Chapter Thirty

Horses’ hooves thundered across the drawbridge, and a squad of soldiers burst through the dark maw of the gate. Their armor glistened in the sun, their shadowed eyes beneath their helmets staring grimly at us. At the front rode an officer with streaming red hair, and he gestured for the soldiers to surround us. They unsheathed their swords together as one, hopping down from their mounts.

My chest tightened with fear, and I grasped Una, all the strength draining from my body. “Stay close to me,” I hissed, trying to make myself appear taller.

“Seize them,” the officer commanded.

One of the soldiers reached for a handmaiden, Molly, and she wrenched away with a sharp cry. Rage surged through my belly, and power burst from me.

“Stay away from her!” I shouted, my voice echoing across the field.

But another soldier grabbed Una, and I collapsed to the ground, my crutch gone. I willed the energy to flow through me, but it was like stepping on the accelerator for a car on empty. I couldn’t find the strength, and I howled, pounding my fist against the ground. Their screams surrounded me, and I strained my mind, trying to conjure enough energy to fight back. A hand clamped onto my shoulder and dragged me backward. The smell of leather and horse filled my nostrils, and I struggled against the soldier as he pressed my wrists together, gemel ropes in his hands.

“Don’t touch her!” a familiar voice shouted across the field.

In a blur of movement, Finn rushed the Tuatha Dé Danann soldier, his chest colliding with him with the force of a Mack truck. They tumbled to the ground, Finn wrenching the helmet from his head, raining blows down on the Fae’s delicate face.

My heart leaped in my throat, my hands clutching his back. “Finn, don’t!”

The soldiers swarmed him, pulling him off my assailant who spit out a blob of blood with a curse. An elbow caught me in the chin, and I spiraled back to the ground with a cry of pain.

“Enough, Aodhan!” Orin’s pale face came into view, his black robes billowing across the grass. He stood between the officer and me, his palms raised. “Don’t touch her!”

The dearg-dubh crouched down beside me, brushing the hair away from my face with his cold fingers. “Elizabeth,” he whispered. “Are you all right?”

Finn hovered behind him, and our eyes locked. All the oxygen flew out of my lungs, and I trembled. Why was Finn here? Why did he have to see me like this? I turned away, my cheek resting in the cool dirt, wanting nothing more than to sink into the ground and sleep forever.

“Elizabeth!” A bright voice sailed over the wind, and a flash of red hair blazed across the sky. Grainne stopped beside Finn, and Eamonn stumbled behind them in his trailing robes, now dingy and gray.

“How—?” I whispered through a weary fog.

A low voice pierced through the commotion. “We must take these women prisoner.” The red-haired officer, Aodhan, leaped off his horse and glided toward us, his eyes narrowed.

I scrambled to my feet, wrenching Orin’s hand away. I darted for the officer, the squad of Tuatha Dé Danann lifting their swords as I approached. The officer waved his hand, and they stood down.

“These women are not Fomorians,” I said through gritted teeth. My legs shook with exhaustion, but I fought to stay upright. In my peripheral vision, I saw Finn edge toward me, sword at his side.

“They are not your prisoners,” I said. “You let them in. You make sure they’re safe!”

“I have orders,” the officer replied firmly. He made a motion with his chainmail-covered hand, and I lurched forward, snarling.

“You make sure they’re safe, or I’ll jam that fucking ward up your ass and leave you and all you motherfuckers to deal with Bres!”

Which was a lie, because I could barely fend off a hungry kitten at that point, but I couldn’t let the other guy know that. I stared down the officer, the wind whistling in my ear, my heart pounding. The silence stretched out between us.

Finally, the officer nodded, barking orders to another soldier.

“Um,” Grainne spoke up, intercepting a Fae headed toward the handmaidens. “I’ll see to these girls, thank you very much.” She placed a maternal arm over Deirdre. “I bet you could all use a nice cup of tea.”

Something about seeing Grainne’s fingers run reassuringly down Deirdre’s arm broke my last thread of strength. The ground seemed to rise up to meet me, my knees digging into the earth before I crumpled in an exhausted heap.

Una crouched down, her tiny hand on my back.

“It’s the magic,” I heard her explain from the end of a long dark tunnel. “It wears her down.”

My cheeks burned and I closed my eyes. “It’s fine…I just need to—”

Finn growled something at Grainne and Eamonn, and then his strong arms lifted me up, cradling me close.

“Ma’am!” Una cried out behind me, grabbing my hand.

“It’s okay, Una,” I mumbled.

Grainne put her other arm around her, murmuring reassuring words.

I sank in to Finn, my head floating in a fever. I blinked, regaining consciousness, and felt him settle me onto a soft bed in a small room. He perched on the edge of the mattress, the lines of his face illuminated in the light shining through high windows. I remained still, my eyelids heavy, studying his dark hair falling softly over the planes of his face.

“Is the ward still holding?” I said in a rasping voice. As soon as I asked it, I knew it was a stupid thing to say.

Of course it’s still holding. I’m here, aren’t I?

Finn nodded.

“What are you all doing here?” I pressed a hand to my temple, trying to keep the room from spinning.

“It’s a long story,” he said in a strained voice.

I sat up straighter, panic crushing my chest. I didn’t know what brought them to Teamhair, but they weren’t safe. “You need to get out of here. Bres and his armies—”

Finn raised a hand, cutting me off. “We are bound to the Fae, Elizabeth. We couldn’t leave even if we wanted to.” He shrugged. “We’re mercenaries now.”

My brain swam with confusion. “Mercenaries? Even Eamonn? But the trial…”

Finn shrugged. “The Fae could care less about Trinity law in Tír na nÓg. Bodb Dearg needs all the help he can get.” Swallowing hard, he reached out his hand toward me but stopped when he saw the cuffs on my wrists.

Heat burned in my cheeks, and I clutched my hands to my chest. A look of pain crossed Finn’s face as I retreated from him, but he folded his fingers in his lap, biting his lip before continuing.

“We need to figure out how to get to Bres,” he said, his voice back in commander mode. “Is there a way for us to—”

“Is that all you care about?” I hissed.

All the blood drained from Finn’s face. “Of course not.” He stood up and leaned over me, his breath tight and ragged. “You know it isn’t. I’m sorry, Elizabeth. I wish—”

“What do you wish? That none of this had ever happened? Well, it did happen.”

Finn placed a sympathetic hand on my arm. “Please—”

“And stop talking to me like that! Stop looking at me like I’m some sort of helpless victim!”

Finn sighed, his face flushed. He stood up and turned to the door. “I know what you’re doing, and it won’t work. You can try to push me away, but I’m not going anywhere.”

“Oh, is that right? Mister ‘I’ll always protect you’? Well, where the hell have you been all this time?” Tears stung my eyes, and I bit my lip, trying to push them back.

Finn wheeled, his fists clenched, his eyes a dark, swirling storm. He opened his mouth and then stopped, his face turning calm, shadows of defeat passing across his face. “We have a strategy meeting in one hour. The king will want you to be there.”

“Oh, I assume now he wants my help.”

He didn’t say anything, but turned and closed his hand on the doorknob, his shoulders slumped. “I was foolish to make that promise to you. You’re right. I can’t always protect you. I’m—” His voice broke and he swallowed. “I’m sorry.”

The door shut behind him with a gentle click, and I buried my face in my hands. I closed my eyes, sleep threatening to overtake me. Shaking myself awake, I tumbled out of bed, searching for a hairbrush, some water to wash my face. Bres’s armies caught my eye from the window, and I pressed my forehead against the glass, watching his soldiers racing around the encampment like tiny black ants. Periodically, a Dark Druid threw a ball of blue fire against the invisible ward, and a shockwave would radiate against the dome in infinite spheres.

A small knock broke the silence, and before I could open the door, Grainne’s face peeped in, a tea tray balanced in her hands.

“Hallo there!” She smiled at me broadly, and I took a steaming cup from her hands.

Eamonn followed Grainne into the room, playing nervously with the sleeves of his robes as he hovered in a corner.

We settled on the edge of the bed, Grainne placing a tentative hand on my shoulder. “Are you feeling better, Elizabeth? You looked so pale—”

“It’s the magic. It takes a lot out of me.” I flashed her a weak smile.

“I’d say! I’ve never seen anything like it!” Grainne’s eyes grew large. “One minute the ward was around Teamhair and then zap! It was gone!”

“I bet Bres wasn’t expecting that,” Eamonn said.

I nodded. “Bres didn’t really understand the magic. He had no idea what I intended.”

Eamonn leaned in, his interest piqued. “What do you mean Bres didn’t control the magic? Who did?”

I placed my head in my hands.

Grainne put her arm around me. “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk about it.”

I swallowed hard and looked up. “It was Lorcan. The monk who wrote Arranmore. He taught me how to…do these things. He made me what I am now.”

Grainne snorted and patted my shoulder. “And what are you now? Strong? Powerful? Lorcan may have taught you a thing or two, but it looks like you made yourself.”

I nodded, smiling faintly. In halting tones, I explained to them how Lorcan experimented on my mom, how Thornton had brought him back from the dead to train me, how all of them were working together to bring down Teamhair. At the end of my story, Grainne and Eamonn stared at each other, their eyes wide.

I held up my wrists to Eamonn, the leather dark against my pale arms. “Do you know how to get rid of these?”

Eamonn reached over and studied the bracelets then, curling up my fingers in his, he gave my hands a strong squeeze. “No. This is dark magic. I don’t have the skills to break this bond.”

“But there has to be some way. How can they have that much power?”

Sadness shrouded Eamonn’s hazel eyes, his mouth turned down in a helpless frown. “These cuffs were crafted for precisely this purpose. It would be like asking a tree to become a fox, or to change your green eyes to blue. Such things cannot be undone, not to the core.”

My shoulders slumped in defeat. Grainne placed her hand over mine, and I leaned against her. “They handfasted me to Bres, during the wedding. Is that irrevocable, too?”

Eamonn lowered his eyes and looked away.

“I see.”

Grainne smoothed the hair from my face. “We’ll figure this out, Elizabeth. Don’t worry.”

Desperate to change the subject, I turned to her, taking note of the patchwork boiled leather pieced together over her body. “So what are you guys doing at Teamhair? Finn said something about mercenaries?”

Eamonn and Grainne stared at each other for a moment, and then Grainne looked back to me. “Well, you see, we made plans to meet up with Finn in Spain, but when he showed up without you, we knew something had gone wrong. He begged us to help him find a dearg-dubh, someone who could take him to Tir na nÓg, and of course we couldn’t let him go it alone, so we came with him, and—”

“Wait,” I said, a lump rising in my throat. “You mean Finn came after me?”

Grainne wrinkled her brow in confusion, staring at me as if I had grown two heads. “Well, yeah! Of course he did!”

“But why is he here? Why are you guys—”

Grainne raised her hand. “I’m getting to that bit!” She smiled at me and winked. “We traveled across Tír na nÓg toward Bres’s castle, but halfway there, we were captured by Tuatha Dé Danann soldiers and taken in as spies.” Grainne groaned. “Ah, what a mess! We had to go all the way back to Teamhair, and they were going to execute us, you know, but Finn brokered a good deal with the king. Renounce the Fianna, fight for the Fae, and he wouldn’t throw us in the bogs.” She shrugged. “We figured we could sneak away at some point, but then you flashed into the throne room, and—”

My teacup crashed to the floor, the brown liquid pooling at my feet.

“Elizabeth! Are you all right?”

My feet crunched on shards of porcelain as I crouched down, making a show of picking up the pieces, hiding the well of tears springing from my eyes. Finn had been trying to get to me this whole time. Just as he had said in the dream. He had never abandoned me.

“I’m fine. I just…I’m still a little—”

“Oh, let me get that, dear.” Grainne gathered the broken teacup in her hands. Our eyes met, and she wrinkled her forehead, placing a hand on my shoulder. “I’m glad you’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

We stood and Grainne placed the broken pieces on the tray. “Are you ready to see the king?”

I took a deep breath, and a great wave of calm settled over me. I threw back my shoulders and smiled.

“What can I say? The prodigal daughter returns.”

Grainne, Eamonn, and I marched to the strategy meeting, winding our way through the grand marble halls and sweeping columns of Teamhair, every inch of masonry swirling with intricate weaves of Celtic knots. They led me into a great throne room, shafts of brilliant afternoon sunlight cutting through the high windows, painting shadows on the Fae milling about. The majority of courtiers looked like Tuatha Dé Danann, with their tall, lithe, shimmering faces, but dearg-dubh wandered through the crowd as well. Smaller elfish creatures of delicate beauty stood on tiptoe to spy on us as we weaved through the hall, sending a chorus of tittering whispers echoing to the flying buttresses high above.

Grainne grabbed my hand and ushered me to a side alcove and into a chamber, small and claustrophobic after the grandness of the throne room.

Finn stood in the midst of a tense debate with the red-haired officer from earlier, Aodhan. Orin lurked in the corner, his clear eyes darting between Finn and the soldier as they argued. Finn glanced at me as soon as I walked into the room, and my stomach flipped, words of regret burning on my lips. Grainne ushered me to a chair at a long table with a frowning Bodb Dearg seated at the end. He leaned forward and raised a hand, and Finn and the auburn-haired soldier ceased arguing, a strained silence filling the room.

“Gentlemen,” Bodb Dearg said. “Please tell me what we are going to do about this army Elizabeth Tanner delivered on my doorstep.”

Aodhan cleared his throat. “Princess Elizabeth, I am Aodhan O’Rae of the Tuatha Dé Danann, general to Bodb Dearg’s armies. You must tell us how you came to be here with the Fomorians. Please, do not spare any detail.”

“I don’t think you could stomach the details, General.”

Finn’s eyes flickered to mine.

Aodhan nodded. “Then, please, tell us what you can.”

“In the end,” I said, glaring at the king, “it all happened just as Finn said it would at the council meeting. Bres wants to use my aisling abilities to take over Tír na nÓg, break through the Veil, and conquer the mortal world.”

“Who taught you to use these abilities?” Aodhan asked.

“It was the monk Lorcan, brought back from the dead. He trained me.”

“Lorcan!” The king exclaimed, his eyes wide in horror. “But he’s been dead for centuries! We bound him to the earth! We—”

“The mortal wizard Edward Thornton freed him.” I glanced at Finn and then back at the king. “They’ve all been working together this whole time. But Lorcan is dead now. I killed him.”

“How?” Aodhan asked.

“With my magic, of course.”

Bodb Dearg exchanged a nervous glance with Aodhan and Finn before turning back to the general.

“How long will the ward last?” he asked.

Aodhan glanced over to a corner, and a woman emerged from the shadows. Her dark, creamy skin contrasted sharply with the white robes cascading from her tall form, but most striking were her eyes, a brilliant shade of violet glowing in the darkness.

“Birog. How long will the wards last?” Aodhan inquired.

The woman’s voice echoed low and deep across the room as if she were talking into an oak cask. “The wards can resist a Druid attack, but they’re meant to protect from the outside. Bres’s Dark Druids are spitting fire at it constantly, weakening the weaves.”

Aodhan’s eyes narrowed. “How long do we have, Birog?”

“Twenty-four hours. Maybe less.”

My heart sank.

“Perhaps the girl could move the ward over Teamhair once more.” Birog said. “To buy us some time.”

“How much time do we need?” Finn interjected. “She can move this ward around for only so long. In the end, we will have to face Bres.” Finn glanced over at me and back to Aodhan. “Elizabeth has given Bres to us. That’s enough! We need to finish this!”

The king shifted in his seat, his face clouded with rage. “And what would you have us do, Fianna? Charge ten thousand Dark Fae with our one thousand soldiers? It would be a bloodbath!”

“We are only prolonging the inevitable if we wait, your highness.” Finn turned to Aodhan. “We must take the offensive while we have the upper hand. Otherwise, we might as well deliver Elizabeth to the Dark Lord right now and be done with it!”

Orin’s soft voice penetrated the tense silence. “Maybe that’s what we do.”

“What?” Finn, Grainne, Eamonn, and I all said in unison.

Orin waved his hands defensively. “We cannot undo the bonds of these cuffs or the handfast, but what if we conjured…an illusion?”

“An illusion of what?” I asked, my skin prickling.

“Why, of you, Elizabeth,” Orin said.

He paused and cast a meaningful look in my direction. “We offer a surrender, offering up Elizabeth if he’ll spare the citizens of Teamhair. But we won’t send out Elizabeth.”

“Then who will you give up to Bres?” I demanded through gritted teeth, not trusting the dearg-dubh as far as I could throw the bastard.

Orin smiled, barring his sharp canines. “We’ll send out an imposter. Eamonn can create the illusion. He disguises one of us as Elizabeth, and we deliver this fake Elizabeth to Bres. The fake Elizabeth pretends to break down the ward. But the whole time the real Elizabeth is safe behind the ramparts, moving the ward back over Teamhair. Meanwhile, the fake Elizabeth gets close enough to kill Bres. It’s simple, really.”

I sat in shock as the whole room calculated what Orin had just said. Aodhan spoke up first. “That’s a good plan.”

I spluttered, shaking my head. “No! It’s a suicide mission! We can’t risk sending someone out to Bres!”

Finn spoke up softly. “Aodhan’s right, Elizabeth. It is a good plan.”

I reeled on Finn. “You can’t be serious.” My eyes panned the table. “This will never work! What if Bres tries to pull the handfast on me? What if I can’t see what’s happening?”

Finn countered. “We won’t give him an opportunity to use the handfast, and we’ll make sure you can see what’s going on from the ramparts so you can do the real magic.”

“This is crazy! No!”

“I can see no other way,” Orin said, leaning back in his chair.

Finn rose from his seat. “I will volunteer to stand as Elizabeth.”

I jumped up, my chair clattering behind me. “No! Absolutely not!”

“The only thing that matters is that you are safe.”

My fist slammed against the table, and everyone flinched. “No! That’s not the only thing that matters!” My voice broke, and my heart drummed in my chest.

Grainne’s chair scraped against the floor, and she rose to her full height. “I will go,” she said, raising her small chin. “I’m a woman. I can easily stand in Elizabeth’s place.”

I whirled on her. “No, Grainne. Finn. No.” I could barely form words, and a hard lump rose in my throat. “No one is going out there except me.” I leaned in to Aodhan. “If I can get close to Bres. If I had a weapon—”

Finn interrupted me. “And then the next Fomorian in line will capture you. Perhaps Edward Thornton again? Do you want that, Elizabeth?” Finn’s face flushed.

I paled. “No, but—”

“This is the only way,” Orin said.

“No, it’s not! Listen to me!” The tables and chairs shook with my rage, and I tried to rein in my telekinesis, breathing deeply until I could begin again. “If I could get close enough to Bres to kill him, I could just travel out as soon as I—”

“No! It’s too dangerous,” Finn said.

“Don’t talk to me about dangerous,” I said in a low voice.

“This is no longer up for discussion,” the king interjected.

“Finn, don’t you do this…!” My voice broke.

“I have no choice!” Finn exploded. “Bres must die!”

“Then I will kill him! Does no one else see how ridiculous this plan is? I can do it! I want to do it!”

“No.” Aodhan rose. “It’s too great a risk. If we have a chance to kill Bres, we must take it.”

“All of you are crazy! I won’t allow it! I won’t be a part of it!”

“Enough!” the king boomed, rising from his chair. “Finn will go. And you will stay silent!” I backed away, energy boiling in my belly, my fingers tingling with power. I quelled the rush, trying to find my voice, trying to be calm enough to speak with reason.

The king turned to the vampire. “Orin, write up this fake surrender. Aodhan, make the necessary preparations. Prepare for a full frontal attack. We will proceed at dawn.” The king rose to go.

“You brought me into this, King Bodb Dearg,” I said. “At least allow me the honor of ending Bres on my own terms.”

The king turned. “You do not dictate the terms in Tír na nÓg,” he said in a low, dangerous voice. “I do. The dearg-dubh’s plan is the one we follow.”

He turned, and I charged the king, all my attempts at self-control crumbling as my power coursed through my body. An iron grip closed on my arm, holding me back.

“Elizabeth, it’s done!” Finn hissed.

His bruising fingers startled me, and a rush of energy surged through my hands. I thrust Finn back, the force of my power slamming him against the wall. His eyes widened in shock, and I stumbled backward. I released him with a strangled cry, hot tears streaming down my face. My hands fumbled with the doorknob, and I fled the room.