Summon (Rae Wilder)

  “The witch is as much a part of fate’s plan as the rest. As was your mother’s misguided decision. Trust me, my friend. If Ana were not a slave to fate she would not have allowed an outcome where Rae died, and she performed the resurrection. Much of her newly found power was drained.”

  “Even so, it was not I who found Rae.” His glance conveyed an apology. “If I brought her to you things would be different. You cannot deny it.”

  “We mustn’t think that way.” I ignored the discomfort that came from the thought of never meeting Daphne. Of Rae being delivered to me as my bride. “It is pointless.”

  “Would you not be happier with Rae by your side as tradition dictates? Happier you and she are united, and as one, felled Cael, and put an end to his perverse witchery?”

  My gaze flashed from the forest canopy to Conall’s wretched expression. I softened in sympathy. “Cael is your brother.”

  “No,” Conall snapped. “He is a depraved fiend, nothing more.”

  He held such anger. Few glimpsed the depth of the emotion Conall hid so well. I suspected his hatred ran hot because he carried guilt at what his youngest sibling suffered as a youngling, and loved him deeply despite his atrocities.

  I’ll ease his pain as best I can, starting with his misconceptions about Rae and little brother.

  Propping my back on the tree, I slid to the floor to sit. “I am going to tell you something you must not repeat.” Conall joined me on the ground, and I looked at him gravely. “Ana told Brenadan of his likely future. That he met my future mate and loved her.”

  “He should have resisted, and come to you, and told you–”

  “He did.”

  Conall stilled. “He did?”

  “My brother is principled and disciplined. I trust him with my life, and I did. Aside from you, there is no other I trusted with keeping Rae safe when she left Temple, unaware of who and what she was.”

  “He betrayed you more than I realised.”

  Conall was determined to lay blame. Why can he not see there is no single transgressor? All had played a part in bringing about the future fate had chosen for us.

  I frowned in consternation. “I was unconcerned by Ana’s prediction. Tradition dictated Rae would be mine, and so why would she not be? I decided they may have some small feeling for each other that would pass when Breandan found another, and she and I grew close.”

  “Breandan thought the same?”

  “He was reluctant, but did what he was born to do as Wyld Guardian, protect his Tribe.” I rested my elbows on my knees and dropped my head into my hands. “One morning, he patrolled our borders and ran into a frightened girl in the throes of losing her glamour. He touched my bride to protect her. In an act of innocent kindness, he changed the course of all our futures.”

  “He should have distanced himself. He took advantage of her confusion.”

  Stifling laughter, I gripped the back of his neck and shook him. “My brother is more like prey than predator. Yes, he should have held her at arm’s length, but what happened between Breandan and Rae was beyond us all.” I rolled my shoulders, accepting the truth behind the words myself. “They fell in love.”

  Conall stretched his legs. He looked mystified. “You’re not angry.”

  “I was never angry at him.” I paused. “Or her. My frustration stemmed from our complicated situation. The people waited for the Priestess I promised, and there she was. But she wasn’t mine.” I laced my fingers together. “I owed them. They shunned tradition by leaving Devlin’s court, and then I was to tell them their High Lord would rule, unmated, whilst the woman that by rights was mine cavorted with my younger brother?”

  Conall made a noise of frustration. “Rae should have done what was right when she discovered the truth.”

  Thinking back to how I acted when I first met Rae, I snorted. I behaved unforgivably. She was stubborn, and though I’d never say it aloud there were times I thanked the gods she wasn’t destined to be mine.

  Our very natures clashed. It would’ve ended badly.

  “She acted on instinct,” I said. “Can we fault her for that? I do not blame her.”

  “I do.”

  “That is because you love her and want what is best.”

  “My family put themselves first in all things, and it is not right. Selfish. They give into their own needs.” He spoke of more than Rae – of his mother and youngest sibling.

  I squeezed his shoulder. “You do not.”

  “I am Eldest.” A rare bitterness soured his tone. “Someone must be honourable.”

  “You do a fine job.”

  Pain streaked across his noble features “Lochlann,” he dragged in a breath then said in a rush, “I wronged Cael. Treated him unfairly and I am terrified to admit the monster we saw was created because of me.” Conall darted a guilty look my way to gauge my reaction. “Did you feel his pain?”

  “I did.”

  Buried under putrid layers of loathing and anger Cael’s soul was a tormented web of pain.

  “That was because of me. I ignored his suffering. I let my hatred of our mother kill any sympathy for him. I withheld love from someone I should have loved most in the world.”

  “It is a difficult situation. I understand your need to protect Rae, even from kin. She will not turn from you because you chose to disown him.” I hesitated. “But she will judge if you continue to ignore what he is to you both. That much is plain.”

  “She will not talk to me.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “Give her time.”

  He shifted his shoulder under my grip as if my touch made him uncomfortable. “My family is despised. My mother broke the balance and turned my father into a murderer. The people think of Rae as wild and disrespectful. My brother is a lunatic.” He chuckled without humour. “They look at me as if I am infected. Waiting for the same weakness to emerge.”

  “Pay no heed to fools. Think of the ways I acted in the last year. The mistakes I made.”

  Conall lifted an eyebrow, intrigued.

  Despite our candid friendship, he saw me as unassailable instead of a male prone to lapses of judgement. No different from the rest of my gender. He wasn’t alone in this idolized opinion. My fall from grace in the eyes of my people was harder to bear because of this widespread misconception.

  My nature was arrogant. The trait was difficult to overcome and generally accepted by the Tribes as leadership. Devlin sank his claws deep before his ability to uphold the values fairykind was created to sustain were questioned. His egotism was mistaken for self-belief.

  Confidence and arrogance, the line between them is fine indeed.

  “Family is family. You cannot change it. We shall deal with Cael, and as for Rae…. The way I treated her in the beginning was never going to endear her to me.” I rubbed my chest. “I didn’t make the situation easier by voicing my annoyance so bluntly.”

  My hand pressed harder over my heart, and I gritted my teeth.

  A distinct pang of irritation came from Daphne down the blood tie. What causes it? Why is she upset…? I froze and stopped rubbing.

  Sliding a look at Conall, I dropped my hand. His expression didn’t reveal a suspicion anything was amiss. Not that he’d let me see if he did believe something was wrong.

  I blocked the vampire from my mind. This is a taste of what little brother experiences. It irritated me I wanted to seek her whereabouts and discover what upset her. Discover and annihilate it.

  Setting my discomfort aside, I picked up the thread of conversation I’d dropped. “Instead of taking control I let things get out of hand. Breandan forswore his oath because he was scared of my retaliation to his claim on Rae. I’m ashamed to say he was right. I was desperate. I would consider anything to secure my place as High Lord.”

  As Conall pondered this, my ears twitched hearing a rustling in the leaves. I opened my senses, stifled a cluck of exasperation, and flicked a look at Conall. He was unaware Rae climbed high in the boughs of the tree above. This c
oncerned me. He desperately needed rest. Had he not been exhausted he would’ve heard her too.

  It was dangerous for my Warrior to be so disabled.

  Glamouring my palm to reflect light like a mirror, a trick from childhood, I angled it up.

  Balanced by her knees either side of the branch, Rae tucked her feet under, and leaned on her forearms to ease forward.

  She flapped her hand at something below then backed up the way she came. I adjusted my palm and spotted a shifter prowling around a tree she’d most likely climbed. Rae put her finger to her lips to shush him when his deep grumbles got louder.

  So loud Conall’s head jerked.

  Baako lifted onto his hunches and pawed at the bark. Beady eyes fixed on Rae he cocked his head and growled. Eyeballing the shifter, Rae pointed in the opposite direction to Conall’s dwelling. Baako vigorously shook his head. Russet fur rippling, he lowered his bulk and lay down.

  Rae returned her attention to peering at Conall and me.

  This is the Rae I know, impulsive with the subtly of a hurricane.

  Dropping my arm, I borrowed a gesture from the female awkwardly hiding in the trees and rolled my eyes.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Rae

  Covertly studying two of the fairies most important to me, I scaled the stout oak from which Conall carved his dwelling.

  After the discovery of my origins my talent at climbing no longer struck me as odd. I secretly considered it something I excelled at regardless of it being a common trait of fairykind.

  Conall and Lochlann were deep in conversation. Dark and light heads bent towards each other they spoke in low, intense tones. Their rangy bodies relaxed and sprawled on the stoop of Conall’s staircase as you do in the company of a trusted friend.

  They made a formidable sight. I doubted anybody saw them together this laid-back.

  I found my brother’s formality sickening when it came to Lochlann, my personal opinion because Lochlann annoyed me. Conall took his duty as a Wyld Warrior with the utmost gravity. The thought of acting less than respectful to Lochlann would likely send him into hysterics.

  Not that I could envision my austere brother overcome with any emotion.

  Lochlann was a stickler for tradition and gentry reserve too.

  Maybe that’s why their friendship worked so well. They supported each other regardless of the other’s failings.

  Lochlann sighed and tipped his head back. He was High Lord as he’d wanted, but I swear, something altered his perception of the future. Demeanour despondent, the steadfast conviction I’d grudgingly admired faded leaving uncertainty. His refined features were delicate in contrast to my brother’s swarthy complexion. Conall’s features were harder. The strong plane of his forehead sloped to meet his heavy brow and wide nose bridge.

  The glance I shot my Elder lingered, and my arms stilled above my head, and my legs tensed in a vertical stride.

  Deep lines bracketed Conall’s mouth and crinkled the outer corners of bloodshot eyes. Hair usually swept neatly into a low ponytail was loose in knotted tangles. His shoulders were hunched, and the vertebrae of his spine poked through his skin under the red marks left from wearing his sword.

  Disturbed by Conall’s grim appearance, I continued my climb with less stealth and more impulse. I shifted awkwardly to get a better foothold as I reached my chosen bough. The hurried movement caused my lower body to scrape against the bark.

  Lochlann’s head lifted.

  I ducked, wings tight to my back. I held my breath and froze; vexed further movement might expose my hiding place. My tail curled around her ankle and held on.

  Lochlann’s gaze raked the tree limbs above Conall’s home, his brow furrowed.

  Pressing my cheek to the branch I straddled, I mouthed a curse. My ears twitched as I listened for an indication he climbed to investigate. His instincts were honed for battle. I should’ve known he’d feel my eyes on them.

  I wasn’t ready to talk to him or my brother. Too many thoughts crowded my head. Too much could go wrong if I spoke to him – to anybody – before I was ready.

  I’d seen the guilt threatening to crush Breandan when he’d realised he’d ruined the balance I died for. Thinking of facing that depth of remorse on the face of Lochlann and my Elder made me queasy.

  “Do you think the witch can re-open the doorway to send those monsters back?” Lochlann asked.

  “Perhaps,” Conall replied.

  It was difficult to see if Lochlann continued his search. Increasingly impatient, I chanced a shifting of my torso. The movement adjusted my positioning favourably so I could spy on them, but haste made me clumsy, and my foot slipped across the damp bark. My heel knocked into a neighbouring branch before I pulled it back.

  A rainfall of autumn leaves twirled towards the ground.

  This time both fairies turned their attention to the trees.

  “A bird?” Lochlann hedged.

  Not convinced, Conall lurched to his feet and hopped onto the first wooden step. His hands fell to his hips as he cocked his head. With his attention engaged, it was a matter of time before he found me.

  Sometimes I hate myself.

  “Ana cannot open another gateway.” Breandan meandered into view. He stopped a dozen steps from them and loosely crossed his arms. His gaze travelled to where I hid, but unexpectedly flicked to his worn boots. A smile teased his lips. The curve of his mouth would look mystifying in contrast to his macabre words from Conall and Lochlann’s perspective. “Resurrecting Rae nearly killed her.”

  Pushing onto his feet to edge closer, Lochlann studied him. “Surely with the added power of your bond this time will be easier.”

  Breandan jerked a shoulder. “Rae will figure out what to do.”

  “Forgive me, but I’m not confident in her ability to reason us out of this hellish mess alone”

  “Give her time.”

  “Time is short.”

  Breandan wasn’t swayed. “When is it not?”

  “I understand your need to protect her. You just got her back, but–”

  “Be patient.”

  “Where is she?” Lochlann sounded amused.

  “With Baako.”

  “That relationship is as amusing as it is disturbing.”

  I agreed. I hadn’t figured out why the werebear stalked me, and why Breandan tolerated his continued attention.

  Satisfied nothing sinister hid in the tree boughs, Conall abandoned his climb. “With the shifter? Does she understand what he wants of her?” His expression darkened. “Where is she?”

  Breandan motioned down the path. “Should we not help restore order to the Wyld?”

  Conall and Lochlann shared a guilty look.

  “Are Lily and Kian not….” Lochlann trailed off sighing. “After speaking to Rae I planned on disappearing to my dwelling. Another Meet will convene at dusk. I need to reason clearly, and for that, I need sleep. The last gathering got out of hand because I was too tired to steer the discussion.”

  Slumped until his torso curved, Conall rubbed his whole face then pushed his hair back. “Agreed. This time I will be present to ensure my sister is protected during the discussion. We need rest.”

  Breandan stiffened. “She was protected.”

  Conall’s gaze narrowed in challenge. “Not well enough.” He strolled out of sight and Lochlann followed, face repentant on behalf of his irritable Warrior.

  Breathing easy, I used the grooves in the wood to climb onto the platform outside the dwelling. My footfall soft, touch light, I eased the door open and peeked inside.

  On a raised bed in the corner of the room Ana slept. Her uneven breathing was harsh in the silence. Hides piled high over her body, a furry mound she snuggled under to the neck. What I could see of her face was gaunt and pale.

  Curious, my eyes swept over the large space, and richly carved furniture. A brazier maintained a balmy temperature in the curved room. Its soft glow cast shadows on the nut-brown walls. An opening in the floor revea
led stairs that led to a lower level deeper in the tree trunk. Weak beams of light filtered from above, and I glimpsed the sky through the leaves. The floor was a knot of roots polished with wax that smelled sweet.

  Letting the door close, I worried my lip, but ended up shaking myself.

  Ana looked peaceful enough. The ritual drained her, and she desperately needed rest, not me eyeballing her as she slept. Breandan confessed she’d lost a hand during the resurrection. Conall induced a magical coma to accelerate her healing, but she’d be in immense pain unless he’d healed the stump.

  Will regenerating her hand prove too troublesome?

  It was something within the realms of my power, as a giver of life. The missing hand was her consequence from the spell, and I couldn’t be sure if replacing it would aggravate the higher powers.

  Realising I stood in plain sight, cautious, I popped her head over the edge of the platform to check I was alone.

  Breandan stood at the foot of the staircase with his head tilted back. His lips twisted with amusement. “Were you born at the Wyld this is how I would dream of courting you, a pink sky and a cloudless dawn. I’d tempt you to the stream with promises of poetry, feed you, and offer gifts.”

  I cringed. Poetry? Imagining it, Breandan’s lips brushing my ear as he whispered in his sensual voice, my body heated, and a blush stained my cheeks. “Why only dream?”

  His eyes darkened. “I would not have possessed the courage to talk to you. You were our destined High Priestess, therefore, my Elder’s betrothed.”

  “Not if Devlin was, well, y’know, alive.”

  He crossed his arms. Uncrossed them. “Has Tomas–”

  “You’ve seen him?” I asked in a rush.

  Arms tightening, Breandan shook his head.

  I hoped my question didn’t suggest I felt an interest in Tomas. I just thought it wise to give any topic concerning the vampire phantom as wide a birth as supernaturally doable.