“Hey Barclay,” I said, as Angel raised her hand in greeting. “How goes it?”
“Kind of rough,” he whispered, glancing away. Barclay had a hard time meeting anyone’s gaze. He was still ashamed of being shunned by his people, and from what we knew, he was genuinely trying to kick the habit. But Carnie-Party was a hard one. It evened out the bumps in the road, smoothing the daily ups and downs. A lot of streeps used it as a makeshift anti-depressant because it was a whole lot cheaper than therapy.
I paused. “What’s wrong?”
He shifted nervously from foot to foot. “I dunno…the weather, I guess. I don’t like it when it’s cold. And the house where I’m staying has a weird feel to it, lately. I think it’s haunted.”
I paused, thinking. “You hang out in the Worchester district, don’t you?”
He nodded. “Yeah. In an old Victorian flop. I’m not sleeping well. I get nervous just walking into the place any more. But there’s not much I can do about it. I don’t have the money to go anyplace else, and most of the flops are full right now.”
I held up my hand, then opened my purse and went through it until I found one of Raven’s business cards. “One moment. Here’s my friend’s business card. I don’t know if she can help you, but she cleanses haunted houses and reads the bones and tarot cards. You might ask her if she’d be willing to help. She does some pro bono work.”
He glanced at the card I’d handed to him. It was purple, with a filigreed scrollwork around the edges. He stared at it for a moment. “Raven BoneTalker? All right. Maybe I’ll give her a call.”
“Good. She might have some advice she can give you over the phone, but I can’t promise. But do give her a call.” I waved at him and he ducked his head in a grateful gesture, then turned and hastened down to the sidewalk.
As Angel and I entered the building, she poked me in the side. “You know as well as I do that Raven’s not going to clean out a flophouse just so the owner can make more money off the poor in this city.”
I shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. She wouldn’t be doing it for the landlord, but for the people who have to stay there. You have to admit, he’s not going to find help anywhere else.” I punched the button for the elevator, glancing around the lobby. There were a couple people waiting near the entrance to the urgent care clinic, but nobody else I recognized.
The elevator arrived and we stepped into the lift, standing back as the door shut and the creaky compartment slowly began to ascend.
“I swear, one of these days this elevator’s going to go crashing down and I just hope we’re not in it at the time. You’d think the landlord would get his ass in gear and fix the thing.” Angel frowned at the ceiling, where we could see a crack in the metal overhead.
“I know,” I said. “Herne keeps bitching at him, but the guy is off in his own world. One of these days, I expect to see Viktor and Yutani taking care of it themselves.”
As the elevator shuddered to a halt, it opened. We were facing the waiting room of the Wild Hunt Agency—the elevator opened directly into it—and given that the elevator actually stopped and opened, that meant that somebody had gotten here early and unlocked everything. When the office was shut up and locked up, the elevator went past without stopping.
I glanced around, trying to figure out who was here. As Angel headed over to her desk to turn on her computer, Herne came out of his office, which was in back of the U-shaped desk Angel worked at. He was carrying a thick file folder and his tablet, and he was looking over his email.
He glanced up as he noticed us. “Hey girls, glad you’re here. We’re just waiting on Talia. Yutani and Viktor are in the break room.”
He held out his arm and I slipped into it, giving him a kiss as we headed toward the break room. It was to the right of the waiting room and Herne’s office, at the end of the hall. To the left of the break room was a hallway that led to my office and Talia and Yutani’s office, as well as the bathroom and the storage room.
As we entered the break room, Viktor glanced up. He was playing a game on his tablet. Yutani was studying something on his laptop. The coffee was brewing and it looked as though somebody had brought a cheesecake. The chocolate-covered New York–style cheesecake was hefty and all thoughts of the waffles and bacon I had consumed went out the window when I saw it. I was a junk food aficionada and though Angel did her best to keep me on track with eating healthier, when it came to sweets and caffeine, I had no control.
“Yum, that looks amazing. Who brought it?” I made a beeline for the paper plates and the plastic forks.
“I did,” Herne said. “We’ve all been working so hard that I thought we could use a little comfort food. Especially since my mother’s coming to visit today.”
I paused, glancing over at him. “You didn’t tell me Morgana’s going to be here.”
“That’s because it doesn’t matter one way or another. You’d have to be here anyway.”
I loved Herne’s mother—in fact, I was pledged to her service. But the goddess had been on my back the past few weeks about a task she expected me to do and I’d been putting it off. I really didn’t want to have her push me on it today, but it was too late to duck out now. Besides, if I skipped the meeting, she’d just find some other way to hound me.
Angel and Talia entered the room together.
“I locked the elevator now that we’re all here,” Angel said. She eyed the cheesecake and then looked at me as I parceled out a good-sized piece. “Really? We just ate.”
“Get off my back, woman. It’s cheesecake.” I grinned at her.
Viktor stifled a laugh. “How you two live together, I don’t know. You’re always fussing over each other like a couple of hens.”
“Dork,” Angel said, swatting him.
“Damn it!” Viktor let out a loud groan and Angel jumped.
“What did I do?”
“You hit my stab wound,” Viktor said, grimacing.
Angel winced. “Oh, hell. I’m sorry—I really am! I never even thought. I didn’t know, Viktor—”
“No, I know you didn’t. It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean to. But please, no more rubbing salt in the wound, so to speak.” The half-ogre settled back, peeling off his jacket to expose the bandaged wound. Angel rubbed her head, looking pained.
“We’re all a little on edge,” Herne said. “So everybody just take a deep breath. Angel, Viktor knows you didn’t mean to hurt him. Viktor, take a couple aspirin or whatever else you need to.” He glanced over at Talia. “Good to see you.”
“I got a late start. My dishwasher decided to overflow and vomit suds all over the floor. I had to clean them up or the dogs would have tried to eat them and that would be akin to giving them a dose of Ex-Lax. Not the best idea.” She snorted. “Anyway, we’re all here now, so let’s get this meeting started. I assume you took care of the goblins last night? Or at least tried, by the looks of Viktor’s arm.”
“And my throat,” Yutani said, stripping off his jacket. His bandage covered the entire right side of his neck.
“That was a close call,” Talia said.
“Understatement of the year,” Yutani shot back.
“Okay, we’re here. We just need to wait for Morgana. But to bring Talia and Angel up to speed, yes, we took care of the Carlsford Café and Cattle Ranch. I’m almost positive we managed to kill all the goblins, though I guess we’ll find out in a day or so. Angel, make a note to reach out to them on Monday. If they’re still pest-free, send them the invoice for the remainder of the fee.” Herne glanced at his tablet.
“Check.” Angel jotted down a note to herself.
“Meanwhile, Yutani, how are you coming on Nalcops’s laptop?” Herne turned to the sloe-eyed coyote shifter.
Yutani pushed his hair back. “I’m working on it.” He paused, then held up a hair tie. “Can someone pull my hair back in a ponytail? My neck’s a little sore and I don’t want to pull the wound as it’s scabbing over.”
Angel hustled out of her chair,
moving to help him. She pulled his long, straight hair back and bound it with the hair tie, then returned to her chair.
“I know there are hidden files on this computer. I can feel it, but so far, I haven’t been able to find them. Give me some time, though, and I’ll crack through.” Yutani was our resident IT genius, though Talia could give him a run for his money in the research department. But when we needed a computer hacked, it was Yutani we went to.
Nalcops had been a doctor working for the Tuathan Brotherhood, until we took him down. We had stolen his laptop, and Yutani was searching for any clues as to where the leader of the movement might be. Until we found out who Nuanda was, and then found out exactly where he was hiding, we were fighting an uphill battle.
At that moment, the door to the break room opened and Morgana walked through. The goddess turned to me and, without missing a beat, said, “So when the hell are you going to get your ass over to TirNaNog and Navane and retrieve those items I asked you to find?”
So much for goodwill and cheesecake, I thought, as I let out a sigh and prepared for the inquisition I knew was coming.
Chapter Three
As far as goddesses went, Morgana was one of the more approachable ones. The daughter of The Merlin, who belonged to the Force Majeure, she had chosen to ascend to deityhood rather than become a part of the elite team of magic-born like her father. She was also part Fae. When Cernunnos, the Lord of the Forest, had married her, he brought her into the fold of the gods. Together, they were Herne’s parents. My mother had been pledged to Morgana, and my father had worked with Cernunnos, and so it was natural for me to follow in their footsteps. What I hadn’t expected was to fall in love with their son.
“Ember, I asked you a question.” Morgana stared at me, crossing her arms as she stood at the end of the table.
“Don’t we even get a hello?” Herne stepped in, trying to deflect her attention. “Good morning, Mother.” He usually called her by her given name, keeping the familial term for when he was trying to get on her good side, or wheedle something out of her.
Morgana gave him a long look, then laughed. She was beautiful when she laughed, and terrifyingly beautiful when she was angry, and beneath her perfume, there was always the wild scent of the sea. With raven hair down to her ass, she usually appeared at around five-seven when she was in a good mood. When she decided to be imposing, she rose up to over seven feet tall. Today she was wearing a linen pantsuit—her usual garb when she visited our realm—and her eyes were glowing silver, with dark flecks in them. She was carrying a designer briefcase, and her hair had been pulled back into a tight chignon, with lacquered combs smoothing it back on both sides.
“All right, I’ll play nice, my son. But I’m here on serious business, so don’t expect me to be a pushover today.” She shook her head, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek. It felt odd, watching their interplay. The fact that Herne was a god was always in the back of my mind, but I usually swept it aside during our day-to-day activities. But now, watching him interact with his mother, the power radiated off both of them in waves.
She gave me a dubious look. “Ember, we really do need to talk about this. But first, someone bring me some coffee and I’ll have a slice of that cheesecake.”
Angel hastened to pour her some coffee while Talia cut her a slice of the cake and slid it across the table. I curtsied to Morgana—it only seemed polite to acknowledge my patron goddess—and then sat down on the opposite side of the table. There wasn’t going to be any getting out of a conversation I really didn’t want to have, it seemed.
When we were all gathered around the table and coffee and cake were at hand, Morgana let out a long sigh and sat back, staring at us.
“First, Lord Cernunnos sends his regards. And while I hesitate to ask, because somehow I think you would have told us if the answer was affirmative, have there been any more breakthroughs on the Tuathan Brotherhood?” She opened her briefcase—it wasn’t just for show, it seemed—and withdrew a sheaf of papers.
Herne pressed his lips together, shaking his head. “Only a few minor things.”
Yutani cleared his throat. “I’m working on Nalcops’s laptop. I know there are hidden files on it, but finding where they are is a massive chore. I don’t think he was the one who set up the computer because it shows all the marks of someone with real computer know-how. But I’m a damned good hacker. I’ll find them. It’s just a matter of when.”
“Sooner is better than later,” Morgana said. “Though I realize this isn’t necessarily something you can control. But do your best, Coyote’s son. We need any information we can find.” She glanced at me. “And now to the core of my visit. Ember, I told you last month that you needed to make a trip to TirNaNog and to Navane. There are two artifacts that your family possesses—one on each side. They rightfully belong to you, and it’s time you went in search of them.”
My families—either of them—weren’t likely to just hand them over. I was pariah in the Fae Courts, and not only had my parents been killed for their forbidden love, but it had been their own families who had killed them. They would have taken me out, too, if I’d come home from school early that day. As it was, I’d arrived home to find my mother and father on the floor, soaked in blood, stabbed to death in a grisly murder scene. Recently, I had confirmed that my paternal grandfather and my maternal grandmother had been at the heart of the double murder, and that knowledge had strengthened my resolve to never darken their lives. When Morgana had first told me that she expected me to show up on their doorsteps, I had rebelled. I was still rebelling.
“Can you please explain to me why these things matter? An old bow, and a crown? Why do I need to have them?” Deep inside, I knew I wouldn’t change her mind, but I was going to do my best.
“They play a part in your future. They’re interwoven in the tapestry of your life. I’m not certain how—if we knew the future and all was preordained, what point would there be to living? But I do know that you will need them. And if you don’t get them back now, it may shift the direction of things to come.”
She caught my gaze, holding it, and I found myself falling into a great silvery sea that stretched farther than any ocean could. She was a goddess of the Great Sea, goddess of the Fae, and I owed her my allegiance. The crow necklace around my neck was the mark that I belonged to her. She had given it to me, and I wore it day and night. More than anyone, more than even Angel, I owed Morgana my devotion.
I swallowed hard as the feeling of belonging swept over me. Morgana wasn’t out to make life difficult for me, regardless of what it sometimes felt like.
I swallowed, then nodded. “All right. I’ll go. I’m taking Raven with me—she’s volunteered. I know Angel wouldn’t be welcome in the great cities.”
TirNaNog and Navane were the great Fae cities. Both Dark Fae and Light Fae had bought up vast quantities of land out near Woodinville, and they had established sovereign cities based on their massive counterparts in Annwn, the world of the gods. They were considered sovereign nations, belonging only to themselves, and whatever went on within the cities was a matter for the Fae, and the Fae alone.
The Dark and Light Fae were enemies. They had been at each other’s throats since the beginning of time, and they probably would be till the very end. The queens—Saílle and Névé, respectively—were currently under a temporary truce as long as the threat to the Fae nations remained. They both decried the Tuathan Brotherhood, and they were as anxious for us to find and destroy the hate group as everyone else, given it had ruined their reputations within the United Coalition.
“Raven? Your Ante-Fae friend? That should be interesting,” Morgana said, a droll tone to her voice. “I’d like to be a fly on the wall when you show up with her in tow. You’re determined to give them the finger, aren’t you?”
I coughed. “I wouldn’t put it that way, but…”
“But nothing,” Talia said with a grin. “You’ll do whatever you can to piss off Saílle and Névé, and you know
it.”
I determined that it was an excellent time to take a big bite of cheesecake so I couldn’t answer. Morgana waited a moment, then cleared her throat.
“Well, I want you out there in the next few days. No more procrastinating. Take Raven if you like, but just get your ass in gear and do as I ask.” She smiled as she spoke, but her eyes were glittering and cold, and I knew she meant it.
“Yes, my Lady, I will.” I spoke softly, meeting her gaze with acquiescence. There came a time in every battle—whether it be of will, wit, or body—to lay down the flag and give in. And this was that moment.
Morgana laughed, holding out her coffee cup. “Now that we’ve got that taken care of, how about another cup of coffee? And tell me what the agency’s been up to lately.”
As Herne poured her more coffee, Viktor and Yutani began telling her about the goblins out at the Carlsford Café and Ranch. I moved to the window overlooking the alley in back of our building. Rain was sleeting down and the day looked dreary and worn. I glanced up to find Talia beside me.
“You know, sometimes wearing the yoke of the gods can be difficult,” I whispered, keeping my voice low.
She nodded. “I imagine. But I also think that it must feel nice, to have someone watching over you. I’ve never had that.” Talia was a harpy who had lost her powers. When she met Herne, long, long ago, he had taken pity on her and brought her before Morgana, who had offered her a permanent glamour so that she could fit into society better. Talia had chosen the guise of a woman in her mid-sixties, gray hair but fit and strong, and she had gone to work for Herne after that. They had been friends forever, it seemed.
“When you put it like that, I suppose, yes.” I glanced over my shoulder at the others. “But in a way, Herne looks after everybody here. And Cernunnos and Morgana, even if it may not seem like it. We’re quite the odd little family, aren’t we?”
A Sacred Magic Page 3