Heart of Thorns: a Between the Worlds novel

by Morgan Daimler

  He pushed in behind her from the hallway. “What’s going on? Is everyone okay?”

  “Yeah Shawn,” Allie said as the two elves exchanged a long look that made her suspicious they were speaking silently to each other. “We had a little fire but it’s out now.”

  “Damn!” he whistled looking at the still smoking table. “Bad luck that Jason’s not here. I’ll go turn off the alarm.”

  “Thanks,” Allie said, her mind turning over his mention of luck. After a stunned moment Allie turned back to Bleidd and Jess and said, “Was it electrical?”

  Both men turned to look at her, eyes wide. Jess grimaced and dropped the blanket, then stepped towards her, clearly intending to move her out of the room. “Allie, you shouldn’t be breathing in this smoke-“

  “And you should?” she shot back, dodging around him and quickly going to open a window. It was chilly but the difference in the air quality was noticeable as soon as the smoke started going out and fresh air came in. After a slight hesitation Bleidd moved to open the other windows with her. “So was it electrical? Did the lamp short out or something?”

  Jess shook his head looking frustrated. Bleidd frowned. “I don’t know how we’d be sure, but it does appear that something like that happened.”

  “Okay,” Allie said opening the last living room window and heading out into the hallway. “That’s it. I don’t know what’s going on but something is definitely going on-“

  As she reached the doorway she tripped over something on the ground and only Bleidd’s speed and reflexes saved her from going face first into the door jam. He steadied her and then pulled her back against his chest. She could feel his heart racing beneath her cheek, his emotions sharp and dangerous. Jess was there an instant later adding his anxiety to the already overwhelming mix. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, I tripped on something,” worming away from both of them she reached down and picked up the plastic bag from the hospital with Bleidd’s jacket and her sundry pocket possessions in it. “On this.”

  She opened the bag pulling Bleidd’s jacket out and tossing it to him before retrieving her wallet, cell phone, and keys. She set them all down on the closest chair as Bleidd examined the bloody jacket. There was a painful tension between them that made her want to either hit him or scream and she wasn’t entirely sure which one would be better. Instead she said, “I’m sorry, like I said yesterday, it’s ruined. I’ll find you a new one.”

  “Do not worry about it, it’s only a jacket,” he said, his voice flat. “I’ll throw it in the garbage now so no one else will trip on it.”

  She flushed following him – and forcing Jess to follow both of them – down the hall into the kitchen. They passed Shawn, who took one look at the three of them, mumbled something incoherent, and fled back upstairs. Allie ignored him. “I’m sure I’m the only one here clumsy enough to trip on it and I’ll be more careful. Maybe we should see if it can be cleaned first…”

  He shook his head, his mouth set in a grim line. “No matter how well its cleaned it will always smell of blood. I don’t think I can bear having the scent of your blood on me every time I wear it Allie.”

  “Oh,” she said feeling foolish. “Right. Well at least make sure you empty the pockets first.”

  He gave her a long suffering look, even as he obliged and shoved his hand into one of the pockets. “They are empty. They are always empty. I don’t even keep my car keys in the jacket pockets.”

  He frowned, pulling out a small slip of paper from the second pocket. He held it up, looking puzzled, and Allie reached out and grabbed it from him. “Aliaine! What are you doing?”

  “I think I just found our problem,” she mumbled, turning the parchment over carefully, taking in the rune on one side and the tingle of magic that filled the little paper.

  “What is it?” Jess asked, his expression also grim.

  “It’s a hex-paper,” she said, understanding flashing through her. “This is why we couldn’t figure out who was hexed – nobody was, but the object itself would act like, like an area effect weapon, influencing everyone around it.”

  She felt Bleidd’s anger but tried to ignore it as Jess went into Elven Guard mode. “We searched for any signs of active magic or curses and found nothing.”

  “Yes, you wouldn’t,” she grimaced. “these things are notoriously tricky, by design, to find. You have to look for pooled ambient magic and around here with all the spells we have for different things…it would be like a needle in a hay stack.”

  “This is a hexed object?” Bleidd said, breaking his silence, and she could feel the rage coming off him now in waves.

  “Yes,” she said. “I think I can find a way to unhex it, and us though, now that we know about it.”

  “It explains all the bad luck that has been occurring,” Jess said.

  “I should have known,” Bleidd hissed, “I should have seen this before, but as soon as you said you were pregnant I should have known there was a hex at work.”

  “Excuse me?” Allie said, stung by his words, even if a small part of her was glad he’d finally broached the subject that had been hanging between them. “You think this child is the result of a hex? Weren’t you the one just a week ago saying if we weren’t more careful this would happen because you didn’t trust human birth control?”

  “And you wouldn’t heed me, and look where it has gotten us,” Bleidd snapped.

  Jess was looking at Bleidd in real shock now. “Why do say that? This is good news.”

  “For you perhaps Commander,” Bleidd said, throwing the jacket forcefully into the garbage. “It will certainly delight your family.”

  “Wait,” Allie said holding up her hand. “What do you mean? Won’t they be upset about this? I mean the baby isn’t Jess’s.”

  Jess shook his head, pulling Allie into a loose embrace, as Bleidd moved to stand stiffly against the far wall. “Not at all my heart. By the Law if you are with child when the contract is signed then the child is considered to be mine. And as well this proves your fertility so no one can criticize you or question your ability to fulfill the terms.”

  “But…wait…no, that doesn’t make any sense,” Allie said, looking around Jess at Bleidd, who was staring resolutely at the wall above her head.

  “It’s the Law,” Bleidd said flatly, “whether you feel it makes sense or not. Elven society cares little for who fathers a child and greatly about the clan the child owes allegiance to, through its mother’s lineage.”

  “I care,” Allie said quietly, and Bleidd finally looked at her, his expression softening at the vulnerability on her face.

  “I know you do, but that doesn’t change anything.”

  She started to open her mouth to disagree but Jess was already speaking again. “We can discuss the long term implications of the pregnancy later. It is vital now that we get this baneful magic dealt with, before it causes any more damage.”

  Bleidd’s face and emotions hardened again. “Yes, on that we entirely agree.”

  ******************************

  Riley was sitting in her car, slouched down as far as she could get, trying to watch him in his front yard talking to something that looked like a big black dog, but which she had a sinking feeling wasn’t a dog at all. She felt real fear go through her for the first time at the sight of the dog. It looked far too much like what her dad had always said Hell Hounds looked like, and she started to worry about whether that’s what it was. Whatever it was she had no desire at all to cross paths with it, and she realized if it was going to be hanging around his place then she was going to have to change tactics, at least when it came to leaving the messages.

  As she watched the dog turned and loped off behind the house, heading towards the woods. Riley didn’t feel any safer with it out of sight though, if anything she was more on edge when she didn’t know where it had gone. Nonetheless she stayed a bit longer, watching him walking slowly around the front yard. He seemed to be checking for someth
ing and she chewed her lip worrying that he had realized something was magically wrong. Would he be able to sense her hex? She wasn’t sure.

  Unexpectedly he turned and ran back into the house, obviously upset about something. She sat up a bit, leaning forward, trying to see what was going on but several minutes dragged by with nothing but the house to look at. Her patience was eventually rewarded though when someone started opening windows and she could see smoke curling up.

  Was there a fire? She thought, still biting her lip unconsciously. She didn’t know the layout inside the house but it was a window on the side towards the back so she supposed it could have been in or near the kitchen. She felt a twinge of guilt I didn’t think the spell would start a fire. Something like that people could get really hurt. Innocent people. She felt a surge of fear, then pushed it aside, No it’s not my fault. If they are choosing to be around him they are guilty too. I can’t start losing my nerve now, just because his girlfriend isn’t terrible. I should be happy that there’s finally some sign my magic is doing something.

  Still she started her car and drove slowly away, filled with a nagging sense of guilt. Nothing in this town was turning out to be quite what she expected and she didn’t like it. She’d met him, after years of hearing her family describe him as practically the Devil himself, and while he might dress the part he didn’t really seem so bad. He worked a plain enough job, and he didn’t act like any other elf she’d ever heard of. His girlfriend seemed really nice… Then again Riley thought, trying hard to convince herself she was still doing the right thing when you read about terrible people like serial killers don’t they always say that they seemed like nice ordinary people on the surface? I can’t start questioning myself now. I have to stay focused.

  Riley straightened her shoulders and nodded to herself as she drove. I know now my magic is working, which is good. So I need to think about how to get him to remove his magic. Or decide if this is just about revenge now.

  She turned that idea over in her mind as she pulled up to her hotel. She’d come here seeking justice, trying to get the curse removed, but now that she seemed to have the means to do that herself she found it was a hollow victory. It was too easy. After all this time, growing up hearing the stories about the elf who had cursed their family, and dreaming of one day setting things right, it seemed too easy now. Maybe it is revenge I want Riley thought slowly surprised that the idea didn’t horrify her. Maybe my family deserves a little bit of revenge after all this time. Why should he get a nice life? Why should he get to move on and forget what he did to us? That doesn’t seem fair. But him suffering like we’ve suffered…that seems fair.

  Riley nodded to herself as she stepped into the room that had become like a second home to her. As she sat down on the bed and flipped on the little tv she asked herself, So what can I do that will really hurt him?

  ************************************

  Bleidd had left for work after he and Jess had cleaned up the remnants of the lamp and table – both of them refusing, much to Allie’s annoyance, to let her help with any of it. The way they were treating her as if she needed to be protected from everything was immensely irritating and that combined with the unresolved fight with Bleidd about the source of this attitude change had put her in a foul mood.

  Jess had made lunch and she was forcing herself to eat more than she really wanted to, if only to show him that she was feeling better. Conversation was non-existent though as Jess frowned thoughtfully down at his own bowl and Allie tried to think of a way to show everyone that she was still competent.

  So, someone is hexing us but we don’t know who or why, she thought as she chewed. It looked like a modern-ish American folk charm, so it’s probably safe to assume the person is human but what does that really tell us? Most of the people in Ashwood are human, and come to think of it someone who has mixed ancestry could have done this too, if they knew folk magic…folk magic…why does that remind me of something?...Rose! Allie thought in sudden excitement. This is her specialty. She might know what this spell is, or at least more details about it. And the best way to deal with it.

  Allie looked up at Jess, trying to think of the best way to talk him into changing his mind about forcing her to stay home and rest today. She cleared her throat, trying to get his attention. “So, I was thinking about this hex.”

  He looked at her, his expression cautious. After a moment she continued. “And I can think of a couple ways to possibly unhex things but I have a friend whose specialty is this kind of folk magic and I think talking to her would be a good idea.”

  He frowned again. “Which friend?”

  “Rose,” she said. “She’s an artist at the co-op. It’s in the northern section of town.”

  He looked thoughtful and then smirked, some of the old Jess pushing through the layers of official Guard Commander that had taken over since the fire. “This is the artist you modeled for?”

  Allie felt herself blushing and struggled to keep her composure. “Yes, that would be the one.”

  She could feel him struggling now, caught between his desire to meet her mysterious friend and his own insistence that she rest today. She decided to play on an elven weakness she knew Jess in particular suffered from. “I think you’d like Rose, if you met her. She’s quite unusual for a human, very creative. Oh and if we go visit her you can see all her works in progress. They really are quite amazing.”

  He held out for another minute, wavering, before he caved to his curiosity. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt if I drove you out for a short visit to consult with your friend.”

  She smiled, feeling cheerful for the first time that day. “Excellent. I think you’ll like Rose as much as I do. Let me call her and see if it’s a good time.”

  His expression softened at her obvious enthusiasm. He cleared the dishes as she used the house phone to call Rose, who answered on the third ring. “Hi Rose, its Allie, are you busy?”

  “Hi Allie,” Rose said, her voice relaxed, reassuring Allie that she wasn’t interrupting anything. “I just finished loading the kiln and was taking a break, what’s up?”

  “Actually I was wondering if you were up for a visit?”

  “From you? Always,” Rose said warmly.

  Allie hesitated slightly, her eyes darting to Jess’s where he stood at the sink washing dishes. “Me and someone I’d like you to meet, if you’re okay with another guest.”

  “Well now you’ve got me curious,” Rose said. “I can’t wait to meet this new person.”

  “Good,” Allie said, relieved. “We’ll be over in about 20 minutes if that works for you.”

  “Perfect,” Rose said. “See you in a bit.”

  Allie hung up and found Jess standing next to her. “Let me get my shoes on and a jacket and we can go.”

  He nodded then reached out and stroked her cheek. “I would not get your hopes up too high that this friend will have the answers we seek. But I am glad to see you looking happy again.”

  Allie managed a tentative smile as they headed out to Jess’s car, one of the Elven Guard vehicles he was allowed to use. Allie tried not to worry about when she’d find the time to get her new car registered now, after yesterday’s debacle. Instead she focused on what to ask Rose.

  As Jess pulled out onto the street she gave him the directions to the artists’ co-op, only half her attention on what she was saying. Jess drew her attention back as they drove though, refusing to leave her to her own thoughts. He chose to speak elvish intentionally, knowing that it required slightly more focus for her to speak properly than the much easier and more reflexive English would have. “You believe this woman can tell us something important about what is going on?”

  “I believe,” Allie said carefully, “that she knows more about this type of magic than I do and that she may see something in all of this that we are not. I feel as if we have more of the pieces to this puzzle than we realize but we are not seeing the pattern that is in front of us.”

  “Ahh,
” he said, nodding as he turned onto a side road. “Indeed. It may also be that we are all so deeply in the middle of the events that we are not seeing the larger pattern.”

  “Missing the forest for the trees you mean?” Allie said.

  Jess gave her an odd look out of the corner of his eye, and she couldn’t resist a smile. “It’s a human expression. It means what you just said, basically. That we are seeing the details instead of the bigger picture that they form.”

  Jess nodded slightly and she could almost see him repeating the idiom to himself to remember it. “You realize that even if we find a solution to the immediate problem it may prove more difficult to solve the larger issue. We all three of us have enemies, and any of them might seek to use such magic against us.”

  Allie frowned as they turned onto the road leading to the co-op. “You’ve been gone for the last month. It seems unlikely that someone would go after us, and the house, with you not even there because of you or to get to you. But as to the rest…you’re right. Bleidd has enemies, not that he likes to talk about anything like that. And there are still people who blame me for detective Walters death and for what happened to the dark coven. Any one of them might be behind this.”

  She gestured for him to pull over as they reached Rose’s little cabin. Jess parked the big car off to one side, looking around curiously. Before she could ask if he’d ever been to the co-op before Rose was emerging from the building, having obviously been watching for the car. Allie smoothed her hair back nervously hoping that the two liked each other, then made herself climb out of the car. Rose’s shock at Jess’s appearance was palpable to Allie’s empathy, even though she managed to keep her expression welcoming. Allie wished she’d warned Rose that Jess was an elf, but there hadn’t seemed to be any way to do so over the phone without potentially offending Jess…

  “Hi Rose,” Allie said, crossing the small dirt road towards her friend with Jess trailing behind.

  “Hi Allie,” Rose said, her eyes riveted on Jess who, even out of uniform tended to radiate ‘police’ to anyone nearby. His current outfit of blue jeans and a plain white t-shirt accomplished little except making him look like an undercover cop who was trying too hard. He just happened to be the sort of cop who had long blond hair and pointed ears.