Elfhaven (the Danu Cycle: Fiann Trilogy Book 2)

He had not seen her all day, so he went to collect her. He knocked on her door again, not wanting to miss the opportunity to walk her to his father. There was still no answer. Using his royal status, he pushed the door open. The room looked much as it had the night before and there was no sign of her. He swore.

"By Danu, O'Callaghan," he muttered, hoping the creeping sense that she had left was a mistake.

He hurried through the halls, passing Nessa as he went.

"Eamon!" she called. "What is it?"

"I think that damned fiann has left after all."

"What?" she yelled, falling into step with him.

"I will kill O'Neill for putting her in danger," he growled.

He heard Nessa chuckled. "How about the rest of them?"

"What?"

"Well, he is in charge of all of them, not just her. Are you sure you have no-"

"Not now, Ness," he interrupted as they came up to Dunne's room. She said nothing and he knew she had taken the warning as seriously as he had intended it.

He pounded on Dunne's door, but there was no answer. He swore again, turning hastily towards his father's hall.

"Have you seen any of them?" he demanded, not caring that he was interrupting his father and his advising council. Usually, he would not have interrupted the council - they hated him enough as it was - though this time he did not care at all.

"I beg your pardon?" his father replied, raising one eyebrow, a glint of humour in his eyes.

"Have you seen any of O'Neill's fiann today?" Eamon repeated, stopping at the base of his father's dais.

"Why would I have seen any of them?"

Eamon rolled his eyes and looked about the room, only meeting shaking heads and shrugs. The council members wore hard expressions which showed they were not pleased with his intrusion. Though, no one said anything so they must have realised that it was actually something important and not just his usual behaviour.

"What has you all worked up, brother?" Donagh asked.

"I think they left. I cannot find any of them."

The king stiffened slightly, but hid the look. "What do you mean?"

"O'Neill has taken them after Dwendardien. O'Callaghan knew he was after her, she knew she was bait, and O'Neill has convinced her to take the fight to him despite her not being ready!" Eamon realised he was yelling and took a few deep breaths to calm the frantic pounding of his heart. He did not know why fear gripped him, nor why he cared so much what one stupid fiann did.

"Eamon, what proof have you?" His father's face was darkened and he felt the familiar crackle in the air which signified his father was very close to letting his anger show, and that only happened when he could no longer get any angrier.

"Sire, I believe he is right," Nessa said softly, her braids blowing in the brewing wind.

The king turned to her and nodded his head slightly before turning to Donagh. "Do you believe them capable of such a thing?"

Donagh shifted slightly and Eamon latched onto that.

"What do you know?" he asked his brother.

"The guards at the eastern gate were drawn away on what turned out to be a false alarm..." Donagh replied and thunder crackled above them.