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All traces of humor vanished as soon as the words slipped out. An invisible barrier now hung between us as we stared at each other.
He cleared his throat. “We should get back to the main house. The sun will be down any minute.”
I picked imaginary lint off my sweater. “Right.”
We all gathered in the parlor. Michaela brought along two witches we hadn’t met before: Vivien and Yulia. These ladies were apparently high up on the food chain; she introduced them as High Priestesses in training.
“So how does this work?” Vance asked.
Michaela stepped forward. “The three of us will accompany you to the site where we will perf
orm the necessary spell to remove the cloak. We have already sent word to the elders. They are expecting you and should have one of their representatives waiting to greet you on the other side.”
Leo shifted in his chair. “So we shouldn’t have any trouble passing through?”
“I didn’t say that,” Michaela said. “You will not be permitted to enter unless you agree to their terms. Once you leave these grounds, the binding spell we have placed over you will expire.” She pulled a small vial out of her pocket. “If you drink this tonic, you will be unable to inflict harm on any Fae. If you tried, the poison would activate immediately. Your immortality does not protect you from this particular brew. The contents within this vial have the power to cause you immeasurable pain or possibly even death.”
“Whoa,” I interrupted. “No way. I’m not letting him drink that!”
Leo held his hand out, imploring Michaela to release the vile. “May I?”
She dropped it in his palm. “So you agree?”
“This is the only way I will be allowed to accompany her?”
“Yes. It is non-negotiable,” Yulia said firmly.
“And no harm will come to me, in any form, provided I do not attempt to harm a Fae?” Leo nodded towards Vance. “Does he count?”
Michaela smiled. “Yes, any amount of Fae blood counts.”
Vance laughed. “Oh, this just got interesting.”
I pointed at him. “You, be quiet!” I faced Leo. “Leo, you don’t have to do this. I want you to come with me, but I don’t want you risking your life to do so. What if you’re provoked?” I pointedly glared at Vance. “What if we’re attacked? You would be defenseless. We have no idea what these people are like.”
Michaela scoffed. “The Fae are peaceful people. They abhor violence unless they’re defending themselves. As long as you don’t attack them, you have my word they will not either.”
I looked to Vance for confirmation. “It’s true, Karli.”
Leo uncapped the vial and stared down into it. “How long does this last?”
“As long as you’re in Faerie,” Michaela replied. “The warlock here is all yours once you’re back on Earth.” Whoa, was she actually making a funny?
“Salut!” Leo winked at her and lifted the rim to his lips, downing the contents in one gulp.
“Everything taken care of?” I asked.
“Yes.” Leo slid his phone into his pocket. “Takk will stay in Dublin until he hears from me. He can field any business matters if necessary.”
“And he knows exactly where we are?” I asked Leo to give someone our last known location in case something happened to us. Vance seemed pretty confident things would run smoothly, but I wasn’t so sure.
“Yes. I had him trace the call while we were speaking. He knows exactly where to start looking if he doesn’t hear from me.”
Vance sidled up to us. “How long do you suppose this is going to take?”
He was referring to the witches removing the veil that concealed this supposed temple. I had yet to see anything but a big pile of grass and dirt. The three women had been walking in a big circle for over twenty minutes, burning sage and chanting. They had magically created a spotlight over their work area so we could clearly see everything they were doing. Their light was obviously different from mine because it had no effect on Leo. I supposed it would be like indoor lighting versus UV rays.
“No idea,” I shrugged.
