Page 24
“Seamus?”
“Not too loud.”
Adam inched toward the figure hunched under the overhang of a brick building.
The leprechaun sat inside a shelter made of plastic and cardboard, wearing a tattered red hoodie and a pair of jeans so dirty Adam wasn’t certain they’d ever been blue. The shopping cart next to him overflowed with all sorts of bottles and boxes. A book or two was wedged between a mishmash of worn clothing.
So maybe his tarot deck had meant the card literally this time.
“What are you doing here?”
The mortal realm wasn’t off limits to the immortals, but Seamus rarely left his place of power. The King of Coins ruled the Watchtower of the West, and while he wasn’t Adam’s biggest fan, his hatred of the elves ran deep.
Seamus patted the patch of cardboard next to him.
“Have a seat.”
Adam sat.
The leprechaun was shorter than him by almost a foot. Unlike the elves, who never seemed to age, time marked the King of Coins. His skin was cragged, his eyebrows as white as they were gold.
There was something more honest about it, something more truthful than the illusion of perpetual youth that could hide the cynicism or experience of centuries.
They were alone, as far as Adam could tell, but that didn’t mean Adam was safe. Seamus had far more power than him, but the leprechaun hadn’t shivved him from behind, at least not yet.
They went a while without speaking. Adam could smell the old piss on the brickwork and wondered who lived in this tent, whose collection of garbage it really was.
“You know, best case, I’m only going to live about eighty years, right?”
Seamus snorted.
“Word is you need information.”
“Word travels fast.”
“Especially when you drop hints to imps.”
Adam hid a smile. His visit to Wendy and Joey had borne fruit faster than he’d expected.
“Are you here to offer it?”
Seamus lapsed back into silence.
“The last time we spoke you said something was coming, something bad. I think it’s on its way, if it isn’t already here. Is it related to that, or is it about the thing at the concert?”
“Your world is lower down the ladder, closer to the Between. They’ve shown up elsewhere, this hell or that, but none have made it above.” The leprechaun jabbed a middle finger upward. “I’m surprised your king and his court give any kind of a damn.”
“I think you underestimate him.” Adam tried not to sound defensive. “Silver cares very much. He does what he can.”
Seamus scoffed.
“Which isn’t anything at all by my count.”
From this angle, sitting beside him, it was hard to see into Seamus’s hood.
“Why do you hate them so much?”
“For all the reasons you should. They sit above and dictate how the rest of us should live. They divvy up the realms as if it’s their divine right, because once upon a time, they had the power to do so.”
