back on just as the Scottish dude brings me a purple cocktail with a little umbrella cocktail stick in it.
“Cute,” I say, raising my eyebrows and sliding the drink towards me. “Although I’ve got to say, I wasn’t expecting a girly drink in a bar like this.”
“Let’s just say it’s a special drink for a special client,” he replies.
"Thanks,” I say, and set a handful of cash down on the counter. “You can keep the change," I add, hoping he appreciates the gesture, and he smirks as he takes it off me before sliding it into his blue apron.
"Thanks a bunch, lassie.” He sizes me up for a moment longer, his bushy eyebrows raising slightly as I take a sip of the drink. I have to admit, it’s delicious - the perfect combination of sweet and sour. I give him a nod of approval, and he grins. “Now, why are you here?" he bluntly asks, getting straight to the point before I can take another sip of my drink. I like this dude, I think. Shame he’s probably a million times older than me. I bet he was cute when he was younger.
"I want to use the portal for one trip,” I say, figuring I should just cut straight to the chase.
He shifts slightly, crossing his arms, but to his credit, he doesn’t look surprised. “You’re a goddess, then,” he says. It’s not a question, but a statement.
“Yes,” I reply, casting a suspicious glance around me to make sure nobody else is listening in. They’re all caught up in their own conversations. “Although I’m guessing you had already figured that out.”
“I made a guess,” the bartender answers. “A girl like you wouldn’t come into a place like the Swanky Swan unless you had good reason.”
“Well, you’re right,” I tell him. “I need to get to London. Tonight. As in, like, right now.”
"There’s a price to get permission to use it from the boss,” he replies, crossing his arms. Although he feels human to me, it’s clear that he knows the ins and outs of the supernatural world as well as any god.
“What do you want for it?” I ask. “I’m low on gold, but I have cash. A few possessions, too, and I could always owe him a favor.”
The bartender appraises me for a second. “If you don’t have gold, lassie, you’re gonna have to give us something else.” He moves his eyes to my necklace, taking in all the charms. My heart sinks. Damn it, I think, that's not what I want to give up. But what choice do I have? I couldn’t have really expected them to let me use their portal as a charity case, did I? And if the options are giving them a useful charm or being indebted to them while I’ve got the justice gods on my tail, then… I don’t have much of a choice. Sighing, I hold up one finger and lift my foot up, unclipping the anklet of spare charms and holding it in the air. As much as it hurts to give up any of Mum’s gifts, I need to stay alive more than I need these right now. I can always come back when I’m proven innocent and buy it back. At least I will have my necklace either way, and that’s where I keep the most important medallions. If they want one of those, then I’m going to have to think of another way to get to London.
"Will this do? They are all magical charms. Rare ones," I say, holding the anklet in the palm of my hand. The bartender picks it up, scrolling through the charms and clicking his tongue. I can tell immediately that he has expertise in magical artifacts, and I won’t be able to just pawn off my most useless trinket and hope it’s enough. He might be human, but he’s clearly not a pushover. “One of them turns anything into pure silver,” I tell him as he continues to leaf through the charms. “It’s a useful charm.”
"It sure sounds useful” he acknowledges, “but charms only work depending on how strong the god is. A weak god would be able to do nothing more than turn a grain of rice into silver.” This isn’t something I was aware of, and I can’t help but feel a little surprised that this human somehow knows more about magical charms than I do. That’s interesting when I think of the lightning bolt charm and what I managed