Son of Sun (Forgotten Gods (Book 2)) (25 page)

“Wipe away if you must. But I’ve already forgotten that little thing you did with the candle.” Mattie dismissed my flaming hand as if it were nothing.

“Yeah, and your eyes shining like that was just sunlight coming in at a weird angle. Right, Mattie?” Sam looked to our black hair friend.

“Yep. Does it to my eyes all the time,” Mattie nodded assuredly.

“So, what’s the plan?” Sam crossed her legs and leaned into me, rubbing her hands excitedly at the thought of coming up with a plan to get my man back.

“Well, I have three problems. One, I have to find a way to Ireland. I can do a lot of things, but flying across the ocean isn’t one of them. Two, I have to find some way to distract Arabette. She’d certainly tell their mother I was coming if she saw me anywhere around Clonlea and they’d make it impossible for me to find Dayne. And three, I have to somehow convince his mother to let us be together.”

“He’s that much of a mama’s boy?” Mattie smacked her lips.

“No one tells his mother
no
,” I answered.

Sam’s eyes narrowed wickedly as if a plan was already forming in her overactive brain. She tossed the magazine they had been reading when I walked in at me. I caught it in mid air with one hand.

On one half of the page Arabette pouted like a sexy princess in a designer gown. On the other half some diamond heiress I had never heard of pranced down a dock in St. Tropez like a leggy gazelle. A headline sliced down the center of the page:

Who’s this year’s hottest IT girl? Vote for your favorite new face to be featured on next months cover!

“I think I know how to distract Arabette. She’s the biggest fame whore I’ve ever seen!” Sam giggled excitedly.

“And I can have your plane ticket within the hour,” Mattie smiled smugly and plopped down on the bed beside Sam, arms still crossed over her chest.

“The papers will say I’ve disappeared again.”

“We’ll cover for you. You’ve got..what?” Mattie looked to her fingers as she counted in her head. “At least two weeks before St. Anne’s notices you’re not in class. We’ll come up with something.”

“You guys really want me to come back?” I looked at their eager faces, smiling at me as if they had just single handedly solved the problems of my world.

And maybe they had.
Scoop!
would distract Arabette by proclaiming her the newest IT girl and flying her to California for a photo shoot. Dayne had told me the only way to beat Daoine was to distract her with her own vanity. If that trick worked on the fairy queen, I was certain it would work on her vain-as-a-peacock daughter.

Mattie was giving me another buddy pass, an all expense paid, round trip ticket to Ireland.

With two problems solved two more remained. Could Daoine ever be persuaded to let us be together? And if she could, were we capable of out running the angel of death that hunted me?

Arabette’s plane touched down in Los Angeles the same hour my flight left for Shannon. I’m not sure it was legal, but using her mother’s security clearance, Mattie was able to check the passenger manifest. When we were certain Arabette was on American soil, and wouldn’t be able to alert anyone that I was coming, I began my journey to Ireland.

The fog hung close to the ground as I disembarked in Shannon, eager with hope yet burdened by memories. Memories, now faded to ghostly reminders of what my life had been, hung heavy in every corner. All the promise of last summer, all the welcome of home, hopelessly tangled with all the heartbreak of it coming unraveled in my hands.

Last summer, talking to strangers without blushing had been my biggest worry. Now, I was preparing to take on the fairy queen in her own realm to win Dayne back.

Oh, how things change in the blink of an eye.

My fingers were itching to dial up Rose and Phin. I hadn’t even called to wish them Merry Christmas, and I was sure they were worried about me. But time wasn’t on my side. I had to get to LisTirna before they knew I was coming. Daoine’s psychic powers were more polished than mine. For all I knew, the entire Sidhe army was waiting for me.

There were so many holes in my plan it made my stomach churn to think about everything that could go wrong. Luckily for me, the reward if things went right was so much greater that I kept on trudging blindly forward, undeterred by fear.

I boarded a bus bound for Clonlea with the setting sun, remembering how my last bus ride had changed my life forever, recalling the close shave with death that had revealed Dayne’s secrets to me. It was like flipping through a yearbook, bringing out memories that seemed to be from another lifetime as I sat on the hard seat and stared out the tinted glass window where Ireland flashed by.

The green fields grew dark with shadows as the sun set over the Atlantic. Familiar rock walls cut through the countryside in crumbling lines. Fog was still heavy at this hour, mixing with the shadows and making it feel like a horror novel waiting to unfold.

When the bus’ air brakes hissed and blew hot, steamy exhaust and dust over me, I raised a hand to shield my face. Partly because it smelled awful, partly because I didn’t want anyone in Clonlea to recognize me. I stuck to the shadows as I made my way from the bus station in the center of town to the road that wound its way past Rose and Phin’s cottage and on to Ennishlough.

The town tavern was a boisterous riot at that hour, patron’s spilling from the porch, talking and laughing so loudly I could still hear their stories as I made my way to the outskirts of town.

Ten minutes later, the road climbed to the top of a small crest and Rose and Phin’s white washed cottage appeared like a mirage, making my heart constrict in my chest with a longing I hadn’t anticipated. There was no way I could stop. They couldn’t know I was here. But that didn’t stop me from stealing my way through the shadows of Rose’s flowerbeds like a snake until I found an open window to peek through.

Phin lay sprawled on the couch that had been my bed so many nights, reading a newspaper while Rose watched some show on TV, absently rubbing Phin’s socked foot as she stared at the little screen.

My heart welled up into my throat, and it was all I could do to keep myself from climbing through the window to hug their necks.

A breeze kicked up, blowing my hair and the curtains into the room. Rose stiffened infinitesimally, her brow furrowing. Sensing she was about to turn to look at me the second before her head began to move, I ducked against the outside wall so I wouldn’t be discovered.

“I wonder what Faye’s doing tonight?” The undeniable tremor in her voice made my heart ache.

“Faye’s doing what every college student should. Having fun and not worrying about two old bags like us!” Phin answered gruffly, obviously trying to reassure Rose that my silence was nothing out of the ordinary.

Oh, if only they knew how
fun
my life was these days. Squatting in the shadows of their front porch, I rubbed a hand wearily down my face. I had to get going. Hiding in the shadows was only wasting precious time I didn’t have.

I slinked quietly off the porch and made my way back to the road. Knowing no human eyes would be around to see me on the deserted stretch of road between their cottage and Ennishlough, I began to run.

Down the gravel road, over the grassy fields, through the massive stone gates and right to Ennishlough’s front door in a matter of seconds—the world nothing but a constant black blur whirring past.

It was just as I remembered it—sleek and glistening in the moonlight, massive and domineering with a presence that permeated your bones. The windows were nothing but black pools of glass. Not a single light burned from within to welcome a weary traveler. Not that I expected—or wanted—a welcome.

I circled the massive sugar cube shimmering like a diamond in the dark, looking for my best entry point. Scaling the white walls was an option. If I could climb or jump to the roof and make my way along the top I could easily drop down into the garden and be at the portal. But looking up at the solid surfaces I wasn’t sure even
I
had the strength to do that.

I stopped at the kitchen door, turning to the little rose garden as I chewed my lip and thought. Dayne’s ancient red Range Rover was still parked exactly where he had left it. A sparkly new silver one, with dark tinted glass, was parked beside it. No doubt a recent purchase compliments of Ara. I had to wonder what the locals thought of her. At least Dayne tried to blend in. Ara’s conceited nastiness would have made an enemy of everyone she met.

Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t notice the kitchen door swing open behind me until it was too late. I lurched out of my skin and spun around with fists drawn, ready to fight, when a cold hand gripped my shoulder.

In a single second, my magic roared to life and the power of fire burned so ferociously in my veins I half pitied whoever was stupid enough to startle me. Sliding up my throat, a feral sounding growl broke low into a malicious hiss, and quivering muscles tensed for a fight. My vision grew red-specked with fire, going hazy at first, which stilled my attack for the tiniest of seconds.

When my eyes focused in the darkness, a familiar smile and golden hair shrunk away from my hostility. I had to slap a hand over my mouth to keep from screaming myself.

“Christine!” I managed to cough her name from behind my fingers as I stood frozen in the doorway.

Recovering from her initial shock, she beamed at me with such radiant joy I didn’t hesitate to throw my arms around her in a huge bear hug. Only, her body stood oddly stiffened in my arms.

“Christine?” I asked, pulling away and holding her shoulders as I stared her, my brow wrinkled in confusion.

She said nothing, only tilting her head as she smiled complacently.

“You can’t speak, can you?” I spoke slowly to be sure she understood what I was asking. She shook her head in response. Of course! Loren had been mute as well. It must have been the only way they would allow a human prisoner to remain in this world.

“Are you alone?”

Her head nodded slowly.

Sliding my hands from her shoulders down her arms to her hands as I thought, my fingers traced over two cuffs that still circled her wrists. I raised her hands between us and looked at the bands that held her captive.

Why not?
I thought. If I was freeing people from the oppression of the Sidhe tonight, Christine was a great place to start.

“Come on!” I barked, leading her into the kitchen and switching on the over head fluorescent lights. The stainless steel illuminated in a harshly blinding way, forcing me to shield my eyes as I fumbled in the knife block, quickly searching for the sharpest one it held.

“Okay, Christine. Hold still,” I ordered and tried to slip the thin blade between one bracelet and her delicate wrist.

It wouldn’t budge, and I was afraid if I pushed any harder I would end up slitting her wrists.

A fire was burning low in the great hearth and an idea sparked in my mind. I didn’t even have to touch the flames, only think about it, and they leapt onto my hands like a trained parrot. Christine didn’t even flinch as I brought my flaming fingers to her wrist.

Closing my eyes so I could focus all my thoughts on what I was doing, I gently traced my fingers over one of her bracelets before clamping down on it. The fire hissed and sizzled, but I held tight to Christine’s bracelet, focusing only on the cool stone cuff, and keeping the flames away from her soft white flesh.

A few seconds later, the bracelet melted under my fiery touch. Christine’s smile fell from her face and she began to watch what I was doing with wide eyed horror as if she were waking up from a nightmare. Her entire demeanor changed from dreamy bliss, to paralyzed bewilderment. When the second bracelet fell from her arm, she crumpled to the floor at my feet, clutching her wrists and swaying weakly as if all strength had been zapped from her frail frame.

“Who are you?” She looked up at me with eyes that were full of fear, yet dull as river rocks. “What...what happened?” She grew increasingly panicked, nearing hyperventilation as she trembled on the cold stone floor, rocking like a child.

Quickly, I got her to her feet and walked her to the kitchen door. The cold night air chilled her skin and she began shivering uncontrollably. I slipped the fleece from my shoulders and wrapped it around her.

“Take this road,” I pointed to the main driveway that led to the great stone gates. “When you get to the end of it, go left. Walk until you come to a white cottage. They’ll be able to help you.” I nodded encouragingly and gave her one more hug. Poor Christine was either too weak to protest or too brainwashed to argue.

Without another word she staggered off into the dark, following my directions. Rose and Phin would take care of her. And if she ran into anyone else before she got to their house she would be fine too. Clonlea was a small, tight knit community. Any one she ran into would know her, whether she remembered them or not.

I waited until she disappeared into the shadows before I turned back to the manor house. Flicking the lights off as I entered, casting the kitchen in darkness again. I grabbed a handful of embers from the fire and crushed them to ash in my hand. Their sizzle stoked my powers, waking the red flecked vision of a fire goddess. A goddess that needed no light to guide her way.

With my world bathed in starkly, sharp alien hues of night vision, I tiptoed through Ennishlough’s shadow cloaked halls. They were as imposing and lonely as always. Beautiful, yet unnerving in their portentous silence. A memory of Dayne hung heavy in every corner, but now wasn’t the time to reminisce over my old life. The clock was ticking and it was time to make my entrance into LisTirna.