Death And Darkness

by E. A. Copen

  Foxglove’s eyes fluttered open, and I nearly fell off my stool. They were pure inky black.

  “There you are.” Josiah grinned. “What about the other fella? What happened to Mask?”

  The possessed Foxglove turned his attention to Josiah. “The one known as Mask has fled.”

  “Good on ya, then. Now, how about you exit the premises so that we can have a chat with Foxglove?”

  The demon frowned. “I wouldn’t advise it. There was extensive damage to the fae’s insides during the struggle. It will be some time before he’s fully healed. If I am allowed to remain, he may heal faster.”

  Josiah looked at me.

  I shook my head. If Remy saw him like that, she’d lose her mind and probably cut off Josiah’s head or worse, use her magic to kill him. Besides, knowing Foxglove, he wouldn’t want anyone running his body for him, especially not after what he just went through.

  “No deal,” Josiah said, shaking his head. “Beat it, or I’ll make you.”

  The demon smirked. “Very well. Tell Khaleda I look forward to meeting her army in battle.”

  Foxglove jerked once and then went limp.

  I frowned and folded my arms. “Khaleda has an army now?”

  Josiah shrugged. “I told you she was off doing her own thing.”

  “That’s not the same thing as raising an army to take over Hell, Josiah.” I paused. After Lucifer’s defeat, there wasn’t anyone ruling his kingdom. I’d been warned that taking him out would make things unstable and cause a civil war in Hell. Of all the people I’d want running Hell though, Khaleda probably topped the list. At least I knew her, and she was marginally less evil than most demons I’d met while I was down there. “But good for her.”

  “Dangerous for her,” Stefan added. “She’s not the only one vying for the crown.”

  “So it seems. Anything I can do to help?”

  Josiah gave me an uncertain look. “I’ll pass along that you’re interested when and if she ever decides to show up again. That is, if you’re not too busy saving the world yourself.”

  Foxglove spat a mouthful of blood and coughed. “Who said you get to save the world without me?”

  I gestured for Stefan to go tell Remy and Finn he was awake and went to squat next to Foxglove with a glass of water and a straw. “Good to hear from you, Foxglove. I thought for a minute we might not get you back. It is you, right?”

  He sucked down half the glass of water before answering. “As far as I can tell.”

  I looked to Josiah for confirmation. He nodded.

  Foxglove squinted around the room. “Where’s Remy?”

  “On her way.”

  Josiah stepped behind him to undo the chains that held him to the chair while I debated how fast to break everything to him. The sooner we got the information we needed, the sooner we could fix everything and kick Mask’s ass, but he wasn’t in very good condition. Remy might be able to heal him, though. I’d seen her bring him back to life once before when he’d been stabbed with a poisoned sword.

  Foxglove took the water from me once his hand was free.

  I still don’t know that he remembers anything, I thought, watching him rinse blood out of his mouth and spit. If he doesn’t, all this has just been a pointless gesture. Finn said we needed all three Speaking Stones to have a chance. Only Foxglove knew where the last one was.

  The door opened and Remy rushed across the floor to throw her arms around Foxglove’s neck, knocking the glass from his hands. It hit the floor and shattered. “Thank the gods you’re back! I was so worried we’d lost you forever.”

  Finn stopped in the corner next to the jukebox and leaned against the wall, arms crossed.

  “That could still happen,” Foxglove said gravely as Remy took a step back. “You could still lose everything because of me.”

  Remy shook herself. “You weren’t in control of yourself.”

  “Yes, I was. At first.” He turned away to focus on the broken glass on the floor. “I sold myself for a stupid chance. It happens in increments, giving up control. I chose to take the stone because I thought I could leverage it to win your affections. I kept it because I was ashamed I’d even considered it. I lied because of the shame, and I left because I knew I shouldn’t be able to lie. I knew then what’d happened and rather than explain myself and ask for forgiveness, I ran. Mask festered and grew out of that darkness like a tumor until it became easier to let him decide what to do. I told myself I could take back control at any time once I figured out how to explain it, or how to win you. By the time I realized I was no longer in control, it was too late.”

  Remy’s throat worked. A tear fell and raced down her cheek. She wiped it away. “You betrayed us? Knowingly?”

  Foxglove closed his eyes. “Yes.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” I said. “We can fix this.”

  Remy’s glare made my skin crawl. “Of course it matters! He betrayed Faerie. He betrayed me! We can’t trust anything he has to say. How do we know he won’t do it again?”

  “The same way humans know when other people are lying to them,” I pointed out. “You don’t. The best we can do is trust him.”

  Finn pushed away from the wall. “He’s back to being fae again, right?”

  “As far as anyone can tell,” Josiah said. “But we still don’t know if any of the effects are permanent.”

  “Then let’s test him.” Finn nodded to Stefan. “Tell me he’s straight.”

  I almost choked.

  Josiah frowned and crossed his arms. “Of all the tests in all creation, that’s the one you want to go with?”

  Finn shrugged. “The dude is tripping my gaydar. It’s not like I can just ignore it. How is that my fault?”

  Stefan shrugged. “He’s not wrong.”

  Josiah sighed, put his head in his hands, and shook it.

  I almost joined him. “Well, how about it, Foxglove? If you can lie, you should be able to say it.”

  Foxglove sighed and rolled his eyes to the ceiling. “Why? Of all the idiots in the world, why him?”

  “Oh, just get on with it.” Stefan waved a hand.

  Foxglove took a deep breath, opened his mouth, and said… Nothing. After a few moments, he grimaced and tried again, but he still couldn’t say it. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t utter words he knew to be untrue.

  Finn lifted his hands and grinned. “See?”

  Remy turned away. I understood. It wasn’t so much about the truth for her as it was his betrayal. She’d trusted Foxglove as she’d never trusted anyone else and he broke that trust for a selfish reason. It’d take more than proof that he couldn’t lie to repair that sort of damage.

  I cleared my throat. “Do you remember what happened to you while Mask was running things?”

  Foxglove nodded. “Some of it. There are parts that were clear. Other moments are hazy. Time ran together, but I can recall names and locations. That should be helpful.”

  “We need to find the missing Speaking Stone,” Finn said. “Where did you take it after you left Shadow?”

  Foxglove closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. “That part’s a little fuzzy. I remember walking for a long time. Mask wouldn’t let me sleep. He just kept talking, wearing me down. I intended to come back here, to Earth, but I don’t think that’s where I went. I remember a wall. A horse and rider coming out to greet me. The face is obscured by shadow. I think whoever it was, he was also under Mask’s control.” He lowered his hands and his eyes snapped open. “That’s right! The wall was white, smooth with dark streaks. Alabaster. It was the alabaster wall of the High Court. I must’ve taken it there.”

  I looked at Finn. “Can you get us there?”

  He made a sour face. “Sort of. I can get you as far as Queen Oonagh’s tomb, which is where I got the stone in the first place. They wouldn’t have put it back there though. Mask knows we’re looking for it. He’ll have it under heavy guard, probably somewhere deep in the palace. I’ve never actually been there so�
��”

  I sighed. “So walking through shadows is out. How else can we get in?”

  “The High Court is on lockdown,” Foxglove said taking another glass of water from Stefan. He gulped it down before continuing. “They have been for a while. They’re not going to let just anyone in, not even three monarchs from other courts. And you’d have more luck laying siege to the ocean than of taking the High City, but I know of another way. I can show you.” He stood and swayed, immediately falling back down.

  Josiah caught him before he could fall over. “Easy there, mate. You’ve been through two possessions in the last six hours and lost a lot of blood. Your insides are probably damaged. It’ll take time to heal. No chance of you going much of anywhere until you’re healed up.”

  I twisted to look at my daughter behind me. “Can you heal him, Remy?”

  She kept her back to Foxglove and shook her head. “My magic has limits. I brought him back from the dead already, and once I’ve done that, the magic no longer works for him.”

  “One-time use only.” I filed that information away for later.

  “It doesn’t always work either.” She glanced over her shoulder, first at Foxglove, then at me. “And to save a life, a life must be paid. It’s not true healing. I’m simply transferring the damage to someone else at random.”

  “Can we get in with a map or something?” I asked Foxglove.

  He pressed his lips together in thought for a moment. “You might be able to. It’s not a secret entrance or anything like that. It’s a rite, one that will force them to open their gates to you. Once they do, however, one of you will have to undergo a test.”

  “A test?” I shrugged. “What sort of test?”

  Foxglove nodded. “You’re going to invoke the rite of Tír na nÓg.”

  “No!” Remy turned around, unfolding her arms. “He can’t, Ethan. He’s human. It’d kill him.”

  I raised a finger. “First of all, I’m a little more than your average human. I’m the Pale Horseman and a necromancer, remember? Second, what the hell is the Rite of Tír na nÓg?”

  “It’s an old tradition that no one adheres to anymore,” Remy said. “Least of all human kings from Earth. A barbaric test.”

  “The High Court still values it,” said Foxglove. “It’s a test of will, Lazarus, one they believe you will fail. I’m not allowed to tell you the specifics, but if you arrive and invoke the rite, they’ll have no choice but to let you in. It’s written in the law that anyone who demands to endure the Rite of Tír na nÓg must be permitted to make the attempt.”

  I frowned and looked at Josiah.

  He threw his hands up. “What’re you lookin’ at me for? This is the most dealings I’ve had with the fae in my life. I don’t know the first damn thing about it.”

  “What happens if I fail?” I asked.

  “Pain,” Finn answered, counting on his fingers as he continued. “Maiming, general misery, and one of the most gruesome deaths imaginable.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Awesome.”

  Foxglove shifted his position on the chair. “But if you win, the court is obligated to grant you any one boon. That will include the last Speaking Stone.”

  “It doesn’t include leaving alive,” Remy added. “They can give you the stone and then refuse to let you leave, or just give you the stone and kill you.”

  “Which is why he’ll have to be accompanied by two of the best warriors in all of Faerie.” Foxglove gestured to Remy and Finn.

  They exchanged glances.

  “We may be better off taking our chances storming the gates,” Finn muttered.

  I turned away from Foxglove to address Finn. “If I get these three stones, can we stop him? Can we fix what he’s done to the people of New Orleans?”

  Finn shook his head and shrugged at the same time. “I don’t know. The power of the stones is difficult to wield. It was like standing at ground zero while a nuke went off. I barely survived it the first time, and it took me weeks to recover. And that was me. I’m a Spellweaver. If anyone else tried, it’d almost certainly kill them.”

  “But will it help the people who are sick?”

  “Maybe.” He sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Probably. They’re infected with something I can only describe as the shadow of Mask. You want to fix it, the best thing to do would be to zap everyone at the same time with a powerful, magical light. The stones do that, they cast out all shadows. I don’t know if this plan will work, but it’s the only one anyone has.”

  “And if we do nothing, Mask gets to spread his sickness farther than New Orleans, Faerie stays the mess it is, and the bad guys win, yeah?” Josiah’s lighter clicked and he lit up another cigarette before continuing. “Then we don’t have another choice.”

  Remy wrinkled her nose and waved smoke away from her face. “We don’t even know that this will work. When Finn used the stones in Faerie, it didn’t help Summer, Winter, or the High Court. Only Shadow.”

  “If we kill Mask, we can fix all of that,” I said. “Problem is, no one knows how to do that.”

  “I might,” Foxglove offered. Everyone looked at him, waiting. He closed his eyes and furrowed his brow, deep in thought. “The three Speaking Stones are keys to three seals locking three gates. For Mask to have made the progress he has, someone had to open all three gates so maybe…”

  “Closing them again will trap him back in the Nightlands,” Josiah finished.

  “And then I can go back there and make Mask calamari.”

  Josiah and Finn stared at me.

  “What?” I shrugged. “The guy has a tentacle for a head. Calamari. Get it?”

  Everyone groaned.

  “Just one more question, Foxglove.” I leaned in and lowered my voice. There was no way to speak so that Remy wouldn’t hear, but I knew she’d get upset when I brought this up. “Jessica, Nate’s daughter. What happened to her?”

  Foxglove frowned. “Mask didn’t say much about it. All I got were glimpses, but she was alive. Imprisoned in Summer, but alive.”

  I nodded. As long as she was alive, she could be rescued. That was something, at least.

  My phone rang. I pulled it out of my pocket and frowned at the time. It was just before five, way too early for Emma to be calling me unless something was wrong. Maybe she was just checking in. That was like her, wasn’t it? Staying up all night by the phone. And me, I’d been a jerk and forgotten to call her…again.

  “Hey, Em. What’s up?”

  “I’m at the hospital with Grammy.”

  I froze as a cold chill slithered its way down my spine. No. Mask could have anyone, but he couldn’t have Grammy. Not the sweet little old lady whose toothless smile made my day. If anything happened to her… “What happened?”

  “She was fine last night, but when I went in to check on her this morning, she was burning up. Laz, she’s so delirious she barely knows who I am. Please tell me you’re working on fixing this.”

  I swallowed the fear and doubt squeezing my throat. “I’m on it.”

  I almost said goodbye and hung up then, but then remembered the last time I’d gone to Faerie on an extended mission. Time could be funny there. Every time I left, I risked coming back to a New Orleans I didn’t know dozens of years in the future. I couldn’t just leave without seeing Emma one more time. “Which hospital? I’m coming to see you.”

  “University Medical. Are you sure that’s wise? I don’t want to slow you down. We have to beat this, Laz. For Grammy.”

  “I know.” I turned my back to everyone in the room and lowered my voice. “But I have to go do something stupid in Faerie. Something everyone says I might not come back from. If I don’t, I don’t want this to be the last conversation we ever have. I need to see you just so I can reassure myself you’re okay.”

  She took a deep breath. “I’d like that.”

  “Then it’s a date. See you soon.” I hung up and turned around to find the whole room staring at me expectantly. “Emma’s grandma is sick, and I
need to say goodbye before we go. Can I have an hour?”

  “Go and get your family in order,” Josiah said. “I’ll keep an eye on this lot and make sure they get everything ready. Probably ought to get that one sober before you put a weapon in his hand.” He jabbed a thumb toward Finn.

  “Says the chain-smoking alcoholic,” Finn mumbled.

  Remy gave me a gentle hug. “One hour. After that, I’m coming looking for you.”

  I nodded and left the bar. Somehow, the shadows outside seemed less threatening than when I went in.

  Chapter Twelve

  When I arrived at the hospital, I texted Emma to ask which floor she was on and she responded she was on the third floor. I checked the hospital directory, and then the map just to be sure I’d read that right. Why would she be in the maternity ward?

  I got into the elevator with a couple of tired-looking nurses and pressed the button for the third floor. One nurse in rainbow-striped scrubs smiled at me. “First baby?”

  “What? Oh, no. I’m not…” I realized about halfway through explaining where I was going that it would seem weird and probably get security called on me. “I’m just meeting a friend. A girl. Girlfriend. She’s not having my baby.”

  She nodded. “Don’t worry. I work in the NICU, and this happens more than you’d think. Go easy on her. Whatever issues you two have can wait until after she’s all healed up.”

  “I don’t know what you think is going on, but I promise you it’s not that. I haven’t had a baby around for a while now.”

  The elevator slid to a stop on the second floor. “My mistake. It’s the eyes. You’ve got that tired look I see in most father’s eyes. Well, have a good day!” She waved and got off the elevator when the doors opened.

  I shifted, uncomfortable under the scrutinizing gaze of the other nurses in the elevator car. The minute the doors slid open on the third floor, I dashed out of there. At the entrance to the ward, I pushed the call button. “Uh, hi. My name’s Lazarus Kerrigan. I’m supposed to be meeting Emma Knight here? She’s not a patient, but she told me to meet her here.”