Page 114 of Beauty

Hello.

A simple thing. A greeting, but it’s all my mind can handle.

Hello, I am Erin. The voice is quiet, but I hear itall the same. And I feel a tiny spark of energy.

I am Wes. Again, a voice and a bit of strengthshared among prisoners.

I am Mina.

They come when I call. A hundred voices with sparks ofstrength that alone would be nothing at all, but together, they bind me in willand power, re-forming my soul. They give what they can and connect togetherthrough my brain and heart.

I am Maris. That voice is quiet, tentative, but theenergy she sends is not.

They continue through the night. By morning, I’m smilingwhen the hags enter and I open my mind to my loves.

Come for me. My time is now.

ChapterThirty-Seven

Shim

I look around the village and wish Bron was with me.She would love Aoibhneas. It’s beautiful and the inhabitants are all slightlyinsane.

But Bron is miles away and I can’t get to her.

And my brother is gone as well.

I take a deep breath and hope the mayor has one sane bone inhis body. “I promise not to make any deals with demons. Now can we sign thistreaty and begin preparations?”

Mayor Mel leans forward. “You have passed the truth tests.”

The truth tests involve drinking an enormous amount of someliquor the mayor makes himself and then answering a bunch of questions becausethe mayor believes no one can lie when drunk. The mayor asked me and Lach amultitude of questions about our feelings on demons and parallel planes. Heseems to think that somewhere on an alternate plane there is another him andthis other version of the mayor has it all wrong and shouldn’t be worried aboutcreatures from the skies, but rather about demons. For our part, Lach and Imostly talked about how much we miss Bronwyn and her breasts. Getting drunkmade me think about all of my wife’s soft parts, and I was sick with worry overher. Well, and sick with the liquor. It was very strong.

Finally this morning Roan found the tear in the wall and gotLachlan through to bring the Seelies back.

I wish they would hurry. I was left to negotiate with whatDante called a whack job.

The vampire proves to be rather good at negotiationshimself. He smiles at the mayor. “Excellent. I assure you the prince has nointentions of allowing demons to take over his kingdom.”

I shake my head. “Not at all. It’s written down somewhere.”

And if it isn’t, I’ll make it a law.

A woman with steel-gray hair stares the mayor down. “Signthe documents. You know we’re going in.”

“Fine, woman. You don’t have to harp on me.” He winks at hiswife. “But you better tell the women because if I know their husbands, they’llstart trying to lock them up and keep them out of this.”

The mayor’s wife grins. “I made sure they all have keys tothe lockups, and each has a sonic sword and one of those cannon things.” Shelooks over at the vampire. “One of our daughters bonded with a royal vampire bythe name of Stefan. He makes sure we have all the weapons we need.”

“And all the sex toys, too, I bet,” Dante pipes up. “Sorry.Talbot Industries makes billions off the toy market. And now I find out he’s anarms dealer, too. Kaj, when we get back to our plane, remind me to buy upTalbot stock. I like him. He’s smart.”

Kaja smiles at her husband indulgently and shakes her head.I don’t believe Kaja and her husband are ever going back to the Vampire plane.Not for more than a visit. She seems happy here in Aoibhneas.

The mayor signs his name with a flourish and stands. Thetown square is filled with villagers, all anxiously waiting. I can see theHarper clan standing near the boy named Charlie, Paige’s hand clasped firmly inhis. They are young, far too young to wed, but it’s plain to see the love intheir eyes.

The whole village seems to quiet as the mayor steps up. “Wego to war.”

A huge shout seems to shake the ground. There are hugs andslaps on the back and celebratory cheers.