The Bastard from Fairyland

by Phil Parker

  ‘I am not his first such victim. He has experimented others. He considers himself a scientist. He is not. He is a monster.’

  Whatever strength she had vanished with that declaration, she flopped backwards and her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

  The three of us looked at each other as the implications sunk in. Midir was still holding her hand but his eyes held a fire in them, I think if Taranis had been in the room at that moment, he’d have killed him. I stared at the notebook, it could contain evidence of the man’s crimes, not just what he’d been doing to Sibeal. That made it even more valuable to us. It also made it valuable to Taranis as well. I could see the trepidation on Clodagh’s face as I looked up. Her voice quivered.

  ‘Taranis will be furious it’s been taken, it contains information he will want kept secret. We may be in great danger now Filidea.’

  I’d begun to think the same thing but it wasn’t something we could change. Midir picked up the woman with considerable ease and carried her up to the bedroom, the familiarity of the process told me he’d obviously done this many times in the past. He came downstairs later, having made sure she’d fallen asleep, and told us he planned on staying there with her. I insisted that Clodagh remained as well, to ensure Sibeal’s reputation stayed intact. He wasn’t happy about that but he agreed.

  There was another reason why I wanted to Clodagh to stay. I hurried to my horse, took out my riding outfit from a bag strapped to my saddle and changed out of my smelly disguise.

  ‘You need to get Sibeal to talk you through the notebook, we need to understand its contents. That’s going to mean keeping Midir’s passion under control.’

  ‘How do I do that? The man is a raging mass of testosterone.’

  Clodagh looked wide-eyed at the thought of controlling my brother’s ardour. I had suspicions she felt attracted to his muscular form, he was the type she usually fantasised about after all.

  ‘Don’t leave her alone, keep working and studying with her, remind her how important our work is and the danger we face possessing that notebook. Midir will get bored eventually.’

  ‘What are you going to do?’ It was obvious she wasn’t happy being left alone.

  I heaved a sigh. ‘We’ve just committed a crime Clodagh, against one of the most powerful men in the whole of Tir na nÓg. I need to keep my ear to the ground to find out what he does next and that means staying close to my grandmother. Plus, now we know he’s competing with our research, we need to find out what he’s actually doing, especially if it’s immoral or illegal.’

  She gave me the look I knew well. I smiled at her.

  ‘Don’t worry. I’ll be careful.’

  Chapter 15

  I rode back to the palace genuinely frightened, I think I’d hidden it from Clodagh quite well, but now I was on my own, the implications of my little adventure were penetrating my shaky self-confidence.

  Rescuing Sibeal had been risky. When it involved helping another woman to escape the crazed clutches of Llyr, I’d been driven by a moral imperative. I hadn’t worried very much because my reasoning told me the man’s interests lay in waging war against the humans. Losing Sibeal would have been an irritation, it wouldn’t have distracted him from his greater purpose though.

  Taranis’ involvement changed the dynamic and raised the stakes.

  He valued her for some reason. Enough to have openly flouted Llyr’s intentions. At least I’d been subtle, Taranis had openly abducted her from the Dark Palace. If he dared do something like that to the High Lord of the Dark Court, he wouldn’t hesitate in seeking vengeance against me. No matter what way I looked at it, and I tried very hard to do that as I rode back to the palace, Taranis posed a significantly greater threat. The plain fact of the matter was that he frightened me. Stories of this man’s cruelty were the stuff of legend. He’d been a commander in the armed forces and even his training regime had been brutal. While some reports might have been apocryphal, others had triggered investigations and his eventual removal. Even in the Light Palace, everyone knew Lord Taranis to be a ruthless, sadistic, cruel-hearted bastard and I’d just stolen one of his valuable assets, as well as having established myself as a professional rival.

  More than once I found myself wishing I’d not behaved so rashly, but what was done, was done. I had to deal with the consequences as best I could. It didn’t stop me from feeling sick with fright though.

  The palace represented some security. I breathed a sigh of relief as I rode into the stables courtyard and handed my horse over to a waiting groom. No sooner had I arrived than a servant sprinted towards me from the tack room. The young man was sweating, panic stricken, his urgency even caused him to call to me across the yard. Servants didn’t yell at royalty, the groom looked astonished as he waited to see how I’d respond. The young man shouted that he had been looking for me for a long time, he’d only just discovered I’d gone riding, he was sorry for his poor behaviour but his mission was an urgent one. Highly important, he gasped.

  By the time he reached me the poor fellow was panting and leaned against the astonished groom to get his breath. The drama fed my insecurities. What had happened while I’d been away? I couldn’t help but wonder if it was linked to the crime I’d just committed. Waiting for the servant to regain enough breath to pass on his message was torture.

  Finally, with enough air in his lungs to speak, the young man told me I was to report to the Silver Reception Room immediately, Lady Nimue waited for me there.

  Trepidation turned to dread when the servant told me there wouldn’t be time to change out of my riding breeches, my presence was urgently commanded. Grandmother never tolerated such impropriety, except in extreme circumstances, it couldn’t be coincidence that I’d just committed a crime which could set the two Courts against one another.

  The servant accompanied me, urging me on as politely as he knew how. I ran through explanations and excuses the entire way back, none of them convincing. Now I knew Taranis was involved, my actions appeared rash, impetuous and grandmother wouldn’t be interested in any misunderstandings of Sibeal’s abductor.

  I arrived sweating, with a dry throat, my hair a mess, my clothes mud-spattered and with a distinctly equine aroma.

  Dread turned to outright terror when the huge doors to the room of rainbows swung open to reveal my grandmother. And Taranis. They faced each other like two powerful pieces on a chess board. They turned to look at me, each face taking a couple of seconds to compose itself before reacting to the sight before them. My grandmother’s expression lowered the temperature to frosty.

  ‘Filidea, where have you been?’

  Each word was delivered with a tone that meant, ‘why have you come looking like that?’ Each gap between the words contained the implication, ‘why are you humiliating me?’

  In comparison Taranis was all smiles and warmth.

  ‘Well, I may be wrong, I so often am where ladies’ fashions are concerned, but I would guess your granddaughter has been riding, my lady.’

  The chilly expression didn’t thaw as it turned on him. He bit his lip playfully.

  ‘I’m sorry grandmother, I wasn’t aware you wanted to see me. If I’d known…’

  I let the sentence hang. If she didn’t want to be embarrassed she ought to have warned me about such meetings, this was not my fault. I had to keep reminding myself of that. Taranis looked as distinguished as usual and his appearance made me feel more like a servant than a princess. Impeccable hair, with flashes of grey amidst the brown, was styled in a modern cut and the suit he wore was expensive and designed to show off his powerful physique. For a man who was starting to age, he looked quite dashing. Anyone who didn’t know him might have been charmed by his smile, handsome features and good clothes. He bowed, perhaps a little lower than was necessary, and that worried me.

  ‘It is my fault, my dear. My visit was unannounced.’

  There was a cold look in his eyes that didn’t match the warmth of the smile. It was those eyes that
betrayed the kind of man he really was. Grandmother watched him greet me with an expression I couldn’t read but then turned back to glare at me.

  ‘You’re normally in the library Filidea. You lack numerous useful qualities, knowing where to find you is one of your most valuable.’

  The old witch. I smiled my apology, making sure I mirrored the political expression worn by the bastard in the perfectly tailored suit.

  ‘Sometimes I like to get some fresh air,’ I said, waving a hand around me as though to demonstrate where to find it.

  Grandmother wasn’t interested in my excuse and dismissed as if she was fanning away a gnat. I would have given anything to be such an insect, so I could fly out of the huge windows that wafted their lace curtains towards us. They allowed in a cool breeze and it made me shiver, though fear was a more likely cause.

  ‘Well, this is hardly the ideal situation to discuss such matters, I had hoped you would have been dressed more appropriately.’

  ‘For what?’ I asked before she’d finished her last word.

  I didn’t like not knowing what to expect and I had the impression I was being manipulated. Taranis kept glancing at me out of the corner of his eye, the kind of look I recognised in courtly politics, one which prefaced an act of vengeance or aggression. I also didn’t like the way my grandmother flicked her eyes in his direction before speaking, that spoke of indecision and such a word didn’t appear in her vocabulary.

  The moment stalled as grandmother’s ancient secretary, Vevina, strutted into the room, glasses perched on the end of her beak of a nose. She always reminded me of one of those long-legged birds that hunt fish, their back hunched in the constant search for food. Vevina’s search meant staring down at the notebook she carried with her, something which never left her claws; I imagined if those records fell into the wrong hands it could bring down the Light Court in seconds. She ignored me, even Lord Taranis, which shocked me, but her expression conveyed urgency.

  A quick glance in his direction, at his narrowed eyes as he watched the old bird, told me he was just as intrigued. The two old crones whispered intently for several seconds, I was near enough to hear the name Oisin mentioned and I felt my heart rate increase. I wondered if word had arrived of my crime. My anxiety didn’t decrease when my grandmother did something I’d never seen before.

  ‘My dear Taranis, something has occurred that requires my immediate attention. I do apologise for inconveniencing you so but I’m afraid I have no choice but to attend to this matter. We will reschedule this meeting as soon as possible. Once again, my apologies.’

  With that she was gone. No opportunity for replies, reprimands or farewells. Both of us stood like statues, mouths open a little. The professional politician was inevitably the one to recover first, he gave me that same smile as before, one a shark gives its prey.

  ‘Your grandmother’s hasty departure gives us an opportunity to get to know one another, doesn’t it, my dear?’

  I didn’t like being called ‘my dear’. I didn’t belong to him, I never would.

  ‘Erm… Yes.’

  He didn’t move, neither did I. We remained at right angles to one another and some distance apart, we’d formed a triangle when my grandmother was present, now our positions felt awkward. He retained the smile though sustaining it looked like it caused him pain.

  ‘We share an interest I believe. I think you have a passing interest in scientific matters, am I correct?’

  The smug bastard. It was more than a passing interest.

  ‘That’s right,’ I said sweetly. ‘Why, do you?’

  The slightest of shrugs. ‘I believe our race should develop greater curiosity, we’ve allowed our long lives to stagnate. I think such a factor may be at the root of many of our problems. Would you agree?’

  That’s why you abduct women and conduct experiments on them, you bastard.

  ‘I would, yes.’

  Now he moved, he took a step towards me then halted as though he didn’t want to appear too friendly. I was glad of that.

  ‘Good. I’m so pleased. It will give us something in common.’

  Ice ran through my veins and I almost choked.

  ‘Something in common?’

  The smile grew. He’d worked out I was ignorant of whatever was happening here. Everyone knew grandmother’s machinations were disseminated amongst her family on a strictly need-to-know basis and that most of us in the Light Court were kept in the dark. It was the source of a good many obvious jokes. This bastard was savouring the moment. That was why he chose to wrap up the news as he pretended to be coy.

  ‘I shouldn’t say anything I suppose. It is rather jumping the gun. Court protocols and the like, but, well, I’ve never been one to beat about the bush.’

  He took a dramatic breath.

  ‘But as we’re to be married, I think having common interests is important. I’m sure you’d agree?’

  The witch had gone behind my back, I should have guessed. This meeting was to be a formal betrothal introduction. She’d assumed I wouldn’t make a fuss when the man stood in front of me. She’d counted on my in-built need to avoid such an embarrassing situation, royalty didn’t indulge in such impropriety. If she thought that, then she didn’t know me at all. No wonder she was furious that I’d turned up looking such a mess. My mind reeled with the implications.

  My suiter, this ruthless, scheming, sadistic bastard, watched me as he waited for my reply. I had no idea what to say, except I wasn’t going to play along. My grandmother might have her plans but I had no intention of cooperating with them. I opened my mouth to reply and hoped words would appear, my only hope lie in the formalities we would need to go through.

  ‘Court protocols, my lord, are the backbone of the Light Court.’ My brain clicked into gear. ‘And if we were to behave in a way which contravened them, my grandmother would be furious. I’m sure you can appreciate why I don’t want to upset her. There are members of this Court who have ignored those protocols and suffered the consequences.’

  I gave a polite little laugh. He smiled back at me but it was just as hollow.

  ‘As my grandmother explained, we will need to reschedule. And next time I shall ensure I am suitably dressed.’

  ‘Of course.’ He gave me another bow, this time it was no more than a lowering of the head. ‘Tell me, where do you go riding? Perhaps we could ride together some time? I’d been informed you didn’t ride.’

  Behind my smile I gritted my teeth at that comment.

  ‘But no doubt you like to get fresh air after spending so much time amongst dusty books in that dark library of yours, it has left your complexion rather pale.’

  I let my smile slip deliberately but his slur was equally as deliberate, the gloves were off.

  ‘It is the penalty of being a serious researcher, my lord, one who is intent on finding the truth, no matter in what dark corners it hides.’

  Our eyes met and, even though my heart was beating like a battle drum, I didn’t look away. The smile on his face remained but his grey eyes turned predatory.

  ‘Indeed, my dear. I would only say that a lady should always be careful where you search for the truth. Sometimes, danger lurks in darkness and the truth can be an expensive commodity.’

  ‘Whilst that may be true, a good scientist does not allow fear to limit their investigations. As you have just said, our race lacks curiosity. Surely you don’t suggest we should only explore those places where we can tread with certainty?’

  I wasn’t going to let this man think he could better me. With luck I might display enough truculence to make him doubt my suitability as a wife. He was the type to expect a woman to remain quiet and unobtrusive, that was not me. His smile looked like it had been set in dried mud.

  ‘Investigations can be unpredictable, my dear.’

  There was that phrase again and I bristled.

  ‘I’ve learned that careful planning, thorough research, well-informed knowledge are the vital elements of the professional
scientist.’

  The implication being that I didn’t qualify. But those qualities were the ones I’d overlooked in rescuing Sibeal, I realised.

  ‘What you must always ensure, my dear, is not to rush into doing something and then find out your dealing with an entirely different situation. That can lead to embarrassment as well as grave problems.’

  My heart stopped. Was he aware of what I’d done? Surely not. It was coincidence. Nothing more. The trouble was, he’d unbalanced me and his smile broadened at my hesitant reaction.

  ‘You see what I mean, my dear?’

  He knew how that phrase annoyed me and he used it deliberately now.

  ‘I’m sure our relationship will be full of such fascinating philosophical debate. Just imagine the conversations we’ll have over the breakfast each morning.’

  That thought made me want to vomit. All the same, our verbal fencing helped me realise I had an opportunity to get the measure of this man. He’d abducted Sibeal and I had assumed his reasons to be malevolent and perverted, I was allowing his reputation to dictate my reactions. I had a chance to watch his reactions first hand. I steeled myself to rattle the cage of this predator.

  ‘I must admit, I do enjoy discussing scientific matters. I was saying as much to my friend Sibeal, very recently. She is the most accomplished scientist that I know.’

  His expression betrayed him for the briefest of seconds, but it was enough. The cold stare he gave me caused the smile to vanish, there was no pretence now.

  ‘Yes, she has developed some interesting theories, I agree. But I confess to having no interest in the mating habits of dragons.’ He gave a silly little chuckle. ‘My interests are far more profound.’

  ‘Really?’ My throat was dry and my heart pounded so loudly he was bound to hear it. ‘Yet she is acknowledged as an expert in the field of genetics. It was why High Lord Llyr employed her. Are you suggesting that he was mistaken?’