"Oh, Lili! I thought I'd never see you again!" Cara cried out at last.
Liliwen still didn't know whether to stay or run, when Cara wrapped both her arms around her and hugged her tightly.
Liliwen hid her face in her best friend's hair and her eyes filled with tears as well. This part, at least, had not gone so badly after all.
"How is he?" she asked. "How is Cadfael?"
Cara pulled back. "He fought bravely for you."
Guilt filled Liliwen's heart, threatening to overwhelm her all over again. He had fought bravely. Both of them had. Her two heroes. If only they knew she had been rooting for both teams.
"Come with me. We'll go see him."
The guards had stood by in silence so far, but now one of them made his presence known with a cough. "Princess Liliwen, we are to bring you to your father immediately."
Oh dear.
"In time. Allow her to see her brother at least, who came so close to giving his life to ensure her safety! It's the least you can do!" Cara argued.
The guards exchanged a few awkward looks.
"I'm afraid we must insist," the same one spoke again. "Orders, you see."
Time to face the music. Liliwen took Cara's hand and squeezed it.
"I'll come find you soon," she said.
Cara nodded. "You'd better."
Lord, give me strength.
"Brother, you cannot be serious!" Broc complained.
Teaq just stared at him. He was. Deadly serious.
"You of all people ought to understand. Your own woman was a guest at our fine dungeons not so very long ago. After attacking one of our own, no less! And it took you all of two hours to get her released in secret."
"But… She's a Mermaid! She's the enemy! You've been harping on and on about the next invasion. Well, in case you forgot, it arrived already. To get her back!"
Teaq sighed. His head was pounding and he was fighting shooting pains in his chest, but this was a conversation he could not put off any longer. He'd had a lot of time to think while in recovery, and it was the only thing that made sense to him.
"Brother, she will not stay in the Deep. She will come back. And when she does, wouldn't it be wiser if I made sure she wasn't here for the Sea Folk to come and retrieve?"
That was the story Teaq told Broc, anyway. In truth, even if she did not come back, he was prepared to venture out there and find her for himself.
As he'd drifted around the edges of consciousness these past few days, she had been on his mind the whole time. He would not give her up so easily. Life wasn't worth living if it wasn't with his Liliwen.
"How can you be so sure? What if all this time she was a spy, and she was just toying with you. What if she's back home now, telling them all about our weaknesses, so their next attack will really hit us where it hurts?"
"How could you be so sure about Kelly?" Teaq retorted.
Broc paced the room, as he usually did when he was struggling with something.
There really was nothing more Teaq could say to convince him. He hadn't seen it that way at first, but Liliwen's comparisons between their own situation and what Broc and Kelly had gone through were starting to ring true now.
They were both slaves to their emotions. Nothing any outsider could say or do would get in between either couple.
Teaq and Liliwen were meant to be. Whether Broc chose to accept this fact or not.
"And what of your duties here?" Broc asked at last. "We need you. I need you here!"
That was the one weak spot in Teaq's plan. He didn't have a proper answer. But he knew he had given all he could to Broc and the Isles. Now it was time for Teaq to do something for himself.
"You could promote Rhea to general. She's been a formidable head of the Royal Guard. A fearsome fighter in her own right. She's proven herself worthy many times over," Teaq suggested.
Broc stopped pacing. "She's a good candidate. But I still don't like it."
"Have I ever asked you for anything before?" Teaq said. "Plus, you have an advantage over the Sea Folk now. One that we never had before. Kelly's powers will only grow as time goes on."
"Kelly," Broc mumbled. "As much as I'd hate to involve her in the ugly business of war, it may be inevitable going forward."
As painful as it was, letting down his little brother, he could not help it. From the moment Broc had taken the throne, this moment had been inevitable, whether either of them realized it or not. Sooner or later, their relationship would change again.
It was just ironic that it happened because of a woman. Teaq had never thought himself capable of changing his entire outlook in life for love.
But it was too late for second thoughts now.
"Then you know what to do. As do I," Teaq concluded.
"Her people will come for her. Again." Broc's expression darkened further.
"They will. But this time, you and Kelly will be ready."
"I hope so."
"And if not, there's always Saras…" Teaq said.
Broc looked up in horror. "No, I couldn't. He's been asleep for so long… Don't you remember the stories Father told us of what happened before he went to ground?"
Teaq nodded. "I remember. But between a witch and a dragon, there's no way the Sea Folk can compete with that."
Broc sighed. "There will be challenging times ahead."
Truer words had never been spoken.
"Where will you go, anyway?" Broc asked.
Teaq shrugged. "Wherever Liliwen's people won't find us."
"I hope you know what you're doing."
As do I. Teaq closed his eyes, giving them much needed relief. It would still be a few days before his body regained enough of its former strength to put his plan into action. Until then, he'd have a lot to think about.
"I'll see you, brother," Broc mumbled as he made his exit.
Teaq would have liked to be able to help. But Broc was king. In the end, the safety of these Isles was his responsibility.
"You have returned." King Weiland's statement almost sounded like an accusation.
Liliwen kept her head bowed, careful not to make any move to enrage him. "Father, I apologize for all the trouble I have caused."
"Mhmm."
She waited, but there was deadly silence all around. It was enough to drive a person mad.
This couldn't be it. The hammer would drop any second now. Yet, minutes passed without a word being said between them.
Liliwen dared not move.
"I had ordered you to leave the fighting to Cadfael, had I not? Or had I just imagined that? Are my orders not good enough for you?" There it was.
"I'm sorry, Father. I did not mean-"
"Silence!" King Weiland roared.
Liliwen flinched.
"You will speak once I am finished! Do you understand me?"
She nodded.
"What was that?"
"Yes, Father."
"It seems you felt the rules do not apply to you, because you are my daughter. You'll address me as your king from now on. So you do not forget that my orders stand, regardless of what our relation is!"
"Yes, my king," Liliwen whispered.
Of course he was furious. She had ignored a direct order; something nobody else would have dared to do.
"I ought to lock you up and throw away the key. But it seems the Others beat me to it."
"Yes, my king. Punish me any way you see fit."
"How could you be so stupid? After the premonition ceremony promised us good fortune this season. We weren't ready. The element of surprise; ruined!"
"I am ashamed of my actions, my king."
"As you should be! You have set us back months, if not years. And your brother, he's been severely injured because of you!"
Liliwen's chest tightened. That was the worst part. She did not give two hoots about the invasion or the war effort. But people she loved had been hurt. All because of her.
"I wish to see him. To thank him for his courage," Liliwen mumbled.
King Weiland got up from his throne and towered over her. He was tall for a Merman, but not compared to the Others.
"You will see him, and you will beg him for his forgiveness."
"Yes, my king." She intended to.
"And once you do, you will return here at once, and await your punishment."
"Yes, my king. I deserve punishment."
With her head still hanging low, Liliwen slinked out of the coral hall, leaving her father alone with his anger.
If he wished to imprison her, fine. He couldn't keep her—his only daughter—locked up forever. She would bide her time, and make one final journey away from here.
After everything, this place no longer felt like home.
Chapter Sixteen
Liliwen turned around to face the guard who had been shadowing her since her return. "Where are they keeping Cadfael? Take me to him," she said.
The guard led the way as they crossed into the residential wing of the palace.
This part would be the most painful. The guard opened the door to the infirmary and showed her in. Liliwen held her breath as she stepped inside.
Nothing could have prepared her for the sight that awaited her. Cadfael, laid up on blood stained sheets. His wounds were still seeping, even though they had been covered in medicinal tinctures and seaweed. He was in bad shape.
Cara sat on a stool beside him, tending to his many bandages.
"Oh, Cadfael, I'm so sorry," Liliwen cried out as she approached.
He opened his eyes, and smiled awkwardly. His formerly handsome features were disfigured by bruises and cuts.
"What does the healer say?" Liliwen turned to ask Cara.
"It'll take time, but nothing permanent," Cara responded.
"I'm sorry I couldn't win for you," Cadfael said.
Liliwen burst into tears and buried her face in her hands. "Oh, brother. I have been so unfair to you. This is all my fault."
"Shhh, little sister. I'll be fine. It's a soldier's duty to fight for his princess after all."
Liliwen looked up through her tears. "I must tell you something which might change your mind."
"Yes?"
"The Other you fought… he…"
Cara gasped and covered her mouth. "It was him, wasn't it! I don't believe it."
Cadfael frowned as he looked first at Cara, then back at Liliwen. " Him? Him, who?"
"Brother, while you have been courting Cara, I'm afraid I had an ulterior motive to visit the Black Isles again and again too…"
"She's been hanging around one of them. One of the Others," Cara added. "I did not tell your father this, but…"
Cadfael closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. "Things are falling into place."
Liliwen sank onto the other chair beside Cadfael's bed and lowered her head into her hands. "I'm so sorry for everything. For putting you in harm's way. For dragging you into a fight you could not win," Liliwen said.
"Oh, I could have won!" Cadfael protested. "It was not a totally fair duel, though."
"How so?" Cara asked.
"I did not mention it to anyone, but when he entered the ring, he spoke to me. He said he wished not to kill me. For your sake. That he was fighting for your safety as well."
Liliwen looked up in shock. "He said what, now?"
"I did not know what to believe, but something in his tone gave me pause. I tried not to kill him either. Did I?"
Liliwen shook her head. "No, he's alive."
"Well then. Everyone got what they wanted. The Black Isles got a truce of sorts, and we got our princess back."
Liliwen's fragile heart could take it no longer. She had to confide in them fully. Her secrecy had brought everyone nothing but trouble. No more.
"I intend to go back."
"What? You cannot! As your best friend, I forbid it!" Cara exclaimed.
Liliwen got up and took her friend's hands. "Don't you understand? What you have here with Cadfael, I have with him. He walked into the duel knowing Cadfael would try to kill him, and yet he sought to spare his life for me. I love him, Cara. I cannot be without him."
Now it was Cara's turn to cry. Cadfael, meanwhile, was stoic as ever.
"I wish it could be any other way, but it can't," Liliwen added.
"Oh, Lili… I don't know what to say," Cara sobbed.
There was nothing she could have said. Liliwen had made up her mind.
"Father will not be happy," Cadfael observed. "He'll break the truce in retaliation."
"Then I'll have to make sure I'm not on the Isles for him to find."
"Where will you go?" Cara asked.
Liliwen shrugged. "Far away. Beyond Father's reach."
Cadfael opened his eyes again and reached for Liliwen's hand. She closed her fingers around his. Despite his injuries, he still had a firm grip.
"Little sister, I hope you know what you're doing. And you're not walking into another trap."
"My heart is already with him. And a person cannot live without a heart."
Their moment was interrupted by the guard, who first knocked, then opened the door.
"My princess, it is time. Your father means to deliver his punishment."
Liliwen shared a long look first with Cadfael, and then Cara. "I'm so glad I could tell you both the truth."
"Be safe, little sister," Cadfael said.
"Be safe, brother."
As she returned to the coral hall, accompanied now not by one guard, but half a dozen of them, Liliwen felt like an offering being brought to slaughter. She wasn't sure what to expect, but when she saw the hooded soldier, already holding his whip at the ready, she realized that she hadn't expected that.
King Weiland looked on from his throne, not a word said between them.
The first crack of the whip shocked her in its harshness. Then, Liliwen braced herself and prepared to endure the rest.
Two good men were laid up with severe injuries because of her. It was only right that she received her fair share.
For Teaq, she told herself as the whip came down hard on her back again.
For Cadfael. Blood started to flow soon thereafter, as her skin gave way.
Four lashes done, seventeen left to go.
No longer would she possess flawlessly beautiful skin. After this, her sins would be etched into her back forever, for all to see.
When she looked up, after it was all done, she noticed that her father was no longer present. Just how long ago he had left, she did not know.
"You came," Liliwen spoke first. Night had come and gone once since her arrival. Still, she hadn't moved an inch from her position to avoid detection and capture. She wouldn't make the same mistake again.
"Was there any doubt in your mind?" Teaq asked.
Liliwen shook her head. "And anyway, I would have waited for you, for as long as it takes. Forever."
"I wouldn't have," Teaq said.
Liliwen's chest tightened. Although it had happened days ago, the lashes on her back still stung. A painful reminder of what she had endured, and would endure again for her transgressions. "You wouldn't have?"
"If I hadn't found you here, I would have sailed all the way to the Deep to get you."
Her heart softened and she smiled. "Just how exactly would you have done that? A one-man assault on the palace, without being able to breathe underwater?"
Teaq shrugged. "I would have found a way."
"Aha." Liliwen cocked her head to the side. "Sailed to the Deep, you say?"
"I have a vessel. It's moored not too far from here. It's small but seaworthy."
Liliwen followed Teaq's hand as he pointed at a wooden structure visible in the distance.
"We cannot stay here," Liliwen observed.
Teaq shook his head. "Indeed, we cannot. Your father—"
"He'll come looking for me again. This time he won't be content with a duel."
"We just have to decide where to go," Teaq said. "The mainland is not an option. The humans would kill either of us
on sight. And if we go west, our route would lead us right to the Deep."
Liliwen breathed in deeply. She wanted to remember this place in as much detail as possible. Where everything began.
"I know of a place," she said. "I mean, I've heard stories."
"Where?"
"It's off to the north-east. At the edge of the world. If it exists, we'll find it." Liliwen looked up at Teaq, studying his face. When she had left, Cadfael had still been covered in cuts and welts. Teaq looked in better condition, but there was still something off about him. "How are you doing? I heard you were badly injured."
He shrugged. "I'm fine enough. A few more scars to add to the collection."
Liliwen nodded. Her punishment had earned her a fair number of scars of her own.
She reached for Teaq, who took her hand and helped her out of the water. This time, she did not protest when he lifted her up in his strong arms, though his touch on her injured back made her whimper slightly.
He carried her across the pathway to his boat, and finally Liliwen felt like she could relax. She had left in the dead of night, from the infirmary where she was meant to recover from her punishment, straight into the vastness of the Northern Sea. Her journey was not yet over, but at least she did not have to go it alone anymore.
In Teaq's arms, she felt safe. Like nothing and no one could hurt her ever again.
But things had changed from the last time they'd met each other here.
They were no longer innocent. No longer carefree.
Both had suffered for their love.
Liliwen knew it would take time for them to find their way back to each other.
As she watched him prepare the sail and haul up the anchor of his boat, she had to smile despite everything.
It would take time, but now that they were together, sailing away into their new life. They would have nothing but time.
As the boat started to move, and Teaq set its course to northwest had Liliwen had said, they both stood side by side, watching the Eastern Isle get smaller as they moved further and further away from it.
Bye bye, Black Isles, Liliwen thought.
"It's strange. I'm leaving everything I've ever known," Teaq observed.
Liliwen turned to face him. She had to strain her neck to get a good look at his face, that was how tall he was. "I have everything I need to know right here," she said.
The Soldier and the Siren: A Wolf Shifter Fantasy Romance (Shifters of Black Isle Book 2) Page 10