told him I was in a rush, or that we could talk later, or both. Instead, I crossed the street to meet him. I couldn’t keep ignoring him just because I didn’t know how to describe the state of our relationship. If we were friends, avoiding him was sort of a dick move. “Yes?”
He looked at me for a long moment. “You’re tapping your foot.”
I stilled my foot. So I was. “And?”
“You’re eager to leave.”
Somewhere, in my city, that cloaked man was stalking another victim for his blood rite, and I was fresh out of unicorn juice. “Why wouldn’t I be? I’ve got a lead, and I’ve got to catch this guy before he does any more damage.”
“You always rush into things,” Kailen said.
I was tapping my foot again. With a supreme effort of will, I stopped. “That’s how I get things done, okay?”
“That’s how you get yourself killed . This isn’t your job. Well, it is, but you know what I mean. This isn’t your mortal job. What do you know about who you’re chasing?”
I shoved my hands into my pockets, one hand curling around the butter knife, the other curving around the petrified kelpie heart. “I saw him at the market.”
“Tell me about it,” Kailen said.
I gestured to the dark and empty street. It must have been getting into early morning. “What, here? Now?”
“I’ve lived a lot of years,” he said, his voice low and soothing. I felt like a horse he was trying to tame. “Sometimes telling someone else what you saw can help unveil clues you missed the first time.”
I took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. He was right. I was itching to go, to act, but I didn’t know anything about this cloaked guy except that he was one of the Sidhe and was Talented in swordplay. I had my Talents too, but I was going to run into this blind, with no idea of who was on this guy’s side or even how many sprites he had with him at any given time. “Okay. I’ll try.”
I told Kailen about spotting the man in the marketplace, about the chase, the way the man ran up the side of the cliff and evaded us, the underhill passage.
Kailen absorbed these details, his expression intent. “A daemon geas, are you sure?”
“Yes. It’s bad, isn’t it?”
“The user of a daemon geas is essentially inviting a daemon into his body. Some Sidhe can control it, but most can’t. It can give you great destructive power—think dissolving things into rot and smoke by mere touch—but it eventually drives the bearer mad.”
“Lovely,” I said. “It sounds like a regular barrel of fun.”
“What did the man look like? Did you catch a glimpse of his face?”
I shook my head. “No, he—” I stopped. He’d had his face covered with a scarf.
I hadn’t stopped to think about why. For some reason I’d just assumed he had his face covered so he could hide from me. But he hadn’t known I’d followed him to the marketplace, and the sprites wouldn’t have had the chance to report back to him by then.
He’d covered his face for other reasons.
“Kailen, are there any Sidhe who have facial disfigurements? Any Sidhe men?”
He thought for a moment. “Well, there’s Maarten of the Daelus family, Iothe of the Muirgheal family, and Panolo of the Rustannars.”
I blinked. That many had facial disfigurements? That was…two more than I’d expected. “Okaaay, well, which of those families have sprites beholden to them?”
“All of them,” Kailen said. He paused. “But from what you’ve said, I think you’re after air sprites, not water or fire. In that case, of the three, only the Daelus family has air sprites beholden to them.”
“Maarten of the Daelus family,” I said. “That’s it. I’ve got my man.” I turned to go.
Kailen grabbed my elbow. “And what do you actually know about Maarten?” he said softly.
I paused. I was doing it again. I didn’t know anything about the Daelus family, or how Maarten had come to be disfigured, or even why he wanted to enact a daemon geas in the
He looked at me for a long moment. “You’re tapping your foot.”
I stilled my foot. So I was. “And?”
“You’re eager to leave.”
Somewhere, in my city, that cloaked man was stalking another victim for his blood rite, and I was fresh out of unicorn juice. “Why wouldn’t I be? I’ve got a lead, and I’ve got to catch this guy before he does any more damage.”
“You always rush into things,” Kailen said.
I was tapping my foot again. With a supreme effort of will, I stopped. “That’s how I get things done, okay?”
“That’s how you get yourself killed . This isn’t your job. Well, it is, but you know what I mean. This isn’t your mortal job. What do you know about who you’re chasing?”
I shoved my hands into my pockets, one hand curling around the butter knife, the other curving around the petrified kelpie heart. “I saw him at the market.”
“Tell me about it,” Kailen said.
I gestured to the dark and empty street. It must have been getting into early morning. “What, here? Now?”
“I’ve lived a lot of years,” he said, his voice low and soothing. I felt like a horse he was trying to tame. “Sometimes telling someone else what you saw can help unveil clues you missed the first time.”
I took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. He was right. I was itching to go, to act, but I didn’t know anything about this cloaked guy except that he was one of the Sidhe and was Talented in swordplay. I had my Talents too, but I was going to run into this blind, with no idea of who was on this guy’s side or even how many sprites he had with him at any given time. “Okay. I’ll try.”
I told Kailen about spotting the man in the marketplace, about the chase, the way the man ran up the side of the cliff and evaded us, the underhill passage.
Kailen absorbed these details, his expression intent. “A daemon geas, are you sure?”
“Yes. It’s bad, isn’t it?”
“The user of a daemon geas is essentially inviting a daemon into his body. Some Sidhe can control it, but most can’t. It can give you great destructive power—think dissolving things into rot and smoke by mere touch—but it eventually drives the bearer mad.”
“Lovely,” I said. “It sounds like a regular barrel of fun.”
“What did the man look like? Did you catch a glimpse of his face?”
I shook my head. “No, he—” I stopped. He’d had his face covered with a scarf.
I hadn’t stopped to think about why. For some reason I’d just assumed he had his face covered so he could hide from me. But he hadn’t known I’d followed him to the marketplace, and the sprites wouldn’t have had the chance to report back to him by then.
He’d covered his face for other reasons.
“Kailen, are there any Sidhe who have facial disfigurements? Any Sidhe men?”
He thought for a moment. “Well, there’s Maarten of the Daelus family, Iothe of the Muirgheal family, and Panolo of the Rustannars.”
I blinked. That many had facial disfigurements? That was…two more than I’d expected. “Okaaay, well, which of those families have sprites beholden to them?”
“All of them,” Kailen said. He paused. “But from what you’ve said, I think you’re after air sprites, not water or fire. In that case, of the three, only the Daelus family has air sprites beholden to them.”
“Maarten of the Daelus family,” I said. “That’s it. I’ve got my man.” I turned to go.
Kailen grabbed my elbow. “And what do you actually know about Maarten?” he said softly.
I paused. I was doing it again. I didn’t know anything about the Daelus family, or how Maarten had come to be disfigured, or even why he wanted to enact a daemon geas in the
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