by Shea Balik
Ryley wasn’t sure that was possible, but he nodded as he placed his free hand over hers. “Fine. But know this, I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe. I know those creatures are scary, but you are not alone.”
It wasn’t lost on him that Eirik had been telling him the same thing whenever the nightmares of Samhain kept him awake. He just wished he could promise Meghan nothing would happen to her. But he just couldn’t lie to her and he knew, after watching the rest of their family die, there were no guarantees.
“Do you think mom and dad are watching over us?” Meghan whispered.
“That is the one thing I am sure of,” he told her. He had no idea if heaven or hell existed, but there were times, when he was at his lowest, that he felt their presence. “Can I tell you a secret?” he whispered.
Meghan nodded. The sadness in her eyes dimming as curiosity took its place.
“When I’m training with Fen and he’s being a real dick,” which admittedly was more often than not. “My ability becomes stronger, as if someone is helping me to tap into it to show that asshole that karma is a bitch.”
Meghan’s eyes lit up. “Grandma Maureen,” she giggled.
Ryley nodded. That was one of his grandma’s favorite sayings, especially when one of them screwed up because they hadn’t practiced. “I swear, I feel her next to me, helping me give that Fae some payback.”
“You ready to eat, kitten?” Eirik placed a bottle of water and a plate with his favorite sandwich and chips on it. Then his gaze slid to his sister. “What about you, Meghan. Do you want me fix you something to eat?”
“Nah,” she told him. “I already ate, plus Arne promised to take me horseback riding around the ranch.”
With perfect timing, Arne popped his head in and called to Meghan, “Come on. We only have an hour before we need to get back to training.”
Ryley watched his sister skip from the kitchen and wished he could have her energy. Then again, his training was much more intense.
“I’m still not sure it’s a good idea to bring her,” Ryley admitted to Eirik. It wasn’t their first time discussing it, and he was fairly certain it wouldn’t be their last. He was afraid for his sister.
Until they found a way to keep the veil sealed permanently, Ryley would worry about Meghan getting hurt. That was doubly true since her druid powers weren’t at full strength yet.
The warmth of Eirik’s hand on his eased some of Ryley’s anxiety. “I can’t promise she’ll be safe, but there’s also no guarantee they won’t come for her here. Fen may have placed spells to hide this place, but that doesn’t mean the Unseelie won’t find it.”
Ryley knew that. He just wished there was another option. One in which he could keep Meghan safe.
CHAPTER 18
“What do you mean, you’re leaving?” Meghan’s voice had become shrill, which only happened when she was truly afraid.
Ryley raced up the steps after another long morning of training with Fen. He was beyond exhausted, especially with the solstice only four days away. But Ryley pushed all that aside in order to get to his sister and find out what was wrong.
Pushing through the basement door, he entered the hallway just outside of the kitchen. His heart sped up as he heard Meghan crying.
“Please, you can’t leave. What if they come for us?”
“We don’t have a choice,” Arne said just as Ryley opened the door to the kitchen to find all eight warriors inside, four of them had a travel bag at their feet as well as enough weapons to take down an army.
Eirik had warned him the others would be sent away to search for more druids. According to Eirik and Fen, they had no way of knowing where the druids were. Families had migrated from Scotland, England, and Ireland, scattering all over the world.
In the beginning, the eight men had done their best to remain with several of the families, but no one had really trusted them since they had been a part of the raiding party that had allowed so many of the Unseelie’s minions to get through the veil. Sure that they were in league with the Fae, the druid families hadn’t allowed Eirik or the others to protect them.
Those families that had left the area hadn’t been easy to find. In the end, it was the veil that did most of the work for them. The openings that were large enough to allow entrance to a low being like one of the Unseelie’s pets, gave off a unique signature the would-be protectors could follow.
Those signals usually started a few days before one of the eight rituals. By the looks of things, four had been felt.
“Meghan,” Ryley said, panting a bit as he’d not only just finished training but had run up the stairs. “Arne’s right. The only way we can hope to seal the veil is with as many druids performing the ritual as possible. They have to go.”
Her pretty blue eyes, so much paler than his own, held despair in their depths. “But if they don’t protect us, how will we perform the ritual?”
Eirik went to Meghan and pulled her into his arms. “Don’t you worry, Meghan. I will not leave you. You and Ryley will be safe with me.”
Ryley joined him, putting his arms around the two most important people in his life. “I know this is hard, Meghan. But I swear to you, I will protect you with my life.”
That only made Meghan cry harder.
The four men who were ready to leave, Arne, Oluf, Hrafn, and Brandr picked up their gear and silently asked for his permission to leave. They only did so out of respect for Meghan, and he was grateful to all of them for treating her as part of their family. Nodding to them to go, Ryley held Meghan tighter.
“And don’t forget, if any of those ridiculous looking creeps come near us, I’ll fry their asses.” Ryley’s heart soared when he heard his sister let out a small giggle. “It will be a huge Unseelie barbecue.”
That giggle sounded again, and Ryley prayed he wouldn’t be proven wrong.
Slowly, Meghan pulled away from Eirik and Ryley. Glancing at the three who hadn’t left, Bjorn, Oluf, and Fritjof, she asked hopefully, “Does that mean you’re going with us to protect us?”
Bjorn shook his head. “I’m sorry, princess, but it’s only a matter of time until we feel the pull of where we’re to go.”
Ryley had tried to get ahold of his friend, Kegan, on social media, but so far, Kegan hadn’t replied to any of his messages. Nor had he posted anything since Samhain. Ryley prayed that didn’t mean anything bad had happened to his friend, especially if the curse was right and Kegan was part of the eight druids needed to permanently seal the veil.
Unhappy with Bjorn’s answer, Meghan stomped from the room. Several minutes later they heard her bedroom door slam shut from above them. Ryley hated putting her though any of this, but there was no choice. At least, not any good one.
***
The next morning, Bjorn, Oluf, and Fritjof were at the front door with their gear. Ryley had been prepared for their leaving, but until he saw them go, the reality of what was to come hit him hard. In just a few days they would be going to a field their protectors had purchased more than a hundred years ago.
It was at the apex of two ley lines. That was another thing Ryley had never believed his grandmother when she told him. Ley lines. Who would have thought there were mystical lines around the world connected together? That those lines also contributed to keeping the veil in place seemed impossible.
Then again, what part of his life since Samhain would he have ever thought was real? Fae, the veil, magic, ley lines, all piled together to tell a crazy story that shouldn’t exist yet did. Add into that their immortal Viking protectors and Ryley was fairly certain he’d be hospitalized if he’d ever tried to tell his story to anyone.
“It’s really going to happen, isn’t it?” Meghan said as she came out from wherever she’d been watching the three men leave. “We’re going to have to perform another ritual without…” her voice broke as she continued to stare at the door they’d just left through.
Ryley went to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her c
lose. “Yeah, kiddo. We’re going to have to do this without the rest of the family.”
“What makes anyone think we’ll be able to do what they couldn’t?” she whispered. “They were far more powerful than we are, yet, they still died.” Her voice rose as panic started to set in. “We’re going to die, too, aren’t we?”
Tears ran down Ryley’s cheeks as he engulfed his sister in both of his arms. He held her tight as he said, “No. We’re going to survive. They were never sure what was happening to the other families. They weren’t prepared. We are. We’ll survive.”
It wasn’t just something he was saying. It was a fact. It had to be, for no way would Ryley allow another member of his family to die. Especially not Meghan.
“You can’t promise that,” she told him, pushing from Ryley’s arms. “No one can.”
The saddest part? Meghan was right. Unable to deny the words, Ryley watched as she walked away, probably to hide out in her room. If given the choice, Ryley might have been tempted to do the same. But if he had any chance of keeping them all alive, he needed to finish his training.
CHAPTER 19
There wasn’t a part of Eirik that didn’t want to take Ryley and Meghan and run as far from the clutches of the Unseelie as possible. Too bad that was impossible, for many reasons. The most obvious of them, there was no such place on earth.
The veil divided this world from the Realm of the Fae. So long as there was a tear in the fabric that separated them, the Unseelie could send their minions. Having been to pretty much every corner of the world, Eirik could attest to that.
All he could do was prepare. He and his brethren had trained every day of their lives. Yet, never had Eirik felt as on edge as he did the morning of the solstice.
He’d piled three plates with scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast. It wasn’t as fancy as Oluf made it, but it was edible. He placed a plate in front of Meghan, who stared at it blankly. Then another in front of Ryley. When he didn’t get a response from his lover, he pressed his lips to the top of his head and ordered, “Eat.”
It was meant for both Ryley and Meghan, but he hoped by encouraging Ryley, his sister would follow suit.
“Huh?” Ryley said in a daze.
Those blue eyes blinked up at him and Eirik handed him a fork. “I said, eat.”
Then Eirik sat down and started in on his own breakfast. He’d already packed sandwiches for both their lunch and dinner. The trip to where they would perform the ritual was four hours away. He and the others had decided it was best to make it that far, so the Unseelie wouldn’t be able to follow them, yet close enough to make the journey in one day.
Of course, when they’d originally purchased the land, it had taken two days by horse, as no roads for the somewhat still primitive cars had led through the forested area. Now, they were having trouble keeping people off their land. How were they to know it would be a perfect location for recreational sports?
At the time, they’d bought it because of its intersecting ley lines. That it had its own mountain, with an exceptional grade for skiing, or a lake that not only froze over for skating in the winter but was stocked with fish for both ice fishing or regular fishing in the spring and summer, was just a bonus.
Meghan refused to pick up her fork as she glared at Eirik. “Trying to fatten me up for the Unseelies?”
It was interesting that teenagers, no matter the century, were pretty much all the same. Brats. Eirik had dealt with hundreds of them over the years. Hell, in the beginning he’d been one himself. Try as he might, he couldn’t ever remember acting anything remotely like the ones he’d met.
Then again, most of them hadn’t grown up battle hardened by the age of fourteen, either. It had been kill or be killed in his world. He’d become an expert with a sword, broadsword, knives, and hand-to-hand combat by the age of ten. Training was mandatory from the age they could hold a weapon.
Thankfully, his years of dealing with teenagers had given him a skill most didn’t have when around the brats – patience. “No,” he said calmly. “I’m providing you with enough protein and energy to get you through the ritual. I would hate for you to come face to face with an Unseelie and not have the strength to defend yourself because you’re too weak from not eating.”
He took another mouthful. When he swallowed and she still hadn’t taken a bite, he gave a halfhearted shrug. “But if you’d rather become a meal to one of those nasty beasts just to spite me, go ahead. But the last words you’ll hear are me saying, ‘I told you so.’”
It didn’t take him much longer to finish his plate. He was glad to see Ryley eating. When Eirik was done, he got up, rinsed off his plate and stuck it in the dishwasher. “I’ll finish loading the SUV. We leave in thirty minutes.”
Taking the cooler with their food and water for later, he headed outside, hoping with him not in the room, Meghan would relent and eat something. Even if she didn’t, Eirik had made sure to pack enough food so she could fill up later.
“Are they ready?” Fen waited for him in the garage. The man wasn’t stupid. Ritual day, especially for those who knew the reality of the Unseelie’s minions, was hard on the druids. They tended to blame the only Fae they knew.
Considering how big of an ass Fen was, it wasn’t exactly a surprise they tended to lash out at him. Eirik had tried to reason with Fen. They all had. But no matter what they’d said, the Fae refused to change his ways.
Now that Eirik understood what it was to love, he couldn’t exactly blame Fen for his surly attitude.
Love.
Who would have thought after twelve hundred years, Eirik would know what that felt like? He just wished he’d had the guts to tell Ryley how he felt.
“They will be,” he told Fen.
Eirik put the cooler down next to the supplies he still had to load and opened up the back end of the SUV. Along with weapons and food, Eirik would bring dry kindling and a few dry logs.
Since bringing Ryley and Meghan to their home, the guys had gone up to check on the ritual site. They’d cut down plenty of wood for the bonfire, as well as covered it to keep it dry, but Eirik had found it was always better to be safe than sorry.
“Really?” Fen said sarcastically. “Because they both looked like they’re in shock.” Fen’s perpetual scowl was on his face. “And that girl was acting…”
Before he could finish, Eirik quipped, “Like you? Because bratty, petulant, stubborn, and obnoxious are all words I could use for you both, so I suggest you shut it when it comes to either Ryley or Meghan.”
In true childish fashion, Fen stomped his foot. “I am a Fae and you will respect me,” he tried to demand.
Eirik tilted back his head and laughed. “No. I really won’t. You don’t control me, Fae. You are nothing to me. Nor can you hurt me, remember? I’m immortal, not by your hands but by a druid and Odin.”
That ever-present scowl was back. “What happened to you, Eirik? You’ve never been so disrespectful before.”
While what Fen said was true, the thoughts had always been there. But Eirik’s father and mother had taught him an important lesson in life. Words could cause damage and there were consequences for them.
That point was driven home when he was eight. A boy, who was about five years older than him, had been making fun of another boy, who was younger than the other boy by about three years. He was often made fun of because he had a permanent limp from falling out of a tree when he was six.
The other kids thought that made him weaker, but Eirik knew better. The boy with the limp had trained day and night with his father, refusing to be considered infirm. Apparently, that day, he’d had enough teasing, for the boy turned in one fluid motion on his good leg. Eirik hadn’t even seen him remove the knife from his belt until it landed in the middle of the teasing boy’s throat.
Since that day, Eirik had chosen his words wisely. Never saying more than was strictly necessary. As he got older, Eirik doubted anyone would be able to throw a knife at him without him already being pr
epared for it, but he still continued to be wary of his words.
If he planned on hurting someone, it wouldn’t be with some backhanded comment. No. If he felt the need to fight, it would be face to face, so the other party could at least defend themselves, instead of feeling the need to hide and cry because he’d been cruel with a few thoughtless words.
Which was why he was standing up to Fen. The Fae was a bully, one that needed to be reminded of his place. Just as Fen couldn’t physically harm Eirik since his immortality came from Odin, Eirik couldn’t really hurt Fen, since he was a Fae. All that left were words.
“That might have been true in the past, Fae, but things have changed.” That had everything to do with Ryley. He was the reason Eirik wasn’t going to allow Fen to continue to torment anyone with what he said. “I’m not about to stand by while you pick on Ryley and Meghan when their only fault is that they were unlucky enough to be born a druid. Now leave, unless you plan to actually be useful.”
Fen cheeks were splotched with red and he looked as if he were about to unleash his Fae magic upon Eirik. Oh, it would hurt like a bitch, but it wouldn’t actually harm him. Prepared for the worst, he was surprised when Fen disappeared.
The door to the garage opened. Ryley stood there, a soft smile gracing those pretty lips. “Thank you.”
Feeling more emboldened, or maybe it was the fear he might lose Ryley during the ritual, Eirik strode to where he stood and took his hand in his. With Ryley on the step leading into the house he was just a smidge taller than Eirik. Staring into those cerulean blue eyes, Eirik bared his soul.
“I know I’m not good with words, so forgive me for just putting this out there, but I love you, Ryley Duggan. That was something I never thought I’d ever say to another person, but from the moment I met you, my heart belonged to you.” Eirik just knew he was screwing it up, but now that he was talking, it was as if his mouth wouldn’t shut the hell up.