Ghalien

by Jenna Elizabeth Johnson

  Yes, he responded, and then the connection was gone.

  Somehow, I managed to make it into Luathara, take a shower, and crawl into my bed. It wasn't yet dark outside, but considering the state I was in, I could sleep a week and still not feel fully rested. Gradually, I drifted off to sleep, hoping my mother wouldn't send me visions of death and suffering throughout the night.

  * * *

  I woke early the next morning having not dreamt at all, which was a small blessing, but the act of getting out of bed and putting on my clothes proved to be a nearly impossible challenge. The welts on my back from the Morrigan's abuse burned as if they were on fire and every bone and joint in my body ached. When I bothered to look at my reflection in the large mirror in my bathroom, I shuddered. It was far worse than it had been the morning before. Bruises and scrapes covered my face and torso, some of the cuts deep enough to leave scars. As much as I longed to have Meghan at my side, I was glad she couldn't see me now.

  Enorah is not going to like this, I mused as I limped my way down the stairs and out into the foggy morning surrounding Luathara. My sister would lecture me to no end when I arrived in her village in the Weald, but there was no helping that. I needed to heal, and I needed someone to make sure I didn't do anything stupid. Like run off to the mortal world to guard a young woman who had somehow worked her way into my heart . . .

  No more of that kind of thinking, my inner voice chastised. You need to regain your full strength and rebuild your glamour reserves. Then, you can go back to Meghan.

  I made it through the front gate without breaking a sweat, which I considered progress, and whistled for Speirling. The stallion came galloping over one of Luathara's many rises, his ears pricked forward and his gait casual. He stopped a few feet in front of me and tossed his head, his long black mane cascading down his back in a dark silken ribbon. I smiled, even though it hurt my face to do so, and rubbed his forehead.

  "I'll be staying with Enorah in the Weald for the next several weeks," I murmured. "Do you think you can manage on your own?"

  Speirling only whickered softly while he lipped at my shirt sleeve. I knew that if he grew lonely or had trouble finding food, he would return to Epona and her herd of wild horses until I returned. I hoped that he did. The queen of the horses would keep him safe, and he would be terribly lonely without me or Fergus to keep him company.

  With one last scratch behind the ears, I left Speirling and headed back to the castle. Climbing the stairs proved just as cumbersome as before, but it took me less time to reach the third floor than it had the previous night.

  At the end of the long hallway, I stepped through the broken stone and out onto the terrace behind the castle. The waterfall cascading down the steep hillside overwhelmed me with its mist, but I brushed aside its icy chill and headed for the second staircase that led into the caverns. Using touch alone, I located the dolmarehn that would take me to the foot of the Weald and stepped through. As the magic overcame me, I thought about Meghan, telling myself she was safe under Fergus's care and that soon I would see her familiar face once again.

  * * *

  Walking, in my opinion, was the best exercise to undergo while thinking, and as I entered the wild realm of the Weald, I let my mind wander into the place I'd been storing all those thoughts I'd been so careful to hide. Now that I had the ancient spell my sister had taught me, I didn't need to worry about the Morrigan catching any information regarding Meghan. Putting one foot in front of the other, I blocked out the residual pain of my latest ordeal with my mother and instead thought of the Faelorehn girl who lived in the mortal world. In all the thousands of years of my immortal life, never had I ever met anyone quiet like Meghan Elam. In all truthfulness, most of it had to do with the fact that she'd been raised entirely outside of our world, but the romantic in me liked to think there was more to it than that. After all, when your heart has been rejected time and time again by those you were willing to share it with, you either lost all hope or convinced yourself there was only one person meant for you. The real trick was finding her. Well, I had found her. The only problem was there were too many outside forces keeping us apart . . .

  Enough with the melancholic pining Cade, my conscience told me. Of course you'll never get a chance with Meghan if you keep that train of thought up.

  I huffed in frustration and stepped over a log, clenching my jaw as the movement rubbed the fabric of my shirt over one of the many welts on my back. At that moment, I wanted nothing more than to strip down and douse myself in the closest stream. The snow was still melting from the mountaintops to the northeast of the forest, and the water would be just the right temperature to ease my pain. Unfortunately, Enorah trained her scouts well and they wouldn't hesitate to shoot me if I started traipsing through the woods naked. Unless they mistook me for Cernunnos on one of his jaunts, but with my luck of late, I wasn't about to take any chances.

  A cool breeze rustled through the treetops above, reminding me that I shouldn't let my mind wander too far from its current surroundings. As well as I knew the Weald, and as experienced as I was in fighting faelah, there could still be danger around the next corner. I took a deep breath, breathing in the green scent of summer. The broad leaves of the beech trees above shaded the trail ahead of me, and the bright pinks, blues and yellows of the wild woodland flowers cheered my dismal mood, if only for the time being. As the miles slipped away, so did the pain of my wounds. By the time I reached the edge of the Wildren's village and caught sight of my big sister, I almost felt like myself again. That is, until Enorah's smile faltered and diminished completely.

  "Caedehn? Gods and goddesses of Eile, what happened to you?"

  I dropped my pack just in time for Enorah to wrap her arms around me. Too bad I didn't think to suppress my hiss of discomfort because she immediately pulled away.

  "What happened? How bad is it?"

  Her eyes darted over my face and then over the rest of me, searching for signs of impending death. All around us the wild children of the Weald had gathered, the youngest ones staring wide-eyed, the rest whispering quietly to one another.

  I glanced back at my sister. A line of worry marred her forehead and her eyes took on that ancient look they often did when she was deeply concerned about something. In this case, me, her mischievous little brother.

  "I'll gladly tell you, dear sister, but can we perhaps talk in a more private location?"

  It wasn't as if I suspected any of her wards of being spies, but there were some things I wanted to keep to myself, if only to save my pride a little.

  Enorah nodded once, then took my arm and led me toward the cabin I often stayed in while visiting the Weald. Once inside, she closed the door behind us and insisted that I sit on the bed.

  "You should probably lie down," she grumbled, sweeping imaginary dust off the coverlet with her hand.

  "I'm fine," I insisted as I rearranged the pillows so I could rest my back against the wall. My legs stretched across the width of the bed and my feet felt like deadweights against the floor.

  Enorah pulled up a wooden chair and placed it in front of me before sitting down. She leaned over, resting her elbows on her thighs, and gazed at me. One strand of her curly hair fell loose and I couldn't help but smile at her, my eyelids already drooping with fatigue. It annoyed me that I was so tired so early, but then again, the situation could be worse. At least the Morrigan hadn't blasted me with nasty thoughts all day.

  "Cade?"

  "What? Oh, that's right. You want to know why your brother looks like he got into a tavern fight with a bull. Very well." I sighed and ran my hands over my face and through my hair.

  Apparently, I didn't go into detail fast enough for her because in the next heartbeat Enorah blurted, "This was the Morrigan's doing, wasn't it?"

  I winced but nodded. No point in holding back the truth.

  Enorah cursed, then stood up and kicked her chair, then cursed some more before sitting back down again.

  "I hate tha
t woman," she snarled.

  "I brought it upon myself, Enorah," I murmured. The last thing I wanted my sister thinking was that this was in any way her fault. Of course, old habits were hard to break.

  "And how did you do that Cade?"

  Wonderful. I guess my brain cells had suffered more damage than I'd previous thought. I should have just remained silent. Now, I had to explain myself. To Enorah. Dodging her questions was about as easy as avoiding the ground once you've already jumped off a cliff.

  Feeling the best course of action was to lance the wound and get it over with, I took a deep breath and said, "I broke my geis."

  Enorah choked, then started coughing.

  "What?!" she managed as she caught her breath.

  "I deliberately disobeyed the Morrigan." Funny, admitting it didn't seem so bad anymore. In fact, it felt strangely liberating, as if I was finally free from something and not tied up in another tangled plot of my mother's.

  Enorah got up and paced the room for all of five seconds. Finally, she stopped behind her chair, planted her hands on the back of it, and demanded, "Tell me everything."

  She may have been my older sister, and she may have had the power to intimidate me into doing as she said, but there was no way I was mentioning Meghan. I wasn't ready to tell my sister about her, so I would have to just skim the surface and hope that was enough.

  I shrugged, clenching my teeth as the action irritated the welts on my back once again. Later I would have to dig around in my pack for the ointment I'd grabbed before leaving Luathara.

  "She wanted information on someone, someone she planned on using to build up her glamour. I refused to give in to her."

  There, that about summed it up. Yes, all of the details were left out, but details were only the extra adornments one could live without.

  Enorah crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow at me. "That can't be all there is to it."

  "No, it isn't, but if you think you are going to get me to speak of it now, it won't happen Enorah. You are my sister, and I love you and I know you love me, but you don't have to know absolutely everything that happens in my life."

  Perhaps my words were sharper than I'd meant them to be, because she actually stepped back and dropped that aggressive stance of hers. Hurt filtered into her grey-green eyes, tilting their color more toward brown.

  I closed my eyes and lifted my hand. "I'm sorry Enorah, I'm not angry at you for asking, it's just that I need some more time to go over the past few weeks before I'm ready to share everything."

  Enorah relaxed a little and nodded once. "I understand," she murmured.

  She turned and walked toward the door, yanking it open with less grace than she had used closing it earlier. Before stepping out into the forest, she turned her head and said, "I'll let you rest now, you obviously need it, but in the morning I hope you're more willing to tell me what happened. Maybe I can help you if I knew more."

  "Trust me, being here and seeing you is help enough."

  My smile was weak, but she tilted her head and gave a small nod. I was very much aware that my sister was still upset with me, though I think not as much as she had been a few minutes ago. I stretched out flat on the bed and fell asleep almost immediately. I don't even remember hearing the door snap shut as Enorah left me to my rest.

  Four

  Recovery

  I woke up several hours later, my heart racing in my chest and my body covered in a cold sweat. The dreams from the night before were still dancing around my head as I sat up in bed, shaking in both fear and fury. My mother's evil laughter echoed between my ears and I was sorely tempted to pound my head against the wall to make it stop. The only problem was, I didn't think it would help and would only make my headache worse.

  Grumbling and hissing at all the injuries acquired in the Morrigan's hall, I pulled on the shirt I wore yesterday. I couldn't remember taking it off, but I must have at some point in time. Grabbing my pack, I dug around for a fresh set of clothing, as well as the jar of ointment for the welts on my back. It was infused with the herbs from Luathara's tiny garden as well as some wild plant known to contain its own healing magic. Lavrin was a weed found around the edges of wooded areas, and although the entire plant could be used medicinally, its autumn blooming flowers contained the most healing power. Its smell could bring tears to your eyes, but it worked miracles when applied to a wound inflicted using glamour.

  Once I had all the supplies I'd need, I exited quietly from my cabin and headed for the creek near the edge of the village. To my great delight, the outside world was quiet and devoid of movement. A thick fog clung to the treetops and the deep, dark grey of early morning soothed my senses. It didn't take long to reach the stream and once there I stripped off the old shirt from yesterday. The chilly air lifted goose pimples on my skin and only made the injuries on my back warm and throb in protest. Puffing in a few breaths to get up my nerve, I crouched down and scooped up the ice cold water, splashing my face and wetting my hair. I was tempted to shout from the shock of the cold, but I didn't want to wake anybody, especially Enorah. If she saw the welts on my back . . .

  Shaking the droplets from my hair, I continued with my make-shift bath. Once I was convinced my back and torso were cleaner than they had been the day before, I unscrewed the lid of the ointment jar. The pungent scent of lavrin, infused with a sharp blend of lavender and bay, filled the air and made my eyes sting. I coughed once and then covered my mouth, hoping I hadn't made enough noise to stir the sleeping village.

  Administering the ointment was a little trickier, but fortunately, I was able to reach all of the lash marks. The process was slow and touching the wounds sent the magic flaring again, but it had to be done if I wanted them to heal. In order to distract myself from the pain, I let my mind wander into thoughts about Meghan. I wondered how she was doing in the mortal world. Was her leg healing well? Had the Morrigan sent more faelah after her? Did Fergus's presence ease her worries? Did she think about me as much as I thought about her?

  I paused for a moment and let my arms drop to my sides. I closed my eyes and turned my head toward the broken canopy of leaves and mist-clogged sky above and allowed myself to dream a little. I pictured Meghan beside me, dressed in that long shirt she'd worn the first night I ever spoke with her. The corner of my mouth curved up in a small smile, but I continued to relax as the imaginary Meghan took the jar of ointment from my hand and moved to kneel behind me. With soft, gentle hands she scooped up a glob of the lavrin and smoothed it over my back, caressing the wounds and murmuring soft concerns into my ear. A small rumble escaped my chest as I pictured her finishing the task and then scooting in closer, wrapping her arms over my shoulders and pressing her face into my neck, kissing away the bruises she found there . . .

  "Caedehn?"

  I nearly fell over into the creek as Enorah's voice shattered my fantasy.

  Somewhat flustered, I regained my balance and turned to face my sister. She stood some feet away from me, further up the bank of the creek, with a baffled look on her face.

  "What are you doing up this early? The sun hasn't even risen yet."

  Before I could answer her, she continued on, climbing down the slight slope. "I was making a perimeter check when I heard what I assumed were groans of pain." She eyed my half-naked form and grinned. "Now, I'm wondering if I should have just kept walking."

  A scowl worked its way onto my face. What a way to start the morning. At least it was too dark for Enorah to see my expression.

  I cleared my throat. "I had to apply ointment to my wounds. It can be painful, but it's necessary."

  "Ah," was all she said before moving in to get a better look.

  Enorah's gasp informed me that she was close enough to see the welts.

  "Oh Cade," she breathed, reaching out a hand. "Do you want me to tend to these?"

  Her fingers brushed one of the lash marks and I hissed, jerking away.

  "No," I barked, thinking about the daydream I'd had where someone el
se's hands had smoothed the ointment over my skin.

  Enorah recoiled, pulling her hand back as if she'd been burned. Immediately I regretted my reaction.

  "Sorry, Enorah," I mumbled as I reached for the clean shirt I'd brought along. "They still hurt pretty badly and I've already managed to apply the medicine myself."

  I pulled the shirt over my head, then turned and gave her a small smile. She looked wary, but eventually her uncertainty melted away.

  "So," she said with a sigh, "are you going to tell me what this is all about then? And why isn't Fergus with you?"

  With one hand, she gestured to my whole body. Meaning she wanted the full explanation.

  I sighed and stood up, an act that took far too much effort.

  "The Morrigan gave me a direct order and I refused to follow it. Like I said yesterday afternoon, she was looking for someone to drain them of their power and possibly enslave them, so I helped this person keep clear of the goddess's talons. Fergus is watching after them until the smoke clears."

  "Cade, you've helped people before and haven't broken your geis. You've defied the Morrigan and she has let it go. What makes this situation any different?"

  The young woman the Morrigan wants has a great wealth of powerful glamour that hasn't been released yet. And I've grown very attached to her.

  Of course, I didn't say any of that out loud. I was barely able to admit it to myself, let alone tell my sister.

  "I deliberately stepped in and stopped the Morrigan from ripping the magic from the victim. And I might have destroyed half of the faelah she had with her at the time."

  Enorah cursed, then crossed her arms and shook her head. After a few moments, she took a deep breath and looked up at me. "I can't say I'm angry with you. I might have done the same thing."

  I nodded, grateful Enorah seemed satisfied with my answer.

  "So, was this horrible beating the only punishment you suffered?"