49
Fell, 2470
Airy scanned up and down the beach, and then looked back at the dark forest behind them. The trees looked tropical and ancient. “Where are we?”
“This was the town of Fell, before Wolf, that is.”
“Fell. Is this where you lived before Thule?”
Fehin nodded. “And before that I lived in Loki’s castle. My mother and Kafir are down the beach,” he said pointing. “Do you feel up to meeting them?”
“Of course.” Airy wasn’t sure if this was true or not. The shock of being here, taking a ride on a dragon, and the odd quality of light made her feel quite peculiar. And seeing Thule ruined made her feel sick inside. She had already met Kafir but Gertrude was another matter altogether. From what Fehin had told her his mother was a strong woman who spoke her mind.
“If you’re noticing light-headedness or a feeling that you aren’t quite here, it’s because of the time dilation. It’ll go away soon.”
“Glad to hear that. Honestly, Fehin, I have no idea how this happened. I thought I was dreaming.”
“Where were you?”
“I was on a bus heading to Champaign to pick up the car.”
“Hmm. Did you do anything special, think something, say anything?”
“I was thinking about you and fiddling with my ring. That’s all.”
“Your ring?” Fehin bent to examine the moonstone. “What was going on with it?”
Airy took it off and handed it to him. “It was glowing and vibrating.”
Fehin turned the ring over in his hands. “My mother told me some stories about a moonstone. Did someone in your family ever use it for magic?”
“They all did. I told you that. My mother was the last one. But when she had it made into a ring for me she said…”
“She said it wasn’t magic anymore?”
Airy nodded.
Fehin handed the ring back. “There’s magic in it. I can feel it. It may be how you ended up here.”
Airy slipped the ring back on her finger. “I’m very glad I have it then,” she said, her eyes meeting his. “I had a weird vision after you left me in that cabin. You were in it but you looked completely different and I was pregnant.”
Fehin stared at her quizzically. “Your ring must be connected to these visions we’ve both been having. Do you know what this means?”
Airy shrugged and shook her head, watching him.
“It means this ring moves you through time. Now we have to figure out if I can go with you.”
“It might have just been the one time--special circumstances.”
“I don’t think so, Airy. If the ring has magic the ring has magic, it doesn’t come and go.”
“Then why hasn’t it worked before this?”
“Maybe it has to be in combination with something else.”
“Like love? Because that’s what I was feeling when it happened.” When Airy glanced down the beach two people were walking toward them. “Is that your mom?”
Fehin took hold of Airy’s hand and headed to meet them.
Once they’d been introduced Fehin’s mother stared at Airy for a full minute before her expression softened. “You look so much like your great-grandmother, Catriona.”
Airy, overwhelmed by the recent revelations about her ring, was surprised by the words. “I heard stories about her but she died before I was born and I never saw a picture,” she replied.
Before Gertrude could answer Kafir took Airy in his arms. “It’s wonderful that you’re here. Couldn’t be better timing,” he added, slanting a glance at Fehin.
Once Kafir released Airy, Gertrude moved closer, placing a hand on Airy’s forearm. “I knew your mother and father in another life,” she said with a nervous smile. “They didn’t much like me back then. And Catriona, your great-grandmother, let’s just say she hated me, for lack of a better word.” And then she laughed.
“I’m not on very good terms with them myself,” Airy answered, smiling. A second later she was pressed against Gertrude’s ample chest and she knew she had been accepted.
When Airy and Gertrude pulled apart Fehin was staring at Airy with his mouth open. “We’re related,” he said, looking worried. “Catriona was my father’s twin sister.”
Airy looked toward Gertrude who frowned, looking down, and then nodded. “That’s correct. I guess you’ve gone beyond the friend stage at this point?”
Airy turned beet red and Fehin had to look away.
“The relationship isn’t close enough to cause a problem. You aren’t pregnant are you?” she asked, staring pointedly at Airy.
“No!”
Gertrude seemed to relax. “Now that you know this, would you consider stopping what you’ve started?”
Fehin shook his head. “I don’t think I could.”
“Me neither,” Airy agreed.
“Okay, it’s settled then. Now, Airy, tell me how you got here?”
“We think the ring moved her through the ether,” Fehin answered. “And if that’s true maybe I can go back with her.”
When Airy held out her hand Gertrude bent to examine the moonstone. “I remember this stone. Maeve wore it as a necklace.”
“Airy’s mother told her the stone’s power is gone.”
Gertrude smiled. “I guess she didn’t realize. I hope you two can stay for a while.”
When Airy glanced toward Fehin he looked surprised. “I thought my destiny was important to you,” he said, leveling a look at his mother.
“Things have changed since then, sweetheart. Thule is gone and you and Airy are here together. Maybe this is your destiny.”
Fehin hesitated for a moment. When he spoke again his tone was deadly serious. “There is no doubt in my mind that Airy and I have a job to do in the past. I didn’t want to tell you about this, but corporations run everything now.”
“What?” Gertrude’s eyes widened. “No more elections?”
Fehin shook his head. “You wouldn’t believe how many homeless there are.”
“That sounds like an impossible situation. The problems here would be simpler to fix,” she said with a hopeful expression.
“I’ll do whatever I can to resurrect Thule. Have you found any survivors?”
Kafir shook his head. “We lost all our friends, Fehin. Resurrecting the island is the least of our worries.”
Fehin’s eyes turned dark, his narrowed gaze going from one to the other. “What exactly do you want from me?”
Airy put a hand on his arm. “What’s wrong with you? Your parents are trying to explain how they feel. They’ve lost everything, Fehin.”
Fehin turned to her, his expression bleak. “It’s my fault Thule is gone and all those people are dead!”
Gertrude put her hand on his arm. “Why would you say that?”
Fehin looked down. “I lost my magic because I was doing drugs.”
Kafir stared at him. “And what does that have to do with it?”
Fehin looked away his eyes full of tears. “My magic’s what kept it going, Kafir. Loki told me.”
Kafir shook his head. “No, Fehin. That island was completely independent of you. There has to be another explanation for what caused that storm.”
“What?”
Kafir pressed his lips together. “After all this Gunnar business I have an idea.”
“Gunnar did it?” Fehin shook his head. “That’s not possible. Why would he hurt all those people?”
“Why would he tell you that killing Wolf was a bad thing?” Airy asked.
“Loki’s on his way to commune with the other gods. I hope he’ll have an answer.”
“I think you should talk to Gunnar,” Airy said. “He’s the only one who can clear this up.”
As if on cue the druid arrived. “Don’t you know it’s impolite to talk about someone behind their back?” He glared at them with his arms folded.
No one said a word until Airy finally asked, “Can you please explain why you brought Fehin here, what happened to Thule and why it was a bad thing to kill Wolf?”
Gunnar raised his eyebrows in surprise. “And how do
you
come to be here?” he asked.
“My being here has nothing to do with you,” Airy answered. As soon as the words were out of her mouth she realized her mistake. This druid could more than likely strike her dead on the spot.
And Gunnar did seem unnerved for a moment. “You do realize I’m privy to things I cannot share?”
“Why not?” Airy asked him.
“I travel through time, Airy. This means I’ve seen the future as well as the past.”
“We do too, so what? Is that the best excuse you can come up with for not answering my questions?” Out of the corner of her eye Airy saw Fehin’s mouth quirk and then he made a funny sound as though trying to stop his laugh. A second later he turned away and coughed.
Gunnar let out a long exasperated sigh. “I brought Fehin here because he’s needed at the moment. Thule is gone and his parents are without a home. As to why Thule was destroyed, that is yet to be revealed.”
“So no longer Loki’s fault?” Airy made a disgusted sound in the back of her throat. “And what about Wolf who would have raped me if Fehin hadn’t shot him? Tell me how that was a bad thing?”
Gunnar ran a hand over his face and stared into the distance. “Do you understand the concept of yin and yang, light and dark, good and evil, balance?”
“Of course I do but that doesn’t explain allowing a force for evil to go unchecked, does it?”
“Killing is never the answer,” the druid said, turning his full gaze on her. “It might seem so in the moment but ultimately it does more harm than good. Everything in this world exists for a reason. You should know that since you communicate with plants and animals.”
Airy glanced over at Fehin and then turned back to the druid. “But what if he raped me?”
“Fehin could have stopped him without killing him.”
“How do you know? And why is Wolf’s life so important?”
“He was never able to redeem himself.”
Fehin snapped alive. “Like he would have!” he yelled out, glaring at the druid. “The guy is without a conscience. I’ve spent enough time with him to know.”
Gunnar didn’t react. “The point is he didn’t get the chance.”
“Gunnar,” Kafir asked, “were you responsible for setting this entire thing up? Did you release Wolf and take him with you on that boat?”
Gunnar shook his head. “I discovered him during the trip. By then it was too late to do anything about it.”
“So who released him from Svartalfheim?” Gertrude asked.
“That’s the question, isn’t it?” Gunnar said. “We may never find out. But I do think it’s possible to start over.”
“What?” Fehin asked. “Do you mean go back in time?”
“I do. And this time, don’t kill him.”
When Airy and Fehin walked down the beach later Fehin grabbed Airy’s shoulder, turning her to face him. “You surprise me every day.”
“What are you talking about?”
“That scene back there with Gunnar--you stood up to him like I’ve never been able to.”
“You grew up with him, Fehin. He’s like a father figure to you. If he had been MacCuill I would never have spoken to him like that.”
Fehin stared at her. “Remember what I said about the light you carry? It’s so strong, Airy. It’s like you have a halo around you.”
“Oh, so now I’m an angel?” Airy scoffed.
“That’s not what I mean. You have a glow. You’re very rarely down. When was the last time you were depressed? You are the light to my dark.”
“You’re not always dark,” she said, placing a hand on his cheek. “You’ve been way happier these past few days.”
“I know, but what I’m saying is we balance each other perfectly.”
“Is this the first time you realized that?” Airy laughed and shook her head, and then headed away from him down the beach. “Maybe it’s because we’re related. I’ll race you to the log down there,” she called out, taking off.
“No fair, you have a head start!” he yelled, taking off after her.
They landed in a heap in a sand dune, both of them laughing. “If we had a baby would it have two heads?” Airy asked.
Fehin pulled her close, nuzzling her neck. “Only if it was twins. They do run in my family, and apparently in yours too.”
“This is kind of weird, Fehin.”
“Tell me about it. But on the bright side, maybe your parents would accept me if they knew we shared a common relative.”
Airy stared into the distance. “Or maybe they already figured this out and it’s the reason they’re against our being together.”
50
The next few days were peaceful and untroubled aside from Airy and Fehin diagraming their family tree to decide if it was a problem. Neither one of them could stop thinking about it. They also swam in the ocean, walked along the beach and then lay naked in the sand, letting the healing rays of the sun burn away their worry and doubts. In the evening they spent time with Kafir and Gertrude, catching fish and cooking them over a fire and talking late into the night.
The day they were due to leave Fehin and Airy returned Aki to the castle but when Airy asked to meet Loki, Fehin said no. He told her that now was not the time especially after what they’d learned from Gunnar. Loki was not one to change his mind about things and any more conflict with the druid would surely make matters even worse. Fehin tended to believe Loki over Gunnar, since the druid seemed to change his story to suit whoever was listening. Gods weren’t normally in the habit of lying. Why should they? They were all powerful beings.
They said their good-byes to Gertrude and Kafir with the knowledge that the sailor and Fehin’s mother wouldn’t have any memory of this meeting once Airy and Fehin went into the past. Airy was sad to think the connection she and Gertrude had forged would be forgotten. But on a lighter note Thule would be back to its former self and all the residents alive and well. That seemed to cheer them, although Airy noticed tears in Gertrude’s eyes once she and Fehin turned to leave.
A taciturn Gunnar transported them to the docks in Milltown and then left without saying good-bye. Fehin said it was because the druid was overcome with emotion but Airy thought he was just being rude. “I agree with your former assessment that he’s a royal asshole,” she said in her prim way making Fehin laugh.
Once they were headed to the tent and she remembered the horrible bloody scene from before, she became terrified, wondering if Fehin could stop his brother without shooting him. Would she need to be raped in order to save Wolf’s life? But this time around Fehin was on top of him before Wolf pushed her backward, laying into him with a force Airy had never seen him display. He hit Wolf so hard that he actually knocked him out before he grabbed Airy by the hand and hurried away.