Heir of Earth (Forgotten Gods) (44 page)

“They weren’t happy here?” I offered and he shook his head.

“I don’t know if they could be happy anywhere.” He stared straight ahead; his gaze softened and I looked ahead with him.

The rock walls fell away and we came to an opening with a little storybook cottage. A large yard stretched out before us, dotted with the same boulders as below and larger patches of grass and fern and lavender filling the gaps between. The normal haze that covered Ireland blew away and for a moment the sun shone down on the hidden retreat like a rainbow pointing to a pot of gold. The rocks began again behind the cottage, forming an impenetrable stone fence.

A huge front porch, filled with rocking chairs and a swing, welcomed us. From the steps I could see that the house sat slightly above the rocks and had a grand view of the landscape and pond below.

A big brass knocker hung on the cherry red front door. Smoke rose from the chimney, and it all looked so picture perfect I had to wonder if it was some sort of fairy magic.

“Is someone here?” I squinted my eyes to try to see in the large windows.

“No, I got it ready for you earlier.” He put me down near the porch and took my hand as we both stared at the little house. I understood why he had loved his human childhood so much. It didn’t seem like anything bad was capable of happening in a place as heavenly as this.

“Do you come here a lot?” I asked, feeling the pain of yet another secret part of his life I had no clue about.

He nodded his head. “When I need to get away,” he said as he turned away from the house to enjoy the view. “But I haven’t needed to come nearly as much as I used to.” He winked at me and squeezed my hand, chasing my insecurities away.

We walked up the steps, and he opened the door. A light floral smell greeted me when we entered. A little fire danced in the fireplace. On the opposite side of the room, a tiny kitchen stood ready to work. It was cozy and lived in—the kind of place where a little old grandmother might pop in the kitchen any minute and offer us milk and cookies.

I picked up a grainy old black and white photo of a young boy, very much like a photo of my grandfather that sat on a shelf back home. The boy looked familiar. I was startled when I recognized the eyes. It was a very young Dayne staring back at me.

“This is amazing, Dayne. Where are we exactly?”

“Still in Ireland, right in the middle of The Burren. A hundred square miles of limestone surrounds us. Nothing but the hardiest of plants and animals can survive out here. People thought my father was mad when he bought it, but it was perfect for us. It gave me a home where I could experience the childhood I always wanted without the worry of nosey neighbors to see how different we really were.” He went to the kitchen and opened the pizza box on the counter. “I hope cheese is okay?”

“Your own little oasis?” I could get used to a place this, I thought, as I examined the worn spines on a stack of books.

His head hung over my shoulder and we looked at the picture I still held together.

“You?” I felt his head nod on my shoulder. A few months ago that would have been too weird to believe. These days, it was normal. “You look really happy.” I smiled as I looked at the young boy.

“I was,” he said, taking the picture from my hands and tracing a finger down the length of the frame. “This life was the only life I ever wanted, but that didn’t matter. It was taken from me long before I was ready to give it up.”

“What happened?” I said as I admired the ringlets curling around his chubby little cherub face. If I had been looking at him I might have seen the darkening skies that claimed his eyes. He said nothing. When I looked up, I was sorry I had ever asked the question.

“My sister lost control. Breathed borrowed breath from her best friend and we had to cover it up.” His eyes glazed over as he stared through the picture in my hand. The blood ran cold in my veins.

I gasped and dropped the frame. He caught it before it shattered on the wooden floor.

“Her best friend?” I asked, nodding my head absently along with his.

“Of course, we were suspected in the girl’s disappearance, but they had no proof. We left as soon as it was safe and scattered. My sister was sent back to LisTirna and I stayed here, roaming the world, trying to find another life to make me as happy as I’d been.”

“Did you?” I swallowed hard, fighting the lump in my throat.

“I think I just did,” he smiled at me and every thought of his horrible sister seemed totally irrelevant. He whispered a teasing kiss on my forehead and pulled away.

“So, dinner.” He held up the pizza box. “There’s plenty of stuff in the fridge if you want anything else. And if you’re a good girl, I’ll cook you breakfast in the morning when I get back,” he said opening the antique refrigerator and bending down to inspect its contents.

I couldn’t help but smile as I turned from the window to watch him fussing in the kitchen.

“More chocolate crepes I hope.” He looked up and winked at me. My heart skipped a beat, and I found myself wishing we could stay in this perfect little cottage, sheltered from both of our ill fitting worlds, forever.

He wiped something off the countertop and straightened a chair as he made his way around the little house, obviously more at home and comfortable here than he ever was at Ennishlough. “Bedrooms are down the hall.” He nodded and pointed down the little hallway. The house was small enough that I could find my own way around. He bit his lip as he scanned the room, checking to be sure everything was perfect. His eyes landed on the little fire, and he made his way over to add another log to the pile.

I walked over to the fireplace and wrapped my arms around him as he bent over to poke the fire. “I think this place is perfect. I could stay here forever,” I said hoping he knew this life wasn’t lost for him just yet.

He stood up with my arms still circling his waist and placed a gentle kiss on my forehead. I didn’t want to let him go, but I knew he would have to leave me soon. I would be here all alone as I faced what was sure to be the longest, sleepless night of my life. He rocked me back and forth in his arms for a while, and, when his muscles released the embrace, I knew he was about to leave.

“No one can find me here?” I said, refusing to let go. A twinge of fear caught in my throat as I spoke.

“All our friends are long gone.” He took my chin in his fingers and tilted my head up to his. His voice was low and soothing. “No one really knows this exists. Sidhe magic. It looks like a clump of rocks from the air.” A troubled look came over his face and he pursed his lips as he looked at me. “Just remember not to invite anyone in. I mean no one or no
thing
. If a stray dog whines and begs on the doorstep, clinging to his life, do not invite him in.” He looked at me with a hard parental glare, giving his words time to sink in.

“Okay. I promise.”

“I know you have a weakness for little white dogs. But not tonight.” I rolled my eyes at him and walked to the window.

“I do have a thing for little white dogs, but not tonight. I promise.” I pushed against the fear that crept up in me. Dayne feared for my safety more than I did. I knew this was the best place I could be.

I played nervously with the locket around my neck, the one I had retrieved from the fire that started this whole elemental thing in the first place. The daytime version of the moon was already visible in the east, a ghostly ball of white against the vibrant blue of the sun filled sky. It wasn’t even illuminated and already hung larger than the sun.

“Dayne, what if something happens?”

“I’ll hear you, and I’ll come.” His face was solemn and serious and he tucked his head down as he looked at me. I nodded my head and looked back at the ghostly ball hanging in the sky. Of course, he would. He had come to my rescue all summer long. All I had to do was think about him, and, if I really needed him, he would come to me.

“And you’re sure Rose and Phin are safe?” My brow creased with worry, and he was immediately behind me, his hand resting in the small of my back.

“Absolutely. It’s just one night, Faye. As soon as the moon slips past the horizon, I’ll be here for you.” He brushed my hair back and kissed the soft skin at the nape of my neck. The sensation sent chills down my body, and I reached up for his hand lingering on my shoulder. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. His hand melted out of mine, and I didn’t have to turn around to know he was gone.

With a sigh that was more nervous tension than boredom, I sat down stiffly on the couch. Even though I was all alone, I still felt out of place, like someone was watching me. I stood up again and paced to the window, looking out over the porch and the beautiful view.

Maybe a cup of tea might calm my nerves. When I got to the kitchen, I discovered just how well Dayne knew me. I found a box of my favorite peppermint tea sitting beside the teakettle.

It made me smile, knowing he wanted me to feel at home.

Billows of steam were floating off my teacup as I grabbed a blanket and opened the door to the porch. The contended sounds of nature happily carrying on outside calmed my mind even further, and I selected a big, comfy looking rocking chair with bright blue cushions. I sat down, curling my legs beneath me and propping the cup of tea on my knee. A delighted sigh escaped me, admiring the view. Dayne’s hideaway was idyllic in so many ways. Aside from the whole gingerbread cottage thing it had going on, it seemed like the perfect yard for children to play in.

It was easy to imagine a little boy with dark curls learning to kick a ball in the soft swathes of grass or riding a bike for the first time along a graveled path. I could see how happy Dayne’s childhood must have been here. I imagined proud parents sitting in my chair, beaming with pride as their son grew up into the amazing man Dayne had become.

The smiling, happy parent faces I imagined quickly turned to dull disdaining masks. That wasn’t the life he had at all. The happiness of this life had been ripped from him when his family grew bored and his sister got careless. In its place, they forced him to live a life he had grown to hate. They abandoned him, ashamed of his belief in the old ways—something they obviously saw as the biggest weakness a Sidhe could have.

More than anything, I wanted to give Dayne the happiness he had known here, to breathe life into his little cottage and give him back the world he loved. He deserved more than a life that continually ended at twenty, a lonely life where his only friends were animals. I knew first hand that wasn’t any life to live. In each other, we’d finally found the missing link to our happiness. We were misfits in our worlds. Together, in a place like The Burren, we could create our own fairytale. Finding, at last, a place where we belonged.

There was a future for us in this little cottage. Right here, among the ruins of his past, Dayne and I could build a new life that would be everything we ever wanted. But the best part? It would never have to end.

The world looked different to me at that moment, filled with hope and promise of what the future could bring. Something that had certainly been lacking in our lives over the past few days. I began to imagine it all as my new home...our home. A place where all our dreams would finally come true. My soul began to sing a song of home, knowing it had finally found were it belonged.

An electric shock charged through me, stealing my breath with its strength.

It was Dayne. He was listening to me, knowing exactly what I was thinking, and wanting it, too. The serene silence was interrupted by my blissful giggle as I thought about how easily my future was coming into focus. A future that had always seemed bleak and dark when I thought about it in my world, now seemed as picture perfect as a Disney movie.

I let my mind wander, escaping to a fantasy world I hadn’t visited in a long time. I imagined sitting there with Dayne, rocking together, our hands intertwined as we watched our own children play in the yard. I looked down at my hand resting on the arm of the chair and imagined Dayne’s fingers intertwined with mine as he sat beside me on the porch.

In an instant, the color drained from my sight and a waking clairvoyant vision—just like when I saw April’s heartbroken face the night we picked herbs— appeared before me with crystal clear clarity I didn’t want to forget. My eyes went wide, welcoming, for the first time ever, the black and white world yet to come. Instinctively, my body stiffened, not wanting to lose a single second of this gift. I was finally seeing something I actually wanted, and I found myself struggling to hold onto the vision instead of forcing it into the vault of my forgotten memories.

A little boy, exactly like the one in the photo and a little girl with long, flowing curls ran around the yard, laughing and playing in the sunshine. Dayne’s voice called out to them from beside me, and my heart was so full at that moment tears bubbled over my lashes.

Hating to see the vibrant colors of the world begin to bleed into my stark vision, I blinked and rubbed my eyes, trying to force the vision back, but it was gone. I kicked myself for never having tried to control my visions, even though I had never before seen anything I wanted to remember. I fell back against the pillows, snuggling back around my cup of tea, and lost myself in imagining the years that would pass before I would see that happy vision again.

The cry of a hawk overhead snapped me back to reality. The sun was going down, sinking below the horizon as the moon climbed higher in the sky. A chill raced down me, and I gathered my blanket closer and scurried inside.