Larkspur

by Christian, Claudia Hall

  “There are more,” Abi pointed.

  “Honey?” Rodney yelled.

  “On my way.” Honey took off toward the next person. Rodney grabbed Honey’s gallon of water and ran to catch up.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Friday night — 11:17 p.m. MST

  Denver, Colorado

  “Hey,” Bumpy said.

  Jill gasped and sat up. She looked around the room. Camille was standing near her head. Bumpy rubbed her back. Camille gave her a glass of water.

  “You’ve been given Pitocin to induce labor,” Bumpy said. “You’re too far along into labor for us to back out now.”

  “What happened?” Jill asked.

  “According to Jeraine, you were gassed by some men saying they were going to take the boys,” Bumpy said.

  “I know he’s your son and all,” Jill said. “But, Jeraine isn’t the best judge of what’s going on.”

  “I heard that,” Jeraine yelled from the waiting room.

  Bumpy chuckled and Jill smirked.

  “Where is everyone?” Jill asked. “My family. The kids. Mike. When I passed out, Mike was right there.”

  She gestured to her right.

  “They’re in the waiting room,” Camille said. “They were tied up and drugged. Tink and Jeraine are the only ones who were able to shake off the drugs. Everyone else is completely out.”

  “Practice has its privileges.” Jill smiled.

  “Damn straight,” Jeraine laughed from the waiting room.

  Jill laughed and grimaced with pain.

  “Dionne’s out there assessing them. A couple of them might need to go to the hospital,” Bumpy said. “Jeraine is helping her.”

  Jill nodded. Tink stuck her head into the room. Mack was sucking his thumb from his vantage point on Tink’s hip.

  “I’ve checked on the babies,” Tink said. “They seem scared, but all right. Jackie, Maggie, and Rachel need to eat. Do you think it’s safe for me to get some of the breast milk here?”

  “I wouldn’t risk it,” Bumpy said.

  “There’s breast milk in the refrigerator in the room at the end of the hallway,” Jill said. “It’s for Maggie and Jackie. We brought it when we came down. There’s enough for all of them. Do you know how to warm it?”

  Tink nodded. Jill smiled to encourage her, and the girl disappeared from the doorway.

  “Are the police here?” Jill asked.

  “Your father and his friends,” Bumpy said. “They wanted us to wait before calling the police.”

  “Why?” Jill asked.

  “They’re concerned that this looks too weird,” Bumpy said. “Don’t quote me. That’s just what I think.”

  “Do you know where Katy is?” Camille asked. “We haven’t been able to find her.”

  “What do you mean?” Jill asked. “She’s in the compartment in the wall.”

  Camille gave a slight shake of her head.

  “What do you mean?” Jill’s voice rose with panic.

  Her anxiety brought a wave of contractions. She gasped at the contractions and grabbed her belly. Camille coached her through deep breathing. For a moment, it was all Jill could do to keep from screaming. When the contractions eased, Jill looked at Bumpy.

  “Where’s my Katy?” Jill asked.

  “Jeraine remembered her going in there.” Bumpy pointed to the wall. “The fairies came to check on you and her. He said they looked into the cabinet and saw her. There was one who said Katy had a fairy with her to protect her.”

  “Maybe she’s there, and the fairy made her invisible,” Jill said.

  “We thought you should take a look,” Bumpy said. “Maybe she’s visible to you and not to us.”

  Bumpy helped Jill off the table. When her feet hit the floor, she crumpled. He caught her before she hit the ground. Camille came around to hold her up. They shuffled over to the compartment in the wall. Bumpy and Camille helped Jill kneel down to look in the compartment.

  The space was empty.

  “Katy-baby?” Jill felt a wave of overwhelming sadness. “Katherine Anjelika Roper-Marlowe, you show yourself this instant.”

  Nothing. A fat tear slid down Jill’s cheek.

  “Katy?” Jill asked.

  She put her hand in the upholstered bottom of the cabinet.

  “Still warm,” Jill said.

  “We think she was there until just a moment ago,” Bumpy said. “We heard a noise . . .”

  Bumpy looked at Camille.

  “We’ve been trying to wake you,” Camille said. “Then we heard a whoosh, or maybe a scrape, like ice from a windshield — you know, shkkratch.”

  Jill couldn’t take her hand off the spot where Katy had been. She saw crumbs. She swept them out of the compartment.

  “Brownies,” Jill said. “We made brownies last night.”

  She picked up a tiny piece of blue taffeta.

  “Hey Jeraine,” Jill yelled.

  “What?” Jeraine’s surly voice came from the other room. “I’m kind of busy here administering to your family.”

  “Were any of the fairies wearing blue taffeta?” Jill asked.

  “Baby-blue, sure,” Jeraine said. “There were these tiny fairies. They weren’t bigger than a dime.”

  “She has a fairy with her,” Jill said to herself.

  “That’s got to be good,” Bumpy said.

  Jill looked at him. Although his voice was reassuring and confident, his eyes betrayed his belief that Katy was in real trouble. Jill gave him a curt nod. She felt the boys move and put her hand to them.

  They told her that Katy was safe for now.

  For now.

  Jill swallowed hard.

  “There’s nothing we can do now,” Camille said. “Your father knows all of this. He can take care of it. Let’s get you back up on the table. We’ll have two healthy baby boys soon.”

  Jill nodded. She let Bumpy and Camille help her onto the table.

  “The dogs?” Jill asked.

  “They’re in with the babies,” Bumpy said.

  Scooter didn’t go with Katy. Jill bit her lip to keep from sobbing.

  “Hey.” Jeraine stood in the doorway. “Julie’s on the phone. She wants to see if we have Paddie. She put him to bed and now he’s missing.”

  Jill’s heart lifted as she recognized the truth.

  “Paddie’s with Katy,” Jill said.

  “Any idea where? They’re ready to call the army,” Jeraine said.

  “I don’t know where my baby is,” Jill shook her head.

  Camille helped her lie down.

  “I’ll call Seth and see if he knows anything,” Bumpy said. He left the room.

  “Come on,” Camille said. “Let’s pray for Katy.”

  Jill nodded. Even as her mouth moved with the words, her heart filled with despair. Her precious Katy was gone. She began to weep.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Jacob was fairly certain he’d never been as tired as he was at this moment. On any normal day, he would have made a joke about being tired, but today, Valerie had given him a lecture about “the pain and suffering of childbirth,” and how “this was the least he could do since Jill was having twins,” and “why did he have to be such a selfish bastard?” and . . . He wasn’t sure what else because he’d glanced at James. James was rolling his eyes at Valerie.

  Jacob grinned.

  “I think it’s up here.” Delphie pointed to a small hill.

  Jacob groaned. James fell in beside him.

  “Come on, super-hero,” James said. The more tired he became, the more of James’s Irish accent came out. He was beginning to sound like his brother, Cian, the baker. “What’s one more hill?”

  “Any idea what ‘raising Manannán’s army’ means?” Jacob asked.

  “Sure,” James said. “What’s he say?”

  James nodded toward Gilfand.

  “He just gave me a thoughtful look and said he’d get it done,” Jacob said. “Oh, and when did we need it?”

  “What d
id you say?” James asked.

  “As soon as we put the bones in place,” Jacob said. “If the goal is to reverse the curse, we need Manannán.”

  “And you’re sure the book says to raise Manannán’s army,” James said.

  “There are pictures of ghost-like figures on horses,” Jacob said.

  “More ghosts,” James said. “Lovely.”

  “My thought too,” Jacob said. “Any ideas?”

  “There’s an ancient burial site called Meayll Hill or Rullick-y-lagg-shliggagh,” James said.

  “Uh, what?” Jacob asked.

  “It literally means the graveyard of the valley of broken slates,” James said. “Dates back to 3500 BC. It’s near the very tip of the south end of the island. Just west of where we were at Balladoole.”

  “That’s got to be it,” Jacob said. “According to Seth, Manannán’s army is located just west and south of where we found the first bones.”

  “At the Viking ship?”

  “I guess the book predates the Viking ship,” Jacob said.

  “Interesting,” James said. “There’s supposed to be a ghost cavalry at Meayll Hill. I’ve never seen it.”

  “Gilfand?” Jacob asked the gargoyle flying near them. “Is that it?”

  “Yes,” Gilfand said. “It can only be raised under the right conditions.”

  “What are those?” Jacob asked.

  “I’m not actually sure,” Gilfand said. “Once we restore the queen, I believe the army will appear to the challenge of Celtic born. But I’m not sure. I will have to consult with Delphie about the images, and then with our librarian. I’m wondering if we have a copy of this book in our library.”

  “You have a library?” James asked.

  “Of course we have a library,” Gilfand said. “We’re not barbarians!”

  James looked at Jacob, who shrugged.

  “False alarm,” Delphie yelled up ahead. “But I think we’re on the right track.”

  They continued hiking up the hill for a while.

  “There’s a stone circle at Meayll Hill,” James said.

  “Like Stonehenge?” Jacob asked.

  “Very much like Stonehenge,” James said. “There are twelve burials in the stone circle. Most people say the army is protecting the people in the circle.”

  “I can assure you that it’s Manannán’s army,” Gilfand said.

  “How do you know?” Jacob asked.

  “I was there when they swore an oath to spend all eternity waiting and watching for his return,” Gilfand said, and flew off to where Brigid and Delphie were talking.

  “Who knew?” James asked. Jacob laughed.

  “Jacob!” Valerie yelled from up ahead. “Hurry up.”

  “Yes, do hurry up,” James said in a low tone. “Older sisters. They are so . . .”

  Jacob nodded and started to jog.

  Chapter Two Hundred and Sixty-eight

  White quartz

  “Where are we?” Paddie whispered.

  “I don’ know,” Katy whispered back.

  Paddie moved closer to Katy. They were standing in a very dark and cold place. Katy shivered as the wet cold penetrated her flannel just-like-Daddy pajamas.

  “Where’s the fairy?” Paddie asked. “The little blue one.”

  “I thought you were asleep,” Katy whispered.

  Paddie tipped his head down while his blue eyes looked up at her. She smiled.

  “Smells moldy here,” Paddie whispered.

  “Dead.” Katy wrinkled her nose. “There are dead things here.”

  Their surroundings became clearer as their eyes started to adjust to the deep black. They were in a kind of long tunnel carved out of rock. There was a stream of water running through the gutter carved into the middle of the path. They could make out semicircular arches cut into either side of the tunnel.

  Paddie looked at Katy and she nodded. They walked to the semicircular space nearest to them. They had to stand on their tiptoes to look inside the space.

  They were looking at a human skeleton. The skeleton was resting on a metal grate, and there were stacks of bones under the grate. Katy made a small sound and began to shiver. Paddie put his arm around her to comfort her.

  “Look.” Paddie pointed past the skeleton to the very back of the crypt. A dot of a tiny blue light shone.

  “Edie?” Katy’s whisper made the light shine brighter. The blue light flew at them.

  “Shh!” Edie waved her wand. Katy and Paddie flew up and over the skeleton to a small space in the back of the crypt. “Be very quiet. Someone’s coming.”

  Katy, Paddie, and Edie hunkered down behind the skeleton in the back of the tomb. Footsteps echoed along the tunnel.

  ~~~~~~~~

  Jacob caught up with Valerie, and they ran to catch up with Sam and Delphie. James came to his side. Gilfand and Brigid flew just ahead of them. They were making good progress through the forest.

  “We’re almost there,” Delphie said.

  “There’s nothing up there,” James said.

  Delphie gave him a patronizing smile and continued marching through the forest.

  “There’s a path,” Jacob said.

  He pointed to an ancient seam cut in the forest floor. Sam kneeled down to touch the footpath.

  “This is an old road,” Sam said. “Not as old as some of the places we’ve been, but old.”

  “Looks like Roman construction.” Jacob kneeled down next to his father. Experienced road builders, Jacob and Sam looked at the plane of the road and the set of the stones. “It’s well built.”

  “No wonder it’s lasted.” Sam nodded.

  “The Romans never landed on this island,” James said.

  “Any thoughts?” Sam looked up at Gilfand.

  “I’d say it was nearly two thousand human years ago,” Gilfand said. “A little less. Not Roman, but around the time of the Romans, maybe a little later.”

  “Where does that fit on the timeline?” Valerie asked. “Was this here when Queen Fand’s human remains were separated?”

  Gilfand paused for a moment before giving a thoughtful nod.

  “Just after,” Gilfand said.

  “After Christ’s death, not before.” Delphie nodded. “We’re looking for a church.”

  “I’ve been all over this tree plantation,” James said. “There’s no church here.”

  “Not now,” Delphie said. She turned in place and started along the footpath. “Come on! We’re almost there.”

  The footpath was not easy going. They had to slow their pace to manage the brush and the climb the hill. They stopped for a moment by a pool of water.

  “When she said church . . .” James started, as if to himself. He was looking at the tops of the trees. Valerie put her hand on his arm.

  “Yes?” Valerie asked.

  James glanced at her and then noticed everyone was looking at him. He blushed.

  “It may be nothing,” James said.

  “Tell us your nothing, and we’ll decide,” Gilfand ordered in an authoritative tone. James sneered at him.

  “It would mean a great deal to us if you would share your knowledge,” Valerie said. “Delphie seems sure, but Jake and I, we feel pretty lost. Anything you know might help.”

  James gave a slight nod and a shrug.

  “You’ve heard of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, right?” James asked.

  “He tortured and killed millions of healers, herbalists, and midwives,” Delphie sniffed. “It’s sanitized as ‘killing the snakes.’”

  “The druids identified themselves with snake tattoos on their arms,” James said.

  “There were never snakes on the island of Ireland,” Gilfand sniffed. “The entire story is absurd.”

  “Let him speak,” Brigid said. “He can help.”

  Gilfand looked at James’s mother, and she smiled. He gave a curt nod. Brigid smiled at James.

  “Most people believe that all those stories about Saint Patrick were really a
bout at least two different Patricks, quite possible more than that,” James continued. “One came to Ireland from Rome as a slave. One was born in Scotland. Those two we’re fairly certain about. All of the Patricks joined the church, either by force or by choice, and they became priests, monks, and at least one was a bishop of Ireland.”

  “It would make sense,” Delphie said. “People would refer to the church leader by one name, even if the person changed.”

  “Right,” James said. “The Patricks were chartered by Rome with breaking the back of the royalty of Ireland, destroying the druids, and taking control of the island from the people who lived there.”

  “Fairy-humankind,” Valerie said. “Queen Fand and Manannán’s descendants.”

  “I’d never thought of it, but yes,” James said.

  “Almost everyone on the island at that time was fairy-humankind,” Gilfand said.

  James looked off into the trees. They heard a noise and watched as a deer came up to the pond for a drink of water.

  “Why isn’t he afraid?” Valerie whispered.

  “Because we’re not really here,” Jacob said. “We’re here and not here. We’re out of sync with our time.”

  Gilfand nodded.

  “We should keep moving,” Sam said.

  They pushed themselves to their weary feet and started along the footpath.

  “Sorry, James, please go on,” Valerie said. “How do these Patricks have anything to do with the Isle of Man?”

  “An Irish prince ran afoul with one of the Patricks,” James said. “Legend says that he attempted to trick Patrick by asking him to heal a man who wasn’t ill. But in the North, we believe Patrick was like every other invader. He wanted to steal our land by destroying the aristocracy and killing the druids. He had the church and the church’s army at his disposal. And you know, that history is written by those who win wars.”

  James sniffed with anger.

  “Jimmy.” His mother gave him a soft smile, and he shrugged.

  “I’d tell you that we Kellys are pretty pissed about invaders to our land, but you know Cian,” James said.

  They chuckled.

  “What does Patrick have to do with the Isle of Man?” Valerie repeated.

  “Yes,” James nodded. “The prince’s name was Machaoi. The English call him Kirk Maughold. Patrick summarily dumped him into a skiff and pushed him into the Irish Sea. No water, no food, no oars. Somehow, he managed to survive the journey and wash up here.”