Shadow of the Mark

by Leigh Fallon

  Adam smiled and wrapped me in the blanket. “It’s real here.” He put his hand over my heart.

  “I don’t want to wake up.”

  “You have to. We need you.”

  “Stay with me!”

  “I’ll be here.” The heat built in my heart until it burned, and the bitter sting of consciousness engulfed me.

  Twenty-three

  CONSEQUENCES

  Four worried faces peered at me as I lay on Adam’s bed. My arm ached. I glanced down to see the source of the pain, but it was my own hand clenching Adam’s.

  He was still unconscious, his chest rising and falling with clockwork precision. I sat up and ran my other hand down his cheek. He didn’t react, but my face tingled. Curious, I touched him again. Yes, I definitely felt my caress on Adam’s face, like it was my own. Shock rippled through me at the strange sensation. I looked down at my hand connected with his and felt my grip back. I smiled sadly and pried my fingers away, allowing my tears to fall onto our hands, sensing as the wetness hit his hand through mine.

  “Megan.” Fionn’s voice sounded far away. “Megan!” he repeated. I snapped out of my stupor and slowly turned to face him. “Megan, we need you to tell us what happened.” I didn’t know where to start. I felt my gaze being drawn to Adam, but Fionn grabbed my chin and pulled it back in his direction. “Megan, stay focused! Talk to us.”

  “Let me try.” Áine removed Fionn’s hand from my chin and sat down beside me. “Megan, we need to help you and Adam, but you have to tell us what happened.” She leaned over and picked up his hand. I gasped, feeling as if she were holding mine, sensing her element fizz under his skin.

  I stared up at Áine, wanting to speak, but couldn’t find my voice. She gazed into my eyes and winced. I opened my mouth, trying again, and finally found the connection to my tongue. “He’s here,” I whispered, putting one hand to my heart and the other to my head.

  Áine cocked her head and peered at me closer. “He’s here,” she explained, putting her arm on Adam’s chest.

  “No.” I took her hand and put it over my heart. “He’s here.”

  Áine glanced from me to Fionn, shaking her head.

  “She’s still delirious,” Rían said. He paced up and down the room, his strides long and impatient. “Shouldn’t we smack her or something? We don’t have time for this.”

  Fionn turned to me again. “Megan, what do you mean?”

  I focused on Fionn, willing him to see what I felt, Adam’s element pulsing back at him. Fionn stared at me, searching deep in the glittering crystal white of my eyes. Then he pulled back sharply.

  “It can’t be!” Fionn paled and glanced from Adam to me in shock. “No!”

  “What?” Rían came up and stared into my face. “What is it?”

  “Adam . . . Adam’s element . . .” Fionn said.

  Áine ran to the other side of the bed and raised Adam’s eyelids, revealing black lifeless eyes. A small cry escaped her lips. “You took his element! How?”

  “I don’t know,” I spluttered. “I woke up and he was unconscious, and then the storm took over and we were floating and, and . . .” I broke off. How could I even begin to explain what had happened? “The Sidhe said I was the Cluaín, that this was what I was selected for . . . but he said it was too early.” I shook my head in confusion. “He said something else, some more Irish . . . I didn’t understand.”

  “The Sidhe visited you?” Fionn avoided my eyes.

  “Yes, he said . . .” I racked my brain, trying to remember the strange, ethereal conversation. “He said the answer was in the stone.”

  “Christ, could he not have told you what it was?”

  “I asked him, but he said I already had it.”

  Fionn paced the room, rubbing the back of his head incessantly. “So it’s true. I need to speak to Hugh.”

  Rían’s eyes narrowed. “What’s true?”

  Fionn winced. “Don’t worry about it now.” His eyes flicked between Adam and me with a mixture of horror and panic etched into face. I reached for Áine. I didn’t want her forgiveness for this, but I wanted to explain. “Áine, I—”

  “Wait,” she said abruptly. “Guys, would you mind giving Megan and me a minute alone?”

  “Now is hardly the time for girly chats!” Rían spat.

  “Just give me five minutes.”

  Fionn walked over to the other side of the bed and ran his hand over Adam’s face before resting it on his shoulder. “How could I have let this happen?”

  “Fionn, stop blaming yourself,” Áine said. “Please, let me speak with Megan. We’ll sort this out.”

  “I should have put a stop to this earlier.”

  Áine’s voice softened. “You know Adam never would have listened.”

  With a sigh, Fionn tapped Adam’s shoulder and reluctantly left the room with Rían in his wake.

  Áine turned her attention to me. “Now, tell me what happened, from the beginning.” All traces of anger were gone. Her voice was full of genuine concern.

  I stroked Adam’s cheek, reveling in the strange sensation of my own touch. “We . . .” I gulped back a sob. “Oh, Áine, I thought I had it under control. I was sure we were ready for the next step! Adam was reluctant, but I convinced him that it would be okay.” I began to shake as I relived the events.

  “You slept together.”

  “I don’t remember.” Heat crept up my neck and across my head, leaving me with goose bumps. “We were kind of working toward it, then . . .”

  “What? Go on.”

  “That’s the thing. I don’t know. I only remember waking up. After a little while, I realized that Adam was more than just asleep, and I started to freak out. Then I saw my eyes.” I raised my fingers and traced the outline of them. “They’d changed, and I felt . . . his power, in me.”

  I dragged my eyes from Adam’s peaceful face over to Áine’s troubled one. “The storm picked up—it was crazy, like a hurricane or something. Was that me?”

  Áine nodded. “Most likely. If you have the water element too, I can only imagine the damage that could cause. What I don’t understand is how you’re controlling all that power.”

  I looked down at my hands. “Am I dangerous?”

  “You should be, but . . . I don’t know. Let’s worry about that later. What else happened?”

  “I don’t really know. The Sidhe said all this stuff about being the Cluaín, that I was chosen for this reason, but I’d taken too early.”

  “And the answer was in the stone?”

  I nodded.

  “And the Cluaín is you?”

  “That’s what he said . . .” My mind raced.

  “I’ve never heard of ‘Cluaín’ before.” Áine looked at me strangely, like she was seeing me for the first time. “Mind if I try something?”

  “What?”

  “I’ve always felt a pull to you, we all have, but we just assumed it was because you were the fourth element. What if there was something else, something more powerful?”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “You know that zing we get when we touch each other? What if that’s more than recognition?”

  Slowly it dawned on me what Áine was getting at. I peeked over at Adam again, and my heart skipped a beat, then thudded erratically.

  “Let me try.” She held out her hand.

  “No!” I pulled away and sat on my hands. “I’ve done enough damage.”

  “Megan, we need to know what we’re dealing with. Now take my hand.”

  I stared at her for what seemed like an eternity and then glanced back at Adam. My heart was racing so fast, I was sure it would explode. “Get away from me!” I jumped up and stumbled toward the door, but my legs collapsed as I blacked out.

  “Back already?” Adam’s face smiled into mine through a fog of confusion.

  “Adam.” I tried to hug him but felt no substance. “What’s happening?”

  “You know what’s happening.”

 
; I shook my head. “I have to figure this out.”

  “You heard the Sidhe; the answer is in the stone.” Adam’s presence wavered.

  “Don’t leave!”

  “I’m not leaving. I’m here until you figure this out. It’s quite comfortable.” He smirked, but there was sadness in his eyes. “I’m tired.” He started to fade again.

  “Adam, please! Stay!”

  His image melted away, and faint laughter echoed in the distance.

  “Ticktock, ticktock,” a girly voice whispered. The laughter came again and then trailed off, making me doubt if I’d ever even heard it. But it came again, louder this time.

  “Ticktock, it’s nearly time.”

  I whirled around, trying to locate the source, when a ghostly image appeared like a void in the haze. Suddenly I was falling toward it at terrifying speed. I couldn’t stop. I went right through, and like a bubble popping, it was gone, leaving residue on my skin.

  “It’s mine,” the voice whispered, and faded away.

  When I woke, I was home in my own bed. Dad sat beside me, a worried look on his face. “Megan, you’re making a habit of this.”

  “Oh, Dad.” I started sobbing and climbed into his arms, something I hadn’t done since I was a little girl.

  “Hey, hey, what’s wrong? Did the storm give you that much of a fright? Don’t worry, it’s all over now.” He hugged me tight. “I guess your instincts around the water were right. I will never let you set foot in a boat again.”

  “Um . . . what?” I asked, wondering what story he’d been spun.

  “The club yacht. The hurricane.” He pulled away and inspected me more closely. “Are you sure you’re okay? I can call the doctor.”

  “No, don’t. I’m fine. It was just all such a shock.”

  “Thank goodness Adam got you back to the marina before the worst of it hit. I can’t bear to imagine what would have happened if he hadn’t. What on earth were you doing out there so early, anyway? Don’t ever go off like that without telling me! Petra and I were at our wits’ end.”

  I felt the blood drain from my face. “Adam—” I gasped.

  “Is fine. Stop worrying. Fionn said he’s just a bit worn-out from his adventure, like you. He said you were so exhausted when you got back to their house that you fell asleep on the couch. He thought you’d be more comfortable here.” I nodded, not sure how long I’d been home or how Adam was. Did I still have his element in my eyes? My eyes! I squeezed them shut and jumped up, running for the bathroom. “Megan, are you okay?” Dad shouted after me.

  I slammed the door behind me and anxiously looked into the mirror. They were my normal sludgy green. I sighed with relief. “I’m fine—I’ll be out in a sec.”

  “I’ll make some breakfast. Come down when you’re ready.” I went to splash water on my face, and with only the slightest movement, water floated up from the sink like a bubble. I lowered my head to the floating liquid and allowed my face to break the tension of the water. It splashed back into the sink. I held out a hand and flicked a towel over to me. My element was unaffected, and I still seemed to have control of the water. But Áine had never answered me—was I dangerous?

  As soon as I got downstairs, Dad handed me a mug of tea. “Hot and sweet, just the way you like it.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “Can you believe all this?” Dad gestured to the TV, which was on mute.

  I stared at the screen, taking in the horrifying pictures of wrecked businesses, trashed beaches, and dead fish washed up with debris all through the town. “Oh my god.”

  “It’s crazy, isn’t it? Half the marina has been wiped out, and we have several trawlers and yachts still unaccounted for. The town is a complete mess.”

  “This can’t be happening.” Blood drained from my face, and the room spun around me. I wobbled to a chair and sat down hard. I could not have caused this. Could I? I brought my knees up to my chest and rocked myself back and forth, trying to ease the panic that flooded through me. Dad’s voice slowly brought me back to the present.

  “Megan, it’s okay. It’s all over now. Listen, are you going to be all right here today? I have to get down to the marina to help clean things up.”

  I nodded, not taking my eyes off the TV.

  “Are you sure?” he asked worriedly. “I’ll stay if you need me.”

  My eyes shot up to his. “NO! Oh . . . sorry, Dad, it’s just so terrible. Of course I’ll be fine. I’ll get dressed and go downtown and see if I can do anything to help.”

  “I’d prefer you stay out of town, Meg. Why don’t you take it easy here for the day instead?”

  I shrugged noncommittally.

  As soon as Dad left, I got dressed and headed into town to survey the damage for myself. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Half the marina was underwater. Yachts with broken masts were stacked up on top of each other, while others lay on their sides, smashed to pieces. Cars had been washed off the pier and were floating in the water. Two men darted past me and headed down the steep stone steps toward the water. Voices drifted up from below, and I froze. In the shallow water, a whale had been beached. Dozens of people stood fully clothed, trying to help it. This was my fault, all of it. In that moment, I hated my element. I wanted it out of me, to be rid of the thing that had ruined my life. But then I realized: If the elements had caused this destruction, they could fix it too. I felt my eyes change as the wind began to whip my hair upward, and my feet lost connection with the road. I focused on the whale, slowly moving him into the water while an astonished crowd looked on.

  “There must be some sort of undertow or something!” one woman shouted as she and all the others kept pouring buckets of water over the whale. “Look at the water! Holy Mary mother of God, everyone, get onto the pier!”

  The water rose up like a tsunami and started rushing toward the shore. I opened my eyes, making sure everyone was on the pier, and then let the water drop. The shocked onlookers stood back, watching as the whale was picked up by the tide and drawn out into deeper waters. As soon as the whale hit the depths, he disappeared below the surface.

  One wrong righted. On to the next. I scanned the scene and noticed a car toppled over another one. I flicked a hand to pick up the wind, and a vortex started swirling. I guided it across the street, dragging the car. People were scared now, running for cover, their faces wide-eyed in confusion. They probably thought another hurricane or tornado was hitting. A woman stopped suddenly, pointed at me, and called to the others, but I didn’t care. I watched as my vortex worked its way up the road, clearing the way.

  “MEGAN! What the hell are you doing?” a voice said loudly. “Stop it, NOW!” I spun around to find Áine glaring at me. I hardly recognized her with her scowling face. She grabbed me by the sleeve and dragged me away from the crowd, who was now staring at me. “What are you trying to do? Get us all outed? Jesus Christ!”

  “How did you find me?”

  “How do you think, you plonker? I’ve been doing my bit in fixing up this mess—a little more subtly, I might add, than I see you doing . . . this. And you shouldn’t be using Adam’s element!”

  “Adam! How is he?”

  Her face softened, and the corners of her eyes turned down. “No change.”

  “Can we go see him?”

  “Fionn said we had to keep you away from the house while he figured out what to do.”

  My heart sank as rejection washed over me. “Please, Áine. I need to see him.”

  Áine looked around at the chaos and sighed. “Okay, I’ll sneak you in, but first I’ve got to fix this.” She glared at all the people who were staring at us, openmouthed. Her eyes flicked to almost entirely ebony, just the thinnest of acid green flashing around her giant pupil. I stepped away from her as I felt her suggestion seep into my skull. It was like an invasion, unwanted thoughts telling me to unsee the last five minutes, alien memories, forcing their way in until they felt like my own. I pushed them away, rejecting her suggestions, unlike everyone else who w
as now caught under her spell.

  Her eyes flickered between black and green before returning to normal. “Come on, let’s get out of here while we can.”

  We left the group of confused and slightly agitated people at the water’s edge and went to get Adam’s car, which Áine had parked up the road.

  “Your new power seems to be getting very strong,” I said, getting in.

  She shrugged and started the engine. “I’ve been practicing. It’s easy, really.”

  “It doesn’t feel right to be manipulating people’s thoughts, Áine.”

  She sat bolt upright in the driver’s seat and pulled out in the direction of home. “At least I’m not creating hurricanes, burning down houses, and causing general mayhem and destruction.”

  “Point taken.”

  “I knew straightaway,” she said, relaxing a little as we left the town. “I knew what you’d done.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “With Adam.”

  “Oh, Áine.” I dropped my face into my hands. “It’s all my fault.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s the element’s fault.” She glanced at me. “I sense him in you, you know.”

  “I sense him too. He talks to me.” I blushed a little. “When I sleep. I have to figure out how to give him back.”

  “If you let me into your head, I might be able to speak with him.”

  I rubbed my brow. “No. I don’t think he’s here. It’s more like he’s around me, and in my heart.” I paused for a second. “I’ve been hearing another voice too.”

  Áine gasped. “Whose?”

  “I don’t know. She whispers at me and laughs. She keeps saying ‘ticktock.’ It’s really scary.”

  “You should let me into your head. I might be able to help.”

  “But you can’t read my mind. How could that be of any benefit?”

  She pulled in at the DeRíses’ and turned to me. “I may not be able to hear what’s going on in your brain, but maybe I’ll pick up on the other things going on, like Adam, and that other voice.”