“Let’s do it,” I said in a firm voice. “It’s our only chance.”
“Not our only chance,” Orin said.
The Queen peered at him as if through a fog. “What do you mean?”
Orin took a long breath. “If we pursue Malachy’s suggestion of renegotiating the terms, then we might be able to rally some of the other species of Tír na nÓg.”
“You’re not suggesting…?” She shook her head.
“Yes.” Orin clenched his fists, squaring his shoulders. “We unite the tribes of our realm. We bring together the dearg-dubh, the púcas, the leprechauns, the elves, even the liberated Fomorians.”
Allanah let out a hysterical laugh. “My husband spent the last months of his life rounding up several of these species, relocating or flat out exterminating them. They won’t trust us.”
“You’re right, they won’t trust us.” Orin turned to me. “But they might trust Elizabeth.”
My heart pounded, and I swallowed a dry lump in my throat. “Me?”
Orin nodded. “You have built a reputation as a liberator, Princess. Your little stint in the The Seven Woods has made you quite the folk hero in our realm.”
My face warmed, and I slipped my hands under the table, fidgeting. “Oh, you heard about that.”
“Everyone has heard about it,” the Queen scolded, narrowing her eyes at me.
I righted myself, opening my mouth to speak, but Orin cut me off with a wave of his dark robes. “The Tuatha Dé Danann needs more friends than it does enemies. We are not the kingdom we once were.”
The door burst open, and Aodhan O’Rea barged into the room, still in armor, his face covered in a layer of grime. My heart pounded against my ribs at the sight of the General, thinking about the last time we met and how I had released the púcas. As if reading my mind, Finn edged closer to me, his shoulders tensing.
Aodhan fell to the floor to kneel before the Queen, his red hair spilling around him. “I have not rested since I received the news of our beloved King, Your Highness. May he rest in the arms of Danu.”
Alannah nodded, her delicate hand resting on the General’s shoulder. “Our tribe has little time for grief, General. Now is the time for action.”
Aodhan lifted himself to his full height. “I am at your service, Your Highness.” His eyes drifted over to me and narrowed. “Princess.”
The General’s face was smooth and stoic, but his bright green eyes glimmered with accusation. I squirmed a little in my seat, and Finn placed a reassuring hand on my thigh.
Aodhan gave a penetrating stare to Malachy, his spine straightening. “Who are you?”
“I am Malachy Moray,” he said with a flourish. “I’m a spy for the American government, recently turned saboteur of said government.”
Aodhan turned to Orin, his lips slightly parted in confusion.
Orin raised his hand. “I’ll explain later.”
The Queen folded her hands on the table and looked thoughtfully out the window, at the sky full of stars.
“Thousands of years ago,” she said after a long pause, “Amergin tricked the Tuatha Dé Danann from their lands. And why? Because we were proud. We thought there was no one more powerful than us. But we were wrong. We were weak. And so, we retreated into Tír na nÓg a broken people, and for thousands of years we have turned our backs on the mortal world. Worse yet, we turned our backs on our own kind.”
She stood, smoothing down her skirts.
“Aodhan and Orin,” she said, “you will send out the message to all the creatures of Tír na nÓg that a new day has dawned. If they fight for us, we will promise them new freedoms, prosperities, in this realm and the next. We will amass our armies here in three days’ time.”
She turned to Malachy. “As for you, you will go to this Anny Black and find a way to stop the supply of weapons.”
The dearg-dubh bowed. “I will need help, Your Highness.”
“I’ll go!” I shot up.
“No,” Finn growled.
I ignored him, taking a step toward the Queen. “Anny Black might be manipulating the realms. I could be useful.”
“You will need someone who understands magic.” Eamonn stood, with his shoulders slightly stooped. “I should go, as well.”
Orin shook his head. “You are banished to this realm, you know that. If the Fianna find you, your life is forfeit.”
“Doesn’t quite matter now, does it? I mean, if we’re ‘renegotiating terms.’” The Druid shrugged.
“If Elizabeth and Eamonn are going, I will go, too,” Finn said.
Orin shook his head. “The risks are too great for the Princess. We cannot risk losing her.”
“I’ll go where I want to, Orin,” I seethed.
Malachy drifted to my side and clapped a hand on my shoulder. I flinched at his cold touch.
“Elizabeth is right,” he said. “We’re not sure what we might find. Her talents could come in handy. We will leave in the morning.”
Orin stood, flashing his canines. “Did you not hear what I said? The mission is too dangerous!”
I slammed my fist on the table and pointed my finger at Orin. “You don’t get to tell me what to do. I’m going to find Anny Black and there is nothing you can do to stop me.”
The Queen flashed her palms with an exasperated sigh. “Enough.” She placed a hand to her temple. “I must rest now. Find this Anny Black and shut down her operation for good. The fate of Tír na nÓg depends on it.”
She swept out of the room, followed by Birog.
Orin cast a withering stare across the room at Malachy. “If she dies, I will hold you personally responsible. Remember that.”
He left the room, followed by Aodhan.
“Well, this has been interesting,” Eamonn said, his eyes shifting between Finn, me, and Malachy.
Finn stood, reaching his hand out to his best friend. “Eamonn, are you sure you want to come with us? You could find ways to be useful here against the Fir Bolgs.”
He shook his head. “I shall see you in the morning,” he mumbled with a subtle nod before shuffling out the door.
Finn sighed and laced his fingers through mine, leading me toward the door.
“Elizabeth,” Malachy called after us. “Do you mind staying back for a moment?”
I paused.
“If Elizabeth stays, I will stay,” Finn said over his shoulder.
I pressed my hand on Finn’s chest, flashing him a warning stare. I wanted to talk to Malachy, to see if he would tell me things in private that he wouldn’t in front of the others. I gave Finn a quick peck on the cheek. “It’s all right. Can you ask Jane or someone to bring a bath up for me?”
He stared down at me, a question on his lips, but I gave him a reassuring nod. He strode toward the door, but not before giving Malachy a menacing glance.
The door clicked shut behind him, and the dearg-dubh and I faced each other on opposite sides of the table.
A smile cracked his porcelain face. “You look so much like your mother.” He laughed under his breath, brushing a lock of hair over his shoulder. “I imagine everyone tells you that.”
“Do you know where my mother is? Tell me the truth,” I pressed.
Malachy paused, his face falling. “I do not.” He walked around the table to stand in front of me. He moved with a light, effortless grace, like a dancer. “I know she sensed a mole in The Children of Lir. I know she was worried about being caught, worried that she and her baby would be dragged back to this realm.”
I shook my head, anger pulsing through my body. “Why would she worry about me when she didn’t even want me?”
The dearg-dubh’s brow knitted together, his mouth dropping open in shock. “What do you mean she didn’t want you?”
“My father, he…he told me that she was a spy. I was just an unfortunate byproduct of her espionage.”
He peered down his nose at me. “Do you really believe that, Elizabeth?”
I let out a long breath. “Honestly, I don
’t know what to believe.”
“You should know this, then.” Malachy’s voice softened. “Your mother fell in love with James Tanner. Hopelessly and irrevocably in love. She tried to hide it, but anyone could see what she felt for him. She jeopardized our mission, and she was the reason I defected. Her failure meant the end of the revolution. At least that particular one.”
Malachy reached into his pocket then threaded a long silver chain through his fingers. A medallion caught the candlelight and the Tree of Life embossed on the side flashed bright as it twirled in his hand.
I gasped, reaching for it. “My necklace! How did you—?”
Before I could grab it, Malachy placed it around my neck, his cold hands lingering on my collarbone before the medallion settled between my breasts.
“You are truly your mother’s daughter,” he whispered, his eyes shimmering.
I backed away, the emotion on Malachy’s face making me feel awkward in the small chamber.
I snorted, scratching the back of my head. “Right, because of my aisling powers,” I mumbled.
Malachy shook his head. “No, that’s not it.”
He kept looking at me, and I frowned, feeling claustrophobic under his gaze. “Well, what?”
His eyes trailed to door and back to me. “Your love for this Fianna. It will be the end of you.”
I stood up straight, my cheeks flushed. “My relationship with Finn is none of your business.”
“You are Fae. You may have been raised in the mortal realm, but this is your world now, and Finn can never be a part of it. Your mother learned this lesson the hard way.”
I clenched my fists at my sides. “Finn will fight for us.”
“No,” Malachy replied. “He’ll fight for you.”
He turned to go but lingered in the doorway. “Once Fianna, always Fianna. Remember that.”
With a swish of his long black hair, he left, leaving me standing alone in the library. I took out the silver medallion hanging beneath my dress and turned it around and around in my hands. It felt cool in my palm, and I rubbed my thumb against the swirling branches as they extended out and down, intertwining with the roots.
I replayed Malachy’s words over in my mind, my shoulders shaking with a sudden rage. But beneath those layers of anger flowed a trickling stream of doubt. Finn and I found ourselves in the middle of another Civil War, our lives pawns in a larger game. How long would he stand at my side before he grew resentful of me for dragging him into yet another mess? And if we defeated the Fir Bolgs, what then? Would we stay in Tír na nÓg and remain servants to the Queen? The same Queen who had denounced me in the past?
I pressed my head against the cool glass of the window, staring out at the veil of stars spilling across the black sky. In spite of all my doubts, I knew Tír na nÓg had become my home in a way nowhere else had ever been. Maybe I was a stranger to this realm, but its people had called to me, and I had to answer.
Chapter Twenty-Four
I opened the door to my room and found Finn dozing in a large copper tub, steaming hot water curling the ends of his hair. The muscles of his face softened with sleep, and the ghost of the little boy he once was swept across the slight curve of his lips, his long eyelashes throwing shadows down his cheeks.
I pulled off my dress and dipped my toes in the warm water, creeping softly against him, the smell of chamomile flowers wafting up from the bath. I curved my body between his legs, and he made a soft, startled sound before he parted his thighs, wrapping a lazy arm around my chest.
“What did Malachy want,” he yawned in my ear.
“He wanted to give me back my necklace,” I replied, my hand grasping it instinctively. I leaned backward, planting a kiss against the hard veins in his throat. A layer of hospital disinfectant and blood still covered my skin, and I grabbed a sponge floating amongst the bubbles. I scrubbed my arms vigorously, but Finn made a small shushing sound in my ear and pried the sponge from me.
“Let me,” he whispered. He slowly moved the sponge over my arm like a caress, the soap making rivulets down to my palm and dripping off my fingers. He raised my elbow and ran it down across my armpit, the ticklish sensation making me giggle. I squirmed between his legs, feeling him hardening against my hip.
“Relax, woman,” he breathed in my ear. “Let me take care of you.”
I melted into his chest and allowed him to wash my other arm, his hand moving back and forth to create a thick lather. He folded me forward slightly and traced circles across my shoulders, dipping the sponge in the water and letting the warmth fall down my back.
“I love your shoulders, did you know that?” He placed a kiss on each one, and I shivered. All I could think of was his cock lengthening, and heat fluttered deep inside me. I placed my hands on the edge of the tub, sucking in my breath as he traced the back of my neck with kisses.
“My shoulders?” I asked in a low voice.
“It’s one of my favorite parts of your body.” He moved the sponge across them. “They’re so small, delicate.”
I shuddered as the sponge traveled down my spine to the small of my back, his movements slow and rhythmic, sending me into a trance. Tendrils of steam traced the air, and my eyelids drooped heavy as I slipped away in his arms. Finn grabbed my knee and traveled down one leg first, lingering in the hollow space behind my knee. He slid the sponge up between my thighs, and I let out a small moan as he swept it away, teasing me.
“Shhhh…” he breathed in my ear, his tongue flickering against my earlobe.
He dipped the sponge into the water and then brought it to the hollow space at the center of my collarbone, squeezing it and chasing the streams of soap flowing between the mounds of my breasts, over the silver medallion draped between them, and down to the still pool of bathwater below. He washed my left breast first, moving the flesh in a circle while he rubbed my right nipple with his thumb.
“Oh, Finn,” I gasped, draping my hand over his, water running between our fingers.
He switched, massaging my right breast, taking his time, teasing my nipple with the edge of the sponge. He painted little circles with the soap, wiping them away with his palm.
“I do believe I might have the cleanest breasts in Tír na nÓg,” I whispered. I wanted him so badly, the warm water making me languid and weightless against him. He had a raging erection, but none of his movements belied any sense of urgency. He was a man at his leisure, taking his time, enjoying my body. I smiled to myself, letting his hands take over.
He submerged the sponge into the water and drifted down the rise of my belly, moving painfully close to my need. I suppressed a scream of impatience, my legs scissoring as he swept across my belly, each stroke inching toward the heat between my thighs. I pushed my hips closer against him, and his breath hitched, the sponge pausing on my solar plexus. He let out a low laugh, continuing with his meticulous work even as he readjusted himself, settling me firmly on his lap.
“I need you,” I whispered, lifting my arms behind my head, and pressing his jaw to my neck. He nipped my skin, and I arched my back, my body pushed to the edge of ecstasy as we floated together in the water, our skin molding together.
Finally, the sponge traveled to the space between my legs, and I nearly peaked as its crinkled surface found my clit throbbing, waiting. He caressed me gently at first, but then increased the pressure with each downward stroke, the sensation so maddening I whimpered nonsensical words, my nails digging back into his scalp as he pressed feverish kisses on my neck, my shoulders. Just as I felt my desire push me over the edge, he drew the sponge away.
“What…what are you doing?” I panted.
“It’s time to wash your hair, my lady,” he breathed into my ear.
Taking advantage of my vulnerability, he pushed me underwater. I flailed at first, the feeling of sudden submergence disorienting, but then he pulled me up again, smoothing the hair away from my forehead.
I spluttered, blinking hard. “Jeez! Warn me first.”
&nbs
p; Finn’s eyes met mine, and my curses choked in my throat. His face was flushed, his grey eyes glimmering with predatory longing. Without breaking his stare, he grabbed a small glass bottle beside the tub and poured a quarter-sized amount of liquid onto his palm.
“Lean back,” he demanded.
I unfolded back, my sex on fire. He could have done anything to me in that moment. The intoxicating smell of jasmine burst around my head as Finn’s fingers massaged my scalp, starting from the crown of my head and working his way to my temples. He rubbed the delicate muscles in the back of my neck, and I bent forward, my spine so fluid at that point, it was a wonder I could even hold myself up.
His hips rose slightly to meet me as I backed against him. His hands found a similar rhythm in my hair, tangling through the long strands, pulling me back against him.
“Are you ready?” he breathed in my ear.
“Yes.”
“Close your eyes and hold your breath.”
He gripped my shoulders again and submerged me, making me weightless and buoyant even though I longed for traction, for something hard to rub against. He pulled me out of soapy water again, his large hands sweeping through my hair before pushing me under again. With incredible force, he pulled me up and swept my wet hair from one ear.
“I’m going to fuck you now.”
He gripped my hips and pulled me close to him, the tip of his cock teasing my folds. I grasped the edge of the tub, gasping for breath, my wet hair like a curtain of seaweed all around me.
Finn thrust inside me from behind, and the shock of his slick, wet cock filling me made me cry out. My hands slipped, but before I fell into the water, he crossed his strong arm across my stomach, propping me up, moving deeper inside of me.
I dug my nails into his skin as he pushed hard, his other hand finding my swollen clit under the water. My thighs parted wider for him, his hand dancing back and forth until I lost all sense of time, all sense of myself. I returned to the beginning, to before the beginning. And all I felt was Finn, his body and mine creating a perfect lotus, something infinite and unfolding. I came. I shouted. From faraway I heard my voice, a high-pitched and frightened echo bouncing off the walls of the chamber. Finn grunted in my ear, his cock convulsing, releasing deep inside me. He thrust into me one last time, emptying completely, and I felt whole, breathing hard and sighing in his arms.
Children of the Veil (Aisling Chronicles) Page 24
