Chapter 7 Lothbrok Manor
Lothbrok Manor
“You mean to tell me that in ten years, your mum has never once tried to look for you?” Killian asked, as he leaned against Arlo’s stall door, tossing the silver case that his game-winning broja was locked in.
“She thought I was dead, Killian,” Ember replied, as she rolled her eyes, quickly gathering all of Maia’s things and packing them away in a bag. “Where exactly was she supposed to look? And for the love of Odin, will you stop throwing that? You’re going to take someone’s eye out.”
Killian smirked as he tossed the silver ball into the air, but instead of landing in his hand, it hit the tips of his fingers and flew across the room, smacking right into Fen’s face as he lay asleep on a bale of hay.
Fen’s eye shot open, and with a quick jerk, he tumbled off the bale and wound-up face first in the aisle of the barn.
“I rest my case,” Ember mumbled, as she rolled her eyes.
“Sounds a bit odd, doesn’t it?” Killian asked, as he helped his friend off the floor. “You’ve been on the island for a year now, and she had no idea? Ellesmere isn’t small by any means, but it’s not that big.”
“She hasn’t lived here,” Ember replied, as she fed Maia a handful of berries. “She was in Scotland till a few months ago. You don’t know what she went through for the last ten years.”
“True.” Killian shrugged as he lazily leaned against the stall door. “But I do know I would cross oceans and deserts and otherworldly realms if it meant getting back to someone I loved.”
Ember stared daggers at the boy as she grit her teeth.
What did he know about losing anyone? His family wasn’t perfect, but he had never known anything less than a life of luxury.
Pristine floors, sparkling walls, meals fit for a king all inside his giant manor.
He didn’t know loss, not the kind of loss she had endured.
Ember slid Maia’s halter over her snout, rubbing the draic between the ears as she stood up and slung the duffel bag over her shoulder.
“Don’t make me laugh,” she scoffed. “You’ve never had to work for anything a day in your life.”
Fen cleared his throat from the end of the corridor and scuffed his shoe across the paved floor. “Need any help, Em?”
Ember smiled as she shook her head. “No, I think that’s about it.” She attached the lead rope to Maia’s halter and kissed the top of her head right as a Helio shot through the open door and hovered in the middle of the trio.
“Your mum is here, Ember,” Eira’s voice rang out from the bright blue orb, more meek than normal.
Ember took a breath, patting Maia on top of the head. “Time to see our new home,” she whispered, then led the draic down the corridor and toward the house, both boys shuffling along behind her.
Ember rounded the corner of the house to see Eira, Otto, and her mum standing on the front porch.
Eira’s eyes were rimmed red and puffy, and her cheeks were pink, like she had spent all afternoon rubbing stray tears off them.
Otto had her hand in his, and Ember watched his grip tighten around her pale skin every few seconds.
Ember’s breath caught in her throat when her eyes landed on her mum. Her long brown hair flowed over her shoulder in waves, and it swayed as she bobbed her head from side to side in conversation. A lump grew in Ember’s throat as she tightened her grip on Maia’s lead, tugging her along to the porch.
“Mo Chroí,” Otto smiled sadly, “do you have everything?”
Ember nodded as she handed off Maia’s lead to Killian, whose eyes were narrowed at Aoife.
He stood tall, a half step in front of her, acting like she needed protection from her own mother.
Fen wasn’t much better, standing with his arms crossed tightly over his chest, close enough to her that she could feel that magic dancing like electricity off his skin.
The invisible tether between the three tightened, humming as it vibrated.
Both boys glanced toward her briefly, but no one else seemed to notice.
She nudged them both and shook her head, just enough for them to lower their guard as they nodded.
“Oh, a draic.” Aoife smiled as she turned to pat Maia on the head.
The draic’s nostrils flared, lavender eyes widening as she whipped her head back to Ember. Ember shook her head, as if to tell her to behave.
“She’ll love the barn. I’ll have the dryads set her up a stall when we get back to the manor,” Aoife continued.
Ember choked on her own spit.
“What?” she breathed, as she furrowed her brow. “You live in a manor?”
“It’s been in your father’s family for generations. It’s sat empty since we left the island, but I’ve had the dryads and Merrow working all week to get it ready for your return.
“Now who’s spoiled,” Killian laughed under his breath, as Ember jabbed him in the ribs.
“And who is this?” Aoife asked, as she nodded toward Killian, who was now rubbing between Maia’s ears. He straightened himself up, plastered on a cocky grin, and held his hand out to shake Aoife’s.
“Killian Vargr, Mrs. Lothbrok.” He smiled charismatically. “Pleasure to meet ya.”
“Vargr?” Aoife asked, as she tilted her head and squinted. “You wouldn’t be kin to Magnus and Asena Vargr, would you?”
Ember glanced to her right as Killian stiffened, the muscle in his jaw tensing as his nostrils flared slightly.
“Aye,” he nodded stiffly, “they’re my parents.”
“Well, do tell them I said hello.” Aoife smiled sweetly, seemingly unaware of the way his fists clenched at the sound of his parents’ names.
“Are you ready to go, my love?” Aoife turned back to Ember, who nodded her head and took a shaky breath. She gave both Eira and Otto a hug and squeezed Maeve as she leapt into her arms.
“Come back and see me?” the little girl asked through tear filled eyes.
“Of course I will.” Ember smiled as she wiped stray tears from her reddened cheeks. “We’ll have a flying lesson soon, okay?”
Maeve nodded her head vigorously before giving Ember one last tight hug and slipping back down onto the porch.
Ember turned to Fen, who had his arms crossed tightly over his chest and was looking at anything other than her.
Her heart sank as she walked toward him, stomach twisting into knots as she bit the inside of her cheek.
Fen was the closest thing she had ever had to a real sibling, him and Maeve both.
While she knew this wasn’t a forever goodbye, it still stung to see the way his eyes filled with tears every time he looked at her.
This would change things, change their dynamic.
No matter how much she tried to convince herself otherwise, she knew this was the end of something she had fought for for so long.
“I’ll see you at school Monday.” Ember smiled as she took a shaky breath. “Save me a seat in Zoomancy?”
“Yeah, of course.” He nodded with a half-smile. “Come fly in the orchards soon?”
“Wild draics couldn’t keep me away,” she whispered back.
Ember and her mother took the Echopoint outside of the Kitts’ home straight to the manor.
Hearing Aoife whisper, “Lothbrok Manor,” under her breath sent Ember’s stomach flipping, but it wasn’t from the spin of the Echopoint.
She landed with a thud in a patch of bright green grass with yellow daffodils blooming around the trunk of the tree.
A smooth cobblestone path stretched past the tree and through a pair of tall iron gates into a courtyard.
A fountain sat in the middle of the cobblestone courtyard, the statue of a Kelpie standing in the center, surrounded by bushes of colorful, exotic looking plants and flowers.
Dryads walked amongst the rows of trees outside of the path, trimming low hanging branches while simultaneously sending floating watering cans to gently water the flowers scattered across the grounds.
Ember smiled as one particular dryad, vines twisting across his arms and legs and a dark brown tunic with a cape hanging on his shoulders, whispered to one of the lower branches in a language that sounded like wind blowing through the leaves.
A bright blue flower grew in his palm where he held the branch before he smiled to himself and turned to tend to the rest of the trees.
“Come, we’ll have Maize get Maia situated while he’s out here,” Aoife said, as she motioned toward the dryad walking their way.
He stood tall, both hands behind his back as he nodded to Aoife, who gave him a kind smile back.
“Good evening, Maize,” Aoife said sweetly. “I am very excited to introduce you to my daughter Ember. Ember, this is Maize, the groundskeeper for the manor.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Maize,” Ember whispered.
“And you, Miss Ember.” He smiled with a nod.
“Maize, would you be so kind as to take Maia and get her settled in the stables?” Aoife asked, as she motioned to the small draic.
Ember’s grip tightened around Maia’s lead rope.
“I will take very good care of her, Miss Lothbrok,” Maize assured her, as she reluctantly handed over the lead.
Maia whipped her head back, trying to rip the lead from the dryad’s hands, and let out a deafening roar like Ember had never heard before.
She jumped forward to snatch the lead from his spindly fingers, but before she could get there, Maize was whispering something in Maia’s ear, hand running down the draic’s snout.
Maia immediately settled, purring and clicking as she nuzzled his hand.
“She’ll be in the stables waiting for you when you’re settled.” Maize smiled.