around her eyes disappeared as well.
She
looked perfect. It might be an
illusion, but it was a damned good one.
What is taking so long, niece? Queen
Lopaka’s imperious voice intruded on
my thoughts. Normally she’s gentle, but
now she was worried and irritated.
We’ve had a bit of a … complication.
Everything is fine. But we need another
minute or two, and Arkady and Olga
won’t be attending.
There was a pause but then she
answered smoothly. I will warn the
musical director. You are sure Adriana
is all right? Her voice in my head is
very faint.
I looked at my hand. No wonder the
queen had been able to reach me through
the privacy shields. She gave me her
ring.
Oh. The queen’s mental voice didn’t
sound any too pleased about that. I
hoped I hadn’t gotten Adriana in trouble
with her mother. But I didn’t have time
to worry about that now. As she’d so
aptly pointed out, we were running late.
“Let’s go, folks. The queen just told
me the natives are getting restless.”
King Dahlmar and Adriana knelt. The
priest crowned them, wrapped their
hands together with ribbon, and spoke
his part very quickly before unwrapping
their hands and moving out of the way.
Adriana hit the secret button again.
When the door appeared, Lars and
Thorsen dragged Anton’s corpse and the
struggling spawn into the secret room.
Sergei, Natasha, and I set to work
grabbing rags and cleaning blood from
the foyer floor and furnishings.
The results weren’t perfect, but when
we threw the bloodied rags into the
treasure closet and closed the entrance, I
looked around carefully. If you hadn’t
known what had happened, you probably
wouldn’t notice, particularly with the
crowds of people that would be soon
passing through.
“It will do,” Adriana assured me.
“Now, everyone take your places.”
Igor came up beside me, taking my
arm. “Do I look okay?” I asked.
“You look lovely,” he assured me.
“No blood anywhere.”
“Oh good.”
35
The rest of the ceremony went off
without a hitch. Of course there were
questions raised about where Olga and
Arkady had gone, but Igor lied
beautifully, telling everyone that the
prince and his daughter had insisted on
standing
guard
over
the
newly
discovered treasures. We’d actually left
Gunnar Thorsen outside the secret room;
Igor had cast an illusion on him to make
him look like Prince Arkady.
It seemed like a thin excuse to me;
after all, the treasures had been safely
hidden for many years without anyone
guarding them. But if anyone doubted
Igor, they didn’t say anything. Probably
because there were too many other
things going on.
It was finally done. King Dahlmar and
Queen Adriana were now fully wed in
the eyes of the church and by the laws of
both of their countries. I was out of a job
and I couldn’t have been more elated.
Dahlmar and Adriana had left the
the guests as the newlyweds departed,
people thought they were getting an early
start on their honeymoon, but I knew they
were going to take care of questioning
Arkady and to finish tidying up what had
happened earlier. I expected Thorsen,
Igor, and Creede’s people had already
cleaned out the treasure closet and
conveyed the hidden riches, the corpse,
and the prisoner to their appropriate
destinations. I wasn’t in the loop
anymore and, God help me, I didn’t want
to be.
I was done to the point of being
crispy. I’d put on a good show during the
church service and danced a couple of
dances at the party, and I was more than
ready to go back to my room, take the
pretty pink pills Dr. Shablinski had
given me, and try to sleep.
“You look like you need a drink, and
you’re walking like your feet hurt,”
Bruno observed as he led me off the
dance floor.
“I do and they do.”
“Then sit. I’ll be right back.”
It sounded like such a wonderful idea
I did just that. Hoping no one would
notice, I reached down to slip off my
offending footwear. The relief was
immediate and intense enough that I
closed my eyes and gave a deep,
pleasurable sigh. A soft cough, and I
opened my eyes to find Queen Lopaka
and Gunnar Thorsen had joined me.
Lopaka sank gracefully into the seat
across from me. Gunnar stood over her
protectively, making sure we could
speak without interruption.
“I wanted to thank you in person,” the
queen said, speaking softly enough that
no one passing by could hear. I was
honored by the fact that she spoke aloud,
knowing that I preferred audible speech
to voices in my head. Adriana’s gift to
me hadn’t changed that—yet.
“It was my pleasure.” I smiled at her.
“I appreciate it more than you can
know. My prophet tells me that Adriana
and Dahlmar will be very happy and that
he will live a long and prosperous life;
when he dies, he will know that their
grown son will safely ascend to the
throne.” She smiled. “I am looking
forward to being a grandmother, and I
am delighted to see my daughter so
joyful.”
“So am I.”
“Tell me, what can I do to repay you?
Surely there is something.”
I thought about it for a moment. What
did I want from the queen of the sirens?
The answer came to me. Something
had been bothering me, nagging at the
back of my mind since the interrogation
of the man who’d tried to kidnap my
grandmother. I was, at least in part,
responsible for the hatred that had
caused the Guardians of the Faith to be
formed. My actions had been a catalyst. I
couldn’t change the past. But I might be
able to make amends for my part of what
had happened. I at least needed to try.
“I need to know something.”
“Yes?”
“When a mind is broken by siren
power, can it be fixed? Can they ever be
normal again?”
The light left Lopaka’s face. I felt her
mind focus on mine. Why do you ask
this, niece?
Oh, she was not happy. She didn’t
want to show it, not in the middle of the
reception, so she’d switched to mental
speech. I felt bad. This was a party, a
celebration, and I was ruining it for her.
Never mind. I’m sorry. This isn’t the
time. We can talk about it later.
No. Something is weighing on your
mind and conscience. I want to help
you with this burden if I can. Tell me.
So I did, mind to mind. I told her how
my battle with Eirene had destroyed the
minds of the men we were fighting over,
turning them into drooling idiots. I
confessed that I’d been too ashamed, too
afraid, to check on them, and that my
actions and Eirene’s had been part of the
root cause of the terrorist movement
against the sirens.
I felt tears burn at my eyes as I
confessed to her. I didn’t mean to harm
those men. I want to fix it, to help them
if I can. But I don’t know how. I don’t
even know if it is possible.
She let out a slow breath and looked
around the room as if seeking an answer.
Celia, there were good reasons why we
sirens retreated to our islands. It
wasn’t just to protect ourselves. We
were protecting humanity as well. Our
powers can be very terrible. It is a
great burden to try to use them wisely.
I was afraid of that. But if I could find
those men, is there anything I can do
for them?
I do not know. But if you wish it, we
can try.
I do. Very much.
Then we will speak of this again. In a
few weeks, after you’ve had a chance to
recover.
Thank you.
You’re very welcome. She smiled. I
see the mage DeLuca coming with your
drinks. I believe I’ll leave you to his
tender care.
Bruno was coming all right, and he
wasn’t alone. Sergei and Natasha were
behind him, holding hands. Gilda and
Isaac Levy, along with Lars, brought up
the rear of the little procession. Bruno
toted a pitcher filled with what looked
suspiciously like margaritas, and the rest
were carrying plates of food, some of
which it appeared they’d imposed on the
kitchen to run through a blender.
Adriana’s ring pulsed on my finger
and I knew without being told that they
were all coming to cheer me up and to
distract me from my troubles. It was
very nice of them and I was sure they’d
be terribly disappointed if it didn’t
work.
Well, I couldn’t let that happen.
So I drank … a little. I had liquified
roast and vegetables. Later, Lars even
enticed me out onto the dance floor.
Tomorrow I’d have to face my
problems. But that was tomorrow.
Tonight I let my friends help me relax
and live in the moment, and if it wasn’t
perfect, it was still pretty damned good.
Tor Paranormal Romance Books by C. T. Adams and
Cathy Clamp
THE SAZI
Hunter’s Moon
Moon’s Web
Captive Moon
Howling Moon
Moon’s Fury
Timeless Moon
Cold Moon Rising
Serpent Moon
THE THRALL
Touch of Evil
Touch of Madness
Touch of Darkness
WRITING AS CAT ADAM S
Magic’s Design
Blood Song
Siren Song
Demon Song
Isis Collar
The Eldritch Conspiracy
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Cat Adams is the author of four previous
Blood Singer urban fantasy novels:
Blood Song, Siren Song, Demon Song,
and The Isis Collar.
Cat Adams is the joint pen name of C. T.
Adams and Cathy Clamp, who live in a
small town deep in the heart of Texas.
They are USA Today bestselling authors
with their Thrall series, which begins
w i t h Touch of Evil, and with their
critically acclaimed Sazi series, which
begins with Hunter’s Moon.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are
either products of the authors’ imaginations or are used
fictitiously.
THE ELDRITCH CONSPIRACY
Copyright © 2013 by C. T. Adams and Cathy Clamp
All rights reserved.
Cover art by Craig White
A Tor Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
www.tor-forge.com
Tor® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty
Associates, LLC.
ISBN 978-0-7653-2874-8 (trade paperback)
ISBN 9781429948265 (e-book)
First Edition: January 2013
Document Outline
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication and Acknowledgments
Authors’ Note
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Tor Paranormal Romance Books by C. T. Adams and Cathy Clamp
About the Author
Copyright