Horsemen's War (The Rebellion Chronicles #3) - Steve McHugh Page 0,59

first and decide the best way from there.”

“Sounds like a plan,” I said. “How’d you get Nanshe to back us?” I asked Mordred.

“I used Excalibur to make me tell the truth,” he said. “And I begged. I may have even groveled . . .”

“It worked?” I asked.

“Eighty-six out of a hundred people voted in favor,” Hel said.

Mordred offered me a fist bump, which I took. “Good job, Your Majesty.”

“Yeah, that’s still weird,” Mordred said.

“You got a team in mind?” Hades asked me, clapping me on the shoulder.

“Lucifer, Isis, Selene, and anyone else who wants to come,” I said. “I don’t think we’re going to have time to see Astrid.”

“We’ll see her soon enough,” Selene said.

“No necromancers,” Hel said. “Duat is not the place they want to be. You’re not a full necromancer, Nate, so you should be fine so long as you don’t use your power.”

“Thanks for the info,” I said. “Okay, well, let’s get ready.” I walked out of the room with Selene beside me. We made our way through the palace and spotted Kase leaning up against the wall near the palace entrance.

“I’ll leave you to talk,” Selene said. “I’ll see you at the temple in an hour or so.”

“Thank you,” I said. I went over to Kase. “So,” I said casually. “Been a shit day.”

Kase nodded. “I’m sorry for what happened in Washington.” Her voice was low, barely above a whisper. “I’m angry all the time, Nate. It’s like it’s just bubbling there and never goes away. The beast wants out, it wants to take control, and it feeds on the anger inside of me.”

“Let’s go for a walk,” I said, and the pair of us walked through the palace to the rear exit.

“This is where your friend died,” Kase said.

I nodded. “Galahad died saving my life, and I lost control. I slaughtered hundreds of blood elves out here without a thought. I tortured the man who killed him. I beat him so badly he begged to die. We all lose control sometimes. We all have that need to protect those we love and hurt those who show us that we can’t save everyone. You have it harder than most. The beast inside a were wants out; it wants blood and flesh. And so do you.”

Kase sat on the steps overlooking the field that led to the dense forest covering a large part of the realm. Just before the tree line was a statue of Galahad. His daughter and pretty much every single member of the council had arranged for it to be built to remember him. It was new and had been done without ceremony, but it was there, and I enjoyed coming to see it.

“I can’t stop it,” she whispered.

I sat beside her and placed an arm around her shoulder. She rested her head on my own shoulder and began to weep softly.

“How do I make it stop?”

“You can help us find your father,” I said. “You can keep it together for when you see him. You cannot let the beast win. If it wins, you will no longer see friend from foe; you will kill and kill and kill until that’s all you are. Until no one recognizes you anymore. It was something Tommy was always terrified of. Diana less so—I think she long since made peace with it.”

“My dad never really spoke about the beast inside of him,” Kase said, rubbing her eyes with the backs of her fingers.

“He had you and your mum,” I said. “That’s what stopped him. Everyone needs that person they can rely on above all others. I don’t mean a boyfriend or wife or whatever but someone they can put their complete trust in. Some people have more than one. I think they’re probably the lucky ones.”

“Like you?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I guess so. And you, too, Kase. You have your parents, Layla, Chloe, and a dozen others. Even Harry.”

“We broke up,” Kase said.

“I know,” I said. “I saw him drinking away his troubles in the bar in town. He does not handle whiskey well.”

Kase laughed but stopped herself and sighed. “It’s beginning to feel like everything I do is just a fucking mess.”

“That’s not true, and I’d like to think that deep inside, you know that. How are you sleeping?”

“I’m not. Not really. I have bad dreams.”

“You need sleep,” I told her. “Even werewolves need it. Look, if you want to come to one of the realms or go to Avalon Island, I’m okay with it. I’m sure