CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
"Hey, no dogs allowed in here.” Pedro pointed a broad finger at Misty and Xav standing slightly behind her. “Sorry, those are the rules. Health department.”
Matt and Kyle started around the counter of the convenience store, growling and snapping at Pedro, unhappy about being called dogs. Dougal lunged for them and grabbed one cub under each arm.
“They sure are cute little guys,” Pedro said, looking them over. “What kind are they?”
The store was empty except for Pedro at the moment. No one was at the gas pumps this early, and traffic was sparse on the roads.
“Wolf,” Dougal said.
“Wolf hybrids?” Pedro reached out to pet Kyle.
“No.” Dougal said. “All wolf.”
Pedro jerked his hand back at the same time Dougal’s T-shirt moved to show his Collar above the neckband. Pedro lowered his hand and swallowed. “No Shifters either. Sorry. Owner’s policy.”
“We’ll be out in no time,” Misty said brightly. “Promise. You two.” She pointed a finger at first Matt then Kyle. “Where? And no goofing around.”
Kyle and Matt wriggled to get down. Dougal set them on their feet then followed close behind the cubs, Misty after him. Pedro stayed put, watching, but not moving to stop them.
Matt and Kyle led them to a door marked “Private,” then behind that to the stockroom, and to where the refrigerated goods were stored.
Both cubs sat down and started whimpering.
“They’re saying the ley line comes out here,” Dougal said to Misty. “In the back of a convenience store?”
“Probably the convenience store was built over it.” Misty looked around. A stockroom was a stockroom—shelves of things to replace what was bought, door to a small office, door to a bathroom, large back door for deliveries. “Does the ley line automatically work, or do you have to do something to activate it? I can’t believe it’s automatic. I think people would have started noticing employees disappearing from the convenience store stockroom over the years.”
“You have to do something,” a new voice said. Ben was standing in the shadows, the man’s short, broad appearance making him look like a creature from fairy stories. Which, in the circumstances, wasn’t comforting. “This is why you need me.”
Xavier had his Taser at the ready, and Dougal growled and stepped protectively in front of Misty. Ben came out of the shadows, regarding Dougal and Xav fearlessly. The cubs echoed Dougal’s snarls and rushed at Ben, not holding back.
Ben took a step away and raised his hands. “It’s all right, little guys. I’m not going to hurt her.”
Kyle and Matt eased off, though they kept up little growls as they sniffed Ben’s running shoes.
Xav didn’t back down. “The cubs might believe you, but I don’t,” he said. “Who the hell are you?”
“I’m Ben. Misty called me. She needs my help.”
“You smell wrong,” Dougal’s nose wrinkled. “In fact, you stink.”
“Yeah, I get that a lot, but only from Shifters.” Ben grinned. “Humans like the way I smell.”
“Not exactly,” Xavier said.
“You’re not human,” Dougal said, looking at Ben’s tight, flat face, scarred from whatever fights he’d had.
“No kidding,” Ben said, but let that interesting answer hang. “Misty, do you want to save Graham or not?”
“Of course I want to save him.” Misty tried to push past Dougal and Xav, but couldn’t. Dougal stood fast, his body almost as solidly strong as Graham’s. “You said on the phone he was in Faerie. How do you know that?”
“I know when a gate opens. And one did, early this morning. Then you called and said your boyfriend was missing—I put two and two together. The Fae must have compelled him to come. Only you can get him away.”
“Me? How? I have no idea what do to.”
Ben gestured to the book she’d brought with her. “It’s in there. Everything you need to know.”
Misty glanced at it then back at Ben, her eyes narrowing. “How do you know what’s in the book? I didn’t have it with me when I talked to you.”
“Because I wrote it.”
Misty looked Ben over again, the feeling of wrongness about him increasing. Xav made a noise of disbelief.
“You wrote it,” Misty said, “back in 1907?”
Ben nodded. “Yep. I’ve been around. The Fae have tried to return to the human world before . . . the last time was early in the twentieth century. They used interest in the standing stones, the growing popularity of the occult, Ouija boards, mediums, whatever they could, to try to find a way back in. I wrote these spells for humans, so they could counteract coercive Fae magic if necessary. The book was very popular at the time, though most humans didn’t realize how magical it was.”
Misty ran her hands over the leather cover and opened to the frontispiece and the color plate of an heirloom rose. “Did you do the pictures?”
“Nah, don’t have the talent. I hired an artist. He did a good job.”
Misty closed the book again. “I’m still stuck on the part where you wrote it in 1907.”
Dougal broke in, his voice fierce. “Means he has something other than human blood in him. He’s not Shifter, though. Are you Fae?”
Ben laughed. “No way. Ask your dokk alfar. I’m not dokk alfar either, but he knows.”
Misty listened to the exchange in impatience. “What in this book lets me open the ley line, so I can find Graham?”
“It opens a path along the ley line. Page forty-six.”
Misty flipped to it and read the words printed in a fancy typeface, surrounded by line drawings of flowers. Violets, forget-me-nots, yellow roses, and a sprinkle of rosemary, scattered in a swirl. Call the blessings of the Goddess, turn thrice clockwise, and chant the letters of your name in reverse.
Misty looked up at Ben. “Seriously?”
Ben shrugged. “Turning in circles and saying things backward was popular at the time. The important part is the type of flowers and the pattern, which you lay directly on a ley line. And call to the Goddess, because you will need her protection. Don’t do this without her.” Ben paused, his dark eyes in this dim light like pools of blackness. “Seriously.”
“Misty,” Xav said. “Who is this guy, and why are you listening to him?”
Misty faced Xav, her chest tight. She’d been holding herself clenched so that her worry for Graham wouldn’t reduce her to a puddle of ineffectual nothing. “Someone who might help me get to Graham. I’m willing to do anything, no matter how crazy, to help him. Understand?”
Xavier looked down at her for a long time. He’d been guarding her in the house and store since her adventure in the desert, and he’d been witness to every shift in Misty’s relationship with Graham. She saw in Xav’s eyes now that he knew she’d chosen Graham and would never have interest in a human ex-cop. A Shifter had gotten under Misty’s skin, and she saw that Xav understood.
“All right. But I’m sticking by you, and keeping an eye on this one.” Xav gestured with his Taser to Ben.
“Fair enough.” Misty turned from him and read the words again. “Violets and forget-me-nots. You didn’t live in this climate, did you?”
“Ireland,” Ben said. “At the time.”
“Rosemary is easy. I have some growing at home, plus there’s always the supermarket. These other two . . . Damn it.”
“What?” Dougal asked in alarm. “What’s wrong?”
“I’d have these flowers in stock, but the gang boys destroyed everything. This means I have to buy from a rival florist, one that would be happy to see me go out of business. I swear, when I get Graham back safely, I’ll let him visit Sam Flores, wherever he’s been stashed, and kick his sorry behind.”
“I’ll do it.” Dougal flashed her his grin again, the one that said he liked any excuse for trouble.
“No, you won’t.” Misty punched numbers into her phone. “Hi,” she said to the pleasant-voiced woman who answered the phone. “I’d like to place an order. A rush. In fact, I’ll pick it up from you. Yes, I know a rush is extra . . .”
? ? ?
An hour later, Misty and Xav returned from the florist with bunches of purple, blue, and yellow flowers. The owner of the flower store had pretended to be very sympathetic to the vandalism to Misty’s shop, saying she wouldn’t blame Misty for closing. “So dangerous, sometimes, to run a small place on your own,” the woman had said. “We could always find a job for you in one of our shops, if you want it.”
“I’m not closing,” Misty had answered, irritated. “I’m waiting for the rest of my repairs then I’m back in business.”
“Oh,” the woman had said, giving her a false smile. “That’s so brave of you.”
Misty had taken her flowers without further word and departed. Xav helped unload them from her car back at her own shop, where Dougal and Ben had waited with the cubs. Misty thrust the bunches of flowers into Ben’s, Dougal’s, and Xav’s hands and told them to follow her back to the convenience store.
“I hope no one sees me like this,” Dougal said. He glanced around, as though worried other Shifters, the grizzly brothers maybe, would pull up, point to Dougal with his arms full of blue blossoms, and laugh.
“Suck it up,” Misty said. She gave Dougal a smile to soften her words. “Hey, Graham’s right about that saying—it’s useful.”
She led the way back into Pedro’s store. Pedro only sighed when Misty asked to use the back room for a few more minutes and agreed, as long the owner didn’t find out. He didn’t ask questions—Pedro had once told Misty he’d seen it all. Maybe Misty charging into his storeroom with two wolf cubs, a Shifter, an armed security guy, and a whatever-he-was carrying armloads of flowers wasn’t the oddest thing he’d ever encountered.
Misty followed Ben to the spot he indicated, and started laying the flowers in the patterns specified by the book. It seemed a shame to toss the blossoms to the floor, when they would look beautiful arranged in a big vase—small purple blooms of the violets and the vibrant blue of the forget-me-nots against the large yellow roses.
The florist had carried rosemary sprigs as well, in bloom. Their spiky leaves and tiny, pale blue flowers would also look good in the arrangement. The pungent scent of rosemary mixed with the heady odor of roses as Misty worked.
She laid the flowers out in a swirling pattern, leaving enough room in the middle of it for herself and her companions. Then she stripped the rosemary from its stems, as the book told her, and sprinkled the little leaves over the rest of the flowers.
“Now the circles?” Misty asked, thumbing to the page in the book.
“The blessing of the Goddess first,” Ben said. “That’s the most important thing. The other stuff is . . . pizzazz.”
Misty held the book closed, her finger on the spell. “How do I call the Goddess? I’ve never done that before.”
“I know how,” Dougal said. He handed the cubs to Ben and stepped to Misty in the circle. Matt and Kyle settled down in Ben’s big arms, having decided he was a friend.
Dougal took Misty’s hands. His were more rawboned than Graham’s, but just as large and strong. “Think of deepest moonlight,” Dougal said. “Close your eyes, and picture it.”
As soon as Misty shut her eyes, she saw moonlight as it had poured into her backyard last night when Graham had lain over her, his weight warming. His eyes had filled with reflected moonlight as he’d thrust into her, his lovemaking rough, but his hands so gentle.
Misty thought she could feel the cool light here in this dim storeroom. A calm stole over her, one sweetly peaceful.
“The Goddess,” Dougal said in a soft voice. “Be with us.” He twined his fingers more tightly with Misty’s. “I ask your blessings to be upon Misty, as she walks the dangerous path.”
More peace. A breeze touched her cheek, one so tender Misty wanted to melt. “And on Dougal,” Misty said softly. “And the cubs, and Ben.”
A sigh, a breath, perhaps a faint laugh. Misty opened her eyes. The sense of the moonlight evaporated, and she stood again in the dingy storeroom, its fluorescent lights flickering.
“Well done,” Ben said. He handed the cubs to Dougal. “Now the turning and the chanting. Has to happen. Dougal, stay close to her, so that when she goes through, you do too.”
Misty stopped. “No, no, Dougal is staying here. With the cubs. I thought you’d be coming with me,” she said to Ben.
Ben shook his head. “The way to Faerie is sealed for me and my kind. Was ages ago. Dougal can protect you—he’s stronger than he knows.”
“Not the cubs,” Misty said firmly. “You can cub-sit.”
“Yeah,” Dougal agreed, and tried to shove the wolves back at Ben.
Ben took a step back and raised his hands. “Oh, no, you’ll need those little guys. Trust me. They’re essential.”
Dougal and Misty looked at each other. “Graham will take my head off for bringing them,” Dougal said, worried.
The two wolves stared up at Misty with perfect confidence. She reached out and petted each of their heads in turn. “Why do you want me to take them?” Misty asked Ben.
Except Ben wasn’t there. He was gone, the half-empty shelves in the stockroom silent.
“Crap,” Xav said, looking around wildly. “I don’t like that guy.”
Misty took a cub, Kyle, and cuddled him into the circle of her arm. “Doesn’t matter. We might as well take these two,” she said, heaving a sigh. “They’d probably just find a way to follow us.”
Matt and Kyle wagged tails and squirmed in delight.
Dougal moved his head as Matt started licking his chin. “Why do we have to use this spell? When you went through the basement, and when the cubs did, you didn’t have to use flowers and rituals.”
“Don’t ask me.” Misty rubbed the top of Kyle’s head. “But if this works, I don’t care.”
“Crazy Fae shit,” Dougal said. “How about we worry about it after we find Graham? Start twirling.”
“Clockwise.” Misty held Kyle more firmly and turned to her right. Once, twice, three times. “Y-T-S-I-M.”
She stopped. The air conditioner clicked on with a rattle. Another light flickered. But they remained in place, flowers scattered around them.
“Is that all?” Dougal asked.
Misty checked the book. “Yes.” No. Names, those were important, the book said—the difference between what a person was called, and her true name.
Misty closed the book and did the turning again. “A-S-S-I-L-E-Mmm . . . Holy crap.”
She’d stopped moving but seemed to be still spinning in place. The flowers lifted around her, circling her, petals leading stems. Yellow, blue, violet, yellow, blue, violet. Faster and faster, making her dizzy.
In the blaze of petals and scent—rose, violet, rosemary, forget-me-not—Misty reached out and latched her hand around Dougal’s wrist. Xav shouted. Misty felt Xav’s warm fingers on her arm, and then they slipped away, disappearing.
The whirlwind increased, the vortex sucking them somewhere. Misty couldn’t think or see, hear or smell anymore. She could only feel the steel strength of Dougal’s arm under her hand, and the warm body of Kyle against her chest.
The whirling dropped away, the flowers falling at once. Dead, petals and leaves brown.
But scents and color lingered. Misty was in a cave with a smooth black floor, covered in vines of colorful flowers, their scents so strong they were sickening. The fountain she remembered burbled enticingly in the center of the cave.
Other than that, all was quiet. No one was there, not Oison, not Graham. Xav was gone too, left behind. Misty’s hand remained on Dougal’s arm. He moved closer to her, Matt whimpering.
“Where is he?” Dougal’s whisper was loud in the relative silence.
Misty looked around the cave. It was dark, but again lit from above, as though cracks opened to sunlight. If she found the entrance to the cave, would she emerge in the hot Nevada desert? Or someplace strange to her?
“Matt,” Dougal said frantically. “Son of a bitch.”
Matt had wriggled hard out of Dougal’s arms. Kyle kicked free of Misty at the same time and landed on his paws, running as soon as he hit the ground.
“Kyle, Matt!” Misty yelled. “Wait!”
She ran after the two cubs, who were loping off into the darker part of the cave. She jumped over ropes of flowers she swore reached up to grab her as she passed. Dougal came behind, his human snarls changing to wolf’s.
The cave went on for a long way. The daylight faded, the only light a strange glow from beneath the fountain’s water.
Misty heard Matt and Kyle’s yipping ahead. She kicked at a Lady Banks’ rose vine trying to wind around her foot, and kept going.
She found Matt and Kyle pawing at a huge mound of flowers. Ropes of stems wound tightly around themselves, topped with vibrant flowers that shone in the eerie light.
Kyle and Matt pawed vigorously, little bodies moving as they tried to shove aside the vines. Whatever was under there, they wanted it.
“Will you listen to me if I tell you to leave it alone?” Misty asked them.
No response. Frantic digging. Yipping that turned into wild howling as soon as they made a hole in the vines.
All Misty’s breath went out of her. She fell to her knees, shoving aside the flowers Matt and Kyle had loosened.
Beneath them was Graham’s face. His eyes were closed, his skin pale, the scars and shadow of dark beard stark on his bloodless skin.