horrors in my head—along with all of those damn pictures of raths that Alaric had put there—to deal with anything else. Two days in and we still had several spots to go. At this rate, I'd be caught up to the time I'd left the God Realm and could pop over and give everyone an update without using my ring. Which leads me to the reason why we weren't going back to Faerie every night. First, it wasn't worth the trips we'd have to make back and forth to the Great Tree, and second, I wanted time to catch up so I could bring my other husbands in on the mission.
So, we were sleeping in Vermont.
It was lovely, actually. The weather was warmer than England but still a bit crisp at night—the kind of crisp that's enjoyable. Fall was already starting to show its auburn face there, tinting several trees gold and rust, and there was that smell in the air. The almost-Fall smell that's hard to describe. It's probably the combination of dying plants and cooling soil, something unpleasant like that, but I liked it. Of course, that could be because my dragon sensed that things were getting dry enough to burn.
We'd checked in and said goodnight to our team, then headed upstairs to a relatively nice hotel room with an odd color scheme of gray and orange. We'd gone shopping on the first day when it became evident that the work wouldn't end by nightfall and we'd all need a change of clothes among other things. I wasn't the only one with a satchel to lug around now. I set the satchel down, stretched, and smiled when I heard the sound of rain. I went to the window to verify that the patter against the glass was indeed a light rainfall.
“I miss our sons,” Arach said as he stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist.
I snuggled back against him and continued to gaze out at the rain. Despite being a Fire Faerie, I loved the rain. It reminds me of home—my first home in Hawaii. The house I'd paid for and lovingly decorated myself. I didn't get to see a lot of rain anymore, what with one home having the weather of Africa and the other located in the Kingdom of Fire. Only the Weeping Woods had the humidity I craved. I still had my house in Hawaii but I didn't have a lot of time to visit. Mostly, my lions used it when they wanted to visit the islands.
“I miss them too,” I said softly. “But I always miss someone.”
“That's better than having no one to miss.”
“Very true.” I glanced back at him. “You're calmer here.”
“Calmer?” He cocked an eyebrow at me.
“Less sexually aggressive.”
Arach blinked. “You're right. The urge has lessened.”
“That's interesting,” I murmured.
“Indeed,” he agreed. “It appears that being in Faerie is the trigger.”
“It wasn't your magic but the magic of Faerie that was affecting you. So, it was Faerie itself that caused your behavior. I wonder if the other men have noticed a difference?”
“I'm sure they have.” He lowered his lips to my ear to add, “Do not go inquiring, A Thaisce.”
“I wouldn't. I was just wondering.” I laid my arms over his and sighed in contentment. It was nice to just stand there and relax for a moment. To just—“What was that?” I straightened and peered through the rain.
“What?” Arach shifted to my side and stared out the window with me.
“There, by the treeline.” I pointed.
Something gleamed—two somethings. They looked like eyes except that they glowed. It wasn't a sheen like the reflection of a cat's eyes, but a true glow.
“It's too low to the ground to be a person,” Arach noted.
Then the thing ventured into the wan light from a nearby lamppost. It wasn't a person, though it was as large as one. Shaggy, dark fur covered its canine body. It swung its head to the side as if searching for something. Or perhaps it was simply getting its bearings. Then it howled.
“A bargest,” Arach growled as he spun and ran for the door.
“Damn!” I snarled as I snatched the keycard off the dresser and slipped it in my jeans' pocket.
We barreled down the hallway but were held up at the elevator. As we waited—Arach impatiently shifting from foot to foot—the other men joined us.
“Saw it too, did you?” I asked them.
“It seems that our fears have come true except in the opposite way,” Mallien said grimly. “Something has