life. No, I’d lost everyone I’d loved years ago, so there was nothing to hold me on Earth. I went back because we had to go there to resupply, but other than a good Chinese takeaway and perhaps an occasional McDonalds, there was nothing there I wanted. I did, however, have a reason to be in Faerie. I was still searching for Walker, and I always would, until either I caught him and ripped out his heart, or I reached the end of my days; which, courtesy of my mother’s gift, would not be for a very very long time. My nostrils flared, my anger still as raw as it was the day Walker left me and the man I loved to the mercy of our enemy. Except they didn’t have any mercy.
I tilted my head and contemplated the spindly fae. The last thing I needed was to free someone who could ruin our business here. When I was eighteen, I’d struck a deal with Somnelaire, the Bogwart fae who was our boss. I got thirty percent of the profits from our Faerie drug deals. But it was the chance to hunt for Walker that drove my success and gave me purpose. Our illegal portal between Earth and Faerie was nearby, and if that were found, we’d all be in deep shit. Som had no loyalty to anyone but himself. I didn’t take offense; it was just the way fae like him were made. Nothing personal. If necessary, he would run to save himself and hang us out to dry. Both Blue and I knew it.
The spindly fae pressed his wide thin lips together, his eyes glowing eerily.
I contemplated the little device I held between my finger and thumb. My leather jacket creaked as I shrugged. “Fine.” And I pressed the button.
The fae squealed, his body going rigid and jerking. His eyes rolled back in his head and spit dribbled down his chin. I kept my finger on the button long enough that when I released him, he fell to the ground, still twitching when I squatted next to him. I inhaled the sweet smell of summer grass and sunshine that surrounded us, and grinned, though I didn’t really relish this side of my job.
Carefully, I brushed strands of silken hair from his sweating face and kept my voice hard. “I can keep doing this, you know. But if you give me your name, and your master’s, oh, and definitely the name of the person who told you about our store, I won’t press this itty bitty button anymore.”
He pressed his mouth together and shook his head, looking so scared I felt sorry for him. The poor bugger was stuck between a rock and a hard place; me or his vicious master. I pressed the button again, I had to make a point; we had lingered here too long.
The stink of urine hit my sensitive nose and my wolf grumbled, her dislike of my harsh treatment of this creature a feeling I didn’t relish—at all. She had been mistreated by her past host and I had promised never to disrespect her like that. I hadn’t, but she still hated when I had to get violent. Hush. This is necessary if you don’t want me dead again. I might get reborn, but you would end up on your way back to the Mother Wolf. She huffed her disapproval but settled, leaving me to do my job.
I took a breath but kept up my cool, drug dealer facade. “Just so you know, those little barbs in your skin can’t be removed. They just burrow right on in, and if you try to dig them out or disturb them, they will release an overdose of digitalis serum and you’ll die. Understand?”
He nodded, his eyes wide enough that black surrounded their solid yellow center.
“Good. Now what’s your name? Come on, don’t be shy. I promise I have no idea how to turn a name into any kind of faery magic.”
He studied me, his wide eyes staring into mine. “Waib.”
I smiled, but not necessarily in a friendly way. “Hi, Waib. Now, who’s your master? And I know you can’t lie, so let’s make this less painful for us both. Just tell me and we can save a lot of time.”
He blinked.
I looked at the egg sized device again while Waib turned an ugly shade of purple. Having spent the last four years of my life breaking the law in the land of Faerie, I knew