Now I’m the one who’s been duped—my whole life.
“When?” I ask.
“The initial Introduction ceremony will be tomorrow night,” Marius says. “And until then, things are delicate. Your energies will be confused and unfocused. There is a small amount of danger for you until the official protective bonds can be done by the druids. Then you’ll train with your protector until the final Emergence ceremony, which will occur at the next new moon.”
Danger. From me or for me? I already know I’m combustible. That I can burn the shit out of things. And people.
I feel like I’m being smothered by the questions piling up inside of me.
I swallow, then clear my throat. “What happens at this thing tomorrow?” The word ceremony makes me think of some secret society or fraternity. I imagine chickens being slaughtered on an altar or a potion I’ll be forced to drink—something with eye of newt in it.
“It’s merely a formality, but it’s vital for your safety as you come into your powers,” Marius says, his voice gentle, like he can sense my anxiety. “The Introduction ceremony tomorrow will present you to the Otherworld, as well as seal an interim protector for you. That protector’s House will shield you until you choose a permanent loyalty to a deity at the Emergence ceremony on the new moon. I’m hoping you will officially choose Faelan to be this protector tomorrow so the House of your mother, Brighid, will have the privilege of giving you safe haven.”
“Why can’t it just be you who protects me?” I ask.
His brow pinches. “Do you not approve of Faelan?”
“He’s fine,” I say. Except he makes me feel too many things I shouldn’t be feeling. He makes that voice too loud in my head. The one that tells me to take. “But you’re, like, in charge, right?” Which probably means Marius is really powerful. Maybe powerful enough to protect himself from me better than Faelan can.
“I’m not usually one to take on such a role.” He gives me a troubled look. “It is your choice, but I would strongly suggest you choose Faelan. He’s best suited for you, more so than I would be.”
Something about his statement worries me. “What’s this protector supposed to do exactly?”
Aelia leans back in her chair. “Teach you how to feed.” She smirks and takes another sip of wine. “It can get a little . . . weird.”
“Enough, Lia,” Marius scolds. “A protector will teach you how to control and manipulate the goddess energy in your blood properly.” He picks the linen napkin up from his lap and wipes the sides of his mouth, then sets the white cloth on his plate, signaling he’s finished. “This isn’t a game to us, young Sage, as Aelia may make it seem. Consider what I’ve said, and we’ll finish this later. If you’ll excuse me.”
“Where are you going?” Aelia asks, sitting up straight again, all her flippancy gone.
Marius stands. “I need to speak with Faelan.”
She shoots me a worried glance, and I realize I’m a coconspirator in covering up for nearly burning down the cottage. Not good. But if Aelia thinks it would be bad for her dad to know what happened, then I’ll just have to go with it, even though she’s annoying.
Right now, I’m more worried about this whole protector thing. There’s so much I don’t understand about this place, about what’s happening to me, and what I am. And after the fire today, it seems even more crucial that I find out.
“I’ll say goodbye now,” Marius says, “since I’ll be leaving straight away through the passage to meet the Cast after I see Faelan.” He walks over to Aelia and kisses the top of her head. “You’d do well to keep a low profile, daughter, until tomorrow night, at least.”
“Of course, Daddy,” she says.
But it’s clear by the look on Marius’s face that he knows she’s not about to heed his warnings. He walks over to Barbara and she stands, letting him kiss her. Their embrace is oddly sterile, and I have to wonder what the story is between them, why he’s with a simple human—or why he’s married at all—when he’s obviously so powerful. And super old. And with what I saw at his office, that half-naked woman hidden away, it’s even more strange.
Marius focuses on me. He steps closer and touches my hair gently, almost absently. “You, my rare child, are going to be brilliant.” His gaze shifts to mine, and I swear a tingle of electricity runs down my spine. “I know you’re desperate for answers, that this must all seem very foreign to you, but your birth House is here for your safety and your comfort. I will ensure that Faelan treats you with the deference you deserve. Just know you are going to be sought. You are the gem in a sea of coal, and once daylight hits you, once the reality of who and what you are sinks into your heart, your world will completely shift.” He hesitates and then adds, “And perhaps ours will as well.”
I want to ask him what he means, why I can feel the weight of his words in my gut. But before I can get my tongue unstuck, he’s slipped out of the room.
THIRTEEN
FAELAN
I open my eyes to a dim haze. I blink, trying to clear my vision, and my eyelashes catch on gauzy coating. A hibernation cocoon? Why am I in—?
There’s a soft sigh in my ear, and something slides across my chest and down my bare torso.
I turn my head. My cheek brushes against silk—no, it’s hair, smelling like sweetened jasmine. It’s a pixie; I can tell from the sugary scent. Her hair is long and reflects the low light with a slow, pulsing glow. Her small fingers play against my abdomen, her leg sliding against mine.
“You’re awake,” she says in a dreamy voice.
My pulse picks up, my skin heating. “You need to stop that hand from moving any lower, pixie.”
I can’t see clearly, but I think it’s Aelia’s friend, Niamh.
She giggles and her body presses into mine as she kisses my neck and whispers close to my ear, “Don’t be silly. This isn’t my first time coming out of hibernation with a son of Cernunnos. Your brother Finbar’s requested me three times.”
The sound of that name makes my blood boil. “Back off,” I say through my teeth. “Now.”
Her touch slips away, and she lifts her head from my shoulder. “You can’t be serious.”
“I can.” I reach out and tear open the webbing of the cocoon over my face. “Get out.” The realization that this girl’s been one of Finbar’s ready playthings has snapped me back to reality. Why am I even in here with her?
I sit up, taking a pull of fresh green air into my lungs, trying to clear my head. I haven’t had an underling share the process of hibernation in a very long time—several hundred years, I think. I’ve made a practice of independence in that area because of the weakened state it puts me in. I don’t always have full control once the spell is cast.
This pixie in my nest is likely Aelia’s doing. Since our run-in last spring, she’s lived to torment me.
“Aelia said you might need a nudge but you’d be into me,” Niamh says, obviously hurt by my rejection. She’ll get over it. She moves beside me, rising from the silver webbing. “Is it because of my huge ears?” She covers her breasts with her hands, her dull eyes looking lost. Her sweet scent dims a bit. She’s upset—hurt. Because I’m being a prick.
My pissy mood darkens even more. “What the feck are you on about, woman?” I yank the rest of the gauzy fabric aside, and tufts of grass come with it.
“Finbar says my ears are ridiculous, that my jawline is subpar compared to other girls he’s fed with.” She reaches up and runs her finger down her chin.
I look away from her, irritated. Because she’s actually very pretty. Not a flaw in sight. Just a whole lot of warm, soft skin. “Finbar’s an ass,” I say. He is an ass. But so am I. “You’re fine enough. I’m just not in the mood. And I’ve got stuff I should be doing. So get yourself covered and get out.”
“But Aelia said—”
“Hang the witch. She needs to keep her druid ass out of my business.” I climb out of the nest, ignoring my tense muscles, the way my skin stings from the movement,
like it’s too tight over my right side. As my feet touch the dirt floor, a memory of smoke and heat flashes in my mind.
Sage. Holy shit, the fire. I attempt to keep the urgency from my voice, asking, “What happened with the demi? Is she all right?” Marius is going to rip my throat out if any harm’s come to his new jewel.
The pixie tips her head. “Maybe? I’m not sure, I . . .”
I move to the closet, not listening to the rest of what she says. I need to figure out what the hell happened. I put on a pair of jeans and grab a T-shirt. “How long have I been out?” Damn, she won’t know the answer to that either.
I’m pulling the shirt over my head when the door opens, and in the blink of an eye Marius is standing three feet away from me. He looms a few inches taller than me. He turns his seal ring round and round on his finger as he stares at me, his lips thin, his normally blue-green eyes a dark navy blue.
Brilliant. I’m fucked.
“Are you enjoying your vacation?” he asks, his voice casual in contrast to the flint in his eyes. I can’t tell from his face if we’ve lost the demi. But my guess is he’d have already carved a few pounds of flesh from my body if we had. Could he know I made a mistake? I’m still not clear on what happened.
His gaze trails up to the edge of my nest where the naked pixie is peering down at us. Then he looks back at me, his irritation blooming into anger. “Breaking two vows in one day? Industrious for you, my stoic friend.”
“Sir, I—”
“I knew you’d be resistant to this task, but after all these centuries of obedience I didn’t think you had it in you to rebel outright. You were commissioned to watch the demi and begin instructing her on her transition. You are not. She says you haven’t even told her of the Introduction that’s happening tomorrow night. But somehow you have time to spend with this?” He points up at the pixie. “You led me to believe you had made a vow to the holy Danu, to fast until your soul has worked through your darker notions. It’s one of the reasons I chose you for this, your control. So what is that doing here?”
The pixie has the good sense to remain still and silent.
“She was merely . . .” My words disappear as I realize that I don’t know how to answer. I was in hibernation. But the reason is still foggy. I don’t know what I allowed to happen between the pixie and me while I was wrapped up with her. And I’m unsure what happened with the demi. I’m not clear on where my failure falls in the moment, and I don’t want to dig this hole any deeper than I already have. Which is worse? That the demi’s magic broke through the wards of the torque necklace and she nearly turned me to ash, or that I may have dallied with a pixie in a moment of weakness?
“This is a foolish time to break a soul vow, Faelan. There’s too much at stake, and if the Cast were to find out—”
“He didn’t touch me,” the pixie squeaks. “He refused.”
My muscles relax as relief fills me. My vow to Danu is secure. Unless Niamh is lying. But it’s against the order for an underling to lie to a lead consort, and she’s young, simpleminded. I don’t see her sacrificing her place in the House of Brighid for me.
Marius gives her a searching look.
“He was really tired,” she adds. “I was just resting with him to refresh the life. That’s it. I tried to offer myself to him as more, but he didn’t . . .” She pinches her lips together and shakes her head like she can’t bear the idea of being rejected.
“Very well,” Marius says. “Come speak with me in private, Faelan.” He turns and leaves the cottage.
I glance up at Niamh and nod a thank-you before following Marius out into the yard. We walk to the rose garden and are soon surrounded by the sound of splashing water, coming from the fountain just behind us. Mist sprays in the air, clinging to my skin. Marius touches a pink bud, lifting three fat drops of water off the petal. They rise and hover for a second until he moves past and the drops fall, plopping onto a lower leaf.
“I’m leaving to formally meet with the Cast’s envoy about our new acquisition,” he says. “My plan is to present her at the council tribunal tomorrow night, so that you can take your place as her protector. I’ll then present the Cast with an official request for her Emergence after the Introduction’s been completed and we know she’s more protected. Once the Penta gets wind of her, we won’t be able to hide who she is from the masses. The reoccurrence of a Brighid female offspring will tip the balance again. And we have her in our hands; you know what this means.”
“Our House could have a place at the table again.”
He leans forward and whispers, “If she is truly the second daughter of Brighid, then we hold in our hands a way to push back into the ranks. No more being brushed off as a powerless House, no more sneers. We will be vying for a far higher position again, putting the House of Cernunnos on guard.”
That sounds like a good thing to me. Anything to kick my brother Finbar sideways. The bastard has been far too powerful as the leader of our father’s House since the Black Death, since Brighid’s reign ended. The god Cernunnos held the position of third in the Penta until Brighid slunk into the shadows, relinquishing her place as first in line. The House of Morrígan rose into the void left behind, and the House of Cernunnos followed on her coattails.
Sage could shift the power structure in very real ways. I knew that, but I didn’t think Marius would care. He’s not one to crave power. However, if history has taught us anything about the Brighid female line, it has shown us the need to be cautious.
“The girl is volatile,” I say. I consider elaborating, recalling the fire, but I’m still not sure what happened to put me in hibernation. I do know it was the demi’s fault, though. “She could go in any direction. And what if she doesn’t choose to give her allegiance to us?”
“That’s why I’ve chosen you, my friend.” He rests a fatherly hand on my shoulder. “You’re trustworthy. You know how to control your urges, so you can teach her and keep her away from Kieran. You won’t fail me.”
I swallow hard, the weight of responsibility he’s putting on me finally sinking in. He wants to regain the power of our House that was lost all those centuries ago when the first daughter fell and Brighid’s power faded. That’s no small order. And it all rests on me to convince the demi to choose us. Getting her to trust us. To trust me. “Yes, sir.”
“Keep her here, under wraps. Instruct her in what’s expected of her, test her powers. But be gentle.” He moves closer, whispering again, “And perhaps, if reason doesn’t work, other methods can be applied. You are very handsome, hunter, and I’ve seen her notice.” His brow goes up in silent suggestion. “She is young and innocent. It would take only a small nudge in the right direction, no need to cross any lines or break your vow.”
“Sir, I—”
“For the House of your goddess, Faelan. You’ll find a way, I know you will. She’ll bring us back from the brink. This means everything—it could be our last chance.” Concern fills his features. “Talks of a shift in the Penta are beginning within the ranks. The Cast are considering the request to push Brighid aside permanently for another—and you know they have no affection for us.”
That gets my attention. “What? That can’t be right.”
“There are whispers that the Cast wish to give our Brighid’s position to a lesser of Danu’s female offspring. Likely Branwen or Ainé—they’ve both been vying for favor at the lower tables in the Otherworld.”
“That’s heresy,” I say, feeling the shadow of a horrible possibility fall over us. Could the great fire goddess really lose her place in the power structure?
“Brighid has been silent for so long,” Marius says. “And we don’t know why. Even the gatekeepers say she’s abandoned us. Her envoys left no mark when they crossed over from the Otherworld to bring Sage here after her birth. There were no markers of the goddess’s power left behind anywhere. It’s as if she didn’t plant the child.”
I don’t see how that could be true. It must have just been missed
. No demi born of a goddess arrives here on this plane without leaving trails behind them. “But, obviously, that’s false. This demi is proof the goddess hasn’t totally abandoned us, no matter what evidence is or isn’t left of her envoy’s crossing.”
“My hope as well. And tomorrow night we can solidify it in the minds of the Cast, along with all of the Penta’s children, when we introduce her.” He rests a hand on my shoulder, his tone becoming fatherly. “You’ve always been loyal, Faelan. Since you came to us as that broken young man. I know what you gave up, leaving your father’s House. I see your strength. And I know you won’t fail me.”
If only I had that much faith. “I’ll do my best, sir.”
“Excellent.” He steps away, closer to the fountain, bending the stream of water with a wave of his hand. “I feel the tide turning, friend. We’ll find a way back to the power of the old order. Perhaps this girl is a sign that we’re nearly there.”
FOURTEEN
SAGE
“The shoes you have on aren’t perfect, but they’ll do,” Aelia says, setting her wineglass on the table with a determined clink. “We should go before Daddy sends Faelan the Downer in to start you on your energy diet.”
“What? Go where?” I lean back in my chair.
“You need to mingle a little, I think. A few drinks at The Fitz and some time with the girls sounds about right. Maybe we can even get you laid before the boring stuff takes over.” She stands. “If you’re going to make a splash, you may as well jump.”
“Your dad said we need to be careful. Going out to party isn’t careful.” Though it might be a chance to sneak away from her for a second, get space, which sounds great—but I could hurt someone, which isn’t good.
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