I’m lost in these thoughts when Warden barges through into my great hall and presents his huge Brag arse to my fire.
“Just because you got rid of Tam Lin doesn’t mean the fight has ended.” Warden shuffles his hooves and then, finally, he changes into his humanoid form, throwing himself into the chair next to me and propping his boots on the table. “I’ve got bad news.”
“You can keep it. I have my mate and my lair. I’m not leaving again,” I respond, picking up a piece of fruit which is called an apple and which my Kaitlyn likes to arrange in a bowl on the table.
I put it back. We’ve had discussions about my feeding habits and decided it would be a good thing if I consumed a little less blood and more of other things. Like the rounds. And the greens.
I am not ready for an apple yet.
“You’re not done fighting.” Warden says. “The Selkies escaped the Night Lands.”
“You had one job…” I grumble.
“One which would have helped if you’d stuck around rather than diving into the damned underrealm,” Warden retorts.
Kaitlyn chooses this moment to enter the hall. She’s wearing my colours as always, and it makes my heart swell with pride but also pump with blood because Warden is here.
“Hi, Warden,” she says brightly.
“My mate is looking for her sister.” I glare at him. “Perhaps if you could assist us with the search, I can assist you.”
“Assist Warden with what?” Kaitlyn asks, kissing me on the cheek and making heat bloom within me.
“He let the Selkies escape the Night Lands and now he wants assistance in sending them back to the underrealm.” I sigh.
“That doesn’t mean you have to go back there, does it?” Kaitlyn says.
I pull her onto my lap, mostly so Warden can’t get any closer to her.
“No, they’re around the borders,” Warden says. “At the moment anyway. They need dealing with, or they’ll only attract more.”
I growl under my breath. Selkies taste like a mouth full of dust.
“But the portal to the underrealm is sealed, isn’t it?” Kaitlyn asks.
“Selkies can get through other portals if they have comrades on the other side,” Warden says. “We’ll end up with an infestation if we don’t deal with them.”
“Fine. I’ll help, if it means you’ll find Kaitlyn’s sister.”
Warden takes an unhealthy interest in Kaitlyn until my growls echo around the great hall.
“Another human female. She shouldn’t be too hard to find,” he says. “Reavely already released a number of them, had them sent back beyond the veil.”
“What about the…resistance?” Kaitlyn asks. “The one which wasn’t much help at all.”
“They are convinced the human lottery is at an end. Magic has been put in place, so humans recall the Yeavering exists, but not the lottery itself.”
“Seems far too easy,” Kaitlyn says.
“It would have been easier had the Faerie not meddled in the first place,” Warden responds. “What they did to the humanscannot be undone, but perhaps if they don’t recall some of the horrors, then they will be able to have some peace.”
“If Hazel has gone back beyond the veil…” Kaitlyn looks into my eyes.
“Then we will go beyond the veil.” I brush my thumb over her cheek.
“The Faerie had many secrets,” Warden interrupts. “Let’s make sure she isn’t in the Yeavering first,afterwe’ve dealt with the Selkies.”
I shrug. “A Bluecap’s work is never done.”
