"The Fae are no longer restricting themselves to work to rule or house arrest. Last month they went back to their day to day routines and actually seemed more cooperative than before, with one exception. Any requests for information about Queen Mab is met with silence. They won't or can't speak about her. It's almost like she doesn't exist for them." Michelle gave Marisa a sympathetic look."She broke the deal." Eyes turned to Mahati, who continued. "When Queen Mab enacted her spell at the party, she broke the deal Henry made with her for the glamors for his friends. She requested three favors in return. The deal I brokered was simple: The favors cannot, in any way, impinge upon Henry's physical or mental freedom. They must not, in any way, endanger him physically or mentally. And those two conditions also applied to those Henry considered important to him."She watched that sink in with the other guests. "Mab used up her first favor making Henry assist with the healing of the Ogre. N

Jake's expression suddenly turned angry. "It's the damn Ruskies! They're sending drone clouds over here to... to...""Zap our wheat?" Sam asked, suppressing his grin."Yes! Zap our--" Jake caught the amusement in Sam's eyes. "Fuck you! What's your idea then?""Ain't got one yet. I need more information. Help me look for the controller. It should have fallen in the same place as this shiny stuff or close by."The two men carefully inspected the ground. Sam paused to use a broken wheat stalk to poke several foil strips into one compartment of his plastic lunch container. The foil was so thin, he was afraid touching them with his fingers might tear it. The box protected it well enough, and he slipped it back into the lunch bag."Sam! I found something!" Jake yelled out.Sam hustled over to Jake's side to see what he was looking at. Hanging on some bent over wheat stalks was a thin mesh of fine gold threads roughly two-foot square. At each thread intersection was a flat, oval translucent

They all looked back at the commotion their sighting had caused. This far away, they were invisible in the dark, but they weren't going to take any chances."I think we're going to need to stick to night time outings. With this shiny coating, we'll draw too much of that kind of attention in the daylight." Jake suggested.Sam thought that was good advice and nodded with a smile. Besides, he was too charged up to think about sleeping."Where do we go now?" Brenda asked. She was still riding the high from the running and from the energy she got from the magically charged and enhanced wheat field.Sam looked to the far horizon and saw a distant flash. He reached out to take Jeannie's hand. She smiled the moment she picked up his intent through their connection. Words were redundant. She reached for Brenda's hand, and that woman held Jake's hand. They all shared a grin.Storm chasing it was.-=-Colonel Crane watched in frustration as the four silver beings raced away at inhuman speeds. "W

"You have a lovely home Henry," Camila said with a smile."I have you to thank for that." He paused as he had an epiphany. He looked her in the eye as he took her hands in his. "I have you to thank for so much more.""Oh! Ah, well... I-- you--" Camila stumbled with her words as her face heated up. Marisa burst into giggles as she watched her mother become tongue-tied. Camila shot her an annoyed look. When Henry's lips pressed against her cheek, she gasped and blinked at him as an unfamiliar emotion surged in her chest. She smiled and couldn't stop. "Thank you, Henry."Marisa was still grinning at her mother's bewilderment when Henry took her hands in his next. Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked at him cautiously."I believe you may have some inkling how grateful I am that you were there when I first started at VRL and for how you came to my rescue again and again. I wouldn't have made it this far without you at my side," he said sincerely and watched Marisa's mouth open and cl

Dayshia's eyebrow rose up and seemed to disappear into the mass of curls. "Is that even possible!?!" she gasped.Mahati nodded cautiously. "I'm no expert in Wild Magic, but for traditional magic, it's the strength of the will and desire that shapes the capabilities of the magic. Considering her only other option appears to be madness, I think if Henry's willing, it's worth an attempt.""I'll speak to him about it when he wakes," Tish said."Let's go speak with Yuko about it. She woke up, and Jun is talking with her, but I'm glad Kesini has a firm grip on her," Dayshia said.Sharing worried looks, Tish and Mahati followed Dayshia back out to the living room. Tish noticed there was no sign of Kali."WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HENRY!" Yuko spat as she tried to thrash loose from Kesini's coils. She was standing but unable to move."Nothing. Henry is resting comfortably after Dayshia and I healed the injuries he sustained in the brief skirmish," the lawyer explained.Yuko glared at Mahati but s