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 is coming for them,” Clem calls out as I’m led away.
I turn and she is staring at me. “Who?” I mouth the question.
A gnarled hand points to the north. “The wizard, of course.”
A chill goes through me, and I have to wonder if Arawn didn’t know what he was doing all along.
It’s not more than ten minutes before Dev slows his horse and allows the rest of us to catch him, forming a close line. I have to admit that Rhys knows how to handle a horse. Something warm went through me when he lifted me into the saddle like I weigh nothing. When he settled me on his lap like his father had done for his mother, I felt precious and cared for.
I should not be thinking about sex when we’re all going to die, but we’re talking about a fertility god here. It’s damn near impossible to not think about what those big hands can do to me. Especially now that I have actual proof of what they can do to me.
Stroke me like silk and heat and power. Worship me. Make me feel like I’ve never felt before. Like there’s a place I can go where I’m safe and loved and the world doesn’t matter.
“What the actual fuck?” The king always seems to know how to start a conversation.
Devinshea slows his stallion, his arm fully around his wife’s waist. “Yes, I have questions. So many questions.”
Neil barks like he agrees. His white wolf has been running next to Brendan’s, while Fluffy took the lead and the other hounds protected our backs.
“I think this is your time, my goddess,” Rhys says, his lips against my ear. “You are the one who saved us, after all.”
“Shy figured it out,” the queen announces. “She was talking to some spirits who haunt the pond, and she managed to put the pieces together. Shy, what exactly did they tell you?”
“Clem kept talking about the king,” I explain. “At first I thought she meant King Daniel, but it became clear she was talking about the high priest.”
“Except I’m not the high priest in this sithein.” Dev says the words slow, as though he has to process them.
“No,” I agree. “It was all very quick, but according to Clem and the nymph in the pond, in this sithein, Devinshea Quinn killed his mother and brother and took the throne. I don’t know how long ago that was. I do know that Clem hates you. She said something about you killing many non-sidhe Fae. I think you might have killed her. She was terrified of you. Well, she was until she figured out you aren’t you.”
“Also, bastard child? Really, Papa?” Rhys chuckles like this is funny.
“Well, they will obviously have questions, and I doubt you’re my child in this world since I don’t think he even knew your mother’s name is Zoey.” Dev’s jaw is tight, his anxiety obvious. “Shy, do you have comprehension of what’s happened?”
I am no science pro, but I can take a wild guess. “I think we somehow stumbled on a different timeline.”
“So like when Aunt Zoey fell into that painting thing?” Cassie asks.
“No, that was a portal to another plane, but it was still the timeline we were born in.” The king suddenly sounds very academic. “Or rather the one we understood. There are some who believe our version of reality is merely a layer that we move through. The planes themselves are physical spaces while what we’re dealing with is time and fractures of reality. Think of it like a layered cake. They exist on top of one another, related but not the same. That’s why the sithein looks the same but something happened to make the Fae here radically different from the court we know.”
“Yes, apparently I am a massive asshole who killed my family to take the throne,” Dev says with bitterness flowing.
“It’s not you, babe,” the queen replies, and her hand rubs over his arm.
“The king is right about the layers.” I do know a bit about this. I remember my family debating endlessly about the difference of moving through physical portals and the walls thinning between timelines. “My aunt could hear near timelines. Like the ones on top of or below us. Or maybe to the left or right. I’m not sure how it runs, but she could hear them. I think it’s safe to say that we were either led to the wrong door or the blue dolerite facilitated a switch in timelines. The dead I’ve spoken to here were all interested in the crystals we carry. I have to believe they have some kind of power beyond simply opening the door. That’s why they made sure we had enough, or we might have lost someone.”
“Well, I suggest we turn this around and go back to the caves,” Dev says. “We can find another way.”