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  “Then Xandra and I will handle the Cowan realm,” Kallen says. I do not believe anyone else would be able to convince her grandfather to come.” I’m not even certain I can. “Once we have everyone here, what will be our agenda?”

  “Is there some spell I can do to locate…her?” I almost said me.

  Isla shakes her head. “No, there is not. My thought is we will not need to find her. Once we have assembled those we assume she wants to target, she will find us.”

  Oh. Good point. “So, we could be making her job easier?” I ask. She could just blow up the building we’re in or something equally as deadly.

  Kallen finds my hand under the table. “There are wards we can put in place as well as multiple layers of circles.”

  “Circles she will be able to walk right through like I can,” I remind him.

  “There are wards that even you could not walk through,” he says and I’m not certain if he’s trying to convince me or himself.

  “I believe we are getting ahead of ourselves,” Isla says. “First, we need to convince the leaders of these realms to come here. We do not have a peace treaty with the Elves and the Centaurs and Sasquatch have been at war for centuries. Neither the Witches nor the Skin Walkers are friendly with the Fae.” That’s an understatement. Sounds like we may need to put wards in place to keep our guests from killing each other.

  “I don’t know that the Merpeople will send a delegate,” Kallen says. “Since they are Queen has already fallen victim, they are struggling to move forward.”

  “We will invite them anyway even though you are probably correct,” Dagda says. “At least they will be assured we are moving forward in trying to apprehend the one responsible for killing their Queen.”

  “Once all the rulers understand the severity of the situation, I am positive they will see reason,” Luden says. I hear a snort from Kegan’s direction but his face is a blank page when I turn to look at him.

  “Luden, who do you propose to travel to the other realms?” Dagda asks.

  “I can personally attend to the Centaurs and Fauns. I can send Jacon…” catching himself, Luden says, “I will need to consider who to send for the Sasquatch.” Sounds like he was grooming his son to take his position someday. Maybe he has another son he can groom.

  “I will travel to the Elves,” Isla says. “I have had occasion in the past where I needed to make contact and I was well received.” Strange, I really don’t see Isla being any more tactful than I am. Maybe I’ve just never seen that side of her.

  “I can travel to the Sasquatch realm,” Kegan says, suddenly sitting straighter in his chair.

  Dagda considers him for a moment. This is probably the first diplomatic mission Kegan has volunteered to go on. His sometimes inane sense of humor aside, I think he can handle it. Dagda does as well. “Very good.”

  “Are those really the only realms we need to visit?” I ask. “I thought there were many realms.”

  Raziel smiles at me. “There are, but many are still developing such as the one in which you first met me.”

  Yeah, I guess the dinosaurs in that realm really aren’t much of a threat to my doppelgänger. Another thought hits me. “So, she could use these other realms as hiding places.”

  “Yes and no,” Raziel says with a slight shrug. “I am not at all familiar with the doppelgänger’s universe, but it may have developed differently from this one. Realms she thinks are advanced may be no more than sea which has not yet yielded to land and vice versa. It will take her time to explore them all.”

  It hits me hard that Isla is right. My doppelgänger’s best bet for killing off the ones she wants is to come here when they are all assembled. But how will she know? It seems she is at almost as much of a disadvantage as we are right now. At least this levels the playing field somewhat, I guess.

  Chapter 10

  “It’s about freakin’ time,” Taz grumbles, instantly awake when the scent of food hits his nostrils. “I’m wasting away down here.” I watch his fat little body waddle to where one of the Palace maids put a tray of sandwiches and fruit. I’d say he has a good two months of fat stored up before wasting away could become a possibility. I really should talk to Tabitha about overfeeding him. Then again, Taz knows where I sleep and he may seek revenge if I take his food source away.

  Tabling the conversation for a few minutes, we all fill plates full of delicious food. Returning to our seats, Dagda lets us enjoy a few bites before saying, “Time is not our friend. We need to make contact as soon as possible to prevent more deaths.”

  Hmm, I wonder how worried he is about losing his own head. He hasn’t doubled his guards or anything, but then again, I would be able to get to him no matter how many guards he had. My doppelgänger can, too. The words blurt out of my mouth before I even know they formed. “Are you sure you don’t want to send someone else for the Witches and Skin Walkers so I can be here to protect you?”

  A grin tries hard to form on my biological father’s mouth, but he does his best to school it and says with a tip of his head in my direction, “I am thankful my safety is such a concern for you, but at the moment, you are needed elsewhere.”

  For some reason, I am filled with both shock and embarrassment. I didn’t realize my feelings for the Fairy who once tried to kill me had grown so much. I really am afraid for his life almost to the point I would fear Dad’s death. Am I really beginning to consider Dagda a real parent? Not a replacement, but as a second father whom I care for equally? I don’t know why this embarrasses me, but it does. Probably because of all the times I told him I would never consider him in such a role. I really hate it when I’m wrong.

  Feeling my discomfort, Kallen rests a hand on my thigh under the table. “Are you going to eat the rest of that pineapple?” he asks, using his fork to spear a piece of the sweet fruit on my plate and popping it in his mouth.

  Thankful for the reprieve from my confusing feelings, I give him a mock glare. “You could at least wait until I answer.”

  He shrugs. “You may have said no.” He helps himself to the other piece.

  Dagda clears his throat. “I expect all delegates to leave within the hour.” An hour? I audibly groan. This day is never going to end.

  “Not happening,” Taz says, tearing at a sandwich on the floor. “I need my beauty sleep before I go anywhere.”

  “You could stay here,” I urge.

  He practically chokes on a piece of meat. “Let you go out on your own and get yourself killed? Do I seem like I have a death wish? We will simply leave in the morning when I am well rested.”

  “I’m afraid you don’t get to make those types of decisions,” I say dryly. “And are you saying that you die if I die?” I ignore the odd looks I always get when conversing in public with my Familiar.

  Taz collapses to the ground, his legs splayed out. I am concerned for his health until he says, “I am no longer able to stand under the pressure of your ignorance. You must scrape me off the floor and carry me away in a bag when you are ready to leave this place.” I don’t kick him per se, but my foot does move his body several inches from where it was. “My ribs!” he howls.

  “Is he having an apoplectic fit?” Kegan asks, covering his ears to keep out the snarling and gnashing that everyone else hears when Taz speaks to me. He’s making quite a racket at the moment.

  “I wish,” I grumble nudging the devil with my foot again. “Be quiet,” I hiss at him. Sulking, Taz does as he is told for a change, but he’s still lying in a pathetic heap. He has made sure he can still reach his sandwich, though.

  Rising, Dagda says, “I will see to the accommodations for the esteemed leaders.” He says esteemed, but it’s obvious he doesn’t think it. “Sindri, with me.”

  “You think they’ll have to stay here?” I blurt out. Other than the snicker at me feet, the room is quiet. Blood rushing to my cheeks, I say, “I guess I was being overly optimistic and hoping we could get everything settled right away.”

  “A dream I
hope you never lose,” Dagda says. I give him a sharp look, thinking he’s making fun of me. The tenderness on his face proves he’s not. Now I’m blushing even harder.

  Pushing back his chair, Kallen stands and holds his hand out to me. “We should prepare.” Not having a clue what preparations we need to go back to my realm, I still take his hand and stand up. I am more than ready to get out of this room.

  Chapter 11

  When we leave the war room, Kallen says to our friends, “We’ll meet you back at the house in an hour.” To me, he whispers in my ear, “Care to teleport us home?” Something about the huskiness of his voice tells me he’s not thinking of packing a suitcase in preparation to go. My response is to teleport us straight to our bedroom.

  When we arrive, Kallen wastes no time pulling me in his arms and kissing me senseless. Curling my arms around his neck, I push my fingers into his silky black hair and mold my body against his. A deep groan rumbles from his throat.

  Moving us a few feet back without taking his lips from mine, Kallen moves his hands to my thighs and lifts me, setting me down gently on top of the mirrored bureau. I have no idea what he did with the stuff that was on top of it and I don’t really care at the moment. I only care about how fast I can get him out of his clothes.

  Reading my mind, Kallen’s t-shirt disappears so I can lightly rake my nails down his hard, muscled back. Moving closer so he’s pressed against my core, he has one hand in my hair keeping my mouth firmly against his as his other hand finds my newly exposed skin. He has removed my clothing.

  “Yours,” I manage against his lips, hating even such a brief pause in kissing him but I want him naked as well. He happily obliges.

  The bureau bangs against the wall as we find a rhythm that brings us both to unimaginable heights. The thought that the mirrors may shatter briefly flits through my mind but neither of us care. The only thing that matters right now is the joining of our bodies.

  When we are finally spent, I lay my face against his chest breathing as hard as he is. “Mmm, I needed that,” I purr.

  Kallen chuckles softly. “I believe you could tell I did as well.”

  “Mm hmm. I just wish we could take a nap now.”

  Massaging his hands against my tense shoulder muscles, he says, “Sleep doesn’t seem to be in our near future.”

  “How about a nice warm bath then?”

  “That I believe we can manage.” Lifting me from the bureau, he carries me to the bathing room and into the deep, warm water where we make love once more.

  As usual, our intimate time together is disturbed by the pounding on our door. I groan. “Real world time, huh?”

  “Unfortunately,” Kallen says, mirroring my disappointment in his words.

  Leaving the comfort of the water behind, Kallen dries us and wraps me in a towel. I’m going to wear real clothes on this little trip. A happy smile curls my lips upward for a moment as I pause in front of the oak bureau. At least, it does until I see my snarled black hair. Immediately grabbing a brush, I hurriedly run it through the tangles. When it no longer feels like I’m pulling out tufts of hair with each brush stroke, I set to work on getting dressed. Donning comfortable jeans and a gray t-shirt, I am ready to go in an impressive five minutes.

  To our surprise, Tabitha announces it was her banging on the door when we enter the kitchen. “It is about time,” she grumbles. “It was ten minutes ago I knocked. I wanted to speak to you both before you go.”

  “What about?” Kallen asks, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl sitting on the counter.

  “I do not like the idea of Kegan going to such a volatile realm unaccompanied.”

  With a frown, I ask, “How volatile is the Sasquatch realm?” I wonder if they resemble the pictures of yetis from my realm or if that’s a myth like the pictures of Fairies in my old books at home.

  Kallen thinks for a moment. “I suppose you could compare it to the early middle ages in your realm.” Study of other realms was a big part of his education.

  “So, lots of wars and few laws?” I ask.

  He nods. “That about sums it up.” Looking back at Tabitha, he asks, “What are you suggesting?”

  Rubbing her hands on her apron in a rare show of nerves, she says, “I believe you should accompany him while Xandra and Adriel travel to the Cowan realm.”

  My heart clutches. Go without Kallen? The expression on his face confirms his own discomfort at the idea. But, are we just being selfish? If Kegan’s safety is going to be at risk, Kallen is the best backup he can have. Coming to the same conclusion, Kallen raises an eyebrow in question. With the slightest nod of my head, I agree. It’s not like I can’t function without him, but I’m letting go of a huge safety net not having him at my back. Then again, Adriel is almost as powerful as he is in her Fallen state and she is just as likely to prevent me from doing anything too stupid.

  “Where is my cousin?” Kallen asks.

  Tabitha narrows her eyes. “In his room with his wife.” She doesn’t need to add ‘doing the same thing you were doing’, it’s implied in her words. Blood rushes to my cheeks and I pretend to be fascinated with the fruit bowl.

  With an evil grin, Kallen says, “I’ll send him a message then.” Kegan is going to be pissed. When Kallen grins like this, it means he’s sending an extra-long, painful message.

  Five minutes later, sure enough, an irate Kegan stomps into the kitchen. He marches right to Kallen and punches him so hard in the arm even I wince. That had to hurt. You wouldn’t know it from Kallen’s reaction, though. He thinks it’s terribly funny.

  Finishing his second apple, Kallen throws the core into the trash under the sink. “Since Tabitha believes you too weak to travel to the Sasquatch realm on your own, I will be coming along to babysit.”

  This time, it’s Tabitha who smacks him. “I said no such thing.” Technically, she did, but I don’t want to get smacked in the back of the head so I’m going to pretend to agree with her.

  Kegan looks to me. “You are okay with this?” His relief that his cousin will go with him is almost palpable.

  I shrug. Not really, but what choice do I have? I don’t want Kegan to get hurt. “Yeah, I don’t have a lot to fear from the Witches and the Skin Walkers. My trip will be a piece of cake.” I’m pretty sure I’m being overly optimistic again. I may need to drag my grandfather here kicking and screaming. “I’ll get Adriel to go with me.”

  On cue, she walks into the room. “What have I been volunteered to do?”

  “Go with me to the Cowan realm,” I say. “Excited?”

  “There are no words,” she says dryly.

  “Where’s Raziel?” I ask.

  “He stayed at the Palace to help the King and his staff prepare for the guests.”

  “Nice. You didn’t want to help?” I ask.

  A smug smile in place, she replies, “I was told I was needed elsewhere.”

  In other words, Raziel already told her I’d want to take her to the Cowan realm with me. “Cheater,” I grumble making her laugh.

  “Shall we go?” she asks.

  I feel a slight pinch of dread in my stomach. I hate seeing my grandfather. Even if we left things on a fairly positive note when I was there last, I still don’t have warm and fuzzy feelings for the Witch. “Sure,” I reply sounding as excited as Taz would upon hearing he must go more than three hours without food.

  Speaking of, the little beast has snuck into the room and is currently begging at Tabitha’s feet. She obliges by tossing him some cookies and a carrot. “Tabitha, his feet aren’t going to be able to reach the floor if his belly gets any bigger.”

  Squaring her shoulders, the plump Fairy says, “Nonsense. He is practically skin and bones.”

  “Yeah, what she said,” Taz manages around a mouthful of cookie. I just roll my eyes at the pair of them.

  “Are you going to waddle along with us or stay here and fill yourself with enough cookies to cause your stomach to burst?”

  Wiping crumbs from h
is snout with his right paw, he says, “It is difficult to decide which I would dislike more, so I might as well come with you.”

  “Gee, thanks,” I gripe.

  Getting impatient, Adriel says, “When you are done speaking to your furry friend, we really should leave.”

  She’s right. Walking to Kallen, I wrap my arms around him and revel in his strength when he pulls me closer. Kissing the top of my head, he says, “I expect you to come back all in one piece. It is optional if you bring your grandfather thus.”

  I laugh against his hard chest. “I’ll do my best.” Leaning back, I stand on tippy toes so I can kiss him good bye.

  A hacking noise behind us spoils our sweet moment. “Maybe the Seraphim will impart a little Divine Grace on me so I don’t get nauseous every time you two do that.”

  I glower in his direction. “I doubt that’s an appropriate use of Divine Grace. You could simply avert your eyes, you know.”

  “Doesn’t matter if I see you or hear you, the nausea level is the same.” There are times I really dislike my Familiar. I wonder why he’s being especially irritating today. Is he afraid of what is happening?

  Turning to Tabitha, I say in my pleasantest voice, “Tabitha, would mind terribly keeping Taz here in a small, a very small, cage?”

  The Tasmanian devil backs away from her. “That’s okay, I’ve decided accompanying you will not be as awful as I first thought.”

  “How lucky for me. Come on, let’s go.” With a final kiss for Kallen, I say my good byes and Adriel, Taz and I walk to the beach so I can tear a third hole in the fabric of the realms today. I sure hope there’s not a limit on how many times I can do this before I cause permanent damage to the universe.

  Chapter 12