changeling chronicles 03 - faerie realm by emma l adams Page A

this realm. I will send out my best warriors to investigate the Ley Line.”
    “I already have mages watching,” said Vance. “However, sending Summer half-faeries might have its benefit.”
    “That was my plan,” said the Chief. “Don’t presume to have won this, Mage Lord. I will do what is necessary to protect my kin. As for you, Ivy Lane, stay out of business that doesn’t concern you. If you do find the sword, you will give it to me, and I will return it to Faerie myself.”
    “Gladly,” I shot at him. “Provided I can prove to the Lady I’ve kept my promise first. So she doesn’t kill me. You ought to put a watch on her, too.” And that reminded me. “Has one of your people been near my flat? My neighbour’s kid keeps seeing a faerie outside.”
    “What?” he snapped. “No. My people have no interest in you. Besides, as I told you, I’m not responsible for every faerie outside of this territory.”
    “Then I’m not responsible if the faerie in question ends up impaled on my sword.”
    He hissed out a breath, teeth bared in a snarl. “You try my patience.”
    “And you’re trying mine. We’re even. I don’t want to die, you don’t want to lose your magic. Until we’ve solved this problem, we’ll have to agree to a truce.” Even I wouldn’t start another fight now. As little as I cared about him losing his magic, I did care if the half-faeries started a war. Finding the sword meant being stuck with him for the foreseeable future.
    “Right,” said Vance. “You should ask your people if they’ve seen anyone carrying a sword of the type you describe.”
    “And tell them to stay away from shifter territory,” I added, remembering what Isabel had said earlier—a shifter disappeared last night. I’d need to ask her when we got back.
    Or maybe not. I had enough problems on my list already.
    “It’s impossible to keep track of everyone,” said the Chief. For the first time, surprisingly human tiredness showed on his too-handsome face. “I will question the prisoners again, too.”
    “Good,” said Vance. “See to it. If you find anything out, let me know. I’ll come back here tomorrow in any case.”
    The Chief’s eyes narrowed. “Send an emissary first. It’s difficult to reassure my people that they are under protection when you insist on defying our laws and appearing on my territory without any warning.”
    I hid a smirk as Vance and I turned our backs and walked away. “You teleported in here?”
    “Chieftain Taive refuses to join the twenty-first century and acquire a mobile phone.”
    “I don’t think he’s a villain,” I said, surprised how relieving it was to know one person in the supernatural community wasn’t plotting to destroy the world as we knew it. Though he’d be happy to see me dead. Can’t have it all. “Still… I don’t know if what he’s doing is enough. He barely has control over his people. They could be plotting anything right in front of him.”
    “He’d know if one of them had taken the talisman,” said Vance. “The nature of faerie magic… I looked into it, and I’m told their magic tends to warp and distort the reality around it. It’s not meant to fit into this realm.”
    I turned to face him. “Yeah… that’s about right. Who told you?”
    “It’s commonly known amongst the faeries,” he said. “I assumed as much from what I witnessed at the Trials.”
    I fought back a shiver at the memory of half-faeries with shark teeth and poisonous barbs and the ability to transform into anything. Warping reality… yeah. I’d seen the worst of it in the Grey Vale. And then some.
    “It explains why mine’s acting up.”
    His grey eyes watched me. “Your magic?”
    I nodded, unease skittering down my spine. Even now, I wanted to keep my secrets close to my heart. “It’s kind of… erratic. I keep accidentally letting half-faeries see me use magic. And last night, when I was looking after that kid, the piskie went berserk and I