Wind roared in from the forest, whipping a green pulse off of the trees that blasted over the drawbridge, knocked Madison to her knees, and crashed into Siobhán. She had the pleasure of seeing the rival druidess’s features twist in anguish before the portal dwindled down to the size of a basketball, made a loud pop, then sizzled away.
Coping with the sheer power that had just passed through her, she slumped and trembled. When Cian crouched and meant to scoop her up, she shook her head and whispered shakily, “No, just give me a sec...I need to do this on my own.”
He seemed to understand because he simply rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. All had gone very, very quiet as everyone clearly waited her out. Hoped she was okay.
“You did it, lass,”he said into her mind, his pride obvious.“You saved us all yet again.”
She offered no response, but she didn’t need to. He felt her relief. Her happiness that they hadn’t lost everything. That they would live to fight another day when it came. Because itwouldcome. But not yet. Today they had defeated the enemy, and everyone was alive.
The castle wasn’t in ruins.
Better yet, whatever connection the enemy had made via her and Cian’s dreams had been extinguished. The mystical cord had been cut the moment Madison overcame Siobhán’s portals. Pushed past the invasive magic once and for all and did away with the enemy’s filthy connection to her and Cian’s land.
A connection she would warn her sisters about.
One they must understand because Siobhán was by no means done seeking out vulnerabilities.
To that end, she finally found the strength to stand. When she did, roars of approval and pride arose far and wide. All around her. Men shook their weapons in the air. Women and children poured out from beneath the castle and joined in the celebration, clapping and nodding with approval.
She smiled and nodded in return, surprised to realize she had ended up in her green dress yet again and Cian in his black robes.
“It seems there’s no way of getting away from certain things.” He pulled her into his arms and tilted her chin until their gazes were aligned. “Welcome home,mo dhraoi.For ye have more than earned the right to call this castle and these people yers.”
Before she could respond, he closed his lips over hers, and just like that, everything else faded away. At least until she heard a, “Tsk, tsk, tsk, me’Lady. Not until ye makes things proper.”
Much to her pleasure, that meant she had a few more things to do before she would be fully accepted.
Chapter Twenty-Four
CIAN HAD EXPERIENCEDa lot of firsts since Madison had come into his life but nothing quite like the night they were married at their castle. He had adored marrying her beneath King’s Heart but something about doing it again here, surrounded by loved ones, made it all that much better.
Deirdre had made it clear that to be fully accepted by their people, Madison would have to spend the remainder of the day being pampered. That meant a proper bath, wearing a wedding gown several talented seamstresses had been sewing together like mad since they met her, then having her hair weaved with flowers hand-picked by all the children who already loved her.
“And while wonderful,” she had whispered at one point. “I’ve got alotof flowers in my hair.”
She did, too, but they were lovely, and he knew she loved every last one. Especially the one from the little girl she had healed because it was tucked behind her ear for all to see.
