Free Banished by Liz de Jager Page A

library.
    I send off a series of urgent emails to everyone in the Blackhart registry that I know, hoping to get help from anyone and soon. Next I check the database that Kyle’s built up to satisfy
Aunt Letitia’s obsessive record keeping. I find the folders on Alba easily enough and after half an hour of rapid reading I’m not really much wiser. King Aelfric came to power six
hundred years ago through a series of wars and deaths in his family. I skim back and my eyes cross over when I see the long line of his lineage. They seem to have always ruled Alba, since a time
called the Sundering. Aelfric is a modern king, well thought of, and he’s a firm and fair ruler, having managed to prevent out-and-out bloodshed between the Seelie and Unseelie Courts, which
are, even at times of peace, forever at each other’s throats. He is progressive and has gone out of his way to strengthen ties with the human community, negotiating intricate business deals
in both realms. He maintains strong relationships with various politically powerful families known as the Free Fae who have long ago decided to declare themselves ruled by no sovereign.
    He entertains lavishly at his Court at winter, inviting the rulers of all the countries of the Otherwhere, and uses the festivities to network and sign new treaties for trade and continued
peace. Spring is the time when he strengthens his ties to the human world. I sit back in surprise, remembering Marc, Megan and Kyle’s parents coming back from the States to attend the Spring
Equinox Ball held in Hyde Park shortly after my nan’s funeral. I thought I was adjusting to my new life but when the detachment of Fae bodyguards turned up at the front door to accompany
Uncle Andrew and Aunt Jessica to the ball, it felt as if I had been dropped into the middle of the filming of
Lord of the Rings
.
    They were dressed in armour that fascinated me. It was made of metal of some sort but it looked more as if the blacksmith had taken large leaves from oak trees and moulded them into protective
armour, covering the guards’ chests, torsos and backs. Their great helms, shields and even their weapons repeated the leaf design. The horses they rode looked as if they were made from sea
foam and moonlight, until you got too close and saw the fire in the depths of their dark eyes and the sparks their hooves struck from the ground. When my aunt and uncle left with the Fae guards I
watched them ride into the forest and knew that this was just one more thing signalling the end to my pre-Blackhart life.
    I drag myself back to the now and open the folder Kyle created for each of Thorn’s siblings. They are all exceptionally attractive specimens. Very Viking-esque with strong shoulders, thick
blond hair and handsome faces. I flick through their files but don’t see anything interesting. Six of them are married and five of them already have their own kids. I find Thorn’s file
and open it. The first thing I notice is a photo of Thorn. It must have been taken a few years ago. He looks maybe fourteen and there is an arrogance there that I don’t recognize in the boy
that’s having a shower only a few doors down. In the photo he’s wearing a black tunic and loose-fitting black trousers that resemble karate trousers. His hair is tousled and he looks a
mess, as if he’s just come away from a sparring match. There is blood on his face and he’s standing with his fists clenched. The expression in his eyes is one of anger and dislike. I
have no idea where the photo is from or how Kyle even has it in his database. There isn’t much info about Thorn, except to say when he was born (using our timeline) and so, yes, that makes
him nineteen now, with his birthday having been on the summer solstice in June.
    I push back from the screens before me and check the main inbox. Nothing. No emails from anyone. Where is everyone?
    I close my eyes. What do we do next? Do we stay here, where we are relatively safe and