"They didn't have access to the Staran where they were so they're..."
"But I used the Staran to get here," she interrupted.
"You did?"
"Yes. The lampads directed me to it."
"Ah. Yes, well I don't think the lampads would have let more people visit them. They're notorious for being antisocial."
"Believe it or not, I got that impression," she muttered, bitterness colouring every word.
"What did they show you, Macey?" he asked softly.
"It doesn't matter." She looked away, not wanting him to see the guilt she was sure rested in her eyes.
"Clearly it does." He reached forward and pulled her hand away from the sheet, slipping it into his and squeezing gently. "Tell me?" he pleaded.
Indecision warred within her. She longed to talk to someone about what had happened, even if it was only so she could move past it. Yet there was a part of her that loathed to admit how weak she'd been. It might just have been words the lampads tortured her with, but that didn't mean they hadn't hurt. Nor did it mean she hadn't taken them to heart. Her rampage the day before had been proof of that.
Guilt welled up inside her. Had she truly believed Amber would do that to her? Sweet, reliable Amber who'd been her friend even when she thought Macey was going to kill her.
A choking sound, across between a laugh and a sob escaped from Macey. After all this time, Amber's dream about Macey killing her had almost come true.
How could she have done that?
How could she have been so careless?
"Macey, please stop?" Flint begged. "Don't do this to yourself."
"But I..."
"No, Macey. You didn't. You were just being tested. It was all part of it..."
"I..." She stopped speaking as soon as she'd started. She didn't actually know what she wanted to say. A part of her wanted to apologise to her friends, but another part didn't want to face what had happened yet.
"Amber is waiting outside, Macey. She's worried about you. Not scared of you. Not hating you. She loves you like a sister and is here for you."
"But not Izban?" Her voice cracked as she asked.
An uneasy look flitted across Flint's face. "No, not Izban. It'll take him a little while to come around I think."
Cold dread flowed through her. All she kept doing was pushing the Ice Warden away with threats. If she wasn't careful, he really would end up betraying them. She had no idea how it would come about, or how he'd be able to do that to Amber, but something deep in gut told her this was a turning point and she needed to be careful.
"I know you're scared, Macey. I know your guilt and your shame don't want you to face her, but maybe talking to Amber is the best thing you can do."
She nodded slowly. "Maybe."
"I'll send her in." He got to his feet and leaned in to kiss her on the forehead.
Macey closed her eyes, enjoying the comfort he conveyed in his kiss. She longed to grab his arm and demand he stay with her, but she knew that was her nerves talking and not any genuine sentiment.
"I won't be far, just outside the door," he assured her, as if knowing what she was thinking.
"Thank you," she said weakly.
"You're welcome." He let go of her and strode over to the door. He stepped outside and she heard the murmur of voices, no doubt him talking to Amber and persuading her it was safe for her to come in.
The red-head slipped through the door moments later, hurriedly making her way over to the chair next to the bed and dropping down into it.
"How are you feeling?" she asked, compassion filling every word.
"Fine," she lied.
Amber's face said it all. There was no fooling the beithir.
"What happened?"
Macey considered for a couple of moments, wondering what she could tell Amber and what she needed to leave out. Before she'd even finished considering it, everything came tumbling out. Everything from the lampads test and the journey to get there. Everything that had gone through Macey's head once she'd returned to Malan's house.
She couldn't stop the words, but she did watch Amber's face, trying to work out how the other woman was taking it. Particularly the parts which painted Amber herself in a bad light.
"I know you wouldn't..."
"It doesn't matter," Amber interrupted softly. "I understand. It wasn't about me, our friendship, or even how much you trust me. You were in a vulnerable position and they latched on to every doubt you've ever had. I don't think any of us would have reacted any differently in your position. And anyone who says they would is lying."
"You really think that?" Macey asked. She hoped the other woman was telling the truth, but dared not assume. She didn't want to lose her friend, but nor did she want people to lie to her through fear.
"Yes, I really think that. It's not your fault, Macey. You should ignore anyone who says it is."
The way she phrased that made one thing clear in Macey's mind. Izban blamed her. And it was going to take more than an apology to bring him around.
"What should I do about Izban?" Macey asked carefully. "I know he must feel left out sometimes, with you being my friend and the other men being my partners. I don't want him to be a seventh wheel on this cart we're steering into danger."
Amber sighed. "I don't think Iz has ever been particularly social. Don't take it personally. He's got the social skills of a caveman and the empathy of a troll. And yes, I love him nonetheless." She blushed. "He's good at other things." She winked at Macey and just like that, the tension in the room ebbed away.
"By the way," Amber blushed even more, "I've been wondering how you do it. Four guys, it can't be easy."
Macey laughed, surprising herself. "Do you mean emotionally? Or physically?"
Amber grinned. "The latter. Not that I'm not interested in the relationship you have, but right now I'm feeling more like I want to know all the juicy details."
She wiggled an eyebrow suggestively at that last bit.
"Amber," Macey groaned. "Please don't use words like that."
"No? What about moist? There must be a lot of moisture when you all come together. You know, you being a water being and all that."
Macey's face was flaming red by now. "Can we go back to discussing the end of the world? That's so much less embarrassing than my love life."
Amber chuckled. "Well, let me tell you, using magic during sex is amazing. Izban has this trick where he conjures ice while he-"
"Amber!"
The beithir laughed loudly. "Okay, okay, but what's really fun is when the ice starts to melt and-"
Macey threw a pillow at her friend, hitting her straight on the nose. She gasped and threw it back. Macey just about managed to evade it, but that meant the pillow hitting the lamp on the bedside table. It fell to the floor, the porcelain base shattering.
Before she could even move to pick up the shards, the door sprang open, Flint running into the room. Sparks covered his hands and he looked ready to interfere whatever cat fight the two women were involved in. They both looked at him as if they were surprised by his presence. They both knew that he'd been standing outside, waiting just in case the girls were going to attack each other. There was a distinct possibility that Izban was somewhere nearby too.
Amber pulled Macey off the bed, smiling innocently at Flint.
"We were just about to see if there's food somewhere. Macey is starving."
Yes, she was actually, now that she came to think of it. Food hadn't been a high priority but now that Flint was healed, the other guys on the way back and Amber not dead by Macey's hands, she could really do with a meal.
"Waffles?" she asked hopefully.
Flint shook his head. "All we have is soup. Malan made it, so I don't know how good it is. The storm kelpies brought some fish earlier, but you're a vegetarian, so I didn't reserve any of that for you."
"How did Malan make soup?" Macey inquired. "He doesn't exactly have a body."
Flint shrugged. "No idea, I wasn't
there to witness it. Maybe someone else made it and he's just claiming the credit for it. Who knows."
That sounded like something Malan would do. She just wished he'd made waffles instead of soup. She needed some sugar to keep her going and dispel all the dark memories still lingering at the corners of her mind.
"Let's have some food," she said, slightly more cheery than she thought.
By the time they'd finished their meal, Cam and the others arrived. All three of them were exhausted, but Jared looked healthier than he had when Macey had last seen him.
"We took a little stopover at the hedonist village," he explained at seeing her quizzical look, before hugging her tight. The other two had run over to Flint, checking on him, but Jared stayed with Macey, embracing her.
"Thanks for saving me," he whispered. "Somehow, you managed to save two Wardens in one day. I don't know how you do it, but thanks."
Macey smiled and pushed him just about far enough away so she could look him in the eyes.
"If I hadn't dragged you down in the water, you wouldn't have needed saving."
Instead of replying, he kissed her, his lips full of warmth and passion. The familiar incubus heat tingled on her skin. She peeked at his wrists. He was no longer wearing the cuffs. Good. She'd hated seeing him shackled like that. She couldn't imagine being cut off from her magic like that... well, actually, she could. The Mahoun had done something similar to her.
She returned his kiss, but her mind kept spinning. Now that everyone had returned and Flint had his powers back, they were going to have to go in search of the Mahoun, and defeat him.
Which sounded straight forward, but she knew it wouldn't be as easy as that. Nothing had been easy since the moment her brothers had been captured.
Her brothers.
Guilt welled up within her. Even more than when she'd thought her Wardens were in danger. So much had been going on that she hadn't given them a second thought.
On reflection, neither had her father when they'd visited him, which was odd, to say the least.
"Get me the kelpies," she instructed, not caring who actually followed her directions, so long as someone did.
It was time she had a talk with her own people.
Chapter 8
She didn't recognise any of the men or women her father had sent with her, but that wasn't surprising. She'd been a classic sheltered Princess while living underwater. Just thinking about it had anger rising within her. There'd been no reason to keep her away from everyone. No other kelpie Princess in history had been treated that way. Unless it was something to do with her parentage.
Whatever the reason, she planned on getting to the bottom of it now.
"Princess."
"Your Highness."
"Your Majesty."
Each of the kelpies had their own way of formally greeting her, none of which were by her name. She wished she'd said yes to one of her men being in here with her, then at least she'd have someone who saw her as a person and not something to be worshiped.
"Please sit." She indicated towards the sofa opposite and all three of the kelpies sat hastily.
She smiled at them, but it did nothing to alleviate the nerves they were evidently feeling.
"You called for us?"
Macey held back a sigh of relief. At least one of them was talking to her and not in some falsely awe-struck state.
"I did. What we discuss can't leave this room," she warned. It wasn't that she didn't want her allies to know, it was more about protecting her own reputation. Whether she liked it or not, she was the leader of their army. Even if she had no idea what that entailed.
"Of course," the boldest one answered. "We would never betray you."
She refrained from commenting, but the phrase never-say-never reverberated around her head. Particularly after what she had to ask them.
"I have a few questions about my brothers..." She studied each of their faces, trying to work out how they'd react.
"The Princes?" The middle kelpie frowned as she asked. "What about them? They were fine when we left the Loch."
"When you...left?" Macey's eyes widened. She couldn't be hearing that right.
"Yes, last week when you came to get us. Has something happened to the Princes since then?" The kelpie cocked her head to the side. Macey wasn't fooled. The woman really was worried. She wondered if there was anything in that.
"And you talked to my brothers?"
"Yes, all the time. I was one of Bruce's partners." The kelpie to her right shot her a look. "His sparring partners," she added hastily, but there was something about her words that suggested more to Macey.
"And you talked to him last week?"
"Yes, we were say...making arrangements for while I was away," the female kelpie answered.
"Did you know him before we went on land?" She crossed her fingers, hoping the woman would say yes.
"Of course, we're the same age."
Macey took the woman's word for it. She had no way of knowing if she was telling the truth or not. She certainly didn't recognise the other kelpie, but that didn't mean anything.
"Was he acting...strangely at all?"
"No. He was the same Bruce as when we were children."
Macey leaned back, not too sure what to make of it all. "When did he return to the Loch?"
"Just after you became a Warden, I think? The two of them brought news of what had happened to you." The woman shrugged like it wasn't important.
Macey was lost for words. How had her brothers even known about her becoming a Warden? She hadn't seen them since she'd been taken by her men.
"Did they tell you how they knew that?" she asked slowly, almost dreading the answer.
"They said a Voice told them?" the kelpie on the right answered. He was older than the rest of them, which had Macey a little on edge. It felt wrong to be ranked higher than him.
"A Voice?" Her eyebrows creased together as the implications of that fell into place.
"Yes. I was skeptical at first too, but then Nessie confirmed what they were saying as true."
"Nessie?" Macey's voice took on a far away edge that she hated.
"Yes, your Aunt." The kelpie looked confused.
"What do you know of her?" Macey asked, choosing not to explain anything.
"The same as everyone. She was an adventurer when she was younger. That your Uncle wasn't enough for her, but he was okay with that. There are rumours she even had a fling with a human at one point."
Macey nodded, but didn't confirm or deny that. She knew the truth. Or at least, the supposed truth, but didn't want to admit to others that she could be proof of that.
"Anything else?"
"There are rumours she had secret children," the left kelpie answered as the woman next to him nodded.
"Rumours?"
That wouldn't be good. It could undermine everything Macey's father had worked for.
"Yes, but there's never been any proof. She's a formidable woman. A lot of people used to say she could take the crown if she wanted. Any children of hers would have been..."
"It's idle speculation," the older kelpie cut in. "And there is nothing to prove any of it. The rumours are twenty years old now, if Nessie had a child, they'd have shown themselves by now. And if she'd had more than one, then we'd already be at war."
The final word spun around Macey's mind. What the man didn't seem to have realised was that they were at war, just not within their kelpie community. This was one which could have a much bigger impact than just their Loch though. She kept the revelation to herself.
"Has my father announced which of my brothers is his heir yet?" She looked between the three kelpies, wondering which of them would break first. She wouldn't like to call it, they'd all seemed fairly forthcoming so far.
"Of course not, Your Highness," the woman answered softly. "How could he announce one of them his heir when you're here leading an army."
"That's not what I was..."
"Everyone is aware it's
not your goal to use this to become Queen, but everyone is also aware that it takes a certain kind of person to lead troops. That's the kind of leader all of us want," the older kelpie answered. "That's the kind of kelpie I want to follow. Which is why I'm here."
"But..."
"Your father hasn't said anything yet," the younger man added. "I think he doesn't dare to. Announcing you're the heir would cause discord with anyone supporting your brothers' causes. But appointing one of them as his heir...it would cause havoc with anyone who respects the old ways. The strongest kelpie rules. That's how it has always been and how many of us want it to continue."
"And if I don't want to rule?" Her voice shook. Being Queen of the kelpies wasn't in her plan. She just wanted to defeat the Mahoun and live a peaceful life with her men.
"Then you'll be a better ruler than most," the older kelpie answered with finality.
Macey almost ran out of the house, her mind swirling with all she'd just heard. It was going to take some time to make sense. Right now, it was going to distract her from battle, so she shoved it all in a far away corner of her mind, willing it to stay there. She didn't have time to think about civil war, her becoming Queen or why the fricking waves her brothers were back in the Loch. That didn't make any sense in the slightest. Either the kelpies were lying, or something else was going on. Maybe they weren't real? Or maybe they were being manipulated, mind-controlled? Who knew what the Mahoun was capable of.
"Everything alright?" Jared asked, walking towards her. The guys were standing a little apart from their other allies, all of them looking at her. Now that Flint had his powers back and they'd all returned from London, there was nothing that should be able to stop them from going into battle.
Macey really wanted a hug, but with everyone watching, she decided it would be better to simply take Jared's hand and give it a big squeeze.
"Not really," she muttered under her breath so that only he could hear. "It's all one big mess in the kelpie world, but I can't let this influence me just now. We need to make plans. What did Amber and Izban discuss with our allies while we were gone?"
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