Gifted Thief (Highland Magic #1)(33)

I might have known. Hundreds of people died. Not Sidhe people though, of course. Poor people. Underclass people. My people. ‘So the Clans are destructive and murderous as well as power hungry.’

His chin tipped up and I spotted a sudden flash of anger. ‘A lot of my friends risked their lives that day to hold back the water.’

‘Well they didn’t do a very good job, did they?’

The way Byron’s body tensed, I wondered whether he was about to punch me in the nose for that comment. I rather hoped he would. It would release some of the tension both of us were feeling.

‘It might not have been broadcast in your neck of the woods, but Sidhe died too.’

I did what I could to ignore his haunted expression. ‘My heart bleeds. Get to the point,’ I snapped.

Byron straightened his shoulders. His green eyed gaze held mine until I felt trapped. ‘Long ago, checks and balances were put into place to prevent any one Clan from gaining an overly advantageous hold on the flow of magic. The four strongest Clans were each granted a key, if you like, to the Foinse. Unless all four keys were used at once then the Foinse couldn’t be touched.’

‘Foinse meaning…’

He gave me a strange look. I was pretty certain it was along the lines of ‘you’re an absolute idiot for not already knowing this’. It was hardly my fault old Bull hadn’t permitted me an education. And Sidhe lore wasn’t exactly a concern of Taylor’s. ‘Source,’ he said finally. ‘The Foinse is the source of all Scottish magic. And it’s failing.’

I could feel the corner of my mouth twitch in an uncontrollable spasm. It wasn’t a particularly funny situation but it was still difficult not to laugh. Even I had enough scanty knowledge of Clan hierarchy to work out what was wrong. Things might have changed in the last two or three decades but, before then, the top Clans had remained the same for five hundred years.

‘Let me guess,’ I said, ‘you need access to this magical Foinse to solve the problem. The four Clans with these special keys are Moncrieffe, Kincaid, Darroch and,’ I paused, ‘drum roll, please, ladies and gentlemen…’

Byron nodded. ‘Adair. And you are the sole remaining member of the Adair Clan.’

No wonder they’d been keeping tabs on me. I wondered what they’d have done if I had inadvertently walked out in front of a bus. It would have been adios muchachos and not just for me. Then my humour fled. No doubt this was the reason why I was shoved into the Bull’s care, such as it was, instead of simply being smothered as a baby.

‘So you’re going to blackmail me into helping you open the Foinse. Like I give a shit whether the magic fails or not. In fact, seeing the Clans brought down might be worth my friends spending a bit of time in the slammer.’ I tipped my head. ‘Long term goals versus short term gains.’

Byron regarded me with a flat, emotionless expression. ‘I was warned you’d be like this,’ he said finally. ‘Bitchy and uncaring. Last night I thought they’d got it wrong and you were actually a nice person. Clearly, I was wrong.’

I raised my eyebrows. ‘They?’

‘The Clan Chieftains. They don’t normally agree on much but they agreed on you.’

‘I haven’t spoken to a single Sidhe in fifteen years. Whether your lot have been keeping tabs on me or not, none of you know anything about me. Don’t presume that you know what I’m like or who I am,’ I hissed. ‘You have no idea.’

‘And don’t presume that keeping the magic stable in the Clan lands is purely to benefit the Sidhe,’ he shot back. ‘That magic does many things which the Clan-less also benefit from.’

‘Oh yeah?’ I sneered. ‘Like what?’

‘That magic controls the Veil,’ he said. ‘The barrier that prevents the Fomori from entering the Highlands.’

I scowled at him. Okay, the Fomori were pretty scary demons who were better kept well away from us.

‘That same magic keeps nature in check,’ Byron continued in the patient, patronising tone you’d use when explaining something to a particularly stupid child. ‘You want to build a factory? The magic adjusts itself so the environment isn’t irreparably harmed.’

I didn’t want to build a factory but I got his point.

Byron wasn’t finished. ‘You want more disasters like the Dee surge? Only on a far greater scale?’ He folded his arms. ‘Then be my guest. Let your friends rot in jail. Let your mentor pay his debts by losing part of his soul. You’ll also be letting all of Scotland suffer.’

Alright. Jeez, he’d made his point. ‘You could have told me all this in the first place. The Lia Saifire ruse was unnecessary.’

‘Would you have listened?’

Maybe. Okay, probably not. In fact no, I wouldn’t have. The first ten years of my life ensured that the last person I’d listen to was a Sidhe.

‘Fine,’ I snapped. ‘I’ll do what you want. Release Taylor from his debt though and let Speck and Brochan go.’

‘That will happen when you’ve done what we require.’

My eyes flashed. ‘You don’t trust me.’

‘You’re a thief, Integrity. Why would I trust you?’

‘It’s not just my name. I’ve got more integrity in my little finger than the Sidhe will ever have. No matter who my father was.’