Last Car to Annwn Station (20 page)

“I’m still not sure that’s a good idea,” Mae said.

Jill took Mae’s hand and steered her toward the stairs. “How about we argue more over breakfast?” Now that she had made up her mind, Jill was anxious to get Mae alone and explain about Robert. Mae smiled widely, probably thinking Jill had something in mind for bed that wasn’t talking.

The three women climbed the stairs. Mirallyn wished them a pleasant night and turned the opposite way at the landing, disappearing into the smaller bedroom.

Jill closed the door to the room and turned, finding Mae sitting on her knees in the middle of the bed. The smile on Mae’s face faded as she watched Jill.

“You’ve got a look on your face,” Mae said. “A look that means something is wrong.”

Jill sat down on the bed next to Mae. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you for the last few days. Really, ever since you took me for that streetcar ride.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. I…I haven’t told you yet because things got weird and dangerous, but now you have to know. It’s important that you know.”

Mae frowned. “Maybe you should just say it. Do it quick and clean, like ripping off a Band-Aid.”

Jill took a deep breath. “You remember me talking about my brother?”

“Robert Coleman Hall the Stinking Third?”

“He’s one of the mages.”

Jill watched as Mae opened her mouth as if to say something then stopped, closing it and frowning. Mae looked down at the bed, her frown deepening.

“I just recently figured it out,” Jill said. “Some things fell into place and…well, now I know the truth.”

Mae shifted, untucking her legs from under her body, resting them on the edge of the bed as she moved closer to Jill. Her frown never wavered. “Start at the beginning, please.”

Jill swallowed and looked down, fidgeting with her hands. “In the last couple of years he’s occasionally asked me things. He’ll ask me if I’ve ever made something happen, something impossible, or seen things that shouldn’t exist. I always told him no, because that was the truth.” She looked up at Mae. “I saw him conjure a flame in the palm of his hand once. I told myself then that I was mistaken, that I’d had too much to drink or it was some kind of trick. But then you took me for that streetcar ride and I started thinking more about those questions he asked me.”

“Because now you know magic is real.” Mae’s expression was grave. “Have you seen him do anything else?”

“I think so, looking back on it. About the time he started asking me if I’d ever made something unexplainable happen, he started wearing this ring. A big, gold thing with an emerald. He fiddles with it a lot. I’ve noticed when he does…” Jill paused. “When we were out for dinner last time, I saw him play with it while he talked to the waitress. I didn’t think anything of it, but the girl suddenly became much more attentive of him, to the point of ignoring her other tables. It was like no one else but Robert existed. I’ve seen that happen before.”

“That’s disturbing,” Mae said.

“He brags about his sexual conquests all the time. To think he might be using magic to make women sleep with him…” Jill shuddered.

“Sick,” Mae muttered.

“Yeah. When I was in Mirallyn and Kravis’s realm, before I went into Annwn, their Lord Murlannor said he knew the blood of one of the mages in me. He knew. He knew my brother was one of those hunting his people.” Jill swallowed, her body shaking. “And now you know.”

“Crap,” Mae muttered. She reached over and took Jill’s hand. “I’m sorry. If you can’t help me rescue Fay because of your brother—”

“Oh no. I’m coming with you. In fact, I’m your in to that mansion.”

“You are?”

“Yes. Remember when I said Robert had invited me to a party on Halloween?”

Mae’s mouth opened in surprise. “You are not serious.”

“I am. It’s at the Arneson mansion. I can walk right through the front door as an invited guest.”

“Jill, honey, they know we’re living together. If you go into that house, you might never come out.”

“Or I might be able to get you in. We know your sister is in that mansion. I want to do this. I want to do this for you. And for Fay. I want to do this for us.”

“Even if it means going against your brother?”

Jill grinned. “That’s just a bonus.” She gave Mae’s hand a squeeze. “I was worried how you might react, finding out my brother is one of the bad guys.”

“You can’t control the family you’re born into.” Mae turned and gave Jill a hug. “You stormed the Underworld for me. I don’t doubt you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

They sat holding each other for several minutes, Jill letting relief wash over her as she continued to hold Mae close.

“We should tell the others,” Mae finally whispered. “This does change things.”

Jill swallowed. “Yeah. Let’s go tell them.”

Twenty minutes later everyone sat in the living room again, warm green tea at hand, taking in Jill’s story. There was a long silence.

“This would not be the first time siblings have strove against each other,” Kravis said with a shrug. “Myth and folklore are rife with such tales.”

“This changes our plans,” Mae said. “Jill can get us inside the Arneson home.”

“The danger is great,” Mirallyn pointed out.

Jill rolled her eyes. “The danger is going to be great no matter how we get inside. Hell, we’re in danger right now sitting here.”

Mirallyn frowned. “Yes. In truth, now that the immediate threats have passed, I am beginning to fear that Kravis and I are too close to the mage’s stronghold. They might sense our magic.”

“But not Jill and I,” Mae said. “I think we should stay here. It’s so close that they may not think to look for trouble.”

“And it would allow you and Jill to scout out their home,” Kravis said, “but Lady Mirallyn is right about her and me.”

Mirallyn leaned forward, thoughtful. “Yes. Though as Kravis said, you could scout. Jill’s ability to see magic is passive. It should not trigger any of their defenses, and she will be able to spot any magical protections on the grounds.”

“I still don’t like the idea of splitting up,” Mae said. She turned to Jill. “What are the odds that your brother might show up? Would he come by here on his way to the Arneson party?”

Jill thought about it for a minute. “I think we’re safe. I doubt he’d bring a woman out here in the winter, not when he has a condo in downtown. I can’t see any other reason for him to stop by.”

“I’m glad he wasn’t here when we arrived,” Mae said.

Kravis nodded. “Yes. That would have made things…interesting.”

“Do you think the hounds have told Hodgins or the Arnesons we’re here?” Jill asked. Mirallyn shook her head. “No. I think they don’t have full control over the hounds anymore.”

Kravis gave her a long, questioning look.

“Mae commanded them to leave and they followed her orders,” Mirallyn said. “That means something, though I do not understand what or why.”

Mae yawned and blinked. “Maybe understanding will come after a decent night’s sleep. We haven’t been attacked yet. I’m inclined to sit tight until we get into that mansion.”

“Agreed,” Jill said, yawning back at Mae. “I think I’m really ready to go to bed.”

She and Mae bid the others good night, leaving Mirallyn and Kravis in the living room. They climbed the stairs again, going back into the bedroom. Jill hesitated at the door.

“What?” Mae asked.

“I—my family is the enemy. Are you sure—” she was cut off by Mae placing a finger on her lips.

“I’m sure. Now come to bed, Miss Hall.”

Jill followed Mae to bed, settling next to her. “So…” Mae kissed her, gentle and soft kisses on her lips, chin, cheeks, over her eyes and back to her lips. “Mae…”

Mae pulled her closer, bringing Jill’s head to her shoulder and wrapping Jill in her arms. “Hush. Let’s just sleep tonight.”

“Mae. Thank you.”

“For?”

She closed her eyes as Mae ran fingers through her hair. “For not wigging out about Robert.”

Mae chuckled. “Jill, honey, there are so many things I
could
be freaking out about that I’ve decided to just go with it, no matter how weird things become.”

“That seems like good advice,” Jill murmured. She sighed and let the feel of Mae’s fingers in her hair and the rhythm of Mae’s heartbeat lull her to sleep.

Monday, 30
^th
of October

Mae held her mother at arm’s length. “I want you to promise me you’ll be careful. We know Rhyania’s people are all looking for you, and the hounds are still out there prowling.”

Mirallyn nodded. “We will be quick. In and out of faerie before anyone can detect us. I know a place we can hide.”

“We’ll stay at the lake house until Halloween.”

Kravis joined them then after taking the opportunity to scout out the location and make sure no one was watching the property. “It seems safe enough here, though I dislike your proximity to the mage’s stronghold.”

Mae nodded in agreement. After listening to Jill’s explanation last night, she was more than a little worried that Robert Hall might drop in on them unannounced, but the lake house still seemed the strongest position from which to stage their raid and rescue mission. Behind Mae, the bell on the streetcar rang. She turned to her mother. “Stay safe,” Mae said. “Stay hidden from the hounds.”

“I shall, and I have my own Champion to guard me,” she said, nodding toward Kravis, who was standing by the streetcar’s red door. Her mother paused, giving Mae a pensive look. “Daughter,
promise
me you will not do anything foolish. I desire Fay’s rescue as much as you, but if you find yourself overmatched, swear you will retreat.”

“Promise.” The bell rang again. She pulled her mother close and kissed her on the cheek. “I’ll bring her home.”

She turned to Jill with a frown as Mirallyn and Kravis stepped through the red door into the yellow machine, off on their search for Ellie or information about her fate. The car pulled away, swaying and clacking along on its tracks. “Have we figured out how these streetcars work? ’Cause I’m pretty sure I never saw any rail tracks anywhere near this place before that car showed up.”

“I thought it had to do with where the cars had traveled before, back when they worked in our reality. Sort of a case of phantom tracks for phantom streetcars, but that doesn’t seem to be how it works, at least not with this one.”

“It’s the fact that the sign reads Malveaux Express that freaks me out.”

Jill gave her a surprised look. “You’re just now getting freaked out?”

She shivered in the worn, fur-trimmed robe she had borrowed from her mother. “Well, for relative values of freaked out.”

Jill held out a hand to her. “Ready?”

“You look dashing,” Mae said, nodding toward the black eye patch and leather jacket Kravis had procured for her friend. It added to the overall “I am a badass, and you had best stay out of my way” effect Jill seemed to be projecting. Mae supposed battling faerie warriors and walking into the Underworld might put a little swagger in your step. She just hoped Jill was not getting overconfident.

Jill flipped her long hair and smiled brilliantly. “I have that pirate queen thing going on, don’t I?”

“More so with all the nicks and cuts all over your face,” Mae said.

“I earned them fair and square.” Jill laughed.

Mae nodded. “I know.” She paused and bit her lower lip as Jill opened the door and led the way into the kitchen. “Are you sure you want to keep hanging around with me?”

“Mae—”

“I’m just asking because, well, I nearly got you killed, and I couldn’t and wouldn’t blame you one bit if you changed your mind.”

They settled into the wooden chairs at the kitchen table. Mae looked directly into Jill’s face, hoping she would find understanding, afraid she would find something else entirely. She started to tremble as Jill regarded her with one pale blue eye.

Jill sighed dramatically. “You are the silliest girl in the world.”

Mae frowned. “I wouldn’t go that far. And who was worried about me changing my mind last night?”

“Yes, well, that is true. I’m not giving you up after all the work I’ve put into this relationship.”

Mae grinned, her good humor restored by Jill’s answer. “You realize the relationship’s only a few days old?”

“Beside the point. I tramped into and through the frozen wastes of the Underworld, battling hell hounds the whole way, for your skinny butt.” Jill leaned forward and gave Mae a mock leer, made all the more sinister looking by Jill’s eye patch. “And you promised me a tumble, girly. I’m holding you to that.”

“Need to get your piece of flesh?”

“Yes. But right now I need to get breakfast.”

“Let’s see what we can find.” Mae stood, but Jill waved her away.

“I know where everything is. I’ll take care of food.”

“Okay. You still need to call your boss too.”

Jill made a dismissive noise. “I’ll call Millard later. He’ll wonder what happened and start to worry. When I do call him, he’ll be so relieved I’m all right and didn’t quit that he’ll accept any old line I feed him.”

“That’s cruel,” Mae said.

“Yeah, but it will work.”

Mae watched as Jill bent down, nearly disappearing behind the counter. She heard a door open and the sounds of Jill searching the cabinet for something. Jill came back into view, holding a toaster.

Mae nodded toward the toaster. “How long will that take, because I’m starving.”

Jill set down the toaster and opened the freezer. “We’re having toaster waffles. It will be a handful of minutes at best, greedy.” She pulled out a frost-covered package of waffles and placed four in the toaster.

Mae smiled at her. Her smile vanished as she remembered the reason they were hiding out in the lake house. “Do you think you’ll be up for a little scouting after breakfast?”

“What about the C
n Annwn?”

Jill took a bottle of syrup from the pantry and placed it on the table. The toaster popped out crispy, golden brown waffles. She placed them on a serving plate and started four more.

“I stand in awe of your mad waffle toasting skills,” Mae said with a straight face.

“Then you can set the table. Plates are in that cabinet, silverware in this drawer.” Jill pointed Mae to the appropriate places. “Now, back to my original point. What are we going to do about those hounds?”

“I don’t think there’s anything we can do,” Mae said, pulling plates from the cabinet and placing them on the breakfast table. “We’ll just have to hope they don’t show up.”

Jill frowned. “There’s butter in the fridge. We’re going to need it. And when the hounds do show up?”

“We ad lib.”

Jill joined Mae at the table, waffles in hand. “That’s the worst plan ever.”

“The floor is open to ideas,” Mae said, grabbing a waffle with her fingers and moving it to her plate, dressing it with butter and syrup.

“I didn’t say I had a better idea.”

Mae took a bite and chewed, letting the butter, maple syrup and crisp fried dough melt in her mouth. She watched Jill, who was not attacking her food with her usual reckless gusto, but instead was being very precise in her cuts and chewing slowly, apparently savoring every bite.

Mae considered how they were planning to get into the Arneson house, free her sister and close the door to Annwn. Jill would be able to walk right through the front door as a guest. Right into a trap. Mae did not like the plan, but it was all they had.

She watched Jill set her fork on her plate and dab at her face with a paper napkin. Jill stood and grabbed her cell phone. “I’m going to call Millard.”

Mae took the two sticky plates to the sink and started to rinse them off, still lost in thought. She had been sure of herself earlier, and though she was wavering now, it did not change the need to rescue her sister. Cutting off the door to Annwn was secondary to saving Fay.

Mae left the plates in the sink and poured herself a cup of coffee. She heard Jill’s phone ring in one of the other rooms. Jill’s voice drifted into the kitchen. Mae was unable to understand anything Jill was saying, but the tone in Jill’s voice sounded surprised.

Mae sat back down at the table and looked out the window. A white winter world of snow-covered landscape greeted the morning light. They would have to take as close a look at the Arneson place as possible and hope an opening presented itself.

Jill walked into the kitchen holding her cell phone, a bemused look on her face.

“Did you reach your boss?” Mae asked.

“Yeah. No worries there.”

Mae nodded, waiting for Jill to continue. “You’re not going to believe who called,” Jill finally said.

“Santa Claus?” Mae deadpanned.

“Not even close.” Jill walked to the coffee pot and poured the last of the dark liquid in her cup before settling at the table across from Mae.

Mae decided she could not take the suspense anymore. “Okay. Who called?”

“My brother. Reminding me that I’m invited to attend a private event some family friends are throwing tomorrow night. He said he thought it would be good for me to meet some people who could ‘help me reach my true potential.’” Jill raised her cup to her lips and paused. “So…trap?”

“Trap.”

Jill grinned. “We’re going to walk right into it anyway, aren’t we?”

“Yes,” Mae said. “We are.”

Mae turned to Jill and whispered into her ear. “Do you get the feeling we’re being watched?” She gave the gathering darkness another sweep with her eyes. The two women were slowly moving away from the Arneson mansion, the object of their scrutiny for the entire day, and back to the Hall lake house.

“Just from the moment we stepped onto the Arneson property,” Jill replied with a shiver that had little to do with the freezing cold. “That place is damned creepy.”

Mae silently agreed that the huge old Victorian mansion was an imposing structure, made the more so because they both knew what was going on inside the doors. “No. This is more like someone stalking us.”

Jill paused and lifted her eye patch. Jill’s new ability to see magic had probably saved them more than once during their little scouting foray, guiding them around the many magically enchanted and charged items they could have stumbled upon during their investigation. Mae had no idea what any of those magics could do. For all she and Jill knew, they had tripped some kind of security alarms or surveillance spells, but the fact they were still alive and had not been attacked was enough to make Mae thankful.

“I can’t see anything,” Jill finally said. “Come on, let’s get back to the house before it gets
really
dark. I don’t feel like stumbling around in the snow-covered underbrush, especially with my complete lack of depth perception.”