by Martha Carr
Ember wrinkled her nose. “Including their cooking, huh?”
“Oh, yeah.”
Cheyenne knocked firmly on the door and pounding feet scurried across the apartment, followed by a quick shout of, “I got it!”
Three deadbolts and a chain slid out of their locks, then the door creaked open.
“Cheyenne!” Bryl flung the door aside, not bothering to keep it from banging against the wall, and grinned at the halfling. “You’re back!”
“Hey, kid.” Cheyenne nodded at the young troll girl and peered inside the apartment. “I’m not sticking around for very long. Just came by to check on a few things. Your parents are home, right?”
“Yeah. Come in.” Bryl stepped aside and waved them into the apartment. “Who are you?”
Ember laughed.
“Oh, yeah. Bryl, this is Ember. Ember, Bryl.”
“Nice to meet you, kid.”
The troll girl stared at Ember with wide scarlet eyes. “What are you?”
Ember shut the door behind her, then twisted her fingers and dropped her illusion charm to reveal her faeness.
“Wow.” Bryl grinned. “I didn’t know you had fae friends.”
“Yeah, well, I guess I just get along with everyone.” The halfling and her Nós Aní tried harder than they should have to not to laugh.
“Maji!” Bryl shouted, leaning back to peer around the corner into the kitchen. “It’s Cheyenne!”
“Ah!” A pot lid clanged on the stove, and Yadje came bustling into the living room with a startled grin. “Would you look at that? She’s back.”
“Not permanently, Yadje. Just stopping by.”
“Oh, Cheyenne.” The troll woman wiped her hands on a stained apron and glanced nervously at the front door. “Have you been to your apartment yet?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s terrible, that’s what it is! I’m so sorry. R’mahr tried the first few nights to chase those good-for-nothing…Bryl, what’s the word?”
“Assholes.”
“Assho…no!” Yadje frowned at her daughter, who grinned and bit her lower lip in a poor attempt to hide it. “Who’s giving you these words, eh? You read them in your books?”
“Someone at the market said it.”
Yadje clicked her tongue and flapped a hand at the back hallway. “Go bring your da out. He’ll keel over if he knows Cheyenne came by and we never told him.”
Still grinning, the troll girl raced down the hall, shouting loud enough for their neighbors on either side to hear that Cheyenne was in their living room.
“That child.” Yadje shook her head, then looked at Cheyenne. “R’mahr tried to chase them off, Cheyenne. They did not want to leave, and more kept coming, so we put extra locks on our door instead.”
“Yeah, I saw that. I’m glad you guys were able to stay safe with all that happening. I’m sorry you had to deal with it.”
“No, no, we are sorry. Not enough time in the day to watch two apartments. Hardly enough time to watch one girl.”
Cheyenne smiled and shook her head. “It’s really okay. I didn’t expect you guys to watch my stuff for me, let alone protect it. There wasn’t anything worth protecting anyway.”
“That is fortunate.” The troll woman finally seemed to notice the fae standing inside her door and jumped. “I have no manners. Yadje.”
Ember took the troll woman’s hand for a firm shake. “Ember. Nice to meet you.”
“Yes! Yes, indeed. A fae. Ha. Welcome to our apartment. Nothing like what I’m sure you’re used to back home, but it suits us for now.”
“Oh.” Ember shrugged. “Well, I was born Earthside, so this looks pretty much like home to me.”
“Ah! Born Earthside.” Yadje clicked her tongue. “A phér móre and an Earthborn fae standing in my life room.”
“Living room, Maji.” Bryl rolled her eyes as she headed back down the hall, her father following quickly behind. “It’s called the living room.”
“It means the same thing, yes?” Yadje grinned at her guests.
Her daughter walked toward the couch and plopped down on it, then picked up her newest book, and whispered, “No, it doesn’t.”
“Cheyenne, Cheyenne!” A grinning R’mahr joined them by the door and reached out with both hands to clasp one of hers. He pumped her hand vigorously, his scarlet eyes twinkling. “So good to see you again. I wondered if we would. About your apartment…”
“Don’t even worry about it. I’m not upset. I’m glad you guys are safe.”
“Yes. Yes, we are. No more thugs knocking on our door, trying to squeeze us for what we don’t have, thanks to you.” The troll man chuckled. “Though I did think it rather odd to see so many different visitors at your place while you were gone.”
Yadje scoffed and smacked his arm with the back of her hand. “Don’t call them visitors. They were…”
“Assholes?” Bryl muttered.
“Ha!” R’mahr turned around to point at his daughter. “Exactly.”
His wife’s scarlet eyes grew wide in exasperation as she glanced at Cheyenne and Ember. “You hush and read your book, hinya.”
Ember laughed, covered her mouth, and shook her head. “Sorry. I shouldn’t laugh at that.”
“You laugh all you want.” R’mahr frowned and leaned toward her before breaking into another eager grin. “Who are you?”
“Ember. Cheyenne’s friend.”
“And fae. We are blessed by Earthside opportunities, eh? Ha!” He shook her hand fervently, then patted his belly. “Yes. This is good.”
“Hey, I’m curious,” Cheyenne started. “Did you guys see anyone else break into other apartments here? Maybe the same people who got into mine?”
Yadje shook her head. “No.”
“That is what I mean by odd, Cheyenne.” R’mahr thrust a finger in the air. “Only you and your apartment. I do not think it’s that special.”
“Stop.” His wife smacked him again, and he chuckled, flinching playfully away from her.
“No, it’s really not.” Cheyenne smiled at them. “I’m glad my place was the only target.” So far, and I need to make sure it stays that way. Short-term and long-term.
“So.” R’mahr smoothed the front of his baggy sweater, which was two sizes too big for him, and nodded. “Where have you been?”
“Well, I’ve taken a few trips across the Border since the last time we talked.”
“What?” The troll man clapped both hands to his head, his jaw dropping in disbelief. “Why would you go back?”
Ember shot Cheyenne a sidelong glance. “We had some business to take care of over there, I guess you could say. In the capital.”
“Ack.” Yadje swiped her pinky across her forehead, then flicked it aside. “Curse Hangivol and everything that foul place has a hand in. Cheyenne, you know why we made the crossing to come here.”
“Yeah, I do.” Cheyenne gave her a sympathetic smile. “You guys picked the right time to leave, honestly. It’s a lot worse over there now.”
“Which we’re working on fixing,” Ember added with an encouraging nod. “And we will.”
“You?” R’mahr chuckled. “What can you do?”
Cheyenne dipped her head. “You’d be surprised.”
“Maji, the kitchen’s smoking.”
“Oh!” Yadje leaped toward the kitchen, followed by muttered curses and pot lids banging around. “I always forget about this stove cooking.”
“It has a timer,” Bryl offered.
“Timer. Timer. You keep saying this thing, and I don’t know what it is!”
“Need any help in there?” Ember called.
“No! No, I’ve got it. Thank you.” More items clanged, the gas stove clicked a few times, the sound of emitting gas cut off, and Yadje emerged from the kitchen again. “I’ll finish that later.”
R’mahr raised his eyebrows and rocked forward on his toes. “She’s making waffles.”
Ember frowned above a confused smile. “On the stove
?”
“It’s called a skillet, yes?” Yadje mimed tossing the handle of a pan. “To cook with.”
“Yeah.” Cheyenne nodded. “Or a pot or pan. Normally not for waffles, though.”
“Yes, but it works. I just can’t seem to find how to get those little squares into the big square.”
Bryl snorted. “Pancakes. She’s making pancakes.”
“No, the container says waffle mix.” Yadje shook her head and smiled at the girls in her tiny entryway. “These ideas of hers. I don’t know where they come from.”
“Well, it smells good either way,” Cheyenne offered. Minus the asparagus part.
“Well, come in.” R’mahr stepped back and waved them forward. “Come sit. Are you hungry? And what news from home, eh?”
“Shush.” Yadje waved him off. “There is nothing I want to hear about it. That’s that.”
“You must be a little curious.”
“No.” The troll woman pointed sharply toward the kitchen. “Get them water, R’mahr. They don’t want to sit here answering all your questions. Cheyenne’s had enough of that.”
“Yadje, we can’t stay.” Cheyenne shrugged and smiled, hoping to let the troll family down easy. “Like I said, this was just a quick stop, but it’s really good to see you guys.”
“Oh. Yes, of course. You too.”
Bryl looked up from her book. “When are you coming back?”
“I don’t know, kid. I’ll try not to make it too long, okay?”
“Cheyenne. Tuesday.” R’mahr pointed at her. “We’ll be in Peridosh. Our weekly trip, remember?”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Come with us. It was so much fun the last time.”
Cheyenne opened her mouth to protest and paused. Yeah, loads of fun, including a few assholes almost running them all over in the main avenue. “I’ll think about it.”
“Yes, yes. And after you think about it, you’ll come.” R’mahr grinned.
“Will you stop pressuring her?” Yadje shot him a warning glance. “She has enough to deal with without you pushing, pushing, pushing.”
Her husband raised his hands and dipped his head, taking a small step backward. “No pushing. I’ve said what I wanted to.”
“If I can make it,” Cheyenne said, “I’ll be there.”
“Any room for a fae?” Ember asked.
“Yes!” Bryl shouted, leaping off the couch. “All the time.”
“Awesome. Maybe we’ll see you Tuesday.” Cheyenne turned to open the door, and R’mahr leaped toward her.
“Wait. Cheyenne. If there is anything you can tell us, any news from Ambar’ogúl… We chose to leave, and we are finding our way here, but it’s still home to us, yes?”
The halfling glanced at Yadje, who’d turned toward the kitchen but stared at Cheyenne with expectant scarlet eyes. “Honestly, a lot has changed in the last few weeks.”
“Yes?”
“The Spider’s gone.”
Yadje turned fully to face her guests. “Gone?”
“Yeah, there’s a new Crown now. Just happened yesterday.”
“Ha!” R’mahr clapped his hands together and leaned forward. “Must have a massive pair of balls to get that job done.”
Cheyenne snorted. “Kinda.”
For the first time, Yadje ignored her husband’s odd sayings, far more interested in hearing more from the halfling standing in her doorway. “Who is it?”
“A troll.”
“For real?” Bryl shouted and raced toward her parents. “A troll like us?”
“Didn’t know there was any other kind, kid.” Cheyenne winked at her.
R’mahr slowly wrapped his arm around his wife, both of them staring at the halfling in shock. Tears swam in Yadje’s eyes, and she swallowed thickly, trying to hide her emotions.
“I don’t know if the name Persh’al Tenishi rings a bell, but now you know.”
“Ha! A troll.” R’mahr’s lips quivered as he smiled at the half-drow and the fae. “Thank you. Thank you, Cheyenne. That is wonderful news.”
“No problem. I’ll see you soon, huh?” She smiled at the awe-stricken family, then gently closed the door behind her.
Ember said as they walked down the hall toward the front staircase again, “You really are set on giving Persh’al all the credit for everything, aren’t you?”
“Not everything, Em.” Cheyenne shrugged. “Those trolls already think I’m the greatest thing since anything invented on Earth that they’ve never seen before. I don’t need to make their brains explode by telling them anything else. And yeah, Persh’al deserves a lot of credit. He’s the only one who had the balls to step up to the plate.”
“After you.”
“Well, yeah. But he’s already been the Crown, like, a hundred times longer than I was.”
“R’mahr did say something about a huge pair of balls.”
“Fuck.” Cheyenne snorted, and Ember’s laughter rang down the hall. “First and last time we broach that topic, ‘kay?”
“Sure. Until the next time you visit the bone drow’s secret lair.”
“Careful. I’m in a good position to shove you down these stairs.”
“And I can float over the ground. Remember?”
Cheyenne rolled her eyes and headed quickly down the staircase toward the ground floor. “I can’t wait ‘til your legs heal themselves all the way.”
“Aw, thanks.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
An hour and a half later, Cheyenne’s Panamera crunched down the gravel drive of the Summerlin estate and rolled to a stop in front of the curved stone steps leading up to the front door. “Here we go.”
Ember got out after Cheyenne and gently closed her door. “You okay?”
“What? Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?” The halfling’s black Vans made very little sound on the gravel.
“Oh, I don’t know. ‘Cause your mom’s awake after being unconscious for three days under a curse meant for L’zar. And let’s be honest. We both know those scars aren’t going away anytime soon.”
“Or ever, probably. Okay, sure. I’m a little tense.”
“She won’t blame you, Cheyenne. She can’t. That would be ridiculous.” Ember floated up the steps after her friend, and Cheyenne paused in front of the huge front door to her childhood home.
“It would be if she came right out and said this was all my fault, but Bianca Summerlin doesn’t point fingers.” Cheyenne took a deep breath. “She calmly works around the whole situation until you end up pointing the finger at yourself.”
“Well, if I see that happening, I promise to slap your hand away. How’s that?”
Cheyenne nodded slowly. “Thanks, Em.”
“You’re welcome.”
The halfling grabbed the door handle and pushed it open. She stepped slowly inside, gazing around, and moved out of the way so Ember could join her. Okay, everything looks normal. “Eleanor? Mom?”
As soon as Cheyenne shut the front door behind her, a crash of metal came from the kitchen, followed by the housekeeper’s exclamation of surprise. Then the swinging door to the industrial kitchen on the right burst open, and Eleanor bustled toward the foyer, wiping her hands vigorously on the white apron tied around her torso. “Oh! You’re here. Good.”
“Hey, Eleanor.” Cheyenne opened her arms for a quick hug when the woman reached her.
Eleanor let her go quickly, then smiled at Ember and pulled the fae in for a tight hug as well. “It’s so good to see you two.” She took a deep breath, opened her mouth, then frowned, blinking rapidly. “Hmm.”
Cheyenne and Ember exchanged glances. “Everything okay?”
“Oh, yes!” The housekeeper nodded.
“Okay. You seem a little confused.”
“Well, everything’s confusing these days, isn’t it?” Eleanor let out a nervous chuckle.
Ember smiled at the woman. “We have that conversation all the time. I think it’s pretty normal.”
“Normal.” Eleanor
laughed, then pressed a hand to her chest and scowled like she’d insulted herself.
Weird. Maybe she hadn’t gotten enough sleep. She seemed totally fine on the phone. “Is Mom upstairs?”
“Hmm? Ah. Yes. Bianca’s up in the master of ceremonies.”
“What?” Ember and Cheyenne said together.
“What? Oh.” Eleanor cleared her throat and tried again. “Up in the master key. No. The master in chief.” With a distressed moan, she thrust her finger in the air and pointed at the right side of the second floor.
“Master bedroom?” Cheyenne offered.
The housekeeper opened her mouth, but nothing came out. She tried two more times, then swallowed thickly and gestured toward the kitchen. “I’m sorry. I seem to have forgotten how…what was I saying?”
The halfling stepped toward the only other parental figure she’d had besides Bianca and gently touched Eleanor’s arm. “Did something happen?”
“Of course, sweetheart. Your mother’s awake. I’d call that something.”
“Okay.” Something’s definitely wrong. “I’m gonna go up and see her, all right?”
“Cheyenne, I don’t think…” Eleanor drew her shoulders back and turned to the kitchen again. “I’m not feeling well, so I think I’ll go lie down. Excuse me.”
The housekeeper turned swiftly on her heel and raced back down the wide hall.
Ember floated after her but stopped. “Eleanor, can I help with anything?”
Eleanor shook her head vigorously and didn’t turn around before she barreled through the door and disappeared.
“That was weird.”
“Yeah.” Cheyenne ran a hand through her hair, now High-Voltage-Raven-dyed black in her human form, and stared at the kitchen door until it settled back into place and stopped swinging. “She’s really good at keeping it together. Most of the time.”
“Well, maybe now that your mom’s up, Eleanor doesn’t have to keep it together anymore. You know, for both of them.”
“Maybe. Maybe my mom has a better idea about what’s going on, at least with Eleanor.” When it came to everything else, the last thing Bianca Summerlin wanted was an explanation of what happened to her. Not if it had anything to do with magic. Or L’zar.