Total pages in book: 162
Estimated words: 151630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 758(@200wpm)___ 607(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 151630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 758(@200wpm)___ 607(@250wpm)___ 505(@300wpm)
He would have been the most magnificent father-in-law.
“Me, either.” I say the words out loud because we’re not in synch the way I was with Harry. Harry and I could talk in my head, but it took a while for me to figure out how to do it. Devinshea is different. His mind works in a way Harry’s did not. Or I suppose I should call it his soul. “Matilda told us, though.”
Yes, I would like to have a word with the crone.
A big white rocket runs my way, and I’m suddenly assaulted by a happy hellhound. Fluffy.
“How did you get here?” I pet the big beast, and we’re joined by the other two. Caddoc and Emyr bounce around me.
“These little ones belong to us. I allowed Mallt-y-nos to take them for a while. I did not understand why she felt she needed a break at the time. There are things not even a god knows. I allowed Mallt-y-nos her sabbatical, and she brought you here. Now it’s time to call them home,” a deep voice says. “It’s time to call all my people home. I’m afraid I’ve been hiding.”
Oh, I have a few things to say to… Dev begins. And then he’s suddenly standing beside me. “…Arawn. Shy, I need you to translate for me. You are a massive ass.”
The King of the Dead manages a smile while crossing his arms over his chest. “Dev, it’s good to see you. I am ready to hear whatever you have to say. Also, you don’t have to hide inside yr un sanctaidd when you’re in Annwn. You are welcome here. I know we’ve had our issues, and you can’t know how I regret the last few decades I spent in the Unseelie sithein. I allowed myself to become something less. Can you tell me how she is?”
I do not have time for this. “Your Majesty…”
He shakes his head. “You do not call me that. You are… yr un sanctaidd. I bow to you.”
I’m not sure what he means, but somewhere out there my husband needs me. “I need to know how to defeat Myrddin, and I need to know now.”
“You’re worried time is moving,” Arawn says, nodding as though satisfied he can fix the problem. “I assure you we can spend days here in Annwn and I will have you back to your husband within moments of when you left. You will miss nothing. But you should also understand that you cannot defeat Myrddin alone. You don’t have what you need yet.”
My heart threatens to stop in my chest. “I can’t save Rhys and the rest of them?”
“Arawn, there has to be a way.” Dev stands next to me, lending me his strength.
“Yes, there is a way, and the dark prophet laid it out.” He chuckles, and it’s an affectionate sound. “Although he didn’t reveal the whole plan, did he? He knew exactly who you were, Shahidi. He could have told me.”
“And you would have…?” Dev asked.
Arawn sighs. “I probably would have screwed everything up since I would have wanted to see her. I’m certain the only reason Myrddin is surprised by her existence is the fact that he didn’t know what she was until now.”
I have to hope this male is telling me the truth and I’m not missing my chance to save my family. For some reason, I believe him. For some reason, he feels familiar. “Yeah, I’m still a bit confused. So I’m this sacred one and I’m somehow connected to you. I don’t know that you’ve noticed, sir, but I don’t have a lot of Welsh in my background.”
The softest look comes over the death god’s face. “It’s in your soul, Shy. I have never understood humanity’s need to classify and separate by traits that are meaningless in the end. The essence you were first formed with was made of Welsh land and magic and pieces of my soul. The way you appear now is mere coincidence. The power was granted to me by whatever being controls the universe.”
“You’re a god,” I point out.
“Little g,” Arawn corrects. “Not big, though you should know those who claim the one god only for themselves do not know the heart of the universe. Think of the gods as pieces of the creator, emissaries, so to speak, because humans are tied to their bodies and common physical features as something to create community around.”
“I think what you’re saying is we are often intolerant to those who look different than us so the creator has to come to humanity in forms we can understand.” Dev sounds very academic all of the sudden.
“So while I rule this way station some call an underworld, I don’t control the universe, and I am just as ignorant as humans about some things. The dark prophet is playing a dangerous but necessary game because all the gods fear Myrddin. Long ago Heaven and Hell worked out a deal to keep balance on the Earth plane and Myrddin was created. Through the millennia he has gained power, and now he has done what we all feared he would do.”