Born of Shadows- Complete Series

by J. R. Erickson

  "Why is she so interested in hybrids?"

  "We have a secret place here," Matilda started and then paused, as if reluctant to explain. "We call it the dream wood,"

  "The dream wood?"

  "Hannah fell in love with a man, Liam, who disappeared into the dream wood. A hybrid man."

  "I'm not following."

  "The dream wood is a strange bit of magic. Witches cannot go there, though it was created by one of the original witches who founded the Sky Mothers. Her child was a hybrid and being hunted. She bewitched a portion of the forest to allow only his kind to enter. Liam stumbled upon it accidentally. Of course, we both know that it was not truly an accident. Did it call to him? Perhaps. He told Hannah of the things he saw and felt. In the dream wood, Liam could see into the past and the future, he could touch the trees and watch them become gold beneath his fingertips."

  Julian frowned.

  "I still don't understand."

  "Nor do I, but it is believed that the hybrid child of the witch who enchanted the forest, spent his years in isolation there honing and playing with his magic. He created a sort of wonderland that is accessible only to those who share his cellular structure."

  "Have you known other hybrids who entered the space?"

  "One, a young man. His name was Fin and he went into the dream wood more than fifty years ago. He never came back out."

  "Is that what happened to Liam, then? He disappeared?"

  Matilda nodded and pulled her shimmering blond hair over one delicate shoulder. She had a fairy-like ethereal appearance. In her presence, Julian often felt light-headed and romantic. He knew it was one of Matilda's powers and not something she emitted intentionally.

  "Liam went back several times. He grew addicted to the experiences in the dream wood. I told Hannah to warn him of the dangers, and she did, I'm sure, but she is impulsive. I fear that she too grew obsessed with his stories and perhaps with the possibilities. To see the future is a rare gift and it is easy to become entranced by it."

  "But then he never came out," Julian mused, frowning. "What then? She hopes to send Sebastian to the dream wood to search for Liam? Impossible! Sebastian has too much at stake. Absolutely not."

  "I agree with you, of course. However, I cannot prevent Sebastian from going into the dream wood any more than you can if he were to choose that."

  "He wouldn't. Abby wouldn't allow it and honestly, I would prefer that he never heard of the dream wood at all."

  "I fear it may be too late for that."

  ****

  "Are you sure she came this way?" Sebastian asked, sensing that the witch leading him into the forest had an ulterior motive, but lost for what it might be. Why would she lure him into the woods?

  He stopped and glanced back at the Sky Mothers' compound.

  Hannah turned and smiled. Her golden hair hung loosely over her bare shoulders. She wore a sheer white dress with tiny straps made from pearls.

  Sebastian swallowed. Hannah was beautiful and eager. He felt desire when he looked at her, followed immediately by guilt. He didn't want to be attracted to her, but he couldn't help it.

  "Come on, not much farther."

  She held out her hand and he nodded, but did not touch her. He wondered if she used some form of magic to enhance his desire. He thought touching her might increase the effects and he had no interest in going there.

  As they walked, the canopy from the huge trees grew thick and no light penetrated. The forest looked as if it had never been logged. It would take three of him standing fingertip to fingertip to wrap his arms around one of their massive trunks.

  Another ten minutes passed, and then twenty. Abby would not have walked alone so far into unknown woods. They had been walking on an incline for a long time. He could see the forest sloping down and back toward the ocean.

  Hannah stopped and turned toward him.

  "Okay, I lied," she admitted. She stared at him with huge inquisitive eyes. Her gaze shifted along his body and she stepped closer to him, trailing her fingertips over his bare arm. "You're not sweating at all."

  Sebastian brushed away her hand and turned back.

  "Wait," she said. Her voice had changed subtly. He heard fear and desperation.

  "What? Why have you brought me here?"

  "Do you see that footbridge?"

  Sebastian gazed in the direction that Hannah pointed. Through the trees, he spotted a tattered footbridge that appeared to extend across a gorge.

  "Yeah, so?"

  "I need you to cross it."

  "Is this like a test of some sort? See if the human is stupid enough to fall to his death on a fraying rope bridge?"

  "You know better than that, Sebastian." She moved toward him and took his hands. "I can't go beyond that bridge, but you can. It was created for someone just like you, a hybrid. It's a magical place, more amazing than anything you've seen in this world. You can do things there, see things, know things, fly if you want, change forms. The possibilities are limitless. You will be limitless."

  Her eyes sparkled as she spoke and Sebastian knew that she believed every word she told him.

  "Why can't you cross the bridge?"

  "A witch created that forest for her son, for her hybrid son. He was in danger. She bewitched the space so that no witch or human could enter, only a hybrid. And that bridge," she nodded toward the fraying walkway, "is merely an illusion. There's a bridge, of course, but it is so strong it could be made from steel. It's a deterrent, you see."

  "What happens if you try to cross it?"

  "I just can't. My body stops. It's like I am paralyzed. I can turn and walk away, but I can never go forward."

  "What is it that you want?"

  Hannah bit her lip.

  "A year ago, the man I loved went in there and never came out."

  Sebastian stared at the bridge and the forest beyond. He searched for any clue that something extraordinary lay on the other side, but he saw only more forest identical to that which they had just walked through.

  "Why did you bring me out here alone? Why didn't you just ask me in the open?"

  "Because Matilda preferred to keep you away from this forest. It is unknown to us as witches. She cannot protect you once you cross that bridge, but I see you differently, Sebastian. I don't believe that you need protection."

  ****

  "Have you seen Sebastian?" Abby asked and grimaced at the words. The question and the niggling feeling behind it reminded her too much of the previous October when Sebastian disappeared from the All Hallow's Ball.

  Oliver looked up from where he stood hunched over an ancient looking text filled with tiny, cramped writing. He squinted at Abby and then shook his head.

  "He hasn't come this way, though who would unless they were into mental strain and torture."

  Abby laughed and glanced around the small library. It was very different from the space at Ula with its soaring ceilings and roaring fireplace. The Sky Mothers' library occupied a narrow alcove. A pair of wooden chairs sat in the center of the space and shelves with old, crumbling books pressed in.

  "This is their library?" Abby murmured, touching one of the books and looking at the streak of white dust on her fingertips.

  "No, it's their archives and antique books. They don't have a library. Matilda told me that they spread the books all over and when you stumble upon a book, that's the one you're meant to read."

  "What if they need a potion for poison ivy?"

  Oliver grinned.

  "I asked the same question, substitute poison ivy with bed bugs."

  Abby laughed.

  "And?"

  "And she said, 'only witches live here,' and walked away."

  "What does that mean? No bed bugs for witches?" Abby scratched absently at her arm.

  "I think she meant witches can find what they're looking for without having it organized in a library."

  Abby rolled her eyes.

  "Not this witch, I just spent ten minutes looking for my
sandals."

  She pointed to her bare feet.

  Oliver laughed and shook his head. "They're by the pool."

  Abby's eyes widened in surprise.

  "How do you know? Did you just see that in your mind?"

  "No, I walked by them twice this morning."

  They both burst into laughter and for an instant, Abby forgot her sense of misgiving. She returned to her questions.

  "You haven't seen him? Didn't hear Julian say they were taking a walk, anything like that?"

  "No, are you worried? This place is huge. He probably just took a stroll to check things out. Do you sense something?"

  Oliver looked at Abby intently and she knew that he too searched for an energetic rift, some proof that Sebastian was in trouble.

  "Yeah," he nodded. "Something is off. I'm not feeling danger, but..."

  "Me too," she agreed, relieved that she hadn't imagined it, but more concerned to have her fears confirmed.

  "Let's go find Julian and Helena."

  ****

  Sebastian gingerly placed a foot on the bridge, ready to spring back if it collapsed. The bridge held firm, more than firm, it did not sway as he placed his weight on it. The boards that looked rotted did not sink beneath his feet and the frayed rope did not suddenly spiral apart. He walked easily across the bridge. As he stepped into the forest, the world before him shifted. The forest flickered and a strange series of other worlds slid into place and then vanished, to be replaced by another and another. He saw soaring snow-capped mountains and dense jungle forests. He closed his eyes and when he opened them he stared at futuristic world suspended in the stars.

  "Pick one," a voice said, startling him in the stillness. He followed the voice and staggered back when he discovered Claire, his baby sister, grinning from the high branch of a tree. She wore white shorts and a yellow t-shirt. Her brown hair stuck up like she'd just climbed out of bed.

  He blinked and rubbed his eyes, afraid that when he opened them, she would be gone, but no, she watched him still. She swung her legs back and forth.

  "Pick one, silly," she said again. "Which world do you want to explore?"

  He looked straight ahead and again the worlds flashed by. He lifted a trembling hand.

  "That one," he said, finding it hard to speak.

  He had simply chosen, not looking all that closely at the changing landscapes.

  A mystical forest materialized. Mossy boughs hung from the trees and a glittering mist shone in the sunlight slanting through the branches. In the distance, he could see huge limestone buildings in various stages of decay. Wide stone steps, some of them crumbling, led to an enormous archway. It looked like an ancient city in Greece hundreds of years after it had been abandoned.

  "Shall we?" Claire asked him, leaping from the tree and holding out her hand.

  ****

  Julian did not look surprised when Abby and Oliver burst into the greenhouse. Instead, he looked angry and shot Matilda a venomous glare. Matilda held his gaze, but Abby noticed that she too seemed to be expecting them.

  "What's going on?" Abby asked.

  "Apparently, Hannah lured Sebastian into the woods."

  Abby scowled, looking back and forth between the two witches.

  "What does that mean?" she snapped.

  "Lured? Is she trying to seduce him?" Oliver cocked an eyebrow.

  "No, she is not trying to seduce him," Matilda explained. "There is a place not far from here, it is called the dream wood. Only hybrids can enter. Hannah wants Sebastian to go in there because..."

  "Liam," Abby interrupted her. "She wanted him to find Liam."

  "How do you know about Liam?" Matilda asked, surprised.

  "Who's Liam?" Oliver asked.

  "He's Hannah's lover and he was a hybrid. He went into the forest a year ago and never returned," Julian answered.

  Abby closed her eyes and didn't breathe, just for a moment, just long enough for the panic to subside.

  "Is there something dangerous in the dream wood?" Abby whispered.

  "We don't know," Matilda admitted, not looking Abby in the eye. "A witch cannot enter the dream wood, only a hybrid. There is no way for us to know what happened to him."

  "Maybe he just walked through and out the other side, caught a ride going south," Oliver remarked. "This isn't exactly a coven for men, right? Where did he live?"

  "Who cares?" Abby shouted. "Where is the dream wood? Maybe we can stop them."

  "I will go," Matilda said. "I can go fast, it's not safe for you to run at such high speeds Abby."

  "Me too," Oliver added.

  "Yes, and I will also go," Julian concluded. "Abby, Helena is with Grace in the garden. Go to them. We will return the moment we have found them."

  Abby shook her head.

  "Not a chance. I've played helpless victim before. I can't go as fast, but I can still go. Tell me where I'm going."

  Matilda explained quickly and then she, Oliver, and Julian sprinted into the woods. They disappeared from her sight within seconds.

  The walk would have been beautiful if Abby didn't feel ready to strangle Hannah. She had sensed Hannah's interest in Sebastian-watched it with her own eyes, but had done nothing. She should have refused to let Sebastian out of her sight. Anger at Hannah felt better than the fear of losing Sebastian again. That thought, she did not entertain. He would be fine.

  Chapter 6

  "Are you real?" Sebastian asked Claire as they walked, side-by-side, through the sparkling ferns and trees.

  She looked real, but he had not touched her. He merely watched her from the corner of his eye. He saw the tiny mole next to her left eye. He noticed how she sucked on a bit of her straight brown hair if it brushed her mouth. Everything about her seemed real, but of course Claire had been dead for over two years.

  Claire cast her big blue eyes on him and smiled.

  "Do you remember Rumi?" Claire asked.

  "Of course," Sebastian said.

  Rumi was a thirteenth-century Sufi mystic who wrote about the divine. Their father used to read his translated poetry to their mother each night before bed.

  "Rumi said, 'This place is a dream, only a sleeper considers it real. Then death comes like dawn, and you wake up laughing at what you thought was your grief.'"

  Sebastian considered her quote. He did not remember their father ever reading that one. Did that make her real? That she had knowledge she did not possess during her lifetime?

  "What is this place?" Sebastian asked. "A dream, then?"

  "It's all a dream, Sebastian. Our life with mommy and daddy. Your life now with Abby-she's lovely, by the way. I too wish that I could hold Vidya when she is born. Maybe she'll be a hybrid and you can bring her here."

  Sebastian stopped.

  "Vidya?"

  "That will be her name, but don't worry, Abby will come to it on her own."

  Sebastian wanted to ask Claire a thousand questions, but he couldn't seem to do it. He feared that any moment she might vanish into thin air. He stared ahead at wide, limestone-covered steps, leading into one of the ancient structures. The first building loomed before them, a beautiful old church with a face of stained glass.

  "What is this place?"

  "What is not important, brother. This place is an experience of another world. If you keep analyzing it, you will never arrive. Let's look inside."

  They walked under a shadowy archway and into a vaulted room filled with splintered pews. Marble statues of saints lined the walls.

  Claire kneeled on the floor and pressed her forehead to the stone.

  Sebastian watched her, curious.

  He rubbed a hand across his brow and sighed.

  "I can't stay for long. Abby doesn't know I came at all."

  "Sshhh...."

  As Claire bowed on the floor, Sebastian walked to another archway that led out of the room. He followed a stone walkway that narrowed and moved higher. The floor next to the walkway fell away and soon he looked down on a river that flowed
through the building.

  "I miss swimming," Claire said, startling him.

  "You can't swim anymore?" he asked.

  "It's different," she admitted. "Sometimes it is like everything is swimming, but here, it's not safe to swim."

  "Not safe?" he asked, but she'd already continued along the stone pathway. Through the high, beautifully crafted windows, Sebastian could see more old-world buildings and then forest that seemed to stretch forever. He touched the stone walls and the glass of the windows. It all felt real. Nothing about the space around him seemed like an illusion, but how could it be real? He watched Claire's head bob as she walked as if moving to her own internal tune.

  They came upon a set of pathways that led in different directions. One crossed high over the river and continued to the other side of the building. Another forked into a set of dark stairways that disappeared around shadowy corners.

  "Where do they lead?"

  Claire gestured to a set of stairs leading down to the right.

  "To the future."

  She pointed left toward+ the path across the river.

  "To the past."

  She gestured straight ahead, along the path they followed.

  "Right now."

  Sebastian stared at the path to the right, the black stairwell.

  Had Claire not been his guide, he would likely have chosen the path to the past, but with her beside him, he turned toward the stairs.

  She put a hand on his arm.

  "Whatever is seen cannot be unseen."

  "Are you telling me that I'm going to see something bad?"

  She smiled a small crooked smile that revealed the tiny chip out of her left front tooth. She had broken it when she was eleven. She had been trying to catch a stray cat that she spotted behind a fast food restaurant. When the cat darted under a car, Claire tripped and hit her face on a concrete parking barrier. She had cried and bled, but refused to give-up on the cat. Eventually she coaxed him into a cardboard box, and only then did she allow her parents to take her to urgent care. She hadn't needed stitches, but she named the cat Stitches just the same.

  "I don't know what the future will show you. Maybe it will be beautiful, or perhaps terrifying."