“Cyn’s just using a little Fae magic to influence the man. We will get his car back to him Lilly. We aren’t thieves.”
Lilly’s brow rose. “So says the warlock king who made a deal with the devil.”
Cypher glowered at her. “You know, I’m not going to help her?”
“Yes, I know,” Lilly, told him as she squeezed his hand in reassurance.
Finally, Cyn looked back and waved them over.
Twenty minutes later they had put some miles between themselves and Ruse, and some poor man that was sitting at home thinking his car was getting repaired and would be returned as soon as it was in a safely operable condition.
Cypher drove in silence as he tried to contemplate the ramifications of what they were getting ready to do. He had never considered that he would one day have a human mate. And, now that he did, he was beginning to realize just how dangerous the match would be for her. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye as she sat in the passenger seat. Instead of eagerly watching the sights and sounds of a country she had never seen, her eyes were focused on the road ahead and he would bet his life that her mind was focused on the coming trial. Pride swelled in his chest as he thanked the Fates that they had given him such a strong mate, a mate who was willing to do what was necessary.
Lilly felt Cypher’s eyes on her. She looked over at him and met his yellow eyed stare. Her breath caught briefly as she took in his inhuman beauty. She had to admit that if she was going to be married to someone, she could do much, much, much worse. She smiled at him and then went back to staring at the road ahead and trying not worry about Jacque, trusting that Fane and his pack would take care of her. She missed her daughter with an ache only a mother would understand. She knew if she wanted to see Jacque again, then they had to do the things necessary to keep the world, as they know it, safe. If they didn’t succeed in stopping Desdemona, the repercussions would be devastating.
Lilly didn’t know how long it had been since they had last stopped for a bathroom break, which under her current circumstances she did not want to discuss, when Cypher pulled over on the side of the road. He parked the car as far off the road as he could without driving into the forest. He climbed out of the car without ceremony and Lilly scrambled to join him. Cyn moved so quietly that Lilly hadn’t noticed the Fae exiting the car. Cyn pointed up into the forest. “We are going to have to hike up there. We need to move quickly, but we must be wary as we get closer to their veil.”
Cypher nodded and looked down at Lilly. “Are you ready?”
Lilly took a deep breath and let it out with puffed cheeks, the air blowing the wisps of hair around her face. “Cypher, sweetie, no one is ever ready for this kind of thing.” She patted him on the back and walked passed him, following Cyn as she started off.
Q
“What brings you to me Perizada, high Fae, friend of the pack, teacher to the healers?” The troll’s voice was deep and gravely, as if he’s spent a millennia smoking Pall Malls.
“Thurlok, bridge master, gate keeper,” Peri gave the troll a slight nod; not because he deserved her respect, but because it never hurt to flatter the one you needed to bargain with. She stepped around so that he and the bushes, which the others hid behind, were in sight.
“I’ve come to make an exchange,” said Peri with deliberate slowness. Trolls were not the smartest of creatures on a good day, and Thurlok had been stationed at the bridge for a very long time. She imagined his brain might be a bit sluggish from lack of use.
“A bargain?” He asked eagerly as his hands rubbed together and his eyes widened like a greedy child in a candy store. Peri nodded and he grew impatient. “Come now, female, what is it?”
Peri was purposefully peaking his interest, leveraging the troll’s natural appetite to possess things of great power or value.
“First, I will tell you what it is that I want in exchange for what I will offer.”
Thurlok motioned with his gnarled hand to get on with it.
“I, and eight companions, would like passage into and out of the In-Between. Upon our exit, we will be bringing back prisoners who were unjustly captured. Nine will go in and seventeen will come out. We will be unharmed as we enter; I fully understand you are powerless to protect us once we enter. Upon our exit, we will remain unharmed. You will not share the knowledge of us ever being here or of the identity of the individuals being rescued.” Peri went over the request in her mind to ensure that she did not leave any loopholes that the troll might use to his advantage.
Thurlok’s stared at Peri, his overlarge eyes growing even bigger. In his time as the guard of this waypoint, few beings ever requested to go in voluntarily and he certainly hadn’t had anyone be rescued on his watch. He knew of the ones she spoke of, the males that Desdemona had cast into the In-Between. He also knew that if they got out somehow, she would be out for blood, and it would probably be his blood she would seek first.
“That is a very dangerous request,” he responded calmly, trying not to show her just how curious he was. “What do you have that is of such great worth that I would give up the witch’s prisoners?”
“Something one such as you could never imagine, ever even laying eyes on.” She paused dramatically before she spoke. “A stone of the Fae,” she finally said.
If Thurlok’s eyes were wide before, now Peri was certain they were going to pop out of his head. She was right to say that he would only ever dream of laying eyes on the stones, very few ever did, no matter the length of their lives.
Peri watched the troll closely. His thoughts flickered on his face. She could tell he was examining the situation from every angle, trying his best to determine if she was trying to trick him somehow. Her plan hinged on his lack of knowledge of the stones; very few understood how they actually worked, or the purpose behind them. She waited patiently, not wanting to appear too eager and stir Thurlok’s suspicion.
“Do you think he’s going to hurt himself thinking that hard?” Jen whispered, as she and the other females watched from the cover of foliage.
“It’s quite possible his head might explode,” Sally answered.
“That would suck, seeing as how we need him to let us into that hell,” Jacque added.
“Okay, can I just ask; is that what you thought a troll would look like?” Jen asked no one in particular as she watched Peri talk to the short male with dark skin, a tuft of white hair on his head and small pointed ears. His eyes were large and black, but his face was otherwise unremarkable. His nose was not large or small; his lips were neither plump nor thin. His body was bulky and he seemed to stand a little crooked. He wore brown pants with suspenders and no shirt. His chest was bare and his belly round and plump. He didn’t wear any shoes and didn’t seem bothered by the rough ground.
“What did you expect them to look like?” Crina asked.