Holy fuckballs. Eddie was a freaking Titan? How was that even possible?
I stared at the page, the colorful words blurring before my eyes. Impossible. How could he be the grandfather-in-law of Poseidon? It was crazy, and yet I'd seen crazier. Well, maybe not crazier, but pretty darn close.
Eddie cleared his throat behind me, and I started guiltily. I turned slowly to meet his gaze. Strangely, he seemed more embarrassed than anything. A flush rode his cherubic cheeks.
"So," he said, clearing his throat. "I guess you know."
"Do I?" I glanced back down at the book. I still wasn't entirely sure I wasn't still asleep on the plane somewhere. "Is it true?"
He shrugged as he placed the tea things on the counter, rattling the teacups slightly. "I rather suppose it is."
I blinked. I took a deep breath. "That means you're one of those they called the Titans. You were here even before the gods."
"Yes, that's true," Eddie said, busying himself with the tea. "Sugar?"
I nodded, and he tossed a couple lumps of raw sugar into my teacup, followed by a splash of real cream. He swirled it around carefully before handing me the cup.
"Does it matter?" His tone was very careful.
"That you're an all-powerful being who can command the obedience of gods? That you're as ancient as the world itself, maybe even more so?" I thought about it for a moment. I couldn't seem to take it in. It was too big. Too much. It was so much easier to think of him as an eccentric man with a penchant for things Victorian. "I guess not. You're still my friend, right?"
He beamed at me, that wide grin that was full of sunshine. "Of course, Morgan. Always."
"I wish you'd told me. You know all about me. Don't you trust me?"
His smile faded, and his face fell. He looked more hang-dog than cherubic. "You are right, my dear. But I simply did not know how to tell you such a thing. How does one tell one's friend that one is…"
"Literally older than the hills?"
That startled a laugh out of him. "Indeed."
"Yeah, I guess that's a tough one." I gave him a wide grin and slammed the book shut. "Well, now I know, and all that matters is that you're my friend. You have any biscuits to go with that tea?"
Eddie snorted. "You and your British-ism's," he chuckled, handing me a plate of cookies. I could almost feel the relief radiating from him. How odd that possibly one of the most powerful creatures in the world cared what I thought of him. "Now, shall we have a look and see if the book is willing to talk about other things more important to the immediate future?"
"Sure. Let's give it a try." I bit into the tea biscuit, enjoying the sweet taste of vanilla.
I flipped open the book again. This time I focused on Alister and the key to the Key. The sentient book riffled through its pages once again, this time landing on a page covered with images in rich jewel tones. Across the top in swirly silver ink highlighted with turquoise and aqua was written the word "grimoire."
"All right," I said. "This is interesting. According to this, the key to the Key isn't just some ordinary old book. Holy crap…" I read it again to make sure. "Does that say what I think it does?"
He adjusted his spectacles and peered down at the page. "Oh, my. This says it's a relic of the Atlantean Empire."
"Atlantis?" I practically squeaked. "It's really Atlantean? Not just written in their language?"
"Not at all. It's actually from Atlantis. That isn't the most important part," Eddie said, reading further. "The Atlantean book is a sort of Book of Shadows, if you will. A grimoire of various spells and such performed by the High Priests. Though perhaps 'spells' are the wrong word seeing as how we're dealing with quantum physics here. The ancients did not refer to it as magic, as we do…."
I scanned the page quickly, noting the book was original, not a copy or translation. It was the real deal. Written by the High Priest of Atlantis himself over ten thousand years ago. A relic of the lost Atlantean empire. Holy amazeballs.
"Look," I said, tapping the page. "This says there is something in the grimoire. Spell or whatever you want to call it. Something that would allow whoever uses it to control not just vampires but any creature: humans, djinn, even the Queen of the Sidhe herself."
"Oh, Hades." Eddie had an interesting way of swearing.
"Exactly," I agreed. "Can you imagine if Alister figures out how to perform that spell?"
"All hell would break loose, quite literally."
"I don't suppose the book says where to find this grimoire?"
We both perused the page, groaning as the answer became clear. No such luck. The book said nothing about where the grimoire was located at that exact moment. Nothing about Alister or his plans. Nothing of any use at all.