Yath perched behind them on a small flat area behind the booth. His thin arms curled around his knees and his intelligent eyes beamed with delight. Occasionally, he leaned forward to study the map with the others. Eve sighed. At least someone was enjoying the mess they found their selves in.
They made a motley crew for sure. Each man was different from the other in a myriad of ways. Yet, Eve could feel their strength radiate from them as a whole. They were soldiers and men, but they were also brothers of battle. They may not share the same blood, except for Jaryn and Daryn, but their bond was no less than family. Each man placed his life in the hands of the others when they stepped onto the killing field. Each man would kill or be killed to save one and another.
She felt like an interloper, a piece to a puzzle that didn’t quite fit. She knew Caleb and Vandel did not favor her, Jaryn and Daryn were too kind not to show her mercy, and Heron would treat her with the same aloofness as he did anyone. She knew Yath already adored her as she did him. The other’s opinions did not matter. Eldon’s approval was the only one she wanted. He was hot and cold with her. When she was wounded, Eldon was kind and gentle. He teased her unpleasantly when she was unsure. He turned distant when she had no idea what she did to deserve it.
With Eve’s approach, a hush fell over the booth. Fourteen pairs of eyes turned on her. She couldn’t read their expressions. She felt as if they were playing a game of poker and she was the outsider coming to lay down her hand. The boys shared blood, sweat, tears, victory, loss, joy, and pain with each other. She was their charge.
They all stood to greet her in gentlemanly fashion but the tension was like a fog hovering between her and them. Only Eldon and Yath seemed genuinely pleased to see her. Yath jumped off the ledge where he was perched and fetched an extra chair. Eldon insisted Vandel give up his seat so that Eve could better see the map and hear them out.
As she took her seat, Faya and Elsie entered the diner. The women bustled over to the table and took the seats offered to them by Jaryn and Daryn. Faya eyed Heron closely but Elsie patted one thick forearm that lay across his broad chest and smiled. To Eve’s surprise, Heron smiled back. The old witch could really do magic if she could get the statue of Heron to crack it’s harden façade.
Eve felt the chill of her earlier thoughts about the thing in the forest leak out of her as she sat in the large group. She found warmth again while smashed among bodies, surrounded by voices, and feeling very well protected. She would not willing separate herself from them before she reached Trig Na nOg. Her safety and security resided within their rank and numbers. The piercing need to be near them was a reminder of her youth and inexperience in the fairy world.
Eve felt almost normal again, sitting in the diner beneath the neon lights. Something about the sparkling counter tops and the sound of Chuck Berry comforted her. The atmosphere was close to hanging out with her friends at one of the fast food places in Upper World, if she ignored the warrior’s armor and Yath’s deep plum skin.
The group made their introductions and exchanged greetings. Vandel eyed Faya carefully and she all but spit in his face. Miraculously, they managed to hold their boiling tempers. Bibesia brought frosty mugs of dark ale for the men and dainty, long stemmed crystal glasses filled with sweet red wine for the women. Once everyone settled down and the pleasantries were over, Eldon declared the discussion must begin.
14
Ten faces peered down at the map on the table. Twenty hands jabbed and pointed at various positions. The new situation compromised the journey to Trig Na nOg. What had begun as a simple plan became an elaborate strategy to avoid darkness at all cost. If it hadn’t been for the trouble in Abnoba’s woods, they would have been in Trig Na nOg by then.
Eldon growled in frustration and everyone went silent. All eyes turned to their leader and waited. Eve couldn’t help but notice the tightness around his mouth and the muscle straining in his clenched jaw. He kept rubbing his hands together and an occasional shiver overtook him. The cold was still in him, perhaps even more than in her. The stress of the situation only weakened his defenses more.
She wondered if the others noticed it too and if they chose not to acknowledge it. She didn’t think Eldon was the type of person who would appreciate sympathy. Especially, if they all knew she was the cause. He had breathed the frost from her heart, risking his own life to save her. Thus far, the only way she had repaid him was to thrust her wounded self on him unfairly. She wanted to regret the kiss but a part of her cherished it too much.
After the group quieted down, Eldon spoke in a low murmur, forcing them to lean closer to hear. Using a red crayon, typically used for coloring the kids’ menu, he drew an X and said, “We are here.”
Picking up a blue crayon, he found a spot across the map and drew a blue circle, “This is Trig Na nOg. We need to find a way to travel as quickly as possible from here to there. Normally, this would not be a problem but with our special guest in tow and our more recent attack, I think it is best if we travel only in daylight territories. We rest and travel at times when we can miss the twilight.”
Caleb piped up first. “The Ki’Lin are held up outside of town. They found a sacred grove protected by an Elfin Bard where no one will be able to bother them. They have agreed to accompany us all the way to Trig Na nOg on the condition we not enter Terelith or Abnoba’s woods.”
Eldon nodded. He already knew the information but it needed repeating for the benefit of the others. Taking a black crayon, he drew out a border around the two territories on the map.
Jaryn leaned forward and placed one thick finger onto the map. “This is Dreg, it is a night landscape. So we won’t be going there.”
Daryn pointed to another spot. “Windflaw is a night landscape as well, boyo.”
Eldon drew borders in black for each territory. He selected a yellow crayon and drew out more borders. “Haven, Fidel, Zeal, York, and Pelham are all daylight territories.”
Over the course of thirty minutes, everyone except for Eve and Heron chimed in. It seemed an equal amount of day and night landscapes existed between Trig Na nOg and Shawd. The discussion became how to get from point A to point B without entering the dark territories.
Eldon drew a line with a green crayon from Shawd to Haven, northwest to Fidel, and then farther West to Zeal. “This is as far as we can travel without entering a night landscape.”
The distances from each daylight landscape seemed insanely far, Eve had to take into consideration that they were traveling by magic through gates and not by any human means. Three dark territories separated Zeal from Lil, the only light landscape other than Abnoba’s forest that joined with Trig Na nOg.
She studied the map intensely when a thought occurred to her. Eve didn’t think before she spoke and by the time her question was out of her mouth, she was sure it had been stupid. After all, they were experienced soldiers. If the answer to their problem were simple, they surely would have already been well on their way. Nonetheless, the words were already out, “Why don’t we go to Upper World and take a gate to the daylight landscape nearest Trig Na nOg.”
Everyone looked at her suddenly as if she had sprouted horns or turned fluorescent green. The silence held on like the last cold winds before spring finally arrives. Eve squirmed in her seat. She scooted herself down a little and folded her arms across her chest in a defensive posture. She wanted to yell at them to stop looking at her but she couldn’t seem to open her mouth.
At last, Elsie came to her rescue. “The little chit is right and wrong. Not everyone can go to Upper World. Six Daoine warriors, a purple child, eight unicorns, a human, and a witch would be troublesome. Yet, there is nothing to say a few of you couldn’t escort Faire Eve to the surface and back again.”
Silence fell again. They all seemed to be mulling over the possibilities and the problems. Some of them seemed to agree but kept their mouths shut while they waited for Eldon to speak. He scowled down at the tabletop as if it had called his mother a filthy name.
The fact that no one would step up until Eldon did became painfully obvious.
Eldon finally spoke. “No. She is no safer in Upper World than she is here. The Astaroth demons had no problem attacking us in the middle of the busiest damn place in all of Upper World. I do not want to risk anyone’s life, especially an unsuspecting human’s.”
Elsie suddenly seemed much younger as her eyes blazed. “The Upper World holds to the basics of all worlds. What cannot bear the sun here could not bear the sun there.”
She gave no other argument and did not attempt to persuade Eldon. She simply stated the barest of facts in the simplest manner, which in itself was a point he could not contradict.
Had Caleb possessed Elsie’s intelligence, he may have let the idea settle for a moment before he spoke or he may not have spoken at all. Unfortunately, Caleb’s brashness and his underlying sense of disdain for Eve, overruled.
With a shrug, the soldier gave Eve a snide look and said, “It’s her world, El. She belongs there. How much trouble could she manage to get into on a short trip there and back? Surely, she could drop the damsel in distress act long enough to manage.”
Eldon exploded. Not physically but the pent up stress, the sickness from the cold, and his own frustrations bubbled out of him in a hot anger. His voice was so loud it rattled the glass windows and sent Yath hopping down from his perch in a hurry.
“No! I am the captain of this troop and what I say goes. Just because some half-crazed healer makes a suggestion does not mean we are going to send our Queen back into Upper World.”
He eyed Caleb nastily for a moment and dropped his voice to a harsh whisper. “She may be half human but don’t you ever forget she is also half Sidhe. She is the reigning queen of our mother city and if you or any of the rest of these buffoons cannot accept that, perhaps we should consider transferring you to someone else’s battalion.”
Caleb clenched and unclenched his jaw as he stared unblinkingly at Eldon. Eldon stared back, daring Caleb to speak. Vandel found the floor suddenly eye-catching and the twins looked on with fascination. Only Heron looked unaffected by the high tempers. He sat with his large arms folded across his massive chest and a blank expression on his face.
“I’m just saying-” Caleb began but never got a chance to finish.
“Cal, shut up.” Eldon’s voice frosted over with a dark chill.
Vandel cringed away from the man he had long called his brother. The coldness in Eldon’s voice took him back for a moment to the house of darkness he had known as a child. He could no longer completely trust Eldon. He became convinced Eve had tainted him. Eldon had not told them what had happened in the healer’s quarters and Vandel was suddenly afraid to know.
Caleb felt the rank anger within his longtime friend as well. For once, he did not challenge it. He raised his hands in surrender. Though his voice still held some defiance, he only muttered a quick, “Yes, Sir.”
Eldon stood up and Eve squirmed to move out of his way. She wanted to have a word with him but she sensed his need for space. She let him go. She sat back down and all of them stared at Eldon’s back as he walked away. The uneasy truce between the soldiers and the others quickly turned into a two-sided war of silence and nasty looks. Elsie, Faya, Eve, and Yath became the enemy.
Bibesia arrived with a fresh round of drinks and Eve could see Edesia had Eldon cornered. Bibesia served drinks, flirted with the men, and joked with the women to try to lighten the mood. She insisted they all call her Bibs and she gave an especially animated wink at Heron. The giant of a man smiled and nodded his head in response. For Heron, it was a lot of communication at one time.
Bibs kept up the chatter and no one seemed to notice the tension ebb away from them. The uneasiness they felt towards one another melted a little at a time. Soon, the whole table was in an uproarious good mood. Eve seemed to be the only one still fretting and the only one to notice the change in the atmosphere. Once everything seemed to be put to rights, Bibs leaned down and whispered in Eve’s ear.
She simply said, “No need to thank me. Emoto is a fun trick. Light a bit of Alexander root and cover your body in the smoke. Combine it with a touch of magic, to project the calm, and it does the trick every time.”
Eve smiled kindly up at Bibesia. The spell would come in handy in any facet of her life, whether in Evalon or back in Upper World. When Eldon returned, he had a steaming mug of coffee in his hand. The rich aroma drifted around the table and made mouths water. They pushed their wine glasses and beer mugs away and sent Yath to the kitchen to beg Bibesia for coffee instead of alcohol. The idea of undiluted caffeine sent Eve into a fit of good cheer, despite her nagging worries.
While they waited for the coffee to arrive, Eldon gave a manly speech about long roads and short tempers. He never apologized for his behavior but the message was there, like a gift hidden behind pretty wrapping for each of them to take or leave. He was a man, a soldier, and a leader, which meant he would not offer again, and he certainly would not beg.
The gesture was enough for the others. Caleb still held a look of displeasure and Vandel seemed to shy away from all of them, but tempers settled and the conversation began again. Eve listened as everyone tried in vain to come up with a possible solution to their traveling problems. She grew angrier by the moment, determined to convince them that returning to the top side would be the easiest and safest way.
Her thoughts began to center on Eldon’s outright dismissal of her suggestion. When her anger at him boiled up, it brought up her own disappointment in herself. She teetered back and forth between knowing what she was inside and trying to convince herself she was only a teenage human.
She was young, but not so young that they minded destroying her fragile reality and bringing her down to Evalon to be their queen. She was part Sidhe and to the group in front of her, the royal blood meant something. A voice deep within her subconscious whispered to her. It told her, a Sidhe princess would never allow the type of behavior from a mere warrior.
She realized she had doubted herself and let a man make her decisions. Eve had seen other girls who allowed boys to boss them around and treat them like livestock. She had always sworn a man would not control her. Yet, since she had met Eldon, it seemed she deferred to him. She let him lead her on whichever path he thought was right.
She was a good girl and she generally played by the rules. She respected her parents’ wishes because they were her parents and because they loved her. Eve knew they would always try to do what was best for her. She challenged their wishes and ignored their guidance when she had gone with Eldon to Evalon. Eldon was not someone who either loved or cared about her. Yet, because he made her feel weak in the knees and he protected her, she had given him control.
Eve stood from her chair and all eyes turned to her. She looked into Eldon’s face first. His eyebrows raised and his lips turned up in a half smile. Afraid he would tease her again; she turned away and swept a cool gaze over the others. She met each of their eyes. She let them see her for what she was. The voice deep inside whispered on. She was the future Queen of Evalon.
Hoping she looked at least half as regal and strong as she felt, Eve spoke, “Am I to be the queen of Evalon?”
When no one answered, she repeated herself, annunciating each word carefully. Elsie was the first to answer. “Yes, Faire Eve, you are to be the queen.”
Eve let her eyes roam the faces in front of her again. “Are each of you loyal to me?”
A chorus of nodded heads and sounds of agreement erupted. However, Eve noticed both Caleb and Vandel seemed a little less convincing than the others did.
“Are each of you loyal to Trig Na nOg and Evalon?” Eve’s voice surprised even her. Full of confidence and self-assurance, it sounded as if it belonged to someone else all together.
More questioning looks passed between the group before they answered her. Eve was afraid. Her heart leapt into her throat and a hard knot formed at the back. If she took the chance and they laughed at her or
they denied their allegiance to her, she might as well go home. The voice whispered to hold her head high and allow them a second to think. Allegiance was not easily given when one had not yet earned it.
Eldon stood, placed his fist over his heart, and bowed deeply before her. One by one, the others followed, emulating his actions. Eve felt a rush of relief before the wave of awe rolled over her like the incoming tide. The sight of the rag tag group all bent to her in allegiance was startling in its beauty and power. Her eyes filled with grateful tears and her lips quivered in a small smile before the voice drew her back.
The whisper came again, reminding her, that even though her new friends did an amazing thing and the moment was nearly perfect, she must continue before the magic of the minute faded. They all took their seats again, slightly puzzled faces turned to Eve. They waited to see why she had required their admittance of loyalty.
“As your future queen, I have decided I will return to Upper World with three of you as my escort. We will travel the way of the light and with luck, we will move almost as quickly. I will not jeopardize any of you by traveling through the darker landscapes or the twilight hour again.”
Eldon’s face grew serious and he opened his mouth to argue but Eve held up her hand to silence him. “I’ve had a long day. I think we should all rest for a bit.” Flicking a glance at Eldon, Eve continued to talk as if she had been a queen all her life and not merely a few hours. “You can finish mapping out the journey later and decide when and where we will go up and come back down.”
Trying to decide who would be her safest choice for an escort, Eve leveled her gaze on Heron. “If Faya doesn’t mind me borrowing her apartment, would you please help me get back? I don’t think I can get past the crowd out there.”
Faya immediately insisted Eve make herself at home. Heron silently nodded and stood to join her. They walked to the rear of the building in hopes of escaping the onlookers out front. Bibesia caught sight of Eve with Heron and grinned madly. The woman obviously liked the big warrior. Eve couldn’t help but wonder if the tiny voice she had heard was one of Bibesia’s tricks or if her Sidhe-self really had demanded to be heard.
Faire Eve Page 15
