Unfallen Dead

“This is my fault,” I said.

“Don’t start that again.” Briallen brushed her hand along the side of my head.

I jerked away. “Stop that.”

A

“Don’t change the subject to the thing in my head,” I said.

“I will if you stop ignoring that something’s not right. I can feel it.”

I met her gaze. “Something happened, Briallen, and it changed. I don’t need you to tell me it’s growing.”

She dropped the hand. “You’re right. And you shouldn’t be here. Between the Taint and this veil opening, I’m worried.”

I stepped away from her. “I’m sorry, Briallen. I got Meryl into this. I can’t leave.”

“I don’t know whether to be proud to hear you say that or throw you over my knee,” she said. Her expression changed abruptly, and she held a hand against her earpiece. She glanced up at me as she listened intently. “A mist has formed at the grove.”

She didn’t have to tell me what grove. Boston druids and druidesses met in an oak grove on Telegraph Hill down in Southie. “I’m not surprised, I guess. There’s a lot of residual Taint down there.”

She peered into the distance as if she were looking through the surrounding city to the ring of oak trees. “We stationed people there, in case, but…” Her voice trailed away.

“No one very powerful, right?”

She surveyed the remaining fey. “Promise me you won’t do anything stupid?”

I gri

Her hand found my cheek again, only this time in a warm caress. “She’ll be fine. If there’s one thing Meryl does, it’s the unexpected.”

Without another word, she hurried down the hill to a nearby black car.

Dylan’s gaze went up over my shoulder. “We’ve got company.”

“Looks more like incoming,” Murdock said.

Above the crowd on the Common, airborne fey scattered from a growing cloud of light. The light resolved into rank upon rank of Dana

“That’s Ceridwen,” I said. She was the last person I wanted to see. If she hadn’t been so paranoid, Meryl would have been at her desk and made sure Powell was in a secure room. As if to draw even more attention to herself, she had the spear with her. I had a lightbulb moment. “Dylan, give me Powell’s soul stone.”

He hesitated. “Why?”

I didn’t want to tell him. If he didn’t like the idea, it wouldn’t work without the stone. “I need it for leverage.”

He looked suspicious. “Leverage with whom?”

Ceridwen would arrive in a moment. I didn’t have time to argue. “Dylan, you wanted me to trust you. I’m asking you to do the same. If you don’t want Ceridwen to know you gave it to me, you need to give me Powell’s soul stone right now.”

Dylan pulled the stone from his coat pocket, rolled it between his fingers, then tossed it to me. “Whatever you’re going to do, make it good.”

Ceridwen landed at the communications area near the monument. Several security agents swept in after her, but the rest remained in the air. She ordered the park cleared, her voice amplified by a spell. Angry murmurs ran through the crowd, but stopped as soon as the security agents spread out. They didn’t fire on anyone, but their reputation for hair-trigger tempers prompted people to head for the streets.

Ceridwen carried the spear like a scepter as a contingent of agents escorted her to the fairy ring. She played the role of command leader for all it was worth.

“What’s with the getup?” Murdock said.

Ceridwen wore classic fey warrior armor, a torso-fitting corselet of stamped red leather and a matching helm with a short nose guard. The fey used as little metal as possible in their fighting gear because it had a tendency to warp essence. The Dana

“Let’s just say she’s not subtle when it comes to asserting her authority.”

She stopped a dozen feet away. “Move away from the ring.”

Dylan bowed and did as he was told like a good Guildsman. From a cautious point of view, I didn’t have a problem with it. Even if he had never sworn fealty to the High Queen, he was her employee. It wouldn’t look good at his performance review if he had “defied an order from an underQueen” in his file. Murdock, true to form, did not move, which I liked even more.

Ceridwen stepped closer. “We said move away from the ring. You are interfering with Guild business.”

Murdock didn’t flinch. “We’re investigating an abduction, ma’am.”

With a gleam of gold, she let some essence show in her eyes. “We are declaring this area under our jurisdiction. Move or face the consequences.”

Murdock frowned. “With all due respect, ma’am, I don’t believe you have any authority over me.”

She gestured with the spear to her bodyguards. “Take them into custody.”

As they moved, Murdock muttered into his radio and stepped in front of me. He pulled out his gun. “I am giving you a lawful order to lay down your weapon.”

The shock on Ceridwen’s face was priceless. She raised her spear. “I said take them into custody!”

The lead agents raised their hands, essence sparking in electric arcs as they powered up. Murdock’s body shield bloomed like a ruby flame. Whether he pla

I felt Nigel Martin coming before I saw him. The Taint accentuated everyone’s essence, but I would have sensed my old mentor without it. He pressed between two agents and stopped between Murdock and Ceridwen. He looked at Murdock, but he addressed Ceridwen. “What is the meaning of this, Your Highness?”

Ceridwen lowered the spear. “Druid Martin, you know the peril here. These people must be removed.”

Ever calm, Nigel clasped his hands behind his back and tried to stare me down.

I shrugged. “I’m deferring to the local authorities, Nigel. Talk to the guy with the gun.”

Nigel glanced at Murdock. “Detective, you are risking an international incident.”

“I don’t take orders from the Guild,” said Murdock. “Unless I get orders from someone I do report to, this woman is going to be arrested for threatening a police officer.”

“We have diplomatic immunity,” Ceridwen said, barely containing her outrage.

“You’ll get a phone call,” said Murdock. How he kept a straight face when he said that, I’ll never know. His brothers in blue didn’t even try. I heard more than a few chuckles.

“Get her to back off, Nigel,” I said.

He glared. “Co

“The only life at stake here is Meryl Dian’s. I don’t answer to you, and I sure as hell don’t answer to Ceridwen,” I said.

She pushed forward and raised the spear like a club. “I will not stand for any more insolence from you and that traitorous bitch!”

That did it. She went a word too far. “I’ve had it,” I snapped. My mind opened to the spot where the spear burned so brightly, tasted the essence that lay there, felt the power that called to me even as I called to it. “Ithbar.”

The spear jerked in Ceridwen’s grip. Her eyes widened, but she refused to let go. Amazingly, it dragged her toward me. She turned golden bright as she called up essence to resist my command.