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Morgan, furious that her cousin tried to involve her in his plot, refuses to let him.
With her permission, Nine plants rumors among the noble fae in Scáth. That the Winter Queen who’s been a legend for so long has been spotted in the Shadow Realm. He does his best to make sure it gets to Nyx, especially since he adds that she’s taken a human male into her home.
Which… is totally true.
As soon as Morgan gets over her initial shock, I tell her how Nyx is the reason why Jim showed up with all of those wounds, suffering from what she called “Shadow Sickness”. In the days following his trade with Grimly, he’s doing much better, and that’s all thanks to Morgan.
It’s… it’s weird. I’m not going to pretend it isn’t. Even before Grimly traded his memory for Jim’s, Jim was utterly enchanted by Morgan. Now? He’s addicted and, as far as I know, she hasn’t even touched him yet. He reminds me of the sixteen-year-old Jimmy that he once was, earnest and interested and a little bit eager when he finds a girl he likes.
I should know. That was me once.
She doesn’t seem to mind. While he follows behind her like a little, lost puppy dog, I work hard not to let it get to me. Hey. I was the one who didn’t want to have to choose. I didn’t want to hurt him.
He’s definitely not hurting anymore. And I mean that. Thanks to Morgan’s creams and care, Jim’s back to being himself—well, except for the whole “he doesn’t remember me” thing—without a single visible sign that he was tortured in Samradh.
So I’m glad. I’m also super ready to get this all over with.
At her insistence, Morgan finally drops the curtain surrounding her cottage. She says it’s because she wants Nyx to be able to find her easier, now that we’ve cast our lure, but I can tell it’s because she doesn’t want to keep me and Rys separated any longer. As much as I like to talk with her, I have a hard time watching her with Jim, especially knowing that Rys is still standing guard on his own outside of the barrier.
And I am grateful for her.
Still—
“Aren’t you worried about the rider?” At Morgan’s blank look, I elaborate. “The Hunter. You know. Big guy. Antlers. Rides this horse that looks like it can flatten me like a pancake.”
“Oh. You’re talking about Kallan.”
If that’s the rider. “Sure.”
“Why would I be worried about Kallan?”
“Um. Maybe because he rides around the woods looking for you and you just took down your barrier?”
“Me? Elle, where did you get that idea?”
From her, actually.
While I was working for Grimly, trying to pay off my “debt” to him, I spent a full week with Morgan. I entertained her with stories about what it was like in the human world. She told me all about the Winter Court and what she knew about the rest of Faerie, including the rumors she heard about Oberon and the Seelie Court.
Of course, I know now that she left out a freaking ton, but I distinctly remember asking her about the rider. “You said he was on the hunt.” And… I’m just now getting it. “You meant the Wild Hunt.”
“Kallan is the Hunter that leads the Hunt in these woods, yes. It’s an Unseelie tradition, and if you go closer to Scáth, you’ll find other Hunters. But you’re right. He’s certainly on the hunt for someone.”
“You?”
Morgan gives her head a small shake.
I think about the Hunter’s reaction when he saw the feather that Rys offered him as a sign of his bargain. I’m no math whiz, but it’s not hard to put two and two together.
“Branwen? But you said that Melisandre called off the Wild Hunt.”
“She did.”
“But—”
Morgan offers me a tiny, cryptic smile. “I keep my sister’s secrets as she’s always kept mine.”
Well, okay then.
