Realms Gate: A Realm Divided

by Juliet Anderson

  Wilhelm looked in surprise at his mother. “How do you know about that?”

  “I might be a woman, but credit me with some intelligence. Also, it is hard not hear what the topic of conversation is when you and your father are bawling at each other.”

  Wilhelm headed to the practice hall, but his mind was on Erin more than fighting. He was curious to get his first glimpse of the First Realm, but Erin was the main attraction. Would they still feel the same for each other when they met again?

  CHAPTER 3

  It came to Erin in the middle of the night. Her father might be able to tell her about the location of the Third Realm gateway. It would have been the type of question he would have wanted answered as well.

  She scuttled downstairs, with a rather hopeful Jacques in tow thinking he might be in for a midnight snack. “Sorry, slobber chops,” she muttered as she opened the concealed chamber off her father’s study, “you’ll have to wait out here.”

  The dog whimpered loudly before flopping down on the carpet.

  Erin took a deep breath and took hold of the Baldoren crystal. Everything span for a moment before she stabilised her mind. The sight of her father still brought tears to her eyes.

  “Erin,” his deep voice rang out.

  “I need your help, Papa.” She spoke quickly, knowing that extended exposure to the spirit world could trap her there forever. “I’m trying to locate a gateway from the Third Realm to Vasmaar. Did you ever discover one?”

  “Yes. There is one in a small town called Frejboren, on the south west coast of Norway. There is a volume in the library which should help you locate it.”

  “Dad, there are about a thousand books in the library. Any clue where?”

  “Use your powers to locate it.” He started to fade.

  Once again she had to use all her willpower not to call him back. It was his way of saying she had stayed long enough. She released the crystal and waited for her world to stop spinning. At least she had made a small start. She had the town, now she just needed the location.

  Jacques let out an excited whine as he thought he might now be getting a snack. He was disappointed once more.

  Erin stood in the middle of the library wondering where to start. It could be any one of the thousand or so books. Dad had said to use her powers. How? It was so bloody irritating not having anyone to tutor her in how to really use her blue energy. The only one capable of that was Heinrekh. And he wanted her powers for wreaking revenge on Lokranor.

  Think, Erin, she berated herself. Most of what she had learnt was from instinct. How would a priestess or sorcerer locate something? She twisted her McLomard medallion in her hands. Of course, that was it. She cleared her mind and held the dragon medallion tight in one hand, the other was raised and instead of expelling energy, she was pulling anything with the crest towards her. It worked. Rather well in fact as about thirty books flew off the shelves. Jacques barked loudly a few times before running out the room.

  “Scaredy cat,” Erin giggled at the departing dog.

  “What the bloody hell is going on?” Magnus rushed through the door in just his pyjama bottoms, sword in hand.

  “Some late night reading,” Erin responded. “Hey, are those penguin PJs?” she laughed. A Viking wearing penguin PJs was quite a sight.

  “Yeah. And?” He looked pointedly at her fluffy bunny slippers.

  “What’s going on?” Birdie appeared.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake the entire household. I just needed to find a book.”

  Birdie glanced down at the pile in the middle of the room. “How did they all get there?”

  “I called everything that had the McLomard crest. I got a little more than I bargained for.”

  “And what are you looking for?” Magnus examined the cover of one. “Farming in the Highlands?”

  “Dad said the gateway for the Third Realm is in Frejboren, the exact location was in a book.”

  Birdie hissed loudly. “You should not be using the crystal, Erin. It is dangerous.”

  “I was only on line for a very short time.”

  “Even so. You should not risk it.”

  “Frejboren?” Magnus repeated.

  “Yes. Do you know it?”

  “I have heard of it.” He headed to a table that contained several decanters and poured himself a fairly decent sized brandy. “And now curse myself as it was so obvious the location.”

  “Why? What is so special about this town?”

  “It is where the Vokteren originated.”

  Erin was lost. “The Vokteren? Any relation to the Volturi?”

  Magnus scowled. “They’re not vampires, you idiot. They’re Valkarin’s followers.”

  “You used the present tense. Does that mean there are still some crazies who think he’s going to rise again?”

  “Yes. They guard his tomb.”

  “Great. Evil sorcerers and madmen to deal with now.”

  “I guess we should make a start on finding the book,” Birdie sighed. It was going to be a long night.

  They discounted some obvious ones, like Farming in the Highlands. It left them with about twenty.

  “This could take a while, perhaps I will make some coffee.” Birdie disappeared off to the kitchen.

  Stoked up on caffeine a short while later, Erin flipped open another book. “There must be an easier way to do this,” she moaned waving her hand over the open volume. She thought for a moment her vision had gone blurry. The text disappeared off the pages and hung in the air.

  “Cool,” she murmured.

  “She scares me at times, Birdie,” Magnus grunted.

  “Go on, you can say it. I’m a genius,” Erin looked smug.

  “Irritating brat,” Magnus muttered.

  She slapped the back of his head.

  “Think of the word Frejboren, Erin,” Birdie suggested. “It might come to you from the book.”

  Erin tried that with several volumes then finally hit the jackpot.

  “Why couldn’t you have just done that right from the beginning?” Magnus moaned tossing the book he was holding to the floor.

  “Has Ingrid seen your penguins?” Erin teased.

  “I don’t tend to wear very much when I’m with Ingrid,” Magnus grinned.

  “Ooh gross,” Erin squealed. “That’s a thought I really don’t want.”

  “Just the sheer magnitude of the vision will keep you awake for days on end.”

  “Make me sick more like.”

  “When you two have finished bickering, can we get on?” Birdie was tired and wanted to get back to bed.

  Erin opened the volume to the page in question. “It looks like an old castle.”

  “Voktere castle to be exact.”

  “Look,” Birdie pointed to an archway. “It looks similar to our gateway.”

  “That must be it.”

  “I guess we go exploring after your birthday,” Magnus yawned.

  “It’s only two days away so you better have got me the most amazing present after all the crap I have to put up with from you,” Erin beamed.

  “Just one moment, you precocious brat. Have you ever been hit by Loxhadrin? No. Have you ever had your charge abscond in the dead of night? No. I’m the one who deserves a bloody medal.”

  “Will you ever let that drop?” Erin rolled her eyes.

  “Nope,” he frowned.

  “I think it’s time for bed,” Birdie shook her head. They really did argue non-stop like brother and sister.

  Sasha was saddling up Blaze when Angus appeared in the stables.

  “Are you off to meet Erin?” he grunted.

  “I hadn’t planned to, but I might stop by. It’s a beautiful day and I just want to ride.” She was partly lying, she was on her way to meet Heinrekh in the woods that neighboured with the McLomards. She hoped Angus wouldn’t offer to ride with her, it could be embarrassing. “What are you up to today?”

  “I was going to head over to Robert’s.”

 
; That ass, she thought. “Well, have fun. I’ll see you later.” She jumped up into the saddle and rode out towards the hills. Her relationship with her brother was still a little frosty, but they were family. It was crazy how complicated her life had become in the space of just a few weeks. She was dating a so-called evil sorcerer from another realm, trying to cover up her brother betraying Muirhead and her closest friend, and about to set off to University in Edinburgh. She wondered how Heinrekh would react to the latter.

  The ride was beautiful, it was so rare to have such a warm, clear day in the far north of Scotland. She followed the bridle path through the woods to the small copse. Heinrekh was already there. He looked magnificent as ever, that stunning blond hair flowing freely.

  He reached up and lifted her down off Blaze. His long, cold fingers brushed aside a few stray red strands of hair that had escaped their clasp. “You look radiant, Sasha,” he murmured before kissing her.

  Three seconds and he had her reduced to jelly. That must be a record, she sighed to herself, as her arms wound around his neck.

  “Come and live with me in Vasmaar,” his voice was barely above a whisper as his mouth trailed down her neck.

  “You know I can’t,” Sasha sighed heavily and disengaged herself from his grasp. Perhaps this was the opportune time to tell him she moving, albeit temporarily, to Edinburgh. She gave herself a few steps distance, mainly to escape those incredible icy blue eyes which could get her agree to anything. “In a few weeks I’m going to be spending quite a bit of time away from Muirhead.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’m going to study in Edinburgh.”

  “How long for?”

  “The course is for three years. But I’ll be home regularly.”

  She could have sworn the temperature dropped several degrees as a chill swept over her. She hadn’t even seen him move, but he was right behind her. “I cannot let you go.”

  “You cannot prevent me.” She walked on a few feet and picked a few sprigs off a nearby bush. “Besides, I’ll be back often, and also during the holidays.”

  She felt his hands slip around her waist as he kissed the side of her neck. She hadn’t heard him move again. “I don’t know if I am capable of letting you go, Sasha.” His hot breath was driving her crazy. “You are fast becoming a very necessary part of me.”

  She leant back against him as his hands slipped under her top and caressed her skin. As they started to move up, she felt her limbs turned to lead. He wasn’t playing fair. She turned and kissed him, before they fell to the ground, a tangle of limbs caressing and exploring. Sasha gave up trying to fight her growing feelings for this man, it was futile. Her hands were stroking his magnificent chest, ice cold and smooth as silk.

  She stopped him as he reached for her belt. “No, Heinrekh. Not yet.”

  He flopped back and let out an exasperated sigh. “I want you, Sasha. Desperately.”

  “I know, but you’re not going to get it here in the woods. I don’t want to be pulling twigs from various parts of my anatomy for weeks afterwards.”

  Heinrekh laughed . “My lady requires the comfort of a bed. So be it. The next time we meet will be in Vasmaar, and you will stay the night.”

  Sasha’s insides turned to mush just thinking about it. “How has Vasmaar been?” she tried to change the subject.

  “Fairly quiet of late,” he twirled a red curl between his fingers. “Wilhelm is not wanting to play.”

  “Maybe he has other things on his mind?” she teased.

  “Perhaps,” Heinrekh smiled. He already knew from his sparrowhawk, Destain, that there was an attachment between Wilhelm and Erin.

  “And have you been behaving?”

  “Me? I have been the very model of a dark lord.”

  A cracking of twigs made both of them sit up quickly. A good job as Angus rode into the clearing. He looked furious.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing, Sasha?” he was livid.

  “I thought that was obvious,” she responded bluntly.

  “I don’t want you near Heinrekh, do you understand?”

  “Why is it men think they can give me orders? I am an adult and capable of making my own decisions,” she snapped.

  Angus glared at Heinrekh. “I told you to stay away from my sister.”

  “Your sister however wants to see me, and as she has pointed out, she is able to choose for herself,” Heinrekh responded smoothly. “Now I do believe you are interrupting a rather good lover’s tryst.”

  Sasha could see Angus’ temper starting to flare, he was itching for a fight. She was in no doubt he would lose. “I’ll see you at home, Angus,” Sasha dismissed him.

  “You should not bait Angus,” Sasha wagged a finger at Heinrekh after Angus had left.

  He grabbed her hand and kissed it. “But it is fun.”

  “The angrier he gets, the worse it is for me. Remember that.”

  “If he ever tries to hurt you, I will kill him.”

  “That is very noble of you, but Angus is my brother. He would never deliberately hurt me.” She got to her feet. She should really get back and have this argument with Angus. “Now I must go.”

  “Not yet, stay.”

  “I will see you in Vasmaar.” Her cheeks flushed just at the thought.

  Heinrekh stood up and pulled her to him. “That day cannot come soon enough.” His kiss removed any thought in her mind for a few minutes.

  On the ride home, she prepared herself for her impending argument with Angus. It was largely Angus’ fault that she met Heinrekh in the first place, so he really couldn’t give her too much grief. He was however not in the most understanding of moods.

  “How long has this affair been carrying on?” he growled.

  “Firstly, it is none of your business who I see. Secondly, it was because of you I met Heinrekh. So stop with the outraged brother routine. You are not exactly snowy white yourself.”

  “He is evil, Sasha, surely you must see,” Angus pleaded with her.

  “If he is so evil, what are you doing with him?” she retorted hotly.

  “That I cannot discuss.”

  “And neither will I discuss my relationship.”

  “It is dangerous to be with much a man, Sash. He has many enemies, on both sides of the gateway. And I’d hate for you to get hurt just for being linked with him.”

  “No-one on this side knows I’m seeing him, excluding Erin and she’s cool with it.”

  It did strike her as kind of ironic that the one person who did not object to their relationship was Erin, and she and Heinrekh were out to kick each other’s butt. One day she would prove to them that Heinrekh was really not as evil as everyone made out. Perhaps they might see the side she did.

  CHAPTER 4

  “Are you sure about this Birdie?” Erin asked as her aunt was on her way out the door.

  “Yes, Erin. You are not ready to take up your role of Priestess of Lokmuir yet. Not that you aren’t capable, but there are too many things you need to do first.”

  “But the Council are expecting me, aren’t they?”

  “I’ve told them many times you’ll take up the role as and when you’re ready. As long as I act in your stead, they should have no reason to complain.” Although they would, most vociferously, Birdie groaned to herself. “Besides, they’re scared to death of you. The benefit of having Valkarin blood in your veins,” Birdie beamed.

  “I can kind of like the psycho priestess persona,” Erin grinned.

  “Yeah, it’s perfect for a teenager.”

  Birdie drove to the Realms Gate to meet with the other members of the Council. This was one meeting she was quite looking forward to.

  “The child is not with you?” Aidan McDerrin quizzed.

  “No. I’ve talked at length with Erin and she will be not taking up the role of priestess just yet. She has asked that I continue in her place.”

  “Erin has no choice but to take the role. It is hereditary.”

 
“She has every choice. She is not turning it down, just delaying it. Besides, a change in circumstances has meant that the Gate is no longer under threat.”

  “What do you mean?” Stewart Haldon asked.