I tugged at the ring. It wouldn’t budge. “I can’t wear this, Ceridwen. Maeve is already threatening to arrest me for your murder. I don’t need her adding robbing the Dead to the charges.”
Ceridwen returned to her chair. “The ring remains. It is glamoured from sight. Someone might sense it, but no one will see it.”
Meryl crossed her arms and tapped her foot. “Now you’re wearing her ring.”
I glowered. “Knock it off.”
She huffed, pretending to be annoyed. “Fine.”
“What’s this all about, Ceridwen?” I asked.
She leaned back. “I’m building an army, Grey.”
“An army,” I said.
“A reckoning is coming, Grey. Maeve is losing the support of the full Seelie Court. I will have it known how she betrayed me,” she said.
“In the meantime, you’re kidnapping people,” said Murdock.
Ceridwen glanced at him with unconcealed disdain. Murdock had pulled his gun on her once. First impressions were lasting. “No one is here against his will, Detective. We give everyone a choice. Safety with me or a pawn in Eorla’s war with the Elven King.”
“Sounds more like they’re pawns either way,” said Murdock.
“My people will always have a choice. The elves do not understand that concept,” she said.
“You’ve never met Eorla Elvendottir,” I said.
“You said you would stand by me, macGrey,” she said.
“I did. And I will. This isn’t the time.”
“I disagree. Eorla’s people are hunting us down. Her people have harassed mine throughout the neighborhood.” She tilted her head in consideration.
“Those are Donor’s people. He’s trying to create confusion down here,” I said.
Ceridwen narrowed her eyes. “Why would Donor care? His problem is Maeve.”
“Then why was Gerda Alfheim embedded in one of your glamoured walls? She works for Donor, not Eorla or Maeve,” I said.
The dwarf made a noise that drew my attention. He tried to cover the reaction by feigning disinterest. “Who is this, by the way?” I asked.
“This is my security chief, Nar Veinseeker,” Ceridwen said.
Murdock and I exchanged glances. “He’s who Donor’s been after, Ceridwen,” I said.
Ceridwen cocked her head at Nar. “Explain.”
Nar remained still for a long moment. “I had no knowledge of this, m’lady. My intent has been to secure our facilities as requested.”
“It sounds like your security chief has been hiding information from you, Ceridwen. Someone has been looking for dwarves that were here a century ago. Anyone with contacts in the Weird knows about it. I have it on good authority that it’s Nar they’ve been looking for,” I said.
“A curious claim, Nar, don’t you think?” Ceridwen asked.
Nar bowed. “M’lady, I do not know this gentleman, but I will not be spoken ill of. Our facilities were being attacked, and I took appropriate measures to protect us as you requested.”
“You weren’t being attacked, Ceridwen—he was. He’s been using your Hunt to protect himself if Gerda caught up with him,” I said.
Ceridwen didn’t take her attention off Nar. “What did she want with him?”
“Her last victim said she was looking for a stone ward that he knows about,” I said.
We both have held the truth spear, macGrey. I sense you are not telling me everything, she sent. Ceridwen had brought the spear to Boston, not realizing what it was. Access to it appeared in our minds at the same time, and we struggled over control of it. In the end, it came to me, but not before Vize used it to kill her. And now he had it again. I shrugged and glanced at Nar. I wasn’t going to share anything with a dwarf I didn’t know.
Nar drew a round polished stone out of his pocket and tossed it to me. “That is what she wanted. Stone wards are keyed to our glamour defenses.”
“These alleys and tunnels are our sanctuary. If anyone were to gain access uninvited, we would be at their mercy,” Ceridwen said.
I rolled the stone in my palm, feeling the essence cycling within it. It matched the ones Janey Likesmith had found on the dead dwarves at the morgue. I handed it to Murdock. “It’s like a pass key through the essence barriers and works with your body signature. It resonates with the same essence as the shield and lets you through if you have it on you.”
“Why not change the lock?” Murdock asked.
Nar held his hand out. “We do, but it takes time to modify all the barriers.”
Murdock tossed the stone back to Nar. “We found one of these on Gerda Alfheim. Kinda curious it didn’t work for her. Maybe you found time to modify one or two?”
“We only defend ourselves,” said Nar.
“This is all beside the point. Nar knows that’s not the stone she wanted,” I said.
“What stone do you believe she sought, Grey?” Ceridwen asked.
“Something called a faith stone. Bergin Vize wants to know where it is, too. That’s who your people are fighting back there, Ceridwen.”
She placed the helm on the floor and stood, her wings sparking angry shades of red and orange. “Vize is here?”
“I talked to him myself not an hour ago. Your people interrupted the conversation. He has the spear, again,” I said.
Then it seems our interests are aligned once again, Grey. I will have my revenge against the man who murdered me, she sent.
Nar moved closer to her chair. “He is playing with you, m’lady, to discredit me. He knows how you feel about this man.”
“Gerda may have been your enemy, Nar, but Vize is the one you need to worry about,” I said.
“The Guild is getting curious, too, Ceridwen. Your security guy is bringing some heavy hitters down on you,” said Meryl.
“I will not allow the Guild in my domain,” Ceridwen said.
“This isn’t your domain. It’s a city neighborhood,” Murdock said.
“Ryan macGoren is not to be trusted. We will investigate this matter and proceed appropriately,” she said.
Murdock shook his head. “After what happened in the Weird, the mayor is not going to allow fey vigilantes to run around outside the law.”
“I will deal with the Guild and the Elven King on my own terms, not anyone else’s, fey or human,” she said.
“I’m still reporting it,” he said.
“Then perhaps you should make yourself comfortable until I decide the best course,” she said.
Murdock loosened his jacket. “Is that a threat?”
I held my hands up for calm. “Let’s bring it down a notch. We’re all on the same side here.”
“Speak for yourself,” Murdock said.
I ignored him. “Ceridwen, don’t do anything foolish. You’re already planning on taking on the Guild. Talk to Eorla. I can vouch for some of her people, and she’s operating under color of law at the moment. Her support will be a lot more useful to you than that of someone who has a private agenda.”
“My people come to me because they do not trust her, Grey,” asked Ceridwen.
“Donor has been creating that distrust. There’s a dwarf named Brokke who can vouch for it. Your people might trust him,” I said.
“I know who he is. He’s a Consortium advisor, not one of Eorla’s people,” Ceridwen said.
“Eorla trusts him.”
Nar leaned forward. “If I may, m’lady? I do not believe I am the one here with a private agenda.”
Ceridwen glared down at him. “I will speak with Brokke and decide for myself, Nar. If Bergin Vize is indeed behind the attacks on my people, there will be hell to pay.”
31
Not long before dawn, Murdock dropped me off at my apartment. I had to crawl out of the backseat. Meryl considered it a toxic zone and had made a permanent claim on the passenger seat. “Thanks for another quiet evening out with friends,” Meryl said.
I tweaked her nose. “When was the last time you got to knock out a nixie?”
She smirked. “Yeah, that part was kinda fun.”
I leaned down so I could see Murdock. “Are you going to report Ceridwen?”
“We can’t ignore a gang fight shaping up, even if it is the Tangle,” he said.
“Can you give me twenty-four hours to broker something between Eorla and Ceridwen? I want the Guild going after Vize, not them,” I said.
Meryl groaned and dropped her head back against the seat. “You can’t help yourself, can you? It’s bad enough you have Maeve breathing down your neck and Vize running loose, but you have to step into a territory spat between two chicks who wished they were queen of the world.”
I pursed my lips. “I think that’s oversimplifying it a bit.”
She rolled her eyes. “Danu forbid that happens.”
I leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Did I mention how much I missed you?”
She pouted, then chuckled. “Can you miss me a little more? I’m beat.”
I looked across the seat. “Leo? At least don’t mention Ceridwen by name. No one else knows she came back Dead.”
He sighed and shrugged. “Another day isn’t going to matter in this mess.”
I tapped the roof of the car. “Thanks, man. I’ll call you both later.”
I lingered on the sidewalk as they drove away, pretending to see them off. I knew the real reason I didn’t go upstairs right away but pushed down the thought. I wanted to go to Shay’s squat, hunch over the stone ward, and bliss out on the essence surge. It was a few short blocks away. I could be there and back in less than an hour.
I took a few steps toward the corner and stopped, realizing what I was doing. That wasn’t what I wanted. I didn’t want to be seduced by need. I didn’t want to be too weak to resist. I didn’t want to be controlled by something outside myself. I had lived my entire life the way I wanted, not because I could but because I couldn’t stand being controlled.
When I had my abilities, I had the ability to determine my fate. Sure, I worked for the Guild, did what I was asked, even stuff I didn’t want to do but was ordered to. That was always on my terms. I had options. I didn’t have to be a Guild agent. I could have left anytime I wanted. I could have used my abilities for something else.
When I lost my abilities, I thought I lost my ability to live my life my way. It made me angry, made me feel controlled. It took me a while, but I learned I was wrong. If I was controlled by anything, it was my perception of who I was. I had spent the last three years learning that I was more than just a body with or without an ability. I was more than that. I was the sum of my experiences. I was my own person. I was who I needed to be, not what someone else wanted me to be. I wasn’t going to invite in something beyond my control. Not again. I turned around and went upstairs.
Despite being tired, I tossed and turned on my futon. I hated that Vize had slipped away. Worse, he had the spear. It was a powerful weapon, strong enough to seal a breach in the veil between here and TirNaNog. When it had bonded to me, I sensed it in my mind even when it wasn’t physically present. When it materialized in his hand, I had felt nothing. It made me worry that the spear was no longer bonded to me or Ceridwen, but to Vize.
It came when summoned with an enchanted word of command—ithbar. Ceridwen had revealed the command to me, thinking only she could control the spear, but it was a fickle thing. I’d used the command, and the spear left her. Then, without the command, it left me and went to Vize. Why it jumped from person to person escaped me. Someone told me it was a sliver of the Wheel of the World, whatever that meant. I didn’t like to think about Vize’s having control of the spear and the faith stone. I had to find a way around him. Even if I couldn’t control who the spear went to, I still had a chance to keep the stone away from him.
I gave up on sleep. One person in Boston was key to both the faith stone and Vize. The whole mess could be stopped if Donor Elfenkonig laid off. I doubted he would, but I at least had to explore the option, if only to close that door.
I left the apartment and walked across town to Back Bay. “Ambassador Core” had chosen to stay at the Teutonic Consortium consulate rather than at the Ritz-Carlton, where his diplomatic corps preferred to stay when they were in town. Of course, the consulate was sovereign Teutonic territory and defended by a contingent of elven soldiers. No doubt the Ritz couldn’t compete with those amenities, which made the consulate a much more attractive residence for an undercover Elven King.
Guards became alert as I turned the corner of Commonwealth Avenue. They had the right to stand on public property, but they had no real jurisdiction outside the consulate. They were an outer perimeter, an early-warning system. They recognized me. I had no doubt. My face was probably plastered in the lunchroom. Before I reached the building, word would spread via sendings that I was coming.
No one challenged me. Through back channels, the Elven King had offered me asylum from the Guild or the U.S. government should I ever need it. Donor saw an opportunity to gain favor with a valuable former Guild agent. I knew plenty of secrets. I found the idea more entertaining than anything else. Despite my troubles, the last person I would make an alliance with was Donor. After my experience with Nigel, I recognized a strategic opportunist when I saw one.
The consulate was a mistake of architecture. Thrust into the middle of a block of Victorian brownstones, the Bauhaus structure was hard to miss. A tall statue of Donor dressed as a warrior guarded the entrance. Now that I had met him in person, I knew the armor wasn’t affectation. Beneath the mannered aloofness of a monarch, I had sensed a fighter.
The reception area resembled an upscale mountain lodge. Empty overstuffed couches faced each other in several groupings, as if the elven staff hung around socializing. None did that I ever saw. Uniformed guards waited behind the desk.
“Connor Grey to see the ambassador,” I said.
“Please declare any weapons,” the senior guard said.
They weren’t going to argue or brush me off. Either Donor expected me or wanted to see me for his own reasons. “Two daggers. Don’t even think of asking for them.”
They exchanged glances a few moments. I had bluffed my way in with weapons last time I was there. They let me keep them, but last time I wasn’t visiting the Elven King. I wondered how many of the guards knew the true identity of the ambassador. “You understand, sir, that the current climate prevents us from honoring your request,” the guard said.
Elven security wasn’t known for its courtesy. Donor must have been eager. “I will leave one dagger here. The other was a gift I cannot replace and will not relinquish. I will keep it in its boot sheath as long as I am not required to defend myself.”
Again, they exchanged glances, the air fluttering with sendings. The dagger was a gift from Briallen, gold-plated handguards and silver-bound pommel encrusted with crystals and gems. The blade had carved runes from different alphabets, bound with spells and essence. Without seeing it, I sensed runes activating in the presence of elves. Briallen never explained how the runes worked—or revealed if she even knew—but they activated on their own according to circumstances.
The senior guard extended his hand. “Agreed.”
I handed over my favorite plain steel one and watched it disappear beneath the counter. I could live without it but preferred not to. They led me through the back of the lobby, past the elevators, to a secure section of the floor. A windowless area was laid out with the comfort of a corporate suite. Beyond a well-appointed living room was an empty, sterile office with an oak desk and several chairs, where they left me to wait.
Fifteen minutes later, Ambassador Core entered in full court regalia, the bright red tunic with all the gold bric-a-brac hanging off it. To my surprise, Brokke followed him and seated himself in a corner. The ambassador gestured at the guards to leave, and they closed the door behind them.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Grey?” he asked.
“Show me your true face for a start,” I said. I hated games.
Without hesita
tion, Donor released the ambassador illusion. Instead of the smug face of Aldred Core, the smug face of Donor Elfenkonig stared at me. “Have you considered my offer of asylum?”
“I don’t need it. I’m sure you’ve heard by now that Gerda Alfheim is dead,” I said.
Bored, he glanced at Brokke. “I’ve been apprised of local news, dull as it is.”
“Where’s Bergin Vize?”
Donor frowned. “Mr. Grey, these are people I have no knowledge of.”
“Funny you would forget Eorla’s fosterling,” I said.
Donor lowered himself into a chair. “I do not concern myself with the doings of all my citizens. Perhaps if you spoke on a subject I do engage, this conversation might proceed somewhere.”
“Alfheim’s dead, and Vize has added more victims to his body count. They work for you. They always have. They’ve caused a lot of damage. At some point, it’s going to stick to you,” I said.
“I doubt that. I won’t be held accountable for the deeds of others. Terrorists have their own agenda,” he said.
“But they serve yours,” I said.
Donor looked down at the desk, his face a mask as he weighed which string to pull. “Many people do. I am not in the habit of rejecting things that have the good fortune of redounding to my benefit. I have heard a rumor that Gerda was looking for something I am interested in. I will not object if it comes into my hands at some point.”
“Where is the faith stone?”
Donor gave his head a small shake. “Faith stone? If Gerda sought such a thing and did not find it, I’m sure no one else has.”
“As far as you know, you mean,” I said.
His arrogant smile was starting to get on my nerves. “True, but I think I would know if someone else found it. I think we all would know,” he said.
“Vize has killed at least three of your own people helping Gerda in her little treasure hunt,” I said.
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