A discussion for later, when we returned to the castle.
Rían and I made our way back to Lorcan. With the pooka at least a head taller than the rest of the crowd, he was easy to spot. I didn’t want to mention the mystery surrounding the culprits without first discussing with Rían. His mouth clamped shut, so I assumed he felt the same.
Still, I had to give the ladsomething. I settled a hand on Lorcan’s slumped shoulder, my gut twisting with regret. “Rían caught the men responsible. They won’t be a problem anymore.”
Lorcan nodded, his lips pressing flat as he lifted his head toward the sky. “Why would someone do this? We weren’t hurting anyone. Had our best year yet—more human customers than ever.” He dashed his hands through his short black hair. “Saints above…what are we supposed to do now?”
“You could consider returning to Tearmann.” Humans may not have committed this crime, but our people in Airren were dying in droves. I’d asked Lorcan to come before, but he’d never agreed because of the bar. Now there was nothing holding him back.
“And leave Deirdre behind?” Lorcan shook his head. “I’ll not be crossing the Forest unless my wife can come with me.”
“You can request an audience with the Queen.”
Rían rolled his eyes. We both knew the Queen probably wouldn’t allow it, but it couldn’t hurt to ask. Maybe Lorcan would catch her on a good day and she’d be feeling gracious. Then again, if she found out he was only half-pooka, she’d deny him on his heritage alone.
Lorcan just shook his head.
What remained of the colorful cushions Deirdre had bought for their living area peeked from between broken bricks and blackened logs. Deirdre had been so excited about those damn cushions. “Do you have somewhere safe to stay until then?”
He wiped a hand down his face, smearing soot across his brow and cheek. “Deirdre can go back to her family, I suppose.”
I arched a brow. “Just Deirdre?”
Lorcan winced. “I’m not welcome there.”
The two of them had been married for years and yet her family still hadn’t accepted him? What a load of bollocks. Lorcan was a better man than any human I’d ever met. They were lucky to have him as a son-in-law.
“I’m friendly with the owner of the Red Bear,” he murmured, still deep in thought. “He might be willing to rent us a room until we can get back on our feet.”
I shifted two purses full of gold from our treasury and handed them to my friend. At first he refused, but when I pointed out how many nights he’d housed, fed, and watered me for free, he agreed the gold would more than settle my tab.
A pink dawn broke over the seaside town as Rían and I made our way to a quiet alley to evanesce back to Tearmann.
We needed to find a way to bring our people home, but there was no way the ones with human partners would leave. Which left us with one option. “We need to find a way to get humans across the Forest without involving the Queen.”
Rían’s harsh breath lifted like white smoke into the crisp air. “If we can’t stop the blight, we won’t have a home.”
How had I forgotten that feckin’ blight?
We weren’t preparing for a war.
We were in the middle of one.
18
RÍAN
The Phantom Queenhad impeccable timing. She couldn’t have come to see us before I’d given in, oh no. That would’ve been too convenient. She had to wait until I’d decided to steal back my joy to send a letter saying she would arrive the following day. The tight turnaround came as no surprise. She probably thought giving us very little time to prepare would make it less likely we’d double-cross her again.
It hadn’t taken much to convince Tadhg to send Keelynn with Aveen to Ruairi’s. Aveen didn’t put up a fight either.
Watching my love leave the castle wearing her glamour left my heart in my throat.
I studied the letter from the Black Forest, the few simple words giving nothing away. The witch held our fates in the palm of her cursed hands, and all she had to say was,I will arrive at half past four tomorrow.
The first word was by far the largest. After all, she believed she was more important than anyone else. And the way she looped her letters? Entirely unnecessary. This wasn’t a feckin’ wedding invitation. Why did she always have to be so formal? So pretentious?
I balled the note in my fist and called fire to my palm. Flames engulfed the yellowed parchment, and I threw the thing into the fireplace’s empty grate.