The Skye Trilogy: Isle of Skye, Isle of Night, and Isle of Dawn. * Bonus: Scrumptious Skye Confections Cookbook*

by Shannon Barczak

  “With pleasure,” he said before grabbing my hand and giving it a gallant kiss. He took off so fast I could barely see him. His body was a blur as he went in and out of the Rau. Hearts and heads were being flung to the ground with swift precision. When it was over, he walked back over and smiled

  “Are you better now?” he said

  “I’ll let you know in a second,” I answered. I closed my eyes and called upon my water finally. It was the only element I had yet to use, and it was begging to get out of me. A huge wave came pouring thru the building, and I made a protective bubble around Mathias and me before remembering Lucian. All three of us stood there as the water came crashing in and turned into a huge whirlpool.

  It left as fast as it came and where there were once ashes, body parts, and blood was left clean of any residue. It was almost hard to believe that the fight had taken place at all. I released us all from our bubbles and looked up when I heard clapping.

  “Well, well, well,” Lucian yelled down. “This must be the Princess Willa that I’ve heard so much about.”

  “Lucian,” Mathias said. “Come down and meet my mate.”

  Lucian joined us and let out a snort before holding out his hand. Mathias took it, and they both smiled at each other. I was somewhat shocked at their friendliness. I could sense Lucian was the Rau but there was also something else that I couldn’t put my finger on until I saw his face clearly.

  “You’re part Fae?” I asked

  “Yes, I am indeed,” he answered

  “You look like…” I stuttered. “You look like someone I know.”

  “Perhaps you think I look like my dear brother?” Lucian asked

  “Who is your brother?”

  “My brother the great Lord of Fire,” he said mockingly

  “Your Machall’s brother?” I asked in disbelief. “He never said he had a brother.”

  “I’m hurt,” Lucian said as he flung his hand to his heart dramatically

  “Your part Rau and part Fae?” I asked looking at Mathias. I knew exactly why he had brought me here.

  Lucian bowed. “I am indeed your highness. I am also quite bored of this place, will you both care to join me at my home?”

  “We are honored that you asked us so nicely,” Mathias said before he took my arm and we followed Lucian out the door.

  “She’s your mate, huh?” Lucian asked as he turned to Mathias, “Why you lucky son of a bitch.”

  “That’s debatable sometimes,” he muttered before I hit him in the arm. “I am quite lucky, in fact, every morning I say a prayer of thanks to every God and Goddess that is listening.”

  I just rolled my eyes as we finally walked back into the alleyway. Mathias stopped and looked at me before turning to Lucian.

  “Willa can open a portal Lucian,” he said

  I ignored Mathias’s grin and Lucian’s look of incredulousness. I had no idea where we were going, but the minute Lucian’s face swam in my mind a portal opened up in front of us.

  “My God,” Lucian said. “What is she?”

  “Myth and legend my friend,” Mathias said as he gestured for Lucian to walk thru the portal. I waited until both men had been in the plush living room before I answered Lucian’s question myself.

  “Nope,” I said. “I’m just a bad mother fucker.”

  I was surprised a few minutes later at the ease and familiarity that Mathias seemed to have at Lucian’s palatial underground home. I watched him as he walked over to the bar and poured him and Lucian a glass of whiskey before he grabbed a water bottle for me out of the tiny fridge. I accepted it gratefully and drained the entire contents in one long swallow.

  Lucian smirked. “There is a washroom just outside in the hallway Willa. I put a clean shirt in there for you to wear if you so desire.”

  “Thanks,” I said as I looked down and grimaced at my blouse which had blood splattered all over the front. Luckily my jeans still looked relatively clean. I hurried outside and into the bathroom. I washed up quickly and threw my shirt away in the wastebasket before pulling on a large black t-shirt over my head. I felt a hundred times better as I made my way out into the hallway and back in the living room where Lucian and Mathias sat talking.

  “I hope you’re hungry,” Lucian said as he gestured to the coffee table which was laden with tea and pastries. “I took the liberty of putting together a few snacks for you. Mathias thought you might be famished after all the power you just used.”

  I pressed my fingers to my wrist and laughed. “I still have a pulse, so yes that means I am a hungry, hungry hippo.”

  “What?” Lucian asked perplexed

  “You get used to it after a while,” Mathias said dismissively

  “Right,” Lucian said. “So tell me, what are you Willa? I have my suspicions but I would like to hear it from you.”

  I looked at Mathias and nodded to him as I pointed to my mouth that was full with cake. He shook his head and answered for me while I tried to swallow.

  “Willa is the Fae Sanctity,” he said. “That’s not common knowledge yet so, please be discreet.”

  “I actually prefer to call myself a weapon of mass destruction,” I said as I finally swallowed my giant bite. “By the way, these little cakes are fantastic. Is there any way I can get the recipe for my new bakery?”

  Lucian just looked at the two of us for a few minutes before speaking, “Good Lord, are you serious?”

  “I know it takes a minute to take it all in or take the awesomeness of me all in,” I grinned

  “You’re really…” he started to ask

  “Yeah, I told you, I’m a bad motherfucker,” I said

  “You’re a baker?” Lucian finally asked, and we all laughed. “I thought that might be the case when I saw you wield so much power over the elements without any weapons visible. I’m utterly fascinated with you. Are you truly mated with Mathias? I’m a lot more fun you know.”

  “Oh, he’s not so bad once you pull the stick out of his ass,” I smiled sweetly

  “I’m think I’m more surprised that you accomplished that feat than that you are the Fae Sanctity,” he answered

  “I’m beginning to like you,” I said as I picked up an éclair and moaned as the creamy filling hit my tongue. “Tell me your story Lucian and don’t leave anything out because I find myself just as fascinated.”

  Mathias grunted. “A vampire’s story is his own Willa. Even I’m not fully aware of Lucian’s story.”

  “How did you guys meet?” I asked

  “Mathias tried to kill me,” Lucian said

  “Lucian tried to kill me,” Mathias said at the same time

  “Jinx, you both owe each other a Coke,” I sang. They both looked at me like I lost my mind so I sat back and let them talk over each other

  “I didn’t try to kill you,” Lucian said. “I was protecting my dinner.”

  “You almost drained that poor girl to death,” Mathias said

  “I have never drained a person to death without good cause,” Lucian answered. “You interrupted us at the wrong time.”

  “You’re right, I misinterpreted her rapid pulse for death instead of an orgasm,” Mathias muttered

  “You should never interrupt a man when he eats or when he’s having sex,” Lucian said smartly, “Especially when he’s doing both at the same time.”

  “You feed off of humans?” I asked

  “Yes, I have no desire for another Fae’s blood nor do I want the hassle of trying to procure Gypsy blood that is extremely rare.”

  “After a brief skirmish, I decided to let Lucian live and we formed a friendship of sorts,” Mathias said

  “You decided to let me win?” Lucian asked laughing. “I must have mistaken your cry of impending death for victory when I had you in a headlock.”

  “Oh this is awesome,” I said

  “Is that how you remember it Lucian?” Mathias asked. “I fear old age must be setting in, you’re what? Six hundred years now, give or take?”

&
nbsp; “I still look better than you,” Lucian said

  “Yes, you are somewhat of a pretty boy aren’t you?” Mathias asked. “It’s too bad you were turned a vampire when you were so young, you might have waited until you became a man.”

  Lucian laughed, and I looked at him closely for the first time. He must have been in his mid to late twenties when he was made into a vampire. His black hair was cut short in a buzz cut, and his face was eerily like Machall’s. They even shared the same sherry colored eyes, and devil may care attitude. I knew Machall’s was an act though. Lucian’s I thought was for real.

  “I will tell you my story Princess Willa but only because you asked so nicely,” he said as he stood up with his drink and went to stand by the bar.

  “Where to begin?” he asked himself. “You know Machall and I are brothers. We were extremely close as most brothers are. I felt nothing but pride and excitement when he became the new Lord of Fire. I figured he would be stuck with all the work while I enjoyed the fruits of his labor and his new position. I put that to the test the first week of his coronation and found myself in a bit of trouble. My parents suggested I go on holiday for a few months in the human realm before returning home.”

  “You are not getting away with just that Luce,” I said. “Spill it.”

  “I might have shown poor judgment when I took a dip with three wood Nymphs in the water fountain on the night of my brothers coronation ball. I also may have engaged in some lewd activities with them but to be honest I was too drunk to remember.”

  “Ahh, that would definitely explain a lot,” Mathias said

  “I was young and hell bent on having fun,” Lucian shrugged. “I went to Paris first and thoroughly enjoyed myself for a few months before heading to London. I was captured by some Rau who wanted my blood. Fortunately or unfortunately depending on how you look at it, one of the women decided that it would be fun to turn me. I didn’t go willingly, but I had been too deep in my cups to fight her fully.”

  “I woke up and she was standing there with a young man. I could smell his rich Gypsy blood, but I resisted the urge to drink from him. I was almost appalled by myself and my urges. I ran from the room and never looked back. A few weeks later I found a band of the vampires of light and a few Fae vampires. They took me in, and we became a family of sorts.”

  “I knew that my Fae family would’ve been horrified at what I had become, so I carefully placed some rumors in the right ears and soon they learned of my death. I figured it would be easier on them if they thought I had died than what I had become.”

  “You figured it would be easier on them if they thought you were dead?” I asked in disbelief

  Lucian shrugged. “I was young and thought I knew better.”

  I shook my head, “Go on.”

  “A few hundred years went by and my new family and I had built a nice little business for us. We were able to go places that many weren’t so we took jobs that required a certain amount of danger and deception, mostly for governments.”

  “You were spies?” Mathias asked

  “If that’s what you want to call us. I always preferred the term mercenaries. One evening I came back to find virtually everyone gone. My faithful friend Egon stayed behind so that he could relay to me what had transpired why I had been away. The Queen of the Fae’s royal guard had paid us a visit. They outlined their plans to bring the Fae vampires back in the realm and offered the vampires of light an opportunity to be Guardians for the Gypsies.”

  “I stayed because I knew most of the Fae vampires would be back, and I was right. They all had embraced the idea of going home but, unfortunately, their families and most people of their former realms were not as keen on their presence.”

  I thought about Machall’s mate Beatrice but decided not to mention her until Lucian had finished telling his story.

  “Not long after I received my first visit from Lord Fonn,” Lucian said

  “What?” I asked sharply

  “Oh yes,” he said. “He came to offer me a deal so to speak. He had found out I was alive and wanted a favor for his silence.”

  “Which was?” Mathias asked in a low voice

  “He wanted me to turn his bitch of a mistress,” Lucian laughed. “Apparently he thought that if a Fae vampire turned her then she would be even less likely to become Rau. I told him to bugger off, and a week later he came back. This time he showed me a hologram so to speak of my dead father. He said that Machall had gotten our father killed and now it was my turn to choose.”

  “When the hologram changed to show my mother tending her garden I knew I had no choice. I couldn’t allow him to hurt her, so I turned Sabine.”

  “Well, good news Lucian,” I said bitterly. “Ding dong the bitch is dead.”

  Lucian smiled. “I heard, thank you by the way Mathias.”

  “Anytime old friend,” Mathias said

  “When Fonn came back to retrieve Sabine he also left something that he deemed valuable in my possession,” Lucian continued. “I’m not going into details but I was more than happy to keep this prize safe.”

  “Have you heard from him since?” I asked

  “As a matter of fact, yes I have,” Lucian said. “He came here a few weeks ago and reminded me of my promise. He said that things would be coming to an end soon, and I needed to be ready to fight.”

  “You promised him that?” Mathias asked

  “No,” Lucian said. “He thinks that he has me by the balls. He wants our small family to join with him and overthrow the Queen after, of course, kidnapping Willa, obtaining the obviously mythical weapons, and killing the Clan of Skye. What he doesn’t realize is that the minute he left I put my own plan into place. I sent a few men into the Fire realm, and they captured my mother.”

  “What?” I asked. “You kidnapped your own mother?”

  “Yes,” Lucian said. “I had to keep her safe. They have been moving her around every day, but she is to be brought her tonight.”

  “Lady Lucia is coming here?” I said

  “You know my mother?” Lucian asked surprised

  “Yeah, I met her when I was in the Fire realm,” I answered. “She’s a great lady.”

  “Yes she is,” he said. “I’m not sure how she will react to seeing me finally, but I have been speaking to her every day, and I hope I can keep her safe.”

  “So she knows you're alive?” Mathias asked. “What about Machall?”

  “I have not talked to my brother yet but soon hopefully,” he said

  “Wow,” I said. “I’m sure Lady Lucy must be pretty happy to find out her son is alive.”

  “Oh, she always knew,” Lucian grinned. “After all she is part Fae witch.”

  “What’s a Fae witch?” I asked

  “You’ve never heard of the Fae witches?” he asked surprised

  “No,” I said looking at Mathias who just shrugged. “Who and what are the Fae witches?”

  “Long ago, before the Fae, Sprites or Nymphs, two goddess witches were born by the mother of all Gods. Gaia is said to have created her very image into the Goddess Arianrhold, who was the epitome of beauty and light. She also was a powerful magical being. Where there is light, there is always darkness, so Gaia created the goddess Morrigan, who is the purveyor of death and war.”

  “Gaia created them a beautiful realm but the other Gods were not happy. They feared these two goddess’s power, so they created the Fae. At one time they were all in the land of Fairlia but the witches did not like the interference from the King, so they made a pact with him. They would leave the whole land to him if he promised never to interfere with their business. King Cormagglia, your grandfather, was only too happy to comply. He knew the strength of their powers and was happy to grant them their freedom.”

  “Then why didn’t he let the Sprites or the Nymphs have their own realms as well?” I asked intrigued

  “He knew that the Nymphs were too vulnerable. They would never survive on their own or against an invasion. The Nymp
hs were fine with it; they are a peaceful being by nature but the Sprites were furious. The king wanted to give them their freedom, but he was also worried about their safety. The first Air Lord was told by Cormagglia to allow the Sprites to live how they choose and leave them alone. When Fonn took over though he realized their potential, they might be small but they are valiant warriors as well as hard workers.”

  “He wanted them as slaves to do his dirty work both on the field and off?” Mathias asked

  “Exactly,” Lucian said. “The witches retreated into the realm of Aislinge, which is Gaelic for dream. They are very secretive, and no one is allowed to visit or leave.”

  “Then how did your mother and her family get away?” I asked

  “At the time, the Fae witches were ruled by a powerful but gentle witch. She was sad to see them go, but my grandmother had fallen in love with a Fae and she wanted my mother to grow up in Fairlia. Soon after an evil warlock, who I believe is working with Fonn, staged a coup against the Queen of the Witches, and he cast her and her family out into the human realm but not before placing a curse upon them.”

  “This warlock, who I assume is the king of the witches, he’s now working with Fonn?” I sighed. “That’s excellent. Just how powerful are we talking here?”

  “It’s difficult to say,” Lucian frowned. “The Fae Witches are not like Gypsy Casters, they believe in using instruments, potions, wands and so forth to enhance and focus their powers. Your power is more organic than a Fae witch. I think they would have great respect for you. You’re not like the Fae; you do not keep the powers within you, and you release them back into nature.”

  “It’s not an option now to keep them inside of me,” I grinned. “You have no idea how bat shit crazy I become if I don’t release them.”

  “Just picture Willa like she was a few hours ago, only instead of killing the Rau, she would be harming herself,” Mathias said seriously

  Lucian blanched at Mathias’s words, and I smiled at him reassuringly. “It’s cool Lucian. Mathias is telling the ugly truth about me, although personally I don’t think that’s the worst thing about me. You should hear me sing.”