One-Becomes-Three, the being who threatened my mother enough that she was forced to flee her workroom. Jadzia was One-Becomes-Three, and she had Gosia in her thrall.
Gosia didn’t even flinch when the taller fae next to her held her neck in the crook of their elbow, drawing her close as though they were the best of friends.
Sparks rained down, lighting up the quarry’s rock walls. “Give us Gosia and give yourself up, fae. There’s no way out for you.” My aunt’s voice from somewhere outside and above was magically amplified.
All three fae laughed this time. The one in the center hid her blades, threw Gosia over her shoulder in a fireman’s carry, and jumped. The two others dove in, one after the other. All three sprouted dorsal fins and flippers as they leapt.
Rémy led our foursome to the entrance. “Tía!” I swept my gaze up the cliffs to where the quarry began and shouted, “Rosey and I are down here. Laz and Rémy are with us.”
“Alabastair’s creating a portal for us. Stay where you are.”
Rémy pushed to the front of our group. “I can’t stay. Gosia’s down there and—”
I grabbed his arm. “Can the Melusine breathe underwater?”
He nodded, adding, “It’s not as effortless for them as it is for merpeople. I don’t know if her gills will activate if she’s been drugged or spelled.”
“We have to hope that Jadzia wants to keep her alive.” I found Rémy’s hand gave it a squeeze.
A pop and a soft “Oh, my” sounded behind us. Alabastair steadied my aunt. “I was hoping at least one of you would be able to keep the charmed button on your body,” Maritza said, patting her throat. “And that wherever you landed would be a place we could access.”
Alabastair added. “I can create a portal to a specific place under the water but I need each of you to wear these to act as a beacon I can home in on.” He unzipped a pocket of the pouch strapped across his chest and withdrew a handful of slender metal cuffs. He snapped one around each of our wrists.
“Why two?” Laszlo asked.
“In case you lose an arm. You’re going up against three armed Fae, possibly more, in an environment they are obviously used to navigating.” Alabastair’s matter-of-fact tone was comforting in the face of what lay ahead. “I am armed and shall remain with Maritza while she works with her magic and continues to track you. Should the fae return, I can fight.
“If any of you become injured, Maritza will deal with your wounds and keep your life force flowing. If the situation becomes dire I can transport you to the nearest treatment center for Magicals.”
“Got it,” I said. Laszlo and Rémy nodded.
“What’s your plan?” Maritza asked. “I believe we might have reinforcements on their way.”
“The plan is to disarm the Fae. Rescue Gosia. Then find her and Rémy’s daughter.” I ticked off the obvious, then asked, “What do you mean about reinforcements?”
“Your father finally responded to Beryl’s texts. He said he knows the location of this quarry and will be here as soon as he can.”
I wavered on momentarily unsteady legs. Took a big breath, let it out, and took another one. I felt oxygen deprived. I finally managed an eloquent, “Well, okay then.”
“It’s time to move,” Rémy said.
I let go of wondering how my father was going to get here and turned to the overwrought mage. “You’re so emotionally invested in finding Gosia you could mess this up. Let me and Laz go in first. We’ll be back in less than three minutes because neither of us can breathe underwater.”
Rémy’s nod was tight and reluctantly given.
“You have your charm?” Maritza asked Laszlo. The demon patted his chest.
He and I fired up the light sticks and lowered ourselves into the water. The sky had begun to lighten with predawn colors. A few hopeful stars continued to twinkle. I slipped under the surface and kicked away from the rock. Laszlo was right beside me. Together, our lights grew into bright, focused beams. We kept kicking our legs and sweeping the water in front of us with our arms.
Our combined beams revealed the rust-coated hulk of a vintage truck. I motioned Laz to stop. The truck was sitting squarely on a ledge. We swam past, kicked down deeper, even as the internal pressure to turn and jettison to the surface increased.
Laz stilled, pulled me next to him, and pointed. Flaming orange hair floated through the murk then disappeared. Nearer to the side of the quarry was the outline of a cage. The demon grabbed my arm and pointed straight up. We broke the surface of the water and waved. “Get your bearings,” I said, gasping for breath while I treaded water and searched for the rest of our rescue party.
“There’s a cage directly below us, about twenty, twenty-five feet down. We’re going to check it again.” Laz and I nodded to each other before ducking under and beginning a focused descent. I held the light stick between my teeth and used both arms. We passed the truck and found the cage.
The door was open. Laszlo grabbed the neck of my coveralls and tugged me to him. We made it to the surface and to the exposed ledge in record time.
Laz found his voice first. “If the fae were keeping anyone in the cages,” he said, “they’re not there now. The door was open.”
“Did you see Gosia?”
We shook our heads. “Nothing but a truck, the cages, and someone that could have been Jadzia swimming toward the bottom of the quarry.”
Rémy stepped to the edge of the rock. The hem of his long coat began to separate into wide, horizontal bands. He peered into the quarry then up to the sky. “There is a way for me to help. It will
