Chapter 8

She found him standing in the middle of the living room, with his back turned to her, his shoulders square and his feet shoulder length apart. He lifted his face and turned it halfway to gaze at her out of the corner of his eye. The late afternoon sun poured through the windows of Lauren's apartment, turning the room golden, almost ethereal. A halo of light glowed around Dyson's dark blond curls.

Tamsin picked her way carefully around the door that had been smashed off its hinges and lay in a splintered pile on the floor. Just as Dyson had informed her over the phone not twenty minutes ago: aside from the forced entry, there seemed to be no other sign of struggle.

"How's Bo taking this?" Dyson asked in greeting as he turned to face his new partner. His face was scrunched up into a frown. "What were you doing at Bo's anyway? Does this have something to do with the case the Morrigan put you on this morning?"

Tamsin sighed in response. Of course he'd done enough digging to find out about her meeting with the leader of the Dark Fae earlier that day. He may have even spoken to the tech guys she'd consulted with that morning to discover just what she'd been up to. She took a moment to think about her answer and meandered over to the kitchen counter. Her fingers hovered over the smooth, clean surface for a moment while she looked around at the scene.

"Her coat's missing," she chose to ignore his questions, and instead, pointed at the empty coat rack by the door. Lauren's brown leather jacket was gone. Tamsin's pale green eyes flickered to the floor at Dyson's feet, "but her phone and briefcase are still here."

One of Dyson's eyebrows twitched before they both fell into a frown, he knelt to the floor and brushed his fingers over Lauren's phone. He'd seen it earlier, of course, had noticed everything the blond detective was pointing out to him now. But aside from the empty coat rack, the busted door and Lauren's phone on the floor, nothing seemed out of place. There was very little to go on.

"Tamsin, you have to bring me in on this. I can help you," he fought to keep the annoyance he felt out of his voice, and tried to cajole instead. He barely managed quiet insistence.

"How's the scene upstairs? Any sign of struggle there?" Tamsin wandered to the steps, her hands hovering over the railing. She was careful to avoid all eye contact with Dyson. As far as she was concerned, he was on a need to know basis, and right now, he didn't need to know. For all the Valkyrie knew, this could be something else entirely. The Dark had coveted Lauren for almost as long as the doctor had been the ward of the Ash, for example. However, Tamsin doubted that the Morrigan would risk the outbreak of another Fae war for the sake of a human, no matter how genius she was or valuable she proved to be.

"No. No sign of struggle. Tamsin," in one fluid motion, Dyson rose and crossed the room to grab Tamsin's arm, pulling her around to force her to face him, "tell me what's going on!" This time, he didn't bother to hide the anger and irritation in his voice. His eyebrows were knit together in a frown, the lines deepening across his forehead and around his mouth.

A gust of air blew out between the Valkyrie's lips and her jaw jutted forward stubbornly. Finally, she looked up to meet the Wolf's pale blue eyes.

"Do you smell anything? Anything Fae?"

Dyson's lips pursed angrily, and he ground his teeth together. Still, he stepped back and took in a deep breath. The whites of his eyes darkened to black and his irises shone gold with the eyes of his Wolf as he took in the scents of the apartment. His angry scowl turned into a confused frown.

"Bear. And… sea water…" The Shifter shook his head sharply, as if trying to clear his thoughts. Tamsin's face scrunched in annoyed understanding, eliciting another glare from her partner. "This means something to you. Tell me what you know. Tamsin, I can help you," Dyson's voice dipped to a harsh, growling whisper, he was pleading with her now, "we are partners, remember?"

The Valkyrie looked about her, drinking in every clue, every indication that this time, it hadn't been Redcaps sent to capture Lauren, but that the gentleman in charge had come himself in order to take Lauren into his custody. The broken door and the scent of Bear told her he hadn't come alone: but the way the rest of the apartment seemed to be more or less in order told her that Dolph hadn't come alone either, and that the Redcaps under his employ hadn't come at all.

If her suspicions were correct, O'Meara had stepped up his game. He had made this personal. Not only to Maia, but to Bo. And Fae cared nothing for humans, Maia was nothing more than a pawn to stir Bo's sympathies, to draw the Succubus right to his doorstep. But why?

"I'll tell you everything on the way. Right now, we need to move, and I have to call Bo." Tamsin was already at the broken threshold, her cell phone in hand. Dyson twisted and stared at her, confusion and worry written in the lines drawn across his face. She paused and cocked her eyebrow at him, "you coming?"

"Where are we going?" Dyson was by her side in an instant, his longer legs easily catching up to the smart clip Tamsin set as they turned the corner and left Lauren's apartment behind.

"The Dal. We're going to need Trick's expertise with this one."

Maia cursed under her breath as she unfolded herself out of the backseat of Bo's Camaro yet again. Her battered waist and shoulder seemed to hurt a little less, though Maia wasn't sure if it was simply because she was getting used to the steady throb or simply the fact that she was a quick healer. Her arm and wrist ached relentlessly, and the cast she wore itched terribly. She pushed her glasses up her nose and brushed her fingers through her hair, assessing the sharp flare of pain that exploded from her shoulder blade and spiked across her back and ribs, and the way her bruised and swollen eye pounded against the added pressure of the rims of her glasses. Maybe a little bit of both.

Bo stepped around the wincing girl and slammed the door shut for her, a kinder gesture than Kenzi and Vex had managed. They had already vanished behind the Dal's heavy wooden door.

"Bo," Maia grasped at Bo's arm and squeezed gently, calling the Succubus' attention to her. Bo paused, took a deep breath to gather her frayed emotions, and turned to face Maia. The worry in her dark eyes pulled at Maia's heartstrings. "We'll find her, Bo," one small, bare brown eye held fast to larger, black lined ones, and Maia leaned in and wrapped a thin arm around the anxious woman standing across from her. Bo stiffened at first, then sighed heavily and returned the hug. If anyone could possibly understand the fear and anxiety Bo was experiencing over Lauren, it was the beaten, fragile human that embraced her.

"I'm so sorry, Bo," Maia mumbled softly into Bo's hair, in a whisper so quiet, Bo wasn't sure she'd been meant to hear it.

The dark-haired Succubus pulled away and grasped Maia's shoulders. Her nostrils flared a little as she looked into Maia's frightened, sorry eyes and grit her teeth against the resentment she wanted to feel, tried not to feel, in that moment.

"We will find them. Both of them. This is not your fault, Maia," her words carried such conviction that Bo found that she believed them herself. She offered Maia a small mirthless smile.

Maia smiled back around the healing splits in her lip, though the smile never reached her eyes, and followed Bo inside.

Kenzi and Vex were already settled at their favorite stools at the bar, frosted, frothing mugs of beer in hand, and were nattering away together. Bo settled on a stool beside her best friend and leaned heavily against the cold, hard surface. Trick raised an eyebrow at his granddaughter and looked her over. Sympathy and concern shone clear in his wise old eyes.

"Hey," he greeted monosyllabically and pushed a cold mug of beer her way. Kenzi threw an arm across her bestie's shoulders, who promptly shrugged it back off.

"Tamsin and Dyson here yet?" Bo asked, too anxious and impatient to deal with any niceties. She wrapped her hands around the cold drink. Maia settled in the stool beside her hesitantly, clearly feeling uncomfortable and out of place.

"No, not yet," Trick frowned at the human shrugging into her seat. Kenzi had been given the responsibility of explaining the situation to him while Bo drove over, with a little help from Vex, and they hadn't been exactly subtle when they glossed over the events of the evening before. Still, it had been hard to picture the depth of the scraggy human's abuse until she edged into her seat, flinching against her aching wounds and settling her cast over the smooth, polished surface of the bar.

The barkeep slid a cold beer in her direction, his eyes flickering over the swollen eye and stitches above them, observing the pained way in which she moved and the tiny smile of appreciation she offered in return for the drink. Rather than take a sip, Maia leaned down to press the bruised side of her face against the cold glass in an attempt to soothe the hot pain that pounded relentlessly along it. Lauren had warned her against drinking alcohol that morning, and as tempting as it was to down the relaxing substance, she trusted that the doctor knew what she was talking about when she'd told her it would slow down her recuperation from last night's concussion.

Dyson and Tamsin were not long in arriving. The Valkyrie stalked into the Dal with the Wolf at her heels and made a beeline for one of the large trestle tables in the middle. The bar was still rather quiet, it was late in the afternoon, but still too early for most of its regulars to have started coming in yet. Bo, Maia, Vex and Kenzi each grabbed their beers and headed over to the table Tamsin and Dyson settled into, Trick not far behind with a beer in hand for each of the detectives.

Tamsin dropped a manila folder directly in the middle of the table as she and Dyson settled into their seats, side by side.

"This is the file the Morrigan gave me on Seth's case," Tamsin offered them in greeting. Bo swept it up and flipped it open, peering down at the pictures of Seth's apartment after the Redcap's attack and the various tidbits of information it offered on both the Seer and her human. There wasn't much in it the Succubus didn't already know.

Maia ignored her. She only stood at the edge of the table, holding the beer she felt would be too impolite to leave behind and looking more than a little uncomfortable. Bo shuffled into the seat opposite Tamsin, the file still in her hand and her attention completely absorbed in it. Vex dragged a chair over with a squawk and threw his legs up onto another, and Kenzi perched onto the end of the table. Drawing an anxious breath, and grimacing against the pain that shot up in her side, Maia took the only chair left to her, facing Dyson.

The Wolf tilted his head at her, a curious and disturbed frown marring his features.

"You look like shit," he offered in greeting, unapologetic in his assessment, though his tone was not unkind. When Maia met his eyes, she found a glimmer of pity there that, while unwelcome, was not unappreciated. Few Fae ever felt anything akin to sympathy for a human.

"Well aren't you a sweet-talker," she replied, voice dripping with sarcasm, the slightest suggestion of a smile twinkling faintly in her single, visible eye.

"Perhaps we should start with an introduction?" Trick suggested and planted a pair of mugs brimming with beer in front of his newest arrivals.

Kenzi jumped up at the suggestion, a nefarious light glittering in her pale periwinkle eyes, "dibs!" she cried and hopped off the table to stand behind Maia.

Her hands fell around Maia's shoulders, eliciting another flinch from the badly beaten girl, "Trickster, D-Man, this is Maia: the diva that started this whole mess," Kenzi knelt to put her face up against Maia's, "not that I'm blaming you, honey," insincerity skulked in her voice like the undertone of the bass in a rock jam, and she gave Maia a quick squeeze of the shoulder, ignoring the glare the curly-haired brunette burned into the back of her head, before darting off to settle her hands around Dyson's shoulders instead.

"This Big Broody Wolf is Dyson, otherwise known as 'the D-Man'. His mope's worse than his bite."

The corner of Dyson's mouth twitched, he turned halfway in his seat, his expression troubled, to furrow his eyebrows at Kenzi, whose sense of humor seemed… a little off.

But Kenzi had already bounced away to bump her hips against Trick's shoulder, who dragged a stool over to the table for himself. The Blood King's lips pressed together as he frowned up at his granddaughter's best friend.

"And this is Trick, Keeper of the Way Station and – "

"Great, now we all know each other. Can we focus on finding Lauren now?" Bo interrupted, finally pulling her head out of the file Tamsin had dropped onto the table. She tossed the folder back onto the rough wooden surface, lines of worry and frustration furrowed across her pale features and an uncharacteristic harshness in her usually gentle voice. Kenzi shrugged, undisturbed, and pranced back to the edge of the table to perch upon it once again. Vex rolled his eyes at the human and took a long swig of his drink.

"That's why we're here, isn't it?" Tamsin lifted an eyebrow at the impatient Succubus, "the door at Lauren's was busted down, but there were no other signs of violence. She even took her coat."

"But left her phone," Dyson added.

"And…" Tamsin paused for effect, her faded sea-breeze eyes flicking to Maia, "your man Dolph was there."

Maia refused to meet Tamsin's steady gaze. Dolph's involvement in Lauren's kidnap came as no surprise to her. Like both detectives working on her case, she didn't believe in coincidences. But her guilt over involving Lauren, and bringing her to Seth's kidnapper's attention, swelled in her chest and Maia chewed on her bottom lip to hold back the angry tears that suddenly threatened to spill.

"There was another scent," Dyson continued uneasily, "of the ocean… sea water. It smelled Fae, but I've never come across that scent before." The dirty-blond Shifter tilted his head to look at his partner, whose eyes settled on Trick's now.

"Any particular Fae come to mind?" Tamsin asked, "Maybe with a warrior background? Rich, Dark, influential? Most likely not local?"

Trick's eyebrows were knit together in a focused frown. He waggled a finger at Tamsin, his gaze intense, and disappeared behind the door that led to his home to consult his books.

Tamsin sighed into the tense silence that followed and leaned back in her seat. She pulled her cold mug close to her and tipped it against her lips. The icy ale slid down her throat pleasantly. She settled it back onto the table carefully, her eyes focused steadily on the golden liquid.

"You know, if this is too much for you, playing against your own team, you're free to go," Bo shifted again in her seat, obviously unhappy that they weren't already out the door and after the guy that threatened Lauren's safety. She regarded Tamsin with suspicion, her fingers toyed with the beer between her hands, her nails sliding over the misted surface and leaving thin traces of clarity along the glass.

Annoyance flashed briefly in Tamsin's faded green eyes, her mouth tensed with hurt, and she raised her gaze to meet Bo's. Her hands flattened over the table and she leaned forward again in her seat.

"I really should, since no one seems to want me here," she replied, almost venomously, "least of all the Morrigan." Tamsin made no move to get out of her seat, however, only stared angrily back at the Succubus that challenged her. "She called me in on my way back from O'Meara's to take me off the case. Even dared to call my loyalties into question," inner turmoil writhed in Tamsin's expression, barely guarded, and her voice betrayed her own conflicted motivations. Still, she made no move to leave.

"So what the hell are you still doing here then?" Kenzi interjected suspiciously, "I mean, the Morrigan's the only reason you took this case, and since when do you care about Doctor Hotpants?"

"Oh, do allow me answer that!" Vex straightened suddenly in his seat, finally taking an interest in the discussion. His eyes lit up with a mischievous smile that broadened across his face, "Correct me if I'm wrong, but your sudden determined disobedience wouldn't have anything to do with that steamy little love affair you had goin' with the Seer a few years back, now, would it?" Vex bit his lip and dipped his chin, eyebrows rising as he grinned suggestively at the Valkyrie under scrutiny.

The mockery in his voice, and the five sets of probing eyes that settled on her made Tamsin's skin crawl and her nostrils flare.

"You know Seth?" Maia's voice was quiet, inquisitive. Tamsin met her unswollen eye, it glittered obscurely, and her bruised face was a mask Tamsin could not read.

"Could be a Fomor."

Tamsin had never been so grateful for an interruption in her life. The Blood King strode back into the bar carrying a heavy tome in his hands, totally oblivious to the topic under discussion. Tamsin shot Vex a furious glare, he grinned back at her roguishly before leaning back into his seat and burying his face in his beer.

"A what?" Bo asked impatiently, Vex's juicy bit of gossip instantly forgotten in light of this new revelation. Trick dropped the massive book on the table in front of her, his finger pointing at the page he was referring to. Bo pulled it closer to her, eyes quickly scanning the page for relevant information. They settled on a black and white picture of a wood etching depicting warriors, some on horseback, others on foot with swords drawn and furious scowls on their faces while they slaughtered and herded masses of people: men, women and children alike. The expressions on the besieged people were ones of stark terror. The skies in the image roiled with angry clouds, leaving a bitter taste in Bo's mouth and a twisting in her gut.

"An ancient, seafaring Fae that originates from Ireland, the Fomor are a warrior people with immense power over the forces of nature, and can bring forth fog, storms, disease, blights and plagues. They feed upon death, fear, and despair…" Bo trailed off as she read aloud, a scowl creeping steadily across her features as she went along.

"A Fomor? Trick, I thought they were extinct," Dyson interrupted, rough voice quiet and thoughtful. Trick pursed his lips and nodded.

"Almost. There is still one, aligned with the Dark, and very powerful. He could have become an Elder long ago, but he's continuously refused the position. His last known whereabouts is at his castle in Ireland, and I don't know what reason he could possibly have for relocating here, but he does seem to fit a little too well with your description."

Tamsin cocked an eyebrow at the old bartender, a humorless smile curling the corners of her lip.

"Does his name happen to be Jack O'Meara by any chance?" The Valkyrie rose out of her seat, already aware of the answer to her question. Bo shoved her own chair aside, the muscles in her jaw jumping and her eyes flashing with dark zeal.

"What are we waiting for? Let's get that son of a bitch."

Maia's chair scraped against the ground as she rose to her feet as well. Her mouth pressed into a pale, twisted smudge, blood welling from the thin red line that split the bottom lip.

"This time, I'm coming too," her eyes glittered cold and dark, shoulders set in her determination. She glared at Bo, daring the Succubus to stop her, to argue. Her hands curled into tight fists, the knuckles whitening with tension, and crossed resolutely across her chest.

"Kid, you'd be more a liability than a help. You can barely stand up as it is," Dyson frowned down at Maia, his tone patronizing and immediately springing a silent, resentful snarl to Maia's lips. Her hackles raised in annoyance and anger.

"Last time, they caught me naked. Literally. This time," Maia flashed her casted arm up in Dyson's face, brandishing it aggressively like a club or a mace, "I'm armed." She spun to face Bo, daring the Succubus to deny her.

Bo opened her mouth to argue, but discovered that she couldn't. Her eyebrows knit together as she took in the hardened, angry woman that stood in front of her, who'd already gone through so much to get Seth back, who was still willing to risk even more to get Seth back. And how could she argue? Wasn't Bo willing to do the same for Lauren? How could she deny the strong, resilient human her right to fight for and defend the woman she loved, when Bo was just about to do the same?

Her mouth closed, lips pressing together as she drew in a long breath through her nose. Understanding passed from Bo's eyes to Maia's. The human would find no resistance here.

"No, Bo, wait!" Trick scrambled to block the exit to the bar, "This is reckless. The Fomor worship chaos, they're cunning and manipulative. Just think about it, what could he possibly want with Lauren? O'Meara isn't stupid. He won't underestimate you, and you shouldn't underestimate him."

Bo stared down at her grandfather for a long minute. She let his words sink in, considered them slowly. But it didn't matter. It really only boiled down to one thing:

"He has Lauren, Trick."

She stepped around him, determination radiating from her in powerful, angry waves, and slipped out the door into the cold afternoon outside. Tamsin and Maia followed close behind, the former raising a cocky eyebrow at the barkeep as she brushed past and the latter ignoring him almost entirely.

Trick flapped his arms at them in consternation, frustrated that no one ever seemed to listen to him, his mouth opening and closing like a fish fighting for air. Dyson settled a large hand on the barkeep's shoulder, bending to be at eye level with his friend.

"I'll look after her, Trick. I'll keep her safe," his rough voice was soft with the solemnity of his promise. Trick stared piercingly into his pale blue eyes, his mouth set in a thin line under the short salt-and-pepper beard.

"Bring her home, Dyson."

"On my honor." The Wolf raised his fist in a salute to the Blood King, who raised his own and bumped his forearm gently against the Shifter's, sealing the oath. Trick drew in a deep breath and expelled it immediately, anxious for the safety of his granddaughter and uneasy about the whole situation. Dyson straightened and, with a final, companionable pat to Trick's shoulder, strode out after the women that waited for him outside.

Kenzi was the last to leave. She sucked down a quarter of her tankard of beer while Dyson and Trick spoke, and hopped off the edge of the table to follow at Dyson's heels. She stopped at the doorway, the afternoon sunlight streaming in behind her and casting a long shadow into the dimly lit bar.

"Dude," she spoke to Vex, who lounged still in his seat and gulped down his ale, "aren't you coming?"

"Naw, love." The Mesmer gave her a lopsided grin, reaching over to snatch her discarded beer and pour its contents into his own cup. "No juice, no Mesmer."

Kenzi threw him an impatient, incredulous glare. He only shrugged back at her, "Not my girlfriend trapped by an evil madman, is it? Go on! They're waitin' for ya!" He tipped his mug back and drank sloppily around his crooked grin. Bo's voice drifted through the open door as she called for Kenzi. The Russian rolled her eyes at Vex, threw a hand into the air in defeat, and turned away, allowing the door to bump shut quietly behind her.

The corner of Trick's lip jumped in disgust as he stalked to the table Vex still occupied. He snatched the heavy glass mug from Vex's grasp, much to the Mesmer's dismay, and started clearing the table, doing his best to ignore Vex's aggravated protests.

Author's Note: The coming chapter is short in comparison to the ones I've been posting recently, so I will be posting it mid-week, most likely on Friday. We're getting close to some of my favorite chapters of the story. Things are going to get very tense, very soon. Enjoy! =)