“Only dimwitted fools believe in coincidences,” my mother said.

“Right.” Reagan nodded. “I would not have thought it possible, but clearly they have someone on the inside. Vampires. It seems the Mages’ Guild has made alliances of their own, and they are, in essence, taking on Darius. For him not to have seen this before now… It’s surprising. He’s really slipping.”

Rustling filled the phone, probably the sound of my mother shifting. “Even elders can get complacent as time progresses. Things go moderately smoothly for a few hundred years, and they get into a rhythm. This little shake-up will be good for him. It’ll sharpen his edges. We need that going forward. I hate to say it, but he’s a strong ally. It’d be better to have him with us than against us.”

“He’ll stay with me, and I’ll stay with Penny. That’s a certainty,” Reagan said with a gravity to her words that squished my heart. She wasn’t in league with many people. That she would cast her lot with me, when I was at the heart of a boatload of danger, really spoke volumes about her loyalty.

I smiled at her and touched her forearm.

“No.” She shook me off. “Don’t get weepy. It’s gross.”

We dealt with touching moments in different ways.

“Fine,” my mother said. “The question we need answered is what to do now.” Movement sounded in the background.

“Darius thinks—”

Emery held up his hand to stall Reagan. He shook his head. “She is one of the most gifted Seers I’ve ever come across. Wait to hear what she has to say. She was integral in keeping us alive in Seattle.”

Reagan’s lips downturned and she pulled her chair closer. “Really? Neat. I’ve only come across a few decent tarot readers. All assholes. So this fits.”

I stared at the phone wide-eyed, wondering if my mom would retort. When she didn’t, I let out a breath. I really didn’t want to see the two butt heads. That would probably make my life hell.

“Did you get anything much out of the mages?” I asked quietly, not wanting to disturb whatever my mother was doing.

Reagan pulled her gaze up from the phone. “Sadly, no. A couple were hired from different areas of the country. They answered an ad, of all things. I also talked to Red. Well…” She put her elbows on the table. “I kicked him around the place, actually, when I found out he knew you were in trouble and didn’t tell me.” Her jaw clenched. “We’re having a rift in our friendship, he and I.”

“That’s probably better for him,” I said. She gave me a blank stare. “That you stay away, I mean. You scare him, I think.”

Emery chuckled helplessly, bending over his clasped hands, his body shaking. The guy could find a joke in anything.

Reagan’s smile gave me nervous shivers. “No. It is not better for him.”

“What he said about the Guild bringing in people was true, then?” Emery asked with a lopsided smile.

Reagan blew out a breath and sat back. “They know what they’re up against. And I’m not talking about two powerful naturals. I’m talking about a rogue mage with no friends, a newbie with no clue, an easily infiltrated ragtag crew of New Orleans magical social drinkers, vampires that can’t help in the daytime, and shifters that aren’t totally sure they want to fully engage in a full-out magical battle. We’re all over the place. Our side is a mess. We—and I really mean you two—stirred up the hornets’ nest without any plan. And yes, sure, we thought the New Orleans contingent was a decrepit, disorganized faction, fat and happy. But surprise, they’re not. So now we have to figure out how to bail ourselves out. Do we go guerilla and plan lots of little, stealthy attacks? Do we…” She rubbed her hands over her face. “That’s actually all I have. I don’t even know what we do. And given how much Darius has screwed up lately, I don’t trust anything he said. So forget that I was going to offer advice.”

I stared at my empty hands and thought about getting a drink, but then thought better of it when I remembered the excessively strong drinks Reagan would likely force on us.

Through the crappy phone speaker, in a slightly tinny, haunted voice, my mother said:

“Her path has been set. Her journey is in motion. He will complete the pyramid of power. The curse breaker will join the oath takers and forge a bond in blood. It is in this union that the way forward shall be writ. That they shall learn their highest level of power, and hold the kingdom from falling.”

40

I looked between Reagan and Emery. Emery studied me. Reagan cocked her head, staring at the phone.

“Right, but what is a curse breaker? I mean, besides it being me,” Reagan said. “No one seems to know.”

“Do you know what it means?” I asked her.

“No. That’s the thing with Seer types. They give you all these windy answers that could mean eight different things. Then some traumatic thing happens that you wish you could’ve gotten a heads up on, and the Seer says, ‘See? I told you that would happen.’ It’s annoying. Too bad your mom is no different.”

“I beg your pardon?” My mother’s voice was weak.

“While I don’t totally disagree,” Emery said softly, “Ms. Bristol is the genuine article. I imagine we are meant to be together—”

“Well la-dee-dah,” Reagan said, getting up and heading to the cabinet that held the whiskey. Something was clearly troubling her.

“—and that foretelling was hinting at future events.”

“What’d I say?” my mother asked. I could hear distinct clicking and figured she must’ve brought out the tape recorder, something she’d done in the past when she hadn’t had (or hadn’t trusted) her audience.

“I work alone,” Reagan said.

“I think we could tell that by the fix my daughter and her male friend got up to this evening, yes. So much for you sticking with Penny through thick and thin.” My mother’s voice sounded on the tape recorder and we heard the message again. “Huh.”

“See?” Reagan pointed at the phone.

“No, that doesn’t help you now. That bears some reflection. Important, though. Let me reduce my scope, see if it gets us more information.” My mother sighed. “Back to the grindstone.”

Reagan unscrewed the cap. “Penny? Drink?”

“Water. Without the tequila or lime.”

Reagan frowned at me. “I don’t carry that.”

“I’ll get it.” Emery rose from the chair.

“And by the way, we’re not in a kingdom right now.” Reagan pointed at the floor. “We’re in the Brink. There are two other kingdoms, and I won’t be helping you keep either of them from falling.”

Emery startled and stared pointedly at Reagan.

Once again, my mother’s haunted and distant voice came through the speaker. “The bonds of sisterhood have formed. Your unique circle has been set. Now you must harness the power of the underworld.”

“Come on.” Reagan braced against the counter and sagged, dropping her head. “Why did I have to get involved? Why?”

Emery was still studying her. “‘You need the boss of the boss. He’ll connect you to the highest level of power in the underworld.’” His eyes met mine. “Isn’t that the text your mother sent that one time? In Seattle? Remember, when we were trying to connect with Clyde in the hotel? We needed to get to Darius, instead. Clyde’s boss. Because Darius…is connected to Reagan.”

“Snitches get stitches,” Reagan said, wild-eyed. “I don’t care how old she is.”

“I’m old enough to ring your bell,” my mother said.

“Mother, would you relax?” I rolled my eyes.

“That boy has a dynamite memory, I’ll say that much,” my mother said. “He is still not moving in with you, Penelope Bristol.”

If only I could hang up on her.

“It can’t be,” Emery whispered. He leaned against the counter, bending a little to try and see Reagan’s face. “A few months back, I heard there was a disturbance of some kind in the underworld. There was a rumor of a mage and a vampire down there. Word is Lucifer himself plans to look into it. It wasn’t a mage at all, was it?”