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I thought about it for a moment. My sense wasn’t that we were dealing with demons with this portal, but something else. “No, I don’t think it’s a demon. But the siren song . . . the sense of heavy Fae energy—it made me nervous.”
“You really think there’s something that big back there?” Aeval never fidgeted, but I could tell I’d piqued her interest. “Elder Fae?”
“Perhaps. I wouldn’t be surprised. Aeval, Chase is one of our closest friends. And he’s one of the best allies the OW Fae can claim. We have to save him.” I let out a slow sigh. “Are you willing to help?”
I waited. Aeval would help or not as she chose. Making one last plea, I held out my hands. “For some reason, I think you’re the only one who can aid us with this.”
Another moment passed, and then the Queen of Night gave me a slight nod. “I will come with you and examine the energy signature. But we will go there my way. It won’t take as long. I sense you are tired, Camille. You smell like the Northlands and your aura is diminished this evening.”
She rose and called for her guard. With five stalwart Fae attending us—all as dark and pale as their queen—we left the palace and walked across the snow-covered square to a twin pair of oak trees. A portal—similar to the one we’d seen in the park—shimmered between them, and the crackle of energy woke me up.
Just as silently, we entered the portal one by one, following the Queen, and the world ripped into a million pieces as we went singing through space and time.
We ended up, not in Tangleroot Park, but in a portal two streets over, in the backyard of what looked like an abandoned house. But on closer inspection, I realized the house was inhabited.
“Who lives here?” I pointed to the faint light that emanated from the windows.
Aeval smiled faintly. “We have our spies and guards. This is a safe house, should there ever come need of it.”
I didn’t press. Her tone told me that wasn’t an option. But I memorized the address—24132 Westerwood Lane—in case we ever needed it.
I glanced over at Delilah, who was examining the yard. There were overgrown ferns and towering firs everywhere, and the lot must have been a good half acre in size—unusual in the city. But we followed Aeval and her guards, setting off for the park on foot. The sidewalks were icy, but one of the guards offered his arm to me and I gratefully accepted, too tired to see straight.
We reached the park within a few minutes and led Aeval to where the portal had been. As we neared the place, Delilah and I looked in vain for any sign of Chase, but he was nowhere in sight. The energy still hung thick in the air, and I could catch glimpses of it here and there—sparkling like a shadow that was there one moment, then gone the next.
Aeval silently approached the place where the portal had been. She held out her hands and closed her eyes, her fingers divining the energy. I could see her aura—the more tired I got, the better my Sight was for such things—and she looked lit up like a Yule tree on steroids.
Wearily, I saw a bench a few yards away and trudged over, sitting down, not caring if the snow was freezing my ass off. Delilah joined me, though she brushed the snow off her side of the bench first.
We said nothing—there was nothing left to say until Aeval was done and had figured out whatever she could. But Delilah took my hand and I curled my fingers around hers. I knew she was hurting. Even though she and Chase were just friends now, they would always care for one another. And I cared, too.
“I never thought to sense this again, not here, not in this day and age.” Aeval was suddenly in front of us, staring down at us with a horrified look on her face. Holy hell. Not good. Not good for a Fae Queen to be afraid—that could only mean trouble on the horizon.
“What is it?” I asked, my voice barely audible in the dark of the night.
“Several things, all from the Elder Fae. First, a dark energy—one I do not recognize except that it’s female, and hungry. Second, Stollen Kom Lightly.” She said the name so abruptly that at first I didn’t understand her. But then it registered, and I slowly raised my gaze to hers.
“The Bog Eater.”
She nodded.
The Bog Eater . . . I closed my eyes. “No . . . he can’t still be alive after all these years. I thought he was killed by one of the gods.”
“So it was rumored, but apparently the gossip mill was wrong in this case. Come, we must discuss this before taking any action. There is much to be lost if we aren’t careful, including your detective’s life.”
Aeval motioned for us to stand, and we began to walk back toward the safehouse, to the portal leading to the barrow.
“Stollen Kom Lightly was thought long lost in the haunts of time. Legend goes he was killed by Lugh the Long Handed, but apparently that was only a rumor, probably started by Lugh’s followers.”
I began to tune out a little. I knew where she was going with this and really didn’t want to follow it through to the logical conclusion. Wishing Smoky were here, or Trillian, I pulled closer to Delilah and she wrapped her arm around my waist.
“Who is the Bog Eater?” Delilah asked. “I don’t recognize the name.”
Aeval glanced at the sky. “Cold tonight, and colder still tomorrow. A bad time for grim tales, but perhaps there is no right time.” After another pause, she said, “There was once a goblin who was so terribly vicious that he was noticed by Jac-O HorseTail. Jac-O was known as the scourge of the Western Wastelands before the Great Divide.”
The Fae Queen inhaled deeply, slowly letting out her breath in a white stream. “Jac-O HorseTail was the son of one of the Long-Cutter Gray Sisters—the webweavers who spin out confusion and hatred into the world. The three hags are not members of the Hags of Fate, but they are from the Elemental world, and it’s thought they have some relation to Fae.”
She paused as we crossed the street, skirting a car slowly edging along the icy path. The driver slammed on the brakes and jumped out to gawk at us, but Aeval waved her hand and whispered “Heed us not,” and he just as quickly slipped back into his car and drove on.
