Changeling: An Appalachian Magic Novel Book 2 (Appalachian Magic Series)

by Debbie Herbert

  “We’ve been watching ye all night. When the sluagh captured Kheelan, we were able to set some of their very own brethren against them as a distraction.”

  Skye remembered the second swarm of sluaghs coming to battle, the loud screeching, fallen feathers and blood from the sky.

  “That was you?”

  “Not just me.” Annwynn said with false modesty. “I had a large role in it of course, but it was the Seelie fairies working together that started the fight. In their bloodlust, the sluaghs forgot all about Kheelan. As the beast loosened his talons to attack another, Kheelan fell.”

  Skye lifted a hand to her chest in fear.

  “Not to worry. I caught him myself before he hit ground.”

  Kheelan was safe. The adrenaline of fear and worry lifted and exhaustion took its place. Skye went to the sofa to rest her wobbly knees. She sunk her head in her hands and took long, shuddering breaths.

  “Say, now that we know the changeling’s okay, how about loosening me bonds?” Finvorra pleaded.

  Skye’s head snapped up. “No—”

  “Certainly not,” Annwynn said with a regal lift of her chin.

  A beat of silence and then, “please,” came a very un-Finvorranish croak.

  “Yer fate is not mine to decide. If it were up to me, ye would spend the next century as a toad.”

  Finvorra gave up the meek approach and bellowed. “Unhand me forthwith, ye dunderheaded, crabbitty ole—”

  “Silence.” Annwynn clapped her hands three times and two fairies floated through the front door.

  Skye put a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Probably not a good idea to insult the Fae. Even if they looked like the leprechauns on a box of Lucky Charms cereal.

  “Ye summoned?” asked one of them.

  “Escort Finvorra to Queen Corrigan.”

  “Ach, with pleasure.” They both smirked and rubbed their tiny, green hands.

  “But . . .” Skye said. She hesitated. These fairies were so small Finvorra would make fairy dust of them the minute he was out of Annwynn’s sight. She tried to think of a way to say it without bruising their pride.

  Annwynn turned where the new arrivals couldn’t see her face and blinked one violet eye at Skye. “There are no better fairies than these two for the task. Allow me to introduce Hefeydd and Ealdun.”

  “I be Hefeydd,” said one, his comical smile endearing.

  “And I be Ealdun,” said the other. “Kheelan’s friends from when he be jest a little tyke.”

  Skye couldn’t tell one green face from the other.

  Hefeydd puffed out a stumpy chest. “Annwynn trusts us like no other. We be the strongest green caps in the realm.”

  Finvorra snorted. “Strong me bahooky,” he muttered.

  “There be ladies present,” said Ealdun, frowning in disapproval.

  “Be along with ye now.” Annwynn made a whooshing motion with her hands. “Skye and I must prepare for the crystal ceremony tonight.”

  “The one I’m supposed to activate for your Seelie Court?” Skye’s heart stammered as the enormity of the task sank in. What if she couldn’t do it? She might be as much a failure at being a fairy as she was at being a witch. After all, she was only, as Claribel put it, a half-breed kind of thing.

  Stop it. She had escaped from Claribel, called on strengths she didn’t know were there. She could do it again.

  Annwynn gave a sly smile, as if she read Skye’s thoughts. “It must take place before midnight this eve. If not, the opportunity will have been lost to us forever. We cannot allow that to happen.”

  Despite the self-pep talk, the fairy’s words made her scalp prickle in alarm. If she didn’t come through . . . it could be very bad for her and Kheelan. Fatal even.

  “By yer leave,” said one of the little fairies, doffing a pointy green hat in their direction. His twin did the same. “Don’t ye worry.”

  Annwynn lifted her wand and the block of ice at Finvorra’s feet melted to a puddle on the hardwood floor.

  Skye watched, amazed, as Finvorra meekly submitted to the creatures and left without a parting shot. “He’ll run for it as soon as he’s out of your sight.”

  Annwynn’s laugh tinkled like a delicate crystal chime. “I discreetly zapped Finvorra with a teeny obedience spell. He’ll give them no trouble.”

  “So, you don’t entirely trust the strength and cleverness of your guards.”

  “The male of any species has their precious pride, ye ken.”

  “Yeah, I ken.”

  They exchanged understanding smiles.

  “And now it be time to prepare ye for yer evening’s work.”

  Skye’s smile slipped. “First, prove to me Kheelan is really okay.

  I won’t agree to help until I see he’s safe.”

  “Suspicious aren’t ye?” Annwynn cocked her head to the side, considering. As if coming to a decision, she nodded and pulled out a glass vial from the pocket of her gown and dabbed her fingertips with the contents. “Close yer eyes.”

  Skye shut them and Annwyn touched each lid with a frosty finger. Her lids tingled and warmed while the darkness behind them transformed to a vision of Kheelan, standing alone under a tall tree. “He is alive,” she gasped. “He’s really alive.”

  “Now back to business. Open yer eyes.” Annwynn placed ice-cold hands on Skye’s shoulders and guided her to a mirror hanging above the fireplace. “Behold yer reflection. I can’t have The One arrive at the celestial crystal ceremony looking a fright.”

  Skye winced. Talk about a bad hair day. And her clothes were tattered and smeared with dirt, cobwebs and sluagh blood. Her makeup-less face was pale, the freckles popping out like globs of cinnamon sprinkles. Her two-day old wings drooped unevenly and were badly singed along the edges. “I could use a good clean-up,” she conceded.

  Annwynn ran cool fingers through the red and purple tangles of Skye’s hair. “First, I’ll take care of yer wounds and then we’ll do a makeover, fairy style.”

  “Promise you won’t make me look anything like Claribel.”

  “More like Adorabelle. And afterwards ye shall have a nice supper and rest to get yer strength back for tonight.”

  Skye went into the first bathroom and screwed up her face in disgust. Clumps of what appeared to be shaved toe hair lay in heaps on the floor like dead rats. Even worse, the stench of alcohol and vomit made it hard to breathe.

  “Wrong room.” Annwynn pointed her wand to a door at the end of the hall. Relieved, Skye entered the sparse but mercifully clean bathroom.

  And enjoyed the most aromatic, relaxing bath of her life. The steamy bathroom was a jumble of floral and herbal scents. She savored their notes like a gourmet meal. Annwynn brought in homemade concoctions for soap, shampoo and conditioner that were out-of-this-world amazing. She had never felt so clean and pampered.

  Only the lure of food made Skye leave the warm haven. Annwynn brought her one of Kheelan’s t-shirts and she laid it against her cheek, inhaling his lingering male scent, comforted by the contact. Annwyn pointed out his bedroom and Skye entered the stark room that was scrupulously clean, but as bland and impersonal as a motel room. She grabbed a blanket off his bed, a pair of wool socks, and padded into the kitchen where a place had already been set for her at the table.

  “What’s this?” she asked, picking up a spoon and stirring the bowl. It seemed forever since her last real meal. She was about to dig in when she remembered a warning from Kheelan. Never eat or drink anything from the fairies, if you do, it could be a trap. You might never return home.

  “It’s chili Kheelan made last night. Lots of cayenne powder, garlic and onions.” Annwynn shot her a sideways glance. “No fairy magic.”

  Fairy voodoo or no, Skye ate. If this was a trick or a test, she was doomed. Like Esau selling his birthright to Jacob for a pot of beef stew.

  The spoon clattered to the floor and Skye jerked up.

  “Ye kenna keep yer eyes open,” said Annwynn. “Ye need a rest.
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  Come lay in Kheelan’s bed. I’ll rub ye with a little something to help yer wounds.”

  Skye obediently followed Annwynn to Kheelan’s room and stretched out on his bed, enjoying the cocoon of comfort from his sheets and pillows. In no time, Annwynn had rubbed ointment on her wounds and left her alone.

  Sleepily, she took in more details of Kheelan’s room. No photographs hung on the wall, no personal effects of any kind adorned his dresser. Only a small wooden box on the bed’s nightstand provided any decoration. Curious, Skye opened the box.

  A goldstone sparkled against a lining of black velvet. The goldstone she had given him the first night they’d kissed.

  Skye smiled as she palmed the crystal. So Kheelan had kept it by his bedside ever since that night. Had stored it in a fancy box as if it were as precious as a diamond. It meant something special to him. She meant something to him.

  Skye lay back down on the bed, clutching the goldstone in one hand. Eyes closed, she pictured Kheelan’s face with its sharp angles and serious eyes. She wouldn’t think of the last time she saw him, in the clutches of the sluagh. Instead, Skye remembered the tender smile as he placed the iron medallion around her neck.

  She snuggled deeper into his scent, where his body had so recently lain.

  She was in heaven.

  21

  Burnt Peat

  “Awaken, fair one. It is time.”

  Skye shivered at the prodding of cold hands on her neck and shoulders. “Whaaat?” She rubbed her eyes, straining to see in the darkness. She couldn’t remember where she was, why she was lying in a strange bed in an unfamiliar room.

  “We must be on our way.”

  Annwynn flipped on a light and Skye blinked. “I’ve slept all day? Don’t tell me it’s night again.”

  “The Seelie Court awaits ye.” Annwynn lifted a hanger from the foot of the bed. On it hung a shimmering sapphire-blue fairy gown.

  “For me?” Skye ran delighted hands over its sparkly surface. It was full length, long-sleeved, and had a slit seam in the back for her wings. Annwynn help her into it and Skye rushed to the mirror.

  She hardly recognized herself – she looked more fairy than human. Her purple and red hair cascaded in glowing ringlets and the new gown gave a pearl luster to her complexion. Even her wings had undergone a transformation. They were larger, and the blue and purple diamond pattern more pronounced and vivid. No signs of Claribel’s abuse remained.

  “Where’s Kheelan? Wait ‘til he sees me in this get-up.”

  “We’ll meet him along the way.”

  Skye frowned. “He really is okay, isn’t he?”

  “Fit as a fiddle. Merely resting and anxious to see ye.”

  Not as anxious as me. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”

  Being alone with Annwynn was slightly unnerving. The sooner this was over, the better. Kheelan shouldn’t have to wait a minute more to gain his independence and get on with his life. For the first time, Skye wondered what he would do. Would he move? Try to meet his family? She had forgotten to tell him he had a sister, Katie, and to arrange a meeting between him and Kyle.

  I might never see him again after tonight. That scared her more than facing a fairy queen and her court. No, Kheelan wouldn’t just leave. He cared about her.

  “So how do we get to your Queen?” she asked. “Is it far from here?”

  “Not far in fairy time.”

  Annwynn was being deliberately vague. Oh, well. They loved their secrets. To be fair, they had to be secretive against human invasion.

  Annwynn pulled out a white faux fur stole from the closet. “Human skin is more sensitive than ours so ye might need this. Follow me outside.”

  They crossed the yard, by the orange full moon light, until they

  reached the border of a cotton field and a thick pine grove. Annwynn stopped by a small mound of earth, no larger than a baseball’s base plate and no taller than her ankles. If alone, Skye would have thought the mound of dirt one of the many widespread fire ant dwellings that plagued the South.

  “Give me yer hands.”

  Mystified, Skye clasped the fairy’s hand – ice and fire united at Samhain.

  Annwynn sang in a crystal bell note voice:

  Samhain is the summer’s end

  Winter’s darkness enters in

  When witches, fairies and the dead

  Dance together and may be led

  To frolic in the land of Faery

  For one night only may they tarry

  This Halfling to our land may come

  As we will, may it be done.

  The ground swallowed Skye, casting her into a tunneled maze of complete darkness. Up, down, right, then a sharp left. As if she were riding an underground rollercoaster—blindfolded.

  Alice through the rabbit hole. She clung to Annwynn’s hands, afraid if she let go she would free fall to the center of the earth, never returning to sunlight. Gradations of gray began emerging, the blackness fading. Skye moved so fast only impressions swept through her mind:

  bonfires scattered in fields and forests

  masked faces

  flying broomstick silhouettes

  the scent of burnt peat and roasted hazelnuts children howling in delighted fear wisps of smoke from chimneys bells ringing from a church a fast-moving river of blood. “Almost there,” said Annwynn.

  But Skye already knew. She smelled that licorice tang of star anise mixed with absinthe. Time slowed its pace as her mind caught up with sensation. Only Annwynn’s hold kept Skye from pitching forward when her feet hit solid ground again.

  Steady now, she raised her eyes for the first glimpse of Faery.

  22

  Tangled Forest

  An explosion of color and energy smashed into Skye. Her eyes drank in the large orb of celestial crystal a good foot taller than herself and wide and round as a giant sphere. It was like being plunked in front of a galaxy of dancing particles of pixilated sparkles.

  Aqua lights ranging from the palest robin’s egg blue to teal radiated variegated prisms of light. Brilliant as the sun, but comforting to gaze at instead of painful. Skye stepped forward, lifting a hand, compelled to get closer and touch the light. Some soft sound, meant only for her ears, made her turn to Annwynn who gave the barest of nods. Skye looked into a sea of fairy eyes, glowing like multicolored gems, searching until she found a pair of serious brown, human eyes.

  She moved toward Kheelan, those brown eyes more compelling than the crystal.

  Two male fairies blocked her path. Skye stopped, confused.

  Icy hands touched her elbows on both sides, guiding her through the crowd and away from Kheelan. The Fae parted and she saw their Queen, seated on an enormous pearl throne.

  “Welcome, Skye. We’ve been waiting for ye a long, long time.” Queen Corrigan arose and Skye stared in awe. At least seven feet tall, she towered over her court. Her hair was thigh-long and silver, the color of moonbeams on water.

  Too late, she wished she had asked Annwynn for a crash course in proper fairy court etiquette. Should she curtsy? No, she would feel ridiculous. She settled for a respectful half-bow.

  A high-pitched tittering rippled, not unlike the basement’s buzzing noises. Skye raised her head, cheeks flaming. How rude.

  “Excuse me.” Kheelan was suddenly by her side. “I would like a moment to speak with Skye. In private.”

  Queen Corrigan’s nostrils delicately twitched, as if detecting a slight stench. “Out of the way mortal one, we have important business here tonight. The Dark Fae may arrive any second.”

  She motioned to the two male fairies that had earlier blocked Skye. Before the guards could remove Kheelan, Annwynn stood before the Queen.

  “A moment, Yer Highness. Kheelan has been invaluable in finding The One. As yer loyal supporter, I request ye let him speak with Skye.”

  Irritation flashed in the Queen’s eyes, but she nodded. “Ye have two minutes, changeling.”

  Kheelan led her behind the tree
line of tangled, ancient oaks not far from the curious fairies. Once alone he grabbed both her arms, his eyes hot and burning. “Listen carefully, Skye,” he whispered urgently. “The Queen will ask ‘who brings you to touch the Fae’s sacred relic.’”

  “And I will tell her you did,” Skye assured him.

  “No! Tell her you brought yourself and demand a boon before you touch it.”

  “Okay. Then I’ll tell her my boon is your freedom.”

  “Skye, no. This is another trick. Annwynn warned me. They don’t intend to ever let you leave their Realm. You know too much to ever go back. If you want to stay with them, fine. Annwynn says you could live among them as their hero.”

  Skye couldn’t stop the little burst of delight in her chest. She had never been anyone’s hero. She looked around at the indescribable beauty, imagined what it would be like to live among them. Flying, learning their secrets, meeting her father’s family.

  “Maybe that’s true, maybe not.”

  Kheelan’s words broke the reverie. Look at what they had done to Kheelan, how they mocked him for his humanness.

  She was half-human. The Fae might not totally accept her either, despite helping them in their battle. “I don’t want to stay with them. I can’t trust them either. Besides, I can’t imagine never seeing my family again, never seeing . . . you.”

  “Then for your boon, ask to return home. It’s your only chance to escape.”

  “But what about you?” Skye’s eyes drifted to the tattoo on his hand.

  He shook her, forced her to face him. “Save yourself.”

  “No, Kheelan. I won’t—”

  He dropped his hands and stepped back. “I’ll find another way to be free one day.”

  Footsteps approached. “Yer time is up. Come at once,” said one of the Queen’s guards.

  A shadow passed overhead and the guard looked up anxiously.

  “Hurry, the Dark Fae have found our sanctuary.”

  Skye started forward to follow the guard, then turned. Kheelan was backing into the darkness of the fairy forest. “Stay with us, by the crystal,” she said. “If the sluagh capture you again there may be no second chance for anything.”