by Leah Cutter
“There,” Thirza finally called out, pointing to a large patch of birch trees just ahead. “Beyond that we’ll be safe.”
The fall had been an odd one, too warm but with some extremely cold patches, and many of the trees still held their leaves. The birches, however, had all lost theirs. They stood bare, like bones sticking out of the dark earth. Edeline shivered as they passed over them.
It was just her imagination that the branches clicked and grew toward them as they passed, as if trying to reach for them.
“You’re sure we’re safe now?” Edeline asked Thirza as they rested. They still were in the woods, perched on the top branches of the tall pines. The air smelled sweet here, even if the winds blew cold and rain would dump on them soon.
The warrior gave her a crooked grin. “Safe enough. Just because we’re out of the Old One’s territory doesn’t mean he wouldn’t come after us for some reason.”
“But I thought he didn’t have any power outside of his territory!” Edeline said, dismayed.
“Don’t you ever go underestimating the o’onakie,” Thirza chided. “Just because he’s weaker doesn’t mean he’s without power. And he’s old, older than these hills. He knows more about the earth and its people than anyone else.”
Edeline nodded but she didn’t reply.
Being old didn’t mean you knew everything. It just meant you were old.
And Edeline was determined to prove that she could do everything the older fairies could—and more—despite her youth.
Brett watched the boy stumble to his feet and stagger away from the cliff. He’d stayed there next to the human all night, curious about what would happen. The boy had taken the shot of magic well, better than Brett had expected.
However, it had only been a few moments before the boy had collapsed, the humanness of his body warring with the magic dancing within it.
Would the boy survive the night? Brett had bet that he would. The other times he’d done this, the most recent being just before this country had joined the First World War, the humans had all survived. Changed, yes. And sometimes not for the better.
Brett would also wager that not only would Dale survive, he wouldn’t change much. He recognized the stubbornness that lay at the core of the human Tinker. Brett had experienced it with Nora as well.
Maybe that was why there were so few of his kind remaining, while the humans covered the earth. It took a lot to provoke Brett into action, though once he got going, nothing would stop him.
Certainly not a few hundred dwarven warriors.
Dale finally disappeared into the tall grass and Brett returned his attention to the ocean. He would miss this when his presence finally disintegrated: the constant pounding of the waves, the freshness of the breeze, the squabbling gulls and the smell of seaweed.
He knew better than to think that anyone, or anything, would miss him.
He hadn’t seen another of his own kind in at least a century. Then again, his kind fiercely defended their territories. If he chose to enter someone else’s domain, they’d kill him before they’d ask any questions.
His kind had never been plentiful. Any children he might have had would have fought amongst themselves, frequently killing all their siblings before they grew too strong or powerful.
Brett still had a single memory of chewing on the bloodied leg bone of his youngest brother, in the cave they’d all been born into. Most of his early memories had faded away after centuries of living. He vaguely recalled the first humans stumbling into his territory, how they’d worshipped him and his kind. How they’d grown scared of him when he took their skin and became like them. Some of the first nations people still talked of skinwalkers.
But these dwarves, though. And the fairies. They weren’t scared of him. Or at least, not scared enough.
He remembered the one old dwarf, Kostya. Who’d been so injured that he’d had the skin of his face magically reattached. Then the dwarf had gone one step further, and had illusions woven into his skin as well, fully aware that the magic would drain his soul and kill him after a while. However, the disguise had helped the dwarf stay hidden from everyone, including the Maker.
Brett had clearly told Kostya that the dwarves weren’t welcome in his territory. That this portion of the land was his, and his alone.
Were the fairies getting the hint? Or was he going to have to kill off all of them before he died?
Yes. That was it.
Brett felt his old blood stirring. It took a lot to warm it these days.
How Nora would have helped him feel more alive. At least until she’d given birth.
Ah, he had no place for regrets. Particularly not now, when his days were actually numbered.
Instead, he gave himself a task. One great mission before he succumbed to the darkness lurking at the end of his days.
He would clear all these upstarts from his land. Scour the earth clean of fairies and dwarves alike. Leave it unsullied for the next to claim it.
Regardless of the fact that chances were, none of his kind remained to do so.
“What do you mean, I’m a danger to myself?” Nora fumed. How dare Flori tell her that? She wasn’t serious, was she?
A very tiny voice inside of Nora agreed with Flori and was worried about the magic Nora had been calling, the explosive power she’d barely been able to control.
Nora quickly squashed that voice of dissent. That wasn’t what Flori was talking about. Was it?
“You’re seeking revenge,” Flori said plainly. “It’s a deadly illusion that will destroy you.”
“I have reasons for my revenge,” Nora said stiffly. Really, it wasn’t any of this woman’s business.
“The revenge you’re seeking will never be enough,” Flori warned. “You must—”
Nora’s phone rang suddenly, the melodic flute music filling the room.
“Hold that thought,” Nora said. “That’s my mom.” Nora eagerly swiped the phone on. “Hi! What news do you have?”
“Hey, Nor, it’s me, Dale,” came the decidedly masculine voice through the phone.
“Dale?” Nora asked as she stood up. “What the hell happened to you?” At least he was with Mom.
God, she had to get out of here. The room looked clean enough, but who the hell knew what kind of things were crawling in that semi-shag carpet?
“Remember what I told you!” Flori warned as Nora headed out the door.
“Yeah, yeah,” Nora muttered as she raced down the staircase. She couldn’t breathe. Not yet. Not until after she was out on the street, in the fine Portland rain. “Okay. Start from the top,” she demanded.
“Nora, look, you’re going to have to yell at me later,” Dale told her. “We’ve got other things to deal with first.”
That made Nora come to a full stop in the middle of the crowded sidewalk. The people directly behind her nearly walked into her.
“What are you talking about?” Nora said.
“Okay. So. I went to see Brett,” Dale said.
“You what?” Nora screeched. She was aware that everyone on the sidewalk turned to look at her. She didn’t care.
“Why the fuck did you go to see him?” she demanded as she turned off the sidewalk and into the closest park. Only a few sheets of magical power floated in the air here—Portland had too many hippies and weirdos who could actually tap into that energy for much to remain.
“He called and asked for me to meet him,” Dale said.
“And why am I just learning about this now?” Nora fumed. How dare he? Her own brother? A cold knife of betrayal slid deep into her chest. Why would Dale be friendly with Brett? Particularly after Brett had kidnapped her? Mentally raped her?
“He promised me that I’d be safe,” Dale said.
Nora couldn’t contain her snort of derision.
“He wants to leave the gas station he own, the one in town, to me,” Dale added.
Nora stopped. “Why?” she asked.
“He’s dying,” Dale said. “
Or at least that’s what he told me.”
Nora felt a grin taking over her face. She assumed that it was maniacal given how the young woman walking toward her suddenly veered off. “Oh really?” she said.
Stupid Flori. Nora was going to be able to enact her revenge. Particularly if that monster had grown weak.
“That’s not important though,” Dale said.
“Might not matter to you,” Nora said, stung yet again.
“Look, I know he’s the scum of the earth because he hurt you. And I wouldn’t take his offer without checking to see how you felt. But something else happened. And I need your help. Right now,” Dale said.
Nora started walking again slowly. Dale was always the calmer of the two of them, the least likely to get mad. But he sounded both angry and scared.
“What is it?” Nora said.
“Brett gave me some magical sight,” Dale said.
“How,” Nora said flatly.
“Doesn’t matter,” Dale said. “It kind of short-circuited my body, and I passed out, which was why I disappeared last night. Anyway,” he continued quickly before Nora could tell him how dangerous that had been, “I still have a touch of sight, can still see some magical things, though the ability’s fading.”
“Okay,” Nora said, perplexed. “What did you see?”
“Besides those sheets you see? Which are mega-distracting, by the way. I’ve found traps set all the way around the house.”
Chills abruptly ran down Nora’s spine. “Traps? What do you mean, traps?”
“Knotted grass with magic tied to it,” Dale said. “I bet it was Kostya. I don’t know what to do about them.”
“Can you tell me what the traps do?” Nora asked.
“One’s like a huge arrow pointing to our house. There are others that are for confusion, some that will make it impossible to run,” Dale said. “And others…man, I don’t even know what they’ll do.”
“They’re for hiding warriors, so you won’t see them until it’s too late,” Nora said, thinking back to one of the books about magic currently sitting on her desk. Something about traps and your garden. “Others will cause your wounds to bleed, making the blood flow unstoppable. Or just make your injuries worse.”
“Great,” Dale said. “How do I get rid of them?”
“You, by yourself? Maybe a flame thrower,” she suggested. That would at least burn the physical parts of the magic, that the magic was tied to. The magic would linger for a while, and eventually get absorbed back into the earth, or rise back into the sky, or maybe someone with power would walk by and just suck it all up.
“That won’t work for all of them,” Dale said. She could hear the grimace in his voice. “While it’s kinda wet now, the summer was too warm and the fall’s been too dry. Might end up burning the house down.”
“The fairies could probably get rid of them,” Nora said slowly. She hated to suggest it. However, she couldn’t go back into Brett’s territory, and none of her teachers could either—he’d outright kill them, as he had in the past.
“The fairies have too many of their own problems,” Dale said. “Brett’s been attacking them. Killing them. And now a huge boatload of dwarves has arrived. They’re going to go to war with the fairies.”
“How do you know that?” Nora asked. His agreement was to only go visit the fairies only once a year. However, he had admitted to going to the fairy kingdom and repairing their clockwork at least a couple of times this year already.
“That’s why Brett gave me the magical sight. So I could see the dwarves coming,” Dale said.
Dwarves. On the warpath. Coming to kill the fairies, their ancient enemies.
“Oh. You idiot,” Nora said.
“Jerk,” Dale replied automatically.
“No, seriously. You doofus,” Nora said. Though she honestly wasn’t sure if she was more angry with him or with herself. “Those traps? Kostya probably did set them. To lead the other dwarves your way.”
“Oh,” Dale said slowly. He obviously hadn’t thought about the dwarves attacking him. No, he’d just been worried about the fairies.
Stupid boy.
“You’ve got to get out of there. Now,” Nora said. “Before the dwarves arrive.”
“Okay,” Dale said.
Nora could tell he hated the idea. “Get into town. You need to be someplace where there are lots of people. The dwarves can’t attack you if you’re in a crowd.”
“For how long?” Dale said angrily. “We can’t just run away for the rest of our lives.”
“What the hell do you think I’ve been doing? How I feel about not being able to come home?” Nora asked, exploding. “Time for the shoe to be on the other foot.”
“Nor, that’s not fair,” Dale said. “I wasn’t the one who made you leave. I’d hoped that I could talk Brett into leaving you alone, since he’d asked to meet me.”
Nora sighed. “I know. I know. It’s just…it still hurts so badly,” she said, her voice cracking.
“I’m so sorry,” Dale said. He also sounded close to tears.
Nora knew it was wrong, but it comforted her to know that at least someone else felt her pain.
Dale sniffed mightily, then said, “I’d call you demented if I thought it would help.”
“Crazy pants,” Nora replied. She found herself smiling despite the tears that had streaked down her cheeks.
“Weirdo,” Dale said. “Okay. Mom and I will leave here after we pack. I’ll give you a call when we’ve landed.”
“Pack fast,” Nora warned. “And I’ll check with my teachers to see if there’s anything we can do.” Though she doubted it. She was helpless, held here out of fear of the Old One.
“Bye,” Dale said, hanging up.
“See you,” Nora whispered. She swiped her phone off, then scrubbed her face with the back of her hand.
The only good news was that Brett had admitted that he was dying.
She’d have to build her own trap. Soon. So that she could hold him and blast him.
Stupid Flori had no idea what she was talking about, warning Nora how dangerous her revenge might be.
Nora could handle this.
She had to.
Varlaam lifted his head, raising his nose into the stiff ocean breeze. The air still smelled wet. No sign of land.
Yet.
It would take at least one more day before they’d spot the New World. Possibly two, depending on the winds. He didn’t know exactly when Ivan had made landfall, but Varlaam had given him a day’s head start.
Varlaam had always planned on traveling to the New World himself. He let Ivan and his overbearing wife think that he’d been talked into staying, safe and hidden, in the old kingdom.
Ivan had no idea of Varlaam’s plans within plans. How Varlaam had read between the lines of Kostya’s reports and known that there would never be a fairy peace. How Varlaam had played up the fairies’ treacherous nature, how they’d first befriended Kostya and then betrayed him.
Varlaam knew that there had never been a time of peace between the fairies and the dwarves.
He held onto the side of the boat with one hand as another wave crashed into them. In his other hand, he held his staff. The wood felt as though it weighed four hundred pounds. He knew that if he accidentally dropped it, it would immediately sink to the bottom of the ocean.
Though dwarves were good sailors, good swimmers, there was something about the magic of moonbeams that didn’t like the water. Or rather, such deep water. Ponds and rivers didn’t seem to bother it.
Varlaam almost regretted bringing the staff. It dragged at him, making him sway harder with every wave. But Varlaam hung on stubbornly.
He knew that being obstinate was probably his greatest strength of all.
It made sense to Varlaam not to be the first to set foot in hostile territory. Particularly if he’d been reading all that Kostya hadn’t been saying correctly.
Let Ivan and his men act as shock troops. Let them suffer the
first blows and deaths. By the time Varlaam arrived, they’d be longing for reinforcements.
When Ivan decided to challenge the king, the men would remember who had led them into traps and gotten so many of them killed.
And who had come to the rescue.
The civil war between the dwarves would be short. Brutal.
But Varlaam was determined to come out on top.
Chapter 5
Denise looked around her room. What did she absolutely need? Her bureau held most of her clothes—the closet was reserved for more formal outfits as well as the things she needed to get rid of. The green walls of her room didn’t soothe her. Her suitcase lay open on the bed, still empty.
God, she hated this. It felt far too familiar. Like when she’d had to leave Chris in the middle of the night, take the kids and just run.
And it hadn’t been enough. She hadn’t brought the kids to a safe place. No, it had been filled with fairies and dwarves and monsters.
Denise sighed and shivered. She had to get over it. Both Nora and Dale had thrived here. And quite frankly, so had she. The meeting that morning with Sergeant Palace…
But of course, a relationship wasn’t something she could pursue. Not while they were being chased by a pack of angry dwarves.
That almost made her laugh.
No one would believe her life. That her son had gone missing for the night because a monster had sent a shock of magic through him. That now they were on the run from other magical creatures.
“Just take enough for a week,” Dale said, popping his head back into her room. He paused, then added, “Come on. It’ll be fun. Like a staycation.”
“Except that we’re staying on the highway,” Denise complained.
“We can’t rent one of the beach cabins,” Dale said slowly. “It’s off-season. The resorts are empty. Nora said we needed to be around people. And though I dislike staying on the highway as much as you do, I agree that going someplace nice and quiet would be stupid.”
“I know, I know,” Denise said. She opened the drawer of her bureau roughly. “I just hate this.”