The Long Goodnight by Selene Charles

Author:Selene Charles
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: SeleneCharlesPublishing
Published: 2018-10-28T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10

Detective Elle

I STARED AT THE MOUNTAINOUS stronghold in the distance. It was nothing but jagged shelves of loose gray shale with thickly striated rust-colored bands punching through the sky like serrated and broken teeth. Large canyons wound around it like a serpent’s tail. There were massive bat-winged creatures the darkest shade of ebony flying in formation around the mountain’s highest peak. The sun was setting, and the sky was a blaze of deep orange, rich indigo, and pale blue. Sniffing the air, I scented the iron-rich tang of blood and the rotten sweetness of viscera. There had been death there, but being that it was faery land, Grimm PD wouldn’t have been notified. The fae had their own brand of justice, and it was a sight bloodier than ours. That was certain.

Where most of Neverland was little more than forested jungle with canopies and ropey drawbridges that formed massive citadels in the skies, this section was an emerald-green sea of rolling grass and flowers in every shade and bloom imaginable, with massive trees as ancient as Neverland itself standing sentinel. Insects with their chitinous armor gleaming like polished rubies flew by in a blurred rush, all of them unerringly heading in the direction of the massive fae stronghold.

I shivered and gently grazed my palm against the comforting hilt of my weapon strapped to my outer thigh. No matter how big, strong, or terrifying, all fae had one rather significant weakness.

I’d already loaded my Glock with iron bullets. Clenching down on my back teeth, I studied the landscape, looking for any signs of intelligent life, guards or even a regular passerby. Anyone would do at that point, so long as they were of fae heritage and could grant me temporary asylum to pass through.

Coming unescorted into fae lands during the day was less than fun, but at night, it could potentially be a lethal endeavor. Faeries, no matter how cute and innocent they looked, were predators first and foremost.

It might be Neverland, but make no mistake that this section, at least, was ruled by Titiana, and she’d done me no favors by asking me to drop by without offer of a guard.

I felt the strength of fae magick in every breath I took. The saturation of potent earth energy seeped up like a wet blanket from the ground itself, making me feel as though I were breathing through a thick fog bank.

My skin tingled as I continued to gaze at the endless expanse of land and sky. The night was far too quiet, too still. Something was wrong. I could taste it on my tongue, feel the urgency of it ride through my bones.

Again, I sniffed the air, and this time, I caught wind of another scent—moss and dank, rich earth and even more subtly, petrichor and iron, a smell that only resulted from a mixture of water and earth and blood.

Kneeling, I reached out to caress the blades of grass beside me—as dry as a bone. I tapped my finger upon the soil, which was as dry as the sands Ichabod had stored at his home.

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