Morrigan's Cross
Page 82
“New York. This is Moira, and her cousin Larkin. They’re from Geall.”
“Get out.” Blair studied them as she ate. “I always figured that for a myth.”
“You don’t seem particularly surprised it’s not.”
“Nothing much surprises me, less now after the visit from the goddess. Heavy stuff.”
“This is Hoyt. He’s a sorcerer from Ireland. Twelfth-century Ireland.”
Blair watched as Glenna reached behind her for Hoyt’s hand, the way their fingers smoothly intertwined. “You two paired up?”
“You could say that.”
Now she lifted her wine, took a small sip. “That’s taking going for older men to a new level, but who could blame you?”
“Your host is his brother, Cian, who was made a vampire.”
“Twelfth century?” Blair leaned back, took a good, long look at him, with all the interest but none of the amusement she’d shown when studying Hoyt. “You’ve got nearly a thousand years? I’ve never met a vamp who lasted that long. The oldest I ever came across was a couple decades shy of five hundred.”
“Clean living,” Cian said.
“Yeah, that’ll be the day.”
“He doesn’t drink humans.” Since it was there, Larkin got another bowl, spooned up stew for himself. “He fights with us. We’re an army.”
“An army? Talk about delusions of grandeur. What are you?” she asked Glenna.
“Witch.”
“So, we’ve got a witch, a sorcerer, a couple of refugees from Geall and a vampire. Some army.”
“A powerful witch.” Hoyt spoke for the first time. “A scholar of remarkable skill and courage, a shape-shifter, and a centuries-old vampyre who was made by the reining queen.”
“Lilith?” Now Blair set down her spoon. “She made you?”
Cian leaned back against the counter, crossed his ankles. “I was young and foolish.”
“And had really bad luck.”
“What are you?” Larkin demanded.
“Me? Demon hunter.” She picked up her spoon to resume eating. “I’ve spent most of my life tracking and dusting his kind.”
Glenna angled her head. “What, like Buffy?”
With a laugh, Blair swallowed stew. “No. First, I’m not the only, just the best.”
“There are more of you.” At that point, Larkin decided he could use some wine as well.
“It’s a family thing, has been for centuries. Not all of us, but every generation one or two more of us. My father’s one, and my aunt. His uncle was—and like that. I have two cousins on the job now. We fight the fight.”
“And Morrigan sent you here,” Glenna put in. “Only you.”
“I’d have to say yes, since I’m the only one here. Okay, so the last couple of weeks, things have been weird. More undead activity than usual, like they’re getting some brass ones. And I’m having these dreams. Portentous dreams go with the package, but I’m having them every time I close my eyes. And sometimes when I’m wide awake. Disturbing.”
“Lilith?” Glenna asked.
“She made some appearances—cameos we’ll say. Up till then, I figured she was another myth. Anyway, in the dream, I thought I was over here—Ireland. It looked like here anyway. I’ve been to Ireland before, another family tradition. But I’m on this rise. Barren place, rough ground, deep chasms, wicked rocks.”
“The Valley of Silence,” Moira interrupted.
“That’s what she called it. Morrigan. She said I was needed.” Blair hesitated, looked around. “I probably don’t have to fill in all the details since you’re all here. Big battle, possible apocalypse. Vampire queen forming an army to eliminate humankind. There would be five waiting for me, gathered together. We’d have until Samhain to prepare. Not a lot of time considering, you know—goddess, eternity. But that’s how it’s laid out.”
“So you came,” Glenna said. “Just like that?”
“Didn’t you?” Blair shrugged. “I was born for this. I’ve dreamed of that place before, as long as I can remember. Me standing on that rise, watching it rage below. The moon, the fog, the screams. I always knew I’d end up there.”
Always assumed she would die there.
“I just expected a little more backup.”
“In three weeks we’ve killed more than a dozen,” Larkin said with some annoyance.
“Good for you. I don’t keep a tally of kills since I had my first thirteen years ago. But I took out three tonight on the road, on the way here.”
“Three?” He held up his spoon. “Alone?”
“There was another. It stayed back. Chasing it down didn’t seem like a good way to stay alive, which is the first rule in the family handbook. There might have been more of them, but I only scented the one. You’ve got more stationed around the perimeter of this place. I had to slip through them to get inside.”
She pushed her empty bowl away. “That was really good. Thanks again.”
“You’re welcome again.” Glenna took the bowl to the sink. “Hoyt, can I have a word with you? Excuse us, just for a minute.”
She drew him out of the kitchen, toward the front of the house. “Hoyt, she’s—”
“The warrior,” he finished. “Yes, she’s the last of the six.”
“It was never King.” She pressed her fingers to her mouth as she turned away. “He was never one of the six, and what happened to him—”
“Happened.” Hoyt took her shoulders, turned her to face him. “Can’t be changed. She’s the warrior, and completes the circle.”
“We have to trust her. I don’t know how we begin to do that. She damned near killed your brother before she bothered to say hello.”
“And we have only her word she’s who she says she is.”
“Well, she’s not a vampire. She walked right into the house. Added to that, Cian would know.”
“Vampyres can have human servants.”
“So how do we know? Do we take what she says she is on faith? If she is what she says, she’s the last of us.”
“We have to be sure.”
“Get out.” Blair studied them as she ate. “I always figured that for a myth.”
“You don’t seem particularly surprised it’s not.”
“Nothing much surprises me, less now after the visit from the goddess. Heavy stuff.”
“This is Hoyt. He’s a sorcerer from Ireland. Twelfth-century Ireland.”
Blair watched as Glenna reached behind her for Hoyt’s hand, the way their fingers smoothly intertwined. “You two paired up?”
“You could say that.”
Now she lifted her wine, took a small sip. “That’s taking going for older men to a new level, but who could blame you?”
“Your host is his brother, Cian, who was made a vampire.”
“Twelfth century?” Blair leaned back, took a good, long look at him, with all the interest but none of the amusement she’d shown when studying Hoyt. “You’ve got nearly a thousand years? I’ve never met a vamp who lasted that long. The oldest I ever came across was a couple decades shy of five hundred.”
“Clean living,” Cian said.
“Yeah, that’ll be the day.”
“He doesn’t drink humans.” Since it was there, Larkin got another bowl, spooned up stew for himself. “He fights with us. We’re an army.”
“An army? Talk about delusions of grandeur. What are you?” she asked Glenna.
“Witch.”
“So, we’ve got a witch, a sorcerer, a couple of refugees from Geall and a vampire. Some army.”
“A powerful witch.” Hoyt spoke for the first time. “A scholar of remarkable skill and courage, a shape-shifter, and a centuries-old vampyre who was made by the reining queen.”
“Lilith?” Now Blair set down her spoon. “She made you?”
Cian leaned back against the counter, crossed his ankles. “I was young and foolish.”
“And had really bad luck.”
“What are you?” Larkin demanded.
“Me? Demon hunter.” She picked up her spoon to resume eating. “I’ve spent most of my life tracking and dusting his kind.”
Glenna angled her head. “What, like Buffy?”
With a laugh, Blair swallowed stew. “No. First, I’m not the only, just the best.”
“There are more of you.” At that point, Larkin decided he could use some wine as well.
“It’s a family thing, has been for centuries. Not all of us, but every generation one or two more of us. My father’s one, and my aunt. His uncle was—and like that. I have two cousins on the job now. We fight the fight.”
“And Morrigan sent you here,” Glenna put in. “Only you.”
“I’d have to say yes, since I’m the only one here. Okay, so the last couple of weeks, things have been weird. More undead activity than usual, like they’re getting some brass ones. And I’m having these dreams. Portentous dreams go with the package, but I’m having them every time I close my eyes. And sometimes when I’m wide awake. Disturbing.”
“Lilith?” Glenna asked.
“She made some appearances—cameos we’ll say. Up till then, I figured she was another myth. Anyway, in the dream, I thought I was over here—Ireland. It looked like here anyway. I’ve been to Ireland before, another family tradition. But I’m on this rise. Barren place, rough ground, deep chasms, wicked rocks.”
“The Valley of Silence,” Moira interrupted.
“That’s what she called it. Morrigan. She said I was needed.” Blair hesitated, looked around. “I probably don’t have to fill in all the details since you’re all here. Big battle, possible apocalypse. Vampire queen forming an army to eliminate humankind. There would be five waiting for me, gathered together. We’d have until Samhain to prepare. Not a lot of time considering, you know—goddess, eternity. But that’s how it’s laid out.”
“So you came,” Glenna said. “Just like that?”
“Didn’t you?” Blair shrugged. “I was born for this. I’ve dreamed of that place before, as long as I can remember. Me standing on that rise, watching it rage below. The moon, the fog, the screams. I always knew I’d end up there.”
Always assumed she would die there.
“I just expected a little more backup.”
“In three weeks we’ve killed more than a dozen,” Larkin said with some annoyance.
“Good for you. I don’t keep a tally of kills since I had my first thirteen years ago. But I took out three tonight on the road, on the way here.”
“Three?” He held up his spoon. “Alone?”
“There was another. It stayed back. Chasing it down didn’t seem like a good way to stay alive, which is the first rule in the family handbook. There might have been more of them, but I only scented the one. You’ve got more stationed around the perimeter of this place. I had to slip through them to get inside.”
She pushed her empty bowl away. “That was really good. Thanks again.”
“You’re welcome again.” Glenna took the bowl to the sink. “Hoyt, can I have a word with you? Excuse us, just for a minute.”
She drew him out of the kitchen, toward the front of the house. “Hoyt, she’s—”
“The warrior,” he finished. “Yes, she’s the last of the six.”
“It was never King.” She pressed her fingers to her mouth as she turned away. “He was never one of the six, and what happened to him—”
“Happened.” Hoyt took her shoulders, turned her to face him. “Can’t be changed. She’s the warrior, and completes the circle.”
“We have to trust her. I don’t know how we begin to do that. She damned near killed your brother before she bothered to say hello.”
“And we have only her word she’s who she says she is.”
“Well, she’s not a vampire. She walked right into the house. Added to that, Cian would know.”
“Vampyres can have human servants.”
“So how do we know? Do we take what she says she is on faith? If she is what she says, she’s the last of us.”
“We have to be sure.”
