by Brey Willows
Kody and Di shared a smile. “I pay my staff well, and we’re in the common sector.”
She said it as though it was meant to explain everything. “And that means?”
Shamus, who had been very quiet since they’d left the Gus O’Connor’s, spoke up. “There’s a savage kind of law here because of the nature of the place. People move in the shadows, and if people start calling in the law and bringing attention down on the place, other people are likely to put a rather gruesome stop to it. We’ll have to watch our backs when we leave, because plenty of people will be willing to come after us once we’re beyond the walls. But while we’re here, we’re relatively safe.” He yawned.
“I think it’s probably time for all of us to go to bed. We should start early tomorrow.” Kody pushed back from the table, signaling the others to do so as well.
“I agree.” Di took one of the pitchers of water from the young woman who had just returned and walked over to hand it to Kody. “But if you feel like talking some more later, feel free. It would be nice to catch up a little.”
Kody’s smile was genuine when she looked down at Di, and Maggie had to look away to park the jealousy that rose like a tidal wave.
“I’ll remember that.” Kody put her hand on Di’s shoulder. “Thank you, Di. It’s good to know that even when you’re gone for ages, you’ve still got friends to come back to.”
Di’s expression was serious. “Kody, you’ve always had friends here, even when you couldn’t see past your grief to reach out to them. And we’ll always be here for a spinner. Whenever you need me, call. I’ll answer.”
It was so much like what the people at Gus’s had said, and even the Puca had come out with something similar. Maggie felt the stirring of an uprising, of people standing behind and beside her. It was a powerful sensation, and she plunged her senses into it, letting it sink into her bloodstream and rage through her like lightning. It was true she needed to do all she could to save this world. Her people. But it was also true that they were ready to fight; they weren’t just waiting placidly by. A force of people who had been pushed to their limits was one of the most powerful things in any world. Maggie would be proud to lead them…if she got that far.
Di drew her focus back to the moment. “You can feel it, and I can feel the power in you.” She put Maggie’s hand in Kody’s. “I believe in you both.” She stepped back looking slightly shaken, but she covered it with a smile. “Good night.”
Maggie was the last of their little group to leave the room, and she saw the young woman in white kneel in front of Di, who had taken her seat again. She was pushing up Di’s skirt—
Kody’s laugh startled her. “Trust me when I say once you’ve seen that, it haunts you for a long time. And it definitely doesn’t end the way you think it should.”
Succubus. That’s what Kody had said she was. Maggie mentally flipped through pages in books until she remembered. “She takes souls through sex?” So she wasn’t the innocuous person she’d come to Maggie as after all.
“If she feels like it. I think she was pretty insatiable in her youth, but a few centuries seem to have mellowed her.” Kody waved to Shamus and Brenda who waved back as they disappeared into their room. Once in their room, Kody stretched and pulled off her shirt. When she caught Maggie staring, she smirked. “Want me to stay dressed?”
Maggie threw a pillow at her. “You seem to have picked up some of sex Barbie’s tricks.” She dug into her bag and pulled out shorts and a tank top to sleep in. With her back turned, she took off her shirt and bra. That’s when she caught sight of Kody’s reflection in the window. She was staring as if struck, and Maggie couldn’t help but take off her jeans even slower before sliding her shorts on. She left her tank top for last, keeping her eyes on Kody’s face. She’d never had a woman look so enthralled, so desperately intense. Goose bumps covered her arms as she slid the tank into place and turned around.
Kody’s eyes were wide, but there was more than lust in them. More than desire. When she met Maggie’s eyes, it was full-fledged fear that swamped her, and Kody stumbled backward, grasping for the door. She grabbed the handle and swung it open. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…”
And then she was gone, and Maggie was alone. The force of Kody’s emotion brought tears to Maggie’s eyes, even though the feelings themselves weren’t her own. She sank onto the bed, shaking, and closed her eyes to calm herself. Di’s words came back to her. Even in your grief. And when Shamus had said something about going to the shepherd’s hut, Kody had said she wasn’t ready. The way she’d felt then tasted the same way it did now. It had an aged metallic flavor, a bitter pill on the back of her tongue.
There was no mistaking Kody’s desire. But whatever it was in her past was still too raw for her to move beyond. There was no question Kody blamed herself for the last spinner’s death, and though it was understandable, it was also a very long time ago. But that fear, that guilt, seemed like it had to do with something else, and she knew in her soul it was her duty, probably some kind of sacred obligation, to help Kody lay old ghosts to rest.
The question was, how?
* * *
The pub creaked and shook in the night, and soft morning light was beginning to show through the thin curtains by the time the noise from the pub’s customers finally died down. It hadn’t mattered all that much, though. Maggie lay awake, waiting for Kody to come back, but hour after hour, she remained alone in the room that felt far too large.
When a rooster crowed and there was a knock on the door, she bolted out of bed so fast the sheet tangled around her legs and sent her sprawling. She groaned and held her shoulder as she managed to crawl to the door.
When she opened the door, she wished she hadn’t.
Di stood looking down at her. Her skin glowed, her eyes were bright, and she looked about seven trillion times better than Maggie ever would, but especially so right now, as she lay tangled in sheets with her hair probably all over the place.
“Are you hurt?” Di squatted down in front of her and touched Maggie’s hand, which was pressed hard against her shoulder.
“I did it on our last stop, but I seem to have just made it worse.” From her vantage point on the floor, she glanced past Di into the hallway, hoping Kody had done something stupid, like sleep outside the door.
“She’s downstairs. That’s why I’ve come to get you. She asked me to place a ward spell on your door so no one could get in, and then she went for a drink.” She said it softly, but her focus was on Maggie’s shoulder. “May I?”
Warily, she moved her hand and allowed Di to place her palm over the part that hurt the most. Warmth radiated from her palm which made it ache more. Then it turned cold, and some of the pain receded. All the while, Maggie watched Di’s eyes, fascinated by the way they turned various shades of blue, from eggshell to deep violet.
Di sat back and dropped her hand. “It feels like a tendon injury, and those are a bitch to heal. But I’ve got some salves you can use to ease the pain and swelling.” She stood and held out her hand. “Shall we?”
Maggie accepted the hand up. “Can I throw on some clothes first?”
Di grinned and blatantly looked Maggie over. “I think that ensemble is adorable. And besides, you should probably get some sleep after if you can. No one is downstairs anyway.”
“After?” Maggie untangled the sheet from her legs and wrapped it around her like a cape, decidedly ignoring the reference to being adorable. Kittens and baby birds were adorable, and it felt nearly as insulting as when Di had said spinners didn’t look like much. That said, her shoulder felt a hell of a lot better than after she’d landed on it, so she’d cut Di some slack for her bad manners.
Di didn’t say anything, just motioned for Maggie to follow, which she did, careful to keep the sheet from under her feet as they moved down the cement staircase. All she needed was to fall and injure something else. When they moved into the main room, it was dark and smelled of sour beer and other odors she didn’t
want to try to place.
Di stopped in front of a booth in the back corner, her hands on her hips and her head cocked like she was trying to make sense of something.
And there was Kody, passed out, facedown in a woman’s cleavage. The woman’s head rested against the wall, a sound a ship’s horn would envy coming out of her with every exhalation.
“Can she even breathe in there?” Maggie asked, getting a better angle to look at her. “She’s not dead, is she?”
“Not dead, certainly, but Fomarians don’t take lightly to being dumped, and I’m pretty sure Kody pledged to marry her after her sixth or seventh Sour Ankle.” Di poked at Kody’s head with her fingertip, but she didn’t stir.
“Funny, she said something about being facedown in a Fomarian’s cleavage before.” Maggie studied the woman, wondering if she was the type Kody went for. She was big. Really big. If she had to guess, she’d say the woman was probably nearly seven feet tall and would make up two of Maggie. Her long hair was the color of mouse poo, and her skin was blotched with orange spots.
“If I had to guess, it’s because she finds them less threatening than the women she really enjoys.” Di slid Maggie a sideways glance. “If you know what I mean.”
Maggie pulled the sheet tighter around her, for once feeling smaller than the women around her, which was most definitely a first. “I don’t, actually.” If the way Di had greeted Kody was any indication, Maggie knew exactly what she meant, but she wasn’t going to take the bait. Apparently, Brenda and Kody had enjoyed a tempestuous fling too, so there really was no telling. She took hold of Kody’s shoulder and shook it, but her face remained firmly ensconced in boob. “Any ideas?”
“One that used to work when she was young. One minute.” Di went through a back door and returned a moment later with an ice cube. “Put this against the back of her neck. She hates being cold.”
Maggie filed that tidbit away. Kody hated being cold, but she’d lived in New York in order to watch over Maggie. With a mental shrug, Maggie pushed the thought away and put the ice cube under the hair on the back of Kody’s neck. It took a few seconds, but when she woke and pulled her face away from cleavage mountain, she had thunder in her eyes.
She grabbed the ice cube and flung it away before wiping the wetness from her neck. “God, I hate when you do that.” She glared at Di, and her eyes were bloodshot pools.
“I’m happy to say I’ve taught the trick to your new friend, whom I’m sure will be equally happy to use it whenever necessary.” Di’s arms were crossed, and her expression was inscrutable. “My cleaning imps want to get started, and I need you gone before I wake up your fiancée.”
Kody glanced at the snoring woman beside her and winced. She rubbed at her temples. “Probably a good idea. Thanks.”
She stood unsteadily and Maggie jumped forward. She put her arm around Kody’s waist and was glad when Kody didn’t put up a fight. “Come on, Romeo. Let’s get you to bed.” They made their way slowly back up the stairs, stopping twice to let Kody breathe deeply so she wasn’t sick on the stairs. Once they were in their room, Maggie led her straight to the bathroom, where Kody dropped to her knees and proceeded to rid herself of whatever a Sour Ankle was. Maggie wet a cloth with warm water and placed it on the back of Kody’s neck before leaving her to it.
An hour later, there hadn’t been any noise from the bathroom for some time, and Maggie’s knock went unanswered. She pushed the door open and saw Kody curled on her side, sound asleep. Wake her, or leave her there? She kind of deserved the stiff neck and sore back she’d probably have from sleeping on the floor simply because she’d put herself in that situation. But Maggie had felt the emotions surging through Kody when she’d fled, and maybe alcohol had felt like the only way to escape them. She couldn’t fault Kody that. With a sigh she went in and gently shook Kody awake.
“Hey. Let’s just get you to bed, okay?”
“Leave me here to die.” Kody pressed her palm to her forehead. “Unless I’m already dead and this is hell.”
“Do fairy tale people believe in Heaven and Hell? That seems odd, but I’m not sure why.” Maggie gave Kody a sympathetic smile. “There’s only one bathroom, and we’re not in a place yet where I can pee with you in the room.”
Kody’s laugh was raspy, but she did laugh. “Okay. But I’m going to crawl, and I’m sure you’ll spend a lifetime not letting me forget it.”
Maggie moved out of the way and let Kody crawl to the bed. Once there, Kody hoisted herself onto the edge of the bed and fell backward. Maggie worked at the knots in Kody’s supple leather boots and got them off. Socks went next, and she stood there trying to figure out if she should take off anything else. Kody’s breathing was even; she’d passed out again. No, the rest of her clothes could stay. She was on the bed, asleep, and that was good enough. If Maggie ever got to see her naked, she wanted it on better terms. Whatever those might be.
Maggie crawled into her own bed but lay staring at Kody for a long time. People had secrets, some more than others. And that was normal people, living normal lives. People who might live to see eighty, if they were lucky. What kind of secrets did someone over two hundred and still in their prime carry? Someone who wielded power, who lost loved ones, who gave up everything for a child she didn’t know? Maggie wanted to be mad at her for getting drunk the night before they were supposed to be leaving early, but she couldn’t. It looked like their connection was going to be more complicated than Maggie had realized. And if that made her more compassionate, surely that was a good thing.
Sleep finally found her, and she drifted off wondering what the rest of the day would bring.
Chapter Twenty-one
The smell of food woke Maggie before anything else, and her stomach rumbled in response. Her eyes felt gritty and she had a headache, but when she saw the mound of food on a tray on the desk, she leapt out of bed again. But this time she made sure the sheets were well out of the way. She sat beside the tray and sniffed the brew that looked an awful lot like coffee. She moaned at the familiar smell and took a sip, then a deeper one. It was perfect. If she had to move to this world, she’d have to live here, where there were fridges and coffee.
She looked up as Kody groaned and covered her face with her arm. “Hairy leprechaun balls, Maggie. Couldn’t you have eaten downstairs?”
She nearly choked on the piece of buttered bread. “I like your swear words. They make me happy inside, and it makes them totally ineffective. And someone brought the food in, sorry, Your Majesty.” She took a big bite of bread to make her point, which was lost because Kody wasn’t looking at her anyway.
“Di can be a mean-spirited wench.” Kody sat up slowly. “By all that’s holy, I’ll never drink a Sour Ankle again.”
Maggie pointed a spoon at her. “You probably shouldn’t drink something with that kind of name anyway.” She dipped her spoon into a creamy red dish and tasted it with the tip of her tongue. Something berry flavor and sweet. “Mm. You should really have some of this.” She glanced at Kody to see her staring, much like she’d been staring the night before. “Hey, earth to boob monster.” She threw a roll at her, and Kody blinked and caught it before it hit her in the head. “Eat that.”
Kody gnawed on the roll, tearing off chunks like she was taking out her anger on its yeasty goodness. They ate in silence, and Maggie savored every last drop of coffee. Someone knocked on the door just as she finished eating. Kody had long since finished her roll and flopped back onto the bed with her arm over her eyes.
“Good afternoon!” Brenda cheerfully skipped into the room, her pastel rainbow skirt floating around her and giving her a typical fairy look. If there was such a thing.
Kody just grunted in reply.
Maggie grinned and shrugged. “Sorry for the delay. I take it Di told you what happened?”
Brenda climbed onto a chair at the table and picked up what Maggie had assumed was fruit but hadn’t dared try. She peeled it open to reveal purple flesh with little red seeds in i
t. She peeled a chunk off like an orange piece and held it out. “You should try this. Pumpersell cores are amazing.”
Maggie took it and nipped at it. It was strangely salty but quickly followed by a vaguely chocolate taste. She ate it and accepted another piece.
“Di told us there’s a heartbroken Fomarian who is missing her boob warmer, and our very own shepherd probably wouldn’t be up to going to the market first thing in the morning like she told us she would because she was absolutely steamin’ last night.” Brenda swung her legs and ate the fruit with both hands while looking at Kody. “Should we go without you?”
Kody sighed and pushed herself upright. “Houl yer whist, Brenda. Let me shower, and I’ll be right as rain.” She got up, grabbed her bag, and shut herself in the bathroom.
“What did she just tell you to do?” Even in context, Maggie wasn’t certain.
“She told me to shut it, basically.” Brenda giggled. “She’s always been a bit of a grumpy after-drinker.”
Maggie nodded. “Yeah, I got that.”
They waited, and Brenda talked about the creatures they might see and the layout of the marketplace they’d be going to. She even drew a little sketch of it on a napkin using purple juice so Maggie understood better.
Kody came out looking a zillion times better than she had, though her brow was still furrowed. She dropped her bag and looked over Maggie’s shoulder at the drawing. “Good scale, Bren. Thanks.” She picked up a roll, pulled it in half, and tucked several pieces of bacon into it. As she ate, she stared at the napkin.
“I think it’s a good idea to have a rendezvous point, just in case we get separated.” She pointed to a little star Brenda had marked on the fringe of the market as one of her favorite food sellers. “This would be perfect. No matter where you are, head to the end of a row and it will take you in a circle so you can reach this point.”
Brenda had leaned over to watch where Kody was pointing. “Well, now I have to hope we get separated.”