CHAPTER NINETEEN
“Mercy Wardwell is full of shit.”
I glared up at the moon. It peered back at me serenely, round and bright against its dark backdrop.
The full moon, Mercy had said. Well, the moon was as full as it was going to fucking get.
Midnight had come and gone, and half of the people in the room behind me were asleep.
I was pretty sure I’d seen Damon drooling earlier when I was pacing in front of him.
Collith appeared beside me. “Fortuna, not even Mercy Wardwell can have total control over magic. A Telling is just like any other spell. It’s—”
“—unpredictable,” I finished on an exhale. “I know. She just sounded so certain … and we need this, Collith. We really need this.”
Toward the end, my voice dropped to a strained whisper.
I kept staring up at that faraway moon as if it could hear my silent pleas.
Gently, Collith gripped the curve between my neck and shoulder, giving it a soft squeeze as he pressed his cheek against my temple.
When his scent reached me, it felt like another spell, all the tension seeping out of me like a fading winter frost. A sigh filled my throat, and my chest sank as I leaned into Collith.
I’d been on edge all day. Not even a shift at Bea’s could take my mind off the full moon and all it might bring, according to Mercy.
I’d practically ripped a customer’s head off when he wouldn’t stop gawking at me.
Normally that sort of shit rolled off me, but not today. There was too much at stake.
We waited in the training room. There wasn’t enough seating, and there was no TV down here to entertain the boys, but I hadn’t wanted to risk missing the sound of a knock.
Damon was slumped on the couch, his head tipped forward at an angle that looked incredibly uncomfortable.
Danny was working the night shift, so Gil and Seth filled the space beside my brother, talking quietly.
Ariel sat cross-legged on the floor, teaching Cyrus how to crochet.
In the corner, Narfu had nestled so deeply in his pile of blankets that all we could see of him was his long, drooping tail.
Savannah and Emma were here, as well, but both of them were upstairs with Mattie.
They’d asked that one of us bring news whenever something happened.
But so far, nothing had happened. Absolutely nothing.
At the same moment I felt the tension return to my shoulders, Ariel’s soft voice reached me. “The nymph king agreed to help us, didn’t he?” she asked.
I shot her a grateful look, recognizing her attempt to offer some encouragement. Even now, at our darkest hour, Ariel’s sunshine hadn’t dimmed. “Yes,” I sighed. “But his reasons aren’t exactly reassuring. Alexander N?rg?rd is … well, he’s a little …”
“Fortuna has a fan,” Gil whispered loudly, waking my brother. As Damon blinked and sat up, Gil continued, “Clearly the chap has never shared a bathroom with her. That would sort his feelings right out.”
My gaze narrowed at him. “What are you saying?”
Gil’s eyes twinkled, and when I saw that, I couldn’t even pretend to be annoyed. He’d been doing so much better since I’d used our bond to ease his cravings. “I only meant—”
A knock echoed through the loft.
We all looked at each other, and I saw my shock mirrored in everyone else’s eyes.
It felt like my stomach had dropped out of my body.
A moment later, I recovered and rushed to the weapons rack.
First, I snatched one of the sheaths hanging there and slung it around my waist. The second I had the notch in place, I reached for my sword.
Collith was already doing the same, our movements in perfect sync.
The two of us strode from the room together.
My heart was hammering hard enough to send vibrations through the rest of my body.
When the door came into view, I stopped and stood there for a moment, just staring at it. My chest had swelled with so much hope that it felt like I might burst if I opened that door and there wasn’t an ally standing on the other side. I didn’t think I could stand it.
We really need this, I thought again, moving forward. If we could make our army bigger, even just a little, maybe we’d all have a fighting chance of getting out of this alive.
But first, I had to open the door.
Collith stood at my side. He didn’t say anything—didn’t question my hesitation, didn’t rush my uncertainty—and his quiet strength steadied me.
I took an extra moment to make sure my mental guards were in place, since we didn’t know what was standing on the other side of the door, and then I forced myself to reach for the knob.
It opened slowly, emitting a low, long whine that floated through the stillness.
Gwyn of the Wild Hunt smirked at me.
I felt my jaw loosen, and for the first time since I could remember, I was completely speechless.
“I heard a rumor that you were trying to gather an army,” the huntress remarked. “And I thought, You know, it’s been millennia since I’ve been in a good fight.”
Moving with the speed Michael had given me, I unsheathed my sword and pointed it at the hollow of Gwyn’s throat.
In the seconds that followed, I sensed my Court gathering behind me, but I kept my focus on the faerie in the doorway as I refortified my mental walls.
Her power, while not nearly as substantial as Michael’s, still made my skin prickle.
Gwyn’s eyes gleamed. “I see there have been some developments while I was away.”
“Where the fuck have you been?” I snarled.
“As usual, you’re asking the wrong questions,” Gwyn told me, annoyingly unperturbed, even as her throat moved against the point of my blade.
Her gaze was steady. “The one you should be asking is not where I’ve been, but how I could’ve resisted your call.
I am bound to you, after all. Such a thing should’ve been impossible. Unless, perhaps, I didn’t hear you.”
My brow furrowed, and I searched Gwyn’s expression.
I had asked myself that question, and I’d also considered the possibility that my summons weren’t reaching her.
Frustration heated my veins and I shook my head, reaching the same conclusion as every other time I had tried to explain Gwyn’s resistance to our bond.
“There’s no place you could go that I wouldn’t be able to … ”
The faerie’s eyebrows rose. “Funny thing about magic. Sometimes it has a little trouble in the pockets between worlds.”
The pockets between worlds. My heart quickened.
So every time I’d tried to contact her these past few months, Gwyn hadn’t been on Earth.
She hadn’t been in this world at all … and I had a feeling I knew exactly which dimension she’d gone to.
My arm was beginning to tire, but I didn’t lower it.
If anything, my distrust had only grown. “How? Why?” I demanded.
Something ancient and feral crept into Gwyn’s expression. “To understand the Hunt, you must become part of the Hunt. Do you consent?” she asked.
“No,” I said instantly, shaking my head again, recognizing the trap. She’d barely put any effort into it, but even now, the huntress couldn’t resist trying to add me to her ranks. “So the Hunt can travel between worlds. Got it. No questions here.”
The corners of Gwyn’s luscious mouth tilted in amusement, and the sight sent an icy breath down the back of my neck.
After all the horrors I’d experienced, I had forgotten to be afraid of the fae …
but facing this creature again was a jarring reminder of how dangerous they could be.
And how careful I needed to be. The last time I’d gone head-to-head with Gwyn, I’d gotten the upper hand on her.
Fallen, especially faeries, held deep grudges and long memories.
When I didn’t say anything else, she raised her eyebrows. “Are you going to invite me inside, or shall I take my news elsewhere?” Gwyn questioned.
News? I hid a scowl, realizing that I was about to step aside for the faerie who had cost Laurie his throne and drowned me in a dirty, frozen creek. From the moment we’d met, Gwyn and I had been moving pieces on a board, and now, in our silent little chess game, she’d outmaneuvered me.
I finally lowered my sword and scanned the area behind her.
There was no sign of the Wild Hunt, but that didn’t mean anything.
This could still be a trap or some kind of attempt to wriggle her way free.
I just had to trust the bond would prevent Gwyn from harming anyone.
I opened the door wider and inclined my head, sounding anything but welcoming as I said, “Come in, then.”
A small, satisfied smile hovered around the huntress’s lips as she brushed past me.
I didn’t think the way her shoulder brushed my chest was accidental, and from the way Collith’s eyes narrowed, he didn’t seem to think so, either.
I closed the door and moved to rejoin my Court, facing Gwyn with all of them still standing at my back.
Collith stayed at my side, and he was so close I could feel the coolness emanating from his skin.
Gwyn stood a yard away from us. Her ancient, calculating eyes took stock of every person in the barn, ending with me.
Her expression revealed nothing. She inclined her head and began, “Several months ago, I received an intriguing summons. A small creature from another world. At first, I ignored its calls. Crossing dimensions isn’t easy, and every journey takes a toll on my people.
But the little thing was relentless. It said my name again and again.
It interrupted my sleeping. My hunting. My fucking.
So eventually I gave in, more out of annoyance than any real curiosity.
“But what I found was intriguing. The wee beastie led us to a place full of stones. At first, I didn’t understand what it was trying to tell us. Truth be told, I considered killing it, just to shut the damn thing up.”