by LJ Rivers
“It was hard to lose them, but it also meant I could decide for myself. However, it was a tough decision, and although I have never regretted marrying Rhys, it has come with a price. It was only because of my magical powers—there are no Goblins here that know all I know about herbs and plants—that we were allowed to stay. And it has only been for the past few years that they have started talking to us again.”
Her voice was packed with bitterness, and her eyes had a spark of defiance in them.
“I’m embarrassed to have let this pass for so long. There is no way you can understand without having lived here. The power of Reeve Yeats and his council is so strong.” She bit her lower lip and shook her head slowly. “Please don’t hate me. Or Rhys.”
A chill ran down my spine. “I doubt very much that I can hate you, but you’re scaring me, Mari. Does this have something to do with Charlie and Brendan?”
“I think it might have. There’s still time, I hope, but with your father arriving, the reeve might want to speed up the next offering.”
Jen stood up so fast her chair toppled over. “Offering? Are you serious?”
Mari hid her face in her hands. “Oh, Lady of Avalon! Please forgive me!”
I had the feeling my grandmother on my father’s side, Nimue, would be furious at what Mari was about to tell us.
“Let’s deal with the forgiving later. Tell us what’s going on in this crazy town, Mari! What offerings are you talking about?”
“It has been this way since the first Magicals set foot here. They thought Nimue would bring them back to Avalon if they prayed to her and pleased her with offerings. They gathered fruits, berries, and grains and burned them every time the moon was gone.”
“That’s about once a month, right?”
She nodded. “Over the decades and centuries, as Nimue clearly didn’t seem to want to open the porth again, they thought it was because the offerings were too small. So, they started sacrificing chickens, pigs, or lambs. Even calves and deer.”
My stomach felt like I had spent a day on a roller coaster. This was leading up to something I didn’t want to hear.
“When the first Donnal was taken, some six hundred years ago, the reeve said it was because Nimue had told him so in a breuddwyd. She had spoken to him when he was sleeping, saying she wanted Donnal blood to burn before she would let the Magicals back in Avalon.”
Jen gasped.
“At first it was only during the winter solstice. Once a year. Not that it makes it right in any way, of course. They only took bad Donnals. Thieves and murderers. A group would go outside to capture them and bring them back to town.”
Tears streamed down Mari’s face as she spoke, but her voice was still firm. She was on a mission, one that would forever cut the ties between the Wogans and the other citizens of Perllanafal.
“I know I say ‘they’ all the time, but Rhys and I have stood silently by and watched it happen. I mean, we are devoted to the Lady Nimue, both of us, but sacrificing Donnals? That’s not right. We just couldn’t speak up against the reeve and his council. They—there is that word again—they would have killed us.”
“You could have fled the town.” Jen’s voice was cold and harsh.
“Believe you me, we have talked about it so many times. And maybe we should have tried, even if it would mean certain death. The truth is, we wouldn’t get far. They would have caught us before we could see the other side of Cilan Head across the Ffos Penfras.”
I had seen the last name on a map; it was the bay stretching across the southern part of the peninsula. I wanted to tell her I understood, and that her and Rhys’ life must have been hard, but at the same time I was furious. They had witnessed ritual murders, over and over, without doing anything to stop it.
The Goblin’s shoulders slumped, and she sighed heavily. “I know, Ruby. I can see it in your eyes. How could we let this go on for years on end?”
“Something like that.”
She shook her head. “I can’t believe I’m saying this aloud.”
“I appreciate you telling me, although I have to admit I’m shocked. I’m trying to understand, Mari, but it’s really, rea—”
“We have a daughter.” She motioned north with her head. “Somewhere out there.”
A giant lump formed in my throat. “Oh, Mari, I’m so sorry!” Not because she had a daughter, but because of the implications of that fact.
“He says he knows where she is, and that she will die if we—” Her voice trailed off as she started sobbing.
I threw my arms around her, pulling her close. Jen’s eyes met mine. Hers were filled with fire, just as I felt the fire inside me screaming to be released.
Mari cleared her throat and stepped back from my embrace. “Well, now you know why we couldn’t risk crossing them. Crossing him.”
“And you have no idea where she is?”
“No. But the reeve does.” She straightened her back and wiped her face with the back of her hands. “But I can’t talk about Ebrill, lest my feet will stop carrying me.”
“Ebrill,” I repeated. “What a beautiful name.”
Mari held her hand up. “Please, I can’t.” She looked back in the direction of the farm. “I’m so sorry to tell you this, as you no doubt understand what it says about your grandparents. But giving offerings to Nimue is an important part of our faith, and I can’t say it hasn’t crossed my mind since last night that … that she has heard us.”
I hadn’t thought about that. Not that Nimue had heard their prayers, which I guess was just an extension of what Mum and I had hoped for at home. But my grandparents had taken part in these rituals and clearly condoned killing humans in Nimue’s name.
Did Mum know? The thought almost knocked me to the ground.
“What about the children?” I said, unable to hide the bitterness in my voice. “The ones who stay in Perllanafal, I mean.”
“When they come of age, they are allowed to the ceremonies. Before that, they don’t know about the Harvesters.”
“Harvesters?”
“They, or rather, we, only sacrifice Harvesters now. We heard about them capturing Magicals, mostly in the cities. But eventually they came into Wales, too. Reeve Yeats formed special groups of hunters, mostly Shifters and Sorcerers, and sent them out to capture those horrid criminals. I must admit, part of me found it almost acceptable. These terrible men—save for a handful of women—would do the most despicable things to Magicals, before discarding them like sothach.”
I knew that word. Garbage. “Both Jen and I have had close encounters with Harvesters. And yes, they are terrible, but that doesn’t mean they deserve to be burnt at the stake.” I could feel Jen’s stare. She knew very well about how I had torched a few Harvesters myself. I had never tied them to a bonfire and sacrificed them to Nimue, though.
“No, they don’t. Nobody does. I know it can be dangerous for Ebrill, but I can no longer hold my peace about it. If the porth is opened, and they all go back to Avalon, then maybe Rhys and I can go look for her. Or perhaps go with you and see if I have a sister in Chester.”
“We’ll get to that,” I said. “Right now I’m only concerned about Charlie and Brendan. I think they went with those Baker boys yesterday.”
Mari stared at me, eyes wide open. “Oh, no!”
“What?”
“They’re not ones you want to confront. The reeve uses them as collectors, sending them outside to pick up Harvesters for the offerings.”
The pieces snapped together in my head. Leighton Ballard! He had to be the man I had seen in the back of the Baker boys’ van.
“Where do they live?” Jen asked.
Mari had a confused expression. “A few hundred yards past our house. When you come to the forest, there’s a fork in the road. Take the right and follow the shoreline until the road comes to an end. You can’t miss it.”
No wonder I hadn’t seen the van when I went out Saturday evening. I hadn’t ventured that far out. “Meet you by the fo
rest?” I said to Jen. “I’m going in the dark.” I leaned down and kissed Mari on her cheek. “Thank you, Mari. I’m certain Nimue will forgive you and Rhys. If I ever see her, I’ll ask her personally!”
Jen had already shifted and started down the field. I ran back to the house, taking care to slow my step before I reached the balcony. Lili was probably still on the patio, but I didn’t know where my grandfather was. I snuck up to the door, peering inside. The kitchen was empty. Carefully, I turned the knob on the door and opened it. I tiptoed down the hall to Charlie’s room, found the plastic case next to her backpack, and got out.
Less than a minute later, I was back by the door. Llewellyn said something to Lili on the patio. I held my breath and turned to look. He stood right outside the window, hunched over his wife. I went outside, as quietly as I could. Only after I had got ten steps away from the balcony did I dare breathe again.
Rhys was standing next to Mari when I returned.
"You need backup?” he asked.
I hesitated.
“It’s all right, Princess. Mari and I agree, and I want to help.”
“Thank you,” I said, ignoring their use of the royal title. “Jen’s waiting by the fork in the road, just past your place. Get your car and meet us there?”
“What about you? It’s faster if you come with me.”
I winked at him. “No, it’s not.”
The old bear started to say something, then smiled and nodded.
As he walked up to the house, Mari touched my arm. “What was that all about?”
“I have some secrets of my own. See you later.”
There were still a dozen tables left after last night, and each of them cast a rectangular shadow. I moved close to one of them, feeling how it reacted like I was magnetic. The shadow stretched from its original shape and slinked around my feet, just like Kit had done earlier that morning. I closed my eyes and started pulling the darkness towards me. The shadows responded to my commands, and seconds later I was inside them. Through the dark-grey veil, I could see Mari’s face, contorted by her shocked expression. I couldn’t help but smile.
I turned away from her and pushed the shadowy cloud towards the town below my grandparents’ farm. I floated inside it, over the fields where sheep and goats and a couple of cows were grazing, oblivious to the Fae passing between them in the form of darkness.
When I reached the first houses, I turned left and floated behind them. I felt nothing but disgust for their inhabitants, and the anger at how they had treated Rhys and Mari almost made me forget the biggest crime of all. Almost.
I hadn’t thought about it when we first arrived here, my father and I, but now that I flew past the Wogans’ house, I noticed the high fence between it and their neighbour. None of the other houses had fences around them, apart from those who had chickens in their backyard. This fence was wooden, however, and six feet tall. I felt a moment’s urge to throw a fireball at it, but couldn’t risk it, as I had no way of controlling the fire unless I stayed.
Besides, if my father—or I, for that matter—were able to open the portal, Rhys and Mari would be rid of their petty neighbours once and for all.
Jen, in her beautiful white wolf form, stood under the trees by the road when I arrived. I let go of my grip on the shadows—or maybe it was their grip on me—and slipped into the light. It was like a part of me yearned to stay in the darkness. I would still be weary of that desire every time I Shadowwalked, I thought. Was this what a drug addiction felt like? I could almost hear the darkness—the absence of light—calling for me to come back.
Focus, Ru!
Behind us, the sputtering engine of the old Land Rover approached. Rhys swerved the car off the road and under a large oak before jumping out, leaving the car wobbling on its suspension. I ran over to the passenger side and hid Charlie’s case under the seat.
“So, this might not be the place for a fisherman,” Rhys said.
I had seen Jen shift many times but was still mesmerised by the sight. Yet nothing could have prepared me for what happened next. Rhys Wogan, the grey-haired—and grey-bearded—slightly hunched old fisherman, changed into an enormous bear. His snout protruded from a face the size of a satellite dish, towering over me. He had to be at least nine feet tall, standing on his hind legs.
“Right,” I said, not at all sure what to follow up with. “Can you understand me when I talk to you?”
The bear dropped to all fours, but still reached almost to my shoulders. He moved his giant head up and down. Jen stepped up next to him and nodded.
“Let’s find Char and B.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“There?” I asked the enormous bear next to me.
He bared his sharp canines in confirmation. My instincts told me to run. Had I not known how sweet Rhys was, and that he would never harm me, I would have run for my life. He was terrifying, and though he was a friend, I couldn’t help but feel a little freaked out about the massive animal slobbering by my side.
Jen padded around us, her gaze fixed on the house ahead.
“Right, then. We go in?” I asked.
The animals shook their heads at me. What wasn’t I seeing? I crouched in the shadow of the tree we stood by and tried to figure out what they were warning me about. I didn’t have to wait long.
An animal, like something out of my worst nightmares, slinked around the corner of the house. Its twisted, human-like face surveyed its surroundings. It stretched and shook its thick and furry, ember-coloured mane. Long, black fur rolled over its colossal body. I rubbed my eyes. Something fanned from its shoulder blades and folded together on its back. It had wings? Freakishly huge wings, like those of a bat. Or a dragon. Where I expected its lion’s tale to be, its fur melted into what looked like hard scales, with a sting at the end, like that of a scorpion. What the fudge? I knew what I was looking at, or at least the origin of the mythology, but I didn’t think anything like a manticore even existed. I supposed I shouldn’t discard the myths after all the weirdness I’d seen, but this beast certainly gave me pause.
“What do I do?” I said in my lowest attempt of a whisper, not knowing how well the beast could hear. “I don’t want to kill it. I don’t know if I could even if I did want to, but I have to get past it.”
The beast was guarding something—or someone—and if Charlie and Brendan were inside that house, I needed to, at the very least, distract the creature.
Before I could move, Tommos Baker came out of the front door. “Alun,” he called.
The beast reared its terrifying head to look at him.
“We’re about ready out back, but we’ll need you for another hour or so.” He tossed what looked like a giant ham shank at the beast, turned, and went back inside.
The beast pounced on the meat and tore into it. While its face had human characteristics, its teeth were as sharp as those of any predator I’d seen, even the ones next to me. It bit into the shank as if its teeth were knives, shredding off large chunks.
I wouldn’t get a better shot. “Try to stay quiet,” I whispered, then dashed out from my hiding place and across the road. The manticore’s sting swung out at my approach. I sucked in a breath, pivoted, and leapt away from the beast to avoid the hit. The sting missed me by an inch. Soft grass hugged my palms as I pushed off from the ground and into a crouch. The immense animal turned to me, planting its birdlike feet over its meal for protection.
“Easy now.” I held my palm out. “I’m just here for my friends.”
The white wolf bounded past me and dipped behind the corner of the house. The beast glanced in her direction, then back at me. Its face twisted into an impossibly cruel grimace, and it rose on its haunches. The silent roar from its open mouth sent icy shivers down my spine. A pair of huge wings shot out from its back and lifted the creature from the ground.
Thrusting my hand out, I tried to fling it away by using my telekinesis, but nothing happened. Well, apart from the throbbing ache in my arm. It was like hitting
a wall. The beast batted its wings and dived at me, talons extended. I backed up on my elbows when the bear jumped on the beast’s back. The weight of the bear sent the manticore headfirst into the ground by my feet. Rhys climbed on its back and dug his claws into the beast’s face. Its sting swung up in the air and aimed for Rhys’ head. The bear rolled off at the last second and thumped to the ground.
I scrambled to my feet and hurled a force field out. It caught the beast, and I skipped on my feet. Attempting to claw its way out, the force field held. At least my Fae power worked on this thing. But now what?
“Not sure how long I can hold this beast,” I said to the bear. “Please, find my friends.”
The bear looked between the beast and me, then lumbered around the house and out of view.
“Now, what do I do with you?” I asked the beast. As I watched, the creature transformed. Its body rippled and shuddered. Fur, wings, and scales bubbled and melted away to human skin, shrinking and shifting, until finally, a boy lay inside the force field. Naked and no more than sixteen. By all the Fae and Pixies in Avalon! He was just a kid.
I went up to the force field and put my hand on it.
Inside, the boy curled up. Golden hair swept around him, at least three feet long. He raised his eyes to me, and all I saw was sorrow. He was beautiful, almost ethereal, with golden eyes and smooth skin. A far cry from the beast he had just been. “I’m going to let you out now,” I said, “if you promise not to scream or run. I won’t hurt you if you don’t try to hurt me.”
Tears clung to his long, dark eyelashes as his gorgeous eyes met mine. He nodded at me, and I let the force field drop, leaving the boy to rest on the grass.
I sat next to him. “I’m Ruby Morgan. I don’t wish to hurt you or take your food. I only want my friends back.”
“Then you’d best hurry,” the boy said in a melodious and hushed voice. “Or they’ll burn.”
“You won’t try to stop me?”
“I hate being on guard duty for the Bakers. I only do it because the reeve assigned it to me. Rhys has always been kind to me. But just now, he attacked me, and I hurt him.” Tears flowed over his cheeks. “I don’t want to hurt my friends.” He hugged himself, trembling. “Someone has to guard the offerings,” he said in a mocking tone, imitating the reeve.