by D. N. Leo
“Oh good, you’re awake. Let’s get out of here now. I’m freezing,” Orla said, looking down at him.
“What happened?” He was still very weak due to the wounds on his chest, but the poison had been counteracted. Maeve shot a frantic look at Orla.
“Bradan, your father died, and you were injured. Remember that?”
Then he recalled. The pain on his face bought tears to Maeve’s eyes again. Orla cleared her throat. “I have things I need to do. But first, we have to get you to safety, and it’s not going to be the village,” Orla declared.
“Why not?”
“Whatever attacked you knew you had left the village for the woods. Someone in the village tipped it off.”
Bradan closed his eyes and seemed to agree with what she said. Orla continued, “You should stay with Maeve.”
“What?” Bradan tried to sit up but flopped down again.
“You need to be taken care of. Nobody would guess you’d stay with her. Maeve, would you mind?”
“Yes, I mean no. Of course not. No one in the village knows my current place.”
Orla and Maeve helped Bradan up. Orla saw no way out of helping Maeve taking Bradan to her place. He was still too weak to walk by himself. It took the two of them, flanking his sides, and they still had to walk one slow step at a time.
Orla looked up to the sky and saw a crack of dawn beginning to show itself. She sighed and thought of Lorcan.
Chapter 17
Keeva’s scream sent Lorcan springing to his feet. He glanced down and saw that his chest had healed completely. Lorcan knew that Keeva slept innocently and deeply and would never remember ordinary dreams. But her nightmares were of the worst kind. Similar to her ability to sense death, her nightmares were all about death, and they were frighteningly accurate. Storming into Keeva’s bedroom, he saw her sitting in bed and shaking, with tears streaming down her face.
Lorcan jumped onto the bed and pulled his sister into his arms to soothe her, but she backed away from him.
Her eyes were devastated, and she backed further away. What had she seen in her nightmare? Whose death? “Keeva, talk to me,” he said gently, but she kept shaking her head.
Riley and Noah arrived at the door. Lorcan acknowledged them, then glanced back at Keeva. He vaguely remembered asking for Riley in his delirium last night. He remembered asking him to perform the surgery to remove the bullet.
“Thanks for coming,” Lorcan said. Riley nodded, his eyes trained on the shaking Keeva.
Noah ran in and flew into Lorcan’s arms. As he hugged Lorcan, Noah whispered into his ear, “She sees dead people. She dreams about them, too.”
Lorcan eased Noah out of his arms and looked at his face, then he looked back at Keeva. “I know, Noah. I know about her visions and dreams.”
Noah looked at Keeva, then in front of an astonished Lorcan and Riley, he climbed onto the bed and curled into Keeva’s arms. Keeva embraced him as tears rolled down her face.
“Why don’t you tell them what you saw? When I talked to Dad, it helped,” Noah said.
Keeva shook her head. “I can’t . . .”
“Do you mind if I tell them what you saw? I think Uncle Lorcan should know.”
Lorcan stood up, bracing for the news. Riley flopped to the reading chair and put his head in his hands.
Keeva nodded to Noah. Noah turned around. “Uncle Lorcan, I think Keeva and I had the same dream. We saw each other in our dreams. We saw a big bird, blood, body parts and . . . Orla.”
Lorcan braced his hands against the wall and inhaled deeply. Then he turned around and asked, “Did you see whose body parts they were?”
Noah shook his head. “It was dark. I saw Orla’s face . . .”
“I need to see her,” Lorcan muttered and charged out the door.
He thundered down the hallway. Keeva, Riley, and Noah chased after him. The lights in the house flickered, and a wave of fresh and lively air washed through the entire house. The eerie silence suddenly lifted, and they heard the hum of the forest and the wind. Birds flapped their wings, fighting for the small birdbath Keeva had made for them. Insects orchestrated soothing Irish country songs. And people chattered.
People? Lorcan came to a skidding halt and turned back. Keeva looked at him. They both heard the familiar sound of people in the house. Riley frowned at their expressions as they rushed down the stairs.
In the front garden, a man was holding a large plant trimmer, enjoying the birds in competition for a place in the bath. He turned and saw the group of people. “Keeva, your bath is very popular with the birds. I told you. Soon you will regret it because they make a lot of noise.” He pointed at Lorcan. “And who might this be?”
“This is my brother, Lorcan, and his friends from England, Riley and Noah,” Keeva said quickly and scurried after Lorcan as he made his way down the corridor toward the kitchen.
There were greeted there by the aroma of his favorite lemon and almond cake and the sight of his mother giving instructions to the chef. Lorcan’s legs carried him into kitchen. His mind was numb with confusion.
His mother looked at him with her soft green eyes, which gleamed with tears of joy when she saw him. She opened her arms wide. Lorcan rushed in and embraced her, almost lifting her off her feet. She released him and cupped his face with her hands.
“Look at you, you’re tired.” Then she rubbed his back warmly. “How are your injuries?”
“I’m okay, Mother.” Lorcan smiled. His mother had no memories of what had happened after he’d run into her arms with claw wounds on his back a few days ago. Keeva walked into the kitchen and stared at the chef—the same chef she’d seen dead on the floor. The chef frowned at the tears on Keeva’s face.
“What happened, Keeva? Are you okay, sweetheart? Why are you crying?”
His mother approached Keeva and wiped the tears from her face. Keeva was dumbstruck and couldn’t say a thing. Riley and Noah stepped into the kitchen.
“This is my friend Riley and his son Noah,” Lorcan said. “This is my mother.”
Riley nodded a greeting. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Brody. Lorcan has talked about you a lot.”
“Call me Jane.” She smiled. “Have you just arrived? Stay with us for a while. There are plenty of beautiful sights to see. I’m sure Noah would enjoy it.”
Riley was about to say something, but Lorcan cut in. “We’ll go for a walk in the woods, Mother.”
“That’s a good idea,” Jane said. “Come home early for brunch.”
Lorcan nodded and strode out. Riley and Keeva rushed after him. Riley turned at Noah. “You stay at home, Noah. Don’t say anything to anyone before I figure out what’s going on. Can you promise me?”
Noah pouted, but then nodded.
Chapter 18
At the edge of the woods, Lorcan turned around. “I broke the curse on my parents, and as a result, Orla died. Is that what this is all about? Is that what you saw, Keeva?”
“No. I don’t know . . . You don’t know that Orla is dead.”
“What curse?” Riley asked.
“You don’t need to know, Riley. But I need to see for myself.” Lorcan turned around and hurried away. He tore through the forest like it was nothing, breaking through the tall grasses and young trees as he ran blindly.
He had no idea where Orla’s house was, but he followed his instinct. There was a familiar trail of her scent in the air, and he followed it. He didn’t know when his sense had become that developed, but he could feel every delicate scent and sound around him. He kept running.
And there it was. He stopped just inside the treeline, looking into the gardens behind Orla’s house. He stood there, hidden in the foliage, as Orla walked out into the garden followed by a woman. She was alive. Lorcan was deliriously happy. She was walking and talking there, right in front of him. But how could he know that this wasn’t just another illusion? Lorcan stepped out and entered the garden.
Orla saw him, and tears immediately poured down her fa
ce.
“Lorcan! You’re alive!” She ran toward him but was held back by the woman behind her.
“Stop right there or you’ll kill her!” the woman yelled at him, and that stopped him in his tracks.
“Let me go, Alana!” Orla protested. Alana was the same size as Orla, but for some reason she appeared to be incredibly strong. Orla couldn’t free herself from her grip and appeared to weaken by the second. Her eyes reddened, and he could see the vein on her forehead begin to throb. She grunted in pain. When Alana released her, she fell to the ground.
Lorcan charged toward Orla, but Alana warned him again. “She’s sworn in with the clan and will be their leader. If she keeps thinking about you, she’ll burst into flames.”
Lorcan could see a shade of the fire in Orla’s eyes. He withdrew, backing up so quickly that he almost fell on his backside. “Knock her out, Alana! Please!” he yelled.
“If you don’t want her to think about you, don’t come here.”
“Lorcan, don’t leave me!” Orla called out, lying on the grass. Her eyes glassed over.
“I’m sorry, Orla,” Lorcan said and ran away as fast as he could, but he could still hear her whispering, “Lorcan, take me home. Don’t leave me. Take me home with you . . .”
Lorcan ran and ran, not realizing that tears were streaming down his face. He’d lost her—not in death, but in life. Which one was worse, he couldn’t say. He collided with Riley, and both fell to the ground.
Riley stood up. “What the heck, Lorcan?”
Keeva approached, panting. As Lorcan stood , Keeva pointed behind them, shaking. When he turned around, he saw the yellow wolf that he’d fought before. He faced it, putting his arms out in front of him and showing the beast he was unarmed. The wolf’s eyes darted back and forth from his hands to his face, then to his friend and sister, searching for the biggest threat.
“I don’t know why you’re here, but I’m not going to shift, and I’m not going to fight you, either, unless you attack my companions.” The wolf cocked its head like it was listening to what he had to say. It then hunched low to the ground, preparing to spring. Lorcan didn’t move, and the wolf launched its heavy body into the air. When it landed, its front paws were on Lorcan’s chest, and it closed its jaws on his throat.
Keeva screamed, and Riley dove forward to help, but Lorcan used his hands to wave them away. Obediently, they moved away, and then Lorcan lay still, arms flat on the ground, not fighting at all. The wolf’s heavy breath made little eddies of dirt swirl near his ear, but still he didn’t move. The wolf gently let go of his throat and backed up a little so it could see Lorcan’s face. Lorcan just stared back at it, not trying to be intimidating or anything of the sort, just staring. The wolf climbed off of him and ran off, disappearing back into the green foliage of the forest.
For a few minutes, no one moved. No one made a sound. Then Riley came over and helped Lorcan to his feet. Lorcan had just opened his mouth to thank Riley for his help when Riley pulled back an arm with a fist attached and let it fly. His fist connected Lorcan’s cheek with a satisfying crack, and Lorcan fell to the ground once more.
“You’re pathetic, Lorcan. You wanted that dog to rip your throat out, didn’t you?”
This time it was Keeva who helped Lorcan to his feet, but as soon as he was up, she yanked her hand back. Lorcan looked into her face and saw the same anger he had heard clearly in Riley’s voice, maybe tempered with a little fear.
“Today is not a good day to die. I have lots of things to do. I admit, it was pathetic. You got your punch in, are you happy now?”
Riley threw his arms in the air in frustration.
Lorcan continued. “I just saw Orla. She’s alive.”
“That’s good, isn’t it?” Keeva asked in a shaky voice.
“I’m sorry if I scared you. After I found out that Orla can never be with me if she wants to remain alive, and after I saw her running toward me even knowing the consequences, I wanted to let that wolf tear my throat out. I just couldn’t think straight.”
“What’s the news?” Riley asked.
“Orla asked me not to leave her and to take her home. She would fight to the death for what she wants, and she’s definitely not the kind to leave a dying wish.”
Riley chuckled. “Couldn’t agree more. So that’s a hint then.”
Lorcan nodded. “A way out for us, I think. I just have to figure out how to get there.”
Lorcan turned and headed home with Keeva trailing behind. “Don’t you feel the need to fill me in at all?” she said. “I met your girlfriend for the first time a couple of days ago, and Riley gets to know a load more stuff about your life out there.” Keeva pointed at Riley.
“And he suffered for it, Keeva.” Lorcan smiled and ruffled Keeva’s hair. “Okay, for both of you—the condensed version is that Orla is a sorceress.”
“What?” Keeva asked incredulously.
“Just accept it—if you want the rest of the story. Her family uses black magic and won’t allow her to be with me. To save me, she made a promise to return to her family. Then she broke her promise, and we ran away together. We currently live and work at a place that you could say is . . . off planet.”
“You’re alien? I thought you were a werefox,” Keeva said.
“I’ll take the alien theory,” Riley said and pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. “I tested your blood last night in my portable lab. Only half of your DNA is human.”
Lorcan cocked an eyebrow. “And what’s the other half?”
“I need a more sophisticated machine to analyze that result,” Riley answered.
“What about werefox?” Keeva asked. “I saw you turn into one.”
“Werefoxes are mythical creatures, Keeva, and I don’t understand their makeup. But even the werefoxes say I’m not one of them. On a mission in Japan, I was bitten by a one, and the next thing I knew, I could turn into one and could heal my wounds quickly, as you’ve already seen.”
“You make it sound too simple, Lorcan. And you left out the part that you nearly died a few times before heading off to that outer space place,” Riley said.
Keeva turned, looking at Lorcan, her eyes welling up. “And you didn’t tell me or our parents any of that! Didn’t it ever occur in your brain that we’re your family, and we care for you, regardless of where you are and what you are?” She stormed away.
Lorcan glared at Riley. “Did you need to stir that up?”
“It’s a fact, that’s life. She needs to know life out there is tough. Your life is hard and not cushy like hers. She thinks the last few days is proof that she’s grown up and mature. She thinks having some psychic connections to Noah make her understand him more than I do, and that she can pass judgment on me and tell me how to raise my son . . .”
A clump of dirt hit on Riley’s chest.
“Hey!” he yelled.
Keeva picked up more dirt and grass and kept throwing. “Now that you’ve fixed my brother, you can pack up your stuff, your kid, your cat, and your life and get the hell out of my head!” she yelled back.
“I have no intention of getting into your head given how muddy it is with all that psychic stuff. I have enough to worry about!”
“Hey! Stop it, you two. I have a curse to break. We have a life and death matter here. And you’re going nowhere, Riley. I need your help.” Lorcan pointed at his sister. “And you, young lady, I need you to help take care of Mother. Can you do that?”
Keeva glared at Riley and turned on her heel, stomping away. They all headed home.
Chapter 19
The heat was eating up her brain. Orla didn’t know it would hurt so much. She had sworn in at the temple in order to get the potion for Bradan. But she thought she’d had it covered and had tricked her gods. She had sworn to death if she loved any man who hated her family on Earth. And Lorcan didn’t hate her family. He had a temper, and he could kill. But he wasn’t capable of hate. So it couldn’t be her swearing in that was hurting her at
the moment.
She wondered if Lorcan had gotten her hint. They understood each other, but given the situation, he might not be able to think straight. She needed him to take her out of here and back to the Daimon Gate and Eudaiz. She needed him. He had to be able to see through the haze of the pain and confusion.
How had she ended up back here? She had left Bradan in the woods with Maeve and had gone for Lorcan. What had happened next? She tried to remember, but her mind kept coming back blank. Then she recalled it. It was the wolf. A gigantic yellow wolf had knocked her out and had taken her back here. When she woke up, Alana was looming over her, ranting about how she had gotten out under Alana’s watch again, making her look like a fool. Orla lied to Alana and said she’d gone out for fresh air and had gotten lost. She knew the excuse was lame, but Alana accepted it and didn’t ask any more questions.
Orla tried to stand up, but her legs buckled and she fell to the floor. Alana cursed and helped her up.
“I want to go and get some help for you, Orla. Get Bradan and Uncle Daly. But I have no confidence that you won’t run away again, even in your current condition. So I’m going to call Bradan’s cell phone again, and hopefully he’ll answer this time,” Alana said, wagging her finger at Orla, warning her not to make a move.
She dialed and tapped her finger impatiently on the table next to the phone. “I’m going to get you a doctor, so sit still, Orla.” Alana warned her again. “Damn it, Bradan doesn’t pick up his cell. What’s the point of having it?” Alana slammed the phone down.
Orla stood up again and staggered toward the door. “Sit down.” Alana grabbed her from behind, but Orla elbowed her. Alana roared in pain, pulled Orla’s hair, and slapped her so hard that they both fell on the floor.
Orla saw stars. The pain in her head was so unbearable that she could feel her life leaving her. She didn’t know why her protective spells weren’t working.
Maeve walked in and rushed over to help her up. “Are you okay?” Then she turned to Alana and asked, “What did you do to her?”