Slamming (Through Time 3)

Aaibhe came to her to put an arm around her, but Frankie was now upset and forgot herself as she shrugged the Queen’s hand off and stepped away, “Da! Where is Da?” She turned to Jazz whose eyes were tear-filled and whose cheeks were wet. She knew. She ran to Jazz and hugged her tightly and whispered, “Don’t let anything happen to m’da and Trevor.”

Jazz was choked up. In the end, Trevor and Deimne had set aside their objections. They had formulated a plan that Jazz felt was doomed from the outset. Her gut told her that Pestale was ready for them and that what he was planning was something they would not be able to control.

Trevor had disregarded the Queen’s command and Deimne had apologized with a tilt of his head. He said that he must give Trevor back-up. The two, as requested sent their message on the wind to Graely.

Chapter Twenty

BANZAR’S EYES WERE slits as he thought about Aaibhe and paced in the comfort of his home.

His lip curled as he thought of what she had done to him. He would never forgive her for humiliating him. The others might wish to move on and forget the horror of their present positions, but he would not…could not forget.

Everywhere he went; Fae looked at him and shook their heads. He had lost his position on the Council and if that was degrading enough everyone knew what he had tried to do, and his brethren seemed to despise him for it.

They didn’t understand that their Queen that they purported to admire so very much, was a traitor to their way of life!

He would get his revenge.

He had the means to it.

The other ex-Council members were trying to get a semblance of their old life back, but he was moving on with his into another facet. He was going to make life just what he had planned it to be.

His eyes were bright with his obsession and his lips were curved, but the smile held only a frigid breath of air as the words he whispered were filled with hatred. He knew himself obsessed, but didn’t care. He told himself he wasn’t going mad, for he had long ago taken the waters of the Cauldron to stave off the madness that comes with immortality. He swept his loose and bright red locks behind his handsome head and looked at himself in the mirror. He believed he was beautiful, with black glittering eyes so unlike most of his kind. He was also smarter than most non-royals.

He reveled in his own brilliance in the quiet of his study. He turned away from his reflection in the long looking glass. It was a good thing that he had foresight and an understanding of the history of the Royal Scepter.

Things would soon change for Queen Aaibhe.

She was not expecting any retaliation for her actions and he would take her by surprise.

He laughed out loud as he thought how easy it had been to steal the Royal Scepter from her.

The Queen was notorious for sending off her magical artifacts and then forgetting about their existence. She did so in his presence only a few months ago. Fearing that it would fall into the wrong hands during the war with Gaiscioch, she sent it off to keep it safe.

However, he had been watchful and had casually suggested she make a record of its whereabouts. She had laughed but had then done just that, right in his presence. Another fault of the Queen. She trusted her fellow Fae. She should not have.

It was an easy thing to open her record book which she neglected to put away immediately. It was also easy to locate the dimension and retrieve and study the Royal artifact to learn how to manipulate its many powers It must be ready for use when all else failed.

All else had failed and the Scepter would now do what his peaceful coup could not. He would send the Queen off to a dimension from which she could not escape.

Banzar would do that and then he would turn to his fellow Fae and show them just how powerful he was.

Only one problem remained. He was not of Royal blood and the Scepter’s inner most powerful magic would only respond to a Royal. He had only been able to access the least powerful of its magic threads.

“Never mind,” he said to the empty room. “It will do what I need. He la

ughed out loud and it was the sound of madness, but he told himself it was purpose.

~*~

Jazz took Frankie’s hand in hers and shifted to the lovely pink sands of the beach at Tir.

Frankie needed some down time with her and in spite of her concern, regarding Trevor she bucked up her spirits for Frankie’s sake.

They walked in a comfortable silence for a moment and then Frankie said, “Da sent me a message just a moment ago. He didn’t say much. It was more a whisper in m’head, it was. Just m’name and that he would see me soon.”

“And he will,” Jazz said with a comforting smile.

“That’s just it. Jazz. I know that devil Pestale is up to something. Ye see…Graely told me.”