Free Priestess Dreaming (An Otherworld Novel) by Yasmine Galenorn Page A

him when you find him?”
    “His last known name was Myrddin and at one point, he was pretty much categorized as a crazed legend—a madman prophet. But we know how history goes.” I grinned. “It’s always written by the victors.”
    “So, not only do we have a rogue portal open to the Northlands, but you’re going traipsing off into the realm of the Elder Fae to look for the Merlin.” Trillian drummed his fingers on the table. “And I’m still worried about Darynal.”
    His blood-oath brother, along with another compatriot, was lost somewhere in the Shadow Lands, a region in Otherworld that separated the Southern Wastes from the eastern side of the major continent. There were ghosts there, volatile and angry, of thousands of people who had fled from the Scorching Wars. They had been hunted down and murdered, their bodies rotting into the land and fens. Restless spirits had taken hold in the Shadow Lands—giving rise to the name. They lingered there even now. And once again, Telazhar was leading an army across the land. This time, their rampage threatened to be far worse than the Scorching Wars.
    “I know you want to go looking for him, but we . . .” I stopped. The danger was everywhere. We needed Trillian here, but Darynal was his blood brother. We had been arguing about this for almost three weeks, and it had gotten pretty loud and there had been several times when one of us had stormed out, slamming doors and the whole shebang. But now, how could I encourage him to stay here with me running off in search of the Merlin? And should I even try? He had a blood-oath debt to Darynal that preceded our connection.
    A knot formed in the pit of my stomach, and, from somewhere far away, I heard myself say, “Go then. Go find him. But damn it, if you die I’m going to kick your balls till they’re blue.” I stared at him.
    Trillian pressed his lips together, but the look in his eyes said everything.
    “Are you sure?” Smoky turned to me. He seemed determined to put me on the spot today. “You are willing to allow this?”
    With a sense of defeat, yet knowing that I was doing what was right, I shrugged. “What else can I do? This war in Otherworld isn’t going to end tomorrow. I have to go find a living legend. We have a portal leading to the Northlands cranking out monsters by the minute and we have no clue where it is right now. Chase still has bad guys he has to catch right here. Life is happening all around us. It won’t wait for the perfect time to spring things like this—nature is unfettered, and Fate weaves her own path without regard to our comfort. I hate that Trillian will be risking his life, but the fact is—Darynal? He would do the same for Trillian or for me. We owe him that much.”
    Trillian swept around the table and gathered me in his arms. “My love, this means so much to me.”
    “I know,” I whispered. “That’s why I’m telling you to go. Go find him. But damn you, come home to me. You understand? No dying. No getting hurt.”
    “Understood.” He gave me another kiss, then straightened up. “I promise you, if I haven’t found him in two weeks, I’ll return. If I can’t find Darynal in that time, then chances are he’s dead. The Shadow Lands claim their victims without regard to the good in their heart.” Frowning, he crossed his arms over his chest. “I won’t go alone, either. I’ll find someone to take with me.”
    “I’ll go.” Rozurial stepped forward. “I know Otherworld inside out. I have been in the Shadow Lands before, when I was hunting Dredge. And I have several . . . acquaintances in OW that owe me favors. I’ll call one or two of them in—they are trackers and bounty hunters. We’ll do best traveling with others used to the open road.”
    Grateful to Roz, I beamed at him and he gave me a quiet wink. He knew how terrified I was at the thought of Trillian trekking off down to the Shadow Lands, and he knew just how dangerous that area was.
    Trillian