He closed his eyes and loosened a deep sigh before dragging his gaze to mine. His expression did not change when he noticed I was awake.
“The Quorum is starting soon.” He told me. “We should head up.”
I nodded, swinging my legs off the bed and standing up. I made no move to cover my naked body, and though I knew we didn’t have time to entertain our desires, a small thrill shot through me when Cormac’s gaze darkened. Whatever had troubled him before was a thing of the past.
“You fecking with me, Princess?” He growled.
I smiled sweetly. “Just getting dressed.”
Chapter Eighteen
Rainn Shallows
As a Selkie, Rainn Shallows spent most of his time underwater. Before the ‘War beneath the Waves’, he spent even more time lounging on the rocks of the Skala Beach, basking in the moonlight in his seal form.
Because of his penchant for having his feet solidly on the ground, or in water, he had never expected to be in the talons of a siren—wings spread, flying over the Night Court.
Rainn soon discovered that he was not suited for flight. In fact, he made him feel somewhat nauseous.
Shay Mac Eoin did not seem to feel the same roiling travel sickness. The Nymph fell asleep, exhausted from expending his magic.
If they’d had more time on the beach, Rainn would have helped Shay with his little problem—Nymphs fed on sexual energy after all.
But when Arden had offered to fly them back to the Twilight Lake, Rainn would have been a fool to say no. Rainn Shallows had no intention of walking a fortnight, on foot, thirsty and exhausted.
Arden was on a one-siren mission to rescue his mother, Nuada. Rainn would have told him how foolish it was to goagainst Balor without a plan, but he didn’t know Arden that well. Arden was, after all, the son of one of the Tuatha Dé Danann just as Maeve was. And Rainn had seen what Maeve could do when she was truly pissed off.
Aside from the bugs in his teeth, Rainn kept his mouth well and truly shut. To keep from vomiting on himself.
The dried river path led to the shore of the Twilight Lake, nearest Tarsainn.
Rainn Shallows had never seen the lake from above, but as they got closer to the border, the slice of sunshine from the Day Court made it easier to see the faelight under the waves.
Rainn squinted, trying to make out the contours of the fortress below the surface, when a wave of heat slapped his face. The shock of it made Arden careen to the side.
Shay Mac Eoin finally woke up, but struggled to keep his eyes open.
“The snow has melted,” Shay murmured tiredly. “The lake is boiling.”
“Boiling?” Rainn echoed in horror, lifting his voice over the roaring wind. “How can you tell?”
“Those bubbles.” Shay jerked his head towards the lake.
Arden swerved for the trees, avoiding the water entirely. The landing was much rougher than the takeoff—the bristling heat and the mass of trees were to thank for that. Arden had insisted he could carry the two fully grown males, but he had worn him down.
They tumbled into the bracken, once spongy and frosted, now crisp with heat.
Shay struggled to lift himself, pressing a hand against the trunk of a tree. His head flopping, and his eyes closed. He was ready to pass out, even before their fall.
Arden brushed the dry leaves from his chest and ruffled his wings indignantly. “I have to get my mother back.”
“And you have a plan, do you?” Shay groused. “You don’t know the lake, and you don’t know Balor. You don’t even know if Balor took your mother.”
Arden bared his teeth. “I know more than you do, whelp. I may be Nuada’s youngest child, but I have a century on you both.”
Rainn held up his arms in a disarming fashion. “Do you want me to turn around?”
“Why?” Arden snarled.
