council and the BVA?”

  “The vampires. I would bet he’s been called into service by Winston. The British vampires need all of the ancients they can get their hands on.”

  “Do or die,” I said. “Daimhín reckons she needs to keep out of the way, too.”

  “She hasn’t lived this long by making foolish decisions. But no, I’m talking about Elathan. He’s on board with a fresh start. Bad blood between him and Fionnuala, you understand.”

  “Elathan? The demon who was kicked out of Hell?” The one Esther always called hot.

  He rubbed his nose. “Technically, yes. He’s extremely old, one of the last of his kind actually. He’s been displaced a number of times by those who aren’t comfortable with his power. He’s a little bitter, and we can use that.”

  “I’m not comfortable with his power either. What is it he can do?”

  Eddie’s smirk made me squirm. “He’s a little too persuasive. Technically, he’s a consultant only so they could keep an eye on him. He isn’t permitted to use his techniques. He’s strong-willed, a decent warrior, and he has connections. He has nothing to lose and a lot to gain. Or regain, as the case may be.”

  My heart thudded. “He wants to go back to Hell?”

  “No, no. The fae sent him there long ago. He was one of the original fae. A different bloodline. When Fionnuala’s ancestors invaded, he was sent to Hell because they didn’t know what else to do with him. Of course, he made enemies in Hell, too, and eventually, he was spit back out. The Council had no choice but to deal with him. That was a long time ago, and Elathan’s an expert at keeping under the radar. If I know the Council, they’ve already forgotten what he can do. Which works for me.”

  “What is it you want?” I blurted. “What do you get out of this?”

  “Power. Power is all I need to get what I want. I’m a man of simple tastes, Ava. I don’t need a lot to survive.”

  I thought of his sparse bedroom, how the only decoration was a painting of a woman. There was nothing else to mark it as his, aside from the living book of magic hidden in his drawer. I believed he didn’t want a lot, but the things he wanted weren’t necessarily safe for the rest o
f us.

  “You’re not planning on enslaving the world or anything, right?”

  He laughed, his eyes gleaming. “I don’t need to do that. I just need a little bit of power.”

  A shiver ran through me as a cold breeze blew against the back of my neck: Maeve, one of the spirits he had trapped to use for his own needs.

  Eddie straightened, looking annoyed all of a sudden. “If you don’t have any news, then you should get home. Wouldn’t want to leave your boys unprotected.”

  I wasn’t about to volunteer the fact that they weren’t there. Eddie had a knack of making the most innocent sentence sound like a threat.

  ***

  That night, Emmett crept into my room in the middle of the night and shook me awake.

  I pressed my hand against his forehead. “You okay?”

  He nodded, but there was pain in his eyes.

  “Can’t sleep?”

  He shook his head.

  “Want a hot chocolate?”

  “Yes, please.”

  We managed to sneak downstairs without waking Peter. I made us some hot chocolate and waited for him to talk.

  “The woman came to see me,” he said at last, licking chocolate from his lower lip. “Maeve.”

  “Oh.” I sat up straight. “Is she okay?”

  He shook his head again. “I think she’s sad. Or maybe angry. She keeps saying it’s dangerous to help him. That it’s getting closer to the end. She scared me.”

  I wrapped him in a hug. “She didn’t mean to scare you. She’s just worried about me.”

  “I’m worried, too. Don’t do dangerous things, Ava. Stay home with me. We’ll be okay. We’ll forget about everything else.”

  “Emmett, I need to keep you safe.”

  His forehead creased into a frown. “But who will keep you safe?”

  “I can take care of myself, but there are people who will help me. Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing, Emmett. I have a plan. There isn’t anything that I can’t get myself back out of. And when I’m done, we’ll have a normal life.”

  I wanted him to believe it so badly. I wanted to believe it.

  I hoped I could pull it off before Eddie finally played his hand.

  Chapter Three

  Emmett moped around for a couple of days, forlorn for reasons he couldn’t quite explain. To cheer him up, Peter decided to take him to the pictures for the first time.

  “It’s huge,” Peter told him. “You’ll love it.”

  “Can you come?” Emmett asked me hopefully.

  “Not today. I need to visit the sanctuary. Bring them some of the treats that you haven’t stolen yet.”

  He grinned. “I’m a kid. I’m supposed to eat junk. So Dita said.”

  “I’ll be having words with Mouthy Dita. Don’t you worry.”

  He giggled. “She also said you’re not scary at all.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “I hope you told her she’s wrong.”

  “Nah. I agreed with her.” He ran out of my reach, still giggling.

  “Peter, your son’s bothering me,” I said in a singsong voice.

  “God, would you two ever give it a rest,” Peter said, but he was smiling.

  “I should head on anyway,” I said, but I pulled Peter aside before I left. “I probably should have mentioned it before, but when I saw Gabe last, he said there have been fights amongst the children. Bad ones.”

  “Kids fight.”

  “No,” I said. “Not like normal kids. Like… warriors. Animals even. Pick an adjective, but it’s definitely not going to be normal or childish.”

  “You’re worrying too much again.”

  “And you’re not worrying enough.”

  We glared at each other for a few seconds.

  He picked me up then, surprising me. “Stop nagging,” he muttered as he nuzzled my neck.

  “Let me down, you big bully.” But I didn’t struggle. I ran my hands along his biceps, wishing we could have one uninterrupted night.

  As if he were reading my mind, he said, “We should get Carl to mind him for a night. We could go somewhere, do something. And I don’t mean kill things.”

  I burst out laughing. “You’re a strange man, Brannigan.”

  He let me down with a growl. “You know you love it.”

  Our eyes locked, and he shifted uncomfortably. “You should probably get going then.”

  I sidestepped out of his way. “I’ll just say bye to Emmett.”

  Emmett was busy packing a bag with little things I had bought to cheer up the inmates in the sanctuary: magazines, books, chocolate, nail polish, whatever they asked for or I could think of to brighten their day a little. They were trapped, and although the place was safe, it was probably dull.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking the bag from Emmett.

  “S’okay. Think I could go with you some time?”

  I thought about it. “Maybe, if your dad said it was okay. You might not want to, though. Kinda close to… you know.”

  “Yeah, I know. I was just curious.”

  “Have fun today,” I said.

  “Be careful, Ava,” he said, sounding a little like me.

  I grinned. “I’m always the careful one around here. Take care of your dad for me. Make sure he doesn’t get himself into any trouble.”

  Emmett giggled, and my insides warmed at the sound, which never got old. Peter surprised me at the door with a long kiss.

  “What’s that about?” I asked when he finally let me go, not that I was complaining.

  He shrugged. “Nothing.”

  We gazed at each other again. “Okay then,” I said, bemused.

  “Ava,” he called as I walked down the street. I glanced back, shielding my eyes from the sun.

  “Be careful,” he said. There was something in his voice that I hadn’t heard before.

  “I will.” I couldn’t stop smiling as I walked away.

  I went shopping to pick up some more things for the gang. Esther was having a hard time between struggling to fit in, controlling the instinct to dominate, and still feeling upset over the reasons she had to go into hiding. Her brother’s betrayal and the violent murder of the mother of one of the children she’d tried to rescue had cut her deeply.

  Worse, Gabe had been clear that the Council wanted Esther in custody. Bullshit charges, probably, but she wasn’t safe outside.

  I wanted to help Esther feel better, and I knew I hadn’t been visiting the sanctuary as often as I could have. I kept getting distracted by Peter and Emmett, and being with those in hiding was a little depressing.

  My phone rang, and when I saw it was Shay, the nosy policeman, I didn’t know whether to be happy or annoyed. “You rang?”

  “Ava,” he said in his lovely lilting voice, but it sounded tighter, harder than normal.

  “You okay?”

  “You ready to tell me the truth yet?”

  “Truth about what?” I held my breath.

  He groaned. “Not you as well. I’ve been looking into a lot of things. There’s some freaky stuff going on in this city. More than I expected.”

  Walking along Henry Street, one of the major shopping areas in Dublin’s city centre, I reached out with my other sense, the one that let me see energy. Lots of non-humans around.

  “You got that right,” I said.

  “This isn’t funny.” He sounded mad.

  “Of course not. Sorry. So is this a specific lecture, or just whatever pops into your head as you go?”

  He laughed, and the tension fled from his voice. “I don’t mean to lecture. But it’s frustrating when I point out things that don’t make any obvious sense, and everyone around me refuses to acknowledge it. Especially after a little lady like you comes along and fills my head with questions.”

  “Never been accused of being a lady before. Are you okay?”

  He sighed. “I’m in some trouble with the seniors. Orders from above. Possible suspension.”

  “For asking questions?”

>   “For refusing to accept no for an answer. I need to know what’s going on, Ava.”

  “You really don’t,” I said softly. “But maybe keep yourself out of trouble. Dangerous people pull the strings around here.”

  “Ava—”

  “I have to go. I’m sorry, Shay.” I hung up before he could protest.

  I felt terrible for him. I had dragged him into this, revealed half-truths, and refused to let him know anything else. Now he was in trouble for it. I had no idea how to make his problems go away without dirtying his life with the kind of drama I constantly had in my own. I didn’t want another Carl on my hands.

  But even Shay’s phone call couldn’t disturb the contentment I felt. Peter would be okay. That was important, like a sign from the universe telling me that anything was possible, that we could all find our own little pieces of normality and happiness.

  I was still in a good mood by the time I got close to Folsom’s place. I was swinging my shopping bags and looking forward to seeing Esther’s face when she saw some of the treats I had brought specifically for her.

  Then the smell hit me, and I wanted to throw up. I stopped walking, my brain catching up to my nose as I realised the truth.

  Death.

  My stomach in my mouth, I ran toward Folsom’s home. A million fears ran through my head.

  There he was. My feet froze to the spot as I covered my mouth in horror. I was too late. Approaching the gate slowly, I gazed up at the small figure strung up against the bars, his body hideously twisted and broken.

  Folsom.Dead. Covered in dried blood.

  I retched, unable to stop myself. The goblin had been a good person, risking himself to protect those who needed help, and his life had been ripped away.

  I pulled out my phone and rang Gabe.

  “Who did it?” I practically screamed at him.

  “What?” He sounded completely confused, and I felt a faint sense of relief.

  “Folsom! Who did it?”

  “The goblin you’ve been visiting? What about him? Ava, what’s happened?”