The memory of him collapsing flashed through my mind—the blood drenching his shirt, the deep slice in his flesh hidden by the darkness and chaos. How he’d managed to stand in that condition, let alone run around and fight, still had me shaking my head in disbelief. Luckily, two minutes after he’d lost consciousness, the Crow and Hammer backup team had arrived and started emergency first aid.
I was rather glad they’d arrived late. Four minutes earlier and they might have spotted the monster-sized dragon flying off into the night sky, carrying a notorious druid and a missing teen mythic.
Aaron’s smile was immediate. “Sure! Kai might be back by then, too. We can order pizza with pineapple and eat it in front of him.”
I frowned with mock condemnation. “That’s a cruel thing to do while he’s still recuperating. We should order Chinese food instead … with pineapple chicken.” As Aaron snorted a laugh, I waved my form. “I need to drop this off with Clara and get ready.”
He plucked the paper from my hand and lifted it to his nose, scrutinizing the text like it described all my dinner date preferences.
“Fascinating, right?” I extended my hand and wiggled my fingers imperiously. “Give it back.”
He held it out—and it erupted into flame.
“Hey!” I yelped, snatching my hand away.
Smirking, he dropped the fireball into the sink, where the paper blackened and curled. “Oops.”
“Oops?” I repeated incredulously. “You did that on purpose!”
He shoved his hands in his pockets, all innocence. “You didn’t really want to turn that form in, did you?”
My anger faltered, and he leaned closer.
“What MagiPol doesn’t know,” he mock-whispered, “can’t get you fired.”
I suddenly had the sneaking suspicion that Clara wasn’t as disorganized as she and I thought. She hadn’t been losing all my forms. Someone had been destroying them. Maybe even three someones working in concert to keep me employed at the guild for as long as possible.
While I gaped at him, he laughed and sauntered across the kitchen. My wide eyes flicked from him to the burnt remains of the form. Darius would be so pissed when he found out.
If he found out.
Was Aaron applying the guild’s second rule? Or maybe …
“Hey Aaron,” I called. “What’s the third rule?”
Pausing with his hand on the saloon door, he looked back and grinned like my question was immensely pleasing—like it was the perfect question to ask.
“Rule number three: Any rule can be broken.”
Then he was gone, the door swinging shut behind him.
That was the third rule? Seriously? Mythics were batshit crazy, the whole lot of them. Glancing one last time at the ashes in the sink, I hurried into the back room to get my apron.
Stifling a yawn, I opened the back gate. A small yard stretched ahead of me, half grass shadowed by a giant spruce and half cracked patio tiles with a wooden pergola. As I crossed to the bungalow’s rear door, the cool night air whispered over my bare arms, smelling of rain. Fumbling around in my purse, I pulled out my keys and unlocked the door.
I’d spent my first night post-captivity crashing at Aaron’s house, but since then, I’d been making good use of my shiny new apartment. It was still a shock to think that this place was mine. All mine. Slipping inside, I descended the stairs—and a high-pitched squeal rang out in greeting.
Okay, almost all mine.
A green faery bounded up to me, his leafy body quivering with excitement. Bemused, I dropped my purse on the floor near the stairs. I fully intended to put a table there … eventually. Aside from my brand-new bed—which Aaron had helped me set up a couple days ago—I had no furniture. Zero. Zip. Zilch. The place had a literal echo, and it would be staying that way for a while.
But it was mine. Who needed furniture?
“You’re baaaaaack,” the faery squeaked. “I can’t believe it!”
I pulled a face at his spastic reaction. “Hey Twiggy. I come home every night, you know.”
His name wasn’t Twiggy. It was Taenerpatni … something. Like fifteen syllables that I couldn’t remember, let alone pronounce. So we’d agreed on Twiggy. He seemed to like it.
“I can’t believe it!” he repeated shrilly. “You know the Crystal Druid.”
My face went cold and I froze where I stood. “You—you mean—”
“The Crystal Druid,” Twiggy repeated in a reverent, almost fearful hush. “All fae here know of the Crystal Druid. He who walks among the darkfae of Gardall’kin. Consort of Lallakai, lady of shadow, the great night eagle.”
Consort? I hoped that word had a different meaning for fae, otherwise it was just way too weird.
Still babbling, Twiggy sped toward the kitchen, leaving me with my mouth hanging open. Feeling vaguely giddy at the influx of apprehension and confusion, I padded after him and flipped on the lights.
Twiggy stood on the counter, bobbing up and down as he pointed excitedly at the plain cardboard box sitting beside my sink. A cardboard box I did not own and that had not been there when I left this morning.
No way. Zak had been in my apartment? How did he even know where I lived?
I approached the box with caution. Absently shushing Twiggy, I unfolded the top and lifted the flap just enough to peek inside, my heart beating like a drum roll against my ribs.
Light gleamed on something pale. Breath catching, I pulled the flaps all the way open. Nestled in a bed of crumpled packing paper was a silver orb streaked with aquamarine and pink, its shining surface adorned with strange bumps and ridges. It was the dormant fae … thing … I’d found in Zak’s room and almost knocked onto the floor.
A shred of paper sat on top, half filled with spiky handwriting.
This doesn’t belong in my care. It’s yours now. Keep it safe.
P.S. The faery is your roommate? You’re an idiot.
I glowered at the note. That’s it? He didn’t want the fae orb around, so now it was my problem? What the hell?
And who was he calling an idiot? Some of us didn’t have our very own paradise ranch in the mountains. We had to make stupid deals with annoying faeries just to afford a place to live. Growling, I whipped my phone out of my pocket, pulled up the single message I had sent him four nights ago, and shot off a new text. Three words: You’re a dickhead.
Squeezing my phone in both hands and ignoring Twiggy’s questions about the fae orb, I waited.
Two minutes later, my phone pinged and a reply popped up. No words. Just a photo.
Waving cheerily at the camera, Nadine perched on the top rail of a wooden fence with nothing but wide-open green pasture stretching away behind her. Her smile was relaxed and happy, the circles beneath her eyes had faded, and a tan warmed her fair complexion.
The blank, hopeless stare that haunted her old photos was gone without a trace.
I studied the picture, taking in every detail, then stuck my phone back in my pocket and smiled. Varvara was still out there somewhere, but Zak would keep Nadine safe. A job well done, even if it hadn’t gone at all to plan.
Turning my attention to the box and its supernatural contents, I folded my arms. One problem solved, but another had literally been delivered to my apartment.
I sighed. “Now what am I supposed to do with you?”
The dormant fae didn’t answer, but then, I hadn’t expected it to. Pondering the unforeseen complexities of my life, I wandered over to the cupboard above the fridge and opened it to reveal several liquor bottles. My apartment was unfurnished and my pantry was half empty, but I still had choice alcohol available. I was a bartender, after all.
Twiggy hopped onto the counter beside me, his jewel-like green eyes inquisitively wide. “What now?”
Good question, and not one I planned to worry about anytime soon. I selected a bottle and set it on the counter beside my faery roommate.
“Tell me, Twiggy.” I arched an eyebrow. “Have you ever tried whiskey befor
e?”
Tori’s adventures continue in
TWO WITCHES AND A WHISKEY
The Guild Codex: Spellbound / Three
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TWO WITCHES AND A WHISKEY
The Guild Codex: Spellbound / Three
I'm not a badass mage like my three smokin' hot best friends. I'm not a sorcerer or an alchemist, or even a wussy witch. I'm just a human, slinging drinks like a pro and keeping my non-magical nose out of mythic business. Seriously, I know my limits.
So why am I currently standing in a black-magic ritual circle across from a fae lord?
Somewhere behind me, my three mage friends are battling for their lives. Somewhere near my feet is the rogue witch I just knocked out with a stolen spell. And I have about five seconds to convince this very angry sea god not to shmoosh me like a bug.
I'm pretty sure this wasn't part of the job description.
- Pre-order now on Amazon -
THE STEEL & STONE SERIES
YA urban fantasy by Annette Marie
When everyone wants you dead, good help is really hard to find …
Piper knows the first rule for an apprentice Consul is don’t trust daemons. But when she’s framed for the theft of the deadly Sahar Stone, she ends up with two troublesome daemons as her only allies: Lyre, a hotter-than-hell incubus who isn’t as harmless as he seems, and Ash, a draconian mercenary with a seriously bad reputation. Trusting them might be her biggest mistake yet.
- See the Steel & Stone Series on Amazon -
The Spell Weaver Trilogy
YA urban fantasy by Annette Marie
The only thing more dangerous than the denizens of the Underworld ... is stealing from them.
As a nymph living in exile among humans, Clio has picked up all sorts of interesting skills. But pilfering magic from the Underworld’s deadliest spell weavers? Not so much.
Unfortunately, that’s exactly what she has to do to earn a ticket back home.
Conning her way into the Underworld may have gone pretty well, but now she’s got a new problem. His name is Lyre, a sinfully alluring incubus and gifted spell weaver—and her biggest obstacle to getting her hands on some damn magic.
- See the Spell Weaver Trilogy on Amazon -
THE RED WINTER TRILOGY
YA romantic fantasy by Annette Marie
A destiny written by the gods.
A fate forged by lies.
If Emi is sure of anything, it’s that kami—the gods—are good, and yokai—the earth spirits—are evil. But when she saves the life of a fox shapeshifter, the truths of her world start to crumble. And the treachery of the gods runs deep.
This stunning trilogy features 30 full-page illustrations.
- See the Red Winter Trilogy on Amazon -
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to Erich Merkel for sharing your exceptional expertise in Latin. Any errors are mine.
About the Author
Annette Marie is the author of Amazon best-selling YA urban fantasy series Steel & Stone, its prequel trilogy Spell Weaver, and romantic fantasy trilogy Red Winter. Her first love is fantasy, but fast-paced action, bold heroines, and tantalizing forbidden romances are her guilty pleasures. She proudly admits she has a thing for dragons, and her editor has politely inquired as to whether she intends to include them in every book.
Annette lives in the frozen wasteland of Alberta, Canada (okay, it’s not quite that bad) and shares her life with her husband and their furry minion of darkness—sorry, cat—Caesar. When not writing, she can be found elbow-deep in one art project or another while blissfully ignoring all adult responsibilities.
Find out more about Annette and her books here:
Website: www.annettemarie.ca
Amazon author page: amzn.to/2b8ZHlh
Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorAnnetteMarie
Facebook Reader Group: www.facebook.com/groups/annettemarie/
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/8546572.Annette_Marie
Twitter: twitter.com/annettemmarie
Dark Arts and a Daiquiri (The Guild Codex: Spellbound Book 2) Page 23