Earthbound: An Otherworld Novella Read online

  Delilah brightened. “I like television.”

  “Oh good gods, save me now.” But I grinned at her.

  “I take it somebody found the TV in the hotel?” Chase let out a soft laugh.

  “A man was wearing fish strapped to his chest. I have no idea what was going on, but it reminded me of some bizarre wrestling match. And there was man…he was talking into…” She paused, thinking, then snapped her fingers. “A microphone. That’s it. Anyway, he’s…handsome.” She blushed and I stared at her.

  “This is new. You almost never notice men…not in that way.”

  “I can’t help it. There was just something about him.”

  Chase’s jaw dropped. “You found Jerry Springer?” He let out a garbled sound.

  Iris snorted. “Well, it’s official. Your introduction to our society is complete.”

  I wasn’t sure what was happening, but it was obvious that whoever Jerry Springer was, he was infamous for something. “Leave it to my sister to discover the oddballs.”

  Chase cleared his throat. “Okay, the less said about Springer, the better. Anyway, as soon as we finish breakfast, I’m going to leave you in Iris’s capable hands. But I have assigned someone to drive you around today. Yugi will be helping you. He’s one of my officers, human and an empath. He’s a good guy so ask him for anything you need.”

  The waitress appeared with our food at that moment. I stared at the oddly shaped cake for a moment. Iris reached over and motioned for me to spread butter on it, and then pour a stream of brown syrup over it. The smell was overwhelming, in a good way, and as I dug in, the first bite sent me into a tailspin of flavor. The second bite was even better. As I cautiously tried the steaming drink, the nuances of rich chocolate and milk ran down my throat, along with a bitter note. I closed my eyes. I could already feel a tingle from it.

  “What’s in here?”

  “Coffee—espresso, actually. It’s a concentrated form of coffee. A mocha is made with espresso, chocolate, milk, and whipped cream.” Chase sounded pleased. “You like it?”

  It was then that I realized he was as nervous as we were. He wanted us to feel comfortable and was doing his best to make certain we did.

  I flashed him a warm smile. “It’s good. I like it, and I like the buzz. This won’t make me drunk, will it?”

  “I can answer that,” Iris said. “Unless there’s something wonky with your blood line, caffeine shouldn’t have much of an effect on you, other than to perk you up, make you feel a little tense, and give you a boost in energy.”

  As Chase was at the counter, paying for the food, a thin, tall man walked in with platinum blond hair. He joined us, introducing himself as Yugi.

  “I see you’ve met.” Chase returned and slipped on his jacket. “Yugi, take them wherever Iris thinks they need to go. Let me know how things are going. Girls,” he turned us, “Have a wonderful day. We’ll get you settled in as soon as we can. I know this week is going to be a difficult transition time, so we’ll do everything we can to make it easier. Meanwhile, Iris and Yugi will be able to answer most of your questions. Oh,” he added, “Iris, you might want to take them down to show them the Indigo Crescent—Camille’s bookstore. The floor directly above the bookshop is where Delilah will be opening her PI business. Delilah, we’ll have a talk about the laws and regulations regarding what you can and cannot do legally, but we can do so in a few days.” And then he headed out the door without waiting for a response.

  “Does he always talked so fast?” Delilah glanced at Iris.

  The house sprite laughed. “He’s probably more nervous than you guys are. The FH-CSI is his baby, and even though he’s not in charge, it’s up to him to make it fly. If it fails, he fails.” She glanced at Yugi. “Can you get us a few donuts?”

  Yugi nodded and wandered over to the counter.

  Iris turned back to us. “Don’t say anything in front of him that you don’t want Chase to hear. Yugi is a good sort, but he owes his allegiance to Chase. You can trust Chase, but as I said, a lot is riding on his shoulders and there are things you may say that he might try to work to his advantage. You can always come to me if you have delicate questions.”

  “How did you end up working for the OIA, given you’re Earthside Fae?” I stared at Iris. Her energy was incredibly strong, and I already liked her lot.

  “It happens. They have recruited Fae from Earthside for many years because the portals have been available all that time, though hidden. I came on recently. I have my reasons for doing so, but they can wait till later. But I will tell you this—don’t trust the OIA to back you up. I honestly believe, and this is no reflection on you, but I think that they send the agents over here they want to get rid of. I don’t know what you did or didn’t do, but don’t rely on them.”

  Her words echoed Jocko’s sentiments. So, we were on our own. If we had been back in Otherworld, it wouldn’t be so difficult, but over here? We needed to learn and learn fast.

  “Thank you, we’ll take what you say to heart. How do we find a house?”

  She laughed. “They don’t have newspapers over in Otherworld, do they?”

  I shook my head, although the word itself was pretty self-explanatory.

  Iris held up a thick sheaf of paper, covered with tiny print. There were several paragraphs circled in bright red. “These are called the classifieds. We are looking at advertisements for houses that are up for sale. I contacted a real estate agent who will meet us later on. She’s going to help us find you a house. First though, I need to know several things. What do you really need?”

  And we were off, describing what we were looking for, as she scanned through the newspaper and marked several other listings. A few minutes later, we were on the road. Delilah and I were in the backseat, while Iris sat up front with Yugi, as we headed into the streets of Seattle to look for a house.

  The first four we looked at were unsuitable. None of them had a way to viably protect from the sunlight, and even though one had a basement, it would have taken a massive amount of work to make livable. But the fifth house was a surprise. It was in the Belles-Faire district, in North Seattle. It was out of the city proper, on a winding two-lane road. At first the houses were thick along the sides of the road and then they began to spread out, with more room between the lots. Iris pointed out various styles to us.

  “That’s a ranch, well it’s a ranch style house. I’ll explain the difference later. And that — see that three-story house there? That’s Victorian style.” She glanced at the newspaper, then tapped Yugi on the shoulder. “Turn left on Fitzweizer.”

  He obliged. “Whatever you say, Miss Iris.”

  I had the feeling they knew each other. As as the road began to wind even more, and houses were spaced further apart, the foliage became thicker than I’d ever expected to see in a city. Even in Y’Elestrial, most of the trees were confined to the parks. But Seattle seemed to be a conglomeration of woodland, city, and small town atmosphere all mixed together. I was beginning to get used to the traffic lights. It didn’t take a genius to figure out how they worked. Red meant stop. Green, go. Yugi slowed down when he saw yellow lights, so I figured that—over here—yellow was a cautionary warning.

  “We’re looking for Victoria Street.” Iris glanced at the paper. “The realtor will meet us there.”

  “What’s a realtor?” Delilah asked.

  “Think of it like a house broker. The realtor acts as the go-between between the owner and the person who wants to buy the house. Realtors occasionally work with rental properties as well. Property is known as real estate. Yugi, we’re looking for number 33933.”

  Yugi began glancing out of his side window, and Iris did the same on her side. As I looked at the houses passing by, I realized they had numbers printed on them. I pressed my nose against the window. We passed first one house and then another, and then we began passing posts with numbers on them that led into long driveways, where the houses were hidden from v
iew.

  After a few minutes, Yugi slowed and turned onto a gravel drive, at number 33933. We bumped along, but I was actually surprised by how much smoother the car was than a horse and carriage.

  Trees lined both sides of the drive, overhanging the gravel path. I fell into a comfortable silence. The land here was beautiful, and I had the sudden desire to jump out of the car and talk to the plants. That was one of my gifts. I could speak with certain plants and sense their growth and their energy. Something inside me sparked when I looked at the land here.

  “I really want to see this house,” I said suddenly, breaking the silence.

  “I thought you might like the Belles-Faire area. A lot of Fae tend to live out here. The house we’re going to see is a little large, especially for just three of you, but I think you might like it. I just had a feeling…” Her voice drifted off as we pulled out of the drive in into the clearing.

  Up ahead was a wide expanse of driveway, a half circle of dirt in front of a large three-story house. It was a Victorian by Iris’s description, and as I stared up at the pink and cream monster, something whispered, “Come live here. Wake me up.”

  Beside me, Delilah let out a little gasp. “Did you hear that?” She was gazing at the house.

  “You mean house?”

  She nodded. “I think it’s talking to us.”

  Iris laughed from the front seat. “I thought maybe this would be a contender. Come on, get out of the car. The real estate agent should be inside.”

  As we entered the house, our steps echoed on the hardwood floors. The foyer was a little awkwardly placed, a T-shaped hall, with a coat closet directly across from the front door. From where we stood, to the left I could see a kitchen, and to the right looked to be a living room. Iris led us into the kitchen where a tall, thin woman was waiting. She was obviously half-Fae, I could tell just by looking at her, and she held a portfolio in her arms. She was wearing the most beautiful makeup I had ever seen, and I had a sudden desire to beg her to let me try it. But I restrained myself. Accosting a stranger for their cosmetics wasn’t exactly the best icebreaker.

  Iris introduced us, and the realtor—whose name was Novena—led us on a tour, starting with the basement.

  As we examined the tidy little suite of rooms, I thought it might work perfectly for Menolly.

  “This has possibilities,” I said.

  Delilah nodded. “Not much work to be done, really.”

  The main floor contained the kitchen—which was huge, a pantry, the utility room, a cozy bedroom, a bath, a parlor and the living room. Two sets of stairs led up to the second story; one from beside the pantry, the other from the living room.

  As we made our way up the narrow staircase, I ran my hands along the polished mahogany railing, listening to the resonance of the wood. The house was happy, but lonely. It needed a family to love it and take care of it.

  The second story included three bedrooms and a bath. One of the bedrooms had a balcony overlooking the yard and all I could think about was how wonderful it would be to sit out under the stars, watching the moon. I needed to be out under the Moon Mother when she rode full on the night sky.

  “This would be perfect for you,” Delilah said.

  “I was thinking the same thing.”

  We headed up to the third floor. The layout mirrored the second second story, for the most part. Bedrooms and a private bath, along with a narrow attic.

  Delilah clapped her hands. “I could get used to it up here. Look how high it is!”

  She opened one of the windows and leaned out, staring out at the branches of a huge oak tree brushed the eaves of the roof. The next moment, before I could stop her, my sister turned into a tabby cat—a blur of long golden fur and razor blades. Her clothes changed into a little blue collar around her neck.

  “Delilah! Don’t you dare!” I dove for her, knowing what was coming next. But I hit the floor face first as she leapt to the windowsill and out onto the roof, scampering out of reach into the oak’s branches. I groaned as Yugi helped me up.

  “Are you okay? And what the hell just happened?” Yugi stared out the window at Delilah, who is delightedly chasing a butterfly on to another branch.

  “Welcome to my family,” I said, shaking my head. “In case Chase hasn’t told you, Delilah is a werecat. Only she has a problem with self-control. What the hell are we going to do now? I’m terrified of heights and if I tried to climb out there, I’ll fall off the damned roof and break my neck.” It was true. Heights, mountainsides, cliff sides—they did not mix well with my fear.

  Iris snorted. “You’re not getting me out there.”

  Yugi let out a sigh. “What will she do if I go after her?”

  “Probably run. We need something to entice her back inside. The only thing she likes better than chasing bug are shiny things. Either of you got something like that?” I glanced over at the realtor who was stifling a grin. “You wouldn’t by chance have any ideas on what we should do?”

  “Well, I might have something to help. Stand back and I’ll see what I could do. I promise I won’t hurt her.”

  Novena waited until we were out of the way, then leaned out the window. She reached out one hand, and fluttered her fingertips. As we watched, a ribbon of sparkling lights unfurled from the palm of her hand, trailing out the window until it reached Delilah, who was now focused on chewing on a leaf. The dancing lights tapped her on the left haunch. Delilah jumped, her head jerking around. At first she looked startled, but then when she saw the lights her eyes grew wide. I stifled a laugh, not wanting to scare her off.

  The next moment, Kitten was bouncing along behind the lights as the realtor drew them in along the branch. They rolled up just like a ribbon on a spool, but Delilah hadn’t figured out that we were baiting her. As Novena slowly stepped back, the lights followed her inside and she aimed them toward the floor. Delilah paused at the windowsill, glancing behind her at the branch, then with one mighty leap, she pounced on the sparkling lights. I slammed the window shut behind her.

  Realizing that she had been conned, Delilah flashed us a nasty look and raced out of the room. I charged along behind her, but only managed to trip on a fold in the runner in the hall. Once again, I landed face first. With a groan, I rolled to the side, giving Yugi room to pass.

  “Don’t let her get outside!”

  The realtor followed him, as Iris helped me to my feet. Feeling bruised and battered, I stood, shrugged my shoulders back, and straightened my hair. Menolly had given me the go-ahead to make the decision on the house for her, and since I figured Delilah had already covertly approved it with her antics and loving the ‘way up high’ rooms, I turned to Iris.

  “Well, I think we’re home.” And without further ado, we had found our house.

  Chapter 4

  The realtor pushed and less than two weeks later, we owned the house. We were able to negotiate moving in early and since we were paying cash for the place, the owner had no objections to closing quickly, especially since she had already moved out of town.

  A week after finding the place, we were moved in, albeit with a conglomerate of thrift store furniture. Menolly had already started working at the Wayfarer, and we were in a taxi, on the way to the Indigo Crescent. I was about to see my shop for the first time.

  “I need to head over to HQ,” Delilah said. We were already referring to the FH-CSI as our headquarters. “Chase wants to discuss my new business”

  Iris frowned. “We’ll get you a ride over there when we get to the shop. But listen, girls, you have to learn how to drive this month. I know it’s a lot to take on so soon, but I’ve been running my ass off finding you rides.” Not only was the house sprite helpful, she was endearingly blunt. “I don’t mind playing secretary for a while longer, but I’ve got better things to do with my time. I’m going to set up lessons for you girls—all three of you. It will have to be at night. At least for Menolly.”

  Delilah frowned. “Dri
ving seems fun, but I have to admit I’m a little nervous. It’s not quite the same thing is steering a horse and buggy.”

  “You certainly didn’t have any trouble learning how to use a cell phone.” Iris grinned at her.

  Delilah snorted. “That’s different. I can’t kill anybody with a cell phone.”

  In the past week, besides moving into our house, Iris had put us on a crash course in getting used to technology. She made us buy a blender, a toaster, a microwave oven, a mixer, a laptop computer, a television, a CD player, and a number of other gadgets we never would have thought of. Most of them were fairly simple, although the mixer made me nervous and I was grateful it was on a stand. The laptop was another matter, but Delilah immediately took to it. She also had fallen full-force into the joy of television and was headed toward full-scale addiction. Menolly loved the CD player, and we all thought the washer and dryer were a gift from the gods.

  “Tell me about the store. What do I need to know?”

  “It’s a bookstore. You sell books. That’s about it. I’ll show you how to use the cash register and how to make change, but most of your day will be talking to customers and helping them find what they’re looking for. Since I’m going to work with you, it shouldn’t take you too long to get the hang of things. You will have to learn how to set up and use an accounting system, and keep track of your profits and losses. But I don’t foresee any difficulties.”

  Menolly had taken to her job in a way that none of us had expected. She had been working for the past three nights, and her mood had altered in a subtle, but noticeable, way. She didn’t seem quite so angry and I even heard her humming at one point.

  As the taxi pulled into the curb and Iris paid them, I jumped out of the backseat and wandered over to stare at the bookstore. A sign that reminded me of an old-fashioned pub sign hung over the street, projecting from the face of the building. It read The Indigo Crescent, and had the image of crescent moon with a book balancing on the bottom point of the crescent.