Broken Dove (Fantasyland #4)(209)

“This is true, mon loup,” Valentine put in. “Our Noctorno of my world was sent there to dispatch Edith, as well as incapacitate Helda. This last was the difficult part that made it quite risky for him to go. However you wanted her alive. I daresay those three didn’t consider firearms entering the picture, or our handsome other world Noctorno. But I suspected it would not take long for them to recover from the death of Edith. The elves had to focus on resurrecting Lavinia so they could use her as the conduit to Specter Isle and then drain Minerva. It was most fortunate your man was there. It made things easier on us all.”

Wow.

Lavinia had actually been dead.

And the elves resurrected her.

They were powerful.

Apollo turned his attention to Valentine. “Right, then, as you’ve explained that, it’s clear you had this plan in place, a plan you did not share, when we already had a plan in place.”

“You did, chéri, and it was a good one. I did not see it failing. And I did not wish to cause alarm by suggesting that it would. But you must admit, it is always wise to have a backup plan, no?”

I looked to Apollo’s profile and saw a muscle jump in his cheek.

That meant it was wise, he just wasn’t going to admit it out loud.

“Were you aware the witches could beat your enchantments and our women would be in danger?” Frey asked and Valentine looked to him.

“Was I aware they were that in danger?” She shook her head. “No. Again, I did not see the protections on this palace beaten.” Her eyes went languid when she stated, “I am rather good at what I do.” Her lips tipped up. “But I did know they carried great power so I asked Noctorno to be on call, just in case.”

“Uh, just to say, no one calls me Noctorno,” Noc stated, sounding irritated.

Valentine’s lips tipped up further and she glanced his way.

“How did you do it?” I asked and Valentine looked to me. “They said you couldn’t use your magic there. How did you?”

“You, ma colombe, and your sisters broke that enchantment,” she answered. “This, I had hoped you would find your way to do. And you did.”

“But I don’t have magic,” Cora remarked.

“I don’t either,” I said.

“Neither do I,” Finnie added.

Valentine looked among us. “We women all have the capacity to carry magic. We just need the motivation. And love is a powerful motivation, don’t you agree?”

Well, that couldn’t be argued.

“Regardless,” she went on, “Circe has magic and she was the channel to pull up yours. It was, as I’d hoped, quite powerful. Alas, I could not send your men or battalions of soldiers there for even with their protections down, the triad was still at full strength and someone might have been harmed in the ensuing fray. The instant they saw any of us, they would pull up defenses, vickrants, toilroys, etcetera. Therefore, once I could transport someone there, I sent someone they would not see as a threat, Franka, instilled by a spell to open a line for the elves to get to Lavinia as well as to create a diversion for”—she glanced Noc’s way—“Noc to arrive and finally make it safe for myself and the men to come, without the tedious bother of dealing with armies of creatures.”

Tedious bother.

This woman was something else.

“So Franka has magic?” Finnie asked, looking Franka’s way.

“She is, of course, a woman. A woman with her own motivation,” Valentine murmured.

I was looking Franka’s way too.

She was avoiding everyone’s eyes.

Even so, I said, “Thank you.”

Her head jerked and she looked to me.

“Thank you,” I repeated. “That took a lot of courage and I…well, I appreciate it.”

“I didn’t do it for you,” she stated coldly.

“Maybe not, but in the end, you still helped us and I’m still grateful,” I returned.

Apollo’s arm around me gave me a squeeze.

Franka’s mouth got tight as she held my eyes for long moments before she looked away.

“Are you okay, Lavinia?” Finnie asked and my gaze went to the witch.

“It is not fun being dead,” Lavinia replied, then she smiled a small smile. “But as I am no longer thus and all is well in my Lunwyn again, I am fine.”

“Are we done?” Valentine asked into this exchange. “I’m sorely in need of a beverage.”

“I am as well,” Queen Aurora murmured, straightening from her chair. “Perhaps two of them. I’ll call for a servant.”

She moved and thus endeth the debrief.

Cora, followed by Tor, moved Noc’s way.

Finnie went to Lavinia.

I got off the arm of the chair, grabbed Apollo’s hand, pulled him out of the chair, and I headed us Derrik’s way.

He looked only at me as we moved to him. I didn’t know what this meant, but things needed to be said now so I decided to ask Apollo later.

For then, I just smiled at Derrik and when I reached him, I let Apollo go, got close and moved in to give Derrik a hug.

His arms closed around me and I felt his jaw at the side of my head.

“That had to suck, hanging with them for so long,” I noted and I heard his chuckle as he gave me a squeeze and leaned a bit away without letting me go.