veil, I'm gonna wait until I know a little more. You know how
it is."
"You know if he asks, I'll have to tell him," she
said reluctantly "I can't hide taking warriors off the line while this
Dwarf thing is still unsettled."
"Not a problem," I replied, knowing that those
warriors indirectly answered to him. "I've got a few ideas that only he
can help with anyway, so I'll probably be talking to him before you do."
I could tell she was a bit uncomfortable about pulling rank.
But we'd had this discussion after she'd taken the throne. It meant a lot to me
that she took her position so seriously. Especially since, like me, she'd been
thrown into that world so recently and without any warning.
"All right," she said as she stood. "I've got
to get back and finish up a few things before my next shift at the PD."
I followed her back into the yard, ignoring the rain. She
gave me a kiss on the cheek as she reached the oak tree.
"When do you want the warriors?" she asked,
holding her hands above her eyes to keep the rain out.
"How about late tomorrow afternoon?" I said,
hoping I wouldn’t need them before then.
"They'll be here before sunset." Then she stepped
toward the tree, but turned back to look at me before crossing over. "I
love you, Dad."
"I love you more," I said as she stepped into the
light and disappeared.
Chapter 5
I dialed Martin as soon as I got back in the house.
"Anything new?" I asked after the phone connected.
"No," he replied. There was a rumble of thunder in
the background. "Just this damn storm. You?"
"Not really. There's a chance that this thing can’t be
killed by magic alone, for whatever that's worth. But I'm still trying to dig
up more about this kind of Demon."
"Good thing I brought my shotgun then," he replied
with a laugh. "I don’t care what I kill it with, as long as it's dead."
"Whatever works. I'll let you know if I find out
anything else."
"Do that," he said and disconnected.
My next call was to Siegfried.
"Robert," he said as he answered. "I was just
about to call you."
"I take it you've got things settled over here."
"For the moment," he replied. "We are
still... mopping up, as they say."
"That's good to hear."
"There is something here that you should see," he
said. "Can you come by my office?"
"Sure," I replied. "What's up?"
"It will be easier to show you," he said. "And
we must also discuss this Demon you fought. Has it shown itself again?"
"Not yet," I replied. "But my current theory
is that it doesn’t like lightning, and with tonight's storms, I'm hoping it
won’t make an appearance. Martin has his folks out there keeping watch just in
case and I've got Sendy doing flybys as well. If it does, I'll know."
"When can I expect you?"
"I can head over there now. I'll see you in a bit"
"Excellent," he replied, then disconnected.
****
I hopped onto US 95 from the Craig on-ramp and headed toward
downtown. About 25 minutes later I pulled into the back of the Neptune's
Landing via Dean Martin Drive and wove my way around until I accessed the
executive parking level. As entered the garage, I called Siegfried.
"I'm just pulling in to a parking space," I said when
he answered.
"I'll have Michael meet you," He replied.
As I got out of the car and walked over to the elevator, my
mind flashed back to where my trip to the world of the Fae began. This level
was protected by more than just a key card. It was protected by magic as well.
If you didn't belong here, you'd never get in. That hadn’t always been the
case.
Before I knew this Fae world existed, which, believe it or
not, wasn't really that long ago, I'd snuck in here to serve a subpoena on one
of the casino bosses. Instead of a simple service, I'd wound up in a firefight
with three Mages hell bent on killing or capturing Eddie Milagre.
When it was all over, I'd saved Milagre's life and killed
two of the Mages in the process, thereby starting my spiral into a world I'd
only believed to be a fantasy. Of course, I