covencraft 04 - dry spells (22 page)

Paris took a deep breath and then told Josef about Sakkara. After he was done, the older man was quiet for several moments while he digested the news.

“So, currently, Jade is in the demon world. And cannot leave until she completes your mother’s errand.”

“Yes.”

“You’ve contact with her?”

“With Jade? Somewhat. Through Lily. Lily indicates Jade is afraid, but coping.”

A rueful smile touched Josef’s lips. “She’s gutsy. I can’t tell if she’s like that because it runs in our family or if she learned it.”

“Does it matter?” Paris asked.

“In the grand scheme of things, no, I suppose it doesn’t. But I like to think… I see my grandmother when I look at her. Not in looks, but in spirit.”

“She’s very fond of you. I know you’ve only just learned you’re related, but I gather she respected your opinion before and now that she knows you’re related, she values it even more.”

“I’m fond of her too. I can see the girl she used to be behind her looks and her bravado. She can’t see herself yet, but when I look at her, I can see her.”

Josef’s eyes drifted again, this time to the mantle above the fireplace. Paris followed his gaze and saw a picture of a young woman with long blonde hair, crouched next to a small girl with slightly darker hair. The woman was smiling; the child had a serious, somber look on her face. Both the woman and the child had startling grey eyes, rimmed in black. Paris’ heart stuttered. Since he found out Jade was Josefina, he’d not seen a picture of her as a child. Now, seeing the photo on Josef’s mantle, he could see Jade in the child’s eyes. But her face was so open and guileless. He couldn’t reconcile the expression on the girl’s face with the woman he knew.

“That was taken just before she… drowned,” Josef said.

Paris turned to the older man, finding him watching. “She looks like her mother,” he offered.

“Very much so. It’s strange seeing her now. Even once I get past the idea that I thought she was dead… she has much darker hair now. Her skin is not as fair. Sharper features. She’s tall. She took after her mother before. Petite, lighter hair. Fragile skin. But her eyes. Her eyes are the same.”

Paris stared at the photo. A memory frozen in time. It was hard for him to reconcile the image he saw in the photo, the diminutive child, was so far removed from Jade as she was now:  reserved, harsh.

“What was she like?” he heard himself ask before he knew the words were going to escape his mouth.

Josef tilted his head slightly. “Quiet. Shy. She had a stuffed cat she took with her everywhere. I washed it once and its eyes fell off. I spent an hour with glue trying to fix it before I ran out to the mall and found a new one, its eyes still intact.” He laughed once, dryly. “I don’t know if she knew it was a replacement or not. But the howling! Oh, how she cried when we told her Smitten Kitten was sick.” Josef laughed. “Wrapped around her finger, we were.” His fond expression dissipated. “We donated all her things when she died. I don’t suppose I can find Smitten Kitten now. Too many years have gone by.”

“Maybe you can find something similar.”

Josef turned away from the photo of his sister and Jade, looking at Paris. “No. She’s an adult now. It’s too late.”

There was something very sad and final about the way Josef said the words.

“Thank you for coming by to tell me,” Josef said.

Paris stood. “Of course. I’ll keep you updated as soon as we find out more.”

Just before Paris left Josef’s house, Josef said, “I’m sorry about your mother. I always thought she was a fine Coven Leader. Strong. Dedicated. I’m shocked. I knew she had great power. At times there were things she did that were extraordinary. But now I wonder.”

“What?”

“I wonder if we, me and other members of the Coven, if we maybe suspected something wasn’t right, but it was easier to ignore it. When your mother was in charge, I had a sense that nothing could touch us. But I’m thinking now, that sense came at a price.”

Paris didn’t know what to say. He’d been thinking the same thing. He found himself going through all his memories, turning them over in his mind, wondering if every thing he remembered was true or if there was some hidden meaning. Some small detail, some innocuous nuance that was a red flag, warning him to the truth, that he’d heretofore missed.

“Thank you,” was all he could manage.

“If Jade makes it back-“

“
When
Jade makes it back,” Paris corrected automatically.

Josef’s lips curved wryly. “When,” he repeated, “will your mother stay here, or return to wherever she’s been?”

“I don’t know. I can’t imagine…”
her staying here, her being here after having been gone so long.
He couldn’t imagine interacting with her on a daily basis now that he knew she was a demon dealer. Now that he knew how she’d lied to them for so long. “I don’t know,” he repeated.

Josef nodded. “Call me when you hear anything.”

“I will, and if you want to stop by, I’m sure Bruce would be happy to see you.”

“Ah, Bruce. I’d nearly forgotten. How’s he doing?”

“He misses her.”

“I’m sure he does. They have a special relationship. I know she was none too impressed when I sent her down into that sewer,” Josef said, recalling when Jade had gone into the city sewers to fix a magical problem and stumbled across Bruce - overgrown and stuck in the system. “But it turned out pretty well for the both of them. I suppose we’ll know if anything happens to Jade through Bruce.”

Paris hadn’t thought of that. If Jade were to die wherever she was, Bruce could not survive without her, bound as he was to her as a familiar. It made him want to rush back to Jade’s cottage and check in with Bruce, ensure he was still breathing. “I’ll keep an eye on him. I’m staying at Jade’s cottage.”

Josef nodded. “I imagine you miss her as well.”

Surprised by Josef’s frank words, Paris could only blink for a moment. “Well. Yes. She’s not been gone long, but I do find myself keenly aware of her absence.”

Josef nodded again, making a low sound of affirmation. “Hopefully, we’ll not miss her for too long.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN

The revolving door still had a lazy spin to it when they left, its
whup whup whup
even and steady. Though the sun had been high when they’d gone into the saloon, it was dark now. Jade didn’t think they’d been inside for that long, but then again, Seth said time was different in the Dearth. She looked up at the sky and only an endless reach of black met her eyes. Her stomach lurched. No moon. No stars. Just emptiness. It felt closed in and exposed, both at the same time. Seth led her around the back of the building to what was presumably the parking lot. It was lit by three pale white street lamps that swayed to an unfelt breeze. There were three cars, a camel and some kind of squid thing that shimmered in the light, like it was made from gelatin. It heaved and gave a mighty belching sound. For an insane moment, she’d wondered if the keys were to the squid thing, but Seth got in the driver’s side of a beater. Jade had hustled to get in on the passenger side, lest she be left behind.

The car was dark red, but not the sleek, burgundy of new cars. It was the maroon red reminiscent of the 1970s and shaped like it came from that decade as well. Jade didn’t know much about cars, but she knew old when she saw it. Unlike modern cars that were shorter up front, this thing was at least seventy percent hood. It stretched out in front of them endlessly before fading into the dark. When Seth turned the key, Jade felt the engine start in every inch of her body; the vibrations traveling through the car frame, up through the seat, and settling into her bones. There was a beaded necklace hanging from the rearview mirror - prayer beads, Jade thought they were. She reached out a finger to touch them.

Seth’s hand caught hers. “Those are hexed.”

Jade frowned, pulling her hand back. “How can you tell?”

“They have magic on them. You should work on your sensing skills.”

“Thanks, Yoda. I’ll work on that. You know, in all my spare time when I’m not trapped in the Dearth on my way to see Medusa.”

Seth snorted at her words and then pulled the car out of the lot, spinning the steering wheel easily with the heel of his hand. Once on the road, the meager light given from the headlights was eaten up immediately by the dark. Not being able to see anything in front of them was comforting and pants-shittingly terrifying simultaneously. How did he know where they were going? How was he able to stay on the road? How the hell did physics work in this world? Instead of watching the end of the hood, where it seemed like the road was being devoured by the car, she tried to focus on the hood ornament. It was either a twisted bit of seaweed or a three-legged man doing something obscene to himself. Tough to say.

Jade shifted and the vinyl seat made a really rude squeaking squelch. Jade knew if there was an unexposed inch of her skin against that vinyl, it would make a sound like ripping Velcro when she peeled herself off.

“So, about that,” she began. The stereo had a knob for a tuner with a red line that indicated what frequency it was on. But instead of numbers, symbols were etched on the glass. It gave off a soft light, and from it, she could vaguely make out Seth’s profile. She reached out and fiddled with the radio a bit, finding the knob spun easily under her fingers. “Medusa.”

“Your question better be relevant.”

“Your ex,” Jade said quickly, ignoring his tone. “Kind of an important detail.”

“Important to whom?”

She rolled her eyes. “Considering I was sent over here to find her, don’t you think it’s important to me?”

“Say, how’s your Englishman doing? Are you getting all cozy yet?”

Jade frowned. “What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Jade could feel the chill of Seth’s sarcasm against her skin. “I thought we were trading our troubles. Sharing secrets and relationship tidbits, braiding each other’s hair and then later we’d have a pillow fight in our lingerie.”

“Gross,” she retorted, unable to stop herself from coming up with the visual.

“You’re right, underwear should be optional.”

A disgusted snort pushed its way out of her nose. “Can you be serious about this? You know the Gorgon. I’m supposed to face her for Sakkara. You being bound here is controlled by my success. If you have information, it’s worthwhile for you to share, isn’t it?” Her whole body sagged in dismay at his silence. He wouldn’t help her any more than he had to. It wasn’t like she could appeal to his humanity. He wasn’t human. She crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine, I guess we’ll just drive in silence.

“You know,” she found herself blurting suddenly, “why is it all fine for you to show up randomly in my kitchen and poke me and prod me and do your demon woo-woo and make sketchy statements about my magic and my brain and…” She waved one of her hands wildly before realizing she was doing it and tucking it sharply back against her chest. “And whatever. But when the shoe is on the other hoof, suddenly, you’ve got nothing to say.” She could feel her heart rate rising, her eyes stinging. She blinked furiously, trying not to cry. “It’s not fair.”

“Fair?” Seth said, his voice low, almost silky. “Fair? Whoever told you it would be?”

“Shut up, you know what I mean. I’m not talking about life in general being fair or the grand philosophy of the soul. I’m talking about you being this… this…” She struggled to find the right word, feeling more and more alone and cut off from everything familiar. “You’re just…”

“Stop,” he deadpanned. “You’ll hurt my feelings. All four of them.”

She looked out the window, unable to see anything beyond her own pale reflection in the glass. Seeing it, dimly illuminated by weak stereo light, only made her miss Lily. She tried to focus on her, wanting, needing to feel their connection, even if it was faint and far away. She shook her head. She couldn’t concentrate. There was an irregular rattle in the door close to her feet and now that she was listening, a faint crackle coming from the stereo - like there were two wires that were only connecting when a small bump or blip in the road shook the car. Her own breathing was unsteady, her breath hitching on both her inhales and exhales.

“What makes you think I want to discuss my relationships anymore than you want to discuss yours?”

Jade blinked in surprise. Surprise that Seth was saying something serious, surprise at his tone, surprise that he wasn’t just deflecting and teasing her. Something in his tone made her feel… Pity? She thought it might pity.

“Was it a bad breakup?” she asked, keeping her voice quiet, afraid that if she spoke any louder she’d break whatever weak truce seemed to be currently in effect.

“Aren’t they all?” Seth asked, his voice sounding more tired than she’d ever heard it. She stole a glance at him. He stared out the front of the car, his mouth a terse line.

“I didn’t realize you had, like, relationships. On this side.” Jade winced. Now that she said that out loud, she realized how it sounded. Like she didn’t think he was real. Or didn’t think he had any depth. Which to be fair, she really hadn’t until this moment.

“Some of us do. Some of us don’t. Much like humans, I suppose.”

“How long?” Jade frowned. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to ask. How long had they been together? How long since they broke up? She kind of wanted to know both, but also was worried Seth would stop answering questions so she felt like she needed to pick and choose her questions.

“A long time,” Seth answered.

Jade wasn’t sure which one of her unasked questions he was answering, but she nodded like she understood. “Soooo, is she going to punch you in the face when you show up or be glad to see you? Or maybe both?”

Seth’s face went contemplative, his head tipping to one side. “I don’t know.”

“How did you… how come you didn’t turn to stone? I mean, obviously you’ve looked at her. But I thought that’s what made people turn to stone. Looking at her. That’s why Sakkara needs me. I’m supposed to tap into my connection with Lily when I see her.”