We entered a smaller, cozier room with a crackling stone fireplace and a variety of plush sofas and chairs surrounding it. Several paintings hung on the wall, and an easel sat in the corner with a human in front of it, the man humming loudly as he moved his brush back and forth. Though his movements were frantic, the painting itself was quite detailed and beautiful. Leanansidhe snapped her fingers as we swept through the door, and the human’s head jerked up.
“Out, Charles,” the Dark Muse commanded, and the man fled. His brush dropped to the floor and left green spatters against the red carpet. Leanansidhe wrinkled her nose at the stain, but then turned to us with a smile.
“Now, darlings, have a seat, why don’t you?” She waved a slender arm at the sofas arrayed around the fireplace. She stode to the largest one, then sank down into it and crossed her legs. “Make yourselves comfortable, and I will tell you what I know about what is happening in the Between.”
Meghan calmly took a seat across from the Exile Queen, sitting up straight but looking confident and unruffled. I did not sit but took my normal place behind her, while Puck slouched on the other end of the sofa, looking the opposite of regal. Nyx also chose not to sit, sliding into a darker corner of the room with her back to the wall. Grimalkin sauntered over to an empty chair, curled up with his tail over his nose, and appeared to go to sleep.
“So, our darling Keirran is in trouble again, is he?” Leanansidhe sniffed. “How terribly shocking. That didn’t take long at all, did it? No offense, darlings, but that boy of yours is almost a bigger headache than Robin Goodfellow. At least Puck hasn’t managed to completely destroy my house and collapse everything I’ve built over the past hundred or so years.”
“Yet,” Puck added with an evil smirk. Leanansidhe ignored him.
“Keirran was exiled from the Nevernever and is paying for his crimes,” Meghan replied in a far calmer tone than I knew she was feeling. “That is not the issue today, Leanansidhe, and it is not the reason we’ve come. Do you know anything of what has been happening in the Between, and the new threat we’re facing now?”
“I do.” Abruptly serious, Leanansidhe took a long drag on her cigarette flute, then blew a puff of green smoke into the air. It coiled into the wispy image of a dragon before writhing away into nothingness. “Possibly more than you want to hear, darling. The Between is getting...well, angrier is the best way to put it. You already know it has the ability to sense your emotional state and churn out manifestations that are the representations of your feelings. But lately, it feels like there is such an excess of negative glamour, it’s starting to affect the Between itself. I don’t know what it is or where its coming from, but all this anger, rage, fear, and hate is seeping into the Between like poison. If it continues, it might start affecting the Nevernever as well.”
“Do you think our big nasty is the one causing it?” Puck wondered after a moment of tense silence.
In the corner, Nyx shook her head, the movement barely visible in the shadows of her hood. “The Monster leaves a trail of corruption behind it,” she said, “but it doesn’t feel powerful enough to taint the entire Between. Whatever this is, it is bigger than that.”
“I did feel a large, shall we say, emptying of the Between several days ago,” Leanansidhe went on. “A mass exodus of sorts, many creatures going through the Veil at once. If you say Touchstone was attacked recently, that was probably the moment when they all fled the city.”
“That matches what Elaith told us,” I mused. “She said Keirran opened a gate in the Between for the Forgotten to escape the Monster. Do you know where they came out again?” I asked Leanansidhe.
“Sadly, no, darling.” The Dark Muse fiddled with her cigarette flute. “But since Keirran has been exiled from the Nevernever, and since I did not feel them reenter the Between, I would guess that he took them into the mortal realm. Where, you ask?” She gave a helpless little shrug. “That is anyone’s guess.”
“It might be anyone’s guess,” Meghan replied, “but you could help us speed the process, Leanansidhe. Your network of spies is extensive, and I know you have informants in many cities throughout the mortal realm. If Keirran took his people and fled to the real world, someone would notice. Eventually, word would get back to you.”
“Oh, you have my network all figured out, do you, Iron Queen?” Leanansidhe gave Meghan a cheery, slightly brittle smile. “I do hope you also remember all the damage your son has caused in the past, not only to the Nevernever, but to me, personally. I helped him, took in that Summer girl he was so enamored of, protected them both at great cost to myself, and how does he repay me?” She waved a hand at the elegant surroundings. “By tearing away the Veil and causing the Between to vanish. Which, in turn, destroyed my mansion in the process and caused me to lose all my servants, spies, and all my Charleses.” Leanansidhe gave a dramatic sniff, wiping away an imaginary tear. “I’m still rather miffed about that.”
Meghan gave no outward sign, but I could feel her tense beneath my palms, and gently squeezed her shoulders to let her know I was there. At the same time, anger toward Leanansidhe stirred. We both knew Faery did not forgive, and the fey often held grudges forever, but from the day Keirran had been exiled, we had both been reminded, constantly, of what he had done; the harm he had caused to everyone in the Nevernever. It was a heavy burden, particularly for Meghan; she was the Iron Queen and still had to abide by all of Faery’s laws. No matter how difficult they were.
“So, this is going to cost you, darling,” Leanansidhe went on, with a grave look at both Meghan and me. “While I have no qualms with the Iron Queen, that boy still has much to answer for. So, if you want me to help you, I’m afraid I’m going to need a favor.”
Meghan paused. I knew she was mentally preparing herself for the most dangerous part of this meeting: the bargaining. “What kind of favor?” she asked after a moment.
“A large one,” Leanansidhe said unapologetically, and I tamped down my growing anger. The Exile Queen knew we would do anything to find Keirran, and she was using that knowledge to her advantage. It was an expected tactic in the faery bargaining game, but it still made my blood boil. Keirran could be hurt, captured or in danger, but all Leanansidhe saw was an edge in making a deal.
“I’m going to need more information than that.” Meghan remained poised and unruffled, though the muscles beneath my fingers were taut. “What is it you actually want, Leanansidhe?”
The Exile Queen settled back in her chair and smiled. “I want out of the Between, darling,” she said. “I believe I’ve been banished long enough, and as you can see, the Between is becoming...rather unstable. It is dangerous for me to be here any longer, what with all the chaos and uncertainty happening now—monsters running amok through Touchstone and turning fey into nightmares. No, it is time for me to leave. I wish to return to the Nevernever and the Summer Court, and I can only do that if the one who banished me rescinds the order. So, I need you to talk to Titania and convince her to lift my exile. Do that for me, and I will help you find your son.”