Nightmares and Daydreams (The Blood Falls Book 4)

Dray was angrier than he knew, but there was nothing I could do about it. I couldn’t change Gigi’s path or my own. I couldn’t change his. I couldn’t even put him in charge of Destiny, which was pretty much the only thing that would calm him down at this point.

And since I couldn’t do that, I popped over to the House of Axl a little early to meet with Lou.

“I like what you’ve done with the place. Getting pretty comfortable.” I walked around what had once been my grandfather’s office. The cold modern furniture that had been so out of place in the cozy wooden room with the big windows had been transformed into a colorful oasis. Flowing purple curtains hung around the windows, a large oil painting with a lot of purple, blue, and yellow hung over a plush blue couch, a thick oriental rug covered the floor. The bookshelves weren’t filled yet, but green plants and colorful orchids dotted the room, making it feel alive.

“I get the impression I’m here for the long haul, so I figured I should be comfortable.” Lou sat behind the same desk that had always been there, but it was now covered in old ledgers, pictures of Tymothy, and a solitary laptop.

“Do you want to be Head of House? You’ve been forced into one position or another for a long, long time now. You should be free to choose your path from now on.”

She stared me down. “None of us have the freedom to choose much these days. But yes, this is where I’m meant to be. With you abdicating the throne, my son will become the heir. And someone with half a brain needs to clean up this mess. Iwan and I actually make a pretty good team.”

I wish I had Rain’s skill to read emotions and thoughts. I heard Lou’s words and I could see that she appeared to be at ease, but I found it really hard to believe that she was truly happy being put in charge of the House that kidnapped and brainwashed her. “And if Tymothy weren’t a factor? Wouldn’t you rather go home?”

“No.” She flicked away an invisible speck of dust. “There is no going back. That’s not how time works. I cannot ever go back and stop my kidnapping. I cannot change that this is my story. Perhaps it is my Destiny as much as yours was to be hidden away. We cannot know or understand all the roles we must play in the war to come. If I sat around mourning the life I might have had I would lose the opportunity that today presents. And to be clear, I have mourned. I had years to navigate this fucked up path before you came along. All I can do now is make the most of today, and today I can remake this House into something worthy of my son.”

“You’re really fucking smart, Lou.”

“Exactly why I’m here, I think.”

And why I was so grateful she was willing to take over for me. I lacked everything required to do what the House needed. “As far as abdicating…”

“Tymothy isn’t old enough to wield Revenge.”

And I couldn’t wield two swords at once. “I could try passing the sword onto you.”

She arched an eyebrow. “I am Sato. It will not work.”

“What about Iwan? He’s not full-blooded, but neither am I.”

Her stare didn’t waver, which was impressive. “You are a full-blooded samhain. Iwan is not.”

The slaughter of the House of Axl left me with very few options. If only we knew for sure that the swords mattered. “Everything we’ve learned from Kris’s metallurgical analysis and Gigi’s genetic analysis indicates that the swords were forged in the Dark Times. They have to be important to the war. And while I don’t fully understand why I can wield them all, there has to be a reason for that too. No matter how many different ways I run this scenario in my head, I keep coming back to the same conclusion. I have to abdicate before the war. Revenge must be wielded by someone else.”

“There is no one but you.”

“We won’t know until we try. You insist it won’t be you, but you don’t know that. Maybe Iwan can. Or maybe Tymothy is old enough.”

She stood up, fingertips pressed into the desktop, eyes full of fire. “I will not subject my son to war.”

A mother’s fury was every bit as powerful as I always imagined it might be. “You don’t have a choice,” I said slowly and evenly. “The war is coming and we will all fight it.”

“We’ll protect the children.”

I knew the plans to hide the children. It was a good plan. One I fully supported. If we could keep them from the war until it was over, then we absolutely should do that.

But I wasn’t so sure it would happen that way.

“Tymothy is not a child,” Iwan said from behind me. I turned to see him standing in the doorway. “He is still young and has not reached the age of maturity, but he is not a babe. He will not be taken with the others. He has been training to fight and he will stand with us.”

I thought Lou might tear his head off. She moved like lightning—the gift of all Sato—from behind the desk to stand in front of Tymothy’s father. “He is a child!”

Iwan placed his hands on her biceps, which I thought was a bold and mildly dangerous move and lowered his voice. “He is our child, but he is of age to fight. If he can wield Revenge it should be in his hands. It will protect him.”

“Absolutely not! Have you two lost your senses? Are you seriously asking our children to fight this war?” She pushed Iwan away and spun around, finger stabbing the air as she spoke. Lou was so busy rebuilding the House that she wasn’t in all the planning discussions. I didn’t realize she didn’t know about Tymothy.

“I still think the two of you should try first. Maybe with my blessing the sword will transfer to one of you.”

Neither of them thought that would happen. It was clear from the looks on their faces.

“If Tymothy, at his young age and parentage can wield Revenge, it is Destiny,” Iwan said simply. “And we are all at its mercy.”

“I hate you both,” Lou hissed. “And I will never forgive you for this. Never!”

“We shouldn’t wait,” Iwan said. “Lou doesn’t have to try, but I will.”

Her eyes went wide with rage, her nostrils flaring. “It won’t matter. It won’t respond to either of us. So let’s get this over with.”

One of the only parts of the house not completely wrecked was the secure area where my grandfather stored the family armor. It was coded to our DNA so no one could enter who wasn’t in line for the throne.

I unlocked the doors and led them into the room. It looked like a movie set. All smooth cabinets and countertops. I half expected James Bond to appear and lay out his weapons.

Instead it was a sword named Revenge and its armor that took center stage.

Lou marched right up and tried to touch the sword. Nothing happened. “See? This is ridiculous. And there’s no guarantee that even if Tymothy were old enough that the sword would respond to him either. His genetic line is compromised.”

She was fishing for hope, so I let her keep babbling. “Iwan?” The chances it would work for him were slim to none. He was a Dreg. One generation shy of being fully samhain. But he was close and he was Tymothy’s father, so I had a shred of hope. But just a shred.

He stood, staring at the sword for a long time. “I…I think I feel it.”

“That’s a good sign. I definitely feel it.” But to me it was like a blaring horn demanding I put my hand on the sword. Maybe my presence made it fainter to him. It wasn’t this loud and obnoxious when my grandfather was here with me.

He held up his big, weathered, soldier’s hand but didn’t reach out for Revenge. His fingers twitched as he came into contact with the field of energy that surrounded each of the swords. “It’s warm.”

“It’s energy. There’s so much imbued into these swords. It’s more than material from another realm fused with ours. It combines the Plane itself.”

“Fascinating.” He wrapped his hand around the sword, which was way more than Lou could do. He blinked in surprise.

“You can touch it,” Lou whispered. “How is this possible?”

“He’s a Dreg, but that’s Axl blood in his veins.”

The muscles of his arm flexed as he pulled it down, the veins in his neck pulsed and his face went red. “It’s too heavy.” With both hands he lowered it to the ground. “I can’t hold it up.”

“He can touch it but not wield it,” Lou said, staring at Iwan. Tears sprang to her eyes as realization dawned. “If he cannot wield it, why does the sword allow him contact?”

The list of things we didn’t know about the swords was as long as the yellow brick road. “Perhaps it’s a failsafe. If Tymothy is old enough, he’ll need a protector. Who better than his father?”

I took the sword from his straining hands and returned it.

“You hold it as if it weighs nothing,” he murmured, staring at his hands. “Incredible.”

“I won’t allow this,” Lou murmured and then vanished.

Or at least seemed to vanish thanks to her incredible speed. “Shit. She’s going to run.”

Iwan shifted and I followed right after locking up the room. When I got to Tymothy’s room I expected to find it empty or at the very least, Lou and Iwan fighting, but instead they stood very still, listening as their son took control.

He stood in the center of the room, his toys discarded, his shoulders back. He looked regal and wise far beyond his young years.

“I know you’re scared,” he said to Lou. “But fear does us no good. If this is my Destiny there is nothing to be done but accept it. And I am ready to accept it.”

“You have no idea what you’re saying,” she hissed.

“I do, actually. I have felt a calling for as long as I can remember. The calling is so strong at times it’s almost painful. Training with my father has helped.” He turned to me. “I am hopeful that I can wield Revenge and make this pain go away.”

Lou threw herself in front of me, fell to her knees and begged Tymothy to reconsider. “Not now. In a few years. You have to finish growing up first.”

“Was Draygus Wren grown when he became Head of the House of Wren?” He asked so calmly it freaked me out a little. Especially hearing Dray’s name invoked this way.

“You are not Draygus Wren, and he was not on the eve of battle when he took over.”

He put a calming hand on Lou’s cheek, cocking his head ever so slightly. “No, I am not Draygus Wren. I’m Tymothy of the House of Axl. I was born to lead a new generation forward.”

Lou whimpered. “Not like this.”

“Exactly like this. Who else can understand the new House of Axl better than me?”

As Lou wept, Iwan pulled her away from Tymothy, nodding for me to take him to Revenge. It all happened in slow motion. Shifting back to the secure room. Unlocking it and showing Tymothy how to do it himself. Leading him to Revenge knowing what would happen before it happened. Tymothy stood and stared, much like Iwan had. Then he reached out and felt the energy that surrounds the sword. Then he gripped it in his palm and easily pulled it down.

“No!” Lou wailed. Iwan held her tight, tears falling from his eyes with fear and pride.

I hated that this caused her so much pain. Truly I did. But for me it was nothing but relief. There weren’t many answers these days but for once, a question was clearly answered. “Welp, Tymothy. That’s that. You are the true heir to the House of Axl.” And I had one more—albeit very young—ally on my side.