When I returned to my room, I found two things. First, Luke had placed a pile of books on my desk that was so tall it threatened to fall over. The second was the backpack Mike had given me.
My banmuinen and I sat away from the bag as it lay there on the bed. I explained to them what the bag was and who gave it to me.
"Should we get the guards to take this bag and destroy it?" Elsie asked.
"There might be a spell on the bag," Jeanne whispered.
Beth was still not speaking to anyone. However, she looked pretty worried I was going to make her open it.
Believe me, I thought about it.
I also realized that it represented another gift I foolishly took from a Fae.
Years of my mother's training fled just because family and friends charmed me.
Even without Luke's sermon earlier, I should have remembered not to take gifts. But I'd been taking gifts from Mike and even Luis for years.
I swallowed. I'd even accepted gifts from Joseph. I hoped that wouldn't count.
He was definitely not human.
That backpack on the bed had bound me just as the box of jewels and the key had bound me.
I felt a bit sympathetic to Erick as I realized I'd been hit with a geas. It might have landed on him in as tricky of a way as mine had.
And to break the geas on me, I had to offer something more valuable in return. I had no idea what that would be. I decided to be the brave one and approached the bag with a letter opener I'd taken from the desk.
I poked the bag and jumped back. The other women all squeaked and cringed.
Nothing happened, of course. I blew out an embarrassed breath. Then I inched towards the backpack and sat down next to it.
"Oh be careful, My Lady!" Jeanne squawked.
Seeing that I was still not dead, I risked opening the bag. Everything that Mike had given me was in the bag, along with the cherry colas I'd lobbed at my kidnappers. They had no dents.
I think that scared me the most.
"We should get rid of it, My Lady," Elsie said.
"Can't..." I mumbled, my lips twisting, appreciating the irony of gifts I couldn't give away. "It's a gift from a Fae."
"Oh, dear..." Jeanne put her hands against her heart in dismay.
"Try pouring salt on it."
I looked up from the bag in surprise at Beth's suggestion. It was a good idea.
"Why are you helping me?"
She looked away from my stare. "I don't want you to get the wrong idea. I'm not happy about this. Erick was mine, but I did something horrible to you when we were kids. You should execute me... but you haven't, My-My Lady." She swallowed and grimaced as she said the honorific.
It wasn't much of an apology, but I wasn't ready to accept one anyway. "I should, but I won't."
Elsie scoffed. "You are her banmuinen. Nothing is yours unless she allows it."
Wait. What? I closed my eyes and shook my head. Never mind. It wasn't the time right then to explore that statement. "Do we have any salt?"
"I can go check with Danela, My Lady," Jeanne said eager to please.
"Great, th-uh-go do that." I winced as I almost thanked Elsie.
She left to go check and we all sat there staring at the bag until she got back. It had remained stationary and didn't eat one of us â not even Beth.
There are truths about Faery-lore that I learned from many trips to the library, and at my mother's knee.
Yarrow is poisonous to the Fae. I'd learned that from the knife that Joseph had stabbed me with.
I pushed that old memory aside. "I hope this works. I know salt can't remove all magic."
Elsie smirked, "At least Beth didn't suggest iron or St. John's wort."
It was a lie about the iron thing - same with stuffing your pockets with St. John's wort. The Fae disliked that herb, but they could still approach it, regardless. They invented the iron myth so they could move around in the mortal world and still keep the humans feeling at ease.
When Jeanne returned with the salt, she held it out to me like it was a bomb. "Be careful with it, My Lady."
"Th... err..." I nodded after almost thanking her again. Nods were safe, right?
"Good job, My Lady." Elsie said, beaming. "You are learning. But thanking us now is perfectly safe once we became your banmuinen. You're safe to thank all your court as your thanks cannot bind you to us any more than you're already bound."
Well that was a relief to know, since I probably wouldn't remember not to thank them. I emptied a cup holding pens on the desk and scooped a little salt from the bag. Jeanne turned squeamish and turned away. They were all acting as though I was pouring battery acid on my bag. "Relax, it's okay. I'm only a half."
Salt just made me thirsty.
I dumped the cup of salt into the bag and shook it around. Then, I carefully fished out the cellphone with a pen from the desk.
I flipped it open. Yes. Mike was so cheap he used an early 2000's flip phone for his curse.
I dialed Mike, and it rang.
He didn't answer the phone, but I hadn't expected him to.
"Nuts. It still works. Salt doesn't work on his magic."
"How could that be?" Elsie asked.
"Perhaps a Fae didn't create the magic." Beth helpfully supplied again.
"He's a Nirumbee, maybe that's why?" I said.
"No. The Edentrees made the Nirumbee," Elsie said.
"My mother said the Nirumbee formed from the earth when the Creator formed the humans and animals. The Edentrees made other fae from their fruits and nuts, but not the Nirumbee."
Elsie looked at the bag. "So Nirumbee magic is one of those exceptions to the rule. I see. I had always thought the Edentrees made them."
Jeanne spoke up, sounding awed. "You actually met a Nirumbee on earth? The Nirumbee possess a special gift that allows the trees to link to the mortal world. When the mortal world fell, they escaped with other solitary Fae before the Garden was closed."
So, that was why the cellphone worked. Nirumbee magic.
I hesitated to dump the salt on my mother's box. What if I came to regret it? With a sigh, I set the salt aside and turned to the ladies.
Beth was staring at her hands, looking stricken. It burned my curiosity, so I had to ask, "Why did you agree to be my banmuinen. Didn't you know you'd be making some sort of vow?"
She glanced up at me. "No. I wasn't told that, err... My Lady." She looked surprised that she admitted that and covered her mouth.
My eyes narrowed. "Okay. Spill it. Out with it."
She took her hand from her mouth. "Erick came to the Earth and visited us the day before he caught you. It was the first time in four years I had seen him and he wanted nothing to do with me. I was desperate! I followed him to San Francisco without him knowing. There was a large cupboard in the van they drove, so I stowed away." She coughed violently and looked at me with shock.
"You commanded her to speak the truth, My Lady, that's why she must."
Interesting. "Okay, go on."
Beth tried to resist and turned red with the effort. But more words tumbled out despite her effort. "Once they parked the van, I lept out and found the maid's outfit in the laundry room which was near the garage. Everyone thought I was a new hire and put me to work. I met Emerlee who was carrying on in her room over being dumped and I felt sorry for her! She'd had her man stolen by the same wench that stole mine! I thought being your banmuinen would make me be able to get revenge!"
I snorted in derision, "Guess that didn't work out so well."
Her jaw clenched, "No, My Lady. And I saw her give your aunt the room key. I knew that they were plotting something."
Jeanne sneered at Beth. "Well, now you're stuck unless Our Lady loses. The geas goes both ways. She can't release you."
I tried to do it. "I release Beth from being my banmuinen."
I stared at her for a minute, then I gave a command. "Hop on one foot."
To her horror, she began to hop. Nope. Guess it didn't work.
"Well, let's get to work on these books, and get me ready for this dumb party. You can stay there and hop, Beth." Yes, yes. I know. Petty.
While Beth hopped, the rest of us spent the time before the ceremony studying. As I made my way through the pile, I found a slim notebook, written in Luke's hand. It stated the rest of the rules that I should follow while in court.
One. Upon entering, the doorman would greet me and have me announced. I would need to hold my head high as one of the Elect.
I practiced my posture a little bit, but soon felt silly doing it.
Two. The Elect had the same station as royals until defeated, thus they didn't need to kneel or prostrate before the Counsul, the high priestess, or the nobles. I would have to prostrate before the Goddess.
Yeah. Not happening.
Three. I must always keep a member of my court with me since there had already been an assassination attempt.
Great. I had to be babysat all night.
Four. I couldn't accept food from strangers at the party, since it could be poisoned. All food at the tables was being overseen for safety so it was fine to get food from the tables.
Always practice stranger-danger. Got it.
Five. The ceremony would begin with the highest Elect contestant going first and the lowest going last. The high priestess would draw the knife over each Elect's palm.
Not happening. I would kick her so hard!
Six. If the knife didn't cut the Elect, she would take the chalice of oil and touch it to herself and each member of the court, including her banmuinen and any concubines.
The knife wouldn't cut me because it wasn't getting near me. Problem solved.
Seven. The bond of commitment would make a seal where the oil had been applied in the form of the Elect's family crest.
I thought it was just a flower? Then I remembered the daisy theme in the jewelry my mother had. I guessed that was my crest.
Eight. After that, the Elect would pour water on the stone of destiny, and if it rang, then her status as an Elect would become valid.
I smirked. Maybe I needed to hide a bell in my robes.
Nine. If the stone did not ring, she may offer Duir and the Consul gifts to receive mercy and be able to go forward as an Elect.
Ten. Luke had provided five gold coins to serve as gifts.
After reading through the tedious rules, I told Beth to stop hopping, and we left for the party.
Elsie reminded me that I forgot about the book, and I hurried back into the room to retrieve it.
I left the coins on the table, still feeling mulish about giving those buttheads anything.