I looked at my watch. If I hurried, I could still check out the cabin.

I ran out of the MacBain suite of rooms, yelling to Taylor, Lexie, Brochan and Speck who were waiting outside with hopeful expressions, and sprinted down the castle stairs, taking them three at a time. Narrowly avoiding crashing into a nervous-looking pixie laden down with a tray of canapés, I ran out of the castle towards the competitors’ village, damning the fact that our cabin was located so far away.

I was too late. By the time I reached the cabin, the door was already wide open and there were shouts from within – and two burly Sidhe guys on guard outside. No doubt there would be questions about the amount of food we’d brought with us and I hated the thought of some Cruaich guard rummaging through my underwear. It wasn’t the potential discovery of the necklace which worried me the most, though – it was what might happen to Dagda’s harp, sitting quietly in the corner.

I stormed over, demanding to be allowed in and to know what right they had to invade our private space, just as Lexie showed up behind me. No doubt the others were close behind.

‘What the hell is going on, Tegs?’

‘Necklace. Stolen.’

I didn’t need to go into detail. Lexie immediately understood and tossed back her blue hair defiantly. ‘And they think we took it,’ she said flatly.

‘Actually, they think I did.’

‘One and the same,’ she grunted as Brochan arrived. He didn’t ask questions – he took one look at the cluster of bodies ransacking the cabin and barrelled forward. ‘Get the fuck out!’ he yelled.

The guards exchanged glances then moved to intercept him. ‘Sir,’ one said with undisguised loathing, ‘you need to wait outside.’

‘No chance,’ he snarled. He made to push past them but the second one raised his hand.

‘Brochan!’ I shouted in warning but it was too late; the guard, whose Gift seemed to involve some kind of electrical lightning strike, had already made his move. Brochan was thrown back, his body rising several feet into the air then landing some distance away with a heavy thump. Sickeningly, his limbs were still twitching.

‘You wankers!’ Lexie screamed, ready to follow in Brochan’s wake. Fortunately Speck appeared and grabbed hold of her. She struggled against him. ‘Let me go!’

‘You’re going to pay for what you’ve just done,’ I said calmly to the guard.

His lip curled as he looked me up and down. ‘I’m quaking in my boots,’ he sneered. I glared at him with the most hate-filled look I could muster up and his face paled. ‘Shit.’

‘Yeah,’ I told him. ‘I might not look much and I might hate violence but that doesn’t mean I’m not capable of doing whatever is necessary to protect me and mine, buster.’

‘Could someone,’ said Byron from behind me, ‘explain what’s going on here?’

Realisation dawned and I looked at the guard. ‘You’re afraid of him, not me.’ I nodded. ‘Right.’ Then I shrugged and tried to look fierce. ‘You’ll learn.’