Shades of Wicked (Page 16)

Ian’s grip on me didn’t loosen, but he did lower the trident all the way down. “What. The. Hell?” he enunciated, staring back and forth between me and Nechtan.

I wasn’t ready to explain. I was too busy flinging myself at my old friend to hug him. That caused Ian to curse in three different languages, but I didn’t care. I’d long feared that Nechtan was dead. Now, here he was. Alive, whole . . . and making a damn good profit with his fearsome troll-under-the-bridge act.

“I never thought to see you again!” Nechtan’s normally rumbling voice sounded even more ragged from emotion. “I felt your magic when the comb hit the water, but I still could hardly believe—”

“Shhh,” I interrupted. Nechtan was speaking in an ancient Celtic dialect, but with Ian’s linguistic skills, he probably understood it. “Speak carefully, my friend.”

Nechtan looked behind me at Ian, baring his teeth in a snarl. “Is this man your enemy?”

“No,” I said quickly. Small true size or no, Nechtan was deadly when he wanted to be. “He is an ally tonight.”

Nechtan read the subtext between my words and a knowing expression fell over his features. Then he began to press kisses onto my hands. “I thought you were dead, Ar—my friend,” he corrected himself. “Please, take all the gold in this pond as the smallest token of my gratitude for how you saved me.”

He’d always been so kind. “Nechtan, there is no need—”

“No need?” Ian interrupted, striding over. He kept the trident tip lowered, but his grip on it didn’t loosen. “Refusing a fae’s gift is a deadly insult. How do you not know that?”

Fae? I pressed my lips together to stop my smile. Is that what Ian and everyone else thought Nechtan was? He’d taken his ruse to the next level by pretending to be from a race of creatures that didn’t exist.

“I see,” I said in as serious a voice as I could manage. “In that case, your generosity is appreciated, Nechtan.” I didn’t say thank you. If I remembered correctly, fae lore also said to never say thank you to a fae. Besides, I’d return Nechtan’s gold later, when Ian wasn’t around.

“Saved your life, did she?” Ian asked Nechtan in a casual tone. “Sounds like a story worth hearing.”

Of course he’d understood what Nechtan had been saying. “Another time,” I said. “We have business now, remember?”

Ian smirked as if he knew why I was suddenly in such a hurry. “Right you are.” To Nechtan, he said, “About this gold, mate. Will we need a crate to carry it, or a truck?”

“Truck,” Nechtan responded promptly.

I was about to object again, but Ian said, “Splendid, I’ll make the arrangements,” and walked toward the doors while pulling out his cell phone. This gave me a few moments with Nechtan without Ian’s full attention on us.

I bent down even though Nechtan’s glamour made it appear as if his ears were meters above me. “I’m a vampire Law Guardian now,” I whispered as softly as I could. “I go by the name Veritas. But if you ever need me, contact me in the old way.”

“A Law Guardian?” Nechtan wheezed and his huge body began to shake. Soon, he was laughing so hard, he was crying.

I glanced at Ian, but he seemed absorbed in his call with someone named Ted who apparently had a truck. “I know,” I said, flashing a rueful grin at Nechtan when I looked back at him. “Life leads us down strange paths sometimes.”

“All set,” Ian announced, returning to our section of the bridge. “Finished on your end, poppet?”

My teeth ground. “Little Guardian” was one thing, but “poppet”? He’d only called me that when we first met and he thought I’d been another of his whores. “Sure, sugar nuts,” I said with the barest level of civility.

His brows rose, but then he shrugged. “Getting into character for our act, I see.”

Nechtan noticed my irritation. “He disrespects you?” he asked, the faintest pinprick of red appearing in his eyes.

Only one type of creature in the world had eyes that glowed red, and it wasn’t the mythical fae.

I immediately started to cough, which was enough to get Nechtan’s attention back on me.

Nechtan must have realized what he’d almost done, so he jumped over the side of the bridge and began to sink beneath the water. “We will speak later. For now, farewell . . . Veritas.”

“Farewell, my friend,” I said, waiting until he disappeared beneath the pond’s dark surface. When he was completely out of sight, I turned to Ian, fixing a bright smile on my face.

“Looks like you’ll be getting your necklace back soon.”

“Yes,” he drawled, a smile edging his mouth. “Seems as though tonight’s our lucky night.”

I didn’t like the look in his eyes. I also didn’t want to give him more time to muse over what had just taken place. On top of all that, I was more than a little rattled by the weapon he’d chosen to bring. The silver prong in the middle of the small trident was self-explanatory, but where in the world had Ian gotten the two demon bones on either side of it?

Oh wait. I think I knew.

Ian would have to keep his extremely rare, deadly weapon hidden. We might not encounter any demons inside, but if we did, none of them would take kindly to seeing a weapon capable of killing them, especially since the necessary component was bone from the body of another demon.

“Put your trident tip away, Ian,” I said, my fake smile still in place. “We’re supposed to be here to party, remember?”

Chapter 14

As soon as we crossed the castle’s threshold, I felt a wave of magic move over me, then quickly disappear. I was wondering what it was for, when Ian pulled out his mobile and grunted.

“Just as I thought. Battery’s dead now.”

Ah, more security measures. Mustn’t let pictures or cell-phone video incriminate anyone. The lack of functioning mobiles also aided our cause. Now Dagon couldn’t get a call from a friend and show up to surprise us.

Once inside, orbs provided all the light, either hanging in the air or streaking around while forming into various animals, birds, and fantastical creatures. When we entered the huge foyer, the cluster of orbs in front of us swirled to form a dragon. It opened its mouth to release more brightly lit orbs in a mime of breathing fire, then the beautiful creation burst apart and the orbs streaked off to form something new.

There were also fountains around the entire room. Each contained a water nymph, which stayed in the center of the fountain like a living, aquatic statue. The nymphs changed their appearance whenever someone passed by, forming into watery versions of beautiful men, women, marine life, or combinations of all three. The nymphs’ artistry was stunning, but water nymphs were as dangerous as they were dazzling.

If a human made the mistake of touching one, that person would drown. Water nymphs body-jumped with a single touch. Vampires and ghouls could survive days of vomiting up streams of water until they finally expelled the nymph, but no human could.

Still, the nymphs called to the part of me that had a unique connection with water. If I concentrated, I could feel the energy coming from them as they shaped the water into whatever they willed it to be. That energy beckoned me, inviting me to participate in their artistry.

I must have stared at them too long because Ian took my arm to get my attention. I glanced away to find him frowning at me. “You know not to touch one, right?”