She’s so pretty.
Jill stretched and rolled over, opening one sleepy eye. “You’re awake,” she mumbled, almost in accusation.
“Yes.”
“And you’re dressed.” Jill reached up and pulled Mae over to her by the bottom of her pajama top.
Mae sat down and leaned into Jill. She liked the way Jill felt first thing in the morning: warm and soft.
“I didn’t want you dressed,” Jill murmured. She began to unbutton Mae’s top with one hand while running the other lightly over Mae’s leg.
Mae leaned over and kissed Jill, hard and deep, bringing the sleepy woman fully awake.
They broke the kiss and pulled apart. Jill sat up and looked up at her, a playful smile on her face, mirth in her mismatched eyes.
“Jill—” said Mae, intending to head off whatever Jill had in mind.
The word had barely left her mouth before Jill began nuzzling at her throat, kissing along her collarbone and into the little area where the neck and shoulder met. Mae gave a tiny whimper of pleasure. It had not taken Jill long to discover that spot. Mae felt her top being pushed off her shoulder and suffered a moment of panic.
Last night had happened so quickly, Mae had not been able to worry. But now in the light of morning, old insecurities and fears reared their heads.
She knew she was not just petite, but in truth rather boyish in build, small breasts, no butt to speak of, little in the way of curves. Mae could not even tell herself she was cute. Her lank blond hair and the angular face that greeted her in the mirror everyday saw to that. At her best, Mae felt plain. It was difficult for her to imagine that someone like Jill, a woman who was as gorgeous as they came, would find her desirable.
Jill must have sensed her change in mood, because the urgent kisses on her skin stopped. Mae opened her eyes and looked at her partner, an apology on her lips. She had unconsciously raised her arms to cover her breasts. “I’m sorry, I’m—”
“Beautiful,” Jill whispered. “You’re beautiful.” She took Mae’s face in her hands and leaned into her.
The kiss was soft and urgent. It told Mae everything she needed to know. She let her arms fall to her side; allowed Jill to slip her top the rest of the way off. Mae pushed Jill onto her back, all thoughts of poor body image and breakfast forgotten.
Dear Wall,
Chrysandra told me the Cn Annwn did not come back from wherever it was Mr. Hodgins sent them yesterday.
They sent her to my room early this morning. Ilona and Robert keep checking on us. When they open the door, Chrysandra winks at me and goes all blank-eyed and limp at the same time I pull the covers over my head and pretend to sleep. It’s a fun game.
Every time they open the door, they weaken the magical seal. If they don’t remember to recharge it soon, I’ll be able to let Chrysandra open the iron studded entrance for me.
Something must have gone seriously wrong. I can hear raised voices, some of them voices I’ve never heard before. Chrysandra said “Grandfather” mentioned something about “calling together the full covenant,” whatever that means.
I told Chrysandra about my rat-herald. I have to trust her. I can’t escape on my own. I hope she doesn’t turn on me. You never know what’s happening in that decomposing brain of hers.
I should try to get some rest. I need to be alert in case they give me an opening.
Mae watched Jill frown at the second bite of her cinnamon roll. “Man, these are stale.”
“Sorry,” Mae replied. “I got distracted and left them in the microwave.”
“Well, I’ll forgive you, just this once.”
Mae kept a blank look on her face as she held Jill’s gaze. They were silent for a moment, and then both women burst into laughter.
They were seated across from each other at the table in the eat-in kitchen, each with a warm-though-stale cinnamon roll and a hot cup of coffee before them. They had decided to shower and dress after their morning exertions. When they reached the kitchen, Mae remembered the pastries in the microwave. They managed to salvage them, but it was not the finest breakfast either woman had ever eaten.
“At least the peaches and coffee are good,” Mae said. She noted that while Jill was complaining about the lack of freshness of the rolls, she was still wolfing them down.
“The coffee is perfect,” Jill agreed, raising her cup. “But we’re going to have to figure out a way to get some real food if we’re going to stay here much longer.”
They finished breakfast in silence, both of them occasionally looking out the window at the grounds outside and the slowly freezing lake beyond. It was snowing again, large fat flakes drifting slowly from the sky to the ground.
Mae rose and brought the coffee pot back to the table, refilling both of their cups. She watched Jill spoon sugar into her drink. She gave Jill a bemused look.
Jill smiled at her. “I thought I might need a little boost.”
Mae replaced the pot in the coffeemaker and settled across from Jill. She pushed the sleeves of her sweatshirt up to her elbows and rested them on the table.
“Happy Halloween,” she told her new lover.
Jill snorted. “I’d rather be handing out sweets to screaming munchkins than going to that party tonight.”
“Speaking of which, do you have something to wear?”
“I’m sure I can find a dress in one of the closets. The family used to throw parties here all the time. I’ll bet Mother left something I can wear.”
Mae raised an eyebrow. “I’d think everything would be summer wear.”
“A little black dress works no matter the season.”
“I look forward to seeing you in that.”
Jill smirked and raised her cup. “You mean you look forward to getting me out of it.” She took a sip around her growing smile.
“That too,” Mae agreed. She returned Jill’s smile for a moment, then licked her lips. “When this is over, then what?”
“Assuming we survive? We go about our lives.”
Mae frowned and leaned back in her chair. “I’m not sure it’s going to be that easy. I doubt I’ll be able to continue working for CPS.” Mae leaned forward again, placing her elbows on the table and fidgeting with her cup. “Even if we rescue Fay and cut Hodgins and his friends off from Annwn, they’re still going to be rich, influential people. Rich, influential people who are going to be angry with you and me.”
“We’ll deal with them when the time comes.”
Mae swallowed and looked down at the table. “It feels like everything will change, no matter what tonight’s outcome. Either we’re going to end up dead or spend the rest of our lives running and looking over our shoulders.”
Mae heard the scrape of Jill’s chair as the woman rose and moved to the chair next to her. Jill reached out and took her hands, but Mae was unable to look into her eyes.
“I’m sorry I got you mixed up in this,” Mae whispered.
Jill took her by the chin. Mae let the other woman turn her face so that they were looking at each other. She was surprised to find Jill smiling at her.
“Okay, first of all, I’m not sorry I got mixed up in this. No matter what goes down tonight, I got what I wanted. That would be you. Second, my goodness but your moods are up and down, aren’t they?”
“I blame it on the faerie blood,” Mae said, the tiniest bit of humor back in her voice.
“Blame it on whatever you want, but stop it. All we can do is take this one step at a time. The first thing we do is rescue your sister. If we have to spend the rest of our lives hiding from angry mages and murderous faeries, well, so be it.” Jill leaned back in the wooden kitchen chair and crossed her arms. She paused in thought. “I wonder what my brother and his friends are planning. For me, that is.”
“Something awful,” Mae answered. “I want you to be extra careful.”
“I will. I think I can handle myself, as long as what they’re planning doesn’t involve elder gods and a lot of tentacles. If that’s the case
, expect me to run screaming from that mansion.”
Mae snorted. “I doubt that’s what you’ll encounter. I would remind you about what Hodgins nearly did to me. He was by himself and almost took control of my body. Tonight you’ll be walking into a houseful of people like him.”
“Regular ray o’ sunshine, that’s what you are. Is there any significance to tonight, besides it being Halloween and the spookiest night of the year?”
“According to mythology, tonight is the night the veil between the realms is the thinnest. It’s supposed to be a good night to communicate with the dead.”
Jill nodded. “Great, so I should expect zombies? Vampires? Ghouls?”
“Yes. What time is your brother coming to pick you up?”
“Sixish.” Jill finished her coffee. “We’re going with the original plan?”
Mae nodded. “I’ll head across country to the house immediately after you leave. You get inside, find a bathroom with an exterior window and unlock it.”
“I’ll need something to signal you. I can leave a piece of cloth in the window or something.”
“Sounds good,” Mae said. “I’ll need to make sure I have a way to cut through a window screen.”
“There are tools in the garage. We’ll find something,” Jill said. “Once I’ve unlocked the window, I’ll give you twenty minutes, then I’ll try to slip away and look for you, all the while keeping my eyes open for any clue to Fay’s location or the place where they access Annwn.”
“And if one of us finds Fay before we’ve found each other?”
“Grab Fay. If she knows how to find the gate, then go to it. If she doesn’t, then run. Call the other one when possible.”
Mae nodded. Of course, it was all well and good for them to talk about abandoning the other, at least in practice. In reality, Mae suspected they would both fail to follow that part of the plan. “We should set our cell phones to vibrate.”
Jill shook her head, making her black hair dance around her face. “We sound like a bad spy movie.”
Mae kept her expression carefully neutral. “Should we set up recognition words, just in case?”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Only half.”
“Well, at least it is only half. What do you think Fay looks like, anyway? It occurred to me that neither of us have ever seen her.”
Mae smiled without humor. “I’d suspect she resembles Mirallyn.”
“True,” Jill said.
“I wish Kravis and mother were here.”
“Should we go over the plan again?” Jill asked after swallowing her last sip of coffee.
Mae shook her head. “No. Let’s rest and not worry now.”
“Rest?” Jill asked, her eye filled with mirth.
Mae stood and took Jill by the hands. She pulled the taller woman from her seat and started dragging her down the hallway back toward the bedroom.
“Well, maybe relax instead of rest.” Mae laughed.
Dear Wall,
My rat-herald came back, which would be good news if Ilona and Elise hadn’t been in the room when he showed up.
He managed to tell me help was coming before they killed him. Ilona touched the onyx on her choker and whispered a word I don’t know. My poor rat squealed and died. Elise was furious with me, of course. Ilona just gave me this cold look. Then she laughed at me.
I probably shouldn’t have tried to claw her eyes out. I’m going to have the ugliest bruise on my face, and my lip still hurts.
Elise tied me to the chair Chrysandra usually sits in. Mr. Hodgins and “Grandfather” watched as Robert nailed a board over the hole in the wall. Ilona smirked at me while they worked. I kept glancing at the marks I left on her face and grinned back at her. I saw something, a symbol I think, carved into the wood on the side they nailed to the wall.
I’m glad I hadn’t written anything on that wall yet. I don’t know exactly what they did, but the whole wall has an unpleasant hum and I get a bad taste in my mouth, all coppery and sharp, anytime I stand too close.
According to Elise, I’m supposed to be at the “family” dinner tonight. I wonder how they’re going to explain my black eye to “Mother”?
I wonder who’s coming for me. Mother? Mae Malveaux? Someone else?
I need to take my cold shower and change for dinner.
Jill pulled the hem of the dress down with both hands, not that it did any good. “I know I’m not the exact same size as my mother, but either I miscalculated how different we are, or there are whole aspects to my mother’s personality that do not bear closer examination.” Jill shook her head at her reflection in the full-length mirror. “I think this might be a little too—”
“Short?” Mae supplied helpfully, a broad grin on her face. “Snug?”
“Slutty.”
Mae looked her up and down. Jill began to blush from the attention Mae was giving her.
“Well, you are showing a lot of leg,” Mae said.
“And cleavage.”
Mae’s face lit up. “Slinky. That’s the word you’re looking for. Slinky.”
“This is my mother’s dress, you know.”
“Try not to think too hard about it.”
“Now to accessorize,” Jill said, moving away from the mirror. She picked up the small clutch purse and black pumps they had discovered in the same closet as the dress and walked out of the bedroom, Mae following in her wake. Jill stopped in the living room long enough to transfer various necessary items from her regular purse to the small clutch. She dropped the pumps on the floor and picked up her keys. Jill turned and started down a short hallway, into a part of the house she had yet to show to Mae.
“What about your eye and—well—the scars on your arm?” Mae asked as they walked along. They had managed to cover the bruise on her head by styling her hair over it and then covering the rest with makeup. The bruise on her leg from the magic dart had faded away overnight. Jill had looked at it with her silver eye and reported no magical residue.
“I’m going to wear the eye patch. I want to hide the eye from them, since they’re mages. I’ll lift up the patch and have a look when I can. I’m going to leave my arms bare. I thought about wearing a shawl or something to cover them, but decided against it.”
“And this decision is based on?”
Jill paused in front of a heavy wooden door. She shuffled through her keys until she found the one she wanted. “I decided there’s a certain intimidation factor involved. They have to know that I know it’s a trap. I’m going to walk in with all my ‘battle scars’ in plain sight. Maybe it will make them hesitate when things go sour.” The lock clicked and Jill opened the door.
The room was male to the point of reeking of testosterone. The heads of various dead animals dominated the walls. There was a large mahogany desk with a leather executive chair. Two large additional leather chairs flanked by low tables that matched the desk rounded out the furniture. A full gun rack stood in one corner, and stacks of outdoor magazines lay on the tables. Framed pictures of hunts past hung on the walls. The faint smell of cigar smoke hung in the air.
Mae followed her into the room. “You’re assuming things are going to get ugly?”
“Yes. Aren’t you?”
“A part of me hopes we can do this and no one gets hurt. I realize I’m being a bit of a Pollyanna, but there it is,” Mae said with a shrug.
Jill sat down in the chair behind the big desk. “I hope you’re right, but I’m gearing up for the worst.” Jill opened the top drawer of the desk and pulled out a small revolver.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Mae asked.
Jill opened the revolver’s cylinder and checked the rounds. She snapped the cylinder shut and checked that the safety was on. She dropped the weapon into her clutch and stood. “I hope I don’t need it.”
“I’m worried that we’re already going to be in enough trouble. If you shoot someone on top of everything else…”
Jill shooed Mae out the do
or. She turned and checked that the room was locked. “Would it make you feel better if I told you I have a carry permit?”
“No.”
Settling on the couch, Jill slipped into the pumps. “Would it make you feel better if I told you I only plan on using this in an emergency?”
“I’d much rather you ran away.”
“In these shoes?” Jill asked, wiggling her feet.
“True,” Mae allowed. “Still, how likely are bullets to stop anything non-human?”
“Not very, but I’d be stupid not to use every advantage I can.” Jill stood. “How do I look?”
“Edible,” Mae said, nodding her approval.
“I’m not sure that’s a good thing, everything considered.”
“Every male in the place is going to act stupid around you, even with the ‘battle scars.’”
Jill slipped the eye patch on. “That’s the plan.”
The doorbell rang, startling both women and making them jump.
“That would be Big Brother.” Jill had called Robert a bare half hour earlier and informed him she was at the lake house and could she get a ride? Jill had purposely kept their location from Robert until the last minute, hoping the tight timeframe would stop the mages from swooping down on them. Jill slipped into her leather jacket and picked up the clutch. She turned to Mae. “Walk me out.”
Mae followed Jill to the front door. Jill grabbed the doorknob and took a deep breath. “Here we go,” she muttered, opening the door. “Robert! It’s good to see you, big brother!”
Mae took the opportunity to give Jill’s older brother a quick once over.
Robert Coleman Hall III was dressed impeccably. A black tailored suit, white shirt, black necktie, leather shoes. The watch on his wrist was probably worth more than everything Mae owned combined. His dark brown hair was short, stylish and styled. It was obvious he spent time in the gym. Robert Hall’s entire countenance and demeanor screamed “wealthy and powerful.” Mae had to admit he was a handsome man.
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