by Jayne Hawke
The hounds removed dark witches from the streets. They never gave a reason or an excuse, and no one questioned them. They were god touched, and that was good enough. The mainstream god touched, those who paraded around with their tattoos and the like running the world outside of the fae isles went mostly unquestioned from what I’d heard.
In the fae territories, there was a lot more push back, but as long as the ruling fae didn’t have a problem with what they were doing they had complete freedom. None of the fae gave a damn about dark witches or fallen gods. I suspected they actually encouraged the hounds, as the witches and fallen could provide some competition and problems for the fae.
“How many god-bound witches are in the city these days?” Cade asked.
“Only a handful. A lot of them went down south,” Ethan said.
Witches fell into two primary categories: god bound, and not. The god bound were very rare. They had somehow managed to get themselves tied to one of the gods and were offered the benefits of that god’s magic. I wasn’t entirely sure how it worked. My understanding was that the god they were tied to gave them blessings and help when they were in the mood to help the witch out. It gave them access to magic in forms other witches didn’t have, but some of the gods required a huge sacrifice to access that.
“So, there won’t be many places to look, then?” Kerry asked.
“I don’t believe so. There was that Eris witch who hung out near the forest a little too often. That’s my bet on the Hecate witch’s location,” Cade said.
Ethan wrinkled his nose.
“I hope not. Eris is unpleasant, and I’d rather not get wrapped up in her discordian magic.”
“Just be glad she doesn’t have any god touched,” Dean said as he began clearing the table.
It had taken them barely any time at all to eat all of those cakes and the pie. And yet each of them was incredibly toned and muscular without a scrap of fat on them. I was a little envious, as I was going to have to go for a long run later that day.
TWENTY-SIX
Everyone had piled into Ethan’s second car, a very sensible SUV. I wasn’t entirely comfortable being surrounded by fae predators, but that was just how my life went. When Ethan pulled out of their driveway, I turned on the radio and began playing with it until I found some music I liked. Everyone in the back looked at me, aghast.
“Did you just screw with Ethan’s music...?” Dean whispered.
“What can I say? I have better taste than him,” I said with a grin.
Ethan went to reach out for the radio, and I swatted his hand away. A deathly silence fell over the car.
“Fine. You can pick the music. This time,” Ethan said grudgingly.
I turned the pop country song up louder and grinned in victory. Cade began singing along with me halfway through the first verse. By the second round of the chorus, we were singing at the top of our lungs. Ethan looked well and truly beaten.
“Why? Why the hell do you listen to country of all things?” Dean asked.
I shrugged.
“It’s fun to sing along to.”
“I like her,” Cade grinned.
We made our way across the moorland. A thin layer of mist had descended over the purple-grey heather, which added an eeriness to the landscape. As we continued on, the mist became a fog, and I could see why they used to write horrors about the moorlands before the New Era. Now we knew that the fae and such really existed, it didn’t have quite the same impact. There was an entirely different tone to a book written about a black dog slowly hunting a poor damsel across the moors when the writer knew black dogs would actually read it.
There wasn’t a single other car on the winding road as we headed further away from the city. That struck me as odd, given that York was a major city and there should have been commuters from the villages and other cities in the county. I peered out into the white fog, trying to discern a landmark or something. There was nothing more than the vague shape of undulating land. Anything could have been hiding out there watching us.
“Do you watch Imogen Shade?” Dean asked.
“Yes! I’m dying to watch the next season. It starts next week, right?” I said a little too enthusiastically.
That was something Matt and I did together. We sat down and watched a few TV shows together. It was shared escapism and family bonding. Imogen Shade was about a kick-ass treasure hunter/thief. She was a pure-blooded human in a very supernatural world. Each episode had her stealing something hidden behind a multitude of traps and such and outrunning awful supernatural bad guys. It was the best type of escapism.
“Can you believe that Graham betrayed her!?” Dean asked.
“Can you not?” I asked as I turned in my chair to face him.
“See, Kit saw it coming,” Ethan said with a grin.
“They were a fantastic team, I can’t believe he sold her out like that,” Dean said.
“Treasure hunting is a cut-throat business,” Kerry said.
“She used to do a little thieving, herself,” Cade said as he nudged Kerry.
“Yes, yes, I was a literal cat burglar,” Kerry said with a small smile.
“Did you steal anything as awesome as the dragon’s egg?” I asked.
I was being a complete dork, but it felt good to relax and socialise. I didn’t spend much time with the bounty hunters, and friends were a commodity I hadn’t been able to afford.
“There was one necklace which gave the wearer immortality, but no, nothing quite as awesome as the dragon’s egg, I’m afraid,” she said.
“That’s why I brought her into my pack. She’s damn good at what she does,” Ethan said with great pride.
“And you never know when you need to sneak into somewhere,” Dean said.
They were such cool people and so easy to be around. It was going to be hard when I packed up and fled to Scotland. A bitterness filled me. I shouldn’t have to leave a chance like that behind, all because I happened to be born to the wrong parents.
Ethan reached over and squeezed my hand. I found myself relaxing beneath his touch as a soft warmth filled me.
“I believe the Eris witch is just up here,” Ethan said.
He slowed the SUV down and turned a tight corner. The fog dissipated, revealing a small modern bungalow with pale blue walls and a slate roof. Small windows were evenly spaced along the thick walls, and black vines grew along the wide path that led to the blood-red door. It looked like the witch wasn’t very fond of subtlety.
“Prepare for the worst,” Ethan said as he parked the SUV.
He placed a small silver disk in my hand. I looked down and saw the delicate and complicated engravings there.
“It’ll keep you safe,” he said with a smile.
I’d never seen a fae protection charm before, not a real one anyway. You could pick up a fake in the Sunday market from a pixie, but they wouldn’t do anything more than lighten your wallet. This one had a weight to it that showed it was the real deal.
Part of me felt like I should have been offended that he felt I needed protection, but I was touched. God-chosen witches weren’t something you screwed around with. They could have some serious magic.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Come on, the sappy movie moment has passed, let’s get this witch,” Kerry said from outside.
I really wished I didn’t have to flee to Scotland. I would have liked to have more moments like that.
TWENTY-SEVEN
The pack moved as a well-oiled machine. Ethan led the way with his back straight and a confident step. Kerry and Dean went around back to block her escape that way. Cade and I followed Ethan. The fae charm was in my pocket and my daggers were in my hands. I didn’t know what to expect from this witch, but I knew that if I had a pack of cu sith show up at my door I’d go out with a fight.
“No life inside,” Cade said.
“Agreed,” Ethan said.
There were no obvious tyre tracks or signs of a car having been there any time re
cently. It looked as though we’d missed her.
“We need to check inside and see how long ago he left,” Ethan said as he approached the front door.
I paused for a second. It was unusual for male witches to have much magic. It was even rarer for one to be god chosen. From what I understood, male witches were usually used as studs and were put to work in the coven businesses rather than expected to do much magic. They were considered to be property. Those that did have a good grasp of magic were highly prized and even auctioned off to the highest bidder to improve their bloodlines.
Ethan kicked the door in.
“You didn’t even try and open it,” I accused.
He grinned at me before he strode into the dim hallway.
We moved through the simple cottage and found that any signs of habitation were gone. There were no clothes in the fitted wardrobes in the only bedroom upstairs. The cupboards had a thin layer of dust inside of them. Only a couple of butter knives remained to show that someone had lived there at all.
“What’s plan B?” Dean asked.
Ethan looked around the empty kitchen with a frown.
“We’ll have to speak to the Hecate witch’s people and see what they can tell us.”
“We can grab fish ’n’ chips on the way back home, for lunch,” Kerry said.
I looked at her in horror. How on Earth could she possibly be hungry after the amount of cake they’d eaten!?
It turned out that they could be very hungry. They had all devoured a large portion of fish ’n’ chips. I’d declined. I couldn’t imagine trying to squeeze more food into my still-full stomach. Instead, I looked through what I could find of the witch’s social media. Her name was Yasmine, she was a couple of years older than me, and it looked as though she had come from a wealthy coven with fae ties.
Her social media was full of carefully posed selfies, which made good use of copious numbers of filters. The only text posts I could get access to talked about the latest concert or ball she’d been invited to. I couldn’t see her friends or get an idea about her usual hangouts.
“Hand it over,” Kerry said.
I passed her the laptop. Her fingers flew over the keyboard as she set about doing a better job than I had at finding essential or at least useful information.
My phone beeped with a text. I expected it to be Jake with a reply about who to chase about the god magic, but it was Matt telling me to thank Ethan for the incredible lemon pie.
“Matt says thanks for the pie,” I said to Ethan.
“I’m glad he enjoyed it.”
“So, this alchemist apprenticeship...”
“We did some digging into you when the god magic thing came up. Matt was clearly into alchemy - his search and library history was full of alchemy bits. It only took five minutes to see that he had talent and had aced his alchemy classes, so it was logical to offer him the apprenticeship,” Kerry said without looking up from the laptop.
I fought to keep my breathing steady. They’d done so much digging into us, I felt creeped out as though they’d gone through my underwear drawer.
“He’ll be given the very best tutoring, and there’s a lucrative job at the end of it for him,” Ethan said.
“And if he wants to go elsewhere when the apprenticeship is over?” I asked.
“Like Scotland?” Kerry asked.
“You know it’s ridiculously creepy that you’ve done that much digging, right?” I asked.
“We needed to know you were as good as everyone said you were. It was standard protocol to make sure you didn’t have any nasty secrets,” Kerry said.
I had dark secrets. That was the problem.
TWENTY-EIGHT
“What if the fae had taken the same route the gods did?” Dean asked idly while nursing his fifth cup of coffee.
“You mean rocked up, reclaimed the world, and started competing for human souls?” Kerry said.
“They don’t compete for human souls,” Dean said.
“Says you,” Kerry retorted.
“No, I meant, what if we had done the whole god-touched thing?” Dean said.
“There are rumours that the Tuatha Dé Danann have done exactly that,” Ethan said.
“Wait, the Tuatha are real?” I asked.
As far as I’d been told, the Tuatha Dé Danann were either a myth or were hidden away far, far from the Earth plane. They were complicated. Some had argued they were Celtic gods, others had said they were just ancient and powerful fae. Given the way Ethan referred to them, it sounded as though they were fae.
“Yes, they’re real. They don’t deal with this plane much, though,” Ethan said as he settled into the seat next to me.
“Can they take god touched?” I asked.
I was really curious now. The god touched were humans that the gods had chosen to bless with some of their magic and use as their agents on the earth plane. I didn’t have particularly good feelings towards them, but that was more the bias I’d grown up. I’d never left the fae territories, and the fae were not fans of the gods or their agents. The gods and god touched wanted to remove the fae from the world, or better yet, enslave them.
There hadn’t been outright war yet, but there were scuffles and disputes. I’d heard that a group of Hades god touched had tried to take out the second most powerful fae lord in the territories not that long ago. They’d failed, but that had changed things.
“Yes, they can,” Ethan said.
“They can choose any species,” Cade said.
“It’s not something I’d want anything to do with,” Kerry said with an exaggerated shudder.
“Why? Isn’t it supposed to be a huge honour?” I asked.
She laughed.
“Oh, I’m sure some weaker souls consider it such. Personally, I hate the idea of having some ancient being pulling my strings and pushing me around. If I wanted to be controlled and give up my freedom, I’d have given my loyalty to a lord or lady in the courts.”
“Can you get out of it if you’re chosen?” I asked.
“Death,” Dean said with a shrug.
“That seems a bit extreme,” I said.
“The gods are extreme by nature. They’re old, and bored. The beings on this plane are tools and toys to them. The fallen are dangerous, too. As far as I know, they wield the same magic as the gods up above, but they walk amongst us as though they’re one of us,” Dean said.
I said nothing.
“I feel bad for the fallen, personally. They were removed from their home and everything they ever knew. They must hide their nature and can’t afford to live a real life as the hounds hunt them,” Ethan said.
That wasn’t the attitude I’d been expecting from him.
“I’m with Ethan,” Cade said.
“Everyone has a place in the cycle and the system. Even the dark witches have a role to play,” Ethan said.
“And sometimes a role is to remove that thing from the system,” Dean said.
“Aye,” Ethan said with a nod.
“We need chaos to keep things moving, evolving. Order leads to stagnation. As much as it sucks for the victims’ families when someone’s killed by one of those beings, sometimes it’s a necessary pain. It shakes things up and produces change,” Cade said.
“I thought you were assassins, not philosophy majors,” I said with a wry smile.
Everyone laughed.
“We do have odd moments where we can think of something other than hunting someone down,” Ethan said with a grin.
“Is it true that once you have someone’s scent, you can track them across the world?” I asked.
“Yes,” Ethan said.
“And Ethan has never lost a mark,” Dean said.
Shit.
“Could someone change their scent and get away like that?” I asked.
“Are you planning on running?” Ethan said as he leaned in close.
“Could I?” I said, returning his grin.
“No. The only way to change your scent suffici
ently would be to alter your very make-up, and that would require huge changes to the magic someone has, or in the case of a vanilla human, gaining a lot of magic,” Ethan said.
“So, if you were to find out you had witch magic locked away inside of you and you brought that out to play, your signature would change enough to have half a chance,” Cade said.
That sounded a little too specific. Did they know about Mum?
“I really wouldn’t recommend running, though. I haven’t seen Ethan this attached to the idea of keeping someone before,” Kerry said.
“Wait, you’ve done this to people before?” I asked.
Ethan shrugged.
“It’s not an abnormal contract amongst fae.”
“What happened to the others?” I asked.
“I let them go. They weren’t worth keeping,” Ethan said.
“Let them go...?”
Ethan laughed.
“I didn’t bury them in the back garden. They’re all off living lives somewhere. The contract ended, and we all walked away.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe I had some chance of getting out of this after all.
TWENTY-NINE
Kerry had been glaring at the laptop in increasing frustration for an hour.
“She’s pretty good at hiding, but I’m better at finding people,” she said.
“God-chosen witches sometimes come together, particularly if they were all chosen by the same god,” Dean offered.
“That’s the angle I’m looking at now. There’s another Hecate witch in the area. Thankfully, there doesn’t appear to be another Eris witch on this island. So, I’m looking around for any signs of chaos and death,” Kerry said
“Hecate witches don’t like being in the heart of things. Hecate herself is tied into crossroads; have you checked for new rentals and such on properties that fall on or near a crossroad?” I asked.
Ethan looked at me with a warm smile.
“I know stuff,” I said.
“Maybe we’re coming at this from the wrong angle. Who would have taken the Hecate witch? Why now? I know everyone’s assumption is the hounds because they take anything vaguely dark or inconvenient, but who else is there?” Cade asked.