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But Feddrah-Dahns answered without further prompting. "The horn of the Black Unicorn. We brought it Earthside, but it was stolen. My emissary recovered it, but now he's missing, and two of the three thieves are still after him."
Smoky glanced at me, then back at the unicorn. "You're actually willing to give Camille the horn of the Black Beast?"
Feddrah-Dahns bobbed his head. "What choice do we have? These girls aren't capable of fighting off a demon lord without help. They may have their allies, but against an army of demons led by Shadow Wing? Under no sense of the imagination can they win without outside help."
"Good point," Smoky said as he sat down, crossing his legs and leaning back. He drummed his fingers on the arm of the chair. "Out of curiosity, to what emissary did you entrust the horn?"
Feddrah-Dahns blinked. "My personal servant. A pixie."
Smoky let out a loud guffaw. "I see. You entrusted a fabled artifact to a pixie. Brilliant."
Uh-oh. That was an insult if ever I heard one. I backed away, noticing that Delilah and Iris were doing the same. Even Chase had the sense to excuse himself into the kitchen, presumably looking for caffeine. Menolly swiftly resumed hovering near the ceiling. She almost looked pleased, and the thought crossed my mind that my vampire sister might make a good addition to the Ultimate Fighting lineup. She enjoyed a good brawl, that was for sure.
Feddrah-Dahns let out an exasperated snort and a whiff of steam and mist rose from his nostrils as he shook his mane. "You presume too much, dragon. Mistletoe happens to be a extremely effective courier. His attackers overcame him with magic."
"Magic? But pixies are immune to most magic. At least, most Fae magic." Apparently Smoky knew his pixie lore. After a moment, he said, "What kind of magic can take down a pixie?"
"Precisely the question," Feddrah-Dahns said. "What kind, indeed? Pixies are the best choice for runners and couriers because they can't be affected by most spells from the Fae, whether Otherworld or Earthside. Which means this wasn't Fae magic at work. And it couldn't be human magic; no human has the power to stop a pixie. But there are darker spells, and magicians…" His voice trailed off.
"I wonder if magic of this sort has been detected lately? Pentangle, the Mother of Magic, might know." Menolly glanced over at me. "Perhaps we should ask her."
"I don't want to run to the Hags of Fate every time we have a problem. Look at what happened last time we asked an Elemental Lord for help," I said, nodding at Delilah. "Procuring a demon's finger was child's play compared to what happened to Kitten."
Delilah let out a loud sigh. "Don't remind me," she said, rubbing her forehead. The black crescent tattooed on her brow shimmered, all too alive and vivid.
"Speaking of magic, I've come to take Camille back to my barrow. I have need of her services." Smoky looked at me, then slowly patted his lap.
I swallowed the taste of my lunch again, which suddenly decided to make a long-distance phone call. Some Turns would be nice now. Or Mylanta. Or a good stiff drink. I glanced at Menolly and Delilah, but they merely shrugged.
Returning from the kitchen in time to catch Smoky's comment and gesture, Chase looked about to say something, but Delilah gave him a warning shake of the head, and he closed his mouth.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I slid onto Smoky's lap. He wrapped one arm around my waist and gave me a delighted smile. As his fingers lightly pressed against my waist, my whole body gave a little shudder, and before I knew what was happening, I threw back my head, gasping as a wave of orgasm hit me. Cripes, he was on fire! And so was I. Hastily gathering my wits, I blushed and hurried to cover my tracks. "What do you want me to do?"
"Do you really want me to answer that in front of your friends and family?" Smoky snorted, and a little puff of steam rose from his nose.
I stared at him. Inserting foot in mouth, do not pass go. "I mean, why do you want me to come out to your land? This time. Today… that is."
"I don't believe it! Camille's actually blushing!" Delilah grinned like a Cheshire cat.
Menolly laughed, deep and throaty. "She is at that, Kitten. I'd like to be a fly on the wall of that barrow…"
"It's not my debt he's calling in," I said, protesting.
"She's right," Smoky said, relenting. "There's something going on out on my land, and I want your opinion. I choose to avoid getting entangled until I know more about what I'm facing."
Chase scowled. "What's going on? We already have a butt load of crap to contend with."
Smoky shifted. I started to get up, but he held tight to my waist, and once again, the heat from his hands burned into me. "It seems I have a visitor. I need you to find out just what she's up to. I believe you met her a couple months ago."
I glanced over at Menolly, who shrugged. "Who is it? And why don't you just ask her what she wants, yourself?"
He let out a slow laugh, almost ominous. "I don't care for the lady. I find her… off-putting. And Titania had some dealings with her centuries ago. The two are at odds. But she wants something, and she's made camp out near my barrow. I think she's trying to find Titania, to be honest, but the Fae Queen emeritus is making herself scarce these days."
I frowned. Who the hell was he talking about? But I knew better than rush him. He'd spill it when he was ready.
"This morning," he added leisurely, "a murder of crows came winging in, with one large raven at the forefront. They landed near Titania's barrow and were pecking around. I fried them for breakfast, save one as a warning to their mistress."
A murder of crows . . . hell's bells.
