Devin listened as Nessa slept peacefully. It turned out that she wasn’t comfortable with having him gone after all. Watching her sleep, he couldn’t help but think that she had no idea how beautiful she was with her dark curls. He reached forward and wrapped one around his finger.
She had been very sheltered from the sidhe life. He was sure that she knew nothing of the castoffs, or even much about the common sidhe in general. It would break her heart to know that there was a whole part of her village that lived on the bare essentials. She had too much compassion to let it stay as it was, but he didn’t want to witness how much it would hurt her when she eventually found out. Devin needed to change the life for the common sidhe and the castoffs to something Nessa could live with.
Slowly, Devin leaned forward and kissed her forehead. He hadn’t slept much, maybe a few hours before he had woken again, but he wanted to go back out into the village. It would be early for the sidhe, but fine for him. He needed to find a way to help the castoffs.
Nessa’s eyes cracked open when the bed shifted. “Where are you going now?”
“Just for a run,” Devin replied, which was kind of true.
Nessa nodded as she closed her eyes again. She wasn’t mad at him any longer, or at least she didn’t stay mad while sleeping. Smiling, Devin stood up. He going to have to ask her to marry him soon, as there was no way he could take any of the other sidhe who were coming to the village coronation eyeing her over. That might just be enough to make him loose his cool. She would be his with all of the ups and downs that followed.
“Come back soon,” Nessa said sleepily as Devin opened the door to their bedroom.
“Always,” Devin replied. He could never leave her for long.
Devin made his way back out of the palace and into the streets. He’d intended to go talk to the castoffs again, but when he saw Old Man Winters pulling his cart in the fading sunlight—which most night humans avoided—Devin hurried over to the old man and took the cart from him.
“Young day human.” The old man chuckled. “Is rescuing an old man your new pastime?”
“Horse still not well?” Devin asked in reply. He did want to see the castoffs, but he needed to help the older man first.
“I think she is better, but I’m giving her one more day off,” the man replied with a shrug, as if pulling a cart full of milk wasn’t a problem for his old body.
Devin nodded, strolling alongside the older man. This time, as they moved through the town, they stopped at the houses on the other side of the street. Devin waited each time as the old man limped over and took the pitcher from the resident. Less people stared at Devin and more just went on with their lives. He had been an oddity his first time through the village, but now he was not and for that he was thankful.
As they reached the last house, and Devin helped Old Man Winters pull the empty jugs of milk back toward the barn, Devin realized that there were still two jugs filled with milk. He was sure that they were done, but there was milk left.
“Do you always have this much left?” Devin asked. He didn’t see any homes that they had missed.
“Sometimes,” Winters replied as he shooed two cows away from the door to the barn.
“What do you do with it?” Devin asked. It wasn’t like they had refrigerated storage in their natural world.
“We try to use what we can, but mostly we give back to the animals around the farm. The cows are doing very well right now, and I’ve had more than enough to feed everyone in town for months,” he replied. When he pulled on the door, the cows finally moved. The old man hobbled over to the tanks of milk and took them down.
“Would I be able to take some to others that need it?” Devin asked.
“As in others that are not visited?” the older man asked with a wink. He knew immediately what Devin planned to do with the milk.
“I don’t want to get you in trouble,” Devin replied. Devin was unsure about the laws and what would be enough to get one thrown in with the castoffs, but truly didn’t want to cause waves for the old man. Plus, he wasn’t actually asking the old man to help him.
The old man held up a hand to keep Devin from talking more.
“If you’d like to borrow a cart, and maybe find another use for that milk, I’m heading inside for a quick nap before I get to my chores. I’ll have no clue what you are up to.” He grinned at Devin, giving him the distinct feeling the old man knew exactly what he wanted to do, and was giving himself plausible deniability. “Not all of us think there should be people who are just thrown away. That isn’t our way, it is the elite way. We are not elite, yet somehow they feel like they have the right to impose their rules on us. I wish I could help all that live here, but that’s too risky. Without me, there would be no one to tend the farm. I have no family of my own, and have never been assigned an apprentice. When I die, so does my farm.”
Devin nodded, and waved to the old man as he walked back into his home. He waited a moment—to make sure that the old man was completely uninvolved in what he was about to do—and then he put the milk back to the cart. He wasn’t going to stand by and shun the castoffs for being who they were. Devin saw nothing wrong in them.
Pulling the milk cart through town, Devin noted that it was strange to see the people waking and starting their day. His other two walks were at dawn when the night humans were heading off to bed. Now it was dusk and the world was coming to life. Old Man Winters wasn’t the only one out doing chores and delivering food. Devin watched as several other carts joined him on the road. They were all going about their day. No one seemed to even pay attention to him while they went about their tasks. For the first time in a long time, Devin felt like he fit in again … even though this was a night human world. This was a life he could live. The sidhe were different than where he was brought up. They seemed even more normal than the dearg-dul that Devin was raised beside. This was truly becoming his home now, he fit in here.
Devin made it to the edge of the village and the castoff area before anyone even looked at him. A few curious sidhe on the border stared, but none stopped him as he left the village for the overgrown pathway that was the castoff road. Pulling the cart got harder, but he managed to get it to the castoff camp without too much difficulty. Devin stopped first at Mara and Colin’s house. Colin was outside with Mara, kissing her good-bye for the day.
“Day human, you couldn’t stay away?” Colin called to Devin.
Devin balanced his cart. “I decided to take a walk and found some leftover milk. I thought everyone around here could use some.”
Mara looked shocked, but Colin grinned. Devin could already tell he was winning Colin over. Mara still seemed to be caught in the sidhe world rules. It was a good thing she had Colin to keep her alive and learning how to do things without the other sidhe.
“The Maise and Connor families both have young children. I’m sure they could use some milk,” Colin replied, pointing further into the makeshift town.
“Well, there is quite a lot left. How many people live here?” Devin asked. He hadn’t thought before how much it would take to feed everyone, just that even one person was better to feed than none.
“Right now we are at eighty-two, twenty-five families,” Mara whispered. She didn’t seem as okay with the idea, even if she looked like she secretly wanted it. Devin was unsure what they even had to eat in the camp, but it was pretty clear that milk was a rarity.
Devin glanced back at the two jugs of milk that were almost full. He had watched Old Man Winters deliver milk to all of the sidhe in town. It wasn’t hard to calculate. There was more than enough for twenty-five families.
“I’ll start with the houses on the right, and make my way back around. There should be enough for everyone,” Devin replied.
“You really shouldn’t,” Mara said, finding her voice a little more. “You’ll get in trouble. No one is supposed to share with us. It’s against the rules.”
“Good thing I’m no one, then,” Devin replied, trying to
reassure the young sidhe woman.
He knew where her fear came from, but in reality, who was going to tell Devin no? While he understood order and rules, he also understood that the clans were just being vindictive toward these people. He didn’t need to follow the rules if they were ridiculous. Colin nodded to Devin as he made his way down the uneven pathway.
Devin stopped at the first hovel. It wasn’t much more than a few branches leaned against a tree with long grass hastily thrown upon it. It wouldn’t keep out much of the weather, and Devin was sure it leaked in the rain. Two young faces peered out from the cracks of the branch walls.
“Ma’am,” Devin called to the woman working the garden outside the home. The castoffs seemed to all have a garden to tend, which was probably their main food source. “I brought some milk.”
The sidhe looked startled that she was being spoken to. She was even more shocked when she stood and noticed that Devin wasn’t a sidhe. After deciding he was safe, she wiped her hands on her dress and cautiously approached him.
“Sidhe of the village are not allowed to share,” she told Devin. She obviously had the same fear as Mara.
“Then it’s a good thing I’m not a sidhe,” Devin replied. He smiled, and saw that would be enough to win her over. Being a day human in that moment was probably the best cover. He could plead ignorance, and the rules technically didn’t apply to him since he wasn’t one of them.
The lady hurried inside and returned with two large glasses. She didn’t have a covered pitcher like the women in town. Devin had to wonder if the cups were the only ones she even had. His short glimpse in the house showed she had close to nothing. Devin ladled milk into the two cups. It would have to do, and it was better than nothing. He gave one last look to the children that were now watching the milk in their mother’s hands.
“I’ll pray that you don’t get in trouble with your master,” the woman said, bowing to Devin before going back into the house.
Devin made his way around to the other houses. It was much the same. The people were shocked at his offer, but no one declined. They were all desperate. Devin looked at each face and knew these were exactly the people the old sidhe king told him he needed to save. There were women, children, old, and young. They were sidhe, yet not allowed to be part of the town. By the time he made it back to the start, Mara was no longer outside. Devin walked through her beautiful garden filled with flowering plants of every color. Even her house was covered with plants that crawled up the sides and onto the roof. She opened the door as he made it closer.
“Do you have a pitcher I can fill?” he asked.
She looked like she wanted to say no, but her eyes were already watching the pails on the cart. He could not have guessed how long it had been since she had had milk. Leaving the door open, she went in and grabbed a small pitcher from the only shelf in the room. There was a blanket on the floor, which had to be their bed, and a short table in the one room. It wasn’t much, but it seemed tidy and clean. Even without the normal sidhe world, Mara was still making a life. Devin filled her pitcher with milk and returned.
“They will punish you for this,” she told him quietly. The lively girl that was singing to her flowers earlier was gone, replaced by the quiet women before him now. There was pain behind her eyes as if she knew exactly what lay in store for Devin. He longed to tell her who he was and make it all better, but he wanted to stay the welcomed day human, not the unwelcome day human prince.
“I will be fine,” he tried to assure her, hoping it would be enough.
“No matter if you’re right about not breaking any rules, your master will be upset,” Mara replied. She was trying her best to get Devin to understand the sidhe world.
“I have no master,” Devin told her for a second time. She still couldn’t believe him. At least this time it seemed she had heard him and was considering the option. The young woman looked shocked at his words. In the sidhe world it was not possible to be a day human and not have a master. “Trust me. No one will be punished for this.”
“But …” Mara started and stopped. She was having a hard time, but was listening to Devin’s words.
“I assure you, I will be fine,” Devin told her. “As long as I head back soon and not upset my …” Devin was unsure what to call Nessa.
Mara blushed as she understood. “You are here because of a girl?”
“Oh, yes. I’m not here to visit the sidhe, that’s for sure. This was never on my list of destinations that I wanted to see,” Devin replied, making his way back through the garden. He was trying to keep her thoughts on a brighter subject than him being punished, since he wouldn’t be.
“And she is a sidhe?” Mara asked curiously.
“That she is,” Devin replied, locking the lids back on the canisters.
“But she doesn’t own you?” Mara asked, full of questions.
“No.”
“Because she loves you,” Mara added, finally understanding Devin a bit more.
Devin smiled and nodded. “I sure hope so. It would make asking her to marry me easier.”
Mara’s mouth hung open. “You plan to marry her? Sidhe only marry sidhe.” She sounded like she was reading a textbook answer.
Devin grinned. “That may be, but as I said, I am special. I don’t think anyone here has the power to tell us no if she does want to marry me.”
Mara didn’t seem to be able to believe that. She continued to stare at him, waiting for the joke that should have been coming, but Devin was serious. In that moment, he felt bad for not telling her, as he could have eased her worry.
“I’ll try to come back in another day or so,” Devin told Mara, making his way to the cart. “I’m sure there will be more milk that I can bring. Seems there has been an overabundance of milk lately, and it’s just enough to feed you guys.”
Mara did not respond. Apparently he had already done enough to shock her for one day.
As he made his way back through the village, the streets were flooded with sidhe; some of the people scurried from one place to another while others leisurely strolled. Old and young alike were out for the night. Children played and women sat around watching the children while they gossiped. Life continued on in the village, no matter what drama was in the elite homes and palace. Devin wanted to stop and watch it all, but he had to return the cart back and get to Nessa soon, as she had to be awake by now. When he made it to the end of the dirt path and Old Man Winters’s farm, Devin dropped the cart and rushed forward. Two sidhe palace guards were dragging the old man from his house.
“What’s going on?” Devin demanded to know. He stood in the open gate to the house to stop them from going further.
“Out of the way, day human.” One guard tried to push Devin from blocking the walkway.
“Young day human, be on your way,” Winters told Devin, siding with the guards. “This is none of your business.”
Devin didn’t move from his spot. “I demand to know what’s going on.” Devin glared at each man, daring them to try to move him. The two sidhe exchanged a look. They were surprised, and slightly amused, at Devin’s audacity.
“Day humans have no business in the affairs of the sidhe. Now move before we have to take you back with us,” the shorter of the two guards told Devin. They were no match for him before he got his power, and stood no chance now. Devin was not moving.
“Under whose authority are you acting?” Devin demanded to know.
The taller sidhe looked to the shorter. They obviously didn’t want to harm Devin, as they didn’t know which family he belonged to, but Devin was stopping them from their orders. They would need to make a choice and soon to get the old man back to the palace like they had been ordered.
“Lady Maureen asked us to arrest this man. He has been found to be aiding the castoff sidhe, and that’s against the law,” the shorter man replied. Devin didn’t move.
“Well, you two may go back and tell Lady Maureen that she has no authority over what I have told this man h
e can do,” Devin replied.
The two men laughed and moved to push Devin out of the way. Devin held his ground as the two swords of the late king appeared on his back. If he had to fight the men, he would. Maureen was the last person Devin was going to allow to bully the common sidhe. He already disliked the lady with a passion for her attempts to kill Nessa through her children, and she was not earning any more points for her actions with the common sidhe.
Both guards immediately dropped the arms of the older man when they saw the swords, fell to their knees, and bowed their heads. Now they knew who he was.
“Please forgive us, Day Human Prince.” The taller man spoke, as it seemed the shorter man was now at a loss for words.
“As I said before, I can do as I please. This man had nothing to do with aiding the castoffs. It was completely my doing. Please go back and inform Lady Maureen that she shouldn’t hastily prosecute people when she doesn’t know the full story. I might not be in as good a mood next time,” Devin warned the two men. They stood and nodded before quickly retreating into the village. Devin would have never responded with violence against the two guards that were only doing their jobs, but he was threatening enough that they didn’t know the difference.
Devin went over to help the older man stand since they’d dropped him at the sight of Devin’s swords. He grinned as Devin pulled him up.
“I think I understand now why you have no fear of us,” the old man said, dusting off his pants. “Because in reality we should all fear you, Day Human Prince.”
“I don’t wish to be feared by the common sidhe, just the elite,” Devin replied. It made life in the palace tolerable when they didn’t treat him like trash. It made doing as he pleased much easier.
The old man smiled. “Then your secret is safe with me.”
Nessa paced around her room some more. Devin had not returned yet. He was outside of the palace walls, but she had no clue what he was doing. He had said he was going for a run, which could have been the case, but she guessed that he had different plans. The common sidhe seemed to fascinate him, but there wasn’t any real reason for that. They were just sidhe like everyone else, with a little less power than the elite sidhe. What was interesting about them?