by Amy Sumida
He navigated us through the throng, weaving around long tables full of equipment, and patients lying on the tile floor. I glanced at the wounded in concern, but I couldn't stop for them. I needed to see my father first. The fairy opened an office door, and there he was, King Keir of Twilight, laid out on a desk with someone's jacket for a pillow. Desk detritus was piled on the floor, as if someone had swept it aside. Keir's face looked pale, his fighting leathers covered with blood stains, but his eyes were bright when he turned them to me.
“Seren,” the silver spokes over Keir's amethyst irises flashed when he saw me. He held a hand out to me, and I rushed forward to take it. “I'm fine. The healers are finishing up-”
“Leave me be!” Dylan Thorn's voice roared from somewhere nearby. “See to my brother! Now!”
There was a light murmuring, and then my Uncle Dylan's response.
“Take your magic to the King!”
“We all show our love in different ways,” Keir sighed as he sat up. “Thank you, Eibhleann.”
That's when I noticed Aideen's mother. Aideen was there as well, but that wasn't all that surprising. Aideen worked at Gentry. Her mother, however, did not.
“Lady Eibhleann,” I said. “It looks as though I owe you another debt of gratitude.”
I threw my father a little smirk.
“The debt is mine,” Keir would have said more, but another bellow from his brother cut him off.
Keir hurried from the room.
“Break his heart, and my gratitude will turn into something much more savage,” I smiled at Eibhleann. Or maybe I bared my teeth, I'm not sure.
“Your Highness?” Eibhleann blinked in shock.
“I'm not saying I don't approve,” I held up a hand. “I like you. I like your daughter. I'd be happy to call you family. Just be careful with my father. Be gentle. His heart is still wounded. Maybe you can help heal that as well.”
Eibhleann bowed her head respectfully.
“Thank you,” I left the room with her on my heels, and my Guard closed in behind us.
Some of Keir's Guard were with him, but most were spread out before the line of offices, watching the gathering of fairies with vigilant stares. As I headed to the office my father had vanished into, Eibhleann and her daughter went out into the mass of wounded, stopping at the very first fairy who needed healing.
“Thank the Goddess,” my Uncle Dylan was saying as I stepped into the room. “I thought you were dead, Brother.”
The healer had been trying to use Dylan's distraction to work on him, but Dylan grabbed Keir, and pulled him down into a hug, dislodging the disgruntled healer. The men hugged tightly, then separated. My father nodded to the healer, and the man was finally able to give Uncle Dylan the help he needed.
“Seren,” Dylan's irises bled out into the whites of his eyes, turning the whole of them a deep, shimmering blue. His fey glamour was falling away beneath the power of the healer. “It's not safe for you here, get your ass back to Fairy!”
“Hey, Uncle Dylan,” I gave him a huge grin. After getting to know my gruff uncle, I realized that all his sharpness was a show. He was now my favorite relative, with exception to my father of course. “I'm not leaving without Dad.”
“You're right on that account,” Dylan transferred his glare to Keir. “Take your daughter home.”
“I will see you healed first,” Keir said stubbornly.
Dylan grunted.
“And my people safe,” Keir added.
Dylan's grunt became more grudging.
“And we're shutting down Gentry for the time being.”
“The hell we are,” Dylan nearly shouted.
“I'm finished,” the healer announced and fled.
“I won't have you, or any of my fairies, in danger,” Keir said calmly.
“What will we tell the humans?” Dylan asked.
“We had a gas leak,” Keir shrugged. “A bombing. Or don't tell them anything at all, just shut the damn doors.”
“We have clients and business associates who are human,” Dylan growled. “We need to give them a solid explanation.”
“Then come up with one that will satisfy them, Brother,” Keir smiled. “But you will not be staying here while our sister is on the loose with iron weapons. You're coming back to Fairy with us, and then we will gather our troops and join the Unseelie King.”
“To fight Moire,” Dylan's jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing dangerously. “Alright, Brother, I agree to this temporary retreat in order to regroup. But we're killing that woman this time. Her crimes have piled up, and now they tower above us. I will see her dead before I let the impending avalanche bury us.”
“Her crimes will bury her in the end, Dylan,” Keir swore, “not us.”
“And Bress?” I asked.
“We're getting our nephew back,” Dylan said first to me, then transferred his gaze to Keir. “That bitch has done enough damage to our kin.”
“And the boy has come so far,” Keir nodded. “I believe he can overcome the evil he was born of.”
“About fucking time we stepped in,” Dylan grumbled.
“Yes, it is,” Keir sighed. “About fucking time.”
“Is this a bad time?”
I looked to the doorway and was shocked to see Soren, the biter witch from Iceland.
“Soren?” I stood. “What are you doing here?”
“You know each other?” Keir asked. “This man came to our aid. Without him and his team, we might not have survived.”
“I thought Councilman Murdock sent extinguishers to help you,” I frowned from my father to Soren, and back.
“He did,” Keir nodded, “but General Soren arrived first. I assumed that the Coven was working with the Human Council, and had sent him.”
“I am indeed working with the Council, Your Majesty,” Soren bowed his head. “But I am in San Francisco purely under orders of the Coven, and I was watching Gentry Tech for personal reasons,” Soren's eyes strayed to me.
I cleared my throat. Cat huffed some fur out of her eyes. My father's stare sharpened.
“You were stalking my daughter?” Keir asked.
“Dad,” I groaned.
“Not at all,” Soren chuckled. “Well, perhaps a little. I was watching over the elf enclave in Iceland, on behalf of your daughter. There had been no movement... at least none we could see, and that in itself was suspicious. I gathered more intel and made some deeper investigations. I tried to contact Princess Seren through the phone number she gave me to give her my report, but she didn't answer. I left several messages, and then decided it would be best to come here, a location she's known to frequent, and wait for her to make an appearance. It was during our wait that the elves attacked.”
“That was fine timing indeed,” my father reached out his hand to shake Soren's. “Thank you for your help.”
“I couldn't stand by, and simply watch as you were attacked, Your Majesty,” Soren said smoothly.
“You just sat across the street, waiting for Seren to show?” Dylan scowled.
“We arrived this afternoon. I was going to meet with Councilman Murdock if the Princess failed to present herself by morning,” Soren shrugged.
“I won't forget what you did for my family today,” I said to Soren. “But I'm rather anxious to hear what you have to say about the elves.”
“Damn it all,” Dylan cursed. “This whole thing has me out of sorts. I should have been the one to hone in on that.”
“We broke into the elven enclave,” Soren went right into it, and we all gave him our full attention.
“You broke in?” Conri huffed. “Impossible. I inspected the entrance myself, there's no way-”
“We used explosives,” Soren cut Conri off, leaving the bargest gaping at the biter.
“That would do it,” Gradh muttered.
“And what did you find?” Dylan was getting back to his analytical self.
“Nothing,” Soren grimaced. “The entire enclave was abandoned.”
<
br /> Chapter Thirty-Eight
I couldn't leave HR without seeing the elven prisoners, but my father didn't want to let me out of his sight. He also wanted to interrogate them himself, especially after the news Soren had given us. So while I was on the phone with Killian, telling him what had happened, Keir declared that he'd be accompanying me to the Council House, along with General Soren and his team of vampire witches.
“No,” Dylan said as I hung up.
“Killian's in Iceland,” I looked back and forth between my father and my uncle. “He just verified Soren's report, though he's a bit annoyed that he had to travel to Iceland for nothing. He says he'll meet us in Twilight.”
“I'm going with my daughter,” Keir said to Dylan.
“Moire just tried to kill us,” Dylan hissed. “Both of us! What do you think she'd do if she got the chance to kill you and Seren with one blow?”
“She'd take it,” I nodded.
“She just attacked us,” Keir shook his head. “She'll be laying low for awhile.”
“For the chance to eliminate everything that stands between her son and a throne, she'd risk surfacing,” Dylan's eyes were hidden beneath their glamour again, but they still looked menacing.
“Bress,” I whispered. “She stole him to put him on the Twilight throne.”
“You just reached that conclusion?” Dylan rolled his eyes. “Of course she did. Why else would she want her son back?”
“I thought she wanted to make him King of Unseelie,” I blinked through the epiphany. “It never occurred to me that she might want Twilight for Bress, while she took Unseelie for herself. That seems like far more effort than Moire would be willing to put into another person's future, even if that person happened to be her son.”
“Fair enough,” Dylan sighed. “But we know Moire always plans ahead, and she's diabolical. Not to mention, she's always coveted the Twilight throne.”
“But Bress would be ruling, not her,” I protested.
“And she would rule him,” Keir sighed. “Two-thirds of Fairy would belong to Moire if she took Unseelie for herself and gave Twilight to Bress. I thought it was the draw of Uisdean's resting place that brought her to me, but Moire didn't once ask where Uisdean was buried. I was the draw. She wanted me dead and out of her way.”
“You actually saw Moire?” I was shocked.
“She was glamoured,” Keir said, “but I know my sister's magic.”
“And she spoke to you?” I asked.
“Yes,” Keir sank heavily into a chair, and Cat went over to lay her head on his lap in sympathy. “Right after she shot me.”
“What did she say?” I asked hesitantly.
“Your daughter is next.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
In the end, it was decided that Dylan would go to the Council House to interrogate the elven prisoners with General Soren. Keir and I were higher on Moire's kill list than my uncle. I hated the waiting and wondering, but I suppose it was fair play. I'd made Keir wait and worry countless times in the past. Now I was the one waiting and worrying.
I contacted Raza as soon as Dylan and Soren left, and informed him that both Keir and I were well. Then I told Raza about the elves. He wasn't at all happy to hear that the elves were now missing along with Moire, and he said several words in Gaelic, or maybe Fey (most of the time they sounded the same to me), that were probably unfit for polite society.
Raza approved of Dylan's insistence to leave me and my father under heavy guard at Gentry, but not of my decision to return to Twilight after Dylan got back from the Council House.
“Your place is with me now,” Raza said.
“I don't like that tone, caveman,” I narrowed my eyes on him.
“You know what I mean, Seren,” Raza sighed and rubbed a clawed hand over his face. “I need you beside me. I worry when you're gone. And then there's this war hanging over our heads. I need your strength in battle too, mo shíorghrá. I need you by my side and at my back.”
“My strength in battle?” I smiled, “Now you're back on track, lover. Keep talking.”
“Seren,” Raza groaned. “Come home. You have a rath available to you at Gentry, you don't have to wait till twilight.”
My heart did this weird flutter and a shiver raced over my skin. I'd never had a man say that to me. At least, not one who wasn't related to me. It felt... good. Funny how two simple words like “come home” could deepen a relationship.
“I need to see my father safely to Twilight,” I said softly. “Then I'll come home to you.”
“You promised me I'd wake up with you in my bed,” Raza reminded me.
“And you will,” I agreed. “I'll go to Twilight Castle with Keir, using the rath, then Killian and I will trace over to you when twilight arrives. He's coming over from Iceland, so he should beat me to the castle anyway. Depending on the time differences, I may arrive in Unseelie long before morning.”
“Alright,” Raza let out a long breath. “Then we will speak soon.”
“And maybe do a little more than speaking,” I gave him a saucy wink.
Raza chuckled, “I shall hardly sleep tonight.”
“Raza,” I suddenly realized something, “be extra vigilant tonight. Moire told my father that she was coming for me next. She may be on her way to Unseelie.”
“We are prepared for her,” Raza went deathly serious. “Don't worry about me, mo shíorghrá. If Moire shows her face in Unseelie, I will rip it off and feed it to the pukas.”
“Savage, darling,” I laughed.
“I can't help it, I was born that way,” he smirked.
Chapter Forty
Just as I was wiping away Killian's image from my father's crystal ball, Dylan came walking into Keir's office. I wanted to let Killian know the new plan, and double check when he'd be arriving in Twilight, so I'd called him. But dawn had already come and gone in Iceland, so Killian hadn't answered. I scried him next and discovered that he was already waiting for me in Twilight. He'd been as snarky and cheery as usual, despite the situation. A direct contrast to my Uncle Dylan. Grim and tense would be the words I'd use to describe Dylan. My uncle had a personality with a resting bitch face.
“They're insane,” Dylan announced as he closed the door behind him. “They believe Danu is supporting this war.”
“I know,” I admitted, “and they may not be insane.”
“What?” Dylan looked from me to my father. “Am I missing something?”
“The elves told Seren the very same thing,” Keir said tonelessly.
“And Danu hasn't spoken to me since,” I added.
“No,” Dylan dropped into a chair. “Danu appeared on the battlefield. She backed Raza. Why would she oppose him now?”
“I don't know,” I shook my head. “It makes no sense to me either.”
“Gods don't need to make sense,” Keir mused. “We must have faith in her.”
“What? Like this is a test?” I asked Keir.
“Perhaps,” Keir agreed. “Or she could have a plan in place which requires our ignorance. I'm going to choose to believe in Danu until I see proof that she has forsaken me.”
“She's started a war,” I huffed. “That's some heavy proof.”
“No, it isn't, Seren.”
“Regardless of which side she has chosen,” Dylan growled, “I shall stand by King Raza and defend Unseelie.”
“Really?” I blinked in shock.
“I am an unseelie fey, Niece,” Dylan said dryly.
“I know, but you're also a Thorn,” I noted.
“A Thorn who has no interest in ruling, nor any interest in seeing my sister rule,” Dylan said. “I-”
“I need you here, Brother,” Keir interrupted Dylan's fabulous speech. “You hold this place together.”
“And you said you wished me to close it temporarily,” Dylan reminded Keir. “An empty building does not require any sort of holding.”
“But...” Keir floundered.
I saw the worry in Keir's eyes
and realized it had nothing to do with Gentry.
“Uncle Dylan has been to war before, Dad,” I reminded my father gently. “He's not just a businessman. He'll be okay.”
“Iron arrows,” Keir whispered. “All of my loved ones are putting themselves in the path of iron arrows.”
“Moire needs to be stopped,” Dylan laid a hand on my father's shoulder. “And we can stop her if we stand together. But if we let her intimidate us with her choice of weapon, we have lost the war before it has begun.”
“If only Danu had taken us into her confidence,” Keir sighed.
“I know,” I said. “I feel the same way. I may have whined about Danu's interference in the past, but as long as she was with me, I was confident that everything would work out.”
“A goddess on your side is no small thing,” Dylan nodded. “But there's something else that I haven't told you.”
“About the elves?” Keir leaned forward.
“The elves said very little,” Dylan grimaced. “They swore that Danu was guiding them, and it seemed to be the only tune they could sing. Not even that biter could get them to talk. Though they did flinch when he informed them about blowing open their enclave.”
“So they didn't know,” I mused.
“What has that got to do with anything?” Dylan asked.
“If they didn't know, then we can safely assume that all of the elves have left Iceland,” I shrugged. “No one stayed behind to keep watch. It may not mean anything, but it seems to me that if they had any intentions of returning, they would have left some elves behind to guard the enclave.”
“That's a very good point,” Dylan lifted a brow at me.
“I have my moments,” I smirked. “But you were saying?”
“I was saying that the elves wouldn't talk,” Dylan continued. “Not until I asked them about Bress.”
“Bress?” My father and I asked together. Even Cat perked up.
“They looked nervous at the mention of his name,” Dylan began to smile. “They may be siding with Moire, but they don't approve of the way she treats her son. It was the light elf who finally spoke up.”
