“Not yet. Especially me mum. She’d probably start hacking at you all with her big cleaver.”
“That seems excessive.”
“My mum’s not good with being startled. Or people with hooves.”
“You don’t seem to mind people with hooves.”
Keeley smiled. “Of course not. Your people saved my father’s life. Without your tribe I wouldn’t have siblings. You lot brought him back to me and me mum. He told me everything when I was a little girl. About the Amichais. About the different tribes. About the mountains and how beautiful they are.”
“And he told your mother?”
“Oh, gods, no!” she said on a big laugh. “My mother would have thought he was insane. She already thinks he’s a little insane. Assumes it’s all because of the few times he got his head split open when he was a soldier.”
“He didn’t tell your mother, but he told you?”
“He tried to tell her but . . . you see, we’re a lot alike, me and me da. And we don’t scare easy.”
“But your mother . . . ?”
“Doesn’t scare at all,” she said quickly. “She can be startled, but she’ll not be scared. Please don’t ever forget that. For your own sake.”
“Noted.”
“So are you going to tell me?” she pushed, the stallion now standing behind her and resting his large head on her shoulder. “Why are you and your friends here? What do you want?”
Caid took a few steps toward the lake but he didn’t step in. He simply stared out over it before announcing, “The Old King is dead.”
“I know. That’s why I’ve been making so much money lately. Mercenaries. It’s fabulous.”
“What about the future king?”
“What about him?”
“Do you not care who it might be?”
She couldn’t help but chuckle. “Why should I care? They’re all bad. They’re all cruel and greedy and I hope the hells welcome them and their royal cohorts when they die, because they’ll not get their due justice on this plain. But I’m not sure what my philosophy on the royals has to do with anything.”
“There has been a prophesy,” he said, turning to face her. “A prophesy about the next ruler.”
“And . . . ?”
“And the prophesy doesn’t call for a king. It calls for a queen. And the witches have named your sister.”
“The nun?” she snarled. Because Keeley would just bet that her nun sister would love that!
“No, no,” he said quickly. “Your other younger sister. Beatrix.”
“Oh,” Keeley replied, surprised. “I see.” She thought a moment. “Yeah. Beatrix might like that.”
* * *
Caid stared at her for so long, he lost track of time. And it could have continued for much longer except that Keeley finally said, “Is something wrong?”
“I tell you that your sister has been prophesized to be the next queen and your response is, ‘she might like that’?”
“Well, she might. It’s hard to tell with her.” She stepped closer and whispered, “I wouldn’t say she’s shy, but she’s definitely not chatty. She only tells you what she wants to tell you. But,” she added, a little louder, “she does like pretty dresses. And I’m sure she’d have no problem wearing a crown.”
Again, Caid could only stare, because he didn’t know what to make of such a response.
But then something happened. He saw it. On her face. Keeley started to think.
“Wait . . . the Old King’s sons. Do they know?”
“We’re not sure. But once they do—”
“They’ll come for her.”
Keeley suddenly paced away from Caid, and the stallion that had been standing behind her sidestepped out of her way. The horse shook his head and let out a snort, which set off the rest of his herd. Some ran away. Some stayed put, but their hooves hit the ground and they snorted their discomfort.
This was the Keeley his sister had been warned about by the witches. The one who would tear the world apart to protect her kin.
“I’ll have to talk to my parents. They’re not going to like this, but they’re not unreasonable.”
“Your sister wasn’t at dinner tonight.”
“No.”
“Why?”
She stopped pacing, shrugged. “My sister was not in the mood to entertain strangers. No offense.”
“Was that it?” Because Caid understood. He didn’t like entertaining anyone either, much less strangers.
“She’s also not a fan of Gemma.”
“Because she’s a nun?” Caid asked, only slightly joking.
Keeley did manage to smile. “Shockingly, no. They’ve never gotten along, sadly.”
“For any particular reason?”
“I would say they have different views, but Beatrix keeps her views to herself. So they’ve never liked each other.”