Falling

by Meredith Bond

  “And I want to spread the word through private channels about the Vallen, so that people like Mom, who are not aware or comfortable with their powers, can learn more and possibly how to use what abilities they have,” Erin added.

  “Wow! That sounds really ambitious, Erin,” her brother Nick said.

  “Yeah!” others agreed.

  “How are you going to do that?” Nick’s wife asked.

  “I want to build a website with bulletin boards and, well, just tons of information for anyone who’s interested. The trick will be how to hide it from ordinary people,” Erin answered.

  “I might be able to help you with that,” Dylan’s boyfriend, Jared, offered.

  “And that’s what brings me to why I asked all of you here today, aside from the fact that I thought we should celebrate that Erin has officially become the high priestess of the Vallen and is embarking on this incredible new journey,” her mom said with a broad smile.

  “Wait, you’ve already become the high priestess?” Susie asked.

  “Yup!” Erin said, taking in a deep breath.

  “Wow!”

  “What does that mean? I mean, can you do something more?” asked Susie’s husband, Mike.

  “I do have more powers now,” Erin acknowledged. “But I also have this responsibility to help any Vallen in need.”

  “That’s pretty incredible, sis,” her brother Xander said.

  “But what all this means,” her mother said, taking control of the conversation once again, “is that she needs financial support. Your father and I are going to contribute what we can, but we thought you all might want to help out as well.”

  Erin wasn’t sure if she wanted to curl up into a ball of embarrassment or thank her mother for being so sweet as to organize this impromptu fund-raiser for her.

  “I’d love to!” one her sisters-in-law said, causing Erin to lean in the direction of wanting to give her mother a huge hug.

  “Yeah! Count me in,” her oldest brother added.

  There was agreement all around the room. Erin’s eyes filled, and she had to blink a few times to clear out the tears before she really did embarrass herself.

  “Oh my God, you all are so wonderful,” she said.

  “Well, of course we’ll support you! How ridiculous you are!” Dylan said, grabbing her into a big hug.

  “Wait a minute, wait a minute!” Erin’s father said, coming in with his laptop. He put it down on the table next to the big-screen TV and plugged it into a cord that he fished out from behind. “Morgan, can you still hear me?” he asked the face that flickered up on the screen.

  “Yes. Yes, I can,” the older man said in a strong British accent.

  “Everyone, this is Lord Morgan Vallentine. He’s your cousin once removed. Your grandmother’s oldest brother’s son,” Erin’s father explained.

  Everyone called out greetings.

  “Yes, yes, hello! That’s all very lovely, even though all I can see are everyone’s legs,” Lord Vallentine said with a laugh.

  “Oh! Sorry about that!” Erin’s father picked up his computer again and directed the built-in camera so that it was pointed toward the faces of everyone gathered.

  “Oh! So much better! Thank you, Reece!” the man said. “Hello everyone. How absolutely lovely it is to meet you all. Ah, this reminds me so much of my father’s family reunions when all of the siblings—less your grandmother, of course, would get together. And also why my father only had two children, now that I think about it.” He gave a chuckle.

  Everyone else laughed as well.

  “Yes, we are a good number of people, aren’t we?” Erin’s father said, smiling broadly all around.

  “Indeed! Well, this isn’t what I’m here to talk to you about, is it?” Lord Vallentine said.

  “No. Erin, come forward, please,” her father said.

  Erin took a step out of the crowd, feeling a little awkward. She looked at her father’s computer and gave a wave to Lord Vallentine.

  “Hello! So you are our new high priestess?” he asked.

  “Yes, that would be me,” she said with a shrug.

  “Excellent! I wish you all the best of luck. I know that my aunt, your grandmother, felt entirely overwhelmed by the role. From what your father has told me, you are working on creating a system to make it, shall we say, easier? Is that not so?”

  “Yes. I want to create a non-profit and have information on-line for Vallen. No matter where they are in the world, they’ll have access to help from either me or other Vallen,” Erin explained.

  “Yes, yes. Your father told me all about your plans, and I think that it all sounds amazing,” Lord Vallentine said.

  “Really? Well, thank you.” Erin smiled.

  “But he did mention that you were in need of start-up funds,” her cousin continued.

  “Ah. Yes. I am,” Erin agreed, looking at her father.

  “No worries. We’re family. I’m very happy to help out. Would an endowment of say, five hundred thousand pounds do the trick?”

  Erin choked and was thrown into a coughing fit. Dylan gave her a slap on her back. She turned to him and between coughs said, “Did he just say…”

  “Five hundred thousand.” He nodded and then wiggled his eyebrows.

  Erin turned back to her cousin on the screen and redirected herself to the computer. “That’s extremely generous of you, Lord Vallentine. I don’t quite know what to say.”

  He gave a wave of his hand. “Oh no, it’s nothing. Just start-up funds, right? And do call me Morgan! We’re family!”

  Erin took a deep breath. “Well then, thank you, Morgan.”

  “Absolutely. I’ll get your contact information from your father, and we’ll work out the details later, shall we?” he asked.

  “Yes. That would be perfect,” Erin said.

  “That’s really generous of you, Morgan,” Erin’s father said, turning the computer around so that it faced him.

  “Not a problem. Happy to help. Really, as I told you earlier, this sounds like an absolutely brilliant idea. I love it. Really I do.” He smiled. “Be in touch!” With a flourishing hand, he reached forward and then disappeared from the screen.

  Erin turned to her father. “I can’t believe you got in contact with some distant relative!” she nearly shouted.

  Her father just laughed. “He’s not a distant relative. He’s your cousin, and actually, we’ve been in contact for years. We’re friends, even though we don’t see each other in person all that often. We Skype pretty regularly. He’s a really nice guy.”

  “Really?” Erin asked.

  “You’ve known him for a while?” someone asked.

  “We met at your mother’s and my wedding and became friends. We’ve stayed in touch over the years, and even saw him and his wife and kids the last time your mom and I went on vacation. Remember, we stopped by in London on our way to Italy?”

  “But you didn’t tell us you were visiting a relative,” Dylan protested.

  “Dad told me,” Lizzie, Erin’s older sister, said. “But he didn’t say Morgan was a lord!”

  “Wow. That’s all I’ve got to say. Wow!” Erin said, shaking her head. She looked over at David, who was smiling broadly.

  “That’s pretty amazing, Erin,” he said. “But at the risk of looking like I’m taking advantage of the fact that we just found out that you have an incredibly rich, noble relative—because, honestly, I’m not! I have a question that I’d like to pose to you.”

  He wiped his hands down his legs. Was he nervous about something? Erin tilted her head to the side a little and waited.

  “I’d thought to do this later when we were alone, but…” he paused, looking around at everyone still paying attention and following their conversation, “this just feels like the right time.”

  Erin gave a shrug. “You can say anything in front of my family.”

  “Okay.” He put his hand into his pocket and pulled out a small box. “Would you marry me?”


  “What?” Erin breathed, her voice suddenly not working.

  “Seriously?” Dylan asked.

  David laughed and opened the box to reveal a small diamond ring. “It’s not much, but it was all I could afford just now. I’ll get you something nicer…maybe for our twenty-fifth anniversary, if you say yes. It might take me that long to save up considering how little I make,” he said with a little laugh.

  Erin reached out and put her hand on David’s cheek. “I don’t care how big the stone is. Your love is enormous.”

  He sighed and turned his face so that he could kiss her hand. “It is. It really is.”

  “And I love you.” This time she didn’t even try to stop the tears from leaking from her eyes.

  All around them were whoops and shouts of joy. “This is absolutely the best family gathering!” Erin’s thirteen-year-old niece shouted.

  “Ha! And you didn’t want to come,” her father said.

  “Yeah, but I’m really glad I did. Congratulations, Aunt Erin!” she said.

  Erin and David were swarmed with hugs and kisses. Erin completely agreed with her niece—this was absolutely the best family gathering ever!

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Daffid didn’t know where to go. The babe was beginning to get fidgety in his arms, probably wanting her mother. The thought of Erinne brought a fresh wave of tears streaming down his cheeks.

  But crying would not help him, the babe, or Erinne for that matter. She was gone. He clamped his eyes together for a minute to try to clear them. It didn’t work, but a few blinks and a deep breath did.

  He had been riding aimlessly for three hours, lost in his misery. Oddly, he now noticed that he was coming close to Tyne-on-Waye, the home of Erinne’s father.

  Somehow, fortune had shown him mercy.

  It wasn’t long thereafter that he was brought into the presence of Lord and Lady Tyne. Daffid bowed deeply. “My apologies,” he said, as he rose. “I’m afraid that I come with sad tidings.”

  “And a babe in arms,” Lady Tyne said, coming closer.

  Daffid showed the child to her. “She is your granddaughter, my lady, and I’m afraid very wet and hungry.” To prove his words, the baby let out a wail and began to cry.

  “Oh my! Poor thing! But where is… Oh!” She pressed a hand to her breast, her eyes widening with realization. “My daughter?” she whispered.

  “Gone, I am sad to say,” he nodded.

  “By all that is holy!” Lord Tyne exclaimed.

  “Please, my lord, my lady. Can we first see to the baby?” Daffid asked, not wanting to cut short their obvious shock and horror at hearing such terrible news about their child, but having no choice as his own was screaming for some much-needed attention.

  “Yes, of course,” Lady Tyne said, giving a sharp clap of her hands.

  A maid appeared.

  “Find a wet nurse immediately and take the child to her. I believe Margaret, Sir Alfred’s wife, has recently had a child, has she not?” Lady Tyne said to the woman.

  “Yes, my lady,” the maid curtsied.

  Erinne’s mother nodded. “Take the babe to her and see if she can feed her. And find some dry swaddling clothes for her as well. I will look to see if arrangements can be made for the future.”

  “Yes, my lady.” The maid took the screaming baby away.

  It was a relief to see her taken care of, but Daffid couldn’t help but follow the woman’s progress through the hall, even as his daughter’s cries grew fainter the further away she got.

  “She will be well taken care of,” Lady Tyne said, putting a hand on his arm.

  He turned back to her and attempted to give her a grateful smile. “I’m certain you’re right, I just…”

  “You’ve had a difficult day. Come and sit. You look like you could use a drink as well,” Lord Tyne said, resuming his own seat by the fire and indicating an empty chair next to him.

  A servant appeared with two goblets of wine, and another with a third chair.

  Daffid was grateful for it. God knew he needed both the rest and the spirits.

  Once he had taken a moment to quench his thirst, Lord Tyne asked, “Can you tell us what happened, Lord Daffid?”

  Daffid closed his eyes, even as he nodded. He then told them everything from the very beginning—from the time his mother tricked Erinne into sleeping with him to Huw’s return and subsequent actions. His goblet had been refilled twice by the time he finished his tale.

  Tears were streaming down Lady Tyne’s own cheeks as she said, “Oh, my child. My poor, sweet innocent Erinne.” She sniffed and added, “You have done right to come here to us, Lord Daffid. I will take care of my granddaughter.”

  “And you will not be in want of a home, ever,” Lord Tyne added. “I could use a good strong man like you to act as my captain of the guards. I’m afraid the fellow who has been in that position is, well, getting on in years as am I. It will be good to have some young blood.”

  Daffid could only shake his head with his good fortune. “You are both very kind.”

  “Do say that you will stay?” Lady Tyne asked.

  “Yes, I would be honored to stay and become a part of your household. Honestly, I could not leave my daughter, and without your help, I do not know how I would care for her. You are both very good and I am grateful.”

  Lady Tyne reached out and touched his arm again. “You will be as a son to us.”

  “Thank you. I…I just have one question,” Daffid said. It had been something that had nagged at him as he’d rode aimlessly that day.

  Both Lord and Lady Tyne looked at him, waiting.

  “You are the high priestess, my lady, and Erinne was supposed to have followed you into that role. Her seventh daughter was to have followed her, but now… Now there will be no seventh. What are you going to do? Is it possible that the baby, Gwendolen, could fulfill the role when she comes of age?”

  Lady Tyne sat back in her chair and considered his question. “I wish I could say that I knew the answer, Daffid.” She raised her eyes to his. “We shall have to consult Merlin. You are right. This might be a pressing matter. It is certainly one of great importance.”

  She stood with the fluid grace of a much younger woman. “Would you care to join me as I pose your question?”

  He stood at once. “I would be honored!”

  With a bow to his host, he followed the lady from the great hall and up to her private salon. There, she removed a beautiful white marble chalice from her bookshelf and a water skin, which had hung on a nail nearby.

  He watched as she poured just the smallest drop of water into the cup, just enough to cover the bottom. The most incredible scent wafted up from the fragrant water.

  Daffid closed his eyes as the smell engulfed him. In his mind’s eye, he could see verdant green fields of grain, a waterfall of the freshest water falling to a pool of pale blue. He didn’t know where the vision had come from, but it made him feel good, relaxed, even happy for a moment.

  When he re-opened his eyes, the face of an old man was peering at him from the water in the chalice. Daffid gasped. He’d never seen such a thing in all his life. Where had the man come from?

  The man looked from him to Lady Tyne. “My lady, why is it that you have called upon me?”

  “You will forgive me, Lord Merlin, but this day we have had terrible news.” She paused to collect herself.

  Merlin? Daffid thought. The great wizard Merlin? He stared harder at the old man in the water. He’d heard tales, but he’d thought them to be nonsense told to children. But here he was, the wizard himself, speaking to them. Daffid could only shake his head in wonder.

  “Your daughter,” the old man said.

  “Yes,” Lady Tyne whispered. “Had you foreseen this?”

  “I am very sad to say that I have. My most sincere condolences to you,” he said. He then looked over at Daffid. “You must be the father of Erinne’s child.”

  “Yes, my lord,” Daffid said, although he had to cl
ear his throat in order to get the words out properly.

  “You have done well, my son, in bringing her to your high priestess where she may be raised well and taught what she will need to know,” Merlin said.

  “Will she be able to take her mother’s place as the next high priestess?” Lady Tyne asked.

  “Yes,” Merlin answered. “There will be an exception made for this tragedy. The line must continue.”

  Lady Tyne sighed. “Thank you, my lord. You are good and wise.”

  “I am saddened, my lady, but accepting of what has come to pass,” he said. He turned to Daffid once again. “Until we meet again, Daffid,” he said as his image faded from the water.

  About the Author

  Meredith Bond's books straddle that beautiful line between historical romance and fantasy. An award-winning author, she writes fun traditional Regency romances, medieval Arthurian romances, and Regency romances with a touch of magic. Known for her characters “who slip readily into one’s heart,” Meredith’s heart belongs to her husband and two children.

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  Books By Meredith Bond

  The Merry Men Quartet

  These books, originally published by Zebra Books, can be read in any order you choose, they are stand-alone novels with recurring characters.

  An Exotic Heir (originally published as Love of My Life)

  A Merry Marquis (originally published as Miss Seton’s Sonata)

  A Rake’s Reward (originally published as Wooing Miss Whatley)

  A Dandy in Disguise (originally published as Dame Fortune)