Among the Unseen

by Jodi McIsaac

  “Hey!” the man called again. He had come out of his doorway and started walking toward them. “I’ve got some snacks. I’ll help you find this Jane person.”

  Eden remembered her mother’s stern warnings about never going anywhere with someone she didn’t know. She shuddered, remembering what had happened the last time she’d broken that rule.

  “No, thanks,” she said, and started to run toward the stairwell. She heard footsteps behind her—heavy ones that did not belong to Niall—and smelled a sickening waft of body odor and stale beer. The man grabbed her arm.

  “I’m not going to hurt you,” he growled. “Just come quietly.”

  “Help!” Eden yelled to Niall, who grabbed the man’s arm and tried to wrench it away. But the man was much stronger, and the three of them wrestled in the hallway…until suddenly, they weren’t in the hallway anymore. They were on the floor of Eden’s favorite bookstore. “Help!” she screamed again, and the man started, immediately releasing her and backing away.

  “Hey!” A store employee in a blue vest rushed toward them. Eden’s attacker stared wildly around, and then took off running out of the store. The employee chased him, yelling something into his headset, while another employee ran up to Eden and Niall, who were both wide-eyed and breathing heavily.

  “Are you okay?” she said. “Where are your parents?”

  “They’re…um…shopping next door,” Eden improvised, giving Niall an alarmed glance. He was walking in circles, taking in the shelves of books and toys and the brightly colored displays with a look of wonder on his face.

  “What is this place?” he asked, his mouth hanging open.

  The employee gave him a strange look. “Why don’t you kids come with me? We’ll find your parents for you. Who was that man who grabbed you? Did you know him?”

  Eden shook her head. “No, he just…appeared out of nowhere.”

  “We’ll have to call the police,” the woman told her as she led them to the front of the store.

  “What’s that?” Niall asked, but Eden shot him a silencing look.

  “We don’t want the police to come!” she whispered into his ear. “And stop acting like such a weirdo! We need to be alone so we can use the sidhe to get out of here!” She turned back to the lady who was tugging them along. “Excuse me? I have to use the bathroom,” she said. She nudged Niall with her elbow.

  “Uh, me too,” he said.

  The lady looked at them in concern. “Of course. I’ll take you there,” she said, leading them off to the side, to a small hallway with two doors. “I’ll wait right here,” she said.

  Niall started to follow Eden into the women’s bathroom, but she shoved him out. “Not this one! You’re supposed to go in that one…I’ll be right there.” She whispered the last part.

  Once inside a stall, Eden closed her eyes and tried to remember the one time she’d walked into the men’s room by mistake. It had been humiliating at the time, but now she was glad it had happened. A few seconds later, she was standing next to Niall, who was examining one of the hand dryers with interest. He waved his hand in front of it and jumped back when a loud blast of hot air shot out.

  “C’mon,” she said, tugging on his sleeve.

  “Where are we going?” he asked.

  “We need to get away from these humans—they think we’re just lost kids,” she said. “My mum said that Brighid was sick too, and that she was trying to save her. I’ll bet Brighid can tell me where she is.”

  “Brighid? Like…the Elder who went to live with the humans? You know her?” Niall asked.

  “Of course,” Eden said smugly. “I’ve been to her house before. It’s really cool. C’mon.” She laughed at the look on Niall’s face. “There’s nothing to be scared of. She’s super nice!”

  “What if she tells our parents where we are?” he asked.

  “I don’t think she talks to the other Tuatha Dé Danann much,” Eden said. “Except for my mum and dad and Felix. Don’t worry; I’ll ask her not to tell.” Without waiting for him to respond, Eden made a sidh leading into the expansive entrance hall of Brighid’s house. After closing it behind them, she turned to look at Niall. “Nice place, eh?”

  Niall nodded, his eyes wide. “Are you sure we’re allowed in here?” he asked, his voice echoing off the glass walls.

  “How else are we going to find her?” Eden said. She raised her voice and called, “Hello? Is anyone there?”

  She heard running, and then Vanessa, the woman who’d helped them in the spa pools, appeared around a corner. She stared down at the two children. “How did you get in here?” she asked, her voice stern.

  “We’re looking for Brighid,” Eden said, confused by the unfriendly welcome. “Well, we’re looking for my mum, Queen Cedar.”

  “Your mother is not here, and Brighid is unwell. You should go home,” Vanessa said.

  “Please,” Eden said. “We just need to find my mum. She’s making a big mistake, and the other Elders sent me to stop her. I just need to know where she is.”

  Vanessa continued to glare at her. “The other Elders sent you?” she asked.

  Eden nodded.

  “You must not do anything to upset Brighid,” Vanessa said, sweeping out of the room. Eden and Niall followed her onto the balcony, both of them keeping silent. The first person they saw was the last person Eden had expected.

  “Eden? What the hell are you doing here?” Jane asked.

  “I’m looking for my mum!” Eden said, rushing forward.

  Jane looked thoroughly bewildered. “She’s not here—she went looking for you!” She bent down so that her gaze met Eden’s. “Didn’t she find you?”

  “I…,” Eden faltered, glancing first at Niall, then back at Jane. “I haven’t seen her since yesterday. She told me what she was going to do.” She saw the look of alarm that spread across Jane’s face. She was about to ask what was wrong, but then she caught sight of Brighid.

  “Oh no! What happened?” Eden cried, rushing to the Elder’s side.

  Brighid was lying down, swathed in blankets, her lank hair fanned out across the pillow behind her. At the sound of Eden’s voice, she opened her eyes. “My child,” she whispered. “Whatever are you doing here?” She struggled to lift a hand from under her blankets, and ran a thin finger along Eden’s cheek.

  “My mum told me you were sick,” Eden said, staring unabashedly at Brighid’s sunken features. “But you look really sick.” She couldn’t believe this wasted person lying in front of her was the same as the vibrant, elegant lady who had given them such lovely things and helped save them from Liam’s druids. She felt more afraid staring down at Brighid’s gray skin and pale lips than she had at any time with Nuala. Suddenly none of this felt like an adventure or a game anymore. She started to cry. “Are you dying?”

  “Yes,” Brighid said. “I am.”

  “My mum is trying to save you,” Eden said, all of a sudden unsure about her mission.

  “So she is,” Brighid said. “She is trying to save me and all of the Unseen.”

  “But…I had a dream,” Eden said. “The Elders were in it. They told me I had to stop her. But if I stop her, you’ll die.”

  “Stop her from doing what?” Brighid asked.

  “From telling everyone who she is and what she can do,” Eden said. “The Elders said the humans would capture her. They said that she didn’t have to do it. They told me I could find the jewels. That’s why we came to find her.”

  “As Jane told you, your mother is not here,” Brighid said. “But her plans have changed. She does not need to reveal herself. They were right. She does need you, child. You must help her open a sidh to Asgard. Go back to Tír na nÓg—your mother went to look for you.”

  “She’s in Tír na nÓg?” Eden asked. “But I tried to reach her through the starstone, and it didn’t work.”

  Jane spoke up, her face aghast. “She was asleep—it was when she was in Brighid’s memories. I saw the stone glow, but I forgot to mention
it.” She swore, then covered her mouth. “She’s going to kill me.”

  “So she’s back home?” Eden asked.

  “Yes, and you’d better get back there quick,” Jane said. “Everyone in Tír na nÓg is probably looking for you.”

  Eden and Niall shared an alarmed look. “We’re gonna catch it,” he said.

  “We were just trying to help,” Eden said, but she knew they’d be in trouble. She wished she hadn’t dragged Niall along with her.

  “Go now, child,” Brighid whispered.

  “What about you?” Eden asked.

  “I am not long for this world,” Brighid said. “Perhaps you will see me in your dreams someday.”

  At this Eden started to cry again, but Niall reached out and put his arm around her. “C’mon,” he said. “You heard what she said…They need you. Let’s go.”

  Reluctantly, Eden moved away from Brighid and opened a sidh back to her room in Tír na nÓg. She cast one last glance behind her before stepping through the sidh, but Brighid had already closed her eyes.

  CHAPTER 16

  Why would she have left?” Finn said. “I mean, she must have left—no one else can open the sidhe. Unless someone forced her.”

  “I don’t think so,” Cedar said in a strained voice. “She wanted to help. I told her she couldn’t, that she had to stay here. But she knew about the Unseen, and I told her about what I was planning to do.”

  “So you think she’s gone to Ériu? To do what?” Felix asked.

  “Here I am,” came a small voice from behind them.

  “Eden!” Cedar cried, flinging her arms around her daughter and pulling her in for a tight hug. “Where did you go? Why did you leave?” She could feel herself trembling as she held Eden even closer. Finn came up behind her and wrapped his arms around both of them.

  “Ow,” Eden said, but she didn’t try to get away. Cedar pulled back a little so she could look at her daughter. Niall was standing behind her, avoiding his mother’s eyes.

  “Where were you?” Finn repeated.

  Eden looked at the floor. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I know I shouldn’t have gone, but I was just trying to help. I had a dream about the Elders, and they told me I had to stop you. They said I could help you find the jewels instead—that I was the only one. But then I saw Brighid, and she’s really sick, Mum! We have to help her.” Eden’s eyes were full of fear, and Cedar felt her anger dissipating in an instant.

  “The Elders spoke to you?” Finn asked, looking around at the others in the room.

  “I meant to tell you,” Nevan said. “She mentioned her dreams to me the other day, but I wasn’t sure what to say because I didn’t know what it meant. She recognized the pictures we have of the Elders; she picked them out right away from a book we were studying.”

  The room was quiet as all of those gathered there looked at Eden with something akin to awe.

  “What does it mean?” Riona asked. No one answered.

  “Am I in trouble?” Eden asked.

  “No, my heart,” Cedar said. “We’ll talk about it more later. But you just can’t do things like this—no matter what. I know you want to help, but it’s too dangerous, and we don’t even know exactly what we’re dealing with here. I’m so glad you’re okay. Did anyone see you?”

  Eden nodded sheepishly. “I went back to our old building because I know Jane still lives there, and I thought you might be with her. But then this man from down the hall started chasing us. He grabbed me, so I made a sidh to the bookstore to get away, but he came with us, and then the guy from the store chased him, and we pretended we had to go to the bathroom so we could make another sidh to Brighid’s house.”

  Cedar tried to keep her voice steady as all the possible scenarios ransacked her newfound calm. “See? This is why you can’t make any sidhe without a grown-up. That man could have really hurt you.”

  “I know,” Eden said. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay,” Cedar said. “You’re safe now. Did you see Jane at Brighid’s?”

  “Yes, and she told me I had to come back here. She said you were looking for me.”

  “I was. I was really worried about you; we all were. But the Elders were right; we need your help. Remember how I told you that the Unseen are all sick because the humans have stopped believing in them?”

  Eden nodded. “That’s why you were going to prove that magic is real.”

  “There might be another way,” Cedar said. “Brighid used these magic jewels to make the spell that binds the Unseen to the humans. If we can find the jewels and destroy them, everyone will be okay.”

  “But the jewels are missing,” Eden said. “No one can find them.”

  “Wait, who told you that?” Cedar said, frowning.

  “Um…” Eden stalled.

  “I didn’t tell you about the jewels,” Cedar said. “Who have you been talking to?”

  “It was the Elders, in my dream,” Eden whispered.

  “Right,” Cedar said. “Did they tell you where they are?” Eden shook her head. “We need you to try to make a sidh. Brighid told us that the jewels are in a faraway place called Asgard. It’s another magical kingdom like Tír na nÓg, except—”

  “I know what Asgard is, Mum,” Eden interrupted.

  “You…you do?” Cedar asked.

  “Yeah, it’s where Thor and Odin live.”

  “How do you know about them?”

  “My friends Cole and Berkley used to play Avengers at recess,” Eden explained. “I was always Black Widow.” She made a faux martial arts stance, and Cedar had to smile.

  “Well, this is different,” Cedar said. “This is the real Asgard, and I’m pretty sure you don’t know what it looks like.”

  “I can try!” Eden said eagerly. “I’ve been working on focusing my power! I bet I can do it!”

  “Wait,” Rohan said. “You can’t just march into Asgard without an invitation from Odin. He’ll take it as an act of aggression.”

  “It is an act of aggression!” Cedar exclaimed. “He stole something from us, and we’re going to get it back.”

  “So you want to start a war with Asgard now?” Rohan asked. “Can you come up with a plan that doesn’t involve bringing us to the brink of disaster?”

  “I’m not trying to start a war with anyone,” Cedar said. “I’m trying to save lives. We control the sidhe. Odin can’t reach us.”

  “Odin does whatever he damn well pleases,” Rohan said. “You don’t know what you’re getting us into. We need to consult the Council, and then consider how to best approach him.”

  “Damn the Council!” Cedar said. “I said it before—doing nothing is not an option. We don’t have time for a meeting. So if you want to go get them, go ahead and do it. But hopefully we’ll be in Asgard by the time you get back.”

  Rohan looked mutinous, but he kept his peace. Cedar turned back to Eden. “I’ve already tried to do it myself, and it didn’t work. Let’s see what happens when you try.”

  She watched as her daughter squeezed her eyes closed. No one else in the room moved or even breathed. The silence was as unnerving as it was absolute. Then Eden finally opened her eyes, and looked in pained disappointment at the regular air in front of her.

  “I can do it!” she said. “Let me try again.”

  “What if the two of you tried it together?” Finn suggested.

  Cedar grabbed Eden’s hand and held it tight in her own. “Okay, on the count of three. One, two, three.” She closed her eyes and concentrated with all her might. Asgard, Asgard, Asgard. But there was still nothing; she could tell it hadn’t worked even before she opened her eyes.

  “What more can we do?” Cedar asked.

  “Mum?” Eden tugged at her hand, and Cedar bent down to listen. “I think…” Eden looked around hesitantly. “I think I know who can help us.”

  “Who?”

  “Don’t be mad,” Eden said. “But I’ve been taking secret lessons on using my powers from Helen, the druid lady.” />
  “What?” Cedar said. Images of Liam flashed into her mind. I was right, she thought. Helen pretended to help us, but it was just a way to get to my daughter. She threw out her arm and opened a sidh to Helen’s room, ready to storm in and drag the druid out by her throat. But Finn put his hand on her arm.

  “I’ll get her,” he said, and stepped through the sidh before Cedar could argue.

  “It’s not her fault, Mum. I asked her to help me.”

  “How did you meet her? What was she teaching you?” Cedar asked. Riona and Nevan looked stricken. They were the ones who spent the most time with Eden when her parents were not around, and they clearly felt guilty for not having noticed what was going on.

  “Cedar, I had no idea. She must have opened the sidhe from her room,” Riona said.

  “It’s fine,” Cedar said through gritted teeth, though it was far from fine. She didn’t blame the others—who knew better than she did how easily Eden could escape out from under a caregiver’s nose? “Eden, answer my question.”

  Haltingly, Eden told them about the older Eden inside her, and how she had told her to find Helen.

  “Helen didn’t tell me to do anything bad,” Eden said in a pleading voice. “She just taught me how to focus, how to connect with the older Eden. We were just starting.”

  Finn returned through the sidh with Helen. The druid’s expression was stoic, but Cedar thought she could sense a flicker of fear behind her eyes. And you should feel that way, she thought.

  “You lied to me,” Cedar said.

  “I can help you,” Helen said in return.

  “I don’t need your help.”

  “What you need is to get to Asgard. I can help Eden open the sidh. The child needed guidance! That’s all I gave her!”

  “I’m her mother! You should never have talked to her without my permission!” Cedar said.

  She felt Finn’s hand on her arm again, but she shrugged it off.

  “How can you help?” he asked Helen. Cedar glared at him. What was he thinking?