“I believe these belong to you.”
He lifted his arm, my keys dangling from his index finger. I couldn’t move, so he drew out my hand with gentle fingers and placed the keys in my palm. My lungs stopped working and my heart started sprinting once more. Okay, not good to have an amped heart rate with no oxygen coming in. The tall stranger turned on his heels and headed back toward the end of the street. Shaking myself free of my shock, I stumbled forward, intent on following Blondie so I could get some answers.
“Wait a second!” I called after him.
He didn’t even break his stride. Huffing and puffing, I sped up, dropping my bag on the sidewalk.
“Hey! Would you stop please?”
The guy’s torso disappeared behind a clump of bushes. Great. He was going down into the homeless encampment. I was terrified to follow him down there, but my curiosity had overcome my common sense.
As I clambered down the dark trail, I called out, “That’s it? You’re just going to leave? Who are you? What’s your name?”
I untangled my hair from the tree branches and stepped out onto level ground, cautiously surveying my surroundings. The homeless camp was deserted. Soiled sleeping bags, empty cans and other debris lay scattered about. What little light pouring down from the bridge above created more shadows than highlights, and being down here again was giving me the willies. Clutching one arm to my side, I shrank inward and started backing up. The Renaissance man was nowhere to be seen. I couldn’t even hear him anymore.
Letting out a growl of frustration, I kicked a nearby beer bottle and turned to make my climb back up the hill. Yes, I was burning with curiosity to learn more about this guy’s agenda, but not to the point where I was comfortable offering myself up as bait in case those Noctyrnum creeps were still around. Swallowing back my disappointment, I made my way back up the hillside.
The barren, silent stretch of asphalt at the top of the trail was a welcome sight. Grabbing my bag and making sure I had my keys this time, I ran to my door, unlocked the dead bolt and darted in. It took me less than two seconds to get the door locked again, and only when I collapsed on my bed did I realized how drained I was. Intense stress will do that to you, I suppose.
I threw an arm over my eyes and just breathed. Oddly enough, it wasn’t my near-death experience that had me so bothered. It was the confrontation with the blond guy and the odd conversation we’d had. He knew about the Otherworld. His words had proved as much. But was I reading too much into it? Was I secretly hoping he was Faelorehn? And if so, what good was it now? I was human. I knew that for a fact. From everything Meghan had told me, those who were Faelorehn had certain traits, the most obvious being a person’s eye color. Meghan’s eyes used to change color, and I had always assumed it had something to do with the lighting. Turned out they really were changing color and it was because of her Otherworldly blood.
Feeling restless, I bolted upright and marched into my tiny bathroom. I flipped on the light and stared at myself in the mirror for a good thirty seconds. Nope. No change. My pale eyes remained exactly the same shade of grey they always were. I snorted in laughter, shutting off the light and shuffling back out into my living room. How ridiculous. As if I expected to suddenly discover I was Faelorehn. I was definitely becoming delusional.
Get over it, Robyn. Meghan’s the one who gets to live in the Otherworld with the hot husband who adores her, not you.
I sighed. I wasn’t jealous of my friend, honestly, I wasn’t. But I did envy her perfect life, even if it was everything she deserved. Oh well. Dwelling on what I couldn’t have wouldn’t make my own life any better, so I might as well just suck it up and move on. I glanced at my clock and winced. Past midnight. At least I could sleep in tomorrow, and by then everything that had happened tonight might end up all being part of a dream.
-Four-
Introduction
The pleasant weather of early autumn tugged on my senses, making me long for the great wide-open spaces where I could best enjoy the soft breeze across my face and the subtle change in the season. Unfortunately, I was sitting at the bus stop with a gaggle of other students eager to get to their classes. Of course, I wasn’t too eager. Mostly boring lectures lay ahead of me: business management, pre-calculus and marketing. The only light at the end of the tunnel was my seminar on navigating the social network scene. I’d be locked away in classrooms with my droning professors for a good five and a half hours, with only a half an hour break in between. Yup, Mondays were brutal, but they were supposed to be, right?
The telltale roar of an approaching transit bus brought us all to our feet. I let the elderly couple go ahead of me but darted into place just behind them. Seats were scarce, and I wasn’t in the mood to stand for the entire thirty-minute ride. Nothing like being jostled about while clinging to a hand-hold as the bus made its eight million stops before reaching the Cuesta campus.
Once up the steps, I spotted an open seat near the back. Like a cheetah zeroing in on a gazelle, I made a dash for it, squeezing into the spot just before a guy with a shaved head and a too-tight T-shirt that read Cal Poly Football could claim it. I gave him my most charming smile, shrugged and then promptly ignored his existence. If I kept eye contact too long, I might actually succumb to his nasty scowl. Fortunately, I had my earphones ready and soon my music was drowning out the rest of the world.
As we chugged along I thought about the past few weeks. Ever since that night I was nearly attacked, I’d been a bit on the restless side, which was darn near neurotic for me. The next morning, I’d woken up groggy, convinced it had all been a dream. But as the day dragged on the nagging in the back of my head wouldn’t stop and finally I had to take a deep breath and reevaluate the situation. First and foremost, I had to address the fact that a gang of sadistic animal torturers had felt that my interruption of their ritual warranted retribution. Whoever they were they knew who I was and for some reason or other, they wanted to teach me a lesson.
And what about Evan? He had mentioned joining the group and then that same night they approached me. I still wasn’t certain if he was responsible for outing me. He’d been absent from class the last few weeks and although I was relieved I didn’t have to face him after what had happened, I was a bit worried. Evan had never seemed the type to miss that much school. Even when we were freshmen, he went to class more often than I did. Was he sick? It was autumn and the flu usually started making its rounds this time of year. Or had he been brainwashed by the Noctyrnum?
Shivering, I took a deep breath and braced myself as the bus made a tight turn. The other event that had kept my brain in knots these past several days was the sudden appearance, and disappearance, of the blond warrior who had come to my rescue. Like Evan, I hadn’t seen him since that first night, and he’d been on my mind ever since.
The bus squeaked to a stop, the brakes hissing and the doors swinging open, pulling me away from my reverie. When I glanced up, I saw something that took me completely by surprise. As if my very thoughts had conjured him out of thin air, the blond god who’d chased off the Noctyrnum stepped through the doors, his height only exaggerated by the bevy of short girls standing just in front of him. My jaw dropped and my ears started ringing, drowning out the song that was blasting from my headphones.
I almost didn’t notice that the person sitting in the window seat next to me wanted to get off at this spot. The older lady grumbled some complaint as I gave her room to pass. The second she was out of the way, my eyes returned to the front of the bus with the speed of a Formula One race car. This time, Renaissance Man was wearing normal clothes, a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. In fact, he would have fit in rather well with the college crowd if he hadn't been so striking.
One of the girls in front of him finally turned around and took notice. Her eyes hit the middle of his chest first, and then her head tilted back as she stared in mute admiration. The girl’s friends soon followed suit. Blondie merely stood there, looking down at them for a few seconds before smiling
. Holy crap. My stomach flipped over. What a change that single action made to his face. I had no idea he could look any better than he already did. With hair that particular shade of gold, straight, white teeth and clean-cut features, it’s no wonder he’d put those girls in a daze.
“I have a schedule to keep ladies and you’re holding up the line.”
Apparently the middle-aged bus driver was immune to Renaissance Man’s charms.
The four girls snapped out of their stupor and took over the four empty seats closest to the front. The young man stepped up, ducking a little to fit his tall frame into the vehicle, and dropped some coins into the chamber at the front of the bus. He then turned his head, scanning the long aisle as if he searched for someone. Feeling absurdly nervous all of a sudden, I crouched down behind the seat in front of me and tried to appear smaller than I already was.
He can’t possibly be looking for you Robyn, and if he is, why on earth are you trying to hide? Hadn’t you been terribly disappointed that he left you standing in the dark with not so much as a name to remember him by?
I peeked up between the seats. He’d stopped searching because his eyes had screeched to a halt, landing right on me and staying there. For a handful of glorious seconds, he just studied me, the same way he had that night we first met. His gaze was even more intimidating in the light of day.
With another rude reminder from the bus driver, my mysterious savior strode forward, stepping around the legs and backpacks of the other riders and stopping just in front of the empty seat beside me.
“Is this seat taken?” he asked.
I pretended not to hear him through my earphones, but he only remained standing, waiting for a response. Feeling like an idiot, I took the earphones out and said, “Sorry, did you say something?”
“May I sit beside you?”
Let’s see, super-hot guy who saved you from a band of marauders wants to sit next to you on a bus and asks, oh-so nicely. Guarded though I might have been, there was no way I was turning him down.
“Sure,” I said, scooting over even more.
He nodded and grinned, then lowered himself smoothly into the empty seat. The bus lurched and belched a black cloud of exhaust and we were on our way once again. I was sitting next to the guy I’d been wondering about for two whole weeks. And I had absolutely nothing to say.
Fortunately, he initiated the conversation.
“I’m sorry about leaving so abruptly that night outside of your apartment. Urgent business demanded I return home for a while.”
Okay, I guess that was a legitimate (and vague) reason to up and disappear. I shrugged. “It’s okay. I mean, you did potentially save my life, so I can’t really hold a grudge, can I?”
I smiled up at him, wondering if I was coming off as charming as I thought.
His return smile didn’t show any teeth, but it felt genuine.
“My name is Devlin, by the way. Devlin O’Brolaigh.”
He held out a hand and I took it. Lightning, warm but not unpleasant, zipped up my arm.
“Uh, Robyn Dunbarre. Nice to meet you and thank you, again, for helping me.”
And welcome to the party, awkward silence. Renaissance Man, Devlin, sat there completely at ease as if we had been good friends for years. I, on the other hand, fought like crazy to stay contained within my own skin. Every female on the bus was checking Devlin out, some more subtly than others. I decided to join the crowd. As imperceptibly as I could, I glanced at the young man sitting beside me, trying to figure out what he was all about. His ears were pierced, well at least the ear facing me. Two silver hoops hung from the lobe, peeking between the strands of hair that tried to hide them. My eyes moved south, and for a few moments I admired the tattoos running down his arm. Some guys over-did it with color and intricacy; not Devlin. These tattoos seemed to be all part of a single piece, yet separate from one another. They were Celtic in design, although looked nothing like anything I'd ever seen and I'd been in my fair share of tattoo parlors. The jeans he wore were loose on him and not a designer brand from what I could tell. His black T-shirt fit him well, tight in all the right places and the color only accentuating his tan skin and pale hair. Unlike Football Dude from earlier, whose shirt appeared to be two sizes too small in order to act as a second skin, Devlin’s was the right size. He just had the physique to fill it out properly. Yikes.
My eyes roamed upward and I blushed and jerked them away when they met Devlin’s amused gaze.
“Have you had any trouble since those men tried to harm you?” he asked.
Oh good. Conversation.
I cleared my throat and shook my head. “No. Haven’t even seen them around.”
The awkwardness returned and I wondered if I should just try to pretend he wasn't there. Yeah right. It would be just like ignoring a bonfire you were sitting way too close to. My other option was to ask him all sorts of odd questions that would place me on the crazy list. Oh well. I suspected I was already there anyway.
“So, Devlin, I was wondering."
I sensed more than saw his body shift toward me. Suddenly, I felt trapped against the bus window, which irritated me to no end. I had no idea who this guy was. He had shown up outside of my apartment and had disappeared just as suddenly, and now we just happened to get onto the same bus? And not only that. When he had looked around earlier and his eyes stopped on me, it was clear he was searching for me specifically. My irritation began to escalate. Drop-dead gorgeous or not, I had enough people stalking me. I didn't need any more.
“Yes?” he prompted.
“What are you doing on my bus?” I blurted out.
The guy looked around, his expression mildly curious. “Your bus? I had come to understand that this vehicle was provided for all residents of this area, to transport them from one place to another, correct?”
I gritted my teeth. Was he mocking me?
“What do you want?” I snapped, my eyes remaining glued to the headrest of the seat in front of me.
Devlin was silent for a moment or two. Then finally, in a low voice that no longer held any of the mirth from just a few seconds ago, he said, “I’m looking for a man you know.”
That took me by surprise. I jerked my head back and actually looked at him. My arms, which had been crossed in front of my chest, tightened their grip. The look in his blue eyes was pure murder.
He must have sensed my apprehension, because they softened a bit and he sighed.
“Robyn, I don’t want to harm you, and I don’t want to burden your life any further. If you can help me find this man, I’ll leave you be.”
“I don’t even know who it is you’re looking for,” I groused. “What’s his name? What does he look like?”
I really hoped he didn’t give me a description of Jonathon or Evan. I would never turn my co-worker, or even my odd classmate, over to a complete stranger no matter how charming he was.
“That’s the problem. I don’t know, either. But I can tell he’s been in contact with you.”
I only blinked up at him, dumbfounded.
“That makes no sense. If you’ve never seen him and you don’t know his name, then how can you possibly know I’ve been in contact with him?”
Devlin shifted his weight so that he faced forward. He crossed his arms like mine and let out a deep sigh. “I just can.”
I slapped my hands to my forehead and dragged my fingers down my face. Ugh, just once in my life it would be nice to appear invisible to the weirdoes. But despite my irritation at the whole situation, I simply wasn’t getting a bad vibe from him. And believe me, my intuition was spot-on when it came to weeding the unsavories from the tolerables. It had never proven me wrong before and right now it was telling me Devlin was not going to harm me. In fact, that intuition of mine was a little too comfortable with him if you asked me.
Oh come on, Robyn, the fact that he’s gorgeous plays a big role here, and letting someone’s good looks override one’s common sense is never a good idea.
&n
bsp; To shut my conscience up, I threw caution to the wind and just came out and said what I had suspected all along. “Look,” I whispered so those sitting around us wouldn’t hear, “the only reason I’m having this conversation with you right now is because I know, for a fact, that the Otherworld exists and that I’m pretty certain that’s where you came from. If I didn’t, I’d be humoring you until we got off this bus, then I’d disappear as quickly as possible and call the cops if I ever noticed you following me again.”
Devlin was quiet for a very long time and for a second I was convinced he’d be the one calling me crazy and telling me to stay away from him. Wouldn’t that be a nice little turn of events on this already dismal Monday morning?
The bus pulled off of the highway and into the turn lane that would bring us onto the Cuesta campus. Yay, this little joy ride was nearly over.
“So you know about the Otherworld,” he murmured.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, then nodded.
“May I ask you how?”
Turning my head, I looked up at him. His eyes met mine, and I saw curiosity there. Instantly, my unease lessened and I admitted, “My friend is from Eile. And I’ve always been interested in Irish mythology.”
A small chuckle escaped his mouth and I blinked in surprise. Of all the reactions I had expected, laughter wasn’t one of them. Devlin exhaled loudly and ran one of his hands through his hair. “So that’s why my glamour didn't work on you.”
“Pardon?” I asked.
Devlin took the hand that had just been in his hair and indicated his torso. “I was using glamour that night, to disguise my clothing. My magic isn’t as strong as most. Well, it has a more specific purpose than most glamour of the Otherworld. Anyway, it fooled everyone else I encountered that night, but apparently not you.”
He smiled, the same smile he’d given those girls the first time he walked onto the bus. And just like that I forgot I wasn’t supposed to trust him and that even though he had introduced himself and we’d been talking the last several minutes, he wasn’t my friend.
Lorehnin: A Novel of the Otherworld Page 4