Night Myst (23 page)

“She’s safe,” Leo said. “We both vouch for her. By blood, bro.”

Kaylin eyed me closely, then shrugged. “All right. I trust you to that.” He pushed back his chair and wiped his mouth on his napkin. “I’m a dreamwalker, Cicely. When I was in the womb, my mother was initiated into an ancient shamanic tradition. There was a demon hanging out nearby and it took the chance to enter my soul. It’s not
in me
—not as
possessing
me. But the experience changed my very DNA. It opened me up on a psychic level. When the demon entered me, it died, but its essence blended into my own soul during the ritual and now we are one. I am both Kaylin, and what’s left of the night-veil.”

“Night-veil?” Oh wonderful. Now we were dealing with demons. Although it was hard to imagine any demon worse than the Vampiric Fae.

“They’re the creatures that you catch a glimpse of in the shadows—they hide in dusty attics, creep into old basements, and live in rotting barns. Only during the cover of night do they emerge, and they’re connected to the Bat Tribe.”

I had a lot to learn. So much of this had gone under my radar, living all those years on the road.

“I feel so stupid compared to all of you. So unprepared. Half this stuff . . . I knew it existed because, hell, I’m magic-born. But my life was so far removed from most magic except the spells I could summon. My existence with Krystal was like a bad seventies road movie. I learned what I could, but there are times I think I’m going to be a detriment because of my ignorance.”

“You’ll be fine. There’s more to you than meets the eye. Just remember: When in doubt, ask.” Kaylin gave me a gentle smile and I suddenly felt safe with him. His eyes promised that he’d do his best to help us, and that was good enough for me. He was on our side, and right now that’s what we needed.

And so, like that, we had our fourth. We spent the rest of breakfast filling him in on the Indigo Court, and what was waiting for us in the wood.

“I don’t like this,” Leo said as he carried our plates to the sink. Kaylin was washing the dishes, while Rhiannon and I cleaned the counters. “We’re going to get ourselves killed.”

“That’s probably going to happen anyway, if we don’t do something about the Shadow Hunters. But we know Heather and Peyton are out there and we have to at least give it a try. If the four of us go together, we might be able to hold off the tillynoks and whatever else might be out there.”

Kaylin stared at me for a moment, then wiped his mouth on a napkin. “Leo’s right. We’re probably going to get ourselves hurt, but I’m in.”

I folded the tea towel and hung it over the refrigerator handle. “Since it’s still fairly early, we might luck out and Myst’s people will be asleep.”

Some of them will be, but be careful, Cicely. Not all beasts thrive in the dark and the shadow.
Ulean’s voice rang clear in my head, and so did her concern.

At five minutes to nine we were standing in front of the path leading into the ravine. The sky was an odd silver color and the scent of snow-covered cedar hung thick in the air. Everywhere, the glint of light on snow sparkled like diamonds, glistening on the ferns and bushes.

Kaylin had his pack, Leo was dressed in khakis and a sweater that matched the surrounding foliage.
Camo,
I thought. Rhiannon was carrying a lighter and the firebombs that Leo and I made her bring.

I’d opted for the tough chick look: black jeans, black turtleneck, and my leather jacket. We all wore boots in which we could move through the snow and slush. For my weapons of choice, I’d slid my switchblade into a sheath attached to my wrist, and had stuck my athame in my boot sheath. Both blades were highly illegal to carry, but they did the trick.

“Okay, let’s head out.” Taking a deep breath, I plunged into the ravine. The path was level for the first twenty minutes of walking, then slowly began to descend. When Rhiannon and I’d been children, we’d usually stayed on this side of the ravine, in the wood near the house. But today, we had quite a hike in front of us.

The mat of needles and leaves beneath the snow scrunched as I led the way into the thick copse. Throughout the woods, the call of crows echoed from tree to tree, and one lone bird sang to announce the coming storms. I listened to the breeze that had picked up, but Ulean warned me from playing in the slipstream too much.

Great. Storms were crazy enough on their own. I tried to stay out of their way because if they could sense you had tuned in on them, they’d take aim at you like a lightning rod. And those of us who worked with the wind or weather tuned in to them like a compass needle seeking north.

I sent a mental hug to Ulean, surprised to feel one in return. It occurred to me that, now that I was settling down—and especially if I were to start up some sort of magical business—I’d need to begin regular meditation again. I’d taught myself how to meditate over the years and it kept me sane during my exile with Krystal. Now I could start to truly dive into my work with Ulean and see just how far we could take our partnership.

I’d like that.
A smile broke through her words.

I’d like that, too
.

I turned to the others. “Let’s get a move on, rough weather coming in.”

As I scrambled to the edge of the ravine, I noted the overgrown state of the path leading down and through it. When I was little, it had been carefully tended, but now it was a tangle of briars and other dangers, all hiding under a blanket of white.

“Watch it, there’s stinging nettle along this path and it will be hard to see now. Everything’s so overgrown and wild, and the snow over the slick ground won’t make this any easier.”

“ ‘Lay on, Macduff! Just don’t lead us to ruin
.
’ ” Leo was joking but I could sense the tension in his voice.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” I said.

The path was slippery, the overgrown foliage slick from the winter’s touch. The patches that were clear of plants had frozen, and were slick with black ice. Down below, mist rose from the bottom of the ravine. And the temperature was hovering around thirty-three degrees. Good thing we’d all worn heavy clothing.

I edged my way down, slipping and sliding, occasionally having to lean back toward the slope to balance myself with my hand. At a shout from Rhiannon, I glanced back. She’d landed on her butt in a patch of brambles.

“You okay?”

She nodded as Leo helped her up. “Yeah, a few thorns but nothing major.” Shaking off the clinging stickers, she cautiously passed over the slippery spot and I went back to deciphering the best way down.

Ravines in western Washington are usually steep, covered in thorny brambles and stinging nettle and ferns, and they’re moist. Fungi grow thick in them, and there’s the ever-present sense that the very ground is alive. Add a layer of snow, and freezing temperatures, and you have the perfect recipe for an accident.

The scents of ozone mingling with the cedar and fir created a sharp blend that went straight to my head. Scents affected me more than they did others, probably because of my affinity for the air.

The mist wafted up the side of the slope and I stopped, staring at the coiling, vaporous serpents. If there was anything hidden within the fog, we couldn’t see it. Chances are whatever might be cloaked couldn’t see us either, but Rhiannon and Leo weren’t skilled at quiet navigation. Kaylin appeared to be, and I knew how to soften my footsteps, but with the other two in tow it would be obvious we were coming.

I held up my hand and motioned for them to shut up. They quieted down, pausing as I listened. At first, the sound of snow falling from the branches to the ground below and the calling of crows overshadowed everything else, but as I tuned in and asked Ulean to separate the sounds for me, the layers began to pull apart. To the left—a small animal running through the overgrowth. Overhead, the trees creaked in the wind, branches rubbing against each other.

As I lowered myself even deeper into the slipstream of sound, I could hear the slow hiss of the mist as it rolled along the ground, alive and looking to cover and obscure. And behind the mist, spirits whispered on their passage through the ravine. Ghostly lips played out laughter and tears, sudden cries, then—just as suddenly silent.

And finally, below the mist, below the ghosts and the susurration of breeze, more whispering. But this time the noise was on a different frequency—not Elemental, but belonging to . . . the Fae. And that meant,
the Shadow Hunters
. But I heard no footfalls to warn me they were near, no vocalized thoughts to indicate they might be waiting below. No, this was different—as though I were listening through earphones to something distant and far away.

I let out a slow breath and turned back to the others. “We’re being watched, but I don’t sense any immediate danger. I think we’re safe enough.” I kept my voice as low as I could but no matter what I did, I knew the slipstream would catch it up for the waiting ears and eyes that hid behind the mist.

Turning back to the path, I began to make my way down into the first layer of mist that rose about a third of the way up the sides of the ravine. The fog swirled around me, cloaking everything outside of a couple yards in my path. While I could see my feet through the white swirls, we’d be walking blind here. I waited for the others to catch up.

“Don’t fall behind. I’ll go slow. We need to keep within sight of one another.”

“Will this help?” Kaylin passed me a thin rope. “We can each keep hold of it.”

“Sounds good to me. Don’t let it catch on anything.” I wrapped the end of the rope around my arm and once again headed into the mist. The chill echoed in my lungs, and reflexively I coughed, then whirled at a sudden stir in the wild rosebush next to me.

“Crap!” I stumbled back as a creature leapt out and landed near my feet. Squat, with bloated eyes, it was about three feet high, and had nasty-looking teeth in an oversized mouth. And it latched on to my leg.

I tried to shake it off, but it had a good hold and—oh shit, it was about to bite down. I had no doubt that those teeth would be able to rip right through my jeans and take a good chunk out of me.

“Get it off me!”

Kaylin rushed forward and landed a kick to its midsection. The creature let go but hissed at him and gathered itself for a leap. Before I could think, instinct took over and I flicked my switchblade open, stabbing the tip square on the creature’s back. As I pulled away for another blow, it jumped out of reach, reminding me of a toad, then ran off.

Panting, I faced Kaylin. “What the fuck was that?”

“Goblin dog. Goblins live in the forest with the Fae you know. They’re actually part of the whole Fae world, but both Seelie and Unseelie avoid them. Goblin dogs are . . . well, they’re intelligent to a degree. They’re a cross between goblins and other . . . creatures. Goblins that didn’t quite develop normally. They’re used as slaves and frontline grunts in wars. In other words: anytime somebody has to do the dirty work and stands a good chance of being offed.”

“Oh, how delightful. I’ve never heard of them. Hell, I barely know anything about the world of the Fae.” I paused. “How do you know so much?”

He gave me a long look. “The shamanic tradition my mother was initiated into, the magic that changed my DNA, is steeped in the magic of the Court of Dreams. The inhabitants of the Court aren’t fully corporeal and they work on the astral plane. They’re well aware of the Fae and I’ve learned much in the hundred years I’ve been alive.”

I’d never heard of the Court of Dreams but just the mention of it washed over me like a bucket of cold water. Something about the name . . .

“Wait . . . hundred years? You’re a hundred years old?”

“One hundred and one, yes.” He said it so matter-offactly that I decided to let that issue drop right there. We could discuss his age and how he managed to get there without looking a day over thirty later on, when we weren’t fighting goblin dogs.

“Okay. So, is this also what gives you your ability to see ghosts?”

“Yeah, and my other . . . abilities.” Kaylin nodded to the bottom of the ravine. “We’d better get a move on or that thing might come back. And frankly, I don’t know if we’re armed enough to actually kill it. You landed a nasty blow with your blade and barely slit the skin.”

The reality of what he was saying washed over me. We’d barely hurt the creature. What would we do if we were facing something more dangerous? No two ways about it: We had to shape up because chances were good that we wouldn’t make it through the next few months without another fight. Kaylin was experienced. And I knew enough to teach street fighting. We’d muddle through.

“Keep your eyes open. If something happens, don’t run off into the mist alone. Kaylin and I have the most experience fighting, so Leo, you stick with me. Kaylin, you help Rhia.”