Ember glanced from the half-drow darting onto the balcony to the housekeeper swaying beneath the stairs. “All good.”
“I’ll just be here, then.” Eleanor took a long sip of vodka tonic and raised her eyebrows at the glass, then returned with it to the sitting area and relaxed on the chaise.
By the time Ember slipped through the open doors onto the veranda, Cheyenne had disappeared. Two seconds later, a blurred streak of slate-gray, black, and streaming white darted across the manicured lawn.
Ember stopped at the balcony and grabbed the rail to watch. Here we go again. Might as well turn the Summerlin estate into a giant O’gúl fighting pit at this point.
Chapter Sixty
Cheyenne dropped out of drow speed between the magically threatening goblins and the team of FRoE agents scowling and shouting at them. Most of them flinched and backed away when the halfling appeared with a sharp crack and a burst of crisp evening air.
“Okay, whatever the hell’s going on right now, cut it out.”
“Turn that shit off, asshole!” an agent shouted.
Lumil raised both fists and snarled. “They started it. I’ll finish it. What’s the big deal?”
“You can’t pick fights with the team I called here to protect us!” A low, warbling sound rose from the grass behind the goblins, followed by a dark, sinister laugh and a static-filled scream. “What is that?”
Cheyenne whirled to face the goblins. Byrd held balls of green fire at the ready, but he met Cheyenne’s gaze with innocent eyes. Lumil scoffed and didn’t look away from the agents. While the halfling waited for an answer, the shrill scream cut off, and a man’s deep, spooky-sounding voice rose from the grass.
“Tonight’s the night, ghouls and goblins. Join us for another six hours of Halloween fright as we take you through the darkest, most terrifying realms known to man and beast.”
“Seriously?” Cheyenne scanned the grass behind the goblins, pinpointing the source of the sound before stalking past Lumil and snatching the goblin woman’s cell phone off the ground. A livestreaming radio app was pulled up on the screen, displaying a blood-splattered picture. I should break the phone. She turned off the app and shook the phone at the goblins and the FRoE agents, fighting to keep a straight face. This is ridiculous. “You guys were going to tear each other apart over a radio show? Are you kidding me?”
“Tear each other apart?” Lumil barked a humorless laugh. “Don’t give those Earthsiders more credit than they deserve, halfling.”
Cheyenne scanned the lawn and found Rhynehart standing away from his team, his hand on the grip of his fell firearm. L’zar still sat perfectly motionless in his meditation, and Corian and Maleshi both watched the confrontation with barely visible smiles.
“Did nobody else think this was a bad idea?”
Byrd tossed a ball of green fire like it was a baseball. “Not our fault if the team you called up here turned out to be a bunch of pussies.”
“Say that again, shitface.”
“Make me!”
One of the agents stepped forward and drew his weapon from its holster. The others followed suit, readying again for a fight. Rhynehart finally stepped forward to intervene. “Stand down.”
“Get rid of the spells.” The jumpy agent glared at the spinning red runes around Lumil’s fists and the green fire in Byrd’s palms.
“You think you’re scary, don’t you?” Lumil sneered. “With your little toys, pretending to be a magical.”
“Lumil, shut up.” Cheyenne stepped toward her and pointed at the goblin woman’s runes. “Kill it.”
Rhynehart’s grip tightened on his fell service weapon and he glared at the agent, who still hadn’t followed orders. “I said, stand down, Borris. These clowns aren’t worth a dishonorabledischarge. Let it go.”
“Who are you calling clowns?” Lumil spat.
Cheyenne rolled her eyes. “I swear to everything, Lumil, if you don’t turn those spinning lights off, I’ll shut them down for you.”
Byrd’s green fire immediately snuffed out. He stepped back and stuck his hands in the pockets of his denim jacket with a shrug. “Too easy anyway. That’s a one-hit knockout right there.”
Lumil sneered at the agents, but when Cheyenne took a step toward her, the goblin woman shook out her hands, and the spinning red runes disappeared. “Way to ruin Halloween, dipshits.”
Corian chuckled, and Cheyenne shot him a warning glance.
She turned to the FRoE agents. “Just to put things into perspective, aren’t you guys supposed to be the best on this side of the Border? You fought those things coming out of this portal right here, and I can’t believe I have to tell you how much more deadly those are than a radio show.”
“I mean, it did sound pretty creepy,” Lumil muttered.
“Seriously, goblin, stop talking.”
The agent, who still couldn’t seem to settle down, turned from the goblins to Cheyenne. “Who do you think you are, halfling?”
“Excuse me?”
“You can’t show up at a FRoE op and start telling us what to do.”
“Hey, I called inthis op, Borris.” Cheyenne spread her arms. “You wouldn’t even know about these new portal ridges if I didn’t think you could handle yourselves out here.”
“L’zar Verdys is sitting right behind you!” Borris drew his weapon and aimed it at Cheyenne.
“Oh, hell, no!” Lumil’s spinning red runes burst into existence again.
“I said, stand the fuck down!” Rhynehart shouted.
“You’rethe one who brought him here!” Borris screamed at Cheyenne, gripping his fell pistol with both hands and aiming it at the halfling’s chest. “How are we supposed to know you’re on our side, huh? That drow’s an escaped convict!”
“Yeah, that drow looks real threatening right now, doesn’t he?” She gestured at L’zar, who still hadn’t moved. “He hasn’t lifted a finger toward any of you since we got here. You wanna know what side I’m on? Everyone’s.” I’m so done with guns. Cheyenne studied the weapon in his hands, and the activator still behind her ear picked up on every weak spot, every sliding mechanism, every separate piece. “That doesn’t mean I’m gonna stand here and let you point your gun at me because you’re
