“It was a very believable scheme,” Alainn agreed in a quiet voice still trembling and laced with evidence of her recent fright.
“Edward and George were to carry the body to be seen by the king and I dressed as an English guard was to slip through the castle where I was to meet with Collum and Phelum. Edward has agreed to assist me in all of this in exchange for him and his family and George being allowed to journey to Ireland and live in our chiefdom. If the king believes me to be dead, he won’t follow with any further threats to Ireland because of anything connected to me. As it is now, I may still be able to escape if the king views this body and believes I am dead, but we must then find a way for you and Danhoul to be freed!”
“But now we have no time to see this plan carried through. We must leave the castle and this city this very day Killian for the king has learned we are wed and I fear much unrest is about to happen this day,” Alainn began.
“And how did he come by that information?” Killian asked with concern on his face that had now grown pale.
“It was Brendan O’Leary, but sure we don’t have time to speak on this Killian and besides I do possess decrees signed by the king. If you get to a ship now, you will surely be granted access to board.” Alainn smiled in mingled relief and excitement at seeing him well and being able to flee this dangerous and displeasing situation. She glanced at Danhoul and he held the decrees so that Killian could see.
“And how were these obtained?” he asked with suspicion as he glanced from Alainn to Danhoul.
“Through magic,” Danhoul answered undoubtedly aware it was perhaps a falsehood, but knowing they hadn’t much time to discuss the matter.
Killian shook his head in confusion, took the papers from him and glanced more closely at the decrees.
“There are only two decrees here, one for me and one for Danhoul, but where is the decree for you Alainn?”
“He has not yet signed such a document for me and it is unlikely he will do so unless I am able to make him forget he ever learned of our connection,” she declared. “But now you must make haste and get to the docks.”
“Aye, Brendan O’Leary was to have alerted the other chieftains, and the soldiers and clansmen to prepare to leave England immediately for soon we will be unable by the king’s order,” Danhoul stated.
“You and Danhoul head for the docks, Killian, for I need to go back to the king. I must employ my magic to alter his thinking for it is imperative he believes with no uncertainty that he with entirely no coercion, willfully signed the decrees stating you and Danhoul are free to return to Eire. If not, he will simply send the English army to retrieve us and perhaps cause much misery for all of Ireland. And I will see to it he forgets our connection and signs such a decree for me as well.”
“I don’t like it in the least, Alainn!” Killian warned, grasping her hand tightly. “But, at any rate, firstly you must allow these guards to waken for they have risked their very lives to assist me, and I have given them my word they and Edward’s family will travel with us,” Killian spoke again.
“I am not certain I can waken them and hold the rest of the castle in a state of stillness, for Danhoul and I have both placed a stillness spell on the location. Combined magic is more powerful, but even less of a certainty in managing or reversing the spells.”
“Is there a way to take them with us that does not involve us carrying them for they are both large men, and even though I also wear a guard’s uniform if one of your stilling spells is lifted and some of the inhabitants of the castle should awaken, yet others remain still, it might seem a wee bit suspicious if Danhoul and I both carry an unconscious English guard over our shoulders!”
Alainn employed her powers and the men were aptly lifted off the ground and now suspended in mid-air still holding tight to the lifeless body.
“That will surely raise no suspicions!” Killian sarcastically stated as he looked from Alainn to Danhoul.
“Perhaps if I strip them of their uniforms and I don a uniform as well, we might simply appear we are taking the prisoners to another area of the castle?” Danhoul grasped to find a believable and alternative solution to their dilemma.
“Aye, but if they are believed to be prisoners we may need to take them to the tower or perhaps to the dungeon. If they are recognized as being English, then we will all be in dire straits even if we do possess decrees.”
Alainn closed her eyes and appeared deep in concentration as she touched her hand to each of the two English guards.
“The man’s name is Edward?” she asked though her eyes remained closed.
“Aye, it is Edward and his cousin is George,” he replied as his eyes looked up and down the corridor as though expecting to find other guards soon upon them. Alainn began the incantation.
“Edward and George waken from this sleep, waken now while the others keep within the spell of slumber deep, waken only thee, as I command it so shall it be.”
The men’s eyes soon changed from a blank stare to full awareness, but they were both filled with obvious confusion at seeing Killian standing there with two others they did not recognize. In their uncertainty they dropped the body they were holding and it fell to the ground with a loud thud. They both stared at Alainn and Danhoul.
“Who are these people?” Edward questioned and George placed his hand to the sword on his belt.
“Edward there isn’t time for lengthy explanations. You must trust me now. This is my wife, Alainn and my friend, Danhoul. It is imperative we all sail to Ireland this very day.”
“This isn’t what we agreed upon,” George argued as his eyes grew wild with uncertainty and he looked to his cousin for clarity.
“We’re in this far too deep now, Cousin. We have no choice but to carry through with it. Besides, you’ve always talked of wanting to see more of the world, and you might just find yourself an Irish lady and finally start that family you’ve always spoken of.”
It was clear that Edward was making some headway in calming and convincing his cousin, but the other man remained doubtful and they knew time was short.
Killian always maintaining a clear head and the ability to take charge of a tumultuous situation, looked at Edward with some regret, but he pulled the sword from Edward’s scabbard and brought the hilt down on George’s head, capably catching the man before he hit the floor.
“What the bloody hell did you do that for?”
“If we are discovered by anyone we may all meet with the king’s block this day. As it is, your cousin will have a large goose egg on his head and perhaps a throbbing fuzzy head, but at the end of the day it is to be hoped we will be standing on Irish soil as free men.”
Edward nervously nodded his head and lifted his cousin over his shoulder as Killian continued to speak.
“Once we make our way through the castle you must go to your family and have them join us at the docks. I am certain some of my clansmen will be found outside the castle gates and I assure you I will instruct them to assist you in seeing your wife and children as well as your ailing mother and brother in getting to the docks.”
“You dressed as an English guard may be capable of making it to the docks, but I don’t know that any of us will be permitted to simply leave the country,” Edward reasoned.
“We have decrees stating we may leave and if we are in the company of an English guard surely we will make it to the gates,” Killian explained. “Collum and Phelum have been providing coin to one of the ship captains so that he holds a ship for us ready to leave with little notice.”
“I sense there will be much unrest and chaotic happenings this day. I feel we will not be the only concerns of the king or his army this day,” Alainn offered perceiving the palpable tension in the air.
Killian glanced at Alainn with uncertainty of what she knew by way of her premonitory abilities. He asked nothing of her but simply took her arm as he waited for the man’s response.
“You are a seer?” Edward asked Alainn.
She fe
lt there was little use in denying it and nodded her head.
He took a deep breath and once more glanced at Killian.
“What of the bodies, this poor soul’s and the other guard’s. I know they are of no use to us now, but we can’t simply leave them here to be soon discovered. The entire castle will be in an uproar if two bodies are found, especially one being an English guard.
Killian glanced at Alainn and she closed her eyes, waved her hands and the bodies sailed through the air and into the cells. The others watched as they were placed upon the beds and covered with the bedclothes.
“Who possesses the keys to the prisoner’s chambers?” she quizzed. Edward’s face had grown steadily more pale, but he hastily handed his keys to Alainn and stepped away from her straightaway. Once more employing her magic, she moved a large stone from the inner wall, placed the keys deep inside and replaced the stone without having moved from where she stood or touched the keys or the stone.
Edward clumsily crossed himself as he held his cousin over his shoulder, and then simply headed straight down the hallway with the others following close behind him. Killian noticed him stumble in his obvious fright and uncertainty of what he’d witnessed. The man did not resist when he lifted George from Edward’s shoulders. They hurriedly continued down the long corridor and started down the winding stairwell. Killian stopped briefly for George had begun to loudly moan as he roused.
“He’ll not be capable of walking any time soon, will he?”
Killian glanced at Alainn and she placed her hands to George’s head and a bright light encircled her hands and the man’s eyes opened. He appeared right as rain as though nothing had happened to him.
“She’s a magical healer as well as a seer,” Killian offered as though there wasn’t anything unusual about that admission.
“I suppose that might be most beneficial!” Edward’s face was a mask of uncertainty, and taking no chances, he crossed himself yet again, took George by the arm and led him toward a doorway when Alainn stopped him.
“We must go on further down the stairs,” she insisted.
Chapter Fifteen
“Believe me lady, seer, magical healer, fairy or whatever you might actually be, you’d not care to venture down those steps for they lead only to the dungeon, and if you think the upper tower was displeasing, I tell you straight, it’s marvelously appealing compared to the dungeon.”
Alainn had long since detected the unpleasant scent wafting upward. The smell of damp earth, mingled with the pungent odors of raw human excrement, sweat, blood and bodies long unwashed, now assaulted their senses.
“Why do you suggest we descend further?” Killian queried.
“Firstly we must collect Conner who is being held in the dungeon.”
“Conner?” Killian asked.
“In the dungeon?” Danhoul apparently hadn’t sensed that certainty even with his powers.
“Aye, ’tis a long story, but we’ve no time to speak on that now. There is also a hidden passageway to a tunnel far beneath the castle. It will take you to a stairway ascending far from the guarded area. It was built when the Norse invaded the city and it was meant to be a means of escape for the English, but was seldom used and long since forgotten. I believe no one actually knows of its existence.”
Edward apparently didn’t question Alainn’s abilities for he simply shook his head, crossed himself one more time, and headed further downward into near darkness with George and his wide disbelieving eyes and ashen face close behind, now entirely silent. Killian followed holding tight to Alainn’s arm and Danhoul brought up the rear.
They passed several doorways, but at each level Alainn urged them to go on. When they finally got to the end of the steps they went into the corridor of the earthen dungeon. They each covered their noses in attempt to block the horrid stench. There was no daylight and only a few dim sconces upon the walls. In the limited light they briefly glanced into the one large chamber where several prisoners remained held in a frozen state by Alainn’s spell.
“Are they dead?” George stared in at the still figures.
“No, not dead, they are alive and well. I assure you.”
“They’re not sleeping are they?” Edward asked of Killian.
“They are held in such a state by way of magic,” Killian replied truthfully. Even though Edward had clearly witnessed her supernatural powers, Alainn further knew the man had Killian’s trust if he dared to actually speak aloud of many of her magical abilities.
“Are you a fairy?” George dared to ask.
“Don’t be absurd, George! Fairies aren’t real,” Edward scoffed.
“But seers and magical healers are?” young George questioned.
“I’m not a fairy, but in actuality I do have fairy blood in my veins, my great-grandmother was a Celtic princess, but also the queen of the fairies.” Alainn winked and smiled at the two men.
“It’s to be hoped this place in Ireland is worth the bloody risk then if we are to have dealings with fairies and the like?” Edward muttered lowly under his breath.
“It is!” Killian assured him scolding Alainn with his eyes at the enjoyment she derived from the men’s uncertainty.
When they neared the end of the corridor, they heard someone moving about within one of the cells.
“Conner?” Killian called out.
“Aye, it’s me.”
“Have you a key for this level?” Danhoul asked Edward.
He shook his head and Alainn employed her magic and soon the large padlock opened and Conner limped out of the cell looking worse for wear with his blackened swollen eyes and bloody garments. But he asked no questions of them nor they of him.
Conner followed them and at the end of the corridor they seemed to come up against a wall of earth. It was nearly impossible to see anything by now.
“It’s too dark. We will be easily overtaken by the demon if he or Ciara and her coven should come to us in darkness for their powers are perhaps limitless with no light to impede them,” Danhoul warned.
Danhoul had obviously seen the visions of Ciara’s coven or read her thoughts.
Killian abruptly stopped and even in the limited light she knew he bore an expression of disquietude and accusation. He turned Alainn to face him although even in such close proximately they could scarcely see each other.
“Killian O’Brien before you rebuke me you’ll remember we’ve not actually had the time or opportunity to exchange pleasantries, much less any other conversation on all that has transpired since last we met. You’ll recall I knew nothing of your intention to appear bludgeoned to death!” she sniped with denunciation of her own.
“Aye, but the dangerous, contemptable Ciara and her wretched coven might have been worthy of mentioning!” he growled as he took her arm and began to move again without speaking, although Alainn well knew he wanted to berate her further.
“A demon you say?” Edward had come up short which caused the entire lot of them to collide into the person before them. “I think we should maybe take our chances with the damnable king and spend the rest of our lives as guards in that cursed tower rather than face the likes of a demon,” Edward declared in a voice that shook and he glanced back from where they had just come.
“Half the king’s advisors and attendants are affiliated with the demon including Cromwell, so you might better stay here with us,” Alainn reasoned, and she simply called to her magic and soon each of the men held an enclosed lantern that burned brightly. Edward stared at her with some uncertainty, and shook his head. This time George crossed himself, but both men bit their tongue so as not to ask any further questions of which they may not care to know the answers.
When they’d walked awhile, Edward stopped once more.
“There appears to be nowhere else to go,” Edward said as he held the lantern before him to reveal only the earthen wall.
Alainn pushed past the men and gently touched her hand to the soil. She brushed away some of the earth and soon sure enou
gh another smaller doorway began to glow and was capably revealed. It took three strong and capable men to push the door open and they weren’t entirely certain they wouldn’t bring the earth down upon them, a goodly amount of soil did fall upon them as it finally gave way. The tunnel that lie beyond was considerably smaller and lower, the men had to stoop as they stepped inside meeting many cobwebs and more earth falling down upon them.
Alainn was holding tight to Killian’s hand, but she stopped walking and he came to her. She whispered to him as they stood together.
“You must go on without me now. I will come to the docks by way of magic after I go to the king once more. I need to do what I am able to control and manipulate his thoughts. It is imperative he truly forgets you and I are wed, and he must believe with no doubt we are free to go. I must also ensure he does not intend to invade Ireland and dissuade him from ordering any violent attacks on our shores. I believe by employing my magic I will be successful in preventing much loss of life and tragedy.”
“And after you accomplish all of this you simply believe you’ll be capable of coming to me at the docks?” The fearfulness in Killian’s voice was ineffectively masked by his sarcasm.
“If for some reason I am not there when the ship sails then know this truth, one day I will surely be capable of returning to you if I must use my magic to that end as well!”
“But you could meet with much danger, Alainn. If you are unsuccessful in controlling his thoughts, you might then be suspected to be a witch, Alainn!”
“I will be cautious, Killian. I promise you that.”
“And what of the demon and all who side with him? What of Ciara and the coven?”
Alainn was suddenly overcome with a clear vision. She saw the massive stones once more, the inside of the circle was charred by a recent fire, but Ciara and the coven were nowhere to be seen. Had they sacrificed the searcher and gained power to undo her spell? Were they even now beyond the next bend in the corridor here beneath the dungeon?
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