“No,” he almost spat, as if I’d invited him to swim in a cesspool.
“Suit yourself,” I said as I secured my hold on the ley line and unfocused my attention.
“Don’t think about me,” Hodin warned, and I glanced at his knee, now inches from mine.
“I know how to keep a secret in the collective,” I said, then lost myself as the bright sun, brisk wind, and even the pinch of my boot vanished.
Al? Got a minute? I thought into the whispering nothing that was the collective on a calm day. Immediately a masculine presence sidled up to and almost enveloped me. Whoa, back up, dude! I complained as I recognized Dali’s imperialistic thoughts. I’m looking for Al.
Gally isn’t available. The thought was tinged with annoyance and a desire to be quickly gone. That and . . . guilt?
Fear slid through me, and I shifted on the cold bench. I’m looking for Al, I said again. Al! I mentally shouted, and several distinctive thoughts bombarded me to mind the volume.
He’s in seclusion, Dali thought at me, his mind all but closed. I’ll inform you when he dies.
“Dies!” I said aloud, my hand pressed firmly into the glass. “Dali, I found an old text about something called a baku,” I lied, and from beside me, Hodin groaned. “There has to be a way to stop it.” Hey. Wait up. I grasped for Dali’s presence as he began to slip from me, but I sank an idea into him and held on as he dragged me for a few thoughts of annoyance and stopped. Are you seriously not going to do anything? It’s targeting Al, I thought, and the demon seemed to sigh.
We know. There’s nothing to do for it.
“I have just about had it with your collective lack of action,” I said aloud, and at my side, I felt more than saw Hodin take notice. You know what is going on and you’re going to do nothing? You are a coward, Dali.
Coward? Dali thundered, and I jerked, almost breaking our connection as his hatred for the elves flooded me. I watched too many of my kin turned to animals by this elven weapon. Thousands, Rachel, murdered by those they loved until Newt learned to shift a soul’s expression to hide from it. She’s gone, and no one else knows how. Al put himself into seclusion. This is the best for all involved, including you. Sometimes, if you give the elves what they want, they go away.
There has to be something we can do, I thought angrily. Maybe the Goddess . . .
There’s not, Dali thought bitterly. You give the baku what it wants, or it does more damage until you do. All we can do is keep him isolated so he doesn’t kill anyone while he fights for his soul. I’ll keep you informed. Someone will continue your studies.
“I’m not worried about my studies,” I said to keep Hodin in on half the conversation. “This thing is loose in Cincinnati, targeting everyone with an aura similar to Al’s. There has to be a way to contain it!” I said, panicking about Al, but it was nothing to my fear when Dali’s thoughts sharpened on mine, digging.
Rachel, how have you been sleeping?
I pulled myself half out of the collective, my eyes going to Hodin. “Me? Fine. I’ve been sleeping fine,” I said aloud to maintain a connection. “Keep me informed of his state.”
Breathless, I pulled my hand from the mirror, hardly noticing the harsh lack of connection. I didn’t care that my face was probably pale and Hodin could tell how scared I was. My God. I had to fix this. “There has to be a way to stop it. I mean, you don’t make a weapon you can’t control.”
Hodin ran a hand over his thick stubble, almost a beard, really. He made a scruffy crow, a nasty dog, and an unkempt demon. His soul was probably just as untidy. “You could. Once. Now? I tried to make things better and only made them worse.”
He seemed depressed, and I wondered at my probable-suicidal urge to give him a sideways hug. “Don’t beat yourself up over it. I can’t tell you the number of times I tried to make things better only to make everything worse. Get me drunk enough, and I might tell you about the time I tried to find a blood balance with I—” I stopped, warming at Hodin’s interest.