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"Which we don't want to hear, right?" I gazed out the window at the snow-filled night. The clouds were parting and it looked like the snowstorm was letting up. Maybe Loki did take the snow with him.
"Most likely, young woman," the Queen said, a faint smile on her face. "We managed to capture one of Shadow Wing's spies. The beast no longer lives, but before he died, he told us that there's a network of spies living in your area. We believe Shadow Wing knows that all the seals are to be found here. That's why he's sending his scouts through the local portals and not elsewhere."
Shit. "Then he knows what we know."
"For the most part, yes. So the race is on, and time and knowledge are no longer on your side. Dredge was a hideous monster. Shadow Wing makes him look like a schoolboy."
"What else?" Camille asked.
Roz snorted. "The Cryptos are up in arms back in OW… They have withdrawn from supporting anybody in Y'Elestrial's civil war and there are rumors that something's going on in the Windwillow Valley. Something to do with the Dahns unicorns. We have no idea what it could be at this point—"
"Not all of us are in the dark," Queen Asteria said, standing. "Be prepared for a messenger from the unicorns to arrive in a few months. It will take time for certain events to play out back in OW, though, so don't fret and don't ask questions." She arranged her cloak and turned to Roz. "And now I must return to Elqaneve. My guards await me. Rozurial, accompany me to the portal."
Rather unceremoniously, she turned and exited the room before we could say good-bye. Camille immediately began to demand Trillian's presence, as Chase, Morio, and Delilah spun into a frenzy of talk over the spirit seals. I headed toward the kitchen and to silence.
Maggie was playing in her pen, and I picked her up and snuggled her on my shoulder. So much had happened that I scarcely knew how to take it all in. In the blink of an eye, I was no longer aligned with my sire, I'd defeated the person I hated most in the world, and I'd been thrust into motherhood—of a sort—all within less than a week.
Iris joined me. "Are you all right?"
I shook my head. "More or less… no… yes… I don't know. I don't know what to think or do. I'm very confused right now."
She hopped up on her stool and leaned her elbows on the table. "About Nerissa?"
"About Nerissa and Jareth—I made love to him when I thought I could never stand a man's touch again. And then there's Erin. I'm a mother now, Iris. I swore I'd never sire another vampire and I did. And one of our friends, at that.">Shaking my braids out of my face, I slowly rose to face Loki. He was holding an orb of energy in his hand. Dredge's soul. I swallowed, backing up a couple steps. What the hell was going to happen now? But Mr. L. merely ran his gaze over me, from head to toe, then winked. I could hear Dredge give one last scream as Loki, his wolf-child, and his vampire child vanished.
"Camille, can you stand up?" Delilah had returned to normal. She crawled over to where Camille lay on the floor, the calves of both legs bleeding at a good clip.
"Where is he?" Morio was first through the door. The barrier had disappeared. He took one look around the room, saw the bloody stake, and reached his own conclusions. "Is everybody okay—Camille? Camille!" He rushed over to where Delilah was trying to fashion bandages out of a sheet to stop the bleeding.
Roz and Chase were right behind him. Roz pushed both Delilah and Morio aside. "Let me. I brought a healing salve, just in case. It will at least stop the bleeding until we can get her medical aid." As he rubbed the ointment on her wounds, she grimaced.
"Oh Great Mother, that stings," she said.
"Payback for the stitches," he countered, smirking.
"So he's gone? Dead?" Chase glanced around and whistled. "You sure did a number on this room. Cracked the walls, burned down the bed, scorched the carpet, broke the windows… You're not ever staying at my place, that's for sure."
I snorted. "Thank you, Mr. Wise Ass. Camille invited a lightning bolt to come and play, which started the fire, and then she put it out with a few buckets of rain. I'm the one responsible for the cracked wall."
Chase stared at us, then began to laugh. "Just another day in the life of the D'Artigo sisters, huh?"
I knelt by the stake, staring at the pile of ashes. The wind blowing through the window caught them up, set them spiraling, and then carried them away. Roz joined me as we gazed out into the chilly Seattle night.
"I don't know how we did it. I honestly don't know how we managed to kill him." I told him about the fight. "We're good… but are we that good?"
"Apparently so. But perhaps… perhaps you had a little help?" Roz picked up the stake and stared at the bloodied end.
"What do you mean?"
"Maybe Loki was ready to make Dredge pay his debt. Maybe not. Whatever the case, I'll bet you the winter dies down in a few days." Roz shook his head. "I can't believe it's over. I've followed his tracks ever since he killed my family. For seven hundred years I've traced him across plain and over mountain. And now, at the end, I didn't even get to look in his eyes as he died."
I hung my head. "I wish you could have been here with us. He's gone. But the rest of the Elwing Clan still lives." I glanced at the window. "They're out there, somewhere."
"And he was their leader. If he treated them like he did you, you'll be their savior." Roz wiped the stake on a blanket and stuck it in his jacket.
"And if they worshiped Dredge… they'll come after me. Eventually." I stood up and dusted my hands off on my butt. "I'll be ready for them."
"Now what?" Roz asked.
