Blood Kin (34 page)

“What I still don’t get,” Tucker said, “is how you figured that breeding half Sidhe children would give you heirs. That’s some genetic anomaly, right?”

Point to my brother, who asked the question that I hadn’t even thought of. My great-great-granny was brilliant, conniving and beyond Machiavellian in her plotting, but there’s no way to guarantee genetics, especially not nearly forty years ago … was there?

“I’d like to hear that answer, too,” I found myself saying.

Gigi steepled her hands and brought them to her mouth, as if in thought. Was she pondering how to explain or how to, once again, prevaricate?

“What I say now, to you four, I only say because of your positions.” Gigi had gone from amused to deadly serious—a tone I’d never before heard in her voice. “I only
tell you, Keira, as my heir, and you, Aeddan ap Drystan, known as Adam Walker, as her partner and heir to the Unseelie Court. Tucker and Nicholas, you are Protectors and everything said in this room comes under privilege.”

Whoa. Privilege. I’ve only
heard
of that, never been involved in a conversation where it was invoked. Privilege, to us, was as binding as the seal of the confessional, as client/attorney discussion, as the oath taken by healers to keep their patients’ affairs secret.

I nodded, as did the men.

“Heirs are made, not born.”

“What?” “How?” “That’s impossible.” Everyone began talking and arguing, each one speaking louder than the rest until it hurt to listen to the cacophony.

“Shut up, all of you,” I demanded, the subharmonics returning. “I want to hear the explanation.” All three men immediately quieted.

Gigi, back to amused, smiled at me. “Command voice, so soon.”

“Enough from you, too,” I said, trying to keep my temper. “Damn it, Gigi, you’ve kept me in the dark long enough. Explain yourself.”

“Breeding is true,” she said, “but if the genes are there, I can tell with a quick spell. Every child born in your generation as well as the one before yours was tested. You, Gideon and Marty each had the right genes.”

“Marty? What the fuck?” This had now gone from the merely insane to the absolutely ridiculous. “Marty had no Talent, no power at all. He was a weird genetic glitch, a biological sport, one hundred percent human.”

“He was, sadly enough,” Gigi said. “When I discovered the genetic set you had, I and my companions—your father, Adam, and your mother, Keira, and Marty’s father
performed a ritual cleansing and Calling. The ritual is intended to wake the dormant genes, raise the Talent in you … to unlock the potential.”

“Marty’s had the opposite effect,” Tucker stated, clueing in.

She nodded. “Not opposite, really, so much as the genes present were so blocked that no amount of Talent could manifest. His father was heartbroken. He and Marty’s mother left our branch of the family and relocated somewhere in New Zealand.”

“Well, I’ll be—” I sank back into the comfort of the chair as I processed this new information. All these years, I believed—hell, all my family had always believed—that the Kelly heir was simply a crapshoot of genetics. Not so much. “You made us,” I said. “Me, Gideon, and poor Marty.”

“I’m afraid so,” Gigi admitted. “Although, Marty would have been himself even if we hadn’t performed the ritual.”

Small comfort that. He’d died because I hadn’t been vigilant enough. “What now, Gigi? You have two heirs. Gideon’s Below with his father. I’m here, but I really prefer not to be.”

“He and you have settled—quickly, I might add,” Gigi said. “Normally, this takes weeks, sometimes even years, as you gather your strengths. Originally, I didn’t want you here until I knew what would happen with Gideon.”

“But then, why did you have Isabel come get me when he was in a coma?”

Gigi ducked her head, avoiding eye contact. Okay, that was new. She’d never done that before.

“Frankly, Keira, I was afraid I’d made a terrible mistake with him.”

“How so?”

“He began to suspect he was the heir. I think he also learned who his father was. He’d come back to the Clan, not too long after we relocated. I believe he overheard some conversations he was never meant to hear or somehow obtained information intentionally kept from him.”

“Gigi, please, of all people, you should have known better. Gideon is the consummate eavesdropper and shortcut taker.”

“That’s exactly why I sent for you.”

“Sorry?”

“Gideon took a shortcut. He determined that he could force the Change by magick overload, forcing the neardeath experience. I’m afraid he ended up in a coma. I wanted you to come, to help him along as Escort if this meant his death. And if he died, I wanted you to be here to be recognized as my heir. The reason for Gideon’s death—that he thought himself heir and died trying to Change—might be guessed. It would be important to show there was an heir already. Besides, I wanted to have you in my territory.”

“Texas is still your territory, Gigi,” I reminded her. “As is all of the Americas. For that matter, you pretty much rule over all the Clan in the UK and parts of Switzerland—at least, the ones that aren’t officially neutral.”

“It’s one thing to have you in Texas, my sweet, but another to have you nearby. Besides, your vampire rules there now.”

“Over the vampires,” I agreed. “Not us.”

Gigi shrugged, a girlish gesture not at odds with her current appearance.

“Truth, but now that you are partnered with him …”

“My partnership, as you call it, does not include in any
way, shape or form, authority over his tribe, Gigi. Nor, for that matter, over the Unseelie Court.”

“It could.” Adam looked at me, then at Gigi. “I claimed Keira, as she has me,” he said. “We have a blood bond, as I do with Niko and the rest of my tribe. She has as much authority with my people as Nikolai and I do. In my father’s eyes, as my companion, she is heir alongside me.”

I
GAPED
at the two of them, then looked over at Niko and Tucker, both of whom seemed to be struggling with this concept as well. “Seriously? You’re not just saying this?”

“Why would I? I admit, I’ve enjoyed my solitude, my independence over the years, but if keeping you and yours safe means returning to my involvement with my father’s court, I will do so. You would do the same for me and mine, would you not?” He amended the last. “In fact, you have. You risked your life for me, you’ve saved your friend Bea. You are a leader and a ruler in your very nature, Keira. Take this opportunity. If it means relocating to British Columbia, then so be it.” He bowed to Gigi. “I will go where she goes.”

Gigi’s eyes locked with Adam’s, both of them equals in many things, including power and damned stubbornness. I noticed Tucker had crossed his arms and pasted a “wait and see” expression on his face. Niko had dropped into vampire stillness.

For the first time since we’d returned, I wondered where Rhys and Daffyd were. Knowing Gigi, she’d had them go off on some fool’s errand, aka, make yourselves scarce.

“You’d abandon your tribe?” Gigi finally asked, gaze never wavering.

Adam responded, “I would not. There is a great deal of land in British Columbia. Much wildlife. My tribe would
do well here as in Texas, perhaps even better. There’s not such heat here.”

“And it rains a lot and is overcast,” Tucker added. “Convenient.”

“Keira.” Gigi turned her attention to me. “Would you be content coming here to the Clan enclave? Learning to be my heir, living amongst the Kellys?”

“You’re
asking
me?” Why was she all of a sudden asking and not telling? “What about Gideon?”

“Do not think of him. If he did not exist, would you want to come here? Live with family, be a part of the Clan and learn to become the Clan chief? Would you work with me to unite all the Other, become a power in the modern world?”

I shuddered. Politics. Damn. The last thing I ever wanted to think about. “Do I have a choice?” I asked. “Isn’t this what being the Kelly heir is all about?”

Gigi studied me without answering. She stood and walked to me, looking down on my face, on my position. Without realizing it, I’d been gripping the arms of the chair as if it were about to take off into the air. Beside me, Adam still draped an arm over my shoulder. Tucker and Niko still stood to the side and slightly behind, each with a hand on the back of the chair.

“Look at you,” she said quietly. “Already ruling. Already their leader. Adam may be king, but he rules with your well-being foremost in his mind. And you have a Protector from both Kelly and vampire clans already in your service. Whether you realize it or not, Keira, you are already uniting. In your small group of four, you’ve united both Sidhe Courts, our Clan and the vampires. You’ll be a force to be reckoned with, child. Perhaps not now, but in time … in time.” She bent and placed a kiss on the top of
my head. A tingle of energy ran through me. She’d given me her blessing.

My great-great-grandmother returned to her seat. “I believe that, for now, I prefer you return to Texas. You and Adam can watch over the territory there. Gideon can remain Below for a while, reacquainting himself with his Sidhe heritage. He is also heir, but I intend to rule for a long time yet. We can readdress this sometime … later, I think.” She settled into the comfortable chair. “You’re going to need more family around, though. I believe I’ll send Rhys and Ianto to you. Your father and Isabel will surely visit at some point. They were looking forward to seeing you while you were out here, but … well, the schedule didn’t work out, did it?”

I studied her for a moment. “You had them go straight to the enclave because Gideon had disappeared, am I right? Woke up and scarpered. Figures.”

My great-great-granny didn’t even bother to address my remarks. She continued explaining her plans.

“I’ll send the Sidhe Daffyd back to his own Court, but I will have perhaps one or two others join you, as you’ll need some training.” She looked at Adam. “There is room at that ranch of yours, is there not?”

Adam nodded, his face giving nothing away. Despite his lack of expression, I could feel the tension leaving his skin. I hadn’t noticed how wound up he had been, probably because I was myself. I couldn’t even look at Niko or Tucker, afraid to break out in hysterical laughter.

“Seriously?” I frowned at her. There had to be a catch. Surely she couldn’t be letting me go like that? Not after everything? “You’re going to let us go back to Texas, split up the family?”

“I’m not splitting up the family,” Gigi said, a self
satisfied smile making me want to think she’d chased, killed and eaten something delectable. I wouldn’t put it past her, actually. “Merely expanding my … our base of operations.”

“Our?” I couldn’t help the sarcasm that crept its way out of my mouth.

The canary-swallowed smile expanded. “Despite everything, darling, you are still one of my heirs.”

Oh, for fuck’s sake. I was getting my own Court. A retinue and all that came with this ridiculous position.

Rio Seco, Texas, was never going to be the same.

Aftermath

T
HE SONG
plays in the wind of the night, although there is no one there to hear it, no one to Call. Melody weaves into harmony, into the beat, beat, beat of the hearts pounding together in utter synchronicity. John picks up his guitar one more time, fingers straining to recapture that song, wondering why it’s so elusive. Rodney prods him, ready to accompany him on the bodhrán.

“I can’t remember it,” John says. “It’s gone.”

“I do,” Rodney says. “Here, let me.”

He begins to hum.

After a moment, John’s fingers find the notes.

Far below them, Underhill, a dark-haired bard picks up his lute and joins in.