Across the Veil: Open Eyes (Book 1)

Chapter 19: Plan of Action

The kitchen door creaked open, revealing Willow, Savio, and Rayne, all waiting patiently on the other side. The Demon paused, a mildly tired look on his face. Of course they hadn't listened to him. He simply gestured towards the stairs before heading towards the other half of The Blue Shoes.

The trio were the first ones to reach the second floor, where they waited for Celeste and Moira. The older women opened a door to a meeting room, motioning for them to enter first. Within a few minutes, everyone had gathered in the room.

Moira and Memphis were the ones who explained the situation to everyone. There were Hunters in the city, possibly with a captive Dragon and Dragon-based weapons. In order for Moira to find out more, she needed to lure out more Hunters, preferably higher ranking ones who might be more informed.

"You need some of us to volunteer." Nina said at the end of the explanation.

"Memphis and I would ensure your safety." Moira began when Savio cut in.

"Why not use his actual name?" Savio stated firmly, casting a sharp look at Memphis, "Eh, Menti?"

The Demon returned the young man's sharp look, "Unless you want to make a deal with me, boy, you don't need my real name."

Moira stepped in quickly, explaining that Demon's rarely gave out their true names. Even her saying 'Menti' was not truly his name. It was more of a nickname she had for him.

Rayne was the next to speak, her voice as strong as her will, "I'll help you."

"Rayne, no-" Celeste began.

"Auntie, please." Rayne practically begged, "The Hunters will notice me sooner than anyone else. I'm the best kind of bait-"

"Please, don't call yourself bait." Moira requested. She was still visibly unsettled with the idea of using anyone to lure out the Hunters.

"It's true though." Rayne stated, "The Hunters are more likely to come out of hiding to finish me. I'm probably the best chance you have right now."

"You're hurt. We aren't letting you do this alone." Willow said.

"I agree." Savio said, earning nods of agreement from his friends.

"Two Fae and a meddling Human sympathizer would be tempting for the Hunters." Memphis said with a small grin, "Plus it would be more likely that we get multiple Hunters, or a high ranking one."

Moira was silent. More Fae, or hell more Magicals in general, would make them better for luring in Hunters... Though that itself carried a lot of risks. More targets to watch out for, more potential dangers for the younger Magicals and Willow...

"Memphis is right. The more targets, the better. Plus, Rayne and I escaped that first Hunter. I'm sure they'll want to have another shot soon." Willow said, cutting through the silence.

Moira looked at Celeste. The older Fae woman looked torn and distraught. "Rayne." Moira said, looking over at Celeste's niece, "I want you to really think this over. If you are so sure, and you are willing to trust Memphis and I, then I will use your help... But please, think about this."

Rayne looked at her aunt, "I know you are scared for me, but please. Trust me. Trust me when I say I know I can trust Memphis and Moira."

Celeste was quiet for a long while. She looked at the worn carpeting, eyes shut tight before she finally looked up, "I do trust you, my sweetheart..."

It appeared that Rayne, Willow, and Savio would be the ones to act as lures the following night. In the meantime Moira asked that anyone else who could, that they help her in getting more information on any new groups that had roamed into the city.

Vilis had commented that the Hunter's emblem was still being held somewhere in The Blue Shoes. Perhaps Moira would be able to use it in order to divine some extra information in the meantime? His father back home was well-studied in the art of using molten metal for divination purposes. He'd learned some tricks from his father and could potentially help Moira with the process.

Moira accepted Vilis' offer with many thanks. Celeste explained that they could use the basement for the divination ceremony and melting of the emblem.

For everyone else, Moira suggested they try and stick close to The Blue Shoes for the next little while. It might not have been ideal for them, but it helped her keep an eye on them and any potential dangers. Plus, if on the off chance the Hunters did decide to attack The Blue Shoes, the more Magicals there were, the better it would be for fighting them off. Moira assured them though, the chances of that were minimal. The Blue Shoes was too large and visible a location to mount a real attack without having every cop in the city on them within minutes.

With that, everyone was dismissed from the room, leaving Moira, Celeste, and Memphis behind.

Moira turned to Celeste, her voice soft and gentle, "I understand your fear... I hope you and Rayne can talk more about this. I want her, hell, I want all of them, to have plenty of time to really think this over."

"I trust Rayne will be careful... And I know you two will keep them safe... I just worry... She's my only real family left." Celeste replied, voice quiet and full of pain.

"Celeste." Memphis said, walking over to the woman and bending slightly so he could look her in the eyes, "I promise you, I will not let anything happen to Rayne. You have my word as a Demon. No deals, no tricks, just my word."

"I trust you." Celeste said, looking over at Moira, "Both of you."

"We won't let you down." Moira replied.