Black Spark (Dark Magic Enforcer Book 1) (26 page)

"I get food for faery," said the troll, seemingly having forgotten what happened.

"Ooh, goodie." The faery clapped her hands together in glee, sprinkling dust I stuck out my tongue to catch before she saw me and it blew away with a nod of her lovely head. Her wings beat faster, almost slicing my face to magic-encrusted ribbons.

"Hey, be careful." I retched one final time for luck, got to my feet awkwardly, and she took to the air. "You could have done that earlier," I moaned. My mouth felt drier than after sucking on an unripe apple then chasing it down with a generous helping of sand—that's what you get for eating troll.

"Done what?" She looked entirely relaxed, but was already losing interest in me.

I stared at her, trying to figure her out. With fae you can never tell if it's a trap or not. "You know, dealt with the succubus. I took a risk with the troll dust, wasn't sure if it would work, especially the second time."

She appeared confused for a moment, then shrugged—the usual fae attitude taking over. "Did something happen? Never mind, I smell food." She darted off, presumably to catch up with the troll.

"Stupid fae," I muttered, making sure she couldn't hear.

"I heard that," came her voice from somewhere at the back of the house, but also sounding like it was right in my ear. Magical after-effects made me too tired to care.

Fae are the worst for remembering things. No matter if you are human or entirely one of the true Hidden, you cannot expect to remember everything that happens if you lead a long, maybe infinite life. Fae, succubi, incubi, imps, goblins, trolls, and on the list goes, all are practically infinite beings, and it means they have to be selective.

Even long-living humans, or ex-humans, have to prioritize. I'm just over a hundred and have years, even a few decades, which are basically blank. For Mage Rikka, and ancient vampires like Taavi, they have the odd century that is gone forever. There is only so much you can keep, and the longer you live the more it gets sorted whether you like it or not. The important stuff remains, the day-to-day things, but events not deemed worthy get thrown on the scrapheap of memory.

I guessed what just happened was worth almost zero to the faery—I'd hate to see what was important.

A vision of Ankine Luisi remained in my mind. A scar on my memory that would never be wiped away. Her as her true self, with dark tattered wings, forked tail, the body all bone and stretched, mottled skin. No wonder she took on human form and reveled in the feel of female flesh of the soft and sensual kind.

Where exactly she was now I had no idea, but she wasn't next to me, and that was all I cared about right then.

The shamed Ambassador was still on the stairs. He was lost, unable to do much of anything now no longer enthralled. She had been all that had kept him going, now even that was gone. He was used up, a husk, no magic of his own left. It's impossible to know how he had allowed himself to get taken by her, but I guess she was just too powerful. She almost had me, so I can't exactly judge.

There was nothing I could do for him, so I sat down next to the empty man and gave my body permission to relax. Slowly, my mind unburdened itself as the dark magic slid back into the Empty. Little remained now, just me, a dark magic enforcer who was spent, a once powerful wizard with a bright future ahead of him who was lost, and dust on the carpet.

"You want eat?" The troll was in front of me, holding out a silver platter with an assortment of meats, bread, and fruit. The faery was stood on a slice of ham, tearing pieces off and ripping into it with teeth as sharp as needles, wings tucked away neatly.

"Why not?" I got up, and followed them into the dining room where I sank gratefully into a chair at an immaculately laid table, ready for guests that would never come.

I dragged out my phone and tapped a button. "You better come over to the Finnish Embassy," I said. "And bring some trolls. There are a lot of books that need moving."

"You okay?" asked Rikka.

"I've been better, but it's done."

"That's my boy. I never doubted you, Spark. Now, I just heard from the goblins, and they have a bit of a problem with—"

I hung up and ate an apple.

The End

Book 2 in the series is
Evil Spark.

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Author's Note

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Stay jiggy,

Al