Autumn's Bane Read online

  I groaned. “We don’t want disconcerting. We don’t need disconcerting. The world is disconcerting enough.”

  “Toughen up, cookie,” Herne said, kissing me again. “I wasn’t the one who brought this issue to light, by the way. It was you and Yutani, so blame yourselves.”

  Frowning—for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what he was talking about—I slowly inched my way to the break room. As I sat down, Talia immediately veered toward the coffee pot. Without asking, she poured me a cup of coffee and brought the cookie tray over to the table.

  “I know you probably just ate, but…here.” She winked at me.

  “Hey, how’s that boytoy of yours? What’s his name? Tanjin?”

  She smiled and that told me about all I needed to know. “He’s good. We’re good. Nothing serious, but I have to admit, I’m having a lot of fun and he seems to be, as well.”

  “Are the two of you exclusive?” Viktor asked, leaning over my shoulder to snatch a cookie off the tray. He gave me a pat on the head. “How you doing today, Ember?”

  “Sore but alive. That’s the most important part.”

  “The stitches pulling on your muscles?”

  I nodded. “They’re right where I bend to the side.” I motioned to my waist. “So they hurt like crap every time I turn.”

  “That sucks,” Yutani said, coming into the room. “I’m glad to see you up and around, though.”

  “Me too. By the way, Herne’s blaming you and me for whatever it is he has to tell us.” I gnawed on my lip, trying to figure out what it could be.

  “Uh oh, that doesn’t sound good.” He sat next to Talia, who was nose-deep in a magazine that she pulled out of her tote bag. I leaned closer and saw that it was Dog Health Monthly.

  “Rema and Roxy all right?” I asked.

  She glanced at me over the top of the magazine. “Yeah, they’re doing fine. I just like to keep up on new treatments for their health and whatever, especially since they’re rescue dogs, and greyhounds tend to have a myriad of problems.”

  When we were all seated, sans Charlie and Rafé, Herne cleared his throat and set down his tablet. “I wasn’t going to bother with a meeting this morning, but something’s come up that we have to talk about. Yesterday, Ember and Yutani discovered a murder case out on Whidbey Island that sounded suspiciously similar to the ones committed by Straff, Blackthorn’s son.”

  I groaned. “Please don’t tell me we’re actually onto something?”

  “I’d like to just gloss over it, but I can’t. I looked into the case and you were right—the wound marks are all too similar to the murder victims in the Straff case. So I called my father to ask him if Straff was still in the dungeons, or if he has any siblings around.”

  “And—?” Yutani asked.

  “And, turns out, someone helped Straff escape. Since he was in solitary in the darkest, deepest part of the dungeons, there were only a couple staff members who checked on him and brought him his food. Each guard takes shifts for three or four days. So when Tokkberry—the guard who discovered him missing—found out he was gone, he reported it to his commander. The shoya—the leader of the prison guards—investigated. Turns out the guard who had been on duty the days prior had vanished, along with Straff. It was an anti-magic zone, which negates personal and innate magic as well, so he couldn’t have charmed her. But the pair are gone, and nobody knows where they went. From what we can tell, this happened a few weeks back and nobody thought to tell my father. Heads are rolling, you can be sure.”

  I grimaced. Knowing Cernunnos, heads could literally be rolling.

  Herne shrugged, tossing a file on the table. “We don’t know that this murder was committed by Straff, but we can’t rule it out. I’ve alerted Rhiannon to be on watch. She’ll keep an eye on the news and let us know if anything further happens.”

  I stared at the table. Straff had been a gnarly opponent, and his case had been my first realization that punishment in the world of the gods had a very different nature than it did here. The thought that Straff was out in the world again, at large, unnerved me. His father had been a freak. But Straff was psycho-crazy.

  “Just what we need. Straff at large again.” I glanced over at Yutani, who gave me a faint nod. “Although, given Typhon’s nature, I think I’d rather face Straff and his father again.”

  “Well, that was a good catch, and my father thanks both of you. He’s pissed out of his mind and I have no clue what he’s going to do now. If he ever finds that guard, I pray she has time to slit her own wrists, because anything my father does will be worse.”

  The thought of being on the bad side of Cernunnos was terrifying. He was massive, with the primal nature of the forest behind him. It occurred to me that as Herne aged, he, too, would grow into that power. Grateful I’d met him when he was young—relatively—I hoped that I could grow with him once I turned into a goddess, so I wouldn’t feel so overwhelmed as time went on.

  Herne must have noticed my expression, because he said, “I know, love. And I truly meant what I said. Death would be far preferable to my father’s anger over something like this. The forest isn’t a gentle place when it’s angered.”

  That darkened the mood of the room.

  Yutani cleared his throat. “Do you think we’ll end up over there again? On Whidbey Island?”

  “I hope not,” Herne said. “But I can’t promise we won’t.”

  “Wouldn’t he get as far away from there as possible, given that’s the first place Cernunnos would likely look?” Talia asked.

  “I thought that too, but then again, Straff has a disease that drives him to seek energy and blood. His father allowed him to feed on his victims without stepping in. Blackthorn might cover up for his son again, even though he allowed us to drag Straff off without protest.” I shook my head. “The island is probably the only place Straff was familiar with.”

  “It’s not that large. Surely we could find him again,” Talia said.

  “Maybe. But there’s something else. Remember, Straff’s condition was still in a sporadic stage. The disease hadn’t advanced to where he was pushed to kill on a frequent basis. But that doesn’t mean it hasn’t gotten worse. I wonder if there’s a way to contact Blackthorn without going over there. He might give Straff up if he thought his own neck was on the line, and I doubt he wants Cernunnos on his back.”

  Herne shook his head. “Unlike Raven, Blackthorn’s not carrying around a cell phone. He’s far more primal. As I said, I asked Rhiannon to stay in touch.”

  Rhiannon was head of the Foam Born Pod—a pod of waterhorse shifters, or hippocampi, as was their proper name. I had enjoyed getting to know her and her people.

  “Okay. Anything else until Ashera gets here?”

  “Yes, actually. Rhiannon mentioned they’re having another problem now. She wanted to know if we might be able to come over and check it out and I told her we had to see how things were going here. She hadn’t heard about Typhon, and actually, her issue might tie into his return. There are unusual goings-on in their compound and she’s getting worried members of the Pod coming up to her right and left. I’m going to call her back and ask for more details later—she was on her way out to an appointment when I called her to ask about the murder.”

  “Does she think Straff’s back?” Viktor asked.

  Herne shrugged. “That I don’t know. All right, people. Let’s get to work. Ember, how’s your side?”

  “Sore, but manageable. It shouldn’t take long to heal. I think the bruises will last longer than the cut, so I’m going to look pretty beat up for a while.”

  My legs and arms were covered with bruises, as was most of my body. When the Reaver had thrown me across the room, I landed against the edge of the table. Added to the bruises I had from the fight in the graveyard, and I was one walking shiner.

  “Take it easy. Hopefully we’ll be able to avoid another fight today. I don’t think any of us are up to it, to be honest,” Herne said. “Physically, I can handle
it, but I’m really tired of beating dead bodies over the head. After a while, the gore gets to you, you know?”

  “Boy, do I know,” I muttered, with Viktor and Yutani seconding me.

  We broke up and I headed to my office, where I opened the window to let in the fresh air. My office was four stories above the dumpsters, but that wasn’t far enough to avoid the stench of garbage. However, the trucks had been through two days ago, and the air was still relatively fresh. I eased into my chair and turned my attention to the paperwork, sighing.

  This was my least favorite part of the job. I flipped open the first file and glanced through it, looking for sections that needed documentation. The “Actions Taken” box was empty. I was supposed to fill out all of the forms the day after we went out on a case, but that seldom happened for any of us. We were just too busy. Rafé could fill in most of the information, but he wasn’t there for the fights, and so that was up to each of us.

  As a crow cawed outside, followed by the screech of a seagull, I picked up a pen, sighed, and began to jot down what I could remember for the archives.

  I had been filling out paperwork for almost two hours when my work phone rang. I pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID, raising my eyebrows when I saw Eldris’s name. So he was actually calling back, was he?

  “Ember Kearney speaking,” I said as I punched the speaker button.

  “Hello, Ember,” Eldris said, his voice smooth and sensuous. He was definitely a pretty-boy, charming in a way that was hard to ignore.

  “Hey, Eldris, I’m glad you called back. Do you have good news for me, I hope?”

  I had already resolved that I wasn’t about to strike a bargain with him. I wasn’t putting myself in his debt, or within arm’s reach of him without a guarantee he’d keep his fangs to himself. Vampires were almost always out for their own agendas.

  “That depends. I suppose it could be considered good news, but I’m not envying you the privilege. Dormant Reins, the regent, will see you tonight at ten p.m. in the Catacombs. I’ll text you the directions. You and two other members of the Wild Hunt may come, but only the three of you. Dormant will guarantee your safety if you meet me at Wager Chance’s office at nine forty-five. I’ll escort you to the regent’s chamber. No silver. No stakes. No pointy daggers that could double as a stake. You bring any one of those and you lose the chance. And I guarantee you, he won’t reconsider once he’s closed the door. You will be patted down.” He made it sound like an invitation.

  I cleared my throat, trying to focus on what I was saying. “As I figured. All right, we’ll be there. Are you coming with us?”

  Eldris sniggered. “Me? I’ll escort you from Wager’s office, but once we’re at the regent’s door, you go dancing down the yellow brick road on your own, girl. I’ll wait and escort you out, but I’m not hitching myself to your star.” Even when he was being snarky, he sounded sexy. I hated that I responded to even his voice, but I kept telling myself it was because he was a vampire, and the vamp glamour affected just about anybody.

  “All right. See you at Wager’s at a quarter to ten. Sans pointy objects and silver.” I hung up before he could say anything else. Staring at my phone for a moment until the pull of Eldris’s glamour faded, I went to tell Herne.

  “Who’s going with us?” I asked.

  “You’re not going.” Herne shook his head.

  “I have to go or my guess is Eldris won’t follow through. I’d suggest Yutani. He knows how to approach this, where Viktor might get in a snit or something. Yutani plays with one foot in both shadow and light. He understands the vamps and their customs.” I eased myself into one of the leather wingback chairs in his office.

  “I don’t want you down there, injured as you are.” Herne stood, crossing his arms across his chest. “That’s all there is to it.”

  “Beloved of mine, get it through your head. I don’t go and I doubt Eldris will lead you anywhere but to the exit.” I wasn’t quite so sure on that, but we couldn’t afford to take the chance. “Ask Yutani. If he says he thinks I can skip the meeting, I’ll stay home. If he says I need to go, then you have to quit bitching about it.”

  Herne let out a little huff and I thought he was going to argue some more. Instead, he walked over to the door to his office, opened it, and shouted, “Yutani, get your ass in here.”

  A moment later, Yutani appeared, looking worried. “What have I done now?”

  I laughed. “Nothing, but Herne and I need you to settle an argument. Eldris called. Dormant Reins will see us tonight. Eldris wants us to meet him at Wager Chance’s office at a quarter to ten. He’ll lead us to the regent’s chambers. Herne doesn’t want me to go. I think I’d better go. What do you think?”

  Yutani rolled his eyes. “More testosterone wars? Dude, I get it. You don’t want Ember there because she’s your fiancée and you think that Eldris wants to play hoochie with her coochie—”

  “No, that’s not the reason!” Herne’s mood seemed to be shifting from bad to worse. “Or at least, not most of the reason. I’m worried about her wound. She’ll still smell of blood and you know what the smell of blood does to vampires.”

  I blinked. I hadn’t even thought of that aspect. “I’ll wash and wear strong perfume.”

  “She has to go. I told you, I know Eldris a little too close for comfort. He has his eye on her, you’re right about that. But he won’t make a move if I’m there with her. And he won’t cooperate if she’s not there. Just put it this way: If he can’t buy, he likes to window shop.”

  Yutani turned back to me. “But Herne makes a good point about the smell. Even the scent of disinfectants and ointments point to a wound, and a wound means vulnerability. Tonight, I suggest you wear a strong spice-based perfume. Also, wear something that gives you side support so you don’t twinge. One of your corsets would be a good idea, but cover up your shoulders and neck with a jacket.”

  “That works for me.” I turned to Herne. “Are you okay with that?”

  Grudgingly, he nodded. “Fine. But you better douse yourself to high heaven with that perfume.” He glanced at the clock. “Not long till Ashera shows up. Let’s get back to work until then.”

  He grazed my lips with his, then turned back to his desk. Feeling summarily dismissed, I turned to go. Yutani walked me back to my desk, and the only thing he said was, “Typical.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  At four p.m., right on the dot, Angel escorted Ashera into the break room. The rest of us were there and waiting with the exception of Charlie, who was busy with an online class. Rafé was taking notes.

  Standing over six-three, Ashera was lean and slinky, with pale skin that had a faint cerulean cast to it. Her hair tumbled down her back, the color of dawn when the first tinges of light illuminate the morning. Around her head, she wore a silver circlet, which I remembered from our first meeting, but this time she was not dressed in a flowing gossamer dress. Instead, she wore a white sundress splattered with a blue and purple hydrangea pattern, and white wedge sandals that boosted her height even more. Her eyes were the palest gray I had seen, and her lipstick was pale pink. She looked like she had stepped right out of a fairytale.

  “Good meet, Sister Water,” she said, addressing me first. “I trust you are well?”

  I smiled, rising as gracefully as my injuries would allow. “Ashera, it’s good to see you again.” Ashera was a blue dragon, connected with the water, and that had forged a connection between the two of us since my Light Fae side was Leannan Sidhe, one of the Water Fae.

  Herne stood, also, as did Victor and Yutani. “Welcome. Please have a seat. Would you like anything to drink?”

  She held up her cold cup. “I have lemonade, thank you. One of the delights I’ve discovered since coming into your world.”

  Viktor pulled out her chair for her and she settled herself gracefully at the table, greeting everyone with a smile and a nod.

  “So,” Herne said after all the niceties were out of the way, “you said you have imp
ortant information to share with us?”

  Ashera nodded. “I didn’t want to broadcast this over the phone since you never know who’s listening and I know these devices aren’t foolproof. As you know, a group of us who are the Celestial Wanderers and Mountain Dreamers have gathered over on Bainbridge Island. We’re one of a number of such groupings who have chosen strategic spots around the world in order to keep watch as the Luminous Warriors arrive. The Luminous Warriors are, almost to a dragon, in league with our father, Typhon.”

  Yutani cleared his throat. “Would you mind clearing something up for me?”

  “What do you want to know?” Ashera asked, accepting a cookie from Talia, who passed her the tray.

  “Your father—Typhon—did he sire all the dragons? I mean, are you all his actual children?”

  Her eyes grew wide for a moment, then a look of understanding crossed her face. “Oh! No, Typhon isn’t my literal father. But he is the ancestor of us all—Typhon and Echidna were the beginnings of the Dragonni. So, in essence, we all bear his blood. But the first hatchlings—there were sixteen of them, a pair to each color. And Echidna cast a spell that they would breed true and free from genetic issues that often plague inbreeding. So, while all blue dragons spring from the original pairing, we evolved and mutated over the years. If you were to test our DNA, there would be differences.”

  “Magical genetics?” Talia asked.

  Ashera nodded. “Echidna was brilliant. She had an eye for the future. She and Typhon fought tooth and claw over many an issue. Echidna believed in evolving, in cooperation and diplomacy and compromise. Typhon had his sights on conquest and keeping the status quo.”

  It was hard to know what to say to that. But after a moment, Angel asked, “What happened to her? We know what happened to Typhon, obviously.”