Betrayal

by Jennifer Blackstream

  “Pleased to meet you,” Andy said, accepting the handshake.

  Devanos held out his hand for mine, and I let him kiss the back of my knuckles. “Pleased to meet you.”

  “He looks wrong,” Peasblossom hissed. “He’s sidhe, but he looks human old.”

  I’d been thinking the same thing. Clearly, Devanos was using glamour to make himself appear older. I wondered why, until I realized some of the tension had seeped out of Andy’s shoulders, and he’d angled his body to face Devanos despite the fact that we’d come to talk to Catherine.

  Peasblossom noticed too. “He’s trying to put Andy at ease by looking like what Andy expects a father with a twenty-year old daughter to look like,” she murmured.

  “Devanos. Is there something wrong with your watch?”

  Devanos turned his attention to Alicia, in the process managing to sweep his dark brown eyes over Scath, up my colorful leggings, and over the bulge in Andy’s suit jacket where his gun lay. His expression remained casual, but I’d be willing to bet he’d already ranked us in terms of how much of a threat we posed to his daughter.

  “Nothing’s wrong with my watch, Alicia. But I didn’t see any reason to rush Catherine when we were having such a good time. Maybe the fact that she bought you an expensive present will soothe your pain at the prolonged separation.”

  I raised my eyebrows. Andy’s gaze bounced back and forth from Devanos to Alicia.

  “Well, now that you’ve seen Catherine safely home, don’t let us keep you,” Alicia said tightly.

  “I think I’ll stay and hear what the FBI and Mother Renard have come to discuss with my daughter.” He looked at Andy. “If that’s all right?”

  Asking permission from human law enforcement. He was definitely angling for Andy’s favor.

  “You are not her guardian, I am,” Alicia said, taking a quick step closer to Catherine. “I will look after her interests.”

  Catherine pressed her lips together, a pained expression on her face as the two adults in her life faced off with her stuck squarely in the middle. She offered me a falsely bright smile and stepped around both of them to come closer to where I stood by the couch.

  “What can I do for you, Mother Renard?” she asked.

  “It would be better if we could speak in private,” I said, avoiding eye contact with Alicia and Devanos. “I—”

  “You will not speak with my niece outside my presence,” Alicia interrupted. “As her guardian it’s my job to see that she’s not manipulated or taken advantage of.”

  She looked at Devanos when she said the last part, and Catherine winced.

  “I’m afraid Aunt Alicia is quite firm once she’s set her mind to something,” she said apologetically. She gestured to the couch. “Please, sit.”

  “All right,” I agreed, taking a seat. “I’d like to talk to you about an heirloom. A knife.”

  Catherine brightened before I could continue. “You mean this?”

  She sat down beside me and lifted her skirt to reveal a blade strapped to her thigh. Alicia rolled her eyes, apparently less than impressed with her niece’s show of skin.

  “May I see it?” I asked.

  “Of course.” Catherine slipped the knife from the sheath and handed it to me, handle first.

  I hesitated, but only for a second. Jim had said the curse was triggered if someone stole the artifact, or tried to use it. Touching the blade shouldn’t be enough to put me at risk.

  The knife was formed from one piece of metal, the blade a long, thin isosceles shaped triangle with rounded bottom edges and a slim handle worn with use. Given its golden appearance, I guessed Catherine had seen through the glamour and dismissed it, as Morgan had.

  “What do you know about this knife?” I asked Catherine.

  “Not much,” she admitted. “It was gifted to my grandfather, and he passed it down to my mother who passed it on to me.”

  Her voice quieted when she mentioned her mother. I put a hand on hers, remembering that the file had listed her mother as deceased. “I’m sorry for your loss,” I said softly.

  Catherine brushed her free hand over her skirt, picking at an invisible piece of lint. “Thank you.”

  “So you don’t know anything about the knife’s history?” Andy asked.

  Catherine shook her head. “It’s a family heirloom, but beyond that, I don’t know.” She hesitated, then said, “There was something a little strange about it. My mother’s will specified that I was never to sell it, or give it away, or loan it out to anyone. If I did, then I would relinquish all rights to the knife, and it would be donated to the closest museum until I gave birth. Then the knife would pass to my child, and the same restrictions would apply.”

  “Do you know what it was used for?” I gestured at the blade. “It’s not the most common style.”

  Catherine looked at Devanos. “My father told me it’s a ceremonial piece. It would have belonged to a set, probably a bowl or plate and a cup or jug. He says a lot of Unseelie families used sets like these to welcome children into the family.”

  “Like an adoption?” Andy asked.

  “In some cases.” Devanos stepped closer to the couch where Catherine and I sat. “But they were also used in ceremonies celebrating the birth of a child.”

  Something about his voice made me think he was going to say more, but stopped himself. Alicia straightened her spine and strode past him, moving fast enough that she beat him to the couch. She folded herself onto the cushion beside Catherine with all the ceremony of a queen gracing a throne, her shoulders squared, and her bottom perched close to the edge so she could keep her corseted middle straight.

  “I know all about the begetting of power the artifacts were used for.” She gave Devanos a cool look. “If you’re holding back on my account, you needn’t worry.”

  “It would be foolish of me to assume there is any method of gaining power with which you are not intimately familiar,” Devanos agreed, his tone cutting.

  “I am only thinking of Catherine,” Alicia corrected him. “Court life can be dangerous. I want my Catherine to have every advantage available to her, every chance to not only survive, but succeed.” She put a hand on Catherine’s knee, and her face softened as she looked into her great-grandniece’s eyes. “I promised your mother I would take care of you. I would never abandon you. Just as I know you would never abandon me.”

  Catherine put her hand on top of Alicia’s, but despite the affection in the gesture, I didn’t miss the tension around her eyes from striving to remain pleasant and composed as the two “adults” in her life bickered and tried to make her take a side.

  “Of course if I go to court, I will take you with me,” Catherine assured her.

  Devanos’ hands twitched as if he’d fought not to make a fist.

  “So you have no idea where the other pieces are?” I asked.

  “No,” Devanos said without hesitation. A shadow danced between his brows, and he looked at me with sudden interest. “Do you?”

  “I’m afraid at least one of the pieces was recently stolen,” I said. “I don’t know where it is.”

  “But you’re trying to find it?” Devanos pressed.

  “I am.”

  I watched Alicia out of the corner of my eye. Morgan had said she’d been to the museum, had asked to borrow the chalice under the guise of celebrating Catherine’s heritage. But she showed no inclination to offer up that information. Interesting.

  “It would help my investigation if you could tell me anything you know about the other pieces,” I said, handing the knife back to Catherine.

  “I’ve no idea where to find the knife’s companion pieces,” Devanos said slowly. “But if you do locate them, I would be very interested in speaking to the owners.”

  I looked at Catherine, but she shook her head. “I don’t know anything about the other pieces. As far as I’m concerned, this—” she gestured with the knife—“is just a family heirloom.”

  “I do wish you’d keep i
t somewhere else,” Alicia said, disapproval in her voice. “It’s not proper for a young lady to flash so much leg, and you’re far too willing to show it off.” She brushed a lock of Catherine’s hair behind her ear. “You want to have a good reputation when you get to court. A husband worth having will have high standards.”

  “She is the one who will need to have high standards,” Devanos said firmly. “Her gifts will make her the envy of the court. She’ll have no shortage of choice in suitors.”

  “Gifts?” Andy repeated.

  Devanos beamed at his daughter with his head held high. “Catherine is a natural-born metal-worker, an artist whose gifts are only beginning to make their full potential known.” He looked at Andy and held out his hand, cupping his palm. “She can hold a piece of gold in her hand, warm it until it’s the texture of clay. Then she can work it without any need of a forge. She manipulates it, smooths it, and creates the most beautiful pieces.”

  “A gift that she inherited from my family,” Alicia broke in. “Her vulcanus roots put that heat in her blood. That is where her talent came from.”

  “It doesn’t matter where it came from, only that it is there.” Devanos’ eyes flashed with satisfaction. “One thing that has not changed about my people is their appreciation for fine art. Everyone will want a custom piece from my Catherine. And I was serious when I said she’d have her choice of suitors.”

  “And when do you plan on introducing her to this plethora of suitors?” Alicia demanded. “She is well past the age when she should have been presented.”

  Devanos didn’t flinch, but it was a close thing. Catherine was looking at him now, and there was no mistaking the hope in her eyes. Aunt Alicia wasn’t the only one waiting desperately for that invitation to court.

  “The time isn’t yet right,” Devanos said finally. “Catherine, you know I want you there with me. But there are considerations.”

  He didn’t look at Alicia, but I thought the older fey took the hint. She narrowed her eyes and took Catherine’s hand in hers, clasping them together with fingers firmly intertwined.

  “We look forward to the happy day you decide we’re worthy,” Alicia said pointedly.

  Devanos’ eyes darkened, but he forced a smile. “I enjoyed our time today, as always. If you’re free tomorrow, Catherine, perhaps we could have lunch?”

  Alicia sighed, and looked down at her lap. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at the blatant guilt trip, but kept my mouth shut when Catherine’s expression turned pained.

  “Perhaps Aunt Alicia could join us tomorrow?” she asked, a plea in her voice.

  Devanos didn’t bother faking a smile this time. “We’ll see. I’ll call you in the morning.” He turned to Andy and me. “May I escort you out?”

  I had the distinct impression he had more to say that he didn’t want to say in front of Alicia and Catherine.

  Andy nodded and removed one of his cards from his pocket. “Catherine, if anyone approaches you about your knife, I’d like you to call me. Could you do that?”

  Catherine’s eyes widened slightly, but she nodded. “Do you think someone’s going to try to steal it?”

  “It’s a possibility.” I paused, then asked, “Just for our records, could all of you tell me where you were the night of August 7th?”

  “I was at home,” Devanos said. “I have servants that can verify that, if you need to speak with them.”

  “Alicia was with me,” Catherine said quickly. She put her hand on her aunt’s shoulder and squeezed.

  Alicia’s expression never changed. “If that’s all?”

  It was not lost on me that none of them had a real alibi. Devanos’ servants would lie if he asked them to—and I was sure he could find a human servant capable of lying for him. And having another suspect as her alibi wouldn’t do Catherine or Alicia any favors.

  Andy asked for everyone’s contact information, and I put their numbers into my phone as well. Then Andy and I said our goodbyes and followed Devanos out of the house. As soon as the front door closed behind us, Devanos turned to me. Tension vibrated from his body, and when he spoke, the heat of his anger throbbed in every word.

  “You need to know that that…woman, would sell Catherine’s soul if it meant getting to court.” He glared back at the house. “She pretends to love her, but it’s a lie.”

  “You sound very certain of that,” Andy said carefully. “Is it possible the two of you are having trouble seeing eye to eye on what’s best for Catherine?”

  “She killed my wife,” Devanos ground out.

  Chapter 6

  Peasblossom sucked in a sharp breath. Murder accusations were not uncommon, especially among court fey, but it was very rare for one to be stated so bluntly.

  Andy stepped closer to Devanos. “Are you sure?”

  “I can’t prove it.” Devanos twisted the cuff link on his right jacket sleeve. “But I believe it with every ounce of my being. That woman has always wanted power, but she’s only a half-vulcanus. Genetics weren’t kind to her, and she can do little more than heat her palms.”

  “She’d be mocked at court,” Peasblossom agreed. “Even with a lot of money, she’d have trouble getting respect. Unless she’s particularly clever?”

  “She’s not,” Devanos said flatly. He glanced at the house, then gestured for us to follow him toward a sporty car that looked older than Andy. “In fact,” he said, lowering his voice further. “She’s squandered what money she has been able to save over the years, lost large chunks on bad investments. She lives off Catherine now.”

  “Catherine has money?” I asked.

  Devanos looked at me as if I’d insulted him. “I provide for her, of course, with a generous allowance. I try to keep that money from Alicia, but she’s found another way.”

  His eyes burned with a sudden surge in anger that sent Peasblossom scuttling back under my hair. “Alicia has turned my daughter into a criminal. She’s twisted her gifts, made them into something ugly.”

  Andy’s face went blank, all his emotion carefully tucked behind his FBI mask. “What does she do?”

  “She’s a forger.” Devanos ground his teeth on the last word as though he could chew it up and spit it out. “That woman destroys everything she touches. There’s nothing she won’t do to get ahead. I should have seen it earlier, I should have been able to stop her.” He closed his eyes, shaking his head as if the past were parading itself past his eyelids, taunting him with missed opportunities. “Killing my wife was her ticket into court. She knew that if I took Catherine to court with me, tradition would dictate I must allow her guardian to remain with her as well.”

  “You’re her father. Aren’t you her guardian?” Andy asked.

  “Not formally. Catherine’s mother and I wanted to control her entrance to court life. When Alicia said court life is dangerous, she wasn’t wrong. There was a chance that even with my genetic contribution, Catherine would not inherit enough power to give her a stable position at court. Neither her mother nor I wanted to risk the possibility she would be taken advantage of.”

  “You’re not on her birth certificate,” I guessed.

  “No, I am not. It was the only way to protect her. I did not realize that Ameline—my wife—put her sister in her will as Catherine’s new legal guardian if anything should happen to her. I have no doubt that was all Alicia’s idea. And that wretched woman waited to murder my Ameline until after she’d bonded with Catherine. She made certain her hold on my daughter was strong, and then she…”

  He stopped and shook his head. “I will bring my daughter to court. But I will not let that murderess come with her.”

  “If you could get your hands on the rest of the set, would you use them on Catherine?” Andy asked.

  Devanos considered that. “She isn’t lacking in power. I can’t imagine the benefit of having the complete set at my disposal would be worth the effort it would take to find the other pieces. Especially if one of them was already stolen.” He looked at me. “But I wo
uldn’t put it past Alicia. When I said I would appreciate it if you could connect me to the owners, should you find the missing pieces, it was to make sure she never gets her hands on them.”

  “It might not be so bad,” Andy said in a low voice. “The artifacts are cursed. If she does use them, she’ll pay the price.”

  There was little doubt in my mind Flint would not approve of Andy’s warning. Telling Devanos—a possible suspect—that the items were cursed would definitely count as discouraging the thief. But the leannan sidhe had failed to forbid it. He couldn’t order Andy around, but he could have offered some threat to me if Andy violated his wishes. He hadn’t. Which, now that I thought about it, was very strange. Perhaps he’d been too distracted by Andy’s loss of temper?

  Devanos frowned. “Cursed? In what way?”

  “The items each carry a curse, in addition to a larger curse that would activate if anyone tried to use them.”

  “Do you know what they do?” Devanos asked. “Specifically?”

  “We can’t say for sure what the details are,” I interrupted. “You know how dangerous curses can be, even to someone looking to study them. But if we have more information to share with you later, we’ll call.”

  Devanos looked at me, and there was no doubt in my mind he knew I was deliberately withholding details. I held his gaze without flinching. Devanos seemed like a good man. A father trying to protect his daughter, who still mourned his wife. But his image was just a little too perfect. I didn’t want to offer more information than we had to. Andy had warned him off with the curses. That was all he needed to know.

  “Does the knife’s curse pose a danger to my daughter?”

  “None of the items pose a threat to their owners, only to the thief or anyone who uses them,” I said. Devanos was playing his “Father of the Year” act well for Andy. For the first time, I held out hope that Andy’s distrust of the Otherworld would win out, would let him see through it.

  “Devanos,” Andy asked suddenly. “You said Catherine can manipulate gold. And Alicia has her creating forgeries?”