Page 102 of Made

“Hera loved the hounds, her grandchildren, as much as Typhon. Seeing that, Zeus had had enough. To punish her for the crime of happiness, he merged the hounds into the fearsome creature you see before you. Just as he’d hoped, Hera was repulsed. Not knowing that Zeus had caused the aforementioned freakish appearance, she asked her husband to put him someplace where he’d remain safe, but unable to cross paths with her.”

“I see,” Diarmuid said. “So, Exscruffenrox was chained at the entrance to the worst part of the Underworld.”

“Yes.”

“’Tis both interestin’ and informative, but does no’ bear on suitability to be around my girls.”

“I’m confident to give clearance for suitability. The reason why I shared the historical tidbit is this. The creature you see before you is not a three-headed dog, but three demigodly hounds. I believe the queen might change the creature back to its original form. Should she be so inclined.”

Diarmuid looked at Exscruffenrox. “Do ye understand what was said?”

“Yes,” said Exscruffenrox.

“Would ye like to be three rather than one?” When Diarmuid saw a big tear roll down one of the faces, his heart melted even more. “Evangeline. Are ye able to do what the wizard suggests?”

Evie found herself in the uncomfortable space between terror and paralysis. She had no idea if she was capable of such a thing. Maeve perhaps. Or Serafina. But when it came to being a fae queen, she was almost as much a baby as Rhiannon. When she looked at Diarmuid with wide eyes, he saw every thought expressed on her beautiful face.

“’Tis alright if ye can no’ love. Give it a try. For me. If it should prove to be a thing requirin’ more practice, I can implore other resources. You’ll find no pressure to perform.” His head turned to the wizard. “Thank ye kindly for comin’. Send the bill to my man.”

“Delighted to be of service, Your Highness,” said the wizard before dematerializing into a puff of smoke, which then vanished with a pop.

“I, um, really don’t know if I…” she began.

“I know,” Diarmuid said quietly. “Nothin’ to lose. Much to gain.”

“Okay then,” she said. She reached out with her mind for help from the magic that resided in Eire, always at the disposal of the royals, and immediately got the impression she should askabout names. Addressing the creature directly, she said, “Do you remember what your names were when you were separate?”

“Yes.”

When it said nothing more, she prompted, “Could you share with me?”

“We were Ex, Scruffen, and Rox.”

She smiled brightly. “Of course.” To Diarmuid, she said, “Revisiting the thing about nannies. I might be mentally out of touch for a few minutes. Can you make sure one of the staff is prepared to feed Rhiannon if she wakes up hungry?”

“The princess will be cared for, love,” said her spouse. “But I’d like to make an additional request before you begin.”

“Um. What?”

“Well, for the sake of Ex, Scruffen, and Rox as well as my father-in-law, I think we should disguise them as dogs. Just in case.”

“What do you have in mind?”

He thought for a minute. “Harlequin. Harlequin Great Danes. Do you know what I mean? If you require a photo…?”

“No. I know what that is.”

The king nodded. “Keir. You’ve done a great service for your brother, for the queen’s friend, Esmerelda, and for Excruffenrox as well. We’ll no’ keep you longer if ye need to be elsewhere.”

“I called Rita just before we arrived so that she wouldn’t worry any longer. I want to see her soon, of course, but I know if I leave with this part of the story unfinished, she’s going to say I should’ve stayed.”

Evie then began the process taught to her by Serafina. She withdrew her consciousness from the reality of the Ambassador Room to create a new reality. In this case, one with three handsome hounds, instead of one with three heads. Shesaw Diarmuid happily sitting in the garden. Nearby were three handsome hounds as he’d described. Each was a Harlequin Great Dane, but each had noticeably different markings. She went a step further and gave each a gorgeous and distinctive jeweled collar.

Ex’s gold collar proudly displayed his name with studs of amber. Scruffen’s platinum collar spelled his name with diamonds. And Rox’s silver collar spelled his name with rubies.

She smiled, seeing the king’s quiet content, and thought she heard high-pitched barking from far away. Returning to the room where her body waited, which she’d learned to do after recreating such things as buildings or landscaping or clothes, she opened her eyes to see three Harlequin Great Danes on hind legs leaping with joy.

There was no time to fully realize her success before Diarmuid scooped her up and swung her around like she weighed no more than a feather. “YOUDIDIT!!!”

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