The Circle

by Cindy Cipriano

  “But if we stay together, we’ll be all right?” asked Laurel.

  Calum heard the worry behind her question. “Yes, as long as you stay with me.” He removed the ring from his finger. “This will bind us together. If you lose your token, and by that, I mean if one of them reclaims it, I can take you out of the mound.” But I can only take one of them. There has to be another way.

  “A glove,” said Hagen.

  “It’s really annoying when you guys do that,” said Laurel.

  “Sorry. There’s an old story about duine daonna sneaking into a mound,” Calum explained. “If the duine daonna leaves a glove in the circle, they can use that as a token to get out.”

  “It might work,” said Hagen. “But no one knows for sure because no one’s tried it with a dark clan. You could be trapped.”

  “I don’t care about the risks,” said Laurel. “I’ll go, because if I don’t I’ll be trapped forever in a different way. I’ll go to this mound. If it doesn’t work then I’ll go to another, and another, until I find him.”

  Hagen smiled in approval.

  “So, when do we go?” asked Laurel.

  “Tonight at seven,” said Calum. “While everyone else is in Aessea at Iris’ house.”

  “Don’t you have to go with them?” asked Laurel.

  “No. I told Kenzie I wasn’t comfortable going through Iris’ things.”

  “And Tullia’s staying home with Brytes and Will,” said Hagen.

  “But, can you get back here tonight, Laurel?” asked Calum.

  “Yeah. I’ll tell my parents we’re still playing video games. I’m sure they’ll let me stay over again.” Laurel picked up her bag. She looked uncertain about their plan.

  Calum smiled at her. “Don’t worry. We’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

  “I know you will,” she said, shaking the worry from her expression. “I’ll see you at seven.” She turned and carried her bag through the door.

  She’s pretty brave, thought Calum.

  Let’s hope she’s brave enough, Hagen replied.

  Wi

  Calum and Hagen stayed close to the house that day. When Kenzie and Gus returned home, the boys acted as if they were worn out from staying up all night. After supper, they lounged on the sofas in the family room. Calum flipped disinterestedly through channels on the television.

  Donnelly arrived at seven. He checked on the boys, and satisfied they were too exhausted to move, he, Kenzie, and Gus quietly slipped through the threshold on their way to Aessea Mound. Laurel arrived ten minutes later, carrying a leather glove.

  “Will this work?” she asked.

  “We’ll see. But remember, it’s just a back-up,” said Calum, smiling encouragingly.

  At sunset, they walked together to Devil’s Peak Reserve.

  “The trees are thick,” said Calum, looking around the forest. “They’ll send a message easily.”

  “Look,” said Hagen, “I still think I should go with you.”

  “We’ve been over this. If you come with us, there will be no one here to get a message to Donnelly if we need help,” said Calum.

  “I know, I know,” said Hagen. “I just wish I could do more.”

  “What was that?” Laurel grabbed Hagen’s arm.

  “What was what?” asked Calum.

  “I thought I saw someone over there watching us.” She pointed to a cluster of white azaleas.

  “I don’t see anyone,” said Hagen. “Don’t let your imagination run away with you.”

  “Don’t worry,” Laurel snapped. She immediately flushed with embarrassment and stammered an apology.

  “Hey, maybe you did see someone,” said Hagen. “This is a popular place. Lots of people hike the trail.” He pulled a stone from his pocket and passed it to Calum. “The kyanite from Rebeccah.”

  Calum put the kyanite in his own pocket. “We’d better get going,” he said, taking a deep breath. “I’ll send a message as soon as we get through their threshold. Wait here for us.”

  Hagen clapped him on the back. “I will. I’ll be right here.”

  “We’re counting on it,” said Calum.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Devil’s Peak

  Calum and Laurel encountered several people on the hiking trail, all on their way out of Devil’s Peak Reserve. Most hikers were friendly, but one girl positively glared at Calum as she passed by. She had black eyes, glossy black hair, and a dark complexion. Although she smiled at them, hers was an unkind smile, more like a scowl.

  “Who’s she?” asked Laurel as they passed the girl.

  “No idea. Must be a tourist.” Calum pointed through the woods. “There’s the end of the trail.”

  “How will we find their mound?”

  “Their post. We’ll know it when we see it,” said Calum. “It’ll be something that looks out of place.”

  It had been at least twenty minutes since they had passed the unpleasant girl when Calum said, “Look there. It’s a watering can. Just like before, when Uilleam was looking for them. Remember? It’s at a right angle to the first pine tree we’ve come across. It’s pointing to the left.”

  They wandered through the woods for another ten minutes without finding the mound.

  “I think we messed up,” said Calum. “Maybe we’ve gone the wrong way.”

  They turned around to retrace their steps when Calum heard a “meow.”

  “Whisper?” said Laurel. “What are you doing out here?” Whisper, being a fairly decent cat, didn’t answer, but merely looked up at Laurel with his amber colored eyes and purred. He nuzzled her leg and headed in the direction they had been traveling. Laurel looked at Calum, who gave a shrug and the two followed Whisper deeper into the woods.

  “There’s a clearing,” said Calum. “It’s got to be in there.”

  “Thanks, Whisper,” said Laurel, scratching the black-and-white cat behind his ears. “Now, please go home.”

  Whisper gave another meow, turned around, and scurried back to the trail. Calum watched the cat and realized he only appeared to be heading home. He carefully and quietly crept behind two gray boulders, continuing to follow Calum and Laurel with his eyes. Just like a cat, thought Calum. Doing whatever they like.

  “There it is,” said Calum, pointing to a circular path on the ground. They stopped just at the edge of the circle. “Are you ready?”

  Laurel peered into the middle of the circle but didn’t answer.

  “If you’ve changed your mind, we can find another way,” said Calum.

  “No. It’s just…this looks exactly like the circle from my memory.”

  “I think it would be a good idea if we hold hands. You know, while we’re in their mound?” He held his hand out to Laurel and she took it in her own. Calum’s hand was clammy, but he couldn’t tell if it was his hand or Laurel’s that was doing the sweating.

  They took one step. Laurel dropped her glove inside the circle before her foot touched down.

  Calum heard a hiss. Whisper? He looked for the cat, but only saw the strange girl from the hiking trail. She stared at him with a wicked grin on her face. Calum thought he saw Hagen intercept her, but he lost track of them when he and Laurel passed into Devil’s Peak Mound.

  Calum looked around, trying to orient himself. He pulled Laurel behind a weathered shed. “I have to mark the place we came in.” He took the kyanite crystal out of his backpack and tied it to the picket of an old wooden gate. “This is your temporary threshold. If we get separated, come back here and get back to the circle. Okay? Laurel?”

  She stared trance-like into space. Her face was pale, her hair stuck to her neck like wet grass.

  “Here, drink this,” said Calum. His hands shook as he pulled a tiny epidote bottle from a cord around his neck. He held the bottle to Laurel’s lips and poured clear liquid into her mouth. “Do you feel better?”

  “A little,” Laurel said weakly. “Where’d you get that?”

  “I made it. It’s one of the verses carved in
the stacks at Siopa Leabhar.”

  “I just felt so weird.” Laurel shook her head. “Like something bad was about to happen. It was like that day of the tornado.”

  “That’s because we’re surrounded by dark Sidhe.”

  Laurel’s eyes darted from the shed to the trees.

  “You’ve got to trust me,” Calum said, squeezing her hand.

  “I do.” Laurel squeezed back.

  “We don’t have much time before one of the Fairy Stone comes to meet us. I have to send a message to Hagen so he knows we got in. Are you okay now?”

  Laurel nodded.

  “Sit here for a second, I’ll be right back.” Calum jogged a few yards to a stand of strangler figs, turning back every few paces to keep an eye on Laurel.

  Devil’s Peak Mound was different from any of the other mounds Calum had visited. There was a sulfur-like stench he recognized from learning dark magic. Tiny purple morning glories battled the air to show their colors. The flowers only lasted a second before snapping, and disappearing in puffs of smoke as if no beauty was allowed in this place. The other colors in this mound were depressingly dull. The air was heavy with a gray mist that settled on his skin in a greasy film. Calum shook the branches of a young tree. It swayed and bumped into a second tree, scratching the tree with its branches. The scratching became rhythmic as the second tree swayed and rocked into the next. Calum watched this pattern continue for a moment and then he turned to go back to the shed. He saw Laurel look around the corner of the small building. Her body became rigid and Calum sprinted back to her side.

  “I see you’ve returned,” said the voice of a boy who at that instant peered around the same corner at Laurel. His black hair gleamed like polished obsidian, and he had a dark complexion.

  Laurel’s hand instinctively found the pendant around her neck and she closed her fingers on it, too shocked to speak.

  “Of course. You kept the token and figured out how to use it. Got here just in time, didn’t you? The seven years are almost up.” The boy smiled at her, showing a dimple on the right side of his face.

  Calum was stunned, but managed one word.

  “Finley?”

  “Calum?” asked the boy. He shook his head in disbelief and looked again. “Is it really you?”

  “Yes, it’s me,” said Calum. He hugged Finley tightly, nearly knocking him over. For a few minutes they were as two old friends greeting each other after a long separation. They hugged again and again and clapped each other’s backs. Calum couldn’t stop grinning.

  “My parents. My sister…” said Finley, “are they all right?”

  “They’re fine,” said Calum.

  “And Hagen? He’s not here, is he?” asked Finley, a note of panic in his voice.

  “No, he’s waiting for us to get back through,” said Calum.

  Finley looked relieved. “That’s good, because that day, when they took me, it was a mistake. They were after Hagen.”

  “Why?” asked Laurel.

  “Hagen is Torin’s grandson,” said Finley. “If he couldn’t have Donnelly, he wanted to snatch Hagen so his rule could carry on.”

  “Hagen would never agree to do anything Torin asked,” said Calum.

  “Not now, but if they had gotten him when he was younger, things might have been different,” said Finley.

  Hagen. The thought of losing his cousin made Calum sick. This feeling was quickly replaced with anger. He had lost his cousin, he had lost Finley.

  “We stayed in Ireland for a few months before Torin brought us to the Fairy Stone Mound in Virginia. That’s where I met LaurelAnn.” Finley smiled at her. “Daniel’s told me all about you.”

  “My brother’s here?” Laurel exclaimed.

  “Yes,” said Finley. “I’ll take you to him.”

  Calum smiled at Laurel and took her hand. “It won’t be long now.” They followed Finley down the path to the village.

  “If you were added,” Calum almost choked on the word, “how come you’re free, I mean, on your own?”

  “Since the mound is sealed, there’s no way I can escape,” said Finley.

  “Can’t you use a token?” asked Laurel.

  “If I had one,” said Finley. He stopped walking and looked at her. “Every Sidhe gets just one token. If you lose it, you can’t leave the mound unless you’re taken out by another Sidhe.”

  “You’ve been trapped here because you gave me your token,” said Laurel.

  “Well, it wasn’t mine for long,” said Finley. “I only had it for a minute before I gave it to you.”

  “Thank you,” said Laurel. She kissed Finley on the cheek. “Thank you for giving me a way to get back to my brother.”

  Finley blushed deeply and continued walking.

  “Why did Torin go to the Fairy Stone clan?” asked Calum.

  “When he was banished, he started looking for a new home,” said Finley. “He’d heard about the Fairy Stone and thought they’d be an easy target. He took me there and told them I was his son,” he said, looking repulsed. “At first, the Fairy Stone welcomed Torin and were cooperative with his suggestions for leadership. They even agreed to seal their threshold at his encouragement. But he made a huge mistake when he altered their token with the Hobayeth mark.” He pointed to Laurel’s pendant. “When the Fairy Stone Sidhe realized his true intentions, most of them fled the mound. One of the last to leave told me he could go out with his wife using her token. He said he wanted me to have his. I walked out of the circle just as Daniel walked into it.”

  “We were following a song,” said Laurel.

  “Yeah, that was Torin, calling everyone back to the mound,” said Finley. “When Daniel was captured, I felt responsible. I wanted to help him, so I decided to go back for him. Then I saw you when you almost stepped into the circle. I gave you my token just in case you went looking for Daniel. The mound was in chaos. I thought for sure I could get another token and without anyone noticing grab Daniel and go back out. But there was no other token. Daniel and I were stuck. We stayed at Fairy Stone Mound until last summer. They finally got their act together and ran us out. Most of the Fairy Stone hated Torin, but some came with us when we moved here; there aren’t many left in Fairy Stone now.”

  Calum noticed the foul-smelling air had become much worse, if that were even possible. He glanced at Laurel, who was scrunching her nose against the stench.

  “Here, let me fix that,” said Finley. He cupped his hands over Laurel’s nose and murmured, “Abeo.” He repeated the gesture with Calum.

  Calum found he could breathe without smelling the horrid odor.

  “We do that for the merchants when they come to trade,” Finley explained.

  Calum studied his cousin. He was so different from how Calum had remembered him. Of course he was—they all were. It had been seven years after all, but there was something else. Finley was only one year older than Calum, but somehow he seemed much, much older. All those years of living under Torin’s rule had aged Finley.

  They entered the middle of Devil’s Peak Mound where, oddly, no one was about. “They’re all hiding,” said Finley. “They know you’re here and don’t know what to expect. You timed it right. Torin left for Ireland ten minutes ago. He left his idiot friend Brownshire in charge.”

  “We know him,” said Calum. “I mean, we saw him.” He explained how they had watched Uilleam search the woods that day.

  “I’ll bet Brownshire nearly wet himself when he ran into Uilleam.” Finley laughed. “Torin’s gotten everyone worked up, and frightened to death of Uilleam.”

  Calum looked confused.

  “Are you ready for this? Torin and his wife tell everyone they are on the run from Uilleam. They make it sound like they’re the victims. Brownshire’s terrified of Uilleam,” said Finley.

  Calum shook his head slowly. “Unbelievable.”

  “Brownshire’s turned out to be one of my biggest fans. He saw me get the token that day. When I came back into the mound, he told Tor
in I did so by choice. Brownshire’s the one who convinced Torin I had truly become one of them,” said Finley.

  “Laurel, it should be easy for you to free Daniel. All you’ll have to do is tell Brownshire you’re Daniel’s sister, and demand his freedom. The verse will be undone. Brownshire will have to release Daniel. He’ll lose his powers if he doesn’t.”

  “And what about you?” asked Laurel. “How will you be able to leave?”

  “I haven’t worked that out yet,” said Finley. “Daniel will be free, but you can only take one person back with the token.”

  “I know how,” said Calum. A grin swept over his face as he realized he would finally have peace about what happened that day so many years ago. “I can take you out.” Calum explained his ring’s protection. Finley’s legs buckled and Calum caught him.

  “I’m finally going home?” Tears glistened in his eyes.

  “Yes cousin. You’re coming home.”

  Devil’s Peak Public House was an old building made of large gray stones and a black tar roof. They clambered up wide wooden steps into the entrance hall where the temperature felt like it had dropped ten degrees. Calum shivered as they passed by Sidhe stories carved into the walls. Unlike stories in the Tusatha Public House, these carvings were twisted in cruel letters that gouged the walls in an ungrateful manner. Calum stared at what seemed to be a scar in the wood.

  “That’s my name,” explained Finley. “Every time Brownshire carves it, the wood seals itself over my name. Blooderdon,” he said, shaking his head.

  Calum thought this must be a Hobayeth phrase or saying. He didn’t ask because he didn’t want to know any of their ways. Once they were gone from this dark place, Calum never wanted to return.

  Finley led them down the hallway. “Watch out for tricks while you’re here and don’t eat any red crackle.

  “What?” asked Laurel.

  “Red sugar pane. It’s like the red part of a candy apple,” said Finley. “A favorite treat of dark Sidhe. However, it’s also a way to trap duine daonna. If you eat it, you’ll be tricked into believing you never want to leave the mound.”