Resistance Read Free

couple and the husband kisses
his wife’s cheek; whispering something in her ear. She pulls in a
breath and nods before going back through the kitchen and
disappearing from sight. The gentlemen start talking and, for some
reason, I abandon my comfortable branch and leap down a few to
eavesdrop. The heat and the iron must be getting to me.
    “— saying, Patty, is that you should
probably tell Fi something before—”
    “No ,” snaps the leader, ‘Patty’, with a shake
of his head. “She is safer this way. She doesn’t have to know about
this.”
    “I’m not sure that’s true—”
    “Seamus, please…” It’s a quiet plea, and judging by
the look ‘Seamus’ gives him, it’s genuine. Looking at them closer
now, it’s obvious they’re brothers. The lilt in their voice is
discernible even from my perch seventy yards away, and they each
use the same mannerisms and hand gestures as they speak. They are
highly animated. I have to wonder how the older one ended up with
such a stoic other half.
    Seamus sighs and nods but doesn’t move away. He is
not happy that his brother is keeping secrets, this much is
obvious, but he stands beside the man in spite of this. Family
loyalty. How nice.
    No more than fifteen seconds pass and his wife is
back, tailed by a girl who is a blend of them both. I’ve seen her
before. She sneaks out in the middle of the night with her father
all the time to practice her aim with a bow. She’s not the best
shot I’ve seen in my lifetime, but she’s young. She’ll learn. Her
name is Fianna. She is only a bit shorter than her mother and has a
braid of ebony black hair that hits the small of her back. Her eyes
are striking, a deep green, and they hold more knowledge and stress
than anyone her age should be carrying. She hides her emotions
well, but watch her a bit and you can see the pain as if it were a
flashing neon sign above her.
    I am ashamed to admit I have been doing quite a bit
of watching her lately. And I am ashamed of that because
it ’ s not like I ’ ve been watching her to establish if she would be a
friend or foe if I were to approach. No. It is strictly because I
believe she is one of the most beautiful young ladies — human or Fae — that
I ’ ve seen in a very long time, and
evidently I have a tendency to stare. What a vain little fox I can
be …
    The wife moves back to ‘Patty’s’ side and turns back
to their daughter. The room is stock still and silent; even a human
could hear a pin drop in the deafening quiet. All eyes are on the
couple when the husband begins, and I chance another leap down. No
one notices.
    “You all know why we’re here. The time has come for
action. To be sure we are prepared, Maeve and I will be heading out
to scout conditions. We shouldn’t be gone more than a fortnight,
and in our absence, Fianna will be seeing to things. If we don’t
return, you all know what to do. Look after yourselves and be
ready.”
    The color drains out of Fianna’s face and she clears
her throat as she moves forward. Patty looks to the other man and
says, “You’ll watch after them, right?”
    Seamus smiles. He looks a bit sad, but he slaps the
other man on the back and nods. “I’ll do my best to keep them safe,
Patrick.”
    There is a big part of me that is thankful the giant
isn’t actually named ‘Patty’. I might’ve spared a moment to think
this over further, but I didn’t have the time…nor the interest, for
that matter.
    Fianna, who heard only Seamus’ last remark, bristles.
Her lips purse and she straightens up, and I almost laugh. She’s a
feisty one. “Uncle Seamus,” she begins, “you know you’ll
have your hands full with your own brood. Eir and I will be just
fine on our own. Please don’t worry yourself.”
    Terrible things would be done to the young lady if
she were to speak to an authority figure that way outside of this
city, but her uncle just smiles and nods; giving Patrick a knowing
look before moving further into the