The Unicorn Hunter by Che Golden

accident,’ said Meabh, wagging a finger playfully at Maddy. ‘Because now I have a monarch of a rival court who is in my debt. The point I am trying to make here is that when you are equal to your opponents in raw power, being clever, even devious, is the only way to get the upper hand. It is also a useful weapon when you are weaker than your opponents, as you are. As the new Hound, you’re going to need all the help you can get.’
    â€˜I’m not the new Hound,’ said Maddy. ‘None of this has got anything to do with me.’
    â€˜That’s how I know you have a talent for this game,’ said Meabh, smiling. ‘That was a very clever trick you played on Cernunnos, asking him to prove he wastelling the truth. And I saw the way you looked at Niamh. Saw right through her, didn’t you?’ She stood up and had to bend her neck against the ceiling of the little cottage, she was so tall. The room suddenly got darker and the flames rose higher in the fireplace, throwing the Tuatha’s shadow huge against the wall. ‘But I’m not Niamh,’ Meabh said, her voice darker and thicker, with a rumble of thunder along its edge.
    She moved so fast Maddy didn’t have a chance to call for help. She saw a white blur and then the Autumn Queen was bending over her, her long white fingers wrapped around the back of Maddy’s skull, her palm pressing against her chin. Maddy kicked out and clawed at Meabh’s hand, gasping for breath as Meabh lifted her from the chair to dangle in the air, her feet inches above the carpet. The Tuatha was so strong her fingers didn’t even twitch as Maddy’s body jerked like a fish on the line.
    â€˜Quiet, little one,’ crooned Meabh, her green eyes glowing. ‘Have you ever seen a rabbit break its own neck trying to get loose from a trap? Hush, hush!’
    Maddy gasped and then hung still, her fingers white at the knuckles where she clutched at Meabh’s wrist. Her neck ached as her head tipped back on her spine and the muscles in her jaw and cheeks burned where the bones of Meabh’s fingers dug in.
    â€˜There is a war coming, but it will come at a time of my choosing and when it benefits my court most,’ hissed Meabh. ‘But this time I will have the Hound on my side.’
    Maddy tried to speak. ‘I’m not …’ she began to mutter through clenched teeth, but Meabh squeezed tighter and cut the words off.
    â€˜Don’t lie to me, child,’ said Meabh. ‘
I can smell your blood.
I
know
you’re the Hound. But you’re only a pup and you won’t last long in a Tuatha war, not without friends. Bend the knee, swear fealty to the Autumn Court, and I can help you find the unicorn hunter.’
    Maddy would have loved to reply to that, but gravity was keeping her jaw clamped shut in Meabh’s hand. Meabh cocked her head and looked at her for a moment as the muscles in Maddy’s neck and face screamed with pain. Then, without warning, she opened her fingers and dropped Maddy back into her chair.
    Maddy gasped with relief and flexed her neck. She glared up at Meabh. ‘How exactly are you going to help me out?’
    Meabh laughed, a throaty chuckle that excited the fire to leap and dance. ‘See how you negotiate the terms of your capitulation,’ she purred. ‘No words of defiance or anger – you play well. I am the Witch Queen – my court as your ally will strengthen your hand enormouslyhere and in the Land. Not to mention the protection my faeries can give your loved ones. Especially those without the Sight – like your lovely granny.’
    Maddy’s blood ran cold to hear Meabh talking about Granny. ‘I need to know your help is worth having before I hand over my allegiance.’
    â€˜Do you now?’ asked Meabh, settling herself back down in Granda’s chair by the fire. ‘Well, I can’t tell you
who
you are looking for, but I