and said, “We didn’t have a chance, did we? Leander smiled at me and pretended to be normal—even when I began to suspect. And Seth . . . all he had to do was look at me.” She hung her head and her long hair veiled her face. “And promise to make me a queen of night and nothing.”
Gently, Finn said, “Leander loves you, Lily.”
“They’re so good at pretending, Finn.”
“Do you remember what you said . . . that night . . . ‘They call us things with teeth.’”
Lily’s mouth curved. “I got that from the first Fata I ever met. Norn.”
“I’ve met her.”
“You have?”
“She was part of Reiko’s . . . family.”
“It’s the first thing Norn said when I saw her. It was in the woods in Vermont and the sun was setting and she came walking toward me like some kind of rebel angel, in jeans, tattooed and barefoot. And she said, ‘Hello, little thing with teeth.’”
Finn shivered, imagining the Viking Fata girl approaching the child version of her sister.
“Mom told me once”—Lily’s voice was soft as she gazed out the window—“that the first life-forms on earth to grow teeth were, technically, going to become the first humans. And Fatas, well, they were probably the first life-forms, right, but they’re all spirit. But they can make themselves solid. And some use their teeth to—”
Lily went silent.
“Tickets, misses?” A figure dropped into the seat opposite them and Finn almost stabbed him with the silver dagger.
The Black Scissors smiled. He looked as if he’d just stepped from a neo-western in his black duster and wide-brimmed hat banded with bird skulls. He said, “Good evening, Misses Sullivan. I see you’ve broken all the rules to achieve your desires, as usual.”
Gripping the arms of her seat, Lily straightened. “You.”
“You know him . . .” Finn glanced at her sister.
The Black Scissors touched his hat brim. “We’re acquainted. Has the Wolf stopped howling?”
“Why don’t you go check?” Finn scowled. “And how did you get on this train? Cruithnear told us it’s a ghost train between the Ghostlands and the realm of the dead.”
“The realm of the dead”—his mouth twisted—“doesn’t bother me. I walk the borders. The dead and I have an understanding.”
“Finn, don’t be rude.” Lily Rose tucked her hair behind her ears and leaned slightly forward. “Did you really expect my sister and her gorgeous boyfriend to kill the Wolf? We barely escaped. Why don’t you grow a pair and kill him yourself?”
Finn looked from Lily to the Black Scissors. The Black Scissors said lightly, “I couldn’t get near him. Believe me, I’ve tried. I gave your sister and Jack the means to kill him, but I didn’t expect them to be assassins.”
“Sylvie and Christie could have died,” Finn said.
“They could die in the true world, too, Finn Sullivan. Now, they’ll be helpful comrades to you and Jack when the time comes.”
“Finn,” Lily said. “Don’t hit him.”
“A girl named Hester Kierney found your key. She’s dead. You used Moth and turned him into a key—and Thomas Luneht—what did you do to him?”
“I’m sorry about Hester Kierney—that was not my doing. However much that dragonfly key would have helped you, I didn’t lure Miss Kierney into the Ghostlands. But someone did . . . someone who knew what that key was and wanted it in the possession of a girl who could only get it to you at the very moment you needed it. As for Moth, he was without memory or any sense of what he was when I found him, shimmering with the remnants of Fata enchantment. He was a void, as if someone had sculpted a persona around nothing. And Thomas . . . well, he’s still fighting. He agreed to become an object of power for you . . .”
“So you turned him into a key?”
“To help you, Miss Sullivan. I’ve done these things to help you.”
“You did them to help yourself.”
“Miss Sullivan . . . what do you think your chances are against the Wolf when he comes to the true world?”
“Home team advantage.” She felt everything go quiet inside of her. “Are you going to be here when the menfolk return? I wouldn’t advise it.”
The Black Scissors and Lily exchanged a look that send a chill through Finn, as if she’d just discovered a dark secret between them. How well did they know each other?
“Why, exactly, are you here?” Finn spoke softly.
“To make sure you get through this safely.” He unfolded one hand and the dragonfly key