rogue shifter 05 - caught between (23 page)

Lately, all I ever wanted to do was sleep and pee and straighten up the house, which Catherine, my pregnancy mentor, had assured me was perfectly normal.

Sinlae tried to reassure me with a sweet smile."As all fae, I follow my instincts, and so we have arrived here
today
." I swallowed hard and tried to look relaxed.

When Liam walked outside and saw her perched on my hand, his eyes widened in shock, while her's grew larger in complete and utter adoration.  She had a major crush on our Liam.

"Lord Liam." She placed her hand over her heart and bowed very low. "I am here to fulfill my duty to the new fae prince as I swore to my Lady Ja-ckie on the field behind your home in this world eleven mortal weeks ago." She turned to me. "I have been practicing your name with your sister Bri-dgett."

"You pronounce it perfectly!" She beamed at me as Liam greeted her in Fae, then continued in that language as he asked several questions.

"She says that when she woke she knew it was time to travel here. More than that she doesn't know—or she won't say."  He gave me an appraising look. "How do you feel?"

"The same."

"Please rest today, Jackie. It would be best if Charlie remains where he is for his full term."

"The trial is in two days."

"Yes."

"I've decided to go."

He tilted his head, shaking it slowly. "The timing might be very bad." He glanced at Sinlae, her wings making music in the light breeze.

"They're early." I sent the next to him privately,
"You may need to help me convince Garrett."

He huffed out an exasperated breath.
"I live to serve, oh stubborn one."
He turned back to Sinlae and spoke to her in English before I could snap at him. "Sinlae Pixiekin, please introduce us to your mates."

The tiny males accompanying her had perched on the branch of a nearby tree, but they came fluttering over as soon as Liam glanced their way and motioned for them to join us.

"Lord Liam, Fae Prince of the High Seelie." She bowed in mid air. "Lady Jackie, Shifterkin Healer, Demonspawn and future mother of Charles, Fae Prince, Shifterkin and Demonspawn." She bowed again.

"I present to you Aymis, Pixiekin Warrior, (blond and a little scrawny, even by pixie standards), Canlyn, Pixiekin Warrior, (taller, with light brown hair and long legs) and Gavrick, Pixiekin Warrior, (a tiny version of Aedus with long black hair and very handsome features). They carried tiny swords in sheaths at their waists, a bow and a quiver of arrows slung over their backs and wore tunics, breeches and boots in colors that blended into the surrounding woods. Their shimmering teal wings made a pleasant vibrating noise as they each nodded to us, looking just a little unsure. After all, they'd never been outside of Faerie. "They are fine fighters and will help protect the new babe and his mother against all enemies. They are also capable hunters, carpenters and gardeners."

"I know Canlyn and Gavrick, but not Aymis." Liam looked at the scrawny one suspiciously. He never took chances where security was concerned.

"He has come recently from court, rescued from his cage by your Lord Father during his last visit." I was shocked to hear that Lord Caelen returned to court to visit his twin sister, the queen.

Before I could interrogate Liam about it, he asked the males, "Do you all speak English?"

Sinlae answered. "They do but not so perfectly as I."

Liam and I both smiled, amused by Sinlae's authoritative tone. We already knew who wore the pants in this household.

Liam spoke to them. "You three must pledge service to Jackie and her son, Charles, and offer your blood to bind the agreement. However, as she is so close to giving birth I will offer up
my
blood for you to drink in her stead." All three of the males nodded quickly in agreement, probably much more excited to get Liam's blood than mine.

"I don't mind. They don't take much."
I sent to him mentally.

"Their fangs are longer than Sinlae's and as sharp as my dagger. With the demi-fey, a binding agreement is serious business and males tend to be much rougher. However, I will still need to cut your palm so that they can mix their blood with yours."

He
pulled out his blade.
"Who is first?"

After they'd made their declarations, bitten into Liam like tiny lions to drink his blood and then cut themselves to mix their blood with mine, we showed Sinlae where we'd arranged for them to stay. They seemed very pleased with the hollowed out tree we'd chosen along with the magical protection spells Liam and Kellaine had put in place to keep predators away. We'd supplied them with a heat and light source for cool rainy or foggy days and nights along with cotton wool, some strips of animal hide and other fibers and threads that they would use to make blankets and clothing for themselves. They'd be hunting for their own meat, animal hides and furs and gathering their own grains and  plants. We'd provided them with a hearth, tiny pots and pans for cooking and a few pieces of very small furniture, which they'd add to as the weeks passed.

Sinlae surveyed the magnificent wildflower, rose and vegetable garden like a young queen, making note of plants that needed immediate tending and others which apparently were growing well enough to meet with her high standards. Although their primary work would be the safety of Charlie, it was in their DNA to care for growing things and this lovely garden, and the one at the vamp villa as well, would provide them with healthy outdoor activity and nutritious fare when the weather permitted. We'd also installed a very small greenhouse which Sinlae adored.

When Lady Dinestri began speaking in English, my mind snapped back to the present time.

Kennet still stood facing the Elders, restrained by iron cuffs on his wrists and ankles which prevented him from using magic and which seemed to cause him some discomfort. Somehow, he still managed to look elegant the way all the Seelie did, dressed in a long robe made of a rich purple fabric that matched the dark plum of his eyes His thick platinum hair hung loose past his shoulders.

"Kennet, you have been judged as a traitor and an oath breaker and will be given over to the Dark Lord of the Hunt who will consume your energy thus ending your life. You may speak if you wish."

Instead of answering, he turned and looked directly at me. as if he'd known exactly where I was the entire time. When our eyes locked on each other, he smiled.

Before I had time to react, there was a strange vibration in the air that made many of the nearby fae gasp or cry out and then fall to their knees. A blinding light lit up the central area where the elders and Kennet stood, causing all of them to wince and cover their eyes, although their group didn't turn away or crouch down like the others.

All around me fae cowered then knelt as the area of light shrunk down, becoming a hot nucleus of intense fae magic. The eye-scorching glow was much too intense for me to look at directly, so I turned away, shocked to see many of the graceful, dignified fae actually lying prone on the ground, their faces in the grass and the dirt.

I turned back, just able to make out the shape of a female inside the still painfully intense globe of light. Oh man, this wasn't good. This had to be the Fae Queen, Fionna.

The elders, Kennet, his sister and all of their children were the only fae able to remain standing, probably because they were of her bloodline. The others lay prone, seemingly frozen in terror.

Garrett pulled me tightly against him as Liam, Brina and Kaera moved in front of us to block the queen's view. Bridgett and Will had moved even farther away from our group as the ceremony had progressed and so I motioned for them to come closer, worried that they were unprotected. As usual, Bridgett ignored me.

I was happy to see that we shifters and vampires were not affected by the Queen's 'prostrate-yourself-before-me-magic, although I knew I was in grave danger. Philladre and Aedus were not in attendance, and at this point I was furiously wishing that I'd made that decision myself.

As the intense light faded, I peeked around Liam's shoulder at the fabled queen, too curious for my own good.

I blinked several times, unable to accept what I was seeing. The Fae Queen was a goddess, a being so lovely that I found myself terrified that if I couldn't touch her, if I couldn't capture at least one of her smiles, I would waste away on the spot. Every one of my cells screamed at me to move closer, because to simply touch the hem of her shimmering gown would forever bring me peace.

A lovely scent drifted past my nose, but I covered it with my hand, not wanting to be distracted from experiencing this miracle.

Still wrapped in Garrett's arms, my hand stretched out in her direction and I began to squirm, trying to get him to release me. Liam growled mentally
."Jacqueline, pull up your shields.
He was furious, his eyes blazing with golden fire, and it took me a few seconds to realize that it wasn't me he was angry with.

I was so confused. I wanted to move forward, to touch her, but that scent returned. I knew that scent. "
Beauty can hide corruption
. S
hield yourself."
A whispered warning inside my mind.

Holy Shit. I clamped down my mental shields tighter than I ever had before, nailing them to my skull with a nail gun loaded with iron nails and adhering them to my brain with a soldering iron. As soon as I did, my head cleared.

"
I'm okay."
I sent out to Garrett and Liam. I glanced at Bridgett, who seemed to be straining  to hold onto her shields. They appeared to be working, thank goodness. Garrett was shielding both himself and William.

I could see the queen without glamour now. She stood almost as tall as Caelen, looking around the clearing with scornful pleasure at the kneeling and prone figures. Fae who'd always moved with elegance and dignity were now forced to grovel in the dirt before their ruler. I rechecked my shields, fortifying them with every megabyte of magic I could conjure up. They seemed stronger than ever, but I was too busy to wonder why.

I'd seen this kind of shit before. Like Eleanor, this bitch was all about the power she wielded. The leader of the fae people had no connection to the balanced life that my seelie allies lived on a daily basis.

But, oh my, she was exquisite. She shook out her glorious hair, allowing it to fall down past her shoulders in an incredible cascade of golden curls and waves. Her eyes were an iridescent shade of purple, more vibrant than any color I'd ever seen, and her body, covered in a shimmering silver fabric, made every person caught in her spell, tremble with lust.

Her sultry voice made you want to cut out your own tongue so that your vocal croak would never pollute the same ears.

"Caelen. Brother. I greet you."  She spoke in perfect English without a hint of an accent.

"Your Grace." Lord Caelen bowed. "You honor us today with your presence." I knew Caelen well enough to read the tension written in his face and bunched in the muscles of his shoulders.

Her sweet laughter sent glorious tremors coursing throughout my body, bringing to mind what Isaiah had told me about her. "I see you are still a master at manipulating the truth. You know why I am here."

"I do not, Your Grace. I apologize for my ignorance." He wanted her to state her purpose out loud.

Instead she asked, "Why is our baby brother held prisoner in this humiliating way?"

"Kennet is a traitor to the fae race, and to you, my queen."

She walked around Kennet, looking him over from head to toe, smiling mischievously. "Did he kill any pure blood fae?"

"His wives."

"This has been proven?"

"No, but..."

"Did you kill them, little brother?"

"No, Your Grace." He bowed as best he could, shackled as he was.

"What else, Caelen?" She looked around, her eyebrows rising when she saw Bridgett and William. Bridgett gasped, looking as if someone had punched her in the stomach, so William attempted to pull her in closer. Instead she pushed him behind her, almost looking like she was trying to hide him from the queen. He didn't fight her, but instead stepped in and wrapped his arms across her from behind, supporting her as she trembled.

"He imprisoned and tortured six of our people." Caelen tried to regain her attention.

"Did he
personally
do this, or did others?" Her eyes skimmed past my sister and her mate and locked on Liam, Kaera and Brina who stood directly in front of me and Garrett. They bowed smoothly, in unison, with hands on hearts, although their other hands all rested on the hilts of their blades.

"He hired werewolves..." Caelen continued as he followed her gaze, looking more worried with each passing second.

"So they lied and blamed our brother. Typical. Have they been eliminated?" She skimmed over the other elders and the children who were present, Farrell, Kellaine and Ashlyn, who all bowed deeply like the others. Kennet's sister and niece had backed away from the group, but also bowed when the queen caught their eye.

"Yes. Liam disposed of them."

"Is this true, Liam?"

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Good. I see your half-breed still has his uses. But brother, where is your pure-blood son and his pregnant consort?"

"Philladre is indisposed. She will be giving birth in ten days. I gave my permission for Aedus to attend her. Of course we did not know that you would be gracing us with..."

"I wish for them to greet me." Her tone was not to be argued with.

"Of course."

She looked at Kennet once more. "How else did our dear brother misbehave?"

"He tortured an ally."

"A
non-fae
?"

"Yes."

"Is the
non-fae
ally present?" He nodded, not giving away my location. It didn't make any difference however, because suddenly I was standing in front of the queen along with Garrett, Bridgett and William. She'd pulled us through the lines without any effort.
Shit
. I dug my fingers into Garrett's arm to steady myself.

Aedus and Philladre appeared next to us. They bowed deeply and the queen's attention turned in their direction. Although it was selfish, I was grateful for the reprieve. I took Bridgett's hand and tried to take this fleeting opportunity to take the rest of us home through the lines, but found that my magic was completely blocked.