rogue shifter 07 - cut off (29 page)

He stomped back up the stairs dragging the queen behind him and turned to stare at Kennet. "This is not our way." Like a shifter, he sniffed Fionna's hair then threw her to the floor where Kennet still knelt. "You and your brother reek of death. Stay where you are until I decide what to do with you."

Caelen rose, his intention to speak cut off by a glare from this furious creature. "You have much to answer for, son." Caelen bowed his head and remained silent. Smart male.

Son? Holy crap. It suddenly hit me. This was Finvarra. This was the king before Caelen, the head dude who'd ruled Faerie for ten thousand years, the male who'd had seven children with five different females. This was...this was my freakin' grandfather.

Whoa. Was this a week for family reunions, or what?

Isaiah probably would have told me to cut out of there fast, but my mom needed me more than ever. I pushed her behind me again and held a fighting stance. Not that it would make any freakin' difference at all. Judging by his mood, we were probably all dead. I lifted my chin, figuring at least I could go down fighting.

Finvarra lowered himself onto the king's throne, a crown appearing on his head as Fionna's crown disappeared. He surveyed the room once more, speaking to everyone in the room mind to mind.
"I will rule again for a time. Eat. Rest. Do no harm or you will answer to me. I will meet with all of you soon
." The fae disappeared, all but our group, Kennet, Fionna and her daughter.

"You are Zerian?" he asked the lovely young fae female kneeling by her mother.

"Yes. Yes, Sire." she looked only at the floor.

"You may stand and face me." His eyes weren't creepy anymore. Instead the golden tone looked warm. "You will not be mated to Aedus. He has a mate and a child. We will speak tomorrow. Do not fear me, child."

She smiled. "Yes, lord." She was suddenly gone with the rest. I remembered having asked Liam about the princess, but he told me that the Cascade fae knew practically nothing about her. I wondered if she was really some mysterious recluse or if Fionna just kept her close to home the way my parents did me.

He continued to ignore Kennet and Fionna. Instead, he motioned for Brina to stand and move closer. "Your glamour is excellent. Brina is your name?" She bowed her head and shifted form.

"Yes, lord." She answered.

He was reading minds. I strengthened my shields using my triad. Let's see him get through that.

"You are Argon's child."

"Yes, lord." Her face was wet with tears, but I didn't think it was because she was afraid or even sad. This was also Brina's grandfather, a fae of legend come to life. The most famous warrior of all time, a true hero in Brina's eyes. According to Liam, he'd been a ruler who was beloved by all.

Finvarra smiled for the first time, wiping a tear from Brina's face. "You are lovely and courageous. May I ask you for a boon?"

"Of course, lord. Anything."

He looked in Dad's direction. "Will you tend the vampire? Give him blood?"

"Yes, lord." There'd been no hesitation which, in my mind, sent her up to the top of the "coolest fae female" charts. She hurried to Garrett, removing his chains and then giving him her wrist so he could feed and heal. My mom, having come back to herself as soon as Finvarra grabbed Fionna, took a step toward Dad, but the fae king stopped her with a dangerous look.

"Stay back." he ordered.

I held out my dagger and faced him, blocking Mom with my body.

Instead of freaking out, he smiled, allowing his eyes to turn a purple so dark it was almost black. I was super happy to see there was no sign of fang as he turned his attention toward me. He swung his feet up onto a stool he'd conjured and sipped from a goblet that had appeared in his hand, looking very relaxed. Meanwhile, I was having trouble keeping my hand from shaking.

He spoke to me in perfect English, to everyone's surprise. "You are a fine guard, young fae. May I speak to the female shifter? I will remain here in this chair and will not take a step toward her nor harm her in any way."

Sensing immediately that he spoke the truth, I nodded and stepped to the side, still keeping my dagger unsheathed.

"Little mother, do you remember me?" His smile was bright and his dark eyes glittered with mischief.

"On the beach." Mom touched her belly. "Sixteen years ago. Are you Finvarra?"

"That is one of my names," he seemed to tease her. I liked this relaxed version much better than the raging maniac who'd first shown up.

"I was told you could only return in a time of great need."

"Have you seen the state of my people?" He glared at Caelen, a golden rage beginning to tint his eyes.

Aedus had moved back to stand alongside his dad. He nodded formally toward his grandfather. "Forgive my interruption, sire, but my father has lived by The Balance in all things. At Cascade your people are healthy and thriving."

He ignored Aedus and spoke directly to Caelen. "You were to keep all of Faerie thriving, especially the court. Instead you turned it over to a child unable to rule, and then abandoned it, interested only in building a small kingdom for yourself where you could rule without responsibility."

Caelen straightened and met his father's gaze. He was not some misbehaving teen no matter what the former king thought. "Fionna was my age. She was trained by you to rule as I was trained. You gave me the crown with only a day's notice. It was mine to do with as I pleased."

"You are confused. I gave you the crown and expected you to rule with intelligence, to protect the Faerie Court with your blood and your power and your life. Our people suffer because of your cowardice."

"I protected my children from the rot that was infesting the court. It began with Mother. You know this to be true."

"And I took her away so that you could scoop out the decay and heal our world."

"I would not bring civil war to our people."

"Instead you brought death and worse. Have you ever been forced to live with only a shred of your magic?"

"No, father."

"Perhaps I should punish you in that way."

"You will do as you think right. I ask only for mercy in regard to my family and the people of Cascade."

His eyes narrowed as he returned his attention to my mom. I pushed in front of her again, even though my knees were now shaking as much as my hands.

Finvarra's eyes grew hard, the irises turning gold once more. "You protect your mother bravely, even in the face of a terrible death."

Um...was that the sound of me getting busted? I swallowed, but my mouth was sandpaper dry.
A terrible death
sounded like a really bad way to go. Still, I had a job to do. "Forgive me, lord, but I'm not her son." Hey it was worth a shot.

He laughed and laughed, the mad sound sending bolts of fear shooting through my body. King Crazy jumped off the throne and grasped me by the shoulders, raising me so that I was barely able to stand on my toes.

"Do you think I cannot discern the truth?" He shifted closer, examining my face and totally freaking me out. This dude was wacked!. "I know you, child. My blood flows in your veins. Because of me, the magic is strong within you." His brow wrinkled. "What is wacked?"

Holy crap. He'd torn through my shields without causing me a lick of pain. I was in very-deep-shit now.

Finvarra laughed again. "Yes, you are."

Mom pleaded, "Lord Finvarra, please don't punish Farrell. He's sworn to protect me."

He didn't move his gaze away from mine. "Farrell is not protecting you." His scowl deepened as he stared at me. "Answer the question I posed."

"Wacked means...um...a little bit crazy."

He grinned, but it didn't feel normal. I was starting to feel like a mouse trapped under the claws of a barn cat. He was playing with his food. "Jacqueline, what is your son's Name?"

"Charlie. Charles."

"His True Name. Send it to me mind to mind."

My mom knew the power contained in a Name. "Lord Finvarra, I can't..."

"I could take it from your mind, little mother, even strip you of your will. For now, I choose to refrain."

Instead of cowering in fear like a sane person, she glanced in Kennet's direction and glowered, expelling an angry breath. "Pfft. I've already experienced that pleasure under the ministrations of your youngest son. He must have inherited the disgusting gift from you." Caelen cleared his throat in warning, but she didn't back down. Instead she moved farther forward, as if to protect Farrell...um...me. Go Mom.

The royal bully lowered me and smiled. I just about fainted when he draped an arm across my shoulders like we were buds and pointed at Mom. "She is incredible, is she not? When I first re-entered the mortal plain, your mother was a refreshing breeze. You were but a tiny miracle residing within her womb. I decided to remain, to take action, because of our talk."

Yep. Officially busted. Time to get serious.

He scrutinized my version of Farrell. "Your glamour is strong enough to deceive my eldest son, much to his future chagrin." The king glanced at Caelen, who'd shifted his angry stare toward me. "I might consider training you myself." The king seemed amused that I'd put one over on his son.

What a tool. Ducking out from under his arm I shifted into my true form, the transition smooth. I'd been kind of stressed that I'd fudge the change, but thanks to Isaiah's forcing me to do it over and over, it felt pretty polished  I heard several gasps as I positioned myself in front of Mom once more.

"I want you to stay away from her." The guy had already admitted to being willing to rip through her mind to get what he wanted. He'd already done it to me. He was worse than his son Kennet when it came to respecting people's privacy.

Mom clutched at my back, sounding kind of hysterical. "Why are you here? Where's Farrell?"

"He's safe. I'm here for you." I squeezed the hand that she'd placed on my shoulder, trying to reassure her.

"Charles." The former king's voice boomed around the throne room. "I am your grandsire, Finvarra."

I made my voice boom right back. "I don't care if you're the Emperor of the Universe, keep your hands and your mind off of her. She's been through enough because of your...your neurotic relatives." As the rest of the room turned silent in shock, Finvarra laughed.  "I'm glad I'm so entertaining," I mumbled.

Suddenly, I felt arms wrap around me from behind and pull me close. Dad was hugging us both, kissing Mom and messing up my hair in front of all these people, which was okay, just this once.

I rubbed my cheeks, hiding the couple of tears I couldn't hold back. "Dad, are you okay?" The bandage on his hand was stained with blood. Someone had given him a clean shirt, but his pants were splattered with blood stains and he looked really tired.

"I'm great. But I thought I was going to pass out when I realized it was you." He sighed and hugged me hard, thumping me on the back and then holding me apart so he could meet my gaze. "I'll be honest. Part of me wants to lock you up and throw away the key."

"I'm commissioning the best metal-crafter to design the cage." Mom added, her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, but I had to..."

They laughed and hugged me again. Suddenly the tension of the past few days lifted off my shoulders. I gave up feeling self-conscious and hugged them back, burying my head against my dad's shoulder.

"
I'm proud of you, son."
Garrett sent privately.

"
I was scared for you
."

"
Same here."

"
I know you're pissed, but
I had to watch Mom's back. She doesn't think things through sometimes
."

"Tell me about it."
He draped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. I don't think she'd ever looked happier. I blinked back another tear, hoping no one saw. I couldn't turn into a sobbing girl in front of all these fae. Isaiah would have me hanging over that pond again.

I was shocked when the king spoke. I'd kind of forgotten he was there. "Garrett, are you strong enough to go home?"

"Yes, Lord Finvarra, but I must tell you that I agree with my son. Without a formal alliance between us, neither Jacqueline nor Charles will be used to further your plans, whatever they might be." Dad's eyes were sparkling, which was a sign that he was prepared to do battle.

"I understand your concern for the safety of your family and also your desire to keep them apart from our problems here at court. However, their assistance is foremost in helping me accomplish my goals for Faerie. I am sorry. If it will help you to feel more secure, I will negotiate a formal alliance with you as soon as the immediate danger has passed."

I moved forward, my dagger in my hand, my eyes prickling with orange. Finvarra laughed, and I was back to where I'd started as if I hadn't taken a step.

"You can move people around with your mind?"

"Yes."

"Whoa."

He grinned at me like a kid. "Whoa." He'd tried it out for himself. "Well-said. Your demon is strong but your instincts need tempering." He sat once more and the wine cup reappeared. "Your family and I have much to discuss." He allowed his gaze to take in the cracked walls and the brown weeds covering the once lovely windows. "There is much to rectify here."

"The court won't be healthy as long as they have power." Mom pointed toward Fionna and Kennet, who'd scooted farther toward the back of the room. They were just wasting energy. The king wasn't letting them out of his sight.

"Ah. You wish for proof of my commitment." His expression grew stern. "Fionna, come to me."

"Yes, Father." He placed a hand over her forehead, his golden eyes back in gear. Fionna's scream had me cringing and covering my shifter-sensitive ears.

"I've taken back the unseelie powers you stole. Now they may choose their own ruler. It was greedy of you to take what was rightfully theirs."

"I've kept our line pure," she sobbed and gasped, obviously in great pain. I hoped a truckload of hurt was coming her way over the next thousand years.

Finvarra circled her as if she were prey. "Are we now obsessed with purity? How does this preserve The Balance?"