Night Myst Part 13

"I . . . I think there's nothing that can keep you two apart. Whatever binds you together is stronger than the Indigo Court or the vampires." She smiled. "Was it good?"

I laughed then. "Yes, oh yes. Grieve is . . . he's what I need. He's who I'm meant to be with. I know you can't help but be suspicious, but Grieve isn't like the others. He fights against his vampiric nature. He isn't truly part of the Indigo Court. He's trying to help us. And he told me where to find Heather and Peyton."

"Alive? Where? Can we get to them now?"

I told her what Grieve had told me. "I think we can trust him."

She sobered. "It sounds like we're going to need more help. We don't dare go through the wood at night. It's far too dangerous."

"We have Marta's stash of goodies to go through. First light, we'll see what we can fashion for protection. And you said Kaylin will be over tomorrow? Will he help us?"

"Maybe," Rhia said, her smile flickering in the gentle light from the candle that was burning on her nightstand. Rosemary and lavender, it was enchanted for protection, for peace of mind. I inhaled deeply and held my breath, letting the fragrance work its magic on my thoughts.

"When are you and Leo getting married?" I asked after a few minutes.

"I don't know," she said softly. "I adore him. He's good to me and we get along, and I think I want to marry him. But I don't know if we have what you and Grieve seem to have. Maybe every great love story is different."

"I never thought I'd find him again, to be honest. And now . . . it's harder than it ever promised to be." I propped my back against the headboard and pulled the comforter up over us. "What makes you think you don't have the same level of pa.s.sion that Grieve and I share?"

"I'm so afraid of losing control-because of the fire. I'm afraid of hurting people. Of hurting . . . Leo. I always hold a part of myself back."

I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and gave a tight squeeze. "You have to learn to control the flames, Rhia. You can't let your fear overpower you forever. It will backfire and then where will you be? Where will we all be?"

And then, because we were both exhausted and didn't want to talk about vampires or blood or anything outside the walls of the room, we blew out the candle and slid back under the covers. Holding hands like we had when we were young, we fell asleep to the soft sound of the air cleaner.

Chapter 14.

We were up before dawn. Leo was still asleep, but Rhiannon woke him up because he was likely to recognize some of the charms I might not. Being on the road and working primarily with the energy of the wind put me at some disadvantage. I didn't do things the way a lot of witches did them, and most of my spells were invocations as opposed to actually working with spell components.

We dug through the boxes and bags, looking for anything that might help. I held up an orange ball the size of a walnut. "This is practically trying to jump out of my hand. You guys know what it is?"

Rhiannon took it, sniffed it, and her eyes widened. "Yeah, it's a firespark charm. Can turn even the most moderate of flames into a raging inferno. I don't think I should touch this."

"Ridiculous. You need to get over your fear of the fire. Just because you're carrying something doesn't mean you're going to set it off," Leo said, glancing up at her. Bart rubbed around his legs; the Maine c.o.o.n was dragging around a fuzzy mouse and seemed intent on cajoling Leo into playing with it. "And shouldn't someone be making breakfast? I'm starved."

"Make it yourself," Rhiannon said, staring at him with a hurt look. "I'm not your maid or your mother."

Leo leaned back, squatting on his heels. He rubbed his forehead and let out a long sigh. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you. It's just . . . things feel like they're spiraling out of control and we have to get a handle on anything that might help us. Like your power over flame. Maybe Anadey can help you?"

I jerked my head up. "He's got a point. She's a shamanic witch and she works with all four elements. If anybody we know can help, it might just be her."

"Fine. I'll talk to her today." Rhiannon frowned. "Do we tell her what Grieve said about Peyton?"

"Not till we confirm it. We want to make certain she's safe before we get Anadey's hopes up."

I ran my fingers through my hair, staring at the ma.s.sive pile of odds and ends with disgust. "I don't know why Marta left all this to me. I usually just work with energy, not with the actual components. She could have left this to her daughter, or to Peyton-they would be able to put it to better use than me."

"Nope, she had her reasons. Marta never did anything without thinking it through." Leo held up a handful of necklaces. "Bingo-protection charms. Don't know how effective they are, but they feel charged. There are five of them."

"We each get one, then. And a spare." I draped one of the Algiz runes over my head and immediately felt the soft keen of magic shroud my shoulders. "Whoa . . . this is is comforting. Okay, let's go eat and then-" comforting. Okay, let's go eat and then-"

The doorbell rang. Leo went to answer and a moment later returned, followed by a guy who looked around thirty. He was Chinese, thin but muscled, and was dressed in a pair of ripped jeans and a black leather jacket over a gray muscle shirt. Combat boots completed the outfit. He carried a heavy backpack, which he dropped in the corner after carefully scanning the room.

"Kaylin Chen, meet Cicely Waters."

Kaylin looked at me. "We've been waiting for you, Cicely-the wind told me you were coming, and to keep an eye out for you."

What the . . . ? "You can speak to the wind?" I'd never met anybody else with my abilities before. But he shook his head. "You can speak to the wind?" I'd never met anybody else with my abilities before. But he shook his head.

"No, but ghosts can speak through the wind, and I can speak to ghosts." And then his eyes lit up with a golden light, and I noticed that, standing behind Kaylin Chen, stood two translucent figures. Neither one seemed to realize that I could see them.

Kaylin blinked. "What are you looking at?" Then, he relaxed. "You can see them." He spoke so softly that Leo and Rhiannon didn't hear him.

"Yeah, but I don't think the spirits know I can."

"Probably not. They're attuned to me on a level I can't explain, and very few ever know they're with me. Even gifted psychics usually don't tune in to them." He turned to Leo. They clasped arms. "Good to see you, bro. It's been a long time."

"You, too, dude. You been staying out of trouble?"

"As much as I can," Kaylin said. He saluted Rhiannon, who waved.

"You want breakfast?" She flashed him a wide smile and her eyes sparkled.

Kaylin nodded. "Not about to say no."

"Come on, Cicely. Let's cook while we fill him in on what's going on."

I stared at her for a moment. She'd just about bit off Leo's head for asking her to cook breakfast; now she was volunteering the both of us. I glanced back at Kaylin and he winked at me. A glint in his eyes twinkled and I felt a sudden desire to make him happy.

"Dude, you have some sort of charm going on?"

He shrugged. "Only my natural demeanor."

"Right. Come on, Rhia. Let's get breakfast under way."

Kaylin followed the rest of us into the kitchen. His gaze fluttered back to me as he turned one of the chairs around and swung one leg over the seat, coming to rest his elbows on the back of it.

"So, Cicely, you're Rhiannon's cousin?"

"Here, you're on toast duty." I thrust the bread into his hands. "And yes, I'm Rhia's cousin." While Rhiannon whipped eggs for omelets, I dug through the fridge for a ham I'd seen earlier and began cubing the meat to go in the eggs.

"Then you're in off the pipelines," he said, pulling his chair over to the counter where he began to toast the bread. I handed him the b.u.t.ter and as the slices came popping out of the toaster, he spread them thickly and covered the stack with a tea towel to keep the toast warm.

I gave him a questioning look, but it was Rhiannon who answered. "Pipelines-that's what Kaylin calls the freeways."

Curious, I thought, but didn't ask why. Instead, I examined the two spirits who stood by his back. As I let myself drift, listening to the wind, I realized that they were a man and a woman, both dressed in long white robes that sparkled with golden embroidery. They seemed oblivious to me, standing at attention, focused solely on Kaylin, almost as if they were guarding him. And then, I knew who they were.

"They're your parents."

Kaylin shifted, barely, but enough to tell me I'd nailed it. He set down the loaf and gazed at me. "How can you tell?"

"It makes sense. The way they're standing reminds me of the cops-or security guards."

Rhiannon scrambled the eggs and ham, sprinkling in a handful of grated cheese, then divided them onto four plates. She glanced up from her work, frowning at the both of us. "What are you two talking about?"

"Cicely can see something neither of you can." He shrugged. "My family has my back. Literally. My parents' spirits travel with me, watch out for me, tell me who to avoid. They don't know everything, but it gives me an edge and I'm trying to get them to help me look for my best friend's killer."

"Then you think the Indigo Court staged his car wreck?" I asked.

"The Indigo Court? I'm not familiar with the name." He finished up the toast and brought it over to the table. "But I know something's taken control of the town and whatever it is, it was responsible for my bro's death. Derek was one of a kind . . . he didn't make simple mistakes like driving when he was too tired."

"You willing to go up against his murderers?" Leo asked.

Kaylin gave us a long look. "I've been looking for a way to fight whatever this force is for months now. I'm already on the front lines."

I bit my lip, trying to decide just how I felt about him. But Leo and Rhia trusted him and they'd know better than I would. "You willing to take a little trip out into the ravine with us today? We're looking for Heather, and for Peyton Moon Runner."

"Haven't got anything else to do. Sure." He dug into breakfast with such gusto that I wondered how long it had been since he'd eaten. But he didn't look poor. In fact, his clothing looked remarkably well made and expensive. Kaylin was an odd duck and I wanted to know more.

"Before this goes any further, how do you feel about telling me who and what you are? It's only fair." I'd had enough of making deals unseen. My pact with the vampires was weighing heavy on my mind and I wasn't about to fall in unaware with someone else who might try to pull one over on me.

"She's safe," Leo said. "We both vouch for her. By blood, bro."

Kaylin eyed me closely, then shrugged. "All right. I trust you to that." He pushed back his chair and wiped his mouth on his napkin. "I'm a dreamwalker, Cicely. When I was in the womb, my mother was initiated into an ancient shamanic tradition. There was a demon hanging out nearby and it took the chance to enter my soul. It's not in me in me-not as possessing possessing me. But the experience changed my very DNA. It opened me up on a psychic level. When the demon entered me, it died, but its essence blended into my own soul during the ritual and now we are one. I am both Kaylin, and what's left of the night-veil." me. But the experience changed my very DNA. It opened me up on a psychic level. When the demon entered me, it died, but its essence blended into my own soul during the ritual and now we are one. I am both Kaylin, and what's left of the night-veil."

"Night-veil?" Oh wonderful. Now we were dealing with demons. Although it was hard to imagine any demon worse than the Vampiric Fae.

"They're the creatures that you catch a glimpse of in the shadows-they hide in dusty attics, creep into old bas.e.m.e.nts, and live in rotting barns. Only during the cover of night do they emerge, and they're connected to the Bat Tribe."

I had a lot to learn. So much of this had gone under my radar, living all those years on the road.

"I feel so stupid compared to all of you. So unprepared. Half this stuff . . . I knew it existed because, h.e.l.l, I'm magic-born. But my life was so far removed from most magic except the spells I could summon. My existence with Krystal was like a bad seventies road movie. I learned what I could, but there are times I think I'm going to be a detriment because of my ignorance."

"You'll be fine. There's more to you than meets the eye. Just remember: When in doubt, ask." Kaylin gave me a gentle smile and I suddenly felt safe with him. His eyes promised that he'd do his best to help us, and that was good enough for me. He was on our side, and right now that's what we needed.

And so, like that, we had our fourth. We spent the rest of breakfast filling him in on the Indigo Court, and what was waiting for us in the wood.

"I don't like this," Leo said as he carried our plates to the sink. Kaylin was washing the dishes, while Rhiannon and I cleaned the counters. "We're going to get ourselves killed."

"That's probably going to happen anyway, if we don't do something about the Shadow Hunters. But we know Heather and Peyton are out there and we have to at least give it a try. If the four of us go together, we might be able to hold off the tillynoks and whatever else might be out there."

Kaylin stared at me for a moment, then wiped his mouth on a napkin. "Leo's right. We're probably going to get ourselves hurt, but I'm in."

I folded the tea towel and hung it over the refrigerator handle. "Since it's still fairly early, we might luck out and Myst's people will be asleep."

Some of them will be, but be careful, Cicely. Not all beasts thrive in the dark and the shadow. Ulean's voice rang clear in my head, and so did her concern. Ulean's voice rang clear in my head, and so did her concern.

At five minutes to nine we were standing in front of the path leading into the ravine. The sky was an odd silver color and the scent of snow-covered cedar hung thick in the air. Everywhere, the glint of light on snow sparkled like diamonds, glistening on the ferns and bushes.

Kaylin had his pack, Leo was dressed in khakis and a sweater that matched the surrounding foliage. Camo, Camo, I thought. Rhiannon was carrying a lighter and the firebombs that Leo and I made her bring. I thought. Rhiannon was carrying a lighter and the firebombs that Leo and I made her bring.

I'd opted for the tough chick look: black jeans, black turtleneck, and my leather jacket. We all wore boots in which we could move through the snow and slush. For my weapons of choice, I'd slid my switchblade into a sheath attached to my wrist, and had stuck my athame in my boot sheath. Both blades were highly illegal to carry, but they did the trick.

"Okay, let's head out." Taking a deep breath, I plunged into the ravine. The path was level for the first twenty minutes of walking, then slowly began to descend. When Rhiannon and I'd been children, we'd usually stayed on this side of the ravine, in the wood near the house. But today, we had quite a hike in front of us.

The mat of needles and leaves beneath the snow scrunched as I led the way into the thick copse. Throughout the woods, the call of crows echoed from tree to tree, and one lone bird sang to announce the coming storms. I listened to the breeze that had picked up, but Ulean warned me from playing in the slipstream too much.

A storm's on the way, with heavy snowfall behind it. This is an unusual winter and Myst might be behind it.

Great. Storms were crazy enough on their own. I tried to stay out of their way because if they could sense you had tuned in on them, they'd take aim at you like a lightning rod. And those of us who worked with the wind or weather tuned in to them like a compa.s.s needle seeking north.

I sent a mental hug to Ulean, surprised to feel one in return. It occurred to me that, now that I was settling down-and especially if I were to start up some sort of magical business-I'd need to begin regular meditation again. I'd taught myself how to meditate over the years and it kept me sane during my exile with Krystal. Now I could start to truly dive into my work with Ulean and see just how far we could take our partnership.

I'd like that. A smile broke through her words. A smile broke through her words.

I'd like that, too.

I turned to the others. "Let's get a move on, rough weather coming in."

As I scrambled to the edge of the ravine, I noted the overgrown state of the path leading down and through it. When I was little, it had been carefully tended, but now it was a tangle of briars and other dangers, all hiding under a blanket of white.

"Watch it, there's stinging nettle along this path and it will be hard to see now. Everything's so overgrown and wild, and the snow over the slick ground won't make this any easier."

" 'Lay on, Macduff! Just don't lead us to ruin.' " Leo was joking but I could sense the tension in his voice.

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," I said.

The path was slippery, the overgrown foliage slick from the winter's touch. The patches that were clear of plants had frozen, and were slick with black ice. Down below, mist rose from the bottom of the ravine. And the temperature was hovering around thirty-three degrees. Good thing we'd all worn heavy clothing.

I edged my way down, slipping and sliding, occasionally having to lean back toward the slope to balance myself with my hand. At a shout from Rhiannon, I glanced back. She'd landed on her b.u.t.t in a patch of brambles.

"You okay?"

She nodded as Leo helped her up. "Yeah, a few thorns but nothing major." Shaking off the clinging stickers, she cautiously pa.s.sed over the slippery spot and I went back to deciphering the best way down.

Ravines in western Washington are usually steep, covered in th.o.r.n.y brambles and stinging nettle and ferns, and they're moist. Fungi grow thick in them, and there's the ever-present sense that the very ground is alive. Add a layer of snow, and freezing temperatures, and you have the perfect recipe for an accident.

The scents of ozone mingling with the cedar and fir created a sharp blend that went straight to my head. Scents affected me more than they did others, probably because of my affinity for the air.

The mist wafted up the side of the slope and I stopped, staring at the coiling, vaporous serpents. If there was anything hidden within the fog, we couldn't see it. Chances are whatever might be cloaked couldn't see us either, but Rhiannon and Leo weren't skilled at quiet navigation. Kaylin appeared to be, and I knew how to soften my footsteps, but with the other two in tow it would be obvious we were coming.