Faith is Fallen (Broken Fantasies Series)

Chapter 13

Author's Note:  Well, now.  Posted Chapter 13 on Friday the 13th.  Isn't that cool?

Cara or, as everyone called her now, Lady Cara fell into her new role easily. After all, she'd been trained from birth to be a queen. The lady of a Scottish clan wasn't any sort of stretch of her abilities.

Niall followed her around like an overprotective puppy dog. Granted, an overprotective puppy dog that asked too many questions and seemed entirely too observant. She suspected it was only a matter of time before he put two and two together, and while Conall had taken it well, she doubted any other human would. They were notoriously superstitious, religious, and prone to violence against things they didn't understand.

Cara had developed a habit of watching the men train. Well, she'd developed the habit of watching off of her new subjects, really. She wanted to get a feel for how the clan operated, its ebbs and flows, its needs and desires. But watching the men train always made her smile. Conall always stood in the middle of it, a sight of magnificence in a sea of muscle, wool and sweat. Which sounded a lot worse than it looked, she supposed.

She stood outside the training grounds, arms rested on the fence, when a commotion arose from the gates. Cara stood up to investigate. The gate and attached walls stood tall, well above her head, protecting their people from attack, so it alarmed her when she turned the corner to find the gate closed, and guards yelling down to the other side.

Cara huffed, and ran for the stairs to get to the top of the wall, grateful that she'd had a hard time standing straight when they were measuring her for dresses and thus all her dresses were just a little bit too short, making it a little easier to run in. Granted, a lady wasn't supposed to touch her skirts, but who here really cared?

She reached the guards at the wall slightly out of breath. "What is going on? Why are the gates down?"

They both looked at her slightly alarmed.

"We, um." In the end, he just pointed over the wall.

Cara leaned over, looking down to see a single woman, dressed in elegant garments, but a single woman nonetheless. "A woman? You closed the gates because a woman came calling at them? Isn't that a little... excessive?"

"There is something... wrong about her. Alarming."

Cara looked down again, paying more attention, reaching out with her senses. There was something different about the woman, menacing, dangerous. It brought to mind power and death. These two men wouldn't have been able to pinpoint what they were sensing, but the fact that they responded to it spoke well of them. "Good work, men. I see what you mean." She called down to the woman. "My lady. What business have you with the clan McKay?"

"Why, I am here to see my daughter, Cara."

"Mother?" She leaned over the wall, trying to get a better look. "Is it really you?"

Her mother pushed off her hood, revealing the hair beneath that seemed to shimmer even in ways that a glamor could not completely hide. "Of course. Did you think I would receive news that you were not coming back home lightly? Of course, I have come."

Cara turned to the guards. "Raise the gate."

"Of course, my lady," they said in unison.

Cara turned and ran down the stairs, beating the opening of the gates, so she had to wait impatiently for them to open. When they squeaked open enough to sneak through, she ran forward and into her mother's arms, calling, "Mother!"

"Oh, Cara," her mother said, wrapping her in her arms. "My baby."

Cara rested her head on her mother's shoulder, soaking up the attention as her mother ran her hand tenderly over her hair.

"Oh, I've missed you, darling."

Cara lifted her head, a bright smile on her face. "I've missed you, too. Come, I'll introduce you to Conall."

"Yes, let's."

"How are things in Faery?"

Her mother shook her head. "Not the same without you, I can assure you of that."

"Oh, Mother. You're just saying that."

"Oh, but it's true! And I wanted to rip Beathan limb from limb when I heard he tried to kill you. Oh, that ungrateful little weasel. How could I have possibly birthed such a wretch?"

"Well, you've got me."

"Yes, but you won't come home."

"This is home now."

"Oh, hush, darling." She stretched her hands out to the space around them. "This will never be home."

"I can't go back, Mother. Didn't Roderick explain it to you?"

Queen Caoimhe waved the statement off. "Hush. You don't belong here."

Cara stepped in front of her mother, and held her by the shoulders. "I can't go back. I wouldn't fit in. And right now I certainly wouldn't be safe."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm weak. I have almost no magic at the moment. The most I've managed to do since my injury is summon a cup of cider. It would be dangerous for me to return."

"Really? That's it? Oh, baby."

"Oh, don't worry, Mother. I'm sure once I recover it'll come back. A person doesn't go from being one of the strongest Fae in existence to powerless. At least not for good."

"I'm sure you're right, Cara. So, who's this Conall fellow?"

"He's in the training grounds. Conall!"

He turned and smiled at her, jogging over to her. "Hello, Cara. Who's this?" He reached out his hand. "Hi, I'm Conall McKay, head of the McKay clan."

"Caoimhe, Cara's mother. It's a pleasure to meet you. Come, we should talk."