Into the Fire (The Unseelie Court Book 4) by Gwen Rivers (free ebooks romance novels .TXT) 📗

hated being locked up. And I remember all too well Pharaildis telling me what it was like to be her. To desire nothing, not food or drink, sex or sleep. She is endless and it had driven her mad.

But do I fear my fate enough to let the rest of the world die?

“Nic?” Garret asks again.

“Yeah.” My voice is rough. “Show me what you’ve got.”

He looks so normal, sitting behind a battered rolltop desk with papers strewn every which way. Clutter is a foreign concept to me. In the farmhouse, there’s a place for everything, even trash. Organized and precise. This place is as chaotic as the inside of my skull. The wall behind Garret’s head is all glass though, allowing him a premium view of the sound. The late afternoon sunlight reflects off the water with a golden glow.

He smiles and gestures for me to come in. “This is something of a novelty for me. Sophie isn’t interested in my dusty old tomes and Tate’s too young. Let’s see, where should we start?”

His boots hit the floor with a dull thump and he rises to his full height, his head nearly brushing the exposed beam of the low ceiling. I take a seat in the wide captain’s chair on the opposite side of his desk and watch him peruse his overstuffed shelves.

“The classics of course, Bullfinches Mythology. That covers Arthurian legends and the Age of Chivalry. The Iliad, The Odyssey but also some snippets from the Norse pantheon. Beowulf, I believe. Have you read it?”

“I have.” Chances are there’s nothing in Garret’s library that could expand my understanding of the nine worlds more than my recent experience. “You said your focus was Greek and Roman. Do you know anything about Celtic mythology? Fairies and the like?”

His dark eyes light up. “You like fairy tales?”

“Why not? I’m living in one.”

He laughs, mistaking my truth for sarcasm. “You know I do. I always found the tales of the Tuatha de Danann most imaginative.”

That isn’t one I know. “Tell me about them.”

Garret pulls a gray book from the shelf. Its spine is broken and the cover is battered and looks fragile in his large hands. “The people of the goddess Danu were a fierce tribe said to have supernatural powers. They invaded what we now know as Ireland, appearing from the mist as if from nowhere.”

At his words, all the hairs stand up on my arms. “They came out of nowhere?” Or had they come from beyond the Veil?

“Well, more likely, the legend is puffed up to make them sound more invincible than they really were. Many believed they burned their boats to keep them in the new land. Did you ever hear the one about the chicken and the pig at the bacon and egg breakfast?”

When I shake my head he says, “It’s one of Sophie’s favorite expressions. There’s different levels of involvement going onto the plate. The chicken is involved, the pig is committed.”

Maybe it is my new appreciation for breakfast meat but I find myself returning his grin. “So, by burning their boats the Tuatha de Danann were committing themselves?”

He nods. “No going back. So anyhow, the Irish inhabitants weren’t too thrilled by the invaders as native peoples usually aren’t. But whether by magic, superior strategy or just sheer numbers, the Tuatha de Danann overthrew them and ruled in their stead.

“They ruled from,” he frowns and turns a page before continuing, “1897 BCE to around 1700 BCE when the tribe was defeated by another. Legend has it that they were permitted to stay in Ireland but only if they stayed underground.”

I suck in a deep breath. “Under the hill. Underhill.”

“Right.” He closes the book and hands it to me. “The original fairies.”

Or maybe not. Maybe just a faction that had left the courts and tried their hand at living on this side of the Veil. I hold the book with both hands. “Thanks. I’m sure this will make interesting reading.”

“Anytime.” Garret pauses and I wait, wondering if he is going to ask me to leave, in spite of Sophie’s wishes.

He studies me for an endless moment. “I didn’t know about you until after she gave you up.”

I wondered how long he’d wanted to say that. Probably from the moment our eyes had met. “I figured as much. From what Sophie said.”

“It’s probably better that I didn’t know.” He turns to look out at his magnificent view. “I wouldn’t have taken it well.”

Which I interpret to mean he would have asked Sophie to terminate the pregnancy. Great. First Underhill had tried to kill me in utero by drinking water from the poisoned spring Hvelgermir and now Garret’s saying he would have ganked me, too. Feeling the love, people. Really.

He turns back and winces at the cold expression on my face. “What I’m trying to say, very poorly, is that I don’t, I won’t—judge you. Because I’ve made my share of mistakes.”

His gaze goes to my belly. I raise a hand reflexively to cover it. I don’t know if Sophie told him or he figured it out for himself. Somehow, I believe the latter. Sophie seems desperate to earn my trust.

“My baby isn’t a mistake,” I say. An accident perhaps, but I’ve come to believe in destiny. Aiden and I were careful, just not careful enough.

One of his thick caterpillar-like eyebrows goes up. “So, you were trying to get pregnant?”

“No, that is…,” I bite off the words, not this time. “Aiden’s coming back to find me. We’re going to be together and raise this baby, together.”

Garret doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t have to. I can sense the disbelief coming off of him. And the pity.

“Thanks again for the book.” I leave before I can do something really stupid, like burst into tears.

Stupid hormones.

Lying down on the bed, I can’t seem to keep my eyes open.

Not another dream. My soul is weary and I think any more will drive me mad. It’s my final thought a second before sleep claims me.