Chapter 21
Non
During the private meeting with Granny, Ail Llew, Mared, and Aeron, I was given strict instructions to sit in the corner and keep quiet.
Although it was difficult to not open my mouth, considering some of the seedy looks Aeron shot my way.
But keeping quiet had paid off as I'd actually picked up some useful pieces of information by observing.
It turned out Mared was Aeron's daughter, which surprised me because the thought of anyone letting him stick it in them turned my stomach.
The title of Pen Arwr that Granny had used meant Aeron was the leader of all the Coven leadership and seemed to have final say in any and every decision.
Despite Granny being nice as pie to him, the vein that would only appear on her forehead when she was feeling murderous was on full display for the duration of the meeting.
It came as no surprise that my grandmother struggled with being told what to do. I had only been in their world for a brief time, but even I had found it unusual that my grandmother wasn't the one in charge.
I questioned why the Wielders and Witches even bothered with Coven Ledrs and Ails who collectively called themselves the Cyngor Blaen when this slimy bastard seemed to be the real one in charge.
As I mulled that thought over, a firm hand wrapped around my bicep. I'd been heading towards the summoning circle, which I'd been instructed to find just outside the main doors of Llwyn Onn.
Jazz's eyes were wild when they met my own. “What the fuck happened in there?”
Despite the empty foyer we stood in, Jazz still pulled me into a dark corner.
“I should be asking you the same question! Why did I end up at the dinner you told me specifically not to attend?”
A crease formed between Jazz's brows. “How am I supposed to know? Alaw used the exact same circle you did, and it took her to the right place.”
Curling my finger around the end of a loose strand of hair, I tried to think of a logical reason I had been transported there. “Maybe my power did it? I mean, can it do that kind of thing? Change the destination of a circle.”
“No,” Jazz said solemnly. “Once a summoning circle is cast, you can only use it as intended. It's a pretty rigid spell that can't be manipulated. If you did try and do anything to it, it would have just broken.”
I bit my bottom lip in thought. “Okay, but what if my power transported me without the help of the circle? When it attacked Seren on my first day here, it formed a big hole that she seemed to disappear into.”
Jazz began shaking their head before I even finished what I was saying.
“Nope. Power like the kind you're talking about, walking through gateways to other places, only belongs to two individuals. One of which, the Orwen, is missing and considered dead”—they dropped their voice to a whisper—”and the other is known as the Orddu. Only they can wield power like that.”
That name. It was what people in Cadoc's memory had called my father back in the library. And although I had no idea what it really meant, the sliver of information Jazz had just divulged certainly helped.
Gwaun could open and move through gateways.
Granny mentioned as much during our meeting in her dining room, and some are thinned during the selection process so gods can choose a vassal.
Laughter and music drifted through the air as the shadows of revellers shifted in front of the open doors.
I waited in silence as their voices faded away before I spoke.
“What's an Orddu?”
It was hard to make out Jazz's face in the darkness, but the whites of their eyes widened slightly at my question.
“Bron told you then?” they whispered.
“She didn't just tell me, she showed me.”
Jazz's eyes searched my face. “Showed you?”
I nodded, swallowed thickly to try and combat the bile that burned my throat at the thought of those poor girls. Jazz was as stiff as a board, watching me closely. As the weight of what I was saying sank in, they buried their face in their hands.
“Cadoc?” they murmured into their palms.
I didn't answer. I didn't have to; my silence said everything. When they eventually lifted their head out of their hands, their expression was solemn.
Jazz reached for my hand, and their thumb brushed over my knuckles. “I'm sorry you had to see that. Vassals of Arianrhod are powerful. I've only ever experienced their power a handful of times, but each time it's terrifyingly vivid.”
The last thing I wanted to do was recount what I had seen when Cadoc had shared his memories. I shrugged and fixed my eyes on the ground.
Jazz tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear, but when I looked back up, their brow was still creased with frustration.
From the way they stood glaring at me, I got the feeling they were waiting for me to say something.
When I didn't, Jazz let out a frustrated grumble and pulled me from the shadows.
The cool summer air was filled with smells of bonfires and cooking meat, but there wasn't another person or any sign of a party in sight.
Jazz led me down a path that ran around the edge of the castle, seemingly heading for a long outhouse that sat to the far side of the grounds.
“This party that's supposed to be happening... Is it an invisible party or...”
Jazz didn't respond, and I was growing impatient of being dragged around with no idea where we were going.
I pulled them to a halt. “Are you pissed off at me? The thing with the summoning circle had nothing to—”
“Fuck the circle, Non!” Jazz growled, rounding on me. “Why did you try to protect him?”
Ah, so that's what they were pissed about.
Silence stretched between us until I had to look away from all the hurt in Jazz's expression. Eventually, I did as I usually did in uncomfortable situations and shrugged; there was no reasonable answer I could give Jazz. I'd been asking myself the same question since we had left the dining hall.
Why did I throw myself in front of Dylan?
Aside from ogling him at training the day before, I'd never met him before in my life. But for some reason, my body had just reacted. Once my face was buried in his chest, I couldn't have cared less what was happening to me, honestly. The rest of the world seemed to fall away.
Jazz ran a hand down their face and seemed to compose themselves. “In case you hadn't gathered from the less-than-amicable dinner we just attended, the Western Coven isn't on the best terms with everyone else.”
I crossed my arms. “No shit.”
The corner of Jazz's mouth twitched. “Remember how the Wielders of D?n have a long-standing hatred for the Witches of Llyr because of what he did to D?n?”
I nodded, remembering what Ail Llew had told me on the day I'd arrived.
“Most who call themselves a Wielder belong to the Northern, Central, Southern, and Eastern Covens.”
“I kind of gathered you weren't all holding hands dancing around cauldrons together. Everyone Granny has introduced me to has been a Wielder of D?n, or so I assumed.”
“You catch on quick. Not bad for an outsider.” Jazz winked.
I rolled my eyes as they continued.
“No, we certainly are not all dancing around a cauldron together. At some points in history, there has been peace, but not anymore. The Anoethau is the only time we're all ever in the same room. During the years when the West doesn't have anyone competing, they don't even bother turning up.”
“So where are all these Witches of Llyr or whatever they call themselves if they aren't a part of the Covens?”
Jazz looked at me like I was an idiot. “What Coven did I just mention?”
Oh. “Western?”
“Bingo.”
“So, Caerwyn and Dylan are the leaders of all the Witches of Llyr, aka the Western Coven.”
“Gold star for Non.”
I pouted. “Do I get a reward?”
Jazz's gaze darkened as they stepped closer. “What kind of reward were you thinking?”
The drastic shift in Jazz's mood threw me off guard, and I took a step away from them.
As my back pressed against a hard surface, something poked me in my side.
I didn't even notice we were standing in front of the door to the outhouse until Jazz stepped past me and opened it, gesturing for me to follow.
It was pitch black inside. Jazz's heeled boots clicked on the floor ahead as they strode down the centre of the stalls. The foul smell and the few huffs of breath that brushed against my exposed arms confirmed what resided here.
“My grandmother has horses?”
“One of the only other things she cares about aside from leading her Coven. I've never seen her ride one, but she dotes on these things like they are her children.”
“How many are in here?” I asked, staring down the long, dark hallway that seemed to go on forever.
“I lost count after fifteen,” Jazz called back.
Was I shocked that the woman who lived in a castle practically by herself had fifteen horses? No, but it was still odd to think my family had enough money to buy and upkeep so many horses.
Jazz's steps came to a stop, and I followed suit, but I still couldn't see my hand in front of my face. I felt the rush of air as Jazz waved their arm. A glowing ring of red appeared on the floor, and inside was the same fivefold symbol that hung around my neck.
The red glow of the blood illuminated the symmetrical outline of Jazz's handsome features.
“Are we finally going to this party?” I asked as they guided me inside the ring. I was desperate for the evening to take a better turn.
Jazz smirked, but tension still showed in the lines at the corners of their eyes. “The private meeting you had after dinner with Pen Arwr Aeron... What exactly did you talk about?”
”He asked Granny to tell him everything she knew about me, who I was, where I came from. He seemed to take a lot of interest in my power.”
Jazz raised a brow. “And did Bronwen talk? Did she tell him the truth about who you are and your power?”
“Oh, she sang like a canary. Even told him who my father is, and about the incident with Seren disappearing in my shadows the other day.”
Jazz's throat worked before they shifted their gaze to the floor for a moment. When they spoke again, their voice was quiet.
“Let's go have some fun while we can,” they said, rather unconvincingly. But as I protested, wanting to understand why Jazz seemed so concerned about Aeron knowing so much about me, Jazz pulled me towards them. My foot landed on the fivefold symbol, and we disappeared.