He gestured that they should start moving again. The break in the rain followed them like a curtain that continued to open before them as they moved. He kept the edge of his hand on her elbow, but nothing more.
“It’s too much to explain now. But suffice it to say that when we realized you were probably going to the royal city, I’m afraid my brother became overzealous and separated you from the group so I could speak with you. We doubted they would let you near the forest once you found the safety of the castle, seeing as you’re traveling with knights and all.”
“Your brother did that?” Katy looked up at the sky. No wonder he meant they were like her. She couldn’t control lightning, but whoever could do that had to be powerful.
“Like I said, overzealous. But with the best intentions, I assure you!”
So many questions she wanted to ask him. She had never seen her eyes glisten in her reflection, but Peter swore they sparked whenever she had an episode of power. Who were Tearlach and Aedan? And better yet, what were they? If Aedan was olc, he was certainly far different than any she’d ever heard described. There were no fangs, no giant, shredded wings tinged in blood. He hadn’t killed her or even asked anything of her, but had instead offered to help her find her way back to her friends. What was it that Firin Reaghan had said? That no one in Downing really knew of what they spoke when they described olcs?
Or was he something else entirely? The crown had outlawed anything magical. What could motivate him to risk exposing himself to the knights and the king’s men to help her?
“Katy?”
Katy jumped at the sound of Peter’s voice in the distance. He sounded panicked. But before she could go to him, Aedan turned her to face him.
“I must leave you here.” He reached into his cloak and pulled out a little wooden whistle. Then he pressed it into her hands. “If you’re ever in need of help, just call me.”
“You’ll hear me from wherever I am?” She frowned at the little hollow stick in her hand.
He smiled again and simply nodded. “I must go. But I’ll see you again.” His eyes tightened infinitesimally. “But for now...” He stared down at the whistle in her hands, looking torn. “For now, go with your friends.”
And then he was gone, taking the rain with him.
“Katy?” Peter’s voice came again, closer this time.
“I’m here!” she called back.
Less than a moment later he appeared, but not before she had slipped the little trinket into her dress pocket.
“Thank Atharo!” He pulled her close with the arm that wasn’t holding the sword. But before she could soak up the feeling of safety, he released her and took her by the hand instead. “We need to go. Now. I can sense something nearby, and I have no desire to meet it.”
“My horse?”
“Returned without you. I saw it on its way back.”
“Peter, what’s wrong?”
“I told you, I sense something. It’s close, so we need to get out of here.”
As he led them through the trees, Katy couldn’t help but glance back one more time. But there was no sign of the stranger that had come to her rescue.
14
Willingly
All the merriment and teasing that had been shared among the men during the first days of the journey disappeared after the storm as they pushed their horses even faster down the opposite side of the mountain. That was fine with Katy, however, as she tried to understand what had happened in the woods.
Part of her wanted to tell Peter. They had kept nothing from one another as children. Or so she had thought. Apparently she hadn’t kept anything from him. Still, he’d risked his life and the lives of his men to come back and get her. And he’d given up something very precious in return, apparently, though she couldn’t yet figure out just what that had been.
Still, it felt wrong to keep something so important from him, particularly when he was so determined to help her. What would he do, though, when he learned she’d met someone possibly like her?
Katy shifted in her saddle as they made another turn down the steep decline. There was only enough room on this part of the path for their horses to pass in single file. Walls of gray rose up on both sides, but at least the forest wasn’t visible from there.
That was the crux of it, though. Would Peter, just like everyone else, see the stranger as a threat merely because he was different?
Would he have seen her as a threat had they not grown up together?
“If you don’t mind me asking, my lady,” Sir Briant called from behind, “who taught you to ride?”
“Sir Christopher did.” Katy looked down at her saddle. “Why? Am I doing something wrong?”
“Not at all.” Sir Briant laughed. “It is only that most women in the city ride sidesaddle.”
Katy turned and gave him a quizzical look. Sidesaddle? “How would one do that?”
“It is nothing you need to fret about,” Sir Tomas replied from up ahead. “You would slow us down considerably if you tried. One little bump and you would be off your horse and flat on the ground.” He shook his head. “I trained all three of my daughters to ride as you do. The only reason they know how to ride sidesaddle at all is because my wife insisted upon it.”
Peter turned in his seat. “My father said he wasn’t about to have a helpless girl living on his land. If trouble arose, he wanted to know he could get us both sent off as soon as possible.” He gave her a wink before returning to the road.
Katy’s heart wrenched a little.
There was so much of the familiar affection in his gaze. Would that change if he knew what power truly brewed beneath her skin? Was she different in his eyes because he really didn’t care what she could do? Or would he consider her dangerous as well if he knew the truth?
“Look there!” Benjamin cried from up ahead. “I can see the city!”
Everyone brought their horses to a halt when they joined him around the bend in the road. Katy’s breath caught in her throat. Though they still had at least a third of the mountain to descend, the open expanse before them was like nothing she had ever imagined. Miles upon uncountable miles stretched out like an emerald carpet on gently sloping hills that rolled one after the other like waves upon the sea. Large gray rocks were scattered along the emerald surface, and little gray ledges peeked out, roughening the land just enough to make it slightly rugged.
Forest surrounded the open hills on all sides except the mountain on which they stood, but not a single tree dotted the green. In the center of the great verdant expanse sat a city surrounded by a wall higher than Katy knew walls could be built. Little windows were nearly impossible to make out in the wall’s sides. Just visible above the wall’s upper edge were the spindly points of spires and towers. Most impressive, however, was the great castle behind it all. Beautiful and terrifying, it loomed above the rest with its countless towers and square turrets rising victoriously to look down upon the land.
“Seems thicker than it did last week.”
Katy turned to see Sir Domnhall whispering with Sir Carey.
The older knight was shaking his head. “I don’t like it. The forest hasn’t grown like this in years.”
Sir Carey just grunted, but Katy was sure his mouth was pulled down at the corners.
“So, what do you think?”
Katy jumped at the closeness of his voice, only then realizing that Peter had drawn his horse up beside hers.
“I never knew anything could be so big,” she whispered.
Peter laughed ruefully. “Imagine my surprise when Sir Odhran sent me over the mountain in search of my uncle, and I found this.”
Katy tried to imagine it, young Peter coming to a stop at this very point and finally understanding what his fate would be.
“Come,” Peter said, turning his horse back to the trail. “We still have half a day’s ride ahead of us.”
“We’ll make it all that way in just half of a day?” Katy asked, still studying the great stretch
of open land between the foot of the mountain and the castle.
“Once we clear the mountain, we can give the horses their heads,” Sir Briant said. “They know the way, and they’ll be ready to make haste to their suppers and beds.”
Katy nodded with a smile, but her stomach began to flutter. Soon she would have a chance to start anew. No one would know of her past. She wasn’t even sure how much Peter had told the other knights. Not much, judging from Benjamin’s unending questions. She should be happy, she chided herself. For once, she would be just like everyone else, and perhaps, just perhaps, a few might even stoop to befriending her.
Not that it was likely. Even now, Katy had to regularly lift her hands from the reins to try and push out her power in small amounts so she wouldn’t hurt the horse. Someone would surely notice something odd about her if she stayed at the castle for any length of time.
And even if they didn’t, every moment they spent with her, she would be putting them all in even greater danger. All it would take was one mistake, and blood would be on her hands.
This had been a terrible idea.
Katy’s trepidation and curiosity only grew as they drew closer. If the walled city had seemed large from the mountainside, it seemed monstrous up close. Its gray stone beauty was captivating, the way the stone blocks as large as her old cottage had been stacked seamlessly atop one another so that the wall curved about the city in a perfect circle. Still, if she rode too close or put her hands on the stones, Katy felt as though the great granite walls might tip and fall on her.
Peter, however, looked as though he might just bounce out of his saddle. “I’ve already instructed the servants to have a special room prepared just for you. If you need anything, all you have to do is pull on the red velvet rope beside your bed.”
Katy laughed. “So you’ve told me three times.”
“Have I?” Then he shrugged. “I suppose you shouldn’t forget then. Oh, did I tell you about the rainbow gardens?”
“Twice.” Katy grinned. “I think I might be able to walk around the castle blindfolded by now.”
Peter made a face at her, which only made her laugh again. Since leaving the mountain and its forests behind, Peter had become a never-ending fountain of knowledge about the castle and its layouts and the people and the food. He often talked about the food. That part of Peter, Katy remembered well. But the rest...
“Your Highness,” Antony called back mildly, “we’re almost to the gates.”
“Right.” Peter shook his arms out and stretched his neck before straightening his shoulders and pulling directly in front of Katy. “Duty calls.”
Katy meant to study Peter more in his official role, but she couldn’t help gawking when they moved in view of the city gate.
More than four times the height of Downing’s bell tower, the towering gate was made of crisscrossing wooden beams thicker than her arm. Each was painted a bright red, and the entire gate stood out against the green grass and gray stone like a gigantic ruby. Or blood. She couldn’t decide which.
“Make way for His Highness, Prince Peter!” a shout went up from the top of the gate, where a dozen men gathered to peer down at them, and a chill ran down Katy’s back. Prince Peter. Even in a millennium, she never would have dreamed it of her sweet, skinny friend.
The gate opened with an echoing groan, and their party made its way through with Carey at the front, followed by Antony, Peter, Katy, Domnhall, Briant, Benjamin, and Tomas bringing up the rear. And they weren’t alone. Just past the second and third gates, which seemed far more practical than the beautiful gate at the front, a crowd at least four or five times the size of Downing’s population waited for them on each side of the main road. Squeezing as tightly as they could into the spaces between the hundreds of thatched cottages, shops, and work buildings, they let out a cheer. Men placed their arms across their chests and bowed when Peter rode by, and the women curtsied or bowed as well. Children shrieked and threw flowers on the cobblestone street, and even the animals present, horses, donkeys, cows, and dogs seemed to join the ruckus, braying and bawling, barking and neighing as the knights’ party passed.
“Is it like this every time you return?” Katy looked back at Domnhall. She had to repeat herself twice before he could hear her.
“Oh no!” he called back, urging his horse up beside hers. “This is special.”
“Why is that?”
Dom raised his whitened eyebrows just slightly. “My dear, they’ve been waiting for you.”
Katy frowned. “For me?”
“The prince has spoken of the mystery girl for years.”
“To the entire kingdom?”
Domnhall chuckled. “Servants hear everything. Servants have families and friends. Those friends have friends. Word spreads fast here in the royal city.” He paused. “What is it?”
Katy could only shake her head as she studied Peter once more. He sat straight as a pine, nodding at those on the side of the road and waving to the children. The eagerness was gone from his face, replaced by the carefully crafted smile of a man who was aware of his position.
Of a prince.
“He’s so different.” Katy said to Domnhall.
“What do you mean?”
“When we were young, he was so shy…at least when it came to praise. He disliked any sort of personal attention and crowds of people even less.” She tightened her hold on the horse’s reins. “Not that he deserves any less,” she hastened to add. “Only that he seems so at ease with it all.”
Domnhall scoffed. “Don’t let the facade fool you. That young man is every bit as resistant to the attention as he ever was. He only knows now that he has no choice. It’s better for everyone if he plays the part.” His eyes softened. “I cannot tell you how he has waited for this moment. The prince has been half of a whole since he arrived. I’ve never seen him this happy.”
Katy turned to look the older knight in the eye. “What do you mean?”
Dom gave her a sad smile. “Let’s just say that the prince didn’t accept his position willingly.” Then he nodded to the portcullis and large walls ahead of them. “But enough gloomy talk for now. We are almost there.”
15
Back
Peter glanced back at Katy once more as they entered through the castle gate. She looked pale as she stared up at the turrets and towers above. He tried to give her a comforting wink, but even he felt on edge.
He had asked them not to make this a grand ordeal. It looked as though they hadn’t listened. Again.
A willowy man with snow-white hair walked up to Peter and bowed.
“Welcome home, Your Highness.” He looked back at the other knights, his gaze lingering briefly on Katy. “I see you were successful.”
“We were. Thank you, Sean.” Peter dismounted and went back to help Katy down from hers. The poor girl had to be nearly sore to breaking from so much riding when she was unused to it. Taking her by the hand, he led her up to where his uncle and advisers were standing. Scanning the lines quickly, he felt a brief disappointment at not seeing Muirin, but he couldn’t blame her for not coming. Being with child looked frightening enough without being told where to stand and how to dress. He would make sure Katy met his cousin later.
“Uncle,” Peter bowed, then pulled Katy up to stand beside him. “This is Katrin McKine.”
“Your Majesty,” Katy murmured, dropping into a deeper curtsey than Peter knew was possible.
“My dear,” his uncle replied as he reached out and took her hand. Katy looked terrified, but his uncle only smiled and patted it. “My nephew has talked of little else than being reunited with you. I hope you will find our home comfortable enough to call it your home as well.”
“I am honored, Your Majesty,” Katy replied.
Peter wanted to freeze time and tell Katy to stop worrying and smile a little, but he didn’t have the chance, for before he could utter another word, he was nearly knocked over by another body that hurled itself into his arms.
“You’re back!” Saraid beamed, her rosy cheeks even brighter than usual.
Peter laughed at her enthusiasm as he unwrapped her arms from his neck. “And I brought you a present.”
“An ancient necklace!”
“Better than that.” Peter reached back and drew Katy closer again. For some reason, she kept falling several steps back. “Lady Saraid, this is Katy.” He turned to Katy. “Katy, this is the girl I was telling you about.”
“I’m pleased to meet you,” Katy said softly, curtseying.
Saraid beamed. “I finally get to meet the famous Katy.”
Peter pushed Katy forward again as she started to take another step back. “Alright, you silly goose.” He tapped Saraid’s nose. “Would you please show her to her new chambers?”
“Of course.”
“You’re not coming with us?” Katy asked.
“Oh, Peter always has to meet with his uncle after his longer expeditions, to get caught up on reports and all that.” Saraid waved lazily in his direction. “We’re going to do something far more fun.” She turned and pecked Peter on the cheek. “See you at supper then. And I expect the full story when you’re all finished.”
Katy’s eyes widened at the show of affection, and for some reason, that made Peter feel a little silly. But he didn’t have long to contemplate her response because Saraid immediately tucked Katy’s arm under her own and ventured inside, happily chatting away.
Once the two women were off, his uncle pulled him aside. They began to walk slowly to the castle entrance. Strangely, all of their attendants disappeared as soon as they turned down the first hallway together.
“I trust all went smoothly?” his uncle asked.
Peter stiffened. “If by smoothly, you mean did I find her just before Odhran hunted her down with dogs and arrows, then yes.”
His uncle turned to him with wide eyes. “He was hunting her? What for?”
Peter shook his head and continued walking. “He was always a superstitious old man.”
The Autumn Fairy (The Autumn Fairy Trilogy Book 1) Page 9