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But I still shoved a German single-handed Messer at her. It was for closer fighting than a longsword—think pirate’s saber—but Beatrice was more of an up-close kind of person, monster . . . whatever she was.
Eli said nothing, simply took a sword in hand.Hissword. Not steel like mine.
More mundane issues were the next obstacle. The Neolithic site was on the far side of a visitors’ centre and museum, and even though tourist season wasn’t fully upon the island, there were people milling about the site.
“They’re only open for a few hours,” Eli said, scanning information.
“Why can’t we send them all away?” Iggy asked. “Bea could terrify them, or I could hex—”
“No. What are we looking for?” I asked. “How will we know? We can start there.”
I wandered toward the visitor center, and they trailed beside me like they were all wary that I would bolt. I couldn’t blame them. I wasn’t completely convinced of my own stability. I felt steadier with Iggy’s bargain in place, but I was acutely aware that I had started to promise not to injure Chester.
Eli slipped his arm around my waist. He said nothing, but I didn’t need words to know that he was there to help me stay steady, too.
“I suppose it would be wrong to summon a storm?” Iggy said lightly.
“Could you?” I glanced at him.
“With your aid.” He shrugged. “I have knowledge. You have more power, though.”
Eli scoffed. “Scotland. They barely blink at downpours here, unless things have changed drastically. Rain won’t chase away a Scot, and I don’t relish a storm.”
“What if the weapon isinthe artefact displays?” Beatrice said, gesturing to an informational placard. She read: “Gaming dice, hand tools, pottery, necklaces, beads, pendants, and pins.”
I pictured trying to fight Chester with a necklace or gaming dice. It was not the sort of fight I imagined going very well. What would I do? Jab him with a rusty pin? Pelt him with dice?
“I hope not,” I muttered.
“You’d rather dig?” Beatrice asked. “A magical trinket would be an easy answer. Perhaps, it imparts strength or knowledge or a spell that can defeat him.”
I looked away, feeling foolish, and admitted, “I wasn’t thinking of magic. More . . . weapon-shaped thing, what with it being aweapon.”
“That, my dear apprentice, is exactly the mental block we must remove. Not all weapons are brute force,” Iggy said lightly.
Then he offered an arm to Beatrice.
No one remarked when she accepted, but I suspected we were all shocked. Together, we entered the visitors’ centre and started to study the items there. There was a lot of information, and a few items that looked decidedly weapon-ish to me.
A neolithic figure, about fivethousandyears old, was easily something that I could visualize bashing into Chester’s smarmy face.
A necklace with what looked like fangs on it seemed like I could find a use for it—jabbed into his jugular, maybe.
What appeared to be a stone Thor’s hammer and something that looked like a wee cannonball with thorns caught my eye. Honestly, I wasn’t particular. Anything would do.
“Nothing here has power,” Beatrice grumbled as she and Iggy rejoined Eli at my side. “I feel no magic in . . .” She gestured at the cases.
I sighed. I hated to say she was right, but I didn’t see anything that jumped out as a defeat-the-jerk weapon. In a pinch, I’d try all of the items, but there was no way my heart could agree to destroying archeological artefacts without reason.
I let my gravesight slide out over the cases, and again, nothing zinged for me. “No grave notes.”
I glanced at Eli hopefully.
“Nothing,” Eli said quietly, undoubtedly letting the magic that he held as one of the fae dance over the items, too.
“Time to remove the humans and dig,” Beatrice said. “Come.”
I had a flicker of fear that she was about to start flashing fang and followed close behind as she walked outside and toward the Neolithic village.
