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There was something to be said for making an entrance.
When I returned to Sea World, I was dressed in black leather from head to toe and arriving on the back of a freaking unicorn. Maelstrom’s hooves kicked up ice as I tore across the frozen lake beside the Leanansidhe’s portal.
I’d opened my rift through the Veil here on purpose because I wanted to know if the Leanansidhe’s gateway was still active, or if Alasdair had succeeded in closing it.
The rift was still intact, though its edges were fragmented and blurring the lines between worlds. Almost like it might collapse at any moment, but for the singular conduit of power holding it open.
Fingers crossed not too much time had elapsed since I had left. I tried to find my phone to check the time, but I’d lost it somewhere along the way and frankly had no idea where on which world it might be.
I tore across the lake, heading for Atlantis as fast as Maelstrom could carry me.
In the distance, sirens blared but still the first responders appeared to be waiting it out, unwilling to enter the park until they had properly assessed what was transpiring within.
Perhaps they’d gotten a look at the gateway from the air and it had scared the daylights out of them.
It should. Supernatural energy spikes were not in the Queensland Police Department’s handbook.
Atlantis seemed far quieter than when I had left. Even at this distance, I could tell that the rides had stopped. Hopefully that meant Alasdair had been able to evacuate them and get the innocent people trapped on them to safety.
Maelstrom vaulted the rocky shore and leaped onto the path. The bushes before me rustled and a man stepped out from behind it.
A handsome man in an open collared shirt and black suit. He had a jaw line that looked like it had been carved by Michelangelo. I might have found him attractive, if he wasn’t such a duplicitous scoundrel. Last I’d seen him, he’d been unconscious in a tavern in the Yard.
Now he was back on his feet and larger-than-life, stepping out in front of a charging unicorn like a man with a death wish.
Clearly, Lazarus just wasn’t that bright.
I doubt he recognized me, particularly dressed as I was, but it was hard to tell on account of the flames he was conjuring above his outstretched hands.
Alasdair had told me that outside the Yard we were allies, but that seemed to just be wishful thinking on my mentor’s part.
One thing I knew for certain, Lazarus didn’t work alone. So where were his cronies?
“We are on the same side, Lazarus,” I shouted, figuring I best give him at least a chance before Maelstrom turned him into a shish kebab. I drew on my power, ready to quench the fire that seemed inevitably destined to be hurled our way. If I could protect us both, I figured Maelstrom could take care of business.
Self-defense; I could live with that. Particularly if it took a worm like Lazarus off the board. One less person trying to kill me and Alasdair couldn’t hurt.
“Lazarus, you eejit, stand down. That’s Nora!”
I’d recognize that brash Scottish voice anywhere. Alasdair emerged from behind one of the support pillars of the Leviathan roller-coaster, waving his arms to get both mine and Lazarus’ attention.
Lazarus turned toward my mentor, the flames still swirling above his outstretched palms.
“Say what?” Lazarus called back. Over the pounding of the hooves, it appeared he hadn’t gotten the message.
I pulled hard on the reins, and Maelstrom slowed his gait. Lazarus had only moments to make the call, and I prayed he had brought both his brain cells with him today.
“Don’t do it, Lazarus,” I called. The mighty black unicorn reared up on his hind legs and before Lazarus could make up his mind, Maelstrom let out a snort, infused with ice and magic that doused both fiery orbs like a bucket of water had been dumped on them. There was a hiss where ice and fire met and when the steam cleared a very damp Lazarus was looking up at me.
“You attack me again, hunter,” I said, “and next time I’ll let him have you for a late lunch.”
It dawned on me that I wasn’t sure whether Maelstrom ate meat, but judging by the wickedly sharp teeth, I doubted he would have any trouble making good on my threat.
“Attack you?” Lazarus guffawed. “I was merely trying to protect myself. You came streaking out of her portal like a bat out of hell. How were we to know it was you? Better yet, why did you come through her portal?”
The accusation touched a nerve. Clearly, Lazarus had a better idea now as to my true nature. And he’d been quick to group me in with the Leanansidhe.
“I didn’t. I came through my own. I was simply checking if you had succeeded in closing her gateway, so that I’d know if I had to watch my back. Turns out, I need to watch my front too.”
“Enough, enough, enough!” Alasdair called, pushing Lazarus away from me with one hand as he pointed past me with the other. “And you two idiots get out here where I can see you. If you so much as light a cigarette with that magic, I’m going to let her finish what she started in the tavern, consequences be damned.”
Beavis and Butthead, Lazarus’ goons, emerged from behind the rock walls edging the path. It seemed they had hoped to take me from all sides. A plan that would have been far more effective if their boss wasn’t turned into roadkill before they could act.
Fortunately, Maelstrom’s speed had taken them all by surprise.
“Nora, where are the children?” Alasdair asked, looking around.
“They are being watched by their grandfather,” I said, careful to conceal the exact nature of my heritage from Lazarus and his minions. Doubtless word would begin to spread but I thought it prudent to do what I could to not raise the tension between us and our rival hunters while we needed their aid.
Alasdair’s expression was difficult to read. “And Conor, is he...”
The big man seemed incapable of putting his fear into words.
“He’s fine, and somewhere the doom can’t harm him. We just need to find the banshee and kill it.”
“Kill it? It’s a banshee.” Lazarus smirked, as if he knew something I didn’t. “It’s already dead, and you can’t kill a ghost.”
“But I can drive its soul from this plane of existence,” I said. “So you would do well not to irritate me any more than you already have.”
“Same side,” Alasdair growled.
It seemed he was really committed to that one, which was a little bit of a shame. With Maelstrom, it was three against three and I was really liking our odds.
I relented and tried to turn the discussion to our common foe. “Okay, okay. Bring me up to speed. What happened after I left?”
“I laid low for a moment, made sure the warlocks had all legged it. Then ride by ride, I started freeing the trapped patrons,” Alasdair said. “I had just reached the Leviathan when these three showed up.”
“Just in the nick of time, hey, Alasdair?” Lazarus chuckled. “You could use all the help you can get.”
“In time to miss the action, and snake a bounty if you could, more like it,” Alasdair replied. “But it was nice to have someone to watch my back.”
Those words hurt a little, but I tried not to let it show. I had left him when he’d needed me, but my son needed me more and I wasn’t going to feel guilty about that.
“So we got the patrons out,” Alasdair said. “Most of the park seems clear, but the banshee and the warlocks that legged it from here headed north toward Dolphin Cove. I think they are regrouping there.”
“Excellent,” Lazarus replied, “that’s what I call a target-rich environment.”
Alasdair looked how I felt: tired and worn down.
“Slow your roll, Lazarus. That target-rich environment is likely to contain at least three members of the Burning Hand’s upper echelon, including Kaznius Markan himself. There is also a banshee, a pack of timber wolves, and an unknown number of warlocks waiting for us.”
“Excellent,” Lazarus replied, “there should be plenty of bounties to go around. Split them with us, and I’ll be willing to let you off for snaking that last one from me.”
“If we live long enough to claim them,” Alasdair replied. “Which will be no easy feat. They know we are coming and they have us outnumbered. But we have no choice. The longer that gateway stays open, the greater the danger. Who knows what else could come crawling through it.”
“And the police won’t stay out forever,” Lazarus replied, straightening his suit jacket. “I spoke to a few of my friends on the force. The gateway has them spooked and they are keeping their distance for now, but if things deteriorate, they’ll be treating it like a hostage situation. They will breach and storm the park. Who knows how many lives will be lost?”
“We are all on the same page then.” Alasdair ran his hands through his thick copper hair. “They know Nora and I are here, so why don’t we lead the charge? The three of you can try to flank them from the training pools. Perhaps we can catch them in a pincer.”
It was optimistic. The training pools were on the same level as the pool at Dolphin Cove. The three of them would need to keep a low profile if they wanted a chance of surprising the warlocks.
“You’re not trying to cut us out of the action, are you, old friend?” Lazarus asked.
“Not at all,” Alasdair replied, “just trying to give us an edge. There will be more than enough to go around.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Lazarus said. “You start the party. We’ll join it.”
Why was I not surprised that he was content with any plan where we were the ones bearing the brunt of the enemies’ ire?
There was a part of me that wondered if the three of them were good for it. If we rode in guns blazing, we could end up horrifically outnumbered waiting for reinforcements that never came. It wasn’t a particularly pleasant thought, but then again, I didn’t trust Lazarus any further than I could throw him.
Alasdair looked down at his watch. “Give us fifteen minutes to get in position and then we hit them from all sides.”
“Roger that.” Lazarus glanced down at his watch and marked the time, before the three of them headed north. Their path was a more direct route, but over uneven terrain with a number of deep pools. We had the longer path, but it was smooth bitumen all the way.
As they left, I turned to Alasdair. “Are you sure we can trust them to come through for us?”
“We can trust him to act in his own self-interest,” Alasdair replied. “He’s too ambitious to walk away from a payday this large.”
Part of me still wondered if they would intervene in time. They could always wait until we went down guns blazing, and come in afterwards to clean up and collect the bounties. I kept that morbid little thought to myself and turned Maelstrom toward Dolphin Cove. Alasdair walked beside me, taking large steps to try and keep pace.
“So you aren’t going to explain what happened to your clothes? Or where your new friend came from?”
I ran my hand through Maelstrom’s mane. “Alasdair, this is Maelstrom. Maelstrom, Alasdair.”
My mentor looked at the massive unicorn and had the good sense to think before he spoke.
“Maelstrom, it’s a pleasure.”
My steed regarded him and then turned back to face the path ahead. Maelstrom, it seemed, was hard to please.
“Not a problem,” Alasdair replied. “I’m an acquired taste.”
“Are you, now?” I asked, looking over my shoulder at him only to find he was already staring at me. He averted his gaze the same way a guilty teenager does when he’s caught checking someone out.
“Yes, like blue cheese, dark chocolate, and raw oysters. People of taste always take a shine to me, eventually.”
I made a barfing motion. “Blue cheese, not on your life.”
“Like I said...” Alasdair grinned. “People of taste.”
We walked in silence as I contemplated just how much I should tell him. I knew I would share everything with him eventually, but was now really the time to mention that I had won status in the Winter Court? Or that I had a fortress and a retinue of followers to do my bidding?
Perhaps not. To be honest, I didn’t even know the extent of the land I had just won. It seemed foolish to talk about it when the first question he asked would make me look ignorant.
“Unicorns are exceptionally rare. How did you manage to find one?” Alasdair asked, breaking the silence. “And how did you manage to win him over? They are rumored to be quite moody.”
Maelstrom snorted and flicked his mane.
“Present company excluded,” Alasdair hastened to add, in a voice laden with sarcasm.
I smiled as he danced on eggshells. It was nice to see him be the one out of his depth for once.
“Maelstrom is my father’s. He’s agreed to help me. The Burning Hand are a threat to us all, and Maelstrom isn’t a fan of anyone who would harm my father.”
“I see,” Alasdair said. “So, the meeting with your father went well, then?”
“It went better than expected.”
I was hesitant to speak openly about my father and the things he had shared with me. I doubted he would want me spreading stories about the softer side of the King of Air and Darkness.
But it had been cute to watch him play with Shay. Cute and worrying all at once. I’d opened a can of worms that I would never be able to close again. But would I even want to? It was hard to see what my mother had been so afraid of.
The optimist in me just hoped reconnecting with my father was for the best.
“As for the clothes, they were provided by the seamstress three, pixies in my father’s service. They started with my jacket, and I ended up with these. All in all, not a bad trade.”
“Not bad at all,” Alasdair replied. “Quite striking, actually.”
I felt a little heat in my cheeks as I tried not to blush. “Am I going to need to talk to HR?”
“Not while Maelstrom’s keeping an eye on me, that’s for sure.” Alasdair chuckled in what was perhaps the most openly flirtatious he’d been since the day we had first met.
It seemed my new wardrobe was good for stopping more than boots and blades.
Dolphin Cove reared up before us, and I changed the topic, lest things get awkward.
“How do you want to play this?” I asked.
“Your show,” Alasdair replied. “And you seem to have things in hand. I’ll follow your lead.”
“I’ve always liked a good western. Have you seen the Lone Ranger?”
Alasdair shot me a sideways glance. “If you’re planning to get ambushed and left for dead, we might need a new plan.”
“Just the former, Tonto; the latter is where you come in.”