“I wish I could reason it all in my head, but it will take time. My iron blood… I’m noticing things now that I’d ignored all along. It hums sometimes. Does yours, or is it just my blood?”
“I’m certain I do not have iron blood, and it does not hum.”
“I noticed it grew warmer inside the hill. It nearly felt as though it was burning from the inside out. The burning sensation lessened when you grabbed my hand and totally disappeared once we ripped the root apart. Do you think it truly caused all the trouble in the hill?”
“I doubt that anyone could answer that for certain, Edan.”
“I once thought we shouldn’t have come to Islay, that if we’d stayed on Jura, Florie might still be alive. But Florie said she’d never leave Islay.”
“That brings up a recurring thought I’ve had. There’s one problem between us.” She caught his gaze, his brown eyes heating her insides in a way no other man’s had.
He reached for her hand. “I know. I’ve thought about it too. If you leave soon, we’ll be on separate isles, and they are not close either. When do you return to Duart Castle?”
“In two days. We promised Daran two days of swimming, even though the water is cool. He doesn’t care as long as he can jump from Morgan’s boat. Dyna promised Uncle Connor she’d go hunting with Morgan, and they would smoke their catch the next day. Magni wants help with his garden, and John promised to assist him.”
“I’d be happy to help too. I’d also like the chance to speak with your sire.”
“Edan, I need to ask you something. When our hands touched, did you notice anything unusual?”
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I noticed several things, Ailith. Whenever you touched me near the hill, a surge of power shot through me. That was something new to me. I noticed that together, we could do much more than apart.” He left that comment there, not drawing his own conclusions because he wanted to hear hers.
“We complement each other. Separately, we couldn’t tear the roots or fight the warriors, but together, our hands clasped,we fought against everything. The Unseelie are afraid of you, and will always keep their distance. Together, we destroyed part of the hill. Taking the root, the source of the Unseelie’s power, crushed a good portion of the hill. The hill cracked with just your touch, but our combined touch nearly obliterated everything. That’s an amazing power.”
“I noticed that. What does it mean?”
Ailith reached for his hand again. “It means that together, we are something special. I think we belong together. Do you not agree?”
“I do,” he said, kissing her fingertips, a shiver traveling up her arm. “The universe wants us together. I’ll not fight the heavens.”
Her gaze fell across the loch, the breeze rippling it in spots.
Edan squeezed her hand and whispered, “Is it over, Ailith? Will Gruin never bother us again? Did he die when the hill collapsed?”
“You have many of the same questions I have, and I can only answer with something Dyna mentioned last eve.”
“What?”
“It’s never over until Lia says it is.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Lia
The following day, Lia emerged from behind their cottage while the bairns played with Cormac, Magni, and Morgan in the loch. A few had remained inside, moving slowly after a late night of celebration, but most had moved to the loch or the clearing behind the cottage.
“Gather round, if you please. This is a good time to speak with you while the wee ones are busy. I have a story to tell and then I need your help. All of you.” She glanced from one face to the next, not surprised to see Edan standing next to Ailith. “I’m glad you are here, Edan. Heilyn doesn’t wish to splash in the loch?”
Edan shook his head. “She stays close to me.”
“Understood,” Lia whispered, her gaze following the innocent child chasing a butterfly in the grass. How could anyone choose to attack such innocence? Death was not good enough for them, in her mind.
Alasdair stepped closer to the lass. “We’ll help you in any way we can, Lia. What do you need?”
Connor, Dyna, Maitland, Emmalin, Sylvi, Tora, and Ailith joined Alasdair near Lia.
Lia sat on a stump, settled her skirt, took a deep breath, and patted her hands on her lap before she began. “Centuries ago, my sister and I were to marry brothers. Erena, my older sister, is the most powerful queen of the Seelie. She was to marry a man named Morvran, and I was to marry his brother, Taranis. Just before our wedding, an evil overlord stole forty-three bairns from their homes, imprisoning them. I tried to use my powers to stop him, but I could not.”
Lia paused, a smile crossing her face when the sound of Daran splashing in the water interrupted her. “His laughter isa balm to my soul.” She couldn’t help but wonder if she had married, would she have bairns of her own by now?
