Betrayals
Page 50
Her lips curved and that ice thawed, just a little. “Good girl. Consider the matter set aside. Yes, I do want something. I want a place in your life, and if I need to bribe you to get it, then that’s what I’ll do.”
“You said you have information on the lamiae murders. From where?”
“The same place I get many special treats these days, Eden. I’ve always had benefactors. In the past, the Cn Annwn looked after me. That was the deal—if we were convicted, they would make prison easier for me and your father.”
“So this information comes from the Cn Annwn?”
“No, they have made sure I am safe in here and never need to worry about anything as trivial as my commissary fund. But it’s not as if they visit me or seek my favor by offering useful information.”
“Which someone now is.”
“Several someones.”
“Starting with Tristan.”
“Yes. And after his disappearance, my stock soared in value. I am the mother of the new Matilda. I paid the price of my freedom to cure her from a crippling condition. Then I enlisted Tristan and, ultimately, left him to take the fall for crimes we conspired to commit. I bested one of their own. And they fall over themselves to praise me for that as a sign of my power, my strength. I have met monsters in here, but there are none that compare to the average fae.”
“Yet you use them to your advantage.”
“I do. I just never forget what they are. They court my favor now, in hopes I’ll use my influence with you.”
“Influence for what?”
“Everything. To convince you to side with one or the other. To side with neither. To betray one. To take them under your wing and give them sanctuary in Cainsville. To champion their cause and invoke the fury of the Cn Annwn on their behalf. There is much you can do for fae.”
“So that’s the price: you give me information, and I grant them favors.”
“No, I promise them nothing. I would never see you obliged to the fae, Eden.”
“Okay, so this information …”
“Ciro Halloran’s common-law wife was murdered two months ago,” she said. “My sources tell me he is now killing lamiae. Two so far. I trust you know that much.”
“I do.”
“His wife, Lucy Madole, came from a family of mhacasamhail. That’s Gaelic for ‘counterpart.’”
“Families with ties to the fae. Generations-long reciprocal relationships.”
Pamela sniffed. “Generations-long slavery. But yes, the Madole family are samhail. So is the Halloran family.”
“Ciro’s?”
She smiled. “Good. I’ve added new information to your investigation. Yes, the Hallorans are also samhail. That’s how Lucy met Ciro. It is also why he’s been able to avoid death by the hounds of the Cn Annwn.”
“It also means he knows he isn’t killing random street kids.”
“Yes.”
“Do you know why he’s killing them?”
She shook her head. “My contacts only see what’s happening. But take a closer look at the murders. They aren’t random stabbings.”
“I know the killings themselves seem ritualistic. Is there more?”
“My contacts don’t know. The bodies haven’t been found. That’s common with fae. After death, the glamour breaks.”
“On to Ricky, then,” I said. “What do you know about his connection to this?”
“That he’s been framed for Halloran’s disappearance. Framed poorly.”
I had to bite my tongue not to comment on that.
“I’m still worried,” I said.
“Of course you are. Ricky is a good man. The Cn Annwn are not fae. They have principles. Like your father. I’m trying to get more on this problem with Ricky. Right now, I know only that he was accused. Getting a reason is my priority, Eden, because I know it’s yours.”
So she would keep digging, but to hear what she found, I had to visit her. I agreed to that.
As I rose to leave, she said, “Before you go, I’d like to thank you for letting Gabriel take my case.”
I took a moment to assimilate that. Then I said calmly, “You were doing so well. I really thought we were making progress. But when it comes to Gabriel, you cannot resist.”
“He didn’t tell you?”
“You know he didn’t or you wouldn’t have brought it up.”
“So I should have kept that from you? Let you go on thinking you can trust him?”
“I can trust him. Yes, in the past he’s done things that hurt me because they benefited him financially. But that isn’t the reason here, is it?”
“Of course it is. He’ll be well compensated—”
“There is not enough money in the world to make him represent you again. This is about exonerating Todd. I want my father out. To give me that, Gabriel’s willing to represent the woman who tried to put him in jail for life.”
“And he made that decision without consulting you.”
“He had to. Even if it means hurting Todd’s chances, I could never have let Gabriel do it. So he’s taken that choice out of my hands, and maybe it makes me a coward and a hypocrite, but I appreciate what he’s done.”
“You appreciate him betraying your trust.”
“Yep. And I appreciate you telling me, because it gives me the perfect excuse to say screw off, Mom.”
“You said you have information on the lamiae murders. From where?”
“The same place I get many special treats these days, Eden. I’ve always had benefactors. In the past, the Cn Annwn looked after me. That was the deal—if we were convicted, they would make prison easier for me and your father.”
“So this information comes from the Cn Annwn?”
“No, they have made sure I am safe in here and never need to worry about anything as trivial as my commissary fund. But it’s not as if they visit me or seek my favor by offering useful information.”
“Which someone now is.”
“Several someones.”
“Starting with Tristan.”
“Yes. And after his disappearance, my stock soared in value. I am the mother of the new Matilda. I paid the price of my freedom to cure her from a crippling condition. Then I enlisted Tristan and, ultimately, left him to take the fall for crimes we conspired to commit. I bested one of their own. And they fall over themselves to praise me for that as a sign of my power, my strength. I have met monsters in here, but there are none that compare to the average fae.”
“Yet you use them to your advantage.”
“I do. I just never forget what they are. They court my favor now, in hopes I’ll use my influence with you.”
“Influence for what?”
“Everything. To convince you to side with one or the other. To side with neither. To betray one. To take them under your wing and give them sanctuary in Cainsville. To champion their cause and invoke the fury of the Cn Annwn on their behalf. There is much you can do for fae.”
“So that’s the price: you give me information, and I grant them favors.”
“No, I promise them nothing. I would never see you obliged to the fae, Eden.”
“Okay, so this information …”
“Ciro Halloran’s common-law wife was murdered two months ago,” she said. “My sources tell me he is now killing lamiae. Two so far. I trust you know that much.”
“I do.”
“His wife, Lucy Madole, came from a family of mhacasamhail. That’s Gaelic for ‘counterpart.’”
“Families with ties to the fae. Generations-long reciprocal relationships.”
Pamela sniffed. “Generations-long slavery. But yes, the Madole family are samhail. So is the Halloran family.”
“Ciro’s?”
She smiled. “Good. I’ve added new information to your investigation. Yes, the Hallorans are also samhail. That’s how Lucy met Ciro. It is also why he’s been able to avoid death by the hounds of the Cn Annwn.”
“It also means he knows he isn’t killing random street kids.”
“Yes.”
“Do you know why he’s killing them?”
She shook her head. “My contacts only see what’s happening. But take a closer look at the murders. They aren’t random stabbings.”
“I know the killings themselves seem ritualistic. Is there more?”
“My contacts don’t know. The bodies haven’t been found. That’s common with fae. After death, the glamour breaks.”
“On to Ricky, then,” I said. “What do you know about his connection to this?”
“That he’s been framed for Halloran’s disappearance. Framed poorly.”
I had to bite my tongue not to comment on that.
“I’m still worried,” I said.
“Of course you are. Ricky is a good man. The Cn Annwn are not fae. They have principles. Like your father. I’m trying to get more on this problem with Ricky. Right now, I know only that he was accused. Getting a reason is my priority, Eden, because I know it’s yours.”
So she would keep digging, but to hear what she found, I had to visit her. I agreed to that.
As I rose to leave, she said, “Before you go, I’d like to thank you for letting Gabriel take my case.”
I took a moment to assimilate that. Then I said calmly, “You were doing so well. I really thought we were making progress. But when it comes to Gabriel, you cannot resist.”
“He didn’t tell you?”
“You know he didn’t or you wouldn’t have brought it up.”
“So I should have kept that from you? Let you go on thinking you can trust him?”
“I can trust him. Yes, in the past he’s done things that hurt me because they benefited him financially. But that isn’t the reason here, is it?”
“Of course it is. He’ll be well compensated—”
“There is not enough money in the world to make him represent you again. This is about exonerating Todd. I want my father out. To give me that, Gabriel’s willing to represent the woman who tried to put him in jail for life.”
“And he made that decision without consulting you.”
“He had to. Even if it means hurting Todd’s chances, I could never have let Gabriel do it. So he’s taken that choice out of my hands, and maybe it makes me a coward and a hypocrite, but I appreciate what he’s done.”
“You appreciate him betraying your trust.”
“Yep. And I appreciate you telling me, because it gives me the perfect excuse to say screw off, Mom.”
