To save the Valkyrie who broke his heart, the Fae Sea God makes a deal with the Demon Prince of the Aerial Kingdoms, but Pazuzu has a history of stealing the women Manannan loves.
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When Mist visits her parents' home in California, she assumes th...
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The gargoyles landed with a jaw-rattling thump. It was amazing they didn't crack the slate tile beneath them. The powerful arm released me and I almost staggered, relieved to not be pressed against him. My body had chilled where my skin touched the grey flesh and I shivered, rubbing my hands over my arms as I looked around.
The courtyard was bordered by high grey walls with hints of pink and gold embedded within the rock. A long building ran the length of one side, taking up half the depth of the courtyard. Opposite the building, the wall held the half-circular pebbled areas that I suspected contained wash areas as I'd already experienced. A barred gate with thick iron stood in the open stretch of wall on the third side between the building and the wash areas. The fourth wall, opposite the gate, appeared empty.
The rust-coloured wveryn carrying Claw landed and he dismounted with considerably more grace than that of the gargoyles.
"This way," instructed Claw, waving a talon at Bloudwedd and me.
Our eyes met. She seemed no worse for wear after the flight and I shrugged at her questioning expression. It's not like we had much of a choice at this point. Together, we turned and followed Claw into the building.
It was a two-storey dormitory-style residence. Claw stopped and gestured up the set of wide stairs that rose across from the entrance.
"My office and residence is upstairs. If you have issues or get injured, you come to see me. The infirmary is upstairs for temporary ailments, but if you go a week without working, your contract is considered invalid and will be sold in one of the other two auctions or you will be freed to fend for yourself. Frankly, that's a death sentence so don't do it. You must accommodate at least one patron per day, two if you want a day off. You can accumulate a maximum of two days off in a row. If you choose to accept more patrons, you acquire credit you can use to get personal items to buy in the market. Your patron options for the day will be presented every morning at breakfast for you to make your choices. The temple opens after the mid-day meal and closes at moonset."
Claw turned and toured us through the lower floor, pointing out two bathrooms on either side of the stairs with multiple toilet stalls. To the left of the main entrance, a large room held at least twenty bunk beds in two rows along each wall. Between each set of bunkbeds were small narrow dressers. Claw walked three-quarters of the way down the room and pointed at a bunk bed and dresser with four drawers.
"This is yours. Decide between you who gets top and bottom. In the drawers, you'll find sanitary and hygiene supplies and several different coloured shifts. When you need more, you'll find them in the store room upstairs. Pick one now and follow me."
Not waiting, Claw began walking back towards the entrance.
I tugged open the top drawer and pulled out three satiny shifts in red, white, and black.
"Do you have a preference?" I asked, holding them out to Bloudwedd.
She took the white and slipped it over her head. Thin white straps held up the garment that fell almost to her knees. I took the black and pulled it on. With my curves, it barely came to mid-thigh, caught on my breasts and hips, both pressing against the seams. Still, it was better than nothing.
