Caledonia Fae 04- Druid Lords (15 page)

He glanced up to see Mrs Hartmann staring into his face. All he could do was bear her condemnation. “We should find our cabins,” he said. “We have a long, eight-hour crossing ahead.” He doubted any of them would sleep.

Huck, Flùranach, and Lisle met Munro and Rory in Essex and explained about Demi and Jago’s kidnapping. The subsequent travel from Caledonia to the Halls of Mist took an excruciating twenty-four hours. Eilidh granted all of them passage, including Flùranach, although Munro said the queen wasn’t too thrilled about the entire situation. Of course, she wanted to help the druids. On the other hand, she didn’t like crossing Konstanze and was displeased to learn Flùranach had hidden in the Halls of Mist for months. Eilidh only allowed her in Caledonia under the protection of the druids. This announcement surprised Lisle as much as it did Huck. It appeared to come as no shock to Flùranach, who was merely grateful for a way back since the gate in Germany had been closed.

Tràth and Douglas met up with the druids’ party after the audience with Queen Eilidh. Surprising everyone, Douglas opted to join the group, offering no explanation other than to say he regretted not helping out more.

Naturally, Lisle couldn’t run like the rest of them. She took the shock of the Otherworld air with her usual stoicism, but still moved at a snail’s pace. So Eilidh arranged for her to be taken by cart, propelled by six Watchers rolling it along with air and earth magic. Even with their help, the journey passed slowly, and every mile pained Huck.

The Halls of Mist buzzed with rumours by the time they arrived. A human druid had been taken in the Ashkyne borderlands, people said, accused of the murder of Prince Ulrich. Lisle muttered denials, but her voice trembled. She appeared to have aged ten years in one day.

Druid Hall servants prepared a room for Lisle, and Huck made sure she got settled. All her toughness had evaporated when she learned about the charge of murder against Demi. Lisle wanted to be alone, even though he worried about her feeling neglected in this strange new place. She insisted, leaving him no choice. Before he left, he asked her, “Why didn’t Ulrich’s people take you too?”

“They didn’t know about me. I was upstairs when they arrived. The ward stone masked my presence.” She sat uncomfortably on the fae-made swing chair, clutching Jago’s teddy bear to her chest. “I heard Ulrich and Demi fighting. They had woken Jago with their shouts, and he was crying.” She looked away, sorrow making the deep lines in her face even more pronounced.

When she didn’t say anything further, he said, “I’ll have some food sent up. You are welcome to eat, sleep, whatever. Just…I wouldn’t leave the Hall, if I were you.”

She glanced up at him, looking pale and fragile. “Where would I go?”

Because he had no answer, he simply nodded and left her alone. He considered with dread that he’d ruined at least three lives by trying to bring Demi here.

When he arrived at the workshop, he realised the druids hadn’t all been together in quite some time. Despite the circumstances, something about the reunion reassured him, as though his fellow druids had his back. Inside, he found the others already deep in conversation. Munro interrupted the chatter when he saw Huck. “How is she?”

“Tired, I think. Confused.” No, that wasn’t right. When she’d come to the Otherworld and the Halls of Mist, she’d appeared unimpressed, as though none of the wonders of the fae realm touched her. “Numb is maybe a better word.”

“You’re sure she’s a druid?”

“Flùranach said so,” Huck replied. Aaron gave a snort at the mention of the faerie’s name, which earned him a glance from Rory.

Douglas, the youngest druid at only nineteen, sat forward. “I’m interested in these wards she uses. Did Lisle make them?”

“I didn’t ask,” Huck said. He sank into a chair.

Munro spoke up next. “Our first priority is Demi and Jago. We need to send a message to Queen Konstanze. Word is Demi’s been arrested, but we don’t know what Konstanze means to do. I have never heard anything about fae law regarding queens arresting humans.”

“Too bad Eilidh wouldn’t come back with us,” Douglas said. “She’d know what to do.”

Munro cast him a dark look. “She said she’d meet us later tonight if she can. In the meantime, I’m planning to talk to Oszlár,” he said. “The keepers seem to be the ones who hold the kingdoms together, the only ones every queen respects.”

Huck worried the druids were out of their depth. They’d never experienced a crisis like this or anything that put them directly at odds with a queen. He hoped the keepers would be amenable to assisting them.

Munro stood and went to the corridor and spoke to someone on the other side of the door. “Please send word to Keeper Oszlár. We need him urgently.”

“Yes, my lord druid,” came the reply. Footfalls sounded on the stone floor and moved away as Munro returned to the workshop.

“We can get her back, right?” Huck said. “I thought our word was supposed to be law.”

Munro shook his head. “The commands of the draoidh
were
law. So far, we’ve stepped into some of the role those ancient druids had in fae society millennia ago, but we haven’t determined how far that will get us in reality. The queens have supported the Hall up until now, but this will be our first real test.”

Huck grumbled. A part of him had hoped they could order Konstanze to give up Demi and Jago.

Aaron shrugged. “They helped us build this Hall, their people make up our servants, they defer to us in every conversation, and pretty much grant us free passage in their kingdoms. I don’t understand why this is going to be a problem. Perhaps Konstanze doesn’t know Demi is a druid.”

The head steward, Hon, entered the workshop and bowed. “A message from Ashkyne,” he said.

Munro stood and took an envelope from Hon, then unfolded the parchment within. He glanced up at Huck. “She knows,” he said.

Huck’s chest tightened. “What does it say?”

“Thank you,” Munro said to Hon. “When Keeper Oszlár arrives, please show him in here.”

Huck stood. “Munro?”

“Queen Konstanze of Ashkyne has invited no more than two members of the Druid Hall to enter her kingdom under her protection. They may administer whatever death rites are appropriate to the druid Demi Hartmann.”

“What?” Huck crossed the floor and snatched the letter out of Munro’s hands. He read the last half aloud:

The execution of
the murderer Demi Hartmann, citizen of the Ashkyne borderlands, will take place on the Eve of Hainne.

Queen Konstanze has decreed her nephew, the lethfae known as Jago, a ward of the crown. The child will be raised under the protection of the royal bloodline and suffer no consequences of his mother’s crime.

A cold sweat broke out over Huck’s skin. “She can’t do that,” he said. “Can she? Demi is one of us.” He read the letter top to bottom again, as though the words on the page might change if he concentrated hard enough.

“We have
two full nights from tonight before the Eve of Hainne,” Munro said. “Which, coincidentally, is my wedding day.”

“Konstanze would execute a druid on your wedding day?” With a chill, the blood drained from Huck’s face, and he lowered himself into a chair. His hope withered.

“She’s making a statement,” Munro replied with a glower.

∞

Demi sat cross-legged in the centre of the bare, stone room, elbows on her knees and head in her hands. Her stomach churned. The power vibrating through the Otherworld air made her gut clench. She hadn’t eaten since they brought her to this prison. Most of her misery, of course, came from worry about Jago. They’d been carried a long distance in a blur, and all the while Jago had cried for his mama.

Tears of frustration stung her eyes. She mustered all her willpower, commanding herself to stay still. She’d discovered her captors would not tolerate resistance. They would not hesitate to immobilise her again with their strong air flows.

The entire first day she’d been bound, and she didn’t want to return to that state. She’d had enough of being tied up in the days when she was Ulrich’s lover. She’d learned how to feign compliance when required to.

Over and over, she replayed the moment of his death. So painful and gruesome. Blood had spurted from his neck and across her face. The suddenness of it had stunned her, and she hadn’t snapped out of her shock until Jago shrieked. Her sweet baby boy. Was he crying now? Was he frightened? Her mind went to dark places. A wailing moan built in her chest, but she stuffed it down and refused to let any sound escape her lips. She needed to be strong.

A whisper came to her ears. “Are you truly draoidh?” it asked in German. She looked around but saw no one. “I need to know. Are you of the Druid Hall?” The voice seemed to be carried on a breeze as though echoing from far away.

Her mind raced. Huck claimed druids were revered in the fae realm. Had he been telling the truth? Should she admit her lineage, or would this land her and Jago in worse trouble? She considered Huck. He’d seemed sincere. She’d wanted desperately to believe him, enough that she was willing to risk to moving her family with him. He’d promised them a safe place, safe even from the powerful fae. Were the druids enemies of the fae? He’d told her some fae served the druids, but judging from her current situation, not all feared his people. Doubts crept in. What power could humans hold to make the fae revere them?
None
.

She held her silence, waiting for the voice to say something more. It did not.

∞

“What do you think?” Munro asked Keeper Oszlár.

The ancient fae frowned as he studied the letter.

“It must have been self-defence,” Huck said. “Demi told us Ulrich was abusive. That’s why she was hiding Jago from him.”

“The letter doesn’t say anything about a trial or hearing. Surely someone will be allowed to speak for her,” Munro said.

Oszlár returned the letter to Munro. “In Ashkyne, Queen Konstanze will do as she pleases. Her people expect strength and even ruthlessness from her. Did the lady confess?”

Munro turned to Huck with the unspoken question.

“All Lisle told me was that she heard Demi and Ulrich arguing.”

The scowl never left the elder keeper’s face. “I would like to speak to the newest member of your Hall, if I may.”

A moment passed before Munro realised he meant Lisle. She was, he supposed, one of them now.

“I’ll get her,” Huck offered and slipped out of the workshop.

“How can we convince Konstanze to release Demi and Jago?” Munro asked.

“We will see what she wants. If her primary objective was to avenge her brother, Lady Druid Demi Hartmann would be dead already, and you would not have been invited to visit Ashkyne. The offer of death rites, while strictly adhering to protocol in the case of a condemned faerie, is clearly an excuse to negotiate with you.”

“What about the boy?” Aaron asked.

“As the child’s blood relative, Queen Konstanze is within her rights to take him under her protection. I’m surprised, however, considering he’s lethfae.”

“What does that mean?” Rory asked.

“Even I am shocked at the news Ulrich was azuri fae. Many rumours surrounded him, and he was known to be, shall we say, cold-blooded, but none suspected he followed the Path of Stars. Queen Konstanze’s family did well to keep his talent secret. A half-druid child recognised as part of the royal family will only remind the fae of Ulrich’s clandestine visits to the human realm and what many still consider to be impure magic.”

Munro opened his mouth to argue how much that perception had changed in the past year, but at that moment, Huck entered the workshop with Lisle Hartman. The old woman’s eyes were bloodshot, with dark circles under them. “They are going to execute my granddaughter?” she asked. Although she looked exhausted, her voice sounded stronger than before.

“We’ll try to stop them,” Munro said. “This is Keeper Oszlár. He’s advising us on how to proceed. He’d like to speak with you.”

She eyed the ancient keeper warily and raised her chin. “What do you want to know?”

Munro admired her grit. Even though she was clearly distraught, she was still fighting with everything in her.

The keeper bowed to her. “My lady druid,” he said. “If we are to help your granddaughter, I must know what you saw.”

“Why don’t we sit down?” Huck said, but nobody moved or spoke for an instant. Lisle seemed to be evaluating Oszlár.

After a long silence, she began speaking. “I put Jago to bed early. We planned to leave in the night, so we decided to rest after supper. I couldn’t sleep, so I was awake when the front door opened. At first, I thought Demi had gone to the corner shop. She had mentioned that she planned to buy Jago some treats for the journey. But then I heard shouting.” Lisle’s eyes shone as she stared straight ahead as though watching events replay in front of her. “I got out of bed and went to check on Jago, but then I heard him crying downstairs. I rushed down, but as I came to the landing, Demi saw me and gestured for me to stay back. She looked frightened, so I did what she wanted.”

“Where was the boy?” Oszlár asked.

“Clinging to Demi’s leg.”

“And where was Prince Ulrich?”