Traitor

by Claire Farrell

  “And Peter?”

  “Peter’s gone. He was never mine to begin with.” I hated that it was true.

  “I don’t think—”

  “I have to go,” I blurted. “I need to get to Eddie and make sure we’re all updated. Can you talk to Gabe? See if he can find out what Erossi is up to and if the rest of the Council are involved.”

  “No problem. If you hang around for a bit, I can give you a lift.”

  I shook my head. “Gotta run. Stay safe, Garda Whelan.”

  I left the boxing club and sprinted to Eddie’s bookshop, feeling as though I might be finally getting somewhere. I burst through the door, and he looked up with no surprise.

  “What took you so long?” he asked drily. “I take it you heard about Erossi.”

  “Yes. What’s going on? Do you know anything?”

  “Not a thing, and as far as I know, neither did Koda. Narrows down the playing field a little.”

  “Unless he’s lying.” I was about to jump up on the counter before I remembered how much it would hurt my wounded side. “Something’s happening. I’m not sure what, but something is definitely brewing.”

  “We need to get there first,” he said.

  “Moses reckons humans have been arrested for comments they made against the Council online. He also said there are a lot more missing person cases. Shay said Erossi won’t get in touch with him, and the Guardians haven’t been cooperating with the police.”

  “Interesting.” He tapped his chin. “We should take advantage of this.”

  “Exactly my thinking. Shay’s going to coordinate with the media and figure out a way to use this against the Council. At least we’ll be keeping people informed and giving them something else to listen to besides Erossi’s bullshit.”

  Eddie smiled. “Good idea. But I’m concerned by this turnaround. Why would the Council suddenly make such ridiculous moves? They’re designed to encourage discontent. It makes no sense.”

  “We’re all with you on that,” I said. “But we don’t have time to think about it. We need to act… and fast. Before Phoenix marries this British royal.”

  “There’s still so much to do.” But his heart beat faster, and I knew it wasn’t with fear. He was enjoying himself too much for that.

  “You should check on the groups who are in hiding,” I said. “If anyone has gone missing, then we can figure the Council are trying to find information.”

  His smile widened. “I’m proud of you, Ava.”

  As I left, I wasn’t sure if that should make me happy or terrified.

  Chapter Ten

  I headed straight to Gabe’s bar, although I worried about what I would find.

  Finn was alone in the bar. “He’s not here,” he said. “Not sure where he is or how long he’ll be.”

  I sat on a barstool with a sigh. “How’s he doing?”

  “Freaking out, basically. Not looking good when big decisions are made without you.”

  I stared at the moving tattoo on Finn’s forearm. “I hear Koda’s been left out, too.”

  He made a face. “I don’t like where this is going. Power shifts always hurt those of us who don’t matter much to anyone.”

  “Let Gabe know I dropped by, okay?”

  He nodded, and I got off the stool to leave. I took two steps before it hit me. Turning back, I grabbed Finn’s arm and took a better look at his tattoo. The lines of the dragon were all familiar swirls. I hadn’t noticed before because of the vibrant colours.

  “I keep meaning to ask you where you got this done,” I said.

  He pulled his arm away. “Personal space, Red. Tattooist for the fae. Strictly fae-only customers.”

  “Is the tattooist fae?”

  “No, but—”

  “Phoenix mentioned being interested in getting a special kind of tattoo done. Think this tattooist would be good enough for him?”

  He frowned. “Hell, yeah, she’s good enough. They just call her the Artist. Hold on.” He disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a business card. “You call this number to make an appointment. Tell Phoenix she’s worth the cost.” He handed me the small paper square.

  “Thanks, Finn. You’ve been really helpful.” I grinned at him, pocketed the card, and left for home.

  Back at the cul-de-sac, a group of the remaining rebels had gathered to train. The atmosphere was still tense, and I didn’t know how to fix it.

  Ry rushed over to me. “I’m sorry,” he said. “We put you in a bad position before, and I apologise for that.”

  “A bad position? Where did you even get the money to go to the pub?”

  He frowned. “Desmond sorted that out.”

  “And you didn’t think that was weird? Gareth never came back!”

  “I know.” He shook his head. “At the time, it seemed harmless.”

  “You make your own choices. I can’t do that for you. But when you make a choice, you have to own it. You can’t just do whatever you want and think you can keep apologising afterward. This is life and death, Ry.”

  Chastened, he went back to the training while I headed straight for Val, calling for Carl to join us.

  I handed Carl the business card Finn had given me. “A fae told me about a tattoo artist who only tattoos fae. He said they call her the Artist. His tattoo is different, but the same kind of shapes are there. This could be a lead.”

  Carl passed the card to Val. “We could go there today.”

  Val nodded, then her entire body tightened as if she were on high alert. I followed her gaze to Leah, who was looking around in a panic.

  Val sniffed the air. “Somebody’s here,” she growled.

  Not again.

  She moved as if she wanted to kill somebody, glancing around to make sure nobody was approaching Leah. I followed her, picking up a scent a split-second after we saw a hooded figure slipping into the cottage where Esther had been staying. Val sprinted, lifting her weapon with a growl of rage. The person turned and froze to the spot, probably because the sight of a transforming hellhound was pretty intimidating, even a half-blooded one.

  Val was about to cleave the intruder’s head open when Esther screamed from the window for her to stop.

  The intruder pulled down the hood and held up two shaking hands. “I’m a friend of Esther’s,” Quinn blurted.

  “Friends announce themselves,” Val replied.

  “Sorry,” Quinn said.

  Esther came out of the house and embraced Quinn.

  “Why the hell are you sneaking around in a hoodie?” I demanded. “Didn’t we tell you the people attacking us wear hoods? Do you have a death wish?”

  “I didn’t think—”

  “We usually decapitate intruders,” Val said, her eyes still red.

  “Val, give us a minute, please,” Esther said. “Go calm down. Please.”

  Quinn waited until Val walked away before speaking again. “I’m sorry, Esther. I just couldn’t be seen. There are so many rumours flying around. Nothing makes sense. Nobody’s seen Koda in days. I overheard Aiden talking about buying and selling humans. The cells are completely full, so people are being held elsewhere, except nobody seems to know where that might be.”

  “Humans have been arrested,” I said. “Others have gone missing. Know what’s going on with that?”

  She shook her head. “But there’s more.” She glanced around anxiously. “I didn’t tell Alanii I was coming here today in case something happened. Natasha’s been feeling ill, and her great-grandmother was a harbinger, so that worried me, and I—”

  Esther’s eyes widened. “Quinn, calm down. Tell me what’s wrong.”

  “Illeana. I was paired with her the most before she died. She was my partner, and this might mean nothing, but my gut is… I covered for her sometimes.”

  Esther frowned. “In what way?”

  Quinn licked her lips, studying Esther as if wondering whether she should speak at all. “Koda called her to him. Often. I would cover for her, make su
re everyone thought she was elsewhere. She was senior to me, and it seemed normal at the time. But now, with everything that’s going on, I’m not so sure, and I’m worried for Koda.”

  “What do you think was going on?” I asked, surprised to see Quinn losing her cool.

  “I think she was working on something for Koda. Maybe something internal. It made her very careful. It wasn’t that she was paranoid, but she was probably more vigilant than usual. She had a lot on her mind.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me before?” Esther asked.

  “She’s dead. It didn’t matter anymore. She didn’t die while working for Koda. But you said she was prepared to die. You said her belongings had gone missing, and that reminded me of the flash drive.”

  I glanced at Esther in surprise.

  “What flash drive?” she asked.

  “A tiny one, disguised as a charm. She wore it around her neck. I only realised what it was because I caught her using it one day. I asked her about it, and she laughed it off, calling it her life insurance. She joked that I should look for it if anything happened to her.” She shivered. “I mean, she laughed, and we saw her sacrifice herself for us. She wasn’t killed for a flash drive.”

  Esther looked at me. “What do you think?”

  “Worth looking into.”

  “It’s probably with the rest of the missing stuff,” Esther said. “I wonder what was on it.”

  “That’s the thing,” Quinn said excitedly. “It’s not gone. Koda wears it around his wrist. His sleeves are always long, so you rarely see it, but I’ve spotted it twice now.”

  “Koda took her stuff?” I said.

  “Maybe he’s protecting himself,” Quinn said. “But I can’t get in touch with him to ask, and I’m worried that whatever’s on that flash drive brought him to harm.”

  “Koda made her risk her life looking into this stuff,” Esther whispered.

  “This isn’t right,” Quinn said. “Our Council is full of traitors. I don’t know who to trust. The angel is affiliated with you, Koda is off on his own missions, Erossi is desperately trying to court the humans one moment and control them the next, and Fionnuala is away fighting wars that aren’t ours.”

  “She’s back,” I said. “I don’t know why she wants to keep it a secret, but she’s definitely back.”

  Quinn shook her head. “More intrigue. How did you find out? From the angel?”

  “Gabe? No, he didn’t know either. Phoenix told me.”

  She rubbed the space between her eyes. “Her own son. What spell do you weave on these men?” She gestured at Esther. “Her, it would be obvious”—she looked back at me—“but you? I don’t understand what you have that they want.”

  I shrugged. “The truth, maybe.”

  “I don’t understand what’s happening,” Quinn whispered.

  “It’s a power play,” Esther said firmly. “You’ve seen for yourself. You’ve heard the stories of the old days. Nobody with power can be trusted. We need to change everything.”

  “I need to see Koda,” I said. “I need to find out what he knows. And make sure he’s okay.”

  “Madness,” Quinn said. “There’s a very small window of opportunity. You would have to sneak past Guardians just to make it inside the Headquarters. And even then, he might not be there.”

  “So let’s do it,” I said brightly.

  She glared at me. “I don’t trust you.”

  “I don’t trust you either, but we both want the truth, right?”

  She considered that for a moment before holding out her hand.

  I backed away. “I’m out of the deal-making business. Don’t wanna fall off the wagon.”

  Esther nudged me. “Seriously. Forever banned from making deals.”

  Quinn looked confused, but she nodded. “I’ll find a way in for you. I want to see him for myself, and his guards keep fobbing me off. Something’s off.” She walked out of the garden then looked back at us. “Well? Aren’t you coming?”

  “What, now?” I asked.

  “Yes, now. Goodbye, Esther.”

  I decided following Quinn might be my one chance, so I hurried to fall into step beside her.

  “Stay safe,” Esther called after us.

  On the way to her car, which was parked a few streets away from the cul-de-sac, Quinn explained her idea. “There are some old tunnels that aren’t presently guarded. Our resources are poor right now. Fionnuala has left us with little. But that works out well for us today. We’ll take advantage of the low numbers of Guardians.” We jumped into her car. “I’m only doing this for Esther to prove that—”

  “Yeah, I know. Pity you aren’t a big enough friend to trust her judgement, though.”

  She gave me the first genuine smile I had seen from her and started the car. “Interesting play. But we both know that Esther leads with her heart and not her head.”

  “It wasn’t her heart telling her to walk away from her only family. She used her head to keep herself safe.”

  She nodded. “Granted, that was unexpected. Do you really believe you’re doing the right thing? Or is this payback of some kind?”

  “I know we’re doing the right thing.”

  We were quiet until she pulled off the motorway, turning at a cleared area I could have sworn hadn’t been there a moment ago.

  “Bespelled,” she explained, seeing my confusion. “Can’t see it unless you’ve been shown the way. Come on. We have to hurry if we’re going to get through their blind spot.”

  “Blind spot?”

  She nodded, jumping out of the car and jogging away. I exited the car and ran to catch up.

  When I reached her side, she said, “The blind spot is when the Guardians switch positions and change shifts. Very brief, except now that half of the Guardians are in the UK, we have more time.”

  “But they’re back.”

  “Not officially. Just because Fionnuala is here doesn’t mean the Guardians aren’t still in the UK, believing they’re still guarding her. Her magic is beyond anything I’ve ever seen.”

  “Then why doesn’t she just take over?”

  She faltered, almost tripping. “Maybe she already has.”

  Her words hit home because it was something I had suspected. And maybe Koda was already dead.

  Quinn kicked at a mound of dirt, pulling away overgrown grass. She stuck her fingers in the soil and wriggled them. “Got it,” she murmured.

  A door opened up in the ground, shifting dirt everywhere. The sound of it made both of us freeze, but nobody came running.

  “I need to search you for weapons,” she said.

  “I’m not going in there unarmed!”

  “Then you’re not going in at all.”

  I glared at her before throwing my hands in the air. “Fine. Do your worst.”

  She searched my pockets and removed my dagger. “Don’t speak. If we come across anyone, just follow my lead.”

  I followed her down a dim corridor. There were scuff marks on the floors, handprints on the walls, even bloody fingerprints decorating what had once been stark white.

  “We’re not allowed in this section anymore,” she said. “They said something about it being unstable, so be careful.”

  We kept moving, turning corners and hurrying down more long hallways until Quinn whispered that we were almost there. We turned a corner and heard footsteps.

  “Quick,” she urged. “Through that door.”

  She shoved me inside a room, shut the door behind us, and leaned against it. She closed her eyes until the footsteps passed, but I was too busy staring around in horror. We were standing in a freaking torture chamber! Equipment hung from the walls, stinking of pain and death and blood. No wonder Ry’s brother had committed suicide. In a chair sat a decomposing body. I covered my nose to avoid the stench.

  Quinn exhaled with relief. “That was close,” she said and then gasped. “What the…? Oh, my God!”

  “What the hell is this place?” I whispered.


  “Robbie!” She moved toward the body with her hands outstretched.

  “Don’t.” I grabbed her, wondering how she had recognised the figure when the only things left unharmed were his almond-shaped eyes, frozen open in horror.

  Her hands covered her mouth, and she shook her head. “Why Robbie?”

  “This is the hacker?” I asked.

  She nodded. “He was nice. Why would anyone do this? And here of all places?”

  “He was trying to find out where Illeana’s stuff went,” I said grimly. “Maybe he learned something he shouldn’t have.”

  “This is sick,” she murmured, looking ill. “This is a torture room. Are these the assignments we’ve been overlooked for?”

  “We need to get out of here.” I grabbed her arm and pulled her into the hallway.

  She insisted on checking all of the rooms we passed. They had all been used to harm and maim. Few were empty of bodies, and the stench of death never left me.

  Twenty minutes later, we had finally made it to Koda’s door.

  “There should be Guardians outside his door,” Quinn said, looking puzzled. “This makes no sense.”

  “Lucky for us then,” I said, ignoring the scent of her fear. “Let’s get this over with.”

  She pushed open the door, and we stepped inside.

  Chapter Eleven

  Koda stared at both of us when we stumbled into the room. I had prepared myself to find his body, so seeing him on his feet was a little unsettling.

  “Come to end me, have you?” he asked croakily. “I’ll admit I didn’t expect you to be the one they would send.”

  I shook my head, staring around the room. It resembled an ordinary office except one wall was completely made up of earth. Roots hung through, and Koda’s hands and arms were immersed in the dirt.

  “Sustenance,” he said, seeing my confusion. “Keeps me going. What are you here for then if not to kill me, little tainted one?”

  “I thought you were dead,” Quinn blurted. “You’ve been impossible to find.”

  He nodded, looking at the dirt wall. “I slipped up somewhere. The wrong people found out what I knew. How, I’m not sure.”