Vex, “Aunt Malvie is often cranky for no reason. You wouldn’t believe how she talks to me sometimes. It’s scandalous. Did you hear I was officially adopted?”
The Duchess intimated that the happy news had indeed reached her during her self-imposed exile.
“That’s a nice-looking dress you have, Agrivex.”
Agrivex scowled at the garment. “It’s for the reception tonight, for the minor dragon keeper or something like that.” A cunning look came into her eyes. “Is your brother Duke Garfire going to the reception?”
“He will be,” said the Duchess.
“Didn’t he once try and cozy up to the Queen? When he was younger? I’m sure I heard some handmaidens talking about it some time.”
The Duchess looked rather embarrassed, as if it were an episode of which she’d rather not be reminded.
“There may have been a fleeting moment when he . . . Why do you ask?”
“No reason,” said Vex airily. “No reason at all. Except I did hear Aunt Malvie mention just the other day how much she missed good old Duke Garfire and wished he was around. It was right after First Minister Xakthan was telling her she should get married.”
“The Queen really said that?”
“She did. Well, I must get myself into this dress.”
Agrivex departed, satisfied with a job well done. Behind her the Duchess looked thoughtful, then abandoned her stroll to hurry off and talk to her brother the Duke.
Dominil noticed an air of unease as she entered the dark stone edifice of Castle MacRinnalch. The werewolves who opened the gate were watchful and alert, more so than normal. Here, at the castle, the very center of the MacRinnalch’s world, there had been little need for tight security in recent years. It was more than two hundred years since the castle had been attacked by outsiders. The Avenaris Guild had never dared trouble them here. Yet it was only a few months ago that the hunters made their presence felt in Scotland. They’d attacked an event in Edinburgh that had been hosted by the Mistress of the Werewolves. Edinburgh was far to the south, but close enough to make the werewolves mindful of danger. Now Minerva had been killed in the Highlands. It was a shocking occurrence, and one that suggested that the hunters were becoming bolder.
Thane Markus was waiting for Dominil. He greeted her in the courtyard.
“Is Thrix here?” asked Dominil. “How is she?”
“Barely sane,” replied Markus.
Dominil nodded. She hadn’t expected the Enchantress to have calmed down. They walked through the central courtyard together.
“Thrix thinks we should go to war,” said Markus. “She might be right.”
“I doubt the Mistress of the Werewolves will agree,” said Dominil.
“You might be surprised. She was furious after her charity event was attacked.”
As they left the courtyard the moon came up. Everyone in the castle took on their werewolf shape. Dominil and Markus continued their conversation without a break.
“I called an emergency council meeting,” said Markus.
“Are there enough of us?”
“Just about. Marwanis isn’t here, of course. She’s still not forgiven us for the death of Sarapen. Beauty and Delicious aren’t here, but they wouldn’t come anyway. And Kalix . . .”
“The makeup of the council really isn’t suitable any more,” said Dominil. “It’s a hangover from the old days when every relative of the Thane was automatically appointed. But in those days young werewolves didn’t disappear off to London to be rock stars.”
Markus nodded. He knew that the council hadn’t been functioning properly. There were meant to be seventeen members, but Dulupina was becoming too old to attend, and the twins never did. Decembrius had shown no interest in appearing since his elevation. Marwanis refused all attempts at reconciliation. As for Kalix, it seemed almost comical that she’d ever been appointed to the council. She’d gained her place automatically as a child of the old Thane, but had been banished before attending a meeting.
“So six of the seventeen won’t be there,” said Dominil. “The others?”
“I got word to the barons,” said Markus. “And the others are here. Eleven is enough for a meeting.”
“A meeting containing all our most conservative members,” Dominil pointed out. “The barons always want a quiet life. So does my father.”
Dominil’s father Tupan was brother to the old Thane. He was a respectable werewolf, and not the sort to encourage the clan to make war on the Guild. They carried on through the dark stone corridors of the castle.
“Do you need long to get ready?”
“Five minutes,” said Dominil, who carried her small bag of belongings over her shoulder.
“How was Kalix?”
“Healthy enough, last time I saw her. She’ll be back in London by now.”
Markus paused. “Thrix wasn’t very clear about things, but I gather she blames Kalix for Minerva’s death.”
Dominil made no reply.
“Was it her fault?” urged Markus.
“Let’s talk about it at the meeting.”
“How can you possibly have lost Kalix?” demanded Moonglow.
Daniel was both shamefaced and exasperated, having already answered this question three times.
“I had to stop for gas. I went to pay for it, and when I got back to the car she wasn’t there.”
“Didn’t you see where she went?”
“No. I drove around looking but she’d vanished.”
Moonglow could hardly believe that Daniel, having successfully picked up Kalix at the airport, had lost her on the way home. She stared out the window. “It’s getting dark. This is the third wolf night. Kalix will change.”
“She’s changed hundreds of times. She’ll be all right.”
“Was she wearing her pendant?” asked Moonglow.
Kalix’s pendant, a mystic item given to her by the Fire Queen, kept her safe from prying eyes, hiding her werewolf nature from the hunters.
“I never notice jewelry. She was probably wearing it.”
Moonglow was not reassured. “It won’t hide her if she runs around the streets as a werewolf. Why did she get out of the car? What did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything,” protested Daniel. “I went and picked her up at the airport. At short notice, which was helpful of me. I can’t help it if she did a runner on the way home.”
“Did you insult her? You know how sensitive Kalix is.”
Daniel insisted that he hadn’t insulted Kalix, but Moonglow was no longer listening. She was putting on her shoes and picking up her keys. “I’m going to look for her.”
“How?” asked Daniel. “When she’s a werewolf, she can climb over buildings and hide in parks. We’ll never find her.”
“I’m going to try.” Moonglow frowned quite deeply. “I knew something bad would happen. Every time Kalix goes away on werewolf business, something bad happens.”
“She had a bruise on her face,”