Tethered Souls

by Jessica McCrory

  “Come on Aine.” Isleen was still with her and pulled her into the cavern behind the waterfall.

  “Isleen, I know what happened to you.” She choked out. “I’m so sorry.”

  “It wasn’t your fault sister. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it.”

  She felt Isleen’s hand, she had assumed she must be hallucinating, but she was okay with it. After all, Caipre had trapped Isleen’s soul so she couldn’t have really been there.

  Abby closed her eyes when Isleen began to sing. She recognized it as a lullaby she used to sing to her when she had trouble sleeping. The pain began to fade and Abby slipped into sleep.

  He had to get away. He knew it was little of him, but his sister and Sheamus were breaking his heart more every day. With every touch of a hand to his shoulder, every reassuring glance from them he felt as if they were giving up hope. Moving on. How could they? Sheamus especially? His sister was still somewhere out there for all they knew and he was just trying to go on with life as if his own weren’t falling apart at the seams!

  Eamon nuzzled his arm and Aengus flung himself on the horse’s back. He would go for a ride, clear his head and look for signs that maybe Caipre had moved Abby. He had just made it to the edge of the woods when he saw her.

  Isleen stood face somber in front of him and then turned to run. He pushed Eamon into a run and chased after her.

  She was moving at an impossible speed, but Aengus would not give up. Eamon pushed on and they ran through the trees. Her presence could only mean one thing: Abby was near. Hope and fear fought for his mind and he silently prayed that he would get there in time.

  He burst through the clearing and Isleen stood at the edge of the pool. She looked towards the waterfall.

  “Hurry.” Was all she said and disappeared.

  He vaulted off Eamon’s back and ran as fast as he could to the entrance of the cavern.

  “Abby!” He dropped to her side. “Oh my God.” Her face was completely black and blue and there was blood trickling from her mouth. He felt for a pulse and was relieved when he found one, but he knew it wouldn’t be long before that faded. Her side was bleeding heavily and by the amount of blood on the floor of the cavern he knew she had lost too much.

  “Hang on my love.” He lifted her gently and ran to Eamon. The horse knelt to the ground for him and he climbed on with her.

  He kicked Eamon into a full run and they raced through the trees.

  Myria and Sheamus were outside the house waiting for him when they burst into the clearing. Isleen must have been here too, he thought to himself.

  “Where was she?” Myria rushed to his side and gasped when she saw her. “Get her inside!” She yelled and the three of them rushed into the house.

  They laid her on the couch not wanting to waste the time carrying her up the stairs.

  Aengus knelt by her and watched as Myria put a hand to her head and closed her eyes.

  She muttered a few words and Abby’s labored breathing calmed. “Sheamus, get my bag please.” He returned moments later and she pulled out a jar with some powder in it. She sprinkled it over Abby’s wound while chanting and the bleeding stopped. She took a deep breath and looked at her brother.

  “Let's get her upstairs. She needs to be comfortable and I have some work to do.”

  Aengus carried her gently upstairs and they pulled the dagger from her hands. Myria jumped back and gasped. “So that’s how.”

  “What Myria?” Aengus asked her frantically.

  She bent and retrieved the dagger from the ground, the red gemstones glinted in the light. “She has the Dagger of Souls.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  A week passed and Abby still had not opened her eyes. Aengus stayed by her bedside constantly, only leaving when absolutely necessary and never for very long. Myria had taken over caring for the horses and she and Sheamus had alternated in bringing food up for him.

  Everyday Myria would chant over Abby and everyday Aengus believed would be the day she would wake up, but she hadn’t yet. Myria had assured him that she would, that she had been asleep so long because her wounds had been extensive. On top of the stab wound, she had also suffered cracked ribs, a collapsed lung and some internal bleeding.

  How had she escaped? He wondered. They hadn’t seen Isleen since that night and his sister confirmed that they had seen her too. She believed it had been because Abby had carried the Dagger of Souls with her. That she must have inadvertently freed Isleen.

  Shortly after he had brought Abby back, he had torn himself away from her and gone with Sheamus to look for signs of Molly. Aengus winced at the memory. He would never forget how she looked when they had found her. They had found a shallow grave near the clearing where Aine had originally been killed. She had been dead for what looked to be a few weeks and Sheamus had fallen to her side in tears.

  His own heart broke. He hadn’t known Molly long, but he had known she had a gentle heart. No one deserved to die that way and to be left as if she were nothing more than trash. He felt the anger in his chest and did his best to push it back. There would be plenty of time for vengeance he had told Sheamus, he knew Caipre wasn’t dead yet since he couldn’t die until after the anniversary, but he would make sure the bastard suffered immensely for what he had done.

  They had buried her next to Isleen’s grave. Sheamus didn’t leave the grave for two days and he had been stuck to Myria’s side ever since he had come back. Determined not to let anything happen to the only light left in his life.

  Aengus looked down at Abby’s bruised face. He knew the feeling. Caipre would never get his hands on her again. Myria had shown him the marks that had been carved into Abby’s back. They looked like tallies and had made Aengus sick to his stomach. How much pain had his love suffered those two weeks? How much horror had she seen?

  He blamed himself for it all. He should have never let her outside the night of the fire. He should have somehow kept her inside, locked the door maybe.

  “You wouldn’t have been able to protect her.” His head whipped around at the sound of Isleen. She stood in the corner of the room ad looked just as she had the night before she was killed when he had seen her and Aine playing.

  She walked towards him and touched Abby’s face. “She has always been so beautiful, my sister.”

  “Yes, she is.”

  “She is different now, though, stronger.”

  He looked at her now and watched the expressions of her face. “Yes.”

  “Abby.” She said her name and smiled. “I like that name.”

  “I do too.” He smiled back at her. “Thank you Isleen, had it not been for you, we wouldn’t have found her in time.”

  She nodded at him and looked back down at Abby. “She freed me, I’m not sure how, but she did. It had been so dark where he kept me.” She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself. He saw her for what she was then, an innocent child. “Caipre’s daughter is dead.” Her face grew serious for a moment and he saw the anger in her eyes. “Abby killed her. I’m glad she’s dead. I know that’s not proper, but she was evil and I’m glad she’s dead.” She repeated.

  He smiled at her, she was so much like her sister. “It is not a bad thing to be glad she is dead Isleen, I am.” She beamed at him and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. He was surprised when it lowered a little with her added weight.

  “It's strange isn’t it?” She smiled. “I am still getting used to it as well. It’s as if I’m here, but I know that I’m not. Not really anyways.”

  Myria and Sheamus came in and Myria smiled widely at Isleen.

  “It is so good to see you again Isleen.”

  “Hi, Myria.” Isleen beamed at her. She had always been fascinated with Myria and her magic, wanting to watch whenever she would practice away from Caipre. The little girl had always been afraid of him. “Sheamus, Molly asked me to tell you something.”

  He stared at Isleen and Aengus saw the tears in his eyes.

  “She wa
s with me for a while. But when Abby freed us, she left. I couldn’t leave, though, I wasn’t able to go with her so she asked me to tell you that she loved you.” The tears began to stream down his face. “She told me to tell you not to forget who you are and not to let the anger make you blind to all that you have.” The control he had broke when she repeated the words he had said to Abby not that long ago back at him. Molly had first told him that after their father had died. He had begun to lose faith and she had fought to bring it back to him. He fell to his knees and cried. Myria wrapped her arms around him and held him.

  It was another week before Abby opened her eyes. She saw that Aengus was asleep next to her and she rolled onto her side to look at him. Isleen had been right, he was alive and he had found her. Her eyes filled and she touched his face. How had he found her?

  He opened his eyes and held her stare for a moment as if he weren’t sure what he was seeing. “Abby!” He shot out of bed and she laughed. “What do you need? Myria!” He yelled down the stairs and then rushed back to her side.

  “Aengus, I thought you were dead.” Emotions swarmed her as he cradled her face.

  “Abby I feared the worst when we couldn’t find you. I swear I searched for you everywhere. Myria couldn’t even sense you. It was as if you had disappeared.” She sat up and he rearranged the pillows so that she could lean against them.

  “Caipre had found some way to hide us inside a mountain. I’m not sure where.”

  He was silent for a moment. They had been so close to her and not even known it!

  “I know where, Sheamus tracked you to a mountain, but couldn’t find any trace of you passed there. I should have known.”

  “How could you have Aengus? We were literally inside. He had found a cavern and somehow managed to hide the entrance. You couldn’t even leave or enter it without saying a spell. I had to wait until Annie came back before I could...” She thought back to what she had done. Remembered the way the blood had felt as it ran over her hand. “Aengus I killed her.”

  “I know you did.”

  “But how?”

  “Isleen told us.”

  “Isleen.” She said her name and the events of that night came back to her. “Isleen! She helped me get to the waterfall, but how was she there? Caipre had her trapped!”

  “You released me.” Isleen appeared in the doorway just before Myria and Sheamus came in.

  “Isleen.” Her heart ached to hug the young girl. “I have missed you.”

  “I have missed you too Abby.”

  “You called me Abby.” Surprised Abby tried to scoot over so Isleen could sit next to her on the bed.

  “It's your name now isn’t it?” She smiled and kissed her sister's forehead.

  “How are you here? I’m so glad you are, but how?” She looked at Myria who stood smiling absently in the doorway.

  “The closest I can figure is that since she had been trapped when I cast the spell and the dagger had been in Caipre’s possession, that I inadvertently trapped her here as well. We will see after the handfasting whether that is the case or not, but I suspect Isleen will be hanging around until then.”

  “That is wonderful!” She exclaimed and then looked at Sheamus. She saw the pain in his eyes, the light that had always been in them was dimmed slightly.

  Her heart fell and she knew she had to tell him. “Sheamus I have to tell you...”

  “I know Abby. We found her.”

  “I’m so sorry.” Tears filled her eyes again, “I thought I could keep her safe, but when I got there she was already...” she couldn’t finish the sentence and Aengus pulled her into his arms.

  Sheamus moved closer to the bed. “Abby it’s not your fault.”

  “It wasn’t her the night of the fire.” Abby needed them to know it hadn’t been her who betrayed them. She wasn’t even sure if they knew that she had, but they needed to know who it truly had been.

  “We know,” Myria spoke up and stepped next to Sheamus. “Caipre had cloaked Annie to appear as Molly. She must have been sent to draw you out and when she couldn’t get you alone, she set the fire.”

  Abby nodded and looked back at Aengus. “I remember the first time I ever saw you. We had just arrived at your parent's house. My mother was to be a maid and my father went to work as a stable hand. You were playing at the edge of the woods and when you saw me, you stopped and waved.” She looked at him and saw the memory reflected in his eyes. “I was so afraid to be somewhere new and with that simple gesture you had made me feel welcome.”

  Myria and Sheamus stood gaping at her. Aengus smiled and pressed his lips to hers. “Welcome, home Abby.”

  Later that evening Myria had insisted Aengus leave Abby’s room for a while so they could bathe her. While he had generously offered and Abby accepted, Myria had shooed him away telling him that she still needed to recover.

  Abby told her of her time with Caipre. Things she hadn’t been able to tell Aengus. She told her of the beatings and why she had the marks in her back. Myria had told her they had suspected that they were some form of a tally system, but she was horrified to learn that they had been right.

  She had been furious to learn how they had tried to use Molly after she had already been dead. As if killing her wasn’t enough. The air had snapped around her and for a moment Abby had been afraid to say anything else. But Myria had gained control over her anger and pulled her power back.

  Abby told her of her escape and how she had tricked him once her memories had returned.

  “That was brilliant Abby.”

  “After Isleen had told me Aengus was alive, I just knew I needed to get to him. Back to all of you.”

  “That was a brilliant plan, and it worked. You don’t need to feel guilty about it.”

  She looked at Myria. She hadn’t realized that she had felt guilty about it, but in truth, she did. She felt as if she had betrayed Aengus by leading Caipre on.

  “You should tell him to ease your own guilt, but he won't be mad at you.”

  “Are you living inside my head?”

  “So it seems.” Myria laughed.

  “Will the rest of my memories return?”

  “They should if there are holes then it may be that those are going to be the more difficult ones and your brain is trying to block them out.”

  “That makes sense.” She couldn’t remember meeting Caipre for the first time and seeing as how that turned out she knew why her mind was blocking it.

  Isleen was beginning to gain control over her new corporeal abilities and handed Myria a towel so she could help Abby dry off.

  Myria helped Abby back into bed and went to let Aengus know they were done. When she opened the door, she nearly tripped over his legs.

  “Oh goodness Aengus, seriously?” She laughed at him and Abby grinned.

  He had been sitting out there waiting for her to be done. It made her so happy, how sweet he was.

  He moved out of the way and Isleen followed Myria into the hall.

  “Feel better?” He asked as he closed the door behind him.

  “Much, it's amazing what some warm water and soap can do.” Her skin was red from the bath, she had asked Myria to make it as hot as she could without inflicting any permanent damage. She still didn’t feel clean enough.

  “Aengus I need to talk to you.”

  “What’s wrong?” He sat next to her on the bed and she looked away.

  “The reason I was able to get away from him was because...” she paused for a moment and looked into his eyes. She wanted to see his face when she told him. “I pretended that since my memories had returned, that I knew all that he had done for me and that because of that I was in love with him. He kissed me.” Just the thought made her nauseous.

  She watched his face and was surprised when he leaned forward and gently placed his lips on hers.

  “Abby, I don’t care what you had to do to get away from him, I will never be mad at you for anything like that. I appreciate you being honest with me bu
t I am just so glad you are home.”

  He laid his forehead against hers and she felt as if her heart may burst with happiness.

  “Aengus, I love you so much. I’ve loved you ever since I was a little girl and I swear I will love you until the day I die.”

  “Let's make that a long time from now.” He smiled and kissed her again.

  She felt the heat begin to warm in her blood and she wrapped her arms around him to deepen the kiss. He trailed lazy fingers down her face and onto her chest and then wound his arms behind her.

  He gently laid her back and covered her body with his.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Caipre stood at the edge of the trees staring at the house. How dare she trick him this way! He had come in expecting to find her ready for him and instead he finds his daughter dead on the floor! True, he hadn’t cared much for her incessant whining, but she had still been his and he had grown accustomed to having her around. Now she was gone, stolen from him. He grimaced into the dark. How dare she kill his Annie.

  He held his hand up and a ball of flame appeared. He held it for a moment, thought about throwing it at the house, the thought of watching it explode excited him. But he knew that would be too easy of a death for them, and with the witch’s ridiculous curse over him, he would be drug down with them.

  No, it was better to wait, better to make them suffer, they would all suffer. His traitorous Aine would pay the highest price, though. He would force her to watch as everyone around her was destroyed and then he would have her, willing or not for the rest of her life, however long he deemed that would be.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Another month passed and it seemed as if everything was getting back to normal. Well as normal as it could be seeing as how two of them were two hundred years old, she had been reborn and the ghost of her little sister from her previous life was popping in and out every now and then. She smiled to herself as she watched Aengus through the window.