Page 65 of The Shadow Path
“Yes.” Cadell finished his coffee and set down his mug. “Then King Edgar dies and there is a new king in Anglia, but his was an untimely death.”
“Exactly,” Laura said. “Harold is obviously building loyalty and trust with a government that his father put in place. They’re not his people, so he has to focus on that.”
Cadell added, “And there appears to be some debate about whether Lachlan or Rory should be high chief in Alba.”
Carys blinked. “That’s news to me.”
The dragon nodded. “I heard several Anglian courtiers last night gossiping about Lachlan’sdiplomaticcampaign. They seem to think the reason he’s down here instead of his brother is to cement his position as heir.”
“I didn’t know that.”
Did it change anything? Not if Lachlan was in Anglia to gain allies. Clearly that meant he wanted to be king.
“The islands of Briton are two small dots in a large ocean, but they hold four different kingdoms and millions of human and magical lives,” Cadell said. “Tensions are always high, but the Queens’ Pact holds the peace.”
Laura said, “But if Orla and Cian are looking to disrupt that peace, now might be the time they would try.”
“Agreed.” Carys picked at a pear, but the thought of eating anything was too much. “My identity”—and my love life—“is not the priority. We should do everything we can to figure out what the Éirens and the fae are planning.”
Cadell stood. “I’m going to the library. Your uncle agreed that meeting in the hall might attract too many eyes. Fae spies are everywhere.”
Meetingin the hall might not have been the best course of action, but Dafydd’s library was not the cavernous chamber Carys had found in the Alban castle. By the time two large Scottish men, a seven-foot dragon, and a wolf shifter the size of a small shed joined Carys and Laura, the library felt more than a little bit crowded.
Godrik glanced at Carys with suspicion. “Anwyn and Dylan are not here? Does that mean the Cymric heir has been?—”
“It means that my uncle has other tasks for them and would prefer to keep them out of this for now.” Carys spoke quickly. “Please do not assume anything else.”
Godrik grunted and lowered himself into an upholstered leather chair that groaned as he sat. “My father and Harold are worried. Did Winnie tell you?”
Cadell said, “She told us a little bit. Why are the old fae gates such a concern?”
“Because that’s how they move.” Godrik’s voice rumbled. “They may use magic now—secretive twats—but the old gates? The old magic? It’s still there. They used them in Éire when Cian slaughtered the wolf clans there. What’s to say that they won’t use them in Anglia for the same thing?”
“Do you think that’s what they want?” Carys asked. “You think the fae want to kill off the North Wolves in Anglia like they did in Éire?”
Godrik shrugged. “I hear your skepticism, but the wolves are the backbone and magical defense of Anglia. If we’re taken out, Harold and his entire country are weaker.”
“Why do the fae hate the North Wolves so much?” Laura asked. “Forgive my ignorance, but I don’t know your stories, and I feel like that might be important.”
Godrik scooted forward. “There is no apology needed. Our stories are our own. Wolves are not native to Briton. At least, not magical ones. We came with the Anglians when they crossed the sea and invaded over a thousand years ago.”
Laura nodded slowly. “So the fae are native to Briton, and they see you as invaders?”
“Fae are everywhere,” Duncan said. “They take different forms, but they’re everywhere. They spread across the Shadowlands after the old gods went quiet, so they can’t judge the wolves for migrating.”
The library door opened, and Captain Wynnflad joined them. “Sorry I’m late.” She looked at Godrik. “It’s not the migration.”
“It’s the magic,” Godrik said. “The wolves are resistant to fae magic.”
“As are other magical races,” Laura said. “But the fae don’t seem to antagonize them as much.”
“It’s prejudice,” Lachlan said bluntly. “Old-fashioned prejudice. Most fae of the Temris Court—the high fae, not the wild—see North Wolves as less than the other magical races.”
Cadell looked at Laura. “I’ve heard fae say that wolf minds are more animalistic?—”
Godrik growled.
“An insult and an excuse,” Cadell continued. “Obviously. But they see the wolves as less, yet they can resist fae influence more easily than humans.”
