Even better, Granny herself was back. I felt like waving hello. She still looked like Mrs Claus, and she was still knitting with silent efficiency. Just like before, she could have been knitting a snowdrift.
But this time, she had company.
There was another woman beside her – at least, I think it was a woman. She was wearing a cape, with a hood, one that wrapped her completely in silvery gray. Her hood was filled with shadows, as if she didn’t even have a head, but I could see her eyes gleaming in the darkness. She had a weird-looking gizmo in her hands, like a top that she constantly kept spinning. She moved so quickly that her hands were just a blur. I watched her, fascinated by the rhythm and eventually realized that she was making thread.
Like knitting wool. Yes! There was a loose stream of white over her shoulder, soft as a cloud, and she was feeding it into the spinning top, pulling it into long, twisted thread.
That must be a drop spindle. I’d heard my mom talk about them before and was pretty sure she even had one.
And sure enough, the spun wool that came from the bottom of the top, all sleek and slender and tight, seemed to be feeding the knitting that Granny was doing.
Would the sheep turn up next? I wondered.
‘I am Urd,’ said the new arrival, startling me with her words. Granny had never spoken to me. She’d just chucked a rune stone at my head. I wasn’t expecting audio. ‘You already know my sister, Verdandi.’
I opened my mouth, intending to ask questions, but Urd suddenly held up one finger. It was creepy, that finger, like a skeleton’s finger. I was kind of glad to not be seeing her face just then.
I did as I was told and kept silent.
‘“Verdandi” means “what is”. “Urd” means “what was”.’ Then she pointed that finger at the ground, down to the root of the tree where there was a dark hole. I’d peered into the hole before. It was like a well, a dark hole that stretched down farther than I could see, with a shimmer of water’s reflection at the bottom.
It gave me the heebie-jeebies, that well. Granny knit faster, as if she were troubled, and her gaze was locked on me. Her lips were tight with concern, the way my mom’s get when she’s fighting against her urge to argue with my dad.
Hmm. Guess she’d gotten over that.
Urd put down her spindle and did a little sleight of hand, reaching into the air and closing her fist on something that wasn’t there. I blinked and then she opened her palm to show me what she held.
Rafferty’s ring.
No, my ring.
‘Hey!’ I leapt from my bed to grab the ring from her. She waited until I almost had it, then closed her fist and flung the ring down the well.
I fell to the ground beside the well, too slow to snatch the ring out of the air. I could see it glinting as it fell, a red glow emanating from it. Then it splashed into that water way down at the bottom.
And disappeared.
I caught a whiff of shadows and rot. Whatever was down there, it could stay put as far as I was concerned. The ring, I was ready to concede, was lost. Even in a dream, I didn’t see any reason to dive into a pit that I wouldn’t be able to escape.
But Urd had other ideas. She moved fast. When I would have stood up again, I found her bony hand was on my shoulder. She was strong, stronger than anyone would expect, and she shoved me toward the well. I stumbled, because she caught me by surprise.
I fought and struggled, but Urd pushed me steadily closer. I twisted to fight her grip. She had fingers of steel, and she was winning.
No, she had fingers of bone. Skeleton hands.
I panicked when I saw that. I thrashed. I caught her hood with one hand and pulled, desperate for a grip on anything.
I heard it tear and looked up when I heard her laugh.
Holy frick! Her head was a bare skull.
One with eyes that burned like twin flames. She opened her mouth to laugh at me, and it looked like she had a snake for a tongue. She released me and I fell over my own feet in my hurry to get away from that face.
But she tripped me.
And I fell into the darkness of the well.
Down and down and down. Urd’s laughter echoed all around me as I fell. There was an inky shimmer, like black water, but it was a long way down.
This was not good.
I woke up, my heart hammering and my fingers knotted in the sheets. There was sweat running down my back.
There was no snow.
There was no tree and there was no dark well.
There was no sign of Granny, or her nasty sister.
But that black envelope from Trevor was perched on the carpet beside my stack of books. I was sure I hadn’t left it there. I had the irrational thought that it was spying on me – although with Mages, that might not be very irrational at all.
I wasn’t entirely sure of everything they could do. And the one guy who did know more had declined to fill me in.
Never mind that recent events meant it was unlikely I’d be able to hit Jared up for advice, live and in person, at his concert. Looked like I’d be solving my Mage-related issues myself, thanks.
I leapt from the bed, snatched up the envelope, and ripped it to shreds. Then I flung it out the window, watching the pieces flutter toward the pavement far below. That stupid dragonsmoke singed my fingers when my hand passed through it just for a second. There was an unwelcome reminder that my dad meant business.
Only when the pieces had all disappeared from sight and nothing else had happened did I shut the window and lock it securely. I rummaged in the drawer with the secret corner in a panic. To my relief, the ring was right where I’d hidden it.
My ring.
I locked my hand around it, still freaked, then opened my hand to look at it. Had it changed?
It had. It seemed to glitter a little in the light, as if the white part was full of snow crystals and the black part was full of stars.
What kind of magic did this ring possess, anyhow?
How could I find out?
I shuddered at the prospect and got into bed, sitting with my back against the wall and my knees pulled up to my chest. I had the ring trapped in my right fist, my left hand locked around the right. There was no way I was going to sleep again soon, not with Urd lurking in dreamland, on the lookout for me.
I checked with both eyes, but my room looked normal even with the eye game. I sat vigil, armed only with a ring, unconvinced of my safety. I had a feeling that Granny and her weird sister could change things on me without notice.
I could have called my dad. He might even have believed me. But I wasn’t exactly feeling confident about his inclination to defend me or even see my point of view.
Call it a learned response.
The thing about being scared crapless by strange old women in the night is that it helps put things in perspective. There had to be something I could do to improve the odds of my not having a completely miserable birthday.
There had to be a plan I could make.
I like riddles and I had a great big clue, right in my hand.
Who would know about the ring? I wasn’t going to ask my dad because I knew what he’d say. ‘Figure it out.’ Thanks very much. Rafferty had already proved to be unhelpful.
Then the answer hit me.
Of course. I could ask Isabelle.
Rafferty’s adopted daughter.
Who was attending college right in Chicago.
Perfect.
The next morning my dad was standing in the kitchen, waiting for me. This was unusual enough to make me wary.
Especially after what I’d said to him the night before.
I had a definite sense that I would be called on the carpet for challenging him.
Was he going to escort me through his dragonsmoke? Or did he intend to leave me holed up here for the duration? Or would my exile be elsewhere? I both wanted to know and dreaded hearing his decision.
That there was a small black satchel at his feet just added to my uncertainty. It was
bigger than his briefcase or laptop bag. He had his leather jacket on and his boots, and looked ready to walk out the door.
Was he leaving, too?
As much as I wanted to be an adult right this minute, this change was happening a bit fast – and in entirely the wrong way.
Maybe I should be careful what I wished for.
‘You’ll need to pack a bag,’ he said curtly. His British accent was stronger than usual, which was never good. ‘You’ll be staying at Meagan’s. Her mother knows that you’re grounded, although there will, of course, be no dragonsmoke barrier there.’
I opened the fridge, as if there were no urgency. I wasn’t in a real hurry to make anything easy for him. I was sure he was going to tell me that he had to make a business trip to secure a pyrotechnics contract in another city. That’s what he does – big pyrotechnics displays timed to music. It is cool, but I resented his ability to carry on as if nothing had happened, as if my mom’s departure meant nothing at all. I was prepared to argue that I was nearly sixteen and could take care of myself. It seemed that someone should have asked me before making plans for my immediate future.
Wasn’t this the same thing he’d done with my mom? Just decided and let her deal with the consequences?
Bottom line – if getting rid of me would be convenient to his career, I wasn’t inclined to be convenient.
I considered a tub of yogurt, as if it held all the world’s secrets. ‘For how long?’
‘I don’t know.’ He exuded impatience.
I put the plain yogurt back and picked up a flavored yogurt instead. Hmm. Peach. ‘I didn’t hear you call anybody.’
‘Meagan’s mother and I e-mailed last night.’
‘Why do I have to go anywhere? I thought this loft would be my prison.’
My dad fixed a look on me, one that was so intent I shivered. I braced myself for a reckoning.
But he surprised me.
‘Because I am going to follow your mother, and try my utmost to change her mind about remaining in this partnership.’ I had a moment to be shocked and delighted before he continued. ‘You cannot stay here alone because you are a minor. That is the law.’
‘Human law.’ I had to say it.
‘Human law.’ His lips tightened at the concession. ‘Which in this case and in the very short term trumps Pyr law. Don’t imagine I’ll forget your transgression.’
Right. Mr Responsibility was back. Maybe he’d never left. Did he really care about my mom? Or did he just feel responsible for pursuing her? ‘How long will you be gone?’
He winced. ‘However long it takes.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘You have five minutes. I have a flight to catch.’
A commercial carrier? What about Dragon Air? ‘You’re not flying yourself?’
His eyes, if anything, glittered more coldly. ‘Your mother wishes to live like a normal human. Therefore, I will arrive to plead my case like a normal human. I have made arrangements for your care like a normal human. I suspect these are but the first of many concessions I will make in the near future.’
I had the urge to tell him he should have made concessions sooner, but I bit back that piece of advice. It should have been good enough for me that he was going after her.
Funny, but it wasn’t. I wanted him to show more emotion for once, to be visibly upset. Maybe to cry. Instead, it felt as if he was going to collect a forgotten umbrella from the Lost and Found.
‘Four minutes,’ he said, biting off the words.
I was halfway out of the kitchen when I remembered who I was talking to. My dad. The dragon who hid his emotions – and his vulnerabilities – better than any six poker faces put together.
I turned back to watch him rinse his coffee mug. His expression was grim and as I looked more closely, I saw an unfamiliar tension in him. He was trying to hide his reaction and unable to do so. That meant he was really upset. I wondered whether he’d slept at all. And he had nearly lost it the night before. I guessed that he blamed himself even more than I blamed him.
In a strange way, that made me feel better.
‘Do you think you can convince her?’ I asked quietly.
I didn’t miss his grimace, even though it was quickly gone. ‘I am not sure.’ It was maybe the first time I’d ever heard him speak without conviction. That made my stomach queasy. ‘But I guarantee you that I will do my best to persuade her.’
‘I think you can be pretty persuasive.’
He smiled then, a humorless expression that lasted less than a heartbeat. ‘And I think your mother is a woman who knows her own mind.’ He frowned and spoke softly. ‘I shall try, Zoë. It’s the only thing that I can promise.’
When he looked up, there was a shadow in his eyes, a doubt I never thought I’d glimpse in my dad. I’d always believed he was in charge of the whole universe, that he could do anything or achieve anything. He could do a lot, even more than most dads.
But he wasn’t sure he could convince my mom to stay with him.
And that was ripping his guts out, doing more damage than the most ferocious dragon attack.
I crossed the room and gave him an impulsive hug, shocked by how tightly he hugged me back. We stood there for a long moment, clutching each other and I heard his breath catch.
My invincible dad was scared crapless.
He really did care.
‘I’ll be ready in five,’ I said to him when I pulled back, realizing belatedly that I sounded a lot like my mom when she has a To Do list. ‘Could you pack me a couple of granola bars and an apple? I’ll eat on the way.’
My inclination to play as part of the team was cut short, but quick. My dad drummed his fingers on the counter as I was leaving the room. I had a fleeting sense that he was going to say something I wouldn’t like.
And he did.
‘You should also be aware that I have decided to modify the Covenant in your case, given the circumstances.’
I froze on the threshold of the kitchen to look back. ‘What?’
He gave me one of those glittering looks. ‘You are forbidden to shift to dragon form without prior approval from me.’
I looked away in a futile effort to control my temper. The very idea that anyone could know when they would need to shift, in advance, in time to ask permission, was so stupid that only a parent could have come up with it.
This was about his lack of confidence in my abilities.
Or some need for control.
And I chafed at the restriction. ‘I can’t shift without your permission?’ I asked, making him say it again.
‘No.’ He glared at me. ‘And I’m not giving it.’
It was pretty easy to guess that the other older Pyr would back the choice of my dad, who is their leader, after all. ‘But you’re leaving. What about self-defense?’
‘You’ll have no cause to defend yourself.’
I flung out my hands. ‘What about the Mages and their plan to eliminate shifters?’
‘We have a treaty with them. It’s resolved.’ He ground out the words, convinced of the power of diplomacy. His eyes narrowed. ‘Did you not shift yesterday, in front of Meagan?’
‘Well, yeah, but Suzanne had punched her—’
‘But you could not have dealt with this threat in human form?’
I was at a loss there. I could have, but it wouldn’t have been nearly as cool.
‘You have shown that your judgment is not sound. We will discuss this more upon my return. Until then, you will not shift.’
‘But—’
‘I do not want to exile my own daughter, but I will do it if you insist on my making an example of you.’
‘What if we’re attacked?’
‘You will not be. Two minutes.’
I didn’t share his confidence at all, but he was unshakable. His decision was completely unfair and unreasonable – but there is no Pyr court of appeals. I know I must have looked mutinous when I stared at him, but he stared right back.
Dragon-stared.
&n
bsp; ‘One minute,’ he reminded me curtly.
One more time I retreated and slammed the door of my room.
I hurled clothes into a backpack, mad enough that there must have been steam coming out of my ears. This wasn’t about me, or even about the Covenant. This was all about my dad keeping up appearances for his Pyr buddies. Maybe it was about my brother turning Slayer. Either way, it had nothing to do with me being safe.
That was when I knew what I would do. I wouldn’t shift. I’d follow my dad’s stupid rule to show that I was trustworthy.
But I would also prove him wrong, about one thing at least.
And Isabelle would help me.
Meagan’s mom met us at school and stored my bag in their car. She tried to offer a bit of sensitive encouragement to my dad, but he was brusque with her. I took this as a sign of his own doubts and felt kind of bad for him.
‘You can do it, Dad,’ I murmured in old-speak after he turned away, and saw him jerk in response. Then he shot me a vivid glance, got in the car and was gone.
I shoved my hands into my pockets and found the ring. I felt superstitious about putting it on without knowing everything it could do, and trusted my instinct. I wasn’t going to leave it anywhere, either, though. I would just keep it close, and touch it sometimes.
‘I’m sorry about your mom.’ Meagan bumped her shoulder against mine, the way we used to. ‘It’s good he’s going after her.’
‘Yeah.’ I sighed. ‘I’m glad about that.’
‘Fingers crossed,’ Meagan said and flashed me a smile. Her smile really did flash – she had a mouthful of metal. ‘Hey, you know, we could try one of my mom’s visioning sessions after school and see if we can help your dad. We could get my mom to help—’
‘I have to go somewhere after school,’ I said, thinking about the weight of the ring in my pocket. I’d have to persuade Mrs Jameson to let me meet Isabelle somehow.