by Alexia Purdy
A panicked feeling ensued as I felt for the familiar film of my glamour shield, which was hiding the fiery Empyrean sword strapped to my back. Assured it was intact, I let out a sigh of relief. Not only would having a flaming sword visible in the middle of a hotel lobby cause certain panic for any who saw it, the fiery wisps it emitted would surely send everyone into a horrified chaotic run from me or set some security guards on me before I could even get away. Would do me no good to sit in jail right now.
So the non-magical girl could definitely see through my glamour. How?
“Got our room key.” Sary waved the plastic key card in front of my face before her smile faded and she wrinkled her face at me. “You look like crap, Benton. Come on, let’s go.”
“Ah, thanks? I feel like it if that’s what you want to know,” I muttered and straightened up in the chair to my utter discomfort. “I need to eat. I’ve used up all my reserves.”
Sary nodded and waved Braelynn over. “Right. I forgot how often you humans need to eat.”
“You don’t need to eat as often as humans?” I asked, surprised that I hadn’t really noticed that.
“We’re not required to eat three meals a day,” Braelynn offered as she took my other arm and yanked me to my feet. “We mostly eat for pleasure, not out of a constant necessity. We must eat at least once a day, but not nearly as often as humans do.”
“Umphf … awesome. Well, we mere humans need sustenance.” I pointed to the front door of the hotel. “There’s a burger joint next door, and I’m starving. Let’s get something. Or we can go to the room if you guys want to order room service.”
They nodded and headed out the door with me in tow. If we looked strange with two women holding up a guy, no one seemed to notice. I looked at Braelynn, and she winked at me with a subtle smile when she realized why I was looking at her.
“An aversion spell, right?”
She nodded. A woman of few words. I was starting to like her more and more. People were avoiding us because she’d bespelled us to avoid attention. Smart gal.
Ten minutes later, I was stuffing the second cheeseburger I’d ordered down my throat before chasing it with an ice-cold soda. Both Braelynn and Sary had stared at their own hamburgers with curiosity before taking a few tiny nibbles. They’d ordered veggie burgers, of course. I frowned at their plates, shaking my head. Sary ate without really savoring the food, and Braelynn, made a face with every single bite. I almost choked on my own burger watching them eat human food. They obviously hated it, even though they’d been outside of Faerie for a few weeks. How they survived out here on the few things they did like was beyond me.
“What the hell do you girls eat out here anyway? I’ve only seen you eat salad.”
Braelynn dipped her fries into ketchup and licked off the red sauce before stuffing the fry in and grabbing another. “We buy fruits and vegetables at what you call a grocery store. They taste funny but are fresh enough for us to consume. Anything labeled organic seems to taste okay, but it depends on if it’s in a box, canned or fresh. We only eat the fresh food.”
“Ah, I see,” I mumbled, my cheeks probably puffed out like a chipmunk as I chewed thoughtfully. At least they didn’t notice my atrocious table manners. Apparently etiquette in Faerie was different than here when it came to talking with a mouth full of food. Still, I hoped I wasn’t terrifying any other patrons. My hunger felt insatiable, and I couldn’t eat fast enough. So that’s what happened when drained by a siphon lord. I was going to need another order of burgers.
“These French fries are delectable.” Braelynn stuffed three more ketchup-coated fries into her mouth. She looked as happy as she ever had, but it was hard to tell with her.
“Fries are the bomb. I could live on them.”
She stared at the fries, confusion passing over her face. “You can? I would think it wouldn’t be enough nutrition for a human. Though, I wouldn’t blame you if you wanted to.” Another fry met its end in her mouth.
I laughed, almost choking on my burger. I grabbed my soda and took a nice long draw from it. “No, I mean, yeah, if I could, I would. You can’t live on just that, though. You’re right when you say it wouldn’t be enough nutrition. I’d be malnourished if I lived off just fries.” I held up the last bite of my burger. “Hence why you eat a burger with it.” I winked at her and stuffed the last bite into my mouth.
She frowned and stared down at her mostly untouched burger, lifting the bun to scrutinize the fake meat. “The burger isn’t quite as savory. It tastes odd, like mulch.”
“Next time ask for Angus beef, then.”
She lifted an eyebrow at me.
I sighed. “Never mind. Stick to the salad, fruit and fries.”
Sary ignored us as she studied a map of the world. It wasn’t a map of our world, at least not as you’d see it on a regular map. No, this was a map with all the land, including all the realms of Faerie. It made the United States much larger than it appeared to humans. In fact, for a moment, I thought it was Siberia until I recognized some landmarks marked as “Human Domain.”
It was nice to see how well-marked the human world was. Why not just mark it with “Wasteland,” which was what Ferdinand had called it?
“Wow, that’s pretty cool to see the world as it really is,” I said. I continued to study it over Sary’s shoulder, but she didn’t seem to mind. Instead, she nodded, completely immersed in the map. “What are you looking for?”
“I’m looking at the different portals of Faerie we could take to get closer to the desert where we’ll find Lorell.”
“Oh,” I said. I wondered how the border portals of Faerie determined how we’d end up on the other side of them. It didn’t exactly say “Portal to the Mojave Desert” on it. I think the map had more magical properties than it allowed me to see, so I let her get her bearings.
“I got it!” She pointed at the map with two fingers, one on an area near Chicago, near our current location, and another one on Las Vegas. “We enter a portal here, near the southwestern side of Chicago. It should take us to the northern edge of Las Vegas, near the western mountains.” She smiled, looking excited. Right then the waitress approached to refill our sodas. Sary quickly folded the map and tucked it away in her pack.
After the waitress left, I wiped my face with a napkin and looked at the two ladies with me. I felt tons better and wondered if eating was the trick to keeping my energy up, not only physical energy, but magical stores as well. Sary and Braelynn sat there either staring out the window or around at the other diners. It was obvious they didn’t mingle much in the outside world. It seemed humans were fascinating creatures to them. I found it amusing to watch them back.
“Can I ask you guys something?”
They both turned back toward me and awaited my question.
“Are there humans with no magic who can see past our glamours or ‘see’ magic?” My thoughts went back to the redheaded girl from the subway and the hotel window.
Braelynn nodded. “Yes. They have the sight. It’s rare, but there are some who possess this trait. Most die before they get too old, though.”
My eyes widened. “Why?”
Sary sighed, rubbing her face and playing with her soda straw. “Because if the wrong faery spots them, they’ll kill them on sight.”
I gulped. “How would anyone know if a human has no magic but has the sight?”
Sary and Braelynn glanced at each other and looked back to me. My curiosity only spiked.
“These humans can see a spark or a wavering glitch in our glamour. Some say it’s like we shine, or glimmer. We don’t actually shine, but that’s what the glamour looks like to these particular humans, and it’s how they detect us. If a faery who doesn’t want to be discovered notices a human looking at them when they don’t possess any magic to be able to see them, which is easily determined by testing a person’s shields, they off them. No shields equals no magic. They see them as a threat to their safety and usually target the human for extermination.”
&nb
sp; “Just for having the sight? That sounds a bit harsh to me.”
Sary nodded. “Yes, it is. But fey are a proud race, and any threat to our safety never goes unchecked. The only ones that survive beyond youth are usually stolen as babies, snatched soon after birth to serve faeries in the Faerie realm. There are oracles who work as bounty hunters to find such children. If a child gets past that age and grows older without detection, they’ll most likely learn to stay away from the faeries they do see, to stay safe. It’s just rare to find a full human with the sight.”
I thought about the girl with burgundy red hair and could see why she was so afraid of us. “Would you guys do that?”
Sary looked confused. “Do what?”
“Kill a human with the sight?”
Braelynn looked down to her plate while Sary stared at me in horror.
“No. Never. I don’t have a need to kill humans unless they harm me. It’s mostly the banished who kill humans, or demented fey who use these humans as slaves. Most who live in Faerie do not bother with such things. The taking of young children with the sight is usually done by the Unseelie, who hunt them to return them to the Faerie world for servitude. These are the bounty hunters of the Faerie, but they don’t just look for those with the sight. They track runaway faeries, faeries who’ve broken some sort of pact, oath breakers and escaped prisoners.”
I turned to Braelynn, who was avoiding looking at me. “What about you, Braelynn? Have you ever run into a human with the sight?”
She looked up at me and nodded, looking bleak. “Yes. I knew a girl named Talla in my clan when I was younger. She was human and a good friend. She was taken from her family when she was but a toddler and brought to our clan in Faerie. Later, when we were almost matured, a bounty hunter came to our village and took her. We couldn’t save her, and I never saw her again. He probably killed her.”
I leaned back, paling. I wasn’t sure if I liked where this conversation was going. “Oh, okay. Sorry to hear that.”
Braelynn focused her saddened eyes out the window, leaning on her hands. The memories this particular conversation had awoken for her were bittersweet, I was sure. I felt bad even asking them about the humans with the sight, but at least I now knew what that girl was. I had to find her, help her get to a safe place. Maybe whenever this business with Oran was over, I could return to find her and help her out. Hopefully, I wouldn’t be too late.
Chapter Ten Faery Tricks
Faery Tricks
I knew the way through Faerie would be short this time. I just wished it wouldn’t take me through Faerie at all. Wishes don’t always come true, but at least it was quick. When we emerged from the border of Faerie and stepped into the arid desert near a vibrant, green park, I was sure we had gone the wrong way. Sary reassured me we were right where we were supposed to be. A furtive glance around to find a sign pointing to the Las Vegas city limits made me finally relax.
“So how do we go about finding this Lorell? What do runt-riffs look like anyway? Do they even resemble humans?” I stopped my questions when I found Sary glaring at me with her lips tight. “What?” I guess asking too many questions at once was prohibited.
“Remind you of someone?” Braelynn leaned in toward Sary and gave me a tiny smile.
“Oh, yeah. I remember the million questions Shade had when we were first travelling together. Although,” Sary flashed a sarcastic smile at me, “this one is more annoying, if you can believe that.”
“Oh, I believe it.” They both burst out laughing, and I was left flabbergasted at what they heck they were talking about. Maybe Shade and I were more alike than I’d thought. She was my sister, after all.
“Hey, I resent that remark.” I rolled my eyes and shook my head. Bested by two female faeries. Best day ever.
“You know we still like you.” Sary patted my back.
“Great. I’m thrilled.”
“You should be.” Sary winked and pointed toward the horizon. “I’ve tracked Lorell downtown, so that’s where we’re going.”
I squinted my eyes and stared across the valley to find a large building pointing out of the center of it. The city was spread out far and wide and was bustling with activity. “Near that space needle-looking thing?”
Sary nodded. “Yep. Down that way, but a bit more north. Come on.”
I groaned. “It’s going to take us forever to get down there. Let me call a cab or something.” I jogged to the edge of the sidewalk lining the park and peered down the way to find a convenience store propped right on the opposite corner. “We can ask to use their phone.”
“What are you going to pay the cab with?” Sary folded her arms and gave me a questioning look.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Whatever you gave the hotel people last night for a room.” Confusion made me stop and peer at her curiously. “What did you pay the hotel with anyway?”
Sary and Braelynn gave each other a look and promptly pulled out some leaves from the tiny little packs strapped to their waistbands. With a quick flick of a hand, they both turned the leaves into money.
“Wicked! Uh, yeah … give them that.” I shook my head again, surprised at their little deception. “You really pay bills with leaves?”
“Or anything thin enough to look like money.”
“Handy trick. Wish I’d thought of that before.”
“It doesn’t stay looking like money forever. It’s just a temporary glamour.”
“Gotcha.” I sighed and headed toward the convenience store, knowing they’d follow close behind. I was feeling loads better today. Even the wound from the Draelik wasn’t aching. I felt great, actually. The craving for the draught was gone, so I was hoping I wouldn’t be needing that stuff for a good long while.
I hurried into the convenience store, feeling grateful for the A/C blowing at full blast. The city was a different kind hot than what I was used to. It didn’t matter if it was winter, the temperature was still higher than back home. At least it was a dry heat, sucking at my skin to shrivel it up. Even so, the sweat began to bead on my forehead.
“Excuse me.” I leaned on the counter and watched as a pretty blonde girl finished stuffing cigarette boxes into the display on the wall behind the counter. She turned, wiped her hands on a smock tied to her skinny waist and gave me a pleasant, bright smile. It made me flush, and I stuttered to ask her what I needed.
“Hello, how can I help you?”
“Do you have a phone I can borrow? I—I need to call a cab.”
She nodded, reaching behind her for the phone and the yellow pages. “Yes. Here you go. Dial 9 first.”
I took the cordless phone and book from her and gave her my own flirty smile. “Thank you.”
“Anytime.” Was she turning red? I liked her response. Too bad she lived in Vegas instead of Portland.
She watched me as I walked down to the end of the counter for some privacy.
“Don’t forget to bring it back,” she called out, winking and returning to her task before I could reassure her I wouldn’t steal it. I guess she saw a lot of crap working in a place like that, even if it was in a nice neighborhood. Still, I didn’t look like a thief, did I? I took a sweeping glance down at my white shirt, hoodie, jeans and sneakers. Nope, I looked like a sloppy hoodlum, but not a thief. What do thieves really look like anyway? There was dirt caked on my shoes, my hair was all mussed up and my hoodie had seen better and cleaner days.
I sighed. So what if I looked unkempt. I was a warrior and an elemental warlock. Cut me some slack. I flipped through the yellow pages, finding what I needed before finally dialing the nearest cab company.
Sary and Braelynn were standing at the entrance outside, looking awkward as they peered at the slot machines lining the windows. One old man sat at one of the machines, yanking the handle every now and then to send the reels spinning. The tiny bells going off as the reels stopped made Sary twitch with each chime. The old man wiggled his eyebrows at the ladies before giving them a toothless grin. They gave each ot
her a tentative glance, looking not quite thrilled at his attention. I stifled a chuckle as I finished confirming the ride and hung up the phone.
“Here you go, miss. Thanks a ton.” I handed the phone and book back to Blondie and flashed her a white, toothy grin again. That caught her eye, and she gave me that charming smile once more before glancing away. “You don’t happen to have any Funions, do you?”
She was watching the girls, looking strange standing outside with nothing to do.
“Uh, yeah, second row to the right.” She flicked her eyes back to me and pointed to the girls. “They with you?”
“Um, yes. My cousins are visiting from out of town. Never seen slots in their entire lives.” I liked the little laugh she let out as she smiled and visibly relaxed. “You know … tourists.” I rolled my eyes for emphasis and sealed the deal by grabbing a bag of chips and quickly filling up a Slurpee cup before placing it onto the counter for her to ring up. Her delicate fingers tapped away at the touch screen register, and I found myself admiring her studious face.
I wished I could stay and chat more, but I knew there wasn’t time for that. I sighed and thanked her for her help before I turned to Sary and Braelynn, who probably didn’t need any snacks. By the way they stared horrified at the racks of food, I could see that they were more than disgusted by the fake, sugary crud humans stuffed down their throats.
“Have a nice day!” Blondie waved at me as I headed through the front doors. I turned to wave back and admire her backside as she turned away and walked down toward the rear of the store. When I turned back again, I found a disgusted Sary and a tight-lipped Braelynn.
“What?”
“Must you ogle every female in your vicinity?”
I shrugged, and they both turned to head back to the sidewalk to wait. I sipped on my Slurpee and joined them.
The day was growing shorter. I munched on the Funions as quietly as I could and scanned the streets. There wasn’t much magic out there in the suburbs of Vegas, meaning there weren’t patches of Unseelie escapees nearby. Good thing, though. I didn’t feel like battling anyone just yet.