“Even though it hasn’t happened yet.”
“Exactly. I know we have time.” He tossed the net in again and sat back down to wait for the tug. “Nothing is certain yet, and I’ll be patient. But even the thought of her chasing faeries here has me a wee bit unsettled. Doesn’t it bother you, Em?”
His wife wove her arm inside his as he held the net. “I’ll admit it does. But I’ve seen Lia with my own eyes, and I trust her. I’ve also seen your parents and grandparents, who are not part of this world. These things help me, knowing she’d have others watching over her, your ancestors and mine. But the land of the faeries is so unknown. We’ll have to be patient.”
Alasdair held his snort in. “My best quality.”
His wife barked out a laugh, looking over her shoulder to see if anyone else was up. Sure enough, Magni joined them.
Alasdair hauled in the net again, finding two different kinds of fish inside. “Magni, are these good eating?”
“Aye. They’re all good. The ones in the bucket are brown trout, and you know they’re good. If you take the boat out into the middle, you can catch one three times that size. May I ask a question?”
“Absolutely.” Alasdair held the net open while Magni reached in to grab the two fish, tossing them into the bucket.
“Maitland said you saw Lia on the ship. I’ve seen her a couple of times. Did she mention anything about coming to Islay? I’d like to see her again. It’s been a long time.”
“I didn’t hear her say anything other than to ask Edan who he was and thenwhathe was. Magni, you weren’t there years ago when Lia explained something to us.”
“Us? To whom exactly?”
“To the adults present during the kidnapping. She advised us that we wouldn’t be needed for many years, but she would return when the time came. Then, she would need John, Grant, the sapphire sword, and the rest of you.”
“Me too?” Magni still had that innocent look he’d carried ever since they all met him at eight years old on Mull. Perhaps it was the ruffled hair or the steel gaze that locked onto someone until he got the answer he sought.
“Aye. She mentioned you along with Tora, Sylvi, and Sandor. Brynja and Hagen also had special talents, but you were specifically named in the list of people with special gifts. The main point of the conversation was that you would all be needed several years later. I think those times are here. In fact, she told Dyna and Avelina last night that it was time.”
Magni’s eyes widened, brushing a bug from his forearm. “Now? Why do you think now is the time?”
Maitland stepped out from behind Magni. “Because we’re all here, and I know it’s not by accident. Ailith and John were both called to come here.”
“How are they called?” Magni looked from one face to the next for an explanation. He’d always been the type to ask many questions, probably because of the difficult life he’d had.
Maitland looked to Alasdair for help.
Emmalin stood up, leaning on her husband for support. “I would call it being compelled. John said he was coming. He didn’t ask, he just declared he was going to Duart. It’s those inklings Lia warned us all about many years ago. She sends them to us and told us not to ignore them. Adults ignore things that don’t make sense, but young people don’t. Those inklings brought us all together again.”
“Inklings?” Magni scratched his head, sweeping his dark hair back from his face. “I’m not sure I understand.”
“Em’s exactly right. Let me think of a good example.” Maitland gestured toward the second cottage. “Why did you decide to build that cottage when you had plenty of room in the first one you built?”
Magni shrugged. “I don’t know. We just decided one day. Wait… is that what you mean? When we’re convinced we need to do something, it’s an inkling?”
“Aye,” Maitland explained. “I think it could be from Lia, but it could be from anyone who has passed on. It could be my father pushing me too.” He’d lost Drew three years ago.
“So you think our building the extra cottage came from Lia? I’ll believe that, I guess.”
Alasdair asked, “And the extra bedchambers you added abovestairs recently? What made you decide to build those?”
Magni grinned, tipping his head back. “Aye. That’s exactly why we added those bedchambers. No reason, I just felt it needed to be done.” He laughed and paced back and forth alongthe shoreline. “Cormac asked me why we needed more, and I looked to Morgan for help. Morgan just shrugged and asked Cormac if he’d ever met our clan. So Cormac agreed to help us.”
“That was definitely Lia.” Maitland clasped Magni’s shoulder. “She told you while you were sleeping that you needed more.”
Magni rubbed his dark beard. “I hope she’s coming later. I’d like to see her again.” His boot scuffed the soft dirt as he stared at the ground. “Standing here reminds me of a day long ago.”
“Tell us, Magni. I’d love to hear it.”
“It was the day the men tried to sneak onto Iona from the rear in the dark. Simone and Artan sent me back for something, and as I returned, I heard noises. I turned around and saw the men climbing out of the boats with their swords. They wanted all the bairns on Iona.”
