The humans that had been watching on the sidewalk were now gossiping with other nonmagical neighbors as they watched the spectacle.
“That resolved a lot easier than I thought it would,” Brody announced as he slammed a car door shut. “I thought we’d have to fight to get them charged with anything, but they practically put a bow on themselves.”
“Yes,” I said, still not satisfied.
“I thought it was plenty hard,” Juggernaut grumbled. “We just lucked out that House Tellier didn’t do more—it could have.”
“Yes,” Sarge agreed as he glanced back at the magical House. “It seems it isn’t on good terms with its current Adepts.”
“Thankfully!” Captain Reese cheerfully said. “Let’s move out! Keep an eye out for any potential attackers en route. Just in case!”
“Yes, Captain!”
“You got it, Captain!”
As the team shouted out their responses, my cellphone buzzed in my pocket.
I checked my messages as I approached the car I’d been assigned to. April had driven, and it was just the two of us for the drive home—probably because Sarge didn’t want to risk the Telliers complaining about House Medeis’s vendetta against them.
Sunshine had gotten back to my text.
Sunshine
The only thing I can think of that includes 29 days is the cycle of the moon. A full cycle is technically every 29.5 days. No idea why that would matter to Orrin. Fae magic isn’t dependent on the moon cycle.
Are there any kinds of magic that are?
Before I could even open the passenger door, Sunshine responded.
Sunshine
There are elf artifacts and weapons that survived until today that have powers that would wax and wane in power in 29.5 days to model the moon cycle, so it’s assumed some elves used magics that operated similarly.
You mean they are most powerful on a full moon or something?
Sunshine
Some, but not necessarily only a full or new moon. It was more like they used the lunar cycle to mark a power cycle, so it could be tied to any day within a 29.5-day moon cycle.
I fired off a text to thank Sunshine for her help, then slowly opened the car door while pondering Sunshine’s revelation.Elf artifacts and weapons… Maybe Orrin could have been referring to one? But why?
During the conversation, Orrin had referenced twenty-nine days, and that he believed I wouldn’t need to come back again. Obviously, he’d felt like he’d delivered information I needed to put together…something, but what?
Had I missed something else he’d said—or maybe not said?
I eased myself down into the front passenger seat of the car, double checking my weapons on autopilot before I closed the car door.
The night we captured Orrin, he said he had to finish things that night. We know he’d been testing Tutu’s seals with his creatures, so he was attempting to… break in? Blow the place up?
We’d never found out because of Orrin’s geas. Andsomehow, Orrin thought he’d given me enough information to go by.
April opened the car door and hopped in, rocking the car. “Ready, Blood?” she asked as she buckled her seatbelt.
I reached for my seatbelt and absently nodded.
If Tutu’s was the goal—whether breaking into it or trying to damage it—how could that be related to the 29 days thing? Is that why Orrin had said he had to finish it the night we got him? Because of elven magic going through a lunar cycle power up?
He’d used an elven necklace to make the gates he used to summon fae monsters, but we already knew that necklace had a seven-day power cycle.
