I watched them warily. ‘Afraid of what?’
‘We’re too close to the Foinse. Its hold here is too strong. Our Gifts won’t work.’
Diana’s brow furrowed. ‘How are we going to fix it then?’
‘There will be a way,’ Aifric said.
‘How do you know?’
‘Because there has to be,’ he replied simply.
Tension uncoiled deep within me. How could this have happened? How could they be so poorly prepared that they’d not thought about this eventuality? It was beyond ridiculous.
I made an effort to get off Barbie and swung one leg round. Sharp needles of pain shot through my legs and I thought better of it.
‘You should never walk into something without knowing what the possible outcomes are!’ I said, throwing my hands up in the air even though it made me wobble dangerously and almost fall off the saddle. ‘We might make the Foinse worse instead of better! I put my trust in you lot. I thought you knew what you were doing!’
‘Shut that bitch up,’ the Darroch Chieftain muttered.
In a flash, Byron was in front of her. ‘Don’t call her that. She didn’t have to come here and help us.’
Actually, I kind of did, Byron. You forced me into it.
‘Yeah,’ sneered Malcolm, ‘you don’t want to annoy her. She might go nuts just like her father and murder us all.’
‘That’s enough!’ Aifric roared. ‘I understand tensions are running high but this is neither the time nor the place! We have far greater things to worry about. This young lady has endured two attempts on her life and yet she’s still here. Do you remember when you found the adder in your bed, Dorienne? You didn’t leave your lands for a year after that! She’s here helping and she’s braver than the lot of you.’
I felt flustered at the attention and unhappy that my outburst had caused a scene. All these Sidhe wankers – myself included – had a lot of pent-up frustration. Maybe I should recommend yoga?
‘We’ll go to the Foinse and see what the situation is,’ Aifric continued. ‘If we can’t fix it without our Gifts, then at least we can try to understand what the problem is. If we need to go back to the Cruaich and re-group then that’s what we do.’
I was alarmed. I didn’t want to spend any longer among this lot than was necessary, even if a delay meant there was less likely to be another attempt to kill me. Besides, if I stuck around to find out what had really happened to my parents and the rest of the Adair Clan, I wanted it to be on my terms, not because I was forced to wait for someone to come up with a solution for the Foinse.
I looked at their faces. There was a lot of anger towards me, bitterness towards Aifric and resignation that our quest was already doomed. Taylor was a great believer in positive thinking when it came to heists. If we walked into a job thinking we were going to fail, then we would. What was needed around here was some optimism.
I drew in a breath. ‘I’m sorry. I spoke out of turn. I am sure that our combined intellect can find a way to restore the Foinse. You guys are the best and brightest of your Clans. Of course we can do this.’
‘Go Chieftain!’ Lily yelled.
I winced at the sour expressions on the faces of the Kincaids and Darrochs. Yoga was out and a group hug was probably not a good idea, either. We needed something – however temporary – to band us together.
‘Let’s take a photo!’ I burst out. ‘All of us together. Then we’ll have it for posterity.’
There were a few grumbles. ‘Good idea,’ Byron said briskly. ‘Do you have a camera?’
Shite. I thought quickly. ‘No, but I’ve got my phone.’ I dug it out of my pocket. ‘You lot get together and I’ll take it.’
Lily shook her head solemnly. ‘No, Chieftain. I will not travel any further from here, so I’ll take the photo. The Saviours of the Foinse together!’
The others looked at Aifric. He smiled and nodded. ‘Come on then.’
I slid down from Barbie, using Lily as a crutch to stop my knees from giving way. Then I handed her the camera. Aifric took centre stage and placed his arms round the shoulders of the Darroch and the Kincaid Chieftains. Their smiles were fixed and forced – but at least there were smiles.
Diana and Malcolm joined in. I stood awkwardly to the side until Byron beckoned me. He placed his arm round my waist and grinned. Malcolm leaned as far away from my body as possible. Subtlety was clearly not his thing.
‘What did Cinderella say when she left the photo store?’ I asked Malcolm. Byron’s arm tightened. I tried to ignore the way he drew me closer and that his hand was holding me possessively.
‘Everyone say cheese!’ Lily said.
‘Some day my prints will come,’ I said, pasting on a huge smile. ‘Cheese!’