Page 49 of Fae Farewells

I set the boys on the ground, asking them to patrol the area between my mate and my parents. Two scampered off, though one stayed put. It wasn’t hard to tell them what to look for, but I didn’t know if they’d be any help today. They weren’t exactly happy about the new form I’d forced on them.

I was hoping it was Atlas that stayed. He’d be better behaved when meeting Freya.

There was no way to know until I waved my hand in the air over him and backed up.

It was Helios… Because of course he would stay to show his ass.

He rose to his gigantic four-legged glory, blowing smoke in my face before pushing his snout into Vaughn’s chest. My fae rubbed frost-tipped fingers over the hellhound’s cheeks and ears.

“What the fuck is that?” Freya shrieked breathlessly.

“A hellhound.” I narrowed my eyes at Helios. “Did you bite me?”

He curled his lip up, his thoughts a faded red color to show his frustration with me. The image of a butterfly hit me with force.

“I haven’t seen any butterflies here,” I explained to the grouchy beast. “I turned you into something that made sense. But if you see any floating through the dungeon, then I’ll gladly change you back.”

“Are you talking to that... thing?” Freya stammered, inching closer.

“Hellhound,” Vaughn corrected, too trusting of the fiery hound as he tugged his sister closer. “This one has a temper. I wouldn’t piss him off if I were you.”

“He can understand me?” she asked.

Helios rolled his massive head to face her, six eyes blinking lazily at the princess.

“That’s weird,” she whispered.

“Yeah,” I admitted. “He must like you. Usually, he’s an ass.”

He snorted smoke at me again.

“Be mad,” I told him. “But be a mad mouse. I’ve got to turn you back now, Helios. I need you to scope the palace out. There are some places we can’t get to.”

As I turned him back into a mouse with a wave of my hand, Vaughn chuckled. “I didn’t know you’d brought them with us.”

“I couldn’t leave them home alone. He’d burn the forest down. And I didn’t know how long we’d be here.”

“Fair point.”

I wiped my hands on my sleeves. “Right. When are we getting you two out?”

“Always in a rush,” he mumbled, smiling at me.

“After meeting the queen, yeah.” I shrugged. “I’m ready to—”

“You met Alania?” Freya cut in. “How did that go?”

I groaned. “Great, until the land decided to bestow a crown upon my head. It was the biggest fuck you I’ve seen in a while.”

“That was sure to piss her off,” she agreed.

“Sarge didn’t help,” I added. “He’s normally pretty quiet unless he’s dropping life-altering news in my lap, so I wasn’t expecting him to be mouthy.”

Freya sat on one of the cot-style beds. “He doesn’t like her.”

“With good reason.”

“So…” Vaughn prompted. “What happened?”