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"Yeah, I hear you. So how's Camil e doing today? The Wolf Briar wear off?"
"She's feeling better. We're going to talk to Paulo's fiancee, and I think we'l also drop in on Marion at the Supe-Urban Cafe and see what she can tel us. Meanwhile, you try to figure out what the hel a group of coyote shifters would want with your sister."
"The question for the win. I have no idea. I haven't talked to her much over the years, until she cal ed saying she needed to move up here. She sounded slightly crazed, but I thought it was the hormones from the pregnancy. Okay, I'l let you get busy." He hung up, and I stared at the phone before handing it back to Iris.
"This is as bad as fighting the werespiders. We didn't know what they wanted, but in the end, it wasn't anything good." I ran down what Luke had told me about the trickster energy and the werewolf deaths in Arizona.
"Somebody in Arizona is producing Wolf Briar then. And so is someone up here. We have to make three stops today--Marion's, Franco's, and Madame Pompey's Magical Emporium. I hate that we aren't closer to finding Amber," Camil e said, carrying her dishes over to the sink and rinsing them off to stack them with the rest. "I keep thinking they're torturing her or that she's already dead. And there's no good way to find out."
"Is there any way you could scry on her? Find out if she's stil alive?"
Camil e frowned, thinking. "I might. My spel of Finding won't do anything more than point the way if she's being held captive. Unless it backfired and dropped us into the captive's lair."
"Hel , I'd almost go for that--but not without backup. One whiff of the Wolf Briar, and we'd both be down for the count."
"Yeah, about that. Sharah cal ed today, told me be careful because I'm sensitized to it now, and subsequent exposures could cause an al ergic reaction-
-which could be anything from mild to fatal."
"Wonderful. Okay, what about the scrying? Can you do it?"
"Bring me a bowl of water. Use one of the crystal ones." She sat back down at the table, closing her eyes and breathing softly as I prepared the water for her. We had several silver and crystal bowls that both she and Iris used for magic, and I pul ed out the clearest one. Then, in a spurt of inspiration, I ran up to her study and found the Tygerian wel water from back home in Otherworld. Couldn't hurt to give it a little extra oomph by adding a bit of holy water to the mix.
When I returned, I saw that Camil e was holding Amber's picture. A touchstone. I added a cup of the Tygerian water to the tap water, and it spread through the liquid like oil, then blended, and the liquid took on a startling clarity. Cautiously, I wrapped my arms around the massive bowl and carried it over to the table.
Camil e let out a long breath, and as I watched, she leaned over the bowl and opened her eyes. She searched the water, face pensive, scanning for--
what I didn't know. Magic confounded me, amazed me, and frightened me.
When Camil e was wrapped up in the energy, it was as if she belonged to another realm, one that swept her away and consumed her. I couldn't reach where she went. But then again, she couldn't fol ow me into my realm as tabby and panther. We had our own private kingdoms--the same with Menol y and her bloodlust. And yet, each of us stood stronger together than apart.
A swirl of mist rose from the water, and she gasped and sat back. "Look," she whispered, pointing at the bowl.
I gazed in at the stil surface, waiting til the mist cleared. There she was--Amber. She was in a cage, holding on to the bars, a plaintive look on her face and--wait a second.
"What's that around her neck?"
Camil e leaned forward, squinting. After a moment, she jerked her head up, a frightened look on her face. "That can't be what I think it is, can it?"
Around the frightened Were's neck was a golden chain, and on the chain a pendant of the clearest topaz, bril iant yel ow and sparkling. The setting was ornate, carved, and looked extremely old. And the gem glistened, even in what appeared to be dim light.
"It looks like the others, doesn't it?" I sucked in a deep breath. Could Amber real y have what we thought she did? And if so, how the hel did she get hold of a spirit seal?
"Fuck, fuck, fuck." Camil e frantical y scanned the image again. "I can't make out anything other than that she appears to be in a cel --a cage--and the light there is dim. I have no idea where she is, and I can't see anything to give us a landmark." She slammed the table with her hand. "If she has one of the seals, we have to find her before she's kil ed."
"What would the coyote shifters want with the spirit seals? Would they even know what they were?"
Camil e grabbed her coat. "Iris, we're heading over to Marion's. She should be at her cafe by now."
I grabbed my jacket and purse. "Right behind you. Let's take my--"
" Not your Jeep. The sun may be out, but it's cold and supposed to get colder today. We're taking my Lexus." She held up her keys. I shrugged, giving in before I even bothered arguing, and we headed down the steps.
The Supe-Urban Cafe was on East Pike, and it was a hangout for Supes of al kinds, but especial y Weres. We'd first met Marion--a coyote shifter, the owner--at a Supe Community meeting, and then, a few weeks back, she'd helped Camil e and our friend Siobhan escape from a crazed psycho stalking the selkie.
Business was brisk at the cafe, with nearly every table fil ed. Scenic photos from around the area covered the wal s, landscape shots of Mount Rainier and the city of Seattle--the Space Needle, down at the docks, Seattle Center--urban scenes mingling with the wild. The tables were polished wood, and the chairs were simple but sturdy--wood and green leather.
The smel of hot coffee, chicken soup, and fresh bread lingered in the air, and though we'd just eaten breakfast, the scents were enough to make my stomach growl. We took a table and motioned to Marion, who was behind the counter, making change for a customer.
