A Lady of the Realm (20 page)

Sig nudged me forward, and I sank into the soft suede.

“Welcome. I’ve been informed you’re a DeDe descendent and wish to claim the title. Is that so?” she asked kindly.

“Yes ma’am, it is,” I said looking into the light green eyes that matched one of Malachi’s own. Lady Gail nodded to herself and sat back with a tranquil smile.

From the left side of the room a man’s voice thundered in indignation. “I hope you’re ready to die if it turns out to be false.”

I looked up and met a pair of hostile brown eyes. Jon, my distant cousin, wasn’t happy to see me. I couldn’t blame him. As the head of witches in America, he made a tidy profit from them all. I’d be taking away a sizable chunk of his income by reinstituting a lost House. I told Sig I didn’t want any recompense for past years, hoping that Jon would be placated. Sig said I was a fool.

The fairy queen folded her hands upon the desk and leaned forward. Her hair pooling on the black desktop in shimmering ribbons of platinum gold.

“Now, Jon, I’m sure she’s been apprised of the situation from Sigmund.”

Jon scoffed and waved his hand in frustration. “How would that prepare her for death?”

Sig stood up straighter, if that was possible. The man walked around as if a stick was stuck up his ass. A reddish glow escaped from under his dark sunglasses as his hand went inside his coat pocket.

“Are you calling me a liar … Lord Jon?”

I didn’t hear any kind of threat in the words. No strange odors filled the air. No energies swarmed around the men. I’d seen how people feared Sasha. How they glanced from the corner of their eyes to make sure they knew where he was at all times. It didn’t matter if they knew him or not. So when Jon turned to the color of a turnip, I was surprised. I’d never seen another person instantly afraid by a few choice words. I didn’t think Sig was frightful. Creepy yes. Jon took a step back, his hands going behind his back as his voice trembled slightly.

“Of course not, but we can’t always be right can we? I won’t hold it against you if you made a mistake.”

Sig didn’t move a facial muscle as he retrieved his pack of Kools. He lit one up quickly and blew out a ring of smoke into the air.

“That’s reassuring,” he said.

Lady Gail’s voice rose as she talked to the room in general.

“Gentleman … I brought my witness here for a cordial ceremony. As the elves have already acknowledged her as such and my own son vows for it, I brought a shifter. James this is the petitioner; Miss Bethany, this is Lord James and his son, Lord Caius.”

I inclined my head towards the man emerging from the shadows. On his left another, younger man flanked him. They were wolves. I could feel it as soon as their presence was made known. The older man smiled warmly, but the younger one just stared, his eyes calculating.

“Do let’s hurry, I have pressing business to attend,” Jon said with a tinge of impatience.

“Don’t worry, it’ll not be your business for much longer,” Sig said.

Lady Gail rolled her eyes upward at the banter. She retrieved a silver knife from the top drawer and began sliding her finger down the edge of the blade. I took in the size of that lethal weapon calmly. Sig’s hand came down on my shoulder as the fairy began to speak.

“Place your right hand, palm up, on the desk. I’ll cut you once, deeply, in the palm of your hand. First I, then James and Caius, will taste.”

Before I could register the instructions, the knife came down in a blur. The stinging sensation of my skin being sliced open made me wince. Gail took my hand up and licked softly at the welling blood. Ther
e was a triumphant gleam in her eyes as she passed my bloody hand to James. He also took but a fleeting lick as he turned and raised an eyebrow towards the fairy. Caius wasn’t as fast. He picked my hand up and licked from one end of the cut to the other, slowly coming back to the middle and sucking softly on the wound.

Our eyes met as he suckled. His amber eyes stayed locked with mine as his pupils dilated. He let go of my hand; and I clutched it to myself. A handkerchief materialized at my shoulder and I quickly wrapped it around the stinging wound. Lady Gail’s head bent forward, her right hand flowing quickly over the page of an enormous book. She grabbed a small bottle and peppered her writing with some kind of gritty powder. Blowing on it softly, the writing started to darken. Her head came up with a smile.

“It’s official. Let me welcome you to your new life, Lady Beth.”

Jon came forward slamming his fist onto the desk glaring at the fairy.

“This can’t be. The DeDe’s have been gone for nearly one hundred years.”

Gail rose to her feet, and Jon stood at attention.

“It doesn’t matter, Jon. Not only is she a full-blooded witch, she has both Merle and DeDe blood running through her veins. She has every right to claim the DeDe title if she wants it. We can’t deny Bethany her rightful place.”

Jon shook his head vigorously, his voice cracking with suppressed outrage. “This reeks of Alek. How is it possible that he failed to destroy the House completely, and then managed to find the lone heir the year he’s to gain control?”

“Alek always was lucky,” Gail said.

Jon heaved a deep breath and looked at me. His palms were blazing. “You dare steal from me? A DeDe whore through and through aren’t you? Take from the righteous and give to your lovers.”

Sig took a step in front of me and palmed his cigarette. The smell of his burning flesh stung my nose.

“This interview is over.”

Caius came forward and grabbed Jon’s bicep, pushing him back towards the door. Jon shook him off and stood his ground.

“Let it go, Jon. You’ve nothing to gain,” Caius said.

“Surely not advice from the likes of you.” Jon’s hands began to glow white. He took measured steps back towards the door; his hand stretched behind him as he groped for the handle.

“You’re another one of her conquests. I can see it.”

Caius became still, his muscular forearms flexing softly.

“Speak not of that which you do not know.”

“You’re rumored to be in league with the dark elf.”

Sigmund waved his hand towards Jon, and he flew back into the doors. They popped open upon impact, and he fell backwards into the empty room. Sigmund turned back around and bowed to Gail.

“If all is settled, we’ll head back to our quarters.”

Gail inclined her head, “Of course, Sigmund.”

I got up and started to follow Sig out the door, but Caius stepped in front and whispered, “Watch yourself,” before I could go far. I looked into his eyes briefly wondering where I’d seen the pair of amber eyes before.

Chapter Twenty-Five
:
The Other Ladies

Everything settled down to utter boredom the next day. I saw no other people of interest other than Caleb, Sig, and Malachi. I didn’t count the multitude of visitors that came courting as interesting. I think many were simply curious to see who the new kid on the block was. Sig was invaluable. He had business cards ready for me with contact information. He also bought me a phone for this pesky side to being a Lady.

I spent a great deal of time drinking tea and coffee while listening to people complain or flatter. Many came bearing gifts. After the first two checks, totaling more than six figures, I became suspicious.

“Do I have to take these?” I asked Sig on the side between visitors.

He smiled. “No. Those are special interest groups. They want you to remember them in the future.”

I wasn’t about to become beholden to anyone. It hadn’t worked out so well with the elf.

“Write a thank you note and slip the checks back to them. Something along the lines that their community could use a new park or something,” I said.

“I’m not a secretary, Beth.”

“Okay, but for now?”

He sighed and took the checks from my hand.

“I’ll take care of it. The next group coming in will test your patience so turn your ring.”

I turned my ring and folded my hands demurely as Caleb, who was nice enough to help me out for the day, showed in the next group. Three plump women, all dressed in purple skirted suits with plumes in their hair, came in. They were master conjurers as they demonstrated their powers by making coffee, pastries, and an extra chair appear.

“Lady Beth, what a pleasure to finally meet you; I’m Henrietta and these are my sisters Orietta and George, House of Champagne.”

I nodded politely, but I didn’t much care. I couldn’t tell the triplets apart. The only thing I needed to remember was that they were one of the five witch Houses left.

“We wanted to let you know.”

“That we live but a stone’s throw.”

“From your headquarters in New Orleans.”

They were used to finishing each other’s sentences. I placed my hand up.

“One at a time, please.”

Henrietta was the official spokesperson. She laced her purple-gloved fingers together and smiled.

“If you should ever need our services, we’ll be more than happy to assist. We brought you a gift to welcome you properly.” One of the sisters pulled an envelope from her purse and handed it to me. I didn’t bother looking inside as I handed it to Sig. That would go back but no need for them to know right away.

“Thanks, I appreciate your visit. Here’s my card in case you need to reach me.” I handed each of them one.

Henrietta coughed. “There’s something we’d like to discuss with you.”

I sat back as Sig placed his hand casually on my thigh.

“Go ahead,” I said.

“We’d like you to sponsor our school in Plaquemines Parish. We haven’t recovered from the hurricanes or the oil spill. The Wilde’s didn’t want to sully their hands with our mess.” Henrietta raised her dainty cup to her lips and sipped her coffee. Her sisters mimicked the action.

“If you need money, why are you giving me a gift?”

Sig tried to disguise his laugh behind a cough. He was still teaching me the finer points of polite conversation. I hadn’t picked up the art of tiptoeing through a conversation as if it were a minefield. Henrietta turned several shades of purple, almost reaching a hue that matched perfectly with her outfit. She set the cup down and looked at Sig; her mouth pressed into a thin line.

“It’s not money, girl. I’ve plenty of money. I want to open our doors to half—witches, and I need you to influence your lover into sanctioning the school.”

“I don’t influence anyone, and I don’t have a lover,” I said.

“DeDe Ladies are generally more sympathetic to witch causes.”

Sig laughed; laughed so hard his sunglasses fell to the floor. Henrietta shot to her feet, and her two sisters each grabbed an arm.

“Thank you for your visit; we’ll be in touch,” Sig said as Caleb appeared to whisk them out the doors. “No more visitors for today, Caleb.”

“What was that about?” I asked Sig, who was still sporadically laughing.

“Your job description by most accounts. Whore for hire. It’s a cutthroat business in Court.”

“Was the last DeDe a mercenary?” I asked, but no one answered. Sig had disappeared once again. The no—good demon was good at disappearing before answering questions.

I spent the rest of the afternoon alone with Caleb. I was reviewing each file meticulously before choosing my shadow. Sig had made appointments for the candidates on the following day. I needed to make sure I could live with the person for the rest of my life.

Thank goodness, Malachi came to play scrabble and watch reruns of Fraiser with me towards the end. He wouldn’t talk about the files I had spread on the bed. The only concession I managed to wriggle from him was to spend the night. I hated sleeping alone.

The next day Sig was back to his usual monosyllabic answers. I was closeted in my room for hours as I talked or listened to seven women. They all declared their never-ending allegiance to me. My instinct told me otherwise. They wanted an upgrade in their status, nothing more.

By evening time, I was going stir crazy. I knew it was hopeless to ask Sig for anything relating to fun. He was still annoyed that I, his pupil, lost control and shot Jack in the face. He grumbled that all his efforts in training me had been for naught. I thought I did great. I hadn’t accidently beheaded him.

Caleb, thank heavens, was a different sort all together. As soon as Sig disappeared to who knows where, I pounced on him.

“Take me out, Caleb. Anywhere. I need air.” I whined as he looked up from his hand of cards. He scratched his head, taking in my jeans, and Hanes t-shirt.

“Okay. Doubt anyone’ll try to kill you this go round.” Placing his hand down, he got up, pulling me along.

“Let’s go. You aren’t expecting Sasha are you?” He asked looking towards the door. His expression crinkled in anticipation of a sudden appearance, which would end the outing before it could begin.

“No,” I said.

I wasn’t expecting him. He hadn’t come back to my room for any reason since the first day. Sig or Caleb conveyed any communications from him. The only social interaction I received was with Malachi. Sweet Malachi and his hot fairy self. He came to play chess, scrabble, or just plain talk over drinks. At least he didn’t act as if I had a contagious disease. We gossiped about the Court and philosophized over the term “love”. He was a romantic deep down in his freaky heart.

“Come on, Beth. You’ll like the gardens,” Caleb said, pulling me through the door.

We took the stairs down and exited on the back of the main floor. Caleb smiled widely as I clapped my hands in delight and twirled in the brisk summer air. He hadn’t lied. The gardens were beautiful. We were on a 700-acre resort in northern Montana. The shifters roamed around freely in their beast forms. Fountains were strewn about, spewing some thick fluid into the air in every color but clear. Stepping towards one of the fountains curiously, I turned towards
Caleb.

“What’s in the fountain? It’s too thick to be water,” I said as I peered over the rim to see the bluish slush move slowly with the gush of more fluid.

“Ah.‘Tis water all right. It moves slower here. A life of its own is what I call it,” he said as he placed his hand in it.