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)
“I’m going to kill that death god,” Rhys vows.
“I am confused.” Cassie and Brendan join us, watching their elders deal with the guards. Brendan scratches behind his ear and doesn’t seem worried he’s got two hellhounds near him. “I thought your granny…”
“Is dead, wolf,” Rhys says and sends Brendan a look that could freeze fire.
“Who is this?” Eoin asks and then winces. “I’m sorry. I do not mean to question Your Majesty, but this is not the group you left with. If you care to recall, my brother, Caden, led your guard as he always does when you seek the pleasure of the outer planes.”
Devinshea frowns, his eyes narrowing. “They await my return. I wanted a bit of freedom. I ran into someone interesting on the planes. That boy is my bastard. Apparently I had too good a time some years ago, and he came of it. His name is Rhys, and he could be helpful. The boy has some fertility powers and a bit of Green Man in him. Nothing like myself, of course.”
It was right there in his words. The warning to Rhys to keep quiet, to not give himself away since his powers were so beyond his father’s formidable ones.
“Well, the real king would kill any son who was more powerful than him.” Clem neatly summed the situation up.
“So I decided it would be fun to show my new friends around.” Devinshea waves a hand, gesturing to the world around him. “Perhaps we should go back to the palace for a bit. Tell Ostara I don’t need her and my reappearance won’t bump up our wedding day. Tell me what day it is. You know how time flows on the outer planes.”
“You have been gone for but a week, Your Majesty,” Eoin replies. “It is almost time for the equinox feast.”
Devinshea nods like that makes sense to him. “Excellent. Then tell the palace cooks to double what they’re making. We have wolves and hounds to feed. Now you have been so helpful to bring us horses to ride so we don’t have to walk to the palace. My go…Zoey, love, you should ride with me.”
“Your Majesty,” Eoin begins as the others step away from their horses, obviously conditioned to immediately do their king’s bidding. “We cannot leave you with no proper guard. The rebels are known to work in these forests.”
“Yes, I know. I killed a chimera they sent to take me out,” Devinshea announces as he moves for the horses. “I think my new friends can handle it.”
“Your Majesty, this is not right,” Eoin says.
The ground begins to tremble and the trees around us sway.
Clem seems to fold in on herself. Though she’s dead and he cannot harm her, the trauma still runs deep.
A branch from a mighty oak swoops in and suddenly Eoin is in the air, a slender tendril wrapped around his throat. The branch lifts him, booted feet kicking as his hands go up to try to pull the branch from around his neck. It isn’t more than an instant before I see blood starting to trickle around the branch.
The rest of the guard pointedly don’t look his direction.
Rhys tenses beside me. I doubt he’s ever seen his father be so brutal. Though from what I can see from how Clem reacts, Devinshea is playing the role perfectly.
Dev easily mounts Eoin’s horse and holds his hand out, lifting the queen onto the saddle in front of him. She sits sideways between his legs, one of her husband’s arms wrapped protectively around her waist.
Sasha and Daniel take two of the remaining horses, and Sasha helps Cassie find her seat behind him. Neil frowns and starts undressing.
“I do not do horses,” the werewolf announces.
“You and Brendan and the hounds will be our forward and rear guard,” Dev commands. Zoey says something to him and he sighs. Eoin falls to the ground, gasping for breath. “Rhys, you and Shy will take the last horse. Try to keep up, son.”
Rhys takes my hand. Before he leads me away, I lean down like I’m tying my shoe. I get close to Clem. “Can you come with me? There’s so much we need to know if we’re going to survive this.”
Clem’s rich brown eyes are pools of sorrow as she looks back to the ponds. “No. I dare go no farther than the tree line. There is some kind of spell, and no spirit who leaves here returns. But there should be dead to help you in the palace. He’s killed so many. Be careful. Something is happening in the mountains. Something terrible.”
“Do you mean the sluagh?” I ask, but Rhys tugs on my hand and I know we have to leave. There will already be a thousand questions without the Seelie guard wondering why the strange girl talks to no one at all.