Chapter 23

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

I t had been two days since Merlin had ridden into Gwaed Lyn with the Wild Hunt, Balthasar bound and shackled. His Seren Du uncles had spoken very politely to Gwyn as they placed Balthasar in the cells under the mansion, and all were glad when the Hunt finally rode away.

"Can't wait to catch up with you in a month," Merlin had said to Gwyn with a sarcastic enthusiasm that the god hadn't noticed.

"Make sure that creature doesn't harm Rosa. In a month's time she might realize it is hopeless and join me," Gwyn replied. He had looked at Balthasar with a gleam of satisfaction in his silver eyes before riding away. Merlin had waited until he was gone before cursing the empty sky loudly in Welsh.

Saul had taken Arthur under his wing, eager to get acquainted with the legendary king and show him the wonders of the new age. Rosa had arrived with Bleddyn and had been sleeping off the residual magical hangover that came with being the queen of the Seelie for the day.

Merlin had taken Nimue's hand, and they had secluded themselves in the cottage. He was eager to lie in bed and forget everything else existed for a long time.

"Rosa thinks this is her price for accepting magic," he said to the ceiling. Nimue rolled over and flung an arm across his chest, her hot naked body curving against his.

"Maybe it is," she yawned, "but I doubt it. If you want to think really hard about it, the magic of the Aos Si could've influenced it happening so that Rosa could kill the queen and restore the balance."

"I don't even want to contemplate it."

"Well, you are certainly contemplating something. I swear even your thoughts have thoughts right now."

Merlin kissed the top of her head, inhaling the warm apple blossom smell of her gold and red hair. "I'll be okay, just processing."

Nimue's weeks spent in the pit had left her leaner than usual even if the queen had ignored her. Fintan had done his best to keep her fed without others noticing, but Merlin was determined to enforce food and rest on her. She had been viciously angry when she had realized how much weight he had lost too. He hadn't even noticed.

"Then there is no cure for either of us but to eat cream in bed for a week," he had replied.

The house had been sending meals down, and Merlin had won the argument about staying in bed. His only priorities had been to sleep and make love.

"We are going to have to check on Rosa soon," Nimue murmured, bringing him out of his doze.

"I'm sure she's still sleeping. She's either going to wake up and try to approach Balthasar's affliction with a clear head, or she'll be raging with frustration."

"I don't blame her," Nimue said. "It's not right. All the queen's magic should've died when she did. It goes against everything we've been taught."

Merlin's eyes snapped open. "Then the only logical answer is that it's not her magic."

"The queen stole a lot of magic over the years, Merlin. That could be a separate mission all of its own." She rolled onto her stomach so she could look at him.

"True, but it's a much, much smaller group when you take out the ones she killed after she was done with them," he said before pushing his hands through his tangled raven curls. "Sorry, my love. I'm going to have to go and talk to Bleddyn."

"That's what happens when you start having ideas." She smiled, dropping a light kiss on his lips. Heat ran down his spine, and he pulled her tighter against him.

"You have just given me another one," he said.

"Oh?" Nimue bit her lip and he was done for. His father would have to wait.

It was past midday by the time Merlin had gathered himself together and had gone up to the mansion. Nimue had gone to the kitchens to make them coffee, and he had sought out his father.

Bleddyn was in the library, arguing with Zalan while sitting in a comfortable chair playing Vincenzo at chess. Bleddyn hadn't quite managed to shake the look of the Aos Si about him. His long black hair had shortened to his shoulders; the tips of his ears were still pointed, and he was wearing an all-black suit, a silver tiepin of a wolf's head the only adornment. He looked exactly what he was—a faerie trying to be inconspicuous amongst humans and failing.

"I see your glamour hasn't reappeared," Merlin said, affectionately dropping a kiss on top of his father's head. "I'm glad. The banker Eli made me uncomfortable."

"Merlin! You're just in time to watch your father lose his queen twice in as many days," Vincenzo said with a wink.

"Should I punch him in the throat for you, Father?" Merlin asked. He still had trouble believing Bleddyn had left Eirianwen behind. He wanted to knock some sense into his dumb faerie head and send him back to get her. He had let Eirianwen slip through his fingers again. It was enough to make Merlin scream.

Bleddyn smirked, his emerald eyes glancing up from the board. "There will be no need. I'm already about to give him a thrashing. What brings you out of the cottage? I didn't expect to see you for a week at least."

"Got anything to drink?" Merlin asked, sitting down next to Zalan.

"Coffee. Right here," Nimue's voice said across the other side of the library. "Bleddyn, how could you let him drink so much and eat so little?"

"Don't chide me, beautiful girl. You know it's impossible to get Merlin to do anything that he is told," Bleddyn said before taking one of Vincenzo's knights.

"What's on your mind, nephew?" Zalan asked.

"The magic on Bal isn't the queen's, so we need to figure out who it belongs to," Merlin said, sipping his coffee.

"It shouldn't matter who it belongs to. We still should be able to find a way to unravel it," Vincenzo argued.

"You won't do it by playing chess," Merlin pointed out.

"It helps us think," Bleddyn replied. "I've been with Bal for the last two days, and I've only just figured out how to calm him down enough so I can examine him."

"There is something familiar about it like I have seen it before, but I can't think of where," Merlin muttered. It had been annoying him since the raid on the Seelie Court, and every time he felt the thread of the answer, it slipped away.

"It feels dark," Zalan said thoughtfully. "Not necessarily evil, though the queen's purpose was, but the magic itself doesn't feel evil."

"How is Rosa?" Nimue asked.

"I keep checking on her, and her body is recovering, but her mind and heart are something else entirely," Bleddyn replied with a sad smile. Merlin caught his eye, and he knew that Rosa wasn't the only one that was heartbroken.

"I'm bored. I'm going to wake her up," Merlin declared and got to his feet. "Maybe she can reach Balthasar in a way we can't."

Rosa had used the servant's passageways to sneak downstairs to the kitchen, make herself tea before heading to the dungeon under the wine cellar. She didn't know how many secret rooms were buried under the mansion that she never knew existed.

The dungeon was one long large cell where Balthasar could prowl up and down like a great frustrated lion. One of the doors in the cell connected to Bleddyn's workrooms where she had stayed during her transformation, but it was always locked. She sat quietly on the cold stone floor opposite the cell and watched Balthasar snooze.

"Whatever Bleddyn gave you has sure knocked you out, love," Rosa whispered. A small hopeful part of her had dared to dream that he would be himself by the time she woke up. The larger, more cynical part knew it had been wishful thinking. A brown eye opened and studied her, sniffing the air for her scent.

"Easy, it's just me. I'm not going to hurt you," Rosa said with a smile. "I thought you might be lonely. God knows I am." His ears twitched, but he didn't seem worried or threatened by her presence, so she stayed. She told him about her adventures since they had been forced apart, how they had another cousin in the Night Court, and what it felt like being the queen for a day.

"He seems to like your voice," Saul whispered from the doorway.

"Saul." Rosa smiled up at him. "Hug me, big brother." Saul sat down beside her, taking her in his arms.

"I missed you, Rosey," he said warmly. "I was worried about you."

"I was with Bleddyn and Merlin."

"That's exactly right. I didn't want you to come back all bitter and sharp edges like they are," Saul said, kissing her cheek. "You've changed, but it's not as bad as all that."

"Not as much as Bal has." Rosa's eyes filled, and she rubbed them away angrily. "I tried so hard, Saul, and nothing I did seemed to have been worth it. I'm just not as good at saving people as Bal was."

"Oh, honey, you couldn't count on something like this happening. You got him back in one piece, and everything else will be sorted out," Saul promised. "Bal has always come back no matter what state he's been in. You have to believe that. If he doesn't, we'll get him a lovely pink collar with diamonds on it, and he can prance about with Caruthers."

Rosa laughed and gave him a hard pinch. "Tell me about what happened in the past month."

"It was only about a fortnight here. I've set the Unseelie knights up in the old village that's been abandoned for the last century. Bleddyn has always maintained it, but no one has lived there for ages."

"They don't want to go home? What about their families? I'm sure Daesyn would look after them."

"It's not that. There's nothing for them to go back to. Zalan, Vincenzo, and I, have had a lot of conversations with them, and none of them have families," Saul explained. "Some were taken as children and don't remember their real names. The queen killed whatever family they had to ensure they would only be loyal to her. The Aos Si is nothing but murder and bad memories for them."

"God, that's awful. I'll take care of them if no one else will," Rosa said stubbornly. "Bleddyn won't fight me about it."

"Of course he won't. He'll appreciate the company. Wolves are pack animals after all," Saul replied. "They are a bit unsure about the Gwaed Gam. They all seem to be playing nicely with each other for now."

"Good! I've had enough of wars to last me a lifetime. As soon as Bal is back, I intend on running away with him for at least a month," Rosa said. "I killed the Autumn Queen, and I deserve a freaking holiday."

"You do, even without Bal." Saul tightened his arm around her. "Maybe you should go to France and see your mom. Let Merlin and Bleddyn sort this spell out…"

"No. How can you even ask me that? I won't just leave him."

"And what if it takes months? Years? Bal would understand. Christ, he probably has no idea what's going on right now. I won't let you sit here in despair for months on end. Spell breaking can be a long process, and you've been through Hell. You need your mom, not a bunch of Unseelie assholes fussing over you. Consider what I'm saying at least."

Rosa hadn't thought of Cecily when she had woken up, only seeing Balthasar. Did she even know she was back?

"I'll give Mom a call. I can't go to France. I need to be in Glastonbury at the next full moon," Rosa argued.

"And after that?"

"I'll think about it." Rosa rested her head against his shoulder so he wouldn't see the lie in her eyes.