Once Upon A Midnight

by Stephanie Rowe

  Tonight he walked amongst the humans. Slaves, he thought. They should be slaves.

  He selected a young woman—a child, really, for she was no more than sixteen—and lured her to his side with his brilliant eyes and his mesmerizing voice. He took her in her father’s barn, and he took her over and over until she was unconscious. Then he slit her throat and stood back to view what he had done. It felt wonderful and liberating.

  The next day Gaiscioch began searching out Seelie Hallows. Such things would help his future plans, and he needed to collect the Death Swords scattered over the globe. He would need them in the future, and one more thing—he would have to find a way into the Dark Realm.

  The only Seelie able to enter the Dark Realm were Trackers or royals. Entre for him was nearly impossible without Queen Aaibhe opening the portal. But he would find a way. And he needed to get his hands on the book of Black Seelie Magic. It was forbidden to all save the royals. It was filled with potent black magic, and he was ruthless enough to take advantage of it.

  And thus, his weeks were filled with purpose…

  * * *

  Aaibhe leaned into Conall and frowned. “What is troubling you, my love?”

  He smiled and put her fingers to his lips. “Naught when I am with you, but there is something going on, something beyond belief. I have no explanation for it and can only think we have a stranger in the village that is insane.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “I told you of that poor young girl left to bleed out in her father’s barn. We canna find anyone who saw anything, and now another young woman—nay, a child really, fifteen—slaughtered and left naked to bleed in the open field.” He shook his head. “I would strip the man of his skin if I could find him.”

  “Does no one have an idea? It would take a visibly disturbed man to do such a terrible thing to a helpless female.”

  “Would it? I think perhaps it takes madness for a man to do that to a poor, helpless female, but being mad does not deprive one of his cunning.”

  “You are probably right.” Aaibhe frowned and waited for him to continue. She could see how distressed he was.

  “No one saw a thing. The child was working the pasture with her father. It was getting close to dark, and her father looked up and did not find her where he had last seen her working the fence. Aaibhe, she had only been one hundred yards away when, suddenly, she was gone.”

  “What are your thoughts?” Aaibhe felt something she didn’t want to feel. She thought something she had not thought possible. Had an Unseelie escaped? Now and then one got through before they realized…

  “My thoughts are that something is off here. I know the child. Her name was Beth, and she was a sweet girl. She wouldn’t go off on her own. She would have put up a fight that her father would have heard. I canna believe this was done by a villager…”

  “Then by whom?”

  “I doona know…”

  However, Aaibhe looked into his blue eyes and thought otherwise. He had a notion but didn’t want to speak of it until he was certain. Then he said something that really worried her.

  “And something else, Aaibhe—do ye not feel it? I do often.”

  “What, beloved?”

  “Someone watching us—Aaibhe, I feel it and canna see anyone, but I know here…” He tapped his stomach. “In m’gut I know that it is true.”

  Aaibhe looked around, immediately concerned that perhaps a Seelie Fae was nearby. She saw no one, but she asked, “Who would watch us—why?”

  “One of yours—a Fae, I think.”

  “Why do you think this?”

  “You have magic and power, but you don’t put any store by your gut. I do, and my gut tells me someone is watching and that someone is a Fae. I canna explain how I know. I just do.”

  She touched his forehead and whispered a spell. He jerked. She held his hand and whispered, “There… you have the sight of a Fios now. It is not a skill often given to a male, even a Druid priest, but you must be able to see all Fae through their Glamour and their invisibility. Politics at times make enemies where none existed before, and if you have this ‘gut feeling’, you will now be able to see any Fae who tries to hide from you.”

  * * *

  Conall spoke with a few of the villagers about the recent slaughter of young women. No one had seen anything they could tell him, so he decided to walk through town and scan the village for strangers.

  Conall turned and bumped into an urchin of a girl. She couldn’t be more than thirteen, and the rags she wore hung on her thin body. His heart clenched with pity, for she was obviously frightened and worried that he might blame her for their collision. He saw at once that in spite of the torn, weathered clothes she wore, she was both clean and sweet of face. He held her trembling shoulders as she tried to apologize. “Nay, lass… I wasn’t looking where I was going… ’twas not your fault.”

  Her upturned face was full with anxiety, and she stood stock still, waiting.

  Conall shook his head. “What is your name, lass?”

  “Annie Braun,” she said solemnly.

  “Braun, is it? I know your father. He is often at MacTalbot helping with repairs about the place.” He frowned at her. “What are you doing in the village alone at this hour? You shouldn’t be out here—it will be dark soon.”

  “I beg your pardon, kind sir,” she said, and her voice still held fear. “I… I came out to see if butcher Mallmot had any throw-away meat… so I could fix m’mother and young brother some soup. We are out of most of our stores.”

  “No food, you say?” Conall’s jaw clenched with annoyance at himself. He should have known. He prided himself on knowing these things and taking care of them. “And where is your father then, lass?”

  “He died three weeks ago, and m’mother hasn’t been right since…”

  Conall closed his eyes and felt a wave of shame. He was usually good at keeping up with his people. It was important to him that when one of the men working at his estate went ill, he made certain the family was provided for. How had he allowed this situation? His driving need to be with Aaibhe had made him neglectful. He would speak with her about this. He could not allow his people to be neglected, and he needed to make certain James would always attend to the matter when he was away. One more reason he could not depart with Aaibhe yet for Tir.

  Conall put his hand in his pocket and gave the girl a coin, enough to buy supplies to last a week. “There now, go over to Mallmot and tell him I sent you. Tell him your mother will be coming to MacTalbot to help my housekeeper Mary. Tell him that, and tomorrow get your mother over to MacTalbot. We need to keep her busy.”

  “Thank ye, sir, thank ye… May I come as well? I’ll look after m’brother for her and do what I can for ye at MacTalbot. I’m handy with all sorts of things, I am.”

  He patted her head. “Yes, bring your brother with you and report to my Mary. Tell her I want you looked after and trained for the future. I will speak with her as soon as I return to MacTalbot.”

  The child stood beaming at him, and he laughed. “Well, go on then, young’un.”

  She turned and ran down the sandy road and then turned and beamed at him once more before making her way to the butcher’s store.

  * * *

  Gaiscioch had been enjoying himself with the young human women. He wasn’t sure which he liked doing more—ravishing them or slaughtering them and watching their human blood run freely out of their bodies.

  His fight was not really with the women, he told himself. They were but poor substitutes for all the human men he would put in the ground one day.

  Still, through these females’ awful deaths, he watched their males suffer and cry. Ah—that soothed his angry essence and made him feel whole.

  However, he had quite made up his mind to cease this activity, for the queen had brought up the situation at Council. She suspected an Unseelie had escaped and had put Chief Tracker Nuad on the job.

  He couldn’t go about slaughtering human
s with Nuad on the prowl. For some unknown reason, even though he had left clues to make it seem as though the murders had been the work of a madman, Aaibhe had quietly investigated and had decided it was an Unseelie escapee—or possibly even a Seelie Fae gone mad. That had infuriated him. She was interfering with his sport. However, he had smiled benignly and agreed with her at the Council meeting. Prince Breslyn had looked at him across the table measuringly, and he had seen Breslyn’s silver eyes glitter with doubt. The Prince of Dagda had never trusted or liked him. One day soon, perhaps he would give him good reason!

  At any rate, he had decided game playing with humans was over. What he needed to do now was finish the business with Conall before the priest drank the elixir and became immortal.

  It would take some finesse to accomplish the deed…

  * * *

  Aaibhe and Conall stopped to chat with Annie’s mother, who was working in the hothouse. A sad smile still lingered on her face, but at least she looked better than the wraith that had first arrived at MacTalbot.

  Annie, holding her brother’s fingers, walked in, and the child clapped his hands as he ran towards the queen and was picked up and kissed.

  “Good morning, my lord, my lady…” Annie dropped a curtsey.

  Aaibhe was known only as Lady Aaibhe. No one knew her secret at MacTalbot. She moved towards the young girl and touched her cheek. “Have you been working the lessons as I showed you?”

  “Yes, m’lady… I have the alphabet memorized,” Annie answered shyly.

  Conall laughed. “Wonderful!”

  The queen returned the boy to Annie and turned to give Conall her hand. As they walked away, she sighed. “Life here is… everything I could want. I would never leave if I did not have to…”

  “I know, but you are a queen, and I understand.” He touched her lips and traced them with his finger before he dropped a light kiss there.

  “Take the elixir, Conall… Take it now.”

  He sighed. “It is a grave decision. You may tire of me, and then what, Aaibhe? I don’t want to live forever without you.”

  “I will never tire of you.” She kissed his mouth sweetly and pulled away to see his face.

  He held her face in both hands. “My life will be prolonged on your Isle of Tir… Is that not enough?”

  “No. Take the elixir, and then let us return to Tir. We shall always come back and spend time, and we can watch and make certain things go on here at MacTalbot as they should.”

  “I want to settle this business first—find the murdering scoundrel and see him skinned alive as he deserves.”

  “I have my Tracker on it,” she said softly. “We can watch from Tir.”

  “How can we watch?”

  “Take the elixir, and I shall show you,” she teased.

  “Tomorrow then—I have a few more things to arrange with my man, explanations, and such, and then when you come for me tomorrow, I shall take your elixir. Fair?”

  Something gnawed at her. She wanted him protected now. However, he was a man of conviction. He would not be swayed once he had made up his mind. He had decided that the morrow was the time. So be it. “Fair,” she whispered as she moved into his arms and shifted them to his bedroom…

  * * *

  Watching them, Gais grew sick with fury. The Druid priest did not even realize the gift he was being given. The Druid was reluctant to take the elixir, and while this worked out for Gais, it also infuriated him.

  Tonight. The deed would be done that very night, but first, perhaps he should make the priest suffer.

  He had watched Conall enough to know that it would grieve him deeply if the young Annie were to be killed on MacTalbot grounds. Oh yes… he would suffer over that.

  He donned human Glamour and the clothes of the times before he shifted outside where Annie was picking herbs for the cook. He called her name.

  “Annie…”

  She turned and saw a handsome, black-haired stranger with the clothing and demeanor of landed gentry. Perhaps he was a visitor—a friend of his lordship’s? She smiled tentatively and said, “Yes, sir… How may I help you?” It worried her a bit that he knew her name.

  “Come here…”

  He stood near the garden shed, and something about the entire aura of the man disturbed her. Annie was what we now call ‘streetwise’. She hesitated and said, “But, good sir, I must bring this basket to Cook…”

  “Later—do as you are told now. Come here.”

  His lordship and Lady Aaibhe had bestowed a great deal of attention on Annie and her young toddler brother in the past weeks. She had blossomed, and she had learned a great deal. She knew his lordship better than to think he would expect her to take orders from any other, and certainly not from stranger.

  “I think, sir, I must first return to Cook, as his lordship wouldn’t want me to be lax in my duties.”

  As rage overwhelmed him, Gaiscioch lost control. He shifted and stood before Annie, a towering inferno of biting, furious Fae. He was so angry that he did not feel the atmosphere part. He did not feel a royal Fae shift into the garden until it was almost too late.

  However, something tickled his senses, and suddenly Gais knew—he knew without a doubt that he had to leave. He was able to stall the hand that had been about to strike Annie just before he vanished.

  Tears sprang to Annie’s eyes, and Prince Breslyn frowned as he approached her to ask what was wrong. She sniffed as she ran to him.

  Prince Breslyn had been a frequent visitor at MacTalbot. He had not been told that Conall MacTalbot would be returning with Aaibhe as her consort, but he knew it all the same. And being the sentimental character (unusual for a Fae) that he was, he was pleased.

  He was always in human Glamour when he arrived at MacTalbot and always gentle, kind, and full of good humor. Today, however, he had arrived and immediately sensed dark hatred in the air. He looked over and saw Annie with a Fae. The Fae’s back was to him, and Breslyn did not quite recognize who he was from that angle as the Fae was in human Glamour and clothes.

  However, Breslyn knew no other Fae had been invited to MacTalbot—except perhaps for his friend, Prince Danté, and thus, he found the entire scene disturbing. He had gone to Annie immediately, and now as she rushed to him he saw the tears in her eyes just before she bear hugged him around his hips.

  He touched her head and ruffled her curls, asking gently, “Did he hurt you?”

  “Then you saw him too—I thought for a moment it couldn’t be, and I was… but, my lord, my lord Breslyn,… there was something otherworldly and evil… He was evil…”

  “Never mind the bloke, Annie. We’ll find him and make certain he never comes near you again. If you see him before I do, run for the house. Don’t hesitate—run inside and find his lordship. Yes?”

  She nodded her head vigorously as she looked adoringly up at his handsome face. She watched him as he looked into the distance and sniffed the air.

  Annie sighed as she stared up at his handsome visage. He was the very broth of male power. He had dark blonde hair, slicked back, tied at the nape of his neck, braided and tucked into itself. His silver eyes were full of warm glitter, and his smile was devastating. Annie was sure she was in love.

  “Thank you, Lord Breslyn… thank you! Can I get you something…?”

  He laughed and chucked her under her chin. “There, be a good girl… and stay indoors for the rest of the day. Go on… get your herbs into the kitchen.”

  He watched her go and made an attempt to track the Fae’s scent, but it was disguised in magic—dark and forbidden Seelie magic, not used in centuries…

  Who the hell was that? Breslyn asked himself as he turned to go inside and warn Conall that there was a rogue Fae somewhere about!

  Conall listened to the story Breslyn told him. Later, after the Prince had departed, he went to his man of business and repeated it. James Durbin was someone he trusted implicitly.

  James knew the MacTalbots had always been Druid priests, and he al
so knew the Fae actually existed. He had only been a lad when he had gone out on the iced loch. It cracked and he raced to shore, but not before it broke beneath his feet. He had fallen into the frigid water and knew he was finished when strong arms had him cradled and a chuckling voice told him he would be fine.

  The person that had saved him had been a Fae. James had sensed it, had seen it through his haze. A man could not have found him in the frigid waters and somehow without swimming delivered him to land. It had been an exceptional Seelie Fae that had saved him and shifted him through space and put him in his mother’s arms. He had never forgotten that face, or the voice that went with it. That Fae was the same one he had recently met at MacTalbot, Prince Breslyn. And so James believed more than met the eye was afoot…

  * * *

  Gaiscioch thought himself safely hidden in the invisibility of the Féth Fiada. Even so, he chose to watch Conall at play with his sons from another dimension. He was ever cautious. Being extraordinarily careful would mean the difference to his success, he told himself.

  This night was the beginning of a new era. This night he would have it all once more. Aaibhe would grieve for her human, but she would turn to him and he would be there for her—and this time, he would make her dependent on him.

  He watched Conall play with his sons and sneered at the human’s sentimentality. They were all of them slobbering fools. They were not worthy to own Scotland and Ireland. The Fae had been wrong to give up the land to these weaklings who only used a small part of their brain.

  He wanted to get it done, but something chewed at his instincts and made him hesitate, and although he believed Conall could not see him through his invisibility he waited for the right moment. And, as things go, it came so very perfectly.

  He watched as Conall rang for his sons’ nanny, and he waited till Conall was at the door bidding them good night with his back to him.