by D. R. Perry
I bowed to Laila just like Ren had taught me to do before any fight, and the cheers got more intense. Then I nodded at Josh. He took a step backward. Uncle Jake mirrored him. They backed away from the center of the lawn, leaving Laila and me facing each other on the dewy lawn.
We circled each other, and before I knew it, I’d cracked my knuckles. Stupid habit, but knowing I only had a ghost of a chance to win this duel had me on edge. At least it looked like Laila intended to start the fight in human form. I’d have to beat her fast, then, before she shifted. Shifting to horse form on dry land would weaken my magic. I couldn’t spare a glance at the pond on the other side of the Temple to Music. If only this match had been over there, I’d be able to throw water spells around, along with my meager glamour.
I kept my gaze fixed on the space between my opponent’s eyes, just like I’d been taught. That was why I missed it when she started shifting. By the time I realized what was happening, Laila’s robe was a pile of gray fabric on the ground, and her face was the last human-looking feature she possessed. I murmured a few words of focus under my breath, hoping to cover my late shift with the illusion it was farther along. It didn’t work. Laila clearly had some experience with Changeling or even Faerie opponents and the fact she hadn’t moved yet meant the ephemeral shimmer of any Glamour had given me away.
Laila bolted forward, her head down. She faked left, then headed around me to the right. I’d just leaned all my weight forward to kick out with my hind legs when I felt the air of her passage under them. She’d been about to hamstring me. My nostrils flared as I blew out a misty breath in the chill night air. The half-moonlight silvered Laila’s russet fur as she darted past on my left. I planted my feet, not daring to rear. She was fast enough to go for my gut before I could strike out with my hooves. Instead, I focused my energy on calling up the deeps.
The earth under me had moisture in the soil. I felt water slick my coat, drenching my mane and tail until they stuck to me. Laila snorted, clearly aware of what I was doing but not why. It took too much time for me to call water even at this short distance in horse form. The fact that some force in the shadows up on the dais pushed against my magic like Sisyphus’s boulder made it all worse.
Laila circled me again, and I had to choose between countering her and continuing my spell. Slashes of pain crossed my back legs, throbbing as they buckled under me. I managed to prop my weight on my forelegs long enough to level a glare at my opponent, screaming out a defiant neigh as I unleashed the force of pent-up water directly at her muzzle.
She couldn’t howl, bark, whine, or whimper. She couldn’t breathe, of course, unless wolves had evolved gills. They hadn’t. She paced back and forth twice as though held captive behind iron bars instead of an open lawn. Then, Laila shook her head, bending it to the ground so she could rub her nose and mouth against the damp grass. I’d only sort of defeated her. I had to stay conscious, or she’d win In the trial of the mate, victory went to the last shifter standing.
She’d cut my legs deeper than I’d thought. My head spun with magical effort and pain. The coppery scent of blood only made it worse until I glanced over at Josh. His fists clenched, and his arms shook. I let my gaze travel up to his face, wanting that to be the last thing I saw if passing out was inevitable. Renewed energy surged through me as our eyes met, either the fact of his love or the magical bond between us letting me dig deeper for more. Laila hadn’t bothered looking back at Jake. My magic told me she’d waited too long before she slumped to the grass, her body slowly transitioning from wolf to human form as her body involuntarily tried to dislodge the water.
I called back my magic, letting go of the cohesive force damming up her airway. Water flowed from her nose and mouth. I dragged myself forward, tilting my head to listen for her breathing. It was slow, but even. I’d won. Shutting my eyes, I rested my now-hairless face against the cool, dank grass. I couldn’t stand, so I wouldn’t bother trying. A collection of hushed gasps from everyone but Uncle Jake’s pack reminded me I was in the altogether. I hadn’t worn a robe either, so one of my favorite outfits currently decorated the blood- and water-smeared battleground in tatters.
Something warm, dry, and slightly scratchy covered my back. A pair of long-fingered hands I’d recognize anywhere stroked my hair. A set of lighter footsteps squelched through the muddy grass behind me, and I felt a sting of antiseptic, then someone bandaging my legs.
“Don’t turn her.” Lynn always sounded bossy, but this time, her voice was tinged with concern. “The cuts are deep. I have to put a poultice and bandage on these. Even with her pelt, they might take a few hours to heal.”
“Fine.” Josh’s voice was hushed and a little shaky. “Just hurry it up. She’s coming.”
I looked up, turning my head away from the suddenly solemn audience. At the top of the dais, Josh’s parents stood rubbing their unchained wrists. That would have been nice to see, except for the presence of the person who’d freed them. I averted my eyes, but it was too late. They’d met hers.
“So this is the insolent scion of House Phillips.” The Sidhe Queen’s voice was lower-pitched than I’d expected, its vowels extended in a languidly musical drawl. She tilted her head, peering down at Josh. “Hand her over, young Alpha, or risk my displeasure.”
“I’ll do no such thing.” Josh rose. Even though he was one of the tallest people I knew, he still had to look up to meet her gaze.
“Did you misspeak?” The Queen’s sky blue gown somehow managed to make her figure look fashionably thin and lush at the same time.
“No, Your Highness.” Josh stood as still as he had that night in the Memorial Grove, all his attention focused. “Nox isn’t mine to hand over. She’s done nothing to displease me either as a member of my pack or my mate. In fact, she saved my Beta’s life and now has claimed this victory that freed my parents. She will go to face your justice of her own will or not at all.”
“And does she realize what sort of catastrophe refusal will assure?” The Queen raised one amber eyebrow.
“She does.” I propped myself up on my elbows, continuing the Queen’s disregard for my presence by referring to myself in the second person. “And that’s why she’s agreeing to go with you as soon as her other packmate finishes tending her wounds.” Lynn had a suspiciously sudden coughing fit, then finished taping the bandages to my calves.
“So, you agree to submit yourself to the custody of my guards immediately and surrender your pelt?”
“I’ll let you imprison me, sure. But you can’t have my pelt.”
“I can’t allow a prisoner to keep such a powerful magical item while in custody.”
“That’s okay.” I glanced back toward the audience where Taki Waban sat. The left corner of his mouth tilted up, and he gave me a slight nod. “I’ve got a church-key. I’ll use that to store it before you bring me in.”
Before I could ask Josh to go back to the bus and get my pack, Blaine stepped forward, one strap slung over his shoulder. I hadn’t seen him leave, but that was what he must have done when it was clear I’d won the match. He approached as Lynn went back to stand with Bobby, helping him support Beth.
“Here you go, horsefeathers,” Blaine grinned down at Josh and me. “Now, all you need is a door and someone trustworthy to leave that key with.”
“I could leave it with Ichiro-san.” I winced as my attempt to get up filled with fail. “He’s representing me.” The pack hit the dirt near my head. I rummaged inside, pulling out a warm sweater and a cozy maxi skirt. I pulled them on as best as I could under the blanket draped over me.
“I’ve got an appropriate custodian in mind already.” The Queen clapped her hands. “Hertha!” Blaine’s eyes widened. A steady but small stream of smoke wafted out of his nose.
I didn’t look up. All I saw were a pair of red and black patent Christian Louboutin pumps step lightly over the grass, stopping in front of me. I rolled on my side, trying not to bend my knees. A tall woman with hair as black and polished
as obsidian looked down her nose at me. She couldn’t help it, really. It was the angle her head happened to be at when she bowed to the Sidhe Queen.
“My husband will convey you to my vehicle because it seems my son also has a conflict of interest in this matter.” One of the woman’s perfectly shaped eyebrows tilted as she scrutinized me. “The key will be safe in my hoard until the conclusion of the trial. I will see it delivered to the right party personally when the time comes.” She directed her gaze to Blaine, eyes narrowing. “And we have a great deal to talk about once this is done, whelp.”
I blinked. The Queen’s clap had summoned none other than Hertha Harcourt, the most influential dragon shifter on the Eastern Seaboard. I knew the Queen ranked amongst the most powerful beings on the planet, but it hadn’t really hit home before how dangerous defying her had been. I’d kind of just done it in the moment, only thinking about my friends and pitying that poor Spite. Finally, I understood exactly how screwed I was.
Mr. Harcourt held his hands palm up. I watched powder-blue scales cover them. He pointed the fingertips at me, blowing gently. I rose off the ground, carried by his Air magic as he strode to the limousine I’d ridden in with Maddie less than a month before. It beat trying to walk hamstrung.
I used the church-key on the passenger door, pulling off my pelt and sealing it in the oilcloth from my pack. Josh had followed us, and Mr. Harcourt must have had some compassion for young love, despite his emotionless facade. He stepped far enough away for us to have a few moments alone.
“Nox, I don’t know what to say. I’ll get you out of this.”
“You can’t. Nothing but information can help now. The Queen has trials with law and order, not by combat like your pack. That’s the King’s way, not hers.”
“Information’s exactly what I’m banking on.” He grinned. “I’ve still got a question to ask a certain ex-Spite.”
“You shouldn’t use that for me.” I shook my head. “Save it for a time when you really need it.”
“Believe me, this is the right time.” He put his arms around me, holding me as closely as the Air magic would allow. “I’ll do anything in my power to save you.”
“You shouldn’t worry. She wants my pelt. After that, she’ll let me go. You don’t have to save me because I’ll be fine. I might even be a better mate as a regular girl. Definitely more appropriate.”
“I can’t believe I’m hearing this after you just fought in the Trial of Mates for me. I love you, Nox Phillips. That includes all twelve ornery ancestors in that pelt of yours. I’ve done my homework. A piece of you is in there too, a piece that’ll be missing the entire time you go without it. I’m not letting the Queen do that to you without a fight.”
“But I told you, she doesn’t fight with fang and claw.”
“Even better. I like a challenge.” He ran his fingers through my hair. “Just because I have fang and claw doesn’t mean I can’t learn to fight on her terms. I’m not giving up. Neither will Ichiro-san.”
Mr. Harcourt cleared his throat. Josh gave me a quick kiss, then backed away a few paces before he turned and ran back to the rest of our pack. The magical air wafted me away, over toward the Temple the long way. I handed Mrs. Harcourt the key on the way, struck by how much neither she nor her husband resembled Blaine. As I prepared to be imprisoned at the Temple to Music for the night, I thought about what Josh had said. I hoped using the rebel sprite’s last question was worth it. But even with recent insider information, how could Josh beat the Sidhe Queen herself at a game she’d been playing since the dawn of humanity?
Chapter Fifteen
Josh
Blaine’s party bus dropped Lynn, Bobby, Tony, and Olivia back at the dorms. It took the rest of us back to my house, including my parents and Beth. My blood relations all went directly upstairs. I tried to catch the Ichiros before they left the park, but they’d gone while I was talking to Nox. Probably for the best, considering Mr. Ichiro’s warnings about conflicts of interest.
I brought Blaine, Henry, and Maddie to the basement with me. The rec room was down there, complete with a bar. I needed a drink. I poured Jaeger over ice in three shot glasses, then used the boiling water tap to make Henry some Earl Gray. He peered at the wall behind me, then took down a bottle of Gosling’s and tipped a shot in the cup.
“A Gunfire, huh?” Blaine sniffed, clinking the ice in his glass. “Haven’t seen one of those since Grandpa visited Newport.”
“Who drinks hot tea in the summer?”
“Air dragons.”
“Ah. Well, that’s odd. How did you end up Fire?”
“Well, he’s my step-grandpa.”
“Wait. Your dad’s not your dad?”
“Not technically. Look, we have more important things to talk about than my home life.” Blaine puffed out a smoke ring. “What are we going to do about Nox?”
“I have a few ideas, but we should talk before I pull the ace out of my sleeve.” I headed over to the pool table in the middle of the room, turned, then leaned on it. “The Queen wants a Kelpie pelt to make up for losing a Selkie one. Trogdor here knows artifacts. I need to know what’s comparable that we can offer her.”
“Nothing.” Blaine didn’t have to check anything or even think before answering. “Well, the original Selkie pelt that got lost, or a different Kelpie’s pelt. But those are so rare they’re nearly priceless.”
“So, I have one question I can ask an extremely knowledgeable creature. Should I ask where to get a Selkie’s pelt?”
“No.” Henry inhaled the vapor over his teacup. “I know who you’re going to ask and they won’t be able to tell you that.”
“So what should I ask, then?”
“How about asking it to give you evidence to win the trial?” Maddie leaned on the bar. “There’s nothing that says the question has to be tightly focused.”
“The problem with that is there’s no evidence to help us win.” Henry sighed. “Nox is guilty as charged. She undid the enchantment and used a Seelie artifact to do it. What I don’t understand is how she got that float in the first place when you had it, Blaine.”
“See, that’s the weird thing.” Blaine sipped his Jaeger. “I blurted out the idea of using it like a moron. But she shouldn’t have even seen it. My bag was closed, the float under other stuff. Somehow, it was sitting right on top of my backpack, outside it.”
“I think that might be my fault.” Maddie looked so down her curls even drooped. “I sort of asked for help that night. I think I know who moved it.”
“Look, you did what you had to do.” Henry put his arm around her. “Neither of us would be here if you hadn’t.”
“What exactly happened, Maddie?”
“I made an oath to a Gnome. I owe them now because they helped our allies get the right things to the right place at the right time.”
“Makes sense.” I shrugged. “Gnomes have a weird time-space ability that only affects themselves and stuff right next to them. Tell on.”
“So, I think maybe the whole thing’s coincidental.” Maddie leaned back against the bar next to Henry. “I asked Lynn to look up some history stuff about pelts to see what kind of pattern we might need to break.”
“Good.” I nodded. “She’s on that now?”
“Yeah. She just had to help Olivia get in her room. Anyway, she’ll text us with whatever she finds.”
Just as I was about to ask Maddie what other information she had about the Gnome, I heard a soft pop behind me and felt eyes on the back of my head. I pushed off from the table, reaching over to grab my drink. It wasn’t where it should be. I turned around slowly. A tiny creature in a tall, pointy and shabby hat pushed a ball toward me. Speak of the Gnome, and they shall appear. I realized the little bastard was positioning the eight ball, so I was behind it.
“You’re trespassing on dangerous territory, Gnome.” I put my hands on my hips.
“Just here to call in my favor from the Lady over there.” The little twerp pointed at Maddie,
then smiled brightly. Well, not exactly. They smiled like Jaws. Their mouth was full of shark’s teeth.
“Great. Because we didn’t need her help at all on this.” The sour tang of Blaine’s sarcasm rang out over my shoulder, along with the scent and sound of more Jaeger sloshing into his glass.
“Coincidence helps those who help themselves.” The Gnome held out their hand. Maddie walked over to the table, sighing.
“I know, Gee. But now’s not a good time.” Maddie shook her head. “We’ve got a crisis on our hands here.”
“That’s why I need your help right now, Lady.” The gnome blinked, their eyes glittering.
“Oh, I get it.” I narrowed my eyes. “You’re trying to make us fail. You must want this to happen.”
“No, wolf lordling.” They shook their head. “I need the Lady’s help to fulfill another obligation. It’s better for you and the Kelpie if she comes with me.”
“This is bullshit.” I held one hand over my head, about to swat that Gnome like a cockroach.
“You should trust him.” Henry’s hand circled my wrist like an icy manacle. “I’ve known Gee Nome for nine years, now. Their timing’s impeccable and they've never made my situation worse even when they could have.”
“You aren’t me.” I broke his grip but lowered my arm to my side. “But I wanted you as Beta for exactly that reason. I need as full an explanation as you can give me.”
“I don’t remember why Gee helps me, but they say that’s because I ordered them not to mention it. Must be something to do with an event I’m not supposed to remember. Anyway, the entire time I’ve known them, they had metal teeth. Now they’re shark. Something’s changed in Gee's situation. If Gee says they need the help now, they mean it. And think about shark’s teeth for a minute. What does that bring to mind?”