Chapter Eleven
Four weeks after dinner with her father and Mateo, Em was drawing on a tablet while sitting in an office across from Dell, with her mates sitting there with what they thought were convincing expressions.
Echel was sitting with her grinning. “Come on, Emhara. It’s for charity.”
Antonio nodded. “For school computers and school lunches.”
Her eyes widened, and she punched Echel with the hand holding the stylus before she got back to drawing. “You squealed.”
He laughed. “I did not. Achilles did.”
“Fuck. I knew I shouldn’t have done that mural for Keres.”
Echel grinned. “But now we have a statue called Painting the Moon.”
She made another face at him.
Amble spoke, leaning forward. “So, the idea is that we get an eight-by-sixteen wall, and we get the theme on the day, probably related to gaming. We start in the morning, and we go all day, ending at midnight when the judging happens. During the painting, there will be donations coming in as votes.”
“Why do you guys turn everything into a competition. Amble is an artist for a living. I don’t have a chance.”
Echel looked at her. “Really?”
She looked at him. “Quiet you, or Duran goes first for a week.”
Dell laughed, clutching her baby bump as she wheezed and rocked. Emhara looked at the rabbit woman, the dire wolf, and the man who was turning into a dire wolf, his soul overlaid with fur and fangs.
Dell wheezed. “What about Samsor?”
Echel grinned. “He has other interests right now.”
Emhara blushed. “Shut it, Echel.”
Antonio looked at her. “Well?”
“When would the blessed event take place? And where?”
Antonio smiled. “The amphitheatre. You will be on one side, he will be on the other. Battery packs will charge the lights so that you can work from noon to midnight.”
“When?”
Antonio winced. “A week from Friday? It was the only permit we could get. The summer ballet is kicking in.”
Echel shook his head. “No.”
“What?”
“No. It’s her birthday, and she’s never had a proper birthday.”
Antonio frowned. “Why not?”
Emhara smiled wryly. “My half-sister and I had the same birth week, and my mother didn’t like that, so she switched the month and day of my birthday and made me celebrate in winter.
This will be my first actual birthday on the actual day.
” She looked at Echel, “Run it past the guys because I think this would be a spectacular way to celebrate the day. You can worship me on Saturday.”
He grinned and said, “You know that word gets us all worked up.”
“Yes, I do. Now send the query, and just imagine a mural designed by me carved up and installed somewhere in the city.”
Antonio perked up. “We can auction off the final panels as part of the fundraiser.”
Dell nodded. “That would give a visibility boost for the next few days.”
“So, the competition for a fundraiser for the schools and lunch programs, and the auction for a specific charity selected by the artist?”
Amble grinned, his dark features enthusiastic. “Now you are getting into the spirit of things.”
“So, you are going to stream this?”
“Yes.”
“Right.”
“I will probably be wearing a tank top, and I have a lot of scars on my back and shoulders. They will gain comments.”
Echel nodded. “She wants to keep them as reminders, or she would get rid of them. They will gain comments.”
“Noted. We will put a short explanation in your bio.”
“Oh, that’s going to be awkward. I just started being me and not a thrall to my sister’s pack. They are currently facing attempted murder charges, as well as a ton of financial charges.” She paused and said, “I will ask Meritha if she knows anybody who wants to donate to the event.”
Antonio typed, “Meritha?”
“Van Housen.”
He froze. “Oh. You two are acquainted?”
“Yup, and I have to meet her for lunch after this. We are going to try some Chinese food and see if it lives up to the hype.”
Dell grinned. “Where are you going?”
“Hynura. Meritha can get in just about anywhere she wants, so we are working our way through the city with a few other mages.”
Dell blinked. “Mages?”
“Yup. The world built the light elves, the stars built the dark elves, the magic built the djinn on both sides, and the soul of the world made mages to keep things moving.”
Amble blinked. “So you are a mage?”
“Yup. With my very own focus.”
Echel’s shoulders were shaking.
Amble was wary. “What is your focus?”
“Art. So see you on my birthday. Wear something festive to build backing. I am going to kick your ass.”
Echel was snickering. “Send us the contracts; we will work up the bio for her. I have started a website of her work.”
He tapped his phone, and Amble got a ping. His eyes widened. He asked in a strangled tone, “How long have you been painting?”
“Full portraits and murals?” She paused. “Five weeks.”
Amble sighed. “I am going down.”
“Put up a good fight. Nobody likes to watch a woman kick a puppy.”
He straightened with a grin. “It’s on.”
“Good. Do I provide my own materials?”
Antonio frowned. “We will give you a stipend of five hundred dollars for paint and brushes and such. What are you drawing?”
She grinned and turned, showing bunny Dell with long floppy ears cuddled against the dire wolf, with Amble’s more human dire wolf holding one of her hands.
Dell’s jaw dropped. “You did that now?”
“Yup. This is how I see the world. Some say art is truth, but for me, the sight is what lets me do what I do.”
They got up, shook hands, and Amble asked, “Can I get a copy of that?”
“Sure.” She sent it to Echel, who sent it to Amble. “Consider it my opening volley.” She and Echel left the room. He held his uproarious laughter until they were in the car.
“You know he is going to use that as a base for a family painting.”
“Sure. I also know it isn’t as good as the one I am going to do. I am going to include their kids.” She grinned.
He snickered and drove her to the lunch meeting at one of the more exclusive restaurants in town.
Luna, Information, and Art were going to meet with Chaos and Beauty to discuss the new mages that had been detected in the area, and then they were going to have tea. If any beta could have a hidden connection to world-shaping energy, they needed to be on alert. Maybe dessert was called for.