by Kimbra Swain
“Grace, Finley is here,” he said.
“Thanks, Levi. I’ll check on the water, Jenny. Perhaps, folks that have lived here longer than I might know why it’s gathering behind the park,” I said.
“Thanks, Grace. Tell Finley I said hello. I may not touch your bard, but I’ll be happy to entertain that fair-skinned brother of yours,” she smiled.
“He’s usually open to anything,” I grumbled. Trudging back up the hill, Levi reached out and touched my tattoo. I stopped instinctively.
His voice erupted through my head. “I didn’t mean it,” he said.
“Sure, you did,” I replied. “I know what you think of me now.” A sex binge could make you arrogant, cocky and mouthy, but most of the time it was the truth. Levi currently had no filter. He meant it. He just regretted that he meant it. I still loved him, but I hated this stage he was in. More than anything, I missed my best friend, but everything had changed now. I supposed those days were gone.
“No, Grace. I didn’t mean it. I swear it. Even now, all I want is you,” he said.
I jerked my arm away from him. His eyes darkened. “I’ll finish the deck later,” he said blinking out of sight.
Finley stood next to one of the posts Levi had laid for the new porch. He looked at his cell phone grinning. He was addicted to the damn thing. He decided against a glamour since most everyone in town was supernaturally inclined or knew enough about us not to care. His white hair hung to his waist, but he had it pulled back and tied behind his head. A week ago, he walked around town with a man bun. Levi teased him calling it a twat knot. Dylan emphasized it by saying that when he sees bun he thinks that there is a serious blow job in his future. I scowled at that notion, but Finley stopped wearing it the next day. Finley said he saw it on the internet that it was the hip thing to do, and that he was trying to fit in. Dylan gave him a Coors ball cap. To be honest, he looked better in the man bun as opposed to the hat with the tips of his ears pointed up beside it.
“Why aren’t your ears pointed?” Levi asked me at the time.
“I got them clipped,” I replied. He took it for the truth, and I never explained otherwise. I supposed that when I dropped my glamour he never noticed the subtle tips to my ears under all that hair.
Finley and I had a talk about not believing everything he read on the internet. He was starting to figure it all out, but in the meantime, it was extremely amusing.
“Morning, Glory,” he called out to me as I walked up.
“Hey Fin, what’s up?”
“Where did Levi go?” he asked.
“He got his panties in a wad, and I’m sure he’s brooding somewhere,” I said.
“Or fucking something,” Finley added. He noticed the sour look on my face and muttered an apology.
I took a deep breath. “That’s why he’s mad. I tried to convince him that the binge had gone on long enough. He lashed out at me,” I said.
“He will figure it all out, Sis. Give him time. Besides the binge isn’t as bad as you think,” he said. “Come on. Let’s go down to the Food Mart.”
“You came to visit so I could take you to the grocery store?” I asked.
“Sort of,” he grinned like the devil.
“You are up to no good,” I said. “I thought the vault was finished.”
He tucked the phone into his pocket without another word then climbed into my truck. His aqua eyes glittered with excitement as he waved me to the truck. I grabbed my keys from inside, and we drove to town, which took all of two minutes.
As I pulled into the parking lot, I stopped in the middle of the street. Henrietta Purcell was behind me in her Pepto pink bug and almost rammed me. I could not believe my eyes. I suppose Henrietta couldn’t see the spectacle beyond my big red truck.
“What is that?” I asked.
Finley grinned, “Isn’t it great?”
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” I replied.
Henrietta honked her horn. I pulled further into the lot and then to the side because I needed to process what I was seeing. At the end of the strip mall that held the tattoo shop, the Food Mart, and a couple of other small businesses, a single wide trailer sat with a funkadelic sign that said, “Magic Vape.” A mural was painted on the whole side of the trailer which was a giant rainbow with white, puffy clouds. Next to a unicorn with a crystalline horn, a bold font proclaimed, “Without clouds, there can be no rainbows.”
I parked the truck on the far side of the lot. Stepping out to view the shop, I asked Finley, “Is that glitter paint?” The whole thing reflected light in a spectrum of colors.
Finley laughed, “It’s awesome! Let’s go check it out.”
“I don’t want to go to a magical vape shop,” I said.
“It is April 20th. I was told you are supposed to smoke on this day,” Finley said.
I rolled my eyes. His lack of knowledge of the real world frightened and amused me. “They are talking about marijuana.”
“Oh. Well, maybe they have some,” he suggested.
“Vape is like a mechanical smoking pipe,” I said. “It’s not real smoke. Chris Purcell may never step foot in town again after this.”
“Oh,” he said. “I still want to see. It’s fucking glitter rainbows!” He pointed at it like an excited child. I had to admit I was curious.
“Okay,” I relented. He practically skipped across the parking lot in happy glee. There was no practical about it. He skipped. “Slow down, Edward.”
“Who is Edward?” he asked.
“Sparkly vamp,” I replied.
“I’m not a vamp! I just happen to like to bite my women,” he grinned.
“T. M. I. You are my brother. I don’t want to hear that shit,” I said.
He laughed as he stepped up on the wooden steps that led to the glitter-covered door. He opened it for me, and we stepped inside. Smoke wafted around the room and billowed out of the open door. There were no walls in the trailer, but the shelves were lined with various liquids and vape mods.
“Good afternoon, Grace, Queen of the Exiles,” a tattooed man behind the counter said. He leaned on the counter taking puffs off his mod. When I say tattooed, I mean every part of his body, including the top of his head was inked. “Nice tat.” He nodded to my arm.
“Um, thanks,” I replied rubbing my arm instinctively. I rarely had to charge my tattoo anymore. After pulling my father’s power in the confrontation with the sylph, I held on to it. The longer I kept it, the easier it was to control. The exhaustion from before wasn’t as bad. Dylan suspected that it wore me out because I fought it. He told me to give into the power. While it sounded easy to do, I was still apprehensive about letting it control me.
“Smells good,” Finley said. The room smelled like glazed doughnuts. It was heavenly. Perhaps I needed a vape just to smell it. Of course, I could just light a candle, too.
“How can I help you, my Queen?” the man asked.
“What’s your name?” I returned the question.
“Míchean Artair. Most folks call me Mike,” he said, offering me his hand.
I shook it lightly, but the ripple of a very powerful magic wielder ran up my arm. I hadn’t even thought to see what kind of fairy he was. He grinned watching me figure it out. As I looked at him, I realized he wasn’t exactly a fairy at all, but had the ability to use fairy magic. There were only a few of his kind left on earth that I knew of. Once I saw his clothing I pieced it all together. He wore overalls covered in patches. The shirt underneath was torn and tattered. He could pass for a beggar.
“Oh, you are one of those,” I said.
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied. I supposed he knew I could tell what he was.
“What do you think of the shop?” he asked.
“It’s interesting. I had no idea that fairies used vapes,” I said.
“Everyone should vape,” he said.
I shook my head, “I don’t think so.”
“Hey, Glory, come look at this one,” Finley said, picking
up a bottle of the liquid.
“Whiskey flavor. That’s what I’m talking about,” I said.
“I figured you would like that one,” he smiled.
“Do they have cunt flavor? I’m pretty sure that would be yours,” I said. He punched me in the arm.
“Maybe. I’ll buy a bottle of it for Levi,” he teased back. He immediately realized that he’d forgotten that Levi was a sore subject and apologized, again.
“It’s okay,” I said, walking around the room to see what all Mike had to offer. Switching to fairy sight, I realized the room was divided into two different kinds of liquids. Some pulsed with magical powers, while the other rested in their bottles with no supernatural glow. “Magic liquids. What do they do?”
“Different things,” Mike said. “I’ve got a potion for just about every fairy aliment.”
“Do you have one to stop a sexual binge?” I asked.
Mike laughed. “Yes, it’s called granny panties.”
“Seriously?”
“I’ve got liquid for everything,” Mike professed. “How about I show you my private collection?”
“Um, no thanks,” I said dismissing him. He continued.
“I meant no offense. I’ve got a back room that you might like,” he smiled.
“Kinky,” I laughed, thinking he was still hitting on me.
“My Queen, you should see the secret room,” he said, waving his hand over the floor in front of the desk. I felt a ward pop up on the inside of the trailer. Finley was beside me quickly. My tattoo flared with blue power.
“It’s okay. Come see,” Finley said, calming me. All the humor had left his voice. He took my hand, leading me down a dark staircase. When we reached the bottom, I realized we were underground. I knew that dank smell. Finley cast a small spell to illuminate the room. The walls glittered like the outside of the trailer, only these walls weren’t covered in glitter. Gemstones embedded in the walls flickered with an unnatural light. Beyond us, a large door with a circle triquetra carved in the center. Surrounding the triquetra was the skull head of a stag. Its antlers encased the circle symbol. It was the same as the symbol on Finley’s cloak.
“What is this?” I said looking at him.
“Your vault,” he smiled.
“My vault is under a vape shop run by a Solomonar?” I asked. I wondered if Mike had his own personal dragon or if he just rode whatever one he could find. The Solomonar were pulled from the human population and taught to use magic. A wizard of sorts. They were best known as dragon riders. They had the ability to control the wind, rain, and hail. Very powerful humans who could tap into fairy magic. Once they tapped into that magic, they became immortal. Most of them hailed from Romania, but when their numbers dwindled, the Solomonar sought others to join their ranks.
“Your supernatural identification is getting better. Stop stalling. Walk toward the door,” he insisted.
Pushing me forward with his hand on my back, the door began to shift and change. The circle triquetra stayed the same, but instead of the stag head, the knot was surrounded by filigree matching my tattoo.
“What? No unicorn?” I asked.
“I figured you wanted to keep that one on the down low,” he said. “Did I use those words right?”
“What words?”
“Down low?” he said.
I chuckled, “Yes, you did. Congrats, you are mastering modern slang,” I said. “There is no knob or handle.”
“It’s a portal. Just walk through,” he said.
The doorway hummed with power as I approached it. Switching again to fairy sight, I saw through to the other side. I walked through into a cavern. The walls were covered in shelves with old books and artifacts. In the center of the room, there were twelve pedestals in the shape of a clock. The three, six, nine and twelve towers had a single fixture to hold a stone. The three and six spots were empty. I felt the air and fire power stones in my pocket.
“Can I leave them here?” I asked, pulling them out of my pocket to show Finley.
“Please tell me you don’t just walk around with those in your pocket,” he said.
“Yeah, who is going to take it from me?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Good point. Yes, you can leave them here. You should be able to access them, but since the stones were given to you by their keeper you don’t need them with you. As for the other two, I haven’t yet located their handlers. I’m still looking,” he said.
I placed the fire and air stones in their proper places. The earth stone sitting at the top of the clock was a black, slick piece of obsidian. It was domed, polished and smooth. When I got closer it seemed to shimmer with an iridescence. I knew I couldn’t use it, because it hadn’t been given to me, but it was a lovely, raven stone.
Finally, I turned to the water stone as Finley watched. The orb was about 1 inch in diameter, and it seemed to be filled with water which rolled and tossed around the edges like a stormy sea, but when I got closer it wasn’t water at all. It was a sea of tiny sapphires and topaz that undulated like the ocean. It was mesmerizing.
“No rush,” I said. “This one is spectacular.”
“Yes, it is. They are each unique in their own way,” he said. “All of this is your inheritance, Glory.”
“Our inheritance,” I corrected him.
“You are the leader here,” he said.
“In truth, you can’t have a leader without the right support, so in that, it belongs to all of us here in Shady Grove. At least those that follow me. The rest can take a long walk off a short pier,” I said.
He laughed. “You are crazy.”
“Proud of it, too,” I added. “I have no use for any of this.”
“You will. Just try to remember what all is here. If there are things you know of that exist, I can track them down for you too,” he said.
Before I turned to leave, in the back, an empty book pedestal stood. I locked eyes on it. “I want that book back,” I said.
“I’m not sure why you let them have it at all,” Finley said. “Have you heard from Jeremiah?”
“No. The last I heard was that he and Riley are in Rhiannon’s realm, preparing for war with Brock,” I said.
“Do you think we should help them?” Finley asked.
“Do you think Rhiannon would accept our help?” I replied.
“Probably not,” he said.
“Then why bother? However, I want to get with Levi after the party tomorrow night, and let's make plans to shut Shady Grove off from the rest of the world,” I said.
“What about the humans who are still here?” he asked.
“As far as I know, Cletus, Tater, and Winnie are the only ones left,” I said.
“Perhaps. We should check with Troy to be sure,” he said.
“Dylan is the sheriff again,” I corrected.
“That’s right. Well, he would know, I suppose,” he said.
“We will double check,” I said. “It protects the humans as well as us until we decide what to do about the Otherworld,” I said. “I’ve got a party to finish planning. Are you coming?”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” he said. “Do you think he knows?”
“I hope not. Super-secret,” I replied.
I dropped Finley off at his apartment. I could feel Levi inside. He wasn’t alone. There was nothing I could do about that right now unless I could convince him to vape some granny panties. Besides, I had a surprise birthday party to plan.
Pacing around the trailer, I tried to think of anything I’d forgotten. Hopefully, everything would be perfect for the party. Tabitha would be by to pick up Winnie who had retreated to her bedroom to play with Bramble and Briar. They were excited to see her, but even more excited to get another night of fairy boinking without her here. I was pretty sure Bramble could give Levi a run for his money in the gravy-swapping business.
It struck me as a crazy, fun idea to throw a surprise birthday party for Dylan. He once told me he didn’t have a birthday. So, I had Reming
ton Blake do some digging for me, and he found a record of when Dylan was born. I just hated that Remy found the record a week ago, and I only had a week to plan. It would be a double whammy. “Surprise, it’s your birthday that you didn’t know you were having,” I muttered to myself. Rufus raised his head to see if I was talking to him. I scratched him along his back and he grunted.
To add to all of it, it was finally a full moon again. The party would be after dark at the bar. Nestor and Mable were setting it up for me because I wanted to be home when he got here. I suppose he wouldn’t be suspicious since he didn’t even realize how important today was to those of us who cared about him.
“Grace,” Tabitha said.
“Oh, hey! I didn’t hear you come in,” I said. “Winnie! Time to go!”
“She playing with the fairies?” she asked.
“Yes,” I replied.
“You know she’s probably the only human left at the school,” she said.
“She is. I’m just glad she doesn’t realize that,” I said.
“Has she talked to you about her best friend?” Tabitha asked.
“No, who is it?” I asked.
“Mark Capps,” she said.
“What? The wolf boy. Oh, hell no! No daughter of mine is going to hang out with a wolf!” I protested. Tabitha looked at me with her eyebrows raised.
“What was that you said at the council meeting? It’s time to get over petty prejudices,” she laughed.
“I was talking about a were-hog living in a fairy neighborhood! Not a wolf playing with my daughter!” I said.
“What wolf?” Dylan said as he entered the door.
“Your daughter’s best friend in school is Mark Capps!” I said, shaking my finger in the direction of Winnie’s room.
His panty-melting grin crossed his face. “Damn it, woman! I love you,” he laughed.
I stuck my bottom lip out. “Aren’t you concerned?” I asked.
He sauntered over ignoring Tabitha, cupped my face and said, “No. I’m not. He’s a good kid.” Then he kissed me.
“That’s not fair,” I pouted.
“Hey, Tabitha,” he said without looking at her.