her birth. “I’m so sorry…”
She whispered to the surrounding oaks before blasting wide the doors leading to the throne
room. Cat could hear her own frantic heartbeat above the stillness of scores of noble bodies
crowding her vision. A path was laid out, as males of equal beauty shuffled away from the
promise of violence. Six tall figures emerged, to hold back a mass of goggling Sidhe.
Nodding thanks to her marked mates, she strode forward with a phalanx of armed warriors
at her back.
“Hey Grandma, guess who’s come to visit.” Cat trilled in manic tones as she advanced on
the throne. Catching a glimpse of Drusal standing tall and proud at the Queens right hand,
she blew him a kiss.
This is sneaking? He blasted at her, arms wedged tightly over an armoured chest.
I re-thought the plan, grovelling is not in my nature.
A growling laugh resounded in her mind as Drusal shook his head in resignation.
Istirina rose from the throne, resplendent in the same blood red gown as the night before.
“You dare to enter my court uninvited child?” Stepping down from the interwoven branches
of glittering oak, the Queen glowed red gold, in homage to the fire element.
Gliding to a halt, a mere hand span from the creature who had tried so often to demean and
denigrate the heir to this Court, Cat smiled, a gentle reminder of Teyrnon’s nobility of spirit.
“I do so dare my Grandmother.” The smile widened into a wicked grin.
“I am not the one who broke the truce. I am not the one who sold mate and Granddaughter
to the Dark Court, in a desperate attempt to hold onto a reign that is fragmenting under the
weight of its Sovereign’s depravity.”
Turning to face the males whose lives were controlled by a Queen who held them in less
esteem than vermin, Cat offered to them as a whole the deference of allegiance, protection
and love.
“You greet my Court, but fail to greet me?” The whiplash of Istirina’s hate shot out in a
useless effort to wipe out the latest viper in their midst.
“You have not the decency to dress appropriately and expect to be respected?” Returning
to the throne, Istrina draped herself close to the one male Cat would die for.
“Little thing, you come unarmed into my home.” The Queen ran her hand over Drusal’s thigh,
all the while smiling with confidence at her control over the males.
Turning to face Drusal, Cat offered him the form of love, bowing low.
“I am armed Grandmother…” Shimmering from head to toe, she became Iscatya, with all the
attributes Teyrnon had gifted to her. Fangs gleaming she registered the shock on Drusal’s
face. Close your mouth Fur ball…
Her thought flashed to him in an instant. I warned you, how distasteful my Sidhe form is.
Burgundy hair undulating over her shoulders, gold streaks playing in arcs of flaming light,
Cat faced her mirror image.
“Grandmother you may be stunningly beautiful, but I make jeans and t-shirt look hot…”
A melange of male voices grunted in agreement at her statement.
“The fangs were a gift. Grandfather sent his farewells as he burnt to ashes. Did you plan
for me to exterminate a discarded mate who would not die? Or did you hope that we
would kill each other?” Pacing the floor, hair wildly out of control, Cat assimilated the fear
on the Queen’s face.
“Sorry to disappoint you, but The Lord Teyrnon gave me more than fangs, he made me the
ruler of the Dark Court. In doing so, I stand before you as an equal. I make no deference to
one who is no more than I.”
Istirina’s laugh was vicious as she gripped tightly at Drusal’s thigh.
“A vampire my equal… You overestimate the power that emboldens the waste that was
once the Dark dimension. You are deluded by the self-importance of ruling a nation of
walking dead.” Sitting forward on the throne, luxurious hair skimming alabaster shoulders,
Istirina sneered at the female built in her image.
Pacing in front of the throne, a picture of volatile impatience, Cat caught Turi’s eye, shrugging
off the heavy jacket she tossed it to him with a wink.
With a wide grin of approval, he snatched it from the air. “Grandmother Dearest…”
Planting her boots firmly in front of the throne, hands on ample hips, she hooked both thumbs
into the waist band of skinny jeans. “In betraying your bonded mate you did not break his will.
Teyrnon was not idle as he languished in the dark. Grandfather wrought subtle changes in his
subjects. Their thirst is quenched. They are free to walk in daylight, as am I. The dark Court will
rise to meet a new era with my help.” Her eyes sought Drusal’s. Cat was explaining the shift in
power, more to her mate than to a Queen who wallowed in her own invincibility.
“I have not come to test your strength. I come only to take my marked mates. As a paid up
member of the Sidhe, you cannot deny me the right to take the males whose bodies belong
to me.” A wall of tall warriors overshadowed Cat as she lay down the ancient lore to her
maternal Grandmother with no fear and a bucket load of spite.
“Showme these marks you are so inordinately proud of.” Istirina kept a firm hold on Drusal.
The fear on the Dark Hound’s face was apparent to all the Court. He was not deemed worthy
enough to be counted amongst the favoured of a Princess.
Sending out the element appropriate to the six warriors at her back, Cat invoked the brands
of marking in a display of earth, air, fire and water. A green glow hovered over Turi’s heart
and Phelan’s Brow. The air element, a wreath of misty cloud encircled Teague’s throat in a
dance of joy. Fire burned blinding white and heated red on the wrists of Charon and Fintan,
an affirmation of their dominant life force. Water formed a coat of ice over Kynthelig’s palm.
With a warm breath he blew on his hand to disperse a second skin in a fine spray of crystal
droplets in Cat’s direction.
“They are yours Iscatya. I cannot deny the obvious brands of mating… I see no mark on my
Hound, therefore him I keep.” Licking at her lips, Istirina ran an arm round Drusal’s waist.
Anguished at all he was about to lose, a frown creased the proud warrior’s brow in dull
acceptance of his fate. With a bow of deference and respect, he sent Cat a wash of love.
Go… Take my brothers and leave before the Queen reneges upon the truce.
A smile as cunning as any Istirina could hope to conjure lifted the corners of Cat’s lips.
“You think to take my eternal mate Grandmother?” Lifting both hands out to Drusal she
sent to him all the elements that bonded them as one. “Burn for me my love….”
A whisper of devotion, a regal command, held the males of Court spellbound.
Tongues of flame, alive with all the colours of the rainbow engulfed Drusal. As light as air
he shifted to settle at the side of his glowing mate, arm settling around her waist he kissed
her solidly on the mouth, staking his claim. I am marked…?
The tenor of his question was amazed, and infinitely adoring.
Yes, and so much more. I marked you as soon after your brethren as I could. The mark is
soul deep and binding. I can release you if you wish it?
No… Drusal tightened his grip on the female who resembled all that he hated.
Get us out of here before I harangue you with all
angst I have suffered at your hands.
With all her men at her back Cat faced the Queen’s anger with sangfroid.
“The Lord Vardon belongs to me. His essence I hold, as he holds mine.” Easing away from
the vibrant strength emanating from the bonds of all mates, she took a step nearer the
throne. A figure of immense beauty and untold power had no wish to start a true war,
but stood ready to finish one if need be.
“I take only that which is rightfully mine. I will not strike a blow at you grandmother, not
unless you force my hand. Can we not have peace as we strive to survive in this modern
world?” A true child of a gracious Grandfather offered a way out for a malicious Queen.
With a wave of one hand Istirina called forth Dardanos. The giant troll drove straight
through the Sidhe nobles, an entourage of hideous soldiers at his back.
Cat turned to face the threat bearing down on them, holding up a hand to Drusal who
had unsheathed the huge bronze sword at his back at the first sign of danger.
“It appears not…” Flicking a fingernail on gleaming fangs she frowned at a Queen hell
bent on destruction, nose curling in utter contempt.
“We meet again Dardanos the Devourer.” A sweet smile curved across her mouth as she
scanned the horde of trolls. “Brought your beastie boys with you this time?”
With a swirl of one hand she entangled them in a web of ice and fire, an ethereal cage,
none but she could disperse.
“Did you learn nothing from our last encounter? I will not be threatened.” Emerald eyes
flashing derision at her Grandmother’s enraged face, Iscatya flicked her fingers at the
bound mass of ugly storm troopers. “Bye, bye, boys…”
The throne room was emptied of the stench of death, from one breath to the next.
With a snarl the Queen shot a lance of fire directly at her Granddaughter, a whip-lash
of hate and jealousy.
Drusal blocked the strike easily, with a shield of ice that fractured into prisms of light.
Cat held back the frightened curse aimed at his mind. The strength of a Sidhe warrior
bolstered by the four elements of her life force stood firm enough to hold off any form
of attack Istirina could conjure. “Tut, tut Grandmother…”
Placing her fingers over her mate’s outstretched arm, she gently ushered him to stand
behind her. “Trying to kill me in front of witnesses, you really are losing the plot. My death
would precede your own downfall, summary execution is the penalty for murder.”
A sadistic bitch under the banner of a ruling monarch had delivered pain and the promise
of death with no remorse. Stepping up to the throne, Cat locked eyes on the face of the
female who thought she was above reproach, beyond reprisal.
“I am the law… These are my subjects, my vassals. They will do as I say, and I say you and
your sex slaves are too dangerous to live.” Leaning back on the throne Istirina smouldered,
heavy lidded eyes darkened to pools of inky black. “Take them prisoner my loyal males.”
Her scream rocked the throne room, as a mass of bodies crowded towards the warriors
surrounding the Princessin.
Without a second thought Iscatya built a protective barrier to encircle the floor space they
held. Sending calming thoughts to the males connected to her by the mate marks, she
steadied hands that held broadswords flailing in a ring of glittering bronze.
It was an impasse…
Cat and her bodyguards could translocate to safety, but she wasn’t going to leave Istirina
free to gloat over an ignominious retreat. Pushing the barrier outwards, clearing a space
wide enough for her to pace the throne room, Iscatya sent out a blast of power directly to
the Queen’s mind.
I did not want to be the one to show you the errors of your reign. I was blissfully unaware
of my heritage until the fear in your heart made me an enemy of that reign. You are my
Grandmother, I was your Granddaughter… I deny that connection now and forever.
You have left me no choice.
Cat’s pacing brought her eye to eye with a Queen, locked to her throne in disbelief at the
raging denunciation in her head. Iscatya stood squarely in front of the throne, palms raised
up, as if beseeching a blessing from the ruler of the Sovereign Court.
“I am Iscatya Edan-Fire, the Lady Vardon, Queen of the Dark Court and Edanholme.”
The brands on her arms blazed with blue fire as the crystal swords shimmered to life in
a chorus of disharmony. Clasping the hilts firmly Cat held the swords above her head, tips
meeting with a backlash of sonic fury that rocked the ground beneath her feet.
“I have been empowered with the guardianship of the oppressed by the Fates. The Swords
of Justice, Saoirse and Breith hold the choice of freedom or doom. I wield those choices.
I make the law…” Voice dropping an octave, menace dripping in every musical note, the
Princess Iscatya Edan-Fire of the Sovereign Court delivered the coup de grace, as a Queen
in her own right. A brilliant pin point of coruscating energy arced to sear the ceiling above
her head. Lowering the laser thin beam of light to sit above the throne Cat breathed slowly,
releasing the song of the swords in an auditory barrage that knocked the Court to its knees.
vengeance for all the atrocities the Queen had committed. “That is not who I am.”
Unlocking the points of the swords Cat crossed them across her breast.
“I leave you in peace with those who wish to live in a sterile realm. Any of your subjects
with the desire to dwell in a world ready to embrace all species will be welcome in my
Court. I promise here and now, I will never step foot in your domain without invitation,
unless I have need to. I also promise you will never get to play beyond the borders of
Withins Underhill…” With the deference shown to equals Cat touched Saoirse to her
forehead before spreading her arm wide. “Fare well Istirina… I know I will.”
Locking the warriors to her mind, Iscatya translocated beyond a tainted reach in the
blink of an eye.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Drusal had been held transfixed by the power play between females of similar visage but
dissimilar hearts. Istirina had been beaten back, by the unstoppable might of the swords
of justice, in the hands of a worthy guardian. In his heart he knew the blackness that
consumed the soul of his previous mistress would not be deterred by the warning implicit
in a display of energetic forces, power that could destroy the universe if it so wished.
The battle for freedom was over. The real war had just begun.
The compassion in his mate’s heart for all living beings was commendable, but vermin had
to be eradicated. If the choice had been his, he would have parted the beautiful head from
a voluptuous body without a moment’s pause.
“Why let the witch live…?” He breathed into Cat’s ear as they shimmered into being on the
verdant lawn in front of Cat’s kitchen.
A frown of annoyance puckered the smooth brow of Iscatya, Queen of two realms.
“No-one deserves to die because they are foolish. Why do you think, I brought you back
from the brink of the abyss?” Turning to face her mate Cat held the Swords of Justice out
to him. “Could you t
ake my life if I became as immoral as Istirina?”
Backing away from a female with the power to scatter his atoms to the ether, Drusal shook
his head in instant denial, he wasn’t an idiot. He would stake his life on the constancy of his
mate’s generous spirit, on the love of life that garnered her soul.
“No, I didn’t think so… She may be useless as a Queen but she is still of my blood. I do not love
her, but her essence made me who I am.” Holding her hands palm up Cat willed the swords
into abeyance. “Her power is bound to Withins Underhill. Beyond those confines, her will
to dominate is diminished to a whisper of command. We have to make ready for an influx
of refugees, Sidhe, vampire and human. The diversity of all three nations has the capacity
to subdue any further bid for domination, until a depraved court collapses from lack of new
blood.”
Dropping to one knee Drusal offered his life to a female with the capacity to envisage a
world free of restraint, a mate with a heart big enough to forgive all the pain an evil tyrant
had inflicted upon her in a remorseless attempt to hold onto a redundant throne.
The rattling of leather armour and countless weapons assaulted Cat’s ears as seven Sidhe
warriors bent on one knee to declare allegiance to their new Monarch.
“Hey guys… This is not what I want. You are free to live a life that is your own.”
Cat’s hyper-alert senses registered Alex hovering behind the glass doors of the kitchen.
“Get to your feet, embrace the challenge of independence. Edanholme holds no throne
of power to subsume the free will accorded to any being willing to accept the differences
inherent in us all.” Cat offered co-existence with a get out clause, if bigotry decided to rear
it’s ugly head in her realm. “I want to introduce you to my sister in spirit.”
A mental command flowed to all the warriors. My sister is to be treated with the respect
due to any female, whether Sidhe or human.
Six heads lifted in unison, Drusal let his gaze linger on the human female hiding beyond the