“Can you sense any Sidhe?”
She closed her eyes for a minute. “Fifteen feet, maybe a bit more, into the trees. No fairies, though. None at all.”
“We must be early.” I really hoped so, one death a day is enough. If we could catch the Sidhe, one of us could let the fairy know that the deal was off. “Stand still and I’ll disguise us.”
It would be pretty easy to slip past the drug dealers. I’d watched them before. They were looking for customers and as long as we didn’t look like competition, they would let us pass. I gave myself a glamour of long bushy hair, to hide Olan. And I hid Cate’s red hair under a hood, filling in the curves of her clothing to create a short chubby man silhouette.
She looked down at her new body. “Couldn’t you find a better disguise for me?”
“I don’t think we want to parade a pretty red haired witch past the three musketeers.” I cut my eyes toward the group who were ogling a street walker as she strutted by with a client.
“Good idea.” She dropped her voice from contralto to tenor. “Thanks for thinking I’m pretty.”
“Don’t go all girly on me.” I laughed and motioned for her to stand. “Let’s get to that Sidhe.”
We made it past the three dealers with only one offer of drugs. Cate led us through a few bushes to a clearing just out of sight of the main path. It looks like the Sidhe were not as reckless as I first feared. A body could rest in here for a while before someone stumbled on it. Although there was not going to be another body. We were here to make sure of that.
Cate held her finger to her lips. Even though I wasn’t planning on chatting I pushed my lips together to show I understood. She pointed toward an ancient oak and cupped her other hand behind her ear. I moved closer and realized I could hear quiet voices from the other side.
“Did you find the right human?” That was Iain. Interesting, it never occurred to me that he would be anything other than a go between.
“Of course.” I didn’t recognize the other voice, but the accent said Sidhe. “It is almost time.”
“I’m ready.”
Cate and I looked at each other; I didn’t feel any fairy presence. I flapped my hands like wings and raised my eyebrow. She shook her head. And I noticed the absence of bird sounds too.
I gestured with my hands and a tiny web formed between them. Cate nodded. A snare spell would be the easiest. I pushed more power in the spell and felt some draining from Olan. The web was large enough to hold two fully grown Sidhe.
I pointed at the left side of the tree and then Cate. She moved into place. We were going to rush around the tree and I would fling the web at the first being I saw. We would get our captive and make the best of it and the chosen victim would be safe. Just before I gave the signal to go, Olan flapped off my shoulders and disappeared into the night.
I nodded and both of us moved around the tree. I held up my hand to cast the web and stopped. There was a human woman on the ground, her back arched in a convulsion, her lips an unnatural color. I saw her fingers tearing into the ground. Her eyes were staring at the tree canopy with no light of comprehension.
Cate stood frozen on the other side of the tree trunk. I took one step toward the woman as she sighed and collapsed. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the swirl of a cloak and a sudden absence of something that had been standing in the shadow of another oak.
I dismissed the spell and grabbed Cate’s arm. We ran in the direction of the motion.
I heard a series of chirps from above as we entered a clearing at the edge of the park. Only a few tall rhododendrons hid us from the street. I turned to see Cate step into the clearing, her disguise gone. Her eyes widened she opened her mouth. I spun to see what had shocked her.
Ten Sidhe males stepped out of the bushes and we were surrounded.
Chapter Sixteen
I stepped toward Cate and she turned so that we stood back to back facing the Sidhe. “Sorry,” I said over my shoulder.
“No problem. This isn’t your fault either.”
I felt her shoulders move and realized she was forming a spell as she talked. I called back the web, it was an easy spell and I figured the first step was to decrease the number of attackers. “What have you got?”
“A stun spell. I figure a spirit wizard would be uncomfortable with fatal spells and I didn’t want you stopping to lecture me in the middle of a fight.”
“Funny.” I appreciated her thoughtfulness. It would help if we could capture one of the Sidhe alive.
Olan flew to the center of the circle. “Damn, I thought I could leave you to this.”
I shrugged and said, “Welcome to the fight if you want. But you can sit back and watch us take care of this.”
One of our opponents roared out a laugh. “Brave words, wizard. But not even a creator will help you now.”
Ah, twin one. I didn’t recognize him earlier because he was covering his face. Now he threw back the hood and I could see all the bruises.
“Did I do that? Or did Fionuir punish you for letting me get away?”
“Queen Fionuir to you.” He stepped forward. “This time you will not triumph.”
“The odds are in my favor.” I said and threw the web. He tried to avoid it but my aim was true and he found himself wrapped in a sticky net that contracted and hardened as he fought it. We all watched as he collapsed to the ground.
“Who’s next?” Cate asked. I saw a ball of light growing in her hand.
The other Sidhe closed the gap and the circle became a step tighter.
I picked through the charms in my pocket. I always carried a few defensive spells, even though I hadn’t come prepared for an ambush. Cate bounced the globe of light in her hand like she was getting ready to toss a grenade. I found a thistle in my coat pocket that contained a confusion spell,
I turned to her and whispered, “What will that do?”
“Blind them. What have you got?”
“Not enough time,” I said, watching the nine Sidhe, creeping closer while we talked.
I don’t know why they didn’t rush us, we were totally unprepared and the fight would have been over in a flash. Maybe they thought we were ready for them. “Cast that and I’ll think of something.”
Cate tossed the globe underhanded; I felt her body slide to the ground beside mine. With our bodies out of the way, the flash should affect the whole circle. I palmed the thistle and found a bee ball. I kissed it and slammed it against the ground before grabbing Cate and rolling on top of her. If I guessed right, my kiss would keep the bees away from me and if she was under me, they wouldn’t find her either.
I heard the buzz grow as the bees expanded to life size. The ball held a hundred bees. A second after the ball released the bees; I heard two things, Sidhe shouting in pain and Cate swearing at me.
“Get off me you oaf.”
“In a second, the bees need to latch onto Sidhe taste before it’s safe.”
She stopped struggling. The Sidhe yelps slowed and I took the chance to look up, the flash from Cate’s spell should have dissipated enough by now. Three of the Sidhe were running for cover, pursued by a trail of hungry bees. Two were unconscious; I’m not sure what happened to them. The other four were batting at attacking bees and trying to cast spells to disperse them.
I rolled off Cate and she sat up moving her hands to create another spell.
“I have confusion ready to go, can you work with that?” I showed her the thistle.
“Yes,” she said before flicking her fingers in the last gesture. “Rain.”
We both started to stand but I felt something touch my leg. Suddenly the strength was gone. I looked down and saw a vine attaching itself to me. A glance at Cate showed she was not yet touched. I tossed the thistle toward to Sidhe who seemed to be casting the vine and pulled out my pocket knife.
The Sidhe dodged the thistle but it did manage to catch two others in its confusion net. Unfortunately, it also
