Page 26 of Wicked Deeds

He flashed me a grin. I was used to how handsome he was now, but that didn’t make it any less distracting when he exertedhimself to be charming. Though I’d learned to be wary when he did.

“Let me demonstrate.” He pursed his lips and whistled three short notes.

The door to the laundry room, which I hadn’t noticed was ajar, pushed all the way open and a nixling walked through and jumped up on the counter to perch next to Callum’s teapot.

No cats on the counter. I could hear my Gran’s voice, and the memory cut through my surprise. He’d brought the nixling back out from the realm? “Is that...” I started to ask but stopped.

This wasn’t either of the nixlings we’d seen. It was lighter. Still shades of gray, but no black as they had. Instead its fur was banded with light and dark gray stripes. The tips of its tail, ears, and a patch of fur on its chest were more silvery, and its eyes were a luminous gold with a near metallic sheen.

It stared back at me while I studied it. Then, apparently tired of waiting, it made a purring chirrup of a noise, twin tails curving curiously.

“Maggie,” Callum said, “this is—” He spoke a rapid string of Fae words that merged together in a musical lilt that took me a minute to untangle.

“Right,” I said, struggling to translate with my basic vocabulary. “That means she who hunts softly?”

“She who hunts in silence like the breeze in the east.”

Of course it did. “That’s an impressive name.” And quite a mouthful I stopped myself from adding.

Callum smiled. “You can call her Lianith if that’s easier.”

It was. And I wasn’t going to ask what Lianith translated to. If the nixling liked it, it was fine by me.

“And what am I supposed to do with tha—with her,” I amended when the nixling hit me with a slit-eyed look I could only describe as judgmental.

“She can patrol your garden for you. That should keep other nixlings out. If one should come, she can deal with it, or perhaps convince it to talk to her.”

“And why would it do that?”

“She assures me that they will. It’s a nixling thing. They have hierarchies, even if the other one doesn’t belong to Cerridwen.”

Of course they did. They were Fae creatures. The nixling certainly looked regal. “And she’s high up the chain?” I asked.

“Yes.”

I pictured Damon’s face if I came home bearing a magical cat queen. Or boss. Or whatever. He liked Ted well enough, but I didn’t really know if he was an animal person. Even if he was, liking normal human world pets and wanting a Fae beastie living in his house were two very different things.

“It does not have to be forever,” Callum said, seeing my hesitation. “But for now it is an added layer of protection more likely to help than anything else I can think of.”

Dammit. If he couldn’t think of a better option, there probably wasn’t one. “I see.” Other than Damon, I couldn’t think of another objection. Not if Lianith could keep the other nixlings away. I met her gaze. “And you’re happy to do this?”

She nodded, a movement that was disconcerting coming from something my brain still insisted was a cat despite the two tails.

Two tails. Right. That was a problem.

How was this going to work? Damon’s grounds were extensive, but he still had neighbors and nixlings could climb. Unless we kept Lianith inside—which defeated the purpose of having her—there was a chance someone might see her. Some of Mitch’s team knew about the Fae but Damon’s gardeners didn’t. His housekeeper, Amy, knew I was a witch but she didn’t know about my past or that things like demons were real.

“She doesn’t look much like a cat,” I pointed out. “That’s going to be confusing for people if they see her.”

“It won’t be a problem,” Callum said. “We can cast an illusion on a collar.”

I blinked. “She’s happy to wear a collar?” Her neck was bare now. A collar seemed a very human thing. And not in keeping with her being high up the nixling pecking order.

“I do not know if happy is the precise word, but she has consented so it can carry the illusion. She understands it is necessary.”

“Okay, well, it’s worth a shot. But if Damon disagrees we are going to have to come up with another plan.”

“Your Damon is a sensible man,” Callum said. “He will not argue when it comes to your safety.”

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