"Give us the Lady Ethine and you shall have him.”
"And you'll leave us unharmed once we hand her over?" Corny asked. "Dave and Luis and me and Kaye and all our families. You'll go away and leave us alone.”
"We will." The fox faery spoke in a monotone.
Luis nodded and let go of Ethine's arm. She darted out in her bare feet and boxers, standing between the other faeries. One removed a cloak and spread it over Ethine's shoulders.
"Now give us Dave," said Luis.
"He is hardly worth your bargaining," one said. "Do you know how we found you? He led us here for a bag of powder.”
"Just give him to me!”
"As you desire," said another. He nodded to someone behind the side of the trailer and two more of them stepped out, holding a body between them with a bag over its head.
They set him down on the step. He flopped, head lolling.
Luis took a step forward. "What did you do to him?”
"We killed him," said a fey with scales along his cheekbones.
Luis froze. Corny could hear his own heartbeat thundering in his blood. Everything seemed very loud. The cars on the road roared by and the wind made the leaves crackle.
Corny crouched and pulled off the cloth bag. Dave's ashen face looked as though it were made from wax. Dark circles ringed his sunken eyes, and his clothes were wrinkled and filthy. His shoes were gone and his toes looked pale, as if frostbitten.
"My Queen wishes to inform you that your brother lived so long as you were her servant," said the fox faery. "That was her promise to you. Consider it kept.”
A fierce gust of wind tore the fabric from Corny's hand and whipped at the cloaks. He closed his eyes against the sting of snow and dirt, but when he opened them, the faeries were gone.
Luis screamed, running out to where they had been, turning. His screaming was raw, terrible. His hands were fists, but there was nothing to strike.
Lights flashed on in the windows of two of the trailers. Corny reached out his gloved hand to touch Dave's cold cheek. It seemed impossible that they hadn't saved him. Dead like Janet. Just like Janet.
Corny's mother came to the door. She had the portable phone in her hand. "You woke up half the—" Then she saw the body. "Oh my god.”
"It's his brother," Corny said. "Dave." That seemed important. Across the street, Mrs. Henderson came to the door and looked out through the glass.
Corny's stepfather came to the door. "What the hell's going on?" he demanded. Corny's mother started punching numbers into the phone. "I'm calling the first aid squad. Don't move him.”
Luis turned. His face looked blank. "He's dead.”
His voice was hoarse. "We don't need an ambulance. He's dead.”
Corny stood and stepped toward Luis. He had no idea what to do or say. There were no words that could make things better. He wanted to wrap his arms around Luis, comfort him, remind him he wasn't alone. As his bare hand moved toward Luis's shoulder, he looked at it in horror.
Before he could snatch his hand back, Luis caught him around the wrist. His eyes sparkled with tears. One streaked down his face. "Yes, good," he said. "Touch me. It doesn't fucking matter now, does it?”
"What?" Corny said. He reached up with his other hand, but Luis seized that, too, fingers scrabbling to pull off the rubber glove.
"I want you to touch me.”
"Stop it," Corny shouted, struggling to move away, but Luis's grip was unyielding.
Luis pressed Corny's palm to his cheek. His tears wet Corny's fingers. "I really did want you to touch me," he said softly, and the longing in his voice was a surprise. "I couldn't tell you that I wanted you. So good, now I get what I want and it kills me.”
Corny fought him. "Stop it! Don't!”
Luis's fingers were stronger, pinning Corny's hand in place. "I want to," he said. "There's no one to care what I do anymore.”