Page 141 of Broken Veil
“Cariad, all of those were the Morrígan.”
“But they all survived.”
“Yes, but every time you battled one of them and drove her from their bodies, you dealt her a wound.”
Carys sat up straight. “The Mothers said I’ve already defeated her, I just don’t know how.”
“You haven’t defeated her.” Tegan put a hand on Carys’s shoulder. “And Carys, you cannot defeat her. But you can force her back to the Shadowlands, and Epona will bind her again.”
“How?”
“I can’t tell you that.” Tegan’s eyes narrowed when she smiled. “But I can tell you how to acquire the vision you’ll need to see her wounds and exploit her weaknesses. You already know what you need to do.”
In the distance, there was a sound, and then an echo came.
The howl of a baying hound.
Tegan’s smile faded. “We’re out of time, so listen closely.”
“Mom—”
“No more questions.” She pressed a kiss to Carys’s forehead. “Listen to me and remember, because I can only tell you once.”
She grabbed her mother’s arm. “I changed my mind. I want to stay with you.”
“No, you don’t.” Tegan’s eyes were bright. “But I love you for saying it. I’m with your sister now. And it’s everything I dreamed of, but it’s not your time yet.”
Carys blinked, and the cave was gone. She was walking through the forest, and a doe was leading her. Blue lights were guiding her in the darkness, and hounds were calling in the distance.
She opened her eyes, and Tegan had her hands on her shoulders.
“It’s not time yet.”
Carys fell backward into the water, the dark ocean pulling her from Annwn.
Her mother’s voice followed her.
She will gather at Cley Hill. Go to Hogg’s Well, take the water in your left hand, and put it in your right eye. Do not drink it. Do not put it in both eyes. Only in one.
A rushing sound as violent water buffeted her body and pressed against her, shooting her from the land of the dead and into the living world.
When you see as she can see, your sister will be with you, and your eye will be opened. Then you will see the wounds you have dealt the crow goddess so you can send her back to the Shadows.
Carys surfaced in the cave where she had started, shaking the water from her ears.
I love you, cariad. Know that I love you so much.
She spat salty water from her mouth and searched the cave for Angus, but the old god was nowhere to be found. “Angus?”
She spun in circles, but there was no one with her, and the water in the sea cave rocked with the tide. The light below the water was dimming quickly.
“Seriously?”
Carys climbed out of the cave pool and managed to get to her feet on the rocky ground. Her entire body was shivering as she found her damp clothes and quickly pulled them on before the light was gone.
She stumbled back through the narrow corridor until she saw the glow of the cave entrance and the silhouette of the man waiting for her.
Duncan.
