THIRTEEN

TWELVE

I LOOKED AROUND with undisguised amazement. I"d expected dirt walls. Maybe something underground. Yet somehow the barrow was something entirely unexpected.

Banquet tables had been set up on either side of the ancient tree, their surfaces laden with a feast. Fae lords and ladies mingled with the visitors, clad in clothes that would make a fashion designer envious.

Their less human looking counterparts watched from balconies set up above. I caught a glimpse of a furred form disappearing through one of the many doorways.

"Don"t go wandering, Aileen," Jerry warned with a serious expression. "The hall is tethered to your world through the tree. The same isn"t true of the rest of the barrow."

In other words, leave this room and risk getting stuck in the barrow forever—if something didn"t decide to eat me.

Jerry didn"t have to tell me twice. I knew the stories where humans wandered into a Fae place and when they left, centuries had passed.

I"d be careful. I didn"t want that to happen to me.

I peered around with suspicion, dropping into my magic sight by habit. A faint after image of the forest was transposed on the banquet hall. I concentrated harder, the image of the clearing growing stronger until the edges of banquet hall wavered, fuzzy and indistinct.

A gentle hand touched my elbow, startling me. Like a rubber band snapping back into place, the image of the banquet hall reasserted itself.

I hid a wince of pain, my head suddenly throbbing.

"Careful, Aileen. We are here, yet not. Two places at one time. Allow one to become too ascendant and it will break the link between the two," Jerry said in a careful voice.

My gaze lifted to his as I caught his meaning. He nodded once.

Magic breaker.

Jerry was one of the few who"d put it together, and I still didn"t know what he planned to do with that information. Ally or foe—that was the question.

If Thomas had any idea of what he knew, I had no doubt my sire would seek to eliminate him.

I nodded to show I understood.

Jerry ambled off, calling over his shoulder, "Enjoy the party, Aileen. I hope you accomplish what you came here for."

The reminder made me realize I could have had Jerry answer some of my questions. As the owner of Hermes Courier Service, he had contacts even Liam was envious of. If anyone could tell me about the Scattered, he could.

Before I could call him back, he was gone. For such a big man, he was surprisingly nimble, getting lost in the gathering in seconds.

I leaned against the tree's sturdy trunk as I considered my next steps. Across the room, Sofia and Sam were speaking to a pair of Fae. The conversation seemed to be going well, as Sofia threw her head back, her warm laugh filling the room.

I didn"t know what Clan Davinish wanted with the Fae, but I had little doubt it was the reason Sofia had agreed to act as escort tonight.

The twins smirked at me from her side. They made a show of flirting with Davinish"s matriarch as Sam watched them with poorly concealed suspicion.

On the other side of the room, Liam, Nathan, and Anton were studying those around them with the sort of focus that said they were planning something.

We"d decided before coming that I would try to mingle by myself. Sometimes having no formal affiliations came in handy. This was one of them. Since I wasn't allied with any of the clans, it meant the Fae might be more willing to approach me to talk than they would an enforcer.

Liam"s eyes met mine briefly before his gaze continued past me.

"Miss," a shy voice said from my elbow.

I looked down, startled. A woman, no taller than my waist, stared up, a tray of drinks held up to me like an offering.

From a distance, she could have passed as a human child on the cusp of puberty. Up close, however, was a different story.

The structure of her face immediately gave her away as Fae. Her eyes were overly large, much like a doll's, her cheekbones too high and her chin pointed.

Her hair was a light green, and I caught sight of leaves curling along her temple and more sprouting from the back of her hands.

She shifted uncomfortably as the moment stretched between us.

"What is it?" I asked, trying to put her at ease.

She beamed at me with unexpected warmth. "Fairy wine."

I paused in the act of reaching for a cup and grimaced. "Better not, then."

Fairy wine was one of the few things capable of getting me intoxicated. Wandering around a Fae gathering while drunk seemed like a very poor life decision.

The woman"s face dropped in disappointment; her expression crestfallen.

"I was wondering if you could help me, though," I said, seeing an opportunity.

Her expression brightened.

"Is there anything you can tell me about the Scattered?" I asked.

It wasn"t the best transition, lacking in subtlety, but it was the best I could manage.

Her face shut down, her eyes dimming. I could see her withdrawing, her eyes darting around as she checked for escape routes.

Before she could, a masculine hand plucked a glass of wine from her tray.

Peter threw the contents down his throat, reaching for another immediately after.

"I"d slow down if I were you," I warned. "That stuff packs a wallop."

He met my gaze, never taking his eyes off mine as he grabbed another glass and then chugged that one as well.

My mouth quirked. Did he think he was hurting me by getting stupid drunk? I wasn"t the one who"d make a fool of myself.

The server took advantage of his distraction, darting off before I could stop her.

"Damn," I muttered.

"Scattered, huh? Those are some dangerous people."

My gaze swung to him. "What do you know about them?"

He took a long swig of the wine. "More than you, apparently."

Before I could respond, Caroline appeared holding two glasses, one of which she tried to hand to me.

"Last time wasn"t enough for you?" I asked, refusing to take the offered glass.

She arched an eyebrow and jiggled the glass at me. "If you don"t take it, I"ll be forced to drink both these by myself."

"You could always put it back."

Caroline"s shot me a look that said she thought I might have been raised by wolves.

Since only one of us regularly spent time with the furred assassins, I ignored her.

"That goes against every social etiquette in the rule book," Caroline said.

"And also violates our host"s guesting laws," Peter said in a bored tone. "Once you take something, it"s yours. Returning it has consequences."

Resigned, I took the glass from Caroline. As much as I hadn"t planned on drinking tonight, wanting to be alert and aware at all times, I also didn"t want Caroline drinking both glasses.

"Who"s this?" Caroline gave Peter a once over.

Confused, I didn"t answer. It took a second for realize why she didn't recognize him.

Caroline had never met the grown-up Peter. Her only interaction with him would have been as a prepubescent teen.

"It"s Peter," I said.

Her confusion didn't lessen.

"You know, teenage Peter," I continued. "I brought him to the library when you were still human."

Dismay warred with a growing recognition.

Peter lifted his glass in a sarcastic toast. "Regrettably, true."

"He also helped save you from the demon," I admitted reluctantly.

Of course, he"d also used the incident as an opportunity to force me to pull out my own eye so he could use it in a spell. When it had grown back, I could see magic.

"How?" Caroline asked through gritted teeth.

She knew some of the details about that incident, but not all of them. Judging from her glare, she"d put together enough pieces to guess at how exactly he"d helped and what it had cost me.

I pretended to misunderstand. "You see, he put a mark on me."

"She"s not asking about that." Peter shot Caroline a charming smile, for a moment appearing almost handsome.

I waved a hand in the air dispelling that image. No way would I ever think that about Peter.

His features might be visually appealing, but he was also an ass. A powerful one. Who held a nasty grudge.

"I used magic to help Aileen find you," he said with a flourish.

I rolled my eyes and glanced at Caroline.

She looked awestruck. If someone could get stars in her eyes, she"d have them. All that was missing were the clasped hands at her heart.

Seconds later, Caroline lifted her hands and clasped them.

Uh oh.

Danger. Danger. Danger.

It was never good when Caroline did that.

Peter, unaware of the peril he was in, lifted a hand, a delicate glass figurine of a wolf appearing.

Caroline made suitably impressed sounds as she took it.

I shook my head. Poor bastard. He had no idea what awaited him.

People tended to underestimate Caroline because she was pretty. Why they equated that with being dumb was beyond me.

I lifted the glass to my lips, taking the smallest of sips as I settled into watching what was to come. This should be good.

Warmth from the wine spread through my chest, a single sip having the effect of two shots of tequila when I"d been human.

Damn, that was potent stuff. Way more so than the last time I"d tangoed with fairy wine.

Caroline held the wolf up to the light, admiring the small rainbow refracted in the glass"s depth.

Genuine pleasure lit her face. "Nice."

Between one second and the next, the wonder dropped from her features as if had never been. She tossed the figurine back to Peter.

It hit his chest and burst into a thousand microscopic pieces, the shards catching the light until it seemed like stars were falling to the ground.

"I can do magic too," she told his disbelieving face. "Side effect of being the librarian"s assistant."

Caroline reached forward, smoothing down Peter"s collar. "If you can take this form, that means the other was an illusion. Do you get your kicks pretending to be a child?"

Peter no longer looked infatuated. His face had gone blank and hard, her words hitting what I knew was a sore spot for him. The arrogance was gone as he finally watched Caroline with the respect a predator like her deserved.

"Caroline," I warned.

Caroline ignored me, saying in a sweet voice. "I do thank you for helping me." Her eyes hardened. "But you didn"t save me. Aileen did."

I gaped at her. That was what set her off?

No, my long history with her told me there was more. There was a banked rage vibrating through her body.

"She never would have found you if not for me," Peter said.

His stubborn insistence proved Peter might be an uber powerful sorcerer feared by most of the spook community, but apparently, he wasn"t smart enough not to anger the demon-tainted wolf wanting to rip him limb from limb.

Caroline"s gaze had gone wintry. "That"s right. I remember." She took a step closer to Peter, peering up at him from beneath her eyelashes. "But you see, I have something of an idea about what goes into making a spell like that."

Caution finally entered Peter"s expression.

About damn time.

"You hurt my friend," Caroline said, her voice deepening until I could hear the wolf in it.

Peter"s gaze dropped to where her hand had fisted in the material of his coat. To my magic sight, Caroline"s wolf was a pale, ghostly overlay on top of her figure.

I swirled the wine around the glass, considering my options. As amusing as it was to contemplate Caroline teaching Peter a lesson, I knew it would only result in disaster. Peter wasn"t a weakling, nor were our hosts likely to allow such violence against another guest.

That left me in the role of peacemaker—again.

"Enough, Caroline." I sank a wealth of authority into my tone. "He was only doing what I asked him to."

It wasn"t his fault I hadn"t realized the cost.

When she didn"t move, I said softly, "I would have sacrificed anything."

Peter"s expression flickered, an emotion chasing across his face before it was gone.

Caroline unclenched her fist from his coat, stepping back with an audible inhale. "You always were the kinder one of us."

I arched an eyebrow. Where did she draw that conclusion from? Didn"t she remember who replaced Ms. Thurber"s markers and pens with quills and ink because I didn"t like how she talked to her student"s?

Caroline"s expression was wry. "And you never saw it that way either. Perhaps that"s why we"re friends."

She sauntered toward her packmates. Over her head, Brax"s gaze lingered on me. He dipped his chin in a nod before turning back to the Fae he"d been talking to.

"Spooks are so weird," I muttered. Even spooks who were my childhood friend.

"We"re not human. You can"t measure us by their standards." The sorcerer paused, looking like he was struggling to say something.

I waited.

In the end, he shook his head. "Why did you lie?"

"I didn"t lie. Everything I said was the truth."

"You didn"t know," he said.

My expression was thoughtful. "No, but even if I had, I would have made the same decision."

"You surprise me, and I don"t say that about many people." Peter took a step away then paused. "You should ask our host about the Scattered. Rumor has it he has contacts among them and that there might even be one here tonight."

He touched his forearm where Caroline had told me they carried their mark. He disappeared between one step and the next, leaving me no time to ask questions.

Frustration that I"d lost another lead caused me to take a larger than was wise sip from the wine in my hand. My lips tingled and my skin flushed in response.

"Foiled again. I'm beginning to sense a theme with you tonight." Arlan stepped out of the tree, the roaring bonfire of his power singeing my senses. I breathed through the pain from the sudden onslaught, conscious of Liam and the others tensing to interfere.

I waved them off with a small gesture. This was what we"d been hoping for, even if the manner was a little unorthodox.

My distraction gave me time to process Arlan"s sudden and unexpected presence beside me. Damn, I didn"t realize how right I"d been before. Arlan had gotten a massive upgrade after Niamh"s death. If anything, I"d underestimated the extent.

His power pressed in on me, making it hard to think.

"You could always help me out and tell me everything I want to know about the Scattered," I suggested when I could control my voice again.

"Hmm, I certainly could." He leaned forward, avarice on his face. "If you ask nicely enough, I"ll even wrap the person you seek in the finest of silk"s and deliver them at your feet."

I snorted. Did he really think I was that stupid?

Arlan"s smile was slight as he straightened. "I see someone has advised you of the consequences of becoming indebted to one such as I."

That was an understatement. Liam and Connor had been adamant that under no circumstances was I to incur a debt. I"d take umbrage with the fact they thought they could give me orders if I hadn"t agreed wholeheartedly.

Arlan wasn"t like the sorcerer. Owing him a marker would be like offering up my life to capricious fate and hoping I didn"t end up dead in the end. On the off chance I survived, I wouldn"t be the same Aileen. I"d be some broken shade of myself.

And yet, I didn"t walk away.

I didn't know what that said about my decision-making process.

The sorcerer thought Arlan had the answers I needed to get to the bottom of this. That meant I was going to play his game. I was going to tango with a being known for his treachery.

Arlan"s head tilted as he considered me. "Perhaps an even exchange will set your mind at ease. Level the playing field as humans would say."

I waited, knowing it couldn"t be that easy.

"There is one from the beginning of the night who I sensed held great anger toward you. Why?"

It only took me a moment to realize who he meant. "Kat?"

He quirked an eyebrow.

"Red hair? Looks like she thinks she"s better than everyone?"

His nod was brief.

As a question, it was unexpected.

"I made her look bad in front of Liam during our first encounter."

Arlan's attention shifted to Liam. "I"ve never understood why the Wolf of Galway fascinates women. But if she held the same obsession for him as Niamh, I can see why she is currently plotting your death."

I arched an eyebrow. "Jealous? I wouldn"t have thought it of you considering how you let your wife be hunted down like a stray animal."

"Our marriage wasn"t a traditional one. We each got something from the alliance." A dark look entered his eyes. "Her more so than me. When her usefulness faded, so did my need of her. She"d have acted the same if our situations had been reversed."

I shook my head. That didn"t sound much like a marriage to me. It sounded like a hostile business alliance. Then again, Niamh had been an awful person. A true monster despite the beauty of her exterior.

If I"d been married to that, I likely would have done the same.

I scanned the gathering, going still as I caught sight of Arlan standing next to Sofia.

What the hell? How was that possible?

"Your first test." Arlan"s smile was faint, daring me to guess which one was real.

I inhaled and then released my breath slowly. Game on.

At least this one didn"t involve opening a vein or getting stabbed.

I debated whether I should use my magic sight. To my knowledge, none could tell when I activated it, but this was Arlan we were talking about. There had to be a reason behind this little test. What better way to trip me up than to catch me in the act?

The Arlan speaking to Sofia glanced over at me with a hint of playful mischievousness I recognized—a twin.

To check my theory, I searched the gathering, finding one of the twins standing cast half in shadow, his gaze focused on the Arlan doppelganger.

"Very astute." There was approval on Arlan"s face. "I"m surprised. I anticipated you needing to use your power to see through our little ruse. Yet you employed mundane talents to find the truth. I wonder if that is a product of your human upbringing."

It seemed I"d been right in thinking he"d devised some type of trap involving my magic sight.

"I have no idea what you"re talking about," I said stiffly.

"I admit, when I first imagined snatching the barrow from Niamh"s clutches, I didn"t think a treasure as valuable as you would literally fall right into my lap," Arlan mused. "Or are you going to keep pretending to be less than you are?"

"I"ve never pretended to be anything less than awesome. It"s everyone else who"s been slow to catch on."

Arlan swept an elegant hand to indicate our surroundings. "Are you enjoying the party? It was meant for you."

I narrowed my eyes at him. Now who was lying?

"You don"t believe me, but we"ve been waiting for you. Why else would the vampires have an invitation now when they"ve been angling for one for months?"

I would have argued with him if not for Sofia saying something very similar last night.

"Why?"

His head tilted. "You"re special. Surely you know that by now."

"Everybody likes to tell themselves they"re special."

On the other hand, I"d always been perfectly content with average. Standing out meant there was always someone gunning for you.

"But in your case, it"s true." Arlan was suddenly closer than he"d been a moment before. "Or do you not find it strange that you"ve suddenly found yourself surrounded by so many powerful creatures? How many other humans newly into their eternity can say the same?"

Arlan"s gaze trapped mine, his eyes swallowing up the rest of the room.

"Your sire is among the most powerful of his kind. The extent of his power is mostly unknown, but I"d wager he could challenge for a council seat and win. Why did he choose you out of all the many humans that night?" Arlan"s voice wrapped around me, coaxing, seducing, as the noise from the rest quieted to a muted roar.

"Liam, known to be the council"s most trusted agent. Not as powerful as his brother but an exceptional assassin. Even my people fear him."

Arlan"s gaze roamed my face. "They"re not the only ones, are they? Niall, lord of the green. Inara, the mad, solitary queen. Even Hermes"s master, the fallen knight. Each one drawn to you in their own ways."

His hand dropped, his fingers trailing over the arm that carried Liam"s mark along with new ones from last night.

I was suddenly grateful I"d chosen to wear my leather jacket.

"They"re my friends." I couldn"t help the defensive tone of my voice.

Arlan threw his head back, his laughter carefree and bright.

Yeah, even I heard the lie in that one.

One of them I could believe. All of them? When vampires my age tended to be ignored and overlooked as they fought to win their clan"s favor? Not likely.

"Shall I prove it to you, then?" Arlan asked, his laughter dying to be replaced by canniness.

I was already shaking my head. I wasn"t that stupid. Take a bet from the barrow"s lord? While standing in said barrow?

Even my sense of self-preservation wasn"t that low.

His mouth quirked. "Such caution. It doesn"t suit a splendid creature such as you."

Yes, because reckless disregard for my own life was way better.

I very carefully kept my expression neutral, knowing that handing Arlan any key to my emotions would only end up in them being twisted to suit his own agenda.

He watched me from half lidded eyes, his gaze that of a hunter anticipating flushing out his prey.

I went still, abruptly sensing the danger I was in. I checked my magic sight, cursing internally as I realized a thin sheet of magic separated us from the rest of the gathering, including Liam.

It hadn"t been there earlier. It would have taken a masterful touch to raise a ward like that without me ever once realizing.

"Arlan, don"t do anything stupid," I warned, already calculating my best escape route.

I could always use my ace in the hole and puncture this reality, returning us to the forest. Of course, that would alleviate any lingering doubts Arlan had about who I was and what I could do.

I"d do it if I had to, but only as a last resort.

Until then, I"d try to bluff my way out of whatever Arlan had planned.

"My wife was stupid. She enslaved people to her will and thought that made her powerful. Now, I"m the one left standing while her life"s essence nourishes this tree"s roots."

I couldn"t help glancing down at the ground, realizing Niamh"s bones were likely under there somewhere. To create this barrow the Fae had relied on some of the oldest magic there was—death magic.

"I"ve answered one question for you and passed your little test," I said calmly.

The situation was devolving in a direction I didn"t like. I needed to get control—quick.

"I think it"s time you answered a few questions of mine."

Interest lined Arlan"s features, his regard overpowering. "Do you?"

"What can you tell me about the Scattered?" I asked, not allowing him to intimidate me.

"Nothing I suspect you don"t already know."

"Answer anyway."

"The Scattered are some of the most feared Fae in all the realms. They weren"t always. Once they were considered part of a great court whose King was unmatched by any other. Made of shadows and nightmares, he could have ruled all if he wanted." There was awe and nostalgia in Arlan"s tone as if he was speaking of a treasured memory.

"What do they want?"

Surprise moved across Arlan"s face. "What do all people without a home want?"

Somewhere to belong.

"And what would they want with me?" I asked.

That was the part that didn"t make sense. How did I fit into all this? Until two nights ago, I hadn"t even heard of the Scattered.

"If you want the answer to that, you"ll have to bargain for it."

I fought the urge to roll my eyes. Of course, he"d go there. Why would I think anything else? The Fae didn"t do anything for free—especially one of Arlan"s power and position. They believed in even exchanges.

"What do you want?" I asked, finding myself grateful for the magic barrier he"d erected. If Liam had heard us, he"d already be here forcibly extracting me before I could do anything stupid—his words. I preferred to think of it as taking a calculated risk.

"Make me a deal."

What nonsense was this?

He must have accurately guessed my thoughts on that subject. "Surely, you"re not afraid."

I barked out a laugh. "I"d have to be a fool to be anything but afraid. You"re powerful and not only because of magic."

When he spoke, I suspected others listened. If this gathering was anything to judge by, powerful Fae already flocked to his barrow despite it only being months old.

The political and magical landscape was shifting in Columbus and it had its roots in this barrow.

No wonder the vampires had been trying to get someone in here. If they didn"t, there was a very real possibility they"d lose their status at the top of the food chain.

"You"ve also already conspired to kill me once." Call me stubborn, or scared, or whatever, but a thing like that tended to stay with a person.

"I try to kill everyone at some point," Arlan said without an ounce of apology. "My suggestion for you is to be bold and fearless. Otherwise, you paint yourself a target for those stronger than you."

"I prefer to think of it as basing my perceptions off past actions," I said with a tight smile.

"A drop of your blood; no more, no less. That"s all I ask," Arlan suggested in that silken voice that coaxed and prodded at my mental defenses in a compulsion much more subtle than a vampire's. "For that price, I will protect you from anything."

Was that all? Why not ask for my life while he was at it?

The Aileen of a few years ago would have been tempted. She was easily tricked into giving up things she had no business giving up. Today"s Aileen was considerably wiser.

A single drop of my blood would open untold doors. There was no telling what he could do with it. Compel my compliance? Easy. Tailor a death spell? Of course.

"I"m not that stupid," I told him.

His face was still and calm. "It will bring no harm to you or yours. Of that I swear."

I shook my head at him. Did he really think I was that naive?

The charming facade of a gentlemen ripped, the true Arlan peeking through. That Arlan disliked being denied. He was willing to do anything to get what he wanted. "Yet you regularly share blood with your vampire lover."

I didn"t react, refusing to give him the satisfaction.

His head tilted as he went for the kill. "Vampires don"t need to feed on their own for sustenance. Does it ever make you wonder what he is after?"

My expression remained blank and closed down.

His smile this time was cruel. "Why did he choose you? A man with as many lovers as him, used to the finest of women—and he settled on you? In your place, I"d ask myself why."

He was good. If I"d been another person—one less secure, maybe a little younger—his words might have drawn blood.

But I wasn"t that person and any doubt as to Liam"s motivations had been put to rest when I"d seen his grief when he"d thought I was dead.

"Interesting tactic," I said in a detached voice. "If at first you don"t succeed, resort to emotional manipulation."

Arlan watched me carefully, his gaze burning into mine. "You're making a mistake."

My smile showed my fangs. "I"m used to that."

A knocking came, interrupting our little standoff. Softly at first, tugging on the senses. A whisper that grew into a roar.

"What is that?" I murmured.

A focused look entered Arlan"s eyes. A grin slowly spread across his face. "A late arrival. How timely. I have a feeling you"re going to come to regret your stance, Aileen."