Grey Folk

Chapter 18

"Emory, are you all right?"

There was a faint, whining buzz in Emory's ears, and his body felt lax with shock, as if he could not shift an inch from his position on all fours in the dirt. Still, his mind was remarkably clear, and he forced his gaze up over the long bare feet and wispy, flowing gown of Midge. There was something in the air between them, a flowing pulse of energy that bathed him in warmth. He was in the sunshine. His skin, bare to the sun and unharmed.

Well, that was a first. "Many firsts, today," he mumbled, forcing himself up to one knee. He moved like a drunken man, stumbling to his feet and blinking at those who surrounded him.

Ulviir approached, her weapons still at the ready and her face tilting this way and that, scanning for danger. Rita's blonde curls waved and bobbed in the breeze and her anxious gaze darted over Emory as her healing aura enveloped him.

A firm hand clasped his shoulder, helping steady him, and he glanced up at Midge gratefully, sucking in a few deep breaths and absorbing the calm from those slate-grey eyes.

"Are you all right?" Rita repeated, tugging at Emory to get his attention.

He glanced down at her, the adrenaline slowly leaving his body. The painful burns that had started covering his scalp and face were already healed, thanks to Rita, but his mind could not accept the shock of what he had seen.

"I didn't even recognize him... Not at first," he murmured, and Rita stepped back, shaking her head.

"He's not all right," she confirmed. "We ought to fetch Rubius to make sure the Shadowfae didn't leave any nasty magic behind."

"Good idea." Midge bit her lip, and Emory would've given a lot to know what she was thinking when that intent expression crossed her face. "I have need of Rubius, too. It seems Her Majesty is far more determined to bring me home than I anticipated."

Ulviir arrived, her pointed teeth bared in a snarl though her brows were quizzical. "What is going on?"

Midge lifted her chin. "It is my fault, Ulviir."

Emory laughed, shaking his head. "It might not be about you, Midge. That was my old friend, Calum. Perhaps he simply came to claim vengeance over me for some forgotten slight, or wishes to kill all the Shadar-kel now that he has forsaken our ranks to join the Fae Queen."

"He is the Shadowfae," Midge said. "I have seen him in the court many times over the years. He is a loyal assassin of the queen."

"How would he get here without powerful magic, Emory? I assume he doesn't get any from the Raven Queen anymore, so no matter how you look at it he came here on behalf of Her Majesty. It must be Midge he came for," Rita agreed. She laid her hand upon Emory's elbow, petting it gently. "You fought well. I'm sorry you had to kill him."

Emory grimaced. He'd seen that trick before; how exactly it worked now that Calum was in Titania's pocket instead of the Raven Queen, he had no idea, but he was sure of one thing. "Calum's not dead. He's melted into the shadows and limped away to recover, like he always does. He'll be reporting all that transpired to Queen Titania."

Midge's expression hardened. "Then I must act quickly and decisively. I appreciate everything the village has done for me since I came here, but I cannot endanger people, especially you, Rita. I need to speak to Rubius."

"I'm going, I'm going," Rita said, but she did not leave Emory's side, her aura continuing to bathe him with overbearing washes of anxious healing energy.

Emory's body felt dragged down by the weight of tiredness and confusion. The sun had slowly faded from pleasantly warm to uncomfortably hot, and he touched the top of his scalp uneasily. Midge was doing something to protect him, but it seemed to be fading, whatever it was.