The good news was Myrddin tended to completely ignore Neil. He wasn’t an alpha wolf so he was beneath Myrddin’s time. Neil had gotten better at simply not talking.
“Mia’s an awesome liar,” Lee replied with enthusiasm. “She’s way better than me. And you can’t tell her mom I said that because we’re on a job and we have a code. Snitches get witches.”
I bit back a laugh because it wasn’t the first time I’d heard that. “Thieves code. Got it, and you know your grandad was serious about that. I remember one time a halfling demon ratted him out to the mark and your granddad paid a witch to do terrible things… Well, he didn’t date for a couple of months.”
“Oh, shit.”
“Lee,” I started because I was still his mom and he wasn’t supposed to cuss, but then I realized we weren’t alone. There was a man standing at the end of the hall, right across from the door we needed to get inside. “Oh, shit.”
We stopped. He was standing facing away from us. He was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, sneakers on his feet.
“Mom, what do we do?” Lee asked.
We yell at Sarah because she should have been watching the hallway so we wouldn’t have gotten surprised like this. “Be still. He can’t hear us.”
“Of course I can, Your Highness.” The man turned and I sighed. Jacob, the heavenly prophet. He put up a hand. “You know I like to watch the important moments of history play out. Don’t take the cloak off. The cameras won’t see me because I don’t want them to, but they will see you.”
“Who is that man, Mama?” Lee asked. I noted that Dannan had moved from his shoulder to the top of Lee’s head, as though he wanted to get a better look at the new guy, too.
“My name is Jacob, little prince,” Jacob said, looking down at the cloak he could obviously see right through. “I’m a prophet. I bear witness to the great events of the world and sometimes guide the hands of those who need it. I have a message for your mother.”
A chill went across my skin because he wouldn’t be here if this wasn’t serious. The fact that I had Lee with me made my stomach turn. This was serious and my son could get hurt. “I can try this again later. I’m going to take my son home.”
“Then you will fail,” Jacob said solemnly. “The princeling is why you have a chance at succeeding. The world is at a crossroads, Your Highness, and once again, it will be the choices you make that shape fate.”
I had to take a deep breath because the last time this had happened, the last time I’d been the one making the choices, I’d lost my beloved guard. I had to force myself not to hold Lee tight because I wasn’t losing him again. “Say what you need to say, prophet. We both know I won’t understand half of it.”
“Gray has said most of what needs to be said.” Jacob’s eyes were perfectly human, so I knew this wasn’t the prophet part of him talking. Sometimes Jacob played a long game. Unlike Gray, he’d had control of his powers for as long as humans had walked the Earth plane, and he often made what he liked to call “moves.” I got the feeling I was about to get put into position.
“I gave your people a gift once. You should retrieve it along with the item you seek to steal. Remember that you have both items when you need them years from now. And Your Highness, do not blame yourself for what will happen. It is truly the only way to win. To win this battle you must begin with a loss.”
“I thought our battles were done.”
“You thought wrong. I believe you were told that Daniel’s challenge wasn’t in taking his crown. It would be in keeping it. And you will be the reason he rises or falls. You and the princeling.”
“I’m just human,” my son said.
Jacob knelt down and smiled. “I think your father was right in how he is choosing to raise you. Be brave, Prince Lee.”
“We don’t give our children royal titles in this kingdom.” I never called my children princes or princess. We had fought to earn our crowns, but they would not be passed on to our kids. It didn’t work that way.
His smile turned distinctly sly. “Also an interesting choice. I shall call him what I