by Amy Sumida
“I see you're not ready for such satisfaction yet,” Raza started the car. “Let me know when you are, Seren. I shall be make myself available to you on a moment's notice.”
“Great,” I cleared my throat as he pulled into the road. “So are you going to help me decide on food, or what?”
“You decide,” he said generously.
“Fine,” I saw something that looked promising, and hit the GPS for directions.
When the woman's voice told Raza to turn right in twenty feet, he almost crashed the car.
“Who was that?” Raza stared at the box furiously.
“That's the GPS,” I said between bouts of laughter. “It gives you directions to wherever you want. Turn right!” I said when he almost missed our turn.
Tires screeched as Raza made a hard right. He straightened and shot me an angry glance.
“You could have warned me,” Raza muttered.
“She warned you,” I waved at the GPS. “That's the whole point.”
“I meant about her,” Raza shook his head and corrected himself, “I mean it.”
“Sorry,” I chuckled, “but that was way more fun.”
Raza followed our GPS directions to a place called Bullman's Wood Fired Pizza. He pulled into the parking lot, eyeing the stone and wood structure dubiously. We got a spot right out front, and Raza came around to open the door for me. I lifted a brow, surprised he knew about the tradition.
“Chivalry is the same, no matter what realm you're in,” he said to my look. “So... pizza, is it? I haven't had that for many years.”
“You've had pizza before?” I asked with disappointment.
“Why are you saddened by that?” Raza took my hand and wrapped it around his arm so he could escort me into the cozy establishment.
“I was hoping to be the one to introduce you to it,” I shrugged.
Raza gave me a tender smile as he opened the door of the restaurant for me. The inside was clean, simply decorated, and smelled incredible. There were booths constructed of wood slats which lined the windows, and little cafe sets in the center. A wide counter separated the dining room from the kitchen, which boasted a brick oven for cooking the pizzas. The heat wafted into the room, making it pleasantly warm. Both Raza and I sighed.
We stood before the “Please wait to be seated” sign, and soon a waitress came to help us. She led us to one of the booths and I slid in happily. Raza sat on the seat beside me, startling me.
“What are you doing?” I looked from him to the empty bench across from us.
“I want to sit next to you,” Raza said as he took the menu from the waitress, nodding his thanks.
“I'll give you a few minutes,” she chuckled and hurried off.
“This is weird,” I nudged him. “Go sit over there.”
“No.”
“Raza.”
“I want to sit here,” he looked over to me with a frown. “Why does this bother you? If we were in my hall, we'd sit in this manner, facing our court. How is this any different?”
“We are not in your hall, nor are we facing anyone,” I rolled my eyes. “We're sitting here staring at an empty seat.”
“Then look out the window,” Raza waved to the view of two spindly trees, marooned on a tiny island of earth, and surrounded by the asphalt of the parking lot.
“I'd rather-” I stopped myself when I realized what I was about to say.
“Look at me?” Raza asked with a smirk. “But this way, you can look at me and touch me.” His hand slid over my thigh.
“Raza,” I hissed, batting his hand away.
“Fine,” Raza sighed, got up, and slid into the seat across from me. “Better?”
“Yes, thank you.”
“Lust is easier to control when the object of your infatuation is not pressed tight against you,” Raza noted.
“I didn't... I wasn't,” I made an aggravated noise. “Don't you dare call me wanton again.”
“It's alright, mo shíorghrá,” Raza said gently. “I understand, and I feel the same. Your nearness is just as tempting to me. I suppose I enjoy the temptation more than you.”
“Can we just decide on a pizza?” I asked with exasperation.
“Of course,” he perused the menu. “This one,” he pointed imperiously at the plastic coated sheet.”
“That took like three seconds,” I scoffed. “Did you just randomly select something?”
“No, this one has the most meat,” Raza shrugged. “I like lots of meat.”
“You're ridiculous,” I shook my head, but saw that he'd indeed chosen a pizza with a lot of meat on it. Meat and cheese, that's what the Bridger pizza was all about. It looked good too. “Fine.”
So we ordered Raza's choice as well as some drinks. It took Raza all of thirty seconds before he was back to discussing our relationship.
“How long will you need to feel sufficiently finished with Lord Tiernan?” he asked conversationally.
“I don't know,” I huffed. “I'm not even sure we're over.”
“You're not,” Raza sighed. “But I doubt he will return to you any time soon. He's a stubborn man.”
“Says the dragon,” I rolled my eyes.
“I am tenacious, not stubborn,” he scoffed. “Stubbornness is for weaker creatures than I.”
“Of course,” I rolled my eyes.
“When we marry-”
“Raza,” I snapped, and then lowered my voice when I saw the attention I'd attracted. “I'm not marrying you.”
“Why not?” Raza looked shocked. “You said you love me. I love you. I've already informed you of my wishes to wed you. What's stopping us from marrying?”
“First of all, if that was your idea of a proposal, it sucks,” I huffed. “I would never marry a man who proposed by informing me of his wishes. Second, I don't think marriage would be a good idea for us.”
“Danu herself-”
“I disagree with Danu,” I interrupted him, and his eyes went round.
“Danu knows far more than we do,” Raza said gently. “It would behoove us to listen to her.”
“What if she's wrong?”
“She's not.”
“She could be,” I insisted. “She created Twilight to stand between Unseelie and Seelie in neutrality. Now she wants us all to blend together? And if Twilight joins with Unseelie first, won't Seelie feel slighted?”
“I couldn't care less how Seelie feels about our marriage,” Raza growled.
“But we're supposed to unite Fairy,” I lifted a brow. “If you don't care about Seelie, how are we going to do that?”
“You can care enough for the both of us,” he waved his hand. “And when Lord Tiernan comes to his senses and asks to be your consort, we will cement our connection to Seelie.”
“Tiernan was cast out of Seelie,” I shook my head. “They won't feel connected through him. And what about children?”
“You wish to have children?” Raza's face went slack, his eyes filling with hope. He looked suddenly younger, almost boyish. It was at such odds with his normal appearance, the breath caught in my throat.
“Possibly,” I whispered. “But you've already made Raye your heir. What would happen if we had a child?”
“It would be heir to Twilight,” Raza smiled brilliantly. “Your father would be thrilled, I'm certain.”
“Hmph,” I scowled. He was right, Keir would be thrilled.
“You are looking for reasons to reject me,” he scowled back at me.
“No, I'm not,” I denied automatically. But maybe I was. Was I fighting this simply because Danu had decreed it was what she wanted? What if it was what I wanted too?
“Seren,” Raza said gently. “Forget Danu. Forget Tiernan and Twilight and all of Fairy. Would you want to be with me if none of that existed?”
I stared at him as my mouth fell open.
“Yes,” I whispered, and then I repeated it more strongly, “Yes, I would.”
Raza's smile was brilliant, but it was also relieved
. If it hadn't been that charming mix of satisfaction and ease, I think I may have told him to go to hell. As it was, I smiled back.
“Bridger pizza,” the waitress slid the oozy, bubbling goodness between us.
“Thank you,” I murmured, never taking my eyes off Raza.
She left to get us some drink refills. Raza slid his hand across the table and turned it palm up. It looked so human under his glamour, so harmless. The nails were blunted, his skin tanned, but there was still that strength lurking beneath the surface. That hand could mean safety or death, depending on Raza's whim. But for me, I knew it would never bring harm. That strength was mine to call upon, whenever I needed it. And it would never seek to oppress me. Raza would never ask me to give up being who I was, and become some pretty jewel to adorn the throne beside his. He wouldn't ask because that wasn't what he wanted.
He wanted me. Just as I was. And wasn't that the biggest turn-on ever?
I put my hand over Raza's, curling my fingers into his so that we formed a sort of hooked link. He closed his eyes and squeezed. Anyone looking at us would think we were praying, giving thanks to our creator for the bounty before us. And I suppose, in a way, we were. We were both grateful for what Danu had done, even if I was a little petulant about it. I was smart enough not to punish myself out of spite for her. I loved Raza. Perhaps I loved him more because I'd tried so hard not to.
I wasn't sure if I was ready to take our relationship to the next level yet. And I was certain I wasn't ready to marry him. But I'd accepted the way we both felt, and finally decided that being with Raza was what I wanted. It would happen. Someday. And that was enough for both of us.
He let go of my hand with a soft smile, and slid a piece of pizza onto my plate.
“It looks good,” Raza nudged the plate towards me. “We chose well, mo shíorghrá.”
I knew he wasn't really talking about the pizza.
Chapter Twenty-Five
We finished lunch and brought pizzas back for the rest of the group. Despite their earlier protests, they were glad for the food. Especially such good food. The slices disappeared within minutes.
The work was done, all of the bodies loaded into our SUVs. Including the bodies of Wesley and his men, which had been found piled in one of the empty rooms. Discarded like trash. They were now in body bags, on their way to Ireland, where they'd remain until their loved ones could be contacted. So at least that was something. But it was all we had. Our psychics had exhausted their efforts searching the buildings for some clue as to where Uisdean and Rue were headed, but they found nothing. That hadn't hurt Killian's appetite, but the twins were moping a little. They'd only had a single slice of pizza apiece. That was how good this pizza was, even sad psychics couldn't resist a slice.
We made sure no damning evidence was left behind for humans to find, then headed back to the airport. All this flying was starting to wear on me, and I knew I'd need a few days in one place to recover. I just wasn't sure where those days would be spent. Raza seemed to think I'd be going back to Unseelie with him. Killian expected me to stay in Ireland at the Fairy High Council House so I could continue to watch over this Uisdean situation, which was really a Rue situation. I knew I shouldn't do either of those things. I had two very pissed off men waiting for me back in Twilight, and the longer I put off the confrontation with them, the worse I knew it would be for me. I should go home. But Ewan was still in that horrible undead state, and if I went back to Twilight now, Keir would do everything within his power to prevent me from leaving it again.
So I was trying to come up with a fourth option.
After another long flight, we arrived back at the Fairy High Council House in Ireland. I went with our teams to report to the Collective. I knew we were about to face some angry council members, but there was nothing to be done for it. We'd tried our best. Now we'd have to wait for Uisdean to pop his creepy head up like an evil groundhog, and give us the chance to shoot it off.
The high council members weren't angry. They were furious. And their fury took a back seat to that of the coven elders. While we were gone “touching things”, as they put it, witches had been disappearing. They were being abducted right off the streets. Reports had come in detailing kidnappings in which a group of humans would grab some unsuspecting witch, drug them, and toss them into a waiting vehicle. The humans were quick, efficient, and drove unmarked cars. They would be gone within moments, taking the witches who knew where.
And the who, who knew where, wasn't any of us.
There were no clues left behind. The witches were taken at all times of day and night, by different men each time, and at different locations all across the world. Yes, the world. A witch had been taken in Switzerland! Evidently, Switzerland didn't get to be neutral this time. They were involved in this war, whether they liked it or not.
Obviously there was some magic, or raths, or other fairy craziness involved. But with such diverse tactics, there was no way to locate Uisdean and Rue. We were flying blind with our thumbs up our butts while Rue did horrible things to those poor people. And what awful imagery that was. Blind fairies with thumbs in their asses, flying around knocking into trees? Really? I apologize.
The truce we'd signed with the witches was practically still wet with ink, and they were being targeted by an insane fairy couple. Ex-royalty no less. Then I brought in some of their ostracized members to help. And what kind of help did Killian bring to the table? Nothing. The Coven was on the verge of walking out on our coalition.
“You can't blame us for a rogue element,” I said to the witch elders. “We wouldn't hold you responsible if witches were the culprits.”
“But we never are, are we?” Richard Nelson hissed. “You blamed my tribe for the disappearance of those raven-mockers, when all along, it was another group of fairies. Now, witches are being taken, and it's your fairies once again. Perhaps we should align with the Human Council and wipe the Fey out.”
“You can try,” Raza smiled slowly at the elder, but it was nothing like the slow smile he'd given me earlier. “And you will fail. Horribly.”
“The humans didn't fare so poorly during the wars,” the Flight Elder went on. “With us, they'd be unstoppable.”
“Hey,” I pointed a finger at Nelson. “Witches may not have been responsible for the disappearance of the raven-mockers, but Flight was responsible for killing humans and trying to blame it on the mockers. So don't give me any bullshit about you all being innocent.”
“Elder Nelson,” Councilman Murdock cleared his throat and stopped our building battle. “We were losing the war. That's why we asked for a truce with the Fey. And frankly, we have come too far with the fairies to turn our backs on them now. We'd sooner destroy the witches, than the Fey.”
That wasn't the most diplomatic thing to say, but it wasn't all that surprising either, coming from the straight-forward Murdock. The room erupted into shouting, furious fingers pointing in all directions as spittle flew from wobbling lips. I made a disgusted face and backed out of the splash zone. Raza placed his hand firmly on my lower back.
“Come now, Twilight Star,” Raza whispered in my ear. “Someone must calm the savage beasts, and you're always my choice for the role of beast master.”
“Funny,” I huffed, but stepped forward anyway. I tried for a bit more diplomacy this time. “Shut the fuck up!”
They all went silent.
“Do you really think this will help those witches?” I looked over the witch elders. “And do you think I have nothing invested in this? My father is still out there somewhere, being used as a slave while his body rots around him. I am invested in this. I am dedicated. I will not give up until I find our people and free them. But some support would be nice. Perhaps, instead of accusing each other, we could band together and make good use of this truce? Or we could tear each other apart, and make things so much simpler for our enemies. It's your decision. Make it now before I lose my patience and leave.”
“She's right,” Councilm
an Murdock growled. “Irreverent, but right. We only play into Uisdean's hands by bickering like this. He could be using that club even as we speak. Bringing some of the most powerful fairies in history back to life as evil versions of themselves. Hell, maybe he's brought back Dagda himself. I, for one, do not want to fight an evil Dagda. The original version was formidable enough, from what I've heard. ”
“I understand your anger,” Timberstride said to the witch elders, “but we cannot control every fairy. This is why the laws were put into place, and our military forces created. So that we could decide, without argument, when a wrong had been done, and then we could punish the criminals. Uisdean and Rue are now criminals. They are outlaws on the run from our justice, and we all wish to find them and mete out punishment.”
“Punishment?” Elder Nelson huffed.
“We're going to extinguish them, Elder Nelson,” I clarified. “Do you have a problem with that?”
“No, Ambassador, I don't,” Nelson smiled grimly.
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Ambassador,” a man approached me in the hallway as I was leaving the council chambers. He had a slight build with wispy blonde hair and almond-shaped brown eyes. Definitely not an extinguisher. “I'm Councilman Jeffrey Lyman,” he held out his hand to me.
“Councilman Lyman,” I shook it. “What can I do for you?”
“I've been assigned to autopsy the witch remains your team recovered,” he got right to it. “And I've had some unsettling discoveries. Would you care to take a look?”
“Yes, of course,” I didn't even check to see if Raza and Killian were following me, just headed after Lyman.
They were following. They followed us all the way to Lyman's laboratory. I was expecting more of a morgue feel, but this was definitely a room for scientific research. All the equipment looked a little slapdash though, as if it had been set up recently and very hastily. Which was most likely the case. We were in the Fairy High Council House and Lyman was a human councilman. The Human Council must have brought him here to assist, and he'd had to set up shop on the fly.