Chapter 1

One

N ot that Bryn minded Georgetown, but he could have listed at least a dozen places he'd rather be. But there he was, sitting outside Professor Lennox MacIlwraith's townhouse on a Friday night. The professor lived with his loyal partner, Agent Grady Nelson, and had cemented his reputation for being an unorthodox investigative savant after the pair rescued six young women from a murderous cult and captured all those responsible, including its leader—a dangerous and deranged wannabe messiah.

That was what the FBI and the authorities down in New Castle wanted everyone to believe, but Bryn knew better. The world had fallen for "Nox" MacIlwraith's cheeky punk professor act and believed he was nothing more than a consultant who solved inexplicable cases with the help of the FBI's most patient agent. When in reality, Nox MacIlwraith was the walking vessel of an ancient Celtic demigod and Nelson, his reincarnated warrior-priest bodyguard.

Nox was also rumored to be an extremely powerful witch and Bryn needed all the mystical and metaphysical help he could get. He just wished he wasn't so desperate and would have resorted to any other option. Bryn glanced down at the pallet they had made on the van's floor for their unconscious patient, Everly Wells, concerned and disturbed. It had been three days and Everly had yet to do more than mumble in his sleep. All of his wounds had healed overnight on their own, but nothing they did would rouse him.

"Are you ready?" Arawn asked from the passenger seat, earning an amused chuckle from Fletcher as he turned off the engine and put his arm over the back of the driver's seat so he could see Bryn.

"I give you my word: we can trust them and they'll know what to do about him," Fletcher said with a nod at Everly.

Bryn winced, watching the townhouse. "It's not that I don't trust them…" He had met Agent Nelson and gotten a good look at Nox and their two friends, Merlin Oglethorpe and Professor Darrach Clancy, after Nox's showdown with Walter Forsythe. "The little bald dandy is older than he looks, but the other two…they're new. And what's this new sun god done with his gift since he changed?" he asked and Arawn groaned, rubbing a temple.

"Why don't you ask him after you've walked a mile in his shoes?"

There was another gentle chuckle from Fletcher as he gave Arawn's hand an affectionate squeeze. They were always touching. Bryn loved that. For them. Arawn had married Dr. Fletcher Bixby almost twenty-five years ago, after facing off as expert witnesses in a murder trial that ended in a hung jury. Bryn rolled his eyes when Fletcher raised Arawn's hand to his lips and kissed it. They put the case behind them and were married in a quiet, simple ceremony at Fletcher's mother's place in Williamsburg, the summer before she passed away. Fletcher cherished Arawn whenever he wasn't up to his elbows in a case so Bryn had happily approved. Fletcher had a generous, nurturing spirit and Bryn was proud to call him brother.

Most of the time.

"Amen," Fletcher said heartily. "I wouldn't want that kind of responsibility."

"Clearly, it would be wasted on you two as well. Good to know," Bryn said with a shrug. "Can we do this?"

"Can you be nice?" Arawn returned pointedly, making Fletcher grin. "What?" Arawn asked, his tone suspicious.

Fletcher cringed sheepishly. "I might have suggested that Bryn was a fan of Nox's," he said and Arawn's eyes widened.

"Why would you do that? You should have warned him that my brother can be a shit and that I got most of the brains," he said so Bryn raised both of his middle fingers, glaring at Arawn.

"That's why," Fletcher said, then pointed at Bryn. "Nox is going to love this. And he won't be fazed by that chip on your shoulder. If anything, he'll knock it off and you'll be the one picking out splinters," he predicted.

"We'll see." Bryn unbuckled his belt and got out. "I don't care, as long as he can help Everly. If he can't, I don't want to be here longer than we need to," he said with one last look at Everly before sliding the side door shut. "Leave the windows cracked and the alarm on," he told Fletcher.

"Will do!"

Bryn went around to the back and looked on as Arawn warded it, blessing the van and shielding it from dark forces in whispered Welsh. "Go on ahead," Bryn told them when Arawn had finished, receiving a disgruntled scowl from his twin brother that spoke volumes. "I'll catch up," Bryn promised with an impatient flick of his fingers.

Fletcher laughed it off as he hooked an arm around Arawn's and pulled him through the townhouse's front gate and garden. "He needs to see a man about a van and do a little hot doggin'," he whispered loudly.

"You should have stopped after the first part, Fletch," Bryn muttered at their backs, then turned and considered the van and his bladder.

It was ready to burst, thanks to the five-and-a-half hour drive and the half gallon of ice water Bryn had packed for the road. Fletcher had developed an impressive network of occult allies, but the beings inside MacIlwraith's picture perfect townhouse were particularly powerful and unique. Their credentials didn't impress Bryn, though. A belligerent sneer tugged at his lips as he checked around him, then unzipped his fly.

He hid in the shadow behind the corner of the van, waiting for his bladder to relax and shivered as he sprayed the ground at his feet. A faint giggle bubbled from Bryn as he sidestepped along the side of the van, sprinkling the road as he skipped to the driver's corner. Bryn's relief was so profound by the time he had made the entire trip around the vehicle, he could have floated to Annwn.

Fletcher was reaching for the doorbell when Bryn joined them on the front stoop. There was a hard jab to Bryn's ribs from Arawn, reminding him to be nice just before the door opened and they were greeted by a baffled Agent Nelson.

"Hello and welco— Oh, it's you," he said, glancing over his shoulder at MacIlwraith.

"Don't just stand there. Let them in!" he ordered as he leaned around Nelson to wave and his brows jumped when he recognized Bryn.

"Hey!" Bryn said as he shook Nelson's hand, enjoying their confusion. "It's the Louisville Slugger and his sexy sidekick, the mystery-solving demigod."

Nox was the first to recover, grinning brightly at Fletcher. "Welcome to our home," he said as Nelson took their coats.

Fletcher offered a quick apology as he shook Nox's hand. "This isn't how I planned on telling you two, but we have a bit of a…situation and I figured that since we helped you…"

"Of course," Nox replied without hesitating and gestured at the open study doors. "Pour yourselves something to drink and tell us your story."

"Actually…" Fletcher scrubbed the back of his hair, grimacing at them. "It's a bit more than a situation and there's one more in our party," he explained apologetically and they all turned as they were joined by a wee bald man in an unnecessarily extravagant violet velvet suit.

"No trouble at all! I've made plenty," he reassured them. Bryn recognized Merlin Oglethorpe from the aftermath at the Forsythe place in Pennsville. His hackles immediately went up because the older man was known to be an extremely powerful witch, but he also had a reputation for being a sleaze ball.

Fletcher winced and shook his head at Merlin. "We've tried everything, medical and mystical. Arawn's a brilliant surgeon and he's a pretty decent witch from what I've gathered, but it's been three days and we haven't been able to wake him up."

"Dear gods!" the little man declared, scattering them with a frantic wave as he rushed to the door and down the front steps.

"Gentlemen, meet our friend, Merlin," Nelson said wearily and gestured for everyone to follow but Bryn raced ahead, not quite sure if he trusted their friend Merlin with Everly yet.

"My, my, my…!" Merlin turned and widened his eyes at Arawn once they reached the van. "You're expecting something large and scary," he said, then wafted the air toward his face, sniffing deeply. "And you have staked your claim, I see," he added with a wiggle of his brows at Bryn.

"Just keeping him safe," Bryn countered and cast his brother and Fletcher dubious looks. "What does this purple Oompa Loompa know that we don't?"

Merlin spun and gasped dramatically, pressing a hand to his chest. "Did I hear this pup correctly? Is he challenging me ?" he asked them, earning an amused chuckle from Nox.

"He appears to have some doubts," he agreed and shrugged. "Go ahead and show them what you can do," he said, making the little old man smile as he clasped his hands together.

"If I must!" He gave a jaunty salute and tiptoed around Bryn, then lowered and touched the pavement with two fingers. He raised them, maintaining eye contact with Bryn as he licked the pads, humming loudly. "Packed with pheromones because someone's in love and extra salty. He's thoroughly hacked off and he's not drinking enough water," he said, then held up a finger. "And he sustains himself on a diet consisting mostly of fish, chicken eggs, tofu, and high-fiber and high-phytochemical greens like kale, spinach, and dandelion."

Fletcher whistled as he pointed at Arawn. "Told you he was obsessed with Everly," he said but Bryn rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"I am not. We're all he has at the moment and I'm still not convinced that this piss whisperer can tell us anything new," he said and checked his watch. "I ran a catheter and the bag should be full soon if you're thirsty."

The old man's eyes lit up and grew wider. "And I've got a straw in my pocket! Do you want to help your friend or have you simply come to flirt with me?" he asked sweetly.

"I'm getting nervous," Nelson said as he crossed his arms over his chest, giving Bryn and Merlin hard, scolding looks. "I'd like to see this man now . He may be in need of medical assistance."

"Don't be fooled by Bryn's shitty attitude," Fletcher told him with a sad shake of his head. "He's a damn good paramedic and takes his job seriously. And Arawn's done everything he can to get to the bottom of this too. As far as we can tell, the patient is in very good health, there were a few scrapes and bruises but they healed particularly quickly . There's no medical explanation for why he won't wake up."

"Not a medical one, I'm certain," Merlin concurred as he stepped up to Bryn and reached around him, placing a hand on the side of the van. He closed his eyes and went completely still as he listened. "Ah," he said simply before turning back to the house. "You have a leannán sí in here. He has been cursed and has lost the will to live. I believe we can heal Mr. Everly Wells, if you'll bring him inside and upstairs."

Bryn glared at the old man's back as Arawn followed Merlin, excitedly dogging his steps. "A leannán sí? I've never seen one, myself, but my first thought was that it must have been a curse and I've done all I can to cleanse his aura."

"I'm certain you did, but this is beyond any one witch's skills and it helps to have the right tools," he explained as they left the rest of their party.

"Need a hand?" Nelson asked Bryn, but he shook his head and opened the back doors after Fletcher used a key fob to unlock them.

He took a moment to admire Everly's angelic beauty before climbing inside. The cabin was saturated with Everly's intoxicating scent, making Bryn's mouth water and his body tighten as he lifted him. Unlike Merlin, Bryn had to find a wallet and a driver's license to learn his name, but it had become an obsession. He had thought of little else since the night he carried little Everly home, bathed him, and tended to his wounds.

"Merlin's not that bad once you get used to him," Nelson said while Bryn eased out of the back with Everly in his arms.

"I didn't think he was," he replied with an easy shrug. "But that lazy, half-ass demigod you two worship, he's pretty bad if you ask me."

"Bryn!" Fletcher barked angrily, surprising them when he blocked Bryn's path through the front gate. "These are my friends and we warned you: you will be nice and you will respect them, or you can carry Mr. Wells back to Roanoke and figure this out on your own."

Heat flooded Bryn's face as he bowed his head, offering Nelson a deferential nod. "My apologies. I have nothing against you or your little friend, Merlin, if I'm being honest. I'll do my best to behave around Nox."

"What do you have against Nox?" Nelson challenged, earning a soft apologetic groan from Fletcher.

"Please excuse Bryn. He believes there are only a few acceptable ways to use magickal gifts and takes offense when someone chooses a different path than he would."

"I see," Nelson said as he opened the front door for them. He sounded as if he did indeed see through Bryn, smiling serenely as he led them inside. Bryn was expecting more black and lots of leather, but the townhouse was tastefully decorated with antiques and mementos and he had already spotted several pictures of Nox's parents as they followed Nelson up the stairs. "Some things are so far beyond my scope," he continued. "I assume it's best to just keep my mouth shut and pay attention. I've learned a lot by standing back and simply doing what I'm told."

"Your poor ego! How does it cope, not being the smartest and in charge?" Fletcher asked facetiously.

"It is challenging," Nelson conceded as they climbed. "But I've found that my friends find other reasons to admire and respect me, oddly enough."

"Fascinating…" Bryn observed. "Have you found a way to suck your own dick, too, while you're being such a fucking paragon?"

Nelson hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "No. But I'm even less interested in sex than I am with always being the smartest and the loudest person in the room."

"Well said." Fletcher clapped Nelson on the back when they reached the top of the stairs. "I forgot that you've already had the pleasure of meeting and conversing with my brother-in-law," he added with a laugh.

"I forgot that you've already had the pleasure…" Bryn mimicked in a nasally voice as he followed but he was secretly impressed as he carried Everly through the open double doors at the end of the hall and past Nox and Nelson's bed.

Instead of a traditional canopy, wrought iron and copper had been twisted into branches with soft green leaves and pink petals made from crystals. The smell of candles, oils, and incense immediately soothed Bryn's temper and softened his grudge as he was led into the bathroom.

"Lay the leannán sí on the floor there in the shower," Merlin commanded, reaching deep into a carpetbag on the counter. A selection of candles and herbs were being lit by Nox as Merlin removed a steaming cauldron. "I know I don't have enough frankincense in here so you'll have to run downstairs," he told Nox.

He nodded, pinching out the flame on his match. "On it. I'll grab more sandalwood while I'm down there, too."

"Good thinking!" Merlin said, then pointed at Bryn as he laid Everly down. Moonlight spilled through the skylight into the shower as smoke filled the room. "Get him undressed and begin bathing him with that moonwater," he ordered and gestured at the large jar and ladle in the shower's corner.

"What's a leannán sí?" Nelson whispered to Fletcher, earning a confused shrug.

"No idea," he said and Bryn snorted as he studied Everly. He should have guessed, but he'd been so distracted, obsessed with waking Everly and guarding him as he slept.

"It's Old Irish for ‘fairy lover.' The leannán sí were half fae, the doomed offspring of faeries—mostly muses—and their conquests. In English, they're known as changelings."

"Doomed?" Nelson frowned as he considered Everly. "Why would they be doomed and why would you say conquests? I thought muses were good for artists."

"Oh, no!" Merlin said as he worked, arranging bottles and jars on the counter. "A true muse is a fearsome thing. The price of divine inspiration is often regret and loneliness as one wastes away, longing for the rush of fame and the thrill of the heyday."

"How can you tell he's leannán sí?" Arawn asked in awe, rapt as he watched Merlin's every move. A student from the moment he could crawl, Arawn's hunger to learn and heal belied his hellhound strength and savagery. There was nothing bigger and faster in the Nothing than Bryn's slightly older brother.

"Well!" Merlin turned and tapped his chin like he was preparing to give a lecture. "I could smell him, but his size and his captivating beauty is another giveaway," he began, making Bryn roll his eyes.

"I might have noticed, but just because he looks like he should be painted and sculpted doesn't mean he's?—"

"Smell him, Nelson," Merlin interrupted.

Nelson shook his head. "I'll pass," he said but Merlin gasped and pointed at Everly's unconscious body.

"Do as you're told. How else will I teach him?" he muttered, looking irritated as Nelson stepped into the shower and leaned toward Everly and sniffed.

He did a double take and sniffed again as he swayed closer. "What is that? It's… nice ."

"Isn't it?" Merlin asked excitedly. "Have you noticed it as well, Dr. Bixby?"

"Me? I haven't spent that much time with Bryn's patient, but I did notice that something smelled really good in the van on the way up. I thought Arawn might have switched his cologne," he said with a shrug.

Arawn's head cocked. "I don't wear cologne. You know that."

"True…" Fletcher said and smirked at him. "I just always assume it's because of you, if I like something."

"Awww!" Arawn clutched his chest and Bryn gagged at them.

"Could you two give it a rest for one evening? A man's life is at stake," he said and nodded at Everly.

"Changeling. He's half-man," Nox corrected as he held up a finger. "What does he smell like? I can't smell it."

That had Bryn's lips tilting into a wry grin. "Another thing a god can't do. What do you know?"

"Stop it," Fletcher said with a sigh, turning to Nox. "There's a distinct vanilla odor."

"No. It's starch and soap," Nelson argued as he stepped out of the shower.

"Starch?" Fletcher asked in disbelief. "It's definitely sweeter. How do you smell soap?"

Nelson crossed his arms over his chest. "How do you smell vanilla?"

Nox took hold of Nelson's sleeve and towed him away from the shower and Everly. "You smell whatever works for you ," he explained. "Because you're both human and very susceptible to fae magick."

"I'll be damned," Fletcher whispered as he studied Everly.

"You will be if you stand too close to him for too long," Merlin warned and shooed him off. "We'll have to keep a close eye on you and Nelson. You'll want to stash a bit of iron on you at all times and a pouch with nettle, yarrow, and other herbs for extra protection."

There was a serious hum from Nox. "I'll get on that once we've woken our friend from this curse. Although, I'm not sure if I'd call it that," he said and Merlin's head tilted from side to side.

"It's close enough and the cure is just about the same."

"What do you think happened?" Arawn asked him but Merlin shook his head, glancing at Bryn.

"I can't quite say… Something has drained the very life from the poor lad. But what's left of him has simply given up. Poor Mr. Wells was already gone before your brother and his attacker found him," Merlin said sadly.

"Dozens of sluagh," Bryn said as he recalled the night he found Everly. "He was swarmed by dozens of them before this cold, dark…shadow appeared. It called itself Abhartach? And said it was the new father."

"Abhartach?" Nox repeated with a cocked brow at Merlin. "Wasn't he buried in Wales? They finally killed him by stabbing him with a yew sword and burying him upside down under a giant stone slab."

Merlin nodded but he made a serious sound. "The druids make sure he remains there, too. I doubt we have anything to worry about from him. But more, his methods and his dark magick."

"Right!" Nox said with a hiss and nodded. "That's bad."

There was a long pause before Nelson cleared his throat. "Why is that bad?" he asked and Merlin let out a heavier sigh.

"Bram Stoker had more to draw from than the Prince of Wallachia when he wrote Dracula . In fact, scholars believe that he was heavily inspired by a creature from his own backyard: Abhartach. But it isn't the creature himself that we should fear, but the legend and his methods. Because unlike Stoker's vampires that infect each other with their immortal curse like a virus, Abhartach made himself a vampire with demon magick."

"He's a man-made monster?" Nelson verified and Merlin nodded as he turned back to Everly.

"He is a man-made vampire. He does not feed on blood, though, but on souls and he grows stronger by consuming other beings' magick."

A low growl rumbled from Bryn as he lowered and brushed the hair away from Everly's eyes. "That's why that creepy asshole was hunting him."

"That would be my guess as well," Merlin said and coughed softly. "Leannán sí, or changelings, are part of a class of magickal beings we call ‘soft sí.' The most well known are the ban shee and like the pooka or the fear gorta, changelings are magick, but relatively weak and they only vex or harm one person at a time."

"Vex?" Nelson asked warily, earning a heavy hum from Merlin.

"A changeling can be utterly harmless and even benevolent if handled gently. But their magick is extremely malleable and can be volatile. It's parasitic, in that a changeling changes to adapt to their environment by absorbing magick. We won't know what kind of changeling we have on our hands until we wake Mr. Wells up and talk to him. Now, get his clothes off so we can bathe him and purge this curse," he said to Bryn with a snap of his fingers.

Bryn hesitated as he reached for the zipper on the sweatshirt he'd swaddled Everly in. At an even 6 feet in his human form, Bryn didn't consider himself a giant, but everything he had was huge on Everly. "Does it all have to come off?"

He ducked and gasped when he received a hard flick on the back of the head from Merlin. "Look around you, pup. Would you ask me that if you were in an operating room? Get out of the way, if the sight of a naked body offends you."

That offended Bryn and he swatted Merlin's hand away. "You don't know how many operating rooms and battlefields I've seen. How many bodies I've seen, naked and clothed, shot and stabbed, mangled and blown to scraps. From here and now, back to Bosnia, and Stalingrad, and all the way back to the Battle of Cedar Creek, just 80 miles west of here," he said with a swing of his head. "I've seen my share of bodies, Merlin. I've taken my share of souls on to Annwn."

Merlin reared back, spluttering. "You most certainly have not, you sniveling whelp. The thing that you call the Nothing has been quiet in your time , but there are some who remember the days of the Wild Hunt and the vengeance your ancestors brought to that realm." He shushed and wagged a finger at Bryn when he tried to object. "I do not doubt that you have done great, heroic things on both sides of the veil. Not one bit, I promise you, lad. But you are that: a lad. And a puppy, compared to the awesome, dreaded specters that ran with his ancestor," Merlin explained in an angry, shaking whisper as he pointed at Nox.

Storming out wasn't an option, thanks to Everly, so Bryn pushed out a belligerent huff. "I still don't think it's necessary for you to see him naked," he muttered under his breath. "We've been warned about you and those grabby, little hands."

"Oh? Well, fair enough!" Merlin flailed dismissively. "Now that we've cleared that up, shall we get to it?"

Bryn was begrudgingly impressed as Merlin and Nox worked to cleanse and revive Everly's waning spirit. The pale blue sliver had grown to a steady glow by the time Bryn carried Everly downstairs and onto the back terrace to recharge in the moonlight, a few hours later.

They had made a fan out of Arawn, he couldn't stop gushing about all the things he had learned from Merlin and Nox in just a handful of hours. A self-taught healer, scientist, and a surgeon, Arawn made the emergency room his field of battle and the gate from which he ferried souls.

Witnessing two powerful witches at work would have more appeal for Arawn, he was a scholar and a scientist where Bryn was a brawler, ready to charge into battle and fight his way out. He was grateful for their help as Everly's soul glowed stronger and stronger by the moment. But Bryn couldn't stop thinking about how much of a waste it was and how selfish Merlin and Nox were for shirking their duties to hold onto their cozy human lives.

"Want me to stay up with you?" Arawn asked when he came out with a cup of tea for Bryn.

"Nah. I'm good."

"That's what Merlin said." Arawn winked and snickered. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you two were flirting."

Bryn choked on his tea. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were delirious and needed to get some sleep."

Arawn shook his head. "We both know I'm not and that we don't need it. Please get over this grudge you have against them. They're good , decent people."

"No, they are not ," Bryn stated in a hard, clipped whisper. "They are a walking demigod who's chosen to hide amongst the academic elite as a celebrity investigator and his two semi-immortal sidekicks. Nox thinks he's Sherlock Holmes and this place is 221B fucking Baker Street, complete with a Watson he can jerk off with and a miniature Mrs. Hudson. I hate it." Bryn stuck his tongue out and shivered, disgusted at the banality.

Arawn squinted at him, exasperated and spiritually exhausted. Being twins and sharing strands of the same soul meant that they could literally feel each other. "I'm going to bed. The bed that the kind people who saved your friend's life and soul offered, without hesitation or expectation of anything in return," he added pointedly.

"Good. Go. Thank them again for me while you're at it," Bryn said and raised his cup in salute.

"Whatever," Arawn groaned as he rose, giving Bryn's shoulder an affectionate knead. "Goodnight. I love you."

"Love you too."

Bryn chuckled as he sipped, because that was really all that mattered and all he had ever counted on. They weren't just twins in the typical, human sense. Their brother souls had been braided together since the time of the Wild Hunt, tethered to the same line of Cadwalladers that started their breed. And not a single generation of sacred spectral hounds had betrayed their brother or their destiny.

"Unlike some people I can think of," Bryn murmured to himself and Everly, frowning into his tea. "They did come through for us, I'll give them that."