The Earl's Childe

by T. J. Wooldridge

  “Hi!”

  The tiny forms winced away from me as I spoke. I guess I must’ve sounded loud to them.

  “Sorry,” I said more softly, trying not to grimace as I got a better look at them.

  You know how there are all these pictures of pixies that look like pretty ballerinas or dancers with butterfly wings or dragonfly wings? Yeah. These guys, not so much. They had arms and legs and were people-shaped with people-like faces. Sort of. One of them, I didn’t know who was who, had perfectly smooth, bright-green skin and bright pink eyes with no irises. Just, like, rose quartz or something. Its wings looked like poison ivy leaves. The other did have the dragonfly wings, but its skin looked like the bark on rose bushes, a mix of green and brown. And thorny. In one of its tiny hands, it held a particularly long thorn like a dagger. Its eyes were pollen-yellow with black irises, which was somewhat less freaky than the pink eyes. Neither of them had any hair.

  I realized we were just staring at each other, which was probably kind of rude. “Um, hi. Again. I’m Heather—”

  “We know who you are, Heather MacArthur, Human Liaison. Have you summoned us to undo the mischief your family has done?” spoke the green pixie. I couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl from its voice, which was not as high-pitched as I’d expected from something so small.

  “Mischief that my family has done?” I frowned, but tried not to sound too annoyed. I had a feeling that even if they were being rude, I, the Human Liaison, would be expected to still be polite. “What are—”

  “They have entrapped us in the gardens! Cutting us off from our true home!” Rose-Bark Pixie, whose voice reminded me of pebbles shaking in a rattle, shook its thorn-dagger at me.

  I pulled back a little. Forget manners! “Hey! Watch it with that thing! Did you hurt my sister with that?”

  “She would not even acknowledge us. We have spoken before, and she ignored us as if we had never met!”

  I pressed my lips together, silently praising my baby sister for being good. “She’s doing what she was told. My father is worried about the fey and the Unseelie lord who is trying to move in, so he asked all the younger kids to stay away from all fey, because we don’t know who is allied with whom.” I hoped that sounded like I knew what I was talking about.

  “You saw us at the meeting. You should know our alliance!” The poison-ivy pixie leaned towards me menacingly. Well, as menacing as a three-inch tall being could be, even if it was wearing poison ivy. “Unless you have not declared allegiance with Lady Fana and Lord Cadmus because you are allied against them.”

  “We are not allied against them. In fact, my parents would like to meet with them, but there was…” I tried to think of a good adult word. “…an altercation between Tom and my dad, so we haven’t been able to get word to them.”

  “Pfft!” The poison-ivy one waved its wee hand in the direction of the castle. “Not surprised. The cat fey’s whole family has brought nothing but trouble upon our relations with the MacArthur clan. I don’t even know why he was given the little responsibility he had. Of course he would fail! We will bring your message to Lord Cadmus and Lady Fana if you release us from this garden.”

  Tom’s family had brought nothing but trouble to the MacArthurs? I thought of the platinum cat, the Marquesa or something, at the meeting and Tom’s cryptic words that he didn’t want to talk about her and that his only job was to be my liaison. I could think more about that later. “What do you mean release you?”

  “Your family has entrapped us here! Do you not know this?”

  I decided that the poison-ivy pixie’s voice was really annoying and was relieved when the rose-bark one added, “Likely not. We rarely see this one in the gardens. Let us show her.”

  With that, both pixies jumped from the bush, giving it a mighty rustle for their little size, and took off towards the far end of the gardens. I glanced at Rowan, who had crept up somewhat close to me, and we both took off after them. It wasn’t easy; it was like trying to follow two dragonfly-sized bugs that zigzagged all over the place. Eventually, we reached the low brick wall that separated the gardens from the nature trails that joined up to the preserve bordering our property. The two pixies hovered a few inches from the gate.

  “See?” said the one with the pebbly voice. “We cannot cross!”

  I looked at the brick wall, then leaned over. Outside the wall, a thick line of salt followed the perimeter. I knew I should let them out, but with the dirt, I wasn’t sure I could remake the line. And if I remembered correctly, even a tiny break, just big enough to let the two pixies out, would be enough to mess with the protection around the whole castle. And I didn’t want one of the Unseelie or red caps able to sneak in.

  I bit my lip, then looked at Rowan, who was a few feet behind me. “Rowan, can you run really fast and get me a cup of the salt Dad had delivered?”

  My brother cocked his head, regarding me a moment, then nodded and took off.

  Taking a few steps back, I vaulted over the wall. I looked back at the two pixies. “You’ll tell Lady Fana and Lord Cadmus my parents want to meet with them? And you’ll return and give me the details?”

  “If you do not bar our way in,” said the whine of the poison-ivy pixie.

  “I have to keep the castle safe, and we haven’t come to an agreement with the Lord and Lady yet, so meet me by Ehrwnmyr when I feed him tonight, and give me the details, all right?”

  I didn’t understand the whiny or the gravely chatter between the two, but finally Rose-Bark answered, “We will contact you. We wish for the safety of these lands, too.”

  Pursing my lips as I considered their words, I stared at the line in the sand for a moment.

  “We can bring no message to anyone whilst we are trapped away from our people!” came from the higher voice of Poison-Ivy.

  True. And I would build no good will with any of the fey by keeping two of them trapped. Cupping my hand, I brushed aside a few inches of the salt. Before I could even stand, I felt the buzz of both of them zooming from the gardens and into the trees. Swallowing hard, I stood, staring between the trees.

  How close could the red caps be? Could one of the Unseelie be right here? I thought of these things too late, along with what if this were a trap?

  And then I thought, Dad couldn’t have put salt around more than the castle itself when Tom came, or Tom couldn’t have gotten to my window. When did he put the salt out here? And does Mum know?

  Those questions sat almost as sickly in my stomach as the fear of an impending fey attack before Rowan could get back with the salt.

  Further into the woods, I heard a rustle. I choked on my breath, peering into the darkness of the shade. Then, a chitter. Or a laugh. Or just a chitter. It could have just been a chitter from…a big squirrel or a bird or something.

  But it sounded like a giggle. A really evil giggle.

  I backed a step closer to the wall.

  The pounding of trainers against ground reminded me to breathe.

  Branches thrashed deeper in the woods. Not near enough to see.

  “Heather?”

  My brother’s voice made me jump. “Yeah. Got it?”

  He handed me a plastic cup full of salt, but his eyes were behind me, also scanning the woods.

  “Do you see something?”

  He shook his head. “But you should hurry anyway.”

  Rowan didn’t have to tell me twice. I poured a fresh line of salt, overlapping the two edges of the prior line by at least two inches on each side, laying it on thickly so that there was no chance of a break. As I did so, I whispered, “Let no evil cross this path,” over and over. I didn’t know if it was a spell or anything, and I knew Mum had said no spells without her ever, but I felt better saying it. And I almost felt a hum from the salt line when I was done. This had to be a reasonable exception to the “no spells without me ever” rule. I hoped. I looked up at the sky. It had started to drizzle; it drizzled almost every day in Scotland, but the salt was still intact. There had
to be some magick to that.

  Another chitter-giggle came from the woods, closer this time, along with more thrashing.

  “Heather?” squeaked my brother.

  “Back up!” With one more glance over my shoulder, I stepped back just enough to launch over the wall again, careful of the salt. After I landed, I jumped up and looked over the wall.

  Nothing.

  “Heather?” My brother whimpered.

  “What?”

  “I don’t hear anything.”

  Crap. He was right. No birds, no bugs. Nothing nearby. Dead. Silence.

  “To the castle! Now!” I hoped the salt magick would hold. I hoped the two pixies were safe.

  My brother and I booked it, top speed, to the castle, nearly breaking down the back door as we shoved through it. Almost knocking Mrs. McInnis down.

  “What is it, children?” she asked, concern crossing her wrinkled face as she immediately put down the dishes.

  “Where’sMumandDad?” I asked between burning gasps of breath, glancing over my shoulder out the still-open door and brushing the raindrops off me. My legs were shaking from the run.

  “Your Mum’s just finishing lunch, and your Dad’s in the office. What’s wrong?”

  “It’s…Um…” I paused. The McInnises knew the truth about Ermie. I remembered Mr. McInnis nailing iron crosses to the horse stalls during the early attacks. They knew, but I had a feeling they were even more distrustful of the fey than Dad. “Just, um, tell Mum to meet us in the office? Like, now? Please?”

  Mrs. McInnis frowned at us, but nodded. Rowan and I dashed out of the kitchen and into the hall.

  The office door was open, so with a knock on its wood, I ran in and stood between my parents’ two desks, breathing hard. Isis scrambled to her feet with a whine of concern.

  Dad was pacing behind his desk and stopped as soon as he saw us. “Alison—” Alison was my dad’s agent “—I’ve got to call you back. Something important.” He swiped the screen on his phone to end the call. “What’s wrong?”

  “Mum’ll be here in a second,” I said between breaths, bending a little and resting my hands on my knees. It was not a short run from the furthest end of the furthest garden to this part of the castle.

  Even as I said that, Mum walked in, closing the door behind her. “What’s going on? Marie said you two came running in like something was after you.”

  “In the woods. Behind the rose garden,” Rowan volunteered.

  “What?” Mum asked, eyes wide. She met Dad’s gaze and nodded towards her desk.

  “We don’t know,” I continued. “Th-the two faerie-pixie things that Ivy and Ash know were trapped in the rose garden and angry about it, so I let them out and told them to see if they could tell Lord Cadmus and Lady Fana to give us a meeting, but I had Rowan bring me more salt and I redid the line, and I totally made sure it was unbroken, I even kind of felt it humming or something, like I feel with spells and stuff, but there was something in the woods behind me. I thought I heard a laugh or something and then some rustling, and then when I jumped back over the wall, we didn’t hear anything. No birds, no bugs, no animals, nothing, like when Ehrwnmyr attacked Helen, remember?”

  Mum sucked in a breath. I heard Dad behind me, opening a drawer. I looked at him. He pulled two knives out of the bottom drawer of Mum’s desk. They had dark metal blades, and the handles looked like they were made of animal horn. It was my turn for my eyes to go wide as he handed Mum one.

  “Show us where you were.” Mum grabbed a sweatshirt that was hanging on the back of her chair and draped it over her arm, hiding the blade. Dad grabbed a light coat and did the same. As we left the office, he slapped his thigh and said, “Come on, girl,” to Isis, even as she was already on his heels.

  My brother and I looked at each other, but led them back to the kitchen. “It’s starting to rain harder, you two. Grab your coats.” Dad gestured to the pegs beside the door.

  Once we were outside and away from everyone else, Mum and Dad put their coats on. Seeing them grip the knives felt unreal, though. My parents. Carrying weapons.

  Once we got to the rose garden, Isis circling around us the whole way, my parents verified which wall we were at and told us to stay behind them. Rowan hovered as close to me as he could without touching me. He didn’t say a word the whole time, and he kept avoiding our eyes. I could see him trembling, and I remembered why I’d kept him out of most of this since Lily came home.

  My parents walked the inside perimeter of the wall, glancing into the woods. It wasn’t so quiet now. Isis didn’t seem concerned, either. Even in the rain, there were a few birdcalls and some quacking in the distance, where there were a lot of streams. From high in the treetops, we heard a heron’s dinosaur-like cry and the angry whipping of trees from where we knew it nested. I felt a little less like a baby when I noticed both Mum and Dad jump.

  “When did you put the salt out here, Michael?” Mum asked.

  Dad looked up at her. “I didn’t. I only covered the castle foundation and all the entries. I thought you did it.”

  “I haven’t salted anything, though I rescind my ‘this is a bad idea’ comment. I’m glad it’s here.” She glanced back at me. “Even if it did trap the little ones. They’re out now, and maybe they will get a message to the two daoine síth, and we can work out some deal.”

  “So who did put the salt here?” Dad pressed his lips together.

  “Jack, maybe?” Mum offered. Jack was Mr. McInnis’s first name. “He knew you’d done it around the castle, and we told them about the Unseelie threat.” Mum shrugged, still looking at me, and then explained further, “We want them safe, too. They’re on our property, so they need to know.”

  I nodded, understanding. “And Ginny? She knows everything, right?”

  “Aye,” Dad said, half a smirk on his face as he looked from the woods to me. He was likely remembering that talk with my parents’ matter-of-fact assistant. “She knows, but I don’t know how much she attributes to us being mad or artists or what. Anita, too. She was better after your mum’s explanation about faeries—er, faerie—being descended from angels who didn’t fight for God or Lucifer and were banished. None of the other staff, though, and none of the villagers. Just the McInnises, Anita, and Ginny.”

  I sighed. It was tough trying to keep straight who could know and who couldn’t know and all that.

  Dad looked at me sympathetically. After one more look to the trees and to Mum, he pulled his coat closer and said, “Let’s go inside.” Walking beside me, he brushed my arm with his free hand. I hesitated, then moved closer so he could put an arm around me. “You took this whole faerie thing in stride. When your Mum was explaining things to me, I couldn’t even begin to process it, even after I saw it. I just had to, because you were in danger.”

  “Mum gets it. And the McInnises,” I said.

  “Your Mum has always been a believer in magick. Long before she met me. We disagreed, so we didn’t talk about it, but that doesn’t mean she stopped believing. And I’m pretty sure the McInnises have always had a certain belief, too.” Dad sighed. “The rest of us, though…it takes time for us to get used to the idea. And we panic, and we want to disbelieve. You’ve seen me panic, and it’s not safe. You understand?”

  “Mm-hmn.” I nodded against him, enjoying the feel of his arm tightening around me. I’d mostly avoided him since the whole Tom-magick-blow-up, and I really missed a good Daddy snuggle. “And Joe’s family? How were they when they found out about the kelpie?”

  Dad paused. When he answered, he sounded a bit surprised, “Strangely, not very shocked. Your mum just went with them being rather unperturbed, so I did too. But, I hadn’t really thought about it.” He shrugged. “Maybe royals are more in tune with magickal happenings than the rest of us?”

  “Hmm.” Again, my mind went to Joe, worrying about him. If they did know more about magick, which was possible because Joe hadn’t even been much bothered by the ghost we ran into, maybe…maybe they als
o had magick helping them in Bahrain? I hugged Dad again. “Think…think they’re going to be all right?”

  He leaned over and kissed my head. “I’m praying every day for them. Remember, though, his parents have more experience for their situation than we do for ours. And they have more backup.”

  I nodded again, and we were quiet for a while. I hadn’t thought a lot about Joe and his family today, not with all the weirdness, and I felt guilty about that too. Yeah, things were crazy, but what kind of best friend was I?

  “Honey,” came Mum’s voice from ahead of us. Once our eyes were on her, she pulled up the sleeve of her sweatshirt, tucked the knife so the dull edge was against her forearm, and then pulled the sleeve back down, hiding the weapon. Dad let me go just long enough to do the same. I reached out to pet Isis as she trotted by me.

  As we approached the door, Mum continued, “I think the rain is just hard enough for an excuse to hand out info on first aid and do some exercises in here…while you and Jack take a wheelbarrow of that salt and lay it around the stables and down the paths there.” She looked back at the gardens. “I don’t know if just the castle and gardens are enough anymore.”

  “I think that is an excellent idea, love.”

  “Does Jack have a blade?”

  “I’m sure he does, but I’ll ask anyway.”

  Mum glanced at the back door. No one was around. She took hers out and handed it to Dad. “Take mine anyway, and take Isis. I’ll stay inside.” She reached up on her toes and kissed him. “Be careful!”

  “We will, love.” He kissed her back. Before I could finish rolling my eyes at them, he kissed my cheek and then blew a kiss to Rowan.

  Rowan turned to Mum. “Won’t the rain wash the salt away?”

  Mum gave him a half-smile as she herded us inside. “Not with the magick we’re using with it.” Then she lowered her voice. “But we shouldn’t speak of this inside. Both of you will keep things quiet, right?” We both nodded as we hung our coats on the pegs, ready to pretend we weren’t possibly in a whole lot of danger.