The Portal to Sidhe: Book 2

by Kelsey Schaeffer

  Finally after what seemed like hours, Damon said, “You both need your rest. We’re leaving the day after tomorrow.” He turned off the light and went straight back to the bedroom.

  I didn’t move for a few moments until I finally looked at Ben through the dark and said, “I’m going to bed,”

  I could see Ben’s silhouette nod, but I stood still for a moment. I wanted to kiss Ben good night, but I knew I had to quickly return to my husband, and guilt was already parading through my mind. As I walked back to the bedroom, I could only hope Damon was already asleep.

  I quietly entered our bedroom and lay down in bed. Damon didn’t move. If he wasn’t asleep, he was certainly pretending to be, as he was completely still. I shut my eyes and tried to sleep, but too many emotions were shooting through my brain.

  I awoke the next morning feeling quite tired. It had taken me hours to fall asleep, and when I finally awoke, I had only slept a handful of hours. Damon was already gone as I rose from the bed and quickly put on my clothes. I headed to the kitchen to see who was awake.

  When I walked into the kitchen, the table was completely full as my mother, Ben, Nathen and Delia were sitting at the table. Damon was sitting at the counter with Luke, and my father was cooking breakfast.

  My mother smiled, “Good morning.”

  “Good morning,” I said with a faint smile on my face.

  The other’s said good morning as well, but Damon did not say a word. He didn’t even acknowledge I was there. I quickly went to his side and gave Luke a kiss on his little cheek. Then I kissed Damon’s cheek and said, “Good morning Damon,”

  Damon continued to play with Luke as he quietly said, “Good morning.” He never looked up as he spoke.

  Our family ate breakfast together, trying to remain cheerful, despite Benny’s absence. Although Damon acted normal towards the others, he never uttered a word to me. Ben remained quiet for most of breakfast; I could tell he felt uncomfortable in Damon’s presence.

  Once breakfast was over, we began to hastily prepare for the journey. Not long after we ate, Emerlee arrived at our suite with several backpacks full of supplies.

  “We don’t have a lot for travel on Sidhe. We have hunters and gatherers who occasionally travel to the mountain villages for trade. They’re experts though and don’t need a lot of supplies...knives, warm clothes and a canteen.”

  “I can go to Pine Lake and bring back supplies,” my dad spoke up. “We have flashlights, lanterns and plenty of dried food from the safe house.”

  “That’d be great,” I said.

  “I’ll return first thing in the morning. Can you think of anything else we may need?” My father looked at Emerlee, “Do you have coats and gear?”

  “I have four winter suits.” She began pulling heavy fur-lined suits out of the bags. “They’re pretty big,” she said.

  “Ben, Damon, Nathen,” my dad called out, “Come here and try one of these one.”

  The guys came over and put on the large snowsuits. The four of them looked like Eskimos buried in the heavy fur lined suits. It was hard not to laugh at the sight, but I knew these suits were essential for our survival. The suits fit my dad and Ben well, but they were a bit loose on Nathen; Damon was swimming in his.

  “I think I can make mine work,” Nathen said.

  My father looked at Nathen and shook his head. Then he looked at Damon and said, “I have a better idea.” He looked at Ben, “Ben, you and I can wear these, but I’ll go into town and buy everyone a snow suit.”

  “Thank you Dad!” I cried, “I really appreciate this.”

  “I don’t mind,” he said, “Anything to save my grandson.”

  Emerlee and my father looked through the bags and made a list of supplies my dad would need to return with. As soon as the list was complete, my father headed to the portal to return to Pine Lake. Once my father was gone, the rest of the group gathered in the living room to relax. Damon and I took turns holding and playing with Luke, as we both knew there was a chance we wouldn’t survive.

  When the night finally came around, Ben suggested he take his old room once more. He said a bed would be more comfortable. I didn’t argue this time, as I knew Damon suspected something had happened the night before. I said goodnight to Ben and headed to the bedroom.

  Damon had hardly spoken a word to me the entire day, and I was nervous by his behavior. When I entered the bedroom, he was undressing for the evening, and I could see his bare chest by the dim light of the bedroom lamp. As I gazed at his body, I thought about my attraction to him.

  While I had always been more physically attracted to Ben, Damon was far from unattractive. Damon was quite striking with his thick blond hair and beautiful blue eyes. He had a perfectly structured face and pale skin, as did all the ice fairies. Damon was much shorter than Ben, but still taller than I, as he stood five foot nine. He was quite a bit leaner than Ben, as Ben was very well built.

  As Damon climbed into bed, I quickly put on my pajamas and cozied up next to him. As I snuggled up next to my husband, he quickly pulled away.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked softly.

  He didn’t respond.

  “Why won’t you talk to me?” I asked.

  Finally he said, “Right now, our only priority is getting our—your son back.”

  “He’s still your son Damon,” I said, “And that is our priority...but why won’t you talk to me.”

  “We can talk about things when we find...our son.”

  “Why can’t we talk now?”

  “Miranda, all you have ever done is push me away. Why do you want to talk now?”

  “Because I love you, and I know something is wrong.” I said.

  “Maybe you should tell me what is going,” he grumbled.

  “What do you mean?” I asked nervously.

  “Just...last night. I know something happened Miranda.”

  I felt my face turn hot. Damon knew

  I felt warm tears begin to fall from my eyes, “I’m sorry Damon,” I sniffled. I paused, and I wondered if I should tell Damon everything. Not just last night, but my feelings the last eight years. I took a deep breath and quickly wiped my tears away, then I began, “Damon, I never got over Ben. I have been traumatized by his death for the last eight years.”

  “Why did you marry me, if you still love him?” Damon asked.

  “Because I love you Damon. I love you so much.”

  “But how can you love us both?” Damon asked.

  “I don’t know,” I said, “My feelings are so twisted. I just don’t know. I never thought we would bring Ben back. I thought...eventually I would get over Ben...and the two of us could be happy together—our boys and us. But now he’s back and—”

  “Miranda, just tell me the truth. Did you sleep with him last night?”

  I was silent for a moment, as I knew I had to tell him the truth. I took a deep breath and I nervously said, “Yes.”

  Damon grunted and didn’t say another word.

  “I’m sorry Damon. I’m so sorry. My mind is twisted and I’m so confused. My heart is breaking from Benny’s absence, and I’m confused about Ben. I don’t know what to do. Are you going to leave me?” I cried, “Please don’t leave.”

  “Leave you?” Damon rolled around and looked me in the eye, “I would never leave you. I figured after last night, you would leave me. It’s why I couldn’t talk to you all day.”

  “You mean...you still want to be with me...after everything I told you. Even after sleeping with Ben.”

  “I’m upset Miranda. I’m so upset,” he said. “I wish you told me how you felt. Part of me guessed it when you yelled out his name so many nights. I’m upset that you slept with him...but you’re my wife and my best friend and the mother of my children—blood or not. I can’t just leave you.”

  “So now what?” I asked.

  “I think...we go on the trip tomorrow, and we find our son. We can work things out between us when we get back.”

  I nodded m
y head. “Okay,” I whispered.

  Moments later, I was so exhausted I quickly fell asleep.

  I woke up after a long night’s rest, as the sleepless nights and mental exhaustion had drained me. I found my family gathered in the kitchen once more, this time Ben was cooking breakfast. The moment I entered the kitchen, I went to Luke and carefully took him from Delia’s arms. I felt selfish taking him from her, but I wanted to hold my youngest son every second I could. This would be the second time I would leave a son behind, with a chance of no return.

  Shorty after eating breakfast, I heard the front door open and the sound of my father’s voice as he said, “I’m back.”

  With Luke in my arms, I headed to the front door to see what he had brought with him. My father and Brandon were standing in the doorway with handfuls of supplies.

  “There’s more by the portal,” Brandon said.

  “I’ll help you,” Damon said as he stepped forward.

  “Me too,” Ben echoed.

  The four men headed out the door to carry back more supplies. Not long after they left, Emerlee arrived at the suite with even more supplies from Sidhe.

  “Are you ready,” She asked me as she smiled at my tiny son.

  I nodded my head, but deep inside I was terrified our group wouldn’t survive.

  “I have some good news,” Emerlee smiled. “David, one of the hunters, offered to take this journey with us. He’s never been as far as we plan to go...but he knows the terrain well, and he knows how to hunt.”

  I nodded my head, “Thank you so much Emerlee.”

  Emerlee nodded and said, “He will be here soon.”

  Just as Emerlee finished speaking, my father and the others poured in the room with handfuls of supplies.

  “This is everything,” my father said.

  “Thank you so much Dad!” I cried as I looked over all the new supplies. He had brought back enough snowsuits for the others, along with tents, boots, canteens, flashlights, lanterns and more.

  “It’s nothing,” he said softly.

  We began filling the backpacks with food and gear—mostly the new gear my father had purchased, occasionally tossing in something from the old hunting gear that seemed useful. My father purchased each person a brand new backpack as opposed to the using the old hunting sacks Emerlee had provided. We set aside one of the hunting bags for David, as we just found out he would be joining us this morning.

  Once the bags were packed up, we laid out the snowsuits and waited for David’s arrival. My father wrapped my mother in his arms and held her tight. I knew he hated leaving her behind, but someone from the family needed to stay with my son; I couldn’t leave him without family. I gave baby Luke to Damon and headed to the infirmary to quickly say goodbye to Roger. Roger was recovering well, but I saw a tear fall from his eye as he kissed me goodbye.

  “Allison and Brandon will be here to take care of you,” I said, “My mom is staying with my son. If anything happens to us, make sure Luke has a good life.”

  Roger nodded his head and said, “You are strong, and you have the best of the best by your side. Take care of yourself sweetheart. I love you.”

  “I love you too,” I said to my grandfather for the first time.

  When I arrived back at my suite, David had already arrived. As I walked in the door, he gave me a kind smile. David was a huge superhuman in his late thirties, almost as tall as Ben, but even more burly. His thick brown hair was neatly combed, but a brown mangy beard hung from his face. I noticed a thick patch of dark hair covered David’s arms as he reached out to shake my hand.

  “It’s nice to finally meet ya,” David said politely.

  “And you too,” I said, “Thank you for your service, and thank you for joining us on this trip. I’m not sure if we could do it without you.”

  David chucked and said, “I don’t mind. I would do anything to keep that psycho from taking over this castle again. Everything has been so much better since you and your husband took over.”

  I smiled, “I appreciate it.”

  Everyone picked up their snowsuit and backpacks as David threw his hunting bag over his shoulder. We opened the suite door and marched towards the main hall. When we arrived at the main hall, several residents of the castle, including my aunt Allison were waiting to bid us farewell. Even Roger sat in a wheelchair with the healing fairy standing behind.

  The members of our crew began to put on their snowsuits and say goodbye. I hugged my aunt Allison and said goodbye to Roger once more. I waved goodbye and shook hands with several of the residents as they wished me luck. I held Luke one more time as tears fell from my eyes, and I kissed him goodbye.

  “I’ll do everything I can to bring back your brother,” I whispered as I handed him off to Damon.

  Once I handed off Luke, my father helped me pull up my snowsuit. It was snow white to help keep us camouflaged against any predators that may lurk on our journey. David, Ben and my father looked resilient in their huge fur suits, while the rest of us flaunted our tight modern snowsuits. We helped one another load up the gear on our backs and lined up at the door with David in the lead.

  Damon handed Luke to my mother, but before heading to the main door, I ran towards them one more time, with my father following behind. I held Luke in my arms one last time as I wiped my tears away and kissed his little cheeks. My father pulled my mother into his arms and kissed her as if he would never see her again. When he pulled away, I could see they both had tears in their eyes. With Luke still in my arms, my mom wrapped her arms around me and pulled me in close.

  “I love you so much Miranda,” she said as she kissed my cheek.

  My father kissed Luke one last time, and moments later, my entire family was by my side—hugging and kissing one another goodbye. After everyone said goodbye one last time, they headed back to the door until it was just Damon and I. Damon kissed Luke one last time as tears blurred my vision from saying goodbye.

  Finally Damon wrapped his arm around me and led me to the door and said, “We need to go.”

  As the crowd waved goodbye, David pulled open the main castle doors as we headed on our way. I pulled the hood over my head and zipped the snowsuit up over my neck. As tears fell down my eyes, Damon guided me out the castles doors and into the miserable snow. Once we left the castle grounds, we would enter a new and dangerous territory, where our safety would be compromised every step of the way.

  Just before the castle doors slammed behind us, I could hear my son begin to cry. Damon pulled me in tight as we continued to walk on—away from safety and away from our tiny son.

  Part Two

  Chapter 8

  Once the castle doors were shut, my son’s cries drifted from our ears and the howl of the wind took its place. Damon pulled away from me, and the two of us walked silently side-by-side until we reached the main castle gates. A strong gust of wind blew through the air, and I lost my balance as I collided into Damon. He caught me and held me steady as I heard Delia yell and fall to the ground.

  Once I had my balance, Damon ran to his mother’s side, “Are you okay mom,” he said as she sat on the ground looking dazzled.

  Delia began to stand up and Damon helped pull her off the ground as she said, “Yes, just a little tumble.”

  “Alright guys,” I heard David say, “We’re not even out of the castle gates. You’ll have to brush it off and keep going. This is only the beginning, it’s much worse out there...so let’s get going.”

  Delia looked ashamed, but I gave here an encouraging smile as she patted the snow off her white suit. I heard metal clanking as David opened the gates, leading us outside the castle grounds, to a new world of danger and misery. Emerlee stood beside him as she carried the map to Desmorelda’s possible location.

  Emerlee and Sadie had performed the location magic the evening before and estimated a possible location where Desmorelda could be. The fairies had also used location magic to find Benny’s location, which verified that he was indeed with her. Be
tween Emerlee’s map and David’s guidance, we were confident we could find my son. We just had to survive the journey and win another battle with the horrifying woman who was my great-grandmother. Once our group had journey outside the gates, we all knew there was no turning back as we hiked on.

  We walked at a steady pace, as the snow was quite thick. After an hour of walking through the snow, the muscles in my legs began to burn, and my face felt raw from the wind. My lungs were scorching as my heart raced to keep up with my muscle movements. I was huffing and puffing as I slowed down my pace. As the others continued at a steady rhythm, Delia and I were casually falling behind. The others were quite ahead of us as Delia and I walked side-by-side, until finally Ben slowed his pace until I caught up to him.

  “I’m sorry I’m so slow,” I huffed.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “I’m just tired. I’m not in the shape the rest of you are in.”

  Ben smiled but said, “You don’t look okay. You’re hardly walking straight and you sound like you’re about to have a heart attack.”

  “Nah, I’m fine,” I lied, but he was right. My lungs were on fire and so were my legs.

  “Hey!” Ben yelled to the rest of the group. “I need a break.”

  “Ben!” I howled softly. “You don’t have to do that.”

  I saw the group halt to a stop as they waited for Ben, Delia and I to catch up. Delia’s face was bright red and she was panting even worse than I.

  “Thanks Ben,” Delia gasped, “I need a break too.

  When we finally reached the rest of the group, David looked slightly annoyed, but he didn’t say a word. Nathen went to Delia’s side as she collapsed into the snow to catch her breath. I suddenly felt hot and dizzy as I leaned into Ben. Damon saw that I wasn’t well as he raced to my side.

  Damon quickly pulled his canteen out of his bag and held it against my lips, “Take a few sips,” he said.