Page 10 of The Rebel Seer

I hear both Neil and Sasha curse as I race out the door, desperate to find my son.

Chapter Three

Shy

Rhys’s arms tighten around me as the alarm clangs and our people start to come out of their homes, worried looks on their faces and weapons in hands.

“Well, that was expected,” Josie says. “You need to get that boy laid and properly or that wizard dude is going to murder everyone.”

I ignore her, trying to figure out what to do. This has only happened once before. Right after the royals returned. “We need to bring the wolves inside.”

Our pack tends to stay outside the mountain. While the pocket world Frelsi exists in seems to be a wide-open valley, we’re actually inside the mountain, and the magic can’t completely fool wolf senses. They’re happy outside, but they’re also vulnerable.

If Myrddin’s found us, we need to bring them in. They will be his first strike.

“We need to get Shy somewhere safe,” Rhys tells his fathers.

If Myrddin’s found us, I’m not sure anywhere is safe. Beyond that I’m not about to hide if we’re going into a fight.

“You need to calm down and stop the magic that’s pouring off you, son.” Devinshea Quinn wades through the grass. “Shy, it might be best if you put some space between the two of you. It has to be your decision. He can’t think straight long enough to let you go.”

“He won’t like that.” Rhys has gotten so much more protective, and he was pretty much a nightmare before his ascension. He’s always treated me like something precious he needs to preserve. In a fight, he’ll insist I stay hidden or he can’t do what he needs to do. I want to be more like Evan and Fen, who fight like a team.

“Rhys, you’re putting Shy in danger,” the king says calmly. “Right now, we still have some shot at not giving away a precise location. The magic around Frelsi will ping it through the countryside, but Myrddin will figure it out if you give him enough data. And that will hurt Shy and your mother. You should know he likely won’t kill them. He’ll take them and hurt them.”

The king knows how to talk to his son.

Rhys takes a deep breath and steps back, his hand still holding mine.

“That dude is wound tight,” Josie says, looking around and shaking her head. “Poor goats are going to get tummy aches.”

I turn her way. She might be my best lead on what’s really happening. “Do you sense anything outside?”

The dead can be sensitive to certain magics. Like Josie can see Rhys’s magic. She might be able to sense Myrddin’s.

“Is someone here?” His Highness asks, and there’s a certain tension to his stance.

Rhys lets my hand go and allows his Fae father to approach him. He shifts his hands out, giving Dev access to his chest. “It’s Josie. She was a tourist who died on the mountain and got stuck here. She’s human.”

Josie frowns. “He says that like it’s a bad thing. Prejudice, much? Oh, hey, what’s that?”

I look over and Bris is in the house. He places a hand flat against Rhys’s chest and Rhys almost immediately relaxes.

“Whoa. He’s pulling the excess magic out of him. Holy shit, Shy. Is that like a god or something?” Josie asks.

I need her to stay on task. The lecture about the Fae pantheon is going to be a short one. “Yes, Rhys’s father is what we call an ascended god. It’s what happens when Fae bond with non-corporeal ancient beings. This is an Irish deity named Bris.”

Josie cocks her head. “Like the thing where they cut a baby’s penis off?”

“No,” I say with a sigh as I watch Rhys. Am I hurting him by being close? If I were to leave, would he settle down and find a proper goddess? I love this man. It’s an emotion that’s sat in my chest pretty much since the moment I met him. I don’t want to hurt him. “It’s just his name.”

“Did she ask if he’s named after the Jewish ritual?” the king asks, his lips quirking up.

“Yes, she’s not up to date on Irish gods,” I admit. “But she is pretty good with seeing magic. Josie, do you sense anything? If Myrddin sent an eye, it’ll feel like something is pressing in on you.”

I’m pretty sensitive to certain types of magic, too. I remember how the last eye Myrddin sent made me nauseated and anxious. I don’t feel it this time.

Josie seems to think for a moment and the alarm stops, bringing blessed quiet with its cessation. She finally turns and points to the north. “I sense something from there, but it’s not like what happened a while ago. I did feel that. This is different. I would bet it’s coming through the portal.”

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