A Place Beyond (2 page)

I’m walking in a dark chamber. The smell of still water and minerals fills my nose. I can’t see where I’m going, but I can tell there is a faint light ahead. My feet slip on something wet and I catch myself on a sharp rock jutting out of the wall.

A series of deep coughs echo through the rock cavern. The further I walk, the louder the coughing gets.

The light grows brighter and I come to a place where it bounces off the damp cave walls.

When I round the corner, Liam is there, on his hands and knees. His body is twisted in pain as he tries to catch his breath between coughs.

I look on in horror and the sound changes, becomes distinctly feminine. I’m confused as I look at my father on the cave floor but the sound morphs to that of my mother coughing.

Clutching the blanket in my fists, I jolted upright. My bedroom was quiet. Seconds later, another cough came from across the hall.

I hurried into my mother’s room to make sure she was okay. She lay on her side, her small frame racked with a cough that sounded as though it would split her in two.

I disentangled the blankets that had become wrapped around her legs. I tried to help her sit up as she caught her breath.

“Oh, dear. It sounds like someone has a cold,” Gram said from behind me as she went to the other side of my mother’s bed.

I propped the pillow behind her and stepped away as my grandmother put her hand on Mom’s forehead.

“Would you mind getting some of the cough suppressant from the medicine cabinet, Allie-girl?” Gram said. Just my grandmother’s presence seemed to soothe her.

I blinked and nodded, the adrenaline draining from my system as I left the room. In that second between dreaming and waking, I’d thought maybe Liam was still alive. That maybe I was having some sort of vision.

The reality was my mother just had a cold and my subconscious was playing tricks on me. My father was dead and I was grieving.

I turned on the tap in the bathroom and splashed a little water on my face before grabbing the medicine. I couldn’t help noticing my skin was pinched and ghost-white. My eyes were sunken in, like they belonged to someone twice my age. I shook my head and flipped the switch.

Gram met my eyes as I walked back into the bedroom. Her silvery brows were drawn together in concern. I attempted to smooth my expression.

“You look tired, Allison. Why don’t you go back to bed? You mother will be just fine.”

I almost argued, but Gram wasn’t asking. She would take things from here. Nodding, I mumbled a good night and went back to bed.

I opened my eyes and blinked at the figure sitting on the edge of my bed. I zeroed in on the steaming mug in his hand.

“Ethan,” I said, my voice raspy from sleep. “What are you doing?”

“Well,” he said, and his face broke out into a grin. “I stopped for breakfast this morning and wanted to bring you something before I head to work.”

I threw my blankets off and nearly spilled the contents of the coffee mug.

“What do you have there?” I asked.

“Your grandfather warned me not to wake you unless I was armed with caffeine. So here you go.”

I grabbed the mug and immediately took a sip. “Thank you. This is so good.”

“There are muffins downstairs, too,” he said with a crooked smile.

My eyes widened. “What’s that all about?”

He shook his head and held up his hands in surrender. “I just wanted to say good morning.”

My lips turned up against the mug. “I’m sorry. That was really nice of you.”

“No problem. But there
is
one other thing,” he began, his smile faltering.

“Okay,” I said, turning and putting my feet on the floor. “Let’s hear it.”

Ethan sucked in a deep breath and stared at me for several seconds. “Jeff said you and Nicole have plans to go dress shopping this afternoon.”

“Dress shopping,” I sighed, shaking my head. “Just what I want to do today.”

“You know, the one good part of spending all that time in Tír na n’Óg is that you missed a couple months of wedding plans.”

“Nicole will go all bridezilla on me if I shirk my maid of honor duties.”

“But first,” he said, reaching for my hand and pulling me to feet. “You need a muffin. Come on.”

My grandfather stood hunched over the kitchen sink when we walked in. When I pulled out a chair at the kitchen table, he straightened and turned to face us.

“Good morning, you two.”

“Morning, Pop,” I said, grabbing an apple spice muffin out of the little white pastry bag. “Has Mom been up yet?”

Pop pursed his lips. “Your grandmother is up with her. She had a rough night, I guess.”

“Yeah,” I said softly. “I heard her up coughing.”

“I’m sure it’s just a bug. Your mom’ll be just fine.”

I nodded, but the image of Liam on all fours clouded my mind. Ethan’s brow furrowed when I caught him watching my reaction.

Just then, coughing came from upstairs and I could hear Gram speaking softly to my mother. When they made their way into the kitchen, Mom wasn’t coughing anymore, though her normally flawless skin was colorless.

“How’s the patient this morning?” Pop asked, winking at my mother as she sat across from me.

Gram patted Mom’s back and smiled. “She’s got herself the first cold of the season, it seems.”

“Ethan brought us a little treat, Beth. How about a muffin?” Pop asked, pulling a blueberry streusel muffin out and placing it in front of my mother.

She nodded and picked a piece off the top. Another wave of coughing seized her and the muffin crumbled in her fingers.

I bit my lip as my mother hunched over in her chair. “Did she take any more of that medicine?” I asked, glancing at Gram.

“I just gave her some before we came down, as a matter of fact.”

Ethan nudged my muffin toward me and gave me a pointed look.

“Well, it’s time for me to head to work,” he said, pushing away from the table and gesturing for me to follow.

I stood and walked with him out the front door as my grandparents said goodbye.

“Thanks for bringing the muffins,” I said, leaning a hip on the porch railing as he walked down the stairs. “That was sweet of you.”

Ethan turned, shaking his head. “It’s not a big deal.”

I looked away. “So, where are you working today?”

“I’ll be spending most of the day in the office,” he said walking a few steps back to the porch. “Paperwork, the bane of my existence.”

“Can’t be worse than shopping for bridesmaid dresses,” I said.

He reached up and laced his fingers through mine. “Well, then. Seems we owe it to ourselves to do something special tonight.”

The way he said things like “we” and “ourselves” did something strange and lovely to my heart. I found myself squeezing his fingers, and swallowing hard.

He cocked his head to the side. “Your mom seems okay. I mean, besides the cough, right?”

I nodded, pursing my lips.

“You’re still beating yourself up about Liam.” It wasn’t a question.

“I guess.” My voice was rough and I stared at the ground so he couldn’t see the tears blurring my vision.

“Hey,” he said, tugging on my hand. “It’s all right. Look at me.”

I ran a hand across my eyes and tried to smile. “Sorry,” I said, feeling ridiculous.

“I’ll come over after work… about 6:30?”

I nodded, giving him a watery smile. “Okay.”

Just after seven, I hit the road for my morning run. The cool autumn air smelled of damp leaves and wood smoke. My usual route wound up into the rural sector of Stoneville where you could go miles between houses. I stuck in my earbuds as I warmed up and cranked the volume. Trees and farmland blurred as I tore along my path, oblivious to the world beyond the angry beat of the music in my ears.

I turned down the wooded shortcut that would bring me down through the cemetery hills. As I broke off the dirt path and onto the paved cemetery road, I felt a presence beside me. I turned my head and nearly tripped over my own feet when I saw Niamh running. Her eyes were on the road ahead, as though she’d been running by my side the entire time.

“You’re becoming rather efficient at blocking me,” she said. Her voice was calm and steady, not the slightest bit winded.

I was running too fast to have a conversation out loud and concentrated on opening my mind to her.
I just needed a little break.

Ah, I understand,
she said in my mind. Niamh was a telepath. She was able to hear my thoughts, which I found disconcerting and downright annoying. At the moment, however, it was the only way I could communicate. I may have some trace of Danaan blood flowing in my veins, but not enough to keep me from panting and sweating like any other human.

You could have just called me,
I thought.

I do
not
like telephones,
she thought with distaste.

I rolled my eyes and glanced over at her. Her pale, golden hair was pulled into a smooth ponytail. It swished back and forth in time as she ran. She wore a perfect fitting baby blue velour jogging suit. Her face showed no signs of strain as we ran.

I wanted to let you know I’ll be going to Thunder Bay
.

Really?
I asked.

Yes. More murders have been reported. We need to put an end to it.

Who’s going with you?
I asked.

Two of my guards. And Aodhan.

The last part sounded sheepish, even in my mind.

I raised an eyebrow, looking over at her, though her face remained unmoved.

I’ve arranged for Tagdh to stay here and keep an eye on you.

‘
Keep an eye on me?’
I asked. It was such a human thing for her to say.

If it’s possible to snort in your mind, that’s what she did.
You need to be guarded until Aoife is stopped.

My initial reaction was to tell Niamh I could take care of myself. But images of Aoife killing her advisor, Breanh with only a flick of her wrist, and nearly killing me, flashed before my eyes.

Okay, but Ethan is here, too.

Niamh sped up and spun around so she was running backward, no small feat. She raised one brow before falling back into place beside me.

Surely I don’t have to tell you that your human lover is no match for Aoife.

No.
I shook my head
. I know that.

Tagdh is very devoted. He won’t intrude. You won’t even know he’s there.

She was trying to reassure me, but all I could think of was an invisible presence watching me no matter what I was doing.

Would you rather I didn’t tell you?
Niamh’s voice was sardonic in my mind.

It’s fine, I get it.

I ran on in silence, seeing Niamh wince as we passed through the wrought iron cemetery gates. Together, we slowed to a jog as we made our way back up the road toward the old farmhouse where I grew up.

Follow me to Liam’s house.

I froze. Niamh’s words echoed in my mind, seeming to bounce around inside my skull.
Liam’s house…

Without looking at her, I trailed behind as she strode toward the lot next to my grandparent’s house. She silently led me up the long, tree-lined drive, not speaking until we walked through the front door of my father’s house. I bent to stretch my legs by the kitchen counter.

“Do you have any idea where Samantha and Ciarán might have gone?” she asked as she opened the refrigerator.

My eyes widened in surprise, mostly because I hadn’t considered where they were. “I… no, I have no idea.”

“I didn’t think so,” she said, pouring water from a jug into a glass and handing it to me.

I took it gratefully. After gulping it down, I went into the living room and dropped into one of the overstuffed chairs.

Niamh came in right after me and sat on the loveseat across from me. “My mother can’t get a read on them, either.”

“That seems to happen a lot where Aoife is concerned,” I said, crossing my arms. For someone with the ability to see the future, Niamh’s mother Saoirse missed a lot when it came to visions of her other daughter.