Ethan paused for a moment before continuing. "Now, let me make sure I get this straight. You've joined up with the people who took you, who hurt you. The people who wanted to take Katie?" I tried to tell myself that I was imagining the growl that had entered Ethan's voice.
"No. There's nothing to join." For the time being, it seemed smartest to leave out that I was being held against my will. "This isn't some big conspiracy. What it is, is a mess. And I know that Galway isn't your city, and you have no reason to get involved here. But I need your help."
"I won't help those people," Ethan said.
"Not them, me. I just want to see if I can find a peaceful way out of this. For everyone. Because what comes next can't be more bloodshed, can it? You will retaliate over what happened to Katie, and the fae will get their revenge. And then the families of those people you've killed will hold their own grudges. It could turn into a whole different war even before the summit starts. This could end any chance at a future for all of us because I'm pretty sure the humans won't be able to ignore a full-scale battle across the continent between the vampires, the werewolves, the witches, the fae, and everyone else. It's too much! We need to stop this before it has a chance to start."
"I think you're overestimating your new friends, Melanie. If there's a war, I know which side will win. The lesser magicks can't stand against the force of all four factions. They won't have a chance."
"Maybe so. But how much damage will they be able to do before they're stopped? Maybe only a few more people will die, but that's still too many. On either side. And just to be very clear, I'm not on any side. I want nothing to do with any of this, but I don't want you or anyone else getting sucked in either. This has to stop."
"And how do you propose we make that happen?"
"Talking seems like the best place to start. Somewhere out in the open and where no one can get hurt without risking exposure. I think I can get people here come to the table, but only if they know they are going to be heard by people who will actually do something. Having all of the leaders of Ireland's factions in one place has to be enough to at least get them interested. But even if it's just you, that would be a start. I don't know, I'm making this up as I go along. What do you think?"
Ethan didn't answer right away, and I could hear people talking the background. How many people in that house with him could hear every word I just said? So instead of worrying, I continued. “You mentioned what the vampires wanted, and the witches, and the fae. But what about the wolves? What about you? Katie's safe, and it's going to stay that way. The only person who really got hurt in the attack on your people was me, and if I want to forgive them shouldn't you be able to do the same? I don't know how many wolves live in Ireland, but if you're responsible for all of them, finding a way to make peace has to be in their best interest."
Ethan didn't answer, so I had to at least hope that I'd made an opening for myself. "How about this, talk to whoever you need to talk to. You can even tell them this is coming from me if you think that will help. I'll do the same and we will see where that gets us. I don't need you to promise anything, just to try. Try to find a way to make peace and we’ll see where that gets us."
"I'm not sure if what you're asking for is possible."
"But you'll try?"
"I'll try. I'll text you if I come up with anything."
"Perfect. Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I'll do the same. And good luck."
We hung up a few moments later and I slipped my phone back in my pocket. A weapon to use again when I most needed it.
That conversation had gone better than I had expected, which just possibly meant that my luck might be changing. But luck was always a funny thing, and the next person I had to talk to was a murderer who could control mine.
Aoife was who I needed to convince, to not only let me go, but to talk to the people she considered her enemies, and hopefully bring all her houseguests along for the ride. While it seemed possible that the wolves wanted to prolong peace, some of the people in that castle with me were sick and tired of the version of peace they had been living with their whole lives. They wanted more, and it seemed more and more likely that they'd be willing to fight for it. To kill for it.
Still, this didn't have to be their battlefield. This wasn't their best shot. They had come to Galway expecting to find half a werewolf pack, alone and unawares, and ended up with far more than they'd bargained for.
It was a start. And yet, as I made my way back downstairs to track down Galway's very own leprechaun, I knew there was no way luck was going to be on my side for this one. Not with things how they were. What I needed was to find a way to put Aoife and I on the same side long enough to get everyone out alive.
Chapter 17
Getting my way didn't end up feeling as satisfying as I hoped it would.
Aoife wanted a chance to talk to Ireland's factions, though she didn't give her reasons, and I handed it to her on a silver platter. At least some of the people Ethan was responsible for seemed willing to play ball as well.
The only upside was that no one wanted to wait, to give the other side time to regroup.
We'd be meeting in an hour.
The rabbit hole back to town ended up being the very same chair I'd been sitting in earlier. All you had to do was shut the curtains, turn on the light in a closet three rooms over, hold a rock in your hand, and the rabbit hole opened, depositing one person at a time directly on the toilet seat in the ladies’ room in the same pub we'd left from.
The woman I'd seen watching me the night before worked at that bar as an extra set of eyes for Aoife, and cleared out the bathroom when needed to make sure people could pass through unnoticed. Usually, even she may have had a problem giving the all clear since every person who was currently staying with Aoife had been called on to join us and we could only move one at a time, but since the pub wasn't open yet, things went more or less smoothly.
I didn't enjoy the feeling of having my body magically transported any more than I had the first time. But after an extremely disorienting few seconds, I was finally back in downtown Galway, minutes from home.
Following behind Patrick, with Tate not far behind me, I stepped back out into the sunlit city. We were close enough to the bay to hear water lapping in the distance, and a few gulls cawing over one another.
It was enough to help center me, and remind me of why exactly I was there in the first place. What I had to fight for. Otherwise, it might have been a little too tempting to just start running and hope that none of the lesser magicks who were with me would risk causing a scene in order to chase me down.
If I was honest with myself though, that was never so much an option as a temptation. I'd promised Ethan I'd be at the meeting the two of us had helped to organize, so that's what I needed to do.
Doing our best to look casual, our group made our way down the sidewalk of the narrow street where we'd landed on. Every minute or so, almost too casually, one or two people would slip away, the size of our group diminishing the closer we got to the center of Galway.
"Where's everyone going?" I asked, leaning toward Tate to make sure he could hear me.
"Aoife didn't want to show our full numbers to the faction leaders, so we're splitting up. You'll be with Aoife, Nina, and a few of the others at the meeting. There's nothing to worry about."
"What about you?"
"I'll be nearby, helping to make sure everything goes smoothly."
He was gone a minute later, Sebastián right behind him.
At least I knew that even if the people I was with weren't all people I could trust, I was at least walking toward someone who was on my side in this.
Ethan.
I spotted him standing in the park where we'd decided to meet as what was left of our group approached from across the road.
Eyre Square has been the heart of Galway City for as long as I've lived here. A small patch of green in the middle of a city surrounded by green. It's only the size of a small
city block, mostly covered in grass and walkways, with trees and park benches breaking up the space. Near the top is a piece of contemporary art I've never really been able to understand, though I do love seeing it yarn-bombed every once in a while.
I'd been to the square enough that I could have pictured it almost exactly at any moment by just shutting my eyes. Which made it that much easier to see that something definitely didn't look right.
Besides Ethan and a few people I didn't recognize, the square was completely empty. There were people going about their business on each of the four streets surrounding the park, but no one crossed over, no one even looked at what was happening in one of Galway's most famous landmarks for more than a few seconds.
It had to be magick, some sort of perception bubble placed over our meeting place as an extra precaution.
Just one more thing I hadn't known to be ready for.
Together, the six of us still remaining in our group stopped at the edge of the street, waiting for the light overhead to give us the go ahead to cross the street into the park.
It was no surprise that Aoife had decided to include herself in these discussions, but it was a relief to have Nina there as well. Patrick, Jeff, and a man I hadn't been introduced to made up the rest of our group. I didn't bother trying to hide my interest as I slowly turned my head, taking in each one of them in turn.
Aoife seemed more interested in what was going on nearby rather than the people waiting for us in the square, while Nina stared squarely ahead, an intense look of concentration masking any emotion. Both Jeff and the man I didn't know looked about the same. But if Patrick had been trying to hide any of his feelings about being asked along, he was doing a lousy job. Beads of sweat dripped from his temple into the scruff of his short beard while a few damp spots showed through his blue shirt.
"Now it's my turn to check in," I said, taking a step backward. "Are you okay?"
"Sure," he answered, not looking at me. His eyes were too busy darting from place to place, person to person. "I just didn't think I'd be asked to be a part of this. Douglas, the buddy I came here with, is out there somewhere," he looked toward the busy streets around us, "but I barely know Aoife. I'm just feeling a lot of pressure not to screw up right now."
"You'll be fine," I answered automatically. "I'm sure she just wanted a few people here to make a more impressive showing. Nothing to worry about."
"I hope you're right, I've just never been this up close and personal with any of the greater magicks before. It's something I generally try to avoid."
"Right there with you," I said. But before I could come up with a slightly less pathetic pep talk, the symbol across the street changed to walk, signaling that it was time for us to get a move on.
Focusing on what I was headed toward, rather than the people around me, I made my feet start moving.
From the other side of the park, I couldn't say for sure whether it was me that Ethan's eyes were trained on, or someone else in my group. Either way, after only a few steps I forced myself to look away and take in the other people standing with him.
To his left was a woman with shiny black hair tied in intricate braids. She was probably about average height, but the impressive black pumps she'd worn pushed her closer to Ethan's height. That, combined with the excessive amount of purple magick I could see pulsating from her body, she made for an intimidating figure.
Whoever she was, she was a witch, and a powerful one.
The man and the woman standing together on the other side of Ethan were far more normal-looking. Though looks can be deceiving. Green magick in the air around them marked both the portly older gentleman and haggard-looking housewife beside him as fae.
Two fae, a witch, and a werewolf. It wasn't a combination I'd been expecting, but was still relieved to see that Ethan had gotten people from multiple factions to join us here today. Perhaps the vampires would have been more inclined to a nighttime meeting, but since they weren't in any way involved in any of this yet, I was more than happy to see them excluded.
The park being as small as it was, only offered us about a minute’s worth of time to size up the other group before we were all standing face-to-face. Somehow, I'd ended up in the middle of our group right beside Aoife. All around us, life went on as usual. I tried to find something to focus on to try and calm my racing heart, but all the people and places outside the square felt like a different world.
Then I saw Taya, just standing on the corner, pretending to look at her phone while other people passed her by without a second look. If she was here, the odds were good there were other witches, and wolves, and maybe even fae nearby as well. Security.
"Uhh," I started a few seconds later when no one else seemed to be willing to speak first. "Should we do introductions?"
"You are Melanie Sinclair," the witch woman said. "I am not concerned with the others. I have long wondered what the prophecy child might have been like if they'd had a chance to survive ...the results are somewhat underwhelming."
"Nice to meet you too," I said, "but we're not here to talk about me, other than yes, my name is Melanie. I'm from Galway, and would like to see my city go back to being a quiet little town where no one bothers one another. Beside me is Aoife, leprechaun." I could practically hear Aoife starting to argue beside me, but I didn't waste a second looking at her. Maybe it had been unfair to out her abilities, I didn't know what the etiquette was in this situation, but in her case, I didn't really care.
Still, the thought was enough to have me keep my mouth shut beyond the names of everyone else there with me who wasn't a faction member.
"This," I said, gesturing toward Ethan, "is Ethan Murphy, Alpha of Ireland's werewolf pack. This bitch is a witch,” unable to hold in my temper, “and the other two are fae."
There. Now both sides had a few secrets out in the open. Since I figured that absolutely everyone knew my story by that point, I was entirely okay with a little less secrecy all around.
"Now," I continued, "what I'd really like to know is what needs to happen for everyone here to go back home and let bygones be bygones."
"Call off the summit," Aoife answered immediately. "Humans will learn about our world when someone is stupid enough not to cover their tracks. But we've all existed side by side for this long, it's how we should continue."
I expected a rebuttal, but instead, the fae woman held up her hand. "Apologies. I am not here to discuss the summit, or to hear demands from those whose powers could not fit inside a teacup. My companion is willing to listen to what you have to say, but I am in attendance in order to bring about retribution for the life lost. Now," the fae woman continued, mimicking my tone, "who is responsible for the fae life lost not two days ago?"
Everyone went silent. And even though I could still hear the wind rustling through the trees overhead, a car honking in the distance, and the bustle of human life around us, it all felt a million miles away.
"They aren't here," I said, not sure what else to do. Even though Ethan hadn't mentioned the fae who had come to see him in more than a passing manner, I'd known this was a possibility. But even after have a little time to think it over, I hadn't come up with any real solutions.
"No," Aoife said, putting her hand on my arm in an oddly familiar way. I wanted to shrug it off, but a look of warning was burning out of Aoife's eyes as her gaze met mine. "They're right. If we want peace, there is a debt that must be paid."
My brows knitted together as I tried to find the angel she was playing. If Aoife was really about to fall on her own sword for the rest of us, I had very much underestimated her. "I knew going into this meeting that justice would be called for, and as such have brought the culprit with me." Umm, what? I looked around at the others searching for some hint about what was happening, but they looked as concerned as I felt.
Aoife wasn't done. "The animal involved was mine, taken from my home by someone I had treated as a guest. If required, I will deliver the beast to you."
I didn't ev
en have a chance to be truly horrified at the fact that this woman was willing to sacrifice her own dog before the fae responded. "We have no interest in a mere animal, no matter what it's actions were, the dog is innocent in this. On behalf of the Seelie court, it is the human culprit I demand."
Demurely, Aoife nodded. "Of course. Patrick?"
Silence fell again. I turned my back to the fae to look toward the man I'd eaten with that morning. What did he have to do with any of this? Had that been his role, to be Aoife's scapegoat? Because no matter what she was about to tell those we'd come here to speak with, I knew she was the one who had been responsible for the fae girl's death. Patrick looked at Aoife, shrugging in question.
I saw her move a second too late. "There is no time for that now, you must take responsibility for the pain you have caused," Aoife whispered, sounding only mildly saddened by the situation. The situation she was orchestrating.
"No!" I cried out. But the fae woman had already moved, stepping toward Patrick and pulling him into an embrace. With Sebastián at Patrick's back and the fae woman in front of him, I could barely see what was happening.
The embrace lasted only seconds before Patrick's flesh silently melted into dust. The last I saw of him was nothing more than ash blowing in the wind.
My eyes stayed locked on the place where Patrick had just been a second ago as the fae woman stepped back.
My body had grown hot with anger as my fists clenched at my sides. "What the hell is wrong with you people? Patrick didn't ..."
Nina stepped in front of me. "Please," she said, addressing the fae woman, "ignore her. She doesn't understand how this works. Justice has been served, no one else needs to get hurt." The last bit left Nina's mouth with extra emphasis.
I was already stuck in my own head, planning my next argument when I realized that she'd meant it for me.
"What's done is done," Aoife added.
I was just about ready to punch that woman in the face. Was that the whole reason she'd brought Patrick along with us, as someone to sacrifice so that she wouldn't feel the consequences for her crimes.
Magic in my Bones (Lesser Magicks Book 1) Page 13
