Chapter Forty
Brigid
I slip into the guys ’ suite quickly, not bothering to knock. “ Nobody saw me.”
Rory grins and pats the couch beside him. “ C ’ mere, you little shadow ninja.”
I roll my eyes but can ’ t help smiling as I plop down next to him.
Tiernan nods from his perch by the window. He ’ s slightly unfocused and I wonder if he ’ s been meditating, trying to see a vision of events to come. Callen is lounging in an armchair, looking for all the world like the wayward prince he is. All he needs is a crown sitting askew on the top of his head and the picture would be complete.
My gaze drifts to Lochan, glowering in the corner. Does this man ever smile? Survey says no. But when our eyes meet, there ’ s a something. Less hostility than usual. It throws me off and I think I ’ d rather he went back to being mean—at least I knew what to expect with that.
“ So,” I say, breaking the silence. “ I should tell you that I invited Eira to meet us here.”
“ You what?” Callen sits up and I picture his invisible crown toppling off his head as he starts paying attention to what ’ s happening.
“ You should have asked us first,” Lochan scowls.
And he ’ s back . “ Huh. Well, I figured since it ’ s my body the Council wants to use, that it was my decision on who I involved in this.”
Lochan grunts.
“ Alright,” I say, squaring my shoulders. “ Let ’ s figure out how to stop the Council from turning me into a creepy goddess vessel.”
As if on cue, there ’ s a soft knock. Rory bounds to the door, ushering Eira inside.
“ Hey, thanks for coming,” I say, trying to sound casual as Eira enters. Her eyes dart around the room, taking in the guys.
“ Of course,” she replies, voice quiet but steady. “ I want to help if I can.”
Callen rises smoothly, gesturing to his vacated armchair. “ Please, have a seat.”
As Eira settles in, an awkward silence descends. I clear my throat. “ So, uh, we ’ ve got a bit of a situation...”
“ The Council wants to use Brigid as a vessel for the Morrigan,” Tiernan states bluntly. “ Then harness her powers.”
Eira ’ s eyes show no surprise, at odds with her words. “ Gods above. Are you certain?” I guess she ’ s already figured that out.
I nod grimly. “ Pretty certain, yeah.”
“ We need your research skills,” Rory explains. “ To help us find a way to stop it.”
Eira leans forward, brow furrowed. “ I ’ ll do whatever I can. But... why me? Why not go to the dean?”
“ Because we can ’ t trust her,” Lochan growls from his corner. “ Or anyone connected to the Council.”
I shoot him a look.
“ We ’ re hoping you might have access to some resources or lore we don ’ t,” I explain. “ Maybe something in the library archives?”
Eira nods slowly. “ I might.”
“ Perfect,” Callen says, flashing her a charming smile. “ We ’ d be grateful for your assistance.”
I resist the urge to roll my eyes at his princely act.
“ Before we go any further,” Lochan interrupts, “ we need to be clear on something.” He fixes Eira with an intense stare. “ This information doesn ’ t leave this room. If you breathe a word of it to anyone, there will be consequences.”
“ Hell, Lochan,” Rory mutters. “ Way to make the lady feel welcome.”
But Eira meets Lochan ’ s gaze steadily. “ I understand the gravity of the situation. You have my word—I won ’ t speak of this to anyone.”
I let out a breath I didn ’ t realize I was holding. “ Thank you, Eira. Really.”
She gives me a small smile. “ Of course. Now, tell me everything.”
We fill Eira in on everything we know. I see the shock on her face when we get to the part about the Council ’ s involvement in Dean Charling ’ s murder.
“ There ’ s also something we should tell you,” I say. I ’ m sure I ’ m already turning a shade of beet red. “ We accidentally discovered a long-forgotten ritual chamber underneath the academy. There were—paintings on the walls. Of the Morrigan. And the Raven King. Together.”
“ Fucking,” Rory adds with a grin. He ’ s eating a sandwich and half of it almost falls out of his mouth.
Eira goes pink. “ Oh.” The sound is tiny.
“ Tell her the best part, darling.” Callen ’ s smirk is insufferable right now.
I draw in a deep breath. “ So…there was also a painting of the woman, who looked a lot like me, with—”
“ All of us.” Tiernan gestures around the room.
“ All of us?” Eira asks in alarm.
“ No, no,” I reassure her. “ The four guys.”
Eira ’ s lips are pressed primly together and she nods.
“ And,” I continue, “ We seem to be—”
“ Mates.” This comes from Marius, who is now standing by the door.
“ We need better fucking security,” Callen grumbles.
Lochan ’ s in front of Marius in two quick strides. “ What the fuck are you doing in our suite?”
He tilts his head and I swear I see him roll his eyes. “ I was invited. By my mate.”
Four heads turn to stare at me. I shrug. “ He ’ s part of this.”
Eira ’ s eyes are as wide as saucers. “ All of you… mates?”
I nod, my cheeks burning. “ Yeah. It ’ s... complicated.”
“ Understatement of the fucking century,” Callen mutters.
Eira looks shell-shocked. “ I-I see. That ’ s... quite unusual.”
“ Tell me about it,” Rory mumbles around a mouthful of sandwich.
Lochan ’ s still glaring daggers at Marius. “ You ’ re not part of anything. Get out.”
Marius doesn ’ t budge. “ I ’ m staying.”
I step between them before Lochan can throw a punch. “ He stays. We need all the help we can get.”
Lochan ’ s hand makes a fist, but he backs off. Barely.
“ So,” Eira says, clearly trying to get us back on track. “ The Council is going to use Brigid as a vessel for the Morrigan. To harness her power for themselves.”
“ That ’ s the gist of it,” Callen confirms.
“ But we don ’ t know the full prophecy, or how they plan to do it,” I add. “ Just bits and pieces.”
Eira ’ s brow furrows. “ I may be able to help with that. There are some obscure texts on magical vessels and divine possession. I ’ d need to look into them more closely, but there might be something useful there.”
“ Great,” Callen says. “ Where do we start?”
“ The archives,” Eira replies. “ But we ’ ll need to be careful. If the Council or the new dean catches wind of what we ’ re researching...”
“ They won ’ t,” Lochan says firmly.
I catch Marius eyeing Eira with a hint of suspicion. His gaze flicks to me and he gives an almost imperceptible shake of his head.
Interesting. I ’ ll have to ask him about that later.
I nod, trying to keep my voice steady. “ Okay, so we hit the archives. But we need more than just research. We need to figure out how to stop them. Once we know what they ’ re planning, how do we stop it?”
Lochan ’ s voice is terse. “ We take the fight to them. Cut off the head of the snake.”
“ That particular head just happens to be my dear dad.” If Callen feels upset by what Lochan just suggested, he doesn ’ t show it.
The room falls silent. I can feel the weight of what we ’ re considering pressing down on all of us.
Marius speaks. “ Cut the head off the snake only to have another grow back. The King isn ’ t the point. The entire Council is corrupt.”
I close my eyes, trying to center myself. When I open them, I meet each of their gazes in turn. “ Let ’ s... let ’ s cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, we focus on gathering information and staying ahead of them.”
They nod, and I feel a rush of gratitude. Despite everything, they ’ re here. They ’ re with me.
I just hope it ’ s enough.