Night Seeker (14 page)

“When you showed up the other day, we were afraid—we didn’t know what to tell you and I’d been ordered to keep my mouth shut by Geoffrey. We panicked and Kaylin thought we’d appear more stable if we told you we were married. The truth is, we’re not and we have no plans to be.”

I sat back, shutting my mouth as abruptly as I’d opened it. I’d kept a few things from her. I did not tell her about the heartstones. I wasn’t ready to, not until we found Lainule’s gem and returned it to her.

Ysandra’s expression remained calm as the waitress set out our drinks, but I could feel the wheels turning at a furious pace. After a moment, she withdrew a sheaf of papers from a briefcase sitting by her side. Pushing them across the table, to me, she handed me a pen.

“Fill these out.
Now.
I’m authorized to offer a special dispensation and induct you directly into the Consortium in case of an emergency. And I think we’ve long passed that state. We’ve known about some of this for a long time but haven’t had the chance to investigate it. Had we realized how bad it’s gotten, we’d have already been into New Forest. With the town under siege, and since you are Marta’s heir, that makes you the magical authority for New Forest. We need to seal this officially and bring you and your Society into the Consortium. Have you picked a name for yourselves?”

I nodded. “The Moon Spinners. We’ve held a couple of brief rituals to bind ourselves, but that’s all we’ve had time for.”

“Then the Moon Spinners it will be. And all you need is the consent of all members. Their names, please? List them on that field there. And also, you need to list the person whom you would choose to lead the group should something happen to you. Do not select your cousin. Do not ask why.” She pointed to several blank lines on the form.

As I stared at the form, my mind reeling, Kaylin cleared his throat.

“It does not bother you that we aren’t all of the magic-born? Peyton’s half-werepuma. Grieve is…well…Cambyra Fae and Indigo Court. Chatter is Cambyra Fae. Even Cicely here…”

“Yummanii, magic-born, Were, contrary to rumor, we do not care about heritage as long as the applicant wields magic in some form and is willing to abide by the Consortium’s rules.” She let out a long sigh. “This will also protect your lover from being targeted by our members. Because the moment you sign that form, the Indigo Court becomes the enemy of the Consortium.”

“You don’t need to check out our story?”

“Oh,
trust me
, I know you are telling the truth.” A sly smile fluttered across her face.

Deciding not to press the matter—I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answer anyway—I paused, my pen hovering over the form. “The vampires already own me. Can I legally sign this contract as well as the one with them?”

“Unfortunately, Geoffrey’s contract will not be nullified by the tricks he attempted to pull. However, your contract with the Consortium does not conflict with your connection to the vampires, and we are not claiming you as an employee. We are requiring you to swear an oath not to betray us, but that should not conflict with your servitude to the Vampire Nation.” She grimaced even as she said the words.

I hung my head. “I did what I had to.”

“I never said you made the wrong choice. We all do what we have to when duty calls. That is one of the hardest lessons in life. Sometimes we are required to do what we do not wish to do. Sometimes we sacrifice our own happiness for the good of the whole.”

We fell silent as the waitress brought our food. The smell was tantalizing—it had been a while since we’d had a decent meal, but I still felt awkward, as if I’d confessed dirty secrets to Ysandra. As the waitress spread out our food, I toyed with my burger.

“Eat. You need the strength. I am not judging you,
Cicely.” Ysandra’s voice was gentle and the look on her face, concerned.

She speaks the truth. Give her a chance. This one’s energy is helpful and powerful. She speaks only when she’s thought through her words. She says what she means.
As Ulean gusted around me, Ysandra shivered.

“Cicely, would you tell your Elemental to hold off on the breeze? It’s cold enough outside without bringing the storm in here.” Ysandra winked at me.

I jumped. “You know I have a Wind Elemental? How did you find out?”

“I think the question is more how can I not know?” She spooned her soup, properly and with a sense of authority. “Eat. Then finish the paperwork and we’ll be off. The sooner I get back to the Consortium, the quicker we can discuss how we can help you.”

I bit into my sandwich, holding it with my right hand as I finished filling out the forms with my left. I had a feeling some of the horror stories I’d heard of the Consortium had been exacerbated by those who had been rejected by the organization.

Rhiannon swigged down her drink, then opened the pamphlet that Ysandra handed her. “Rules and bylaws?”

Ysandra nodded. “There is an expected level of decorum. Once a member, during any time when you officially represent the Consortium, you must abide by certain regulations. This means that any function the Moon Spinners attend as a group, you are attending as members of the Consortium. It also plays into your magical business, Cicely, and that of Peyton’s. There are ethical standards you will be expected to abide by.”

“Somehow I doubt we’ll be needing those rules, since both our businesses went up in smoke when the Veil House burned.” I smiled ruefully. “We can rebuild, but it’s going to take money, which we don’t have. And we have to eliminate Myst first. If we went back now, she’d just send her Shadow Hunters after us again.”

Ysandra dabbed the side of her lips with her napkin. “Money is not necessarily an issue. The Consortium has its
own worldwide financial institutions for our members. We issue our own credit cards, make loans, offer complete banking services—everything you could possibly need. Open only to members, of course, and their immediate families.”

Startled, I laughed. The sudden turn in the discussion seemed so alien from what we’d been discussing. “Do you offer a free toaster with every new account?”

Ysandra chuckled as she tucked the papers into her briefcase and handed me a certificate, already prepared, with the Moon Spinners name, and my own, on it. “No, but we offer a free prosperity charm or a dozen green enchanted candles. Will that suffice?” And with that the tension seemed to break and we all relaxed and finished our meals.

Kaylin glanced at his watch. “We’d better get moving. It’s growing dark, the roads are treacherous, and the danger increases after dark.”

As Ysandra began to stand, I stopped her. “You had the certificate already prepared. And you seem…I don’t know…when we told you about Myst you were quiet, but you didn’t seem terribly surprised.”

Her gaze flickered from my face to Rhiannon’s, then to Kaylin’s. “The Consortium makes it our business to know everything we need to know. I knew that I’d be giving you that certificate today. One of our seers told the Council that it would be necessary. And…as to Myst…as I said, we’ve always known about the Indigo Fae.”

I must have looked startled because she laughed lightly and touched my arm. A tingle raced through my body like a jolt of lightning—not painful but not exactly pleasant. But it was strong enough to leave me jarred.

“The vampires think they have an exclusive hold on that knowledge, but they are mistaken. The Vein Lords have long considered themselves to be the top of the food chain, but they have never crossed the Consortium. They have no real clue about the power our Society wields. And we intend to keep it that way until the day they choose to waken the sleeping dragon.”

Her lips stopped moving, but I could still hear her inside
my head.
Cicely, know this: If push comes to shove, the vampires could never win against us. And we should prove a sturdy force against Myst. We have an elite task force with whom I will discuss this situation. That is all I can tell you for now. Keep the knowledge to yourselves, and do not tell Lannan Altos or any of the vampires. But look for us to send help shortly.

I glanced at Kaylin and Rhiannon. They, too, wore surprised looks and I had the feeling they’d heard everything I had. We all nodded.

As we headed for the door, I asked, “What magic do you work with? You are one of the magic-born, correct?”

She nodded. “I am. I work with pure energy. The energy of thought, of communication, and of lightning.”

I pushed open the door and we headed out into the snow. As we were about to separate, her to her car and us to ours, a growl—low and threatening—alerted me.

Incoming. Werewolves. At least five.

Shit! I hadn’t been prepared for a fight. My belly was full and I was already tired from the altercation with the day-runners earlier. I whirled around to see the pack headed for us.

“Werewolves!” They didn’t look like they were from the Lupa Clan. In fact, they looked even surlier and nastier.

“I smell the stench of magic-born.” The tallest one stepped forward and—before I could say or do anything—he threw a punch my way, hitting me in the stomach and knocking me back into a snowbank.

Kaylin had his shurikens out within seconds, and Rhiannon jumped back, squinting as she whispered some chant. I struggled to my feet.

Ysandra, on the other hand, simply placed her briefcase and bag down behind her in the snow and held up one hand, palm toward the lycanthropes. They jostled for position, but within a moment a shockwave raced through the air, knocking all of us on our butts. The werewolves looked startled, nervous.

Kaylin grabbed Rhiannon and helped her up, then me.

Ysandra simply stood where she was.

“You have a choice.” Her voice was even and so scary cold that it frightened even me. “You can turn tail and leave us be, or you can lose your hearing forever, along with your equilibrium. If you don’t think I can do it, you’d be sadly mistaken. I am no youthful witch, new to her magic.”

One of the werewolves started forward, but the leader shook his head, grabbing the man by the arm. “She’s
Consortium
,” was all he said, and the five began to back away, hands in the air.

“Get in your car and drive out of here now.” Ysandra gave a little nod to us. “Do as I say.”

“But will you be safe if we go?” We couldn’t just leave her standing there.

She let out a cold, harsh laugh that seemed incongruous with her looks. “Do not let appearances deceive you, Cicely. Trust on instinct rather than what you see.”

Kaylin motioned to the car. “Get in. Do as she says.”

I started to protest, but Ulean swept around me in a spinning vortex.

Do as Kaylin says. Do as the witch says. She is far more than you perceive—I can see her energy now and it is frightening in its power. She could destroy the werewolves’ hearing with a whistle, she could rupture their eardrums with one clap of the hands. She does not need our help.

The intensity of Ulean’s thoughts hit me like a brick. She wasn’t joking. I nodded, backing up to the car, keeping one eye on the werewolves who stood near their trucks, staring at us. Rhiannon and I climbed in as Kaylin turned the ignition.

Ysandra called out something—I couldn’t quite catch what because I was too busy gawking rather than listening to the slipstream—and the werewolves turned, jumped in their trucks, and peeled out of the parking lot.

As we headed in the opposite direction, I glanced in the rearview mirror. Ysandra picked up her briefcase and bag like nothing had happened, daintily stepped into her sedan, and within seconds, she’d driven off into the night.

On the drive home we didn’t talk much. Watching Ysandra bring a pack of werewolves to their knees had been sobering. If that’s the kind of power the Consortium had, I wanted in on it. I didn’t know how much I
trusted
them, but I’d rather align myself
with
them than against them.

“We have to tell Lannan we talked to her, but let’s wait till he’s asleep to discuss the werewolves, the task force, and the fact that the Consortium knows all about the war between the vampires and the Indigo Court.”

“Spot on.” Kaylin flicked the turn signal as we eased off the highway, onto the street leading to the warehouse. “Somehow I think even Lannan would go running back to the Crimson Court with that information, as much of a rogue as he is.”

We pulled into the parking lot and he turned off the ignition. We’d made it back to the warehouse without anything worse than a few swerves.

As we swept into the central room, everybody was eating. Everyone except Lannan, who was sitting off to the side, a smirk on his face as he flipped through an issue of
Vamp
. A slut magazine catering to the bite-me set, the
monthly rag featured gaudy pictures of women—and men—dressed in little to no clothing, advertising their services for hire as bloodwhores.

He glanced up at me, his long lashes fluttering against the obsidian gleam of his eyes. Very slowly, he closed the magazine and set it to the side. “So, our illustrious trio returns.” Slipping off the arm of the chair on which he’d been sitting, Lannan sauntered over to me, circling me as I shrugged out of my jacket.