Stone of Destiny (The Danaan Trilogy) (3 page)

The house was quiet as I slipped out the front door. Our road was on the outskirts of Stoneville, so even in the middle of the day we didn’t see much traffic. I cherished my morning run almost more than a hot fudge sundae with extra whipped cream. Something about the wind in my face and the pumping of my heart recharged me. I could make sense of almost any situation as long as my feet were carrying me forward and I had the peace of the open road.

The memory of Aoife’s icy blue eyes was in the forefront of my thoughts. I wondered why she was so obsessed with my father. I felt a little bit guilty for having that thought, but what was it about Liam that made her so ruthless? The truth was I really didn’t know anything about Aoife or Niamh, or any of the Danaans really. To keep my mother safe, I needed to learn more about what I was dealing with. From what I knew, we weren’t in any immediate danger from Aoife. Aodhan wouldn’t be so calm if that were the case.

As I jogged past my father’s house on my way back home, a familiar blonde leaned casually on Liam’s front fence post. Niamh stood gracefully, and I stopped when she met my eyes.

Good morning, Allison.

Niamh was a telepath. She could read my thoughts, and project her thoughts into my mind. It unnerved me and she knew it.

She actually looked apologetic, having picked my discomfort out of my thoughts. “I sometimes forget how that bothers you.”

“No big deal. What’s up?” I said as I bent down to stretch.

“I wanted to speak with you, but Liam stopped me. He told me your morning run is important to you.”

I laughed to myself a little imagining Liam telling her what to do. Niamh was one of the good guys, as far as Danaans went. Even though she had technically kidnapped my mother and hidden her in Tír na n’Óg, it was for her own protection. Saoirse had foreseen that Aoife’s adviser, Breanh, was planning to kidnap my mother. He would hold her hostage until Niamh and Liam let Aoife go.

Breanh was a telepath too, and if Niamh had told me that she was hiding my mother, Breanh would have read it in my thoughts. According to Saoirse, Breanh would have found another way to bargain for Aoife’s release. In the end he did find another way, by kidnapping Ethan. But at least Niamh’s intentions were good.

I raised my eyebrows at Niamh who was staring at me. She tossed her golden hair over one shoulder and looked up at the sky before she spoke.

“We haven’t had the chance to speak since we came back, have we?” She glanced back at Liam’s house with what I thought might be a nervous expression. She turned back to me and started leading me toward my grandparents’ house. “I thought you might tell me a bit more about what happened with Breanh.”

I frowned as I walked with her. I’d told this story several times and most of those times Niamh had been there.

“You’re right, of course,” she said in response to my thoughts. “But I can’t help feeling you’re having a hard time talking about it with all of those men. I understand that. They
are
intimidating aren’t they?”

Niamh was one of the most self-possessed people I’d ever met. The idea of her being intimidated by anyone was bizarre. The only time I’d seen her control waver was when Aodhan was around. Their history was complicated. That probably explained why she was sitting on my front steps rather than Liam’s. Aodhan had been staying at Liam’s since we’d come back from Tír na n’Óg.

“There’s not much more to tell,” I said. No matter how much I
wanted
to tell her the truth about Aoife, I couldn’t. As soon as I thought it, Niamh’s eyes widened just the tiniest bit, but it was enough to let me know she heard it in my mind.

I closed my eyes and the memory of Aoife killing Breanh played out in my mind. Aoife used mind control to keep me quiet, but could Niamh really see this? I never realized there was a loophole.

She nodded and cocked her head to the side, thinking. “Aoife wasn’t there when Aodhan found you. She must have snuck back through the portal. She didn’t say where she planned to go?”

I shook my head. One minute Aoife was standing in front of me and the next, I heard the sound of Aodhan’s boots from the corridor. I looked to see who was coming and when I turned back, Aoife was gone.

“Where does her portal lead to?” I asked.

“The only place I know for certain is an old castle outside of Dublin.” Niamh tapped her finger on her lower lip for a second and turned to me. “I believe she created a portal somewhere near Thunder Bay. That’s where all the trouble from her guards has been. My mother will know the exact location.”

I stretched my legs out in front of me on the steps. “Aodhan mentioned more reports of murders in Thunder Bay, even after your guards killed Aengus, the one who stabbed Liam.”

Niamh sighed. “I hope if my sister
is
there she’ll put an end to that. If only because she doesn’t want the unnecessary attention.”

“Why does Aoife use magic that’s supposed to be forbidden, anyway?” I asked.

It was several seconds before Niamh answered. “Aoife hasn’t always been so troublesome,” she said. “I was nearly full-grown when she was born. She followed me around, always curious about what I was doing. When she was just a halfling, which is about the same as a ten year old human child, I brought Aodhan to Tír na n’Óg.”

I couldn’t believe Niamh was being so open with me, so I kept quiet hoping she’d continue. She chuckled quietly, hearing that thought.

“Aoife was fond of Aodhan. At that time, he adored her as well. It was impossible not to be enraptured by her big blue eyes and thick black curls. As she got older, Aoife grew jealous of the relationship between Aodhan and me. Few Danaans experience love.” Niamh paused and looked down at her hands before meeting my gaze. “I consider myself lucky to have been loved by Aodhan once. I know you’ve wondered about that...”

I nodded. I
had
wondered about the relationship between Niamh and Aodhan, only knowing that Niamh had rescued Aodhan after he’d been shot by English soldiers in 1602.

“When Aoife met your father, she thought she’d found a love of her own, similar to Aodhan and me. Unfortunately for her, Liam was merely enthralled by her. When that wore off he wasn’t in love with her at all. She still hasn’t accepted that and probably never will. She tries to rationalize what she’s done to him by believing his love for your mother is a passing fancy. When you have all the time in the world, as we do, a human life span seems rather insignificant.” She smiled vaguely.

“So she thinks he’ll get over it and come back to her someday?”

“Yes. But we are a vain people, I admit. Aoife doesn’t understand why Liam would love your mother when he could have someone such as herself.”

A breeze ruffled the hair that came loose from my ponytail. When I looked up, Deaghlan was right beside me, resting his arm on the porch railing.

“So jealous of a human—I’ll never understand,” he said. But when he looked down at me his eyes smoldered. I laced my fingers together around my knees to keep from doing something I’d probably regret.

“Good morning, Father.” Niamh shot me an amused look.

“Speaking of humans, Allison, how have things been going between you and your human friend? What was his name—Ethan?”

I glared up at him, making the mistake of meeting his dazzling blue eyes. He wore a snug light blue V-neck shirt that brought the color out even more. I blinked and shook my head, trying to remember what his question was.

“Ethan? He’s been…busy. I guess. I haven’t seen much of him.”

“Hmm, too bad. He seemed like such an
interesting
boy.” Deaghlan’s eyebrow quirked up. He seemed pleased with himself.

Don’t let him get to you. He’s just trying to get a reaction.

Taking Niamh’s silent warning, I looked down at the ground, pressing my lips together.

“You know, Niamh, you really should be spending more time learning about Allison’s abilities,” Deaghlan said, his eyes eager with curiosity. “Her mind shields are practically non-existent. Rather than worrying about what Aoife is doing, don’t you think you’d be better off teaching Allison how to see through glamour?”

“I’m still here, you know.” I said, annoyed.

“I was actually planning on going home.” Niamh said. “I’d like to speak with Mother about a few things.”

Deaghlan waved his hand. He obviously didn’t think anything Aoife did was wrong. To him we were just like Niamh said,
insignificant
.

I’d had my share of Deaghlan for the morning and excused myself, practically tasting the incredulity coming off of Deaghlan as the screen door shut behind me.

I walked down the hall, past the stairs into the living room. My grandparents and mother sat at the little round table that separated the living room from the kitchen. Like most mornings, my grandfather was eating a bowl of cereal while talking with my grandmother. I grabbed a cup of coffee before joining them.

I took the first sip before I realized what my mother was doing. She had a mostly blank piece of sheet music in front of her. Her brow was furrowed as she filled in notes on the page. Without saying anything I met my grandmother’s gaze and widened my eyes, wondering if she was seeing what I was seeing. Her answering smile told me she was.

My mother was a musical prodigy from the time she was old enough to hold a fiddle under her chin. She’d taken private lessons and traveled across the country to perform with a handful of other talented young musicians called the Fiddle Kids. She not only had talent, but a magical stage presence that drove the audiences wild. My grandparents had some old videos of my mom at eleven, playing while my Aunt Jessie, age nine, danced a traditional Irish jig. They made it look as easy as breathing, which I’d learned through my own lessons was certainly not the case.

I never saw my mother write music before. She wrote a few pieces in college, but her days of composing ended after she met my father. To see her even attempting to put notes together was incredible. So much happened since I’d met my father and I couldn’t help wondering what had changed with her. Was she better when he was near? Could it be that time was erasing the thrall she was under?

A buzz and a series of beeps announced a new message on my phone, so I got up and grabbed it off the side table by the hall.

The text was from my cousin, Nicole.

I’m coming over. You better be awake!

I put my phone back as the front door banged open. Nicole sashayed to where I stood, her eyes bright. She squeezed my upper arms and flounced toward the table where my family still sat.

“I have some news,” she said as she kissed the top of my mother’s head. My grandparents chuckled at her as she breezed toward the coffee.

“Well, don’t let us stop you from having your coffee,” Pop said, his eyes twinkling with mirth.

I sat back down and watched Nicole heap sugar into her cup

Without turning she said, “Jeff took me to Boston last night, as you all know.” She spun around and leaned back on the counter as she took a long sip of coffee. She drew out the moment before placing the cup on the counter. “He asked me to marry him.” Her voice was nearly a shriek as she held out her bejeweled finger in front of her.

“Oh my word, sweetheart,” Gram said and stood to wrap her arms around Nicole. “Congratulations.”

“Congrats, Nic,” I said with a wink. “I was wondering what he was waiting for.”

“Well, it’s not in my nature to make you wait, is it?” Nicole asked me sweetly. A little too sweetly. “Allison, will you please be my maid of honor?”

Everyone laughed as she came over and took my hands in hers. The sheer joy on her face was enough to keep me from ruining her moment with sarcasm.

“Of course I will,” I said and pulled my hands out of hers so I could hug her. “I’m so happy for you, both of you.”

When she met my eyes, I could see tears welling in hers and I looked away. Seeing someone else cry always made tears burn the back of my own eyes.

“Did you talk about a date yet, small fry?” Pop asked before taking the last bite of his cereal.

Nicole straightened and put her hand on her chin. “Well, I’ve always wanted a traditional June wedding. That will give us nine months, plenty of time to plan, right Al?”

I groaned in mock horror. “Not nearly enough,” I muttered, but I grinned at her.