“Your mother was angry because she didn’t want to be part of our secret cohort, but she wanted to have children. She moved to the other side of the country and married someone she thought didn’t have the genes. Your father is mostly Hispanic, correct?”
“Yeah he is, but my mom is Hispanic too. I guess they have some other genetics in there. I mean I have some Irish way back in my genes from both sides of my family, but everyone has a mix.” Danny gestured to the stereotypically Irish freckles on her dark skin.
“That’s part of what makes this so complicated. The human race is so mixed; anyone could have the genes not just people who identify as Irish or Scottish. I think your mother felt your father would be less likely to carry the genes or she may have just wanted to remove you from the Celtic part of your heritage.”
“It doesn’t matter. The Tuatha De Danann aren’t real. Mom’s just being weird.”
“The Tuatha De Danann are a myth. However, there is a grain of reality, in every myth. Sometimes evidence of a human condition is the only fact, but sometimes there was a person or event from which the fairytale stems. The Tuatha De Danann did exist as a humanoid race. My family prefers the term Genetic Fey or just GF, because we are humans who carry some genes from the Danann. The actual Danann race is long extinct.”
“I’m confused.”
“Do you follow scientific discoveries in the media?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, perhaps you’ve heard of the various groups of humanoid skeletons they’ve found all over the world?” Eadowen returned his attention to the kettle. “There is evidence that there were once multiple species of humanoids on the planet, but the other species died off. My family knows relatively little about the GFs, but fortunately, no one without GF ancestors knows about them—at the moment. I fear that may soon change, with people like Dr. Crane so adamantly looking at genomes. She must have noticed some consistency in the DNA of those who lived for a long period of time, because it appears she suddenly started targeting people of Celtic heritage.”
“Dr. Crane wants to find my DNA?”
“Based on the journal of a Roman officer, it was possible to interbreed with a group of humans who had unusual traits—traits that came perhaps from ancient interbreeding between two species of humanoids, namely human ancestors and the Tuatha De Danann. Your traits and some people in my family are similar to those described by the solider.”
“So even at the time of the Roman officer the Danann race was already extinct, but certain people were their hybrid ancestors?” Danny clarified.
“Exactly. Would you like some tea?”
“No, thanks.”
He poured a mug of hot water and put a sheet of rolls in the oven. “Would you pass me the tin of tea and the honey jar behind you?”
“What were the unusual traits?”
“A long lifespan, based on genealogy records my family kept. There may be other inherited traits, but it is difficult to tell with the few of us that exist. There’s a distinct possibility that more of the genes that code for olfactory receptors are turned on in us.”
“Humans sure missed out on the smell sense,” Danny said eyeing the honey as Eadowen stirred some into his tea. He took a bowl and spoon from a rack by the sink and gave both to her. She unscrewed the top on the jar, poured the honey into the bowl, and started to eat it. “Thanks.”
“If I have a longer lifespan, does that mean my development is slower? I thought I was mostly done with puberty,” Danny groaned.
“From what I’ve seen of my family you probably developed a little bit slower, but not very much. Our organs just don’t seem to degrade as quickly as other people. Unfortunately, that doesn’t protect us from diseases induced by both viral and genetic mechanisms. Do you see why Dr. Crane getting a hold of your genes is a problem?”
“They would want to study me to find out how my body does things differently?” Danny asked. “Wouldn’t that be good?”
“Well yes, but …”
“Oh wait, a longer life span might not be good for the human race,” Danny interrupted. “We could have even more over-population problems.”
“Not to mention it might ruin your life.” Eadowen stroked his chin with the back of his fingertips as though it surprised him to be talked over.
“How?”
“Conflict of interest, my dear. The corporations that fund these types of research are in it for money. Unfortunately, there aren’t many of us. If we are discovered and try to have some control over what happens to the discoveries, it would be easy to make us disappear. Once our DNA is stored, our lives aren’t very important and if a family member tries to claim rights to the DNA, they have revealed themselves as also being a GF.”
In nervous contemplation, Danny tugged at her ponytail, which came undone releasing long wavy hair down her shoulders. “Someone would actually murder for the rights to DNA?” she wondered aloud.
His face somber, Eadowen stared at the floor. “It happened to my mother … she managed to get away … but …” He rubbed his eyes, then continued with a rasp in his voice. “She died of her injuries. A friend had her body cremated.” With fingertips wetted from tears, he stroked the ends of her hair. “I don’t want the same to happen to you or anyone else.”
From her perch on the counter, Danny reached down and laid her hand on the soft wool of his sweater vest that covered his shoulder. “I’m so sorry to hear that,” she heard herself say.
“I’ll be alright,” he assured her. They sat together in silence for a few minutes until the oven chimed. Eadowen took the rolls out of the oven and set them on a vacant counter space. Resting his arms on the counter next to her, he looked up at her affectionately with eyes still rimmed in red from crying. Danny enjoyed the aroma of the bread mixing with his scent. “How did you find me?”
“Edana, I need to apologize. I horribly invaded your privacy. I promise you that I never looked up your Me-Site. Your home address, in Victoria, is in my family’s contact list. When I started to hear about this research project, I got in touch with your mother, which is how I learned about your visit. You can probably guess she told me to stay away from you. I blatantly disregarded that request.” Eadowen regarded her, his whole body stiff, as if he expected her to punch him.
“Well, I do feel uncomfortable knowing that, but for now I’m going to …” Danny searched for the right words.
“All I ask is that you give me the benefit of the doubt. If I betray your trust, do as you see fit.”
“I can do that,” Danny replied as the oven beeped. “The person who came to my house last night said something about how I should try not to get sick or something.”
“Just take good care of yourself. You seem strong, I’m sure you’ll be fine,” Eadowen said hastily. “Dinner’s ready. We can talk about it later.”
***
“You’re not half bad,” Taban said as Cassidy raced them around the virtual track. “Donovan, she’s givin’ you a run for your money!”
“Uh huh,” Donovan agreed in monotone.
“You know Cassidy, Donovan has a crush on the guitarist from that one band you like.”
“But the guitarist is a guy—”
“I’m gay,” Donovan said coldly.
“Sorry,” she mumbled to Donovan. Scolding herself for making assumptions Cassidy wondered, Am I really that desperate for someone to have the possibity to be attracted to me? Must be Spring Break that’s got me feeling like this ... Still playing the video game, Taban tilted his whole body to make his car round a particularly sharp turn. Though it started when he showed up.
“‘I’m gay’—two words, really stretching yourself there, Donovan,” Taban laughed.
“Three. A contraction.” Donovan cut off the car Taban controlled sending it into a spin.
With her attention diverted from the game, Cassidy realized Danny was no longer standing behind her.
“Where’s Danny?”
“Probably went off with Ea,�
� Taban explained. “She might be in the dining room.”
“Dining room? Oh no!” She imagined her friend destroying delicate table decorations. Ashamed that she had forgotten Danny, she made her way down the hall, until she heard voices from the kitchen. Peeking around the doorway, she saw Danny sitting calmly on the counter, kicking her feet. Danny listened intently to something Eadowen said, but Cassidy could not hear him over the running water as he filled a kettle. She returned to the living room and sat on the sofa next to Taban. They continued to play the game until Eadowen called them to dinner. When Donovan stood, he dwarfed Taban who Cassidy estimated to stand six feet tall without his platforms. He looks like he has trouble fitting through doors, she thought, noticing his no longer hunched shoulders. In both directions.
“He’s six feet ten inches.” Taban responded to her unstated question. “Can you believe he’s sixteen … or seventeen?” Taban checked his Ogham. “He turns seventeen in a couple weeks, but still.”
CHAPTER 6
OF RITUALS & PERFORMANCES
CASSIDY PASSED A TABLE only large enough to accommodate a vase containing a single stalk of orange foxglove. Beneath one of the tapering table legs, she observed a piece of particularly frayed rug. The table seemed to be placed specifically to conceal the tattered fibers worn away by repetitive use.
“Entre ici,” Taban bowed in front of an archway in mock formality.
A chandelier with seven crystals hung from the vaulted ceiling. The soft light illuminated the ivory tablecloth covering the oval table in the center of the dining room, but the apex of the ceiling remained shadowed. Between two silver candelabras, ripe pomegranates lay on a bed of apple blossoms. A silver plate with two forks on the right and a spoon and a knife on the left comprised each place setting. From a tray in his lap, Eadowen handed Danny glasses cut to refract light into an aria of color. Danny filled each glass with sparkling water. Donovan transferred the salad bowl, noodle container, and bread basket from a wheeled trolley onto the table. Behind Donovan, Cassidy noticed a harp next to a double casement window framed by violet curtains.
“Would you like to take a seat?” The tips of Taban’s fingers touched the small of her back to encourage her to move out of the doorway.
“Sit next to me.” Danny pointed to a spot between her and Donovan. The water she poured spilled over the edge of the goblet. “Oops, sorry!”
“Just water,” Donovan replied.
While Donovan mopped up the spill with his cloth napkin, Taban sat on the other side of him. There was another place setting between Taban and Donovan, but the chair for that place was in the corner of the dining room, as though its master rarely joined the table.
Eadowen gave Donovan a separate plate of noodles. “Please, help yourselves.”
“He’s allergic to nuts,” Taban clarified. “Which is kinda funny when you think about it.”
Donovan turned toward Taban. Even though Cassidy could only see the back of Donovan’s head, a chill went up her spine. I never want to be on the receiving end of his death glare, she decided.
Eadowen lifted himself into the seat between Taban and Danny and pushed his wheelchair behind him to the wall. “I wish Aydan would join us.”
Taban opened the window. “He’ll smell the food.”
“I don’t usually like to interrupt him, but we have such wonderful company. How are you doing, Cassidy? I trust Taban and Donovan behaved.”
A spicy aroma wafted from the large helping of noodles Cassidy had just served herself. “I had fun.” She bowed her head to give thanks. Everyone stared at her except for Eadowen, who placed his hands together to show he understood.
Cassidy reached for a bread roll.
“Don’t take one yet,” Taban said. “Unless you want to do dishes later.” Cassidy stopped, fearing she had done something impolite. Donovan took a bread roll and passed the basket to Taban, who also took a bread roll and set another at the empty place. He handed the basket to Eadowen, who unfolded the white cloth in the basket revealing several more bread rolls.
“Now you can have anything you like.” Eadowen gave the basket to Danny, who took three. Taban turned the crisp roll in his hands and smiled at Donovan, who flipped his over on his plate with a fork and sighed. Cassidy craned her neck and noticed a round burned spot on the otherwise flawlessly baked crust. “Whoever gets the black mark does the dishes,” Eadowen explained. “If we kept a schedule, everyone would avoid their day, but this way it’s random.”
“How appropriate that it’s based on a ritual to determine a sacrifice,” Taban commented.
“Is this your house?” Danny asked.
“My brothers and I inherited this house. This house and almost everything in it is generations old.”
Cassidy reached for her goblet, but stopped when she realized it might be a family heirloom. “Don’t worry about breaking anything—Aydan dropped everything on this table when he was learning a tablecloth trick,” Taban assured her.
“This is lovely, thank you,”Cassidy said.
“You’re welcome.” A light thump came from the open window behind Taban. A small person perched on the sill, his face shadowed by long black locks.
“Won’t you join us, Aydan?” Eadowen beckoned to the figure. “These are our guests Cassidy and Edana, who prefers Danny.”
Aydan alighted on the floor. A black velvet coat concealed his body, just as his hair hid his eyes. A thin hand whipped out of his coat and pulled out the last chair available between Eadowen and Taban. The candlelight shone on an intricate silver broach fastened under his pointed chin. Still standing, Aydan snatched up the serving plate of noodles and dumped the entire entree onto his plate.
“Manners, Aydan!” Eadowen ordered just as Taban slurped a noodle.
“Oh, and you want me to take lessons from him?” Aydan asked, pointing at Taban.
“Please take a seat,” Eadowen said.
Aydan disregarded his sibling’s request and consumed several bites of pasta. Sweeping his hip-length hair behind his head, he secured it loosely with the salad fork. Heavy stage makeup highlighted his cheek bones and emphasized his wide mouth. The silver and black eyeliner, applied to the edges of his lids, gave his narrow eyes a cat-like appearance. Nodding to recognize the guests, he shrugged off his coat revealing a black garment Cassidy decided was a cross between a short dress and a tunic. He took a deck of cards out of his thigh-high boots, set it on the table, and flopped into his chair.
Well, no more empty places, Cassidy thought. That means the gang’s all here. The new arrival made her uneasy. Before, if anything weird happened, she and Danny were close to evenly matched. She felt guilty for not including Eadowen, but his movements were limited enough that she didn’t consider him a physical threat and Danny had been present while the drinks were prepared. The way Donovan wolfed his food suggested to her that he was more focused on returning to his video game than anything else. She glanced at Taban—he gave her a sincere smile—he was so easy to trust.
“Good evening,” Aydan said in a husky counter-tenor. “I just got back from doing a magic show.” The firelight reflected in his ebony eyes, as he scrutinized Danny. “You’re the one who didn’t know you were a GF?”
Recognizing his voice from the night before, Danny stared back at him, her cheeks stuffed like a chipmunk. “Maybe.” She swallowed the lump of pasta. “I’m not sure I believe it.”
“I understand this is confusing. I hope you will return tomorrow night. We’ll do what we can to prove it to you.” Eadowen said.
Cassidy shifted in her seat; she wasn’t sure she how she felt about returning tomorrow night. She wanted to see Taban once more before she and Danny had to leave, but she still found the concept of the mythical Tuatha De Danann hard to grasp, and what was all this about being a GF?
Aydan picked up a pomegranate. He made a small slice with his knife and ripped it open, spraying red juice over a startled Taban. Danny, feeling threatened by Aydan, decided to show off. She
shoved her fingers into the top of another pomegranate and tore it in half without the aid of cutlery. Cassidy guarded herself with a napkin.
“Edana, you’re so powerful.” Eadowen clapped delightedly and turned to his left. “Aydan, that’s barbaric, clean it up.” Eadowen sipped his drink, ignoring the almost identical irritated and incredulous expressions with which Taban and Aydan regarded him.
This interaction eased Cassidy enough to ask, “Where do you put your Oghams?”
“Everything is recorded by Oghams and tablets, both communication and location. No one is supposed to be able to access Ogham company records, but a good hacker would have no problem getting to them. That’s why we don’t talk about GFs in our Oghams and we have an apartment near the university where we store them and receive all of our mail,” Taban explained. “It’s a good place to do homework.”
Danny heard Aydan mutter in a low voice, “By homework, he means women.” His lips pursed in satisfaction when he realized she alone could hear him. A fan of playing cards in front of Aydan’s plate replaced sustenance. His attention focused on a single playing card that he flicked back and forth from one hand to the other.
Eadowen let his hand rest on Taban’s. “Ready for dessert?”
“Definitely!” Danny shouted.
“Me too. By the way, who plays that harp?”
“I attempt to play the clàrsach,” Eadowen answered as he repositioned himself in his wheel chair. “I’ll play for you, if you like.”
“Should I sing?” Taban asked, following Eadowen into the hallway.
The shadows cast by the candlelight seemed to close in around the table once Taban and Eadowen left the room. A breeze caused the shadows to dance around the room. The fluttering card Aydan tossed, added a heartbeat of sound to the otherwise silent table. Cassidy tried to keep her eyes fixed on the moving card, but she shivered each time she felt a shadow slide past her.
Seducer Fey Page 6
