Kenzie frowned. “What is it?”
I sat back in the chair. “New Orleans,” I muttered, glaring at the journal, as if it was the cause of my headaches. “One of the biggest goblin markets in the country comes to New Orleans every month, on the night of the full moon.”
I felt Annwyl’s gaze on me. “Do you think he’ll be there?”
“I don’t know, Annwyl.” I rubbed at my eyes, frustrated. “We could be grasping at straws. All I know is, if Keirran wants to find something expressly forbidden or dangerous, the goblin markets are as good a place as any. No one asks questions, and no one cares who you are.”
“The first full moon,” Kenzie mused, then jerked upright on the bed. “That’s this weekend! That means we only have three days to figure out how we’re getting up there without our parents blowing a gasket.”
“Whoa, wait a second.” I stood quickly, holding up my hands. “Who said we’re going anywhere?”
“Ethan.” She gave me an exasperated look. “Keirran is my friend and your sister’s son. Annwyl came to us for help. Are you really going to stand there and tell me you’re not going to do anything?”
“Kenzie...” I paused. If I agreed to this, I would be plunging right back into that world I hated. Chasing down my half-fey nephew, searching for him at a goblin market, lying to my parents again; I didn’t want more faery drama. And I didn’t want to drag Kenzie into more dangerous situations, not with everything she’d already been through. And not when I was on such thin ice with her father.
But she was right. Keirran was out there. And even though he was part fey, stubborn, infuriating and probably going to get me in a lot of trouble, he was family. More than family, more than my nephew and Meghan’s son; he was a friend.
And Annwyl was in danger now, too. The Summer girl might’ve been part of the Seelie Court, but I didn’t want to see her Fade away to nothing. She’d risked a lot by coming here and obviously cared for the Iron Prince as much as he did her. If she disappeared, I didn’t know what Keirran would do, but it would probably be fairly drastic.
Her green eyes watched me now, beseeching, and I raked both hands through my hair. “I’ll think of something,” I told them both, seeing Kenzie smile at me and Annwyl sag with relief. “Right now, though, I need to take Kenzie home. Annwyl, you’re welcome to stay here if you like. I can get the sleeping bag down if you need a place to sleep.” Though I’d never thought I’d offer to let a faery stay in my room. Again. The last time it’d happened, Todd, the half phouka, and his piskie friend had spent the night, and I hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep.
Annwyl nodded solemnly. “I am...grateful, Ethan Chase,” Annwyl said. “I would not have come if I did not think you could help.”
I nodded, knowing that was the closest the fey got to saying thank-you, as they never spoke the actual words. Leaving the house, I told Mom I was taking Kenzie home, and we walked down the driveway in silence, me scanning the bushes and shadows for this mysterious Thin Man. If he was anywhere nearby, I didn’t see him.
I unlocked and opened the truck door for Kenzie, but instead of climbing in, she stepped close and put her arms around me. “Well,” she said as mine slipped around her waist, “here we go again.”
I sighed, knowing it was useless to argue or try to convince her not to go. Tonight, anyway. “You are way too eager for this,” I told her, and she grinned cheekily. “It would be so much easier if you were one of those girls who ran away screaming.”
She laughed. “Sorry, tough guy. Looks like you got the abnormal girlfriend who talks to little green men and sees invisible things.” Her cool fingers slipped into my hair, and my stomach knotted. “But you know you can vent to me about any of this, right? You don’t have to face them all by yourself anymore.”
My voice came out kind of husky. “I know. I just... I want you to be safe.”
Her smile turned bittersweet. “I don’t have that kind of time.”
The porch light winked on, Mom’s way of letting me know she was still up, and I winced. “Come on,” I said, reluctantly drawing back. “I’ll take you home.”
After dropping Kenzie off at her house—and the stomach-curling good-night kiss in the driveway—I returned home to find Annwyl in the living room, hovering over my mom’s potted plants. The wilted houseplants looked better than they ever had under Mom’s not-so-green thumb, but having a faery wandering around my home made me nervous, even if it was Annwyl, and I steered her back into my room.
“Where would you like me to sleep?” she asked as I closed the door. Mom had finally gone to bed, but Dad might be home any minute and didn’t need to hear me talking to myself in the wee hours of the morning. Annwyl regarded me solemnly. “If you have charms placed around your house, I could go outside. I don’t think the Thin Man will come through the wards.”
But she sounded frightened, and I shook my head. “No, Annwyl, I’m not going to make you sleep outside, especially if something is after you.” I scrubbed a hand through my hair, not liking the other alternative but seeing no other choice. “You can stay here. Take the bed, in fact—I have a sleeping bag in the closet.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh no, that would be improper,” she protested, looking stunned. “Especially since I owe you so much. You are the Iron Queen’s brother. I cannot presume to sleep in the prince’s bed.”