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“You are? That’s a pretty specific allergy.”
I shrugged as Maddox opened the door for me, the scent of earthy incense wafting out. “My dad would train them as a kid,” I explained. “He stopped when he realized it was the cause of my sneezing fits.”
Back when he used to love me. When things were so much more simple.
I couldn’t dwell on it much longer, a distraction presenting herself from behind the counter. Claire wore an easy smile that matched the flowing teal-and-silver robe, the rich-looking fabric sparkling under the light. “Hey there, boys. Welcome to the Magic Box.” She opened her arms and did a twirl, nearly tripping over Robby, who had walked out from a back room with four boxes stacked in his arms. She accidentally hit the topmost box and sent it tumbling. Before it even hit the ground, Claire sent out a thick thread of crimson-red mana, stopping it inches from the floor and lifting it back onto Robby’s stack.
“Whoops, sorry,” she said, smiling.
“No worries,” Robby answered. His skin, smooth like a pebble sitting at the bed of a rushing river, was only slightly unsettling. If I hadn’t met him before, I would be a little more nervous around him. Not that I thought all vampires were bloodthirsty monsters out to ruin the balance of power, but, well, many were. And after what happened with the dragon fall only a few months ago, the vampires had a lot of footwork to do if they wanted to earn back some goodwill.
But Robby had proved to be one of the good ones. Not only did he save the dragons (and the world) from extinction, but he was also a fun time. Playing card games with him and the rest of the family had been a highlight for me, so it was nice to see him and Claire again.
“Good catch, though,” Robby said, placing the boxes gently down next to the counter. He opened up the flaps on the top box and pulled out a dark black and smokey orb. “If these broke, then we’d all be knocked out.”
“Oooh,” Claire said, tapping her fingers together and moving toward the box. “I didn’t realize we had these back in stock.” She lifted one of the orbs and held it to the light. “Shadow balls. They can tell your future if you know how to read the smoke. And if you don’t, then you can shatter it and fill the room with a near-lethal covering of whatever the hell’s inside this. Like this.”
She lifted her hand up high and motioned to throw it when all three of us held out our hands and said, “No!” in unison.
Claire started to laugh before placing the shadow ball back into the box, the glass clinking against the rest. “Jeez, you boys are so on edge.” She glanced at Maddox. “Very not like you.” She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. I noticed the shirt she wore under her robe was from a Lady Gaga concert. I wasn’t a huge listener of music, but I was gay, and I did have ears, so I did enjoy Mother Marvel and appreciated anyone else who did the same.
“It’s been a complicated couple of weeks,” Maddox replied. He was taller than Claire by about six inches, and yet the Marvel’s aura made her seem like she was the all-powerful dragon in the room. She held her chin high, and an easy smile cocked on her face as she absent-mindedly played with the turquoise gem hanging from her necklace.
“What’s going on? You mentioned something about the Crimson Ring over the phone?”
Robby’s head snapped up from the boxes he was working to unpack. “The Crimson Ring?”
Maddox nodded. His icy-blue eyes darted in my direction. We stood shoulder-to-shoulder. The back of my hand brushed his, but instead of snatching it away, I left it there, enjoying the gentle sparks that spread through me. Helped keep me calm as Maddox gave Claire and Robby the rundown.
“Holy fuck,” Claire said, echoed by a “Shiiiiit” from Robby. He had stopped restocking the shelf and instead sat cross-legged on the floor, head in his hands. It was the expected reaction whenever someone was faced with the idea of the Chaos King returning.
“Okay, okay.” Claire clapped her hands together. “This is doable. They only have one of the paintings, and you need all three, right? Do we know where the other two are?”
Maddox and I both shook our heads. “No,” I answered. “But we know for certain that they don’t have it. Or it would be raining blood and glass by now.” A cold and cruel shiver crawled down my back.
“Then we need to get that painting back,” Claire said. “And yes, yes, I realize that’s the obvious answer. But I also think I have the not-so-obvious solution to our problem.”
