by Lyra Evans
Niko dropped his head onto the counter, knocking his forehead against the surface with a thunk. Ignoring the pain that radiated through his skull, amplifying the headache that had already begun to grow, he exhaled a long and slow breath. Finally lifting his head, he glared around himself, as though he couldn’t quite believe the situation, then walked over to the cupboard by the sink and opened it. He shoved some of the contents aside until he found the bottle of painkillers he kept in there. Popping the lid, he took two, knocked them back dry, then replaced the bottle, collected his clothes, and went to the bathroom. Hot water would solve his problems. At least temporarily.
He closed the bathroom door behind him, placed his clothes on the counter, and hung his towel on the hook behind the door. Turning on the shower, he stood naked on the bathmat a moment, letting the water get to temperature and rubbing his toes into the plush fabric of the mat. When he stepped into the shower, he flinched slightly, the water hotter than it usually was when he bathed in the morning. For a few moments, he only stood with his head hanging down beneath the stream of water, allowing the heat to soak into his skull, his skin, his bones. Then remembering he didn’t have time to loiter as Cobalt could be back any minute, he began to wash properly.
But with thoughts of Cobalt came the unwanted images from the day before. He tried to push them aside, tried to think of other things, but the short films playing out in his head persisted. No matter how he struggled, he still imagined Cobalt in the shower with him, his body glistening in the wet, the Soul Stone at his collarbone shimmering with barely contained magic. Imagined-Cobalt pushed Niko up against the tiled wall, his head turned to the side, the cold of the tiles pressing into Niko’s face. Cobalt had his hands at Niko’s hips, digging in, gripping as though to pin him in place, and then he pushed his cock inside Niko, without prep or preamble, and Niko felt himself moan aloud.
He blinked through the water, the feeling of Cobalt inside him so real he momentarily forgot it was just a—a what? An illusion? A daydream? A vision? He didn’t know, but they needed to stop happening.
Staring down at his hard cock, Niko gritted his teeth and wrapped his hand around the base of it. Pulling and jerking, he took only minutes to finish, his body desperate for release after a full day of frustration. Damn Cobalt. Did he know what he was doing to Niko? Something he’d said to Niko at the club struck him now. “I know what I do to you in your mind.” Did he? How could he, unless it was something he was doing on purpose?
Niko gritted his teeth and turned off the water. He wanted to accuse Cobalt of not taking the case seriously, but Indigo was his friend and his prince. He’d said they were like brothers, and Niko had seen the look on Cobalt’s face at the apartment… and over his friend’s body. He knew this mattered to Cobalt. So why fuck with Niko by making him see these inappropriate things in his mind? Was it some weird Selkie method of flirting? He’d been more than forward to this point…
But Cobalt wasn’t even in the apartment now. And yet Niko was still experiencing the images. How was that possible?
Hearing the outside door of his apartment open and close, Niko brushed his teeth quickly and got dressed. Scrubbing at his head with the towel to soak up the excess water, he stepped out into the hall to find Cobalt sitting at the counter with a paper bag and two cups of coffee. He turned as Niko emerged, smiling easily at him despite the hard look on Niko’s face.
“I hope you like bagels,” he said, pulling out a wrapped, toasted bagel from the bag and handing it to him. Niko took it from him without saying anything. Despite his frustration, the smell of baked goods was more than welcome to his stomach. “And this is for you.” He handed Niko one of the paper cups.
Lifting it to his mouth, Niko caught a whiff of the contents and stopped before drinking. “You took my keys.”
Cobalt studied him, his expression even. “Yes,” he said. Niko matched his look, and Cobalt’s mouth quirked up at the corners. “I apologize for not asking first.” His expression softened slightly, his gaze travelling from Niko’s eyes to his wet hair. “I thought it would be nice for you to wake up to breakfast, and waking you beforehand seemed rather counterproductive to that end.”
Niko maintained the stare for a moment, then to fight the unexpected smile that threatened to appear on his mouth, he took a sip of the drink in his hand. “Did you drive?”
Cobalt tilted his head, plucking a wrapped bagel from the bag for himself. “Don’t be silly. I don’t know how to drive.”
Niko chuckled nearly silently and moved around Cobalt to the other side of the counter to take a seat and eat his breakfast. Filled with cream cheese and a thick fig jam, the bagel was remarkably filling and flavourful. Licking his lips, Niko took another sip of the drink Cobalt had brought him.
“How did you know I prefer tea?” he asked, giving the Selkie a side-long look. It was a strong yerba mate tea sweetened with honey. Niko breathed in the aromatic scent and drank again.
Cobalt chewed his bagel and tried to look neutral. “I noticed you don’t have any coffee in your apartment, but you do have a collection of teas. As I don’t know the proper brewing techniques for different teas, I decided it was safest to have a professional do it. I chose that particular type as it ranges the highest in caffeine content, which I assume you would want after such a long night. And given the only sweetener in your cupboards was honey, that seemed relatively safe.”
Niko set the cup down and stared at him. A small part of him wanted to be alarmed that Cobalt had rifled through his kitchen—and probably his bathroom too—but he couldn’t quite muster the energy for it. Instead, he was mostly impressed.
“Keen detective work,” Niko said. A warmth settled in his chest that disconcerted him. The only person who routinely brought him food or drinks was Uri, and he generally didn’t put that much thought into it. Normally he’d just double his own order and bring it for Niko. “Did you happen to put your skills to work on the files from the landlord?”
Cobalt took a long drink of his own cup and set it down empty. He pulled the files toward himself while Niko finished his bagel.
“There isn’t much in these,” he said, flipping them open. “The most relevant information seems to be the dates they all moved in, which were all approximately the same—”
“Approximately?” Niko interrupted. Cobalt nodded.
“A few of the Selkies moved in a day earlier than the rest,” he said. “Possibly because that’s when the apartments were available?”
Niko looked at the dates. It was possible, sure, but given the turnover rate at those buildings, he didn’t think it was unlikely there were any number of free units available at any one time. “Maybe,” he said, thinking it over. “Who was the first to move in?”
Cobalt glanced at the page again. “Amber Frakes.” Then, as if anticipating Niko’s follow-up question, he added, “She was one of the group who bullied me as a child, yes. But she was not the instigator. More of a follower, from what I can tell. It’s also possible she was under considerable pressure, at the time, to become as close to Indy as possible.”
Niko cocked an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“Her parents are notoriously thirsty for influence,” Cobalt said. “The Frakes have a history of association with Selkie Royals. Centuries ago, when there was a schism between the Reefs, the Frakes were known to be kingmakers. As a powerful military family, their support was considered crucial to victory for anyone with dreams of the throne.” Cobalt shrugged. “Since the unification of the Reefs, though, they generally settled for advisors and confidants of the various Kings and Queens. Amber’s parents are very close with King Azure, and no doubt they fully expected Amber to take up a similar position with Indigo.” Cobalt shrugged. “Then I came along.”
“Sounds like motive for bullying to me,” Niko said, wondering at Cobalt’s laissez-faire attitude.
“Her parents may be determined to maintain their influence, but Amber always seemed to me more of a follower, like
I said. She was the most sincere in her apology to me after the fact. And she does have considerable influence with Indigo. She gained that by studying hard. She is by far the most learned of the Selkies on the trip. Even more so than Indy. She was often the first he’d turn to for counsel. After me, anyway.”
The information percolated in Niko’s brain, the headache having thankfully vanished thanks to the pills and the caffeine. But something seemed odd to him still.
“What day did she move in?” he asked.
“The same day they left Azure’s Court,” Cobalt answered. “First thing in the morning, it seems,” he added, consulting the information.
“Why didn’t everyone move in at once, though?” Niko asked, though he knew Cobalt likely didn’t have the answer. “It seems as though she knew right away where to go to find a place to stay. Why not tell the others immediately?”
Cobalt shook his head. “It’s unclear. We might know more once we receive the documentation from my Court.”
Niko nodded, setting the information aside for the time being. “In the meantime, I’ve heard from Uri. The forensics team found some information about the locations Indigo had mapped out.” Relaying the information quickly to Cobalt, Niko turned in his barstool to face Cobalt more directly. As he spoke, Cobalt seemed to watch him with a strange serene look. There was a tide of something unidentifiable in his eyes when he watched Niko. Then, without warning, he reached out and brushed at Niko’s still wet locks, catching a drop just as it dripped from the tips. Niko felt himself freeze. Cobalt ran his tongue softly over his lips and pressed his now wet finger to his mouth.
“That certainly seems suspicious, to say the least,” he said. “Should we go as prospective buyers or as police?”
Trying to gather himself, Niko shifted in his seat. He suddenly felt very young, very new. But he was neither innocent nor inexperienced, and Niko couldn’t pinpoint what it was about Cobalt that threw him so badly.
“Possibly both,” he said. “Don’t announce we’re law enforcement until it becomes relevant, essentially.” Cobalt nodded, and Niko took in the details of his clothing. He wore a pair of dark-wash jeans with a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled to his elbows. The shirt had a faint pattern to it, barely visible until you were within inches of him. The boots from the night before were on his feet, and a platinum watch Niko had not seen before adorned his wrist. He looked as gorgeous as usual with minimal effort, but there was one small problem. The shirt he wore was open at the throat down to his mid-chest, showing off the Soul Stone against his dark skin. “Probably best if you cover that, though,” Niko said, his throat somewhat dry as he suggested it.
“Ah, yes,” he said, his fingers rising to work the buttons into their place to cover the mystical Stone. As it vanished beneath the shirt, Niko had to remind himself to look elsewhere. He tried to shake off the feeling the Stone gave him, but as he didn’t know quite what the feeling was, he was having difficulty getting rid of it.
“We should go,” he said, getting to his feet. He went to grab his phone and wallet, sliding both into his pockets, then went to the door to put on his shoes. When ready, he looked up to find Cobalt watching him with a smirk on his face. “What?”
“Forgetting something?” Cobalt asked. Niko only stared, and Cobalt pulled his keys off the counter and held them out dangling for Niko. “Unless you had it in mind to let me drive, after all.” Cobalt’s smirk grew. “Do you trust me?”
Niko walked up to him and took his keys, holding Cobalt’s gaze with more steadiness than he felt. “Not yet.”
Chapter 14
The property in question was located in one of Maeve’s Court’s most exclusive and wealthy neighbourhoods. The area bordered the entertainment district and the financial district, but it was well-removed from the day-to-day of city life. Niko drove down through the hotel district and turned, wanting to pass Sickle Beach and chart the route from there to the property. As he drove, he saw the hotels and restaurants, the theatres and clubs slowly give way to more natural landscape. Houses began to appear, interspersed with trees and rocky structures that seemed much like small cliffs. Indeed, there came a point where Niko thought he’d somehow missed a turn or an exit because the landscape in front of him seemed too wild to be the entrance to a neighbourhood. Only, on closer inspection, it wasn’t wild at all.
The trees were very carefully pruned and trimmed, the lawns beneath them maintained down to the blade of grass. There were no errant leaves on the ground, no signs of dirt or wear on the road or sidewalk, and the rocky area seemed almost too perfect to be natural. As though it were carved that way. And set into the shaded area of the rock cliff, flanked by shrubs and colourful flowers, was a small sign that read Shady Cove Residences.
Niko turned into what seemed like a dead end, and as he approached the wooded area at the base of the road, suddenly it melted away. The illusion dispelled; the street beyond was a line of massive manor houses and modern mansions. Each plot of land spread wide enough to house several of the apartment buildings in the heart of downtown Maeve’s Court, with grounds as manicured as the entrance to the neighbourhood.
Sharing a glance with Cobalt as they drove, Niko felt a sense of dread and unease seize him. He did not belong among these people, not even to drive along their street. But the thought, in itself, was enough to set his jaw and bolster his determination. He’d promised himself long ago he would never allow anyone to make him feel inferior again.
They came up to the address Indigo had marked on the map. This house—or manor, or mansion, or castle, whatever—sat at the base of the curving street. Even from the car, Niko could see the property spread out to the beach behind it, the residents claiming a slice of paradise for themselves alone. The structure was a marriage of modern and classic design. The architecture was quite traditional with the vaulted arches and high peaks of the roof, but the details were more modern. Clean lines, the removal of the shutters or more gothic detailing, and the doors painted red pulled the design to something more fashionable. At the foot of the expansive drive was a gate flanked by stone pillars. Atop each pillar was a statue of a woman, bare from the waist up with thick locks of wet hair. Her eyes were larger and wider than any Niko had ever seen on a creature of the Three Courts, and her mouth spread sideways in more than one cut strip. Her fingers were tipped in long claws, sharp as knives, and her bottom half was engulfed by that of a seal. The place where the seal tail met her stomach was pulled, as though she were in the process of emerging from its skin.
Niko grimaced and got out of the car, having parked along the edge of the street where others seemed to have done the same. All the other cars were models significantly more expensive than his, and they seemed to be better maintained. Shiny hoods and sparkling windows glinted at him in the nearly noonday sun. He put on his sunglasses and waited for Cobalt. When Cobalt emerged, his eyes were trained on the statues at the gate.
“Are those…?” Cobalt asked, unable or unwilling to finish the question. But Niko knew what he meant, anyway.
“Yeah,” he said, the displeasure evident in his tone. “Selkies. Or, at least, they way they’ve been depicted in legend.”
Cobalt studied the statues for a long moment. Niko glanced up at his face, wondering at his reaction, but he couldn’t read it. “Seems to imply a more direct connection to our case, doesn’t it?”
Niko looked at the faux-Selkies again. “I doubt it,” he said, and at Cobalt’s questioning look, he added, “Selkies are a pretty prominent part of Maeve’s Court lore. There are restaurants, clubs, even hotels that are ‘Selkie-themed.’ None of them accurately, obviously. There are also old legends about Selkies seducing people on the water, drawing them down into the depths with their song to kill them and eat them. Or to turn them into Selkies themselves. Things like that.”
Cobalt frowned at this. “Charming,” he said. “Why are they both women?”
Niko rolled his jaw. “These statues seem to be taking specif
ically from one set of legends that suggested Selkies were only female. It said that they wore the skins of seals to live in the water and removed the skins to come on land. If a man were to steal the skin of a Selkie, he could claim her as a wife and she’d be bound to him forever. A Selkie wife was supposed to bring a number of advantages—wealth, health, sexual satisfaction, and so on. Putting Selkies like this at the gates was likely meant as a form of good luck token.”
Cobalt’s frown vanished, replaced instead by a stony look he might have learned from Niko. Niko felt a spark of shame at the statues. They represented the disfigured and warped views his people had of another species. Fae were not alone in these views, to be sure. Witches and Wizards had similar stories, though he wasn’t sure about Werewolves. But still, to have the worst of their ignorance on full display to an actual Selkie made him ashamed.
“We don’t look like that,” Cobalt said as they approached the bottom of the drive. The gates stood open for the open house, a sign on one of the columns indicating as much. It read For Sale—Open House—Red Horizon Real Estate. The name of the company was rather small, however, in comparison to the rest of the information. This struck Niko as odd, as these types of signs were normally free advertising.
“What?” he asked, realizing Cobalt had said something.
Cobalt nodded toward the statues. “Under water,” he said. “We don’t look like that. We don’t—‘wear the skins of seals,’ as you said.”
Niko was jarred but hid it well behind his sunglasses. “I never believed that shit,” he said, with a bit too much defensiveness. “I mean, it was all bullshit, wasn’t it? Luring swimmers and sailors to their deaths to eat them? Not to mention the horrible rape tropes of stealing women’s skins to force them into marriage…”
Cobalt’s lips quirked upward. “Yes, that is rather appalling.” He studied Niko out of the corner of his eyes. “But maybe it’s not all bullshit.”