Night Seeker

Chapter 3

But we couldn’t go after the heartstone that night. It was too late and too dangerous. We’d need to go during the day, when it was less risky. And there were other things we had to attend to first. I sprawled on the makeshift sofa, closing my eyes, wanting nothing more than a long, warm, comfortable night’s sleep.

Peyton dropped to the seat beside me. She let out a huff, then said, “Rex is coming. I finally got hold of him. At least he’s still alive.”

Rex was her long-lost father who had shown up on her doorstep a few days back, after abandoning her mother and her when she was a little girl. Peyton hadn’t been home to meet him. Making a deal with the vampires, Anadey had sold me out in an attempt to prevent the meeting from ever taking place, but her betrayal was in vain. Rex was still alive, and now Anadey was an outcast to us. Peyton had taken it hard, but she was soldiering on.

“You made certain to warn him to make sure he’s not followed, right?” The last thing we needed was for the vampires or the Shadow Hunters to track us down by following him.

“He’s not stupid.” Peyton gave me a sharp look, then grimaced. “I’m sorry. Yeah, we talked about it. He’s being careful. He’ll be here tomorrow morning. This is the first time I’ll have seen my father in…over twenty years.” She looked like she was going to cry but then grabbed the dishes from the table, carrying them off to the utility sink in order to wash them.

“There’s another thing we need to discuss before we track down the heartstone. We did a hasty ritual to band the Moon Spinners together, but if we’re going to ask for help from the Consortium, we’ll have to do things by the book. They don’t cotton to people trying to buck the trends.”

Rhiannon tapped her fingers on the table. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

I frowned. “I don’t think so.”

“What about the fact that you told Ysandra Petros that you and Kaylin are married? It was Kaylin’s dumb idea at the time-and though I see what he was getting at, things didn’t work out the way we thought they would. She’s going to expect to see a marriage license. She pretty much said so before we left.”

We didn’t know a lot about them, but the Consortium served as an international organization to which a good share of the magic-born-at least those in high places and with any public notoriety-belonged. They laid down rules of conduct and enforced them. Heavily. They also backed up members who ran afoul of the law-as long as it was a blatant frame-up-or afoul of enemies. They were an impressive association, and their membership was daunting. The real Who’s Who of the magical set.

And since Peyton and I had started magical businesses together without realizing that all such enterprises needed to be registered with the Consortium, we were on the hook for becoming members. Ysandra Petros, a high-ranking member of the organization, had dropped in for a visit when we opened the doors of the Veil House to customers for Wind Charms and Peyton’s endeavor-Magical Eye Investigations.

When Marta, the town witch for New Forest, left me her business and her position as the official leader of the now-defunct Thirteen Moons Society, I’d apparently earned a place in the ranks of the Consortium. Marta had been Peyton’s grandmother and Anadey’s mother-but Anadey and her mother were at odds. Because of a vision, Marta had named me as her heir before Myst killed her. But now, I had to come up with a magical society to replace hers-and so the Moon Spinners were born.

I’d been leery at first, but now with Geoffrey taking a trip into La-La land and Lainule ignoring us-we needed the Consortium’s help. When in danger, any help is usually better than no help at all.

“Oh. That.” I turned to see Kaylin laughing. “And just what do we do about this? I’m not about to marry you just to back up your lie, especially now, with the situation so out of hand. I don’t know what possessed you to encourage me to tell her that or why I even listened to you.”

“We were trying to keep the whole matter with Myst quiet, and with Heather in Myst’s grasp…well…we needed a ruse as to why we were all living there, and we needed it quick. Rhiannon-and you-yeah, she would have bought that. But I didn’t think she’d believe that Leo and I were just dropping by. Chalk it up to stupidity, but then we’ve all done some stupid things, haven’t we? You were just as flustered as the rest of us.” He gave me a whatever shrug and went back to sorting out the stuff we’d purloined from the house.

“Oh, for Pete’s sake. I’m just going to tell her everything. At this point, they’re bound to find out at some point, and if I admit I lied, she might be more apt to forgive me rather than if she discovers it later on.” Ysandra had seemed a reasonable person. At least, I hoped she was.

You run a risk once she discovers you were deceiving her, but that may be the least of your worries. Ulean’s voice was gentle in my ear.

“We could go through with it.” Kaylin grinned at me.

I let out a sigh. “Oh, Kaylin, I like you, dude, but you have to be kidding.”

Kaylin set down the sack of herbs he’d been sorting and dropped to one knee. “Oh, Cicely, marry me!”

“You can’t marry Cicely.” Grieve didn’t sound at all happy.

“I’m not Lannan. I’m not trying to fuck her. But seriously, I’m joking. Don’t have a fit.” Kaylin stood, dusting his hands on his jeans, and then started to laugh. “Yes, my idea was stupid. Of course we’ll tell her the truth. I’m really not trying to co-opt your lover.”

Grieve let out a snort. “I know. I know. I just feel so damned helpless right now. I’m caught between being who I was and being a monster. I feel the urge to hunt rise in me and I push it down. I feel Myst’s call, but I fight it off because I hate her. I cannot let myself become one of her creatures. Yet…how much longer can I go on living like this? None of you trust me.” He reached down to stroke my cheek, smiling sadly at me. “And I understand why. I don’t even trust myself. But at least I recognize the potential within…the potential to become a ruthless killer.”

Grieve’s conflict made my heart ache. How were we going to resolve this? Luna’s suggestion that there might be a cure locked away within the Akazzani’s archives gave me a glimmer of hope. I just prayed it wouldn’t be dashed away.

Kaylin sat down next to Grieve, folding his elbows on the table, his expression sober. “I understand. Really, I do. When my night-veil demon entered my soul while I was in my mother’s womb, it forever changed the potential of who I could become. A fact I learned all too well when Cicely helped to wake my demon. There was a horrendous struggle between us-the night-veil and me. And I’m still not sure exactly who won. I don’t know if I’m Kaylin with the waking demon in his soul, or the demon with the memory of Kaylin in his soul.”

Restless, he crossed to the nearest window and stared out into the snow. “We’re all changing. Cicely, your memories are waking…You are beginning to remember the time when you were Myst’s daughter. The obsidian knife would have bent your nature if you’d kept using it.”

“It already did that.” I stared at my hands. I’d used one of the Shadow Hunters’ knives, only to find it strengthening the part of me that had once been Myst’s daughter. I would have gone into a killing frenzy if my father hadn’t stopped me. The taste of the enemy’s blood was thick in my mouth, and I still remembered the intense joy of stabbing the knife through his body. “We’re all twisted. We’ve all lost part of our souls because of our battle with Myst.”

Rhiannon came quietly over to sit by my side. “You are experiencing what happened to me when I was thirteen. When I…when I called the flame and burned up the little girl in the car, it took away a part of me forever. I know what it’s like to be ridden by a power. Perhaps this transformation, it’s something that links us all?”

“Perhaps.” I wondered if Luna had her story to tell as well. Peyton was consumed by her werepuma side at times. And Chatter…well…Chatter seemed the solid one. The one untouched by the madness. He alone stood as a bright shining beacon to me, a symbol of friendship and loyalty, but looks could be deceving.

“So, what are you going to do about the Consortium?” Rhiannon forced a smile and took my hands. “Marta wouldn’t let me be part of the community after my…accident. But Ysandra invited me in with you. So I consider that one a victory.”

I squeezed her hands, bringing them to my lips to kiss them lightly. “Yes, it is most definitely a victory. I’m going to tell Ysandra the truth. I have her card with her phone number. I’ll call her tomorrow and talk to her.”

Wrath stood. “I can take word to them. They are not always grateful to see the Fae, but they have never turned on us. I can fly there in my owl form.”

“No-we need you here.” I was worried. I’d just found my father, I didn’t want to lose him.

“You forget, my dear. I am King of Summer. King of the Court of Rivers and Rushes. I have many tricks up my sleeve.” He took my hand and pulled me to my feet. I leaned against him and he hugged me. Warm, paternal, caring. He would never be the suburban father I’d imagined, but he was my father and he cared about me, and that’s all that mattered.

“I know. But don’t go. Please stay with us.”

“Very well. If you wish it.”

I turned to the others. “I want you all to know that whatever happens with the Consortium, happens. I’m not going to let our panic create a tangle of lies. There are a few things I’d rather not tell them, but I’m done with lying.”

“I think you’re making the right choice.” Luna gave me a sheepish smile. “They have so many ways to pick up on liars…”

Kaylin flashed her a quiet look, then shrugged. “As you will. But I still think we could pull it off.” Another sly grin, but I knew he was teasing.

“Truth is our best approach. Hopefully, we won’t look like total idiots.” I was regretting ever following Kaylin’s advice, but it had seemed the best way to hide the fact that Heather had been kidnapped. And at the time we didn’t dare tell them about Myst-we weren’t clear on who we could trust with the knowledge. Now that we knew we couldn’t deal with the Mistress of Mayhem by ourselves, we might as well admit it.

Kaylin finished spreading out the herbs and began sorting them into piles. Luna joined him.

“We need more supplies.” He held up a bag of dried leaves, squinting at it. “Is this mugwort or vervain?”

“Vervain, I think.” Luna joined him at the table, helping to separate the herbs.

“Thanks, Luna. You know, I think that tomorrow, we should sneak out of town, over to Monroe, and see what we can find. We’ll have to take my car. Your GTO is too recognizable, Cicely. I don’t want to be run off the road.”

“You don’t believe the Shadow Hunters would try that, do you? They don’t work with technology. I doubt if they can even get into a car, let alone drive one.” I picked up a couple of the bags containing woven garlic charms. “Maybe I should wear a strand of this while I sleep to keep Lannan out of my bed.”

“Not such a good idea.” Lannan interrupted, entering the room again.

I whirled around, blushing. I’d been joking, at least partially, but Lannan might not see it that way.

But he simply shook his head, and added, “While the Shadow Hunters may not try to run you off the road, Geoffrey might. If he even suspects you’re going to the Consortium for help, chances are he’ll try to stop you. He wants this war all to himself.”

“I had him pegged all wrong, didn’t I?” I’d thought Geoffrey the most reasonable of the vampires. But that theory had been shot to hell.

“What about me? Do you think you pegged me wrong?” Lannan cocked his head, flirting.

I glanced over at Grieve. “No, I think I’ve got your number down pat. Here, have a necklace.” I tossed the garlic charm his way but Kaylin caught it midair and pocketed it.

“What was that?” Lannan stepped forward.

“Nothing, just a stupid impulse,” Kaylin said. “Ignore her. She’s tired.”

“I see.” Lannan continued to stare at me.

I decided that retreat was my best ally. “I’m going to sleep. We’ll talk more in the morning. Grieve, join me, my love?” I’d been an idiot. Sassing Lannan was one thing. If he was in a good mood, he’d overlook it. But actively throwing a garlic charm at him? Stupid beyond the max. I could only chalk it up to exhaustion. I turned to Grieve. “Come with me?”

But he glanced at my father, who shook his head no, and reluctantly, Grieve leaned over to kiss me. “Not this evening. I suggest you and the other girls retire to your bedroom. We spruced it up today so it’s a little more comfortable. You’ll be safe there. Chatter and I will watch over you during the night.”

I wanted to protest that we didn’t need watching over, but that was stupid. We needed all the help we could get. We were all strong, but none of us was invincible, and even with Ulean at my side, I was as vulnerable as Myst’s next victim. Perhaps even more so.

I yawned, stretching as I avoided looking at Lannan. “Yeah, we’ll sleep. We need to rest. My body is weary and my mind-wearier.” I motioned to Luna, Peyton, and Rhiannon. “Come on, girls. Let’s get some downtime.”

“Here, take these.” Chatter handed us cherry-stone warmers-cherry stones my aunt had sewn into bags that were heated in either a microwave or-in this case-in the range oven. We’d tuck them under the covers near our feet and they’d keep us toasty into the cold, chill night.

“Thank you. What about the space heaters?”

“Not a good idea to have around so many flammable items,” Kaylin said. “But the blankets are piled high like they were last night and the stone warmers should help take the edge off.”

And with that, we entered the shrouded room.

I made sure the door was closed before we tucked the warmers under the covers and changed for the night. We were relieved to have nightclothes again. The past couple of nights, we’d slept in our jeans and sweatshirts. While upstairs at the Veil House, Kaylin had managed to scavenge enough clothing to provide each of us with several changes of jeans, shirts, along with underwear, nightgowns, and robes. He’d also scrounged up a few more personal items that we might need and for that, I blessed his heart. I was PMSing like crazy and cracked open the ibuprofen after I slid into the comfy flannel gown.

The room was set up with a bunch of old cushions serving as one big bed. The four of us women could easily fit on the makeshift mattress. A half bath to the left offered a working toilet and sink. I longed for a toothbrush, but for now the tube of toothpaste Kaylin had found, and our fingers, would have to do. If we did make a supply run, we were laying in a supply of toothbrushes.

After we changed and washed up as best as we could, lingering under the hot water as it splashed across our hands, we slid beneath the covers, our heads together in the center.

“Do you think we can win? Do you really think we can take down Myst?” Rhiannon said after a moment.

“Dark thoughts aren’t the best thing to discuss before bedtime.” I must have sounded a little too harsh because Rhia looked hurt. Relenting, I burrowed under the covers as far as I could and added, “I don’t know, but we’ll try. If we can get hold of Lainule’s heartstone, we’ll stand a better chance.”

Peyton sounded strained. “I wonder what my father will be like. You know what it’s like, Cicely-never to know your father. How do you feel now that you’ve met him?”

I thought about her question before answering. “Honestly? Relieved that he wasn’t some freak. That he wasn’t a junkie. Given Krystal’s addictions, there was no way to tell. It’s odd, because my birth was planned by Lainule and Wrath. Krystal was a tool. A pawn to bring me back into this world. I can’t help but wonder if Wrath cared about her. He…he’s so far beyond what my mother could ever have hoped to be. Or anyone she could hope to be with.”

Ever since finding out he was my father I’d played out a dozen scenarios in my head about how they met. Maybe she was out in the woods, walking, and he showed up out of nowhere and stole her breath away. Maybe he snuck into her room in bird form and then, like a prince out of a Faerie tale, turned into the handsome king, promising to take away her worries. Maybe…maybe I’d never know, and maybe that was best.

Peyton sniffled. “I used to imagine that Rex had to be dead. Otherwise, surely he would have come back to find me, to find out if we were okay. I couldn’t let myself believe that he was alive and happy, knowing that he’d left behind a daughter who never got to know him.”

Rhiannon murmured in soft agreement. “I’m still in the dark about my father. I have no clue who he was, or what I am. I’m just…a woman who once killed a little girl with my fire, and my mother is a vampire, working for an evil queen.” She sounded lost and frightened.

“Are you thinking about Leo?” I sat up, gathering the covers around me to wrap them tight against the cold.

Rhia let out a forced laugh as she scooted over next to me and leaned her head on my shoulder. “Leo? I don’t know if I ever really knew him. I thought I did, but now I think…I was in love with the idea of being in love. Or maybe I loved the man I thought he was, but in reality it was a sham. He let me believe he was who I wanted him to be. Not once did he ever tell me he was interested in being a vampire.”

I hated sticking up for the scum, but there was a part of Leo that I understood. The all-too human side. “He probably knew how you felt. He wanted you to love him and said the right things, made the right moves…Don’t we all do that at times?” I paused, wondering whether I should ask the next question. But since we were having an impromptu girls’ night, I decided to go ahead. “And what about Chatter? Did you ever talk to Leo about him?”

She shook her head. “No, never.”

“But you thought about him.”

Rhiannon let out a soft sigh. “I met Chatter in the woods a few times when I was a teenager-I don’t think Grieve knew, we kept it secret. But I couldn’t believe we had a chance.” She looked up at me. “I don’t think I’ve ever loved anybody else. And I always remembered him. How caring he was, how gentle, how I trusted him and he never let me down. He gave me my first kiss, out there in the woods, when I was fifteen. But I couldn’t tell him about the little girl. I was too ashamed. I thought he’d hate me, so I never went back again.”

Luna had been listening to us, watching us in the dim light of the twenty-five-watt exposed bulb that lit our chamber. She pushed herself to sitting, too, huddling under the covers. “I listen to all of you and I think how lucky I had it. My family loves me, even if they don’t understand me. I’ve never had a great love, but I’ve never had great loss, either. I’ve only sung about it. I guess I’ve lived vicariously through my music.”

I reached over and took her hand. “You are holding up remarkably well. And we’re grateful-and glad-you’re here.”

She crossed her legs. “It’s nearly midnight. I should call Zoey. It’s morning where she’s at.”

“Where are the Akazzani located?” Peyton asked.

Luna shook her head. “I can’t tell you that. I don’t even know myself. But I do know the time zone difference. It’s midmorning where she is.”

“Go ahead. I don’t think we should keep this secret any longer. Myst is determined to spread her contagion. If we don’t survive, someone outside of New Forest should know what’s going on. That’s why we’re going to the Consortium, too.” It was time to spread the word. If Lainule was right, Myst had other cells of the Vampiric Fae scattered around the world.

Luna moved to a quieter spot in the room and flipped open her cell phone. Not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable than she might already be about asking for her sister’s help, I turned to Peyton.

“Did your father say when he was going to be here?”

“Around eight or nine.” She rested her chin on her knees. “I really don’t know what to expect, so I’m trying to expect nothing.”

I stared at my feet, poking up under the covers, and wiggled my toes against the cherry stone warmer. It was toasty, and I tried to relax into the warmth and coax it up my body.

“This is just too bizarre. It feels like a million miles and a thousand years since I left La La land to return home, but in less than two weeks…everything I ever thought was true has been turned upside down. To say I feel lost is an understatement.”

Rhiannon nodded. “I’ve been getting used to the weirdness over the years, I guess. My mother…she kept track of the odd events going on. But now…” She pushed back a long strand of the coppery red hair that hung down her back.

My cousin and I were fire and ice. I had hair as black as the night, sleek and hanging straight just past my shoulders. My eyes were emerald, and I now realized their color came from my father. At five feet, four inches, and 140 stocky, athletic, curvy pounds, I was a fireball of muscle. Rhiannon was taller and willowy, lithe like a dancer, with long curling red hair and hazel eyes. She was the spitting image of Heather.

Aunt Heather used to call us amber and jet when we were little. But we called ourselves twins. We were born on the same day, on the summer solstice-Rhiannon under the sun, during the waxing half of the year, and me under the moonlight, after the year switched over to waning. We were twenty-six now, and I wondered if we’d make it to our next birthday.

“I promise you, we will put her to rest.” It felt horrible to say, but I knew the fact that Heather was now a vampire weighed heavily on her mind.

She nodded to me, her face a frozen mask. I wondered what she was thinking, but she chose to remain silent, scooting over to me. I lifted up my covers and let her slide beneath them. We pulled her blanket over the top of mine and the added warmth felt good. I wrapped my arm around her and she rested her head on my shoulder.

Luna returned then. “Zoey will be here as soon as she can. She’s breaking a lot of rules to help us, but she thinks there are some more texts hidden away and she’ll sneak out what she can. She said she can get away in a couple of days. I didn’t ask how. I got the feeling it’s another one of those things I’m not supposed to know about.”

As she crawled back under her covers, shivering in the chill night air, I glanced at the clock on the wall. “We’re well past the witching hour. We should get some sleep. And pray that tomorrow we start sorting out this mess. At least Lannan will be all beddy-bye then and I won’t have to deal with him. Honestly, if he were human, I’d slap him with a lawsuit for stalking.”

Peyton barked out a sharp laugh as Rhiannon and I snuggled down under our blankets, holding hands like we had when we were children. I hoped there were no spiders or rats around, but the long weariness of the day, the fear of returning to the Veil House-it all compounded to summon me into sleep.

As the soft sounds of Luna’s and Peyton’s breath came whistling by on the slipstream, Ulean swept around my cousin and me, a gentle shroud of protective energy.

Thank you. I’m afraid.

Ulean whispered gently next to my ear. There is much to fear in the dark. There are monsters under the bed and in the closet, and now they walk abroad at will. But there is life here, and hope. I sense change on the wind. Others will offer help. As with Lannan, do not write them off simply because you dislike them.

Her voice-I say her loosely because Elementals truly have no gender-trilled lightly in my ears, blowing around me like a soft billowing cloud. I sank into her cadence, letting her words lull my mind.

“Cicely, sleep deep. Dream of the paths that are ruled by the Summer. Follow the sparkling lights, for they have much to teach you.”

Unable to tell whether it was my father’s voice or Ulean’s, or perhaps both in harmony, I finally let go of consciousness and slid into a slumber so hard and deep that it felt like I was melting into the earth.