Authors: Richard Jackson
“I don’t want Fitzgerald.”
“You don’t?” Everyone says it, even Kara.
Aleric’s eyes narrow for a moment as if he is about to walk into a trap. He asks the question scholars and philosophers have asked since the dawn of time. “Then why am I here?”
“Sit back and relax” I say more for Nerva’s sake than for Aleric. “Let me tell you a little story.”
Slowly, but surely, Nerva relaxes as I spin my tale. She’s not sure what I am up to but she is willing to trust me. Fitzgerald hurt her and she wants him. It reminds me of how badly I wanted Meredith. With any luck, she won’t be disappointed. I start at the beginning and tell Aleric everything. The others have heard it already but it is all new to the Fae. Aleric’s mood changes when I mention the Seven. He doesn’t like what he is hearing. He likes it even less when I get to Meredith’s plan. His expression darkens as he thinks of life in Meredith’s better world. He, like most of the Fae, longs for the good old days when magic was strong. The problem is the price tag for such a return. He interrupts me right before I tell him the juicy bit.
“And Lord Fitzgerald is in league with this Meredith.”
“Yes and he isn’t doing this for free,” I say.
The Fae don’t accept payment in coin. They deal in boons and favors. It is the currency of their realm. They use it in their ever changing game of politics and intrigue. In helping Meredith realize his dream, Fitzgerald is going to get something in return. Aleric knows the man. He has a good idea what he would ask for. I let his imagination run wild then I finish my tale.
“Meredith needs a place of power to cast his spell. Does Fitzgerald have access to one?”
Aleric’s silence is all the answer I need. He does. If Fitzgerald was doing this for the benefit of the Fae, he would have told someone at Court. It would have gotten back to Aleric. You don’t have to be a genius or paranoid to come up with a number of reasons why he wouldn’t want that to happen. I was counting on it. When Aleric speaks, he chooses his words with care.
“I will have to investigate your claims thoroughly, Count. If what you say is true, Fitzgerald will have much to answer for.”
Hagan laughs. Whatever his history is with Aleric, he knows exactly what the Fae has in mind. Nerva looks confused. She doesn’t see how this helps us. She’s never had to deal with Aleric on this level. He’s not about to let something like evidence or due process stand in his way if he thinks there is a credible threat to his people. He believes what I’ve told him. He’s going to act quickly. The question is how quickly.
Jennifer asks the question on my mind “And how long will that take?”
I had nearly forgotten she was here. Jennifer had been silent during my rehashing of events. Aleric replies, not missing a beat. “If he is linked to Meredith, I’ll know it within the hour. I just need to make a few calls.”
I direct my thoughts and amusement inward to Kara. It wouldn’t be diplomatic to say them aloud. “
Whether the evidence exists or not, Aleric will find something. He isn’t going to take any chances.
”
“
Sometimes you can be a little devious.
”
Instead of replying, I focus on the conversation. Jennifer still has questions, all of them important. This one is of more interest to Nerva than me.
“And what will happen to Fitzgerald?” she asks.
Even though Meredith is my prime concern, Fitzgerald has to be dealt with sooner or later. It would be nice to know what Aleric plans to do regarding him. It’s clear he already has something in mind.
“If he is guilty, his crimes would warrant exile or worse.”
“Worse?” Hagan asks.
Banishment and exile are practically unheard of among the Fae. They consider it the harshest possible sentence. Many Fae would prefer death. Not only would they be an outcast forced to find their own way through mortal society, they would have to do it without their powers. Enemies could strike at them without fear of repercussions. It is the closest thing to hell, a Fae could find on this Earth especially if he or she didn’t have any money or resources squirreled away. What could be worse than that?
“Yes, Elfkiller. I would personally hand him over to Nerva.”
We all turn to her. Nerva’s smile is not particularly pleasant.
Chapter Twenty Four
Space is at a premium. Jennifer and Aleric both need privacy to make their phone calls. Aleric claims the bedroom. As expected, it doesn’t take him long to learn the truth. He has a lot of contacts in the Unseelie and Seelie Courts. It’s a necessity for his job. The time consuming part involves apprising the rulers of both courts about the situation. They need to know what’s going on before Aleric can act against Fitzgerald. In the kitchen, Jennifer calls her people. She wants them ready to move the moment we know where Meredith is. I’m not sure if that is a good idea or not but I’m not going to argue with her. She has a job to do. That leaves me, Hagan and Nerva. We sit in the living room where Hagan sharpens his sword. He’s expecting the fight of his life and he wants to be ready for it.
Nerva leans close to whisper against my neck. “Everyone else has something to do. How shall we ever pass the time?”
Her close proximity and thoughts of entertaining ways to pass time make it harder to concentrate. Kara’s hiss warns me of how far my thoughts are straying.
“We don’t have time,” I say by way of apology.
“
And even if you did?
”
I think clean thoughts. Kara mutters the word “hussy” before lapsing into silence. Hagan is good enough not to laugh. Sometimes, it’s almost as if he can hear Kara as clearly as I can. Nerva sighs in disappointment. “You’re right and I’m not in the mood for a threesome.”
The big man nearly cuts himself as he looks our way. I’ve never seen anyone shock Hagan before. It takes him almost thirty seconds to realize Nerva is joking then the laughter comes. It spreads like wildfire, lightening the mood and warming the heart. Even Kara joins in, forgetting her dislike of Nerva. When Hagan regains control of himself, he asks a question.
“Count, do you remember how we first met?”
“That was a long time ago, ancient history,” I reply. My theft of Hagan’s trademarked line gets a chuckle out of Nerva and a smile from Hagan. “How could I forget?”
***
Jesse James isn’t my sort of place. It’s not the music, a mixture of country, honky tonk and classic rock. It’s not the large crowd though the bar is a bit more rowdy than my usual haunts. The men and women who frequent Jesse James range from bikers to wannabe’s and outsiders looking to walk on the wild side. Add to the mix the occasional celebrity who wants to be seen and the bachelorette parties that stop by for a last night of extreme entertainment. It’s definitely not the alcohol packed drinks that are served quickly and efficiently by the scantily-clad barmaids; though heaven help you if you decide not to tip. Cheapskates soon learn there is a price to pay for their thriftiness. The barmaids possess razor sharp wits and tongues to match along with a megaphone to call out an offender at a moment’s notice.
It’s a combination of little things that put me on edge. The abnormally long line to get in isn’t helping matters. I have to be in a certain mood to enjoy myself in a place like this. Tonight is not one of those times. Even if it were, I’m working tonight.
“
You don’t have to do this,”
Kara says.
I’m not sure if I can get used to having her with me like this. The link or connection we share allows me to hear her thoughts and sense her emotions. My guardian angel is always close and in intimate contact but untouchable. Even though I like having her around, it feels weird having someone in your head talking to you. It’s also pretty frustrating when you consider the sort of thoughts I have about her.
“
It’s what I want to do and Wendy needs help.
”
It was pure chance I had run into her. We were both researching vampires in the library. Wendy was in a talkative mood and I was more than happy to listen. She was a bit unnerved by one of her customers last weekend. The guy wanted to sleep with her but bartenders are used to fending off unwanted admirers. So what made this one different? When she looked into his eyes, she felt compelled to follow him back to his place. A scuffle in the crowd distracted the man and Wendy came to her senses. The following night, he showed up again. This time she stayed away from him. Later, she learned he had asked her co-workers a lot of questions about her, questions they answered for some strange reason. It was enough to get her thinking about vampires.
I offered my help. After all, I had some experience with this sort of thing. It wasn’t much but I was an expert compared to her. The money and free drinks at Jesse James sealed the deal. Truth be told, I would have done it for free. The days of the Good Samaritan are over. No one ever seems to do something for nothing. Those that do are met with suspicion. It was easier to take the money. To be honest, I could use it. I wasn’t in danger of sleeping on the street but the extra few dollars would help.
A sense of uncertainty flickers across the link from Kara. “
What if she is right? What happens then?
”
I hadn’t thought about that. What if Wendy is right? What if her stalker turns out to be a vampire? It’s not like I can call the cops or stake him if there is any trouble. Sure, I could fight him but what happens after that? Instead of saying what I am thinking, I reply “
I’ll think of something. I did handle Nerva, didn’t I?
”
I smile, hoping she can be fooled by my words. What I get in return is not a smile but more like a murmur of discontent and barely suppressed anger. She was less than pleased with how things turned out with Nerva. All in all, I thought I didn’t do too badly. It could have been a lot worse.
“
I know you want to help this woman but maybe you should take it slow. You’re still new at this.
”
I shake my head. “
It’s too late for that. I told her I would help and I’m going to do just that.
”
My guardian angel lapses into silence as the bouncer asks for my ID. Now I see why the line is so long tonight. He’s the only person working the door and proofing people. Ordinarily, there are four or five bouncers to direct traffic and keep the peace. My estimation of the place goes down a notch. One man can’t control a crowd like this no matter how dangerous or able he is, barring the use of firearms. No wonder one of the bartenders is having problems with a stalker.
He’s a big man, bigger than me and I’m no little leaguer. It’s not just his size, it’s also his attitude. Like a warrior of old, confident in his abilities and more than willing to use them. A stray thought flickers across the link from Kara, one of wonder and surprise. It nearly causes me to drop my wallet.
“Count Albritton,” He says. “Is this for real? You some kind of royalty or something.”
“It’s just a name. You know like Count Bassie or Nat King Cole.”
He nods at that while continuing to scrutinize my id. Sure, it’s an uncommon name but it doesn’t warrant this much attention.
“So you’re the joker Wendy hired? You on the level or what?”
I don’t like his tone. There is an unspoken threat, a promise of pain if I were to screw Wendy over. I can’t blame him for looking out for his friends. I would do the same in his position. I keep my voice friendly. “Yeah but I doubt there will be any trouble.”
He laughs. It is a sound rich and full. “If there is, you stay out of the way and let me handle it. ‘Kay?”
I nod, wondering how much Wendy has told him and give the answer I think he wants to hear. “I won’t get in the way of your job.”
“You know, I thought you would be …. different.”
I laugh; happy the first major obstacle of the night was handled so easily. He was probably expecting some skinny pale faced kid or a nerdy bookworm type. Maybe he thought I would turn out to be some lecherous old Van Helsing type who was looking to score with Wendy. Who knows? I step into the orderly chaos that is the Jesse James.
The place is packed. It makes threading my way through the crowd a minor ordeal as I make my way over to the bar. I don’t bother Wendy. I’m sure the blonde has seen me. She has a job to do which means there is little time for socializing. I order a beer and to my surprise, it comes in a can. I guess it is management’s way to limit the number of potential weapons in the place.
My next destination is the jukebox which has been set off to the side. On a night like tonight, it’s turned off though drunks still pump quarters into it not realizing the bartenders are playing tapes and cds. The regulars use it as a place to put their coats. For me, it’s a nice spot to hang out in without being constantly bumped into while I nurse my beer. It helps I’m not a big beer drinker. The one beer keeps me going for a while without drawing too much attention to myself. I can’t afford to get drunk and it’s a better alternative than ordering a coke.
As I watch the bar and the patrons, Kara murmurs something but I can’t quite hear it. I try to focus on her voice without losing sense of my surroundings. She cuts in and out as if there is a bad cell phone connection. She told me that in time, I wouldn’t have this sort of trouble. It’s all a matter of practice and getting used to this. The one word I catch from her is a name “Hagan” and the face of the bouncer.
It’s close to last call when I can hear Kara clearly again. The crowd has thinned out some but there are still a lot of people here. I glance in the direction of the side door to see a man enter. He is just like Wendy described him, not a bad looking guy. What disturbs me is the way he entered the bar. That door should have been locked. Why do I say that? With only one bouncer, you can’t have more than one way into a bar. It defeats the purpose of proofing people.
Kara murmurs “
He’s not a vampire.
”
I feel more disappointment than relief. He’s human. If he was one of the Fae or something else Kara would have mentioned it. She also would have told me if he was a sorcerer. That means I’m off the hook. Sure, I can get involved but I would do no better and probably worse than the authorities. It also means I won’t be getting paid and Wendy will have to deal with this some other way.