Give Me (Wyrd and Fae #1)(26)

“Yes, Igdrasil is a world tree—”

“No.” She put her hand on his mouth. “A human consciousness. Unable to speak, but aware of its condition. Horrible.”

He considered Igdrasil’s trunk and its branches above them. “Strange things often happen in Dumnos.” He believed that she believed it. “Your ghost? Is it there now?”

“I can’t tell. I lost it when you arrived. I don’t think it was the ghost.”

“My lord!” Someone called from the road, and he groaned inside.

“Lord Tintagos!”

“Lilith, halloo!”

With a sinking feeling, Cade turned toward the unmistakable voices. The Bausiney carriage was stopped behind the DB5, and the French girls had disembarked.

“How fortunate we saw you!” Bella called out. Cade was sure he detected a laugh from Trenam sitting up on the perch with Moser. Both men had blank faces and pointedly faced forward as the carriage moved on.

Lilith was silent, but Cade felt her discomfort. The intensity of her anger surprised him. Excited him too.

“You poor things,” Cammy said. “All alone—oh…” She stumbled a few feet from Cade and Lilith, and her hands flew to her temples. Her face blanched sickly white. “I don’t feel so good.”

“What is it, Cammy?” Bella said. “What’s happened?”

“Come sit down,” Cade said. “You look like you’re going to be—”

Cammy lurched toward them then swerved toward Igdrasil and vomited on the trunk. Cade felt certain the tree—Igdrasil, not some unfortunate trapped inside—recoiled in disgust.

“I had a sudden migraine.” The color slowly returned to Cammy’s face. She took Cade’s arm, and he eased her to the ground.

Lilith still sat on the ground, as pale as Cammy had been. She’d removed her hat, and even her hair seemed to have lost color. It was lighter, more blond than brown. Her eyes were deeper blue with a hint of glowing green.

Cade blinked and looked again. Behind Lilith for a brief blip—half a second—he was sure he’d seen the faint outline of gossamer wings.





9

Starry, Starry Night



It was easy to charm the tourist ladies and air-kiss their cheeks. Lilith Evergreen was different from any of them. Different from anyone he’d ever met. She’d wanted to go back to the Tragic Fall with the French girls, though Cade would have gladly spent the rest of the afternoon with her. But she’d been worried about Cammy, so he’d left her there until the appointed hour.

He opened the door and handed her out of the DB5. “My father wants to meet you. I hope you don’t mind.” Her hand was small and delicate in his, skin to skin, without gloves.

“I’d like that.”

“Let’s see if he can tear himself away from Little Britain.”

Love at first sight? A ridiculous notion, but the moment Cade saw her at the Halt something had happened to him. When she emerged from the train framed by mist and steam, her eyes closed as if she wanted nothing in the world but to feel the breeze on her face, he’d felt struck by lightning. He had to know her.

And then she seemed to fancy him. In the ride down to the Tragic Fall, yesterday at the ruins, and this afternoon at Igdrasil—before Cammy threw up all over everything. Literally. Several times, he’d been sure Lilith wanted him to kiss her. Better yet, to sweep her up in his arms and carry her off to his cave.

Though he might be reading his own desires into the cave thing.

He led her through the gallery past the portraits of the ancestors and the display case for Bausiney’s Abundance—forlornly empty—into the earl’s study.

Study? The earl’s cave, more like. Remote corner of the house, a roaring fire, plenty of brandy and a flat screen tuned to BBC One. Moo coming in every morning to give him a shave and a bowl of mush. If Lord Dumnos had ghosts, he lived with them well enough.

Ensconced in his study like an ancient cartoon tortoise in its shell, the earl blasted a horselaugh from his La-Z-Boy recliner. The laugh morphed into a gag then flowered into a revolting hack of phlegm.

“Brilliant.” Cade glanced at Lilith. “It’s been the day for bodily functions.”

Dad started in the minute they crossed the threshold. “This one is too pretty for the likes of you, Cade.”

“You’re in fine form. Ms. Evergreen will believe I have all sorts of women up here.”

“Now that you do have one, take off your macks and have a cocktail.”

“We’re on our way up.” Cade kissed the top of the old poof’s head. “Just stopped by to say hello.”

“Good night, sir,” Lilith said. “It was nice to meet you.” She was a good sport about everything. And now dinner on the roof when it was bound to be freezing up there.

It was his favorite place in the old pile—his favorite place in the world. Arranging for caterers and musicians might have been a bit much. He hoped there were musicians, at all events. This morning the cellist had assured him they were all up for the gig; but when Cade had left to fetch Lilith forty minutes ago, none had yet arrived.

The back stairs were on the closed-down side of the house where it was very cold even inside. “I’ll go first,” he said. “Catch any random spider webs that weren’t cleared away.” Great. Point out that the place was going to ruin.