Courting Darkness Read online

Page 5

 

  I bit my lip. We’d been gone only a few days, but it seemed like a lifetime. “She found Vikkommin. Or rather, what was left of him. Apparently . . . it’s a long story, Delilah, and I don’t feel like talking about it. But she proved . . . she won back her right to have children. She was responsible, but there were extenuating circumstances. ”

  Delilah let out a long sigh. “She’s powerful, our Iris. ”

  “More powerful than you know, and the powers they stripped away from her are returning. Everyone thinks of house sprites as cute, winsome little creatures who exist to be cleaning machines, but they’re so very wrong. Iris could probably level the three of us if she were mad enough. I don’t ever want to see her have to use her powers the way she did against Vikkommin. It nearly destroyed her the first time. ”

  “But she’s free now? To marry Bruce?”

  “Yes, and to have children. I’m not sure that will be enough for her, though. ” I paused at a red light, then turned onto the freeway entrance, gaining speed as I pushed the car into higher gear. The traffic was light this time of night, and it was cold enough that the snow was sticking to the road. By morning, it would be another solid sheet of black ice. “This weather’s crazy. We need a break. Have they said when it’s going to stop snowing and go back to rain?”

  “We’re in an Arctic cold snap—it’s supposed to last another week or two and then gradually warm back up. And what do you mean, you’re not sure that will be enough?” Kitten fidgeted, tugging on the seat belt.

  “Something happened out there on the ice fields, and before you ask, no—I don’t know what. But Iris returned, both happy and pensive. Something’s in the works with her. But you know how close-lipped she is. Until she’s ready, she’s not going to dish. ”

  I sped up, matching the speed of the oncoming cars, and darted left into the next lane, then left again so we’d be away from the upcoming exit-only lanes. As I eased into the speed—we weren’t going that fast, considering the weather—I let out a sigh and relaxed.

  “So what about you? Sharah cleared you for combat?”

  Delilah grinned. “Yeah, and boy am I ready for it. I hate being on bed rest. But I need to work out. Eight weeks of sitting around the house has turned my body to jelly, and she warned me the first few weeks are going to hurt when I start using my muscles again. She’s had me on some physical therapy, but the muscles are tight and they’re going to pull. ” She sobered then. “What do you think happened to Chase?”

  I shrugged. “I have no idea, Kitten, but what I sensed on the other side of that portal wasn’t altogether friendly. You . . . you aren’t having second thoughts, are you?”

  She looked startled. “You mean about Shade and Chase? No—not at all. But I still love Chase, dearly. He was my first love, and you don’t just blow that off, not unless the person hurt you. I adore Shade; he’s good for me. But Chase . . . he’s our detective, you know?”

  I smiled softly. “Yes, I know. He’s our detective. He’s family. ”

  As we sped along the road, an easy silence fell between us then, one born of being who we were. None of the three of us needed constant chatter, though Delilah liked to keep the TV on for background noise. Both Menolly and I were content with silence or background music.

  “Do you ever think about the future?” she asked after a little while.

  “What do you mean? Are you talking about Shadow Wing?”

  “Yes . . . No. Maybe? I mean, if we do manage to stop him, what then? Are we going home to Otherworld? You’re married to Smoky, Morio, and Trillian. I’m with Shade and bound to the Autumn Lord. Menolly is in love with Nerissa, who’s an Earthside Were. Our lives are bound up on both sides. And you . . . ” She stopped suddenly. “Never mind. ”

  “No,” I whispered. “Go ahead and say it. I can’t go home to Y’Elestrial because Father disowned me. ”

  “If Queen Tanaquar lifts the ban, would you?”

  “Would I go back? Maybe. But I don’t know now . . . even if Father comes around, I’ll always remember that he cut me off. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him for that. And Y’Elestrial is all bound up with memories of our childhood. I don’t know if I could go home again. At least not to there. Maybe Dahnsburg—Feddrah Dahns and his father like me. ”

  As I thought of the unicorns, I smiled. I’d recently received a missive from King Uppala-Dahns exonerating me of killing the Black Unicorn. In fact, I’d become somewhat of a folk hero there, for freeing the Black Beast to reincarnate as per legend. But I hadn’t told my sisters about it. For one thing, it sounded a little like bragging. For another, I hadn’t had time to fully process the whole situation.

  “Now there’s a thought,” Delilah said, giggling. “The unicorn city. I still haven’t seen it—and I’d like to. ”

  “Maybe we’ll get a chance to go there. Next time we need a break, let’s take a vacation—we can skip Y’Elestrial and go via the Elqaneve Barrows. We should check in with Queen Asteria, anyway. ” Ever since my father had disowned me, my sisters and I had quit the Otherworld Intelligence Agency and gone to work for the Elfin Queen.

  “There—there’s our turn,” I said, veering back into the right lane as I checked over my shoulder to make sure we were clear. The night sky was silvery as the snow continued to fall, and the exit ramp was slippery—we skidded slightly as I slowed, but I managed to keep us from fishtailing, and then we turned east and headed toward the compound.

  The Triple Threat—as I’d dubbed the Court of the Three Queens—owned a thousand-acre compound northeast of Seattle, buttressed in the foothills of the Cascade Mountain Range.

  Earlier in the year, the government had set the Earthside Fae Queens a limit—they could buy up and hold five thousand acres of land for now, with the possibility of expansion in the future. This land would be considered a Sovereign nation, and a treaty had been ironed out with the understanding that it would stand only if no threats were made against the government or the people of the United States by the Earthside Fae who signed up on the rolls.

  Titania, the Queen of Light and Morning, and Aeval, the Queen of Shadow and Night, had agreed. And they’d forced Morgaine, the half-Fae Queen of Dusk and Twilight by default, to agree to the terms. Although I had the feeling Morgaine hadn’t been asked for her opinion, the three Queens had agreed to name their nation Talamh Lonrach Oll—loosely translated as the Land of Brilliant Apples.

  As we wound through the foothills toward the Fae Nation, I began to feel the energy a good five miles before we were there. In the darkness, the trees glowed and sparkles skittered across the road, making me smile. I loved the magic out here—especially at night, for Aeval and Morgaine were both connected with the Moon Mother, as was I.

  We eased onto the road leading to the towering silver-plated gates that had been erected across the driveway leading in.

  I wasn’t due to show up until the Solstice. The guards seemed surprised to see us, but they waved us through once they realized who we were. As we pulled in, the road veered to the left, toward a major parking lot. Cars weren’t permitted beyond this point. It was either walk or take a horse-drawn cart or a bicycle.

  Easing into a parking space, I turned off the ignition and opened my window. The sound of magic filled the air. Not everyone could hear it, not even all of the Fae, though the average person might get a humming that irritated them or a headache from a buzzing in the ears, but I could. Soft and on the wind, like a thousand dancing chimes.

  Delilah scratched her neck. “I feel like ants are crawling on me. ”

  “That’s magic,” I said softly. “Come on, you’ll get used to it after a little bit and won’t notice it so much. ”

  We climbed out of the car and locked it. No use taking chances—our father’s people generally weren’t trustworthy unless they’d given their word of honor, and even then, I was cautious.

  “Over there. ” I pointed t
o the stalls where we could borrow a horse and cart. I had no intention of walking all the way to the palace barrows. I was tired from the trip with Iris and felt like I’d never warm up, though compared to the Northlands this storm was a spring breeze.

  The woman who was manning the stables gave us the once-over, then broke out in a smile. “Welcome, Otherworld Sisters. You have need of a cart?” Her voice was clipped, and I realized she wasn’t used to speaking English. She must have recently come out of the forests.

  There were still enough wild places that some of the Fae remained relatively untouched by society, but that was dwindling and pretty soon I feared there would be a struggle between the FBHs and the Earthside Fae over territory.

  Andy Gambit, tabloid reporter for the Seattle Tattler who did his best to make our lives a spectacle, was afraid of those of us from Otherworld, but the fact was, he’d better keep a watch in his own backyard first. We were far less of a threat than the Earthside Fae who had quietly absorbed the shock of deforestation and development for the past hundred and fifty years.

  “Thank you. ” I accepted the reins to the covered cart. It was a two-seater, with one horse to guide it. As Delilah and I settled ourselves inside, I realized that although the buggy would protect us from the majority of the snow, it wouldn’t do much against the cold. Delightful.

  “Do you remember how to drive one of these things?” Delilah glanced at me, then at the horse. “It’s been a while. ”

  “Not that long. ” I paused, testing the reins. Truthfully, it had been a good two years or so since I’d sat behind the reins of a buggy, but I’d spent a hell of a lot more time than that driving one when I lived in Otherworld. And, after one mistake of reaching for the gas pedal, the feel of the leather in my hands came back and I tsked to the horse, keeping a steady hold on the reins.

  A thousand acres is a surprisingly large area when you’re cold, and snow is blowing in your face. I blinked against the flakes as they landed on my eyelashes, grateful for waterproof mascara, and guided the horse through the middle of the cobblestone street. The stones were covered with packed snow and ice, and more than once I was actually relieved we were in a buggy and not the car. The Triple Threat seemed averse to shoveling snow, and the horse was now plowing us through a good ten inches of the white stuff. Up here in the Cascade foothills, it snowed more often, and with more depth than in the lowlands or the sea-level cities.

  By now, the only visibility came from the silver-dark sky and the lights shining to the sides in barrow houses, where the Earthside Fae—those who had been accepted into Talamh Lonrach Oll as actual inhabitants—lived.

  The member rolls were far greater than the inhabitants. So far. What the government would think when they saw how many Fae there really were, was yet to be seen. Although FBHs had accepted—some more reluctantly than others—that they were not the only beings on the planet, I had a feeling they weren’t going to be comfortable when they knew the full extent of just how many Fae there really were in the world. Or vampires. Or Weres. Or Cryptos, for that matter. The fairy-tale stories had opened up and come to life. The monsters had come out from under the bed, and we were among them.

  “Would you want to live here?” Delilah asked, gazing at the lights that shimmered by the sides of the road.

  I gave her a faint smile. “I don’t think so. I doubt if they’d accept Smoky into their hearts . . . or even Morio. Trillian, maybe—even though he’s a Svartan and they’re actually part of the elven line. And Svartans and elves don’t mix well. ”

  “Svartans and Fae don’t mix well. ” She blushed. “I’m sorry Menolly and I gave you such a hard time about him all these years. Now that we’ve gotten to really know him—”

  “You mean, now that you’ve been forced to live with him?”

  “That, too. ” She ducked her head, grinning. “He’s really a pretty good guy. I still think he’s arrogant as hell, but that’s just his nature. He loves you, he dotes on you, he helps out with the household, and he adores Maggie. ”

  “Well, thank you for finally noticing. ” I reached over and bopped her on the nose.

  “Anyway, you were saying?”

  “What? Oh, would I want to live here?” I let out a long sigh. “Don’t get me wrong—I think what Titania and Aeval are doing is a good thing. And it is beautiful. The magic sings to me. But it’s cold, Kitten. The magic leaves me cold and feeling alone. Like starlight—it’s brilliant, but it’s so far from anything you can touch or feel that it’s almost . . . empty. ”

  The horse’s quiet clipping of hooves on snow-covered cobblestones soothed my nerves as we wound our way through the maze of paths and trails. A lot of construction was going on, and it looked like houses and barrow mounds were springing up all over the place.

  None of the houses were over a single story, though—and all were cottagelike in structure. No electricity lines crossed through the land, nor would they. I knew that Titania and Aeval had insisted on that—the power to fuel these homes would come from magic, and solar and geothermal energy. From the wind and from sun and from steam.

  Eye catchers glimmered along the paths, marking each new street. It seemed odd to see the shimmering lights over here, Earthside, but I had a feeling that more than a little crossover was happening. Otherworld was borrowing some of Earthside’s technology, and the Earthside Fae were latching onto some of the wonders back in Otherworld. It rang odd, like the two worlds were reuniting, in their own way . . . roots long torn apart winding back together again.