“I did a little digging, and it turns out you weren’t exactly forthcoming with me on our first visit. I have to say, that was a great disappointment.” Lou sounded like he’d mastered the you should’ve known better voice a decade ago.
I’m dead. The creepy angel knew I’d lied to him.
Would compounding it with another lie make a difference? Was one lie forgivable but the second a capital offense? I stayed quiet.
I should’ve refused to come with him. I was so over my head that I didn’t know which way was up anymore.
“No need to worry. I don’t take offense. I merely mention it because, going forward, I’m going to need your complete transparency. No secrets between us.” He was back to beaming at me.
“Going forward?” The words came out a little rough, like I’d been doing shots of crumbled cement.
“You have to understand that Xazier and I go back a very long time. I know him better than anyone, and he has a tendency to get a little sneaky at times. It’s fine, because I keep him in line, but I need to be aware of what he’s up to or he could cause a lot of problems. I know he’s trying to make a move on Xest right now.”
He looked at me to agree. Was this going to get me caught in some war between heaven and hell? Lou already knew, and I hadn’t been sworn to secrecy by Xazier. I was collateral, but there hadn’t been a nondisclosure agreement. This should be safe territory, even if it felt like jumping into a pool of water and not knowing where the bottom was or whether it was boiling.
“I do believe he would like to make his presence here known in some way.” That was fairly diplomatic and vague.
He stopped walking and smiled. “See? Was that so hard?”
I didn’t respond and merely smiled back.
He began walking again. “Tippi, you have to understand, it’s much better to be friends with me than enemies. I can help you. You don’t have to fear Xazier if I’m your friend.” He laid a hand on his chest and stopped, again, seeming to wait for a response.
“That’s good to know.” Was it normal that the one from heaven seemed worse than the one from hell? At this rate, I was never going to be able to die in peace. On some level most people are afraid of dying, but this brought a whole new element to it. Up or down, didn’t matter if I was blacklisted by these two.
“Do you plan on speaking to Xazier again? I’ve heard you’re meeting with him weekly until you get this little problem you have sorted out, which should be a priority, considering what is at stake.”
Now what to say? How much did he know?
“I do believe he will be back to check up on things, but I don’t call the shots. It’s at his discretion.” Again, all true but a bit vague. I was definitely getting the hang of this.
“The little problem you’ve been having, we’ve been aware of it as well, and it is an issue. I might be able to help you out if you’re willing to make certain concessions. I’d have to make sure that if I tipped the order of things one way or another that you’d be willing to repay my kindness. Roads must lead in both directions, after all.”
Oh, no. I already didn’t like where this was heading. What was the point of getting help to swap out one takeover from another?
“We’re still exploring our options right now, so I’d have to get back to you on that.” These bogus lines were really flowing now. If I’d stayed in Rest, I might’ve been able to get a job in PR.
“That’s fine. We have a bit of time.” He smiled and shrugged in a way that made me wonder if there might be something he knew. “You’ll need to make sure to call me after your next meeting with Xazier, though. Just step outside and say the word ‘Lou’ into the fifth wind. I’ve got you tagged as a VIP caller, so you’ll get right through. But you must realize how important it is to call. If we’re friends, you’ll call. That’s what friends do.” He stopped walking and turned to me. “We are friends, aren’t we? I wouldn’t want to not be friends. That wouldn’t be good for anyone.”
It was about as thinly veiled a threat as you got. Any thinner and there’d only be air. If I agreed to being friends, was I locking myself in magically? Why had I agreed to talk to him at all? That was right. I’d been too chicken not to.
“I’d like to be friends if possible,” I said, being as evasive as I could pull off and hoping he’d take it.
He smiled and then turned on his heel, directing us back to the office. “That’s good. Come. I’ll walk you back.”
“No need. I’m sure you have a busy day,” I said, risking a faster pace.
“Not at all,” he said, walking faster with me. “So, you came from Salem, I hear? Interesting how you ended up in Xest.”
“Yes, I guess. Never really thought much about it myself.” This was getting oddly familiar. Demon or angel, they were starting to merge in my mind.
“Was your family witches?” he asked.
“My mother was a witch.” He probably already knew that. He probably knew a lot of things—more than I did, if I had to guess.
He hummed. “Was she strong?”
“I hate to admit it, but I’m really too ignorant to say.”
“And your father?” he asked, not letting a second lag between questions.
“Can’t say. I didn’t know him.” Finally, I could give him a truth.
There was more humming. I could see the broker building up ahead. Just a little bit closer and I’d be away from him.
“I find you so very peculiar. There’s”—he put his hand out, twisting it back and forth like a seesaw—“something.”
“I’m a weird girl, is all. Nothing overly interesting about me.” Few more steps. Almost home free.
“Well, here we are. Don’t forget, I’ll be waiting for your call.”
“Definitely won’t forget.” I gripped the front door.
Lou smiled again, and then he was gone.
The door to the broker office swung open and Hawk was standing there.
“Where the hell have—”
I clapped a hand over Hawk’s mouth and put a finger to my lips. I looked about the office, making sure they were all getting the message, and then made sure the door was shut completely.
“I think he can hear things through the fifth wind, so no talking about any matters if the doors are open,” I said, making sure everyone was listening.
“Where did he take you? I’ve been looking everywhere,” Hawk said.
“We were walking around Xest, but I don’t think anyone could see us.” As angry as I was at Hawk for varying reasons, knowing he had tried to find me gave me a warm feeling. Besides, this mess superseded any fight.
I shrugged off my jacket as I came to terms with this new issue. I walked until I was in the back room, pouring tea and settling on the couch, trying to unfreeze my brain from a stalled position.
Hawk followed me in, with Zab, Bibbi, Musso, and Bertha trailing behind him. How exactly did I tell them that, in a nutshell, I’d become the knot in a tug of war between heaven and hell and was beginning to suspect this fight was over more than gaining control of Xest.
Hawk stepped closer. “Tippi, what happened with—”
“Don’t say the name.” I nearly choked on my tea. I’d just gotten rid of the guy. I didn’t want him back now, and even inside, I was afraid his name might trigger an appearance.
“What happened?” Hawk repeated.
Bibbi came over and topped off my tea, even though I’d only had a couple of sips. “It’s all right. Just take your time.”
“No, it’s not all right. I need to know what happened,” Hawk said, coming closer.
Bibbi gave me a smile, silently telling me to ignore Hawk. Had to give it to the girl. She was really coming into her own these days. She’d been hiding a pair the size of watermelons under her new outfits.
Zab, Bertha, and Musso stared and waited as Oscar rushed through the back door.
“You found her,” he said, stopping short.
“She came back on her own,” Hawk said.
“Don’t say the name,” Musso said, throwing up a hand.
“Okay, well, what did he want?” Oscar asked, becoming part of the circle of people staring at me.
“He said that he’s heard about my prior meetings with the one from down below.” I wasn’t taking a chance naming any names.
“That’s not really where it—”
“No one cares, Zab. Do the geography lesson another day,” Bibbi said.
“Keep going,” Hawk said.
“So, the one from above wants to be informed of what’s happening with the one from below. That he wouldn’t consider us friends if I didn’t cooperate.” I leaned forward, putting my tea down, because if I didn’t, I was going to spill it on myself. The more reality hit, the more my hands were starting to shake, and that wouldn’t do.
“Was anything else said?” Hawk asked. “Don’t leave a single detail out.”
“He asked about me a bit. My parents, where I came from.”
Hawk moved closer. “What did you say?”
“That I didn’t know much but I was basically a girl from Salem.”
“Did he buy it?” Hawk asked.
I was so past the realm of normal, even in Xest, that no one skipped a beat at that question. All they were focused on was if I’d sold him a bill of goods about being common. Well, they were all going to be disappointed.
“I doubt it.” I sat on my hands in a show of warming them, which had the added benefit of hiding the tremble.
“This is not good. First we’ve got one involved, and now the other? What happened to Xest having autonomy?” Musso said, shaking his head. Bertha moved in closer, patting his back.
“Are you okay?” Bibbi asked, sitting beside me.
“I’m fine. I’m just going to drink some tea and unwind for a few minutes, and then I’ll be good.”
Her eyes suddenly seemed to glaze over. “Okay. Well, I’m going to get back to work.” She got up as if nothing strange had happened.
“Yeah, I’ve got some stuff to finish up as well,” Zab said.
“Oh, I’ve got dough I need to get in the oven,” Bertha said, and then Musso followed her out.
“Shit. I forgot to run over to Zark’s and give him something. I’ll be back,” Oscar said, then hurried out the door.
One by one, they all remembered something else they had to do. The only one left standing in the room was Hawk.
“What did you do to them?” I asked.
“Gave them gentle reminders they needed to be somewhere else. They’ll probably realize it by tomorrow and be angry.” He sat across from me then leaned back, his stare fixed on me. “Now that we’re alone, what aren’t you saying? How bad is it?”
I weighed my options as I stared back.
Even if I didn’t want him to be the person I confided in, I wasn’t sure anyone else could handle what I was about to say. The weight of it might crush a weaker soul. Hawk had a lot of flaws, but no one would dare call him weak. I had to face it: whether I liked it or not, he was still my strongest ally right now in this war, even if he did play dirty. Or maybe because of that. Jury was still out.
“They’re both trying to get me to agree to be indebted to them, like they know something about me, or at least suspect something. There’s something beyond Xest at play here. They want something from me, and I don’t know why.”
I leaned forward, feeling a smidge better for getting it off my chest. I wrapped my hands around my teacup, steady enough to not splash myself as I waited for him to say something. When he didn’t, I looked up.
Hawk’s eyes had hardened, the lines of his body tense and coiled.
“It doesn’t matter. They’re not getting you,” he said, with an eerie calmness.
If he wasn’t an ally, I might’ve run from the room right then, new resolutions of not running be damned.
24
I lifted my head back, sniffing the air. It wasn’t that it was easy to smell grouslies, but once in a while, when I took a deep breath, it was as if I could feel their presence nearby. The only smell on the air tonight was the stink of Mertie’s weird tobacco blend. Sure enough, a cigarette glowed in a nearby alley.
She poked her head out, glanced around, and then waved me closer.
This time there was no hesitation joining her. I’d never thought I’d count Mertie in my list of assets, but that was exactly what she was becoming. She grabbed my jacket, yanking me farther into the shadows with her.
“If I get caught talking to you people, my reputation will be in shreds. It’s bad enough you’ve got the whole rainbow on display, but could you try to be a little less conspicuous?”
“So nice to see you too, Mertie. It’s always such a pleasure.” I tucked some rainbow behind my ears.
It wasn’t worth arguing with her. Both Hawk and I were known to attract attention no matter what precautions we took. What she was asking for was nearly impossible. Although if she’d given me some warning, I would’ve put on a hat.
“Did you get me information on that person?” I asked. “I’m assuming you’re hiding in the shadows for a reason and not a lingering habit from your previous occupation.”
She was looking out of the alley, unfazed by my return jabs. The fact that she could take it as well as she dished it out was redeeming, even for a past demon.
“Some, but I want to go over our agreement again. If things get ugly, I get to move into the broker building, right?”
“Yes, that is the deal.” The way Mertie kept looking for guarantees was making the long shot of her actually moving in seem more and more likely. I was lucky Hawk wanted me alive but wasn’t sure how well the rest of my roommates would take it. Gillian would clash with Mertie being there on day one, and my coin would be on Mertie winning.
“What? Why are you smiling at me like that?” Mertie asked.
“Just glad to see you.”
“You’re so odd.” She dragged out the sentence as she tilted her head. It wasn’t the unkindest thing I’d heard from her.
“I’ve been told. What do you have?”
She stuck her head out of the alley again before she spoke. “I went through the records. Your person was a worker at the factory, like you suspected. Middle-of-the-road Whimsy, nothing special, maybe a little more staying power than some but less than others. Only thing that was of any interest was that she could jump puddles, which is unusual. A lot of Middlings can’t. Other than that, nothing surprising.”
My mother could jump puddles? She was a Whimsy and she could puddle-jump and yet I couldn’t? How was that possible? Why couldn’t anything ever be neat and tidy?
Mertie turned to leave.
“Wait. What happened to her? Did she get fired from the factory or something?”
“No one gets fired from the factory.” She let out a laugh, as if that were the most ridiculous thing someone could utter. “Our records indicated probable death, but it had a bunch of question marks beside it, which means she somehow disappeared on her own. Marvin doesn’t like there to be written records when someone manages to save themselves.”
“How long ago?” Had she conceived me here or in Rest? Was my father a warlock or some human she’d hooked up with afterward?
“Around nineteen years ago, but I don’t have anything more specific. It might’ve taken a while to notice her gone as well. Like I said, Marvin doesn’t like to keep those kinds of records. I wasn’t employed there yet, and any Whimsy that knew her is long gone by now.” She lit up another cigarette. “You’re not going to back out on our deal, right? If you’re even thinking about it, I—”
“I gave you my word I wouldn’t.” It was beginning to be obvious that it wasn’t if Mertie was going to come, but when. But why? If I’d had a true idea of the odds of having to pay up, I would’ve negotiated a little harder. “Tell me one thing: if things get bad, why would you need a place to go? Why can’t you stay where you’re at?”
She shrugged and
rolled her eyes, as if annoyed I’d asked. When I continued to wait for an answer, she finally huffed. “I told you the witches and warlocks at the factory are getting weird. What else do you need to know?”
I leaned back on the side of the building. She didn’t like Dread either? I’d thought she was impartial, but this was just…
“Dread unsettles you too?”
She shrugged.
Mertie got the same bad vibe we did. That was interesting, and maybe a little nauseating. I’d thought it was a given that this thing was evil, but wouldn’t an ex-demon like it, then? What did that say? Or maybe that was why she was an ex-demon. Maybe she hadn’t been cut out for the job? Was Mertie as lost a soul as I’d been living in Rest?
“Look, one way or another, we’ll make room for you. You’ll have a place to stay.”
She gave me a half a nod. It was the nicest gesture she’d ever given me. Maybe the nicest gesture she’d ever made?
“I gotta go,” she said, and then took off, as if that in itself had been a little too much niceness for her to stomach.
25
There was a towel over my eyes; I was trying to ease the ache of eye strain from poring over every book I could find in my search for a solution to what was coming. It felt as if most of my day was spent hunting an enemy I couldn’t find or mentally roaming around in pea soup without a clue, and begging people to dig for details of my origins, in some hope it might lead me to what Dread was.
“You’re not going to find answers in that book,” Oscar said.
I lifted the rag off my eyes and surveyed the room. Oscar was hogging the other couch. Bibbi had a pile of slips at the table she was sorting and Zab was sitting on the other side, eating again, feeding his anxiety, as Bertha tried to cook hers away.
“It’s better than doing nothing,” I said, eyeing Oscar up.
Point was, none of us knew what to do at this point. We’d once again hit a brick wall, and the clock was ticking louder every day.
The Most Wanted Witch: Tales of Xest Page 14