***
‘How far away is Rako?’ Isla murmured.
We had followed the mountain range around to the left to stay clear of the milling goblins.
‘Not sure.’ Aethan shook his head. ‘We’re going to have to wait till night and sneak around them. Rako won’t have brought enough Guards to deal with this.’ He gestured towards the goblins, or at least I think he did. I couldn’t be entirely sure because his arm blended in with the rocks behind him.
‘What are they up to?’ Brent said. ‘Are they planning an attack?’
Cold fear walked down my spine. Was it possible they knew that a lot of the Guard were away acting as emissaries? Until they all returned, Isilvitania was vulnerable. This in turn meant that England was. And if the goblins went through the veil after attacking Isilvitania they would end up in Eynsford. Again. But this time we wouldn’t be there to stop them.
The afternoon shadows lengthened as we cowered against the mountain, hidden in plain sight. Night couldn’t come fast enough. As more and more goblins flowed into the basin we took turns to try to sleep. I had a feeling it was going to be a very long night.
‘Orcs,’ Brent whispered.
I opened my eyes and sat up, peering out into the twilight.
Huge, hairy orcs were marching out of the valley. Their shaggy, orange bodies reminded me of Wilfred and suddenly I missed him with a fierceness that took my breath away.
But the orange hair was where the similarities between him and his maternal side ended. Where Wilfred had looked human, the orcs resembled Mr Potato Head gone wrong: ears not quite level, eyes that didn’t match, noses that were crooked on their already crooked faces and teeth sticking out from under their lips at weird angles. I certainly wouldn’t be taking one home to meet my mother.
Isla sniffed and wiped her eyes and Aethan reached over and took her hand. ‘I miss the hairy bastard too,’ he whispered.
The goblins, who had previously had their attention fixed on the open plain, turned toward the orcs. The two groups eyed each other warily. While they might be fighting on the same team, it didn’t mean that there wasn’t any infighting.
‘This might be our only chance,’ Aethan said. ‘Let’s go.’
I pulled myself back up into Lily’s saddle as quietly as I could and placed Scruffy in front of me. Slowly we walked the horses out onto the plain. I’d thought riding down the valley had been nerve-wracking, but it had nothing on this.
We made our way around the edge of the goblins, keeping as much space between us and them as we could. When we were past them, we turned our horses so the goblins were behind us.
I sent out nothing-to-see-here vibes as the muscles between my shoulder blades twitched waiting for an arrow to pierce them. It took every ounce of self-control not to kick my heels into Lily’s sides and gallop screaming across the plain. I could hear the orcs and goblins squabbling and I prayed to the Great Dark Sky that they would be too focused on each other to notice any irregularities between our camouflage and the surroundings.
The dying sun helped as it cast a long shadow out onto the plain. The further away from the goblins we got, the closer to normal my heart beat became. And then finally we were too far away for them to be able to see us. I sagged in my saddle, the fear oozing away with my strength.
We rode for a couple more hours before Aethan proclaimed we were back in faery territory. By then the sun had gone and a million stars twinkled above us. I felt Wolfgang playing with our outlines once more and the shadow and darkness slid off my arm, leaving my skin unmarked.
Normally we would have stopped for the evening, but this close to home, and with that many enemies behind us, there would be no stopping tonight.
‘What’s that?’ It was the first thing Ebony had said all afternoon. ‘Over there. Is it a fire?’
We all looked where she pointed. Off to our left a tiny light flickered a couple more times before disappearing. Aethan put his hands to his mouth and a nightingale carolled in the still, night air. It took me a second to realise it was coming from him.
There was a few seconds’ silence and then another nightingale responded. Aethan pulled Adare’s head around and the big stallion snorted and headed towards where the fire had been. Within minutes we came across Rako’s camp.
‘I thought you’d gotten lost.’ Rako and seven of the Guard came out to meet us.
‘Waylaid.’ Aethan told them about the enemy that was massing at the border.
When he had finished, Rako let out a low whistle. ‘Sounds like we’d better head for home.’
Ebony nudged her horse forward until she was abreast with Aethan.
He held out his hand towards her. ‘Rako, this is Orion’s bride-to-be, Princess Ebony.’
Ebony inclined her head a fraction as Rako swept a low bow. ‘Your Majesty,’ he said. ‘Welcome to Isilvitania.’
The Guard behind him mirrored his bow and murmured hellos.
‘Right,’ Aethan said when the formalities were over, ‘time to move.’
I could hear Rako and Aethan murmuring as we rode back towards the castle, words like attack and strength in numbers, words that normally would have had my ears twitching, but I was just too tired to care. I wanted to lie down in a soft bed and sleep for a week, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to. Even if the goblins and orcs weren’t planning an attack, there was a Royal Wedding to organise, which meant Guard duty would be continuous until Ebony and Orion were safely wed.
Hopefully I would have time to see Sabina and Mum and Grams in the chaos that was about to ensue.
The sun was breathing over the edge of the hills when Isilvitania castle came into sight. I felt myself sagging in the saddle, and to be quite honest it was only the fact that Ebony’s back was still ram-rod straight that kept me upright.
We rode the horses to the front gate, where some faeries waited to welcome us. King Arwyn and Queen Eloise, dressed in formal attire, stood at the head of the group. Eloise’s eyes ran across our party, the look on her face flashing schizophrenically from adoration as she viewed Aethan, to irritation as she looked at Isla. It morphed to hate as her eyes lighted on me and then just as quickly flashed to satisfaction as she looked Ebony up-and-down. Even after twenty-four hours in the saddle the damned night faery looked perfect.
We alighted and Aethan took Ebony’s hand, leading her over to Arwyn and Eloise.
‘Mother, Father,’ he said formally. ‘I have travelled to the ends of the Earth searching for the perfect bride for Orion.’
I managed to stop the cough tickling the back of my throat from escaping. I mean it wasn’t like he’d had any choice in the bride he’d brought home.
‘Please greet your future daughter, Ebony.’ He held her hand out towards them and Arwyn reached out and took it.
‘Welcome home daughter,’ he said.
‘Your words are balm to my soul,’ Ebony murmured, looking up at them through her lashes.
Eloise looked as pleased as a squirrel with a bag full of nuts. My urge to cough had changed to an urge to stick my finger down my throat, roll my eyes and say, ‘Oh pleeeeease,’ but I was pretty sure that sort of behaviour would get me kicked out of the country.
I looked at the castle entry. Someone hovered in the shadow of the arch, moving from foot-to-foot as if trying to walk off a gut full of nerves. I was guessing it was Orion. Poor bastard. I wasn’t sure how I would cope being introduced to my future husband like this. Unless it was Aethan.
That thought woke me up. I’d never contemplated marrying Aethan before. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but more that I was too young to be interested in it. Too young, and too swept up in being a Border Guard.
We had loved each other fiercely and that had been enough. I had blindly assumed we would always be together. Hunting and fighting, loving and laughing, at night, in Trillania, the world had been our oyster. But the reality was, that one day this would be happening to Aethan. One day he would need to wed and have children to carry on th
e Royal line.
The question was, would it be with me?
A hard knot formed in my stomach.
Did I want it to be with me?
The thought of him being with someone else drove me to the edge of insanity. But was I willing to give up who I was to play nice and bear his children?
I rubbed my hands up-and-down my arms thankful that the chill air gave me an excuse for the goose bumps that had formed on my skin. Up until that moment I had thought my main concern was getting Aethan back, now I realised it was much, much more.
We followed as King Arwyn led Ebony towards the steps leading up to the castle entry. Orion stepped out from the shadow of the arch, his face neutral as he prepared to meet his future.
I could tell the exact moment his eyes fell on Ebony’s face. They widened, and his mouth formed a silent, ‘Oh.’
Ebony kept her face demurely downcast; a suitable pose for a shy virgin. It was a shame that that wasn’t exactly what Orion was getting, but he certainly didn’t seem to care as his eyes greedily lapped her up. I wondered how long it would be before her tempestuous nature rose to the surface.
Arwyn reached the top step and closed the gap between himself and an extremely keen Orion. ‘Princess Ebony,’ Arwyn said in a formal tone, ‘I present to you Prince Orion, heir to the Faery Throne.’
Ebony finally swept her eyes up to Orion’s face. He stared at her searchingly as he reached out and took her hand, touching her as if she were a delicate piece of porcelain. I had been stunned by Ebony’s beauty the first time I had seen her and Orion seemed no less impacted by the vision in front of him.
‘My Lord,’ she purred, ‘forgive my disgraceful appearance. We have been in the saddle since yesterday morning.’
I probably looked disgraceful, I mean even Isla was looking a little worse for wear. But somehow Ebony appeared as fresh as a daisy. Her long, dark hair undulated down her back in perfect waves, her alabaster skin glowed as if she had had a good night’s sleep, and her clothes appeared freshly washed and pressed. If I hadn’t hated her before, I certainly did at that moment. It was unfair that one woman could be so glorious.
‘You are perfect,’ Orion said, his tone that of a love-struck boy.
Her face broke into a radiant smile and together they turned and entered the building.
‘Well,’ Isla said, ‘that was gag-worthy. Come on, you can sleep with me.’
I yawned so widely that the muscles in the back of my neck protested. ‘Sounds good.’ I followed her into the castle and up a winding set of stairs to her suite.
The hot water of her shower felt amazing but I was too tired to linger long. I changed into the clothes she had given me and gratefully lay down on the far side of her bed.
She was sitting cross-legged on top of the sheets with her head bowed. Her lips moved but no sound came out of her mouth. I wanted to ask her what she was doing, but my eyes slid shut of their own accord and I was sound asleep before she had finished.
13
Rise of the Dark Lord
‘Izzy. You need to wake up.’ Isla’s voice reached into the deep, dark void of my sleep and dragged me back to the surface. I felt like I’d only lain down a few minutes ago, but from the angle of the sun coming through her window, I must have been asleep for hours.
‘Goblins?’ I jumped out of bed and looked around for my sword. Scruffy snorted in annoyance and turned around and around, snuggling into the blanket where I had been lying.
‘Not even close.’ She had a bemused look on her face. ‘They’re holding steady where we left them. Rako thinks it may just be a meeting with the orcs.’
‘Strengthening their position.’ It made sense. We were doing the same.
I pulled my clothes back on and followed her from the room. ‘So what’s the emergency?’
‘You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.’
I hated it when she was right.
Scruffy trotted beside me as she led me up to the top floor and down the corridor to the room Orion used for his study. The door was open and Rako and Aethan sat at the long table. Mia was curled around the back of Aethan’s neck, balanced along the top of his vest so that her coat blended with the soft fur. Arwyn and Orion were nowhere to be seen, but a man and a woman stood with their backs to the door facing Rako and Aethan.
Isla pressed herself against the wall so that she couldn’t be seen from inside the room and motioned for me to do the same. She put a finger to her lips and then touched her ear.
The woman was speaking. ‘Lieutenant Leighton returning from undercover ops. I’d like to be re-instated for duty Sir.’
I so knew that voice.
‘Lieutenant Leighton?’ Rako said. I could hear the sound of fingers drumming the table. I was guessing they were his. ‘I seem to recall that name, but surely you can’t be the same woman. You were reported dead years ago.’
The woman bowed her head. ‘I regret my decision to go AWOL.’
I risked a quick glance around the door frame at the woman.
‘It seemed necessary at the time.’
Same python around her shoulders, same naughty voice.
‘In retrospect perhaps it wasn’t the best decision.’
‘You think?’ Rako stopped drumming his fingers. ‘So what happened? You were sent in to spy on him and then you disappeared.’
There was dead silence for a few heart beats and then she said, ‘I found out I was pregnant.’
‘To Santanas?’ There was resigned horror in Aethan’s voice.
‘To Santanas.’
I could hear roaring in my ears as the room started to spin.
‘I couldn’t let him know,’ she whispered. ‘So I faked my death and fled through the veil. I found a deserted witching house in Eynsford and slept on the porch till it accepted me as its own.’
Isla’s fingers were like a vice on my arm.
‘I looked for the signs when Prunella was born. But there were none. I thought we were safe.’
I could feel hysterical laughter bubbling up inside. Mum was going to be royally pissed when she found out who her real father was.
‘And Isadora?’ Aethan’s voice was a bare murmur, as if he were scared of the answer he was going to get. ‘Were the signs there when she was born?’
Scruffy pressed into my legs as if to comfort me. I wet my lips and opened my mouth but no sound came out.
‘There was a full eclipse that day.’
‘Not totally conclusive.’ Rako’s voice was tense.
What were they talking about?
‘Isadora Margarita Gabrielle was born on a day of a super moon. At the precise moment of her birth the world turned totally black. It stayed that way till she took her first breath.’
I pushed off the wall and stood in the doorway.
‘A total solar eclipse,’ Rako said. ‘There’s one of them every one to two years.’
‘Yes, but do wild animals gather around your house whenever one occurs? Never seen the likes of it. Rabbits, deer, mice and badgers sitting calmly next to foxes and wildcats; all of them staring up at the bedroom where Isadora was born.’
What did that mean? I felt my knees go weak. I was sure the answer, when I got it, was not going to be to my liking.
Rako slumped back in his seat and shook his head. ‘So it’s true then. She is.’
‘Two of them.’ Aethan shook his head. ‘That’s never happened before.’
‘Two of what?’ I said.
Grams spun towards me and for the first time I realised it was Lionel standing on her other side. If nothing else about this conversation had freaked me out, the expression on his face would have. I’d never seen him look so grave.
‘Oh Izzy,’ Grams said.
I strode towards her – no mean feat when your legs are trembling. ‘Two of what?’ I insisted. ‘What am I?’
Glass smashed and splintered as a window caved in. Legs, followed by the rest of the goblin flew through the now-open window. He slumped to th
e floor as blood gushed out of a deep cut on his leg, but the next goblin through was uninjured. A second window smashed then a third and a fourth. I wrapped a shield around Scruffy and tossed him high in the air. This fight was no place for my fluffy familiar.
‘They’re on the roof,’ Aethan roared. He drew his sword and vaulted over the table. Mia jumped from his shoulder, her little wings stretched out as she glided across the room. She wrapped herself around the face of a goblin, ripping at his eyes with her claws. As the goblin reached up to grab her, Aethan ran him through with a sword. She snarled and leapt back to Aethan’s shoulder before propelling herself off again.
Before I could even draw my sword Grams had whipped out her wand. She and Lionel stood back-to-back as they fired spells into the mass of goblins. I launched myself at the far end of the room where the latest window had just been broken. Isla was right behind me.
I leapt into the air, dropping down onto the first of the goblins through the hole. The tip of my sword plunged into his neck and through his spine as gravity retook control of my body. He collapsed to the ground. I pulled my sword free and turned back to the window.
Even as we fought them one thing became clear. They were not interested in us. They fought to get past us to the open door. So if it wasn’t us they wanted, who was it?
The thought must have occurred to Aethan at the same time. ‘Orion,’ he yelled. ‘To Orion.’ Mia leapt back to his shoulder and then he turned and charged out of the room.
‘Go,’ Grams said. ‘Lionel and I will hold them here.’
I released Scruffy from the shield and then Rako, Isla and I took off after Aethan, sprinting down the hallway and turning down the first left passageway we came to. We could hear fighting coming from other parts of the castle.
The door ahead of us was shut. Aethan raced towards it, twisting the handle and barging it with his shoulder at the same time. It was locked. He swore in frustration and lifted his leg to kick it.
‘Back up,’ I yelled, waiting only long enough for him to move away from the door before I let my will loose on it.
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