Lapidary

I couldn’t fight him, and I couldn’t run away. I couldn’t hit him, and I refused to cry. So, I did the one thing I could, to defy him – I spat on him. Devton’s face crinkled, and he let me go so he could wipe off the spit. “It’s a bit soon to be spitting on each other, don’t you think?”

I froze. Was that a joke? He stepped backward, and I was free to run away. I eyed the taxi.

“What’s your name?” His eyes lingered on my gloves.

“That’s none of your business,” I said.

“Yet you’ve stuck your nose in my business,” he said.

I raised an eyebrow.

“That man owed me money,” he explained. “I came here because he hasn’t paid.”

I didn’t dare ask what he owed money for. I trembled as I realized I was knee deep in gang shit. My intentions had been so good when I had seen the man in trouble. I had simply wanted to help him, but now I regretted it. He had gotten himself involved with the gangs and without a doubt deserved what he had coming to him.

“How much did he owe?” I wondered.

“Five gold coins.”

I clenched my jaw – that was a lot of money.

“And now he has run away, and I am not paid,” Devton continued. “Do you see my problem?”

Briefly, I wondered if he’d kill me, but then I studied his body language. His hands were relaxed by his side, and he was maintaining distance between us. He was not going to attack me. I could pay him off with the gold someone had been leaving me, but I refused to spend that money. Another thought struck me: Devton Embers owned several bars and casinos on Butterfish and Swordfish chains – which was where Lakelyn was often seen.

“I’ll pay his debt,” I said.

“How noble of you.” Devton’s mouth twitched upward.

“Once you’ve employed me.”

He looked confused for a moment until he realized I was serious. He laughed, and I almost laughed with him. “My casinos and bars aren’t the safest places for humans.”

As I’d expected, he had confirmed that he wasn’t human. He didn’t have feathery wings, so he wasn’t an angel. He didn’t have pointy canines, so he wasn’t a vampire. He wasn’t hairy, which led me to believe that he wasn’t a werewolf. He has round ears, not pointy ones like the fae. What was he?

“Neither is Vesea. Yet, here I am,” I countered.

“Are you stupid or crazy?” he wondered.

“I can look after myself.” I met his gaze and hoped he couldn’t tell that his eyes made my soul shiver. “I’ll start tomorrow,” I decided.

For a moment, I feared he would deny me, but then he said, “Meet me tomorrow afternoon at 4pm at My Night Habit.”

I almost cried out in relief. I had landed a job and managed to stay alive. I gave him a slight nod then turned to go, but he reached for my arm. There was nothing violent in his touch.

“What is your name?”

“Natka Roqueze,” I said.

“Devton Embers.” He held out his hand.

This must be his way of trying to start over. I accepted his hand and squeezed hard, trying to prove that I was not weak. But he was incredibly strong and didn’t flinch. I looked past him to see the wraith rushing toward us with fire in her eyes. Devton let go of my hand and stretched out his arm to stop her from shredding me to bits.

“Astaroth,” he said. “This is Natka. She is, as of tomorrow, an employee at My Night Habit.”

I flashed her a dashing smile.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Astaroth said.

I winked at her before leaving them behind and signaling a taxi. I lifted my suitcase into the carriage and hopped on, soaking wet.

Although I would be working for Devton, I was not a member of The Risen. That gang wouldn’t just accept anyone as a member, and I didn’t want to be a part of it. I shuddered in the carriage and wondered what I had gotten myself into.

***

I disembarked by the Lower Fin of Ocelos and admired the tall buildings. I dragged my suitcase behind me and stopped at a vendor selling trinkets, hats, and gloves at the side of the road. I bought myself two pairs of lace gloves. The one pair was black and covered my fingers and my wrists. The second pair was pink and tied around my middle finger, leaving the other fingers exposed. The rest of it traveled all the way up to my elbow.

I stuffed the gloves into my handbag and headed down the street. I knew where my family lived because they had sent me plenty of invitations – which I had either declined or ignored. I hadn’t seen them in more than two years.

When I had just left home, my younger sister, Ava, had texted me every day. She had wanted to know where I was and why I had left without telling anybody. Clearly, my parents hadn’t told her that we weren’t blood related and that I was potentially half-monster. Ava had wanted to know if she could join me and if I was okay. She had texted me every day for a year, and I hadn’t answered once. I hadn’t even texted her on her birthday, and I had never told her why. After a year, her longing had turned to anger. She had sent me one last message telling me that she was done with me. I still hadn’t replied.

I wasn’t planning to stay with my family – I wanted my own home and independence – but I had to say ‘hi’. There was no point in procrastinating, since Ace had told them that I was coming.

I found their house – a double-story structure painted light pink that had many square windows. I was exhausted as I knocked on the door and dreaded the moment when my sister would open it.

It wasn’t Ava, but my mother, Kellie. She had on a paint-covered apron, her hair was tied into a bun, and she didn’t wear any makeup – nor did she need any with her natural beauty.

“Hi,” I managed to say. My throat felt incredibly tight.

Kellie’s eyes filled up with tears, and she threw her arms around my neck. She held me, and I let her, but after a while, I found myself wrapping my arms around her shoulders, too. When she let go, she sniffed.

“Come inside!”

I followed her into the house and closed the door behind me. The interior was clean and decorated with porcelain plates on the walls, Kellie’s paintings, and photos of us. I stopped when I saw a photo of me. I had left them, and a part of me had feared that they might have torn up my photo or blacked me out on the family photos. They hadn’t.

“What can I get you to drink?” Kellie asked. “Apple juice? Water? Tea?”

“Juice, please,” I said.

I left my suitcase by the front door and followed her to the kitchen, from where I could see her art studio, the only messy room in the house. I felt out of place and shifted my weight from one foot to the other while I fumbled with my gloves. My mom handed me my juice, and I was glad that at least one of my hands had something to do. She smiled awkwardly at me, as if she didn’t know what to say. In these two years everything, but nothing, had changed.

“So…” I forced myself to speak. “Where is Jacob?”

“He is at Shark Bay Prison, working,” my mother said. “They are expanding the prison.”

I was glad that my father had such a good job. He used to be stressed out, because of money, all the time when I lived with them, but now that he had this job, he undoubtedly had powerful friends.

“Oh,” I said.

“He sometimes works with the Sky Watch,” Kellie said. Powerful friends indeed. “And he knows Rhinsel personally.”

Status meant a lot to my family – like it did to most humans. Status was something humans barely had, and I was happy for my family.

“Where is Ava?” Her name tasted foreign on my tongue, like the apple juice, and I considered asking for something stronger to drink, like vodka.

“She’s at class – studying to become a doctor,” Kellie said.

My sister was three years younger than me and had turned twenty-two this year. She was an intelligent, hard-working girl, and she would make the perfect doctor. Could I run away before she came home so that I could avoid seeing her? I got up.

“I should go,” I said.

“No!” My mom reached for my arm. “At least stay for dinner.”

I couldn’t find it in my heart to turn her down, so I sat again. Her relieved smile broke my heart. Kellie got up and opened the drawer under the stove to remove pots and pans.

“I haven’t read any articles about you going on tour recently,” she said.

After Ryker had taken me off the streets, I had begun to play violin again. I had become incredibly good and played at the top, fully booked stadiums. I had made headlines in the newspaper many times. The last time I had played was the night Ryker had killed himself. He hadn’t come to watch, and I hadn’t played since.

“I don’t play anymore,” I told my mother.

“That’s a shame,” she said. “It was your passion.”

“I have new passions now,” I said.

“Like?”

I couldn’t answer. I was passionate about nothing and enjoyed nothing. I used to love going for morning runs and dressing my best. I used to enjoy having my nails done or trying different hairstyles. I used to have a sweet tooth, and Ryker had often taken me to try new desserts. I used to get lost in the sound of my violin when I played, and Ryker and I used to attend many shows at Serenity Stadium. Those were things I had been passionate about. They had made me happy, but happiness wasn’t something I was used to anymore.

The silence dragged on longer until my mom finally said, “We can get you onto the stage here – at Reverie.”

Reverie was the only stadium in Vesea. It was south of Heaven’s Window, and it was a big deal to play there. I had been offered an opportunity to play there previously but had turned it down because I hadn’t wanted to risk running into my family.

“I don’t play anymore.” I finished my juice and put the glass on the table. My hands needed something to do so, I played with my hair, ignoring the split ends.

The front door opened, and I tensed in my seat. I heard heels on the floor and knew it wasn’t my father. I dropped my hands in my lap and forced myself to turn.

“Ava…” Her name sounded wrong, like I didn’t deserve to say it.

My sister was beautiful. Although she was younger than me, she was also half a head taller. She had an angular face, compared to my round one. Her hair had once matched my mom’s, but now it was dyed bright pink, and I wondered if she tried to look like the fae or the merfolk. It couldn’t be easy being one of the only humans living around here. She wore tights with a dazzling silver shirt – as if being human didn’t make her stand out enough.

She looked through me, as if I wasn’t there, and spoke to Kellie. “What the fuck is she doing here?”

“Ava!” Kellie cried. Our mother dropped a pot and spilled green beans on the kitchen floor.

“I’m visiting,” I mumbled.

Ava looked at my mother. “She should go back to wherever she’s been these past two years.”

When I had left, I hadn’t told anyone where I’d gone, but once Ryker and I began dating, it had made headlines: we were the biggest scandal in all of New Peace. Bellevue Featherswallow’s son had dared to stoop so low as to date a mortal. Would it have made a difference if the world knew I had angel blood? Maybe not, since I was powerless and wingless. I tried not to think about all the hate mail and death threats I had received during those days. That was when my sister and parents must have found out where I lived. They had texted to tell me that Jacob had gotten a job and they were moving to Vesea and they were happy to hear about me and Ryker. I hadn’t told them, or anyone, that we had gotten engaged. The ring felt heavy on my finger.

“Ava, don’t,” Kellie said.

“Don’t what? Insult her? Talk over her?” Ava asked, and I shrank into my seat. “Or what? She’ll leave without telling any of us?”

Ava snorted and headed to her room upstairs. Her door slammed shut.