Etched in Stone: Twilight Court Book 9

by Amy Sumida

  “He was hit by one of your magic bombs,” Killian said to Daxon with a snide look.

  I grimaced at Killian; that wasn't nice. He just shrugged at me. Boys. It was just a joke to him, but it wasn't funny to the extinguisher.

  Extinguisher Clay Sullivan lost his smile as he glared at Daxon. “You're the fairy bastard who made those bombs? I nearly went insane,” he growled. “The Ambassador helped pull me through; without her, I'd probably be institutionalized... if I lived.”

  “That was another life for me,” Daxon said. “I'm sorry for causing you pain.”

  “We've all done horrible things,” I said to Sullivan. “Daxon is trying to make up for his mistakes. I'd appreciate it if you gave him the opportunity to do that.”

  Sullivan's jaw clenched, but then he swung his gaze back to me, and his expression softened. “For you, Ambassador, I will make an effort. I owe you that much, at least.”

  “Never mind that.” I waved it away. “We were in it together; you do what you can for those fighting beside you. When it's over”—I shook my head—“there are no debts.”

  Sullivan nodded and then reached out to shake my hand. He smiled before he said, “They're right about you; you never stopped being an extinguisher.”

  “That's part of who I am; I can't just stop,” I said.

  “Well then, Extinguisher-Queen, I have a report for you,” Sullivan said.

  “Extinguisher-Queen.” Killian chuckled. “I dig it.”

  “Her Extinguisher Highness,” Conri added.

  “Her Royal Extinguisherness,” Desmond took it too far.

  “Enough, you louts,” I growled.

  They all went silent.

  “Go ahead, Extinguisher Sullivan,” I prompted.

  “We've caught twelve of the old underground rulers; thirteen if you count the dead one,” he reported. “Excluding the ex-monarchs, sixty-two fairies have been arrested, and four are dead. Of the humans; twenty-eight were injured and ten killed, with a hundred-sixty-seven alive and well in custody.”

  “Holy shit,” I whispered. “That's a lot of people.”

  “This is a big place,” Sullivan noted. “And it seems that each of the ex-monarchs had a retinue, and the humans were a collection of several crime organizations. It's a good thing we came in such large numbers. But at least we won't have to imprison the humans; the human government will be coming to arrest them shortly.”

  “Excellent work,” I said. “And damn good timing as well.”

  “Thank you, Your Majesty Extinguisher.” Sullivan shot a wink at my Guard.

  “Ah, damn it!” Conri hissed. “That's a good one.”

  “It was good to see you again, Seren,” Sullivan continued.

  I lifted a brow at his familiar tone, but he was already walking away.

  “Was he...?”

  “Flirting with you?” Daxon asked. “Yes; he was. Very poorly, but he was absolutely trying.”

  “And flirting is the part Daxon knows about,” Killian added with a smug smile. “So, he's probably right.”

  “And thanks for throwing me under the extinguisher bus, asshole,” Daxon snarled at Kill.

  “Can someone make sure that Delli gets taken back to Fairy?” I asked; stopping the brewing fight.

  “Of course, we will,” Daxon said as he nodded to Desmond. “We'll get him home, Seren.”

  Desmond headed back into the mansion to collect Delli.

  “Thank you,” I whispered. “That's the least I can do for him. And no, I'm not going sappy again. I know what we're up against, and I know why we do this; I just needed a moment to be sad. Someone needed to mourn him.”

  “We all need those moments,” Gradh said gently. “If we don't feel the sadness, we cannot appreciate the joy.”

  “Well, the moment's over,” I said firmly. “Now, I'm royally pissed, and I'm really tired of that murdering trollop escaping us!”

  “Then let's go get her,” Daxon said with a vicious grin.

  “Now, that's just what I wanted to hear.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  “Did you see any harpies?” I asked Killian suddenly.

  We were driving through San Francisco the next morning, nearly to Gentry Tech, with Delli's statue in the van with us. I wanted to see him through the rath myself and make sure he got into Fairy in one piece; an important thing for a statue. I had scried my father, and he was sending some twilight soldiers with a wagon to meet us at the rath. They would take Delli back to Twilight Castle until I could have him moved to Craos-Teine. I promised Delli that I'd give him a place at Court, and I intended to do that, but I needed to speak to Raza about it first.

  After I saw Delli to Fairy, I wanted to talk to Uncle Dylan about Jared's invention. That's another thing; the dwarf and his new, improved, magic-stealing box had disappeared along with Lana Clach. I had told Daxon about what Conri and I learned, but he couldn't think of a way to create a device to distribute power without limitations. He flat-out said it was impossible. But we all know how I feet about impossibilities.

  “No; I didn't,” Killian said with narrowed eyes. “And I don't recall any of the extinguishers saying that they saw harpies. I know for a fact that none were arrested.”

  “The storm was pretty bad,” Ainsley said. “They were probably hidden in the clouds. They wouldn't land if they didn't have to.”

  “Huh,” I simmered down. “Yeah; you're probably right. But the Gorgons didn't show up either, and I thought they were chasing the Harpies.”

  “They could be chasing one group of harpies,” Daxon said. “There's no telling how many Lana had working for her.”

  “Good point... and a scary thought.” I sighed. “Are we seriously back to the beginning again?”

  “No; we weakened her,” Killian said. “We took nearly her entire army; both humans and fairies. All she has left are the Harpies and Jared.”

  “And the other monarchs who escaped,” I added. “And however many of their people who escaped.”

  “That's more than enough to form an army,” Daxon muttered.

  “It depends on what she's after,” Gradh pointed out.

  I looked back at her with a lifted brow.

  “We know she wants you dead, Your Highness,” Gradh amended. “But we never verified her other goals, and she must have some. No one goes through this much trouble just to kill one person.”

  “Two,” Killian said. “She wants Daxon dead as well.”

  “Yes; of course.” Gradh nodded. “Two.”

  “I don't know,” Torquil murmured. “People can get obsessed; especially when they live as long as we do.”

  “But Lana always has an ulterior motive,” Daxon said. “She may be crazy, but she's also brilliant, and she wouldn't waste all this effort just to see Seren and me dead. No; she's after something; probably power.”

  “She can't be after the Undergrounds,” I said. “There's no way for her to go back to ruling. And yet, she killed those princes.”

  “Maybe that was to appease the other monarchs,” Ainsley suggested. “She could have an agenda that not even her partners know about.”

  “I'd say that's more likely than not,” Daxon said.

  We pulled into the underground parking lot for Gentry, and then into the stalls reserved for my Guard and I. Ainsley and Cleary carried Delli into the building between them, and I took the elevator up to the second floor with them. In order to get to the rath below Gentry Technologies, you had to first go up. We walked through the orderly rows of desks while the other elevator dinged behind us; announcing the arrival of the rest of our group. The fairy employees gave the statue surprised looks as we passed, but they didn't ask any questions; just nodded to me respectfully. They had learned that where I was concerned, ignorance was best.

  A door in the left wall opened on a staircase that spiraled tightly down to the basement. The stark, cement foundation circled a patch of earth that this building had been built to protect. This was an entry point to Fairy, an
d we couldn't have humans stumbling through it. Since it connected directly to the Twilight Kingdom, it was my father's responsibility to guard this rath. In a city like San Francisco, the best way to do that was to build a high-rise over it. Then he decided to make use of the structure itself, and Gentry Technologies was born.

  I strode from bare cement onto lush grass with a few footsteps. The grassy hill of the rath was bathed in sunshine from an unknown source, and the smell of living things permeated the air. But I had been there many times before, and the fairy mound had ceased to amaze me. I walked to the golden door set into the side of the hill—a silver replica of Castle Twilight worked into the panel—without sparing a glance for the impossible flora around me. The gate opened smoothly at my touch, and I led the way into the welcoming darkness.

  Through the In-Between we went, and then out of another gate; this one with an image of the Earth worked into the gold. I stepped into a peaceful meadow, bright with sunlight, and breathed in deeply. The scent of blooming flowers and crisp grass comforted me, but the sight of Ainsley and Cleary carrying Delli in behind me set my stomach to churning.

  Be at ease, Daughter, Danu said.

  I flinched; startled by the sound of her voice.

  “Danu?” Ainsley asked.

  “Danu?” Daxon repeated the question as he strode into the meadow. “She's here?”

  Then Dax stopped; inhaling as deeply as I had as he looked around the meadow. His eyes closed in bliss as he lifted his face to the sky. The Sun pulled turquoise highlights from his hair and warmed his skin to a golden topaz while tension eased from his bunched shoulders. Five feet into Fairy and Daxon looked more handsome than I'd ever seen him. I guess I wasn't the only one affected by our world.

  Then I realized how long it must have been since Daxon had been home, and how long—if ever—it was since he had spoken to Danu.

  Welcome home, Daxon Tromlaighe.

  Daxon dropped to his knees as tears trickled down his cheeks. “It's true,” he whispered. “You're speaking again.”

  I've always been here. You're the one who left, she teased him.

  Daxon swiped at his face and sighed. “I'm barely here two minutes and Danu herself is chiding me for being gone.”

  I have missed you too, you rascal.

  Daxon hung his head and wept more. Even his bravado couldn't stand up to the presence of the Goddess.

  I'm proud of you for taking care of my children when I could not, she went on. You are a perfect match for Seren.

  “Am I?” Daxon lifted his head and looked around him as if Danu might appear. “Lately, it doesn't seem so.”

  I gaped at Daxon as the rest of our group came into the clearing, only to promptly move to the edges of it. They wanted to be in the Goddess' presence, but they could recognize an intimate moment when they saw one.

  “What's that supposed to mean?” I asked him.

  “I love you, Seren.” Daxon sighed as he stood. “But I can't seem to do anything right by you.”

  “Dax”—I shook my head—“every couple has their issues. Do you think I had it easy with Tiernan or Raza? For awhile there, I thought Tiernan and I were over. Now, we couldn't be happier.”

  “I know what I am,” Daxon said crisply. “I'm good for you in some ways, but tremendously wrong for you in others.”

  “How are you wrong for me?”

  “Look at what happened yesterday,” he said. “I didn't even know how to comfort you. I'm not husband material. I know how to be a lover, but not how to actually love someone.”

  Danu laughed, and we all went still.

  “Great, now the Goddess is laughing at me,” Daxon huffed.

  How is knowing what a woman wants in passion different than knowing what she wants in a marriage partner? Danu asked.

  “Um... it's very different,” I said.

  Not the what of it, the how, Danu clarified. You are a wonderfully intuitive man, Daxon. I've seen it in you since you were a child. You grew up and grew cynical because of what your father did to your mother, but that doesn't change who you truly are.

  Daxon's jaw clenched as my eyes widened.

  You were taught that women were only for pleasure, but you felt the wrongness in that. Your instincts warred with your upbringing and created a quandary. You know how to connect deeply with women—especially with Seren—but your head-knowledge keeps getting in the way of your heart-knowledge. The humans call it; Nature versus Nurture. Or, in your case, Nature versus Non-Nurture.

  “What?” Daxon scowled.

  Follow your heart, dummy, she huffed. Stop trying to figure out what Seren may want, and just feel it. Use that powerful instinct and the even more powerful love you have for her.

  “Oh,” Dax whispered as he looked at me. “All right; I'll try.”

  “Well, that was easy.” I chuckled. “The next time I have relationship problems, I'm coming to you, Danu.”

  You should bring all of your problems to me, Daughter, she chided me. But at least you have brought me Dellinesti.

  “Dellinesti?” I asked, and then my eyes landed on Delli. “Delli?”

  Yes.

  Danu shimmered into view at the end of the clearing, and everyone came forward to kneel before her. She smiled; her face and body shifting through all the Fey races as she stepped through the aisle of kneeling fairies. Her transforming hands—first dark, then light, then furred, and then scaled—touched the bowed heads in blessing until she came to Daxon. For him, Danu bent and laid a kiss on his forehead.

  “You have a strong and beautiful heart, Daxon,” she said gently. “Never question it, and never give up on it.”

  “Yes, my lady,” he whispered.

  Danu smiled and winked at me with an eye that looked identical to my own. I was kneeling with the others, but my head was up. Yeah; maybe I wasn't as deferential as I should have been, but Danu knew I loved her. And frankly, I wanted to get a good look at her while I could. She was a sight that would never cease to amaze. But her smile disappeared as she stepped over to Delli.

  “Lana has gone astray,” Danu said sadly. “She has hurt so many of my children. I love her, but she must be stopped, Seren.”

  “I know,” I said. “I'm trying my best.”

  “I wish I could help you find her,” Danu murmured. “I can't; I am bound here. But I can help you undo some of the damage she's caused.”

  Danu placed her hands along the sides of Delli's terrified face and then leaned forward to kiss him gently. His lips suddenly bloomed into a rosy peach, and then color rippled over the gray stone. Every cell was revived—shifting from aluvian to flesh—and then Delli gasped back to life. Danu exhaled into that gasp, and Delli shivered as he breathed the magic of the Goddess in. He fell forward, and Danu caught him; cradling him as if he were a child. Delli opened his eyes and stared up at Danu in wonder.

  “Danu?” Delli whispered.

  “Yes, Son,” she said. “Seren fulfilled her promise to you and brought you to Fairy and to me.”

  Delli started to cry, and Danu held him to her chest; her arms widening briefly into those of a troll before becoming the thin limbs of a dryad. She didn't falter in her hold; just rocked Delli and smoothed his hair.

  “Am I dead?” He murmured into her neck.

  “You were, but I kept you close and brought you back. You're home now,” she crooned to him. “You are safe, and you are loved.”

  “Danu,” Delli cried. “I never thought I'd see your face again. Not in life, at least.”

  “When you do good, Dellinesti, it has an effect on the world around you,” she said. “It's a small magic, but still wondrous. Your goodness vibrates out and then returns to you. When you decided to risk your life to help Seren, you set yourself on the path that brought you back to me.”

  “But I only did it because I had no choice,” he confessed.

  “You had a choice as soon as you returned to Lana.” Danu tapped Delli on his nose and then set him on his feet. “You could have be
trayed Seren then, but you chose to stand with her. You took the harder path because you knew it was the honorable one, and you wanted so badly to be honorable. It was such a dramatic shift in your life that it rang out like a struck chord. It vibrated through the Between and into Fairy, Dellinesti. Sometimes a single word—a single breath—can alter the course of a life. You made a change in your soul that allowed me to be able to change your fate.”

  “I did something good,” he whispered with amazement.

  “You are something good. You just forgot that for awhile.” Danu laid her hand on Delli's cheek before she turned to me. “Bring the other victims to me, Seren,” she said as she faded away. “Bring them home.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  After Danu disappeared, there was a long moment of silence which I finally broke.

  “Is Dellinesti Italian?” I asked Delli. “Are you an Italian Delli?”

  Every eye slid to me, and then the meadow was full of laughter. All of our pent-up tension melted under the warmth Danu had left with us. The combination of being in Fairy, having just seen our Goddess, and the witnessing of a miracle was enough to send us into hysterics. And that was how the twilight soldiers found us; laughing in wonder, relief, and sublime joy.

  “Your Highness?” One of the soldiers asked. “I thought we were coming to pick up a statue?”

  That started another round of laughter. The soldiers looked at each other with bafflement until I calmed enough to explain it to them. They seemed sad that they had missed Danu, but not surprised that she had shown herself, or that she had healed Delli. This was the new Fairy—a world beloved and touched by its goddess—and the Twilight Fey knew that better than anyone.

  Instead of sending the statue of Delli off to Twilight, I sent the man. He'd remain at the castle until we found new digs for him in Unseelie or in the Unseelie Court. I was eager to get back to Earth, so we could retrieve the stone princes and bring them to Danu to be healed as well. So, as much as I wanted to see Delli to the castle, I chose instead to bid him goodbye and head back to San Francisco.