by Martha Carr
"Woot! Woot! Yumfuck!" yelled the troll, leaning over and shaking his ass.
"What the hell is Correk doing now?" Leira moved to get a better view.
Correk had his arms behind his head and was gyrating near the crowd again. Eireka was stepping out further onto the stage, touching the dancers as they went by her, occasionally getting spun around by a dancer mashing his hips against hers.
"All this without alcohol."
The guard who had let Correk and her mother go backstage was making his way upfront, taking the side stairs, stepping onto the stage. The women down front started pawing his leg but he shook them off with a snarl. "Angry Wood Elf, maybe. Not good. I'd better get up there." Leira started pushing her way toward the front, the troll still bouncing on her shoulder.
"Excuse me, sorry, excuse me, just want to get by, that's my mother, don't have the bail money on me, excuse me, sorry, Yumfuck let go of him, excuse me, sorry."
She finally made it to the four side steps and ignored the boos from the women. She saw Toni bobbing in the crowd giving her two thumbs up and she smiled and quickly climbed the stairs, pulling her new badge out of her back pocket, flashing it at the dancers starting to move in on her, still gyrating their hips.
"Not today, big fella." She made her way to the back of the stage where the guard was doing his best to pull her mother off of a muscled dancer with thick wavy brown hair. His back was to the audience and he was doing a slow stomach roll as Leira's mother slid dollar bills into his Speedo, while running her other hand through his hair. He was smiling, curling his lip, singing, "Satisfaction came in a chain reaction," as the guard demanded Eireka leave the stage. No one was listening to him.
The crowd started chanting, "Take it off, take it off," at the guard, only making him more frustrated.
"Not another one!" he shouted, throwing up his hands.
Leira flashed her badge at him, flipping it closed. "That's my mother, sir. And the machine dancing in the front is with me too."
"The trained mouse yours?" She had forgotten for a moment that Yumfuck was on her shoulder. She smiled at the guard. "I'll get her..."
"You a circus family or escaped from a nut farm."
Leira felt a thin thread of anger spike up the middle of her chest and burn in her throat. Glowing symbols appeared on the backs of her hands and her eyes started to glow. Correk spun around to shake his ass at the crowd and saw Leira lighting up, glaring at the frightened guard. He stopped dancing and scooped his tunic off the ground as the crowd gave out a loud, collective groan. He shoved his way to the back, putting a hand on Leira's shoulder, hiding her from onlookers.
"Cousin," he said, evenly, "I suppose we've had our fun."
Leira held still for a moment, still staring down the trembling guard. "Not crazy," she hissed. "Got it?"
The guard vigorously nodded his head as Leira let Correk lead her away. He put an arm around Eireka's waist and pulled her off the stage with him.
"None of you come back," the guard meekly yelled, jabbing a finger in the air. Leira turned back around and he took a step back, pressing himself against the wall.
"That was worth the fifteen-year wait," said Eireka, brushing a wet lock of hair out of her face. "Wow, men do a better job of grooming these days."
"They call it manscaping, remember?" said Correk.
"What exactly were you doing on the computer? How long was I gone from the house?"
"Eireka asked me to show her. She's into abs. What? She's a grown woman."
"I have needs," said Eireka, giggling as Leira did her best not to sputter.
"My brain is melting." Leira looked at Correk still standing there shirtless, breathing hard from the dancing, his muscular torso moving up and down. I could get hypnotized by that. "Put your tunic back on," she said, doing her best to look away.
Leira pulled Eireka's arm away before she could run her hand along Correk's back. Still, Leira found herself taking a longer look. It's like he has twelve pack abs. Is that even possible? She shook her head. No, not gonna go there. She looked at her mother. Eireka was still smiling, covered in sweat. Her own and a few dancers.
"You had a good time, didn't you?" Leira felt the anger drain out of her. Not going to waste a moment, she thought.
"I did. That was quite the workout. I think I used up all my dollar bills. Totally worth it. Best investment I've made today."
Leira finally laughed and hugged her mother tight. The troll jumped from her shoulder into Correk's open hand.
"I'm soaked! I'll get you wet," said Eireka.
"I don't care." Leira looked over her mother's shoulder at Correk. "Nice moves, big man. I have a few more questions about Oriceran now, of course."
"Wouldn't you like to know."
"You've been holding out. You've got moves like Jagger."
"Mick didn't invent the moves. He just showed them to a grateful nation. He used to visit more often. I wonder how he's getting on these days."
"I suppose that one actually makes sense. Come on, let's go. That's enough for one day. You good, Mom? I think you got close to a hundred pictures and you were the groupie for the Chippenelves."
"I'm good. Whew! That was amazing! It hasn't even been a week of freedom!"
"We can't keep up this pace, Mom. Even as Elves. This will do me in."
"Live a little, daughter."
"Trust me, I'm already out of my box and someone took the box away and used it for origami. Let's get you home so you can wash off all that sweaty DNA."
"This was not a crime scene, my dear daughter. It was a happening."
Leira kissed her mother's forehead, holding her head in her hand. "Yeah, it was."
"Motherfuckers!" yelled the troll, holding up peace signs. He had tied the paper wrapper from a straw around his forehead.
"Ah, there you go, perfect ending," said Eireka.
"Yes, just like Woodstock. Don't say it," said Liera, pointing at Correk.
"Well, Jimi Hendrix..." muttered Correk, smiling.
Chapter Eleven
Leira waited till Correk was in the shower. "Nesturnium," she said over the sleepy troll. She tucked the washcloth around him. He was holding a pair of her underwear in his arms. "I see that's still a thing," she whispered. "Going to have to make a run to Target." She went out into the living room where Eireka was sitting on the couch looking up pictures of shirtless men. Leira shook her head and smiled. "Try not to stare at those too long, Mom. Pace yourself. You know most men don't actually look like that."
"Light Elves do."
"Point taken. Are those all Light Elves? Never mind. That is a rabbit hole I don't have time for. I'll be back soon. Don't wait up if it gets late. I'll be fine." She kissed her mother on the top of her head. Her hair was still damp.
"At least be careful, okay?" Eireka held up her hand. "I'm not asking for an explanation. I know you can take care of yourself. Correk is used to a different world where the Elves naturally do most everything together. He can't imagine someone running toward danger alone. But I know you. Even though I haven't gotten to be around you for most of your life, I know you, and I believe in you. Go, be careful and come home to tell me all about it." A small do over. "Leira, if you need my help..."
Leira stopped, her hand on the doorknob.
"You can send out a stream of energy and I'll feel it. We're connected. All the women in our line are connected by the energy. It's how your grandmother knew you were in such grave danger. Even in there, she felt it. If you need me," she said, slowly, "send out a signal. Let me answer."
"Promise," Leira said softly, and she quietly slid out the door as the shower stopped, hurrying for the gate.
"Hey Leira!" One of the regulars called out to her.
"What have I told you about making her wave at you every fool time she comes and goes." Estelle shot out a wet bar towel, snapping it at someone.
"Estelle you still have a soft spot in my heart," said Scott. "Some day you're gonna end up in heaven."
<
br /> "Well, I'll miss you people," grumbled Estelle, the cigarette bouncing between her teeth as she talked.
"Did she just say we were going to hell?" asked Lucy.
"Yeah, don't take it personally. She works that point into a conversation at least once a week," said Mike.
Leira hurried out the gate and got in the Mustang, quickly driving away. She made a quick stop, getting back into her car and called her old station. Detective Hagan was on a case down on 5th Street. Possible suicide the desk sergeant said, but no one was sure yet.
She looked at the pink box in her lap and turned off the engine. It was easier to walk the one block to the crime scene where her old partner was than to drive there. She turned the corner passing under the Driskill Hotel, looking up at the windows with the curved stone arches and was tempted to go in but she made a promise. Besides, she wanted to see Hagan.
She got up to the barricades and was about to lift the tape when she remembered she didn't work for the department anymore. She waited for an officer to approach, a new face, and pulled out her badge.
"What are the Feds doing here?" he asked, lifting the tape. "Looks like a straight-up suicide."
"Visiting a friend. Hagan nearby?"
"Strange place to pay a visit. He's right over there. Near the jumper."
Leira made her way over to the blue Chevy Tahoe with a large plastic sheet draped over it. The top of the Tahoe was caved in.
"What are you doing here? They don't have enough for you to do? Uh oh, the pink box on the job. This can't be good. Don't ruin doughnut time for me by always saying shit I don't want to hear."
"Hello to you too, Hagan. This is a makeup box for the doughnut Yumfuck got a hold of."
"Yeah, I noticed later the little fucker had licked a few others. I don't know how he does it. Fast as lightning. That's it? You drove all the way down here just to bring me food? If you were Rose I'd say this is my reoccurring dream but I generally wake up just as she hands me the pink box."
"Take the doughnuts asshole and stop telling me your innermost thoughts. I thought we had an agreement not to share like that."
"My bad. Thank you," he said, taking the box. "Why are you really here? Ah, crullers, we meet again."
"If I say I missed you and needed to bounce a few things off you, will you not make a thing out of it?"
"Guaranteed. Feelings are not my thing. Although, I have to admit, I am touched. Come on, let's get out of the way of the coroner. We can take a rest by my car. My partner is too busy chatting up those college seniors to notice he's on the job."
Leira looked over at the young detective, smiling and flirting with the two girls.
"There could be someone running behind him waving a pistol, he wouldn't see it unless the gun landed in someone's cleavage." Hagan sat the box down on top of his Dodge Charger. "Not a Mustang but it gets the job done," he said, patting the car.
Leira leaned against the hood. "How’s Rose doing? Her cold finally go away?”
“It’s dragging on but she’s holding her own. What’s up, Berens?”
“Remember when you said I could sort things out with you? That's why I'm here."
"Oh yeah? What's happened now? More of the walking dead visiting you?"
"Not so far. But I think I found a place to do a showdown with the thing that almost ate me. The Driskill Hotel."
"Right around the corner?" Hagan hooked a thumb over his shoulder. "No shit. Makes sense."
"Makes sense? Why is that?"
"Everybody knows it's haunted. I take it that's really your people."
"Nice. My people."
"You know what I mean. So what's the dilemma? Bet I can guess. You want to go barreling in there but the big magical Elf is not up for it. You got the bejeezus scared out of you even if you won't admit it and you're not even sure it's smart to just go prancing in there. Am I warm?"
"Pretty warm. I don't even have all the pieces yet."
"Oh yeah, the oversized talking rat. Where do you find one of those?"
"A Willen. To find that I will definitely need Correk's help. He says they're great thieves and will bargain you out of everything."
"You can take 'em. You bring coffee? You are slipping. So you find a talking rat, you make a deal and then..."
"And then, we trust the thieving rat does the impossible and steals from a group known for their ability to keep things locked away. And that's the easy part. If we get the intel we need, then we hold the Oriceran equivalent of a seance with a bunch of magical people from Austin holding hands..."
"Oh, this really is getting good."
"And we open the gates of hell, or a kind of a hell and hope that nobody gets sucked in and my grandmother is standing there, ready and waiting when we do. Easy peasy."
"Sounds like it. What are your other choices?"
"Walk away. Forget I found out where she is."
"Then we both know what you're gonna do. Come on, let's go take a walk. Yes, we're headed there. We won't go in. We'll just stroll by. Satisfy my curiosity and make you feel better. Peterson! Peterson!" Hagan called to his partner who finally peeled himself away from the ladies. "You thinking about retiring sometime soon? No? Then you might want to try working the job. Interview a few people who aren't female and in their twenties and bring back actual useful information this time. Now, I'm leaving this box with you and I've counted them. If one is even disturbed, you're bringing me doughnuts from Voodoo for a month. Got it? Don't care who does the disturbing, you protect these."
Peterson nodded, taking notes.
"Oh geez. You don't have to write that down, do you? Alright, I'll be back." Hagan walked off in frustration, lifting the tape for Leira.
"At least he's enthusiastic."
"Yeah, for anything with boobs. I'm telling you Leira, I have even looked at my retirement package once or twice. Come on, let's turn here. How're you adjusting with your mother?"
"Bit by bit. Not easy feeling like I'm responsible for someone else."
"First mistake. You're not. Take it from an old married guy with a smart wife and a former partner who could run faster than I can. You're there for each other but you don't help unless you hear a fucking question. Enough withering glares from Rose in our early years finally taught me that one."
"Another Hagan-ism I can tuck away."
"It'll save you from a lot of arguments and you'll end up learning how to back off anyway. Might as well start early. Besides, you're still the kid, even if you wear a weapon. I tell you what, treat her like you treat a partner. You know how to do that. Okay, look up, you can just about see the hotel already."
Leira stepped off the curb to see around a tree and looked up at the windows. In the moonlight she saw a figure at the window and almost looked away. There was something so familiar. She looked again, shading her eyes from the streetlight. All the women in my line are connected, thought Leira, sending her energy out before her, reaching up to the window. This way, I'll know for sure. Her energy unfurled, dancing a thin curling stream reaching up at the window pane that would go unnoticed by ordinary humans.
But there was no one in the room, not really. Mara floated in the thick ether of the world in between, gazing down at her granddaughter. Her patience had been rewarded. She had found her again.
The curl of energy came up and drifted into the room, strong enough to barely penetrate the veil between the two dimensions, wrapping itself around Mara. It was the first time in four years she had felt it so purely. It was love. She closed her eyes, soaking it in, sending out her own energy to meet it, letting the two mix together for a short time.
Leira felt the energy mixing with something and knew it was her grandmother. They had found a meeting place. Maybe this will work. The feeling of hope grew stronger in her chest. There is a way. Her face flushed from the rush of love that slid down the stream of magic and into her being.
Mara felt the connection return and let it linger for just a moment longer. She knew she couldn't stay. T
he dark mass of old magic was looking for both of them and her granddaughter's magic was powerful. It would attract attention in the world in between.
She let the tendrils slip away from her, sliding back down the side of the hotel and she moved through a wormhole quickly finding herself on the streets of San Francisco, watching the harbor seals in the bay.
"She's gone," said Leira, standing under the windows of the hotel. "She's gone, but it was her. She was there. I felt it." Her eyes shimmered in the streetlight. She looked back up at the window and saw the mist creeping up the glass. It was moments too late. Leira grabbed Hagan's hand. "Let's get out of here."
"Bogeymist back?"
"Yes, but that's actually good news. It won't see me coming."
"They never do, Berens. Dumb fucks."
Leira hurried home, coming into the dark guest cottage as quietly as she could. She dropped her purse onto the red velvet chair by the door and tiptoed across the floor toward Correk. She could hear the troll snoring in his shoe box on the floor by the couch. He gave out a trill and a giggle and curled up into a ball.
She took another step, pausing as one of the floorboard's creaked under her weight. She waited to see if anyone stirred before taking another step.
"The anticipation is killing me. Will you just walk over here?" Correk put a hand behind his head. Leira could see him arching that one eyebrow even in the near darkness.
Leira took the last few steps a little faster as Correk sat up and swung his legs around to make room for her, watching out for the troll's nest.
"Did you realize he gets a clean pair of your underwear every day? It's like he makes his bed."
"I did not. Really going to have to move going to Target up the list of things to do." Leira sat down next to Correk, already waving her hands, too excited to sit still. "I saw Nana! I saw her! She was in a window at the Driskill." She was whispering as loud as she dared.
Leira waited for Correk to lambaste her for going near the Driskill but he sat back against the couch, stifling a yawn, patiently waiting.