Wondrous Strange

normal-looking people-that drifted about all around them. They were insubstantial, almost shadows-ladies with handbags and high heels and men in suits and ties, they ate and talked at tables that were simultaneously plainly occupied by leaf-winged Fae and silvery-skinned selkie girls with big dark eyes, among others of the Fair Folk in all their infinite variety.

“Are they really here?” she whispered, indicating a shadowy young couple-tourists from the look of them.

“Almost,” Sonny said. “Or, rather, we are almost there. Herne’s Tavern and the Tavern in Central Park exist side by side, occupying virtually the same place-just in slightly different worlds.”

“Are we in the Otherworld?”

“No. This is a place apart from any other realm. A kind of safe haven created by Herne where the Lost Fae-the ones who have crossed over and the ones like Tyff who were trapped or chose to stay when the Gates were shut- can gather without fear. It is still in the park but it is, well, sort of sacred ground, I guess you could call it. Sanctuary.”

“He means the Janus cannot touch us here,” said an ethereal girl who appeared suddenly at his elbow. She had skin the color of new leaves, and in her fist she carried a slender bow. “They cannot kill us here.”

“Now, Carys.” Herne’s voice was gently chiding. He came and stood behind them. “I would not have you show disrespect to our guests.”

“None offered, my lord,” she said, but Sonny could see that it was plain in what regard the huntress Fae held the Janus.

“And none taken,” Kelley said firmly, stepping up beside him and placing a hand on Sonny’s elbow. “I understand that Sonny’s isn’t exactly the most popular profession among your people. I also understand that he wouldn’t be what he is if he hadn’t been stolen from his world by your people in the first place. By doing his job, he saved my life, and probably the lives of others, from a creature I believe you call a Black Shuck.”

Carys’s eyes went a bit wide, and Herne’s brow clouded with an impressive frown. “The shuck have come through the Gate?” he asked.

Sonny cleared his throat. “Just the one, lord, as far as I could tell.”

“A harbinger,” the Hunter muttered.

“I hope not. The Janus are trying to keep it that way. But Auberon does seem to think that someone-perhaps Queen Mabh herself-is trying to wake your former companions, my lord.”

“For what purpose?”

Sonny’s gaze drifted to where Kelley stood by his side. “The shuck was tracking Kelley. I believe she is the one being hunted.”

“Then she is in great danger,” Herne said. “And she is not the only one. The Wild Hunt will not be sated with a single quarry. This lady’s world-and the lady herself-are in terrible peril.”

“Which is why I brought her here.”

“I will see to her safety, then, personally.”

“Thank you, my lord.”

Herne gestured them farther into the Tavern. Music wound around them as Sonny and Kelley walked out to the courtyard, where high, thin clouds stretched across the sky like torn lace curtains. Kelley gasped as she realized that the fairy lights in the trees were actually Faerie lights in the trees: thousands of tiny winged beings flitting to and fro among the branches.

“It won’t be long now until I have to go and return Lucky to Queen Mabh,” Sonny said. “But I want to show you around a bit first. You needn’t worry-you’re under Herne’s protection here. He knows who you are and he is the most powerful guardian I can think of to trust you to. And this place should keep you safe.”

“Even from something like the Hunt?”

“Don’t worry about that.”

“That was not answering my question. That was avoiding my question.”

“I know.” Sonny grinned, ignoring the look she shot him. “Come on. Let me show you around the place.”

Over in the corner where, in the mortal realm, the King Kong topiary stood, a massive leafy creature crouched. Vines and vegetation clung to the giant, twining in the green ivy of his beard, sprouting like bunches of marsh grass on his huge mossy head and shoulders.

“The Greenman,” Sonny said reverently. “He is an ancient spirit, older than all of this. The Greenman has been in the worlds longer even than the Fair Folk. He is the soul of the natural world. He also likes a good whiskey now and then.” Sonny whispered, “Herne has an excellent cellar, I hear.”

The Greenman winked at Kelley and raised an enormous earthen mug, and Sonny watched, grinning, as Kelley smiled shyly and waved the fingers of one hand at the leafy old god in return. They continued past him, toward where the splashy music of a fountain entwined with the sounds of tinkling laughter. They saw the flash of a long rainbow-silver fish tail.

“Was that a mermaid?” Kelley asked, moving toward the stone rim of the pool.

Sonny put a hand on her arm. “The Water Folk are…tricky. Dangerously unpredictable.”

“I think I saw one,” Kelley murmured. “A mermaid, I mean. The night I rescued Lucky from the Lake.”

“That was a Siren,” Sonny said, trying hard to keep the bitterness from his voice. “Her name is Chloe. She saved your life.”

“I should meet her then,” Kelley said. “Thank her.”

“You should stay as far away from her as you possibly can,” he said, and pulled her away from the fountain.

They approached a band of Faerie musicians, and Sonny smiled as Kelley swayed gracefully to the unearthly music. His Firecracker. He was painfully aware that she would in all likelihood not remain “his” for very much longer. Not if she decided to accept her true identity. “Take up the mantle of a Faerie princess,” as she’d said earlier, in the carriage. It was a choice that bore consequences that remained veiled to him. Sonny made up his mind. Whatever path Kelley ultimately chose to walk, and whether he would take that journey with her, he certainly wasn’t about to waste the time they could share together.

He turned to her suddenly and held out his hand.

Surprised, she glanced down at his outstretched palm and then back up at his face. Sonny knew clearly that he would do anything, give anything, just to be able to make those green eyes sparkle. He swept her a low, courtly bow and gazed up at her. She smiled down on him.

“Will you dance with me, Kelley?” he asked.

His heart swelled as she put her hand in his.

XXXI

The band played beautiful music.

Time spun out around them.

The stars whirled overhead in the heavens.

And they danced.

On and on, they danced.

Sonny’s hand at her waist was strong and steady, and Kelley let her head rest on his chest-carefully, mindful of the bandages under his shirt. She closed her eyes as she felt Sonny draw her closer. She thought that she had never felt so much at home as she did right at that moment. But it wasn’t the place. It was the person.

“I don’t belong here, Sonny,” she murmured, her senses dazzled by the sights and sounds of their surroundings. “I mean, look at these people…”

A troop of Seelie Fae swayed to the music, unearthly in their beauty. Kelley felt like one of Cinderella’s stepsisters at the ball. She knew her big clumsy foot would never fit into the glass slipper, and the only thing she couldn’t figure out was why the handsome prince was still dancing with her. Sonny said nothing, but she felt his hands slide up her shoulders and under her hair. He undid the catch on her necklace and eased the silver chain from around her neck.