AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The lines cracked open. Powder the color of midnight spilled from the gaps forcing Vortigern’s body to cave in on itself. A sea of darkness seeped across the husk like spilled ink until it broke into a million grains of black sand.
I released the breath I’d been holding.
“Huh. A pillar of pepper,” Gun observed. “What ever happened to good, old-fashioned salt?”
“I think his body rejected the heart,” Camryn said. “That happens sometimes with transplants.”
Gun grunted. “More like the heart rejected him.”
“It’s both, actually.” The stag’s power was his virtue—the innocence and purity he carried in his heart. It couldn’t coexist with a heart as wicked and corrupt as Vortigern’s, which meant neither could survive.
Matilda clapped me on the shoulder. “Well done, annwyl. You make me proud.”
The remaining hunters stood awkwardly around their fallen leader.
“What do we do now?” one of them asked. He was tall and reedy, with a wiry gray mullet that seemed out of place on an ancient spectral hunter.
“Await our new leader, same as always,” Colm said.
Matilda puffed out her chest. “No need to wait. Gather the hounds. You’ll find them hiding in the caverns by the Falls. We’ll ride through the crossroads together.”
I spun toward her. “We?”
“As the Morrigan said, you no longer require my services. Perhaps it’s time to return to what I do best.”
Alan dropped to one knee. “It would be an honor to ride alongside you again, Night Mallt.”
The other hunters followed suit until Matilda was surrounded by hunters swearing their allegiance to her. There was no sign of the traitor.
I studied Matilda. Regardless of her initial reasons for befriending me, I knew she saw me as more than a duty. I was her family, and she was mine.
“I’ll miss you,” I told her. “If I could choose anyone as a big sister, I’d choose you.”
Her face softened and she patted my cheek. “I am so relieved you said big sister and not mother. I was on the verge of smiting you.”
I took her hand and gave it a quick squeeze before releasing it. Honesty and vulnerability weren’t easy for me, but I was working on it.
“Will I ever hear from you again?”
She pressed her forehead against mine. “When thunder rolls into town and the wind howls, listen for the sound of my voice.”
“Or you could just try the telephone,” Josie deadpanned.
“To whom much is given, much is required,” Matilda whispered. “But you’ve already learned that lesson.” She released me and, with a dramatic sweep of her cloak, mounted her mare. As sunlight shattered the darkness, Matilda disappeared through the crossroads, trailed by the faint echo of her cackle. A Wild Hunt parade followed. One by one, the hunters filed in line behind her, followed by riderless horses and hounds.
Kane entwined his fingers with mine. “I’m sorry about Addison.”
“Thank you.” I didn’t sense her ghost nearby, which meant her human spirit hadn’t lingered. The knowledge was a comfort. Tessa deserved to dwell in a better place. As for Aite, I wished her only peace.
West let loose a deafening whistle to summon the missing members of his pack. “If I never chase another horse, I’ll be a happy werewolf.”
Josie stretched her arms over her head. “I’m glad this is over. Devil’s Playground is a snoozefest without any customers.”
I didn’t have the strength to correct her. We may have survived the Wild Hunt, but if recent events were any indication, our problems were far from over.
The scent of pine invaded my senses as I walked through the woods toward home. Spring was finally on its way. I hoped to live long enough to see it.
CHAPTER 18
