Twisted (Rogues Shifter Series Book 3) (23 page)

“Jackie,
please
tell me you won’t do that at the meeting. It won’t be helpful.” Liam sounded exasperated, like he was dealing with an unruly child.

“I won’t.” She turned to me and whispered. “But it’s cool, right?”

“Very hot, actually.”  She laughed again and I felt relieved to see genuine joy spread across her lovely features.

We packed our few belongings and then met Liam at his rooms and walked together to the meeting. It was always a good idea to arrive
at a possibly difficult conference involving the elders with a prominent fae in tow.  All four of the Elders were there as was Aedus and his mother, Lady Silvus and Liam’s mother, Lady Erin. Lady Silvus walked over to Jackie as soon as she saw us, taking her hands and bowing her head in a show of deep respect. Aedus repeated the same gesture and then said, “I owe you my life.”

“So now I’m responsible for you right, Aedus?” She smiled at him.

“I believe that is the Chinese custom. In Faerie, it’s more that I am responsible for
you
.”

Liam walked over. “Which translates into
I'm
responsible for you since Aedus is the heir and I’m always doing his work for him.” Liam gave his brother a shove and I saw Aedus’ face light up with laughter. Trauma can change your life in unexpected ways. The very serious man Jackie had met at the dinner the night before the Midsummer Ceremony had been replaced by a much more carefree version. At least until the next crisis reared its head.

I saw Jackie admiring him in his sky blue tunic and so I sent, “
If you continue to drool over Aedus, I might start to get jealous
.”

She laughed and sent,
“I don’t drool. Except maybe when you take your shirt off. Anyway, he and Philladre are crazy in love”
She looked around,
“I suppose all these gestures of support are sending a powerful message to the other fae here at the meeting.”

“The point exactly, my darling.”

She turned again to Liam, “But what about the fact that you both helped in the search for me. Doesn’t that make us even?”

I piped in, “That falls under the ‘ally of the fae’ category.” They were both laughing along with me.

Jackie sighed in exasperation.  “I don’t think I’ll ever get all these obligations straight. How about we all just agree to always have each other’s backs for ever and ever?”

Lia
m was laughing so hard he was crying. “I wish that was translatable into fae, but it would come out sounding obscene.”

Lord Caelen cleared his throat and the four of us slunk guiltily into our designated chairs.  We ate our lunch quietly, talking with Caelen and his family about simple things
, not related to the horror of the last week. They were trying to let go and move on, which was easier for the fae to do than shifters or humans. They saw these events as minor glitches over a huge expanse of years.  Emotions didn’t rule their lives, and although they felt deeply, they rarely acted out of anger or fell into deep depression.  I was happy to see that Philladre was seated next to Aedus as Kellaine sat beside Liam. They both smiled at Jackie and nodded.

Jackie’s hand crept into mine and I squeezed it in support. I was glad that she’d had some time to laugh with Liam and Aedus
, because it was obvious to me that she was burying her feelings to stay in control and it was wearing her out. She needed to talk about what had happened before the lid blew off. She’d been caged in a small room, unable to relieve any of the  incredible stress brought on by her kidnapping and torture. At times I could practically see her cheetah pacing anxiously behind her eyes. Sighing, I wished I could take her home with me now.

When we’d finished and everything was cleared away from all of the tables, Lord Caelen stood to speak. “Ja
cqueline Crawford would like to speak before the Elders. My family and I already know what she’s going to tell you, and she and her mate, Garrett, have our full support as always." He smiled at both of us and sat down.

Jackie stood and spoke, keeping it brief and to the point. “While I was a prisoner of Lord Kennet, I was guarded by a demon, Isaiah. He was able to tell right away that I had a full blooded demon ancestor. He believes it is my maternal grandmother, and because of this, he was able to teach me how to travel through the ley lines just as you do. In return
for this training, I was to give him Lord Kennet for a year. He saved my life, and even though he was sent back before we could complete our agreement, I still offered him Lord Kennet, for a more limited amount of time, as most of you observed.”  She sat down, tension wrinkling her brow, and I felt her grab my hand and squeeze it hard.

“Try to r
elax, love, They'll argue it out between each other now.”

“They might ask me a bunch of questions.”

“You don’t have to answer any questions. Just defer to me or Caelen.”

Lady Jo
rrenn opened the matter up for discussion. A few Fae stood and debated the advisability of having a demon ally. Lord Caelen rose, towering above all of them, and brought up a few points.

“Jacqueline is a healer as my son Liam is. As an ally
, she is available to help any of us who need her unique gifts. As part demon, she can possibly arbitrate and bargain with their realm on our behalf if there is a need.” There was whispering, so Caelen raised his volume slightly, and glared in the direction of the noise. “I trusted her with the lives of both of my sons and I would do so again.”

A tall slender woman stood and all eyes went to her. She had very light blonde hair and eyes that were such a deep purple, they were almost black. Her mouth was turned down in a slight frown and she glared at Jackie. This was the speaker they were waiting for.

She spoke in Fae and Caelen translated.  “Do you actually believe that this shifter will be of use to us? I know you think she saved your son, Aedus, but I’m sure he would have healed on his own. She is dangerous to our people as all demons are, whether full blooded or not. You saw what she did to my brother, a full blood fae noble. What’s to keep her from taking revenge on me or my daughter to end our line completely?”

Caelen stood but she stopped him and spoke in perfect English, “I want to hear from her own lips that she does not intend to harm my daughter in retaliation for any small grudge she has against my brother.”

Jackie popped up out of her seat before I could grab her. She was so angry that I could see her trembling. I sent to her quickly,
“This is where we show them that we mean them no harm, not where we rip out their throats.”

She took a
shaky breath. “Lady…?”

“Lady Korwyn,” the woman responded.

“Lady Korwyn, unless you attack me or my friends or allies, or have someone else attack us, I will not take any action against you or your daughter. I swear this. I don’t believe in blood feuds. But my grudge against your brother isn’t a small matter. If you’d like to know what he did to me, I'd be happy to tell you, in private. In fact I could let you into my mind to experience it yourself, if you think you could stand it.” No one spoke as the two women continued to stare at each other, neither one willing to back off.

"You sent him to the realm of demons.

"He killed his wives and he would have killed me too after he was finished with me. He'll be back alive, which is more than his wives' families can say, Lady Korwyn."

"And do you seek retribution?"

“I’m a healer. I want to put these last days behind me.” Jackie’s shoulders sagged suddenly, so I snaked an arm around her waist to hold her steady. “Could I ask you a question?” Lady Korwyn nodded. “Why was he so obsessed with producing an heir when he has you and your daughter to carry on the bloodline?”

“He doesn’t consider my child to be worthy to inherit. Her father is half human.”  She lowered her eyes in shame and I recognized the poisonous effects of Kennet’s prejudices which he’d inflicted on his sister and his niece.

Jackie turned to look at Liam and then turned back. “It sounds like a perfect combination to me.” Lady Korwyn looked up again, her expression surprised and no longer angry. Jackie sank back into the chair, obviously exhausted, yet wound up as tightly as a reel.  I took her hand and pulled her a little closer so she could lean on me. Her heart was beating much faster than normal. I was starting to get worried.

“Breathe deeply and think about going home this evening. You’ll see Ethan and Kyle and Sinc, and you’ll be able to take a hot bath and sleep in your own comfortable bed.”

“I want to sleep in your comfortable bed with your arms around me.”

“That can be arranged.”

“Lady Korwyn, are you satisfied?” asked Lord Caelen. She nodded and sat and I noticed for the first time the lovely fae woman who sat beside her. She had the same blonde hair and deep purple eyes but her lips were full and her smile was warm as she turned to take her mother’s hand.

There were a few others who spoke in support of Jackie remaining an ally and then the Elders agreed unanimously to support Jackie and continue her ally status. The meeting was called to a close, the decision of the Elders being non-negotiable and final.

We followed everyone out of the large chamber and walked to the field where the Midsummer Ceremony had taken place. It was time for Bridgett to apologize.

Chapter Forty-five

Bridgett: 3:00 PM Saturday

OK so this was it. I was going to do this.  And even if they hit me or spit on me or kicked me…I’m not sure if that was allowed…I was going to get through this and act very sorry and not flip out on them.  I took a breath. I didn’t always have the best control of my temper, but if there was ever a day to put a lid on my short fuse, today was the day.

Lady D gestured for me to walk to the platform. The six former prisoners were sitting in the front row, but there were hundreds of other fae surrounding us
and whispering to each other. I was told that they weren’t allowed to call out or throw things at me, thank you very much, but I could pick up on the anticipation of what they were hoping might happen. What crowd doesn’t like a good brawl? Only this time it would be kind of one sided. I hope no one broke my nose. That hurt like a bitch the last time.

I walked up onto the central platform, feeling very much like Ann Boleyn walking to her death, and tried my best to look confident, but not too proud. First Lady D introduced me and then told me that I could speak. I was supposed to offer up a good apology. I’d tried to figure out what to say, but ended of deciding to just speak the truth from my heart and see what happens from there.

I looked at the six fae in the front row and spoke only to them. “I found out about what my dad was doing by accident. He’d been acting strangely, sneaking off with a few of his pack and then returning, looking really tired. He wouldn’t tell me what was going on, only that things were going to be better, financially, for the pack. One day Kennet appeared in the woods behind the club and I saw my dad talking to him. I didn’t know his name, only that he was a powerful fae. I shifted and was able to get a lot closer to him to overhear everything. So that’s when I found out, about one month after he captured the first one of you.

“So, I could have gone to tell someone then. I
should
have told someone then. I can make an excuse and say that I didn’t know who to go to, but I could have just asked one of you who I should contact. When my dad found out that I’d overheard, he put me to work bringing you food and cleaning up. You all saw me there. Some of you asked me to help you. I’m ashamed that I didn’t.

“It’s not like I’m a little kid, I’m
seventeen, an adult, and I should have acted like one. I really didn’t know how bad your pain was from the iron, but you shouldn’t have been locked up at all, away from your families. The fact that I helped that snake, Kennet, who then turned around and tortured my own sister, makes me sick.

“Anyway, there are no excuses to make up for what I did…or didn’t do. I apologize for ignoring your pain and for not doing anything to ease it, for not telling someone that you were there and for supporting my father when I knew in my heart that he was wrong. I don’t expect any of you to forgive me. I’m committed to two years of service to your people and I swear that I will serve y
ou the best I can.”

I breathed out and waited. The audience was so quiet. I thought I did ok, I mean, I told only the truth so they would know that. I just hoped that I’d have a chance to show them that I could also be an ally to the fae, just like Garrett and Jackie.

The first prisoner got up and introduced herself. It was Ashlyn, Farrell’s lady, and her face looked very serious. “I was the first one captured, so I was there the longest. I’ve chosen to accept your apology, Bridgett Brownlow, because I see that you are sincere. I never felt that you were to blame for what happened. You were still a child of sixteen when I first met you.” She nodded and sat.

The next two prisoners, 2 males, also accepted my apology, although they weren’t quite so nice with what they said about me. The fourth prisoner, a woman named Ferriss, spat at my feet and cursed me to burn in the demon realm for 100 years. I really hoped that she didn’t actually have any power to make that happen. Everyone could see that I was visibly shaken after Ferriss had left the platform, but I kept my cool as a tall male approached me. He introduced himself as Leander and said that he’d asked me for my help but that I’d turned my back on him and that he couldn’t bring himself to forgive me. He punched me in the stomach…really hard, and I collapsed to my knees right there in front of all the fae. I saw Jackie stand up but Liam held her back. It took me a couple of minutes to get my breath back but I stood up and told him that I was sorry that I’d turned away when I should have helped him. He just glared at me and sat back down. When the last woman walked up and accepted my apology I thanked her.