Kiss and Spell

There were apartments below us the whole way across, so we moved with painstaking care. We could walk upright between windows but had to drop to hands and knees while crossing windows, in case there was someone watching from outside. I thought it likely that there would be illusions in the windows making it look like normal life was going on in normal apartments, but we couldn’t confirm it, so we didn’t take any chances.

By the time we reached the far end of the building, my legs were cramping and my knees felt bruised. Out on the landing, we brushed the dust off ourselves and straightened our clothes. When we got downstairs, Owen made sure the way was clear before we left the building and hurried around the corner toward the more populated areas.

We passed a couple of the gray guys, but they didn’t seem to pay us any particular attention. “Are you going to report all this to Mac?” I asked Owen.

“I have to,” he said with a helpless shrug. “If I’m ever going to have any kind of life, I have to convince him to trust me, which means no secrets.”

He didn’t sound at all enthusiastic about it. “You’re worried about Mac’s plan.”

“I think it will expose all of us and risk getting us all put under the spell again. And that’s the best-case scenario. It could also get people hurt or killed.”

“But you don’t dare argue with him for fear of looking like you’re taking over, which naturally leads to taking over the world using bad magic.”

“Not that he’d listen to me even if he did trust me. I think he still sees me as a five-year-old.”

“What would you do if you were in charge?”

“I’d work closely with the elves. Maybe one of them could switch out with one of the gray guys and get inside for some recon—maybe even find the portal and get through. We’re at a disadvantage while we’re here in the elven lands, so I think the key is to get help from the other side.”

“But anyone approaching from the other side is likely to find themselves here.”

“That’s why we need to get someone through who looks like an insider.”

“Earl’s too well-known,” I mused, “but maybe someone he knows might be able to pull it off.” I contemplated telling him that I already had Earl working the elf angle, but I figured Owen was safest if he had plausible deniability.

Not that I liked having secrets from Owen. In fact, I was a little worried about how he’d take it. That wasn’t enough, however, to deter me from doing what had to be done to get all of us home without Owen having to defy the Council.

Since it had been my habit while under the spell, I figured it was safe to keep stopping off at Perdita’s diner on my way to work. When she saw me the next morning, she rushed over to me. “I used to go out with the guy who delivers our supplies,” she whispered. “I think he might be in the underground—he was very political. And then there’s a guy who comes in at least once a day who’s going out with my best friend’s sister. I don’t know where he stands, but if he’s here, he’s probably on our side, right? So, what do I do?”

“Have you ever kissed either of them?”

She blushed slightly and coiled a ringlet around one finger. “Both, actually.”

“Give that a shot.”

“Oh, like in the fairy tales?”

I started to explain about cognitive dissonance, then remembered who I was dealing with. “Yeah, like that. But be careful. Make sure you’re alone, and then explain it and have them revive anyone else they know and trust.” I hoped that if her ex was with the underground, he’d know how resistance cells worked, because I really didn’t want to try to explain that to Perdita.

“By kissing them?”

“Talking about your life back home works, too. Kissing’s just quicker if you had that kind of relationship there but don’t have it here. Anything that brings back strong memories.”

“Okay, got it, thanks,” she said a bit too enthusiastically, then dashed off before I could order my coffee.

After I’d ordered and received my coffee from another waitress, I left the coffee shop and nearly ran into Perdita kissing someone in a delivery uniform. She gave me a thumbs-up behind his back. It looked like we had one more member on our team.

Owen was sitting with Mac in the park when I approached the store. I thought about joining them, then decided that varying our routine a little not only wouldn’t look suspicious but might help keep our guards guessing. Besides, I wasn’t sure I could keep a straight face now that I knew things that Owen didn’t.