Page 90 of Broken Veil
“Carys,” he repeated. “You’re having a nightmare.”
“Nightmareis the last commonly used remnant of the Old English wordmaere,” Carys mumbled. “It meant terror.”
“Take a breath, Professor Morgan.” Duncan brushed damp hair from her forehead. “What are you talking about?”
Carys’s brain was on overdrive. “Andmaerecomes from the Indo-European root for something crushing. Something terrible.Maere,maron,marais also…” She took a shuddering breath. “Also where the first part of the Morrígan’s name comes from. At least they’re pretty sure it’s something… like that.”
Duncan gathered her into a giant hug. “What the fuck were you dreaming about?”
“Macha and Seren. London was burning. Then Baywood…” She turned her face into his chest. “There were planes buzzing in the sky. And sirens. Then the cabin and…”
He kissed the top of her head. “Christ, no more movies for you.”
In the firm embrace of Duncan’s arms, her heart began to slow, and her mind calmed. “It was a dream but not a dream if that makes sense.”
“None of this makes sense.” Duncan reached out to a pair of floating lights that emanated from the earthen walls of the room where they were sleeping. “Look at this place, Carys. I thought the Shadowlands was magical, but this?”
Jack of the Forest, the Green Man, the Green Knight, whoever he was, had stowed them in his strange pocket world in the middle of Sherwood Forest for the night. Jack’s world was a place where tree roots had personalities, water babbled from an earthen pump, and leaves smiled when you walked past them.
It wasn’t just touched by magic, it was made of the stuff.
Carys didn’t feel unsafe in the least—in fact, she felt more than secure—but clearly the veil between Jack’s realm was thinner than normal if the Morrígan was sending her dreams and her Shadowkin?—
“Seren was there,” Carys blurted out. “In my dream. Seren was there.”
Duncan pulled back to look at her face. “You were dreaming about her?”
“No, like… she wasthere. In my dream. Still alive. Or kind of alive.”
“I’m pale, but I’m not that pale.”
“You’re also not dead. That helps.”
Carys shook her head. “It’s hard to explain, but she was there, she realized she was dead, and she was talking to the Morrígan.” She frowned. “She said she liked her because she was a saucy bitch.”
“Oh aye, that sounds like Seren,” Duncan muttered. “Carys, can you do me a favor?”
“Probably.”
“Don’t tell Lachlan any of this.” He smoothed a hand down her hair. “Not right now. His head is already completely fucked.”
She closed her eyes and fell back on the pillow. “Do you think he was trying to die?”
“When he challenged the… Jack? Earlier?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know.” Duncan scooted down next to her and put his arm around her waist. “Maybe. Maybe he was.”
“He loves Seren so much.” It was so obvious to her now. The love he had for Carys wasn’t like what he’d felt for Seren.
Seren was Lachlan’s person. Just like Duncan was hers.
Duncan kissed her forehead. “I understand his grief better now, because if anything ever happened to you…” His breath caught. “Just be careful, will you? Because if you get taken to Annwn, there’s not a fae or a giant or a druid in the world who’s going to stop me breaking through magical worlds to get you back. I’d make a deal with the devil himself. I’m not as polite as Lachlan, lass. I’d just end up burning everything down.”
Carys had a vision of Duncan in the armor that the Green Man had given him, taking an axe to the forest behind his house and telling Cadell to light everything on fire.
“Don’t burn everything down.” The floating blue lights danced over her head, and she reached up to touch one with her fingertip.
