Chapter 18

18

W e were promptly escorted outside, and we didn't cause a fuss. We'd found what we'd come looking for…kind of. The guards deposited us on the pavement just beyond the looming archway, giving us stern looks before returning to their posts.

I dusted off my jeans, frowning. "Lugh was here. He beat us to it."

"The biggest question I have is why ?" Boudica asked, dropping back her head to stare up at the cloudy sky.

"Well, that book did say that everyone is drawn to the damn thing," Warin added. "He figured out where it was and went for it himself."

"They want it when they see it," I corrected. "When they're in the presence of the cauldron. There must have been some other reason he decided to seek it out. "

We all gazed around at each other, dumbfounded. I had no idea what Wraith Lugh wanted with that cauldron, but whatever it was, I knew it was trouble. And he'd just taken away the very thing that was the core of our strategy.

"Well, we can't stop there," Saoirse said softly. "If he's going after cauldrons instead of people, then he isn't as hungry as we anticipated. It won't be long before he gathers the other nightmare wraiths."

"We need to find that cauldron," I muttered, still grasping at the one thing that could bring Lugh back to me. Alive.

"If only one of us had a tracking power," Boudica said. "My fist fighting abilities have never felt useless before, but they sure do now."

I whipped up my head. "Tracking power."

"Yep." She sighed. "Unfortunately, I don't think I can beat the answer out of the ground with my fists. Might be fun to try though…"

"I know someone who can track," I said quickly. "Axel. The sorcerer. He helped me find Caer."

Uisnech chirped. "Axel is very powerful indeed, but he cannot track objects. Only people."

I arched a brow. "People like…Lugh?"

Uisnech's eyes caught fire. "And if we find Lugh, we find the cauldron. You are not only strong, my dear friend. You are clever, too!"

I shook my head and laughed, hope springing back to life. "Come on then. Let's go find us a sorcerer."

A xel lived in a squat little building that matched the rest of his street. The buildings were tall and thin, with mostly flats above the commercial properties. Some were pubs. Others were takeaway restaurants. There were even a couple of real estate agents on the block. Axel had gifted me with his address during our month-long hunt for Caer, just in case I ever needed his help.

For emergencies only, he'd told me. I was pretty sure this whole thing counted as an emergency.

I rang the doorbell for Flat 3, waiting on the stoop alone. The others had headed back to the castle to regroup, refresh, and check in with the rest of the guards. We were all running on fumes. Once we had a pinpoint on Lugh's location, we'd have to move fast. So the crew needed to get rest while they could.

The door opened a moment later, and Axel's scruffy face peered out at me. He wore a black t-shirt with matching jeans, barefoot. The skin around his eyes crinkled in surprise. "Moira? Didn't expect to see you here anytime soon."

"Gee." I grinned. "Nice to see you, too, Axel."

He grunted, waving me inside. "Don't take offence. You just caught me by surprise is all."

I trudged into the building, following Axel up a set of thin, carpeted stairs that looked as though they hadn't been cleaned in years. Dirt clung to the faded blue threads, and holes had been worn from the many shoes that had scuffed along it. He took me to the second floor, and then swung open the door to his flat.

The room inside was barren—or what the trendy called minimalistic. He had a single sofa in the very center of the room, facing a television set that squatted on the hardwood floor. A bed sat in the far corner beside the single window, white sheets rumpled as if he'd just rolled out of bed. Other than that…the place was empty.

"I see you like things cosy," I said.

He glanced around his empty space. "Too many objects messes with my magic. And to be honest, I'm not sure how much longer I'll live in Edinburgh. The city is cramped, dulling my senses. I do much better in wide open spaces."

"Makes sense," I said slowly. "Listen, there's something important I need to talk to you about."

He led me over to the sofa and motioned for me to join him. I sat, arse on the edge, too tense to relax into the cushions. "You still looking for that Caer of yours?"

"No. You were right. She doesn't want to be found, and I don't think she'd have answers for me even if I asked her."

He let out a low whistle, crossing his arms over his chest as he regarded me carefully. "Your tune has changed in such a wee time. Something happen?"

"I mean…where do I even start?" With a bitter laugh, I launched into the story of the past few days, careful not to leave even the smallest detail out. His ex pression ranged from incredulity to dread, and he alternated between leaning forward and sitting back every time my tale twisted yet again.

"This must be why you end up killing him." He shook his head. "Looks like the future caught up to you faster than you'd hoped."

"No." Voice firm, I narrowed my eyes. "I'm not killing him. That's not the answer."

Eyebrows winging upward, he frowned. "No offence, Moira, but it doesn't sound like you have much of a choice, unless you were exaggerating about his powers. The bloke is dangerous. You said so yourself. If he gets what he wants, this whole realm is fucked."

Tears burned my eyes. I wanted Axel to be wrong, but I knew he wasn't. In saving Lugh's life, I was sacrificing everyone else to a fate worse than death. "I'm not killing him."

Sighing, he shook his head. "Well, then someone else is going to have to. ‘Cause he can't be let loose on this world. I know this whole thing is one big pile of shite, but you know I'm right."

"I know that I'm going to try to save him. And keep trying to save him, as long as I can," I whispered.

"Why'd you come here, Moira? It clearly wasn't for my advice."

"I need you to track him," I said, my voice still quiet. "I need you to find out where he is."

He grunted, crossing his arms over his chest. "So that you can what? Try to talk him out of it again? He's a nightmare wraith, love. He's no longer your Lugh. He doesn't understand reason, not like you and me. That male out there, feeding on fear, he's a shell. Lugh once lived inside that shell, but he's not there anymore. You've got to let him go."

"I'm not ready to give up. Not yet." I pushed up from the sofa, glaring down at the sorcerer. "Are you going to help me or not?"

Axel let out a heavy sigh. "Aye, I'll help. But on one condition."

"What's that?"

"You can try to do whatever it is you're planning to do. But if that doesn't work…you need to kill him."

A xel insisted I return to the castle to get some rest. He needed to gather some supplies for his tracking spell: he'd used up the rest of his herbs during our mission to Faerie. So he wouldn't have anything for me until the morning.

I hated returning to the castle empty-handed. I knew the crew would be waiting for me, hoping for information. Even after everything we'd tried, we still had next to nothing. Lugh was still out there somewhere, terrorising innocents. A part of me wanted to stay out in the city, racing through the streets, making sure he didn't harm anyone else. But I knew it would do far more harm than good at this point. He'd taken the cauldron somewhere. If we scared him off, he might leave with the cauldron, never to be seen again.

Until he returned with his army of nightmare wraiths.

Sighing, I trudged through the gates and into the palace. Checking the clock in the square, I found it was well past two in the morning. The entire Court was in bed, clueless about the madness going on outside these walls. We still hadn't told them what had happened to Lugh. Soon, they would begin to wonder. He hadn't been to any dinners in the Great Hall for days. Neither had any of the rest of us.

I'd never been a fan of keeping secrets like this. The fae of Castle Wraith deserved to know. If this plot to find Lugh didn't work, if we didn't track him down tomorrow, we'd tell them then.

Sighing, I drifted into the palace, not even thinking about where I was going. My guest room still technically lived on the first floor of the library. But I couldn't bear to sleep alone in there again. I ached for the comfort of Lugh's bed, desperate to sense him surrounding me, even if he wasn't there.

A tall figure blocked my route.

My sword was in my hands within seconds, without even thinking. Quentin's shadows pulsed around his form, twisting and turning like writhing snakes. He met my gaze and grinned.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I barked at him, edging closer, adrenaline buzzing away my exhaustion. "Haven't you done enough damage? "

"I'm here for the cauldron. What have you done with it?"

I blinked, confusion rippling through me. "What do you want with the cauldron? Haven't you already gotten everything you wanted?"

"Never you mind that. Just hand it over."

I narrowed my gaze. "First, tell me what you want with it. And then I'll hand it over."

He let out a chuckle. "Do you truly believe me to be that gormless? You only want to know my reasonings so that you can find some way to stop me from what I have planned."

"Fine," I said through gritted teeth. "You're right. Which is why you're an idiot to think I'd just hand the damn thing over to you."

Quentin stalked toward me, shadows rippling across his body. Frowning, I took him in. "What are you, anyway? I know you're not a normal fae. Not with that kind of power."

The wanker grinned. "A nightmare wraith bedded my mother a long, long time ago. I got the best of both worlds. Fae powers along with the shadow shifting of nightmare wraiths. It means I'm practically indestructible."

"We'll see about that," I said.

I lurched to the side, grabbing one of Lugh's swords off the rack he kept in the hallway. Quentin lifted his brow, grinning. "What happened to calmly handing over the cauldron, Moira?"

"You pissed me off," I snapped. "You want the damn thing? You're going to have to fight me to get it."

Lugh's words echoed in my ears. Quentin was not a fighter. He was a schemer. He might have nightmare wraith powers, but he had probably relied on them too much over the years. Based on his previous actions, the man had rarely handled a sword.

I had the advantage. And he knew it.

The shadows rippled again, and suddenly, he appeared behind me. I whirled to face him, sword raised.

"You seem strangely intent on keeping me away from the cauldron."

"Of course I am." I stalked toward him. "I know what the cauldron does. And I doubt you plan to bring back someone like Florence Nightingale."

He disappeared into the shadows again, this time reappearing further down the hallway. Closer to the false wall that hid Lugh's den. Narrowing my eyes, I continued after him. Obviously, I didn't care if he went in there. It wasn't like I had the cauldron—but he didn't know that.

"I know all about the false wall," he said with a smile. "I already stole the spear from there once. Are you dumb enough to stash the cauldron there, too?"

He vanished before I had a chance to reply. An instant later, he stood before me again, frowning. "It appears not."

" Obviously not," I snapped. "And you'll never guess where we've hidden it this time. You want me to tell you? Fight. Defeat me. I'll whisper the answer with my dying breath. Or...is a nightmare wraith scared to take on a measly fae?"

That got him. Anger flared in his eyes. He turned toward the rack and grabbed a knightly arming sword, holding the short hilt with both hands. I bit back a smile. Everyone with even the slightest knowledge of blade weaponry would know that was a one-handed sword.

With a roar, I launched toward him. His eyes wide, he swung his blade at my head, blocking my blow. Our steel clashed together, singing in the dead of the night. The force of his blow threw me back, landing me flat on my arse.

Ouch.

Okay, so he might not know much about swords, but his strength was next level.

I jumped to my feet. Quentin pranced sideways, swinging his sword this way and that, like some kind of bizarre interpretive dance routine. Narrowing my eyes, I lunged. The fae laughed, the wicked sound curling around me as smoke filled the room.

Blinking, I stepped back. The damn wanker had vanished again.

I t took me awhile to calm down after that. I'd had my chance to take down our enemy, and I'd blown it. I'd waited for awhile, camping out in the hallway, hoping he'd return for another round of fighting. But he either must have given up or realised that I didn't have a clue where the cauldron had gone.

Either way, our fight was over. For now.

Sighing, I trailed into Lugh's quarters and propped the sword against the wall beside the bed, just in case. If I needed to awake suddenly, I wanted the weapon as close as possible.

Then I hauled myself into Lugh's bed and buried my face in his pillows. I wasn't sure I'd fall asleep. My mind whirred; fear clouded every corner of my thoughts. But the scent of him soothed me in a way that nothing else could.

Soon, I drifted to sleep, Lugh's scent curling around me like a cosy blanket. At first, my sleep was dreamless, my body weighed down by the exhaustion lurking in my bones. But soon, images sparked in my mind.

I was in the forest. Somehow, I had lost sight of the route on the way home, even if I had made this trek a hundred times before this night. Winter had covered the lands like an icy blanket, dousing the light from the skies. The thick, grey clouds were endless, it seemed, and night came far quicker than it had in weeks past.

Shivering, I pulled my cloak tighter around my shoulders and glanced around. Imposing trees rose all around me. My footsteps in the snow were the only indication of where I'd been. Well, if I had made a wrong turn, then I had to retrace my steps. There was nothing to it.

Fortunately, I had my sword. If any deadly creatures lurched out of the darkness, I would be able to defeat them as only I could. My skill was in the blade. It was the only thought that kept me comforted this night.

Hurrying, I rushed back the way I'd come, my boots crunching into the deep snow. It had been years since the village had seen a snowfall quite like this one. It had put all the fae on edge. Whispers came with the heavy flakes. Rumours of monsters, of creatures that only came out during the deepest parts of the night.

As the daylight further slipped from the sky, I turned up my enhanced fae vision. Still, it was dark. In another hour, it would be far too dark for me to make my way home. I needed to hurry, or I'd be lost until morning. During the summer, there would be little to fear. But I could not survive alone in these icy woods.

My sword might protect me, but it would not keep me warm.

Somewhere up ahead, I heard the unmistakable sound of crunching snow. I slowed to a stop, cocking my head. Was someone else there? Had another gotten lost on the way home from the London markets?

A chill swept down my spine as the crunching amplified in my pointed fae ears. There were far more than just one set of footsteps. There were so many that the sound grew into an avalanche. Mouth dry, I held up my sword before me. It shook with my fear.

Out of the darkness rose dozens of dark figures. I could not see their faces, but I could feel the emptiness within them. My heart pounded hard as their scent filled my nose. They smelled of rot, of anger, of fear .

I had never seen these creatures before, but I knew what they were.

Nightmare wraiths.

Legends told of their existence. Dark creatures of even darker magic that feasted on the living souls. They came straight from the depths of Faerie's ancient caves, pouring horrendous nightmarish images into your head.

I stumbled back a step, glancing at my sword. It would do nothing against these creatures.

Heart racing, I spun on my heels and threw myself into the forest. Right or left, it did not matter. I just had to get away. Pumping my arms by my sides, I ran, faster than I'd ever run in my life. Still, the wraiths drew ever closer.

They were at my heels. I could feel their icy breaths on the back of my neck.

A hand gripped my ankle, and I fell face first onto the ground. Nightmares swarmed into my mind. Images of blood and bones, fire and screams, magic and tormented lives.

I screamed.