A Place Beyond (14 page)

I know you worry I blame you Allison. But you couldn’t be more wrong.

I was surprised, even though I shouldn’t have been. I hadn’t focused on keeping her out of my head, since it was the only way we could communicate.

I’m still sorry. If I were stronger, I would’ve been able to stop Aoife before everything got so out of hand.

She shook her head.

You are stronger than many women of the Tuatha De Danaan could ever hope to be. You just don’t see yourself clearly.

I smirked.
Thank you. But I hope you know how much I hated agreeing to what she wanted.

She kept her eyes forward.
I do.

When we got to the base of the mountain, the sun was just beginning to paint the sky a pale peach on the horizon. Niamh held up a finger and closed her eyes. We waited as she tried to communicate with Saoirse.

They’ve located the entrance Samantha and Ciarán must have used. It’s around the west side, up a narrow trail that forks up to the right. You’ll know you’re in the right place because a rocky outcropping marks the site of an old landslide. Follow the trail around the rocks and you’ll see the mouth of the mine entrance.

Ethan slid his hand into mine and gave it a gentle squeeze. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply through my nose. We were really going to do this. Niamh and Aodhan would give us a head start to get to where Ciarán and Samantha were being held. Once I signaled we’d released them, Niamh and Aodhan would enter from the opposite side of the mine. They would find Aoife and trap her once again.

I looked at Aodhan and his answering gaze was so full of conviction, I felt a renewed sense of self-confidence.

Ethan and I walked through a field of purple wildflowers to the west until we found the trail. It started off easy enough, but grew steep and rocky. I took my time finding safe footing. A twisted ankle would mess up the entire scheme.

Once we came to the fork, we walked around the piles of rocks where we found the opening just as Niamh described it. Once inside the mine, it was as dark as a moonless night. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the tiny spheres Niamh had given me. They were fey lights and when I held one out, it lit the tunnel enough for us to see where we were going. I passed one to Ethan, and he gripped my hand and pulled me against his chest.

“Stay close to me,” he whispered into my hair.

I nodded into his shirt.

“Promise?”

“I promise,” I said, my voice muffled against the smooth fabric.

The cave formed a winding tunnel and we couldn’t see very far ahead as we walked. I listened for any sounds that would indicate we were getting closer to Samantha.

The tunnel opened up and we could either go along a narrow ledge with a high ceiling or continue down another dark tunnel. Pressure settled in my chest as I looked for any indication of which way we should go.

“Which way?” Ethan said, his voice low as he paced from one side of the tunnel to the other.

I stepped forward, focusing on the tunnel first. I couldn’t see very far inside even with the fey light flaring. I looked to the right, at the place where the cavern opened into a ledge.

I glanced over my shoulder at Ethan. “Let’s try the ledge first.”

“Okay, do you hear anything?”

“No,” I said, shrugging. “Just following my gut.”

“That’s the best we’ve got,” he said, walking ahead of me and putting up his hand. “Let me just see if it’ll hold us.”

I bounced on the balls of my feet while Ethan threw a few small boulders to see if the ledge was stable. The last time we walked across a narrow path like this, the whole thing collapsed under Liam’s feet. Which might have been caused by Aoife, but I might never know for sure.

“Let’s go,” he said, gesturing for me to follow him.

At the end of the ledge, there was a wide bend leading to another tunnel. We followed the tunnel, only seeing as far as our fey lights allowed. I froze when I heard a wet, dripping sound beyond the light.

“I’ll see if I can find where that’s coming from,” he said, creeping forward. I waited, the dripping noise tapping a beat in the darkness ahead.

A crunching sound echoed in the tunnel and two things happened before my mind could process what I was seeing. The ground beneath Ethan’s feet shifted and crumbled and he vaulted forward, tumbling into a hole in the cave floor.

I screamed, my feet carrying me forward without thought. I fell to my knees at the edge of the hole. Ethan was ten feet down in several inches of water. He bellowed in pain, his fingers scrabbling against the jagged walls of the hole.

“Ethan,” I said, looking around trying to figure out how I could get him out of there.

A steady drip of water hit him in the center of his head, and he was alternating between trying to climb the wall and cover his head with his tunic.

“It’s burning me, it’s like acid,” he yelled, his voice hoarse.

My heart dropped. I tried to shimmy down and reach my hand to him to help him climb, but he was just out of my reach, frantically trying to climb out of the pool at his feet.

I scanned the ground around me, not even sure what I was looking for, just hoping for some divine inspiration to get to Ethan.

A patch of small stalagmites jutted off the cave floor and I scuttled over to them and hooked my foot behind one, lowering my upper body down to where I would be able to grab his hand.

“Ethan, over here,” I said as loud as I could so he’d hear me over his own shouts.

He turned and saw me hanging over the edge of the pit and hurried through the burning liquid. He tripped and landed hard on one knee, howling in pain. Without hesitation, he jumped back up and made his way to me.

He reached up and grabbed my hand, his body trembling with shock and pain. With effort I was able to support him as he used my body to lever himself up out of the water. His hands found a crack along the wall and he climbed up the side and heaved himself up next to me. Using all my strength, I pulled myself back up, dropping beside him.

His hands were shaking so badly, they fluttered uselessly against the fabric of his pants.

“Are you trying to take them off?” I asked, not sure if touching him would hurt him worse.

“Y-yes. It’s burning my skin.”

I knelt beside him, yanked my sleeves over my fingers and pulled his boots off, throwing them to the side. He was able to remove his socks and wiggle his pants down and I helped him pull them off his feet.

He blew out a shuddering breath and dropped down on his back. His chest heaved as he tried to breathe through the pain.

“What can I do?” I asked.

“I’ll be okay, just give me a minute.”

I sat back on my feet, and closed my eyes.

We’re coming,
Niamh said in my head.

The sound of footsteps echoed from the direction we were heading.

Niamh and Aodhan blurred to a halt just in front of Ethan. Aodhan looked down into the pit then back at Ethan and me.

“What’s down there?” he asked.

“It’s some kind of acid,” Ethan said, his teeth chattering. The skin on his feet and up to his thigh on one leg was deep red and blistered. When he looked up, I saw spots where the acid had splashed on his forehead and his cheeks were raw, as well.

“There’s nobody here,” Niamh said quietly as she knelt down beside me.

“What?”

“When I saw Ethan falling in your mind, we came in the front way. We saw the rooms where you’d seen Liam and the others, but they’re empty. Aoife is nowhere to be found, either.”

“Oh, no,” I said, deflating.

“This looks like some kind of trap,” Aodhan said as he inspected the gaping hole Ethan had fallen in.

“We should have known,” I said, shaking my head.

“What do you mean?” Ethan said, his face pale and strained.

“She knows everything I do. Charging in here trying to trick her was stupid.”

“That kind of talk will get you nowhere, Allison,” Aodhan said, eying me with disappointment.

I exhaled and got to my feet.

“Are you able to walk?” I asked Ethan.

He squeezed his eyes shut and wincing, got to his feet.

“Yeah, my skin hurts, but I’ll be fine.”

Seeing his pain, I reached for him, but faltered. “I’m so sorry.”

He narrowed his eyes at me, reaching out his own hand to grasp my shoulder. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“You shouldn’t be here, I wish more than anything you hadn’t been dragged into this.”

He shook his head and pulled me forward. “How many times do I have to tell you I want to be wherever you are?”

I swallowed and could practically feel the adrenaline drain from my system. Even though he was injured, I was the one who nearly collapsed in his arms.

“My parents are waiting for us, we should leave this place,” Niamh said, walking past us.

We followed Niamh and Aodhan toward the opening in the front of the mountain. The tiny crack Ethan and I had climbed through the last time we were here had been opened into a wide gap we were able walk through.

When we were out in the bright morning sun, Aodhan turned to Ethan. “I know you’re in intense pain. If you would allow it, I can carry you back to the Bruidhean.”

Ethan tensed. “I should be okay, but thanks man.”

“How bad is it?” I asked.

“I can take it,” he said, but the skin around his eyes was tight.

“Nobody will think less of you if you let Aodhan carry you, Ethan. You’re in pain and he could get you there fast.”

Ethan’s jaw tightened. “I mean it, I’m good.”

I dropped it. I didn’t want to hurt his pride, but I was worried about him. We walked down the gravelly hillside and saw Saoirse and Deaghlan along with a group of guards.

Deaghlan actually acknowledged us this time. He inclined his head as we approached, his eyes narrowed and jaw set. If he’d appeared this dignified the first time I met him, I might have felt a little more respect toward him.

Saoirse, despite the circumstances, appeared calm and untroubled. Her hair was still perfectly in place, and her strange opal eyes reflected the sun in a thousand prisms.

“We must get you to a healer, Ethan,” she said, her voice serene.

“More importantly, we must find our daughter,” Deaghlan said, with an air of haughtiness beyond anything I’d ever seen from him. And that was saying a lot.

“We’ll take care of Ethan, Mother,” Niamh said, glowering at her father.

Deaghlan’s eyes slid to me before he looked at Niamh. “Very well. I’m sure we’ll see you soon.”

With a tiny nod in our direction, Saoirse turned and, in a flash, disappeared, the rest right behind her.

Niamh and Aodhan stayed with us as we walked, but I could feel the need to run radiating off both of them. I felt torn because, while I understood Ethan’s pride, it would mean less time until his burns were cared for.

She could be anywhere.

I jerked back. I knew that was true, but I was so worried about Ethan I wasn’t thinking clearly.

Where will your parents try to find her?

Niamh shrugged one shoulder.
I’m not quite sure. My father thinks they may be in the human realm. In Thunder Bay.

That didn’t seem likely to me. I couldn’t explain why, but my instincts told me they hadn’t left this realm.

I think you’re right.

I looked at Niamh’s ponytail swinging back and forth in front of me as we walked, somewhat surprised she agreed with me.

I glanced at Ethan, his skin was pale, but he kept moving despite the pain and the fact he was in his boxer shorts and bare feet.

We’re almost there. It will only be another ten minutes. I’ve made sure a healer is ready to see him.

I nodded, even though she couldn’t see me.
Thank you.

The sun was almost in the middle of the sky when we arrived at the base of the staircase leading up to the Bruidhean. There were at least one hundred steps to the top and my heart hurt watching Ethan look up with a flicker of dismay in his eyes.

“Sweet Brigid!”