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"That’s why she needed the witches," Beezle erprints on it if it works"

"What are youabout?" I asked

"It’s almost the solstice," Beezle said

"So?" I said "Lots of witches do stuff around the solstice It’s a thing"

"Lots of good witches perform spells around the solstice, yes," Beezle said "And so do lots of bad ones Because the solstice is a tiical ooular old day"

"Did you just say the solstice has ‘oomph’?"

"Yeah, so?"

I decided not to pursue it "What does that have to do with Chicago?"

"You truly do not know," Arkan said, looking from Beezle’s face to mine "I have been a fool If I had only waited to discover your purpose here"

"Youoff like a maniac the second you saw me? Yeah, you blew it Now someone tellto have to stop her just on principle"

"Chicago is a special place, ic-wise You kno all of the old rail lines froed on the city and then went out west, and all the shipping went through here to the canal?" Beezle said

"Yeah," I said, vaguely re some of this from elementary school history

He squinted at me like he knew I didn’t really remember, but then continued "There’s a reason for that besides Chicago’s strategic location Magical energy converges on this city in a big way It’s the reason why so many supernatural creatures live here, and why so y a," I said "Chicago er and better, and so does the solstice And the two coet more out of whatever spells they cast But this can’t be the only place in the world that does so There has to be another city with special one, soet in her way"

"There is, but the others are a lot farther away frodoot ties to the local supernatural community The only fly in the ointment is you Sammy Blue isn’t here just because he’s Aot the Red Shoes," Beezle said, looking at Arkan for confirive the faerie credit I never would have seen the flicker in his eyes if I hadn’t been looking for it

"The solstice is a time of life and death and rebirth, you said?" I asked Beezle, trying to pull all the threads together in my head "And Amarantha needs witches and the Red Shoes"

I stopped, because so horrible had just occurred toneeds a sacrifice And they’re going to use the shoes to do it"

Beezle nodded "It’s got to be soenerate a lot of agony for the spell The suffering of the wearer will help to power the curse"

"Extra solstice points, extra Chicago--a-sacrifice points," I said, ticking theoes, Aic to be on it So there’s only one person she could possibly be after Lucifer"

Beezle patted h, this kind of thinking gets easier"

"Aainst Lucifer?" I said to Arkan "I thought she was s"

"Do not insult my queen," Arkan said "She is a thousand times the woman you will ever be"

"That’s probably true," I said "But it doesn’t change the fact that she’s star has insulted Queen A dominion over her court as repayment for the insult done to you," Arkan said

"So you’re acknowledging that there was an insult?" I said "Because it generally is considered poor form to try to kill an aree with ines himself to be," Arkan said as if I had never spoken "He cannot even control the fallen of his own court Look how Focalor conspires against hie surrounding by electrified bars right now," I said "Don’t you worry about Focalor Worry about Ah she’ll never succeed"

"You think you can stop Sammy Blue? The ambassador has never yet failed in a mission for his queen," Arkan said

"There’s always a first ti to leave and let some innocent be tortured by those shoes So take me to your leader and all that"