Page 15 of The Rebel Seer

The lights flicker slightly.

Shy waves it off. “She’ll be back. I’m the only one she can talk to. As for Rhys, I didn’t mean to…I don’t know…stunt his growth. I know he should have way more experience than he has, and it’s my fault.”

“You need to stop using that word, sweetie. Fault is loaded and not applicable here,” I explain. “If anyone is at fault, it’s his fathers and me for being dumb enough to fall into that painting and cause the world to explode.”

“It would have done that anyway,” Shy says firmly. “Myrddin would have found a way. He was always going to bring this darkness to our plane.”

I wonder about that. I know Myrddin thinks I’m little more than the king’s bang buddy, but I have some power of my own. I’m a nexus point. It means I have no fate. I don’t show up on that endless tapestry, and the things I do and choices I make can change that sucker for good or bad. I have to wonder what could have happened if I were here when Myrddin made his move. But I’ve been told thinking that way will get me nowhere, so I let it go. I have inroads to make with this someday daughter-in-law of mine. Including cleaning up some of my son’s mess so he has a chance at making her exactly that. “The point being if Devinshea had been here when Rhys reached puberty, he likely would have taken him to Faery to begin his training as a priest, and let me tell you it does not involve denial of pleasure the way it does here on the Earth plane.”

Shy’s head cocks slightly, a curious expression coming over her. “A priest? Like a high priest?”

I nod. She knows the terminology, but there’s more to it. I wonder if anyone explained this to her. Likely not. The kids were too young to really grasp their father’s role in the Fae world beyond he was called His Grace and given deference. It wouldn’t occur to Trent or Sasha to talk about it beyond telling the kids their dad was important. I’m pretty sure Trent, at least, hadn’t explained that their parents got it on in public and a whole lot of voyeurs got pregnant. “Yes. Simply by his nature he’s already a priest of Faery. Dev is the high priest, though I suppose in his absence they declared Rhys for the position. It’s why they tried to kidnap him. The issue is a priest usually spends years in training that begins when the Green Man hits puberty. When he should have been in Faery making Lee look like a prude, he was on the run.”

“From the stories I’ve heard, it didn’t stop Lee,” Shy says quietly. “I was sixteen when I met him. Harry managed to teach me how to act normal. How to be normal, and I finally got out of the institution. Naturally they sent me to a group home, but Harry taught me how to get out.”

I smile. “He taught you how to steal, didn’t he? My father was a menace. He was also the best thief in all of the supernatural world. I wondered how you managed to get across the globe and find your way here.”

“It wasn’t exactly stealing,” Shy admits. “Harry kept a bunch of cash in his old house. By then it had been sold by Myrddin, and he pocketed the money. You do not want to know how your father felt about that.”

I can guess. “I suppose Myrddin used magic to falsify the records.”

“Almost certainly,” Shy allows. “Harry walked me through breaking into his old house and getting the fifty thousand in cash he hid under the baseboards of his old office. From there he taught me where to get a fake ID, and it was pretty easy. I got here. They were freaked out some unknown American was living in a tent outside the mountain. I met my first actual Fae creature and after a while, they let me in and I met my second. And realized how different they can be.”

I heard a bit of this story. It doesn’t surprise me my dad hid money in his office. He always had a plan. “You never saw a faery before?”

She shook her head. “My parents never went to the Council building. Every now and then a vampire or a witch would show up for consultation, but they look human, of course. The wolves I met were always in human form. So meeting that brownie was a lot. And then I met Rhys.”

It’s easy to forget how young she was when Myrddin killed her family, and only coincidence saved her. “How old was Rhys?”

“He was seventeen,” Shy answers. “Lee already had quite the reputation. He managed it even though Fen and Rhys wouldn’t join him in the partying. Oh, they would drink and start fights and stuff. But they wouldn’t pick up women the way Lee did. Or men. Lee doesn’t discriminate. From what I understand it’s not like Rhys has no experience. He had encounters but he never finished the act.”

“Because something deep inside told him not to.” Neil gets serious, his arms crossing over his chest. “I know I wasn’t on the outer planes with the kids, but I was still their Uncle Neil. When they would come home, they would always spend time with me. Rhys and I sat up many a night talking about his future and how weird he felt not doing what his body so clearly told him to do.”

The idea of my best friend being there for my kids brings tears to my eyes. I know Sarah would have done the same if she had the chance.

“But why wouldn’t he follow his instincts?” Shy asks. “Trust me. I’ve heard a whole lot about Rhys’s instincts.”

I’m curious about that as well. It’s not like Rhys wants to talk about his sex life or lack of one with his mother. Lee is so much more open. So is Evan. Rhys is the one I’m having a hard time getting close to.

“He told me he dreamed at night of his goddess. He said he knew she was out there, and he didn’t want anyone but her,” Neil explains. “No amount of teasing or pointing out the obvious problems of a virginal Green Man could persuade him. I think one of his deep fears about being taken to Faery was being forced to perform rituals.”

Oh, he’s being generous. The Fae treated my children poorly while we were away. “He was afraid they would facilitate his rape. I don’t care that he would have likely gotten some pleasure out of it. It’s rape, and they should be happy they didn’t pull it off. I assure you they will feel my wrath.”

“Zoey, you should know both King Angus of the Unseelie and Queen Miria disavowed having anything to do with those attempts,” Neil says. “From what we can tell, they were rogue elements of the Fae world.”

Sure. Like they didn’t know. Like they wouldn’t have found a way to use my son and his fertility powers. “What’s important is the fact that Rhys knew he would have a goddess at a young age. Devinshea thought he was a simple priest. So he had no reason to hold back. However, the situation can’t stay this way. It’s not sustainable. Are you afraid of him?”

Shy’s eyes come up and she smiles slightly. “You remind me so much of Harry.”

I can only imagine why. “Because I have no filter right now? I actually am pretty good at politics, but not when it comes to my family. I’m blunt and plain and not afraid to ask the hard questions.”

“Honestly, she’s not that great at politics, which is why I’m worried about her getting to Faery and starting another war,” Neil admits.

Shy seems to ignore him. “To answer your question, Your Highness, yes I am afraid, but not for the reasons you might think.”

“Because he’s so possessive? His dad was much the same. The vampire/companion relationship is an intense one, to say the least.”

“Yes, the vampire is addicted to companion blood,” Shy says in an academic fashion, and I’m sure she’s been through some lectures on the nature of supernatural creatures. “A companion’s blood makes the vampire faster, stronger, far more powerful than a vampire without a companion. Rhys isn’t addicted to me.”

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