Knight in Leather (28 page)

“Well, well. Look what happens when you climb out of the swamp and join society.”

“I don’t
understand
society. I don’t understand relationships in general, I imagine. Your wife plucked that into my brain.”

“Did she?”

Colin grunted. “For some reason, she thinks I’m incorrigible and undeserving of a mate.”

“Are you?” Ethan wanted to believe that there was someone for everyone—even people like Colin. Sometimes
finding
those someones took a great deal of patience, but winning them over took even more. He didn’t know if Colin had the right stuff.

“Maybe I am. Not really sure what I can do to change at this point.”

“Asking for help would be a start. You know that, right?” Ethan tucked a couple of silver candlesticks Mother handed him into the trunk.

“Do you? Ask for help, I mean.”

Ethan scoffed, and turned to scan the room. There wasn’t much left that was valuable, but the Gotches had always lived simply. Having few possessions made packing up and leaving on a whim easier should doing so be necessary. “I ask the prince and princesses for assistance regularly. And Thom and Sully, too.”

“That’s interesting.”

“How so?”

Colin set down the mirror. “We demigods in general don’t form relationships like that. We tend to keep to ourselves.”

“Lone wolves, huh? And how’s that working out for you?”

“Living like that for as long as I have has kept me alive. You can’t even fuckin’ put two of us in the same room together without someone losing blood.”

“And maybe that’s why your mate isn’t one of
you
.”

Colin blanched and then scowled. He looked confused—as if he really hadn’t thought of his situation that way, and didn’t like that he hadn’t.

“You’ve got to learn how to be a team player if you’re going to stick around,” Ethan said. “I assume you want to stick around?”

Dasha stepped into the cottage with the fabric and a thick, leather-bound book. She smiled as she handed the items to Ethan, and his heart filled to bursting. He never would have imagined that he would go weak-kneed by the tilt of a beautiful woman’s lips. But, that beautiful woman was
his
, and she knew, and she seemed to like her station.

Colin dragged a hand through his damp hair and let out a ragged breath. “I suppose I do.”

“No one expects you to adjust quickly,” Ethan told him. “You just need to act like you want to.”

Colin seemed to be pondering the advice.

“Here he is. Owen.” Father poked his head into the doorway. “I won’t bother having him come in to say hello. I imagine we’re going to head right out?”

“Yes,” Ethan said. “How much shit is he hauling?”

“The whole household, like I said.”

“Better help him cull that down. Maybe he’ll be able to run back through and get some things later, but for now, he’d best sort out what he can carry on his back.”

“Would have made much more sense to have sent Ari with the mess.”

“Alas, we weren’t thinking that far ahead.”

Father ducked back out.

Laurel sauntered over, only for Colin to escort her right back to her seat.

“Just stay put right there,” he said. “We’ll be on our way soon enough.”

“But he’s standing
so
far away.”

Sighing, Dasha pinched the bridge of her nose. “Poor deluded weirdo.”

“The mess will be over soon, sweeting,” Ethan said.

“Let us hope. The fish smell is exacerbating my nausea.”

Normally, Dasha wouldn’t have condoned anyone pulling a lady along as if she were a rag doll, but if Colin hadn’t kept scooting Laurel through the tunnel, they never would have gotten anywhere. She kept turning and smiling at Ethan, and even the most clueless of beings would have been able to guess that the fairy’s patience was shot.

She had to put herself between Ethan and the rest to keep him from lunging and throttling the annoying woman. She couldn’t wait until Colin wiped Laurel’s memory of the entire ordeal.

Ethan Senior was at the front of the group, mumbling about having to use his second-best sword as they approached the end of the tunnel. “Let’s stop here and rehash,” he said. “We’re sending Laurel out first, and we’re going to use her as a distraction for any guards standing near the doorway, and then she’ll go find the right kind of fairy to send Heath a message.”

Ethan nodded. “Right. If there are any guards besides those who intercept her, everyone will do what they can to offset them until Mielikki shows up to open a portal for us. Chances are good that once any guards out there see her, they’re going to either retreat or run with the crowd into the human realm.”

“Hopefully, she’ll show up on time, then,” Moira said. “She peered down at the mirror in her hand. “Fergus, do you have everyone collected on your end? We’re near your cottage now.”

Dasha couldn’t see the glass from where she stood, but she heard Fergus’s grunt.

“Place is getting crowded,” he said. “Daryn and Caryl’s folks are here and Sully’s folks are here with their siblings and their kids. Those are two of the biggest families I know of.”

“Who else?” Ethan asked.

“Perry’s mother is here. His father is still imprisoned. Not sure how to get him out or if we even can. I also have a random assortment of their friends and neighbors milling about outside.”

“Are the guards watching the place not suspicious?”

Fergus snorted again. “Maybe a bit, but the guards can’t see most of the folks.”

“Why the hell not?”

“Magic. Ask Perry’s mother what she did when you get a chance. She’s a crafty one, all right.”

“That she is,” Moira said low. “I forgot she could do that.”

“If she’s anything like Perry,” Ethan said, “she’s
very
good and making people forget what she’s capable of.”

“Don’t worry about the folks here,” Fergus said. “Worry about yerselves. If there’s a skirmish, do what ye can to not to draw it over to the cottage. Too many little ones here, and dammit, here’s another refugee headed over now from the farthest mound. Just one, though. Maybe they won’t— Shit. Aye, ye best send your lass out now. The lad’s got a knapsack, and the guards are piqued.”

Colin turned Laurel toward the exit. “Do you remember what to do?”

“Of course I do. I’m taking my love to see Rhiannon.”

Colin cringed.

Dasha grabbed Ethan by the back of his shirt when he jerked toward the woman.

“Uh, no,” Colin told her. “Follow these simple instructions.”

“Uh-huh.” She beamed in that vapid way indicative of a lack of substance between her ears, and Dasha’s heartburn flared up.

This freakin’ realm…

“You’re going to step into the realm, and you’re going to tell any guards that you encounter that you have to see Queen Rhiannon—that you have a
very
important message for Queen Rhiannon and that they should escort you to her at once. If they refuse, make a big fuss.”

“Big fuss?”

“That’s right. And while you’re waiting for Rhiannon to come get you, find a word-thrower at the palace. There are a few there, right?”

“Uh-huh. She uses them all the time to talk to the clans outside the realm.” Laurel pouted. “They don’t always respond.”

Colin let his eyes cross. “Okay. Well, you’re going to tell him or her to make a little talking hole between the realms and to tell Prince Heath his mother may be on the way out. If the guards are resistant, cry if you have to. I’m sure you’re capable of false hysterics.”

“Who needs acting? I’ve cried oceans of tears.” Pouting, she fixed a hangdog expression on Ethan.

“The very first thing I’m going to do when we’re back at The Hearth is drink an entire six-pack in a single sitting,” he whispered to Dasha.

“Sounds like a plan. Personally, I’ll be calling my parents to assure them that I’m alive. You know. Stuff like that.”

“I’m certain Princess Simone is keeping them reasonably calm.”

“I hope so, because
calm
is likely to be the last thing they’re going to be when they meet you.”

“I resent that. I make a pleasing enough son-in-law.”

“You knocked me up before you even met them. They’re going to feel a certain kind of way about that.”

He took her hand and kissed the back of it. “I’ll win their favor, I promise. Just tell me what to do, and I’ll be at their mercy.”

“You’d do anything?”

Ethan raised an eyebrow.

“
Anything
, Ethan?”

“Are you done with the kissy-face back there?” Colin asked. “If I don’t send our girl here on out, I’ll have to remind her of what her instructions are again. I’m getting bored by all the talking.”

Expending a soft growl, Ethan pulled his sword from the scabbard and moved into position at the front of the group. “Let’s get on with it.”

As Laurel raised a hand to the heavy wooden door, the group seemed to brace itself collectively. Even tired Moira straightened her spine and curled her hands into fists. Dasha wrapped her fingers around the butt of the gun in her purse and fixed her gaze on Ethan. Back at The Hearth, he was generally so good-natured and keen on having a good time, but when he was working, she got to see a whole different side of him.

They stepped back into the dark. Laurel put her hand to the door, and it sprang outward.

She started talking the moment she stepped out, pulling the nearby guards’ attention away. “I must be taken to Queen Rhiannon at
once
,” she said. “I demand you take me to see her.”

“Settle down,” one of the guards said. He moved past the portal entry without looking in.

Ethan slowly put his head out and glanced both ways, and then pulled his head back in. “The guard that was headed toward Fergus’s is headed toward the other guards now. The rest are scattered around the mounds that contain portals to different parts of the realm. None look to be open at the moment.”

“How close are the nearest guards?” Moira asked.

“Twenty meters or less.”

“Then let me out next,” she said. “Let them swarm. I’ll deal with whoever gets close, and when the rest come running, the rest of you can come out.”

“Moira—” Ethan Senior started.

“No.” She wagged her finger at her husband. “If we can do this with as few people as possible getting hurt, then that should be our objective. Putting them to sleep isn’t going to hurt them, unless they hit the ground too hard.” She shrugged. “That’s a chance I’m willing to take.”

Ethan Senior took a few deep breaths, letting each out slowly. He muttered something vulgar to the ceiling of the tunnel, and looked down again.

“I’ll be
fine
,” she said.

“Aye, sure you will.”

“I don’t appreciate your tone.”

“Take a chunk out of my hide later, then.” He gave her a scoot by the bottom. “Get on with you before I change my mind.”

Moira harrumphed, hitched up her skirt, stepped up into the doorway, and out into the grass. She looked around, casually, and then started walking at a leisurely pace toward Fergus’s cottage. She was cool as a cucumber, as if she played the role of decoy every day—an old pro at subterfuge.

“You! Stop!” came a man’s voice that seemed to come from overhead.

They all looked up, but of course, there was nothing to see but dirt and rock. The guard was likely standing on top of the mound.

Out in the field, Moira turned—wide-eyed with feigned shock. “Can I help you?” she called over.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“To see my dear friend Fergus, of course. Everyone knows Fergus.”

“Aye? I’ve seen lots of
everyone
today. Tea party or some such garbage going on I don’t know about?”

Moira gave him a long blink. “I’m sorry you weren’t invited. With the place being so small, I imagine he has to draw the line somewhere.”

The guard hopped down and moved toward her.

Ethan Senior tensed, the veins in his neck standing out noticeably as he poised to move.

Moira was absolutely calm. She twined her fingers together in front of her belly and smiled to each of the other four guards as he approached. If they’d thought they were going to make her slump with fear, they had the wrong woman.

“I know you,” one of the guards said. He snapped his fingers as if trying to conjure words out of the air. “You’re…Gotch’s mother, aren’t ya?”

Her grin broadened. “I am.”

“Troublemaker.”

“Him or me?”

Ethan scoffed.

“Both, probably. Whaddaya doing coming out of that tunnel so soon after Laurel, anyway?”

“Am I not allowed to travel with whomever I choose?”

“Even her?” One of the guards let out a bark of laughter.

Moira narrowed her eyes and stuffed her hands into the pockets of her skirt. “Do you know something I don’t? If so, please share.”

“I imagine you’ll be finding out soon enough. She been getting cozy with Ethan?” He laughed again.

Moira smiled and straightened her spine. “No. She hasn’t.”

“Not for lack of trying, I’m sure.”

“Whether or not she’s tried is none of your concern.”

“Not like Ethan to say no, is it?”

Colin grabbed Ethan by the waistband before he could take one step outside of the tunnel.

“He’s a fuckin’ instigator,” Ethan spat.

“He knows what he’s doing,” Owen said. “He’s trying to get your mum all riled up so he has a good reason to use force. She’s not going to give it to him. You know she’s not.”

Another guard jumped down from the top of the mound, and the group inside took a collective step backward. They may have been in the shadows, but at some point, one of those idiots was going to notice the portal hadn’t closed. They usually didn’t stay open that long unless someone was waiting just inside them.

The guard joined the group, asking, “Who’s this?”

“Gotch’s mother,” another said.

“No shit? Sickly-looking one, isn’t she?”

Moira kept smiling.

The first guard patted his yawning mouth. “Said she was gonna go visit Fergus.”

“Oh, yeah? Maybe we should all go visit Fergus.” That guard yawned, too.

“Queen Rhiannon said to stay away from the cottage, you dolt. Remember that?”

“She did?” The third guard rubbed his eyes and shifted his weight. “When’d she say that?”

“This morning. Said not to get close because he likes to play games. Said something about lures and”—another yawn—“Gods, why I am I so sodding tired all of a sudden?”

“You, too?” That guard stretched his arms over his head as he yawned.

Moira looked up, locking her gaze on him.

He stared at her for seconds. And then he fell.

One of his buddies moved as if to render aid, but before he could get to him, he collapsed, as well.

And then the rest.

The last guard nearly knocked Moira over as he fell, and she’d barely gotten out of the way in time.

Dasha let out the breath she’d been holding.

The guy had to weigh a ton, and Moira wasn’t exactly in tiptop shape.

She stepped out of the ring of slumbering bodies, turned in a slow circle—looking around, and then gestured toward the portal.

“Come,” she said. “It’s safe for the moment.”

“But not for long.” Mielikki arrived in a showy blue flash accompanied by a tall, elegant, flaxen-haired woman and broad-shouldered man with the hugest forearms Dasha had ever seen.

“That’s Thom’s folks,” Ethan said as the group hurried from the portal with all their gear.

“There are skirmishes elsewhere—the doing of other gods and goddess. I have reason to believe there’ll be one here soon enough. Let’s get moving, shall we? I can only send one person out of the realm at a time, and—”

A great cracking sound startled the group into turning, and it took Dasha a moment to find the portal they’d come through had been split wide open and an angry redhead storming out of the remains.

“Katie?”

Simone’s mother said nothing to them. She ran toward her father’s cottage, shouting, “Dad! You’re not fuckin’ staying here. I came to get Mum.”

“Oh, s
hit
,” Ethan said. “Laurel must have gotten word out to Heath already.”

Colin scoffed. “She’s a mermaid. She might be exceedingly daft at the moment, but there are plenty enough men who’d do favors for her.”

Ethan Senior grunted and fondled the hilt of his sword. “If Katie’s presence doesn’t lure Rhiannon over for a fight, nothing will.”

“What’s wrong?” Owen asked.

“Out of the loop, are you?” Dasha asked. “That’s Fergus’s daughter.”

“Aye, I caught that much.”

“And…Katie and Rhiannon are mortal enemies.”

That was probably the most dramatic statement Dasha had ever made, but given the circumstances and her company, the assertion seemed reasonable enough.

“I can’t believe you don’t know about that,” Ethan said. “Their enmity one of the realm’s worst-kept secrets. Katie hasn’t stepped foot into the realm for seven hundred years. She and Rhiannon had it out over King Brandan.”

Owen furrowed his brow. “But weren’t they together already by then?”

“That’s the point,” Dasha said. “Katie never wanted him, and I don’t believe he ever
really
wanted Katie. Maybe he looked her way a time or two before hooking up with Rhiannon, but that was the extent of their so-called relationship. Apparently finding out about that was enough to set Rhiannon off, though. Anyway, Katie’s mother has been in an enchanted sleep since Katie left. She vowed to never come out until Katie could come home.”

“Ahh,” Owen said, and then groaned. “She didn’t have a choice but to come, did she? If she didn’t come, she’d never be able to get her mother out because of the realm collapsing.”