The Banshee's Desire by Victoria Richards Page A

had been going on for over a hundred years.
    So when one of those young girls had been brave enough to fight back when Artro attacked her, catching him off guard and killing him with a knife, it was only natural that the villagers would rally around the girl in celebration. They had hid her in their homes and prayed to the goddess Morrigan for protection.
    But such things had only brought down terror, pain, and death on the village. The wizards demanded she be given over to them. When that hadn't happened, the watering well had dried up and the crops wilted in the field, leaving them with little to eat.
    It was all her fault.
    And Efa knew there were things the villagers didn't know, things they would have condemned her for, things which would have caused them to turn on her.
    She was in love with one of the wizards. Jervis. He'd come across her one spring morning as she bathed in the waters of Antrim pond. Something about him had mesmerized her and she'd felt drawn to him, knowing instantly he was from the castle. The power whispering off his skin had been irresistible.
    They'd made love that same afternoon and she'd given him her virginity willingly, vowing to be together whenever they could. Weeks and months had slipped past as they met in secret. The love they shared grew deeper.
    And then Artro had spotted her at the village well. Flushed and happy after an afternoon of love with Jervis, Efa had no idea the pretty picture she made. Artro wanted a piece of what he thought was his for the taking.
    The knife she always wore strapped to her leg had slid into Artro with ease during their struggle.
    It was Jervis that protected her. He stalled the others, trying to reason with the wizards that she had only been protecting herself. But when it became clear that the matter would not be put to rest, Jervis warned her to leave the village.
    They were not to see each other again.
    Efa couldn't do it. She loved him too much. And she couldn't tell the others the truth-- that she was in love with Jervis.
    Eventually, the wizards had grown tired of playing with the lives of the villagers from a distance. They had come for her, led by an old man in black robes and who looked like a bitter wind would push him over. His long gray beard hung to his waist, signifying his seniority over the other robed men.
    "Give us the girl," he demanded in a voice that carried around the village. "There is no sense in harboring the whore. The Brotherhood brings death to your village should you not give her up."
    Efa, hiding in a nearby hut, heard it all. Trembling, she'd been unable to move.
    "Very well," the old wizard said, when no one came forward to turn her in. "You bring this on yourselves, on your children."
    He'd uttered some words in Gaelic and a great black cloud hid the sun, causing a chill to fall. Fire bolts rained down on the village, catching the straw thatched roofs on fire. People fell to the ground, writhing in pain from an unseen force.
    "No!" Efa screamed, watching a young boy twist and convulse as blood poured from his ears and nose. "Stop it!"
    Without thought, she ran to the old wizard, ready to give herself up.
    "So you're what all the fuss is about." He looked her over with a grim smile. "You’re the reason my son, Artro, was killed."
    Efa paled. Artro had been his son. No one had known that.
    "I can't wait to strip your skin from your bones," the old wizard said, his voice deceptively soft. "I'll do it nice and slow, prolonging the agony as you have prolonged mine by hiding yourself."
    "No!" Jervis pushed his way out of the robed wizards. "Stay away from her."
    "What's this? Defiance in my ranks?" The old wizard shook his head. "Jervis, you disappoint. Don't tell me you've been tempted by the pleasures of the flesh?"
    "These villagers have done nothing to warrant your anger. Artro committed terrible acts of violence here. Death was better than what he deserved."
    The old wizard's face grew red with rage and the other men in his