Page 16 of Honour Bound
‘I’ve known taller leprechauns,’ I told him. I rubbed my eyes. ‘There has to be something I can do.’
The genie snapped his fingers. ‘There is!’
‘I amnotgoing to make a wish.’
He nodded solemnly. ‘You can’t. But…’
A kernel of suspicion formed in my belly. ‘But what?’
Bob put his hands behind his back and acted bashful, his foot tracing a pattern on top of the table. ‘Leprechauns,’ he said.
I was puzzled. ‘What about them? Because even if they are musical, we’ll never track one down in time.’
‘Leprechauns are Irish.’ He beamed at Brochan and me as if he’d just discovered the secret of alchemy.
‘Bob,’ I said, ‘you must be all of – what? A thousand years old?’
He patted his cheeks. ‘I look young for my age. It’s closer to two.’
‘Fabulous,’ I replied drily. ‘You’re two thousand years old and you’ve only just discovered that leprechauns are Irish. Impressive.’
‘You can tease me all you like, Uh Integrity. It’s not going to change the fact that I can save your Sidhe bacon.’ He flew onto my shoulder and picked up a lock of my hair. ‘I told you you’d need me.’
‘Do you have short-term memory loss? I can’t make any wishes. It’ll nullify any chances I have of winning the Games.’
He yanked so hard on the curl that I yelped in pain. I reached up to brush him off but he danced out of my grasp and settled on the top of my head. Two tiny feet began to stamp into my skull in a continuous, drumming beat. It didn’t hurt but it wasn’t improving my mood.
‘What’s he doing?’ I asked Brochan.
The merman’s face had taken on the most peculiar expression. It wasn’t helped by his eyes starting to stream because of his proximity to Bob. Poor Brochan was allergic. ‘Riverdance, I think.’ He wiped his eyes.
Bob swung over my forehead, hanging upside down and waving. ‘Ireland is the answer!’
I growled and tried to grab him again. He disappeared in a puff of bright green smoke, reappearing on the tip of Brochan’s ear. The merman sneezed three times in quick succession but Bob didn’t react; he just crossed his legs and smiled. ‘I will do what I have never done.’
Resigned to the situation, I blew air out through my pursed lips and glared. ‘What?’
‘I will accept an IOU.’
‘Huh?’
‘IOU. I realise you are not the most intelligent Sidhe, Uh Integrity.’ He leaned down, whispering loudly to Brochan, ‘Sharp as a sack of wet mice. An IOU is…’
‘I know what an IOU is.’
‘Then what’s the problem?’ He blinked innocently.
‘You’ll help Integrity out if she promises to make another wish,’ Brochan said.
‘A pot of leprechaun gold to the man with the runny nose!’ Bob applauded noisily. He lifted an eyebrow in my direction. ‘Well?’
‘I promise to ask for a wish in the future and you’ll help me become musical?’
‘I won’t make you musical but I’ll tell you where to get the equipment you need to pass the test.’ His brow furrowed. ‘Or win the challenge. Or whatever.’
‘Equipment?’
‘Magical equipment which even you could play.’
