Under the Darkest Skies

Chapter 13

"At least I didn't have to play the demon card." Becky's hand lingered on the car door handle as she gazed up at the large hotel. She wasn't quite as daunted as she had been when she left Ireland for Canada for the first time, but the feeling was very similar. She was out of her element and she was going to be alone, though Seth and Finn would only be a phone call away.

"No. Just the demon's credit card," Finn grinned. "I'm joking, Becks. You would have got in on your own, I'm sure of it."

"I'm not, but thanks for the vote of confidence." Taking a deep breath, Becky pushed the door open. The drop-off zone for the hotel had a five-minute time limit and she was sure her hesitance had eaten up at least half of that. "Okay. I'm off. Have fun."

"Call if you need us." Seth leaned between the front seats to give her a kiss. "You've got the blood?"

"There's a question I don't get every day," Becky muttered. She still double-checked her purse, though, just to make sure. She hated taking blood from Seth after Sora had just done the same, but just in case there was someone at the melody who could help her, she wanted to have some blood on hand. The first sample came from the same night, after they got home from their walk. It was a bit early to do the deactivation but she chanced it anyway, taking another sample right after; Seth, naturally, didn't mind that one so much. The third sample was from that morning. "Yeah, they're here. Okay... wish me luck."

"Don't you like to say that the Irish are made of luck?" Finn reached over and squeezed her hand. "It will be fine. If she's horrible, just go to the market and buy something fun. Make the trip worthwhile."

Easy for you to say. Becky took a deep breath and stepped out onto the sidewalk. "Don't forget to call Liv and see if she found out anything about sigils, yeah?"

"Will do." Finn waited until she had shut the door and stepped back to start pulling out of the drop-off lane. Seth waved as they left and then Becky was alone, with three vials of blood in her purse, a head full of questions, and a heart steeped in doubt.

Becky strode into the foyer and promptly stopped. The interior looked like it belonged in a medieval castle and she could hear various chants coming from multiple directions. They must have had the doors pre-warded, she thought. Any human who stumbled on this would have been utterly confused; the hotel's website showed sleek, modernist decor, not medieval majesty. Should have figured that out when no one was at the door.

A large wolfish dog came from behind the check-in desk, followed by a woman who reminded Becky of Zelina, but with shorter hair. "Hello. May I see your invite code, please?"

Becky took her phone out of her purse and opened the confirmation message that had an image that was a combination of a bar code and an optical illusion. "Sorry. I've just... never been to a set-up like this," Becky hedged. On the off chance it wasn't connected to The Fathoms, she wanted to watch her wording.

"First time?" the woman smiled as she scanned Becky's code. "The Fathoms are big here, so they actually own the place. They don't have to find abandoned buildings, which means we can have all sorts of permanent fixtures."

She wasn't quite sure how to ask about the new, harsher restrictions, but Becky wanted to know before she went in. "The last market I was at had some new protocols," she began. "Are they in place here?"

The sentry rolled her eyes. "Calling them protocols is being generous. Don't give them that kindness. No, they aren't in place here. Hopefully they never will be." When her device beeped, she nodded. "Excellent. Everything checks out. You'll be heading to the basement level, but there's a note here that Laoise has requested a private meeting with you, so Rutti here will accompany you." She gestured down to the wolfish dog.