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One

Olivia

Tonight I would watch a man die for his criiant black hounds rip him to death and send his soul to the afterlife, and I would trust that he had done so to deserve it

I was struggling with that concept

Not the part where I'd hunt him or even watch him die I'd seen a man torn apart by a cwn before, and while I didn't intend to closely observe the process, I did not have an issue with the overall idea of it Otherwise, I wouldn't be here

I believed in the Cwn Annwn, in their purpose on earth The Welsh Wild Hunt, tasked reaking vengeance on humans who murder those with fae blood Did those crih, it was indeed rough justice But justice it was When you take a life--intentionally and maliciously--you must accept that you may receive the same in return

My probleht's Hunt? The part where I didn't knohat our quarry had actually done

I had chosen not to know I'd seen that as purpose Resolution Faith, too, which doesn't come easily to me I trusted that the Cwn Annere justified in their actions, and so forfor details

Yeah

A noble sentiment, which lasted only until the moment of truth loomed

I sat onto calh, and her left ear twitched

"Dwi'n iawn, Rhyddhad," I said, reassuring her I was okay

A soft whinny suggested I

Rhyddhad looked like a regular horse--a young gray ular hounds They were, in their way That is, they weren't shape-shifting humanoid fae But they were fae beasts, and they understood us better than mortal ones

Rhyddhad and I were on an e for our quarry to arrive

The Hunt must take place in a forest That was traditionally the domain of the Cwn Annwn, and back in ancient Wales, the restriction had been no restriction at all as people passed through forest regularly It was trickier in the o? A city of threethe local Cwn Annwn pack had been here for centuries, with tiet even thekiller to a patch of woods

It helped, too, that they only needed to conduct a proper Hunt a few times a year That meant plenty of tiet their prey where they wanted him

This tio but lived outside it He passed daily along this wooded road, and he often drove past dark

It'd been alo when Ioan--leader of the local Cwn Annwn--came to me and said, "We have one Are you ready?"

I was There wasn't any doubt of that I was the new Mallt-y-Nos Matilda of the Night Matilda of the Hunt I had accepted that role, and along with it, I accepted this responsibility

When headlights bobbed down the e to

"Looks like we have a winner," Ricky said as he reined in "Dark sedan headed this way, right on time"

He se, too, and his horse--Tywysog Du--shook his head, breath strea air