Page 3

Zoey

“I have intelligence that places Myrddin’s witches around both doors to the Faery plane,”

Sasha Federov says as he sits at the conference table. The big Russian vampire is awake and seems to enjoy being a daywalker since I gave him Alexander Sharpe’s ring. I took it from his ashes when I killed the fucker. Sasha’s eyes go down to the ring he wears on his left hand. On his ring finger. “Your Highness, I think we should consider postponing the trip.”

My Fae husband frowns. “I think it’s important to get Rhys to Faery. I’m worried about the state he’s in since his deeply unexpected ascension.”

I have to wonder if he blames me for that. I was there with Rhys when it happened. Naturally, like most of my life right now, we were in terrible danger, and not wanting to watch his recently returned mother be murdered by a troll had caused him to accept his power. The trouble was his power had turned out to be way stronger than any of us dreamed.

My son is Walking Spring. Sounds innocent, right? Like how can being able to grow flowers be a destructive power? You wouldn’t think it if you saw what Dev can do. On many occasions he’s used the trees around us to stab our enemies or the roots to drag and hold them underground. We’re still not certain what all Rhys can do, but it’s been raining a lot lately. Raining in a pocket world that shouldn’t have much weather. I think we can safely say it’s not Lee or Evan.

Who chose Kelsey.

I try to shake off that invasive thought. When the Nex Apparatus and I decided to split our group for these missions we’re on, I knew she would need her son Fenrir with her, and where goeth that wolf king so goeth Evangeline Donovan-Quinn. Kelsey is trying to save our friend we found on another plane. His name is Dean Malone, and according to prophecy, he is going to help my son, Lee, destroy Myrddin Emrys. So beyond the fact that I like the kid and don’t want him to die, we kind of need him. It’s one of those dire, this-is-the-only-way prophecies that prophets like to give us.

I often think the universe would be way more fun if instead of prophecy leading us, we could do one of those Mad Lib things and figure out how to save the universe that way.

So Kelsey is on the Hell plane trying to steal a feather from Lucifer Morningstar with the help of two of my kids, and I’m sure Rhys would have tried to go if his papa hadn’t told him absolutely no. Not that his papa’s views would mean a thing. It was only when my vampire husband, Daniel, pointed out the Hell plane might be disturbing to someone with Shy’s powers that Rhys agreed to come to Faery with us.

My son’s love can speak to the dead, and I know sometimes they can frighten her. I would like to keep her away from a place where the dead are tortured and will likely overwhelm her. I hope in Faery we can spend time together and become closer.

“I think Rhys’s powers will also help loosen some tongues,”

the King of All Vampire says. Danny was once my childhood sweetheart. Then he died and our lives truly began. We spent years bringing the supernatural world together and building a Council that worked for everyone. We also built a family. A family I love.

Myrddin took it all away from us. He stole twelve years from me and Dev and Danny. Twelve years where our kids and the people we love struggled and fought to stay alive while waiting for us to return.

“You really think the faeries know how to get to the celestial planes?”

my bestie asks.

Neil Roberts, the most fab werewolf in all of the planes. We’ve been through a lot together, and having him here with me brings me so much comfort. In the years since we disappeared, Neil and his vampire husband, Chad, adopted two wolves and made a home for themselves within the rebel force.

“I think my mother has access to information.”

Dev sits back, his gaze going to the window that looks out over the yard. “The Faery plane connected directly to the Earth plane is rather unique. It’s been posited that faery planes are close to celestial planes. There has to be a way. My brother gave Zoey a relic to use to speak with our ancestors. Unfortunately, my lovely wife chose to use it as C4 to explode my beautiful club.”

Yeah. We’re still processing that. “Babe, Myrddin turned Ether into something terrible. I had to do it. We can start again after we off him.”

Danny stands and frowns Dev’s way. “According to what your brother told us, it’s back in Faery. It was the process of dematerializing to go back to the amulet’s base that caused the explosion. So the amulet is safe and sound in your mother’s palace. We simply need to access it.”

It’s more complex than that. I have to prime it first, so it’s not like we’re going to walk in, find it, and use it. According to my brother-in-law, I have to wear the amulet close to the chain Devinshea gave me when we wed. The Goddess Chain is one of the Fae treasures, and its proximity can allow the wearer to use the amulet.

Dev nods. “Yes, and we can use it to talk to the ancients, who might have some wisdom when it comes to finding Sarah, Felix, and Mia.”

We have come to believe Mia plays a huge role in the prophecy we risked our lives for on the outer planes. The prophecy speaks of a weapon. I believe Mia is that weapon.

My other bestie is a powerful witch, and her husband is a fallen angel. Mia’s powers were off the charts as a kid. She was so powerful Myrddin came for her on the day of his coup. According to the intelligence Kelsey received, Sarah was forced to take her family off plane because Myrddin tried to claim her not-even teen daughter at the time as his bride.

Yeah, I hate that man.

“Beyond finding Sarah, we need to get to Faery to help Rhys control his powers,”

Dev says. “I don’t think you understand how bad it could get. His powers seem soft…”

“There’s nothing soft about Rhys.”

Sasha waves him off. “Rhys is a hell of a fighter, and his powers can help us win this war. What is it about being in Faery that will help him? I would think having his father back in his life would be what he needs to learn to control these new powers of his. His fathers. Has Bris spoken to him?”

My faery husband’s eyes shift in a heartbeat, the change so quick, going from his normal green to an emerald color that takes over the entire eye, leaving no white behind. Unlike my son, who ascended to godhood all on his own, my husband did it the old-fashioned way. He opened his soul to a non-corporeal ancient god. Bris, an Irish fertility god. They bonded at our wedding.

Which I mostly didn’t know was a wedding. Let me tell you it’s a shock when you realize the public proof of sexual compatibility ritual you’re performing with your honey has been taken over by a sex god.

Though now I simply love Bris. He looks my way and sends me a warm smile. “My Goddess.”

“My Lord,”

I reply with a smile of my own.

Once he’s greeted me, he turns to Sasha. “General, being in Faery will amplify Rhys’s powers. My host believes being in Faery will push our son to have sex. Rhys is a sex god. He requires sex to exist. It is not natural for him to be a virgin, and that state is causing him to struggle to contain his magic. If he were having sex as he should, his partners would absorb some of his magic.”

“He’s apparently really good at masturbating,”

Neil offers helpfully. “I mean I mostly stay in the forests with the wolves, but we’ve all heard stories about gardens exploding around Rhys’s house after a late-night session.”

He sighs. “I never thought of it. He can’t even jerk off without the world knowing. If the grass around his place grows a couple of inches, everyone assumes he’s been one-fisting it. The only way I knew Brendan had figured it out was those socks. Socks aren’t supposed to be sticky. That was when I realized the boy needs to do his own laundry.”

“Thank you for the clarification, Neil,”

Danny says with a long sigh. “Bris is right, of course. We have to find a way to get Rhys to… I can’t believe I’m having this conversation. When I thought about having kids, never once did I imagine I would be sitting around a table with my wife and partner and the living god inside him discussing how the hell to get our sex god firstborn laid.”

“There are many temptations in Faery,”

Bris says slowly as though he knows it will be controversial. “My host thinks being there will put Rhys on a proper footing.”

They are forgetting one important fact.

“You tell your host that our son is in love with Shy.”

Of the three of us, it’s Dev who is having the most trouble adjusting, and it’s affecting his relationships with our kids. He tried to meddle in Evan’s relationship with Fenrir already, and that went south. I’m not about to allow him to ruin Rhys’s relationship with that smart, brave and gorgeous girl. “He isn’t going to be tempted by anything. She is his goddess.”

Bris shakes his head. “I know he is in love, but she hasn’t proven to be his goddess yet. Not only does she have to bring forth his magic, she has to be able to contain it, to calm him. As far as I can tell, being close to Shahidi merely heightens Rhys’s issues since they won’t do what they need to do. There is also the fact that my host believes Rhys is too young to take a goddess.”

I feel my brows raise at the hypocrisy. “His brother said the same thing to me. It was his justification for withholding the Goddess Chain.”

“He’s four years younger than Dev was,”

Danny points out. “I’m with Z on this one, but we need to all be on the same page.”

Dev’s back, his eyes normal again, but I’m getting used to that frown of his. “And that page is the one the king chooses to be on, I assume.”

Danny sighs and sits back. “Devinshea, you are pushing our children away. You have to accept that they are adults and understand their hearts. Evan loves Fenrir.”

“And Fenrir is destined to be the king of the wolf packs,”

Dev points out. “They will never accept a companion as a queen. There have already been attempts on her life.”

“Which we have successfully stopped,”

Sasha interjects. “Your Grace, the situation with the wolves is complex, but I need you to understand Fenrir has called for her. There is no other mate for Fen. He will never give her up. So his father and I have a plan, one which we will implement when Fenrir is ready.”

Danny grins, but it’s a predatory expression. “Kill every fucking wolf who refuses to accept their marriage?”

“That seems extreme,”

Neil begins.

Sasha shrugs. “I figure we only need to have Fenrir challenge ten or so of the strongest alphas to let the packs know we won’t stop. They can accept Fen’s mate or they can lose a generation of alphas and unite under Fenrir only. He can be a modern king or a ruthless dictator. It’s up to them.”

“Evan is seventeen.”

Dev’s hand slaps at the table. “She should be finishing high school, not be in the middle of a fucking political campaign.”

“I assure you, Your Grace, that neither Fenrir nor Evan sees their relationship in those terms.”

The Russian sits back and seems to consider my faery prince. “I know you have anger because you lost those years with your children, but that is the reality of the situation. I watched those children grow. Those children have been the center of my life for the last twelve years, even while my own child grew up with a different family. Fenrir loves Evan and Evan loves him. It is the same with Rhys and Shy. Did you know the dark prophet visited Frelsi when Shahidi first came here?”

Dev studies Sasha for a moment. “No, I did not. Do we know why Gray thought Shy was important? Or was it Harry? Shy brought Harry with her. I know he had a profound impact on the rebellion.”

Sasha’s head shakes. “No, it was Shy. I know this because he came in full prophet mode. He did not speak to the rest of us. Merely watched for the moment he was supposed to witness. Would you like to know what that moment was?”

I can guess. “When Rhys first met Shy.”

Sasha nods.

Dev takes a long breath and seems to calm. “I am not trying to alienate our children. I will accept whatever Evan and Fenrir decide, but we have a problem with Rhys. He and Shy have known each other for a long time. I don’t think she wants him. Lee’s been having sex for years. The only reason Fenrir and Evan aren’t sleeping together is he promised her brothers to wait until she’s eighteen.”

Which is coming up on us like a freight train, but I’m not about to point that out to my husband. “And until a few weeks ago Shy had my father in her head. Do you honestly believe she was going to go to bed with Rhys with his grandfather talking in her head? I love my father, but he could be bossy at times and very opinionated.”

“Look, let’s give them some time,”

Danny says, obviously trying to placate Dev.

“I don’t know how much time we have.”

Dev looks out the window and then stands. “What the… Well, this is exactly what I’m talking about. I’ve got to find him.”

I stand and see what he means. The grass around the house was perfectly cut this morning. It’s a mess of weeds now, and it’s at least four inches taller than it was. I seriously doubt Rhys meant to do that. One of the goats is standing in the yard, looking around and trying to figure out how she’s suddenly knee high, lost in a field that had been easy to walk in mere moments before. To the goat’s credit, she simply puts her head down as though she’s ready to eat her way out.

Danny starts to follow Dev. “I’ll fly up and see how bad it is.”

He turns his attention Sasha’s way. “But you need to get us into Faery. Any way you can. We have to find the Days, and there’s that other project the ancients might know something about.”

Danny walks out the door, and I see his feet dangling above the window. Because he can fly.

“What other project?”

Neil asks. “I think finding our way to the Heaven plane is project enough. Especially if we’re going to have to fight our way through Myrddin to get there.”

Sasha’s head shakes. “I’ll find a way to distract them. I’ll think about it, but I’ll get us in. As to the other project, that is for Her Highness to say.”

It’s not like it’s a big old secret. Not in my inner circle. “Harriet.”

The child I’m carrying. The one Danny and I made when he was briefly human on the outer planes. Dev facilitated the pregnancy.

When Myrddin realized I was pregnant with Danny’s baby, he flipped out. Like lost his cool, and not in a congrats way.

In a “you’re carrying a creature who might destroy the world”

way. It is precisely why he locked me up with Lee rather than taking me prisoner. He thought my dying son would kill me in his turn. He was wrong, but his reaction got me thinking.

So I need to figure out why the baddest of all magicians is scared of a fetus.

It was pointed out to me that if I used the amulet in the way it was intended to be used, I could have asked the ancients. So now I get to go to Faery, face my mother-in-law, who thought her son was dead for twelve years, and ask for the super-exclusive way to call really old dudes.

Of course, I’ll also be talking to Miria about the fact that she refused Lee and Fenrir entry to Faery. She was willing to allow Rhys and Evan in, but she closed the doors to my seemingly human son and Kelsey’s werewolf boy. Sasha and Trent decided to not break the kids up, a decision I approved of.

I thank the universe that Sasha and Trent stepped up.

And I’ll explain to my mother-in-law that she won’t ever get Rhys to live in Faery and be a proper priest.

After I get the other stuff. I’m pretty sure my guys will be pissed if I throw down with Miria before we get what we need.

I have a job to do. I get that amulet via persuasion…or I can steal it. Either way, I’m going to get what we need. I’m going to find Sarah. I once pulled my friend out of a torture chamber on the Hell plane. Surely I can find her in Heaven.

I hope she’s still alive and wants to come home.

“There’s nothing wrong with Harriet,”

Neil insists. “Daniel was human when you conceived. So Harriet might end up being a companion, but she’s probably human. We can handle a human. She won’t even be a latent vampire like Lee, so we won’t have to deal with the recklessness.”

“I’m not so sure about that,”

Sasha says. “Daniel might have seemed human, but from what I can tell he was under the influence of some truly unique magic. Summer Donovan is a magical creature of immense power. She managed to make her father seem human, and Dev’s fertility magic did its work. So in essence the queen’s child was created with several kinds of magic, and we can’t know what she is.”

“She’s mine.”

It’s all I need to know. The girl Bris promises me is growing normally is my baby. I don’t care what kind of supernatural creature she turns out to be. But I need to know so I can protect her.

“And she’s perfect.”

Neil is one hundred percent Team Harriet. Or rather he’s always on my team. Even after all these years. “Sasha’s right. We’ll figure a way to get in without Myrddin’s hunters knowing. I think this might be a job for my husband. It’s been a while since Chad did a really fabulous illusion. He’ll be thrilled since he’s not actually coming on this trip.”

“Someone has to stay and represent the vampires as Lily and the others move to New Zealand. The wolves trust Chad and so does Zack.”

It was decided we would keep our group tight. I would feel so much better if Zack was with us, but he has a young son and just regained his health. He’s the alpha of our wolf pack. He and Chad and Lily can oversee the safe shift to New Zealand while we’re gone, and Neil and their kids will serve as our wolves.

I’m excited to spend time with Brendan and Cassie.

I’m nervous about what will happen with my son when he’s in Faery. I know there is trouble with both the Seelie and Unseelie. Both tried to claim Rhys. With my husband off plane, they had no priest, and at the time Rhys was the next best thing.

Now he’s beyond any Green Man they’ve seen in centuries. Beyond his ascended god of a father.

I wonder if I’ll be giving up the Goddess Chain soon. I’m attached to it, but I can pass the torch on after one more job. I’m not sending sweet Shy in to deal with the Fae royals.

I walk to the window to see if I can tell where Rhys is when the alarms start to go off.

Neil is at my side immediately. “Z, let’s get you somewhere safe.”

But I’m not a safe girl, and he should remember that. “The safest place is with my family.”

I hear both Neil and Sasha curse as I race out the door, desperate to find my son.