Uh-oh. That couldn’t be good. I glanced at Rhiannon. We waited for Regina to continue.
“When one of our esteemed Vein Lords went to visit the Blood Oracle yesterday, he discovered that…well…Crawl has gone missing.”
“Missing?” At first I thought I’d heard her wrong, but one look at her face and I knew she was telling us the truth. Her four little words were enough to crumble the world.
Lannan stared at me, unblinking. “Make no mistake. It’s true. Crawl is missing, and no one knows how he escaped from his prison.” His voice echoed through the room, no longer smooth and elegant, but instead harsh. He was on his feet the next moment, pacing back and forth.
“Prison? Crawl’s chamber is a prison?” That was the first I’d heard anything to that effect.
The Blood Oracle was esteemed, a seer among his people, revered as almost a god. I had no idea he was a prisoner, though it made sense. I knew they’d kept him tucked away between the worlds with good reason. The freakshow was deadly, with no conscience whatsoever, and he’d had his fangs in me once already.
Lannan glanced at me. “Crawl was imprisoned by the Crimson Queen eons ago, when she first anointed him as the Blood Oracle. He’s far too powerful and dangerous to be allowed among the populace, especially around breathers.”
He paused by me, lifting my chin to stare into my face with those gleaming black eyes of his. “You, of all people, should know what he can be like, my sweet Cicely.” And the Golden Boy was back.
Shivering—from both his touch and the memory of Crawl tearing into my neck with wanton thirst—I swallowed the lump rising in my throat and forced myself to remain steady.
Rhiannon looked ready to faint. “How did he get loose?”
Regina grimaced. “Not without help, I can tell you that.”
The idea of someone helping Crawl escape was ludicrous. “Who the fuck would help him get free? Who would even think of something that stupid?”
She gave me a long look. “Consider the situation, Cicely. Who has everything to gain by causing mayhem? By aligning himself with one as powerful as the Oracle?”
And then I knew. “Geoffrey…”
“Yes, Geoffrey and Leo. Word on the street is that Geoffrey is planning a major coup against Lannan, while Leo’s out to kidnap Rhiannon. And both of them are out for revenge against you, Cicely.”
“But why Crawl?” Rhia was so pale she looked as bloodless as the vamps.
Lannan answered. “Crawl can wield dark magic. Ever since he tasted Cicely’s blood, he’s been obsessed with how sweet and rich and tender she was. The Oracle does not forget lightly. And…the Oracle’s sanity long ago turned to dust.”
“Leo means to turn me into a vampire,” Rhia said. “He wants to turn me and keep me locked up with him.”
Lannan nodded. “No doubt.”
Regina regarded him somberly. “We believe that Geoffrey plans on turning Cicely over to Crawl…” She paused, shuddering. “I wouldn’t wish my worst enemy to be at the mercy of the Blood Oracle.”
The room fell silent. I could barely think, let alone speak.
Lannan cleared his throat after a moment and turned to his sister. “What are the Crimson Queen’s orders?”
Regina held up what looked like an official decree. “Direct from the Queen: Our first order is to secure the safety of the newly arisen Fae Queens and the populace of New Forest. With Crawl free among the townspeople, the Vampire Nation could suffer irreversible damage to our reputation. Second: We return him to his prison. And third: We terminate Geoffrey and Leo.”
“Do you know where they are?” I asked.
She let out a soft whisper. “No. We have no idea. I sent in guards to raid their last known hideaway earlier this evening. There was no trace of them or where they went. The owner of the club died without revealing their whereabouts. My men used every form of persuasion possible. The club owner died in the process.”
I crossed to the big bay windows. Every morning, they were covered with steel shutters. Now, I stared outside, into the dim night. The snow was piling up again. Myst was still out there, gunning for us. And Leo and Geoffrey had freed a monster from his dark and fiery hell to claim the streets of the town for his own.
Myst was a holy terror, but at least, she was somewhat predictable. Whereas Crawl…Crawl was as alien as an insect, and as dangerous as any predator who ruled the top of the food chain. Crawl wanted my blood, and Leo and Geoffrey were only too happy to serve me up on a platter.
Lannan was suddenly behind me, making no noise with his approach. He placed his hands on my shoulders and leaned down to whisper in my ear. “Are you afraid, Cicely?”
I turned to stare at him over my shoulder. He wasn’t being sarcastic this time. His question seemed oddly genuine. “Yes, I’m afraid.”
“My offer stands, you know. Let me turn you. Renounce the world of Fae and join me. It would be easy for you to fight back, then. With your powers, combined with me as your sire, you could defeat Leo and Geoffrey.”
His words entwined around me, and the wolf tattoo on my stomach growled a low warning note. Grieve could tell I was all too close to his rival.
I shook my head. “No. I refused to let Geoffrey turn me—I would become a bigger monster than Myst. But thank you. I think you really mean it—you really want to help.”
“Don’t be so quick to think you know my mind, girl.” Lannan let out a low laugh. “I just don’t want to lose you.” But the look on his face told me that Rhiannon and I weren’t the only ones who were afraid. I turned to look at Regina. She, too, wore a look of concern on her face.
As I stared back into the night, too aware of Lannan’s hands still on my shoulders, I thought I saw something dart past the window. As I wiped my eyes, whatever it was seemed to disappear.
It was all too much. Too many enemies. Too much stress. I just wanted to go home and crawl under the covers, but even home now had a new meaning, and was still an alien and strange place. Rhiannon joined me at the window and I took her hand in mine. We stood there, linked, twin-cousins, fire and ice against the shadows outside, as they grew dark and long, and looming.
Chapter 2
The first thing we did when we got back to the Barrow was check on Luna. She was resting, but still shaky. Peyton confided to me that Kaylin hadn’t left her side since they’d returned.
“What happened? What did they say about the attack on Luna?” Peyton leaned against the counter—the marble tops gleamed against the dark oak cabinets that were hand carved and as old as time.
“Tell you in a minute.” I wanted to breathe first, to sit down and relax. As I glanced around the Marburry Barrow, it hit me that this place was starting to become familiar. I still didn’t think of it as home, but it was a safe haven, and there had been precious few of those lately.
“Let’s have tea.” Peyton put the kettle on and played with the knobs. I still had no clue as to how to work the Cambyra gadgets. The stove was fueled by both wood and magic, and I hadn’t had a moment to pay attention to anything like that, with the rush of training we had been undergoing.
We were gathered in the common room that served as a combination dining-living-office space for our little group. This room, and our private chamber of suites, made up our temporary home. Eventually, Peyton, Luna, and Kaylin would move back to the Veil House, while Grieve and I would take our place in the realm of Winter, and Rhiannon and Chatter would remain here, ruling over the Court of Rivers and Rushes.
There were no windows here in the Barrow, but a continual illumination from the golden lanterns hanging every few feet. The lights were magical—soft glowing amorphous orbs caught in the glass and metal lamps. Lainule said they were energy creatures, young Fire Elementals indentured by the Fae, before being turned loose on the world to grow.
Do they mind being forced into service? I had asked Ulean when I first found out how the Barrow halls were lit.
Mind? Ulean sounded slightly perplexed. Do I mind being bound to you?
I hope not. I would never knowingly harm you.
Do not worry on that account. You cannot harm me. Neither can the Fae harm the Fire Elementals. We are far stronger than any of the mortal races, even the full-born Fae. We can be destroyed, but there are few in the world powerful enough. Myst, in her glory days, could neither destroy nor harm her Ice Elementals. Even these bonds…we can break if we choose. Life is often illusion, Cicely. Illusion that is very real, very strong, but still—place the right amount of force in the right spot and it breaks.
As the lights flickered around us, I moved to help Peyton, reaching for the tea bags. “Let’s have tea first, before we tell you what went down. It’s a cold night out there, and there are monsters roving the town.”
Shadow, a young Cambyra girl who was hovering behind me, snatched them out of my hands. “Allow me, Your Highness. A queen should never make her own tea.”
I wanted to remind her that I wasn’t Queen yet, but the Fae in the Barrow had already begun to refer to Rhiannon and me as such, and there was no going back.
“Thank you.” Feeling conspicuous, I let go of the tea, standing back as she scurried over to a beautiful ceramic pot, hand-thrown, with delicate, hand-painted holly leaves and berries wrapping around the sides. She shooed Peyton out of the way and took over preparing the tea and scones.
We gathered in the seating area. I leaned forward, elbows resting on my knees. I was sitting on an ottoman, thick and comfortable, with a covering made of hand-woven linen, and for just a moment, I closed my eyes and let the warmth seep into my bones.
“What’s wrong, Cicely? Is there something more going on than just Geoffrey and Leo’s attack?”
With a glance over my shoulder, I sighed and stared into the fire.
“Yeah, a lot more. It seems that the Fang Brothers managed to free Crawl from his prison. He’s loose now, somewhere out there on the streets of New Forest, looking for somebody to drink his dinner from. Apparently, Geoffrey is looking to turn me over to him, and Leo’s out to kidnap Rhiannon.”
There was a sudden hush, then Peyton slapped the table by her chair. “Fuck and fuck again. What are Regina and Lannan doing about this?”
“They have teams canvassing the town, but the truth is…Geoffrey and Leo could be hiding anywhere. Regina’s offered to put a guard on the house. Since you guys move in a couple of days down the line, I told them yes—and I want no arguments. At least you’ll be safe while you’re at home.”
“Not necessarily.” Kaylin stretched out on an oak bench. It was polished to a sheen, and the workmanship was so detailed that I couldn’t imagine how long it had taken to create. “Remember the day-runners? They might still have yummanii helping them.”
“True. Which means we’ll also station Cambyra guards outside the house during the day. The vamps can take over night duty.” I frowned. “Before we left, Regina asked us to watch the morning news on television tomorrow. Apparently Lannan’s going to give an announcement that they’ll be reading on air.”
“We’ll have to go out. We can’t watch TV here, that’s for sure, and the cable hasn’t been hooked up at the Veil House yet.” Luna stood up, still looking weak, but her cheeks were beginning to glow rosy again. She was a yummanii bard; her magic was in her song. She’d come to us for advice and ended up staying.
I glanced at her. “You okay? You can stand without help?”
She nodded. “So where do we go? And yes, I’m doing better. The food and wine helped a lot. But…I never want to go through that again.”
Peyton spoke up. “We can go over to Rex’s apartment. He’ll be fine with that.” Her father had rented an apartment in town not far from the Veil House. Anadey, her mother, was still lurking in the shadows, running her diner, but she hadn’t made another attempt to contact Peyton after she’d betrayed us.
“Good, I can charge up my cell phone while I’m there without worrying that somebody up at the house is going to steal it.” Even though they were working for Regina, I didn’t trust the vamps fixing up the house. Regina had paid for the restorations, though we could have gotten a loan from the Consortium—the magical guild we now rather forcibly belonged to—but for some reason, the Emissary had insisted on footing the bill.
“Soon enough, you must leave your toys and gadgets behind.” Lainule’s voice tripped lightly over the words and, at her melodic tongue, we turned. All of us rose, and Grieve and Chatter bowed, as Rhia and I dropped into deep curtseys.
“Your Highness…” I hadn’t expected to see her. Lainule had been keeping to herself the past few days, except when she had called us in to instruct us in what would be expected.
She looked tired. Regaining her heartstone had saved her life, but it also deposed her as Queen. However, Lainule seemed content to accept her destiny gracefully. The foliage around the Barrow was halfheartedly returning to its former glory. Once we crossed through the portals that cloaked the Marburry Barrow, though, Myst’s snows and ice came rampaging back with a fury. But here…here the trees were green again, though with a faint orange glow, like we were at the end of a long summer.
And it truly was the end of summer. At least the end of the summer that had ruled here for who knew how many centuries. Lainule would preside over the initiation and coronation of Rhiannon and me, and then she and my father would leave, forever, back to the Golden Isle. Rhia and I would then be responsible for routing Myst and bringing the balance back to the world.
But for now, she was still here, with us.
