Total pages in book: 117
Estimated words: 109477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 109477 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 547(@200wpm)___ 438(@250wpm)___ 365(@300wpm)
A jolt of adrenaline zipped through Daisy’s body at hearing the term Faegate.
Zorn’s whole body tensed. He straightened slowly. This had just gotten a whole lot more interesting. Or terrifying, depending on how one looked at it.
“What about the Faegate?” Zorn walked toward the tub.
The man licked his lips. “Just that— Hey, look, I’m just a peon. I’m a nobody. I’m here to make sure things go smoothly. They’re offering a lot of money for—”
“What about the Faegate?” Zorn repeated. His rough voice held a warning.
He was not a person from whom anyone wanted a warning.
“The dark fae king… W-well…well…” the man sputtered. “He’s looking to pierce the Faegate or something. To come into the human realm, I mean. To escape the Cerebrals or whatever they are.”
“Celestials,” Zorn said not so patiently.
“Ce-celestials, yeah.” The man’s eyes watered, fear drowning his gaze. “The fae type that rules all the kingdoms and guards the borders or whatever—”
Daisy nodded, motioning for him to move on. “We’re all aware of the setup.”
At least, people now obsessed with the fae were. People like her, ever since that one set loose an unspeakable danger that nearly killed her whole family. Since he started continually showing up in her dreams. Since his memory would not fucking diminish.
She’d been learning all she could about their realm and their kind, but the so-called scholars didn’t know much. Humans who crossed the Faegate—what the fae called the “fringe,” a sort of magical borderlands to keep their species put—didn’t tend to return. If they did, it was because they’d made a deal with one of the kings or queens. A deal that usually went sour—part of the cunning fae’s plans—and resulted in a fae rummaging through the deal maker’s mind and then killing them gruesomely. There’d been a few instances.
Fae weren’t supposed to cross the fringe unless they had a binding contract with a human. That would permit them entry, but only allow them enough time to carry out their business. If they lingered, the guardians of Faerie, the Celestials, would force them home or kill them outright. At least, that was what the books said.
Only a fool got involved with the fae and their meddlesome, malicious gods. Only an absolute moron invited them into one’s life.
This guy was clearly both, and his boss was a dead man walking. Which, whatever. He’d get what was coming to him.
But trying to find magical objects with which to bypass the Faegate? Did he not realize that faerie magic would take root here and twist their reality into something nightmarish? There was a reason the realms needed to be kept separate. All the texts agreed. Hell, even the old gods agreed. They’d made the fringe, after all. They’d created the magically superior “star children” Celestials to guard it. If the fae got through, they’d enslave what they thought of as lesser beings, kill anyone they had no need of, and twist the fabric of reality to suit their needs. The whole place would become unlivable. And for what? A few bucks dealing cups?
She said as much.
“A few bucks?” The man’s loose jowls wobbled with tremors. “Try a couple hundred thousand for each chalice. More if we track down one they really like. The crystal chalice? Over a million.”
“Right but…then what?” Daisy’s fingers tightened on her knife. She really wanted to slice something off to get the point across. “How’s money going to help you? If that king gets through the Faegate, there’s nowhere for you to hide. No other safe realm for you to go to. Not that we know of, anyway. You’ll be as influenced by their magic as anyone else. You’ll see friends turn into creatures. Non-magical humans get a magical upgrade and probably lose their heads with the power and declare war on the magical governments. There’re a million different ways it could all go wrong, and I probably haven’t thought of the worst ones. Money won’t do you any good if you invite that sort of horror into these lands.”
His eyes narrowed, looking at her fully. Stubbornness set his jaw.
“Obviously we’d be protected,” he said indignantly. “Randall isn’t stupid. He—”
“I beg to differ.” Zorn stepped a little closer, and the man visibly quailed. “You’d be the first to fall by the king’s hand.” Zorn’s hard gaze hit Daisy. “Clear out. Find that chalice. I want to see what it is. Leave it in the middle of the living room floor. Once you do, take the fire escape and head back to the car. Wait for me there.”
Shivers rolled down Daisy’s spine. Zorn didn’t usually shoo her away from the job. Not for any reason. When you trained with Zorn, you lived by the sword. She’d seen some gory stuff. Daisy didn’t have a squeamish stomach, and she didn’t have much in the way of morals. She was made for this role, same as Zorn. Same as Amber, their partner in espionage and sometimes assassinations. His asking her to leave meant he planned to send a message to this Randall guy. To get colorful. This was the reason Zorn was greatly feared.