“Your father would be proud of you, my love.”
Lulach smiled. “I hope so. When I… When I see him, he does seem proud.”
I stopped and looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“Nothing. It was nothing.”
I touched the mark on his forehead. “My little love, don’t tell me it was nothing. I have told you the story of how you got this mark and what the shape means. Did you see the tattoo on Lord Banquo’s brow?”
Lulach nodded.
“Please, tell me what you meant.”
“In the garden… Sometimes I see a man there. He watches me, and he seems pleased. And other times, there is a lady there. She often seems very sad, but she smiles at me when I look at her.”
“Our blood is special. People from our family are often sensitive to the otherworld. One day, when the madness is done, I will see to it you learn more. But you must not speak of what you see to anyone else save me and Lord Banquo. It is not strange to see spirits. Only special people can.”
“Can you?”
“Yes. I see them too.”
“Is that my father? The very tall man with the brown hair? He wears the blue and green of Moray. Sometimes he has a falcon on his arm.”
“Yes.” My stomach clenched hard.
Lulach smiled then took my hand once more. He led me into the stables. From the back of the barn, I heard the sounds of little growls and barks. Grinning, Lulach led me to the stall. Why Thora had decided to have her pups in the barn was beyond me, but the stablemaster ensured she was not disturbed, and we all brought her food and drink. Thora’s wild batch of puppies, five in all, rolled around, fighting and playing with one another.
“The stablemaster has been letting them out. They’re big enough now to survive on their own, but sometimes they get under the horses’ feet, so he pens them up when it’s busy to keep them safe.”
I opened the gate so Lulach and I could slip inside.
Thora lifted her head and wagged her tail.
“Well, bonnie lass. What a brood you have here,” I said, tossing her the bread.
Still true to her mark, she snapped the bread from the air and chewed happily, her tail wagging.
“Mum,” Lulach said, looking down.
I followed his gaze to one of the puppies. There, sleeping in the corner, was a puppy I did not recognize. The sweet little bundle had white fur and one roan-colored ear.
“Who is this?” I asked.
I bent down and reached out to pet the little thing. He woke up groggily then went directly to Lulach, his tail wagging.
I glanced back at Thora. “Now what trouble have you gotten us into?”
Thora let out a muffled bark then wagged her tail again.
“Maybe the stablemaster found a runt. Mum, how cute he is! Have you ever seen a dog like this before?”
“Seen? No. But I’ve heard tell of dogs like these,” I said then petted the pup who wagged his tail when he looked at me. I glanced around the stall, and then I spotted it. Where the puppy had been lying sat a single red rose.
I picked it up, inhaling the fragrance. I smiled. “The puppy is a gift for you, Lulach.”
“For me? From who?”
I handed the rose to him. The boy’s brow furrowed. He inhaled the rose then gave it back to me. “But it’s not the season for roses.”
“No. Not here, at least.”
“Not here, then—”
“The pup is cú sídhe, like Thora.”
Lulach laughed as the dog licked his chin. “Thora the faerie dog. Now, that I believe.”
I shook my head at Thora. “Did Eochaid buy your silence with treats?”
Thora looked at me out of the side of her eye then wagged her tail.
I rolled my eyes.
“You will need to name him. And one of Thora’s puppies will need to go to Fleance or I will never hear the end of it.”
“Angus,” Lulach said at once.
“Angus?”
Lulach nodded. “It is my favorite name.”
“All right. Angus it is. Well, Thora, you suppose Fleance can take one of your bairn off your hands? We’ll need to get the pup trained to live in the castle.”
Thora thumped her tail, yawned, then closed her eyes and went back to sleep. Couldn’t blame her. Her pups were a rambunctious lot.
Lulach and I stayed a bit and played with the puppies. They were cute but wild, and all of them were black like Thora with the exception of Angus.
“Well, Angus, are you ready to see inside the castle?” I asked the little fey puppy who cocked his head at me.
I grinned at him. There was no doubt in my mind that Eochaid had brought the puppy. I only wished Eochaid had stayed. I missed Sid’s sweet boy. How old would he be now? Twelve or so? I wasn’t sure. With those who walk between the worlds, their age never runs the same, as it does for Thora and me. I gave all the puppies a good pat then turned to Lulach, motioning that we should go back.
Admittedly, I was anxious to return to Banquo.
When we returned to the castle, we found Banquo and his men had finished their meal. Fleance sat beside his father, hanging on Banquo’s every word. Upon seeing us with the puppy, Fleance slipped off his bench, but then he thought better of it.
“Father, may I see what Lulach has?”
Banquo looked up, glancing at Lulach and the fey bundle he held, then at me. He smiled softly.
A lump rose in my throat. Here was my love. Our children, not born of a union between us but every bit ours, with us. It was everything I ever wanted.
“Lulach, what have you found?” Banquo called.
“Thora had a litter of puppies,” Lulach said.
“And has taken in a foundling,” I added.
Banquo reached out for the puppy who greeted him with a lick on the hand. “How unusually colored,” he said, eyeing over the dog.
“I’ve heard stories about dogs like that,” one of Banquo’s men said, pointing to the pup. “You’ve found a fey thing, little Lord of Moray. The good neighbors have blessed you with a fine hunting dog.”
I glanced at Fleance, whose eyes glimmered with jealousy.
“Let’s hope he grows to be as good a tracker as his mother. You know, I believe Thora’s other puppies are ready to wean from their mother as well. If we’re going to have both puppies in the castle, we’d best start training them now.”
Fleance looked up at me. “Both puppies?”
“Have you chosen yours yet?” I asked him.
A wave of gratitude washed over his face. Fleance turned to Banquo, “Father, may I—”
“Of course, of course,” he said, and no sooner had Banquo answered than the two boys rushed out of the hall, Angus the fey dog along with them.
Banquo poured glasses of wine for him and me. He handed me a goblet then we went and stood before the fire where we could talk in private.
Banquo smiled. “Fleance has grown into a fine boy. All that wildness is still just behind his eyes, but it seems he has polished off the edges with you there to guide him. Cerridwen, you don’t know how grateful I am. Between the battles and the cold and the sea, I had much on my mind. But when I laid my head down each night, I did not worry for my son. You have been a good mother to him.”
I smiled softly. I understood how Banquo felt better than he could ever know. It was the same thought that comforted me when I missed and worried about Crearwy. But remembering she was under Epona’s care always brought me comfort. “I have done my best.”
Banquo exhaled deeply. “There are no words to describe what it means to me.”
I reached out and squeezed his hand. “When have we ever needed words?”
While Banquo’s’ men took their rest, Banquo and I returned to the meeting hall where I had taken up residence as my workspace. It was the same hall in which Gillacoemgain and his men had once met and where I had foreseen their end. Now, I used the space as my own to train with sword and dagger and to plot my way forward.