Chapter 16

The sun was down by the time I arrived at the Castle. We had fewer than twenty-four hours before the Wild Hunt came crashing through the crossroads and I was in no shape to deal with them.

Addison sat at the kitchen table, playing Scrabble with Nana Pratt, Ray, and Claude.

The goddess barely glanced at me. "You're alive. We thought you might've drowned."

"We had no such thoughts," Ray countered. "Otto contacted Gunther about your visit, who then contacted West."

"Seems like you had quite the eventful day," Addison said. "Anna dropped off your phone and dagger."

"Thanks."

"And she wanted me to tell you the druid is dead."

No surprise. The wolves would've seen him give me the final kick into the Falls.

"Oh, and she left his head on a spike at the crossroads."

Oh, boy.

Addison gestured to the oven. "Matilda and I have eaten, I put the leftover pizza in the oven at a low temperature to keep it warm for you."

"Thanks. I appreciate it. Where is Matilda?"

"Napping on your sofa. She didn't find the stag, and she injured one of the scouts. She didn't seem too happy about it."

I didn't blame her. The scout was likely someone she knew well.

"You might want to shower before you eat," Addison said. "You reek of sulfur. Did you swing by hell on your way home?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. "Something like that."

Nana Pratt examined me closely. "Are you all right, dear? You look frazzled."

"And pretty gross," Addison added. "Is that your blood?"

"Yes," I said. Kane had offered me fresh clothes, but I didn't want to arrive home wearing his. Only one option invited questions I was willing to answer.

"Your phone is charging on the counter," Ray said.

"Thanks."

I checked my messages while Addison put two slices of pizza on a plate. It seemed that everybody I knew in Fairhaven had heard about my dip in the Falls. There were multiple messages from Gun, Cam, and West. No Brody. I replied to all three of them to let them know I was safe and sound. Then I wolfed down the pizza and washed it down with a tall glass of water.

"When Matilda wakes up, please tell her I'm in my room."

I took my time in the shower, letting the warm water wash away my internal strife. I needed to shift mental gears, to focus on the onslaught of hunters, but it was hard to stop ruminating on the day's events.

I changed into a T-shirt and sweatpants and opened the weapons trunk. No time like the present to sharpen my blades. There was no doubt I'd be using them by sundown tomorrow.

There was a knock on the door and Addison poked her head inside. "Whatcha doing?"

"Prepping."

"What happened to you? You look like you've seen many ghosts, and I know that wouldn't bother you."

"There's something you should know." I told her what I'd learned from the Morrigan.

Addison's jaw unhinged. "That's wild."

"Tell me about it." I sighed. "And The Corporation knows. I'm sure of it."

"A problem for another day," Addison assured me. "You've got the Wild Hunt to worry about first."

I swapped a dagger for a knife and continued sharpening. "How long until The Corporation makes a move?"

"They're a bureaucratic machine. First, they'll convene an emergency meeting where they'll decide which department should handle it. Then they'll argue about it. Then they'll formulate a plan. Could take weeks, honestly."

I swallowed the lump in my throat. From the frying pan into the fire. "Is Matilda awake?"

"Not yet. She snores like a chainsaw. Is that a Night Mallt thing? I don't know how you can't hear it from in here."

"I'm too distracted to notice."

She perched on the edge of my bed. "Any word from your pal Brody?"

"Not yet." I returned to sharpening my blades on the whetstone.

"I could help, you know. I'm an asset. You should use me."

"I don't want to use you."

She folded her arms. "Why not? Because you think it'll put you in the same category as The Corporation? Trust me, it won't. You're not in the same league."

My sharpening slowed to a halt. "This isn't your fight, Addison."

"And Mathis isn't your fight, but you took him on anyway."

"That was for selfish reasons."

"Keep telling yourself that, snookums. Seriously, though. Who convinced you that you're the rotten apple that ruins the bunch?"

My head jerked up. "What do you mean?"

"Do I really need to explain it to you? Look at you." She waved a hand at my weapons collection. "You're busy prepping for a fight that has nothing to do with you. You act like you owe this place something."

"I'm the liminal deity of the crossroads. By definition, I owe this place my protection."

"And who assigned you that cushy gig, huh? A higher god than you? Who do you work for?"

"There was a vacancy. I took it."

Addison barked a laugh. "You volunteered? You're even sadder than I thought."

I jabbed a knife in the direction of the forest. "There's a multirealm crossroads out there that didn't even have guards until I arrived."

"And yet this town has survived for over a century without your help. In fact, one could argue it's become more dangerous since you came on the scene."

"Now you sound like West."

"I like West. I look forward to seeing him at the party where we all kick the crap out of the Wild Hunt."

I resumed sharpening my blade. "I already told you. You're not invited."

"I don't need your protection, Miss Liminal Deity. I can take care of myself."

"It isn't you I'm protecting."

She grunted. "I see."

"If you don't mind, I have a lot of work to do."

"Fine. I'll go see if Nana Pratt wants to bake cookies with me, unless you're worried I'll poison them."

"I've gotten to know you well enough by now to know you would never ruin baked goods for any reason. Besides, poison is a coward's weapon."

She laughed. "And you don't think I'm a coward?"

I set down the knife and the whetstone and gave her my undivided attention. "You're many things, but a coward isn't one of them."

"How can you say that? I'm literally hiding in your house."

"I've been hiding my whole life, but I don't view myself as a coward. I have strong survival instincts, and so do you." And so did my parents.

"I threw you under the big ass wheels of the corporate bus to save my own skin. It doesn't get much more cowardly than that."

I craned my neck to look at her. "Do you want me to think of you as a coward?"

She shrugged. "I just don't see how you don't."

"What does it matter what I think anyway? All that matters is how you feel about yourself."

"I feel like shit, obviously. If I had a healthy relationship with myself, I wouldn't behave the way I do. There's too much human left in Aite." Her brow creased. "Or maybe it's the other way around."

"You're too hard on yourself. You might feel better if you focused on forgiveness."

"Are you kidding? I'd love to be forgiven by you."

I rose to my feet. "It isn't my forgiveness that will heal you. It's yours."

I left the room.

"Is it wise to leave her right next to the weapons trunk?" Nana Pratt asked, following me downstairs.

"She's fine. I have a bag of chocolate chips. Why don't you get the ingredients ready for cookies?"

"She doesn't deserve you, Lorelei."

I stopped on the last step and looked at her. "She deserves a hell of a lot better than what she got."

I checked my phone again, hoping for a response from Brody. Still no answer from the nature mage. His presence wasn't necessary to win, but I would feel better knowing I'd used every tool at my disposal to protect Wild Acres.

Every tool except the goddess of mischief and ruin.

Despite my mounting fears, I slept hard that night. No dreams. No nightmares. Only sleep. I rose with the sun, feeling marginally better than yesterday.

Needless to say, I wasn't looking forward to sundown.

I spent the morning with Matilda in the parlor room, discussing yesterday's events. She told me about the scout she'd injured (not Reginald), and I told her about the Morrigan's revelation.

"I should have suspected," I continued. "When I first told you about The Corporation, you told me to pack my bags and leave town immediately. I was surprised you were eager to see me quit so easily. It was unlike you." And then she'd killed the djinn, Solomon, to save me from The Corporation. All part of her assignment from the Morrigan.

Matilda turned her face toward the roaring fire. "Are you angry with me for my deception?"

"No."

Her shoulders sagged with relief.

"You're no longer obligated to look after me. The Morrigan said their agreement to protect me has reached an end."

The Night Mallt kept her focus on the flames. "Do you really think I'd abandon you now, in your hour of need, especially when I am the reason for it?"

"I don't blame you."

She met my gaze. "I'm with you to the end, cariad, whatever that end will be. I may not have chosen the arrangement to look after you, but I choose you now, and every day thereafter."

It was hard to hear, that level of devotion. Part of me still felt like I didn't deserve it.

She patted my hand. "Enough talk. It's time to assemble your team. We have much work to do."

As far as teams went, mine wasn't too shabby. Kane, Josie, the Arrowhead wolves, Gun, Camryn, and a few mages from the guild who'd voted in favor of helping me. I didn't contact Madame Thea about the axe throwers. Matilda felt we should stick to those we could trust. An axe thrower might decide the white stag was too tempting a target to resist.

I started with a call to Gunther. "Are you ready?"

"I've already selected my outfit. It's Brokeback Mountain meets Return of the Jedi."

"Brokeback Mountain has gay cowboys, so I get that reference. Why Return of the Jedi?"

"They fight the Dark Side in a forest, surrounded by misfit creatures, which is basically what we'll be doing later."

He agreed to continue the phone chain with the mages, while I called Kane and West and asked them to do the same with their respective cohorts.

I felt a rush of warmth when Nana Pratt and Addison revealed that they'd prepared a variety of fruit and finger sandwiches to take to our team members.

"Food is fuel," Addison said, shoving a backpack into my hands.

"Snacks will be important to keep up your energy levels," Nana Pratt advised.

I wasn't sure there'd be a convenient time to scarf down tuna on rye while fighting for our lives, but I appreciated the gesture, nonetheless.

We gathered our weapons and the snack pack. Claude climbed onto Matilda's shoulder, her own gnarly parrot. Dread coiled in my stomach as we exited the house. My parents had left their home one day, unaware that they would never return. That they would never see their loved ones again.

I turned around to wave at Ray and Nana Pratt, who hovered together on the front porch. Unsmiling, they returned the gesture. They were worried.

So was I.

The mare awaited us at the gate. Matilda stopped to push against the fencepost and stretch her calf muscles.

"I'm out of practice," she said by way of explanation. "It wouldn't serve me to suffer a cramp in the middle of battle."

"Ooh, there's an idea. Maybe we can trigger a leg cramp in Vortigern. Those are both painful and debilitating."

"You'll have to unseat him first if you have any hope of that." She dusted off her hands. "Are you scared?"

"Terrified."

"Good. You should be." She motioned to the horse. "Up you get."

We rode the mare to the appointed meeting place in the forest—the crossroads.

Not all of us would stay to greet the horde. That honor was limited to Matilda, Claude, and me. We decided that ambushing riders as they passed and attacking them on the ground was our best approach.

Josie passed out earpieces to each group leader, including me. "The comms will help us stay in contact since we'll be so spread out."

"And if anybody happens to stumble upon the white stag, don't yell ‘stag,'" I advised. "No need to give the hunt any help. Use a code word."

"Boot-scootin' angel?" Gun proposed.

"Too long," I said.

"Too stupid," Josie mumbled.

"How about just ‘angel?'" Kane suggested.

Camryn grimaced at the sight of the druid's head on a spike. "Whose handiwork is that?"

Anna raised her hand. "What's wrong? Do you think I should've chosen a taller spike? If they're coming through on horseback, they might miss it."

Camryn shot me a helpless look.

Bert scented the air. "Why do I smell ham and cheese?"

Stupid werewolf senses. I unzipped the snack pack. "I come bearing treats. Would you like a finger sandwich?"

"I'm a werewolf. I'd like the whole hand."

I tossed him a zip lock bag stuffed with finger sandwiches.

Strips of orange and gold blazed across the sky as the sun began its descent.

"The hounds will be first," Matilda advised. "If I can make them obey me, I will."

Although she failed to tack on the words "no promises," I heard them clearly.

My eyes locked on Kane's. "Stay safe," I told him.

"I will if you will."

My body tensed as most of the team departed the clearing and took their appointed places in the forest.

The air shifted; it felt wrong somehow, although I couldn't describe how. The back of my neck prickled, but not the way it sometimes did when my ward activated.

I rubbed the spot, hoping to rid myself of the uncomfortable feeling.

"You sense it, too," Matilda noted with a sidelong glance at me.

"What is it?"

"What do you think?"

Twenty feet ahead, a wall of mist formed. It rolled toward us, coating our shoes in a thick white cloud. I felt like I stood on the precipice of a Belgian field, searching in vain for landmines that were impossible to see. Treetops rustled.

"There's no wind," I observed. Everything about this moment seemed unnatural. Dogs barked in the distance. The ordinary sound took on a sinister quality.

Gun's voice reverberated in my ear. "All the pieces are in play."

I tightened the bundle of nerves that threatened to unravel in the pit of my stomach.

"The Gift of the Magi are in position," Monica whispered in my ear.

"I didn't realize we could have nicknames," another voice whined in the background. Camryn.

Gun shushed her. "If the stag can have a code name, then so can we. You can be DQ."

"Why would I want to be Dairy Queen? You know I have issues with lactose."

"Drama Queen," he hissed.

"Ooh, I like that."

Frigid air rushed through the trees and slammed into us. Trees groaned as they bowed from the pressure. Instead of dispersing the mist, the wind appeared to thicken it.

Matilda withdrew her blade. "You might want to ready yourself."

A gust of wind tore through the trees, bending their branches to its will. The sky darkened.

I stood beside Matilda and her mare and tried to appear as confident as she did. The Night Mallt wasn't fooled.

"If you're going to regurgitate, cariad, wait until the enemy is upon us and use it as a weapon."

Vomit as chemical warfare. Got it.

Eyes fierce, the Night Mallt looked down her nose at me. "This is where we set the tone. A storm approaches, and we shall meet it with thunder and lightning of our own making."

"The Fujiwhara Effect," I said.

Matilda looked blank.

"When two storms collide."

"Another lesson from your grandfather?"

"No, I actually learned this one in school."

The leaves scattered, followed by a chorus of barks.

Matilda's chest rose and fell. "Here comes the first wave. Stay vigilant."

I faced the crossroads as white hounds with crimson-tipped ears ripped holes through the shadows. Their fangs gleamed with the promise of carnage.

Matilda rode forward to meet them with her chin held high. She let loose a shrill whistle that was almost too high-pitched to hear.

The hounds froze in place. I counted a dozen of them, as intimidating as werewolves, each one as large and ferocious as the next.

Matilda said a few words I didn't understand. The hounds broke free of their temporary hold, even angrier than before.

She turned toward me. "They refuse to obey my commands."

Snarling and snapping, they surrounded the mare.

I rushed out from behind the tree. "Stop!"

The hounds dropped to their bellies, whining. Drops of saliva burned holes in the dirt.

Matilda stared at me, wide eyed. "If I had known you could do that, cariad, I wouldn't have put myself at risk."

"You know dogs don't like me." Until now, I wasn't certain their fear and subservience would extend to spectral hounds of the Wild Hunt.

She observed the pack on the ground. "It's far more than dislike. They're terrified."

It seemed cruel to frighten them. "Do you think they'll listen to me if I order them to return home?"

"I suppose it depends on whether they fear you more than they fear Vortigern."

I had to try. I approached the cowering hounds. "I command you to return home through the crossroads and never return. This land is under my protection."

The hounds quivered and yelped. They seemed unsure whether to obey. The slash marks on their backs were indicative of the training they'd endured under Vortigern's command.

"Did you ever whip them?"

Matilda looked affronted. "Do you think so little of me? I might've cracked a whip on the ground, but never on an animal."

"It seems Vortigern believes in other methods of instilling obedience." I pointed to the marks of the nearest hound. Thin lines of fur appeared to have been burned away by a fiery whip.

Matilda's lips thinned as she examined their backs. "Bastard," she hissed.

"If they're spectral hounds, how does a whip hurt them?"

"If history has taught us anything, it's that there's a weapon for every occasion, cariad, and for every creature, no matter their composition."

If only we'd found the one that could kill Vortigern.

I debated whether to issue my command again. The hounds had grown eerily silent.

"What should we do about the hounds?" I asked.

"If they won't leave, tell them to abandon the hunt."

I faced the hounds. "Time to go. In these woods, there's a waterfall. Follow the sound of rushing water until you find it. There are caves nearby where you can hide. Do not leave the caves until I come for you. Do you understand?"

The hunt aside, I couldn't risk them scaring anyone who happened to cross their path in Wild Acres once the police reopened access—assuming the forest survived its encounter with the Wild Hunt.

The hounds whimpered in response.

My pulse sped up as the ground trembled beneath our feet. "Go, now!" The horde was on its way.

The hounds sensed it, too. They rolled to an upright position and ran.

I unsheathed my sword. "It's showtime."