by Phil Parker
He turned and, without a word of command, his soldiers parted to allow Ankou to amble through their midst. There was no smile on those wizened features, I doubted his parched skin was capable of it, instead his eyes focused on me. They had the satisfaction in them. In his hands, which were little more than bones covered in leathery parchment, he held a device which he carried with great care.
It was shaped like a large wooden goblet with runes etched on its outer edge, on its top surface was a glass sphere in which two crystals sat in indentations carved so their multi-faceted surfaces connected at one corner. They emitted a bright, vaguely purple energy, even from this distance I could hear it fizzing like the portal curtains. I suddenly realised what it was. I’d seen much bigger versions, never one that could be carried so easily. They carried lodestone which reacted to whatever crystal was positioned next to it; large, powerful ones generated enough electro-magnetic energy to wipe out an entire regiment’s technology. These things, in the early days, gave the Fae an edge over human military power they should have capitalised on. This object must have a different purpose.
Finn moaned quietly, closed his eyes and sagged.
‘What are you doing to him?’
‘Don’t worry.’ Llyr moved towards Ankou and stared at the object with an expression full of pride, like a father for a son. This was another of his creations.
Ankou carefully handed the object over and Llyr stared with fascination into the glass sphere. I guessed the purple glow lighting up his face came from an amethyst. I’d rarely paid attention to my physics lessons but I vaguely remembered something about the amethyst affecting the wavelengths of the brain. Llyr was watching me, I tried to look nonchalant but I must have failed.
‘It interferes with the boy’s psychic signals, it stopped him sensing us.’
‘Clever.’
An assured nod. ‘You’ve caused me to expend more resources than I intended Robin. It’s a price I did not want to pay. But don’t worry, I’m going to exact an even greater one from you.’
‘As high as the price Mab’s demanding of you?’
He froze.
Ankou flicked a glance at his leader’s face, realised too late I’d spotted it. I didn’t know what edge it had given me or what I was going to do with it, all I knew was that I had one. I needed to throw these bastards off balance somehow long enough to work out a plan.
Llyr watched me though eyes with irises the colour of dark chocolate, the bitter kind.
‘Oisin should learn to keep his mouth shut. Where is he by the way? Surely you’ve not driven him away again?’
‘Oh, it wasn’t just Oisin.’
That hooked him. He glanced at Ankou briefly who replied with a wide-eyed look of innocence that almost made me smile, so there was no trust there either.
‘But don’t worry Llyr. I’ll be interested to see what Mab has to say about this situation when she arrives.’
I was gambling on Keir’s mission being a success, and timely. All eyes turned to Llyr. Fury built in him rapidly but I think it was fuelled by urgency, the need to escape.
‘Bring them!’ Llyr roared as he started to edge his way past the frustrated wyvern. He flung a pointed finger at me. ‘And if he causes any trouble, kill him.’
Chapter 21
‘You’re pregnant?’
The pitch and volume of my voice rose unnecessarily high but I couldn’t stop myself.
Sibeal gave the slightest of nods. She sat on her bed, still pale and fragile and looked nervously at Clodagh then Midir, her eyes met his and stayed there.
‘But how?’
I managed to modulate my voice this time and added a sharpness directed towards my brother as I glared at him.
‘It wasn’t me!’ he replied, holding his hands up defensively. ‘I’m infertile, every woman in the land knows that!’
I took a breath and composed myself, it had come as such a shock. Women did not get pregnant, it was as simple as that. Normally such events met with jubilation because they were so rare but there was no pride in this woman’s announcement, quite the opposite. I couldn’t imagine how poor Sibeal felt. She had tears in her eyes now, it was enough for my brother to hold her hands and squeeze them affectionately, smiling at her while glaring at me almost simultaneously. The small bedroom felt oppressive.
‘It’s a sunny day outside. Why don’t we sit in the sunshine and talk? Are you up to it Sibeal?’
It took a while for us to navigate the staircase. Midir wanted to carry her downstairs but his offer was refused, Sibeal wanted to test her strength. It had been two weeks since we’d rescued her and her recovery had been slow. Despite her refusal of help, her progress down the staircase, through the dark sitting room of the cottage and onto its veranda involved my brother watching her every step. He sat her down in a wicker armchair and placed a woollen rug over her legs and knelt at her feet like a loyal dog. Clodagh brought out two stools and we sat on either side of her, she held the notebook stolen from Taranis too.
The identity of the baby’s father was no great mystery, I’d been naïve to overlook what she’d meant by her violation by Taranis, unsurprisingly Sibeal struggled to recount the details. In the end we resorted to carefully worded questions which received reluctant nods or emotional shakes of the head. Midir’s fury, which had festered since we’d first realised what had happened, now exploded into a vigilante’s need for justice. It was only my reasoning and Sibeal’s pleas that stopped him from riding off to kill Taranis.
‘He raped her,’ Midir kept repeating as I led him into the sunshine where we could speak openly. ‘The bastard needs to be punished. You know as well as I do that will never happen. She’s not strong enough to testify against him in court. No, he needs to face a more direct punishment.’
I grabbed his arm as he reached for his horse. I’d never seen Midir so angry before, usually he was the relaxed one and I was the one who got worked up about everything.
‘Listen to me. You may be a prince of the Light Court but he has powerful friends in the Dark Court. Anything you do could flare into war if we’re not careful, especially if you killed him.’
Like me, he’d grown up amidst the tension that existed between the two Courts, we both remembered the last war and the bloodshed it brought. No one wanted that. Thankfully sense prevailed, not something I associated with my brother normally. He released the reins of his horse and looked at me. I could see the resentment burn in his eyes, it worried me he could still do something stupid, perhaps less directly.
Clodagh joined us, she’d waited for me to calm things.
‘I’ve been going through Taranis’s notes. Sibeal was an experiment.’ She glanced at Midir before continuing. ‘After he… did what he did… he treated her with drugs which seem to have increased her fertility. Increased it enormously.’
She looked at me intensely, it had been one of the issues we’d researched for years. When she spoke again it was with astonishment, there was a tinge of something else though I couldn’t tell what it was.
‘Filidea, he’s made a significant breakthrough.’
My brother’s rage reignited.
‘And that gives him the right to rape women, does it?’
Clodagh shook her head, reached out like I’d done and held his arm. It calmed him.
‘Of course not. But can you imagine how people will react to this news? He has potentially solved our race’s greatest curse.’
We stared at each other in silence. Even Midir’s anger subsided. He knew any court would consider Taranis’s actions to be immoral but they would be outweighed by the benefits to society. What was one rape in such a context? I was certain even my grandmother wouldn’t see anything wrong in what he’d done. It was a means to an end.
Even though she clung to Midir’s arm, Clodagh’s eyes hadn’t left mine.
‘What is it?’ I asked.
Clodagh took a deep breath. ‘I don’t know enough about this. I’m not a physician. But by suddenly en
ding the treatment, I don’t know what effect that will have on the baby. Or the mother.’
Midir’s eyes widened. I suppose mine too.
‘What are you going to do?’
My brother looked at me, then at Clodagh and back at me again, his eyes demanding answers we didn’t have.
‘Is Sibeal aware of any of this?’ he asked eventually.
Clodagh shrugged. ‘She’s a scientist. She isn’t stupid.’
He turned and raced back to the cottage. Clodagh’s lengthy sigh told me she was thinking the same as me, I was the first to say it.
‘She can’t stay here, she’s going to need a physician.’
We looked at each other, we both understood the implications. It would mean taking her back to the palace, admitting what we’d done so we could get her medical help. Inevitably, Taranis would find out.
So would my grandmother. I didn’t know whose reaction I dreaded most.
We walked back to the cottage in silence, lost in thought. Our act of chivalry had triggered terrible consequences, as each one formed in my head it felt worse than the one before.
‘I’m going back to the palace before I’m missed. I’ll visit tomorrow and hopefully have some answers.’
I received a hesitant smile and as I turned to get my horse, Clodagh held my arm.
‘Things will turn out all right, won’t they?’
I made sure my smile exuded more confidence than I possessed, I patted her hand.
‘Taranis won’t make a fuss. He’s a rapist. He may have succeeded in his experiment with one woman but he’s still committed a crime. He will need to keep quiet, no matter how furious he might be in private.’
Clodagh’s smile had more belief in it as she nodded her agreement. I only wished I felt the same. It was likely Taranis’s private reactions would be far worse than any public display, something that scared me beyond belief, as the woman scheduled to marry the bastard.
I rode back home as I tried to find ways to conceal Sibeal in a place that was quiet and out of the way. It wasn’t going to be easy. The Light Palace would be consumed by gossip regarding the mysterious woman in my care, at the same time as another had mysteriously disappeared from Taranis’ protection. I began concocting a fanciful incident where I’d discovered the woman, lost and wandering alone in the countryside. It wasn’t going to hold up to close scrutiny but it was a start.
For the second time I arrived at the stables and found the same servant waiting for me with the inevitable message from my grandmother. This time I insisted on changing my clothes. It allowed me time to compose myself for whatever horror waited for me. The worst possibility was that Taranis waited for me, like last time, I couldn’t face him now, knowing what he’d done. The thought made me want to vomit.
I stared into the mirror in my bathroom as I splashed cold water on to my face. I was supposed to marry this man. A rapist. Someone who experimented on people. How could I face him on a daily basis knowing that? Worse, the thought of him touching me made me feel sick. As for sex… that did cause me to vomit.
The girl staring back at me in the mirror looked ghastly. Red-eyed from crying, pale-faced from being sick, she had a hunted look about her I’d never seen before. My impetuous good intentions had back-fired on me in ways I had never imagined.
The young man who’d brought the message waited for me outside my rooms. My journey to meet my grandmother felt like I walked towards my execution. I wasn’t going to marry Taranis. I would sooner die. The consequence of my decision meant I would have to explain why and events would then unfold in ways I couldn’t begin to imagine.
I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that it took me a moment to realise we weren’t going to the Silver Reception Room. We were outside. The fear that threatened to overwhelm me amplified when I saw my grandmother waiting for me at the entrance to the orchard.
It was her private space.
No one was allowed in its walled grounds. When times were difficult she could be found trimming branches, pollinating flowers or just walking amongst trees as ancient and crooked as her. She beckoned me inside and shut the wooden door in the high orchard wall. We walked in silence to a bench where we sat, it was probably the most peaceful location in the palace but it didn’t feel like it to me. My heart raced.
‘I’m leaving shortly. But I wanted to speak to you before I left.’
I swallowed to lubricate my dry throat. Grandmother never left the palace these days. Something was wrong. I turned to her.
‘What’s happened?’
She gave me a weak smile. That wasn’t her either, she was actually worried. Perhaps even frightened.
‘Let me come to that in a moment, my dear.’
My dear? She hadn’t used an affectionate term with me since I was a little girl. My anxiety increased, panic stirred. Her smile strengthened, she must have realised what effect this was having on me, she patted my knee.
‘You and I are very similar Filidea. It’s why we fight. I see a great deal of me in you. I would get involved in activities I didn’t know how to resolve, purely because I knew they were the right things to do from the outset. I used to assume I’d find a solution to the problem eventually. And I always did. But that kind of thinking isn’t how you rule, you cannot jump from one crisis to another. You have to see the problem coming before it strikes you.’
She patted my knee again.
‘But that comes with age and experience. I have too much of it. I think it makes me rather cautious and conventional these days.’
She was still smiling at me. I tried to reciprocate but failed.
‘I know about the woman at Midir’s cottage.’
I think my jaw dropped. It made her grin.
‘How? When did…? Why haven’t you…?’
The old woman locked eyes with me though the smile remained.
‘Filidea, dear, cover your tracks more carefully next time. Going riding so frequently, for someone who hasn’t shown any interest in even being outside, draws attention. I think it would have been wiser to have brought Oisin’s sister nearer to the palace, to make her more accessible. Of course, your brother’s motives would be very different. It was wise of you to leave your friend as chaperone.’
I blinked repeatedly and nodded dumbly. My mind tried to find answers to the inevitable interrogation but every synapse felt sluggish and numb.
‘However, your actions are commendable. You have successfully sabotaged Taranis and his callous activities. You need to bring the woman here, quietly. I’ll make arrangements. We will need to be careful only those we trust know what we’re doing.’
‘You’re not angry grandmother?’
Another pat on the knee.
‘I’d considered doing the same thing when I found out what the bastard was up to. But, like I said, age has made me cautious. It’s why I’m pleased you’re following in my footsteps. When I’ve gone, I expect you to assume my role. For a while, I thought your decision to shut yourself away in the library was going to define you. I see I needn’t have worried.’
My head was in turmoil. Everything I thought I knew was getting turned upside down.
‘But why are you marrying me to that bastard?’
‘I’m not my dear. We are going to appear as though you are.’
‘We are?’
‘Politics, my dear, is like sleight-of-hand. You make sure your audience is focused on one hand while the other does something else. You and I are going to perform a sequence of conjuration that will bring about some changes. You’ve shown yourself capable of deviousness, we need to make it more subtle now.’
‘I see.’
Except I didn’t.
‘The only way we can find out what Taranis is doing, is to get close to him. What better way than to be his fiancé?’
‘You want me to spy on him?’
‘How do you think I’ve maintained control all these years? It’s because I have eyes and ears everywhere, it’s a skill I learned from a very g
ood friend of mine, when I was a young girl. You need to become a spy so that you learn how to manage them effectively.’
The door in the wall creaked open. Vevina, my grandmother’s ancient secretary, stood in the gap but said nothing. The atmosphere became brisk and business-like suddenly, an imperious, arthritic finger was raised to signal Vevina to wait. She must have noticed my increased anxiety, grandmother smiled again.
‘Events are afoot, Filidea. Events that will have far-reaching consequences for our people. I am genuinely worried where they will take us. Something is about to happen which will be the first chapter of a story that’s ending could spell the destruction of our race.’
My grandmother never spoke in such dark terms, it frightened me.
‘I blame myself. Old age has made me cautious. My inaction has led to events unfolding which are connected to mistakes from the past. There’s an old human saying, the birds have come home to roost. Except these birds are not welcome. I once put measures in place to counter the conflict they will provoke.’ She sighed. ‘There are powerful forces determined to destroy that peace, Filidea. They operate in the shadows. They manipulate others. They have been performing their own sleight-of-hand and I allowed myself to be fooled.
Vevina tapped her wrist. Grandmother flexed her shoulders and stood up slowly, brushed invisible creases out of her clothes.
‘We will talk more about this when I return. I have a pressing matter to address.’
‘Where are you going?’
Grandmother looked at me through rheumy eyes that looked tired and old suddenly. I had never seen her like this. Whatever had happened had shaken her, perhaps even upset her and she was still recovering.
‘I am needed elsewhere. Those roosting birds I mentioned are about to instigate an action which could destabilise our world. If they succeed the implications are grave for all of us, including Taranis. It goes beyond his raping of women. Much further. I will need your intelligence and cunning to help me deal with the consequences.’
My grandmother turned and took a couple of steps towards the doorway, she hobbled, clearly in considerable pain then stopped. When she turned her head, there was an expression of granite-like determination on her face. For the first time in as long as I could remember, I felt sorry for her. I wanted to help her, though I knew she’d dismiss my assistance with a couple of sharp words.
