She hissed. When I have that which is silver borne, I shall have no need to fear. Not wolves, not Gray Lords. The only thing that saves you at this moment is that it might take some time after you die for it to reveal itself. If you make this too difficult for me, I will risk it.
What did you want me to do? I asked her.
Tell me you wont tell any of the werewolves about me, about what you have, and that Gabriel is in any kind of distress or danger.
Okay, I said reluctantly. I wont tell any of the wolves about you, about the thing I have that was Phins, or about Gabriels current danger.
You will not tell any of the fae. Not the Gray Lords, not the old fae who was at your place of work this morning.
I looked at Darryl, and he nodded grimly. Hed tell Zee for me.
I will not tell any fae I know about you, about the thing I have that was Phins, or about Gabriels current danger.
I cant force you to adhere to that agreement, she told me. That magic is no longer mine. But I will know the instant you break your wordand our deal will be off. This young and beautiful man will be mine, and you will die.
Jesses cold hand gripped mine. She and Gabriel had been sort of dating for a while. Sort of because he was concentrating on school since he needed scholarships for college.
All right, I told the fae.
Second. You will bring this thing to the bookstore and give it to my knight of the water.
Fishy Boy, I thought. Though Knight of the Water didnt ring any bells. Maybe it was a title rather than a type of fae.
Nope. Im not bringing it to the bookstore to your knight. One of her people could kill us all, and leave her not foresworn. We needed to deal only with her.
You will
Not trust you unless it is a full exchange. You bring Gabriel, and I get him safe and unharmed in exchange for this thing I will bring you.
I cannot bring you Gabriel unharmed, she said, sounding amused.
Mary Jo gave a very soft rumbling growl, and I poked her to stop it. Maybe the fae wasnt paying attention. Shed heard the earlier sound Jesse had made, but as Bran liked to tell me, you can have the best senses in the world, but if you forget to use them, they can do you no good.
No more harmed than now, I said. Himself, in his own mind, his body no more bruised than it is at this instant.
That I can manage, she said, still sounding amused.
I would consider death as further damage.
She laughed. The sound was beginning to get on my nerves. So distrustful, Mercedes. Dont you read your fairy tales? It is the humans who betray their bargains. Get a good nights sleep . . . Whoops, too late. Rest, then. Ill call you at this number sometime tomorrow when I have a chance to organize a safe meeting place.
I wracked my brain because she was too happy, like she knew something we didnt.
Gabriel is the only human you have, I said, suddenly worried that she had more hostages.
She laughed again. You dont really think Ill answer that, do you?
And she hung up.
Does anyone know what area code 333 belongs to? I asked.
There isnt one, said Ben. No 333, no 666. Phone company doesnt officially believe in numerology, but they have a lot of customers who do.
You want me to call Zee right now? rumbled Darryl. Or does he get grumpy when you wake him up?
I looked at him. I cant answer your first question. And Zee is almost always grumpy. Dont let it bother you.
Ill call him, said Auriele.
Wait before . . . I hesitated to say anything about her calling Zee, not knowing just how far I could go without triggering the faes spell. But Auriele understood and sat back down.
Did anyone hear anything that might pinpoint where she was calling from? asked Jessewho watched several forensic police procedural TV shows regularly.
No trains, Mary Jo said dryly. She pushed the table so she wasnt pinned anymore. No water noises. No highway or car sounds. No airplanes. No distinctive church chimes. No dolphins playing in the background.
Which eliminates a lot of places, said Auriele. Im pretty sure it was indoors. I heard a hum that might have been a fluorescent light fixture.
I heard echoes, like she was in a room with hard sides, said Darryl. Not a huge room, though. It didnt sound hollow.
When I couldnt say she hit him, because Id promised not to talk about the fairy queen or Gabriels danger to the werewolves. When Mary Jo heard something, there was a slight scuffing sound, I said. Like a chair sliding on cement. I closed my eyes and thought about the feel of the background sounds.
The lack of outdoor noises might mean that she was in a basement instead of just indoors, said Darryl. If shes not from around here, shed need to acquire someplace securenot a hotel. Rentals are hard to find in the area right nowone of my coworkers was complaining about it. If Phin is dead, maybe the fae is using his house.
He lived in an apartment, one of the newer ones in West Pascoand he has nosy neighbors. I got up and got a dishcloth and wet it down so I could clean up the cocoa.
The bookstore, then, said Auriele. She took the cloth and tossed it to Mary Jo. Your mess, you clean it up.
Mary Jos shoulders were tight, but she started to clean up without protest.
Sam and I were in the bookstores basement tonight, I said. But the lighting there is incandescentno buzzing. Beyond that, the sound was wrong. There were a lot of books down there, so it wasnt as echo-y. The room in the phone call sounded emptier.
You were at the bookstore? Did you catch a scent? Ben had been dozing, I thought. Even after he spoke, his eyes were closed. The stress of his wounds and the full belly from Warrens mysterious ice chest of roasts would work like a narcotic.
Do you need to go downstairs and sleep? I asked.
No, Im fine. Did you find out anything?
We picked up Phins scentand four other fae who had been in there. One of them, some kind of forest fae, came back, and Sam killed it. There was another forest fae, a female we didnt meet. She was the same kind as the one Sam killedIm pretty sure of it. And then there was one who smelled of swamps and wet things who hopefully is her knight of the water. The fewer allies she has, the happier I am. I met the fourth, who left traces in the bookstore earlier today . . . I guess thats yesterday now. She looked like a happy-grandmother type. I couldnt tell what she was.
Was it her? asked Ben, and nodded at the phone.
I cant answer that, I told him.
But you can answer me, said Jesse. Was the old woman the one who took Gabriel?
I dont know, I said. I closed my eyes and thought about what had happened and when. No. She was looking through Phins records, trying to find out who Phin gave something to. The bad guys had already tried to kill me onceif you didnt pick up on it, the incident at my garage yesterday morning was aimed at me. They knew where they were looking. Maybe if I could have talked to her, wed know more about what it was that the fairy queen wanted.
Shes not smart, this fairy queen, said Ben. If she were, shed have known that you werent human.
I dont exactly advertise, I told him. And, other than my connection to Adam and the Marrok, Im not important. Theres no reason that she should know. Especially since shes been producing shows in California.
She makes assumptions, Darryl said. Most people look at you, Mercy, and wonder if you are fae or wolf and just hiding it, because youre mated to a wolf and working with a fae. He stopped and raised a speculative eyebrow. Or she thinks you are one or the other and might react and tell her which one if she kept taunting you with being human.
That sounds about right, I said.
Why not just give them whatever she wants and get Gabriel back, Mary Jo said. Its not yours, and it sounds like the rightful owner is dead anyway.
Ben snorted. You arent usually this dumb. You want to hand a woman like this fairy queen an object of power that she believes can protect her from us?
Darryl tilted his head and looked at Mary Jo. She flushed and dropped her gaze. Dont think I dont remember that you disobeyed Adam, he said. You have no standing here, and you will not leave this house until your punishment. He waited, then answered her question. Bens right. Besides, you really think shes going to let anyone live who knows what she has? I dont know a damn thing about what she wants. If the Gray Lords are willing to kill Mercy just because she knows about itMercy who has their favor and is beloved by our Alphadont you think theyd kill one of those under their power, who has no such protections? If I can figure that out from one phone conversation, this Daphne, she knows it, too. She has no intention of letting anyone go. Shed make the exchange, then kill both Mercy and the boy.
Or keep the boy and kill Mercy, added Jesse, who had her dads clear eye for strategy. Gabriel would rather be dead. She was still a teenager with a streak of drama, though. I wasnt so sure Gabriel would rather be dead than serve the fairy queenfrom all accounts it was fairly pleasant from the victims side because they had no willpower to object.
Id rather be dead. Maybe she was right.
Mercy, grumbled Darryl, she was right about one thing: you need some sleep. Go to bed. His voice softened. You, too, Jesse. We can all help your boy better on a full nights sleep.
He was right. I was so tired I could hardly keep my eyes open.
I yawned and hooked my arm through Jesses. Okay.
* * *
AFTER DROPPING JESSE OFF AT HER ROOM, I OPENED the door to Adams as quietly as I could. Someone had stripped the comforter and thrown it on the floor. Adam was sprawled naked on top of the sheetand he looked horrible. A mass of dark red scabs covered most of his extremities as well as here and there on the rest of his body.
Warren had taken off his boots and was lying on the near side of the bed on his side, facing the doorway. Sam was curled up between them at the foot of the bed.
Id worried a little about leaving him with a wounded Alpha, but apparently he was still behaving atypically for an uncontrolled werewolf. While I closed the door, he rolled flat on his side and half looked at me. He wiggled a bit and let out a satisfied oof as he pushed Warrens feet over a few inches. I noticed that he didnt touch Adam.
Warren was awakeeven if he looked like he was deeply asleep. I crawled over him and the corners of his mouth tipped up. I settled in between him and Adam, curling my legs up so I didnt kick Sam.
I tried not to touch Adam, but he rolled over and threw an arm over my hip. It felt warm and safe and goodand probably hurt him. His eyes opened a slit, then closed.
I lay there a while in simple appreciation that hed survived the fire. The door opened just as I was drifting off to sleep.
Is there room for one more? asked Ben. I lifted up my head to see him standing in the doorway in a pair of baggy sweats. His hair was ruffled on one side as if hed been lying down before he came up. If not, I can go
Come on in, rumbled Warren. Ill go take the upstairs guest room.
Warren rolled off the bed, and Ben crawled on. He put one foot on mine, then let out a sigh and collapsed like a puppy whod been playing for too long. Pack is for comfort when you hurt, I thought, putting my head back down. And for the first time in a long time, maybe the first time ever, I appreciated being a part of one.
* * *
I WOKE UP BECAUSE THE TOP OF MY HEAD WAS TOO warm. The sensation was vaguely familiar so I started to go back to sleep when sharp, pokey things started digging into my scalp. And then I remembered why there shouldnt be a cat sleeping on my head.
I sat up and stared into the cool gaze of the slightly singed calico Manx who expressed her irritation with my abrupt change of position with an irritated meow. She smelled of smoke, and there was a raw spot on the top of her back, but otherwise she seemed to be fine.
Adam didnt move, but Ben rolled over and opened his eyes.
Hey, cat, I said, tearing up, as she adjusted to my new position and maneuvered herself so she was within easy petting distance of both Ben and me. I thought you were toast.
She pushed her head under my hand and rolled so my hand slid through her coat. Ben started to reach out, but stopped as soon as he moved his fingers. They looked better than they had beforethough they still looked like something that might appear in a horror movie.
I didnt realize you didnt know, Ben said, his voice still rough. I should have told you. Adam went to your room. I went to Sams and found her under the bed.
I wiped my eyes and nose on my shoulder (both hands being occupied with cat and covered with cat hair anyway). Then I leaned forward and kissed Bens nose.
Thanks, I said. Id have missed her a lot.
Yeah. He stretched out on his back, hands carefully laid across his belly. Wed have missed her, too. Only cat Ive ever seen who tolerates werewolves. He sounded oddly vulnerable. I dont think he was used to being the hero.
Dont feel too flattered, said Adam dryly. Medea likes vampires, too.
Adam? I said.
But he was asleep again. And I could feel him in my head, just as he should be.
Chapter 10
I WOKE UP, AND MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS SURPRISE that I was so sore. Then I remembered the huge fae whod knocked me silly. In the wake of my home burning down and Adam getting hurt, the encounter with the fae in the bookstore had become incidental. There was a goose-egg-sized knot on the back of my head, nothing wanted to move very much, and my anklesboth of themached.
Sam was snoring, something he actually didnt do very often. He was stretched out across my feet, which couldnt have been very comfortable for him, though he seemed happy enough. He must have felt my attention because he rolled onto his back and stretchedan instant of half wakefulness that ended with him going back to snoring.
Adam was still sleeping like the dead, as he had for most of the nightexcept when he woke up coughing blood tinged gray with smoke particles. Sometime during the night, hed rolled away from me, and now he slept on his side. I ran a hand over his shoulder blade and he moved into my touch without waking up.
Hey, I told him. I love you.
He didnt answer, but I didnt need oneI knew how he felt. Only after I rolled painfully off the edge of the bed did it occur to me that Ben was missing. A glance out the window told me it was still morning, not early, but not late enough to make me feel like a slugabed either.
I limped stiffly to the bathroom. One hot shower later I could move again. And even if my clothes were on their second dayand smelled of blood and smoke and allI felt ready to face the morning. After a little dithering, I put my shoulder holster back on.
I didnt feel any urgent need to go armedbut I didnt have anywhere to put the SIG out of harms way either. Adam probably had a gun safe around somewhere, but I didnt know where it was. So I wore the shoulder harness under my T-shirt, which was loose enough to conceal it. Id have a hard time drawing the gun, but that shouldnt matter: it was loaded with lead bullets, and the house was full of werewolves. If I had to draw the gun, I was probably dead anyway.
On that cheery thought, I left the bedroom and shut the door quietly behind me. The lovely smell of sausage and butter pulled me into the kitchen.
Darryl was cooking.
Auriele grinned at my expression. Sundays, she said with satisfaction, he cooks, and I wash dishes. Mostly we end up here at Pack Central, and when Darryl cooks, everyone stops by. Its a pretty big job.
The way werewolves eat, it certainly was. A big job that was one of those little things that pulled a pack together: Sunday breakfasts at Adams house.
If youre doing dishes while he cooks, does he do the dishes when you cook? I asked.
Nope, Darryl said, serving each of us a plate of sausage, eggs, hash browns, and French toast with a snap that looked awfully professional, and returned to the stove. Not that enlightened.
She smiled at his back. He vacuums, though. And Darryl made an irritated noise.
Have you seen Ben? I asked, then said, involuntarily, This is really good. The French toast was spiked with real vanilla, cinnamon, and a host of other things, including authentic bitter-sweet maple syrup.
Mmmm. Auriele nodded, taking a bite of her hash browns. He cooked his way through grad school.
Made good money at it, too, Darryl agreed. Bens been down, eaten breakfast, and gone. Hell be back soon. I called Zee last night.
I set down my fork. What did he say?
Nothing, if you are going to let my good food go cold.
I took a hasty bite, and he went back to cookingand talking. I played last nights ransom call back to him, and he picked me clean of everything you told us. Then he said hed see what he could do. He called an hour or so ago and told me to tell you hed be over here as soon as he could. It might be a couple of hours, though, so stall the villainess if she wants you to move before he gets here.
How did he sound?
Grumpy. Coffee or orange juice?
Water is fine.
His eyebrows went up.
Uh-oh, Auriele said, but she was smiling.
Darryl was not. Are you implying that my coffee is not the best in four counties? Or my fresh-squeezed orange juice is less than perfect?
Jesse breezed in and squealed. Oh my goodness, Darryl is cooking. Id almost forgotten it was Sunday. Orange juice, please. She glanced at me and laughed. Mercy doesnt do orange juice or coffee, she said, grabbing a glass out of the cupboard and filling it out of the pitcher Darryl had set out. So sad. More orange juice for me.
She was being cute and upbeat, but there were dark circles under her eyes. She took the plate Darryl handed her and sat down next to Auriele.
So, she said. Her pink hair helped her cheerful acthard to look sad with pink haireven if her eyes were a little pink, too.
How are we going to save Gabriel?
Have you ever noticed that everyone who knows Mercy eventually needs saving? asked Mary Jo as she walked into the kitchen.
I was going to have to do something about Mary Jo. I took another bite of French toast and put the fork down on the plate. Sooner was probably better than later.
I stood up. Excuse me, I said to Darryl. To Jesse I said, Im borrowing your bedroomany complaints?
She stared at me a moment. No? she said, her voice rising as if her answer were a question. Which maybe it was.
Your stereo is pretty effective at keeping voices from being overheard by all the werewolves in this house. And from the noise coming from downstairs, there are a lot of werewolves here.
Its Darryls cooking, said Auriele, sounding a little apologetic.
I can see why, I said. Id appreciate it if you would guard my plate until I come back. I looked at Mary Jo. You. Come with me.
And without looking behind me, I led the way up the stairs to Jesses room. I walked into Jesses room and turned on her stereo until it was almost painfully loud. The CD wasnt something Id have chosen to listen to, but it was loud, and that was all I was interested in.
Shut the door, I told Mary Jo. I was almost surprised shed just followed me up as Id asked.
Face blank, she did as Id requested.
Okay. Now, if you come over here by the window, its almost impossible for anyone to overhear us.
All the precautions werent really necessary. With this many people in Adams house, no one, no matter how good their hearing was, could really listen from one room to the nextthere were simply too many conversations going on. But the stereo made our privacy virtually certain.
What do you want? she asked, not moving from the center of the room.
I leaned against the wall next to the window and crossed my arms over my stomach. It felt wrong to be in this position. Ive been a solitary person my whole life. Even when I lived in Aspen Creek with the Marroks pack, even then Id really been alone, a coyote among wolves. But Adam needed his pack behind himand because of me, they werent. If I was going to be the problem, I owed it to him to be part of the solution. So I was going to see if all those times I watched the Marrok twist people in little knots would allow me to use his techniques to achieve the same results.
I smiled at her. I want you to tell me what your problem with me is. Right here, right now, where there is no one else to interfere.
You are the problem, Mercedes, she snapped. A scavenger coyote among wolves. You dont belong here.
Oh, come on. You can do better than that, I goaded her. You sound like youre Jesses ageand Jesse doesnt sound like that.
Her eyes veiled as she considered what I said.
All right, she said after a minute. Point to you. First problemyou let Adam rot for two years after he claimed you as his mate. And during that two years our pack fell apart because Adam could barely keep himself calmand was nearly useless at helping anyone else keep their wolf in check.
Agreed, I said. But I have to point out in my defense that Adam never asked me if I wanted to be his mate during that timeor before he declared it in front of the pack. He never asked me either before or after. I wasnt a pack memberand his declaration was to keep the rest of the wolves awayso I didnt even find out about this until well after it happened. Even then, no one told me the consequences until just a few months ago, and as soon as I figured out what was happening to the pack and to Adam because of that claim, I made a decision.
How kind of you, she snapped, her eyes brightening with temper. To become Adams mate for the packs sake.
Point to me, I told her calmly. The choice I made had nothing to do with the problems in the packall Adam needed was an answer, and no would have worked just as well to set the pack back in order. I agreed because . . . because hes Adam. Mine, whispered a voice in my head, but I was pretty sure that it was my own voice.
Second problem, she said between gritted teeth. It was your invitation to the stray that led to Adam being almost killed and Jesse kidnapped.
Nope. I shook my head. You cant lay that one on me. That was werewolf business from beginning to end. I got involved because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. No more, no less. Point to me.
I disagree, she said. She was standing in the classic at ease position, I noticed, like a soldier. I wondered if it was something Adam taught them while he had them in training because, to my knowledge, Mary Jo had never been in the military.
Fine, I said, shrugging. Its a free country. You can feel as you wish.
You cant deny who nearly got our third killed when the demon came to town, you and your connection to the vampires, she said.
Her voice was cool, her heartbeat steady. Warren wasnt important to her; Ben had been right. She hadnt even called him by name because she felt the rank was more valuable than the man.
Once it was known that there was a demon in town, it was inevitable that the wolves would have to go after it, I told her. And you could care less about Warren, so dont pretend you were concerned about him.
That had her head up and her eyes on me. She actually looked a little worried. She had been trying to pretend that she wasnt one of the wolves that Warren bothered.
Warren is worth ten of you, I told her. Hes here when hes needed, and he doesnt do his best to undermine Adam whenever his orders are inconvenient. I waved off her impending argument because I was saving the discussions of her more recent activities until later, when Id broken her down enough to answer my questions. Back to business. What else?
Its your fault I died, she said. Poor Alecwhen he tore my jugular he didnt know what hit him. None of us did. The vampires targeted us because of you.
The vampires had set a trap at Uncle Mikes, the local tavern where the fae and assorted other supernatural people went to relax. Theyd laid a spell that drove anything with ties to wolves to bloodshed. Mary Jos bad luck that she and two other werewolvesPaul and Alechad gone there on the wrong night. By the time Adam and I got there, Mary Jo was dead. But apparently if you die when there is a Gray Lord present, at least when one particular Gray Lord is present, dead isnt as permanent as it might otherwise have been.
Point to you, I said, deliberately relaxing against the wall so she could see it didnt bother me in the slightest. I cant lie with my mouth, but sometimes body language does it for me. Id tell you that accepting the blame for the bad guys is a stupid thing to dothe proper people to blame for your almost death are the vampires. But if I hadnt been dating Adam, they wouldnt have targeted the wolves, so I suppose you could be justified in blaming me.
I waited for her to look up again, so I could read her face. When she looked at me, her control was back in full. There were two things that could explain her sudden dislike of me. The first one was the incident at Uncle Mikes, but she wasnt angry enough about it. Which left me with the secondId hit her with that when it would do me more good.
But, I told her, if I accept the blame, Id like to point out that Im also the reason you are still standing here. The Gray Lord healed you because she thought she owed me a favor.
She sneered. I hope to God that someone does you that kind of favor someday. It hurt . . . It still hurts. Some days I cant feel different body parts.
Id known about that, and it worried me though the fae had given her word that Mary Jo would be back to normal. I expect that shed left out the word eventually because Mary Jos suffering didnt really matter to the fae.
Next time, Ill tell her not to bother bringing you back, I promised. I tapped my foot and wondered how far I really wanted to push this. Some of it depended upon what role I wanted to take in the pack. Just then I was channeling my inner Bran, using the techniques Id grown up watching the Marrok use, techniques that came so easily to me it made me a little uncomfortableI dont see myself as a manipulative person. For the moment, though, I set that aside and considered the case at hand.
Figure out the results you want and do what you can to get them was one of Brans favorite sayings. Well, then, exactly what results did I want?
Part of that really depended upon how much of her recent activities were directed at me and how much at Adam. I found that I could excuse her actions against me, but I was less inclined to be forgiving about Adam.
I remembered that look shed given me when I was sitting on the floor of the hospital with Adam changing in my lapAdam, whod damn near burned to death trying to rescue me because she hadnt told him I was safe. The look that said shed have been happier with him dead than with him on my lap.
Had that been a momentary thing, or had her anger that Adam was mine become a force driving her past the point of no return?
Mary Jo, I said pleasantly, you and I know all of that is garbage. It is all true, or mostly, but it isnt why you are so angry with me.
Her chin jerked up.
Adam is mine, I told her. And you cant handle it. Does it bother you that Im a coyote? That we have sort of an extreme case of an interracialin our case maybe even cross-speciesmating? Darryl is African and Chinese, and Auriele is Hispanic, and they dont seem to bother you. It wasnt that I was a coyote shifter that bothered her. I knew it. I just wondered if she knew it. It did bother some of the pack; maybe Auriele and Darryl bothered some of them, too. If so, those pack members were smart enough to keep it to themselves.
Mary Jo tightened her lips but didnt say anything.
How long have you wanted him? I asked her. You had all these years since Jesses mother left.
Brans methods sucked. I watched her eyes darken with pain and wanted to kick myself. But shed been at least partially responsible for Adams wounds. And I agreed with Warren about fire after watching Samuel scrub dead flesh from live. Mary Jo had been stupid. I was betting she hadnt hurt Adam on purpose, but I had to know.
I observed the anger that followed pain rise in her face and just watched her.
You are nothing, she spit. Im nothing, too. Thats how I know. Adam deserves the best. A wolf strong and beautiful, a woman who is