Page 124 of Broken Veil
Duncan sat on the edge of the bed. “What did she say?”
“That I can’t go to Annwn. That mortals don’t return from Annwn. Which is not strictly true—some of them have returned in stories, but it’s rare.”
His eyes went wide. “Then you’re not going.”
Carys sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes. “Why don’t we head to Swansea today and see what these Mothers have to say? How far away is it?”
“Not close. Four and a half hours minimum, and that’s not accounting for all the stops that Naida and Godrik are goingto want to make at travel centers so they can feed their slushy addiction.”
“So all day.”
“Likely yes.”
Carys stretched her arms up, then looked around the room. Her arms fell and her heart jumped. “Duncan, where are my papers?”
“I put them in the library this morning,” Duncan said. “Relax. Just give your mind a rest. Have some food. Breathe. Go walk in the garden a bit. Maybe it will give you some perspective. Clear your mind.”
Carys smiled. “If I’m Frodo, are you Sam? That would explain why you’re always trying to feed me.”
Duncan crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not a fucking hobbit.”
“But I am,” she whispered. “I’m Sexy Frodo.”
“Fuck me, I’m going to be hearing about this for the rest of my life, aren’t I?” Duncan shook his head. “Get out of bed, Frodo.” He pulled back the covers and slapped the side of her thigh. “Come on, lass. Get up and let me feed you.”
“Okay, but only if there are potatoes involved.”
“Is that another Sam reference?” Duncan asked. “Because I haven’t read those books in ages, and at this point, I’m going to actively avoid them.”
Carys slid off the massive king-size bed. “Dear Sam.” She patted Duncan’s shoulder. “Frodo wouldn’t have made it very far without her Sam.”
“Don’t make me strip you naked and fuck you again, woman.”
“Is that supposed to be a threat?” she muttered. “Because it’s really not.”
Duncan shoved her toward her duffel bag. “Get dressed or the dragon is going to break into our room.”
She did not want Cadell breaking into their room when she was naked.
“Fine.” She wrangled a bra from the tangle of her jumbled duffel bag. “But know that underneath my modern armor” —she nearly tripped over a heavy wool rug while trying to fasten her bra— “I am still Sexy Frodo.”
The house butler,Franklin—no doubt a man who also doubled as a driver and majordomo for the undercover spy—delivered a rolling tray of breakfast to the library.
“Poached eggs and bacon,” he said. “Roasted tomatoes and potatoes from the garden. The cook just took these scones from the oven.” He lifted the last tray. “And of course a rack of venison for the” —he glanced at Cadell and Godrik— “for the gentlemen.”
“Thank you, Franklin.” Duncan picked up a scone. “I’ll let Jeff know how helpful you’ve been.”
Franklin didn’t look like he gave two shits about impressing Duncan, but he was clearly more than a little bit worried about the library. He glared at Duncan before he closed the double doors and left them alone.
Laura had attacked Carys’s file of research and spread it into very engineer-coded piles.
“Okay,” she said. “I’ve separated the files on the Morrígan from the research you’ve done on other gods.”
Naida added, “And we also have another pile of papers on various alternate realms.”
“I had a dream with Seren last night,” Carys said.
Lachlan’s head popped up from his slumped posture in a corner of the room. “What did Seren say?”
