“There are so many possibilities that I couldn’t begin to answer that question. Whatever it was, it would have to be something he could carry on him, so he may have an amulet, or a talisman, or some sort of dagger, or even a wand. But bear in mind, Yerghan the Blade is a soldier. He left the magic to Telazhar. Which is probably why Shadow Wing sent him over here. If he had been a sorcerer, Shadow Wing would have drained him dry. So I doubt if he’s got too much magic hidden up his sleeve, other than whatever’s inherent to the items he carries.”
The daemon leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “To be honest, we don’t know what we’re getting into. You guys were the only ones who’ve seen him since he gated over, at least among the people we know. Whatever you remember is what we have to go on.”
“I have a question,” Menolly said. “You said that several transients were found murdered, stabbed to death. Didn’t the soul-stealer blade just send them out to the Land of Wandering Souls? Why aren’t they alive, like Shade was?”
Shade shook his head. “I’m part dragon. That is the only thing that saved me. I still have stitches, and I heal up far faster than any human ever could. I can’t imagine being on the other end of that blade if I was an FBH.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I hadn’t thought about that. Does that mean their souls are forever lost?” A shadow crossed her face, and I realized what she was thinking.
Any human killed by that sword would lose their soul and their chance to move on, forever. It was a sobering thought.
“I’m pretty sure that’s a big fat yes,” Trytian said. “The sooner we can prevent anybody else being hurt by him, the better.”
As I stared at the daemon, I realized he did have a compassionate side. He might not want to admit it, but I doubted that Trytian would ever harm an innocent person who hadn’t attacked him first. There was a lot he was capable of, but he wasn’t really the bad guy he let on to being.
“Is there a back way into the building?” I asked.
Morio minimized the map, then brought up another screen and opened up in the file. “In anticipation of that question, I contacted Tim Winthrop about it. He was able to hack into the blueprints office of the city. I didn’t think we’d have the time to go about it the regular way. Anyway, he found this schematic. Here it is.” He enlarged the window as large as could.
Tim Winthrop was our go-to guy when it came to computer needs. He had been a female impersonator while he finished college to get his degree in computer science, and we had attended his wedding to the love of his life—Jason Binds, our go-to mechanic. Tim had a little girl from his first marriage. While he and his ex-wife weren’t on good terms—she had been taken off guard when he came out—she made certain he had plenty of time with his child.
I suddenly realized that Morio had to be using the laptop on battery. “The battery’s not running low, is it?”
“No, and you can thank the techno-mages,” he said without missing a beat. “It’s running on captured lightning. See that little USB plug?” He pointed to what I had thought was a jump drive. I nodded. “That’s actually a power pack, created by the techno-mages. It will run a laptop for about twelve hours on a single charge. Anyway, we have plenty of juice left. And I’ve got more of these if we need. Now, take a look at the layout of this building.”
The building was two stories aboveground, with a basement level. There were three entrances. One, the main front door, was open to the street. The other two entrances were around back, in the alley. One was a large set of hangar doors, allowing deliveries to easily be transferred into the building. The other was a normal-size door, to one side of the hangar.
“Windows?”
“You notice there are two on the upper floor looking over the street, and none in back. There’s a front window on the main floor, but it’s been barred off. Iron bars. And from what I could tell, they’re still firmly in place. No secret entrances, either. Remember, this was a human-made building, designed for business, so it didn’t need any secret passages. And Yerghan hasn’t had time to create any. Of course, that doesn’t mean somebody else wasn’t using it before, but I seriously doubt that we’re going to find anything like trapdoors or entrances through the sewers.”
In other words, it hadn’t been abandoned long enough for anybody to turn it into a secret lair. We crowded around the blueprints, looking for anything that might help or hinder us.
“Vanzir, you said that Carter suggested we talked to Hercules at the Rockface. Have you guys done so yet?” It occurred to me that we’d been out in the Land of Wandering Souls long enough that maybe they had already taken care of that.
Vanzir shook his head. “I went in the other night, but the bar was so busy that it was hard enough to find a waiter. And then it turned out that Hercules had the night off. We should drop in there tonight before we go over to the hangar.”
“All right, here’s what we know. Yerghan the Blade has a soul-stealer sword. He may have had time to hire some thugs. For all we know he could have some sort of magical device on him as well. Do we know how he started the fire in the house?” Everything had gone too fast for us to talk to the fire marshal.
“Yugi’s team detected some sort of magical firebomb. Which doesn’t surprise me,” Nerissa said.
“Well, we have our own dealer for those.” I glanced over at Roz and laughed. “You’ve got a steady supply of ice and firebombs, it seems. Bring as many as you’ve got. Also, bring along your magical stun gun. That thing can take down a horse, so it should be able to take down Yerghan.”
We had managed to pick up a magical stun gun in one of our raids, which had also been down in the industrial district. There were a lot of seedy characters that flocked to the area.
“Good idea. And with all of us going in together, we know what to expect out of him, so we can hopefully keep him from attacking anybody else with that damned sword. Also, Trytian’s idea of capturing him would be a whole lot easier if we can stun him.” Morio leaned back in his chair, shutting his computer. “I suggest we get a move on. Do we need to stop at the house for weapons?”
“I do,” Roz said. “I left everything in the studio, but I locked it up and hopefully everything’s still in one piece.”
Now that Vanzir lived out at Talamh Lonrach Oll, Roz was the only one living in the studio on our land. Once again I felt an overwhelming sweep of nostalgia.
Shade led me back to the bedroom we were using. I turned to him, wanting him, but also hesitant. So many things had gone on that I wasn’t sure where we stood. And knowing what personal fears he was fighting only made me more uncertain of how to act.
“We need to talk when we have a chance. I need to talk to you about what you said over in the Land of Wandering Souls. About your fear…”
He let out a sigh. “I know. We really do have to talk. I suppose it’s time to get everything out in the open, but let’s leave it until after we take care of Yerghan. Then we’ll lay all our cards on the table. I guess I’ve been hiding a lot of things from myself, not just you. I truly didn’t realize that losing my Stradolan powers affected me so much. I’m embarrassed.” He ducked his head, staring at the floor.
“Don’t be, please. We all have our fears. I had no clue that I was still harboring some of the things I discovered while I was over there. And I’ll tell you everything, so that you’ll know my deepest secrets as well.” I leaned down, pressing my lips against his. They were warm and flush against my own, and he pulled me onto his lap, kissing me deeply as his hands stroked my back. After a long moment, he pulled back and stared into my eyes.
“I suppose the best way to start a marriage is with complete honesty. Perhaps Yerghan the Blade has done us a favor without realizing it.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” I said. “But you’re right, sometimes blessings come disguised as curses. Come on, let’s get changed and go take care of Yerghan.”
As we changed clothes, I glanced over at Shade. He was gorgeous. He ha
d his share of scars and so did I, and so did anybody who had lived a full life. Sometimes those scars were on the surface, and sometimes they were buried deep inside. But scar tissue hurt, no matter which form it took.
WE STOPPED AT the house, and I was surprised to see so many armed guards from Talamh Lonrach Oll there. Camille had been busy, all right. They escorted us onto the land, reporting that no one had been seen at the house since we left. A stray bloatworgle had been found prowling around and quickly dispatched, and the neighbor’s dog—Speedo—kept wandering onto the property, but otherwise it had mostly been local wildlife come to visit.
While Roz went to the studio to gather his weaponry, the rest of us walked over to the house. I stared at the charred remains of the back porch and the kitchen. My stomach sank as the scent of soot filled my nostrils. But I noticed that a lot of the stray debris had been cleared away, and a dumpster sat nearby, full of charred timbers. Apparently, work had already begun on repairing the house. I also noticed that stakes had been pounded into the ground, and from those I guessed the kitchen and the back porch were going to be enlarged. We had already enlarged the kitchen once, and I wondered just how many children Camille thought I was going to have. But I wasn’t about to complain. The bigger the kitchen, the better.
I dithered about going inside. Part of me didn’t want to return home until it was back together again, until it felt whole. Shade seemed to pick up on my feelings, because he draped his arm around my waist and pulled me to him.
“Think of it this way. Our house was wounded. You don’t turn away when someone you love—or something you love—is hurt. You take care of it, and you nurture it, and you nurse it back to health.”
I flashed him a smile. “Thank you. I needed to hear that. Hold on, I’ll be right back.”
I dashed inside the house, one of the guards following right on my heels. I realized I wasn’t going to shake him, so I let him come along. I didn’t really care what he thought.
As I stood inside the living room, staring at the familiar surroundings that made me feel so grounded, I realized just how much I loved this house, and how much it meant to me. Even though I loved my home in Otherworld, I realized I never wanted to go back. Not to live, at least. This house had become my foundation, my anchor, a part of my very core. Camille and Menolly might not live here anymore, but their memories were deep within the walls, and they would always be a part of this home.
“Hey house, listen up. You need to get better! Get well for me, for Shade, for Maggie and Hanna. You’re our house, and you mean the world to me. I love you, I love everything about you. We’re going to build you back strong and safe, I promise you that.”
I glanced at the guard. He smiled at me with a soft glow in his eyes, and I realized he understood what I was doing. I might not work magic like Camille, but I believed with every fiber of my being that everybody had a little magic in their heart, and love only spurred it on.
“Delilah? We’re ready!” Shade’s voice echoed from the door.
Blowing a kiss toward the walls, I turned and headed back outside.
WE TOOK TWO cars. I drove my Jeep, and Shade, Trytian, and Menolly rode with me. Morio drove his Subaru, and Smoky, Trillian, and Nerissa rode with him. As Camille had predicted, Aeval had put the brakes on Vanzir coming with us. And she had also laid down the law regarding Camille.
It was 10:30 by the time we reached the industrial district. Traffic was light, and because it was the middle of the week, there didn’t seem to be much foot traffic on the streets. But the parking lot by the Rockface was jumping. We parked in the last two open spots, and headed toward the door.
As we entered the bar, we were assaulted by the smells of hard liquor, spilled beer, and fried food. My nose was on hyperdrive, and I could tell that whatever they were serving had been fried in rancid oil that had been around a little too long.
The bar was laid out like a lot of dives—a long counter, jammed with barstools, packed with patrons, and then a series of booths near the windows. The booths were full, although I saw one that was open and sent Morio over to claim it. It was one of those corner booths, shaped in a semi circle, and I thought we might all just barely fit.
Menolly motioned for us to join Morio as she headed up to the bar. A few moments later, she returned, followed by a very large man—he stood ten feet tall—who had a buzz cut, and who was wearing a Nirvana T-shirt. For some reason I hadn’t expected the giant to be a grunge fan.
Behind him, a waiter expertly maneuvered a tray with seven beers and a bottle of blood on it. I noticed the beers were microbrews, which meant expensive. I had to hand it to Menolly for knowing how to subtly bribe as well. She motioned for me to scoot over and sat down beside me.
“Hey guys, meet Hercules. He’s the owner.” She gave him a fangy smile and he returned it with a lopsided grin.
“I never thought I’d have the owner of the Wayfarer as a customer,” he said and I heard a muted awe in his voice. It made sense, given Menolly was a minor celebrity among bar owners.
“Hey, we’ve heard good things about this place. I’m just sorry that I haven’t had the time to drop in before now.” She motioned to the end of the table. “Why don’t you pull up a chair and join us for a few minutes?” She waited until he had done so, before resting her head on my shoulder. “It’s been a long day, I can tell you that.”
I wasn’t quite sure what angle she was playing, so I kept my mouth shut and gave Hercules a friendly nod.
“I see you have one of your sisters with you! Where’s the other one? I heard she’s a queen now,” he said, his voice dropping as though he were speaking about a goddess.
I realized right then that Hercules had a nose for gossip and anything we said would be fair game for the rumor mill. He was a celebrity horn dog and, probably, a name dropper. That could work to our benefit, I thought.
“So, a really nice joint you’ve got here. What’s the foot traffic like?” I asked.
“Pretty good. There’s been an uptick in sales over the past week, which suits me just fine. So, your sister…” He glanced around, expectantly. “Will she be in?”
Menolly cleared her throat. “Unfortunately, she’s busy with royal business right now. I suppose I should be home too, taking care of issues with the Vampire Nation, but you know, sometimes a princess just has to have a night out.” She pointed out Nerissa. “Let me introduce my wife, Princess Nerissa.”
Nerissa gave her a look that would have withered a blackberry bush. But Menolly just smiled at her, blinking.
“How do you do, Mr. Hercules? What a lovely establishment.” Nerissa was laying it on thick, but Hercules seemed to eat it up. He had perked up at the word princess. Yep, celeb stalker, all right.
“Wow, I’ve got two princesses in my establishment. I’d love to take a picture with you both, if you don’t mind.”
Menolly looked like she was about to lose it, but she managed to suppress her laughter. “Uh, Hercules, I hate to remind you, but I don’t show up on camera. Remember, I’m a vampire? And vampires aren’t exactly photogenic.”
I was doing my best to stifle a laugh. Nerissa and Menolly were playing him like a violin. I wondered how often they had done this, especially while out clubbing.
“You can take a picture of me, though,” Nerissa said. “I’d be happy to pose with you, if you’d like.” She leaned forward, dazzling him with her best Barbie-smile.
Hercules nearly knocked over his chair as he scooted out of the way. Morio, Smoky, and Trillian stood so that Nerissa could squeeze out of the booth. None of the guys looked amused, but they didn’t interfere. I wouldn’t interfere with Menolly’s plans, either. Or with her wife. Not when they were on a hunting trip like this.
Nerissa wound her way over to Hercules, draping her arm around his shoulder. He slid his hand around her waist, holding her firmly, and I winced, glancing away, thinking that the ick-factor would be a whole lot less if we just paid him for inf
ormation. But he was much more likely to give us whatever we wanted if he felt special.
Menolly used his phone to take a picture of them. Then, handing it back, she gave Nerissa a look that I noticed, but I didn’t think Hercules caught. Nerissa quickly disentangled herself from his embrace, and slid back in the booth, motioning for the men to sit down quickly so that Hercules didn’t try to squeeze in beside her.
Menolly handed his phone back to him. “So, Hercules. What’s the area down here like? I’ve got a friend who’s thinking of opening a tattoo shop. There are a few abandoned buildings across the street. Do you think that would be a good location?”
I had to hand it to my sister. She was smooth.
“I’m a little leery about the people over across the street. Those buildings look abandoned, but I’ve noticed some strange things going on there the past week. I think somebody may have rented the big one, but I haven’t seen any renovation going on. I get a bad feeling every time I walk past there.” The question seemed to have taken Hercules’s mind off the fact that he was hanging with local celebrities.
“What do you mean? What kind of a bad feeling?” I decided to play along too.
He puffed up a little. “I like to think I’m a good judge of energy. I’m not sure what it is, but there’s something lurking in that center building that scares the hell out of me, and I don’t scare easy. It could be a ghost, maybe. I didn’t notice it before last week. And then, the lights are on. That building has been abandoned for a couple years. I know there haven’t been any squatters there, because I was looking after it for a while. I made sure everything was locked tight. The company went bankrupt and stopped paying me about two months ago, but I still take a walk over there now and then. So I know the feel of it. You know, buildings do have feelings at times.”
When you yanked him off “Star-Central Lane,” Hercules actually had some substance to him.
“You said you think it might be a ghost. Could it be something else?” Morio asked.