‘Yeah.’ My jaw clenched. ‘He has that skill.’

Aifric could have done something; he could have helped them. He’d been in a position to change Scotland for the better and, because he wanted to remain the strongest leader in the land, he hadn’t. Other Sidhe wouldn’t have appreciated his actions and might have challenged him; equally, he might have been worried that uniting Scotland would make his position less meaningful and more diluted. And yet he had kept the Fomori sweet. He wanted to have them ready for his own sinister purposes.

‘We sent delegations. Your Clan killed them.’

‘Is that what he told you?’

The demon looked at me. ‘Are you suggesting he was lying? It would be in your interests to suggest that was the case.’

‘I spent most of my life believing my father was a genocidal maniac. I have no problem with believing that there were those in my Clan who were … less than noble.’ I told him about the three dead demons Byron and I had discovered. ‘You can get your Truth Teller. My story will not change.’ I pointed at Byron. ‘He will tell you the same.’

‘We do not test our friends.’

I was taken aback. ‘Am I a friend?’

He smiled toothlessly. ‘Not yet.’

I considered this and hope flared through me. We were getting somewhere, we were really getting somewhere, but there was still a great to be said. I drew in a breath. ‘What happened in Aberdeen…’

‘Ah yes. A tragedy for all concerned.’ He glanced down. ‘Our situation is dire. We went to see if there were others we could negotiate with. As soon as your kind saw us, however…’ His voice trailed off.

‘They attacked,’ I whispered. Byron himself had done so; he’d casually tossed a fireball into the back of a Fomori demon who’d pitched up in Perth. Fight first, ask questions later. We were all guilty of something.

‘Yes. We tried other methods of communication but they were misunderstood.’ He looked at me archly. ‘Including by you.’

I frowned. ‘What do you mean?’

‘We knew that sooner or later someone would come looking for, what was his name? MacBan?’

‘MacBain.’

‘Ah, yes. We left a message for anyone who came.’

I closed my eyes. Save us. It was written in blood above his bones. I’d assumed it was a message from the Fomori’s slaves but I was wrong. ‘I’m sorry.’

He shrugged a bony shoulder. ‘We should have been more explicit. We know our ancestors did your kind wrong when they first came here. They were afraid and they believed they needed to fight in order to stay. Our fathers sinned and we have been paying the price ever since. We know what you think of us; telling you the truth about our desperate situation would have invited disbelief. We were hoping for … investigation.’

‘Because that way lies the truth,’ I said.

He nodded. ‘Indeed.’

‘And the others? The ones who aren’t Fomori?’ I leaned forward. ‘You don’t even allow them names.’