Del:

The girl had disappeared off the face of the earth. When Del left the occult shop, he set up a permanent guard to follow her in case she tried to run. The resourceful little brat had somehow managed to evade her protection detail and escape the very same night he visited her. He’d been looking for any trace of her since. Without even a name, tracking her was proving to be a problem.

He’d reached out to his Real World contacts and found someone who might have information on her. He was on his way to meet him now. The sun was setting and he only had a small window of time to meet with his contact. He was a Pooka and they only liked to do business at dusk.

Del banged on the door with his fist. A panel at about eye level slid open and a pair of black eyes peered out.

“I have an appointment with Rehan,” Del said. The panel slammed shut and there was some shuffling on the other side of the door. Del recognised the creature who opened the door as a Kobold. The squat demon waddled down the long hallway, Del trailing behind him. The Kobold guard led him into a dark room, dotted with expensive, tasteless furniture. It almost disappeared into the dimness with its black, burnt-looking skin, but its bright shock of red hair stood out in the dark.

“You are Del?” a high, feminine voice asked. A woman was draped across an elaborately embroidered settee. She was beautiful with blood red lips and pale, poreless skin. Del nodded. She rose gracefully, slinking across the dim room. Her golden hair floated around her shoulders, falling in soft waves. “I did not expect the Caul to send someone so…” her eyes flickered over his figure, “delicious.”

“That’s enough, Aibhlinn,” said a raspy voice from the far corner of the room. The woman, Aibhlinn, flashed him a slow smile, showing her sharp canines. She glided away and sunk back onto the settee, arching her back and eyeing him suggestively.

“Rehan, I presume,” Del said to the shadow. A breathy laugh echoed from its direction.

“You are Caul.” It wasn’t a question but Del nodded.

“I need information.”

Rehan chuckled again. “You surely do,” he said, in his halting accent. The shadow shifted. Firelight glinted off a matted, dirty mane.

“I’m looking for a girl.”

A slow exhale. “Ain’t we all?”

“She was seen at one of your gambling rings.” The pooka pulled back, deeper into the shadows. The clop of cloven feet against stone echoed through the grandiose room.

“Young,” Del pressed, despite the apprehension radiating off Rehan. “No more than twenty. Hair the colour of ripened plums, smells of tart sweetness. She’s slim with olive skin and-”

“Mayhap you are mistooken,” Rehan interrupted, his voice vicious. “I know not of the place you describe, nor the girl. I am nought but a humble businessman, making a livin’ off farmin’ and the like.”

“Rehan,” Del said dryly, “the Caul are quite aware of your dealings in the underground. We don’t care if you wish to supplement your money lending with a side business or two. What we do care about is finding this girl.”

“We don’t know what you talk of, boy,” said Aibhlinn, leaning further back in her chair and sliding her legs together sensually.

“Now, now, Aibhlinn,” said Rehan in his breathy drawl. “Not so hasty-like. Some things may be comin’ back to me.”

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“You will help this Caul scum?” Aibhlinn lifted a disbelieving eyebrow delicately.

“We are on very kindly terms with our Caul brothers,” Rehan said. “There is no reason why we can’t do a favour for our friends. Mayhap our friends will be wanting to do us a favour in the future.”

Del deliberated the offer, for that is what it was, for a second before nodding slowly. A favour for a favour. Rehan giggled, delighted.

“The girl you talk of was here.” Rehan rose as he spoke, moving across the room. He wove in an out of the shadows, the flank of his equine body was dark and dirt-streaked. “She beat a formidable fae opponent. She was after some healing magic.”

“She was hurt?” Del asked.

“Nae, she didnae say what she need the healing fer. Her opponent told me the little Jinn mutt was muchly skilled. She didnae lose a single hand that she didnae want to.” Del sighed. This was another dead end.

“I’m not looking for a Jinn girl,” he explained. “I’m after one of my own.” Another wheezy laugh.

“Misplaced a little Caul brat, aye?” Rehan shifted delightedly and then sobered up, his voice turning serious. “But, nae, this girl is who you seek. A little bit Jinn, a little bit…not. She say she could read minds, she did. Mayhap, that was nae a joke.”

Del frowned thoughtfully. A Jinn parent would explain how she slipped out of Caul influence. It would also explain her apparent knowledge of the Real World. Interbreeding between the People was uncommon, but it would account for a lot of the unknowns surrounding the girl.

“Thank you, Rehan,” Del said, with a formal bow. “You have been most helpful.” He turned to leave.

“One more thing, boy,” Rehan called. The pooka stepped fully into the light, revealing his horse's face and matted, black mane. His mouth didn’t move as he spoke his next words, but his dark eyes glinted dangerously. “She also did say she could see the future.”

“That’s impossible.” No Caul could see the future. Only the past could be glimpsed at.

“‘Tis what she says.” Rehan seemed to shrug before turning away. “Mayhap you would not be too hasty-like to say ‘impossible’ if you saw what she did do.”

Del only stared. What Rehan said was simply absurd.

“It is nice helping allies,” Rehan said, dismissing him. “Good day, my friend.”

Impossible.

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What did you think of Rehan? Fun fact, Rehan's odd way of talking was inspired by a very uneducated woman screaming at me while I was at work! #Retail. She used a lot of the words he does (e.g. misstooken, and did do etc.) It was also, in part, taken from Joss Whedon's Serenity and Firefly (if you have not seen that TV show/movie, you need to stop what you're doing and watch it now!). I just love the way Joss always creates a whole other way of speaking in a lot of his work (i.e. Buffy). I also threw in a little Scottish-isms (nae) to tie it in with the UK setting.

I enjoyed writing this chapter and I enjoy Rehan's character and will no doubt use him again.

The next chapter is the beginning of my favourite part of the book. It introduces another new character, whom I love dearly. It also contains a good bit of action (finally). Give your best guess as to what will happen and I will tell you how close you are =)