by Kate Ristau
As the smoke cleared, Áine saw Ciaran standing in the doorway. He was transformed. His eyes were a fiery red and there were streaks of amber in his hair. There was blood on his cheeks and the light shifted around him, bending to his will. He raised his hand high above his head and the fire in the room stilled. Even the birds silenced their wings as he spoke. “Call back your birds, craven; we’ll end this.”
Creed straightened up and turned toward the door, a shower of flames falling from his fingers. With a flick of his hand, the birds settled at his feet.
“Where’s Hennessy?” Áine asked.
Ciaran caught Áine’s eye and shook his head. “I’m sorry.”
“But...she was just...how could she...” A weight pressed in on Áine’s chest, and she wrapped her arms tighter around Keva. He was wrong. He had to be.
“Well, if it isn’t the prodigal son,” Creed said, spreading out his arms. “You know, you’re just a glutton for punishment. I saw what happened to you in the waiting room. Do you really want to lose another battle, rebel boy?” Creed slowly raised himself to his full height and towered over Ciaran. “This one will cost you much more than a few stray Shadows.”
Ciaran’s hands shook. “You have no right to call me that,” he said.
“What? A boy?” Creed’s face settled back into a mocking smile. “Just because you’re old enough to be a man doesn’t mean you are one.”
“You know what I mean,” Ciaran thundered and the room shook with the sound. Áine had never seen him so angry. Or so strong. He spat the word back at Creed, “son.”
“Ciaran?” Áine looked back and forth between the two men, struggling to understand what they were saying. His son?
“Oh, you didn’t tell her?” Creed asked. “How original. And how interesting. He’s my son, Shadowgirl.” Áine looked toward Ciaran, but he didn’t meet her eyes, refusing to look away from Creed. “And, I might add, he’s not a very good one. Abandoning his father. His training—”
“You let them kill my mother!” Ciaran screamed, his face flushed, and his arms tense.
Áine’s mind spun. What was he talking about? Ciaran always said that both his parents were dead.
“Why would I ever stay with you?” Ciaran asked. “You’re just a tool. You do whatever the Queene says. It’s disgusting.”
“I had no choice in that matter. You know she went too far to the other side. There was no getting her back. And don’t act like you’re so much better. Running to the rebels? Hiding behind the skirts of that leeshee—”
“Her name is Eri,” Ciaran said.
“Leeshee?” Áine asked.
“Come on,” Creed said. “Didn’t she tell you anything? Eri’s one of the soulsuckers. They entrance the men of the Shadows, giving them a life of glory while slowly stealing away their Eta, their very being. She suddenly abandoned that life and retired to raise a herd of kids.” Creed laughed, and pointed toward her. “It’s interesting, isn’t it, that one of those children is a human? And a very powerful one at that. How much more powerful would you be if she hadn’t been sucking you dry?”
“She would never do that!” Ciaran yelled. “She’s always protected us!”
Áine wished she could feel that strongly, but doubts surged through her. There was so much Eri never told her. A soulsucker? She had all that power...and she never came back for Keva?
Creed turned and settled his eyes on Áine. “Do you think that after all those years she was just protecting you, raising you? Do you really think she didn’t get anything out of the deal?”
“Why are you telling me this?” Áine said, rubbing Keva’s arms, trying to get her to wake back up. “What good does it do you?”
“Perhaps it’s one last chance to spite you? Or maybe I’m just being generous, giving you one more favor as my final parting gift?”
“What do you mean?” Ciaran asked.
“The Queene no longer requires my services. I have two more orders, and then a long retirement awaits me in the Aetherlands. A life of relaxation and luxury. I think I’ve earned it.”
“How?” Áine asked.
“My faithful service with my second in command.”
“Your second?” Ciaran asked.
Creed looked closely at Ciaran, and after a moment of consideration, he stated, “Your brother.”
Ciaran staggered and then righted himself. In a flash, he lost all his Eta, all traces of his power. The light collapsed around him, and the warrior Áine saw just moments ago, so strong, so powerful, was gone...replaced by the boy that she remembered from all those years ago. Vulnerable. Broken.
“He’s alive?” Ciaran asked. “And he...did he...was he...was he there...when they killed her?”
“A question you will have to ask him. I wouldn’t know.”
In the silence that followed, Creed quietly assessed Ciaran, taking in the effect of his words. He seemed to be considering something. After a moment, he nodded once quickly, a look of understanding crossing his face. His next words had lost their bite. “To think, all this time I thought my son was a coward. Turns out you are just naïve.”
“I was a child!” Ciaran yelled. Áine flinched at his words. His jaw was set, but his mouth twisted, and with a deep sigh, he unexpectedly relented. “But maybe I was naïve too. And you know what? You’re right. I’ve spent enough time hiding from you. I won’t let you hurt anyone else. This ends here.”
Creed shook his head. “I won’t kill you; you know that. I won’t waste your talent or lose all that power. And now that you’re finally away from the leeshee, we can resume your training. You have so much more to do and so much more time to choose the right side. Just help us end the rebellion. Help me finish the last of my orders. Then we’ll head back home. Together.”
“Never,” Ciaran said. He locked eyes with Áine, and a shadow passed over his eyes as he whispered, “I’ll see you in the Fairerlands.”
The room exploded in a fury of sound and movement. Ciaran pointed toward the two chairs and hurled them across the room, felling several crows. Creed quickly attacked, hurtling balls of emerald fire as he dodged the splintered wood. Ciaran gathered a ball of blue flame in his hands and hurled it at Creed, who ducked to the side.
Fire quickly began to consume the room, and Keva woke back up, screaming in terror. Áine grabbed the covers and threw them back over Keva’s face, shielding her from the sight of the ever-increasing inferno. She batted off several crows and yelled, “Aresanté Eta!”
The trees limbs broke through the last of the wall and lifted the bed, with the sisters in it. The bed rose into the air, the crows clawing at the covers. With a jolt, the bed barreled out the window, and landed in the middle of a large oak tree.
A burst of water shot out of the ceiling and doused Creed’s next attack, leaving him unprepared for the chunk of wall that Ciaran threw across the room. It glanced off Creed’s shoulder, and he fell to the ground. But as he landed, he pushed a pulse of air into the small table, sending it flying across the room. Áine watched in horror from outside the window as Ciaran was struck to the ground. She winced as he tried to raise himself from the floor, only to fall back down again.
“Go,” he shouted.
Áine stared hard at him, then felt her sister squirming in her arms, trying to break free. Áine knew she could go. Take her sister. Run to the nearest crossing. Bring Keva to the other side.
Or she could stay. Try to find a way to help Ciaran and get her sister out of there too. And find Hennessy. She watched the crows claw out of the window and fly toward the tree. She watched Ciaran wipe the blood from his mouth.
And she stood up.
With a battle cry, she called to more of the trees. The earth shook as they made their way to Áine’s side.
The trees hurtled large rocks at Creed while avoiding the flames that were bursting forth from the hospital. The trees’ branches shook as they crashed through the wall, and acorns and leaves fell on the bed. Áine threw the acorns as hard as sh
e could, whispering to the Eta to give them speed. When Keva held out a hand to her, Áine went to take it, but realized Keva was holding another acorn. Áine smiled at her and then pelted the acorn at a nearby crow—its feathers burst into the sky.
In the midst of the chaos, Ciaran recovered quickly. He dragged himself up and grabbed the table, using it as a shield to protect himself from Creed’s onslaught.
Suddenly, there was a great explosion. Áine’s tree burst into flame and lost control of its limbs. Keva gripped Áine tightly as they plummeted to the ground and landed with a crash. Áine pulled Keva to her feet, but when they stood up and the leaves settled, she realized the Guardians had surrounded them.
She looked at them one by one. Dark cloaks, pale faces shining beneath their hoods, and nine pairs of red eyes staring directly at her. The way they were staring—the hunger—barely looked human.
Ciaran dropped the table and scrambled through the flames toward Áine, locking eyes with her, but he was caught off guard, and Creed knocked him down with a ball of fire. He tried to catch his balance, but Creed threw another ball of flames across the room: it exploded into a shower of sparks. Creed leapt out the window and raised his fist into the air; he lowered it and brought the wall down behind him with a deafening crash. Ciaran was trapped inside.
“It is finished!” Creed yelled. “Carry out your orders!”
The Guardians nodded their heads as one, and tightened their circle around Áine and Keva. Áine called to the trees, but no more would come, and the earth did not move as she called for help.
No more tricks. No time for rescue. It was finished.
The wall exploded from the inside, a crash of rocks flew through the darkness, and Áine shielded Keva, then turned to look back up. She saw Ciaran standing far above her, untouched by the flames, with Creed pinned beneath the rubble.
But he was too late. The Guardians raised their hands as one, fists aflame.
Áine looked up at them in defiance, grasping Keva’s hand tightly. She didn’t close her eyes as the flames flew from their fingers. She opened her mouth to call to the Eta one last time.
But then she saw Hennessy behind them. Blood dripped from her eyes and ears, and she held Áine’s father’s journal in front of her.
“Scamenorche!” she screamed. “Tofroche! Ena!”
“Hennessy!” Áine yelled. “No!”
Hennessy caught Áine’s eye and opened her mouth, but then the shadows gathered around her hands, and she dropped the book and screamed as they burst outward. The shadows flew toward the Guardians, dousing their flames and tearing apart their flesh. One by one they were consumed until there was nothing but an empty space as dark as any night Áine had ever seen. They didn’t even have a chance to scream. In an instant, they were gone. Only the shadows remained, spreading into the gathering mist. Hennessy fell to her knees, darkness gathering around her.
Áine ran to her, pulling her into her arms as she fell to the ground. But she was too late. Hennessy looked distant, lost—as if she didn’t know who she was or where she was going. Her eyes, once a brilliant blue, had turned as dark as onyx. And her hands were freezing.
“You know the rules of Shadowmagic!” Creed said, pushing away the last of the fallen debris. “The Queene will not stand for this!”
“The Queene?” Áine yelled. She gently placed her cloak underneath Hennessy’s head, then turned and stood. Rage filled her chest as she walked toward Creed. “The Queene? Would you have those be your last words? Vague threats? Accusations? Do you think I care what the Queene says? She destroyed my family; she tried to kill everyone I love. Don’t you dare say anything about the Queene.”
Creed slowly pulled himself up and stood before Áine. “The Queene wants your head,” he said. “And I will give it to her!”
He raised his fist in the air, and Áine yelled with such anger and defiance that the very earth trembled beneath her feet. The ground broke into a deep chasm. Creed’s eyes widened as he slipped and tried to grab hold, but the ground disappeared beneath him, and he stumbled into the abyss. The last she saw of him was his red eyes, shining with confusion as he descended into the darkness.
She collapsed to the ground, her energy drained. She hadn’t even called the Eta. They just knew. They had responded to her forcefully, quaking, breaking, and thundering through the ground, but they left her feeling exhausted and fuzzy, like everything was happening in a dream. Ciaran climbed down the rubble and ran toward her. He was moving fast, but it seemed to take him forever to get to her. When he finally made it to her side, he dropped down beside her and pulled her into his arms. He touched her, and she reveled in the warmth of his skin, his rapid breathing, the feel of his arms around her. She could feel the Eta coursing through his body, while her Eta were so weak, so tired. Her own breathing slowed down, and she pulled him closer, trying to find a way back to the warmth and the light.
“I thought I’d lost you,” he said. She turned her face up, and she saw tears gathering in his eyes. “I can’t lose you,” he whispered. “Not now. Not ever.”
She touched his face, feeling the Eta beneath his skin. “I’m right here,” she whispered. “I’m not going anywhere.” She pressed her face against him and felt the Eta gathering around her.
A dark cry snapped her from her tranquility. She turned toward Hennessy, her movements slow and forced. Hennessy lay on the ground, twitching and moaning softly. Keva was right beside her, holding her hand and rubbing it slowly, a dreamy look on her face. Áine pulled up on Ciaran and he helped her to her feet. She stumbled forward, scrambling toward Hennessy, who was wrapped in shadows. She fell down beside her, and the shadows twitched away from her, then fell back on Hennessy’s legs. Áine felt her forehead and took in her glassy eyes. Ciaran ran up behind her.
“Hennessy!” he yelled. “How could you be so—”
He stopped short when he saw the look on Áine’s face. “You wanted her to do this,” Áine whispered to him. “You pushed her to. And now—” She shook Hennessy, willing the Eta to respond. “Hennessy,” she said. “Can you hear me?”
Hennessy’s head rolled away and back again. At first, her eyes were glazed over and blank, but then a spark of recognition brought them back to life. A soft smile slid onto her face. “Those guys were such assholes,” she said hoarsely. “You should have seen what they did in the lobby.”
Laughing, Áine wrapped her arms around Hennessy and winced when she grunted in pain. She released her quickly. “What’s wrong?” Áine asked.
“I don’t know,” Hennessy whispered. “Everything. My head, my stomach, my hands. Even my ears. Jesus, your touch feels like fire, and the goddamn air on my face...and I can’t see right.”
Áine looked at Ciaran, who shook his head softly and knelt down beside them. He felt for Hennessy’s heartbeat and looked into her eyes. His face betrayed no emotion, but Áine knew he was holding back. Something was very wrong. The Eta—she couldn’t feel the Eta inside of Hennessy. She couldn’t feel anything.
After a moment, Ciaran asked, “Can you stand?”
Áine and Keva backed away, and Hennessy tried to pull herself to her feet. Her hands barely left the ground. “No,” she mumbled.
“We need to get her to Eri,” Ciaran said. “She’ll know what to do.”
“You seriously trust Aunt Eri? After everything Creed said—”
“I would trust her with my life. I did trust her with my life. Several times. Listen, there’s a lot we don’t know about Eri, but she never faked her love for us. She cared for us. You know that. Deep down.”
Some of what Ciaran said felt true. But Áine wasn’t sure about all of it. Even if she loved them, she was still a liar. She had still left Keva to die. “Fine. I’ll take her to see Aunt Eri. But she has a lot to explain. And so do you.”
Ciaran bowed his head and wiped the soot from his cheeks. “I do. And we’ll get to that. But first let’s help her. And your sister.”
Keva smiled at him. Her sm
ile seemed to push back at the darkness. She stood up slowly, eyes wide, like a child in a grandmother’s body, and stretched her wrinkled hands toward the sky. Áine patted her foot gently. “Yes. My sister.”
Ciaran looked down at Hennessy with a strained look on his face. “Hennessy, I’m going to have to—”
“Will this day never end?” Hennessy asked, her voice shaking. “Yes, you can carry me, and no, I won’t like it. And you better not like it either!”
Áine laughed weakly, and ruffled Hennessy’s hair. “She seems fine to me.” Áine smiled as much as she could, but she knew it didn’t reach her eyes. Hennessy was not trained to use Shadowmagic; she’d never wielded its power before. The shadows were clinging to her skin, and her eyes were glazed...shaded. She didn’t look like herself at all. She looked like she was...Áine stopped herself. After everything that had happened, she didn’t want to think about it.
She helped Ciaran pick up Hennessy, who grumbled half-heartedly, and then she took Keva’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”
Nineteen
They arrived at the Pine Crossing as the first light broke through the city. The pine tree towered over the center of a small green. Áine’s heart lightened when she saw it. It felt like a beacon in the middle of the desolate city—buildings surrounded it, but the humans never chopped it down. They just seemed to avoid it. Áine watched as a man running with his dog swerved into the street and then crossed the road, completely unaware that a group of fey was watching him jog.
They were otherwise alone in the early morning light, save for one lone man who appeared to be living on a nearby bench. He smiled broadly at them, revealing yellowed, broken teeth and rotting gums, and brown, furry skin. He smiled mostly at Ciaran.