"You're coming with me, witch," he hissed.
"Let me go," I shouted.
He punched me, pounding down on my jaw once, twice. Pain exploded across my face and down my neck.
Desperately, using my free hand, I tried to pry away his fingers and loosen his grip. He yanked on my arm, throwing me face down on the ground. The rain matted my hair around my head. He pushed his knee into my back, crushing my lungs with his weight. I struggled to breathe through a mouth full of my own wet hair.
He pulled my arms behind me. My heart pounded in my ears as I thrashed from side to side trying to get him off me. He tied my wrists together with the rope.
He leaned over to put his mouth next to my ear. His knee dug into me as he moved. I let out a muffled groan and again tried in vain to rock back and forth.
"Witch, I told you. You will burn."
His words filled me with terror. Though I had little strength left, I fought against him with renewed vigor and managed to turn my head. I gasped in air and began to scream.
Suddenly, Alexander was there. He dove at Fred, ramming his shoulder into his torso and tackling him away from me. Fred tried to regain his footing, but Alexander punched him and knocked him right back down.
My chest heaved as I sucked in air. It felt like I would never draw in enough. I rolled to a sitting position and then struggled to work my hands free of the rope.
Alexander straddled the other man and pummeled his face repeatedly with his fist.
I wrangled myself free of my restraints, ripping open the skin on my wrists and hands.
On the next gust of wind, Shamus and Gilleagán flitted in simultaneously, but from opposite directions. Gilleagán hauled Alexander away from Fred.
"Damn it, Xander. That's enough," Gilleagán said.
While Alexander struggled to push past Gilleagán, Fred rolled to his hands and knees. My brother held his ground between the two men.
"What's the matter, tough guy?" Alexander shouted at Fred. "Can you only hit women? Come on, I'm ready for you. I'll whip your ass."
Shamus hurried over to me and gave me his hand to help me to my feet. Pain seared through me, and I thought my knees might buckle. I held onto Shamus to steady myself.
"Xander, I'm okay," I said. I thought my words would calm him.
He turned to look at me when I spoke. I can't say what I looked like, but it must have been bad. Shoving Gilleagán to the side, he delivered a sharp kick straight to Fred’s ribs. Fred collapsed back down to the ground, groaning.
Alexander would have continued beating him if Matt hadn't come sprinting around the end of the labyrinth at just that moment. He stepped between them, chest heaving, and held his hands up to stop Alexander's next blow.
"Xander," he shouted to get his attention. "I got this. You take care of Tressa."
Fred lay immobile on the ground in a puddle of mud. Though he gave no indication he would run, Matt hogtied him with the rope just in case. Then he pulled out his cell phone and dialed 911.
Shamus discretely stepped away from me once Alexander had me within his grasp. Alexander held me under my elbow as he gently examined my swollen jaw and the bleeding scrapes on my hands and wrists. His anger blazed from his eyes.
"Will you be able to take care of this?" he asked. "Should we take you to the hospital?"
I shook my head.
"I just need to get home."
Shamus cleared his throat to bring us out of our tète-à-tète.
"It would be best if she flitted. It's the fastest way to get her there," he said.
Alexander looked reluctant to let go of me.
"She doesn't seem to be very steady on her feet," he said.
"I will move with her. I'll make sure she gets there safely."
Shamus, showing Alexander a new level of respect, waited for him to acquiesce before acting.
Alexander kissed me. He nodded to Shamus, who took my hand. We walked a few steps together and then flitted on the wind to the door of my home.
ALEXANDER
I cursed at myself as I ran to Tressa's farmhouse. How could I have been so reckless? Why didn't I add my own security measures to the fae magic Shamus had in place? The remote, cocoon-like feeling of the estate had tricked me into a false sense of security.
When I ran into the farmhouse, Shamus was in the living room filling Holly and the twins in on what had happened. Tressa sat in the chair, rubbing herself dry with a towel.
Holly had lost all her color. She hugged herself as she listened to Shamus's story. I didn't know if she could bear to hear of another brutality perpetrated by her husband.
Tressa reached out with a trembling hand and patted Holly's arm to calm her. I took a deep breath to squelch my anger; Tressa was again at the brink of exhaustion, yet still she was helping someone else. Exploding at Holly would be a serious misdirection of that anger.
Everyone stopped talking as I strode over to Tressa, gathered her in my arms, and carried her up the stairs. She relaxed her exhausted body as I carried her, turning her face into my chest and wrapping her hands around my neck. I took her to her room and eased her onto the bed.
Shamus came in behind me, carrying an armful of supplies from Tressa's pantry. He placed the various bottles, herbs and powders on the bedside table.
"I have everything taken care of downstairs," said Shamus. "The princesses will tend to Holly. Sophia is with Jenny. I'll go check on her now."
"Thank you, Shamus," Tressa called after him as he headed out.
"What else do you need?" I asked.
"Just you," Tressa said, attempting to smile. I flinched; the bruising on her face made the smile look more like a grimace.
Tressa struggled to sit up. I gave her my hand to help her as she gingerly pulled herself forward. I layered pillows behind her with my free hand and she eased herself back against them. Then she patted a spot next to her for me to sit.
She spread a white liquid from one of her jars over the wounds on her wrists. She chanted softly as she applied it, and her skin healed nearly the moment she touched it. It was the fastest healing I had ever seen her do.
She placed a couple of tablespoons of a fragrant oil in a bowl, adding a pinch of dried plant leaves and mixing them together. She rubbed this mixture over her jaw and her neck. The skin under her fingers went back to its usual pearly alabaster as she touched it, but the swelling took longer to go down.
"Will you help me take off my shirt?" she asked.
She moved cautiously forward, and I carefully pulled her shirt over her head. I clenched my teeth when I saw the purple skin underneath the fabric.
She made more of the tonic, singing softly as she applied it to her midriff. The skin changed swiftly, going from purple to yellowish-green to pearly white.
"Rub some on my back, please," she said.
"Will it work if I do it?"
"Aye, it will be fine."
This time she sat forward easily. I took the remaining oil from the bowl and rubbed it into the bruises on her back as she continued her chant. These bruises healed slower than the others, but they had disappeared completely by the time she sat back against the pillows.
Within five minutes of starting the process, she looked exhausted but completely healed.
I climbed into bed next to her and put my arm around her shoulders. She leaned against me and kissed the hand that hung over her shoulder.
"How could I let him get to you?" I chided myself. "I should've taken better care of you."
"This wasn't your fault. You found me, as you always do, and stopped him from taking me. You're a hero."
I felt like the furthest thing from a hero when I remembered the marks the beating had made on her. She looked so frail.
"I knew you needed me, but I was at the History Center Library doing research. It nearly killed me, thinking I wouldn't get here in time."
My mind went to the old photos I had found; they might help me pinpoint a landmark on Brion's map. It would be a big
step towards finally finding the source of the River Rock. I saved that news for a better time. Her half-asleep voice drew me back to the present.
"I couldn't hold Dominion over him."
"Why? You did it before."
"Another Sidhe already had control of his mind."
It took me a minute to fully comprehend the implications of her words.
"You mean an Unseelie may have been using him to get you out past the wards?"
"Aye, could have."
A new fear gnawed at my gut. I believed that the strange stories she told me of war and blood oaths were real. Nevertheless, until now she had seemed to worry about a great many things that didn't happen. This knowledge made the danger real on an entirely new level. A crushing pain in my chest reminded me how close I had been to losing her.
After my discharge from the Marines, I thought I had left war behind me. Nevertheless, I would pick up arms if need be to protect her from this strange threat.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
TRESSA
Although I felt fully recuperated after sleeping through until the next morning, Alexander insisted I take the day off and spend it relaxing with Holly at the Manor House. I didn't think he understood how difficult it was to relax in a chaotic Sidhe household. I agreed with his plan without enlightening him.
When we arrived, Shamus roused the twins from their beds. They bustled around in their pajamas, upending everyone's routine as they enthusiastically took charge of Holly and me. They insisted that Holly lounge on the living room sofa, agreeing for once that it was the most comfortable spot in the house for her. They pointed out that the room had a second sofa, in case I should like to lounge as well, which I did not. I chose a comfortable chair next to Holly instead.
While relaxing didn't interest me, I welcomed the opportunity to discuss the previous day's incident with my cousins. Once their fussing calmed, I asked, "Keelin, Rosheen, have you noticed any other Sidhe around since you've been here?"
Rosheen shook her head.
"I'm sure you're wondering who's responsible for your attack yesterday. I've been thinking about it too."
Holly, pale and drawn, spoke up timidly.
"Tressa, are you sure it wasn't just Fred acting on his own? I mean, at this point I have to believe he's capable of anything."
"I can't say he wouldn't come after me on his own, but a Sidhe definitely held Dominion over him in that moment," I said. "Roe, on that first day when I asked everyone how they knew I was here, did you sense that anyone was lying?"
Rosheen's brow crinkled. "No, not that I recall. At first there was your comment about being Handfast..." I blushed, embarrassed she knew I had lied. "...but when Xander agreed, that made it truth," she continued.
"One of the guys told us," Keelin said. "I can't remember who we spoke to first about visiting. But with all the noise on the wind recently, it wouldn't be difficult for anyone to track you, Tressa. If they were seriously looking, that is."
"So any Unseelie who managed to cross a threshold from the Otherworld could find me." My stomach turned over. I was open game. Suddenly I remembered something. "Wait, I may have seen someone. In the woods, just before Fred appeared... but it was just a blond head, really."
"I spoke to the trees yesterday after the attack," Keelin said. "They said no Unseelie were in the woods yesterday, but there was Unseelie magic. It was confusing."
"Speak to the trees?" Holly asked, incredulous.
"Keelin has an affinity for plant life. She can speak with them and they obey her command," I explained before returning to the conversation. "Brenna told me something similar after her last trip to Faery. She couldn’t make sense of it either."
"Well, the forest is on the lookout now. No one, fae or human, will get past them onto the estate," Keelin said with conviction.
"How close would they have to be to hold Dominion over him?" Holly asked. "Tommy said Fred was in Canada."
"Of course!" I said, understanding washing over me. "He was probably in Niagara Falls, where the flu started. An Unseelie would need to lock eyes with him to start the Dominion. Then the Sidhe could continue to control him until he completed the command or something broke his connection. So the Unseelie magic would be here, but not the fae himself."
The aroma of brown sugar and blueberries put an end to our conversation as Jenny arrived with a luxurious tray of food for the expectant mother. Sophia, who had come in with her, brought me a plate of her favorite pastries. I made space so that she could sit with me on the chair and share them with me.
"What about us?" Rosheen pouted. "Don't we get breakfast?"
Jenny nodded.
"It's waiting for you in the kitchen."
"Sophia, when I come back I'll take you to visit the Pixies and I'll give you another ballet lesson," Keelin said. She smiled at Sophia, who pumped her head enthusiastically, as she and Rosheen followed Jenny out of the room.
I passed the rest of the morning alone with Holly. She spent most of that time curled up in a brooding silence. When she spoke, her words were stilted. After the extraordinary amount of grief she had been through in the last couple of weeks, I feared she was slipping into a depression.
She wore a new outfit from the twins' shopping spree. She had styled her hair in her usual way and had applied her makeup perfectly. However, that day more than usual, it all seemed like window-dressing.
She only perked up when Rosheen came back that afternoon, wearing a watercolor print dress with beading around the neckline that complimented her complexion.
"Rosheen, that dress is simply wonderful!" Holly gushed. Rosheen twirled to give her the full effect.
"Thank you; it's one of my own designs." Something clicked in Holly's mind. Her eyes widened.
"Rosheen, you're not... but you must be... you're the Rosheen?" Rosheen curtsied theatrically.
"The one and only."
Holly turned to scold me. "I can't believe you didn't tell me your cousin is a famous fashion designer!"
I laughed.
"She's just my little cousin to me. I forget she's famous." This prompted an idea for how to cheer her up. "Roe, honey, Pix loves fashion design. Why don't you teach her a few tricks of the trade?"
Both faces lit up.
"Would you like that?" Rosheen asked.
"Oh, yes!" Holly said, eyes dancing.
Rosheen ran out of the room and returned with a drawing pad and colored pencils. I got up so she could sit next to Holly, settling myself into a chair by the window instead.
Rosheen pulled her chair closer to Holly, who sat with her legs stretched out on the sofa. Soon, absorbed in their conversation, they bent over the sketchpad—Holly's dark head with its short Pixie cut side by side with Rosheen's long, straight blue tresses.
I was on my own, gazing out the window, when Connor entered the room. I had avoided any intimate conversations with him since that strange moment in the club, still not trusting that he hadn't put a hex on me that night. I closed my eyes and sighed in resignation when he headed my way.
"I understand you had a real scare yesterday," he said, sitting uninvited on the arm of my chair.
"It was nothing," I said, not wanting to discuss it with him.
"That's not what I heard," he insisted. "But isn't that just like a human, to beat a woman. How can you stand to be around—"
"This was one man. Let's not condemn an entire race for the actions of one individual."
"Tressa, how can you be in a serious relationship with one of them?" His expression was a mixture of contempt and pain. "Especially when you know that I'm here for you."
"Connor, please. Let's not do this again. We settled this long ago." I felt physical discomfort at the idea of heading off his advances yet again. Though he was undoubtedly handsome, he was also self-centered and vain. I simply wasn't attracted to him.
He took my hand. I tried to pull it away, but he wouldn't let go.
"I was your grandfather's choice for you."
&nbs
p; "What good is that, Connor? I am not your Anam Cara. We would not fulfill the prophecy together. Why can't you understand that?" My voice rose, taking on a sharper edge than I had planned.
The two girls on the other side of the room lifted their heads to look at us. I forced a smile in their direction. Reassured that I was okay, they went back to their sketching.
"The prophecy means nothing to me," Connor said.
His adamant tone might have convinced another, but I didn't need Rosheen's ability to know that this was a lie. My fame as the King's Jewel was the real attraction, not me as a person. If he didn't recognize that in himself, I couldn't help him.
"I am of your own kind: a Sidhe and a Royal, and quite simply the better choice for you."
"My choice is made, and you’d best accept it," I told him with as much finality as I could.
ALEXANDER
I rushed into the Manor House, knocking and entering without waiting for Shamus, as was our custom now that so many visitors were running in and out. I hurried to find Tressa, anxious to share with her the news of my discovery.
In the living room, Holly was on the sofa with one of the twins beside her—I couldn't tell which, since her head was down. They worked together over a large pad of paper.
I stiffened when I saw Connor sitting close to Tressa on the opposite side of the room. Connor reached out and took her hand. I waited, trying to understand what was happening, straining to hear their conversation.
"The prophecy means nothing to me," Connor said. "I am of your own kind: a Sidhe and a Royal, and quite simply the better choice for you."
I controlled my instinct to rush in and break the guy's neck. My second, more reasonable thought was to let Tressa handle her own business. I changed direction and went to find Órlaith.
As I walked to the back porch, I rolled Connor's words around in my head. He was like her. He was the better choice. I couldn't deny these truths. I was pensive and sad by the time I reached the back porch.
This room, although enclosed, always felt like the outdoors to me. The plants filled the room with a musky smell, seeming to multiply every time I returned.
Tressa's Treasures (The King's Jewel Book 1) Page 18