Frost & Bothered (19 page)

She shot to her feet and began capering around the room. I watched her for a few minutes before muttering, “So much for that idea.”

Ginger continued her wild dancing as I slipped into bed, and the light slowly dimmed down to full darkness.

I really was losing it.

“I
was leaving the restroom.” Connor helped himself to another slice of ham.

“And we were about to leave the employee break room. Now we know the portal thingy doesn’t have a fixed point in the Dreamland pocket realm.” I made a note on my legal pad. It and a couple of pens were items I’d decided to keep in my case purse. There’d been too many times I’d needed to jot something down to keep from forgetting it, and had nothing handy.

“Okay, how did you get here? You said you were invited.”

Kethyrdryll nodded. “Yes. I entered through the arch in the gardens.”

“In Thorandryll’s sidhe?”

“Yes.”

Now I knew where it led. I’d seen it during my first case for his brother. That had been one of the things I’d meant to ask about, and had forgotten. “I know where it is.”

“It’s not the only entrance to the Unseelie realm. It is, or was, our doorway. A few days after I arrived, it closed.” Kethyrdryll paused for a drink of juice. “I check daily to see if it’s reopened, which is why I was there when you three arrived.”

“And you’ve been here, alone, for eight years.”

The elf stroked his hound’s head. “I haven’t been alone, with Leandra and Selwin as my companions.”

Selwin was the horse’s name. Check.

Connor reached for another slice of ham, and I frowned at him. “Dude, slow down.”

“There’s no need to worry about supplies. My pavilion’s well-stocked.”

After eight freaking years? I wanted some of that magic for my new kitchen. Connor stuck his tongue out at me, and I said, “Brat.”

Looking at my notes, I said, “If no one’s come to meet you, something’s happened to them. Have you tried to find out what?”

“The inner defenses are still in place. Invited or not, I’m not allowed to pass them freely, and the first isn’t one I felt I would be able to safely defeat without assistance.”

“Okay.” I sighed. “This is what we know. The Unseelie realm went into lockdown mode when the Melding occurred. You haven’t seen hide nor hair of any of them since you got here. Did you ever have to wait on prior visits?”

“Not longer than a day.”

But he’d waited a few days this time, and ended up stuck. “I’m thinking something must have happened right before the Melding, which kept the Unseelie busy.”

No one disagreed with my assessment. Cool. “Next item is that Santo Trueno is having its first real winter in years, and people started going missing. And both of those things tie into Thorandryll’s club, Dreamland. It’s new, it’s a pocket realm, and it’s where the people, including us, went missing from.”

I paused for a drink of my tea, wishing for coffee. “Third item we now know is that the Dreamland pocket realm has an intermittent connection with another one.”

“You mean the Unseelie realm.” Connor raised his eyebrows when I shook my head.

“I don’t think so. We weren’t here. We were...on the other side of the mountains from here, and I think it’s a different pocket realm. I mean, there was nothing alive there, except the golem and those snow gremlins. One was sent to grab drop ins, and the others apparently wanted to kill anyone or anything that intruded.”

Logan nodded. “A buffer zone.”

“Yeah. I think maybe it’s part of the lockdown mode. Whatever happened must be really bad, if a large number of elves couldn’t handle it. And we have to find out what happened, if we want to go home.”

Kethyrdryll lifted his hand from the table to get my attention. “I mentioned the security measures are still in place. They are the reason I’ve always waited for an escort. Even should we successfully pass them, the castle itself will oppose our entry.”

“One problem at a time. First problem: an escort. Problem solved, because we’re it.” I smiled at him. “How far do we have to go?”

His gaze fell to the table top and he frowned. “I’m not certain. The last time I visited, it was a matter of a few hours to reach the castle, with an Unseelie escort.”

“You said it’s always night,” Logan said. “Does that mean the moon doesn’t move?”

“I’ve never seen it change position.”

“Then it’s a fixed point of reference. Do you know which direction we have to travel to reach the castle?”

Kethyrdryll’s frown had faded. “Yes.”

“So we have a compass.” Logan looked at me. “And you’re the backup compass.”

“If my tracking ability cooperates.”

“You’re a Tracker?” the elf asked. “That’s an extremely rare power.”

“I prefer to call them abilities. Sounds less magical. And I don’t know if it’s the same thing you mean. I sometimes see colored threads that led me to useful clues, or lost objects and people.”

“Yes, you’re a Tracker.” He studied me for a moment. “Exactly how many pow...abilities do you have?”

“More than I know what to do with, and enough to make things confusing.”

Kethyrdryll chuckled. “I do not ask in order to pass the information on. We discussed the families I knew of last night. Each had certain specialties. I’m curious which family you’re descended from.”

“Oh.” Now I was a little curious too.

“Can you call fire or ice to hand?”

“Both.”

“Wind?”

I blinked, reassessing my aerokinetic ability. “I can thicken air. Never thought of trying to create wind though.”

“Hear the thoughts of others, or feel their emotions?”

“Both.”

Kethyrdryll’s gaze sharpened, and he leaned forward the tiniest bit. “See the past or future?”

“The first, a lot, but the second, only once that I’m certain of.”

He smiled. “Do you have visions when you touch objects or people?”

“Yes.”

“Can you call lightning?”

“Yeah, and that one’s new.”

“Move objects?”

“Yes.”

“You’re a Tracker and can teleport.” Kethyrdryll gave a slight shake of his head. “You are truly remarkable, Lady Discord, and quite right to be wary of my brother’s interest. You’re descended from each of the great families who were natural mages.”

“I’m a psychic, not a mage. Or a witch.”

“That may well be what humans call you, but your kind were known as natural mages in the past. You don’t need spells, potions, or the favor of gods to work your magic. Yours comes from within.”

My mouth felt dry. “Psychic sounds a lot less scary.”

Kethyrdryll laughed. “Legends would have it that your kind are the children of the gods.”

Okay, now he was trying to put one over on me. “Yeah, right.”

“Have you heard of Herakles?”

“Hercules? Yeah, he was the son of Zeus and,” I paused. “He’s just a myth.”

“No, he was quite real, and he was a natural mage.”

Whoa. Me, descended from gods? My turn to laugh. “If what you’re saying is true, it’s been thousands of years since all that god and human hanky-panky was going on. Pretty sure any god blood would be way diluted by now.”

“Yet, you have many abilities.” The elf’s smile disappeared. “Have you died?”

I had to clear my throat as cold spread down my spine. “Once.”

“Your injuries heal more quickly than other humans.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes.”

“I now have far more confidence we’ll survive the trek to the castle,” Kethyrdryll said.

And I had a bad feeling I’d just learned the reason why Sal had begun visiting me.

“A
re you sure she can carry us both?” I petted Selwin’s white neck.

“For hours and hours.” Kethyrdryll tightened the cinch. “Give me a moment to break camp.”

“Sure.” I walked over to Logan and Connor, who were both going to travel in their animal shapes, and had already shifted. Logan could handle the snow and ice, but Connor had admitted to feeling a little cold. “Let me check the straps.”

The lion chuffed, holding still while I looked over the straps and buckles holding the horse’s blanket in place. “I hope you’re toasty.”

He coughed. I mussed his mane and moved to Logan’s side. “Are you okay?”

I’m fine. You?

“Great.” The elf’s invisible servants had provided warm clothing in the form of boots, thick socks, and leggings that felt like silk, but were thick and waterproof. I also had a long shirt of the same material, a handy leather belt, and gloves. My tiger coat covered most of the outfit, but that was okay. It’d cover most of Selwin’s rump too, and hold in the heat she generated.

I turned around as the elf spoke a few words, and my jaw dropped as the pavilion collapsed. It folded itself into a neat, extremely small square. The thorn barrier was shrinking and contracting, to become less than a handful of tangled, dried brown vine.

Kethyrdryll picked them both up and dropped them into the pouch at his belt. “Are you ready, Lady Discord?”

“Sure.” I’d tried to discourage the “Lady” business, but he insisted.

He mounted the horse, freed his boot from the stirrup, and leaned to offer his arm. My ascent was easier than I expected, but I did have to make a few minor adjustments to the skirt of my coat once behind him.

Leandra fell in beside us as Kethyrdryll nudged the mare into a walk. Connor and Logan trotted past to take the lead. We were on our way to find the Unseelie, and I had to grin

My life was just one giant adventure.

B
right moonlight and a lack of clouds meant Connor stuck out like a sore thumb on the snow. It was obvious Logan had loads more experience in snowy terrain and at night, from the way he moved alongside the trail, under the shadows of the trees.

There were times I couldn’t see him, even though his fur was mostly black and should’ve been more noticeable against the blue white of the snow.

However, Connor was watching the older shifter, and learning as he went. I liked the guy. He wasn’t saddled with a giant ego. We rode for a few hours before coming to a wide, slow-moving river. Kethyrdryll brought his mare to a halt. “Our first obstacle.”

“How deep is it?”

“I don’t know. I chose not to attempt crossing due to the inhabitants.” He raised his voice. “I wouldn’t venture too close.”

Logan and Connor veered away from the riverbank, and came to join us.

“Okay, what are we up against? Cold water piranhas? Ice sharks?”

“Winter drakes. Fortunately, the wingless variety, but they’re vicious beasts.”

“Oh. Um, what’s a drake?”

Kethyrdryll threw his leg over the horse’s neck and slid down. “I’ll show you.”

My dismount wasn’t as graceful, but I didn’t fall on my butt. The elf walked to a point about thirty feet from the river’s edge, and bent to dig around in the snow. He straightened with a fist-sized rock in his hand. “Watch.”

When he threw the rock, I followed its path and jumped as a large, pale blue head shot upward from the water to catch it. The drake’s head was easily as long as I was tall, with a mouthful of sharp teeth.

It smashed the rock to bits before turning to strike at us. Kethyrdryll had judged the distance well, so its attempt fell a good five feet short of us. It had flippers instead of legs. The front half of its body hit the bank, making the ground shake.