Imperative: A Quinn Larson Quest by P. A. Wilson

hear what happened, but the girl handed him a while china jug and he turned and ran back into the dark. “We are in luck.” I whispered.
    It was about two in the morning. Nightshade would have to find and enchant a human before meeting the Sidhe. We would need to get ahead of him if we wanted to interrupt, save the human and get a sample of the potion. A half hour later, nightshade had found a man outside a bar downtown. The glamour he wore now showed a tall thin girl. Olan had ventured a short flight down the alley. He reported back, “There is a Sidhe woman half way down wrapped in a black cloak.”
    I was in favor of the direct approach. “Let’s try to capture her.”
    “Wizard, you are addled. You know there’s no sneaking up on one of them.”
    “But if we try, maybe we can get the potion. If we had a whole dose it would be better. We can do more testing.”
    “What about Nightshade? He paid for the potion. I don’t think they will give him another go at it. That means his family can’t breed.”
    I was surprised at Olan’s concern. “You are worried about the fairy?”
    “I don’t like creatures being taken advantage of. He is only doing this because the Sidhe won’t let him breed. Breeding is no choice, it is a biological imperative. You know that.”
    That’s a new side to the pixie. “If we get the potion, I can take a bit and give the rest to Nightshade. I won’t need much. The trick is going to be getting the Sidhe to drop it.”
    “If I fly into her face, maybe she will drop it trying to protect her precious looks.” He puffed his wings up and tried to look more dangerous.
    It didn’t feel like a good idea to change plans at this point. It would be too easy to lose the human while we attacked the Sidhe. Despite his initial reaction, Olan seemed confident so I pushed aside my concerns and started down the alley while Olan took to the air.
    Nightshade was still working on getting the human into the alley. The man was reluctant to trust a stranger, but it was only going to be a matter of time before he was pouring belladonna down his throat. Olan was slightly ahead of me as I entered the shadows. His flying was erratic; as though he was drunk, but I was sure he could manage the attack.
    I could see the Sidhe lurking in a doorway beside a dumpster. It amazed me that the normally fastidious Sidhe were willing to endure the smell and filth of the alley for a dose of human spirit. She was wrapped in a dark cloak as had Olan reported. The cloak was too small and I could see her hand clutching it around her, the white fingers almost shining against the dark fabric. The hood rested back from her face, framing rather than concealing. I could see she was really young. Her skin was almost translucent white except for the rosy blush of her cheeks.
    Olan swooped at her from behind. She didn’t suspect anything until his claws pulled at the hood, exposing thick spiral curls of strawberry blond hair. Both hands flew up to protect her face. Neither held the vial.
    I rushed forward to pull at the rest of the cloak. I hoped for a pocket, but didn’t get a chance. She saw me coming and spun away as I reached for her. As she did, the cloak swirled open and I saw the outline of the vial in the breast pocket of her blouse. Before I could grab at it she slipped out of arm’s reach.
    Olan flew after her, and I chased her down the alley, but it was no good. After a few twists and turns, I could no longer see even a hint of dark cloak. Olan landed on my shoulder. “Good news, I can fly. Bad news, she’s gone.”
    I could feel it all coming apart. “Can we get back to the Nightshade fairy before he kills the human?”
    “Next right and we’re back in the alley where they were supposed to meet.” Olan lifted off my shoulder and flew over the roof tops.
    When I got there, Nightshade was alone in the alley. At least there was no body on the ground. He looked up as I approached then shook his head.
    “She’s gone.