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"You… you have hidden out for so long and now you expect to step in and reclaim a throne you willingly vacated years back? The Merlin told me you were fickle, when he taught me so long ago—"
"Fickle? We're all fickle, you snot-nosed brat." Titania squared her shoulders and raised a finger, pointing it at the sorceress. "You, me, her—" She swung around to nod to me. "Anyone with Fae blood will turn their backs on someone they love, sometime. It's in our blood, it's in our nature. Don't you know that the Merlin was my lover long before you were born? He was an old fool who cared too much for his reputation and too little for what he could offer to the world. If you seek his help to raise the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, you'll understand what it truly means to be betrayed."
Morgaine opened her mouth, then quietly closed it. She dropped to one of the fallen logs and clasped her hands together. "I know. That's why I stopped hunting for him. But we have to do something. I cannot allow this world—and all that I love about it—to fall into the hands of the demons. And that girl is no match for a demon lord." Again, a nod to me.
I was beginning to feel invisible, the proverbial fly on the wall. I started to speak, but Mordred, who had inched his way over to my side, shook his head.
"Don't get involved. It isn't safe." He had a dark scowl on his face, and I wondered what he thought of the whole matter.
But I didn't ask. I wanted to hear everything I could that Titania and Morgaine were saying.
Titania gave Morgaine a dangerous smile, showing her teeth just enough to remind me of a snarling dog. "Don't dismiss the girl and her sisters so lightly. And remember this: they are under my protection and the protection of the dragon who lives on my land."
I blinked. Obviously, Smoky and Titania were having some sort of dispute over property boundaries. I idly wondered if he'd ever slept with her, but decided not to go there. At least not right now.
"Morgaine, we have much to discuss." She turned back to me. "Camille, return to Smoky's for now. Do not stray from the path; there are dangerous traps and creatures that wander this land. We will be in touch with you soon. You are not out of this yet."
"But the horn—she has—" Morgaine jumped to her feet.
"Enough!" Titania's voice shook the clearing, and Morgaine cringed. "Leave it be for now."
I chose that moment to make my exit, stage left. I gave a short bow to the Fae Queen emeritus and the sorceress. As soon as I was away from the clearing, I started to jog along the path, wanting to put distance between me and the sparring women. What the hell were they up to? Titania looked far stronger than the last time I'd met her. I would have bet my pay that she couldn't have returned from the sodden state she'd been in, but I'd been wrong.
As I rounded the bend, a noise startled me. I glanced over my shoulder to check if Mordred had followed me, but there was no one there. Just then, a beautiful red fox raced onto the path and blocked my way. I dropped to my knees.
"Morio! I'm so glad to see you." I recognized the particular glint in his eye. Within seconds, he'd changed back into human form and retrieved his bag from beneath a huckleberry bush.
"Camille, I was worried about you. I saw everything. I've been prowling the land all day. Smoky and Titania have the place loaded with magical traps, but I'm good at spotting most of them." He helped me to my feet and slid his arms around my waist, pressing a quick kiss to my lips. "I thought I was going to have to jump in there and help you get away from that witch."
"You mean bitch, don't you? I don't think I like Morgaine," I said, frowning. "Grandmother Coyote was right. She's power hungry."
"She may be, but she's right about one thing: we need all the help we can get to fight Shadow Wing." He drew me to the side of the path. "This area is safe. I checked."
As we settled down on the lush patch of grass, Morio held out his arm and I leaned into it, realizing how comforting it was to be on familiar turf again. Morio and Trillian were safe. I knew them, we had our routine and rhythm down. But everything out here felt dangerous. Smoky, included.
"I'm scared," I said. "I just want it to be tomorrow so that I can go home."
"It will be soon, just hang on a little longer," he murmured.
I leaned forward and propped my elbows on my knees. "So, what did you and Delilah find out about the rug shop?"
"Demon scent there, all right. I went in, just in case they recognized Delilah. The owner wasn't there, but his assistant was. A woman named Jassamin. I think she's the one who was asking after Menolly."
"What's she like? Do you think she's a djinn like we thought?" Djinns were tricky to pinpoint, but there were ways to flush them out. And Morio was well-versed in identifying magical beings.
"She's beautiful, she's sensuous, and yes, she's a djinn." He grinned at me as I slapped him on the arm.
"Beautiful and sensuous, huh?" An odd little flutter inside warned me that I was tripping close to playing the jealousy card. I had no idea where the feeling had sprung up from. It had never bothered me before if my lovers had their own private flings. But something was shifting, and it had started when we came Earthside.
He snorted. "I knew that would get your attention. Don't worry, I have no intentions of getting involved with a djinn. I don't like them, for one thing. For another, anybody hanging around a greater demon has to be bad news. I think she's young, in terms of her abilities. The underlying wards on the shop were very strong, but the ones that I could tell she had erected were weak and easily overcome."
"Did you say greater demon?" My blood turned to ice.
He nodded.
"But djinn technically aren't demons, they aren't even considered to be minor demons like imps and incubi. So where do you think the scent of greater demon is coming from? I can't believe one just wandered through the shop."
Morio shook his head. "I don't think so, either. Honestly? I think it's the owner. The scent went beyond the areas they allow customers in. I snuck into the office while the girl was off checking on a nonexistent order I'd put in, and sure enough, the room was rife with it. The stench is stuck in my nostrils and driving me nuts."
