Page 31 of Leviathan's Song
I gasped and grabbed her wrist to shake the offending garment back into the pile. I couldn’t be sure, of course, but I had a sneaking suspicion Isadora might have run off another Phantom. I could totally picture her grabbing for a guy by the back of his pants and ripping the band of his boxers out in the process. I glanced around to see if anyone was nearby but didn’t feel any magic that seemed out of place.
“Come inside with me.”
Once we were settled at my table, I filled her in on the man who’d tried to push his way into my house after she’d left last week, and then been chased off by Isadora, and the Phantoms who’d cornered me in the market. Her eyes were wide as she digested my story and she sat with her mouth pressed into an unhappy line.
“Do you think we should go check on Isadora?” I asked. If she’d lost that many feathers in a scuffle, maybe she was hurt.
“I haven’t seen her come home yet,” Bette said, “but it’s not quite time for her to come home.” Sometimes having a nosy neighbor who knew everything about everyone in the neighborhood had its perks.
“I’ll keep an eye out for her, and if I don’t see her come home soon, I’ll come to get you and we can go knock on her door together. I’m a little frightened of her myself. I bet she could be more vicious than an orc with a missing baby.” She shuffled slightly, eyeing Isadora’s house.
“No,” she continued, “I’m more concerned about miscreants still lurking around. I’ll be another set of eyes now that I’m home. I may not have enormous talons or a deafening harpy scream, but I’ve got someveryunpleasant potions, should the need arise.” She sounded so sure of herself that I didn’t doubt her for a moment. I wondered if those particular potions had anything to do with the occasional sulfur smell.
“Oh, that reminds me,” I started. “Do you happen to know of any potions that can break a longstanding enchantment bond?”
Bette eyed me curiously. “How long are we talking about here?”
I shrugged. “I’m not sure exactly. Twenty-five, thirty years, maybe?”
Her curiosity dimmed. “That’s a tough one. Enchantments are better blocked than broken, as I’m sure you’re aware.” She gestured to my amulets. “Permanent enchantments or enchanted bondings, those are quite difficult. I might be able to figure something out.” She chewed on her bottom lip and drummed her nails on the tabletop while she thought. “I’d imagine, if it’s possible, it is probably incredibly expensive to make, but if you give me some time, I can probably come up with something helpful or find someone who can.”
“Thank you,” I said with a sigh. “That would be lovely. I’ll pay whatever necessary.”
She waved me off dismissively. “I’m sure we can work something out. I can always use another amulet for something or another. I’m honestly not even sure if it’s possible yet, so let’s not get ahead of ourselves.” She winked and slapped the table lightly. “Alright, I’m going to go dispose of the mess out front. I’ll keep an eye out for your neighbor. Lock this door behind me.”
Chapter 11
Thursday morning had been busierthan we were used to, with several people stopping by through the morning to place orders or pick things up. I kept hoping I’d see Levi stop in, but it had been so hectic there wouldn’t have been time to chat even if he had.
We’d finally gotten a break a bit after lunch, and I was working on a ring for a little girl named Avery. Her father had brought her in from Golden Laurel this morning because she was beginning to show an aptitude for conjuring lightning, and he was afraid she was going to hurt herself or someone else.
After a brief assessment, I’d agreed with him that it was a concern at her age and had agreed to produce a small power limiter for her to wear until she was able to control her abilities. I didn’t want to muzzle her power completely, because that would limit her ability to learn to use it. Instead, I had created a small ring that could be sized with her as she grew and that would hopefully constrict the flow of power to something less likely to singe her mother’s arm hair off. Orders like this I always rushed without an extra fee, because I considered it a safety issue.
I finished the tiny ring quickly and handed it off to Sidney for paperwork and storage in the back. As I picked up my checklist to start on my next project, I felt a magic with strong impressions of sea squalls and cresting waves crashing on jagged rocks.
I turned, excited to see Levi, but he wasn’t there. In retrospect, I should have known it wasn’t him because his magic was warm and mellow, sea mist and rolling tide. Sea crabs frolicking in a gentle surf. This was violent and cold, raging tempests and ships being crushed.
I felt the magic coming from directly in front of the shop, but I couldn’t see anyone when I looked out the front glass.
“Sidney?” I called, feeling uneasy.
“Yeah, just a minute.”
I heard a strange noise near the front door and went to get a better look through the glass. My heart seized in my chest, and I flung open the door. There, on the filthy, gravel-strewn sidewalk, was a tiny sprite no bigger than my hand, beautiful and wild-looking, sprawled out and lying in a dark puddle of her own water. I gathered her in my hand as carefully as I could, hearing her gasping breaths beginning a death rattle in her chest.
“Take it.” Her words were a thin breath, but I couldn’t stop to think about her meaning.
“SIDNEY!”
Sidney raced from the back room, war written on her face, only to see the tiny sprite laid out in my cupped hands.
She skidded to a halt next to me. “What on earth?What is shedoinghere!?”
“She’s dying. You have to get her back through a Gate.” My voice shook. Her skin wept more water into my hands, the scent sharp and metallic as it dripped out between my fingers to the floor. Her labored breaths had too much space in between them, and her eyes stared unseeing.
Sidney cursed profusely and began stripping her clothes off right in the front of the store. She knew exactly what I meant—running to a Gate would take too long. The sprite’s best chance at survival was for Sidney to fly her there.
“She needs the tide pools,” Sidney said, stripping off her pants. “Meet me at the ones south of the Gate into Oar’s Rest. Open the door, and hold her out flat for me.”
