“I believe you on that. I know what a good cook you are.”
She smiled at me, and then, just like that, we were back to being friends, even if things were a bit strained. As I began to set out the bowls, Rhia and Peyton joined us, and soon we were all gathered around the oak table, holding hands. It felt like an ending. If we could find Myst’s heartstone and destroy it, the town would be freed, but things would continue to change, and Luna would still be forfeiting her life. If we couldn’t, then we faced a long, arduous battle, and chances were we wouldn’t win the war. And we might all forfeit our lives.
Wrapped in the melancholy cloud of thought, I forced my attention back to the table. Focus on now, I thought. Focus on this moment, right here. Focus on the soup and the biscuits, focus on your friends and the warmth of the house as the storm rages outside. Focus on these things—this is what you are fighting for. Get lost in what might be, and you’ll lose your will. You have to remember that friends and loved ones, and this way of life, this . . . this is worth fighting for. This is worth the struggle. Myst can try to defeat us, but don’t give her any quarters—don’t give her more power than she already has.
A gentle gust of warmth surrounded me. Ulean was by my side. She embraced me in her ethereal arms, soothing me as I bit into the bread. I forced myself to breathe, to ground and come back to the present.
My grandfather was with us at the table, and I realized how much I’d lose if I didn’t talk to him while I had the chance. Tomorrow was iffy—yesterday, gone. There was only today.
“Hunter, have you always lived in the Golden Wood?”
He looked up at me from his plate. “No, young one. I came east, from the Olympic Peninsula. I lived in the heart of the ancient groves there. The trees are so large, their roots sink down to the center of the world, and it rains so much you think you might drown. The trees are so old they’ve forgotten their names, and there are days where you think the sun is a faerie tale.”
Peyton put down her spoon. “You must be very old, sir.”
Hunter grunted. “As old as the upstart queen. I’ve watched the yummanii come and go, and watched the forests dwindle. I’ve watched the turn of the tide as the landscape has shifted. I’ve watched the cities born, and men die in the woods, and I’ve seen the rivers change course over time. One day I will return to the Golden Isle, but my time is not yet. I have things here to do, and one of them is to watch over my granddaughter, since her father had to leave.”
He smiled then, and laughed. “You are so solemn, all of you. And well you should be; Myst is a blight. But Myst is not all-powerful, and together, you possess far stronger abilities than she. You need to acknowledge your fear, then dismiss it. Fear will kill you faster than the Shadow Hunters, any day.”
“Have you ever fought them before?” Kaylin asked.
“No, demon. I have not. But I’ve watched them, seen them feed, watched as they bred slowly but surely. She tried to gather the Wilding Fae to her, many centuries ago, but they would give her no quarter, and the only control she’s ever had over them is through entrapment.”
“Like the Snow Hag. We freed her from a snare that Myst had set.”
“Yes, entrapment and slavery. A true leader breeds love, as well as respect, and Myst doesn’t have what it takes to inspire love. She’s a demagogue. A wayward, temperamental child. Cunning, yes, but still . . . a child who cannot accept her place in the scheme of things. This is why she will fail. She oversteps her reach, and she forgets. Cicely, you must find her heartstone before she realizes that you know she has one. Before it occurs to her that you know where she buried it.”
“After dinner, we’ll leave. You said you’ll come with us?”
“Yes, but we cannot take a great force—too much chance for notice. Bring your guards, Grieve, the demon, and a couple of your vampire friends.” He gave me a look that said, “Don’t argue.”
“Vampires?”
“They are your allies, whether you wish this or not. They can be very useful. I have a feeling . . .”
I didn’t want to agree, but he was my grandfather, and without Wrath and Lainule here, I needed an advisor who was blood related.
“Then,” I said, holding out my bowl for a refill on the soup, “I guess I’d better give Lannan a call in a few minutes and have him meet us here.” Ignoring Grieve’s disgruntled expression, I once again tried to focus on my friends. This might be our last gathering together, and I wanted to make the most of it that I possibly could.
Chapter 13
With Lannan and a few of his men on the way, we moved into the living room to discuss what the others would do while we were gone. While taking such a small contingent was dangerous, it would attract far more attention to go as a larger group.
“We can set up a protection grid for you.” Ysandra motioned to the members of the Consortium who had joined her. “We’ll keep you under our cloak as long as we can. Once you enter the Barrow, the energies there will negate the spell, but we should be able to help you make it through the woods without attracting too much attention.”
Luna leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. “I’ll let Dorthea send the dead into the town to hunt down the Shadow Hunters and snow weavers. They can feed often, so they should be able to take more of them on.”
Olrick smartly clicked his heels and bowed. “With your leave, I will take a unit of men into the woods and begin hunting down Myst’s people.”
Rhiannon motioned to him. “We will go with you. We’ll take some of Summer’s warriors, too. We may not move as quickly in the snow as you, but we can still make haste.”
“As you will, Your Highness.” Olrick bowed to her. I often wondered just how tired our men got of bowing to us, but it was a tradition we weren’t going to be able to break them of, and frankly, given that we truly did need their respect, I had thought the better of trying to put a stop to it.
Peyton shrugged. “I guess I’ll stay here and help Ysandra and Luna. I can’t make it through the storm very well, I know that much. And I don’t want to be a hindrance. So I’ll do what I can here.” She was still very quiet, even compared to her usual stoic nature.
“I guess we’re settled, then.” Antsy, wishing Lannan would get here so we could start, I walked into the parlor to stretch my legs. Grieve followed behind me, closing the door to give us some privacy.
“Cicely?” His voice echoed with uncertainty. As I held out my arms, he pulled me into his embrace, covering my face with kisses.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” He sounded rattled, and I looked up at him, startled by the pain in his expression.
Worried now, I reached up to stroke his face. “What for? What did you do? What’s wrong?”
“What’s wrong? Everything. Myst . . . the fact that you were supposed to be the Queen of Summer and live in a land of warmth and beauty. . . . I feel like my love drew you back here, and look what happened.”
He held me so tight I almost couldn’t breathe. “I blame myself for getting you and your cousin involved in this mess. Chatter and I were assigned to guard you while you were young. I knew you were my Cherish, from before, so I never thought about what loving you now might mean. I almost think it would have been better if I hadn’t reminded you of who you were. If I hadn’t fallen in love with you all over again.”
I struggled back a step, pushing him by the shoulders so he could get a good look at my face. “Listen to me, and I do mean listen. None of this is your fault. We bound ourselves together eons ago. Our love has existed down through time. I’ve seen the past, and I know that at least once, I killed myself when I was a little girl because I realized I’d been born in the wrong time and you wouldn’t be there with me.”