Beyond the Pale: A Thin Veil Novella (The Thin Veil Book 3) by Jodi McIsaac Page A

shattered goblet, then back at his wife. “She’s learning herb-lore,” he said quietly. Out of the corner of her eyes, Kier saw the goblet reforming, but she kept her gaze fixed on her husband.
    “You told me you had closed that sidh,” she said, unable to hide the shaking in her voice. Her blood was pounding in her veins, and she closed her fists to keep fire from escaping them.
    “I did,” he said quickly. “But…I have reopened it. On occasion.”
    “Are you insane?” she burst out. “Is this all a game to you? Lorcan wants to conquer Ériu . He wants to kill and enslave your precious humans. And yet you are leaving a sidh open for him to go through?”
    “Ruadhan closes it,” he muttered, his face turning red.
    “Oh really? Every time? He just sits around waiting for you to come back so he can close the sidh? It’s never just there, waiting for someone to find it?”
    “It’s very well hidden,” he said sharply. “You yourself have said it: I am the king, and I can do as I like.”
    “Not if it brings about the destruction of an entire world!” Kier screamed. She was starting to feel quite hysterical, so she took several deep, calming breaths. “Listen,” she said after a long, slow exhale. “It is obvious that you care about this woman very much. And that’s something we can talk about—later. But if you truly love her, you need to close that sidh. You must ensure there is no way Lorcan can get to Ériu. He hates you. Think of what he would do if he found her. If nothing else sways you, perhaps that should.”
    Kier felt her anger draining away as exhaustion overtook her. She didn’t even realize she was falling until she hit the floor, and then all was dark.
     
    * * *
     
    When Kier woke up, it was not Brogan who was gazing down at her in concern, but rather the chief healer. His real name was Toirdhealbhach, but he had adopted the name “Felix” back in the years when he had made frequent trips to Ériu, and the name had stuck. He was remarkably handsome, even by the high standards of the Tuatha Dé Danann—his blond hair framing chiseled features and piercing blue eyes. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
    “Fine,” she answered automatically, and he raised an eyebrow. “Um…strange,” she corrected. “What happened?”
    “You collapsed,” he answered. “The king brought you here.”
    “Is he still here?” she asked, sitting up. Felix handed her a goblet that smelled like wild strawberries and night air.
    “No. He said he had some business to attend to,” Felix said.
    Like a visit to Ériu , she thought bitterly. She took a sip from the goblet to mask her expression. Was this her fate, to be constantly blindsided by the men in her life? She had felt a growing closeness with Brogan in recent weeks, as though their common goal had created a new bond between them. Apparently it had been one-sided. “Have you made any progress on the plant samples?” she asked.
    Felix’s lips twitched. “You have a bit of a one-track mind, don’t you?” Seeing that she was about to argue, he continued. “I’m sorry to say that what Connor told you is correct. There is some sort of poison at work. But it’s nothing I’ve ever seen before. I’ll keep working on it to see if I can identify the source. But as of now, I don’t know any more than you do.”
    Kier frowned. The Tuatha Dé Danann had created this land and lived in tune with it for thousands of years. How could an unknown poison of this strength appear out of nowhere? Unless Eolas was right, and it had something to do with Lorcan.
    Felix interrupted her thoughts. “Since you seem keen to talk about anything but your health, there’s something you should know. We are not the only ones to notice this strange decay. Some are saying the humans are to blame, that they have somehow poisoned our land as a bid to weaken us and take over Tír na nÓg.”
    Kier gaped at him. “That’s ridiculous. There haven’t been any humans in