The Pillars Of The World

“Why do you plant flowers for the Lady of the Moon?”
    “Because she’s the Queen of the Witches.”
    “ What ?”
    “We follow the turning of the moon, and the turning of the seasons. The moon is our guide. She is always constant and ever-changing. The Mother’s wiser daughter, and our older sister.”
    I’m not that much older than you , Dianna thought crossly. “She isn’t always called the Lady of the Moon.”
    Ari nodded. “There is the other side of her. When she rides as the Huntress, she isn’t always kind. But she’s supposed to be our protector, the one we can call on for help.” Bitterness aged her face. “I don’t think she cares about protecting anything or anyone anymore.”
    The Huntress cares very much about protecting something , Dianna thought fiercely. And I will do whatever I must in order to save Tir Alainn .
    She had to get away now, had to have time to think. Either she was standing beside a dangerous enemy or someone who might, somehow, be able to help the Fae protect Tir Alainn.
    “I do need to go now. I have a ways to travel.”
    Ari’s smile was polite . . . and distant. “Yes, of course. I’ll go saddle the mare.”
    Dianna hurried into the cottage to change clothes. As she stripped out of the garments Ari had given her, she noticed the amethyst necklace again. A chill went through her, biting as deep as a winter storm.
    Did Lucian know that Ari was a witch? He couldn’t. He would have said something. He knew what was at stake. He wouldn’t have said nothing . Was he in as much danger as Tir Alainn? Why had he fixed his interest on this female? Had it really been his own choice, or was this a trap to somehow ensnare the Lightbringer? And how could she ask him without making him defensive and difficult? Surely . . . surely he wouldn’t allow lust to cloud his mind to that extent.
    In the normal way of things, no, he wouldn’t, Dianna thought as she put on her riding habit. But if he was caught in a lust over which he had no control, that could explain why he was looking so troubled lately.
    Dianna swept out of the bedroom, anxious to return to Tir Alainn. The answers the Fae were seeking could be right here—if they dared to ask the questions.
    Something’s wrong , Neall thought, urging Darcy into a canter as soon as he saw Ari. He knew her well enough to recognize, even at a distance, that she was distressed about something. And the way her face lit up when she saw him warmed his heart and made him anxious.
    Except that, now that he was closer, she didn’t look distressed. She looked like she was struggling to hold in a belly laugh that could be heard in Ridgeley.
    He couldn’t think about that right now. Darcy was gathering himself to jump the low wall—which would put the gelding and those big hooves smack in the middle of the newly planted garden. Which wouldn’t earn endearments for either of them, no matter how pleased Ari was to see him.
    Why was she so pleased?
    He reined in hard enough to warn Darcy he meant it. The gelding responded so fast he almost went over the animal’s head. Of course, Darcy was also standing right in front of Ari with his head already thrust over the wall for the petting he expected.
     
    My horse and I are in love with the same female , Neall thought sourly as he dismounted on legs that were a little shaky. And he doesn‘t even have the balls to get excited about it, which, I suppose, is a blessing. I wonder how Ari would react to an amorous horse. Mother’s mercy .
    “Neall, I’m glad you came by,” Ari said while she petted the gelding.
    “What’s wrong?” Neall demanded, feeling testy now that he could see there was nothing wrong with Ari.
    Ari hesitated. “Behind the cottage—”
    “What? A snake? A wolf?” Royce? That mysterious lover who still had a claim on her?
    “No, a—”
    Another woman’s voice carried through the air quite clearly. “Stand still, you four-legged piece of misery!
    ”
    Neall took a step back and watched Ari cautiously.
    “It’s a gentry lady,” Ari said.
    At least she sounds apologetic about it , Neall thought, having a good idea of what was coming next.
    Being related to Odella, he had enough experience with gentry ladies to know they could be the meanest creatures alive, and this one sounded riled.
    “She stopped to visit, and—”
    A pungent curse filled the air.
    “—she’s having a little trouble mounting.”
    “She rode sidesaddle? Here?”
    Her eyes dancing with