Harley Merlin and the Cult of Eris (Harley Merlin, #6)

Despite everything, Finch had somehow managed to prove himself. He’d asked me to trust him, and I had. And he hadn’t let me down. It surprised me, but I was also secretly pleased. That nagging doubt in the back of my head had gotten so loud, to the point where I was certain he’d somehow twist everything and turn on us, letting the Bestiary collapse for old time’s sake. I’d been very wrong, and that was a tricky pill to swallow. Even Tobe seemed a little sheepish about the whole thing.

“Thanks, Finch,” I said. “We’d be totally screwed if you hadn’t stepped in like that.” I got up from my spot on the floor and moved toward him. I didn’t know whether to go in for a handshake or a hug, so I settled for standing there awkwardly, just looking at him, instead.

He shrugged. “I only did it so I could get this lighter filled. Tobe, can you help a guy out? I need that neurotoxin for what we’ve got coming up.”

Wade came hurtling around the corner, his cheeks red. “Is everyone okay?”

“All fine. Finch fixed the power problem.” I filled him in on the rest of it as quickly as I could, rendering him speechless. “Where have you been?”

“Slamming all the doors shut and putting the locks back on so none of the beasts could escape,” he wheezed, catching his breath.

“My gratitude, Wade.” Tobe bowed slightly, his amber eyes brimming with concern. “I ought to conduct my own checks of the Bestiary, to ensure that none of my beasts have managed to break free. Although, I’m certain you have done an exemplary job.”

“I did my best.”

Finch shook his head. “Not so fast there, Beast Master. I need the neurotoxin, and I need it now.”

Wade shot him a dark look. “Neurotoxin? No way.”

“Yeah, that doesn’t sound like a great idea,” Santana added.

“Worst possible idea,” Raffe chimed in.

“Wait… is that why you were out here prancing around, almost blowing our cover?” Wade’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Hang on, now. Neurotoxin might not be a bad thing, where we’re going. It’s highly effective stuff. I remember from my own experience with that blade of yours, Finch,” I grumbled. “Tobe, if you’ve got a safe way of getting us some, it might actually be really useful. It’d be one more string to our bow, and we need all the strings we can get.”

Tobe sighed with exasperation. “I have such a hard time denying any of you. I will assist you, but I must reiterate that I’m not aiding you for his benefit. I just do not wish to see you end up in Purgatory.” He turned his attention to Finch. “You may collect the neurotoxin you require, but at your own risk. As I am sure you know, Devil’s Tongue Triffids are notoriously dangerous. You seem to know a great deal of things that you should not.”

Finch grinned. “You’re right there, Beast Master. But what’s a guy to do if people leave things lying around?”

Tobe growled. “Do not push your luck. I have a great deal of patience, but it appears to wear thin when it comes to you.”

“Even when I saved your Bestiary?”

“You are still standing, are you not?”

Finch frowned. “Yeah.”

“And you are still in possession of both your head and your bowels, are you not?”

“Yeah.” He looked so confused. I stifled a laugh.

“Then you have received the extent of my gratitude.” Tobe’s amber eyes flashed with a warning. For a split second, all of Finch’s cocky arrogance fell away, leaving an alarmed kid who didn’t know what to do. It was all the more poignant as he was still in Jacob’s form.

“You won’t say anything to anyone, will you, Tobe?” I interrupted, wanting to relieve Finch from his paralysis.

Tobe shook his head. “I will not breathe a word of it.”

I walked right up to him and put my arms around him. The Beast Master embraced me in a tight bear hug. This was the hug I’d thought about giving Finch, but Tobe made a great substitute. He was warmer and furrier and less likely to turn on me. Finch had definitely proven himself today, but that didn’t mean I trusted him completely. It was safer to keep a buffer of caution up when it came to him. That way, if I made it out of this mission alive, and he hadn’t done anything to betray us, I’d be pleasantly surprised. Gotta keep the bar low.

“Thank you, Tobe,” I murmured into his fluff.

“For what?”

“For being on our side.”

He chuckled, the sound rumbling in his throat. “I always endeavor to be on the side of good, Harley. It just so happens that the pendulum is swinging in your direction.”

I hoped with all my heart that he was right—that I was doing the right thing, for the right reasons.





Thirteen





Harley





After discreetly making our way out of the Bestiary, leaving Tobe to tie up any loose ends and explain how he’d jumped into action to fix the glitch, we reconvened in the infirmary, well out of sight of any cameras. We stood around the central table in Krieger’s office to draw up our plan of action. The Ephemeras glowed on their fancy golden stands, off to the right of the tabletop. It was hard to take my eyes off them, given the swirling, almost liquid tendrils that churned inside.

Garrett had gone back to LA to give them the results of his “research,” but the rest of the Rag Team was present, Louella and the real Jacob included. Nobody had told Jake that Finch had temporarily used his face to sneak back through the coven. It had been creepy enough to see Finch all gussied up in my form; I wasn’t going to put Jacob through the same thing.

“So, after the duplicate has safely been sent to Alaska, we’ll portal to Salem, where we’ll meet Naima in Azarius,” I said, pointing to a picture of the dive bar that Astrid had brought. She’d made a whole folder on what we were going to do, though she’d promised to shred the evidence as soon as we were gone. There couldn’t be a single trace left for Levi to find.

“That’s right,” Astrid replied, with a satisfied nod.

“That means we need to get our disguises on the go. Finch?” I looked at him. He’d been way less catty since coming back from the Bestiary, even though everyone had relaxed around him. After the miracle he’d pulled back there, there was more gratitude than suspicion between the Rag Team and my half-brother. Apart from Wade, that is, but he was always concerned when it came to me.

“I’ve got them all in order and ready to go. It didn’t take long. I had a lot of time to think in my cell. Child’s play, really,” Finch replied, his arms folded defensively across his chest. “I’ve picked two siblings, presumed dead after a mission that went wrong in the Arctic Circle. I remember the story on the news, so it sort of stuck. There were polar bears involved—not pretty. But no bodies were found, just blood. It’s an easy cover. And they’re definitely dead. A hunter out there said there’s no way they could have survived. So there won’t be any surprises.”

“Do these siblings have names?” I prompted.

“Yeah, Volla and Pieter Mazinov. Volla was renowned for her abilities with Water and Earth, and Pieter was known for his skill with Fire. I thought they’d come in handy, since you’ve got the Elementals down, and I can just borrow the Fire from you, thanks to these babies.” He tipped his head at the Ephemeras. “I didn’t know we’d have these, so I was just going to BS my way through it and get you a Kaleido mask. But this works even better. I can give my Shifter skill to you, to make a better impersonation of Volla, and I can use your Fire in case anyone asks me to show what I’ve got. So to speak.”

I was beyond glad that Krieger had managed to get hold of a couple of the Ephemeras. The last person I’d heard of who had one was Jacob’s mother. His father had gifted her one with his Portal power inside, so she could make a quick getaway if she needed to. It had saved Jacob’s life. I hoped it could do a similar thing for us, keeping us from getting skewered by Katherine.

“And these siblings—what else can you tell us?” Tatyana asked. “I’m not too familiar with them, though the surname rings a bell.”

“It should. They were wanted criminals, until recently. They were trying to steal a cache of ancient weaponry when they were mauled to death. We can use their identities to get into the cult, no problem. Their rap sheet will come up, and Naima will be thrilled to have us. We’ll be just her kind of people.”