Yutani left the room, and when he returned a few moments later he was carrying two new tablets and two new cell phones. He handed us one of each.
“I programmed them this morning for you, so they’re already. The password has been entered but you need to change it to something that you’ll remember, on both devices. Do not use a password that you use in your personal life. Do not use a password that is under four letters. You must include one uppercase letter and a number in your password. Do not try to use any non-alphanumeric symbols. Please take care of this now, and be sure to write down your passwords because I don’t want to have to hack into them.”
He tossed us each a packet of sticky notes. I felt rather conspicuous poking around while we were being watched, but it was part of the job. Finally, I decided on two passwords that I was pretty sure I could remember, although I did write both of them down. The first, for my cell phone, was gnasHer1, and for the tablet I chose sKillet2. The former was what I was feeling toward my situation, and the latter no one would ever guess considering how little I cooked. When we were finally situated, Herne airdropped the information files to everybody.
“Please open the document titled ‘Kuveo,’ and navigate to the first page.”
“Which side are we dealing with?”
“I believe the Dark Court,” Herne said. “Here’s the rundown: Eight unexplained homicides throughout Seattle, all human. Four unexplained deaths among the shifters.”
“The cops?” Talia asked.
“Turning a blind eye. Rumors are going around that the vampires are to blame, but I traced them back to two officers, both of whom have strong ties to TirNaNog, so I’m pretty sure Dark paid them to fan the flames.”
“Why would they want to blame the vamps?” I asked, confused.
“If people believe the vampires are responsible for the deaths, they’ll focus on them and not the Fae. Humans are uneasy around vampires. And since shifters and vampires don’t get along, chances are likely that they’ll believe the gossip. No disrespect to your people, Yutani.”
Yutani laughed. “I know as well as you do, most shifters are a little hotheaded. I don’t care whether they’re Raksashas, Weres, Selkies, or coyote shifters like me, we’re all a little bit on edge.”
“That’s the truth,” Talia said with a laugh. Her voice was scratchy, and low pitched. She sounded like a smoker who had had one too many packs for the day.
“I don’t see your people winning any awards for being the most patient,” Yutani said, winking at her.
Talia snorted. “Touché. Your volley.”
“Back to the matter at hand,” Herne said, “the fact is we have twelve mangled corpses and no perpetrator in sight.”
“Is there any evidence other than the cops’ connection to TirNaNog that makes you think the Fae are part of this?” I asked, wincing as pictures of the mutilated corpses showed up on my tablet. The bodies had been mangled, all right, torn to shreds and large chunks of flesh were missing. Angel let out a gasp, closing her eyes.
“Angel, I’m sorry. I forgot you might not be used to this.” Herne motioned to Viktor. “Get her a glass of water.”
Viktor hurried over to the sink, where he filled a glass, adding ice from the refrigerator dispenser. He carried it over to Angel, who gratefully accepted it, sipping as she tried not to look directly at her tablet.
“Well, I’m not. I’ll do my best, but please give me some warning next time.” She squinted, scrolling back to the first document.
“I’ll try to remember. As to any other connections with the Fae, yes. That’s what brought our informant in. He was in a bar where he overheard a conversation between two TirNaNog guards. They were drunk off their asses, and talking about the news stories about the bodies. Since there had only been a bare-bones story in the news, our informant decided that he should listen in. He bought the guards another drink, and they were just drunk enough to keep talking. One of them mentioned that it shouldn’t be long before people blamed the vamps, and then he elbowed his compatriot and winked. When our man asked what he meant, they abruptly shut up and turned away, after muttering a warning to steer clear of the catacombs.”
The “catacombs” was the name for a series of underground tunnels below the city of Seattle. At one time, they had simply been called “underground” Seattle. But ever since the space had been taken over by vampires and other nefarious undead, they had been nicknamed the catacombs. No longer a tourist attraction, they were now a place to be avoided at all costs if you weren’t welcome.
“But that would lead to the vampire connection. Did he hear anything else?” Viktor asked.
“Yeah, the most damning. As the guards were walking away, one of them said to the other, ‘That will teach the bloodsuckers to mess with us,’ and then they disappeared. That’s enough to tell me that there’s something going on between the Fae and the vampires. Now, whether the Fae are trying to use the vampires as a scapegoat to hide their own machinations, or whether they’re deliberately trying to get them in trouble, I don’t know.”
Herne frowned, putting down his tablet. “That’s one of the things we have to figure out. But we better do it quick before the body count rises, because the police have taken the stance that these attacks are wild animal attacks. Given the reports are coming from cops who are on the take from Névé, my guess is that the Fae are up to something and just trying to deflect blame.”
“Surely the Fae don’t want to start a war between the vampires and everybody else?” I asked.
Herne shook his head. “No, I doubt that’s their motive. My guess is they just want to continue whatever they’re up to without interruption. If they can deflect attention, maybe we won’t be tapped on the shoulder to step in.”
“What do you think their end goal is?” Yutani asked.
“Given that TirNaNog seems to be behind this, my guess is they’re looking to strike a blow at Névé and the Light Court. Trouble is, if they’re raising havoc down in the catacombs, there are things far worse than vampires lurking down there. Originally, a small group of explorers found a subterranean level that was there before Seattle burned, and when they broke through, it became apparent that there were other creatures beyond vampires and humans that tended to go creeping around in the dark. At that time, the catacombs were walled off and forgotten.”
“So what’s the bottom line? Where do we start?” Yutani scrolled through the pictures, raising his eyebrows. “This is heavy-duty mutilation.”
“Yes, it is. I want to move on this before the police spread the rumor that there is a vampire serial killer running around. If you’ll notice on some of the pictures—Angel, don’t feel you have to examine the photos, at least not right now—there are chunks of flesh missing from the bodies. I pulled some strings and got the coroner’s reports. The fact that something took a bite out of the bodies gives the coroner leeway to label the attacks as wild animal attacks. But no wolf or puma did that.” Herne set his tablet down.
“So officially, the call is wild animal attack. Unofficially, the Dark Court is spreading the rumor that vampires are to blame.” I rolled my eyes. “And when you think about it, you could almost chalk up the bites to a werewolf or the like. The waters are so muddy on this it’s hard to tell what’s true.”
Herne poured himself another cup of coffee. “And that is exactly the MO of the Fae courts. Stir up enough muck till everybody loses their way. So, brainstorm. Where do we start?”
Talia cocked her head to the side, then said, “Talk to the families and find out what their loved ones were doing down in the catacombs. Visit the catacombs themselves and see what we can find. What do you need from me?”
“That’s a start, though not all the bodies were found near the catacombs. Why don’t you run a background check on all of the victims? Try to pinpoint if they have anything in common. We have eight humans and four shifters, and that’s a broad spectrum. Did they know each other? Did they frequent the
same establishments? Whatever you can find. Yutani, you and I will visit the families.”
“What about us?” Viktor asked.
“You take Ember and go take a look through the catacombs. Six of the bodies were found outside, near the secret entrances, but go through from the inside. See if you can find anything that might give us a clue as to what’s going on. Then head over to Seward Park where the other six bodies were found.”
I was glad that I’d worn jeans and a good jacket.
“Angel, you get the layout of your desk and duties. It’s two p.m. now. We’ll meet back here at six. Okay, that’s about it.” He paused. “Oh, Angel? Can you make another pot of coffee?”
“It figures.” She laughed. “I always get to make the coffee.” She picked up her tablet and phone and headed out to her desk, giving me a little wave.
Viktor turned to me. “You ready?”
Ready or not, I didn’t have a choice. “Sure, lead the way.” And we headed out into the blustery afternoon.
I FELT AWKWARD getting into the car with Viktor, given how little we knew about each other, but he tried to put me at ease.
“Please fasten your seatbelt. I try to drive as carefully as possible, but you never can tell with some of the road conditions out there. No smoking in the car.” The rain was coming down in a heavy, steady stream by now. “Are you cold? I can turn the heat up if you are.”
I realized I was shivering. “A little, if you would. I think I’m still in a bit of shock over everything that’s happened since yesterday. I’m feeling a little shaky. Oh, and I don’t smoke. Neither does Angel.”
“Do you need to drop by a Fast ‘N Go? We can pick up a burger on the way. I could use some food.”
I realize that I hadn’t eaten lunch. And pancakes and bacon only went so far.
“Thanks, I’d like that. Breakfast seems like it was a million years ago.” I paused. “How long have you been working for Herne?”
“I started with the Wild Hunt Agency fifteen years ago. For a long time I worked as a bouncer in a bar, but then Herne approached me about taking a job with him. It sounded a dozen times more interesting than what I was doing, and I’ve never regretted it.” He hesitated, then added, “I think you’ll really like it. I don’t know about your friend, but it’s a good job, and good pay. And Herne is… Well, he’s Herne. Don’t let Talia frighten you off. She’s crusty, and she’s a dangerous old coot, but she knows what she’s doing and she’ll have your back.”
“I didn’t want to ask because it seemed like prying, but she’s not human, is she?”
Viktor snorted. “Human? She’s about as human as a rock. She’s a Crypto, one of the rare ones.”
“Oh? Are you going to tell me, or do I have to ask?” I flashed Viktor a smile, suddenly liking the half-ogre. He seemed good-natured, and he also had brains. And I liked intelligence.
“Talia isn’t in the habit of talking about her past, especially given what happened to her. I’ll tell you, but don’t mention it to her unless she brings it up, which she eventually will. Deal?”
“You have my word.” I was more curious than ever.
Viktor changed lanes, easing over into the less-congested left lane. We were heading toward the docks. As he stopped at a red light, a brilliant flash of lightning shattered the sky, followed by an ominous rumble.
“I hate thunderstorms,” Viktor said. “Anyway, Talia was a harpy when she was born. A number of her powers were stripped from her during an altercation with a liche.”
“What’s that?” I had heard of a lot of creatures, but never a liche.
“It’s an animated corpse that feeds off life energy. Often, the person was cursed before death, and when they die, they rise again. But their spirit’s changed and they’re driven by a thirst for magical energy. They feed off just about any life force, but Cryptos provide an incredible amount of energy for them, and they can permanently drain abilities.” He shuddered. “They’re terrifying, desiccated corpses with fiery eyes.”
I shuddered. “And one attacked her?”
“Yeah, when she was younger. It almost drove her mad, but she managed to reach help and even though she’ll never regain her powers, she’s still got an eye for detail, and an ear for conversation. Talia has a photographic memory, and a photographic auditory sense. In other words, she can remember just about anything she sees or hears. You can see how that comes in handy in our business. She never has to double check any of the research she’s done, since she remembers everything.”
A thought struck me. “Wait. You said she’s a harpy? I thought they looked like bird women?” But then again, I had never known any harpies, nor had any contact with them.
“She used to. By the way, liches have been spotted in the catacombs. At least, in the catacombs that are still fairly desolate. So be careful.”
“So how did stripping her powers change her looks?” I wasn’t surprised to find out that Talia was a harpy. It made an odd sense with the energy I had felt off of her. She was blunt and abrupt, and I had a feeling she could be ruthless when necessary.
“It didn’t, but she met Herne, and he took pity on her. Even without her powers, Talia was a terrifying sight, and everyone ran from her but she couldn’t do much for herself. She couldn’t hunt any longer and had to learn how to integrate with society in order to survive. The harpies are a solitary race, and they seldom make friends even amongst themselves. Talia had to learn to be something she’s not. Herne petitioned Morgana, who gave her a permanent glamour. Talia chose the form.”
I suddenly felt like my life wasn’t so rough. “That must have been hard.”
Harpies were a form of shifter, although they did not belong to the Shifter Alliance. They were bird women, predators of an intense nature, and their shriek could deafen anybody who heard it. Often, they would take the shape of beautiful young women, and like sirens, lure men in to their deaths with their song. Thankfully, they were solitary creatures, and rare.
“She no longer has her shriek, nor can she shift form. The only thing she retained from her time as a harpy is her ability to sing. And even that is muted, mild compared to what it once was. Mostly, she’s stuck in a human body, with the ability to persuade strong young men to carry her groceries to her door. But Morgana gave her the choice of any form she wanted, and Talia chose her looks.”
I felt sorry for her, but knew immediately she wouldn’t want that. “For all that she’s been through, I see why she’d be crusty.”
“Oh girl, you haven’t even begun to see just how crusty she can be. She was downright polite to you and Angel. That’s why she’s not up front at the receptionist desk. But she’s good at her job, and we rely on her. I think it makes her feel like life isn’t a waste.”
“What’s Yutani’s story? He’s bound to Great Coyote?”
“Native coyote shifter. The native shifters have their own branch of the Shifter Alliance. Unfortunately, the universe seems to be geared on making Yutani the butt of its personal joke. But that’s what Coyote does. He teaches through laughter and ridiculous situations, and he’s a dangerous trickster, although not malignant.”
“I don’t know a whole lot about the shifters, to tell you the truth. Are all coyote shifters bound to Great Coyote?”
Viktor shook his head. “No, in fact the majority aren’t. Yutani was asked to leave his pack because the Trickster led him a merry chase and the whole mess ended up with a good share of his town being burned down. It wasn’t Yutani’s fault, and nobody was killed, but he was deemed a menace. Coyote shifters who are bound to the Trickster usually find themselves the odd man out.
“He moved up to Seattle from the Southwest and Herne brought him into the business about three years ago. Yutani was on his way to becoming a pretty bad alcoholic, and he was sleeping in one of the tent cities on the side of the freeway.”
I didn’t say anything, but I couldn’t help but think that Herne seemed to gather the strays and
misfits. I wasn’t accepted by my people because of my heritage, Yutani had been drummed out of his pack, Viktor was an ogre who didn’t look big enough for his father, and Talia was a harpy without her powers. As far as Angel went, well, she kept to herself a lot because of her empathic abilities.
We pulled into a Fast ‘N Go, and Viktor ordered a double cheeseburger with large fries, while I ordered a bacon cheeseburger and a strawberry shake. I really wanted a mocha, but I could wait. We ate in the parking lot, chatting about the weather and getting to know each other a little bit, before heading down to the docks.
At one point Pike Place Market had taken up most of the area around the docks. Now called the Viaduct Market, it was still a mishmash of vendors, hundreds of stalls selling food and handcrafted goods, and services. Tattoo shops abounded, as well as fetish brothels.
“The entrance to the catacombs is on a subfloor level of the Viaduct Market.” Viktor glanced at me, his gaze traveling down to my dagger strap on my thigh. “Do you have a conceal license? What about a blade-carry permit?”
“Both. I don’t pack a gun. They don’t set well with my bloodline. Gunpowder makes me queasy, since even the smell of it can set me off. But I do have a permanent blade-carry permit. I pulled some strings with a client who worked for the city and he was very grateful for me eliminating a problem he and his wife had on their property. He wrote me out a permanent permit.”
Long blades were allowed in public if you had a permit to carry. Guns were highly regulated, and between the various permits and licenses needed to own one, and the fact that gunpowder was as good as an allergen for me, I no longer bothered with the idea of one. But my dagger, I couldn’t imagine being without.
“I have a pistol grip crossbow at home, I can use nunchaku, and I’m pretty good with throwing stars. I can fight double bladed if necessary.” I prided myself on my abilities, and it felt good to know they were actually going to come in handy. While I never liked finding myself in an altercation, I was damn glad I could take care of myself.
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