She’d been doing research of her own on the soulfire that sparked between two people when they were destined to be together. Soulfires were strong and easily recognizable in her faerie clan. The colorful evidence of each couple’s love and devotion was unique. Rich and vibrant, Breanna saw them all.
Before he’d guarded his emotions, when he believed she was too young to understand such things, she’d seen the soulfire between them. Her adult aura had deepened to a bright red, Gowthaman’s danced with gold. Yet the colorful connection with him, with her destined mate, had faded as she’d gotten older, not grown stronger. When they were together, she had often sensed her half of the fire reach out to him, only to be blocked and repelled. In those times, brief sorrow would flash in Gowthaman’s eyes or his sensual, full lips would tighten to a thin line. He deflected her love consciously.
She glanced at him when he paused to rebalance his stack of books. “Sure you don’t want me to carry some of those?”
“No. We are nearly to the doorway.”
“It might have been nice if Jayse would have positioned the portal a little closer to the door instead of at the end of the drive.”
He arched one eyebrow. “The distance should not trouble a young one as yourself.”
Bree gave an unladylike snort when he stepped forward. He had some hang up about the difference in their ages. She was fully adult now and knew her mind. As Faerie, once a child reached maturity, the aging process slowed to an almost imperceptible crawl. She was only half-fey, but with the amount of time she spent in the Faerie Otherworld, she had no reason to believe she would age any more rapidly than any other of the clan. She and Gowthaman would appear close to the same age all their long lives.
Long lives. Bree stifled a sigh. She would wait all that long life for him, for there had never been another who called to her soul. Someday he would realize the joy to be found in accepting the soulfire. And her. Someday. Soon, she begged silently. Soon, please.
The heavy front door opened as they neared the stone stoop and Jayse motioned them inside with a weary swipe of one hand. “Dea Annie’s in the workroom, but she’ll meet us in the kitchen. Hope you’re hungry. Coralie’s been baking up a storm today.”
Gowthaman nodded and moved down the wide hall toward the back of the house. Jayse touched Bree’s elbow and she paused, both of them watching Gowthaman’s tense back. “Do you think he’s discovered anything new?” Jayse asked.
“Yeah, I do. It’s amazing. I believe we’re on the right track this time.” She held the journal flat and placed her palm on the cover. “The information he’s culled from so many different sources, from so many different worlds... all in here. I think we’ll be able to make a concrete plan and take action. Get Morghan back.”
Palpable tension flowed from Jayse’s shoulders and he released a long breath. “I hope so, Bree. We’ve had so many disappointments over the years. I’m afraid we’re running out of energy to deal with much more.”
He frowned then turned and led the way to the huge kitchen. Breanna watched him sadly. In a clan filled with the joys of many children, Jayse and Lucidea never had any of their own. After numerous miscarriages, they’d been brave and blamed the incompatibility of their two fey races to form a child. But everyone had easily seen through the bravado to their pain. Fostering children, a combination of Faerie and Alfar-Sindhu helped... to a point.
So now Lucidea focused almost exclusively on finding a way to return her uncle either to this world or to the world of the Alfar-Sindhu. She’d only known of him for a week before the night he was taken, but she missed him fiercely nonetheless. Breanna understood her sadness and determination, and as leader of the Alastriona, she had the ability and tools to help.
Coralie welcomed them into the bright, light-filled kitchen with mugs of warm, spicy cider. Breanna smiled her thanks. Cider was Gowthaman’s favorite beverage. Bless Coralie for attempting to put him at ease.
After giving Coralie an appreciative nod, Gowthaman stacked his books neatly on the table and sat. He cupped the mug with both hands to tame the trembling and waited silently for the others. Breanna sat next to him and he was thankful for her presence and support.
When he’d explained his findings to her, she’d grasped the concepts easily, amazed at the complexity of occurrences needed to effect a rescue. When she’d added the discovery of an apparent sacrifice, he’d been able to fill in the missing pieces and add to his theory. She would be able to simply explain the theories that still hovered convoluted in his mind.
She slid his notes before him and casually touched his hand. The warmth of the brief contact filled him, spreading confidence in his knowledge through him. He may not be a warrior, and had no desire to fight, but this upcoming battle would need his skills as well. Before her hand escaped, he clasped her fingers and gave a gentle squeeze.
If he could hold her hand, her heart, her body for the rest of his life, perhaps he would never again feel the... No, the horror would always be with him. He had no right to subject her to his defects.
Reluctantly, he released her fingers, but she didn’t move her hand from under his. He chanced a sideways glance and she graced him with a small smile filled with understanding.
He looked down at their hands, her fair skin pale against his darker flesh. So different, yet so right. A brief flash of golden-red sparkles made him blink. His heart thudded a harsh rapid beat and he pushed back the flare of joy in his chest. The sign wasn’t what he thought it to be. Couldn’t be. He was unable to love her in that way. He glanced quickly again at Breanna’s face, but she watched the doorway where Lucidea stood talking quietly with Coralie.
Breanna hadn’t noticed the sparkling colors so his secret was safe for the time being. Before long they would be so immersed in Morghan’s rescue, there wouldn’t be time to contemplate the irony of imagined soulfire. Then he would return to the library, his solitary life, and his private pain.
Lucidea turned toward them with a hopeful grin. “So, you’ve found something?”
Gowthaman felt Breanna’s gaze turn to him so he moved his hand to his journal and nodded. “Yes. I believe I have found a final answer.”
When Jayse and the two women joined them at the table, a sudden rush of uncertainty kept Gowthaman silent. He fumbled with the edge of the journal and cleared his throat.
As if aware of his discomfort, Breanna spoke. “I should have copied down the drawing you made. The one of the worlds. That might make explaining some of your ideas easier.”
“Can you reproduce the drawing now?” Lucidea asked.
After a moment’s pause, Breanna shrugged. “It’s pretty simple, really. I don’t see why not.”
Lucidea left the kitchen and returned a moment later with a large sketch pad and a handful of pencils. Breanna nodded her thanks and quickly sketched a series of circles spaced around the page, pausing once or twice to remember exact placements. Angling a pencil, she shaded the areas between the circles with the side of the lead. Gowthaman nodded. She had done well.
When she looked at him for approval he smiled. “Would you explain your drawing first? Then I will discuss my other findings.”
Tapping the pencil against the pad, Breanna hoped she’d remember and pass on all the important facts. True, Gowthaman sat next to her and could fill in any gaps, but she wanted to prove herself to him, to show she listened and understood what he was passionate about.
“So,” she continued after she’d given the basic layout of her drawing. “This is how the worlds could look now. At least those we know of. I don’t suppose any of us really know how many worlds there are.”
Lucidea traced her finger over the main, largest circle. “An infinite number I’d say.”
“Sure, especially since there’s so many ways the worlds can connect.” Breanna drew a series of circles in one corner of the paper. “I mean, they might not just butt up against each other in long chains, though I’m sure that happens. They could overlap like this. Or if
I could draw in another dimension, maybe they’d stack one on top of the other. We know that since there has been some communication between the three, the worlds of the Alfar probably sit close to each other. And to the human world, like Faerie does.”
Bree glanced at Gowthaman who sat with his hands folded on the table. Though his head was bowed, she knew he listened intently, ready to add any information she missed in her telling.
“The most confusing thing is what part the world between worlds plays in all this. We don’t understand yet the full impact of one world on another. Are there simply doorways and portals, or are there more serious consequences of interactions between the different worlds? Or with the world between worlds. Or what might happen if the cushion of the world between worlds disappeared. From what Gowthaman told me, I’m thinking there could be extremely important implications in what we plan to do now.”
To turn the discussion over to him, she angled expectantly toward Gowthaman. The depth of information he continued to find in the far reaches of the library amazed her. Now, she was even more astounded he’d been able to put those scattered bits of knowledge into a coherent theory.
Without preamble, Gowthaman stated simply, “I believe there is a way to return Morghan to this world. However, the window of opportunity is very small. One night only, and in that one night, only at the height of the full moon.”
With a lackluster swipe of one hand Morghan destroyed the pyramid of monochromatic pebbles he’d spent minutes building. Concentration drew his mouth to a tight line. Or had it been days? He blinked and swiveled his head, gazing at the surrounding landscape.
The soft echoes of distant voices captured his attention and he strained to interpret the words hovering just beyond his hearing. Shrugging, he attempted to ignore the persistent sounds, but the almost-words called him to remember.
Covering his ears amplified the sounds, and unable to resist, he kept his palms flat against the sides of his head. Listening. Remembering.
He closed his eyes. How long had he been like this, his brain as dull and unremarkable as the landscape or the flat gray sky? For a moment, he cared. Then his hands slipped to his sides, falling limply, palms up in the dirt.
Nearer, the clear sound of laughter seemed to suck the gray from the air. When he opened his eyes, he found no colors to taunt him. Morghan tilted his head to one side. He remembered there could be laughter without the colors that danced through his hallucinations. He remembered.
Morghan shot to his feet and lifted his fists high over his head in celebration. He remembered.
He let his fists lower until they rested on the top of his head. What good was remembering when he was trapped and no longer able to even see those he’d left behind? Still, he turned toward the mumbling voices and took a step forward. A single voice separated from the others. The gray of his world lightened. He pressed one palm over the hard beat of his heart. Tattered shreds of the haze that had filled his mind disintegrated. After all this time, he still lived. He knew. He remembered.
Behind him, laughter rang from a high ridge. Morghan tensed at the dark, taunting sound then turned to face the shadowed form, tall against the gray sky. Dragging his nails over his chest he captured the cool fabric of his shirt and curled his fingers into a tight fist. The muscles in his jaw tightened and he narrowed his eyes to glare at the intruder.
Forced past tight lips, his breathing grew harsh. He took one step forward but stopped at a sudden, strange stillness. He could no longer hear the murmurs that had returned him to life. Struggling to keep the welling of despair at bay, he focused on the laughing figure of his enemy. He let anger settle in his chest and constructed a ragged wall of hate around his heart.
The call to battle, the driving need to protect, this too he remembered.
Five
Gowthaman completed his recitation, satisfied with the silent contemplation filling the expressions of those seated at the table. Confident he’d presented the facts and possibilities to the best of his capabilities, he slid his hands over the dry parchment of the last book he’d shown to support his theory. Absently he turned the page.
At Coralie’s startled gasp, he froze and shifted his gaze to the Alfar-Sindhu. With her eyes wide and staring at the book, she gnawed on her lower lip.
Wondering what had caught her attention, he slowly bent his head to peer at the partially turned page. A precise drawing covered half of the thick page. “Coralie?” he asked.
“I’ve seen that,” she said, pointing to the book. “In the palace library.”
Lucidea leaned closer trying to see the page so Gowthaman turned the volume so the others could see clearly. Jayse and Breanna rose to lean over the others for a closer look. Lucidea turned her face toward Jayse. “What do you think?”
Jayse frowned. “That looks like...” He straightened and left the kitchen. The others continued to study the drawing.
Coralie shook her head. “’Tis no’ quite the same, the figurine I remember. But similar enough there could be a meanin’ to it. See here?” She pointed to a flat circle suspended between three slender, curving and uplifted supports. “I remember this bein’ lower, held closer to the base. An’ this looks to be made of stone.”
Gowthaman reached for his journal, turned to an unused page and clicked the top of a fine-line pen. As he scratched a rough copy of the drawing with the black ink, he allowed himself a smile. Years ago Breanna had provided him with his first ‘gel’ pen and now he disliked capturing his thoughts with any other type of writing instrument. Even the smooth flow of a Faerie quill paled in comparison.
Next to the first sketch, he recreated the uplifting supports and base, but drew the circle at a lower position. He turned the journal toward Coralie. “Would it appear as this?”
At her nod, he turned the journal so he could study the two sketches. Possibilities, and probable connections shifted through his mind, but he struggled to focus and verify his thoughts. Breanna returned to her seat next to him and gave him a quick smile.
Jayse hurried into the room and set a small, abstract glass sculpture next to the open book. Coralie’s eyes widened further. “That be almost the same as well. Howe’re, the one I remember is metal. An’ look, here the dish be held high, at the very top of the supports.
Something about the odd art piece sparked her memory and Breanna spoke without thinking. “There’s one like it in Morghan’s bedroom in the palace, too.”
Eyes narrowed, Lucidea leaned over the table. “And you know this how? At my request, that room was sealed by the council until Morghan returns. I didn’t even allow myself in there.”
“Oh, I...” Breanna took a deep breath. Heat flamed her cheeks. She’d been caught. Glancing around the table didn’t help. Coralie’s normally calm face bore a scandalized expression. Jayse looked amused and Lucidea frustrated. Unable to read Gowthaman’s eyes since he’d immediately turned back to stare at his drawings, Breanna blew out the breath she’d been holding and started again.
“I, uh, did a little exploring when I turned old enough to be allowed to visit the palace.”
Coralie leaned back in her chair and fisted her hands at her hips. “Ye betrayed my trust and explored areas of the palace ye were forbidden to go?”
Breanna hadn’t had a dressing down in years, hadn’t deserved one since she’d stayed out too late on her seventeenth birthday. With a great effort she lifted her gaze to look Coralie in the eyes. “Only that bedroom and some connecting storage areas. I was almost caught in Morghan’s room by one of the guards. I wondered what he was doing there, but was really more concerned with not getting caught. I didn’t want to face your anger and disappointment. After that, I kept to the places where I knew I should be.”
Fighting to keep a frown on her face, Coralie nodded slowly. “I was told ye had been explorin’. I did no’ realize ye found milord Morghan’s private chambers.”
Feeling more and more like a child caught misbehaving, Breanna stared at the table, willi
ng herself not to pull her shoulders forward to make herself appear smaller. “I... I didn’t really know where I was. Or, I mean, whose rooms they were. I only stayed a few minutes. But, I do remember a sculpture on the stand across from the bed that I think looked like the one in the book. And I’m pretty sure it was made of stone.”
Jayse planted his palms on the table. “Anyone know of any more of these things?”
In the silence, he looked around before continuing. “Okay then. Let’s gather all three of these statues here and see if there is some relationship between them or if there’s a new clue to help us bring Morghan home. Coralie, would you swim to the palace and bring those two back for us?”
“Immediately.” Determination tinged with hope filled her eyes as Coralie rose then rushed toward the workroom. The faint sound of a splash carried back to the kitchen.
Lucidea sighed. “I’ll always wish I could do that so easily.” Then she rose and busied herself with gathering bread and vegetables for a salad. After another curious glance at the glass figurine, Jayse excused himself and left the kitchen, leaving Breanna and Gowthaman alone at the table.
While Gowthaman picked up the figurine to study it from each side, Bree watched Lucidea. There was something different about her, a slight physical change Breanna couldn’t quite distinguish. So, she let her vision blur, narrowed her eyes to a squint and released her magic. Lucidea’s distinctive color surrounded her without breaks or invasions. Then Bree traced the flow of the soulfire blessing Jayse and Lucidea. She let her eyes widen slightly. Something about the soulfire was a bit off, a bit disconcerting. Concentrating, she found the disturbance. A concentration of sparkles.
Smiling, Breanna joined Lucidea at the counter and started tearing lettuce leaves into a salad bowl. Even knowing Gowthaman was deep in concentration and wouldn’t hear their conversation anyway, she leaned close to Lucidea and lowered her voice. “Have you been to a doctor lately?”
Blue Keltic Moon (Children of the Keltic Triad) Page 4
