by Ellen, Jo
Dunstan had retrieved his dirk from Stephen’s room. He would not be careless with his property again.
Stephen turned and went to his bed. He did not notice the door closing behind him. He was thinking that the bed looked inviting. I’ll take a little nap, and then look for someplace to eat.
Dunstan sighed as he sat up on his bed. Being imprisoned by his father for so long, he thought he would never see the mortal plain again.
Ciar never wanted a family. His power over his territory in the unseelie court was what he craved. When his son disobeyed him, his punishment was fierce. Unfortunately, being chained in his dungeon was something Dunstan had become accustomed to.
His mother had been young and impressed by his father’s looks and charisma. He had been very charming, so she didn’t realize the evil underneath. Dunstan’s memories were of a sad woman that tried very hard to hide it from him.
When Dunstan did not do his father’s bidding, he was punished by being chained in the dungeon. The last time, his mother had somehow released him, pushing him to leave and go to the mortal world. He didn’t want to leave without her, but she made him promise to go. Begging her to come with him, she refused. He did not know or understand what hold his father had over her. She was physically strong, but Ciar was stronger.
Dunstan escaped, leaving his mother behind as promised. He had travelled all over the world, hoping he could find the power to defeat his father and save his mother.
After many years, he decided to go back. No matter what his father did to him, he wanted to see how his mother was faring.
Going through the castle doors, it was as if nothing had changed. It was a cold, unfeeling place. Asking servants about his mother, he received no response. They were too intimidated by his father. He went looking for his mother, searching her usual places. He could not find her anywhere. Going to her bedroom, he searched for any sign of her presence. He tromped from her room, heading for his father’s throne room. There were no other words to describe it. The room was huge and empty, except for the large chair placed on a dais.
“The prodigal returns. Very brave of you to just walk right in,” Ciar said menacingly.
“I need to be brave to visit my father,” he said sarcastically. “What have you done with my mother?”
“How sweet. Such a mama’s boy. As you saw, she’s not here. I threw her and that whelp she had out.”
Ciar was too arrogant to let anyone think she may have escaped. Throwing her out would appeal more to his ego.
“Whelp? What the hell are you talking about?” Dunstan asked angrily.
“Had you cared to visit your family, you would have known. I have more important things to see to.”
With that, Ciar waved his hand and Dunstan was immediately thrown into the dungeon. Before he could react, his body was pinned and shackled to the wall.
“Where is she,” he screamed.
Dunstan was stunned. So many questions swirled through his head. Had his mother escaped, or had his father really kicked her out? Where would she go, what realm would she feel the safest in? Was she even alive?
Then he remembered Ciar’s words. He had a sibling. Unless he was lying. Dunstan knew he could not trust anything Ciar told him. Still, he couldn’t help wondering. Maybe he had a brother, or sister. He spent days, weeks, months, contemplating what his father said. He lost track of time. Being part fae, he knew he wouldn’t die in that dungeon. Unless, his head was chopped off. Somehow he doubted even his father could be that evil.
He sent his mind outwards, searching. Physically restrained, but mentally he traveled wherever he wanted to go. He kept feeling a pull to the mortal world. He didn’t know what to believe. Was it his mother? Sibling? He spent many hours planning. Someday he would escape. He would find his family and never return to his father’s place again.
So here he was, in a small east Texas town. Why that redhead? He was not his father’s son. He would not kidnap her and force her to help him. He thought it ironic being summoned to this place. Maybe there was universal awareness. Maybe this was how fate or destiny worked. He just didn’t know. He had felt a pull here while stuck in that dungeon, mentally traveling. Maybe his family was here, he thought. Was that redhead his sister? No, he’d felt no darkness in her. Not in the dark haired woman either.
Maybe, somehow related to his mother then? No, the redhead wasn’t a wolf. He sighed, disgusted. He could go round and round trying to figure this out.
He had to figure out a way to talk to her before she was mated. He knew once she was, there was no way he could get close to her. The wolves were merciless when protecting what was theirs. She must have some knowledge of his mother, he decided. Otherwise, why would she call to him?
Rafe and Mack went into the great room, followed by Ian and Devlin. Once everyone was seated, they looked to Robert to begin.
“Sorry it took longer than I’d thought to get back. I had to search further than I’d imagined looking for these two. Not all my men were working on their sword skills,” he said sardonically.
“Really? What’s more important than using your sword skillfully?” Devlin asked innocently.
Robert laughed, as once again, Mack slapped the back of Devlin’s head.
Turning serious, Robert began his report. “We have heard nothing in the seelie courts. My men have been asking around, but no one has had any news from the dark court. If anyone there were planning something, they’ve managed to keep it quiet. When I spoke with the Queen, she said we were at yer service as long as you need us. We are under yer command.”
“Convey my thanks to the Queen when you see her next. I would like one man to stay in the area of the pond. The other one, I need to patrol the woods with my wolves. My pack knows everyone allowed on the property. They will be able to tell you if a trespasser is a stranger. Robert, I expect, will roam as he pleases, going wherever necessary,” Rafe said.
Chase had come in when the meeting had started. “I need to go back to my house. We’ll be patrolling our area too. If we hear or see anything, I’ll let you know.”
Chase said his goodbyes as the meeting broke up. The guards left to patrol their areas. As Mack left to go to the kitchen, Robert turned to speak with Rafe.
“You do know we can see magic in some people, right?” When Rafe nodded, Robert continued. “I see magic in your mate.” Robert did not mention what he’d also seen in Anna. He needed time to think.
Rafe was shocked. As far as he could tell, she was human.
“What do you mean what kind of magic? Is she fae?”
“I don’t know. I can see something in her aura. It’s not like any magic I’ve seen in seelie or unseelie. Do you know anything about her family?”
Rafe realized that he didn’t know much. After learning her parents had been killed in an accident, he hadn’t probed any further.
“No, other than the loss of her parents, I don’t know anything about family. But, we only met twenty-four hours ago. She planned to visit with Stephanie for two weeks. We’re using that time to get to know one another. She had no idea there was magic in the world. Much less that she had any abilities.”
“I don’t believe in coincidences. I find it strange that there is this dark premonition, and then you find your mate who happens to be magical,” stated Robert.
Rafe shot off the sofa, challenging Robert.
“You think Lisa is involved in this?” he growled.
“Involved in what?” Lisa asked as she and the other women joined the men.
“Calm down, Rafe. I’m not accusing her of anything. I’m just putting the pieces together,” Robert said.
Rafe went over to Lisa and led her to the sofa. As everyone got settled, Rafe calmed down enough to fill them in on the meeting. Rafe nodded to Robert, signaling to him to tell Lisa about what he’d seen.
“Lisa, I understand you’ve recently learned of my people. Well, one of our abilities is being able to see magic. To put it bluntly, I see magic in yo
ur aura.”
Lisa was shocked, again. I have entered a world of crazy people, she thought.
“I don’t have any magic. I can’t even do any tricks,” she said half-jokingly.
“Yes, you do, lass. Think about it. Have you ever known things in advance? Been able to open a door by thinking about it? There are different abilities. I’m just mentioning a couple. Your magic is different. I’ve not seen the same before. Think about your family. Does anything come to mind, maybe parents or grandparents were a little different?”
Lisa sat contemplating. She thought of happier days when her parents were still alive. That brought a smile to her face. Remembering how her mom would always know when she needed her. Then her dad, how he would hug her and say she was his little fairy princess.
“Oh, my God!” She exclaimed. “My mom, she always knew things. And my dad, he called me his fairy princess.”
She was stunned. Her parents were just Mom and Dad. She was used to them, never thinking any deeper. Her parents were normal to her, nothing different from other families. No, they were wrong. There was nothing special about her. She was getting caught up in their delirium.
Lisa looked around the room, noticing everyone was staring at her. They think I’m the cause of all this. What a load of crap! She had absolutely nothing to do with all this paranormal bullshit.
“Look, I am not a fairy, or fae, whatever. My mom was just intuitive, and every father calls his little girl a princess. I am not responsible for that prophesy thing. Nor am I dark or evil,” she said angrily.
Rafe laid his hand on her thigh, thinking to calm her.
“We don’t think you’re evil, and we aren’t blaming you for any of this. You’ve had a lot thrown at you in a short amount of time, but I don’t believe in coincidences either. Adding to the problem is this man that was watching you. I think he is part of it”
“What man? What haven’t you told me?” asked Robert.
“I hadn’t gotten around to it yet,” said Rafe.
As Lisa repeated her story, she insisted that the man wasn’t the threat. She explained how she felt he needed her help, and wasn’t sent to harm her.
“Do you hear what you’re saying, lass? You feel he needs help and that he won’t hurt you. Please, trust me. I’m not lying about seeing your magic. Has he come to you in dreams?” asked Robert.
Lisa whispered, “How did you know?”
The room erupted with everyone throwing questions at her.
Ian put his fingers in his mouth and whistled, loudly. The wolves in the room cringed at the shrill noise, but it got their attention.
“Everyone, be quiet and let her speak. Lisa, would you tell us about the dreams?”
After describing them, they sat trying to understand how this affected the prophesy. Lisa was coming to terms with everything she had learned. With Robert insisting she had magic, she started examining herself and her life in a new light. She looked up at Rafe, beseechingly. She needed to get out of here, away from everyone, so she could think.
Rafe stood, pulling Lisa up as he did. “There’s nothing more to do tonight. We can discuss this more tomorrow, after we all get a good night’s sleep.”
Devlin came over and hugged her while telling her everything would be fine. As they all wished her goodnight, she understood then that they were supporting her and not blaming her. Liz kissed her cheek, reassuring her that things would look better in the morning. Lisa felt her eyes water, remembering how her mom used to say the same thing.
Arriving at her room, Rafe asked if she wanted him to come in. “Just to sit with you, no nefarious intentions, I promise,” he smiled.
Lisa laughed softly. He was good at cheering her up. “Thanks, but no. I have a lot of thinking and processing to do.” He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her. Expecting a kiss goodnight, she was surprised when he just held her tighter, and then said goodnight.
Watching him go back downstairs, she sighed and closed her door. She peeled her clothes off as she walked to the bathroom. I’ll pick them up later, she thought. After adjusting the temperature for her shower, she stepped in under the spray. She took a quick shower, wanting to put her soft nightshirt on and fall into bed. Pulling the comforter back, she climbed into bed, enjoying how soft the bed was. Hearing a soft knock on the door, she knew it was Stephanie. Nothing psychic. She just knew Steph would want to make sure she was okay. After bidding her to come in, Steph opened the door and came to sit by her, leaning against the headboard.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I will be. Once I get the bomb dropped on me tonight to finish blowing me apart.”
Stephanie laughed. “You couldn’t just be a wolf’s mate. You gotta be a fairy princess too. Hey, see if you can close the door. It’d be so cool to have a best friend doing magical stuff.”
Leave it to Stephanie to bring her back to earth. She made it seem so commonplace. No worries about Steph looking at her differently. With just those few words, Lisa felt almost normal again. Normal enough to freak Stephanie out, if she could. She concentrated on closing the door, figuring why not try it?
The door slammed shut with a loud bang. They almost jumped out of their skin. Looking at each other wide-eyed, they started laughing hysterically.
“You just scared the crap out of me,” Steph was gasping for air.
“I scared the crap out me too!” Lisa said.
The bedroom door burst open. Rafe, Colin, Ian, Devlin, and Robert ran into the room.
Of course, that started them laughing all over again. Seeing that the women were fine, the men relaxed, and asked what was going on.
“Lisa closed the door harder than she intended,” Steph said innocently.
“Umm, I kind of closed it with my mind. Sorry, I didn’t mean to slam it.”
“I knew it!” shouted Robert.
“Well, I didn’t. It just adds one more topping on my sundae from hell. Now, if you will all just go away, I’m going to sleep and hope for a dreamless night.”
They all traipsed from her room with Rafe lingering behind the others. “Good night, again. You know where I am if you need me.” He quietly closed the door.
She reached over and turned off the bedside lamp. Curling on her side, she closed her eyes hoping for sleep. She lay there for a while with her eyes tightly shut. Then she flipped to her back and opened her eyes to stare at the ceiling. There was a small amount of light coming in from the windows. Sleep just wasn’t going to happen.
One refrain kept going through her head. I have magic, over and over again. What am I? What were my parents? She found herself going over her life with a microscope. Breaking down every little thing that may have been different from the families of her friends.
Thinking of her dad brought back happy memories. He was so normal. There was just no way, he was anything but human, she decided. She was a daddy’s girl and proud of it. Her father had cherished both her and her mom. She had been blessed with wonderful parents.
He had worked for the city planning department, for God’s sake. Having an analytical mind had been one of his strong points. Okay, I didn’t get this ‘gift’ from Dad.
Must have been Mom, she thought. She was a stay-at-home mom by choice. Lisa was remembering her mom showing up for every school party or function. Usually, she was the one that planned everything, from snacks to the games the kids would play.
There was something different about her mom, though. Lisa had never sat down and thought about it before. Mom was just Mom to her. Thinking back, she knew who would be coming to visit beforehand. She predicted the weather better than the guy on TV did. Getting sleepy now, Lisa’s last thought was about her mom’s green thumb. Didn’t everyone talk to plants and sing to them while planting?
Rafe and his brothers were up early the next day. Their mom was already in the kitchen preparing breakfast. He kissed her on the cheek while reaching up in the cupboard for a coffee mug. Leaning against the counter, he waited while Robert and
one of his guards came in.
“Anyone else want some coffee?”
“Ach no, don’t know how you drink that stuff,” said Robert.
“Don’t worry. I made some tea for you and your guys. I remembered you preferred tea,” said Liz.
“May the blessing of light be upon you. If you weren’t already mated, I’d take you back to Faerie with me.”
“Flirting with my mate so early in the day? Don’t make me spill fae blood first thing in the morning,” Mack quipped as he walked in.
Rafe grabbed two more mugs for his brothers before he seated himself. There wasn’t any more talking as the food was put on the table. Once they all had their fill, Robert spoke.
“I think Lisa’s mother must have been a witch.” Mack and Liz looked at him in surprise, so Rafe explained what had happened last night.
“I’ve been thinking the same, all night long, as a matter of fact. Never met one, as far as I know. Just heard rumors of their powers,” Rafe told them.
“I said I hadn’t seen magic like hers before, but I’m thinking I was wrong. Many, many years ago, I met a woman that had an aura similar to Lisa’s. It had been so long, I had forgotten about her. What I do remember is that her power came from nature. Since Lisa seemed to tap into it so easily, I think she is either very powerful or the waters might be helping her. I’m just guessing here, but we could test her,” said Robert.
“Test who?” Colin asked, as he came in and grabbed the coffeepot.
Rafe explained to Colin what they had discussed, asking him if he had known Lisa’s parents.
“Yeah, I met them a couple of times, but if you’re asking if I noticed anything different about them, then no, I didn’t. I know that Lisa was the joy of their lives, but they seemed like any other human couple I’d met.”
“I’ll talk to her about testing her powers. I don’t want her frightened by this, so leave it to me to speak with her,” Rafe announced.
After clearing the dishes, they went their separate ways. Liz told them to send the other guards in after they were relieved to eat breakfast.
