Midlife Blues - Victoria Danann Page 0,23
for a few minutes without all the pomp and loud voices, but… tradition.
I breezed through the door to my chambers and left it standing open for Lochlan and Keir. I turned when I heard the door close just in time to see Lochlan and Keir launch into a private little celebration that involved something like a combination of secret handshake and little satyr dance.
When they finished, they shared a laugh.
“Well,” Lochlan said to Keir, “I knew the Powers are never wrong, but it seems that sometimes they’re more right than other times.”
Keir nodded and gave Lochlan a fist bump. Finally, the two of them looked at me.
“What was that?”
“What?” they asked in unison
I motioned toward their lower bodies. “That weird little dance thing.”
“It’s not a weird little dance thing,” Lochlan protested. “It’s a perfectly respectable and quite ancient ritual elf thing.”
“Oh. Well. No offense.”
“None taken,” he grumbled, the words not in keeping with underlying emotions. I’d hurt his feelings and needed to find a way to make amends before a rift took hold.
“So, you should teach me. I don’t want to be left out.” I really did want to be left out. Far out. But I wanted Lochlan happy more.
He instantly brightened. “Of course. Now?”
“Um. Maybe not right now. I need a minute to gather my wits. Right after Hallowstide Meet? Can I take it that the performance of the ancient ritualistic elf dance means that I did okay?”
“Fishing for compliments, love?” Keir smiled as he flopped into an overstuffed chair like a teenager. It was adorable. For a second I got stuck on thinking about the myriad things about Keir that were adorable.
“Well, yeah. Of course, I want good reviews. Who doesn’t?”
“Alright,” Keir said. “Here it is. You were beyond magnificent. Creative. Insightful. Large balls of fire, Rita. You’re taking us where no magistrate has gone before.”
“Like the final frontier.”
“What?”
“Never mind. Lochlan, is it okay for me to take a break between cases? To clear my head a little?”
“Of course, Magistrate. You decide what is and is not okay. The day is yours.”
“That kind of, um, authority may take quite some time to get used to.”
“I’ve noticed, over time, that the Powers That Be choose magistrates who have humble backgrounds. I don’t mean poor necessarily, but certainly not wealthy and powerful.”
“I’m glad I fit in. Not wealthy and not powerful describes me to a T. At least it did until recently.” I looked around the room. “So, if I can take breaks as often as I want, who do I see for a cup of coffee? Not that stuff Molly makes. I always want to say, ‘If this is coffee, bring me tea. If this is tea, bring me coffee.’”
Keir laughed.
“Don’t give me credit for that,” I said. “It’s a Mark Twain quote from his visit to jolly old England.”
“There are many among those in the congregation outside who can conjure any sort of coffee you wish. The bailiff can see to it. What, precisely, would you like?”
“You mean, like going through a Starbucks drive-through?”
“I… think so.”
I clapped my hands together and rubbed with palms. “The perks just keep comin’. Wait. I may be on a path to being disliked by some. I’m sure the pais would poison me if she could. Do I need to worry?”
“You don’t need to worry,” Lochlan said. “For the remainder of your life you will enjoy certain fae advantages. Like not being sick and not being subject to poison.”
I sighed, wishing that included a little age regression for my bladder. “In that case, I’ll have a large, half-whole-milk, extra hot, no foam latte with a shot of espresso, no whip, four cubes of raw sugar, a splash of vanilla syrup, and five medium sprinkles of cinnamon.” Lochlan blinked. “Should I repeat that?”
“No, Magistrate. I’ll pass that on right away. What kind of cup would you like?”
“Double-wall paper, plus sleeve and lid.” I grinned. This was fun. I hoped I’d never take it for granted. “Oh. And make the cup a plain neutral color. I don’t think little flowers or geometric designs would support respect for the office.”
When Lochlan stepped out to convey the coffee order, Keir smiled, “You seemed to be having a good time.”
I looked at him sharply. “Are you insane? There was nothing fun about the phoenix case.”
“No. Not that. Pavio Lauro.”
I made a feeble attempt to suppress a smile, but failed. “Okay. I confess. I might have enjoyed that just a little.”
“Look out, fae world. There’s a new judge in