In The Dark

by Sarah K. Jensen

  It took all his willpower to not roar out his anger and grief. How could his soulmate love another man? And how was he supposed to deal with it?

  “I’d advise you to not rush in there and demand anything from her. If she is your shonuachar then things will work themselves out. Don’t push her too much now. If you want to win her over, you might try being the charming young man I know you to be.” Lydia squeezed his shoulder and kissed the back of his head, just behind his ear.

  “You knew that she might have a life other than simply being a Guardian. And I’m sorry that this is hurting you, but don’t push her away because you force her into choosing this Callan over you, at least not now. Let her tell you about him when she’s ready. Or allow her to let him go on her own.”

  Chapter 9

  Isle of Éire, Brandon Mount, 1432

  Ian leaned against a black alder and studied the daughter of his sister. Síofra moved with confidence, wielding the sword with skill. The skill of a mortal. If she wished to succeed against the Oíche Scáthanna, she would need to learn the way of the fae. The way of her mother.

  He pushed away from the tree and straightened to his full height. At well over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, he was an intimidating man to the humans who inhabited the small peninsula off the southwest coast of Ireland.

  He approached the girl slowly, not wanting to startle her. Ian had not returned to visit his sister’s mortal family in many years. Not since the love of her earthly life took up with another woman. He didn’t blame the man, heaven only knew that he could not stay away from the lasses, but he hated the pain it caused his sister, to know her husband sought comfort in the warmth of another woman.

  The girl, Síofra, turned at his approach. He made no noise and realized she felt his presence. At least that was something most mortals could not do, so he should be able to work well with her.

  “Me know ye,” she said, cocking her head to the left, just like her mother always did when she thought things out.

  Ian smiled. “Do ye?”

  “Aye. Ye came when me was a small gel.” She studied him, looking for something to tell her who he was. “Ye know me.” It was a statement.

  “Yea, I do. Yer mother is my sister.”

  Síofra nodded. “Aye. Me felt a kinship with ye.”

  A chuckle escaped from Ian before he could stop it. Síofra was very much her mother’s daughter.

  “Ye are here to teach me, are ye no’?”

  With admiration for her keen sense of understanding, Ian smiled and nodded. “That I am, lass. That I am.”

  “Ye will teach me the true way of the fae? Ye will ‘elp me to defeat the Oíche Scáthanna?”

  Ian took her elbow and led her back to the flat ground where she’d been practicing her skills. “I will teach ye what ye must do to kill those you battle. And ye will, in turn, teach yer children. And teach them to teach their children. ‘Tis very important that it be learned by all the daughters ye have and all the daughters they have. And in the years to come, I will help ye teach Nuadha so that he will be a helpmeet to ye. And he will teach his sons.”

  “Do it again,” Ian growled at Síofra. “‘Tis not good enough.”

  Síofra gave a growl of her own and swung the bastard sword at his head, almost wishing to take her uncle’s head off with a landed blow. He ducked, swept her legs out from under her, and kicked her in the side, lifting her off the ground. She sucked in a sharp breath when she could again breathe and screamed her hatred of the man she loved so much.

  He laughed, extended his hand, helping her off the ground. “I find no joy in leaving ye bloodied and bruised, but the Oíche Scáthanna will give ye no reprieve. They will not give ye time to rest. They will not be gentle with ye. Therefore, I will not be gentle with ye when we practice.”

  She knew the speech by heart, for Ian recited it at the end of each “mock” battle. Síofra also understood the reasons behind the way he trained her. The men in the village trained in the same manner, at least those who pledged their swords to the Earl of Desmond. Síofra had watched them many a warm summer’s day training in the fields near Brandon’s Head.

  If she were honest with herself, which she wasn’t often, she mostly watched Liam Kelly. The third son of the town’s blacksmith, he had learned his father’s trade. Though six years her senior, she had always fancied him. Often sneaking after him at the end of the day to watch him wash in the calm waters nearby.

  He had caught her on one occasion and threatened to beat her if she didn’t go home and leave him be. Síofra learned to hide better.

  “Gel, if yer head is not in the battle, ye will die. Where did ye go just now?”

  Síofra blushed from her ears to her toes. She would not tell Ian she’d been daydreaming of a beautifully naked Liam. “Never ye mind. Ye have worked me for most the day. It is a cool dip in the sea I wish for and then a warm meal. Tonight, ye can teach me more of the ways of the fae and tell me stories of me mother.”

  “My mother,” Ian corrected. That, too, he did often.

  She gave a curt nod and made her way down the hill toward the sea, wanting a swim before she helped Maolisa with the evening meal. Before she stepped into the emerald green waters, Síofra stripped down to her shift and strode into the surf.

  When the water reached her waist, something bumped into her. Callous roughened fingers grabbed her wrists and tugged downward as a beautiful masculine face and a bare, hair-dusted chest appeared in front of her.

  “Did ye follow me again?” Liam Kelly asked her, his voice low and harsh.

  She shook her head, unable to speak. He was touching her! His large, warm hands were actually on a part of her body.

  “Then why are ye here?” he snarled.

  She swallowed the lump in her throat and croaked out, “To swim.”

  He slung her arms away from him, causing her to lose her balance. Her feet shot out from under her and when she finally found her footing, she came up out of the water sputtering. Liam’s eyes widened and he sucked in a deep breath as he stared at her chest.

  She caught a jagged breath when she saw that his eyes seemed to remain on her overgrown breasts. Embarrassed tears sprang to her eyes and she fought to not let him see her cry. She knew the other girls in the village did not have breasts like hers and she’d also overheard many of the men commenting on the largeness of them.

  Liam continued to stare, and heat spread throughout her belly. She had no understanding of what was happening to her, and she wasn’t at all happy that Liam was watching it happen.

  Stepping closer to her, Liam grabbed her hair at the nape of the neck and tilted her head back to stare into her eyes. “Yer a witch sent to entice me to the vera gates of Hell. Do ye wish me to take ye now? Are ye trying to make me lose me mind?”

  Síofra didn’t know of what he spoke, so she didn’t answer.

  “Ye are but a gel, and yet ye have the body of a woman.” His eyes were angry, yet the hold he had on her was gentle.

  “I can no’ ‘elp ‘ow me body looks. Do ye think I wish to be unnatural and ugly?”

  A dark brow lifted, and he looked somewhat confused. “Unnatural? Ugly? Síofra, ye ‘ave been a beauty since ye were a babe scampering after yer da. And ye simply become more beautiful each year which passes. I ‘ave wanted ye for the past two years now. I ‘ave tried to do right by ye and wait until ye were older, but ye keep showing up everywhere. Ye watch me bathe and it makes me hot and hungry for ye.”

  Síofra could not believe what he was telling her, admittingly not understanding some of what he’d said. “Ye think me beautiful?”

  He laughed, pulling her into the warmth of his arms. “Aye, sweeting, I think ye more than beautiful.”

  “I am ten and six. Many of the gels my age ‘ave ‘usbands and babes on their ‘ips. No one ‘as offered for me. They all think I am ugly.”

  Liam smiled wickedly. “No, love, they do no’. They all know that if they speak with ye, I
will likely pummel them to the ground. They know I ‘ave been waiting for ye to reach an age that I could make ye mine. I just didn’t want ye to be too young to understand what was ‘appening.”

  Again, his lips turned up and he looked at her in a way she had never been looked at before. The fire in her belly burned hotter.

  Her cheeks heated again. She whispered, “I do no’ know what is ‘appening to me body.”

  “Aw, love, I will teach ye if ye will be my wife.”

  Síofra jumped into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Oh, Liam, I ‘ave dreamed of belonging to only ye.”

  And she was lost to him as he captured her mouth with his own.

  Ian watched Liam Kelly’s hands bunch the sodden shift on his young niece’s thighs and push it upward, all the while, kissing her as if to make her a part of himself. If he hadn’t come along when he did, the pair would likely be making love in the next few moments.

  “That’ll be far enough,” Ian growled.

  Liam stiffened, raising his head to look Ian square in the eye. “And who might ye be to say what is enough with me betrothed or no’?”

  Sighing, Síofra buried her face against Liam’s neck and whispered, “‘e be me uncle.”

  Liam cursed under his breath, allowed Síofra’s feet to again touch the earth, resting his hands on her hips. He stared at Ian for a long minute before saying, “Would ye mind turning about so that Síofra and I can come ou’ of the water?”

  Raising a brow, Ian said, “How about ye turning about so that Síofra can leave the water without ye seeing any more of her. Then she can turn her back so ye can leave the water.”

  Liam nodded his agreement, turning Síofra about to ascend from the sea alone. Ian did not watch her, but Liam did, lust burning bright in his eyes. When Liam left the water, Ian kept his eyes on his niece, making sure she stared away.

  This should be a fun conversation, Ian thought, as Síofra and Liam dressed. When Liam joined him and Síofra, Ian nodded toward a patch of grass, which would have probably made a nice bed for the two young lovers had he not come along when he had. “We need to talk.”

  Síofra took Liam’s hand and they followed Ian and sat, waiting for Ian to speak. At least Síofra waited.

  Liam started, “I knew what we were doing isno’ suppose’ to be done before we become man an’ wife, but I will talk to ‘er da and gain ‘is permission to wed ‘er. Me brothers can be ‘ere in a sennight for the wedding feast. It isno’ uncommon for a couple to, uh, be together before the ceremony. If they make the promises to each other.”

  Ian knew this. And he did not have the restrictions on him that these two had, thanks to his sister, Caoimhe.

  Giving his best smile, which seemed to make Síofra suspicious, Ian said, “The problem with being together before ye are wed, is that Síofra’s mamaí found fault with the fact that men can have many lovers before they wed, and even after, while women are to be saved for their husband’s alone.”

  At Síofra’s look of amazement, Ian clarified, “She did not wish to love any other man, she only wanted yer da, but she was not pleased with the number of women he’d had before her. She wanted her sons and daughters to remain pure for their betrothed. But it went deeper than even that. She placed a spell on her blood, that anyone who fight. . .”

  He stopped, looking from Liam to his niece. “Does he know?” he asked Síofra.

  She paled a little and shook her head. “I ‘ave no’ ‘ad the chance to tell ‘im.”

  Fear played across her beautiful face and Ian took pity on her. “Liam, ye need to know what we are before ye wed Síofra.”

  Liam stared at Síofra, searching for answers. Tears sprang to her eyes but did not fall.

  “Her mother was fae,” Ian told him.

  A sputter of laughter left Liam as he placed his hand over his heart. “‘Tis vera good. Ye must know that me da believes fae live below The Brandon and wish to play it against me.”

  Ian did the easiest thing he could think of to make a believer of him. He disappeared. Well, not really, he simply transferred himself to the woods behind them. But the effect was what he’d wanted.

  Liam jumped to his feet, pulling Síofra up and behind him, looking all around. The large man cursed loudly. It was then Ian let himself be seen. He walked a few feet before popping back to the spot he’d just vacated.

  “And since Caoimhe is fae, then, of course, I am as well. We are not of this world but have shared it with humans for longer than ye can know. Áinle is half-fae and half-druid.”

  Liam sunk back to the ground, tugging Síofra down again. As he glanced from Ian to Síofra and back again, he asked, “Tis true? Ye are no’ of this world?”

  Ian knew to tread carefully. This man would be Síofra’s mate and therefore would help teach their children how to fight the Oíche Scáthanna. He needed to be gentle, but thorough in the telling of this tale.

  “Áinle’s father, Ciaran, was a powerful Druid who used stolen magicks of my people, the Tuatha De Danann, to call the banished souls from the Underworld. He was not a good man, and Áinle was ashamed to be of his blood. But his blood is quite powerful, along with his fae mother’s.

  “When Áinle met Caoimhe the bond between them was vera strong. They knew they were for one another, and my dear sister wanted to help destroy Ciaran, for they thought that was the only way to stop the Oíche Scáthanna from entering this world.”

  Liam frowned. “Yer serious, are ye no’?”

  With a stiff nod, Ian leaned back on his hands and stared for a moment at the heavens. He whispered, “They were wrong about that stopping them.”

  Looking back to Liam, Ian continued, “There are magicks not of this world, which are needed to start or stop such things. Caoimhe stole a book from our people that told how to kill immortals. And being immortal ourselves, it was not something our Queen wished for anyone to ever know about. There is a sword, created before this world that my people have, called the Sword of Nuada. It is well protected.

  “It would not be something my sister could have taken, but the book was not so well guarded. She took it and copied it for her husband to use, returning it without anyone being the wiser.”

  Ian turned his head, gazing out at the sea, remembering the blood and his sister’s lifeless body. Yes, she was alive back home but was being held prisoner by the Queen for marrying a human. If the Queen found out her other doings, Caoimhe would be killed. Ian was grateful the Court paid little attention to humans these days.

  “What ‘appened?” Liam asked.

  “Me mamaí used ‘er blood for the three blades me da forged. She died so that I could destroy the Oíche Scáthanna.”

  Liam stared at Síofra for a long moment. Fear dominated her features, and it wasn’t until Liam took her face in his hands and whispered that he loved her and would help her in any way possible that the fear left, replaced by joy. Ian saw something else burning bright in her eyes. Heat.

  “For the rest of the blessing, or curse, if ye will, yer mamaí placed on her blood, was that no one who saw the Oíche Scáthanna could have physical relations with anyone but the person they are lawfully wed to. That means that ye cannot be together until after the wedding has taken place.”

  That brought Liam’s attention back to Ian. “What?”

  Ian chuckled at the look of incredulousness on his soon-to-be nephew’s face. The look was somewhat pained. He sobered, thinking of the importance this held to Caoimhe.

  “My sister does not think there should be one way for lasses and another for lads. She thinks ye should hold true to the one you pledge yer life to. That if lasses should hold their virtue for their husbands, then, so too, should lads hold their virtue for their wives. She wanted purity for her children and their children, male or female. So she blessed her blood, even as she lay dying from this mortal existence, and made it so that none of hers, or yer father’s, offspring, or theirs, could fight if they did not hold onto their virtue.”

&n
bsp; Liam, taking Síofra’s hand, tugged her up with him again. “We’ll go to yer da and ask ‘is permission to wed, then go to the monks and ‘ave them marry us. Me brother’s need no’ be here.”

  Síofra smiled brilliantly up at him. “We ‘ave waited this long. We can hold off fer a sennight. ‘Sides, there will needs be a reading of the banns. Me wants no one to say I am no’ legally yers.”

  With a groan, Liam nodded. “We will wait to marry, but no’ to talk to yer da.” He turned to Ian. “Thank ye fer protecting Síofra. Ye will let me know what to do to help?”

  Ian nodded before leaving the young couple on their own. He’d done his part in relating the blasted curse to them. Whether they followed it was up to them. He refused to follow young lovers around making sure they didn’t do anything they should not. If they did, he’d protect Liam and Síofra from the Oíche Scáthanna until they could defend themselves once again. But who knew, they might just keep their hands, and other parts, to themselves for the next sennight.

  Back in his world, Ian found his sister’s small room and shared with her what had taken place with her daughter. He did not tell her of the young boy fathered by another woman. No need to torture her any further than she already suffered.

  Chapter 10

  Texas, Present Day

  Laif wasn’t completely stupid. He knew his mom was right when it came to how he reacted to this Callan guy. If he burst into Memphis’s room and demanded to know who Callan was, he was sure she’d shut down and tell him to leave. And probably refuse any help he and his family could offer.

  He’d do his best to forget this jerk and focus on helping Memphis and getting her to fall in love with him. He could be charming. His mother had taught him to not take too much advantage of that little talent. But he sure would take advantage of it now.

  He took a deep, cleansing breath and smiled at his mother. “You’re right. As usual. I’ll go in and talk to her and not say a word about this Callan jerk.”