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She shrugged. "I think I'll be staying in town after the meeting, cousin," she said, shooting a questioning look at me.
I hesitated. I hadn't given myself to anyone since Dredge. He was the last man—living or dead—to touch me in my most private of places. Was I ready for another relationship? The thought of a man's hands on me scared me shitless—the memory of Dredge still way too fresh. But a woman… not just any woman but there was something about Nerissa… Could I take her into my world and keep her safe? I gazed at her as she blew me a gentle kiss. I had to find out, one way or another.
"She's staying at our house for the night, Zach. Nerissa, you can ride back with me." Without another word, I turned and headed back to the front of the room where my sisters were in a whispered conference with Wade, Sassy, Grandmother Coyote, Morio, and Trillian. Iris had taken over hostess duties and was greeting folks at the door, putting them at ease.
Camille cleared her throat. "Good of you to join us," she said dryly. "People are starting to trickle in. We've lined up several guards from the major clans to keep order and planted them around the room. Let's hope nobody gets his muzzle bent out of shape."
I glanced around the rapidly filling hall. Most of the groups who agreed to participate had sent a handful of emissaries, the number depending on the size and position of the clan within the Supe community.
The Rainier Puma members stood out, of course, with their height and their Scandinavian good looks. But the wolf clans were just as striking. Lean and muscled, the majority of their members looked Mongolian by nature and they walked with a refined arrogance that was hard to ignore. There were members in from the Olympic Wolf Pack, the primary pack in the state, but also a few from the Loco Lobo and Cascadia Packs.
The werepumas were limited to two groups—the Rainier Pumas and the Icicle Falls Pride, who were leaner and shorter than Zach's group. They rivaled Trillian for the obsidian glow of their skin, but Trillian had that OW look in his eyes and his hair was brilliant platinum, while the Icicle Falls Pride looked more like earthborn humans than Fae. They were black panthers, hiding out in the wilds of the forests, and their hair was as dark as their skin.
Camille hedged in beside me, Trillian right behind her. She nodded at the door. "Looks like some of the real closet cases have decided to show."
She was right. I wasn't sure just what kind of Supes they were, but a group of three disparate looking characters entered the room. And characters they were, with a fashion sense that looked about two hundred years out-of-date. I nodded at her and said, "Let's go greet our new friends."
We headed over in their direction and Camille gasped. "They're old Fae, Menolly. Very old Fae. I can feel it from here."
A woman and two men, they turned as we approached.
Their eyes glowed with an inner light impossible to miss. I wasn't sure whether they belonged to the Sidhe, or whether they were from a line far older than that, but whoever they were, the pall of dark magic hung heavy in their auras.
The men were average height, on the short side even, but they were sturdy with shoulder-length hair caught back in braids, and they wore golden cloaks around their shoulders. The woman was shorter than me, four-eleven at best, with long dark hair and a silver crescent branded on her forehead.
She inclined her head ever so slightly toward Camille. "Good meet, my Sister of the Moon."
Camille seemed transfixed, her face flushed with excitement. She returned the bow and held out her hands. "Welcome. We sure didn't expect to see the likes of you come through these doors."
Still in the dark as to who they were, I cleared my throat. "Camille, do you know this woman?"
Camille glanced at me, a wary look on her face. "Mind your manners," she whispered, then turned back to the trio. "Thank you for coming. We need all the help we can get."
"We'll reserve our decision on whether to get involved until we know more," the younger of the men said. He glanced at me. "Creature of the night, and yet one of us… though not quite. You and your sisters are from the Otherworld, correct?"
I inclined my head slightly, still wary. "I'm Menolly D'Artigo, this is my sister Camille, and the blonde over there is Delilah. We're from Otherworld, yes, though our mother was Earthside human. And you are?" Camille might be willing to pussyfoot around them but until I knew who they were, I wasn't about to drop to my knees for anybody.
The woman smiled then, faint but with a twinkle in her eye. "You may call me Morgaine. I'm a Daughter of the Moon, like your sister here."
Morgaine? My jaw went slack and I hastily backed up a step. "Not the Morgaine?"
She let out a low chuckle. "The one and only."
One of the greatest sorceresses to ever live, Morgaine was half-human, half-Fae like we were, although it seemed she'd managed to avoid the short circuits in her wiring that afflicted most half-breeds. Morgaine had chosen to stay behind during the Great Divide and it was thought she'd faded into history. From her appearance, it was obvious that the rumor mill had been working overtime. She was as alive as any of us. Well, as alive as Camille and Delilah.
I glanced at the men. "Then these must be…"
"Mordred, my nephew, though many make the mistake of thinking he's my son. And this," she motioned to the older man, "is Arturo, my mate from the Golden Wood."
Her eyes flashed with the same violet as Camille's. Maybe a connection because of the moon magic, maybe something else. I glanced at Arturo. He looked FBH, but there was something about him that didn't quite track. Mordred, on the other hand, was obviously part Fae.
Camille gazed at Morgaine, totally playing the fan girl. "My teacher taught us about you. You were the greatest sorceress that ever lived. We are honored by your presence."
Morgaine reached up to caress Camille's face, lingering on her cheek gently. "So you have returned to our world. Why, might I ask?"
Her question seemed innocent but something tripped an alarm. "We have our reasons," I said before Camille or anyone else could respond. "We're here to find out about our mother's heritage. We wanted to know more about her." A blatant lie, but I had an uneasy feeling that wouldn't leave me alone. "So what brings you to our meeting tonight?"
Mordred stared at me, impassive, but I had the feeling he didn't buy my story. "It's time to wake the great powers. Time to reclaim what is ours."
