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I paled. “Oh hell, so it was true. A party of goblins found him?”
“Not quite. They almost caught him, but he managed to get away. However, it became clear that Trillian had to vanish. So he went underground in order to continue the hunt for your father. Apparently, whatever information your father ran across can make—or break—the war. Both Lethesanar and Tanaquar are searching for him. The key he carries can turn the winds of war.”
We sat back, mulling over that one. A highly secret mission that involved not only Camille’s lover but our father. And if Trillian was in danger, Father was in far more danger.
“Why don’t they keep a watch on your house? Isn’t Trillian afraid that you’ll be kept under observation?” I asked.
Darynal laughed. “No . . . I am known to be a goblin sympathizer. I do business with them, I publicly support the goblin king. Trillian comes and goes by the dark of the night, and he’s a master of disguise. But you must not stay long. I cast an illusion spell on the gate when you entered to keep prying eyes out. But I can’t hold it for long, and Trillian must not find you here, either. He can’t have any distractions right now, Camille. He has to focus on his mission.”
The look in his eyes said it all. Trillian couldn’t afford to divide his attentions right now, and if he knew we were looking for him, he’d have to double his efforts to hide.
“If we find him,” I said slowly, “then we chance exposing him to the enemy, and we chance putting our father in worse danger.”
“Precisely. Please, eat your lunch and go. Don’t look for him, don’t search for him. If something happens, I promise, I’ll let you know, but unless I show up on your doorstep, assume he’s alive and well. Leave him to what he does best.” Darynal paused, then reached out and lifted Camille’s chin. He leaned forward, almost lip to lip, and gazed into her eyes. Smoky tensed.
“Trillian adores you. He worships you. He would never just run off and leave you worrying if the balance of war weren’t so perilous. Can you let him do his job and not interfere?”
Camille swallowed slowly, then nodded. She licked her lips, almost looking frightened. “I hate this. I hate this with every fiber of my being. But I’ll let him be. Just . . . I love him.”
Smoky leaned forward and firmly but gently disengaged Darynal’s hand from Camille’s chin. “Enough. We understand. We’ll let him do his job, and Morio and I will keep Camille occupied until Trillian is able to return. We should leave now. Our very presence puts the operation in jeopardy.”
Morio stood up. “Smoky’s right. Thank you, Darynal. At least you were able to put our minds at ease. We know more than we should, but rest assured—the information will not leave our lips. And we won’t tell Queen Asteria that we know, either.”
I eased over to Camille’s side. She murmured a thank-you to Darynal, then gave him a quiet hug. He kissed her forehead, almost like a big brother might do, and then glanced over at me. “You’re still hungry. Here, drink this up before you go,” he said, holding out my soup bowl.
I grinned at him. “You’re all right, I’ll say that for you.” I quickly chugged down the rest of my soup and gratefully took the chunk of buttered bread, and we left the house.
As we quietly slipped out the gate and hurried away as fast as possible, Camille remained silent. I knew she was mulling over this little twist in her mind, and she’d talk when she was ready. Meanwhile, I nodded at Iris, and we pulled ahead of Camille and the boys.
“This is a fine kettle. Camille bound herself to those two, and she didn’t need to,” I said, fretting a little. The wedding had bothered me on some level I couldn’t quite catch, even though I adored both Smoky and Morio.
Iris let out a long sigh. “She would have done so eventually. You know so, if you look deep into your heart. What bothers you, my fine tabby, is that things are changing. You’ve had your sisters all to yourself for so long, and you don’t want to see anybody or anything interfere with that bond. You don’t seem to realize yet that families can expand. That’s the cat in you: territorial, wanting your people to stay your people. You have to get over the fear that Camille will abandon you. She’s going to stay right by your side, honey. You know that, if you’d only let yourself see it.”
I stared at her, unable to answer since my mouth was full of bread. As I silently ate the rest of it, I wondered if she was right. I’d hated the fact that Trillian had returned. But was that so much because he was Trillian, or because my sister so willingly let him back into her life? And Smoky . . . and Morio . . . could it be that I really wanted things to stay the same?
As if reading my mind, Iris added, “You know, life can’t stand still. People and relationships must evolve. Look at you; you bear the Autumn Lord’s mark, and you’re only now beginning to understand what sweeping changes that will bring into your world. Don’t begrudge Nature and her relentless drive to move forward. It’s the way of all things. Even death is a transition, a progression. You can’t freeze time, Delilah. You can’t bring the past into the present. Everything moves and shifts and turns. It’s up to you whether you will face the changes or be left in the dust.”
I hung my head, staring at the trail as we hurried along at a brisk pace. She was right, and yet I didn’t want to face all the changes that were happening. And the most immediate—the one closest to my heart—was Chase. What was I going to do? He wanted me to call him, but what could he say? Was he going to tell me how much he enjoyed fucking Erika? Or that she meant nothing to him? That he wanted a threesome? And I had a date with Zachary.
And in the larger scope, we had a spirit seal to find and keep from the demons. Screw relationships; saving the world was hard enough without emotions interfering.
Life had been so much simpler when I’d been ignoring men in favor of running around on all fours. I was sorely tempted to retreat to that state, to say fuck you to loving anybody except in a family manner. But as Iris’s words ran through my head, I knew I couldn’t go back to the way I’d been. So where did that leave me?
As we broke into the meadow, the sun was lower in the sky, and the birds were chirping loudly as a contingent of clouds headed toward us, an army in gray, set to loose a volley of rain overhead. I shook myself out of my ill-disposed reverie and headed toward the portal. We needed to get home and, as much as I loved Otherworld, right now, I wanted to get back to Maggie and Menolly. And with a little luck, I’d think of an answer to my problems with Chase.
CHAPTER 13
We got home right around dinnertime. Vanzir and Rozurial were hanging out in the front yard, playing a game of gin rummy at the picnic table Iris had ordered so we could eat outside during the summer. They ran over to the car as we drove into the yard.
“We found it—we found the cave,” Roz said, rushing over to my side. “We know where the spirit seal is, and there isn’t a moment to lose. Karvanak nabbed the prospector, and while Vanzir’s memory steal should hold, we can’t take any chances. We need to go out there tonight and claim the spirit seal.”
Shit. I was tired. So was everyone else. But Roz was right. In a war, sleep came second. Winning battles came first.
“Yeah, you’re right. Camille? What do you think?”
“Same thing you do. Why couldn’t this happen after we got some sleep? But hey, at least Menolly can go with us, and that’s always good. If they’d found the location tomorrow morning, we’d have had to go without her. As it is, we wait another couple hours, and she’ll be up and raring to go. Meanwhile, we can catch a few z’s.” She yawned and looked at her hand, which was still wrapped in a bandage. “This wound hit me harder than I thought, but if I can just doze for a while, I’ll be fine.”
I nodded, a little concerned. Our half-Fae blood usually helped us heal up without a problem, but the wound had been a nasty one. Actually, when I thought about it, we’d all had a rough year.
