Faery Forged

by Donna Joy Usher

  The truth was, though, that I didn’t know how much more fuel I had in the tank. I had nearly died and been through a healing and then I had fought. I was exhausted.

  ‘Kill them,’ Galanta yelled.

  Rako and Aethan reached their swords and the rest of the Guard, but we were surrounded. The looks on the goblins faces told us we only had moments before they summoned the courage to attack. The horses were just too far away for us to make a getaway.

  ‘Foiled again,’ Isla muttered. She threw an arm around me to help hold me upright as I staggered against her.

  ‘I can do this,’ I said. ‘I can.’

  ‘Sure you can,’ she said, but her voice held no conviction.

  ‘Kill them or know my wrath.’

  The look on the faces of the goblins around us became resolute. The first raised his dagger and charged towards us and a wall of fire slammed into him.

  Isla gasped and looked at me. ‘I thought you were spent.’

  ‘Wasn’t me,’ I gasped.

  The sound of hooves beating over the ground reached us as a fresh wave of Border Guard raced towards us. They yelled war cries as they came, and there at the front was Wolfgang. I’d never seen such a beautiful sight.

  The goblins peeled back from around us and sprinted in the opposite direction. It was lucky that maths wasn’t their strong point, or they would have realised that even with this fresh supply, we were still badly outnumbered. But I wasn’t going to tell them the error of their ways.

  ‘Cowards,’ Galanta screamed. ‘Stand and fight.’

  Aethan supported my other side as we staggered towards our horses.

  ‘Mia?’ I asked.

  ‘She’s going to be fine.’

  ‘That’s one brave little girl,’ Rako said as he hauled himself up onto his horse.

  I tried to mount Lily but my legs wouldn’t obey me. Instead I found myself staring up at the saddle wondering how I was going to stay there, if I managed to get there.

  ‘I’ll take Scruffy.’ Isla’s voice shook as if trying not to cry. ‘You take Izzy.’

  Aethan climbed into Adare’s saddle and reached down for me, pulling me up in front of him and settling me in his arms. Mia clambered down till she was nestled in my lap. I wrapped an arm around her and closed my eyes and promptly fell asleep.

  14

  The Aftermath

  I woke twice on the way home. Once when Aethan climbed down from the saddle with me still cradled in his arms. I stayed awake long enough for him to lay us both down and wrap one arm and a blanket over me.

  The second time was when he picked me up and climbed back into the saddle. I knew I should stay awake. But I was exhausted and despondent and I didn’t want to be awake in the world as it was right then.

  Orion was dead and Santanas was back.

  Days don’t get any worse than that.

  ‘Izzy. Oh no Izzy.’ Grams’ voice woke me.

  I lifted my head to find we had arrived back at the castle. ‘I’m fine,’ I said, but my voice was garbled with exhaustion.

  ‘She lost a lot of blood.’ Aethan held my hands as I slid from the saddle. Grams wrapped me into a hug as soon as my feet were on the ground.

  ‘I’m fine Grams.’ I kissed her cheek and looked around at the chaos unfolding.

  ‘Orion.’ I winced as I heard Queen Eloise’s voice. ‘Where is Orion?’

  Isla grasped her mother’s hands and pulled her into her arms. I saw her whispering in Eloise’s ear as tears streaked down her face.

  ‘Noooooo.’ Eloise’s scream made the hair on my arms stand up. ‘Nooooo.’ She pushed Isla away. ‘I don’t believe you.’ She raised her hand and slapped her daughter across the face.

  Isla lifted a hand to her cheek as she stared at her mother.

  ‘You,’ Eloise hissed. ‘You treacherous slut.’ Her eyes blazed and spit flew from her lips. ‘Did you plan this? Did you?’ She pounced on Isla, clawing at her with her nails.

  ‘Mother.’ Aethan grabbed her arms and pulled her off Isla. ‘It’s not her fault.’

  Bloody streaks marred Isla’s cheeks.

  Eloise turned towards Aethan. As she threw herself into his arms her howls were that of a wounded animal.

  Isla pressed her hands to her face as fresh sobs took her. She resisted me for a second as I wrapped my arms around her, but then she sank into my embrace.

  I had been kidding myself if I’d thought I hated Eloise before. Now though, feeling Isla’s heart breaking as she shuddered against me, now I knew what real hate was.

  Eloise let out another scream and flapped her hands at Aethan. ‘What is it?’ she screeched.

  Mia arched her back and hissed, revealing shiny teeth.

  ‘Kill it.’ Eloise pointed. ‘Kill it now.’

  ‘Mia is a hero.’ Aethan scooped her off his neck and held his arm out to me.

  I scooted forward and Mia jumped into my arms, scampered up to my neck and hissed at Eloise again.

  ‘You.’ Eloise’s eyes bulged. ‘You… you….’ Her face turned first red and then purple as she shook her arm at me.

  ‘Isla, Izzy,’ Rako said. ‘You two get out of here. Izzy, take Isla home with you.’

  I nodded as I backed away from the Queen. She seemed to be having some sort of fit.

  ‘How did you get here?’ I asked Grams.

  ‘Your car is parked around the side.’

  ‘Come on,’ I said, grabbing Isla’s arm.

  She stumbled along beside me, the fight gone from her. In the space of a few days she had lost her lover and her brother. Now it looked like she had lost her mother too.

  We reached my car and I helped Isla into the back. Her eyes stared at nothing as Scruffy pressed up against her leg. Lionel climbed into the front passenger seat and Grams started the engine. She backed up and drove past the front of the castle.

  Ebony stood on the stairs. One hand was pressed to her mouth and the other to her stomach as King Arwyn spoke to her.

  A group of faeries stood at the end of the drive. As we slowed and then stopped, two of them started to open the veil.

  ‘Service with a smile,’ I said.

  Isla blinked her eyes a couple of times and looked out of the window.

  ‘Poor Ebony.’ I actually felt sorry for her; coming all this way just to have Orion killed before they were married.

  ‘They’re getting ready to close the veil,’ Isla said.

  ‘Close it?’

  ‘It will be sealed during the official mourning period for Orion. For thirty days.’ She pivoted and looked at the castle through the back window.

  The veil was open in front of us and Grams put her foot on the accelerator.

  ‘Wait,’ Isla said. ‘We have to stay.’

  ‘We can’t,’ I said. ‘Your Mum, she doesn’t mean it. But she’s a little crazy at the moment and you and I make it worse.’

  ‘You don’t understand.’ Even in her grief her brain worked better than mine. ‘Ebony came to marry the heir to the faery throne. Not Orion.’

  As we drove through the veil I spun in my seat to stare out the back. Aethan was standing on the front stairs of the castle and Arwyn was placing Ebony’s hand in his.

  ‘Stop,’ I screeched, but it was too late.

  The edges of the veil started to flutter back together. The last thing I saw before the veil was sealed, was Ebony rise on her tiptoes to press a kiss to Aethan’s lips.

  ************* THE END **************

  Thank You

  Thank you for reading Faery Forged. If you liked my story I would love for you to give me the gift of a review on the site you purchased it. It doesn’t have to be gushy or flowery or even very long; I just ask that it is honest and fair. Thank you so much for your generosity and time.

  If you would like to find out when my new fantasy books are released, you can Join My Bookclubs on my website – www.donnajoyusher.com or type http://eepurl.com/bmJpNL into your browser.

  About Me

&n
bsp; Hi there, I’m Donna Joy Usher. I started writing my first novel when I was seven. With no idea about plot or character development (I mean I was only seven) my storyline quickly disintegrated into a muddled jumble of boring dialogue between two horses. Disillusioned, I gave up writing stories for quite a while after that. Instead, I concentrated on my studies, eventually graduating as a dentist.

  After many years of ‘drilling and filling’ I turned to writing in an effort to escape the seriousness of my day job. During that time I created my first book, The Seven Steps to Closure, and discovered that I love nothing more than making other people laugh. Well that, and my husband and two miniature schnauzers, Chloe and Xena.

  I currently live near the Swan River in the beautiful city of Perth. When I am not working or writing, I love to kayak, ride my bicycle, and sip chai lattes at the local cafe.

  You can connect with me on Facebook, Goodreads, or my website – www.donnajoyusher.com.

  What To Read Next...

  You’ll be pleased to hear that Faery Revenge, the last installment in The War Faery Trilogy, is now available from the same retailer you bought your copy of Faery Forged. If you click on the cover below it will take you to a page with links to the different retailers. Alternatively, type http://donnajoyusher.com/fantasy-4/ into your browser.

  FREE BOOK OFFER

  So I know you like fantasy, cause you’ve read this far, but I’m wondering if you might like some of my other work???

  Just in case you’re a multi-genre reader who also enjoys Cozy Mystery, I’d like to offer you book one in The Chanel Series, Cocoa and Chanel, for FREE. Just click the button below. Alternatively, you can access my Free Book Offer on my website – www.donnajoyusher.com.

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  Also by Donna Joy Usher

  The Chanel Series

  Cocoa and Chanel

  Goons 'n' Roses

  Tess's Tale

  Billy

  Goons 'n' Roses PLUS Tess's Tale - Books Two and Three in The Chanel Series

  The Chanel Series: Books 1-3 (The Chanel Series Box Set One)

  Two Weddings and a Fugitive

  Two Weddings and a Fugitive (Book 4 in The Chanel Series) Plus The Seven Steps to Closure

  The War Faery Trilogy

  Faery Born

  Faery Forged

  Faery Revenge

  The War Faery Trilogy: Books 2-3

  The War Faery Trilogy: Books 1-3

  Standalone

  The Seven Steps to Closure