Queen of Swords and Silence

by Carrow Brown

  “Nonsense. Of course, I do.” I flashed him a grin. “When I want to.” I tucked the photos back into their envelope. “I get why you’re concerned. Because this isn’t only about our own going missing.”

  He nodded. “You always told me if you were stupid enough to get caught, you deserve what happened. These ones aren’t stupid or weak, yet are still taken.”

  The waitress arrived to take the empty glasses, and I waited until she departed before speaking. “If humans have developed technology to capture us, then we’re looking at a very different problem.”

  Yuki nodded slowly, his eyes on the table. “When prey becomes predator.”

  David lifted a hand. “Can I ask a dumb question?” Yuki and I looked at him. “You already know a lot about this situation.” David gestured a hand to Yuki. “Why haven’t you done something about it?”

  Yuki eyes shifted from me and back to David. “I’m not an enforcer, so I can’t go and stick my snout into situations. Mother can kick in someone’s door and interrogate them and won’t suffer serious reputational damage or something more… permanent, since she’s authorized to do so.”

  “And because I’d show them a kickin’ good time.” My lips spread into a wide grin. “See what I did there?”

  Yuki groaned, covering his face with a hand. “It’s worse when you make dad-jokes.”

  I laughed, returning my attention to David. “It’s about authorization. When people have problems, we go through proper channels to handle it. Help’s avoid things like clan wars and genocide.”

  “Sounds like red tape some wouldn’t bother with.”

  “Some don’t, and they don’t live long,” I said, getting to me feet. “I’ll check it out, kiddo. Keep an ear out and send me word if you find out anything else. I’ll see what I can put together today with what you’ve given me and pass it onto the network. If it’s as large as I am thinking, we’ll need all the help we can get.”

  He nodded and reached out a hand to me. I took it with a smile.

  “Be safe,” he said.

  “You, as well.” I gave his hand a final squeeze and headed out of the bar.

  It didn’t take long to make our way back out onto the streets of Tokyo. As soon as the doorway closed and we were once more in the streets with mulling humans, I called Carl.

  After the fifth ring, Carl picked up with a staticky version of “Solitary Bed and Breakfast. This is Carl.”

  “Carl, it’s Ghost.”

  “I’m sorry, I can barely hear you. Can you say that again?”

  I placed my hand to the receiver and spoke slower. “It’s Ghost. I need to ask you a question.”

  His tone relaxed. “Oh, hey. You never call.”

  “I know. Are Fae in the room with you?”

  A pause followed my question before he offhandedly said, “Yep.”

  “Don’t say my name. Can you move where they can’t hear you?”

  “Yeah-yeah, sure. Let me go to my office and find that receipt for you.”

  You should be worried that humans lie so easily.

  I listened to the static until Carl said, “What’s wrong?”

  “Do you know if the Fae queens have started their convention or whatever it is?”

  “Not that I know of. One said they are still waiting for a few others to arrive. What’s wrong?”

  My insides tightened. If the queens were waiting for more Fae to arrive, it wasn’t a summit, it was a roll call. They already knew something was up.

  “I don’t want to tell you, so you can honestly say you don’t know if asked,” I said.

  “Geez. You’re making me nervous here.”

  “I’m sorry, but it’s better this way. Do you know roughly when it might start?”

  Carl sighed. “I heard it might be next week at the soonest. When you came over, it was the second day of them flying in.”

  Silence asked, Why Seattle though? It can’t be for the coffee.

  “And they’re meeting on a ley line to draw power from if needed.” I pulled in a deep breath. “Carl, I need a favor. Will you text me when the summit starts or you hear anything else that’s out of place?”

  “I can but it puts me in an awkward position. Is this an official investigation?”

  “No. If it were, I’d have to send notification to all parties involved. I’d rather Mab not know I’m snooping about in Fae business.”

  Static welled up on the phone line and I strained to hear his voice. “All right, I’ll text you. What’s a good number?”

  I rattled off my cell number and then looked at David. “Do you have a cell?” He nodded and told me his number to give to Carl. “If you can’t reach me on that line, call the second. They know what’s going on.”

  “Okay, friend. Be safe.”

  “I will.” I disconnected the call and pressed the corner of the phone to my bottom lip. “This is bad.”

  “What’s happening?”

  I looked to David. “I think the queens already know something is happening. If they start an investigation on their own and find humans are the cause, it’ll be impossible to stop them.”

  David cocked an eyebrow. “What’s so bad about Mab?”

  I snorted. “She’s not going to care if a small minority started this—she’ll decimate everyone to make it clear her court is not to be trifled with.”

  “Great.” David scowled, his eyes shifting side to side. “How long do we have?”

  “Carl said the summit hasn’t started yet, so maybe a week. They’re waiting a few more days to let everyone arrive.” I worried my bottom lip. “I’m concerned since they’re meeting on a ley line.”

  “What’s a ley line?”

  I groaned. “I wish Badb had explained this shit to you first before dropping you into it. Think of a ley line as like a vein in the Earth with a lot of power. If the queens decide to strike, they’re sitting on the magical equivalent of nuclear missiles.” I rubbed my face again. “This is turning into a shit day.”

  “What can we do?”

  “At this point, I don’t think I can do much. I have a no-contact order when it comes to the Winter Court. If I poke my nose into their business, it’ll make things worse.”

  “A no-contact order? That’s a story I have to hear.”

  I snorted. “Maybe another time.”

  Once we were on the train ride back to the bay, Voltaire’s voice bellowed from my pocket, “Fangs were flying, capes were torn. Hell hath no fury like a vampire scorned!”

  “Great,” I groaned, pulling out my phone. I hit the answer button and placed the phone to my ear with a sigh. “Hello, Nicholas.”

  A man’s voice, rich as melted chocolate, said, “May I speak with you at your convenience?”

  “You may. In fact, we are speaking via phone at this very moment.”

  “Save your snark. I’d like the discussion in person. It’s about your newest job.”

  “You expect me to drop everything and come see you?”

  “I expect that someone who still owes me for the damage inflicted on my property after assaulting one of my patrons would be eager to clear the books.”

  I regret nothing. Asshole deserved it for saying I looked like junkyard scrap.

  An unease settled over my belly. “Sure, I’ll pop over now if you want. But I am traveling with someone who needs to stay with me.”

  “Bring him, but my discussion with you will remain private.” I heard a faint click and a dial tone.

  “Nice talking to you,” I told the phone. “Yes, I’m fine. Vainya is doing great. Thanks for calling.” Shoving the device into my jacket, I massaged my temples. “Dammit.”

  David asked, “What’s wrong?”

  “Just getting confirmation Caldrin’s job stinks. Someone I know wants to talk about it and I am not even going to wonder how he knows about it. But he’s not the type to reach out with the best intentions.”

  “Possible foul play then?”

  “Most likely.” I adjuste
d the strap of my bag. “Ready for a vampire club?”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Antiquity

  Ifussed with my growing hair as we walked along the side of the narrow walkway leading to Antiquity. My hair had grown into an uneven bob which reached my shoulders. If I was lucky, it would be it’s typical length by the end of the day.

  “That’s a pretty cool trick,” David said, gesturing to my head.

  “It’s only cool for people who like how they look.”

  “And you don’t?”

  “Let’s say it is hard to disguise myself when my hair rejects dye as soon as I apply it.” I scratched the side of my head. “And this is itchy as fuck!”

  In the evening light, the cobblestone road and stucco-fronted three-story buildings looked no different than they had a hundred years ago, with the lack of any evidence of maintenance. We passed the occasional person on the way home, but otherwise the streets were vacant.

  “So, vampires in Italy?” David asked. “I’d never thought of that.”

  “Vampires live where they want. Most reside in places that don’t change much over time.”

  “They don’t like progression?”

  “Oh, they do—especially when it comes to the recent medical advances—but some don’t adapt fast enough to keep up with human advancements. I make an active effort to keep up with the times and I still miss things.”

  We came to the corner and bumped into the last person in a long line leading to the main entrance of Antiquity. As clubs went, it was as reputable and close to impossible to get into as most other elite establishments. People stood in the line awaiting their turn to go inside, if they could get in at all. Some others walked past the line dressed in finery and were admitted with a simple nod to the bouncers. Other establishments had a separate door for such privileges, but Nicholas enjoyed reminding the “common folk” of their place. Not a hair was out of place nor a blemish to be seen on any of the features of those allowed immediate entrance.

  David grumbled, “This is a bunch of hurry up and wait.”

  “Naw, we can go right in. I have a lifelong membership.” Given our soaked appearance and matted hair, we wouldn’t fit in with the privileged elite, but I’d given up on trying to look presentable when we arrived. Canalasso, the elemental of the Grand Canal, also felt the need to place concentrated rubbish in my hair. We’d managed to clean the worst of it, but our appearance was a stone’s throw away from street beggars.

  David nodded his head toward the club’s entrance. “How do you get a lifelong membership to a place like this?”

  “Marry and then divorce the owner.”

  David brows crawled upward. “Married?”

  “And divorced,” I said pointedly.

  This is wonderfully awkward. Please continue.

  Thankfully, David didn’t push the topic further. Not that there was much to tell beyond that. We made our way to the front, earning a dirty look from those who had likely waited for hours and who did not look like they had been dragged backward through the finest sewer in Venice.

  The bouncer didn’t move when I tried to get inside. I hadn’t seen him before and judging by how he held himself along with his pasty complexion, he was a vampire who had just come into his power. He exposed his cute baby fangs, but when I didn’t seem impressed, he returned to scowling.

  He took his time looking me over. “Name?”

  “Nonya.”

  He frowned, looking over the list. “Nonya?”

  “None ya business.” I tucked my hands into the pockets of my parka. “I’d like to speak with the owner and I know where his office is, so just let me in.”

  The bouncer leered at me, moving into my personal space. “You don’t understand how this works, do you, sweet cheeks?”

  Another man appeared at the bouncer’s side and whispered into his ear. I took some satisfaction in watching the scowl shift to surprise and then a slow swallow.

  He cleared his throat and stepped out of my way. “We’ll notify Mr. Antiquity you’re here.”

  “Thanks, sweet cheeks.”

  Once inside, I cringed at the loud music and the sea of bodies. The flashing lights coupled with Silence’s gleeful excitement brought on a pounding in my head. I moved along the edges of the dance floor until I came to another door with two men on either side of it. One nodded and opened the door for David and me.

  Entering the foyer, I noted a woman standing next to a rack holding a variety of weapons spanning the ages, everything from broadswords to machine guns. Pulling out my Glock, I handed it to her and took my ticket stub. David reached into his jacket, pulled out a Sig, and handed it to the smiling woman.

  Such an odd formality, Silence mused. They take external weapons even though mythics could easily kill each other by other means. What is the point of it?

  “Like you said, it’s a formality.”

  You didn’t hand me over, Silence pointed out. Do you not feel safe without me by your side?

  “It’s safer for the others when you are by my side.”

  I pushed the inner door open and looked about while Silence cackled in my head. A soft light lit the room, allowing for shadows to cloak those within. Creatures sat at tables with drinks and plates of exotic food. The tables were all arranged to face the stage where a man dressed to impress spoke with a dazzling smile to the crowd. It could have been a club act with a particularly dapper compère until someone noticed the woman on the ground next to him with her throat ripped out. Blood pooled about her body and spread over the black stage floor. I was sure the dress she’d worn had been dazzling and suited to her figure, but it was nothing more than an expensive rag at that point—ripped beyond repair and stained with her blood. She’d been young and beautiful with full lips, gray eyes, and long black hair, which was now tangled and gummed to the floor by her blood.

  Such a waste.

  The man said something in Italian and everyone in the room chuckled. He continued as a stagehand dressed in all black removed the corpse.

  We’ve missed the fun part. But we can always make our own fun.

  Silence vibrated pleasantly at my back, his desire causing my heart to pound in my chest and eyes to become half-lidded. Before us were a variety of deadly creatures. Vampires, werewolves, demons, witches, warlocks, ghouls, and more peppered the tables. The air was tense with the possibility of violence, but all present refrained from attacking. If anything, the frisson of danger only added to the attractions of the club.

  Another woman came onto the stage, her skin a shimmering bronze and covered in conveniently placed rhinestones over her breasts and crotch. She smiled with vacant eyes at the group while leaning against the compère.

  I shook my head as we moved in the shadows and made our way to the stairs. Another guard nodded and ushered us through another door, heavier this time. When it closed behind us, all sound from the establishment became muted. The hallway leading to Nicholas’s office hadn’t changed much since my last visit. Long red carpet, dark walls, the occasional painting of some dead guy no one cared about.

  I don’t understand vampires and their need for long hallways.

  “They enjoy creating suspense since it builds up the hormones for the feeding,” I said, before facing David. “You have to wait out here, but Nick said you’d be fine.”

  David held out a hand. “Let me go through that stuff Yuki gave you. Maybe I can see something you didn’t.”

  “Mmm… sure, why not?”

  I handed everything over before walking into Nicholas’s office. He wasn’t in, but I expected that. With his club in peak hours, he wouldn’t be in his office. Not with connections to be made.

  Furnished with paintings, thick carpet, and elaborate drapes, I could’ve been in a medieval mountainside castle rather than in the back office of a nightclub. Books on various subjects ranging from history to modern scientific theories decorated the bookshelf on one side of the room, while elaborate paintings furnished the other side ove
r the wide fireplace, where a roaring fire blazed.

  I walked over to the selection of drinks and arched a brow at the date on the bottle of brandy, while Silence sounded a low whistle from my lips.

  Bad guys spare no expense for creature comforts.

  “Indeed not,” I murmured.

  Nicholas, dressed in an Italian suit that cost more than all of my pistols combined, entered the room with no ceremony. His hair, flowing to his shoulders, framed a proud face that sported a well-maintained beard. I noted a gray streak down the middle in contrast with his black hair. But Nicholas’s eyes, even after knowing him for centuries, held my attention. I’d always loved his eyes. Mostly because they were liquid black, which was my favorite color.

  I reached over and flicked the bottom part of his beard. “What is this? Are you bleaching your hair?”

  He pushed my hand away from his face with a finger. “Yes.”

  “Why? You’re already handsome.”

  I’d like to enforce some Silence rules. Rule one, don’t compliment your ex-husband’s looks.

  “Because I would like to look older than twenty-six. And good evening, Silence.”

  Ask him when he’s going to cover himself in sparkles while flexing his abs in the sun.

  “He says hello.”

  “In his own way, I am sure.” Nicholas poured an amber liquid into two glasses and held one out for me. “Who is the male you brought with you?”

  “Avatar of death and slaughter. I thought he and I could hang,” I said, taking the proffered glass. “Thank you.”

  I followed Nicolas to the two chairs by the fire and made myself comfortable. “Hey, wanna guess what I’ve started reading?”

  Nicholas arched a brow. “No, but I am sure you’ll enlighten me.”

  “I’ve been reading those romance novels about vampires humans keep gushing over. All those stories starring those misunderstood leeches are something. Especially that crap about Vlad.” I fanned myself while doing my best impression of a swooning lady.

  His eyes narrowed. “You are attempting to bait me.”

  “A little.” I leaned over toward him and rested my chin on my palm. “How much of that shit is actually written by you guys? It’s written so your kind are so... seductive. Forbidden.” I grinned. “You must get them by the dozen.”