Chapter 7

Seven

P erhaps Everly had spoken too soon when he said he didn't mind being confined to Nox's townhouse. It was a beautiful morning and the front garden looked as warm and inviting as spring. A Pipevine swallowtail butterfly flittered in the wild bergamot and bee balm, and Everly ached to follow it and bury his face in the sun-warmed grass and leaves.

"I was just on my way out to gather some herbs to dry," Merlin said when he found Everly with his nose pressed to the window. "Would you like to help?" He held out an old-looking harvest basket and a pair of shears.

"Yes! I would, I would!" Everly hopped off the window seat and beat Merlin to the door. "Bryn went for his run," he told Merlin as he took them, earning a knowing hum.

"He did seem particularly surly this morning so I imagine we won't be seeing him for a while," he said, clicking his teeth as he set a wide-brimmed hat on his head and tied the bow under his neck. "But he forgets that he isn't the only one who gets frustrated and needs to stretch his legs."

Everly cracked the door and peeked around it, sniffing at the air and sighing at the fresh breeze. "He's afraid something will happen to me but it looks safe. There's a butterfly I want to meet," he whispered, tiptoeing onto the stoop.

"You're perfectly safe here, Everly. This whole lot is warded and under the care of two powerful witches, and there is also a federal agent and a second spectral hound guarding the property. But those old shears are made of iron, if you should need to cut a bitch," he added with a tip of his chin.

"Ha!" Everly turned, brandishing the scissors like a pirate, but his feet tangled. He toppled back and landed on his bottom with a soft "Oof!" The butterfly tickled his ear as it passed. "Bye!" He waved as it went over the wall and into the neighbor's yard.

"You just need a bit more practice," Merlin said and offered Everly a hand up. "The witch hazel could use a trim." He pointed at the tree in the corner of the yard and its spiky yellow flowers, chuckling at Everly's jaunty salute.

Many of the flowers and trees in the front yard were medicinal or had magickal properties, but Everly had learned that most were also good for attracting butterflies and bees. There was a hive in the ancient maple tree and Merlin said that both were almost as old as the house!

"It'll be winter soon," Everly noted, sad as he looked around at the flowers and herbs flourishing in the beds and pots.

"That's why we gather and dry the things we need in the colder months," Merlin murmured as he worked in the bed under the front window. "But there is plenty of magick in the dark months of the year. We celebrated the Yule long before the Christians adopted it for their Christmas."

"I love Christmas!"

Merlin laughed softly. "A truly magickal time, is it not? Do you think it's a coincidence that it's also one of the few Christian holidays that celebrates an immortal saint who can teleport and keeps a legion of elves in a magickal realm? Can you think of any other Christian saint who behaves like that?"

"No…" Everly's brow furrowed as he stretched on his toes to reach the lowest witch hazel branch. "But I don't know that much about saints. Do you think Santa could be a god?" He heard Merlin snicker at the bergamot.

"I have no way of knowing since I've never met him myself. But if the measure of a god is immortality and the number of believers, then I would say so and that Nicholas could give the rest of the Christian pantheon a run for their money, depending on the number of children in the world and how close we are to Christmas Eve. When was the last time you saw a child waiting to sit on Jesus's lap and how many letters do you think he gets a year?"

Everly frowned in concern. "I write to Santa every year but I've never sent Jesus a letter. Do you think he's mad at me?"

"Jesus?" Merlin asked and Everly nodded. "I'm sure he understands."

"Does the post office know his address? I just put ‘North Pole' on Santa's letters and they make sure he gets them."

Merlin blinked at Everly, his mouth opening and closing. "Do you think he's…? How do you know Santa got your letters?" he asked.

"Well… They never came back. But one time, I accidentally sent a birthday card to the electric company instead of my barber and it came back because the address was wrong."

"I see." But Merlin continued to blink at Everly.

"And one year, I asked Santa for a new streetlight by the bus stop because me and the old woman across the hall used to get nervous waiting in the dark and guess what?"

"What?"

Everly's lips stretched into a wide smile. "Just four months later, a streetlight magickally appeared! A crew from the city's department of transportation worked for five days," he recounted, giddy as he recalled how exciting it was to see all the bright orange cones and neon vests. Several construction vehicles had been used, including a backhoe and a bulldozer. "And then it was there: the light she had wished for almost every night!"

"I'll bet she was thrilled," Merlin said but Everly shrugged.

"She moved a week later. But it wasn't so bad being alone because I had my own streetlight."

"Well!" Merlin nodded at him, his gaze misty. "It's a blessing to be able to find magick in even the smallest things."

Everly nodded, then frowned when he recalled the blurry photo of a very large man that had recently been added to the board in the study. "What do you know about Ronan O'Sullivan? Are you sure it's him in the picture? It barely looks like a person."

"That's Ronan," Merlin confirmed and laughed quietly. "Nox's father took me to see Ronan a few times. He took Nox as well. He thought he'd get a picture from the top of the old lighthouse once and Ronan nearly strangled him with the strap. If you believe Nox. Which I'm inclined to because Ronan does not take kindly to cameras."

Everly made a note to never ever go near a merrow with a camera. "Why?" he asked and Merlin clicked his teeth.

"Nox swears he doesn't look that bad, especially once you get used to it, but Ronan's…hideous. Merrow men always are. Nox says it's the kind of ugly that makes him interesting and bizarrely beautiful, but I don't see it. Either way, it's just his face as far as I can tell," he explained with a shrug, then turned back to Everly. "How are you doing with that witch hazel?"

"Um…" Everly's teeth scraped over his lip as he checked the basket and counted the sprigs he'd cut. "I have two," he said and hid his hand behind his back when he noticed he'd taken a few snips out of his fingers as well and was bleeding.

"That will do, I'm sure," Merlin said with a wave as he turned back to the bergamot. "We probably have more than enough."

"Maybe you should take the scissors," Everly suggested, then froze when he spotted a child-shaped shadow between the townhouses across the street. It raised its hand and Everly shuddered as a chill rushed up his spine. He glanced at the flowerbed to call for help. "Mer—" he started but stopped when a pair of young joggers crossed and turned into the narrow lane between the houses, right where the child's silhouette had been.

"Yes, lad?"

"Maybe I'll keep these," Everly decided, hugging the shears as he backed away from the street and closer to the house. "I hope Bryn will be back soon," Everly said and as if he had been summoned, Bryn came around the corner.

His arms and legs were a blur and his hair was loose and streaming behind him. He staggered to a halt on the sidewalk outside the gate, panting as he braced his hands on his knees. His gray t-shirt clung to his torso and the thick hair on his bare legs was wet with sweat.

"What's going on out here?" He sounded concerned as he let himself in through the gate, captivating Everly as he used the front of his shirt to wipe his face. Bryn's stomach was covered in thick, dark fur, making Everly's mouth water and his fingers itch.

A hoot from Merlin made Everly jump. "Shameless flaunting and teasing is what I'd call it. Look at the poor lad," he said with another click of his teeth at Everly.

Bryn pulled a face, then gasped at Everly. "Look at his hands. What did you do?" He went to Everly, groaning as he inspected the cuts on his fingers.

"I barely noticed," Everly said and was far more interested in the heady scent of Bryn's body, his breath, and his wind-blown hair. He smelled like a wild run in the sun and Everly wanted to cover himself in Bryn. "I'm glad you're back."

"Want to go inside and clean this up?" Bryn suggested but Everly shook his head.

"I want to stay out here and help Merlin. Can you cut the witch hazel for me?"

Bryn nodded as he accepted the shears from Everly. "Sure."

There was a chuckle from Merlin. "Witch hazel is useful for wound care and inflammation," he noted.

"I'll cut extra," Bryn decided. "Are you sure it's a good idea, having Everly out here without one of us?" he asked and cocked a brow at Merlin.

He hushed Bryn with a dismissive wave. "He is not some ungodly horror to be kept under the stairs and away from the light. Unless you turn him into one with your fretting. Do you know how Nox learned to identify a queen bee or how to heal a poison ivy rash in the woods? Not by sitting indoors with a book on his lap," Merlin told them.

"I had iron scissors!" Everly interrupted. He didn't want Bryn to worry or for them to argue over him again so he didn't mention the scary shadow across the street.

"See?" Merlin's nose tipped back haughtily.

Everly thought he resembled a mushroom, sitting on his heels with his large hat casting a shadow around him. A butterfly landed on the brim, making Everly gasp and point. "It's a Little Yellow! That's its actual name!" he whispered to Bryn.

"Do you like butterflies?"

"I love them! I don't know the names of all of them yet, but I can usually tell what family they belong to by the shapes of their wings."

"Huh." Bryn smirked over Everly's shoulder at Merlin. "That's another thing he knows that I don't. Did you know he used to answer customer service calls about air fryers?"

Everly nodded. "I know everything about air fryers." It was the perfect job for Everly because he was scared to use his stove.

"A device for frying air?" Merlin confirmed, then shook his head. "How strange."

"Bryn!" Everly gave Bryn's arm a tug, urging him closer. "I'm going to blow Merlin's mind this Christmas!"

Bryn laughed, the minty huff making Everly dizzy as their lips brushed. "I can't wait," Bryn said and cupped Everly's cheek.

"Wait!" Everly complained when he received an affectionate kiss on the forehead before being released.

"You're distracting me and I don't want Merlin getting on my case." Bryn gave Everly a firm nod, then got to clipping.

"Have a look at this vervain, Everly," Merlin called and pointed at the flowers next to him.

Everly hurried over and lowered next to Merlin. "These are pretty!"

"They are. You know, it takes a very special soul to tame a hellhound," the old man said quietly, his smile gentle as he studied Everly under his hat. "He has the ability to see us as we are and judges the qualities of our souls. You can't fool a hellhound, Everly."

"Hmm…" Everly fondled the clusters of purple petal ruffles. "Some of the things he's said about you aren't very nice."

Merlin tittered as he snipped with a set of child-sized garden shears. "No doubt well-deserved. I have not survived this twisted world by being an angel. The trick to being a redeemable rascal is to only pick on those who are capable of knocking you into next week if you go too far, and using your wiles to protect those who are smaller and weaker than you."

"I'm smaller and weaker than everyone!" Everly said, earning a pleased hum from Merlin.

"You have the potential to be quite the rascal. I'm looking forward to it, so don't let me down," he whispered to Everly.

"A rascal!" Everly whispered at the vervain, then smiled wickedly. "I'm going to touch Bryn's butt!"

A happy chuckle wafted from Merlin and the Little Yellow returned, a happy omen dancing on the bergamot and vervain. "I think that's a marvelous idea."