The motel walls were a fly-spotted, mildew-streaked yellow, all that was left of a once-soothing white. Keelie knew she had to calm herself Her father and the other Dread Forest elves had left Grey Mantle shortly after Herne's disruptive entrance, and it was decided that this motel was easily defended against goblins. Uncle Dariel and Elia were in the next room, and their voices rose as they argued.

Knot sniffed the musty s.h.a.g carpet. "Meow stinks!"

Dad paced back and forth. He was thinking, and Keelie didn't want to disturb him; he had the I'm-going-to-losemy-temper look on his face. He had maintained a persistent beet-red glow ever since Herne had announced that Keelie was his consort.

Coyote was back with them, having mysteriously reappeared after they found rooms in the motel. Keelie hadn't yet had a chance to talk to him, and now wasn't the time. Coyote dug between his toes with his teeth, avoiding eye contact with Dad. Tension hung in the room like sticky cobwebs.

Above the beds hung a framed photo, a stag pose majestically in front of a stand of trees. Even this disgusting motel was reminding Keelie of Herne. She was so mad at him. How dare he show up and break up the meeting she'd worked so hard to arrange?

She hadn't really taken all of this consort nonsense seriously. Maybe she should have, but figured she'd find a way to handle the nature G.o.d. And part of her had wanted to be with him. Keelie recalled how strong and muscular he'd felt when they flew next to each another in Under-the-Hill. She'd felt safe.

Dad stopped and stared at her, as if he was picking up on her thoughts.

Keelie smiled, forcing her mouth muscles to work. "I was thinking of going to get some ice," she said, point ing toward the faux-wood plastic bucket on the even more faux-wood dresser.

Shaking his head, Dad began walking back and forth again. "You're staying right here." He was going to wear a hole in the carpet, which in her opinion would definitely be an improvement. Knot washed his tail, and Coyote was now working on cleaning out the toes of his other paw. No help from her guardians. She was on her own with Dad.

"I can't believe I chose to stay here. When we first arrived in Big Nugget, I wanted to stay in a motel instead of the elf village. Be careful what you wish for."

She missed Grey Mantle. She missed the stick-and-twig granola. She even missed Miszrial. Dad didn't reply.

Loud, deep singing replaced Uncle Dariel and Elia's arguing. The motel was crawling with dwarves, who had taken it over after Ermentrude's appearance. They were excitedly preparing for war, which consisted of consuming large quant.i.ties of beer and singing bad songs.

"Off on the road to the sh.o.r.es of Bagadoom, we'll march through the dark and the gloom..."

The door opened and Dariel and Elia entered, both scowling. Elia plopped down on the shiny nylon burgundy bedspread embroidered in sparkling thread. Her rounded belly stuck out like a mound.

Keelie watched as something moved within. Startled, she realized it was the baby. Eek. This was the first time it really hit home that there was a child growing within Elia. It would be here soon.

A sense of urgency filled Keelie. The cataclysmic images she'd seen at the High Court rushed back to her. In her mind's eye, solar flares baked the surface of the Earth. They had to find a solution to mend the rift, and soon, or all would be lost.

Elia placed her hands on her belly. "Dariel, come quickly."

He ran to her side and placed his hand over hers. His face melted with love as the baby seemed to move even more, as if it knew that Dariel was nearby.

Dad smiled and he looked at Keelie. "I remember when I first felt you within your mother." Keelie's chest clenched.

"I want to go home, Dariel. I don't want to give birth here." Elia lifted her hands to indicate the motel room.

Dariel smoothed back Elia's hair. "We'll go home soon, but right now, we're safer here from the goblins."

Keelie felt bad. She wouldn't want to give birth in a motel room, especially this motel room. They needed to resolve everything so they could go home. But she knew deep down that there wasn't going to be an easy solution. Like an apple with a rotten core, Peascod was at the center of the situation, working his manipulative evil. It was imperative she discover the ident.i.ty of Peascod's new master, if Herne was right about him finding one. Peascod alone couldn't have weakened Herne.

She looked at Dad, and he met her gaze and frowned. It was as if he knew she was thinking about Herne.

"Why did you go to him? Why did you put yourself in peril?" His voice cracked, as if he had to force the words out.

Dariel strode over to Dad and placed his hand on his shoulder in a brotherly gesture. He turned to Keelie. "Help us understand how this all came to be."

She flicked her eyes over to the photo of the stag. "I don't know what the big deal is. I needed help rounding up allies to help me with the rift. Herne offered his help."

Keelie watched as Dad and Uncle Dariel exchanged glances. Perhaps she could lighten the mood in the room. "It's extremely inconvenient to have a G.o.d fall in love with you.

Crickets chirped, the only sound other than the dwarves singing, "In the dark moon of the night..."

Dad lifted his head toward the ceiling, as if it might open wide and Sylvus himself would descend and offer advice. "This is serious, Keliel. You didn't see the way he looked at you.

"How did he look at me?"

Dad's eartips flushed bright pink, which was a nicer shade than the beet red on his face. "It was enough for Terciel to accuse you of favoring the forest G.o.d."

"Are you on their side? Do you agree with Terciel that I'm conspiring to bring about the downfall of the elves because of my fae blood?" She glared at Dad.

He threw his hands up. "I didn't say I agreed with Terciel. Didn't you see Uncle Dariel hold me back from punching the arrogant elf when he accused you of being a mongrel?"

Keelie had to repress a smile. Dad had come to her defense, and it had made her feel wanted and loved when he threatened to put a balding charm on Terciel.

"You're my daughter, and I don't want anyone or anything harming you. That includes a forest G.o.d who wants to claim you." Dad's voice rose again. His eartips now matched the rest of his face. Keelie wondered if he was yelling so that Herne, wherever he was, could hear him.

Elia moved the pillow over her head in an attempt to block out the conversation.

"What happened in Under-the-Hill?" Dad stared at Keelie. His once-livid face was a dark gray, as if asking the question had drained all of the blood out of him.

"My virtue is still intact, if that is what you're wondering," she rea.s.sured him.

Dad sighed. "Good." Uncle Dariel looked away, and Elia lowered the pillow.

Keelie didn't know if she wanted Elia to hear all of this, but she didn't have a choice. They were holed up in the motel whether they liked it or not, and she had to make Dad understand they all had to work together.

"There's a lot more going on than goblins going to war and trying to collect more magic," Keelie said.

"I know the wild magic is caused by a rift in the Earth," Dad said. "What else do you know?"

"There's also a crack in Gaia's Dome, and the Earth's atmosphere is at risk. If we don't find a way to repair it-"

"Then the Earth will burn up," Elia interrupted in a soft voice, embracing her rounded belly. Her eyes were wide with horror. "Dariel." She reached out her hand to him, and he sat down on the bed beside her and held her.

Dad's gray face became even more so, and his green eyes clouded with understanding. "Norzan didn't mention this to me. The High Court was supposed to keep him informed as to what was happening."

"Vania refuses to talk to the elves." Keelie shrugged. "I don't think most of the fae know what she's up to."

"That doesn't surprise me. I don't trust Vania." Dad looked grimmer.

"That's why I went to Under-the-Hill with Herne. After Vania proved that she wanted me to mend the rift alone, I thought that Herne was the second most powerful being and we had to get him on our side. He wanted me to see where the dark fae live." Keelie hoped her words rea.s.sured Dad.

Instead, Dad grabbed her arm and pulled her into the corner. Keelie saw Elia's wide, curious eyes on them.

"Herne is a powerful being," he said, his voice low. "He's a nature G.o.d. If he wants you, then I'm powerless against him, even in his weakened state. You should not have gone with him. What promises have you made him?" His face was lined with worry.

"I haven't made any promises. Give me a break, Dad, I'm sixteen." Keelie thought of the intoxicating feelings she experienced whenever Herne was near. Darn him for doing this to her. Dad didn't know just how dangerously attractive the Green Man was, but she still had to find a way to smooth things over. "Anyway, when I was there with him, I found out some things about Grandma Jo. She was pureblood fae."

"Pureblood?" Dad echoed, surprised.

"There's more," Keelie said quickly. "Queen Vania turned her into a brownie, cursing her for a love affair she had with a mortal man. My grandfather."

A frown creased Dad's forehead. "Before your mother was born?"

Keelie nodded.

"That means that Katy was-that you are-"

"Dark fae. It's why I can go Under-the-Hill." Keelie didn't add how at home she felt there. "Herne told me that my dark fae side is strong enough, along with my elven blood, to make me not human. I'll have the lifespan of an elf or greater."

Dad didn't seem overjoyed. "Your mother never told me all this. If the elves discover it, they may consider you more dark fae than elf. It won't help matters."

Grandmother Keliatiel knew. Keelie didn't say the words aloud, but it looked like Grandmother had kept the secret well. Was this the reason why Mom had left Dad and the Dread Forest all those years ago? Had she feared her dark fae blood would be revealed? If so, she'd had nothing to fear.

Keelie jumped up. "I thought you'd be happy, Dad. I won't live just eighty years. We'll have more time together."

"I never doubted it." He said the words as if he really believed them.

Keelie was astonished. "You've never said that before."

"We'll talk about that later. One thing at a time, Keelie." Dad sighed heavily and sat down on the bed. "Norzan insisted you were the one to help. Mother convinced me you could handle yourself among the fae, after the superb way you managed the situation in the redwoods."

"Grandmother said that?" Keelie was pleased. A com pliment from her rigid elven grandmother was high praise indeed, and rarely given.

"I wasn't going to let you come here, but she convinced me, along with Dariel." He scowled at his younger brother.

Dariel shrugged. "We all trust Norzan." Keelie caught the implication that Dad had agreed with Norzan, also.

"Elia wanted to visit her family, and with Sean and Knot along to protect you, I thought you would be safe. Dariel thought Elia would be safe with her clan."

"My clan did not welcome me. I felt unloved and dismissed." Elia blinked several times. "They didn't even celebrate the hope of the child."

Dad nodded. "We didn't expect the hostility and anger toward you both or we wouldn't have sent you into such an uncomfortable situation, much less such a dangerous one."

"Dad, I don't think anyone knew about the rift other than Vania. What I don't understand is how Peascod and the goblins have been able to collect the wild magic to make themselves stronger."

The dwarves' singing had stopped. Silence filtered through the motel walls, punctuated with an occasional "huzzah." Uncle Dariel and Elia walked over to the door, where he embraced her.

"Get some sleep. We have much to discuss in the morning. Sean's jousters and the dwarves will take turns keeping watch for goblins and Herne, so you'll be safe. Dariel and I must go speak with Terciel and King Gneiss about our next strategic move against the goblins."

Elia walked over to the bed, pulled back the covers, and slipped in.

Dad kissed Keelie's cheek and held her close for a moment. "I won't let anything happen to you Keelie. You are my life."

Tears p.r.i.c.ked her eyes. "I love you too, Dad." She closed the door after him and turned to Coyote and Knot, who seemed to be asleep on the floor. "I know you guys are faking it. Get up. We need to talk."

"Will you shut up?" Elia said. "I'm trying to get some sleep."

Coyote's ears p.r.i.c.ked up. "First talk to Herne. He's waiting for you outside."

Elia levered up on her elbows. "Not him again."

Keelie whirled and ran to the window. Sure enough, the forest G.o.d was outside. He waved.

"What nerve! After what he did to us. We're stuck in this fleabag motel and he's out there laughing." Keelie frowned at the horned Green Man.

"Gotta admit, it was pretty funny," Coyote's black lips curled up in amus.e.m.e.nt.

"Well, I'm not going out to talk to him. The guards will probably see him and kick him out anyway," Keelie said. As if the guards could even touch him.

"You're delusional." Coyote threw his head back and howled in glee.

Herne must have heard, because he grinned at her.

"Shut up. You'll bring the guards over here."

"So go talk to him. What can it hurt?" Coyote's tongue lolled.

"Zeke will kill her. That's what it's going to hurt," Elia said. "Don't take advice from an ugly dog."

"I'm not a dog." Coyote narrowed his eyes.

What could it hurt? Herne could whisk her off to Underthe-Hill again, that's what. "You're supposed to be protecting me," Keelie accused Coyote. "Whose side are you on?"

Knot opened one eye. "Yeow's the trickster."

"See, even the cat agrees with me," Elia said.

"Yeah, I'm getting that." Keelie glared at Coyote. She turned to look back out the window and stifled a shriek. Herne's face was pressed up to the gla.s.s. She turned around to tell Elia, but the elf girl was suddenly asleep.

Keelie yanked the door open. Her elven guard lay on the ground, snoring, his eyes wide open.

"That's just wrong. What did you do to him?" she asked.

"Sweet dreams," Herne said, with a wave of his hand.

"Get in here before anyone sees."

Herne shook his head. "You come out. These buildings are full of iron."

Keelie rolled her eyes and stepped outside. She turned to look back. "Stay in there and don't make any noise."

Coyote looked at her innocently. "Who, me? She's making enough noise for all three of us." He motioned with his paw at Elia.

Knot closed his eyes, but she knew he was the biggest faker. She stepped outside and closed the door gently behind her.