“She was the second-to-last call I made,” Monty said, his jaw set. “We’re here to arrange terms.”
“Terms?” I asked, worried. “What terms? What are you talking about?”
“Simon, we’re out of our element,” Monty said. “Neither of us is strong enough or wields enough power to confront an enclave of dragons.”
“An enclave of dragons? Since when are we confronting an enclave of dragons?” I asked, trying to keep my voice calm. “We’re confronting Magnus and possibly Rell. When did an enclave enter the picture?”
“The moment we agreed to be part of this operation,” Monty said. “Word will go out that we challenged Magnus. If we manage to kill him what do you think the response will be?”
I paused and gave Monty’s words thought.
“The enclave will be out for blood.”
“And if we don’t?”
“Magnus and the enclave will be out for blood,” I said, seeing the no-win scenario. “Goddammit, how could I not see this? They outplayed us.”
“You wanted to do the honorable thing,” Monty said. “You wanted to reconcile Rott’s pain regarding his daughter’s death, but we are dealing with honorless individuals. Men who would threaten an entire hospital of defenseless patients, who would plunge this city into a dragon war, without regard for the consequences Then there is a dragon who only sees tradition and your death.”
“But her?” I asked, pointing at Badb. “Isn’t this a little extreme? Why would she help us?”
A large crow about twice the size of a normal crow sat perched on one of the other chairs. It screeched, making me jump as it flapped its wings. Then it really creeped me out by wailing.
“Where there is war, carnage, rage, and violence,” Badb said softly, her voice clear in the emptiness of the room, “I am there. If forces are arrayed against you, then I will welcome them into my garden and reap their lives. Do you agree to the terms, mage?”
“Terms? What are these terms, Monty? Why are we discussing terms with her?”
The dread in the pit of my stomach clenched into a fist of apprehension. Was Monty going uber dark this time? Dealing with the Morrigan was shady enough, but this aspect of hers had only one purpose…death.
“I agree,” Monty said, his voice steel. “All on the battlefield who are not under my aegis are yours to do with as you please.”
“How speaks your shieldbearer, the Marked of Kali?”
“Why does she care about my opinion?”
“Part of the terms requires we be in alignment. If you need to adjust the terms, now is the time to do so.”
I turned slowly to face Badb. A few deep breaths later, I managed to get my emotions under control.
“We will deal with the leaders of Shadow Company, Peter Douglas and George Rott,” I said, staring at Badb. “You can have any sorcerers at Haven who want to harm innocents. It would be great if you could squish Magnus without killing him, but let him know that coming after us and ours would be bad for his health.”
“You want me to ‘squish’ a dragon?” Badb asked. “I do not squish my foes. I crush bones and spill blood. I lay waste to entire battlefields and destroy enemies.”
“That’s a little much,” I said, slightly taken aback at her calmness.“We only need to stop the Balfour dragons from coming after those”—I glanced at Monty, who nodded—“under our aegis. If they try, then you can do all the crushing and spilling with the laying of waste.”
“The sorcerers who wish harm upon yours in this place, Haven, are mine to feast upon?”
“Feast away,” I said with a nod. “Only those working for Shadow Company.”
“I am to persuade the dragons of this Balfour Enclave without killing the leader to leave you and those under your aegis alone?”
“Yes. Just persuade, not kill.”
“Are you in accord, mage?” Badb asked. “Do you accept these terms put forth by the Marked of Kali?”
“I do,” Monty said. “On my word as a mage and a Montague.”
There was an energy shift in the room and the nimbus of black around Badb flashed with red and gold for a few seconds before she slowly disappeared.
“It is done,” Badb’s voice said. “The terms are accepted. I will leave you my totem. When you require my unkindness, the Marked of Kali must destroy it.”
The massive crow flapped its giant wings and took off, flying full speed at the far wall. It vanished a second later. A single black feather floated down to the table. Monty picked up the feather, and handed it to me.
The black feather shone with violet light as I examined it. I put it inside my jacket with an uneasy sensation.
“Do you remember what to do with that?” Monty asked.
“Yes,” I said, remembering our short, destructive visit to London. “Do I need to be in Haven, or will this set off remote death by goddess?”
“Better not to be in the vicinity when you do summon her,” Monty said. “Do not call her until I let you know Haven is clear. From what I understand, her missions of death are heavy on the collateral damage. She has a tendency to kill everything on what she perceives to be the battlefield.”
“This is the surgical scalpel option? You’ve got to be kidding.”
“It’s the only option that can act on both Haven and the Balfour Enclave,” Monty said, grimly. “We must deal with everything else.”
In that moment I realized it was too easy.
“Monty, what exactly did we just do?”
“We evened the playing field.”
“Evened the playing field?” I asked. “Don’t you mean, evened the odds or leveled the playing field? Are you feeling okay?”
“I’m fine. You know what I mean,” Monty said, waving my words away. “We now have the advantage on the playing field.”
“This feels like
