The Amulet (9 page)

The amulet has been passed down throughout
our descendants since it was given to them all those centuries ago.
I was Custodian, but if you are reading this letter I have probably
died and will have made sure that it was passed to you at the time
of my death. You are now the Custodian of the Amulet of Azran.

Faedra looked up from the letter in
disbelief, all kinds of crazy thoughts swimming around in her
head.

“This is ridiculous. I’m a receptionist. The
only thing I’m custodian of is the key to the coffee machine so I
can refill the cups,” she muttered to Faen then continued on with
the letter.

First, we must get the amulet around your
neck. Once you turn eighteen you must wear it always and never,
ever take it off. I cannot stress how important that is. It is
warded so that only the Custodian can touch it. You will find the
amulet in Arianne, the fairy I gave you. If you push her wings
together they will unlock a secret compartment in the horse’s
body.

Faedra looked over to her fairies, eased
herself out of bed, and crept over to her collection. She opened
the glass door and plucked Arianne from the center of the shelf.
She carried her back to bed and got back under the covers. Faedra
sat and looked at Arianne for the longest time, staring at her in
disbelief. Her heart was racing, and her hands started to tremble.
She took a deep steadying breath and held the two outstretched
wings between her thumb and forefinger, held her breath, and
squeezed them together. The wings were stiff and she was terrified
of breaking them, but with a little more pressure they closed
together, and Faedra heard a tiny click. She held Arianne around
the waist and lifted her from the position she had, sitting astride
the majestic black horse.

She peeked into the body of the horse. It was
hollow and inside was a small bundle of soft golden cloth. Reaching
in with her fingers, she took hold of the small golden pouch and
extracted it from its hiding place. She lay the horse down on the
bed beside Arianne and turned her attention to the pouch once more.
Her fingers trembled again as she undid the thin gold braid that
was tied around the top and tipped it upside down allowing the
contents to drop into the open palm of her other hand. She sucked
in a deep breath.

The amulet was her mother’s necklace. She had
often wondered what happened to it, as she could not remember ever
seeing her mother without it. But neither Faedra nor her father had
ever been able to find it after she died. Now she knew why, it had
been hiding in her collection, in plain sight, for over a
decade.

Faedra had always loved this necklace. She
stared down at it, not quite comprehending that she was holding it
in her hand after all this time. The amulet triggered memories she
thought were forgotten, and they came flooding back to the
forefront of her mind. Wonderful memories of the times she spent
with her mother.

The amulet was a pendant about an inch and a
half in size and triangular in shape. It looked like it was made of
silver and there were swirls covering the face of the piece.
Celtic no doubt
, she thought. In the center was a beautiful
yellow stone, which looked like a topaz. The facets of which
sparkled in the sunlight that was spilling through the window.

Faedra gazed at the amulet for a few more
moments, soaking up the memories it was provoking in her mind. She
got up from the bed and walked over to her dresser, opened the
clasp, and put the chain around her neck. As soon as the metal
touched her skin, the stone glowed, for just a second; she
definitely saw it glow in the reflection in the mirror. She wasn’t
sure of what she’d seen when the ring had glowed. Faedra thought it
was just a trick of the light. But this time she almost expected
it… she was waiting for it to do something. After a moment more of
gazing at the amulet, she got back on the bed, sat cross-legged on
top of the comforter, and continued on with the letter.

The ring you found in the envelope is a
Celtic battle ring. It is over two thousand years old, and was
crafted by our ancestors. Wear it, also, and never take it off. It
will warn you if danger is near.

Now, here comes the tricky part.

Faedra raised her eyebrows at that comment.
Her mother had thought that everything else she had explained so
far in the letter was easy? She sighed, and continued reading.

Remember I said that we are descendants of an
ancient fae family, and the members of this family were each
allowed to keep one of their powers? You will have one; although no
one knows which power they will inherit until they become of age.
You are now of age, Faedra, and your power will grow to full
strength shortly. You have probably also noticed by now that you
heal incredibly quickly. This does not mean that you can’t die or
be killed. You can, so be very very careful.

Until you turned of age, powerful wards that
were put on you when you were born protected you. Nothing evil
could have penetrated those wards. Unfortunately, they dissipated
the moment you turned eighteen and no longer protect you. Make it
your duty to learn how to defend yourself. Hopefully, you will not
have a need to use defensive measures, as only three people know
the whereabouts of the amulet. Faen will be able to teach you all
you need to know.

Now, that brings me to the subject of
Faen.

Faedra looked at her dog, who was still
sitting on the bed watching her intently.

I have explained about as much as I can in a
letter and I will leave the rest to Faen. I asked the day you were
born that he be assigned as your Guardian if anything should happen
to me. It is probably easier if Faen shows you, rather than me try
to explain it. Please do not be afraid, he will look after you.
Now, if I could ask you to say out loud the phrase at the bottom of
this letter.

I love you, my darling. Take care and learn
all you can.

Forever, Mum

Faedra’s goose bumps returned with a
vengeance. She looked up from the letter to stare at her dog who
was now sitting up attentively, watching and waiting. She looked
down at the letter again, and back at Faen. She did this several
times, her mind whirling, confusion splashed all over her face.
Finally, she took a deep breath, looked down at the letter, and
read with a quiver in her voice.

“Faen, please, show yourself?” It came out
more like a question than a statement.

Faen jumped off the bed and stood in front of
her on the floor. What happened next was a bit of a blur; actually,
that’s exactly what happened. Her dog blurred, and a split second
later, in its place, stood a man.

She threw her hand up to cover her mouth as a
scream broke free from her vocal chords. She knew if her dad heard
he would be up the stairs and through her door in a flash. She
backed herself up against the headboard and stared with wide,
frightened eyes at the stranger standing just a few feet away. Her
heart pounded so hard all she could hear was the pulse in her ears.
Her hands went clammy and her breathing quickened.

“Do not be alarmed, Ms. Bennett,” Faen’s
voice was calm and steady. “I will not harm you.”

Faedra couldn’t speak, her throat had closed
up. She could see the concern spreading across the man’s face. He
started to move towards her with his hand outstretched. She edged
herself along the bed, pushing the bed covers away with her feet as
they scrambled to push her back further until she was nearly at the
other edge of the bed. The man acknowledged her fear and stepped
back. She stopped moving when he did and took a breath. He took
another step back and stood quietly, sensing that he would have to
let Faedra try and get her head around what was happening before he
could continue. It wasn’t an every day occurrence to have a strange
man materialize in her bedroom. He should know, he had been there
every day for the past eleven years.

A few moments passed in silence. Faedra did
not take her eyes off the man who was now standing motionless in
the corner of her room. He returned her gaze, not taking his eyes
from hers either. As the sudden shock slowly abated, her heartbeat
calmed and her breathing returned to normal. She regained some
composure and sat up straighter on her bed, instead of embedding
herself into the headboard. Cautiously, she released the hand from
her mouth, and for the first time, took in the features of the man
who was standing in the exact same spot where her dog had been just
a couple of minutes before.

He was beautiful. From head to toe everything
about him was perfect, fairy-tale perfect. He didn’t look much
older than her, maybe twenty. He had blonde hair that looked like
pure silk, and she watched as he ran his hand through it. Was he
nervous too, perhaps? His aqua blue eyes shone with a brightness
that held her captive. He had a strong jaw and chiseled cheekbones
and stood about six feet tall. To be honest, he looked like he’d
stepped straight out of an animated Disney movie, especially
dressed as he was.

He wore knee high brown leather boots that
turned over with a cuff at the top and light brown leather breeches
that hugged the contours of his legs to perfection. A cream
loose-fitting tunic-style shirt with long puffy sleeves made of
thin cotton, edged with gold trim skimmed the top of his thighs.
The tunic had a v-shaped neckline that showed a hint of his
muscular chest. There was also an ancient looking Celtic talisman
that hung from a black leather thong around his neck. An impressive
sword hung from a leather belt at his waist, prompting Faedra to
fleetingly wonder if the artists at Disney were, in fact, fairies
themselves.

She blinked several times and shook the
thought away to return to the matter at hand.

“Wh-who are you?” Faedra stuttered.

“My name is Faen, Ms. Bennett.”

“But that’s my dog’s name. Faen is your real
name?”

“It is. Pray tell me, you could have called
me anything, where did you think of the name Faen?”

Faedra narrowed her eyes at him, searching in
her mind for the memory.

“I-I, my mother,” she remembered. “I
overheard my mum mention your name once and it stuck with me. You
knew her, too?”

“I did.”

“You turned up the day of my mum’s funeral. I
was sitting on my swing crying. I wrapped my arms around your neck,
and you let me hug you for ages. I remember my dad didn’t have the
heart to shoo you away. He let me keep you as a pet. But all this
time you were sent here to do what? Protect me?”

“Yes.”

“What are you?”

“I am Fae, Ms. Bennett.”

“That’s a fairy, right?”

“You are correct, Ms. Bennett,” he replied
with an incline of his head.

Faedra let out a sigh. “Stop calling me that.
You make me sound like a character out of a Jane Austin novel.”

Faen frowned. “I do not understand, that is
your name, is it not?”

“No. I mean, yes, it is, but it sounds so…
formal.”

“Ms. Bennett, as a Guardian I am taught to
treat my charge with the utmost respect.”

“Please, Faen,” she pleaded. “Call me
Faedra.”

“Very well, as you wish, Ms. Faedra.”

Faedra raised her eyes heavenward, she could
sense he was not going to compromise any more than that.

“Great, now you make me sound like a school
teacher,” she whispered under her breath.

She looked at him thoughtfully for a moment,
something having just occurred to her. She was sensing no danger
from the stranger in her room, so she eased herself off the bed and
moved towards him. He did not move, but just continued to watch
her.

“May I ask you a personal question?” she
asked as she meandered around him, looking intently at his back.
Faen followed her with his eyes as far as he could, but continued
to stand very still.

“Of course.”

“Aren’t fairies supposed to have wings? You
don’t have any wings.”

“I have wings, Ms. Faedra. I choose not to
show them,” he replied with what Faedra thought was a look of
discomfort, embarrassment even.

“Why?”

“I have my reasons,” he responded with just a
hint of sharpness that cut through his otherwise silken voice.

Again Faedra sensed that was as much as he
was going to say on the subject.

“So, let me get this straight. You can change
from a fairy into a dog?”

“Most fae have the ability to shape-shift
into an animal, though not necessarily one of our choosing, and as
you can see,” he waved a hand down the length of his body, “we tend
to stick with the same coloring in both our forms.”

Faedra walked around to face him and studied
his beautiful features. They were very hard not to stare at. Then
something else occurred to her. Her eyes widened with horror as
what she was thinking sank in. She ran over to her bed, sat on the
end of it, and buried her head in her hands to hide her crimson
cheeks.

“Oh, NO!” she groaned.

Faen moved then, too quickly to track with
the naked eye, and was kneeling in front of her at the foot of the
bed, unable to hide his look of concern.

“Ms. Faedra, what is wrong?” he asked
softly.

“This can’t be happening,” she repeated into
her hands.

“Ms. Faedra, please tell me. I can help.”

“All these years,” she continued.

“All these years what, Ms. Faedra? Please,
talk to me,” Faen was almost pleading with her. Faedra kept her
face buried securely in her hands.

“Ms. Faedra, please look at me,” he
whispered. “Tell me what is wrong.”

A moment passed, and Faedra didn’t move. Faen
reached up tentatively to touch her hands. He took hold of them and
pulled them away from her face. Her eyes were tightly closed, her
cheeks still beet red.