Page 44 of Broken Veil
Carys scooted closer. “You can feel him?”
“I can smell him.”
It wasn’t more than three minutes later that Wade walked through the door and made a beeline for their table. He was followed by a tall, bushy-haired woman wearing clothes that were nearly identical to his.
Bess was just bringing out the first of the shepherd’s pies when Wade and the woman sat down. “Can I get you two some food?”
Wade eyed the pies. “Two o’ those, Bess.”
“Course, Wade.” She beamed. “Good to see you again.”
Carys watched the woman walk away and looked at Wade. “We asked if she knew you.”
Wade shook his head. “She doesn’t remember me unless I’m here.”
“How does that work?”
He shrugged. “This is my daughter Frida.” He barked something at her in a strange language, and Frida sat down.
“I am Frida.” The woman looked even less comfortable around humans than Wade did. She would have been in middle age if she was human, but if Wada was her father, she was a demigod at the least. She was tall and nearly as broad as the sea god, but there was a distinctly feminine curve to her features and her bearing.
Carys looked from her to Wade, then back again. “So you’re Wade’s daughter, which means you’re also a…”
Frida’s eyebrows went up. “A river reclamation biologist?”
“Yes.” Carys nodded. “A river reclamation biologist.”
“I am.”
“Great. That’s great.” She looked at Duncan, who paused long enough in devouring his pie to raise his eyebrows and shrug.
Wade was the one who cut to the chase. “We have a problem here. That’s why Frida called.”
Cadell was also devouring his pie, but he paused and looked up. “What is the problem?”
“There is a sea serpent,” Frida said. “He’s swimming up the Ouse and destroying boats. Eating pets. Things like that.”
The moment Frida saidsea serpent, everyone stopped eating and looked at her.
Laura said, “So when you sayserpent?—”
“Monster,” Wade said. “Giant beastie-like. Not as big as the Great Serpent in London, mind, but not much smaller either.”
Laura’s eyes were as big as saucers. “Are you serious?”
“Serious as Sam,” Wade said.
“Who’s Sam?”
“That’s what they called him last time. The humans, that is. He slipped through a gate ’bout a hundred years ago. Mortals here tried to make a mascot of him, they did. Like that lovely beastie up in Loch Ness.” Wade nodded at Duncan. “But this un’s a bit more… feral.”
Naida said, “So a sea monster got through an underwater fae gate and is now eating human pets in Yorkshire.” She sighed. “Wonderful news.”
“Really not wonderful.” Frida narrowed her eyes. “Quite harmful. The humans on this side don’t know about sea monsters. If they did, I imagine they would find it quite upsetting.”
Apparently river reclamation biologists were not keen on sarcasm.
“You’ve got to stop it.” Wade pointed at Carys. “Got to stop it from getting farther upriver. Once he passes the Naburn Locks, he’ll have a clear shot to York city. And after that, there’ll be no stopping him.”
