The Iron Locket (The Risen King) (21 page)

"Ready?" Maureen asked as she tested the string on her bow.

Alo shook his head and put a hand on hers, lowering the bow. "I don't want you to do this. Go back to the garage. You'll be safe there--"

"No." Maureen didn't snap; she didn't plead. She simply stated a fact. She wasn't going anywhere. As he opened his mouth to argue, she raised the bow and pulled an arrow from the quiver, slipping it onto the string. Her green eyes locked onto his. "We do this together, as it should have always been."

Alo drew a breath, ready to plead his case, but an image flashed through his mind, that of his wife cowering in a corner of the garage as Leanansidhe stalked toward her. If he went out there alone, it was inevitable, though he couldn't imagine the famed hunter Maureen Callaghan actually cowering. No, they stood a better chance together, side by side as they had been since the first day he saw her. He smiled and leaned over, kissing her softly. "I love you," he whispered.

She returned his smile, years melting off her face. "I love you, too." Then the smile faded. "Now stop being a sissy. We have work to do."

He laughed and together they walked out onto the porch to meet their unwelcome guest.

*~*~*

TWENTY-FOUR

*~*~*

Kane stood in his study near the fireplace, his hard glare locked on the faery that fidgeted near the door. The man was tense, ready to bolt at a moment's notice. Kane almost laughed. If he decided to end the man's life, he wouldn't get two feet down the hall before he was finished, his lifeless corpse nothing but another piece of refuse for the servants to dispose of. This particular man was lucky, though. Kane was in a fairly good mood, despite the annoyances he had encountered lately, and this fellow brought news from Leanansidhe's palace. Useful news, with any luck. He raised a hand and waved the man forward. With faltering steps, the shorter man moved toward him, bowing with every step. He was a servant, just like most others in Lea's employment. The aspiring queen didn't like to keep too many people around that she could not easily control. She preferred to hold the power. It was much simpler that way.

"Speak," Kane commanded.

"Your highness," the man began in a scratchy, rat-like voice. "I have heard that you are looking for information on the queen, I mean, the faery Leanansidhe. It is rumored that you will reward those who are able to give you information that can, let's say, improve your situation?" The man raised his beady little eyes to Kane's, grinning at him hopefully with sharp yellow teeth.

Kane peered down at him, raising his chin a little higher as his eyes narrowed. "It is possible. What information do you have?"

"Well, my lord," the rat continued, twisting his hands together so tightly that Kane was sure he was in pain. "You see, I have information."

Kane's shoulders dropped as irritation settled on him. He was half tempted to strangle the man right there before he could get whatever news the man brought from him. It simply could not be worth having to listen to his squeaky, weaselly voice.

"And?" Kane clenched his fists, forcing his urge to kill down into the pit of his stomach.

"Sire, the queen, I mean, Leanansidhe, she was mumbling something about wiping out the line, about freeing faeries from the clutches of humanity. She has left the castle."

Kane cocked his head and raised an eyebrow, waiting for the man to continue.

"She has opened a door, to the human world, sire."

Kane's hand shot up, commanding the man to be silent. "What did you just say?"

"She went to the human world, your highness. And she took a dozen gremlins with her."

Kane began pacing in a tight line. "Where exactly in the human world did she go? Did you trace the door?"

"Yes, sire. She opened a portal very near the house of a hunter. That one they say you k--"

The faery's breath was cut off as Kane's hand clenched around his throat, squeezing so hard the bones creaked as they ground together. "When did she leave?" His good mood was gone, evaporating in an instant, along with what little respect he had left for the would-be queen.

"About half an hour ago," the struggling man squawked, his cracked nails scratching feebly at Kane's wrist.

With a snarl, Kane gripped the man's head with his other hand and jerked it around. An audible pop echoed around the room as the bones and muscles in the other faery's neck tore and snapped. Kane let out a disgusted sigh as he let the man fall to the ground in a motionless heap. Caena wouldn't like that, he thought.

"Caena isn't here," he grumbled to himself hoarsely as he stared at the body.

Aiofe wouldn't like that, his heart responded. For two human decades, he fought back the emotions that had threatened to overtake him, pushing the girl out of his mind and closing his heart off to anything and everyone. But that day on the battlefield, a crack formed in the impenetrable wall, and with each passing moment it was growing larger, letting the pain and love from long ago flow through. Only one person could stop the dam from breaking; only one person could keep him from falling apart completely. And Leanansidhe was at her house at that very moment.

*~*~*

The self-proclaimed queen stood at the bottom of the stairs, a wide smile on her face. She stretched her arms wide and cocked her head to the side, feigning joy. "Maureen, darling. So lovely to see you. How long has it been? Thirty years? Forty?"

"Forty-one." Maureen's voice was hard and low. "You tried to kill my daughter."

The faery beamed and clapped her hands together, a wild glint in her eyes. She leaned forward conspiratorially, resting her elbow on the railing and her chin on her fist, her face falling into false pity. "Oh, my dear hunter, don't you know? I did kill your daughter, if a couple years later than intended." She wiggled her eyebrows as she stood up. Her lips shot out into a pout. "Terribly sorry about that, you know."

Quick as a whip, Maureen raised the bow and let an arrow fly. It soared through the air, aiming straight for Leanansidhe's black heart. The faery dodged to the side, executing a perfect tumble that brought her back up onto one knee with her own sword drawn.

The arrow shot past her and sank into the creature who had been cowering behind her. It pierced the thick hide without so much as a pause, tearing into its neck and protruding out the other side. With a howling, burbling keel, it tumbled head over heels, rolling several feet before sliding to a twitching stop. Its fellows looked nervously around, muttering guttural phrases that Alo and Maureen could not understand.

Leanansidhe's face curled into a snarl and she raised her sword, pointing it at Maureen. "That was not very nice. Your granddaughter tried that, too. Did you not teach her any manners?"

Maureen reached behind her to pull out another arrow as Alo unsheathed his sword. His body screamed at him, begging to just lay down and let the women hash it out. He stepped between the faery and his wife. "What do you want?" he asked, his white eyebrows knitting together as he glared at the faery. The sword in his hand wavered, catching glimpses of the fading sun in its perfectly polished sheen.

The faery stared at it with amusement. "A witch's blade? How interesting. You really must be Titania's favorites. How sweet it will be when she discovers that her precious hunters have been ended. By me, nonetheless, her ancient enemy."

Leanansidhe was stalling; Alo could see that now. The remaining creatures were inching out to the sides, trying to block them in. He and Maureen could try to escape into the house and out the front, but with what he knew about the faery, she had already closed that route off. Five of the beasts remained, along with the faery. Her alone would have been fight enough, but the creatures left them badly outnumbered. They were in trouble.

"Mo," he whispered. "Go inside."

His wife ignored him, her bow once again aiming for Leanansidhe. "Is Aiofe alive?" she asked, her voice quivering.

The faery woman's grin grew and she shrugged. "With any luck, she will be a banshee by now. I have had some fun with little experiments. It is almost like cooking, you know. A dash of this, a sprinkle of that, and voila! A brand new species designed to wreak pure havoc. I would have been able to watch the results if not for those meddlesome southerners." Leanansidhe scoffed and shook her head. "No respect for science anymore."

"Lea, stand down."

All eight heads turned toward the new voice echoing from the woods. A tall blond man was riding up the lawn on a horse, moving slowly but steadily. Leanansidhe half growled, half sighed as she turned her body part way to address him.

"Kane," she said, her voice floating across the grass. "What an unwelcome surprise."

Alo grabbed Maureen's arm and pulled her back, putting them closer to the house and the open door. He watched as the young faery dismounted and strode across the lawn. It took the old man a moment to connect the dots, to realize he was staring at Titania's son. Anger surged through his body as he thought of his daughter. The last time he saw Kane, the faery was standing over her mutilated body holding the knife that was responsible for her death. The blade in Alo's hand continued to shake.

"What do you want, Kane?" Leanansidhe propped her hands on her hips, her sword sticking out at a very dangerous angle, not coincidentally pointed directly at the newcomer.

"Let them go. They are not part of this battle." Kane stood in front of her, his sword still sheathed, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Leanansidhe snarled at him. "Oh, but they are." Her sword hand shot out, pointing directly at Maureen. "That is the last of the line of The First. When she is gone, the protection is broken. Not only will I have your mother's throne, but I will have this world, as well." She took a step forward and ran her free hand across Kane's chest, looking up into his eyes with a lust that made Alo's stomach lurch. "I bet you would like that, no? To be king of the humans? To rule over these filth and make them into the slaves they were meant to be?"

Kane didn't respond for a moment, then his hand came up, smashing into her breast bone and sending her flying across the lawn. He drew his sword and leapt up the stairs toward the hunters. Alo raised his sword and slashed out. It clanged against Kane's just as Maureen loosed an arrow. It sailed past him, lodging into the wood railing of the porch.

"Stop," Kane cried, stepping back and putting his hands up. "I'm not here to hurt you."

Aloysius stepped forward, waving his sword wildly. He took a swing and Kane ducked, but Alo wasn't aiming for him. The blade whirred through the air, slicing the arm off one of Leanansidhe's creatures. Kane turned, putting his back to the man, and swung his own weapon as a second beast leapt through the air toward him. His blade lodged in the flesh of the thing's shoulder, pulling him down to his knees. He struggled against the howling creature, trying to disentangle his sword as Alo finished off the other creature.

"Why are you here, then?" the old man asked, slamming the witch's blade down into Kane's opponent, ending the mini battle.

Kane jerked his sword free and shook off the black blood. "Where is Aiofe?" he asked, glancing quickly at Leanansidhe. The faery woman was rising, albeit slowly, but she was clearly angry.

Alo stood beside his wife. "She's not here."

Kane stopped and stood straight up, turning to face the man. His eyes were wide. "Where is she?"

Alo frowned at the concern in his voice. "We don't know. Your friend there seems to think she does."

"Shit." Kane turned back toward Leanansidhe once more, just in time to be thrown backward against the house. Siding cracked with the impact, sending slivers of wood raining down over the trio.

The faery woman smiled. "Never do that again. Now, where was I? Oh yes, wiping out the line of The First." She raised a hand, her lips moving silently. Alo couldn't see her sword anywhere, but it was clear she didn't need it. Flame glowed in the palm of her hand, the ball growing larger the longer she chanted. Her eyes rose, locking on Maureen. With a thrust of her fist, the fire ball was soaring through the air, straight at Alo's wife.

The old man moved faster than he had ever moved before. He lunged, knocking Maureen over. The fire singed his hair and Maureen was groaning in pain underneath him, but they were still alive. He watched with horror as his blade twirled over the side of the porch, out of reach. Behind them, Kane groaned, half conscious, and steady thumps echoed across the porch as Leanansidhe advanced up the stairs.

*~*~*

TWENTY-FIVE

*~*~*

"That way," Aiofe said, pointing through the tangle of trees. Arthur tugged the horse's reins gently, steering it in the direction of her finger. They plodded slowly along, the animals picking over the brush and fallen logs carefully. "Maybe we should have left the horses behind," the young woman muttered, her fingers tapping impatiently on the creature's neck.

"We cannot leave them unattended," said Arthur behind her. "Besides, they are excellent warriors."

Aiofe raised an eyebrow and turned halfway in her seat. "The horses fight?"