Chapter Two #2
Nen shrugged. “The rituals stopped. She ceased to be important if the star didn’t rise.”
Nessa cleared her throat. “It rose.”
Kel smiled. “Tell me more.”
Tolly explained what she knew. “She was running from an arranged marriage, and they came after her. For years, they have been coming after her. She had someone remove her name from the world.”
Kel nodded.
Tynan asked, “How did they do that? That is a master level spell. Someone would have known about it.”
Tolly paused. “She said she paid for it traditionally.”
Tynan snorted. “Well, that’s one way. Who was the mage who did it?”
Tolly shrugged. “It wasn’t a mage. She was in Japan and was in an ogre settlement. She’s horrible with names, but she said he had paler skin and horns. Oh, and his name was Buzz or Pez or something.”
Stovos smacked his hand into his forehead. “Lord Rez? She paid Lord Rez for a spell?”
Tolly patted his shoulders. “It was a simple transaction, and then she got out of there.”
Stovos paused. “Simple transaction, and she left immediately. Oh, boy. Rez is not going to like hearing that.”
“She says she was bleeding, so I think he knew.” Tolly shrugged.
Everyone in the room winced.
“She also said that she had to hide from a bunch of hunting ogres, so it sounds like it was him.”
Stovos paused. “I thought he was waiting for Stiila’s little girl to come of age.”
“This was before Stiila and Arthur got together.” Nessa smiled. “Do you think Bethany wants him to know where she is?”
Tolly shrugged. “I don’t think she cares. The transaction is over, and that’s that.”
Nessa nodded. “Good. I want to know more about that spell, so I am going to play text tag.”
Hector said, “I will do it.”
Stovos growled. “I will do it. I actually know him.”
Atolica leaned over and watched the foreign script stream across Stovos’s phone. “I knew you had clever fingers, but wow.”
He snorted. “Do you remember our honeymoon when we travelled there?”
“Oh, right. I suppose I could have contacted him.”
“I would have pulled you over my knee for that, love. Issuing an invitation to the ogres is not something I would tolerate.” He finished his text and sent it.
Yusen removed the empty plates.
Atolica jumped when she heard the return text. “What did he say?”
Stovos read the text, and his eyes widened.
“Oh. Well, he would like to meet her again when he is here for the party on the weekend. And yes, he did cast the spell. Her family kept trying to pull her back, using one alias after another. He blocked their queries and continues to today.” Stovos paused.
“Which indicates they are still looking for her.”
Kel shrugged. “Would you let a star go?”
Atolica paused. “Oh. Shit. No, I guess not.”
Kel nodded. “Even if they think she didn’t manifest, the possibility that her power will carry to the next generation is strong.”
“Oh. Which is why she ran in the first place. She is just lucky that she was able to get away.”
Nen shook his head. “Luck probably had little to do with it.”
Krys frowned. “Kel, you said fallen star?”
“Yes.”
“Aren’t fallen stars adults? She was born. She was a summoned star. There have to be a lot of guild records about that particular event.”
Tynan frowned. “You are right. There should be. Let me check.” He opened a window in front of him and flicked his fingers in the air. “Going back three decades and working forward. Ah. There. Found it. A request to harness the aurora borealis. The star was an accidental casualty.”
Kel said, “Show me.” He looked at the projection and nodded. “There are some signs that they were successful in their purpose, but there was never an indication within their ranks.”
Krys said, “But, as Ember showed, it can leave the party it was supposed to remain in, with an unpredictable birthdate.”
The group nodded, and Tynan said, “Perhaps we should consult Olmin?”
Tolly shook her head. “No. The less guild contact, the better. The greedy buggers would try and grab her here as well as the ones from where she was born.”
Tynan paused and then nodded. “You aren’t wrong. Stars are rare. If she were pulled in by mistake, that would make a lot of sense. It would also mean that she wasn’t going to respond the same way the aurora would. They wouldn’t find the right response because it was the wrong magic.”
The group blinked and exhaled. Nessa murmured, “Oh, wow. So, the grand light show could still be out there somewhere.”
Atolica nodded. “I think she is.”
Nessa said, “Have you met her?”
“No, but I think I met her mother.”
Kel frowned. “What?”
“I met an elegant woman who glowed from within, and she said that the glow came with her pregnancy, nearly three decades ago.” Tolly smiled.
“She said a daughter like that comes once in a millennium, and she was a very proud mother. Her daughter is the CEO of a training centre that helps people learn how to set up small businesses and find grants to assist in fertility treatments.”
Krys snorted. “That is some niche education.”
“Both have folk working for their families, just from different sides.”
Nessa said, “So, she works with humans? Don’t the ears give her away?”
Stovos put on his glamour. “What ears?”
The grouping laughed.
Kel said, “Do you have a name?”
Tolly held up a finger while she looked for the name of the training centre. She looked up the CEO and started laughing. “Miss D.A. Kadabra.”
Stovos laughed and then stilled. “See if she is related to DAK Corp.”
Tolly nodded and whistled. “I must be getting rusty. Yes, that’s her. Oh, wow. I have met Delphine dozens of times when she came to the office for land rights negotiations.”
Stovos’s eyes widened. “She’s powerful. I can remember DAK but not Delphine. Now that you have said her name, I remember her.”
Tolly looked at him. “Seriously, boss? You couldn’t remember her?”
“No. But now she seems very familiar. Her mother used to be on a number of charitable organizations in town. She still is, actually.” Stovos frowned and worked on his own phone. “Here. Ambera Kaden. She’s on the board of about a dozen charities in the city.”
Tolly smiled. “I have met her as well. She’s not snooty at all when we meet with her. She also doesn’t stare at my breasts; she points to hers.”
Stovos sat back. “This has been illuminating. It explains where Ambera is getting the funds she donates. DAK is a successful company.”
Tolly kept working on her phone, and when Stovos put his hand on her shoulder, she swatted it. “Not now, sweetie. Hang on. I need my laptop.”
Stovos sighed, rapped on the table, and the laptop rose out of the wood. “We will discuss your lack of interest in your husband later.”
Tolly turned and gripped his face in her hand. “Boss, I am doing research. You asked me to do research. I can’t turn it off and on. There is a mystery here, and there are websites that I use that you don’t need to worry your pretty head about. I will do penance for disrespect later. On your knees.”
She let her husband’s face loose and opened her laptop.
Nessa said, “You mean on your knees.”
Tolly started typing. “I know exactly what I said.”
The king of the dark court laughed, and his assistant did what she did for her salary. Research.
Tolly looked at the list she had compiled. “Delphine is a busy girl. She owns a variety of businesses, most with an artistic bent, under five different corporations. Money lines up to jump into her accounts.”
Stovos smiled. “So, she’s an elf.”
“Half-elf. Her father is the elf; Ambera is human and a discarded mistress. Veeso is Delphine’s father.” Tolly said, “I would have sworn Ambera was an elf.”
Stovos curled his lip. “Ah. She is lucky her mother is so strong and determined.”
“From what Ambera has said, it is Delphine who does all the work. Ambera just acts as the face of the corporations.”
Stovos asked softly, “Are they coming to the party on Saturday?”
Tolly smiled. “They are.”
“Excellent. So, the star and the light will both be in the same place. I wonder if they know about each other?” Stovos mused.
Nessa smiled. “I can ask. She’s still on shift right now.”
Nessa got up and walked away from the table, holding her phone to her ear. “Hello, Bethany? Yes, I have a question for you. Do you know a woman named Delphine?”
Nessa nodded and frowned. She got an idea. “What about Abra Kadabra?”
The shout from the other end of the line was audible to those in the room. Nessa winced and said, “She’s going to be at the party on Saturday.”
The Woo hoo! came through the phone and carried into the room.
Stovos nodded. “They know each other.”
Tolly snorted and kept digging into Delphine’s history.
There wasn’t much. She had appeared on the business scene twelve years ago and had purchased a food cart, then a food truck, and from there she had a fleet.
Her progression led to a small art gallery, and from there, her wealth increased astronomically and all legally.
She blinked. “Kelnen, Danforth Accounting does her books.”
Kel smiled and sipped his beverage. “You don’t say.”
Nen grinned, and Krys snorted. “We have a lot of clients.”
Tolly chuckled and looked at her husband. “We have the most interesting dinner parties.”
Stovos slid his hand up her thigh. “Yes, dear. If all goes well, play dates will soon ensue.”
Krys stared at them. “No way.”
Tolly put a hand up. “Not yet, but we are working on it.”
Stovos smiled. “Working hard. Have to give my grandchild a little uncle or aunt.”
Hector smacked his forehead. “How could I forget about that?”
Nessa sat next to him and patted his hand. “It’s okay. He’s still grandpa to our kids, and you have always wanted a sibling.”
“No, I haven’t. I like being an only child.” He grumped.
Tolly looked at him. “I will fight you for it.”
Hector looked at her and held up his hands. “Nope. Nope. I give up.”
“Aw. I haven’t had a solid fight in ages.” Tolly sighed.
Stovos caressed her cheek. “We wrestle regularly.”
“Yeah, but I am always the winner.”
Kel snickered. “Would you like to go for a flight, little cousin? We could race.”
“I think that is an excellent idea. Once you meet Bethany, you can race her as well.”
“She has wings?” Kel grinned.
“She did when I knew her. I hope she still does.”
Stovos brought up an image on his phone. “This was her two years ago.”
He showed Kel. The image was of a woman in a low-backed corset, tall leather boots, and huge, soft black wings. Her hair was the same inky black.
Kel frowned. “I don’t recognize the venue. Where were you?”
“Working in Japan. It was a special event put on by the host company. Her voice wrapped around us, the energy spilled through us, and all felt the laughter and amusement. It was immersive, and I recorded the songs on my phone. When Orvis asked what I wanted for my birthday party, I told her that this performer was on the list.”
“She didn’t get irritated?”
“Of course not. Insecure is not in her vocabulary.”
Tolly grinned. “I could take her.”
Stovos laughed and kissed her hand. “I know.”
Kel grinned. “If you think you can.”
Tolly blinked. “What?”
“That is not a woman, that is wild magic in a living body. She doesn’t want what you have, so it is a non-issue.” Kel grinned. “Stars are very linked in to destiny. You two have already found yours. She would have no interest in it.”
Orvis muttered, “I don’t know whether to be insulted or not.”
Krys smiled. “Think of it this way. You two have exchanged energies so many times, you taste wrong.”
Stovos chuckled. “That is mildly less insulting.”
Orvis looked at him. “Okay, I was stressing over your party, but now I think it’s going to be fun.”
“I have told you time and again that it isn’t necessary every year.”
“I know, I know, but I am figuring one in ten should be good. And when we have kids, you are going to celebrate the moment they notice that you don’t have parties.” Orvis prodded his chest with two fingers.
“The very moment?” He caught her fingers and kissed them.
“Well, around this time that year. Kids like looking forward to celebrating things, especially when they realize that being old means a bigger cake.” She grinned.
Stovos pressed his forehead to hers. “I notice you are speaking in the plural.”
“Well, if the first one is a fluke, we need to try again to see if it can be managed without intervention.”
He grinned. “I stand ready to test the theory.”
“Yeah, I thought you might. A houseful of little girls would suit me.”
“Let’s see whose genes win out. I am eager to meet you on the field of battle.”
She laughed. “You bring the marshmallows; I will bring the honey.”
The room full of folks laughed, but they sat in their own little world, head to head, and imagining the future in a house full of tiny harpies.