Head lowered, Lanias continued calmly on her way, her hands hidden within the pockets of her coat as she bypassed a group of people sheltering under a bus stop hangover.
Turning down a back alley, she disappeared from sight as she entered the darkness, leaving those who’d spotted her change in direction to hold a slight worry. Nashville wasn’t as peaceful as it presented itself to be in magazines. There were places one should never go wearing expensive brands. And the alley near Carters was one of them.
She continued on her way as she passed under a window with a man hanging out of it. He shouted orders to a man below who was carrying a large bag of trash. A large cloud of steam streamed out of the door as the clashing of dishes could be heard. The man paused with surprise; he watched her pass without a word.
Coming to the end of the alleyway, she stopped in front of a brick wall that was a pale grey color. She pulled her right hand out and placed it against the cool stone. Her lips parted as she whispered. “Reveal.”
The wall of stones shuddered like a bag of marbles that had been spilled out. The Veil lowered just enough so that she could cross over.
The back alley went from a dank, dark place, to a brightly lit area filled with Chinese lamps and red banners strung here and there above. The soft echo of traditional Chinese music filled the night sky. Walking past the spirits who were making their way toward the illuminated high pagoda that was in the distance, she lifted her hands to draw her hood lower in case anyone bumped into her.
Spotting her destination ahead, she picked up her pace. The location she’d been given was a small tea shop, the lights of spirits not strong enough to take full form hung in the air like lightning bugs before they flittered away like falling leaves.
Brushing some of the drifting lights off her shoulders she entered the tea shop. The smell of jasmine and chrysanthemumsfilled her nose. She covered her nose as the smell was a bit overwhelming.
“Madame,” someone smoothly called from behind the counter. The speaker wore white powder foundation, with a heart-shaped red lip. Her robes were a mix of red and orange which made her appear like a flower amongst the many brown vases that decorated the wall behind her. Each vase held a Chinese character labeling what lay inside. The light above was not a lamp, but a single ball of fire that remained overhead no matter how the wind blew in from outside.
“Or is it just Lanias now?”
Reaching up, Lanias moved her hood back, exposing her plain face to the tea house madame. She didn’t feel fear as she walked past the spirit customers. “Xi-wangmu, you should know the answer to that better than me.”
Xi-wangmu offered her a sanguine smile. “I rarely hear news about Veil City. If I do, it’s not usually from a reliable source,” she said, shooting a glance to her clientele who were sitting straight back, hands braced on their knees. The steaming cups of tea before them changed colors as either tears or smiles graced their faces. “I only focus on brewing my tea of laments and memories for those who cannot move on. Still humor me, and let me guess to why you’ve come here.”
She gathered her hands together at the counter, her rheumy eyes meeting Lanias’. “You are here for the Golem.”
It wasn’t a question.
Lanias nodded, glancing toward the back hallway. “Is he here?”
“Yes, he’s also brought with him a friend.” Xi-wangmu said calmly, she moved her right hand and rested it open palmed on the counter. “That will cost you a memory.”
Lanias raised her hand decisively, but just before she pressed her two fingers to her head, she hesitated. She had manymemories. They all meant something to her. A flicker of loss hit her, but as always, she did not change her mind. Pressing her fingers to her forehead, she drew them back, and a colorful lace-like material came with them.“I don’t remember asking you to betray him.” She placed the lace of her interwoven memories into Xi-wangmu’s hand. “But it will make my next choice less difficult.”
Closing her hand on the memory, Xi-wangmu’s eyes turned black before she reopened her hand. A small-sized black vase now sat in it. She smiled. “Your memories are always so deep and dark, certain people would enjoy their flavor.”
Lanias eyed her before she turned away, “Well someone should enjoy them.”
She’d spent months searching for any clues that could lead her to her father.
Her identity was pivotal to why the Witches had been taken and experimented on. Part of her wanted to find her father and take his head, but she also felt great curiosity and a need to learn about her origins.
Every time she even dared to use the name Surrem, her road was blocked.
Faking her death had been the right thing to do, whoever had been intent on preventing her from finding out about her origin was now free to believe she was dead.
So far, she’d faced pushbacks only from those who wished to keep their secrets hidden.
Lanias knew a lot about secrets, she’d carried many before she’d even learned how to spell her name. Her uncle wasn’t her uncle, her mother wasn’t really her mother and so on it went. The only person in her entire life who’d remained honest and unbent by the world around them was her sister Sabina.
Lanias had spent her own early years as some type of protected product until Legolas had assisted the Council ingathering young Witches of power to weed out the numb ones. Fear and greed had brought suffering to her people and her sister.
Lanias paused at the threshold to the back. A beaded curtain hung between her and the man who supposedly had answers for her. She glanced over her shoulder, once more seeing if anyone had spotted her. Facing forward she entered with no hesitation.
“You’ve come earlier than planned.”
The Golem Gaul across from her said, his wrinkled small sized body was an abomination to the tailored suit he wore. A Golem was similar to a human with two arms, legs, two eyes and ears. But a human aged over time, a golem came into the world bent backed, grey skinned and nose drippy. Those greenish eyes, the color of mucus, slid toward the clock on the wall, while his long fingers tightened on his cane.
Gaul always adorned himself with shiny watches, and gold rings. He needed things like this to make himself feel better, Lanias looked from him to the two black-skinned demons standing behind him.
