Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

"There are whispers in many places of Elspeth's travel from the forgotten realms," her father said almost casually, and everyone at the table listened intently. When he saw he had their rapt attention, he went on. "Not just in the mortal realm, where my coverage is admittedly spotty, but in other places. Her passage from such a place would have made an unmistakable ripple in the fabric of the universe and especially in those places much more in tune with the currents of magic and energy than the mortal plane. I cannot definitively confirm that she is now in your world," he nodded to both Billy and Gavin, "but there is mounting evidence that she has indeed traveled somewhere. And where else would she go but there? That is where her greatest power lies with her myriad followers and that blood magic many of them practice. It would have taken a great deal of that sort of evil energy to retrieve her, and that is what I believe happened, based on current evidence. I will, of course, be pursuing the matter with my network, hoping to get confirmation and will pass anything I hear in that vein along to you, daughter."

"Thank you, Father," Amalie replied, looking a bit pale, but she took a deep breath and seemed to regain some of her stamina. "So, it looks like this really is going to happen. War," she breathed. "Like the last great war against Elspeth and her followers."

"Part two," Gavin added, nodding, a grim cast to his mouth.

"There won't be a part three if we do this right," Billy said, speaking it like a vow. If he had anything to do with it, they would end the threat of Elspeth, once and for all.

"Don't be so sure about that," Amalie's father cautioned gently. "In the last great war against her, we had marshalled many forces to fight hers. The battle went on for many, many years, and she was in the crosshairs many times, but she is very hard to kill. In fact, we finally settled on the idea of banishment because nobody seemed to have the right sort of magic, or skill, or whatever it was we needed and didn't have, to end her."

"You fought her, sir?" Gavin asked. "You were part of the great war?"

The fey lord nodded. "It was I who opened the portal to the forgotten realms, and with great difficulty and much loss of life, our forces managed to push her through. I have never opened such a portal before or since. It is not something that is easy, even for me, but it was the best we could come up with to give our peoples respite. She was a cunning foe, and she killed so many…" He trailed off, his eyes gaining a faraway look that spoke volumes.

Billy had seen that sort of look before on the faces of combat veterans who had seen way too much loss of life. He understood.

"This time, we'll come up with something better," Billy said. "Though your plan gained our side centuries of peace in which to rebuild our forces and gain new skills."

"Have you, though? I am concerned that many in the mortal realm seem not to remember what we went through centuries ago. Even those that were there—and I'm speaking of my mother-in-law's coven here—don't seem to have changed much over the intervening years." Amalie's father looked almost angry about what he seemed to see as a lack of preparation.

"I think you might be surprised about the Marsh Witches, Father," Amalie said gently. "I lived among them, and they are much more powerful than they look."

"And they probably didn't even need us as backup during the siege. They probably could have withstood just about anything within their circle," Billy added. "Those women are scary good mages."

"Yet it was the unexpected appearance of an elemental that ended the siege," Lord Aclodonne pointed out.

Billy nodded, ceding the point. "According to our intel, more and more elementals are coming to awareness of their powers. Also, more mixed matings are happening, elevating power levels as the couples feed each other's strengths. It feels like we've been unconsciously preparing for the past several years, though none of us realized it. I've even been told of djinn power returning to our world. All of us have been out there, fighting evil wherever we encountered it and that's something we'll continue to do. A lot of shifters have elite military training and have left the service to form their own groups that work on the side of Light."

"They have?" Lord Aclodonne seemed very interested, and Billy didn't see any reason not to tell him the basics, though he would not give away any specifics in deference to his colleagues.

"The bear shifters have a town full of ex-Spec Ops warriors who just fought off the leviathan and its minions. Then, there are the Wraiths. They are an elite shifter mercenary group that only takes on very special missions. There's another active military group of which some of the Clan Kinkaids are part—" Billy nodded to Gavin. "They are definitely fighting on the side of Light under command of an Admiral who is, himself, a very powerful and ancient elemental according to my sources. And that's just the ones I know about in North America. I'm certain there are other groups all over the world, doing the same thing in their regions."

"I'm glad to hear it," Lord Aclodonne said, relief clear on his aristocratic features. "I just hope it will be enough."

*

Amalie spent the rest of the afternoon visiting with her mother while Billy rested in one of the many guest chambers. His wounds had been healed, but he was still lower on energy than usual and needed rest, according to the Healer Janus. Gavin went off with Geoff on a tour of the garrison and the castle grounds while her father spent time checking in with the rest of his network.

"I like him," her mother said out of the blue, surprising Amalie into confusion.

"Who?" Amalie prevaricated.

"Don't be coy, darling. I'm speaking of Billy, of course. It's clear he's very interested in you."

Amalie felt her cheeks heating. "Don't be silly, Mom."

"You're the one being silly. Did you think I wouldn't notice the way you two look at each other?" Her mother scoffed but grinned. "I won't say much more, but I do like him. He seems like a very fine man, and he's handsome as sin."

"Mother!"

Amalie privately agreed, but this wasn't something she wanted to discuss with her mother. Her dating life in faerie had been extremely limited and rather disappointing, so she'd never really talked of such things with anybody here. Nobody in the mortal realm either, come to think of it.

"Don't look so shocked, my girl. I want you to find a nice boy and settle down. I want you to be happy, even if you can't do that here. And if you're going to stay in the mortal realm, and bad times are coming, then you should have a strong mate who can protect you. Someone you can work with and who will take you seriously. I think that nice Billy is that kind of man. He didn't try to talk over you or belittle your ideas. He seemed to take in everything you said and really think things through before he spoke. He may be a warrior, but I'm guessing he's a smart one." Her mother grinned again. "I do like him."

Amalie just shook her head, giving in. "I like him too," she admitted, feeling heat flood her cheeks. "And he is wicked smart and really skilled. But I almost got him killed by taking Mrs. Entwistle's bait and leaving my safe room. I couldn't let him battle a Tauror on his own with that old witch making him stumble." She cringed at the memory.

"As long as you learn from the encounter," her mother said, a sage tone in her voice. "And don't let it happen again."

"I only had one plan. I never considered that I wouldn't be alone when trouble came to call," Amalie admitted. "I'll know to make contingency plans in the future. I think that's something Billy can help me with. They do that kind of thing a lot in the military, from what I hear."

"I've heard the same thing," her mother agreed, grinning again. "And if it keeps you working with Billy, so much the better. I want some grandchildren before I get too much older."

"Mother!" Amalie laughed even as she was scandalized by the direction of her mother's words. "I only just met the man."

"But already you've fought evil together and spent time getting to know one another. I can see you care about him, and if I'm not much mistaken, he definitely feels something for you, my dear."

"You think so?" Amalie sounded pathetic, she was sure.

"Oh, come on," her mother chided. "Anybody can see the way he looks at you. I think he's well and truly smitten. Just don't scare him off by acting indifferent."

"I don't act indifferent," Amalie objected, then thought about her past experiences. "Do I?"

Her mother shook her head, her expression turning more serious. "I can't blame you for not wanting to show your feelings. I know you were hurt by Lord Balishara's brat when you were younger. It was safer not to let anyone know your true feelings after he treated you so badly. But that was a long time ago, and he was a twerp who couldn't tie his own shoes unless his father told him how, when, and where to do it. He hasn't improved with age, I'm sorry to say. But not all men are like that. Your Billy, now…" Her mother smiled again, and her eyes sparkled. "He's no twerp."

You can say that again , Amalie thought to herself.

"Now, you should rest a bit before dinner. We've invited the new Duchess of Alundela and her husband to dine with us. You'll like her. She was raised in the mortal realm too. In fact, she didn't know anything about her heritage until just recently, and though she's newly wed and very much in love with her husband, I think she misses the simple comforts of her old life. Your old gowns should still fit, and everything is just where you left it in your room."

"I didn't expect a big dinner, Mom." Amalie tried to protest even as her mother shooed her out. "I thought we'd just open a portal and go back as soon as Billy was fit enough.

"Nonsense," Lady Aclodonne said quickly. "You've only been here a few hours. You can leave after dinner, if that's really what you want, but I wanted a bit more time with you. You don't come home often enough."

Amalie hugged her mother. "I'm sorry, Mom. I was doing my human thing for as long as I could get away with it, but now that I'm firmly back on the magic road, I'll make it a point to come visit you a lot more often." She drew back and kissed her mother's cheek.

"See that you do," her mother scolded but smiled. "Now, shoo. Get ready for a nice dinner. I really think you're going to hit it off with the new Duchess."

Bemused, Amalie went to her room, which was still just down the hall from her parents' suite. There, she found a hot bath awaiting her, and she undressed and sank into the warm water with a sigh of weary happiness. It had been a long day.

A few hours later, after a refreshing nap and a change into one of the pretty fey gowns she had left behind here when she'd moved to the mortal realm, Amalie went looking for Billy. She found him just coming out of the guest room where he'd rested most of the afternoon. He was attired in fey clothing as well. Likely borrowed from one of the high-born soldiers. Billy looked absolutely delicious in the soft leather breeches and fancy tunic with masculine embroidery around the hem, sleeves and collar. She wanted to lick him up, but that would have to wait.

"You look like a fairy princess," he said, a sexy growl in his voice as she walked up to him.

"Well, you're partially right. I'm not a princess and only half-fey, but you were close," she allowed, smiling up at him. "You look pretty nice yourself," she told him, scaling back the superlative words she really wanted to use. He looked handsome. Hot. Sexy. Stunning. Lickable.

But she couldn't tell him that. She dared not. Not in a public hallway. But maybe later… If she could get him alone. Preferably in a bedroom…

Gavin joined them, looking a little uncomfortable in his own borrowed finery, but he was pleasant, as he always seemed to be. They exchanged greetings, and he told them about his afternoon touring the armory, garrison and grounds with Geoff while Amalie guided them to the dining hall.

When they entered, both men went on instant alert.