31. Maeve

31

Maeve

G ladys sat in silence for a long time after Maeve finished speaking, helped in part by Rodan and sometimes Pike. Corra stayed at her guard duties, scanning the park for threats. Elias listened with just as much interest, sometimes interjecting with questions of his own.

"Are you okay?" Maeve asked gently after a while longer.

The woman nodded and gave a flicker of a smile. "It's a lot to take in. And your proof is… incredible." She held to her chest a gray teddy bear.

Maeve had asked her to hold the clearest image of it in her mind as possible, and the figure of the stuffed toy came through so well that it was easy to craft one just like it.

Gladys laughed a little. "I lost this bear ten years ago, in one of my last homes. I'm pretty sure the mother stole it. She hated me."

Maeve put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I do understand. There were a few times I had to start over entirely from scratch."

"Yeah," she said, and stared at Maeve intently. "So something is going to happen to Earth, and you want help from someone legitimately rooted in this world. Am I warm?"

Smiling, she nodded. "I know it's a lot to ask, and I understand if you can't. Just know I'm going to give you a bit of a nudge if you say no."

Furrowing her brow, Gladys asked, "A nudge?"

"Just a little one," Maeve affirmed. "Something to make you think of this more as a story. Something…" she hesitated, caught on the correct word.

"Unbelievable." Gladys whispered. "No, thank you." She straightened her shoulders and unslung her backpack, putting the bear away in one of the compartments. "Alright. You want to, what? Know what the rumors are now?"

"That, and how are things? None of them are from here at all, and I've been gone for months."

"Things are weird," she said, coming to a stand and adjusting her pack once more. Her nails were painted a brilliant crystalline orange, like cave crystals. "Everyone's been talking about how stuff doesn't feel right. The news is the news, always going on about the worst things. There's conflict all over, and we hear about it constantly. But, if you dig deeper? Look at forums and online posts? There's something else happening."

"You're on this line often?" Elias asked.

Maeve and Gladys both burst out laughing, the latter saying through her giggles, "Yeah, I guess so. When I was growing up, it was one of the only ways to mentally escape what was going on around me, and the habit kind of stuck. I lurk, mostly, but sometimes contribute a bit." Her eyes glimmered. "I doubt anyone would believe me about you."

"Enough would," Maeve said. "I'd prefer you not."

Elias was still frowning, but Rodan tapped his shoulder, taking him aside to explain a few of the intricacies of Earthen technology, no doubt.

She turned her attention back to Gladys. "So what is it exactly that has escaped the main media attention?"

"Towns going dark," she answered immediately. "Especially near the arctic circle. Not just Russia, which is hard enough getting reliable news out of, but here in the States, too. Canada."

"Dark?" Maeve asked, her lips going numb with fear.

Gladys nodded and motioned for them to continue on the path deeper into Central Park. The place was massive, but it paled in comparison to the wide-open spaces of the Realms. They walked with Rodan and Elias just behind, Pike taking point and Corra bringing up the rear. There was enough space in between to make way for anyone who might need to weave through their little group.

Scratching the back of her neck, Gladys said, "Places are emptying out without explanation, and none of the major news outlets seem to care yet. Then there's the pagan, witch community, and they're screaming about how we're in some kind of astrological super-charge zone where we're about to undergo some great change." She flashed a grin. "I wouldn't have mentioned it, it's not necessarily something I believe in, but enough people do that it's worth noting. Oh, and people have been going missing in record numbers."

"Missing?"

"Whole families, yeah, but mostly the same old undesirables that never make the news cycle. There's been enough recovered that the authorities are fairly certain it's just coincidence, but according to some of my data nerd friends, the trend is troubling."

Maeve shuddered. "And we have no idea."

"None." Gladys glanced at her and then away. "There's also a feeling I've had and been unable to shake. I don't know, a part of me that believes this is—known? Like we're walking a predetermined path." She shook her head. "And there are massive powers at play."

Maeve nodded but said nothing, hoping to get Gladys to continue.

She obliged. "This feeling… it's that we're on the cusp of something. Like a pressure in my chest, right here," she tapped her solar plexus. "An expanding balloon. It's telling me to run. Run, run, run. But I also just know there's nowhere far enough. So I don't do anything."

Maeve made herself a bottle of water as they walked and took a sip, giving a wink to the little girl who had seen her twirl of magic and was staring, slack-jawed. The girl was perhaps four years old and tugging on the sleeve of her weary-looking father, pointing.

"Yes," she heard the man say as they passed where the two of them sat on a bench. His tone was just as tired as he looked, and he was not paying Maeve any attention beyond that first cursory glance. "That's a very pretty lady."

"But daddy, she made the bottle jus' appear!"

They kept walking, beyond earshot, though the little bit she could hear of the father's timbre was the same soft indulgence that had been in him earlier. She smiled to herself and offered the bottle to Rodan. He took it, finishing it off. Elias cocked an eyebrow and she made one for him to, passing it over. He was fiddling with the cap when she asked Gladys, "Is there anything you do that makes the feeling stronger, or weaker? Like a time of day, or a place in the city?"

The woman thought about it, kicking at loose stones scattered across the path. "Sunset," she said. "Or the hours just before."

"Anything else?"

"Certain people, I guess. My boss at The Met, she wigs me out. I get that feeling every time I'm in her office."

Magically sensitive? Rodan asked through the bond.

Possibly. Hope was blooming in her. This was starting to come together. And it seems she is in tune with the local species.

Elias said, "Perhaps your boss is a vampire."

Gladys giggled, then saw how Maeve exchanged glances with her bondmate. "He's not serious?"

Maeve shrugged. "I just found out myself."

They were in Bethesda Terrace. The massive, fountained area was filled with people, and Maeve started to feel a little itchy, being around this many for this long. New York City was like the entire population of the Realms all crammed into three hundred square miles.

Maeve fished out her phone. "I think we should make this a little more private," she said, checking the nearby cross streets. "I'm going to call Lydia and let her know we're all coming back." She raised her eyebrows at Gladys. "If that's okay."

The woman was bouncing on the balls of her feet again, containing an energy that was infectious. "This is wild. Sure, why not?"

Maeve made the call to her daughter, requesting she send the van offered to their location. Lydia let her know it would be there in ten minutes. "Thank you," she said. "We're bringing back a guest. I think we all need to talk."

"How enigmatic," Lydia said, laughter in her voice. "I'll gather the troops. My place?"

"Yes," Maeve said, starting to walk toward where they would have their pickup, the others trailing her. "And thank you."

"Of course, mama," she said softly, and the line went dead.

The title hit her harder than she expected, her eyes pricking with tears as she shoved the phone back in her pocket. She gave a shaky smile to the group. "A vehicle should be here for us soon. Corra, with me." She did not want the young guards woman scared of the contraption when they got to it. She looped her arm in the young woman's and leaned in. "You've been paying attention to the cars and trucks going by on the roads?"

"Yes, my Queen," she said, trembling a little. Maeve patted her arm, reassuring. Corra flashed her a smile. "They're very loud. And they smell."

Laughing, Maeve said, "Well, we're going to ride in one. To save us from having to walk all the way back to Lydia's. Are you okay with that?"

"I go where you go, my Queen," she said.

Maeve sighed. "Just Maeve is fine. Please. You're going to get people thinking we're part of some Broadway stage production." At Corra's confused expression, she explained, "It's this city's version of a theater district, and sometimes the people who play a part in those musicals do little bits for the people of the city. On the subway," she motioned around them. "The park. This isn't the only one, but it's the biggest."

"It's crowded," Corra said, leaning in with her voice canted low. "And the entire place has a smell. What is it?"

"City funk," she said, deadpan. They were just coming upon Fifth Avenue, and she could see the markings for the driving company Lydia had booked. "Come along."

The van ended up being one of those long SUV's converted to be more like a limo on the inside, two sets of bucket seats facing one another in the back with a bench seat stretched across the side. Maeve took the very back bucket seat and motioned Corra to sit next to her. Rodan took the seat directly across from her. Gladys took the middle of the bench seat, legs braced for movement, with Elias settling next to her. Pike took the last spot next to Rodan.

Corra's eyes were wide as saucers in her face as she looked around the interior. It was awash with blue tinted light through the nearly-blackened windows, and smelled faintly of peaches.

Maeve's feet were grateful for the reprieve immediately, voicing complaints she had been ignoring. It had been a long time since she had worn heels.

"What's that?" Corra asked, pointing to a glass-fronted display between Maeve and Rodan's seat. It was lit internally and showed off an array of beverages, primarily alcoholic. "Can I have one?"

"Of course. What are you in the mood for?" She went over the choices with her.

The guardswoman selected a can of brown soda, cracking the seal on the miniature bottle with glee at the noise it made, then making a face at the first sip. "It's burning water. But so sweet! Sir, you should taste this." She thrust the bottle toward Pike.

Maeve chuckled and distributed drinks to everyone else, and asked the driver if he wanted anything as he merged into traffic with a gentleness that made his years at this apparent. "No, thank you," he called through the half-window separating the backseat from the front. "I have plenty up here."

It had taken them almost two hours to meander to The Met, and then there had been the time inside and the time in the park, talking. Now the sun was at the start of its wide descent, the buildings casting thick shadows over the roadways.

Rodan tracked where she was looking. "It is odd, to see only one, is it not?"

It is odd, she mused, keeping the thoughts to herself. How quickly one becomes accustomed to another place, another world.

"I find it mightily strange," Corra agreed, eyes shaded as she looked toward where the sun was. None of them were so foolish as to look at it directly. "Does this star have a name?"

"I suppose," Maeve said. "Sol is the name given by scientists, but there are regions that looked upon the sun as a god, or did historically."

They were within distance of Lydia's building within moments. Maeve was the last one out, and scanned her mobile against the reader, increasing his tip. "Thank you."

He nodded, accepting without comment, and Rodan offered a hand to help her out.

They were still chatting and had reached the penthouse floor when Corra asked, "What other names are there? For the sun on this world?"

Maeve thought about it as she turned the key in the lock. "Helios. Lugh. Mithra." She pondered a moment longer as the door swung open. "Ra."

"We should be cautious, speaking names of the gods here," Rodan said. "It seems to me their hands are in much of this."

"Wise words, my friend," Elias said.

Maeve agreed, and led the company into the main room of Lydia's place, where she and High Priestess Thea looked to be in deep conversation. Cedric, Thea's guard, was standing by the sliding glass door with a glass of water in one hand, looking out over the park and all the people below. His attention was pulled away as the rest of them entered, and Maeve noticed his eyes were deep sapphire blue.

"You're back," Lydia said, rising from the couch with barely-contained relief. "Are you hungry? Who is our new guest?"

She did not seem surprised to see Maeve had brought someone else home, which made her smile. "This is Gladys. She's a musician. A pianist." It was a fact that her new friend had dropped during their conversation, and Maeve could not help hear the melodies within her mind.

"I have a piano, in the library," Lydia said, perking up. "Would you play something for us?"

Gladys was looking around with undisguised awe. Her eyes caught the glittering lights, making it look as though they shimmered. "This is—yeah. I would love to play on your piece. I'm sure it's lovely."

"I keep it tuned," Lydia said with a grin, coming to the young woman's side. Seeing the two of them together, Maeve was realizing they must have been of a similar age. "I haven't played in years."

Maeve wondered what years might mean to her daughter. She cleared her throat. "How about we order something? I'm starving."

While the company in the living room deliberated, Maeve felt her phone buzz in her pocket and fished it out. There was a new message. She unlocked the screen and read.

We know you're here. Go home.

The number was simply listed as Unknown, and when she attempted to dial it, there was nothing but a disconnected tone.

Heart starting up a quick rhythm, Maeve crossed the room to Rodan and showed him the screen. "I think our hand was tipped quicker than we hoped," she said.

He was reading, gaze skimming over the short sentence, when another message came in. This one was also from Unknown.

Go back NOW.

"I will not be told what to do," Maeve growled at her screen, but fear was trickling in a cold line down her spine. "Do you think it's the vampires?" she asked, canting her voice low.

He nodded. "It must be."

"We decided on pizza from Vic's," Lydia said, pulling menus out of a kitchen drawer. "Everyone get at least one thing they want, and we'll share once it gets here." She passed the three menus she had on hand around to share, then convened on Maeve and Rodan. "What's going on?" she asked in an undertone.

Maeve twisted the phone to show her the messages. She frowned. "I think we know who these are from," she said. "The only question is, how did they know how to contact me, and how did they know the moment we got back here?"

Lydia's lips thinned. "Your information was shared with the doorman, and my man has known of your arrival, but otherwise no one has been given that information."

Furrowing her brow, Maeve asked, "Who is ‘your man'? You keep referring to him."

Her smile softened. "Jonathan. We have history."

Rodan's eyes narrowed. "What kind of history?"

"Father, I've lived more years than you," she chided softly. "I know this might be hard to conceive, but I have had adult relationships with a number of people."

He cleared his throat and Maeve gave a slight smile, though she also wanted to change the subject as quickly as possible. "So he's someone you've trusted?"

"With my life. Every time we've met. There was even once…" she paused, her gaze going far away. It was something Maeve had seen on her numerous times. "Once, I thought it would work. That he would save me." She shook her head. "A fantasy."

Maeve stomach twisted a little, and she ran a hand down her daughter's arm. "Not someone who would give us up to the vampires."

"Definitely not," she agreed. She frowned. "I have known of the vampires for some time, but I have never met one. Fae, lesser gods, and spirits? Yes. Plenty of times. But never a vampire, and they supposedly run the place."

Maeve sighed, her stomach growling. "For now, let's put a pin in this. We'll order our dinner and then convene a meeting."

Rodan squeezed her hand. "As you say, my love."