Page 41 of Sigils & Spells

When we step outside, the fresh air hits me and I’m woken from the stupor. Suddenly, it all comes rushing back to me. Fionn’s love, his cruelty, my nights with Cormac. It’s overwhelming. Panicked by the influx of memories, I break free from Val and Rowan and start to run.

“Connor, go after her,” Val instructs.

I make it all the way around to the back of the house before he catches me. He grabs my arm, swings me around and hoists me over his shoulder with insulting ease I kick and scream as he brings me back to where the others wait. He sets me down but keeps a tight grip on my arm.

“Conduct yourself with dignity,mo bhanrigh,” Val urges, addressing me as her queen for the first time. “There will be consequences if you misbehave. Do not defy him.”

My heart pounds furiously as Connor drags me up the steep side of the hill. Ahead of us is a ring of flaming torches. As we reach the peak, I see people, dozens of them. I look again. No, they aren’t people. These tall, elegant creatures with the long hair and piercing eyes are faeries. I wouldn’t have believed it if I couldn’t see them for myself. My heart lurches as I see a man, bound to a whipping post with heavy chains. His pale eyes meet mine and I feel a tug of recognition. Cormac.

Another man steps forward and I know instantly he’s the one from my dreams. A shudder shakes me as he moves close and curves a hand around my cheek. Fear spikes through me as his violet eyes fix on my face. As he caresses me, something else takes hold of me — arousal. I may dread this man, but I’m drawn to him as well.

“Do you know who I am, Cait?”

Taking in his shimmering, midnight blue tunic and black leather pants, I nod. I could live a thousand lifetimes and never shake off the memory of his penetrating gaze, his coldly handsome face.

“You’re Fionn, King of Laidir.”

“That’s right.” He smiles, a gesture which holds some warmth. “But do you know who you are?”

I shake my head, not yet willing to admit what I know deep inside.

“You are Caitlyn Dubh, my Queen.” He bends and kisses my lips before pulling back. “Do you remember now?”

CHAPTER9

Fionn

Cait staresat me for several long seconds before nodding slowly. She really is beautiful in this form. That flowing, jet black hair against her porcelain skin is magnificent. Her body is slender, with just enough shape to make her womanly. With such long, elegant limbs, she could almost be Fae-born, like the original bearer of her soul. My queen chose a magnificent vessel to carry her essence, and I can’t wait to make her mine once more.

“Who are you?” I ask her.

She blinks a couple of times. “I’m yours.”

“That’s right, Cait. You’re mine. Do you know what happens next?”

Her eyes dart toward the stone slab at the center of the hill’s peak and she swallows hard. Good, she remembers. When I first took her as my queen, millennia ago, we held the ceremony here, as my father and grandfather did before me when they claimed their brides. The ritual is a simple one. There is an exchange of promises, the relationship is consummated, and then I crown my queen. Following that, a blood offering is made and we return to Laidir as man and wife.

“Yes, but I..uh….”

Whatever objection she’s about to raise, I cannot allow her to speak it in front of witnesses. There are too many people hovering around us.

“Everyone, take your positions!” I command and people scatter, leaving me and Cait alone. I caress her cheek, loving the fragility of her bones beneath my hand. “Don’t try to defy me, Cait. You know we belong together. Fate decreed it.”

Her eyes drift over to where my esteemed prisoner is shackled to a post.

“And Cormac? What has Fate decreed should happen to him?”

Anger pulses through my veins. She didn’t know who I was when I visited her dreams, but she seems to know him straight away. I tamp down my fury. There will be time enough to punish her for her treachery with my closest friend once I have her back in Laidir with me.

“Fate will not determine what happens to Cormac,” I tell her. “You will.”

Cait’s gorgeous blue eyes widen.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that if you perform the bonding ceremony willingly, I will gift his life to you.”

She huffs out a breath that suggests disbelief.

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