Total pages in book: 247
Estimated words: 231436 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1157(@200wpm)___ 926(@250wpm)___ 771(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 231436 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1157(@200wpm)___ 926(@250wpm)___ 771(@300wpm)
The next evening at the Contou residence, Kieran brings food and word that Valyn wants to meet with Casteel. He, Cas, and Poppy talk about the evening prior and how Casteel read parts of my journal about wicked kisses in secret places and foursomes—oh, those passages are good! But let me tell you, the real thing was even better… And Kieran laments that he wasn’t there for the foursome talk. Occasionally, I imagine sitting down with them and relaying some of the stories firsthand. It would be a delightful experiment to be sure.
Cas heads off to speak with his father, and Kieran stays with Poppy, explaining things about Nyktos and the wolven and their history, then telling Poppy that his people will respect her differently than they do the King and Queen because she is proof that they come from the gods. When she goes on to tell him what the Duchess told her about the Blood Queen being happy about Poppy taking both Atlantia and Solis, Kieran says that her actions determine whether she’ll become a threat to Atlantia, not her bloodline.
When she brings up hearing him in her mind at the Temple, Kieran asks about his imprint. She reaches out to test it and tells him that it’s like cedar, woodsy and rich. He assures her that he can’t read her thoughts all the time—only that one time at the Temple so far—and that if he could, he imagines her mind would be a cyclone of questions. When they attempt to communicate telepathically, they succeed—both ways. Kieran theorizes that the notam allows the communication.
After a battle with the Unseen, Kieran, Cas, and Poppy discuss the fight. Kieran explains how he tried to keep her out of it, and Cas tells him that his wife can take care of herself. When Kieran reminds them that things are different now, Poppy compromises by telling him they’ll handle whatever comes…together. When discussions turn to the attack that killed Poppy’s parents, Kieran tells her that everything she’s been told about Cora and Leo is most likely a lie.
Kieran returns from checking on Sage after she’s injured and brings a textbook and his father with him. From the book, they learn about Gyrms and that Iliseeum is real. They also discover where it is purportedly located. Discussing it more and veering onto the subject of how the Gyrms came to be in their realm, Jasper reveals that most things about the Land of the Gods were kept secret, especially the magic. He goes on to say that I am one of the few people who knows about it, taking all of them by surprise. They then tell Jasper about my journal, and he reveals that I’m one of the oldest changelings alive and one of Atlantia’s Elders. And while I wish he wouldn’t have—because a woman’s age should be kept secret and sacred—he tells the group that I am over two thousand years old.
When news comes that a child has been injured in an accident, Kieran sets off with Casteel and Poppy. As they approach the little girl named Marji pinned under the carriage, Kieran realizes the girl is dead. When Poppy resurrects her, seemingly without consequence, Kieran kneels, paying homage.
After Cas and Poppy’s sexy little tryst in the garden, they and Kieran take in the sights of the city and end up in a museum. They discuss Nyktos and his connection to wolves, viewing paintings of the King of Gods with a dark gray wolf, sculptures of him with a wolf, and a drawing where a white wolf stands behind him. They also discuss how Malec Ascending Isbeth is what led them to where they are today, the cave cat Poppy saw when she was younger, and the fact that godlines and their hierarchy have been greatly skewed by incorrectly reported history spearheaded by the Ascended.
Later, they come upon a wolven wedding, and Casteel dismisses the guards. Kieran spends some time with his friend, Lyra, and they all dance and have fun. Kieran tells Poppy that she honors them by joining in on the dances. After, Lyra pleasures Kieran in the shadows of the bluff, and he catches Poppy watching.
When the time comes to meet with the King and Queen, Kieran stands guard and helps Poppy assert her and Casteel’s position, speaking for the entirety of the wolven and stating that it doesn’t matter if Poppy is Malec’s daughter or not.
They discuss how Leopold could not have been Malec using an assumed identity or a changeling in disguise, and Kieran questions how Malec can be Poppy’s father at all, given he’s been presumed dead for centuries. Then he wonders if they’re wrong. Perhaps her father is actually someone else. He suggests that the only way to know if Malec has risen is for them to go to the Blood Forest and check, which is nearly impossible with all the Craven about and how deeply it lies within Solis.