The Rebel Queen (Outlaw #1) - Lexi Blake Page 0,134

a nice box.”

“Is it?” Nim asked. “I didn’t see it. I kind of woke up here. It’s very plain on the inside. Tell me he didn’t just shove me in a basic brown box.”

It was pretty ornate and painted a nice midnight blue. “Nah, it’s got some bling. And a bunch of ancient writing that’s done in a very elegant hand. It’s quite tasteful.”

“Zoey, focus,” Daniel said.

Lee was studying the box. “This says it keeps magic from…I think the word is growing. Is this somehow keeping your body from growing back?”

“Yes, and that is a complete crime because my boobs are truly fabulous.” Nim’s lips had curled up. “You grew up really well, honey.”

“Nim, that is my son.” I should have known. She was right. It was my fault. The minute she’d gotten all serious and shit I should have pointed and done that Donald Sutherland scream thing because horny Nim had definitely been replaced with a pod person.

“Yes, and he’s very adult now. And don’t tell me I should find someone my own age. I’m ten thousand five hundred and fifty something years old. The last dude even close to my age gave me a magical roofie and then cut my head off, so you’ll have to forgive me for wanting some youth,” Nim shot back.

“I’ve never…” Lee began.

“No. Absolutely not. Do not complete that sentence.” I pointed a finger my son’s way because I wasn’t about to listen to him talk about how he’d never done a bodyless head before. Boundaries. We needed some, my son and I. “What did you need, baby?”

“Lee asked about my biological dad.” Dean managed to stop staring at the head. “I told him what my mother told me. I was conceived during a summer ritual here on the Earth plane. I believe that is why I have the power I have.”

“You were conceived at a midsummer ritual?” Dev asked. We’d gone to many of those because fertility rituals were powerful when held within those rites.

Lee shook his head. “Nope.”

“I was conceived at the ritual known as Burning Man,” Dean said with absolutely not an ounce of irony. “My mother was into spiritualism at the time.”

His mom had likely been into pot and the festival circuit.

“Oh, shit.” That had come from Nim and answered a whole lot of my questions. “Was your mom a cute brunette with a nice rack?”

“What is this about?” Dean looked to me, seeming to know Nim couldn’t be too serious.

“I wanted to get the ‘Luke, I am your father’ moment out of the way,” I admitted. “Dean, I’m pretty sure Myrddin’s your dad.”

Chapter Twenty-Three

“So Myrddin knocked up a human at a music festival. I knew he and Nim planned to explore the world, but I thought they would go to museums or something. They were out in the world for ten years. How many little wizards did he manage to make?” The next day Dev still seemed to be mulling over everything we’d learned. He was in his seat on the new plane and we’d been in the air for an hour or so. When I looked out the window all I could see was ice and tundra far below.

Danny had spent the rest of the previous night with Sasha, the academics, and the Nimhead, as I had taken to calling her. She’d vowed revenge, but she was a head. What was she going to do?

Dev had stayed behind with me. He’d held me while I cried again and let me sleep against his chest. I’d somehow gotten through the night.

I was certain Myrddin had caused lots of problems during those years he and Nim had walked the planes before he’d returned to fuck up our lives. “I suspect going to a music festival was one of his less nefarious adventures.”

“It’s more than a music festival. It’s also a place where you can not bathe for like a week and everyone’s so high they don’t care. Lots of wolves attend those things. So many smells.” Neil sat back down in the comfy chair next to me. Naturally he’d found the snacks and had a whole tray in front of him. “Have I mentioned how much I adore private planes? I’m so happy I have my wealth and privilege back.”

Apparently the last twelve years had sucked because Neil had to take public transportation.

They’d sucked for a lot of reasons.

I missed my dad, but that deep mourning had to wait because I had a job to do. I was doing