Chapter Four
Dyna
Dyna Grant Corbett sat in a chair in front of the hearth, sipping on a cup of warm broth. Something was happening, but she could not grasp it. Why the hell could she see things so clearly one day and the next day see naught?
She was a seer, she knew it, as were all three of her older bairns.
Sylvi, Tora, and Sandor all had some unusual abilities.
Sylvi could hear unspoken thoughts, Tora could see things in the present, often in dreams. It was Tora who had run over to her grandfather many years ago and said, “The boat bwoke,” when a couple’s boat had exploded in the middle of a storm, and the two had ended up at MacClane Castle telling the tale.
And Sandor had the ability to speak with the dead.
He spoke with her beloved grandfather and grandmother often.
Alex and Maddie Grant were such wonderful people, how she wished she could see them both again.
Sandor had helped them all deal with their losses over the years by being able to communicate with them.
After the evening meal, her husband, Derric, had mumbled something about going to the parapets. The girls had gone outside to practice archery and who knows what the boys were doing?
She took another sip as a door opened, Sylvi shouting to her, “Mama, Grandda is nearly here.”
“Grandda? He is? I didn’t know he was coming. When?”
The door opened and her dearest cousin Alasdair came in carrying three satchels, a gaggle of family members behind him, and a wee bit behind him appeared her father and mother.
She moved over to her cousins, kissed each one on the cheek, and began to cry when she leaned over to kiss her father and mother, throwing her arms around her father’s neck and whispering, “I need you so much, Da.”
Her father, Connor Grant, moved inside with a bit of a push. “If you let me set our packs down, I’ll give you my complete attention, daughter.”
Her mother, Sela, said, “Oh, Connor, she’s crying. I’m so glad we came.” Dyna switched from one parent to the other and latched onto her mother’s shoulders for a bit.
Dyna got herself under control and stepped back as both parents came inside, her dear sister Astra behind them. She hugged her sister a bit too tightly. The door opened from above stairs and Sandor bellowed, “Grandda! Grandmama! John!”
The door in the tower opened up and another bunch of people filled the hall, Grant yelling, “John! I’m so glad you’re here. Uncle Connor, Aunt Sela.”
Serving lasses came out of the kitchen with goblets of mead for the visitors and a tray of cheese and breads.
Dyna stood inconspicuously off to the side, tears running down her face, so happy to see her family, whom she missed so much, filling the hall with greetings and laughter and loud banter.
Doing her best to gather her thoughts, she couldn’t come up with a good explanation for her father to accurately explain how she felt.
But something was off. She’d been having dreams of crumbling hills and screaming banshees. Not her usual type of dream at all. Not the kind she confessed to anyone.
It unsettled her to think that something was about to happen.
Many years ago, they’d been victims of some evil beings who thought to steal their bairns away, a horrible time in her life.
But they’d all survived, and the faery, who had been amongst them, had said their help as seers wouldn’t be needed for a long time.
The faery had gathered them together and advised the group that their skills would be needed to fight evil sometime in the future.
Her mind carried her back to that night. Lia had gathered the group: her parents, Hagen, Brynja, Maitland, Maeve, Grant, Alasdair, John, and Dyna.
The wee faery had informed them that they were a chosen group with their abilities and would be called upon someday to save bairns again.
The group she’d singled out had been John, Grant, Tora, Sylvi, Sandor, and Magni.
She’d said that Grant and John would work with the sapphire sword, and the others would be needed to protect bairns.
Lia had told Connor and Dyna, Maeve and Maitland that they would be needed too.
And so would Brynja and Hagen with their special healing skills.
It all seemed so distant. Had they truly dealt with a faery named Lia?
They’d never seen her since, though Magni had searched for her all over the Western Hebrides, but she was nowhere to be seen.
They knew she’d be found only when she wished to be found.
Her father strode over to her and wrapped his arms around her again. “Now you have my complete attention. What’s wrong? I don’t often see you this despondent.”
“I can’t explain it, Da.”
Her father took her by the hand and said, “Alasdair, come with us.” He led her into the solar where they could talk privately.
Alasdair joined them while the housekeeper settled the others in chambers with their bags. “What’s wrong, Dyna?”
“I don’t know. I just feel… different. Tora is having nightmares, Sylvi walks in circles staring at the walls, and Sandor is fixated on the ceiling. We’re all confused.”
Alasdair let out a big sigh and said, “Ailith is having bad dreams too. ’Tis one of the reasons we’re here.”
“She is? Oh my.”
“We’ll get settled, then you can talk with her. Mayhap on the morrow. She’s overtired from all the dreams. The boat across the water was hard for her. She was having visions then. Sometimes they give her headaches.”
Dyna scowled and hugged herself, a chill running through her.
Her father pointed to a chair. “Come and sit. Sela and Maeve will settle everyone upstairs. Your bairns are busy chattering with Alasdair’s. You have both of our attentions for a few moments. Talk to me, Dyna. How are your brothers?”
“Aye, they’re both fine. Hagen loves it by the sea at MacClane Castle. And they see Morgan and the shipping crew often. He works with them while Brynja goes to the abbey whenever she can.”
“Whatever is happening, we’ll figure it out. Sit and relax.”
Dyna sat down and said, “You’re right, Da. We’ll do this together. I’m so glad you are all here.”
“What has you worried?” her father asked, not mincing any words. “Tell me all of it.”
“I think something is on the horizon. Recall that night when Lia said she would need us again? I can’t say that I’ve seen it definitely yet, but I would wager I’ll see it soon.
There’s trouble somewhere, and we’re going to be called to help.
” She nodded her head but then saw her beloved cousin and the worry on his face.
“Tell me about Ailith, ‘Dair.” She and Alasdair had been close since their toddler years because Dyna was only a year behind him.
Alasdair leaned back, steepling his fingers in front of him.
“Ailith is such a quiet person that it’s hard to know what is happening inside her mind.
She’s a far cry from Daran who yells out the first thing that pops into his head, and John?
He’s as steady as anyone I’ve ever known.
Her mother tells me she’s trying to find her way, that she’s ready to step away from us. ”
Connor snorted, looking at Dyna with a smirk. “And someone does not like that idea one bit.”
Dyna said, “I understand completely. Sylvi is going through the same. Young, confused, wondering where she belongs. Tora is as light-hearted as anyone and nothing bothers her.” She dropped her voice to a whisper. “Everything bothers Sylvi. Is Ailith like that?”
“Nay. It’s something specific. She’s having nightmares about bairns in caves and a troll, and she wakes up screaming. Now she’s having headaches.”
Dyna whispered, “I had headaches when my abilities grew. I could always see Grandda and what he was doing when I was young, but when I was older and my abilities changed, I had headaches frequently. It was as if my mind was trying to tell me it didn’t like all the odd thoughts there.”
“Ailith is not a seer,” Alasdair said.
Her father arched a brow at her and said, “But she did get her father’s attention. You can admit it now. Tell her why you’re here. Dyna will understand.” Alasdair’s father Jake had died long ago, so she knew he considered her father as a substitute for his own.
Alasdair let out a huff, glanced over his shoulder as if anyone would be standing there, before he said, “I’ll admit it. She took a stand against me, and she’s never done that before.”
Dyna let out a low whistle. “I love it. Tell me more.”
“She said she needed to see you about her nightmares. I suggested we wait a bit before we came for a visit.”
Her father had one of the biggest grins on his face she’d ever seen. “And?”
“She told me she would travel with Uncle Connor with or without me.”
A knock interrupted them. The door opened and Tora, at ten and seven, came inside and greeted her grandfather first, then Alasdair.
She took the chair next to her mother and whispered loud enough for the other two to overhear, “Lia is coming.”
Dyna closed her eyes and muttered, “I knew it.”
Then her father leaned toward her. “Do not tell Aunt Maeve until we are certain, Tora.”
“I won’t say anything to anyone,” Tora replied. “She came to me in a vision, waving at me. She won’t be here for a few days, but someone else will be here on the morrow.”
“Who?” Dyna asked, rubbing the frown on her forehead.
“I don’t know them, but a man is coming and he carries a storm with him.”
“Hellfire.” Alasdair’s head fell into his hands.