Reluctant Adept: Book Three of A Clairvoyant's Complicated Life (54 page)

A derogatory term for a clairvoyant.

True Name

A being's intrinsic name, one which is bound so closely that it's tied to their essence. When pronounced with intimate familiarity, it can be used in a ritual to summon the being between worlds.

Truthsayer

A psychic who is capable of detecting whether a person is lying.

United Convocation of Strigoi

The international society of individuals affected by the strigoi curse.

Ùruisg

A diminutive, roughly humanoid race from the Otherworld. Like the brownie, they are one of the few fae that thrive living on Earth, however, they are considerably less social and rarely provide their human neighbors with domestic help. On Earth, they live outdoors near streams and waterfalls.

Vampire

An alternate term for 'strigoi,' one that is viewed as somewhat coarse by those affected by the strigoi curse.

Ward

A type of ensorcellment that regulates or prohibits magic or physical interactions that take place within its area of effect. Such spells are often (but not exclusively) used in conjunction with a magic circle or within the natural boundary provided by a dwelling's foundation.

Warlock/Witch

A magus who can only employ spoken or chanted magic, they use runestones and/or other objects (such as wands) to power or strengthen their spells.

Were

Someone who is cursed with therianthropy.

Which Witch

The paranormal talent agency owned by Judith Kitchell.

The Wild Hunt

See Wuldrífan.

Will-o'-the-Wisp

In English vernacular, refers to a diminutive spirit-like being from the Otherworld, often seen glowing like a lantern at night, that are known to lead travelers astray.

Witchcraft

Spoken or chanted magic.

The Wuldrífan

The sidhe's phantasmal, spectral hunting party, complete with horses and hounds, outfitted with the regalia of the chase and led by the Master of the Hunt. According to legend, the Wuldrífan is comprised of fallen sidhe who died fearlessly in battle. Their leader, the Master of the Hunt, heeds only the sidhe king or queen's command and is often depicted wearing a great horned helm. Also known as the Wild Hunt.

Zombie

A human or animal corpse that has been raised from dead and animated by magical means.

LIRE AND THE PEOPLE SHE KNOWS

Amhaín

Geiléis, primarily known as the amhaín, is the sidhe's sole portal adept. (The sidhe, also known as 'elves' thanks to Tolkien, are a humanoid immortal race who live in a parallel universe we call the Otherworld.) She alone possesses the ability to create, maintain, or close the sidhe's conduits to Earth. Currently, she and her brother Faonaín are the two estranged siblings who rule over the sidhe in the Otherworld. Three thousand years ago, following the death of their father, Faonaín forced his sister to abdicate in favor of serving as his adept, by holding her son Tíereachán hostage. Faonaín's brutal stance regarding the treatment of humans and the amhaín's escape from his tender care eventually led to the sidhe's Rift War. After many battles and countless lives lost, the amhaín forced her brother's hand by closing nearly all of his gateways and threatening to do the same to his remaining conduits. Since the conduits provide the magic potential necessary for his people's survival, the move brought about the Compact and the tenuous peace that now exists between the estranged siblings and their kingdoms. The amhaín is Queen of
Thìr na Soréidh
, the territory she sealed off from the rest of the Otherworld about twelve hundred years ago.

Azazel

I first came face-to-face with the archdemon Azazel in Invisius Verso's basement when a group of us discovered the demonic gateway the corrupt telepathic elders had summoned. The demon's preferred form seems to be that of an eight-foot leviathan with thick, leathery brown skin that covers its entire body, including its genitals. More disturbing, though, are the six-inch-long black talons it brandishes instead of fingers and its exceedingly creepy, pitch black eyes. Although humanoid in its appearance, with a sure-footed stance on two massive legs, its muscular arms are long enough to run on all fours. Over a thousand years ago, Tíereachán traded Azazel his soul to free Princess Maeve from its grasp, only afterward learning it had been a ploy. Maeve had been in cahoots with the demon the whole time.

Brassal

Brassal is a sidhe of some stature in King Faonaín's retinue. Through his soulbond with Kim Pratchett, he provides an invaluable means of communication to the king's subjects on Earth. I've only spoken to Brassal through Kim, but I'm curious to meet him in person. Brassal and Kieran are best friends and share a residence in the Otherworld.

Brian Stalzing, the Circle Murderer

Brian was a telepath, member of Invisius Verso, and a power-hungry, serial-killing psycho. In his mad attempt to wrest control away from Invisius' elders, Brian murdered four psychics (including my college sweetheart) by using a summoned demon to steal their powers for himself. The arrogant ass then kidnapped me, along with my business partner Jack, and might have succeeded in murdering both of us if he hadn't lost control of his summoned demon Paimon. Instead, the demon turned on Brian, killing him.

The Circle Murderer's Victims: Nick Coulter, Jason Warner, Trinity Wilson, Patty Schaeffer

All four of the Circle Murderer's victims had been psychics, but Nick Coulter was the only one who I'd known personally. Nick had been my college sweetheart, a fellow clairvoyant, and the first man I'd been able to touch without the protection of a skin-suit. We broke up, after just a year, but remained close friends until his death. His murder drove me to aid the police by performing a psychic reading on the three other victims' remains. Not something I'd normally do—nor would any clairvoyant in their right frigging mind!—but Nick's murder had left me angry and feeling more than a little reckless. What I didn't know at the time, what none of us knew, was the murderer had been working with a demon to siphon each of his victim's psychic powers using an ancient spell. When I touched their remains, the residual magic from that spell reacted with my clairvoyance and transferred their talents to me. From Jason Warner, I received telekinesis; from Trinity Wilson, cryokinesis; and from Patty Schaeffer, pyrokinesis. Out of the three gifts, I struggled with Patty's fire the most. Patty had been an evil individual in life and I found it difficult, if not impossible, to separate her vile memories from the magic that bubbled to the surface all too readily when I was angry.

Claude Lefevre

I met Claude at our apartment building's first community mixer, six years ago. With his shoulder-length blond hair, GQ-good looks, and swoon-inducing French accent, the Rowan warlock has no shortage of admiring women vying for his attention. So it surprised me when he spent a majority of the party focused solely on me, especially since my clairvoyance prohibits anything more serious than egregious flirting. Since then, I've discovered that there's so much more to Claude than irresistible rake with commitment issues. He's intelligent, perceptive, and a steadfast friend. Even though we're both around thirty, he seems to possess a soul as old as mine. I acquired my own abiding insight after years of ingesting the memories of countless individuals through my psychic readings. How he came by his sagacity is a story I've yet to hear, but I suspect it has something to do with his childhood and family he almost never talks about.

Clotilde 'Lire' Marie Devon (me!)

I adopted the name 'Lire' when I was twelve and it's stuck with me ever since. Pronounced 'lear,' it means read in French. The nickname seemed appropriate since my father was French and, as a clairvoyant, that's what I do, I read things. Besides, by the time I'd reached seventh grade, I'd heard 'Clit-tilde' one too many times. (I discovered early that teenage boys are genetically programmed to be a pain in the ass.) I'm thirty years old, five-foot-seven-inches tall, and reluctantly athletic. I inherited my dark-red hair from Grandpa Giordano, jade-green eyes from Dad, and smattering of freckles from God knows where. Except for my years at Coventry Academy and then NYU, I've lived in Seattle, with my familiar Red, for most of my life. I discovered I was a clairvoyant when I was three and a half. My life has always been somewhat complicated, but about a month ago, I managed to acquire three additional 'gifts'—telekinesis, pyrokinesis, and cryokinesis. Making matters worse, every sidhe I meet thinks I'm an adept—someone capable of opening and closing portals between worlds. Me? I'm not sure what to think, but with the way my life's been going lately, it's probably true. It might not be so bad if every Tom, Dick, and Psycho didn't want to get their hands on my particular brand of power. Thankfully, I have Kieran at my side to keep the monsters at bay. Meeting him is the one good thing that's happened after all of my recent troubles.

Daniel Stockard

Daniel was my first love. We met in first grade at Coventry Academy and fast became friends. He was the one person at school who never shied away from me and my gloves, probably because he was another mind psychic, a telepath. Our 'psi battles' are why my shielding ability is as strong as it is today. We shared our first kiss under the library stairwell when we were thirteen, just before Invisius Verso stole him away to attend their secret school. Two months ago, after not seeing him for seventeen years, Daniel strode back into my life when the Invisius Verso elders used him as their messenger, hoping to force me into removing myself as a police consultant on the Circle Murder investigation. Daniel risked his life to help me, telling me about a divination that predicted I would reorder Invisius, something the elders sought to counter by any means necessary. Using his influence, Daniel steered Invisius away from voting to mind wipe me. Just a few weeks later, he died at the claws of the archdemon Azazel when a group of us stormed the Invisius headquarters to finally deal with the organization's corrupt elders. If I'd known how to close a demonic gateway sooner, I might have saved him. It's a frequent recrimination that will no doubt haunt me for the rest of my life.

Diedra Yamaguchi

Fellow clairvoyant and high school alumni, Diedra and I became BFFs from her first day at Coventry Academy, partway into our junior year. She turned what had mostly been a trying school experience into something easier to bear. Anyone who takes stock of Diedra's petite frame, fine features, and porcelain skin and jumps to the conclusion that she's a soft-spoken, demure, Japanese-princess type is in for a big surprise. Next to Julie, Diedra tips the charts at being the most outgoing, fun-loving person I've ever met. She also isn't shy about expressing her opinions, and if you piss her off … look out. She works for a strigoi clutch as their primary administrator and even migrates with them—six months in Patagonia and six months in Iceland.

The Domn

The leader of the United Convocation of Strigoi (vampires) is a figure veiled by mystery, wrapped in a thick layer of urban legend, whose identity is zealously guarded by the far-reaching influence of the strigoi PR machine. Even the Domn's gender is unknown. It is widely believed that the Domn's power over each strigoi is nothing short of omniscient, as each strigoi is bound by blood to their supreme ruler. The Domn's absolute authority and unwavering enforcement of their strict laws enabled the strigoi to remain hidden for many centuries until their recognition as a minority group in the mid-1960s. As magically cursed individuals, they are protected by the 1995 Paranormal Rights Act, along with psychics and magic users, due in no small part to the Domn's considerable influence.

Duran

Duran is everything you'd expect in a Glindarian witch if all you had for reference was the good witch from
The Wizard of Oz
. She's a dark blonde beauty with flawless skin, blue eyes, and a trim figure, but that's where the similarities end. She likes to socialize, questions everything, and is so direct, if not for her humor and tenderheartedness, she'd border on bossy. She's a powerful healer and has come to my rescue more than once. She also makes a mean chocolatini.

Evgrenya

I don't know much about this female sidhe. According to Kieran, she controls the only Earthbound gateway that lies outside of the amhaín's domain. The gateway's access point on Earth is somewhere in Ireland. A few weeks ago, Maeve negotiated a treaty with Evgrenya, which allowed Lorcán, Maeve's second in command, to travel to Earth for the purpose of claiming me.

Faonaín, King of the Sidhe

I've never met King Faonaín, ruler of the sidhe, and never will if I have anything to do with it. From what I've heard, he has zero regard for humankind and would be tickled pink if our species went extinct. From what I've been told, only the Compact—the agreement between the king, the amhaín, and the Invisius telepaths—keeps the king from resuming his extermination efforts. Ever since his sister, the amhaín, slipped through his fingers almost two thousand years ago, he's been obsessed with finding his own adept to keep his kingdom flush with potential from Earth.