Oisin flashed an arrogant grin. “And I’m the best.”
Finn gave him one that matched. “You are, son. You are.”
Chapter 12
Bastie,
I keep meeting the most interesting people. Remind me to tell you more about Ailis. You two would get along wonderfully. She also likes to tease.
I am also having visions of a half-mountain the locals say is cursed. I almost squealed in excitement but managed to hold it in. Maybe they are not so unlike us after all, if they have curses.
I do wish you were here, though. These immortal not-men are confusing me.
- Bat, the goddess on the trail of a killer
p.s. Oh! I did not tell you! I am reinventing myself. I am going to become a disciple of Ma’at once more. I very much like the idea of seeking justice for those who have been wronged, and keeping the balance in a more direct manner. I have always been jealous of the cat goddesses, who get to go hunting for the wicked.
BAT
They were here. O’Malley’s, the first stop in their investigation. It was a mere fifteen-minute walk from the pub. This walk had been much different than the one the night before.
Celebrations and revelry for the saint were still underway. It seemed the peoples of this country could not decide on a proper ritual though. There were some, somber and respectful, nicely dressed and quietly going about their business; closed storefronts were the business equivalent. Then there were the others, in large green hats, or holding banners and ribbons, streaming in and out of pubs, or loudly singing, their accents so thick she wasn’t sure they were speaking English.
The clouds parted, allowing a stream of light to illuminate the painted storefront sign of the shop they sought. It picked out the reds and deep browns in the letters and reflected off the glass, obscuring her vision for a moment.
When Bat blinked and focused, Ailis stood on the other side of the glass, a broad smile on her face.
The green haired woman yanked open the door and stepped back. “Ya came!” She gestured quickly. “Come in, come in. I don’t have a lot of time, but I can fit in a chat.” Her gaze moved beyond Bat to the brothers standing behind her. “Ya found the pub alright then?” She gestured again. “Come, come.”
Bat entered the store and felt a pressure similar to the night before. Ailis’s green eyes widened and shot back to the brothers as they came in, then settled back on Bat. “I had heard rumors, but...”
Bat noted that the accent, though still there, had cleared up considerably. She tilted her head. “Rumors?”
Ailis put on a wide smile. “Come into the back with me. Come on. We’ll have a chat, and I’ll tell ya of our little city. It’s something, it’s something.”
Bat caught sight of an older couple in the aisles formed by shelves filled with various goods and foods. She nodded. “Yes, I would like that, thank you. And, thank you for the directions last night. Who knows how long I would have wandered in the cold. It was kind of you.”
Ailis nodded, shot another closed look at the brothers and led the way through the little store. In addition to the aisles of goods, there was a low wood counter, weathered and old, just like the bar top at the pub. Shelves filled with jars and bottles were lined up behind it. An old-fashioned register, the kind with lever-buttons and numbers that flipped over, had a place of importance at one end. Bat wanted to examine it, and the scrolling metalwork that decorated its sides. Something of it called to her...
Dub nudged her back. “Don’t be taken in by the glamour, storeen.” Then he scowled at Ailis. “Tricky, tricky fae.”
Ailis scowled back. “Not here, Fomoiri. Wait.” Then she flipped her hair—and her middle finger—spun on her heel, and continued to the back of the store.
Bat laughed. Ailis reminded her of Bastet. She missed the cat. I hope Ailis isn’t the culprit. She would make a good friend.
They entered a narrow room tucked behind the main store. A couple of small tables with chairs were crammed in there, and a narrow counter and sink took up space along one wall. A small plug-in kettle stood next to a box of tea bags.
Ailis moved right to it. “Care for some tea? How do you like it? Have a seat.” She looked over her shoulder at Bat, brows raised.
She was supposed to answer now? Bat suppressed a grin. “Yes, tea would be lovely, thank you. I am not sure how he made it, but Shar put together a wonderful concoction earlier. And, yes, I would like to discuss something with you. Da—” Her throat closed. “Dano.”
Ailis stiffened, and the mug she pulled from a cabinet fell into the sink. “Dammit,” she muttered. She pulled out the pieces and placed them on the counter. The handle had broken off. She quickly pulled out another mug and filled the kettle, hitting the toggle to start it. She grabbed a second mug, and then two bags of tea, fussing until everything was ready for the hot water. When that was done, she slowly placed her hands on the edge of the counter and leaned into it, her head bowed. Then she spun and pinned an angry look on Mell.
“What did you get him mixed up in?” Her gaze bounced from brother to brother and she must have sensed what happened, or her abilities ran to reading thoughts, or emotions, or both. Her lids closed, and her face twisted. “What the hell am I going to tell Ciara?”
“The pixie?” Dub asked, his voice almost gentle. He pulled out a chair and nudged Bat until she sat. He took the one next to her, and his brothers leaned against the wall behind them. They filled the small space to bursting.
“Aye. She and Dano had an... understanding.”
Mell shifted, and Bat knew he was going to reveal the ring. She wasn’t sure it was the best move if Ailis was guilty, but it would be very smart if she was not. Reaching between her and Dub, he placed the small piece of gold onto the table.
Ailis sucked in a breath as her hand moved to cover her mouth. Tears glimmered in her eyes, making them look like the fields that covered this island. If she was presenting a false front, she was doing a very good job of it. Bat couldn’t sense any traces of emotion from her. A trick of the fae?
“It’s real,” Mell murmured, so low Bat almost didn’t catch his words.
Ailis pushed away from the counter and snapped up the ring. She turned it in her fingers, and once more her eyes slid closed. Her brow furrowed, and Bat could see her eyes moving beneath her lids. She slumped again and looked at Dub. “Not one of yours?”
“No.”
One of his? Why would he have a claddagh, or, more than one? The confusion must have shown because Ailis grinned at her. “No, he doesn’t keep a supply of claddagh on hand, ready to propose to every fae or goddess that steps into his pub. He’s a smith.” She snorted. “Used to be one of the best. Now he just does it as a ‘hobby.’” The fae even held up her hands and made quote marks with her fingers. Bat grinned. Bastet used to do that too.
“We think there was a baobhan sith involved,” Mell said.
Ailis paled. The kettle went off and she jumped, then busied herself pouring steaming water into the mugs she’d set out.
“Ailis.” Bat didn’t use any power, didn’t seek a vision. Yet the other woman still flinched. “Dano was given a final death. A... soul blade killed him. And a woman with a pale freckled hand dealt the blow.” Bat’s gaze dropped to the other woman’s hands, pale, yes, but with ragged nails and peeling green polish. Time for the doozy. No reason to hold back. “I saw you. You and another woman with red-gold hair, you ran from an alley.”
Ailis’s face closed up and Bat’s stomach clenched. Maybe she shouldn’t have been quite so blunt.
“And you want to know if I, or the woman with red-gold hair, had anything to do with Dano’s death?” Her eyes narrowed. “And how the hells did you see this? I know when this was, it was months ago.” She waved her hand and just like that she was back to the Ailis that Bat had met on the street the night before. “Eh, no matter. That was Ciara and me. We were spying on Dano. He was acting real shifty. We followed him to the alley behind the pub and saw him and Mell
doing some sort of deal. Dub was there as well. And tell me, now, who does back alley deals with shifty Fomoiri? Shifty leprechauns, that’s who. And that’s what I told Ciara, she needed to drop him. But she refused and now look where she is.” Her eyes filled, and she blinked. “And look where Dano is. So, tell me, what were you all doing in that alley, eh?”
It was a good question. Bat wanted to know the answer as well. She craned her neck back and looked at Mell expectantly.
Mell’s eyes were wide, and his gaze bounced around the room.
Dub let out a frustrated breath and scrubbed his hand over his head. “Tell them.”
“He was helping find Da’s brooch.” Mell’s voice was guarded. He hunched the shoulder closest to Shar, a small cringe away from his brother.
Shar moved, an aborted movement of his arms, like he would hit his brother, or embrace him. The scowl on his face had him looking so much like Dub at that moment, if it weren’t for the patch, Bat might not have been able to tell the difference. “You’re both idiots.” His hands flew up and Mell flinched. “Fucking idiots, the both of ya. What good would that do? It’ll change nothing.” Shar dropped a hand and slammed his palm into the wall behind him, denting the plaster.
“Hey now, easy on the walls. I don’t want to be replacing that.” Ailis straightened her slumped posture and glared at him. She turned to Bat. “Do you ever feel like you started reading in the middle of a series, but can’t find the first book?”
“Yes.” Bat grinned at her, appreciating the moment of humor. “I often feel like this around these brothers.” She sobered. “I am sorry about Dano. We played music together last night. He made me feel very welcome. If you think it allowable, I would like to meet this Ciara and offer my condolences. It has... come to my attention, the ways of death are a little different for the immortals here. Know that if I could have, I would have ensured the parts of his soul found rest in the otherworld.”
Ailis bowed her head. “That is kind of you, goddess. I will pass on your sentiments.”
The sudden respect threw her off. “Thank you. But, please continue to call me Bat. I am no goddess here. I am barely one at home.”
Ailis’s green eyes met hers, glinting through her lashes. “I appreciate the generosity of the use of your name.” Then she grinned and shot a look at Dub, who sat close enough for Bat to feel the heat of him. “Though I could argue that there are some who think you a goddess in truth.”
Heat rushed to her cheeks and Bat cleared her throat. “Yes. Well. Back to Dano.”
“Of course. Though there’s not much I can tell ya. I will ask around about a baobhan sith, but I’m not sure what use it will be. Unless she didn’t get her intended victim, you know she’s probably returned to her mountains. I doubt she’s using the blade for her own sake, that’s not where a baobhan sith gets her power.”
“Where would she get the blade?” Bat asked. “Would a deity have given it to her? Why would they? What purpose could it possibly serve? How does it give power? Does it use the souls it gathers? How many are there? Can just anyone use the power?”
Ailis glared at the brothers. “You boman. Did you not explain anything to her?” She leaned forward and gathered Bat’s hands in hers. Their eyes met, Ailis’s green ones eager. Bat couldn’t even guess what her own expression was, but her thoughts swirled. “The soul blades belong to the gods, yes, but that doesn’t mean that some enterprising immortal will not steal one occasionally and try to... raise their position in this world.” She shrugged. “Or it’s some pissant god who’s decided he wants a larger slice of the pie. I don’t know how they were made, and as far as I know, not everyone can use them or use their power, I should say. Anyone can kill with them, which is why they are locked up.”
“So, the sith can’t use the power?”
“No.”
“Then there is someone else behind it.”
“Find the sith, and you’ll find the string puller, more than likely. Or figure out what they are ultimately after and get there before them. Dano and a soul blade, doesn’t add up. It could have been random, a simple gathering of power. It could have been revenge, or he could have gotten mixed up with the wrong crowd. But how would they know he was going to return to the pub?” Ailis shifted her gaze to Dub. “Or he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he took the blade for someone else?”
Ignoring the innuendos, for now, Bat turned her hands under Ailis’s and gripped the other woman’s fingers. She was careful to keep her power to herself. “Will you help us? I would like to find justice for Dano.”
Ailis beamed at her. There was no other word for the smile the green-haired woman gave her. “Oh, ye’re gonna stir up all the trouble in this little place. All the trouble.” She turned her head to Dub but didn’t pull away from Bat’s grip. “I assume the guardi has been called?”
Mell cleared his throat. “Yes, Finn is on it.”
“Well, that’s got to burn yer britches.” Merriment rang in Ailis’s voice and filled the room.
Oh, she was one of those, like Mell. Well then.
“I asked for him,” Mell said.
Was that a pout? Bat wished everyone would sit at the table, or at least stand where she could see them, especially if they were going to be part of the discussion. Her neck was getting a crick.
Bat squeezed Ailis’s hands until the woman looked back at her. “And we are once again in the middle of a scene where I have not read the beginning of the book, as you said.” She took a deep breath and slowly released it. She hoped this worked, that her powers cooperated. “I would like to try something, if you agree. I can sometimes get vi—”
“No.” Dub shifted next to her and grabbed her forearm to tug one of her hands away, enfolding it in his. “Do not.” His tones were stone. He would not move on this.
She argued anyway. “But if it could help—”
“Not more than it would harm if word got out.”
Mell pulled out one of the chairs at the other small table and turned it around to face her. He leaned forward and propped his elbows on his knees, his long, calloused fingers clasped in front of him. “Word is out. She told the pooka how to find his lost love.”
“A— a pooka’s lost love?” Ailis giggled and squeezed the hand she still held. “More like his next victim.”
Bat stiffened and pulled away. “I would never.”
Ailis shook her head. “Pooka’s don’t have loves.” There was condescension there despite the woman’s cheery tones.
“This one does.” Bat’s words hung in the air, and tension rose in the room.
Gaze bouncing between the four of them, Ailis licked her lips. “All right then, ya told the pooka of his love. Yeah, the pooka’s love.” Her lips pursed. “Will you tell me of my love, then? Is that yer power?” Her green eyes twinkled with suppressed merriment.
“No, I have vi—”
“Bat.” Dub cut her off once again, and she rolled her eyes.
Ailis grinned. “Don’t be having ruptions, now.” She reached out and squeezed Bat’s hand. “You do what you may or may not be able to do, and we’ll just see if it helps,” she said to Bat.
Bat smiled and closed her eyes. Opening her mind’s eye, she reached. The vision came easily, almost eagerly.
Flash. A flat-topped mountain that curved like a jaw. Slopes covered in green and the sun shining down. Ailis on the plain beneath it, new flowers spouting around her in dots of deep pink. She held a knife, the same as in the earlier vision. Opposite her stood a woman with deep brown hair, clad in a green gown that flared out in a gust of wind. Hooves. The woman had cloven hooves.
“Benbulben.” The word slipped from her lips in a whisper, and Ailis’s fingers went slack.
Bat opened her eyes, echoes of the vision still playing in her mind.
“There’re effing stars in yer eyes, you know that?” Ailis slipped her hand from Bat’s grip.
Mell chuffed. “Yeah, she does that.”
“It�
��s kind of pretty,” Shar said from his spot against the wall.
Bat blushed, she couldn’t seem to help it around these brothers. “Does this Benbulben mean anything to you? I... think we will find your balboa siv there.”
“Baobhan sith,” four voices sounded together.
“Right. That. But...” her voice trailed off. She didn’t want to involve Ailis anymore, but the vision showed her being there. Bat had never tried to defy the visions.
The image had also not shown her or the brothers. It didn’t mean anything, really. Just a snap in time.
Decided, she continued, speaking directly to Ailis. “Please do not go there without us.”
Ailis scoffed and crossed her arms. “Wasn’t planning on it. That place is cursed.”
“Cursed? I know curses. Egyptians specialize in them, really.” If this half mountain was cursed, it could explain what befell Dano. Curses were tricky, tricky things.
“Not literally, at least I don’t think. But there always seems to be some tragedy happening there. The battle of the books and those squabbling saints. Or the thing with the deer.” Her voice lowered. “Or the boar...” Ailis shot a cautious look at Dub.
“What was the thing with the deer? And a boar?”
“Nothing,” Dub ground out.
“Dub put down a madman,” Shar said at the same time.
Bat frowned. “You are all being very cryptic. Again.” She glared at Ailis. “Even you. I thought you would be better than these…” She gestured to the brothers. “Men.” She injected her exasperation into that last word.
“Well, then let’s lay all the secrets out there, shall we,” Ailis said with a wicked smile and a wink. “Have you met Finn yet?”
The guy Mell asked to help with the investigation? “No, I was inside when he came.” And I have a feeling the guys don’t want me to meet him, Bat silently added.
“Well, Finn Cumhaill, leader of the Fianna, had some effing bad shit happen to him up at that damn mountain. More than once. And most of it was because of a bastard named Diarmuid. And Dub got sick of it and made sure it would never happen again. He became the boar.”
The Forgotten Trilogy Page 9