WITH EVERYTHING GOING on with Reave, my brother, and the Towers, it wasn't the best time to try to break into a walled-off private garden, but the growth cycle of the rare Asian Moon Lily couldn't be altered simply because I was having a bad day. I was irritated by the distraction from what I needed to be doing, but in truth, I had to get away from the shop and all the building insanity so I could clear my head. And what better way to clear my head than to do a little trespa.s.sing and larceny?

Trixie was settled beside me in the tree, seeming more ghostly apparition in the moonlight than flesh and blood. It was the first time she had accompanied me on this excursion and I was grateful that she had chosen sneakers instead of her usual heels and leather.

"I can't believe you do this," Trixie said as she sank into a new crouched position in the large maple tree we were sitting in. We had been up in the tree for nearly a half hour as we waited for the last of the lights in the house to go out. Our legs were starting to cramp and grow stiff, but I wasn't willing to move yet. "You know they sell this stuff at most potion-supply stores."

Looking up at her, I smiled. "You know how expensive that stuff is? Crazy. This is easier."

"And dangerous."

I shrugged. "Maybe, but it's certainly more fun."

About three years ago, I had entered a pool with five other parlor owners in the area. We had found the only grower of the Asian Moon Lily in the region and decided that we would liberate one flower when it opened. The catch was that the Asian Moon Lily only opened at night once every twenty-eight days. As a result, it was my turn to pluck a flower once every six months, which was an agreeable schedule.

"I don't think we even need the flower," Trixie continued with a frown. "None of us have used it in the shop lately and the flower remains good for one year when stored properly."

"We don't, but that's not the point." It was rare that any group member needed the flower. We all had enough stock after the first three months of the agreement, but no one had wanted to stop. It was too much fun.

A few days before the run, e-mails were sent around so the runner knew who needed a piece of the flower. Any pieces left over were usually sold. For my run, I had only two shops needing a supply. Since we had learned to divide it evenly six ways, that meant I had four portions to sell for myself.

The other catch was that the previous runner never told the next person if the garden owner had made any changes to his security. Since we came regularly every twenty-eight days, the owner knew when we would show up and regularly implemented new security measures to stop us. Nothing lethal, but enough to get you caught if you weren't paying attention. And who wanted to go to jail for stealing a f.u.c.king flower?

I glanced over my shoulder at the elf as she stared over the eight-foot wall toward the garden. "Look, if you're going to suck all the fun out of this, you can stay here."

"I'm trying to be sensible. I'm not sucking the fun out."

"Oh, I definitely feel some suckage going on." Trixie glared at me, but I could see the hint of a smile she was fighting to hold back. "I thought you'd want to spend some quality time together."

"Not exactly my idea of quality time."

I looked back toward the garden, shifting on the large branch as I tried to get some circulation back into my legs. "You know, there's more to life than s.e.x."

Trixie smacked me on the back of the head. "No, there's not."

I opened my mouth to tease her some more, but the light we had been waiting for went out on the second floor of the house. The owner was settling into bed and it was only eleven. Early for him considering what night it was. He had something new he was planning. In all my visits, the man had tried motion-sensor lights, gla.s.s shards in the top of the wall, moving the flower inside the house, dogs, and even a couple hired thugs. From what I heard, the dogs had lasted one month, if not less, as I believe the type of dog he acquired also liked to dig. New security items came and went without warning so you were never quite sure what you were faced with.

"I don't understand why you don't . . . you know . . ." Trixie broke off and waved her hands in the direction of the garden.

I fought back a smile, playing dumb. "What? Flap my arms like a chicken?"

"You know what I mean!" she said in a harsh whisper.

"You mean the stuff I'm forbidden to do?" I pointedly asked, arching one brow at her.

"Like that's stopped you."

With a shrug, I looked at the garden wall again. "I like to think the forbidding part has at least slowed me down. I can't rely on something that I'm not supposed to be using in the first place."

"True," Trixie murmured, and then fell silent for several moments. "How do you want to do this?"

"You don't have to-"

"Oh, I want to. I was just making sure that you wanted to do this."

I chuckled. This woman was insane and I loved her for it. Pushing the thought roughly aside, I focused on the garden before us. This might not be a dangerous task, but I still didn't want to get caught for sneaking in to steal a flower. "Careful and quiet. With the weather remaining relatively warm at night, the six pots should be in the center of the garden next to a fountain. He's been turning off the fountain at night so we won't have the sound to m.u.f.fle our movement. We take one flower. No more. You have your bone knife?"

"Got it."

Asian Moon Lilies were extremely temperamental. They were notoriously hard to grow and the flowers could be cut using only a knife blade made from bone. Anything else would instantly destroy the magical properties of the bloom. From there, the flower had to be stored in a brown paper bag in a dark s.p.a.ce.

Glancing up at the house one last time to make sure there was no movement that I could see, I jumped down from the tree and headed across the yard to the garden gate. I peered through the iron bars at the garden in the full moonlight. All was quiet, with no sign of a dog or thug. In the center of the garden in a circle around a silent fountain were six terra-cotta pots holding large bushy plants with showy white blooms. Only two of the six plants were blooming tonight. The others would bloom within the next few days.

Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out a lock pick that I had used for nearly three years on the gate-one of the few things the garden owner had never bothered to change. With a soft click, it swung open without a sound. I hesitated. Nothing moved in the garden. There was no breeze to stir the leaves, no nocturnal animals flitting about. It looked empty and safe, but my stomach churned as adrenaline pumped through my veins. I was missing something. There had to be more. Unfortunately, the only way for me to see anything was to step farther into the garden.

With my left hand, I waved once behind me, motioning for Trixie to approach while I stepped into the garden. I moved toward the house, peering into the darkened windows through slits in curtains and in between slats in blinds. My eyesight was no better than any other human's in darkness, but I saw nothing within the house. Turning back toward the garden, I watched as Trixie soundlessly moved between the plants along the little stone path to the center. The moonlight glided over her, caressing her curves. The small bone knife in her hand seemed to glow as she raised it to one of the flowers.

As she came away with a bloom cradled in her hand, I approached the center of the garden. Trixie tucked the blade away in her pocket and looked at me with a mocking expression. "You made this sound difficult."

I shrugged. "Some months are. He may not have had time to play tonight." Lifting one hand to cup her cheek, I leaned in to kiss her, but my body froze less than an inch from hers when I heard an out-of-place click. Trixie stiffened under my fingers as she heard it as well.

f.u.c.k. We had company.

The click that came from one of the garden doors to the house was followed by a much louder chunk from a shotgun as a round was chambered. Lifting my hand from Trixie's face, I held both hands open and out to my sides as I turned around.

A little old man with a bald head and a wrinkled face like a bulldog frowned at me as he held a shotgun pointed at me and Trixie. His skin was a nice chocolate brown, while his dark eyes were lost in the night. "Brought some help this time, didn't ya?"

"A shotgun, George?" I said with a sigh. "Do we really need a shotgun over a flower?"

The old man glared at me through thick gla.s.ses balanced on his round nose. The end of the gun trembled slightly as if he was already getting tired of pointing it at us. "This s.h.i.t is getting old. Sneaking into my garden, stealing my flowers. I thought a gun would show you that I mean business this time."

"Fine. Then let my a.s.sociate leave unharmed and we'll discuss it." Trixie b.u.mped my back with either her hand or elbow, I couldn't quite tell. She wasn't exactly pleased with my suggestion. Didn't matter. Bringing Trixie along for a silly romp through a garden at night was one thing. Letting an old man point a gun at her was entirely different, and I wasn't good with that.

"And let her leave with my flower? Not a chance?"

I clenched my teeth in my growing frustration. My fingertips tingled as the urge to draw in the energy to cast a protective spell was nearly overwhelming. "She'll leave it here."

"How did you catch us?" Trixie interrupted.

George graced her with a smug smile and he lowered the gun slightly. "I had a new laser grid installed last week. When you entered the center of the garden, it set off a silent alarm inside the house."

"Nice," Trixie purred, winning her an even wider grin from the old man. "But how did you get downstairs so fast? We watched the light go off on the second floor."

"The light was on a timer. I was on the first floor the whole time, waiting."

"Fabulous," I muttered. The old man was getting crafty and I was getting sloppy. Lesson learned? Don't bring your s.e.xy girlfriend along on a clandestine mission because you'll get distracted thinking about taking her clothes off when you should be worried about infrared laser grids.

Unfortunately, things were about to get more complicated as I spied a moving shadow to the right of the old man. I stifled a curse. Apparently I wasn't the only one who didn't care to have a shotgun pointed in Trixie's direction. As the shadow lunged at the old man, I pivoted on my right heel and plowed into Trixie, tackling her. Before we hit the ground, a shot echoed through the silent garden while buckshot ripped through plants directly overhead.

I raised up enough to look down at Trixie, her expression stunned. "He shot at us," she gasped.

"More likely the gun accidentally went off when he was knocked to the ground. Old George might be p.i.s.sed, but he isn't the violent type. Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I crushed plants instead of hitting concrete. What about my brother?"

"I'm sure he's fine," I said in a growl.

Eldon's timing was impeccable, leaving me to believe that the elf had been following us for quite a while. Not a good sign. As my problems with Reave grew more complicated, I didn't want to worry about Trixie and the Summer Court as well.

Pushing back to my feet, I extended a hand to Trixie, helping her up as I looked over my shoulder. Eldon was kneeling over George's body. I didn't think he'd kill the old man, but then this guy had been hunting his sister for centuries to turn her over to a man she didn't want to be with. There was no telling what Eldon was capable of.

I caught Trixie's arm as she tried to move around me toward Eldon. "Cut a new flower and get out of the garden. I'll be right behind you."

"But-"

"Please. Eldon's not here to cover our a.s.ses. He'll follow. We've got to go. I'm sure the cops are on the way after the neighbors called in that gunshot."

Trixie frowned, but still turned back toward the Asian Moon Lilies sitting serenely in their pots, watching this little play unravel. I jogged over to where Eldon was getting to his feet. He was frowning as well, but I never expected the elf to be happy to see me.

"Dead?" I asked.

"Unconscious. Are you done endangering my sister?"

I grinned, wishing I could put my fist into his pointed nose. "I would say she's safer with me than in your hands, considering your plans for her."

Even in the darkness, I could make out the flush that filled his pale cheeks while his eyes widened. "Life as consort to the king of the Summer Court is far preferable to a life as a . . . a . . . common-"

"Shut it, Eldon," Trixie snapped as she came up behind me. As my smile grew, she turned her glare on me. "You too. We need to get out of here."

Trixie led the way out of the garden, a brown paper bag clenched in one fist as she silently walked across the wide lawn to a stand of trees. I had parked my car on the other side a couple streets over. Eldon and I followed. No one spoke, mostly because neither Trixie nor I wanted to hear what had brought Eldon back to Low Town.

"Trix, wait," I called as she made it to the tree line. We were away from the house and hidden enough that we wouldn't draw the attention of the cops when they arrived. I couldn't put it off any longer.

When she stopped and turned back to face her brother, I could see tears glistening in her wide eyes. She was scared, but then, so was I. Three centuries ago, Trixie had left her home with the Summer Court and gone into hiding because the king was determined to take her as a second wife. She had changed her name, changed her appearance, and was in constant hiding as she turned her back on her people and her family. Sadly, her brother was a member of the royal guard, and had spent the past three centuries pursuing his sister in hopes of dragging her home against her wishes.

Grabbing Trixie's hand, I pulled her close, wrapping one arm around her waist. I needed to hold her, to feel her against me. If Eldon had come to take her back to the Summer Court, I had to hold her one last time because I knew that I'd either have to kill him or Trixie was going to run out of my life forever in hopes of staying out of the king's clutches.

"What's the news?" My voice was rough as I struggled to push aside my growing panic.

"Rowena, I'm hoping that this break has given you the time to think about your situation," Eldon began. I flinched at hearing Trixie's real name, brutally reminded of the long life she had lived with her people before she had been forced to run to protect her freedom. "Come back to your people, where you belong."

"No! She's not returning so she can be a plaything for a selfish a.s.shole!" I shouted.

"Selfish? The king is trying to protect our people by selflessly putting aside his desires so that he can ensure the continuation of our people."

"Bulls.h.i.t! He's a pompous p.r.i.c.k-"

I never saw Eldon's fist, he moved so quickly. Pain exploded across my jaw, snapping my head around and knocking me off balance. I recovered quickly, swinging two fists at him. He dodged both, but the kick to the stomach caught him by surprise. I slammed my fist into his chin, knocking him to the ground.

The elf rolled back to his feet and started to charge when Trixie jumped between us.

"Enough! You're acting like a pair of idiots."

I stepped back, breathing heavily, my eyes locked on Eldon. If he touched Trixie, I was going to be all over him again. Trixie's brother didn't appear to be winded at all, but at least he was rubbing his jaw.

"You're not the only one being hurt by your decision, Rowena," Eldon said in a low voice. "What remains of your family is hurting. My daughter is hurting. Come back, and you can start to make it right for everyone."

Pain slashed across Trixie's face at his words and I growled, ready to jump over Trixie to get at him. "You know I never meant to hurt you or our family. But what he wants, what he's doing, is wrong. Let me fix this, my way."

Eldon took a stiff step backward, his face becoming a blank slate. I didn't know what the elf thought. He was ready to hand his sister over to the king to be used as some kind of brood mare. Yes, I could understand trying to protect your people, but what about the happiness of your own flesh and blood?

"Do you have any news or are you here to hara.s.s Trixie?" I demanded, breaking the thickening silence.

Eldon glared at me for a second before he spoke. "The queen has agreed to meet with you. Tomorrow at noon at Mirror Lake."

"Anything else?" I said when he started to walk away.

"Don't be late."

Trixie reached out, catching his shirt with two fingers, halting him when he would have turned his back on us. "Eldon."

His shoulders slumped and he shook his head before looking at his sister. I wasn't sure who was older. They both could have pa.s.sed for midtwenties, even though I knew that Trixie was more than six hundred. They both had green eyes and blond hair, but Eldon's features seemed hard and cold to me, where Trixie was soft.

"Don't get your hopes up," he said, breaking the silence. "After the king's betrayal, I was lucky she didn't have me killed for seeking an audience with her."

Trixie gasped beside me, her fingers fisting around his shirt. I frowned. This wasn't a good sign. "Do you think she'll try to execute Trixie when we show up?"

"Possibly. But I think she's more interested in you."

"Then I take it she knows what I was?"

Eldon smiled at me; a cold, evil thing that made my skin crawl. "Was? You don't ever stop being one of them no matter what you do. And, yes, she knows what you are."

"Thank you, Eldon," Trixie interjected, trying to defuse some of the tension. I kept my mouth shut rather than adding to it. There wasn't much I could say. Witches and warlocks had brought the elves close to extinction during the Great War; not exactly something that is easily forgiven or ever forgotten. I may not have been the one killing elves, but I was counted as one of that race and that was condemning enough.

"You know you could avoid this need to meet with the queen," Eldon said, looking over at his sister.

"I'm not going to him. There has to be another way."

"I don't see it if there is." He started walking into the woods, his shirt pulling out of Trixie's grasp.

"How's my niece?" Trixie called in a voice that slightly wavered.

Eldon didn't look back as he continued to walk away. "Waiting to meet her aunt."

Trixie laid her head against my shoulder and sighed. She was in a s.h.i.tty position. Leaving the Summer Court had made her an outcast among her people. She'd never seen her only niece and she'd been at odds with her brother for centuries. Adding to her problems was that she'd chosen to align herself with a warlock-the most hated of creatures in this world. Even if she did win her freedom from the king, it was highly unlikely her people were ever going to welcome her back. Certainly not with me hanging on her arm.

I squeezed Trixie's waist, pressing her tightly against me. "We'll figure this out," I whispered against her hair. Trixie looked up at me and nodded, but there was no accompanying smile. I had a sick feeling that her thoughts were traveling in the same direction as mine, which didn't bode well for our relationship. I couldn't blame her. Bronx and I were family and friends as much as we could be, but blood ran so much deeper.