I felt his hand next to mine. The magic caught us in its tidal wave, sucking the air from my lungs. I kept my eyes closed to keep the dizziness from overwhelming me. Wind whooshed through my ears as if I stood inside a tornado.
The wind quieted. My ears rang as I opened my eyes. We stood in my apartment. Gray light seeped through the window over the sink. Was it morning? Hopefully, I’d gained a few hours. I never knew when I’d come back—sometimes hours ahead, sometimes days. The crossing gods never seemed to make up their minds, though I usually ended up within an hour or two of the right day.
“Is this where you dwell?” Kull asked.
The ringing in my ears made his voice sound distant. He looked colossal in my tiny apartment.
“This is my home.”
Han Solo pounced on the counter and gave us a once over, his whiskers twitching as he sniffed unfamiliar scents.
Kull removed his knife. His eyes lit up with a predator’s gaze.
“Whoa.” I grabbed Han off the counter. “He’s my pet. No killing.”
“You keep a small grimwelt for your pet?”
“This is a house cat.” I pronounced the words slowly. “He can’t hurt you.”
The predatory look remained for a few seconds, and then he sheathed his knife.
Sheesh, already tried to kill my pet. What else would this guy try?
I rubbed Han’s ears. He ate it up.
The rumble of car engines came from Seawall Boulevard. Kull inspected his new surroundings. He creased his brow. “Do all humans live in such tiny quarters?”
“Not everyone. It’s certainly no castle. I’m sure it’s not what you’re used to.”
His knees buckled, and he leaned against the bar.
“The dizziness won’t last long.”
He eyed me. “How did you manage to overcome it?”
“Lots of practice.”
He knit his brow in concentration. “I feel as though the floor is liquid.”
“It’ll pass.” I didn’t envy him. I’d known some people who stayed bedridden for days. I hoped he wasn’t one of them.
The dream catcher’s dark magic called to me, so I pulled off my pack. With careful fingers, I removed the talisman and stowed it under the cabinet. I wouldn’t be able to spellcast it yet. I needed the first rays of morning sunlight to negate the dark energy, and it looked like we’d arrived a few hours past that. Tomorrow morning, then. That gave me one day to talk to Sissy, find Mr. Green, and help Kull retrieve his dino. No sweat, right?
I found my car keys on the hook by the door. “Do you know what a car is?” I asked him.
“It depends.”
“Depends on what?”
“The definition of car—if you mean V8 engine, one-hundred-forty horsepower, front-wheel drive muscle car, then yes, I know what a car is. Anything other than that I would not consider a car.”
I gaped.
“I’ve a few Earth Kingdom texts in my library.” He winked.
“Oh,” was all I managed.
He grinned. “Shall we fetch my dinosaur first?”
Kull was impressed with my car. So much so that he wanted to drive. I didn’t let him. Call me crazy.
I’d managed to talk him out of his sword and studded leather. Now he could pass for a regular guy—if regular meant six-foot-eight and cudgels for fists.
He didn’t stay mad too long as we drove down Seawall Boulevard. This time, it was his turn to gape. Galveston is a carnival of sights and sounds—some pleasant, some not. The ocean breeze drifted through the open windows, the sprawling, historic hotels loomed overhead, and the sand-salted highways were awash with empty beer bottles and refuse. Beggars rifled through trashcans, and the beautiful pink sky tinged with lavender reflected the ocean.
He took it all in without saying a word. I don’t think his Earth Kingdom texts had prepared him for the sounds, the smells. To a Wult who’d grown up with snow-capped peaks, dragons, majestic elven cities, and fresh air to breathe, I knew what he was thinking. Pretty crummy world.
“It’s amazing.”
Okay, maybe I didn’t know.
“You think so?”
He watched a pair of surfers wearing wet suits cruise the waves. “Are all Earth cities like this one?”
“No.” We’d be driving into the heart of Houston, with its headache traffic jams, twisting highways, and skyscrapers that made your head swim. A monster of a city. And no sea breezes to calm frazzled nerves. “Earth cities are noisy, polluted, crowded places. Not what you’re used to. And no game to kill, either.”
Kull didn’t answer. I let him take it in. He remained silent as we crossed to the causeway and drove off Galveston Island. The traffic picked up. Huge semis passed us, and Kull stared at them with fascination.
Kull questioned me for the next hour and a half. I answered as best as I could, though in truth, human societal norms baffled me, and I wasn’t sure I answered him correctly on half his questions.
I headed off I-45 and onto Highway 59 toward the zoo and museum district. Kull sat up in his seat as we passed the towering skyscrapers, their aquamarine glass reflecting the sun. Nothing in Faythander compared to this. The elves, while technologically advanced, preferred to keep their architecture unchanged. After thousands of years, they still built their buildings in the same style, preferring to expand outward instead of upward.
But here, in the concrete jungle, Kull looked unsettled. He gripped the dashboard as an eighteen-wheeler sped past. “I thought you said there were no creatures to slay.”
“Trucks aren’t meant to be slain, no matter how much you hate them.”
The noise, the smells, and my blooming headache all made me wish I’d stayed in Faythander. I was a gal born for tall trees, grass, and empty, open sky dusted with the wings of fairies.
At least when we reached the museum I’d have a little time to study the Peerling text. The whirlwind of traffic continued until I turned onto Hermann Drive. We drove past the zoo, with its rows of shadowed shrubs and green, grassy
