Page 106 of Ulune's Daughter

Carrie pokes her head into the bedroom to say that she’s put the cat litter in the kitchen and that dinner’s in an hour if Kellan wants to take a bath and have a glass of wine first. My mate has neglected her hygiene over the past week. Although she doesn’t smell strongly, her beautiful mane hangs in lank strands around her face.

I purr in happiness rather than fear when she agrees and accepts a large glass of red wine from the Naga. While she bathes, I perch on the edge of the tub, purring and swatting at the occasional iridescent bubble that rises from her bathwater.

With her hair piled on top of her head, the blue and black strands slathered with something glossy that smells like jasmine, lavender-scented bubbles up to her neck, she murmurs to me, “I think I got a little lost, lovey boy.”

I squint adoringly at her, so she knows that I don’t begrudge her wherever she’s wandered, so long as she comes back to me.

“I’m not sure what happened.” She sips her wine and stares into its dark surface. “I had a vision while I was in England. A ruined castle. It called to me. Followed me home. Invaded my dreams. I began building it. I’m not sure if it’s real or if it was all a hallucination. I’m afraid to look. I’m not sure what would be worse—if it was a fever-dream or if it’s real.” She rubs her water-dotted throat. “I think maybe the exhibit and the cup have affected me more than I thought.”

I want so badly to speak to her now. To reassure her that she is still herself. This is the first step in becoming more, and first steps are always uncertain, wobbling, and perhaps painful. But I believe in my mate. She will find her path and I will walk it beside her.

“Jane and Carrie are right. I shouldn’t have the cup in my house. And now that the exhibit’s open, I can focus on other things.” She passes a wet hand over her eyes. “Benighted Mother, Rhodes. Poor Rhodes. He asked to see me days ago. I ignored him. I need to apologize.”

I can’t muster much sympathy for the human. If it had been me, I’d have stormed down her door and demanded she speak to me. He texted a few times and fell silent when she didn’t respond. Pathetic.

I paddle my paws in the bath bubbles to amuse her and purr when she strokes me, even though her hand dampens my fur.

“I think we should stay here for a few days,” she tells me as she rises out of the bath. “Are you okay with that, lovey boy? I know it’ll be strange. You’ve only gotten settled at my place. I hope it’s not too much change for you. It’s just that now that I’m here, I don’t want to go back home right away.”

She never has to return to her house. My family owns a dozen homes. She can have them all if she continues to smile. I will have my parents issue an invitation for Cait House. She should know she has options other than the Naga’s guest room.

I purr and weave around her ankles as she brushes out her clean hair, braids it, and dresses in simple cotton pajamas. I love my mate’s lack of pretension, but I would occasionally like to see her in silk and lace, like at the V.I.P. reception. I’ll make sure Larissa stocks her closet with clothes more fitting for my queen.

Kellan picks me up and carries me, and her wine glass, into the Naga’s comfortable dining area. It’s at the back of their townhouse, beside a sunken lounge, both areas looking out over a long, narrow garden. There are still flowers blooming even though there’s frost at night now: bright and showy in the gathering night. Jane comes in from the garden, bearing an armful of sweetly scented blooms. She distributes the flowers into vases and places them on various tables. They help conceal the dry, musty scent of snakes that pervades the Naga’s house. Walking by my mate, Jane tucks a deep purple flower behind Kellan’s ear. They trade cheek kisses before Kellan makes her way to a couch. She settles into the cushions and strokes me onto her lap while she finishes her glass of wine. Carrie refills it on the way to light the fire.

As a cheerful crackling and the scent of woodsmoke fills the room, a tray of breadsticks, crackers, dip, cheese, and sliced meats floats over and lands on the couch beside Kellan. The smell of Gouda cheese and salami make me lick at the air. Carrie sits down on the far side of the tray with her own glass of wine. She lifts her eyebrows at me.

“Even fae can get heart disease,” she murmurs.

I glare at her.

Kellan laughs. “My family’s happily free of heart disease.” She rolls up a slice of salami and feeds it to me before making herself a cracker loaded with meat and cheese. “That’s so much better. I’m not sure when I last ate. Thank you for rescuing me.”

Jane tosses a cushion on the floor near Carrie’s feet and sits on it. “We’ve all needed a helping hand from time-to-time. Any idea what made you spiral?”

Kellan nods around another loaded cracker. “I did a Circle with Teddy, Rachel, and Darwin’s sisters. Not like a coven or anything,” she amends quickly, although I doubt the Naga would bring the Aedis Astrum down on Kellan even if she formed a true coven. “We just get together to renew our wards. We did a spell of unbinding to help with Evan Lords’ release. I think I unbound too much. I unleashed something.”

Carrie closes her eyes and holds her hand over Kellan’s head. The aether shifts and the raven cloak flickers around Kellan’s arms.

“No,” Carrie says slowly. “You didn’t unbind too much. You unbound enough.” Letting her hand drop, she opens her eyes and bows her head. “There’s so much coming. Change, good and bad. It will be hard for you.” She reaches out and takes Jane’s hand. “And you, dearest. Just know that you’re both strong enough to bear it.”

Kellan swallows audibly. “Can you give us a hint?”

Carrie draws in a breath, her eyes going very dark, and speaks slowly, almost in a monotone. “There are deep tides rising. Things that haven’t looked on our plane for thousands of years have opened their eyes again. I can just sense them at the very edges of my mind. Evan’s at the heart of it. His imprisonment. His release.” She squeezes Jane’s hand. “He’s a Capricorn.”

Jane shakes her head. “So is Kellan. And Teddy. And Gabe, I think?—”

“They’ll play parts in it.” Carrie’s fathomless eyes flick to my mate. “The Sapphire Chair is empty. Kellan has her own chair to fill, but it’s not the Capricorn throne. I think ... Ihope... that’s Evan’s path. He’s a good man. If he can shake off the despair of his long incarceration.”

Carrie lifts her wine glass in a toast. The other two women join her and they drink in silence for a moment.

“Is my paththat place?” Kellan asks hesitantly. “The Court of Cold Mist?”

Carrie nods. “But it need not be a tomb. It overwhelmed you. I imagine it’s very hungry, having been forgotten for so long. But you’ll master it. You just need some space to remember yourself and muster your strength. When you’re ready, you’ll make it your own.” She releases Jane’s hand and puts her hand gently on Kellan’s shoulder. “Without sounding horribly patronizing, Kellan, you’re so young. Give yourself time. Not everything has to happen today. Or even tomorrow.”

“I don’t have to go back ...?” Kellan shudders.

“Yes, you do,” Carrie and Jane say at almost the same time.

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