Elphames Choice Read online

Chapter Eight

  Elphame stared at the statue. It did look like her. She and the statue shared the same high cheekbones, full lips and fine, arched brows.

  "Rhiannon," Brenna said suddenly. "This fountain must be a statue of Rhiannon when she was a girl. I remember now. Before she became Goddess Incarnate of Epona, she lived here, as the only child of The MacCallan, and she was. . . "

  "My ancestress," Elphame finished for her.

  "She was also a great warrior," Cu said, still studying the statue carefully. "It was through her leadership that the Fomorians were defeated and driven from Partholon. "

  "Let us not forget that Rhiannon did have a little help from her lifemate, the centaur High Shaman, Clan Fintan. "

  Elphame looked around in surprise, trying to locate the owner of the strong female voice that carried across the courtyard. From the lengthening shadow of the central column emerged the lithe form of a female centaur. Elphame couldn't stifle her gasp of surprise. The centaur must be a Huntress to be able to creep up on them so silently; Cuchulainn hadn't even been aware of her approach. The thought sent a rush of pleasure through Elphame. A centaur Huntress had joined them!

  "You are right to correct me, Huntress," Elphame said formally. "My father would have done the same. "

  "I did not mean to correct you, Goddess, only to remind you. "

  As she came closer and more fully into the pool of light that illuminated the area surrounding the fountain, Elphame was stunned by her beauty. The equine part of her body was a sleek palomino, shading from cream to a blonde so light that she almost appeared to be silver, and El was suddenly reminded of the bright coat of Epona's Chosen Mare. She had never seen a centaur with such spectacular coloring. Even her hooves were a unique, snow-white shade. The human part of her body was just as lovely. Her hair matched her coat, and it streamed down her back in a thick, white wave. Her skin was alabaster, and she wore the centaur's traditional half-open leather vest through which could be glimpsed her full, well-rounded breasts. Her face was a study in classic perfection. Elphame met her eyes, which were an arresting shade of lavender.

  The centaur stopped before her and executed a deep, graceful bow.

  "I come to offer my services as Huntress to you, Goddess Elphame, and to MacCallan Castle. I am Brighid Dhianna. "

  "You are of the Dhianna Herd," Cu said. His voice was unusually sharp and his expression grim.

  "I am of that Herd. I am not of that mind-set. "

  And her words suddenly made sense to Elphame. There was a growing sect amidst centaurs that disdained contact with humans. They rarely left the Centaur Plains and they rejected centaurs that chose to live within human communities as being little better than domesticated animals. She remembered her parents discussing the ramifications of the growth of such an exclusionist belief, and the disgust with which her centaur father viewed the segregationist ideology. And she also remembered him mentioning a particularly militant herd by the name of Dhianna, whose powerful shaman leader was stirring up a disturbing amount of support for her ideology, which explained Cu's grim expression.

  "Brighid Dhianna, if it is a new beginning you seek, then I welcome you to MacCallan Castle, a place of new beginnings," Elphame said solemnly.

  The Huntress met her eyes with a square, strong gaze. "Yes, Goddess, I am in search of a new beginning. "

  "Good, then you can start by calling me Elphame," she said briskly. "This stern-looking warrior is my brother, Cuchulainn. " Cu nodded icily at the Huntress. "And this is our new Healer, Brenna. " Elphame was pleased to note that Brighid did not flinch when Brenna lifted her scarred face at her introduction.

  "Grab a log, Brighid. It's getting late and I would like to have this fountain uncovered before we lose all of our light. "

  Elphame turned back to the pile of rubble, ignoring the suspicious looks passing between her brother and the Huntress.

  "Enough, El! You can begin here tomorrow. Everyone left the kitchen some time ago - even your tyrannical cook and her harpies are on their way back to Loth Tor for a hot meal and a soft bed,"

  Cuchulainn said, exasperated at his sister's unlimited store of energy.

  He and the Huntress had just dragged another litter loaded with debris from the courtyard to the ever-growing pile outside the castle's walls. And had he returned to find his sister and Brenna stacking buckets and preparing to leave? No - his obstinate sister was filling yet another litter with filth, this time from the rear side of the basin.

  "Cu," she said, barely looking up at him. "Why don't you go ahead? I'll just load this last litter and be on my way. " She glanced up through the open roof at the sky that now held only the palest mauve light reflected from the dying sun.

  "No. Everyone else is gone. I don't want you traveling through the forest alone. "

  "Oh, please. People have been clomping back and forth from here to Loth Tor all day. I'd be surprised if there are even any squirrels willing to stay through such noise. "

  "And she will not be alone. I will return with her," the Huntress said.

  "As will I," Brenna added.

  Elphame cocked one eyebrow at her brother. "Satisfied that I won't be alone?"

  "Hrumph," he grunted. Then added firmly, "If you are not at the Mare's Inn by the time the food is being served, I will come and fetch you. And keep this with you. " He unbuckled a thin belt from around his waist. Strapped to it was a small sheath which Elphame knew held one of his lethal throwing daggers. He tossed it to his sister, who caught it deftly. "You know I've told you before that you should carry a weapon. " He turned and, mumbling under his breath about hardheaded women, stalked from the courtyard.

  "Hey! It's your safety you had better worry about if Wynne hears you calling her assistants harpies," she called after his retreating back. "Overpossessive, annoying little brother," Elphame said in disgust.

  "He loves you very much," Brenna said.

  "But he is annoying," Brighid added.

  "You haven't seen true annoyance yet. If I'm not back by the time he expects me he'll come charging through the forest, claymore drawn and ready, scaring the life out of small rodents and helpless songbirds. "

  Brenna began laughing. It was a lovely, musical sound, and soon Brighid and Elphame joined her.

  As they worked companionably together on clearing the fountain's basin, Elphame thought how good it felt to have the courtyard filled with the sounds of laughter and life. She didn't need to press her hand against the central column to Feel that the atmosphere of the castle was changing. From her first glimpse of MacCallan Castle she had felt welcomed, but she also had to acknowledge that it had been a forlorn place filled with lonely waiting. Its history was rich with tradition and honor, as she had explained to the women earlier, but it had also stood silent and abandoned for more than a century. The span of a single day had begun to change that. In the very air surrounding them she could feel life newborn. It was as if each breath she breathed was filled with hope.

  "I think that's enough," Elphame said, wiping her grimy hands on her skirt. She looked down at herself.

  "Ugh - I'm looking forward to bathing almost as much as I am to eating a hot meal. "

  Brenna nodded quick agreement as she tried to pick something sticky off her arm. Even Brighid's sleek coat was dusted with smears of soot.

  The Huntress grabbed the leather leads that attached to the litter and linked them over her shoulder so that her powerful centaur body had no trouble pulling the weighty load.

  "At least you two will actually get to bathe. I can almost promise you that Loth Tor will not have a bathing chamber large enough for me," she said as she started dragging the litter from the courtyard.

  Elphame and Brenna helped balance the pile of rubble so that they didn't lose any of it on the trip out.

  "I never thought about that before," Brenna said, panting a little as she jogged to keep up with the two more athletic females. "It would be
awful if all the bathing chambers were too small for me," the petite Healer mused.

  "Awful if you're a female," Brighid said. Then she grinned at Brenna. "If you're a male centaur, well, you don't so much mind. "

  "Ugh, boys!" Elphame said, remembering how her mother used to have to threaten Cuchulainn and Finegas when they were children to get them into a bathing chamber. "Centaur or human, they can certainly be disgusting. "

  The three women wrinkled their noses at each other and laughed.

  "Can you believe how much this pile has grown?" Elphame said as they emptied the litter onto the growing mound of rotted timbers and ancient filth that was located a little way from the castle's outer walls.

  "I believe it," Brenna said, pausing to rub her shoulders and roll her neck. "I hope Loth Tor has a decent mead brewer, we'll all need something to help relax our muscles tonight - " she glanced back at the hulking form of the castle " - and tomorrow. "

  "That's that. " El clapped her hands together with satisfaction. "Let's head to Loth Tor and the Mare's Inn. "

  "And dinner," Brighid added.

  "Absolutely," Elphame said. But they had only taken a few steps down the road when she stopped and slapped her forehead. "I left Cu's dagger inside. I'll never hear the end of it if I show up without it. Wait here, this will just take a moment. " She bunched her powerful muscles and sprinted back up the road and through the castle's entrance.

  Where had she left that thing? The light was really failing now, and every pile of leaves and heap of dirt could be mistaken for a casually discarded sheath and belt.

  "I should have showed more sense and strapped it to my waist when he gave it to me," she muttered angrily to herself. 'Is this what ye seek, lassie?"

  A cold shiver doused her body. The deep voice came from behind her; it had an odd quality, like it had to drift through a pool of water to reach her. As if moving through a dream, she turned.

  He was sitting casually on the lip of the basin that held the fountain. She had no trouble seeing him because his body glowed softly, like candlelight on pearls. She could also clearly see the ruins of the courtyard behind him, as well as directly through his semisubstantial form.

  "Oh!" Elphame hadn't realized she'd been holding her breath until it released in a rush. She felt her body begin to tremble as she tried to tell her numbed legs to get her away from there.

  The specter raised one thick, well-calloused hand. "Rest easy, Elphame, I mean ye no harm"

  He spoke with a gruff edge to his thick brogue, but the look in his eyes was gentle, and when she didn't bolt away he smiled at her. "There, lass" He nodded his head toward the belt that hung haphazardly over the lip of the basin not far from where he was sitting. "Is it not what ye seek?"

  Elphame nodded her head woodenly, took a halting step forward, and snatched up the belt. "Th - " she had to clear her throat and swallow before she could get the words out. "Thank you. "

  He tipped his head gallantly at her. "'Tis my pleasure. " His good-humored gaze slid from Elphame to rest on the fountain that was a statue of a girl. The specter's smile turned poignant. "It pleases me ye have finally come, Elphame. Even the dead canna wait forever. "

  "You know me?" Her voice didn't seem to want to work, and the words came out barely above a

  whisper.

  "Aye, lass, I know ye. And a fine, braw lassie ye are, too. "

  His eyes danced. "Look at ye! A perfect blending of two. Ye are the right choice. "

  "For what? Who are you?" El's power of reasoning was starting to recover along with her vocal ability.

  "Use yer heart and intuition, lass. They will tell ye who 1 am.

  Elphame took a deep breath and studied the specter carefully. He was well past middle age, but he was still a powerful figure in full western regalia with his blouse-sleeved linen shirt and his well-draped kilt.

  Even transparent, the bold colors of sapphire-blue and lime-green made a striking contrast on the tartan.

  Her eyes widened. She knew that plaid - intimately. Her mother had worn it for years whenever she traveled to the west. Elphame owned one herself. And she had every right to; the blood of the Clan MacCallan ran thick in her veins.

  "You are The MacCallan. "

  His smile widened and he winked at her. "Aye, lassie, I was. Now that position is held by ye. " Then his look sobered, and he stood, executing a dashing bow that suddenly reminded her of Cuchulainn.

  "Your companions come for ye, and I canna stay. Another time, lass. . . another time ___"

  And he disappeared into nothing more than a thin mist that hung like fairy fog around the fountain.

  "My Lady! Is all well?" Brenna's voice drifted from the direction of the entryway.

  "Yes!" Elphame called. She passed a shaky hand over her face. She had told her mother that she didn't believe that any of MacCallan Castle's lingering spirits would wish her harm, and she had meant it. But that hadn't meant that she had ever really considered that there might actually be lingering spirits to deal with. "I certainly never thought I'd meet The MacCallan himself. "

  "Did you say something, Elphame?" Brighid asked. Her hooves thudded with a muffled clop against the dirt-covered marble and her silver-blond coat seemed ethereal in the darkness as she entered the courtyard. "By the Goddess it's black in here! No wonder it was taking you so long. "

  "I'll be glad when the wall sconces are repaired and the torches are lit," Brenna said nervously. She was just a slight, dark silhouette as she stayed close to the Huntress's side.

  Elphame smiled and forced her voice to sound normal. "You're right, I was having a terrible time finding it, but I have it now, so we can finally go get that hot meal we've been tasting in our minds. " With one final glance over her shoulder at the fog-shrouded fountain, Elphame hurried from the darkening castle.