by Brey Willows
What if it wasn’t the right time? What if the right time never came? Did that mean there were things Kody might know and never tell her? “And if I ask you something outright?”
Kody grinned. “There’s the spinner blood, always looking for the plot gaps. If you ask me something directly, I won’t lie to you, and I promise I’ll do my best to answer directly.”
Maggie nodded. “Good enough, for now.” What emotions could Kody feel? Could she feel everything? She looked at the ground as her stomach turned. Even the baser things, like crazy stupid lust? She nearly groaned out loud, and then shoved the thoughts away when she felt Kody shift beside her.
Raindrops began to paint the sand with dark splotches. “We’d better get up the path.”
They got up and Maggie reached for Kody’s arm to stop her. “Thank you for talking to me, and for being patient.”
Kody covered Maggie’s hand with her own. “I’m not always patient, Mags. I can be a donkey’s arse, and sometimes you’ll have to reel me back and tell me to pull my horns in. But I’ll always be there for you.”
Again, Maggie wasn’t entirely sure she understood the phrasing, but she figured the context was clear and when thunder shook the trees, they took off up the mostly hidden path along the cliff edge that led into the trees. Kody was right, it was becoming slick fast, and as they neared the top, Maggie slipped.
She tried to catch herself, but then the other foot slipped out from under her. She dug her fingertips into the mud, but she kept sliding downhill on her stomach. Her feet, thick with mud, wouldn’t get any traction either. She knew the bend in the trail must be coming up fast, and if she didn’t turn with it, she’d go straight over the edge and fall to the beach below. She didn’t dare open her mouth to scream, as there’d be nothing but mud to fill it.
A vice-like grip grabbed her wrist and she jerked to a stop, pain shooting up her shoulder. She managed to look up through the driving rain and saw Kody hanging onto a tree branch with one hand while holding onto Maggie with the other. Thunder cracked around them and lightning followed immediately after, shredding the rain into slivers of glass.
“Can you get up?” Kody shouted over the rain.
Maggie managed to pull her feet under her and reached for Kody’s arm with her other hand. She grabbed hold and managed to lurch toward Kody, who pulled her upward before she let go of the branch she was holding onto and started climbing the path again, her head bent against the driving rain. The rain stung, and more than that, it felt somehow personal. Fear made her hands shake and her knees weak, but she forced herself to keep moving, to tap into the same anger and determination she’d felt whenever she faced a bully bigger than herself. The storm was a bully, and she could beat it.
Water sluiced down Maggie’s face, washing dirt into her eyes and blinding her. She clung to Kody’s hand like a lifeline, and when she felt level ground under her feet, she nearly wept with relief. They ran toward the cottage and Mal was waiting in the doorway.
“Get inside, you numpties. Didn’t you feel the storm coming?” They rushed past her, and she slammed the door shut behind them.
Blessed silence was broken only by the sound of the water dripping off them and onto the stone floor. Maggie tried to wipe the water from her eyes but only managed to spread more grit around her face. She felt a towel pressed against her hands.
“This should help,” Kody said.
Maggie wiped away the water and dirt from her face, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Kody grinning widely. Blech sat in front of the fire, his hackles raised and his eyes narrowed.
“What?”
“You look like a mud monster.” Kody held up a mirror and began to laugh.
Maggie couldn’t help but join her. From her forehead to her feet, she was a thick mass of mud and forest debris. Only her face was reasonably clear. “Oh my God. That was terrifying. But probably better than a spa treatment.”
“I should probably take you both out and hose you down. You’re going to muck up my bath. But get clean. We need to talk.” Mal turned away and went back to her seat in front of the fire.
Kody gestured toward the bathroom. “Go ahead. You’re worse.”
“Geez, thanks.” Maggie smiled and turned away. “Would you mind grabbing my bag so I can put fresh clothes on? I don’t want to track this into the bedroom.”
Kody saluted her and Maggie went into the bathroom. The hot water washed away the chill brought on by the rain, but when she raised her arm to wash her hair, she groaned. Her shoulder ached and pain hummed through her. She managed one-handed and got out, refreshed and clean but still not in great shape. She opened the door when someone knocked.
“Here you go. Didn’t want to come in while you were showering.” Kody’s eyes moved quickly over Maggie’s towel-wrapped body before she looked away, her face pink. “Are you okay? I thought I heard something.”
Maggie took her bag and set it on the sink. “My shoulder’s a little messed up. I can’t move my arm very well.”
Kody’s gaze snapped back to her. “You’re hurt?”
“Only a little. I’m sure it will be fine by morning.” A feeling of guilt and worry washed over her, but it felt strange…kind of far away. She thought of their talk on the beach, and suddenly understood what it was. “Hey, it’s not your fault. If you hadn’t grabbed me, I’d be splattered on the beach right now. You saved my life.”
Kody looked away and nodded. “Yeah. Okay. Do you need any help getting dressed?”
Maggie grinned and punched Kody’s shoulder. “There are easier ways to see me naked.”
Kody laughed and seemed to relax. “Yeah, yeah. Just hurry up so I don’t catch my death of cold, would you?”
She walked away and Maggie closed the door behind her. In truth, getting dressed was more difficult than she anticipated as her shoulder began to stiffen, but she managed without swearing too often. She left the bathroom and waved Kody in. “Your turn, Your Highness.”
Kody rolled her eyes and pushed past her. “Thanks, Princess.”
Maggie had left her mud-caked clothing in the bathroom, unsure what to do with them, but she figured Kody’s clothes would join them. She liked the image of their clothes bunched together on the floor—
“Your head is between your legs again. I’m glad I’m past all that nonsense. Nothing but trouble, love.”
Maggie dropped into the chair opposite Mal’s in front of the fire. “Love isn’t on the table. And there’s nothing wrong with sex.”
“No, not at all. Unless it gets you killed.” Mal threw something purple into the fire and it hissed and flared. “But that’s not your path.”
“You know what my path is?” Maggie wasn’t sure she wanted a straight answer.
“Save the world. Get the bad guys. Keep order. Simple things. You won’t screw them up.”
Maggie stared at her. “Great. Good to know.”
Kody came out of the bathroom looking relaxed and clean, and Maggie wanted to know what her tattoos looked like wet.
Mal cleared her throat. “Sit down, shepherd. This is important.”
Kody pulled up a chair and straddled it, her chin resting on the intricate wooden frame. “I’m here.”
“I know you’re here. You’re like an elephant stampeding through the house. A deaf person could hear you.”
Kody sent Maggie a wry smile and Maggie shrugged. Blech yawned, his pointed teeth glinting in the firelight. Was he more comfortable in cat form, or, like Brenda, had he simply grown used to it while living in the other world? She’d make it a point to ask, just out of curiosity. She paid attention to Mal again when she leaned toward the fire.
Mal sent more purple stuff into the fire and it flared again. “The storm wasn’t natural, spinner. It was sent, and that means someone powerful is watching and knows where you are. I couldn’t stop it, and I couldn’t taste their scent on the air. That means they’re not close by, which is good and will work in your favor. But it means you’re leavi
ng in the morning.”
Disappointment rocked her and fear replaced hope. Someone was already out to get her, and if that was what they could do from far away, what would they do up close? “But I’m not ready.”
“Don’t be daft. You learned how to use the hag stone in half the time of anyone else I’ve taught, and you’ve learned to direct your thoughts into your painting, which is where your deepest power lies.” Mal reached out to put her hand on Maggie’s knee. “I know it’s scary, lass. But you were born to this, and there’s no question you can do it. The fact that they’re already afraid of you cries louder than a gull.”
Kody was staring into the fire. “What about her painting?”
Mal sat back and cradled a mug of tea in her hands. “True power indeed. She captures emotions in motion, traps them in place. And she sees, Kody.”She nodded in that way old wise people always nodded. “She sees. What she painted will come to pass, and there won’t be any stopping that.”
Chills covered Maggie’s arms and she rubbed them. “So, what? I’m some kind of clairvoyant?”
“Tosh. You’re so much more. The way you paint will be the way you fix everything. When you’re in doubt, feel what you felt when you were painting. Dive into it the same way, and you’ll know what to do.” Mal’s smile was kind when she turned her night sky eyes to Maggie. “Trust your instincts, trust your shepherd, and never, ever, fail to believe.”
Kody looked at Maggie and shrugged. “I guess we should pack up and head back to the cottage. There’s no need to go to the Key Keepers now that we have our answers.”
“No.” Mal raised her hand, and firelight flickered over a black star carved into her palm. “You’ve got one more stop to make before you go.”
Kody stopped midway from getting up. “Where’s that?”
Mal leaned toward Maggie once more, and if Maggie didn’t know better, she would swear that Mal could actually see her.
“You’re going to the communal market. There’s something there you need. I can’t tell you what it is, but I can feel it, here.” She held up her marked palm. “And when I feel it here, it’s an absolute truth. You must go there first.”
Kody ran her hands through her hair, a gesture Maggie hadn’t seen since she first showed up and told Kody who she was. Just like she had in the bathroom, she felt emotions that weren’t hers tap at her, like someone knocking on her soul. Fear.
“The market could be crawling with people who aren’t on our side. It’ll be harder to protect her there.”
Mal tossed the remnants of her drink in the fire and it hissed, sending up a cloud of steam that created the shape of a star like the one on her palm. “True. You’ll have to do your job then, won’t you?” She laughed, a hoarse sound that actually made Maggie smile. “Be off at first light. There’s a cart and horse available in Doolin, at Gus O’Connor’s.” She kicked at Kody’s boot. “And don’t forget your sword. I took it from your house to keep it safe, you fool of a selkie fisher. You’ll be needin’ it with you now.”
Kody shrugged. “I couldn’t very well take it with me to New York.”
Mal waved away the excuse, got up and slowly hobbled to her room. Before she went in, she turned back to them. “Be safe, children. There’s more at stake than you know, and we need you more than I can say.” With that, she went into her room and closed the door behind her.
Maggie let out a long breath. “So, let’s recap, shall we? One, someone just tried to kill me by sending me off a cliff during a storm. Two, we have to go to a place where we might be surrounded by enemies to look for…something. Three, we can’t head home until I’ve found that something, and four, the world is depending on us.” She looked up at Kody and swallowed against the panic. “That cover it?”
Kody nodded. “Yeah, I think so. I mean, you left out the other stuff. You know, catch bad guys who have gone into the other world, stop the reign of terror of the bad guys here, and figure out who is pulling the strings and why even the baddest of the badass villains here are afraid of them…but yeah, I think you covered it.”
Maggie began to laugh, and once she started, she couldn’t stop. Tears ran down her face as she laughed and cried at the same time. Kody, also laughing, came and put her arms around her from behind. Blech leapt onto her lap and curled up with one paw over her heart.
When Maggie finally settled, Kody said, “But you’re not alone, and like Mal said, you were born to do this. You’ve got what it takes, and I believe in you.”
Maggie’s chest constricted at the words. Not once in her life could she remember someone having that kind of faith in her, and she was certain no one had ever said they believed in her. She held Kody’s arms tightly against her and breathed in her strength. “Okay. Let’s get some sleep. Sounds like we’ve got a big day ahead of us.”
Chapter Eighteen
Maggie shivered against the cold she could feel even through her jacket. Her shoulder had grown stiff and swollen in the night, and Kody not only refused to let her carry her own bag, but also insisted on a makeshift sling. Though Maggie had very nearly argued, that connection thing they were doing meant she felt Kody’s guilt, so she gave in if only to let Kody feel like she was doing something to help an injury she wasn’t responsible for in the first place. But those words would fall on deaf ears.
She yawned, her breath puffing in the chill air. Kody walked ahead, and behind her Shamus and Brenda walked side by side. She could hear Shamus filling Brenda in on all that had happened in the night and what Mal had said. Brenda’s exclamations and laughter made Maggie smile.
“I would love to have seen you covered in mud, Maggie. I’m sorry, but I think I would have wet my knickers through.” Brenda tugged on the back of Maggie’s shirt.
“Yeah, well, I’m still finding it in places I’d rather not have dirt.” She looked over her shoulder at Brenda. “But I’m actually glad you weren’t there. To be honest, if someone is willing to go to that length to take me out, I’m not sure it’s safe for you to be around.” She jumped when Brenda pinched her butt.
“Don’t even say things like that!” Brenda’s tone was unusually serious. “It’s when you’re in trouble that you need your friends most. And we’re around to protect you from the maggot farts, anyway.”
Maggie laughed. “Yeah, well, let’s hope there won’t be a lot of protecting to be done.”
“Are we still heading to the Key Keepers, Kody?” Shamus called from behind.
She hitched the bags higher over her shoulders. “I think it’s a good stopping place. We’ll drop the bags and freshen up, and then we’ll head into the market.” She looked over her shoulder at Maggie. “I don’t suppose you’ve had any thoughts as to what we’re looking for?”
Maggie blew into her closed hand, trying to warm it. The other she’d tucked into the sling. “Not a thing. I’m guessing I’ll know when I’m there.”
For the next hour the only sound was Brenda’s monologue about her time with the Fir Bolg, and when she started talking about their men’s anatomy, Maggie zoned out. Fog swirled around the cliff edges, veiling the water and lightly undulating landscape around them. Low, crumbling stone walls lined their route, broken occasionally by a lonely little cottage or larger farmhouse. But it was eerily silent. No one appeared at the windows of the houses, no one passed them on the path. When they came to Doolin, Maggie’s shoulders ached from holding them so tightly, so sure was she an attack was imminent.
Gus O’Connor’s was a squat stone pub with a thick black sign and bright gold lettering. It overlooked a pretty little creek and rolling hills covered in newly bloomed yellow flowers. Heavy double doors seemed to be the main entrance, but a regular looking door not two feet away also said entrance. She looked at Kody, who shook her head.
Kody tried the main door, but it was locked, so she moved to the other one, and when it clicked open, she stuck her head inside. “Hello? Anyone about?”
“Aye, lovey. Come in,” a deep voice answered.
When Maggie followed Kody inside, the aroma of bacon and spices hit her and she began salivating. A long island in the middle of the kitchen was covered in various breakfast foods. People of various shapes and sizes sat at tables eating and drinking, and Maggie did her best not to stare. The one noticeable aspect was that there didn’t appear to be any humans in the room, something the diners apparently noticed too as silence settled over the room and all eyes were turned on them.
A man a little shorter than Brenda, and with the same light green skin, came hurrying over. “We’re not interested in trouble, folks. I can get you a few plates to take on your way.” He twisted a dishtowel between his hands.
Brenda stepped around Maggie, as did Shamus. Seeing someone more their size might put the rest of the people there at ease. The man frowned and looked from Brenda to Maggie and Kody.
“Are you Gus? That smells divine. We’d love some to take on the road with us, thanks!” Brenda batted her eyelashes at him.
He leaned toward her and whispered, though it was most definitely loud enough for Maggie to hear. “Are you okay? Do you need help? Have they captured you?”
Brenda’s head tilted and she stared at him. “What, now? Why would anyone capture me?” She grinned. “Unless you mean in the good way.” She winked.
