I couldn’t see my mate, but I sensed him hovering nearby.

  “You might not see me, but I’m always around,” he always said to me.

  Once the sun retreated and the waning crescent moon greeted me, I stood. Erica pulled into the parking lot as I prepared to leave.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  “Late shipment from New York. Bill was complaining about it being left on the back door.”

  I motioned to the empty dock. “I’ve been here for hours. Nothing’s arrived.”

  The Bends had closed already. Did she really come here for a shipment? I couldn’t smell a lie in her words, but suspicion flicked at me. The zmee said he had a wolf minion. Could that helper be Erica?

  “Maybe it hasn’t shown then. I guess I’ll eat dinner and return later.” She turned to leave but glanced over her shoulder. “What are you doing here?”

  I explained to her about the trunks and how I could find the Basilisk King if I retrieved an item from the troll thrift shop. Naturally, I didn’t tell her about the minion.

  “Why don’t you coerce the zmee into giving you the information you need?” The way she stood there, placing her weight on one leg, her annoyance came off her like a fog.

  “A thousand-pound Russian dragon can’t be coerced—only bargained with. Even the witch and wizard with me didn’t bother.”

  She sniffed. “I would’ve tried anything, but…” She left my lack of action in the air, so I marched away.

  Footsteps echoed behind me. Was she following me?

  “Where are you going?” I asked her.

  “The Basilisk King is attacking my territory, too. If you know a way to find him, I should help you.”

  “I don’t need your help.”

  She ignored me and followed me to the empty troll mart parking lot. A breeze passed over my nose, and I inhaled. Nothing stirred here recently. I caught the delicious scents from the nearby fairy bakery, the noxious fumes from cars along the Parkway, but not much else.

  Erica scanned the outside of the building. “I don’t see any security cameras.”

  “The troll guards his property during the day,” I murmured, not really wanting to work with her tonight.

  “And what guards the place at night?”

  “I don’t know—” My words ended when I checked the garden. The tulips stood tall, yet there were less rocks in the front now. Only indentations from where the rocks had been. Had someone pulled them up since my last visit?

  With the cover of darkness, we circled the property, finding no one around.

  “How did you plan on entering?” she asked.

  That was a good question. The loading dock to the rear of the building had locks on the doors. As I drew near, I caught the scent of both humans and enchanted creatures. Had Jocelyn locked these doors or perhaps one of Kramkar’s supernatural employees?

  I crept toward the door. The dim light from the night sky shone on the dark metal. Electric shocks danced along my fingertips as I rubbed the surface.

  “Is it enchanted?” she whispered.

  “Yes, we’ll need to find another way inside.”

  With a quick glance at my watch, I noted the time. “Let’s keep this trip under ten minutes.”

  “Understood.” Erica pointed upward. “I doubt they’ve locked the skylights.”

  Good observation.

  I took point and jumped up to the second story windowsill. From there, I scaled the side of the building with Erica again on my tail. Clutching the wood wall, a warm breeze fluttered my hair into my face. To my left, Erica scampered past to the nearest skylight. Surprisingly, the window opened with ease and she slipped inside.

  I took a final look around—I’d never surveyed The Bends from this high in the air. In the daylight, my workplace appeared like any other. Simple. Non-threatening. But now that night descended, shadows prevailed. Suddenly, The Bends’ roof shifted.

  A second later, the troll store fluttered in return. I felt the movement beneath me. So weird and disorienting. The walls on The Bends stretched and contracted as if the store drew in deep breaths like a living being.

  I shuddered and hurried after Erica. She perched on one of the roof’s support beams.

  “What were you doing?” she whispered.

  “Nothing.” I leaped onto the beam and crept across to join her.

  Below us, only moonlight bled through the skylights and revealed the showroom floor below.

  “What are we looking for?” she asked.

  “Reindeer bells. They were in booth 2B, but this store might be enchanted…”

  “…meaning they could be elsewhere,” she finished as she scratched her nose.

  “Unfortunately.”

  During my excursion with Mrs. Weisz, I hadn’t smelled any guard dogs or any other creatures that might be used for protection like a moody brownie. Bill didn’t use a security alarm, but he did use wards. Did that mean a similar method was used here?

  “Reaching out to find light in the darkness costs nothing,” Mevelyn had said.

  I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath. Held it. I cradled everything that represented the outside within me. Even with my eyes closed, Erica’s essence flared beside me like a bright beacon in the dark. Beyond her, the entire troll thrift store glowed. Briefly, my stomach quivered from the beauty of strange, firefly-like sparks flittering around vases in one booth to hanging urns vibrating in another. Swirls, as beautiful as the vermillion streaks in a hunter’s moon, undulated from packages of fairy dust in one stall to a rack selling void-black clothing.

  This whole place was alive with supernatural activity.

  I searched further.

  There. The magic emanating from the reindeer bells was dark-blue, similar to the shifting shadows along the deepest points in the ocean. When I examined it the first time, I’d glimpsed what it wanted me to see, not its true nature.

  My awe died a grisly death as, suddenly, a crack formed in the corner of the store and a hunched-over creature ambled out. Compared to the dancing lights, this being pulsed with dark gray shadows.

  I opened my eyes. Erica stooped beside me still scratching her nose. How much time had passed? It felt like close to fifteen minutes already, but my watch confirmed we’d been here less than five. I jolted myself out of the time shift. We had a mission to accomplish and ominous company coming from one of the showroom corners.

  “We got a problem,” I whispered. “Something’s crawling out of the wall.”

  “Where?” she asked. “I don’t smell anything.”

  “In front of us to the far left. See those double windows? Near that corner.”

  She squinted. “Is that a rat?”

  “Rats aren’t that big.” Erica’s description appeared to be accurate. Whatever it was, it had an elongated tail and a thick torso and legs. A faint swish-scratch reached the rafters every time its tail and nails brushed the floor.

  Swish, swish, scratch. Swish, swish, scratch. The sound grew louder.

  The reindeer bells were on the other side of the store. If I made a run for it, I could grab the bells and then we could get the hell out of here.

  “Got a plan?” Erica asked.

  “Can you attract its attention while I grab the reindeer bells?”

  She nodded and jumped to the nearest rafter. From there, she reached the top of one of the booths’ shelves and climbed down. The guardian twitched and shuffled her way. Meanwhile, I made my way down the opposite wall. This high up, I didn’t expect to find so much dust and cobwebs. The Jersey spiders had made themselves at home, and I dodged their housing developments to head down. Once I was close enough to the ground, I jumped and hid behind a booth wall.

  A crash erupted—the clang of a metal bin hitting the floor—and my heart jumped to my throat. More sounds, a table turning over and metal objects banging about. I turned the corner to peek.

  At the far end of the aisle, Erica ran toward me with the guardian hard on her heels. It huffed and puffed, but that tiny body picked up speed. Any second now it would catch up with her. The goblin blade on my ankle hummed and I withdrew it. The weapon’s hilt twitched in my hand and stretched out to form an axe. Nice and heavy, too.

  Erica glanced over her shoulder and missed noticing a table in her path.

  “Hey!” I called out to her, but she crashed into the table and a whole display fell over. So much for sneaking in and out without leaving a trace.

  The creature advanced and its tiny mouth opened, revealing rows of gleaming white fangs.

  I braced myself to jump out and help her, but the most peculiar thing happened. Instead of pouncing on its prey, the guardian picked up the nearest product in its mouth, a wicker basket with gaudy stick figure dolls, and placed it back on a shelf. Then it stepped closer to Erica, saw another item and arranged that, too.

  Erica looked back at me, and I shrugged. She got to her feet. The rat-dog snarled and advanced again. With the tip of her pink-painted fingernail, Erica pushed over a small bin. Only cats knocked over things with such finesse, but the guardian stopped to clean up the mess. The process repeated over and over again.

  Damn, Bill would love to have an employee follow people around and tidy up behind them. Where could we get one? Probably not from the local Animal Control.

  Erica whistled sharply and shot me a wake-up-and-get-what-we-came-here-for expression. I sprang into action and raced down aisle two, trying to remember the arrangement of the booths from above. Two stalls later, I recognized my target. The pedestal sat in the middle of the stall with the glorious reindeer bells on top. I picked up my prize and about booked it out of there but realized I was stealing.

  Good look there, Ms. Stravinsky.

  I retrieved the envelope of money from my pocket and left it on top of the pedestal. I didn’t need to leave my name or identifying information. The troll would only know I’d bought it at the price on the tag. Surely, that’d make up for breaking into his shop.

  With my prize in hand, I said a prayer that this stealthy purchase wouldn’t be the beginning of an all-out troll-goblin war, then I got the hell out of there with Erica not far behind.

  Chapter 16

  Thorn and I refused to venture through the woods at night to visit the zmee so we set out to do the handoff first thing in the morning. Will planned to start his new job at the mill today, and Aggie joined us as backup.

  Personally, I didn’t fear the zmee. That three-headed dragon wouldn’t be gobbling any hikers in Jake County Park, but I did fear the Basilisk King. Why did he build the altar for the zmee and who were these sources of power they were blathering about? Did we need to find these people before the Basilisk King attacked them, too?

  The three of us trudged through the woods with the rising sun peeking through the oak and pine trees. This early in the morning, the cooler weather gave us a pleasant breeze filled with the scents of wildflowers, honeysuckle, and mushrooms. The nocturnal birds had fallen silent and now goldfinches and woodpeckers freely flitted from tree to tree.

  Eventually, we reached the zmee’s ramshackle home. Smoke rose from its chimney and the scent of meat—not sure of what kind of meat and I didn’t want to know—wafted from inside.

  We didn’t have to wait long for them to appear.

  “You brought it!” the second head slipped out before the other two.

  The third head attempted to shove the second one out of the way. Their tiny fingers eagerly reached out to me.

  No way was I giving up the goods until it answered the agreed upon question. “Where’s the Basilisk King?”

  Each head frowned in unison.

  “The Great One doesn’t sit still,” the third head screeched. “He is drawn to power therefore, his location changes from one day to another.”

  “You said yesterday he seeks power sources,” I said. “What are power sources? Shapeshifters?”

  In the past, warlocks had used shapeshifters for their spells. It was cruel and torturous.

  The third head gave me a sinister grin that skittered up my spine. “True sources of power. Those who can draw power from within and manipulate it.”

  My veins filled with ice, but I held myself steady. Now wasn’t the time to breakdown. The zmee referred to Old Magic practitioners.

  Like Grandma and me.

  I whipped out my phone and dialed my parents’ house. No one picked up.

  This early in the morning, my dad should still be there as he usually worked the afternoon shift as a machinist at a local factory. I tried his cell phone and that went straight to voicemail.

  “Dad, pick up the phone!” I hissed.

  My dad slept like a bear head-deep in hibernation. Mom got creative years ago and hooked the television to a timer to wake him up.

  I need to go home. Now.

  “Nat, where are you going?” Aggie called out.

  “I’ll explain on the way. Let’s go!” I replied.

  The forest blended around me as I sprinted back to the car. The others weren’t far behind, barely panting by the time we reached the car. Thorn jumped into the driver’s seat.

  “Grandma, right?” he asked.

  He’d read the situation quickly. I nodded then shot a text to Nick: BK wants old magic spellcasters. Heading to Grandma.

  Barely adhering to the speed limits, Thorn leaned on the accelerator and got us to my parents’ house a few minutes later. I scanned the street. Honestly, I expected to see a row of trunks heading down the road, but with only a woman walking her schnauzer, the scene was one of quiet calm.

  I had a feeling a hurricane was coming though.

  Nick arrived at my parents’ home before us. He sat on the front step like a sentinel.

  “Any signs of trouble?” Thorn asked him.

  Nick sighed. “He’s been here, but he hasn’t entered the property.”

  “How do you know?” Aggie had circled the house and appeared around the corner.

  “The residue you spoke of is all over the backyard,” Nick replied. “Water evaporates, but the basilisks are enchanted from an alternate realm full of caverns with sulfurous pools.”

  “Eww.” Aggie made a face.

  “Is Grandma inside?” I asked, already at the door.

  “Yes,” Nick replied. “She’s watching television while your father is sleeping. I’ll wait here while you check on them.”

  “I’ll keep you company,” Thorn said to Nick.

  I had only a half-second to wonder what the hell Thorn and Nick could talk about before Aggie and I hurried into the house. The way we barged in, you’d think there was a major emergency, but Grandma Lasovskaya merely watched a recorded Russian gameshow from the 1990s called Hundred to One. She giggled away as the host asked families a series of questions Family Feud-style.

  Grandma’s features softened. “Natalya, what are you doing here? What is wrong?”

  I knelt in front of her and brought her wrinkled hands to my cheeks. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”

  Aggie searched through the house, checking all the rooms downstairs. The moment she opened my parents’ door, a heavy snore bled out, only to cease when she shut the door again. She hurried up the stairs two at the time to the next floor.

  “Of course, I’m safe.” Grandma Lasovskaya smiled. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  I drew in a deep breath. “The creature behind all of those trunks is called the Basilisk King.”

  While I explained everything that happened so far up until what we’d learned from the zmee, she nodded at the appropriate moments.

  “I was worried you were in danger,” I added.

  She stroked the side of my face. “He was here last night, but he didn’t bother me.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me? Or even Mom and Dad?”

  “I didn’t want to see you like you are right now. You’re worried about things you can’t control.”

  “I can’t stop the Basilisk King from leaving his little care packages around, but I can at least protect you.”

  She gave a tsk-tsk. “All of you believe the elderly should be cared for, but many of us still have some tricks up our sleeves.”

  I immediately recalled the day she used Old Magic to protect me, but at a great cost.

  “Some prices shouldn’t be paid unless absolutely necessary,” I said.

  “True, but he hasn’t gotten desperate yet. The time may come for me to face him, but I’m not afraid.”

  Grandma might not be scared, but the tightening in my stomach signaled how deeply I feared for her. Just one basilisk was a handful for Erica and me. How would Grandma fare against double or triple that number?

  Aggie came down the steps and joined us. “All clear. I made sure the windows were locked.”

  Grandma patted the seat next to her, and Aggie gladly took the spot.

  “Want one?” Grandma offered Aggie a piece of candy from a tiny pocket in her blue shift dress. Agatha thanked her and unwrapped the shiny, crimson wrapper. I smiled, recalling the familiar feeling. My grandma always knew how to make us feel better.

  “I’ll wake up my dad and tell the others what’s up,” I told them.

  After rousing the eldest Stravinsky and explaining the situation, I joined Thorn and Nick outside. The two kept a respective distance from each other and chatted.

  Maybe this was a sign my mate trusted Nick.

  “I’ve learned a spell or two of Old Magic,” Thorn said while leaning across his SUV. “Why hasn’t the Basilisk King sought me out?”

  “Good question.” Nick crossed his arms from where he stood next to the house. “For some reason, you’re not a potential meal.”

  Thorn grumbled, “He should come for me if he wants a real fight.” He paused as if in thought. “Tracking an enemy that doesn’t leave a trail is very difficult.”

  “The zmee said he does leave a trail,” Nick said. “Therefore, we need a plan to trap him.”

  “How do we trap someone who’s constantly moving though?” I asked.

  “It’s hard as hell,” Thorn said. “Hey, how come the magical community hasn’t intervened?”

 

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