AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He shrugged. "Funny is good, it keeps a soul healthy. Lead on, lady."
We searched the house from top to bottom, although I conveniently ignored the basement. The entrance, hidden behind the bookcase door, stayed safely off-limits. Menolly's lair was sacrosanct.
As we returned to the living room, satisfied that nobody was lurking in the hall closet or under the beds, Morio set his bag down on the love seat and quickly assumed the lotus position next to it. Mighty flexible, I thought, wondering in what other ways he might be flexible. My body was jumping on the bandwagon my mind had already commissioned and set into motion.
I offered him a drink, and he accepted a beer. As I handed it to him, he stared at me, appraising me from head to toe, and the appraisal looked good. I licked my lips. While I was used to men staring at me—if only for the size of my breasts—this was different. This could lead to something, and coming so soon on the trail of Trillian's visit, I wasn't sure whether that was a good idea or not.
I settled down in the recliner. "All manners aside, tell me who you are."
He cracked a smile. "I can see you won't be satisfied with a simple explanation."
"Not on your life. Spill it, as the locals say."
He shrugged. "You know my name—Morio—and I told you the truth. Grandmother Coyote sent me to help you. I'm one of the yokai-kitsune."
"Kit what?" For all I knew, it could be a family clan name, a tribe, or some secret fraternal order.
"Yokai-kitsune. Fox demon would be a close translation."
Demon ? Oh shit! I jumped up and looked around wildly for the nearest weapon. The silver short swords my father had given to each of us were safely ensconced in a cabinet in the parlor. Since the closest thing I could reach was a sofa cushion, I held out my hands to gather the moon's energy, hoping that she wouldn't fail me now.
He cocked one eyebrow. "You're going to attack me? Oh, that's nice."
Hesitating, I stared at him, waiting. "Then you really aren't from the Subterranean Realms? Why would Grandmother Coyote send you here?"
Morio snorted. "No, I'm not from down under, and she sent me because you obviously can't handle this situation on your own. If I'd been from the netherworlds, you'd be toast by now, and I'd be feasting on your bones." He patted the seat beside him. "Now, sit down and quit being a drama queen!"
Of all the arrogant, smarmy—I paused when I looked into his upturned face. He was patiently waiting for me to do as told. I wanted to stomp off into the kitchen; however, this situation was going from bad to worse, and we needed all the help we could get. I sat down, sighing.
He smiled, satisfied. "Good. You know how to listen. As I said, I'm a yokai-kitsune. I come from Japan, though I've been to the U.S. several times before. I owe Grandmother Coyote a big favor, and she's calling it in, so here I am. She wants me to help you find the spirit seals. After hearing about what's going on, I am more than happy to be of service. Nobody's going to invade my world and get away with it."
I examined his face. Now that I had a chance to look closer, I could see that his ears were slightly pointed and that his teeth seemed a little sharp for a human. But he wasn't Faerie—not in the sense that my father was.
"You say you're a demon?" I asked.
"In a manner of speaking. Demon, nature spirit, what have you. The terms aren't important. What matters is that I'm not human, even though I take the form for the most part."
"A Were?"
Again, a shake of the head. "No. Demon."
I could see I wasn't going to get much else out of him, so changed the subject. "I thought Grandmother Coyote wouldn't interfere."
"She won't, but she can ask others to step in. Shadow Wing is upsetting the balance, and the Hags of Fate don't like it when the scales are off-kilter." He opened his bag and pulled out the object he'd been holding earlier. As I'd suspected, it was a skull. "This is my familiar. I have to have this in order to change into a human. If I lose it, the next time I change into a fox, I can't change back until it's returned to me. It was given to me at birth. I'm telling you this so you don't get any bright ideas about swiping it for one of your spells."
I blushed. "I'd never think of it," I said, though it occurred to me that I still owed Grandmother Coyote the finger bone of a demon, and here was one, sitting in my living room. But I was a good hostess. I wasn't going to conk this guy over the head and make off with his skull, let alone cut off his finger, especially after she'd asked him to help us fight Shadow Wing. Besides, I was more interested in other body parts.
"So, what did she tell you?"
"Everything I need to know. You're looking for the spirit seals that have been lost. If you don't find them before Shadow Wing does, we're in big trouble. What I don't understand is why the OIA won't step in with a mass attack and take care of this problem."
"Because they can't." The voice from the front door startled us both, and I leapt up, catching my breath. Trillian. Again. And he didn't look happy to see Morio sitting there.
* * *
CHAPTER 10
"Will you stop that? Next time ring the bell!" I glared at him as he wandered in and slid into a chair, his eyes never leaving me after a single glance in Morio's direction.
