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“Dead girl!”
“Yeah?”
“You may cal upon me again if you wish another bargain. Be cautious with yourself. Not al of the Elders are as discriminating as I am. Not al , as pleasant.” And then she vanished into the shadows.
I stared after her, wondering what condition she’d left the tunnel in. I wondered what she was going to do with the spirits and shadow men that she had carted off with her. Most of al , I wondered if the Elder Fae had al stayed Earthside or if some of them had fol owed to Otherworld during the Great Divide.
About to head below, I paused as my cel phone jangled. A glance at the Cal er ID showed me it was Delilah on the other line.
“Yeah? What’s up? Any news on Morio?” I waited for her answer.
She spoke slowly. “He’s out of surgery. Now it’s a matter of time. Sharah thinks he’l make it, but the next twenty-four hours wil tel the tale. Camil e’s a wreck. Tril ian’s helping her keep it together.
Morio’s liver was severely damaged, and he lost so much blood.”
“Twenty-four hours, huh? He’s youkai—demon. He should survive.” But the thought that he might not crossed my mind. “Delilah, if he slips . . . do you think Camil e would want me to . . .” I couldn’t even say the words, but they had to be said. There had to be no recriminations later over what I did or did not do.
Delilah let out a little mew. “I don’t know. I’l find out.” She hung up.
I paused, then punched in our home number. Iris answered.
“Vanzir there?”
But Iris wasn’t going to let me off the hook with being so abrupt. “Yes, he is, but you can just damned wel get your ass back here and tel me what’s going on. Nerissa and I’ve been waiting and waiting for the phone to ring.”
Damn. I should have told Delilah to cal her when she got the chance. “I’m busy—”
“It’s going on four in the morning. You may have a few hours left, but girl, you need to tel me what’s happening out there.”
I glanced at the tunnel. “Give me twenty minutes and I’l be home. Meanwhile, sit tight.” I’d been thinking to ask Vanzir to come help me, but Iris’s mood kiboshed that. With one last longing glance, I left the manhole cover and jogged over to my car, speeding off to home.
Iris was waiting up. She looked exhausted but had stubbornly stayed up al night in order to keep watch. Bruce O’Shea, her leprechaun boyfriend, was on vacation visiting his family in Ireland, but Vanzir was sitting with her in the living room, and Shamas, our cousin, was there, too.
“Hey, cuz,” he said. “How’s Camil e? How’s Morio doing?” He hadn’t ful y integrated into our extended family but was doing his best to try.
“Camil e wil be a whole lot better tomorrow night. If Morio lives. Sharah’s giving him a sixty percent chance to make it; if he passes the twenty-four-hour mark, he should live.”
Iris shook her head. “It boggles my mind how strong some spirits can become. I wonder if there’s a way to cleanse them from the area so you can go exploring without worry.”
“I . . . wel . . . I’ve taken care of that. At least as far as the diner and the tunnels are concerned.” I hadn’t meant to say anything—at least not yet—but Iris had a way of making you feel like you were lying if you omitted tel ing her something.
“And how did you do that?” She gave me a piercing stare.
“I made a bargain with one of the Elder Fae—the Maiden of Karask. She cleared the spirits for twenty pounds of beef.”
Iris gasped, and her fingers fluttered to her lips. “Oh no, my girl. You didn’t. Please tel me you’re joking.”
Vanzir looked confused, but Shamas stared at me, his eyes wide. “Are you mad, girl? The Elder Fae? Even the Lords of Fae let them be. They are our Titans and—often—our enemies.”
I shrugged. “We needed to do something and I didn’t want Camil e trying to take them on herself, especial y with Morio so wounded. You know her—she’s going to feel it’s her duty to take care of this. I put a stop to that before it could begin.”
“But the Maiden of Karask? Girl, her history is terrifying. We have such like her in my own homeland, and the people and Fae give them a wide berth.” Iris stood, pacing. “She knows you now; she wil study up on you. Once you bargain with the Elder Fae, they never forget you and always come sniffing for what else they can gain from you. You’ve bound yourself to her as certain as you are bound to the twilight hours. Do you realize what this means?”
I stared at her. “But the bargain was met and paid—”
“The bargain! The bargain is the connection. You merely paid the first instal ment. She has the right to contact you again. She has the right to touch you for more meat—the kind she longs for, not the kind you’re wil ing to pay. She has the right to ask a bargain of you, now. Don’t you understand? There are no bargains when it comes to Elder Fae. Only enslavement on an unwritten level.” She was seriously upset, and I began to realize I might have dived in over my head. “For the sake of the gods . . . you did not say ‘thank you’ or ‘I’m sorry’ to her at any time?”
“No, that I was mindful of.”
