Kept (16 page)

“Leave her be.”

“Why? She knew what that note said.”

Abby nodded. “It really upset her. I can tell. Just give her some time on the road and I might be able to get it out of her.”

“Some time? Did you see the holes in the soda machine? You can practically see the brick wall on the other side. If she knows what attacked these imps, why withhold the information?”

“I don’t know,” Abby said with a shrug. “But what I do know is, she wouldn’t keep anything from us that would hurt us.”

I made the move to go outside, but her grip tightened—and then disappeared. Her hand passed right through me. My mouth gaped at the sight, but she kept her gaze focused on me. We both knew what her disappearing act meant, but Abby’s mind was on Heidi.

She asked, “Can you trust me, please?”

“As long as you don’t disappear on us, I won’t bug her about it.”

“Agreed.”

A half hour stretched painfully along. I hated to admit it, but I pondered how it would look to my friends if I took the truck and left them behind.

Apparently it wouldn’t turn out well, since Heidi had a death grip on the keys.

“Do you have any patience at all?” Nick asked me.

I ignored him and continued to pace.

Finally, the Supernatural Municipal Group’s cleanup team arrived. Just as when the Supernatural Drunk Bus had picked up the drunken shape-shifter I’d encountered a few months ago, this van had the same Linda Leeks Bread Company logo on the side. I expected several people to show up, but only one man did—Mike, the very same warlock who had picked up the drunken shape-shifter.

He frowned when he spotted us. “I didn’t expect to see you two again so soon.”

“We didn’t plan on being here.”

“I suggest you watch yourself, Ms. Stravinsky. I hope not to see you a third time. Especially since there’s been rumors of trouble brewing in this area with the fairies. They’ve been getting mischievous and restless.” He took in the room again. “And if this is an indicator of what’s to come, hopefully you’ll remember my warning.”

I kept a straight face, but naturally my first thought
was:
Does any of this trouble have to do with what’s in the truck?

Somehow, I found a civil response. “Thanks for the tip, but I think that spiel should be saved for the drunken shape-shifter who always gives you trouble.”

I didn’t say just
how
civil I’d be.

Chapter 12

N
ight
deepened as we left Connecticut. Thanks to Heidi’s faster driving, we’d made good time. After the incident at the gas station, no one asked to stop, and we refrained from eating. Nick had offered a few snacks from his coat, but no one seemed interested in wizard candy. (Although it did smell rather good.)

I’d never had a chance to travel through this area before. The shadows along the roads looked no different from those along the Garden State Parkway at night, but something about this place made me uncomfortable. The fairies hadn’t attacked us yet, and with so many hours on the road, it seemed logical that they would’ve come for us by now. Not too many cars passed us either. It was late at night and most travelers were safe at home. A place I’d prefer to be.

“I don’t like it here,” Abby said.

“You and me both,” I replied.

Heidi’s voice sounded wary when she said, “We’re deep in fairy country now.”

I muttered, “Perfect.” Why not just show up at their back door with some freshly baked cookies?

“We’ll be in Maine before dawn. Not long at all. You should make your appointment on time.” Heidi turned off the radio.

The silence wasn’t welcome. “I liked it better with the radio on,” the Muse said quietly.

“I’d prefer to hear some warning if we’re about to get run off the road by imps—”

The truck jolted to the side as if something dragged us. Our bodies slammed to the right. We crushed poor Nick, but he only grunted. The truck twisted and then came to a rest on the grass, slightly off the road.

From my position with the Muse’s arm under my head, I continued to gaze outside. Maybe an attack would come soon. But nothing stirred outside.

“What the hell was that?” I asked quietly.

Nick peered at our surroundings. “We need to get out of here. Right now.”

I shifted my gaze to look in the same direction. In the darkness, I spotted lights. The lights of many eyes staring at us. Some of them bright red.

Heidi twisted the steering wheel and pressed against the gas, but after a few feet, the truck rammed against an invisible barrier.

“This is not good,” she groaned.

Nick slowly opened his door—his eyes on the forest, where the red eyes continued to stare us down. From his coat, he pulled out a worn black staff. He pointed toward the barrier. When he approached the front of the vehicle, the staff encountered something, and a brilliant white light bounced off it.

“Nick?” I asked.

“A fairy roadblock,” he said. “You can come out now.”

“Are you crazy?” I hissed from the truck. “With them out there?”

“They could come for us anytime they want. But they won’t, because of the wards I put on the truck.”

Slowly I got out and joined him. “When did you do that?”

“When I took that little joyride to hide the truck behind
the iron gate, I infused some of the iron in the truck—to be safe.”

I nodded. “Good thing you did.”

The others joined us.

Abby said, “I see so many of them.”

A faint sound—but grating, like fingernails against metal—came from the back of the truck. Curious, and slightly alarmed, I left the others to check. I sensed Nick not far behind me.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Something’s going on back here.”

Nick aimed his staff at the door. We were both silenced when we noticed the lock was beginning to corrode. Bits of metal flaked off and fell on the ground. Also, the seam between the door and truck bed had begun to warp. Whatever was in there wanted to get out.

“Oh, shit,” I mumbled.

Nick approached the door, but I grabbed his arm. “Are you nuts?”

“I’m pretty sure I can tell what’s inside now.”

“And you want to investigate?” I gestured to the crumbling lock. “When whatever it is can do
that
?”

“Trust me.”

I trusted him, but not what was inside the truck.

“When we hit the barrier, the magic sealing whatever it is inside the truck broke a bit,” Nick said. “Enough for it to start busting out.”

Heidi joined me. “I agree with Nat. We should care about this because …? We need to find a way past the fairy barrier and get the hell away from this potential bloodbath. If what is in there is some kind of monster, we shouldn’t hang around to have a couple of beers with it.”

Nick took another step forward. “I know what it is.”

He tapped his staff against the door. Light bounced
against the lock and sizzled when it encountered the spell. The smell of burnt cinnamon made me back up a few feet as the door folded inward. Smoke filled the air while Nick worked on the lock again, and whatever was inside also tried to open it.

A part of me wondered if we’d squished Nick too hard when we’d crashed and he had lost his mind. Then the door crumpled outward. I waited for a hand to come forth, for something dark to emerge and attack us.

Thanks to Nick, the padlock finally fell with a
thump
to a snow-covered patch on the ground.

What was left of the door opened with a soft groan.

The light from Nick’s staff shined inside, and Heidi said what I thought:
We are so fucked
.

Chapter 13

I
nside
the cargo area stood a child. She had to be no more than eight or nine. She looked no different than one of my cousins. All she wore was a simple blue pair of slacks and a dirty shirt with a cartoon character on the front. Her skin was so white, I could discern the blue vessels running under her skin. Hair as black as the darkness surrounding us was cropped short and stood straight out from her scalp.

The skin around her wrist was blackened from an iron bracelet.

My heart sank. This whole time, I’d been driving with a child in the back of my truck. A mere child. What kind of piece of shit—well, I
was
talking about Roscoe Skins here—did this of kind of stuff?

I took a tentative step forward. “Are you okay, honey?”

Nick snatched my arm. “Don’t touch her. She’s dangerous.”

“This is really bad,” the Muse murmured.

“Nick, we got a kid here. We can’t just leave her in there.”

His features darkened. “Do you know what she is? She’s a fairy. And just as I suspected, she’s one of the powerful ones.”

Even though I hadn’t known what she was, this was
wrong. I had a kid locked up in the back of the truck, and she was most likely cold and hungry. It wasn’t right for us to keep her in there. Guilt struck me hard.

“She’s dangerous,” Nick repeated. “That’s why the fairies came for her.”

“Of course they did. Roscoe most likely kidnapped her.”

He rolled his eyes. “I understand that. What I’m saying is, how the hell do we
give
her back to them without getting gutted alive. And do you understand what giving her back means to your debt?”

I hadn’t thought about that. For a second, even more guilt soured my stomach. But my parents had taught me right from wrong. Pups should never be harmed when it came to the business of adults. This fairy wasn’t a wolf, nor did she care about the Code, but as a child she should be presumed innocent.

Wasn’t today a day of sacrifices? I had a moon debt, but I’d never forgive myself if I fulfilled the moon debt by sacrificing a kid.

The one in question hissed at us just then and stepped toward the opening.

I sensed movement around us. The fairies were circling, waiting for an opportunity to strike. “It’s okay, honey,” I said softly. “Don’t be scared. We won’t hurt you.”

“It’s not you I fear,” the little girl said quietly. Her voice was high-pitched. Higher than most children’s. Her eyes were focused on the Muse.

“Don’t look at me.” The Muse moved out of the way. “I mean you no ill will.”

We all glanced at Abby. As usual, she appeared rather harmless. Why the fairy saw her as a threat, I had no idea.

A part of me wanted to rush away the cab. To back away from the disgusting edge of the dump truck. The
interior had been cleaned, but gunk still clung to the walls. The poor thing had sat in there this whole time. I extended my hand to her. “Come on out. I’m setting you free.”

She edged toward the doors.

From the corner of my eye, I spotted shadows inching toward us. Their eyes continued to glow brightly. Something told me not to look fully at them or they’d spring forward and attack us.

The child took one step. Then two. When she was a few feet from the opening, though, she slid back.

“I can’t,” she whispered.

“I almost forgot.” Nick waved his staff against the truck and tapped the opening. A smooth sheen of iron disappeared.

The child leaped into my arms.

I expected to cringe. To cry out from the filth that crawled all over her. But she smelled of forever. Youth. The warmth of my babuska’s blankets wrapped around me.

I cried out, but it wasn’t in pain. It felt good to do the right thing.

My fingers touched her hair. Although it looked slightly prickly, it was soft to the touch. She didn’t weigh anything at all, and I reveled in it. The blissful moment was lost when I turned to see endless forms standing around us. No imps. No monsters. Just fairies—wielding deadly weapons.

They should’ve swept in and tried to slit our throats. But they stood silent. Two of them stared at me with longing. One of them was a woman.

“Is that your mama?” I whispered to the girl.

She nodded against my neck. “Your life force smells warm and alive,” the little girl whispered. The way she said it should have been sweet, but it actually kinda creeped me out.

“You need to go to them,” I said. “No one needs to get hurt anymore.”

She got down but took my hand. “What about you?”

I hadn’t expected her to say that. Didn’t most kids want to rejoin their families?

The woman gestured for the child to come to her, and said, “Don’t linger with them, Lisbetta, come to me now.” The lady was about my height, with the same black hair as the little girl, only much longer. The wicked blade in her hand shook.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. We need to get that thing off your wrist.” I moved my arm so I could guide the girl to her mother, but she refused to release my hand.

“You won’t be. He’ll kill you.” She spoke casually, as if she were talking about some cartoon character she watched on Saturdays … in the same off-putting way, she’d told me my life force smelled appetizing.

“That’s not for you to worry about right now.” I tried to sound strong, even with my friends around me. None of them dared to move, thank goodness.

When the couple advanced on us, I again tried to let go of Lisbetta’s hand, but the child wouldn’t budge.

“I know of your moon debt. Of the price you must pay.”

“Lisbetta,” the woman warned. Somehow within the space of an inhale and exhale, the couple had come to stand before me. Lisbetta continued to cling to my hand.

I kneeled so we could be eye to eye. Werewolf or not, I had to face her dead-on. Power pulsed from her. Powerful enough for the wolf in me to want to escape. But I was in control now. This had to end. With no one dying, I hoped.

“I don’t know what Roscoe did to you, or what plans he had for you. But what I do know is that it’s wrong for you to be in that truck.”

The frown on the woman’s face deepened. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who was eager to settle a score with Roscoe.

I continued, “I have problems, but they are mine to solve. Go to your family.”

The child shook her head.

“Lisbetta, this woman planned to take you to those wolves. I don’t think you should help her,” her mother said.