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I managed to catch a glimpse of several members of the Blue Road Tribe—werebears—entering the room before, once again, I found myself face to face with Grandmother Coyote. She'd ensconced herself in a chair in the corner and was observing the room as it filled up.
Camille brought her up-to-date on Morgaine's appearance. "So, we want to know, is it really her and what does she want?"
Grandmother Coyote motioned for us to sit down. At her feet. Camille dropped to the floor and I wasn't far behind. When one of the Hags of Fate told you to sit at her feet, you sat.
She looked around to make sure we weren't being overheard. "Morgaine she was, indeed. Remember: Not all help can be trusted, even if it does not run in evil paths. There are few who can rival the sorceress, but she carries a great thirst for power. That thirst has been her undoing in the past. I doubt if she's learned much over the years."
At least Grandmother Coyote wasn't being cryptic this time. I frowned, wondering just what this little jewel of information was going to cost us. With the Hags of Fate, there was always a price.
"Then we shouldn't trust her?" I glanced at Camille, who stared at the floor, crestfallen.
Grandmother Coyote held my gaze. "There are few you can trust in this world. Even those who mean well can crumble under pressure. The more people who know your secrets, the more the chance for betrayal. That's why I'm here tonight. A warning: Think twice before you spill secrets about the Demonkin, because once you push Humpty off the wall, you're left with a mess of scrambled eggs." With that, she stood and made her way over to the buffet.
Camille and I sat, staring at one another.
"I'm sorry," I said. "I know you wanted to hear something different."
"My teacher regarded Morgaine as a heroine. I feel like one of my role models just fell off the pedestal. I wonder what all that talk about reclaiming what's rightfully hers is about. If she's going around mucking with ancient powers, then we'd better keep our ears open until we figure out just what the hell she's trying to do." She smacked her hand against the ground, then pushed herself to her feet. "Damn it, I hate this. There are so many variables, so many unknown factors at play in the balance now."
"Maybe she won't find the Merlin. Or maybe she'll go somewhere else. The Merlin can't be around here," I said, a nasty thought creeping in. "You don't think she knows about the spirit seals, do you? That she's looking for them in hopes of using them herself?" Surely someone like Morgaine would refuse to play second fiddle to a demon. If she were after them, she'd want them all for herself.
Camille flashed me a stricken look. "I hadn't thought about that. Well, hell in a handbasket, as if we didn't already have enough to worry about."
"Well, push it to the side. We'd better grab Delilah and the boys and have a quick discussion about the rest of what Grandmother Coyote said. I'm not so sure this meeting's a good idea after all," I muttered.
Camille nodded. "Me either."
Just then, the Hag of Fate returned, an incongruous Harry Potter paper plate filled with cookies in her hand. "One last thing, girls."
If she had one more discouraging word to say, I was going to bag it and take off for home. But she just gave us one of her steely grins that would have sent shivers down even Dredge's back.
"My payment for advice…"
Camille cringed. The last time she'd owed an I.O.U. to Grandmother Coyote, she'd had to play chop-chop with a demon's fingers to pay her debt.
"What do you want, old witch?" I asked, deciding that I'd had enough bullshit for the night. Camille gasped, but Grandmother Coyote just laughed.
"I like you, girl, but mind your manners." The cautionary tone was unmistakable and I swallowed, acknowledging her warning with a nod. "I'm giving you a particularly delicate assignment."
"Just me or Camille, too?" It didn't seem fair. Camille had been the one to ask the question. But fairness wasn't par for the course in the world of the Immortals. Any which way it worked out, I wasn't going to whine about it. No sense in ticking her off any more than I already had. Walking a thin line in the playground of the gods required both balance and timing, and I wasn't at all sure I mastered either when it came to diplomacy.
"Both, though the lion's share will fall to you. It will be up to Camille to convince you to go through with it."
Uh oh. Camille and I looked at each other.
"This can't be good," I said. What the hell was going to happen now?
Grandmother Coyote let out a long, low breath. She squinted, laugh lines creasing the corners of her eyes. "Menolly, you're going to have to do something you have vowed never to do. When the time comes, you'll know what it is, and you'll balk. But do it you must, regardless of your aversion to the idea. A long thread of destiny hinges upon your action… or inaction. Don't fail me. If you shy away, you'll upset a critical balance."
Before I could ask her to elaborate, she turned and vanished like a wisp of cloud under the glimmering sun.
I blinked. "Things are spinning out of control."
Camille shook her head. "I hate to tell you this, but things spun out of control the day we decided to accept this assignment from the OIA." She glanced at the front of the room. "Come on, we've got to put the skids on our original plans for this meeting. And we have to come up with something to replace it with in less than ten minutes."
As she hurried to the podium where Wade was conversing in quiet tones with Sassy and Delilah, I couldn't help but think that we'd already set in motion the wheels to a very big, very dangerous machine.
CHAPTER 9
