Page 32 of Endless Terrors
“Damn,” I said softly. “I’d forgotten that life can still have good surprises.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Viessa said, bringing my attention back to her.
I smiled. “You’ll drink to anything.”
“I’ll drink to that, too.” She winked and then, as if they’d timed it, Ariel returned and set a glass down in front of her.
I wasn’t in the mood, so I just clinked my water against Viessa’s cocktail. While she drank, the new queen told me about the latest events at the Unseelie Court, and I spun half-truths about where I’d been these past few months. Faeries were good at picking up lies, so the best way around that was to use the truth. Everything I said was technically accurate. I’ve made a lot of enemies. I didn’t feel like my family was safe. I came back because my brother got sick.
There were three empty, juice-stained glasses on the table when Viessa’s demeanor changed.
“Something is happening in our world,” she said abruptly, staring down into her drink. “I can feel it. A sort of … rumbling.”
So that was why she’d come. I leaned back in the booth, considering Viessa’s remark. I could sense her fear coiling between us. It had such a lovely flavor, like roses covered in a layer of fresh frost.
Focus, Fortuna.
She had to be talking about Lucifer. He was shifting players on the board. Making moves I couldn’t see. For a moment, I thought about telling Viessa the truth. Warning her about Lucifer’s presence here. But then I looked into her cold, pale eyes and remembered who she was. The Unseelie Queen. Fae.
Like Dracula, if she thought killing me would stop the devil from getting a foothold in this world, she’d do it. She wouldn’t even hesitate. She might not enjoy it, because our strange friendship meant something to her, too, but she wouldn’t hesitate. Of that I was certain. I turned my water slowly, watching sunlight bounce off the glass.
“Will you get a message to Nym for me?” I asked, raising my gaze to Viessa’s.
She understood what I was really asking—I saw the glint in her eye, the knowing. Nothing in our world came free. The two of us might be friendly, maybe even friends, but she was still their queen and I would always put my family first.
“What do I get in return?” the faerie countered, playing the game effortlessly. There was a reason she’d been able to scheme her way to a throne.
“Information.”
Viessa didn’t pretend to consider it. “Very well. What is your message?”
I didn’t need to think about it, either. My voice softened, and I imagined his sad eyes as I said, “Tell Nym his room is still here, if he ever wants it.”
“I shall tell him. And what is this information you have to share?” Viessa asked, eyebrows raised.
I paused, thinking about the best way to word it. I had no idea if Viessa would accept it as my half of the trade, but it was the best I could do. My answer was halting. Hesitant. “When you leave this bar, pull your people in. All of them. And if there’s a way to lock the Doors, do it. Because tomorrow night, something is going down. It could play out in a lot of different ways, but if the worst-case scenario happens … if the worst-case scenario happens, you don’t want to be anywhere near here, Viessa.”
She was quiet for a while, and in the silence, I could hear her unspoken question. How do I know you haven’t made this up just so I’ll pass your little message along?
I let my steady gaze be my answer. You don’t.
Viessa searched my face, and for the length of a heartbeat, she let her glamour drop. The Ice Queen looked back at me, eyes empty as a frozen tundra, death on her lips and clinging to her fingertips. It was a warning. A promise, should she ever find out that I had deceived her.
At last she said, “My people won’t make this easy. What am I to tell them if morning arrives and the sky hasn’t fallen?”
“I’ll get a message to you. If you don’t hear anything, then you’ll know … I failed.”
Her finger tapped against the table. With each tap, the nail changed color. Pink, glamour. Black, frostbite. Pink. Black.
“Well, I suppose I should be going, then,” Viessa murmured, getting to her feet. “This day just went from delightfully bloody to incredibly stressful. Thank you for that.”
“Tomorrow,” I said, giving her a small, tense nod. “I’ll talk to you then.”
“I’d say it’s been fun, but you always manage to ruin my buzz, Fortuna Sworn,” Viessa said as the door behind her opened. She pulled her coat on and stepped around Bea, who was only just arriving for the day. It wasn’t like my boss to be so late, and a dart of worry pierced me. Was everything all right? Viessa walked out of sight, and Bea turned in my direction. I waved and gave her a small, uncertain smile.
She looked right at me.
Then she looked away.
