Dark Isle (Celtic Legacy Book 2) (5 page)

The truth of his words, my understanding of what was to be
,
settled over me;
it
end
ed
whatever dreams I might have had.

Bres and I were done.

The next morning dawned bright, the sky cloudless
, the blu
e so brilliant it stung my
sleep
-
deprived eyes.

“Did you not sleep last night, Quinn? You look as though you’ve been pulled through a knot hole backwards
,
”
Luke said.

I grunted at him, dressed and then made my way outside. Summer wind whipped past me, the scent and taste of salt on the air. Looking out over the ocean, the whitecaps were abundant, the sea lions dark spots on the waves
;
their distant barks a perfect companion to the whole scene
.
Picturesque
. That was the word for it. Too bad I knew what lay under the waves.

Luke followed me, Cora looped over his arms. “Sorry Cora,
” I said
.
“
I didn’t mea
n to leave you behind.”

She gave a sn
iff. “Dreaming hot and heavy last night were we
?
Once you fell asleep you kicked and moaned, leaving me no space on the bed.
”

I swayed as if the wind had picked up speed. Luke grabbed my arm, his eyes full of concern. “Quinn,
are you okay
?”

“I’m just tired, I . . .Cora’s right, I didn’t sleep well last night.”

Hoping they would drop the subject
,
I made my feet move in the direction of the gas station. Luke didn’t seem ready to let the subject go just yet. “Maybe we should stay here another day then, so you can rest.”

Letting out a groan
,
I shook my head. No, I didn’t want to stay here
;
but I didn’t really know where I wanted to go either. Somewhere I could forget all the pain that my heart held. Again, anger covered the hurt and I spun towards Luke.

“Am I just a piece of the prophecy to you?
Just a piece of ass that you get because some crazy oracle said so?”

His eyes widened
,
and Cora’s mouth dropped open, in what I could only assume was shock.

“What the hell happened last night?” Luke
asked.
“Quinn. Tell me what happened.”

Cora and Luke stared me down until I wilted under their combined gazes.
Finally I said, “I can’t, because the last thing I need is for you to agree with him.”

“Agree with who?” Luke asked. His hands were now holding either side of me.

“Bres. He, I dreamed about him last night
,
but it wasn’t a real dream
,
”
I said, not knowing if I was making any sense. My
sleep
-
d
eprived mind wasn’t at its best for explaining something I barely understood myself.

“It’s like the Calling mirror, Quinn. Some of us can Call others when we sleep
;
it’s a form of communication that is difficult for most
,
”
Cora said. That didn’t make me feel any better.

Luke tried to pull me into an embrace and I resisted him. “No, I can’t. I don’t want to talk about this.”

“Show me then, what he said.”

I blinked up at Luke. “What do you mean?”

“I can see what he said if you open yourself up to me. If you trust me enough
,
”
h
e
explained
. “Just
picture him speaking
to you,
and
I will be able to see it.”

How could I tell Luke
what Bres had said
, least of all show him
? Cora
bobbed her head in agreement with Luke.
I would get no sympathy from that quarter.

Then again, what did it matter? Bres and I were enemies
;
I had nothing to hide from Luke. I wasn’t ashamed of what I’d felt for Bres.
Shoulders
squaring up,
I nodded. “Okay.”

Luke took my face in his hands and lowered his lips to mine. “Just breathe
,
”
h
e
whispered, our mouths
brushing lightly.

I thought about the dream, skipping the first part where I reached for Bres. The rest of it unfolded in my mind
,
except it was like watching a movie with Luke at my side. The ugliness of Bres’ words, my fall to the ground. The tears
and the keening
. I turned my face away
,
and then blessedly it was done and we were back standing on the highway, the wind whipping around us.

Luke still held my arms, and this time when he pulled me into them I didn’t resist. “
I didn’t know he’d Charmed you, Quinn. I’m sorry
.
I wish I had I could have blocked it
.” He spoke into my hair. I felt Cora make her way onto my shoulders.
Charmed? What I’d felt for Bres was Charm?
My stomach turned and I thought I was going to be sick. It made
a perfect kind of sense.

“You aren’t angry with me?” I asked, suddenly feeling very shy in Luke’s arms.

He shook his head. “No, not for that. I wish you’d trust me, Quinn. I’m on your side, remember?”

Be easy, Quinn.
I do not believe you will hurt Ashling.

Cora’s belief gave me the
first sense of relief.

K
iss
ing me
on the forehead
,
surprising me,
Luke said,
“
You can’t help it that Bres Charmed you
.” He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Let’s get moving; I’ll tell you what Nuadha had to say when I spoke with him.”

“Who’s
Nuadha
?
What
’
s going on now?
”

We started back up the hill and Luke filled me
in
on what
he’d been doing while I was asleep
.
It t
urned out that Nuadha
was the
leader of the Tuatha de Daanan
in Ireland
, the head of the Council I was supposed to go see
.
Nuadha had informed Luke that he was to bring me for training immediately.

“Well we can’t go to Nuadha, there isn’t time. Not if Balor’s trying to free Chaos.
” I was breathing heav
il
y now
;
the hill was steeper than it looked.

Luke shook his head
, his eyes flashing
with frustration
. “
You don’t get it! I can’t train you
;
Cora can’t train you
;
and you need that if you are going to face Balor. Nuadha is the only one who can train you properly.” He paused and lowered his voice. “If, and I really mean this, if Balor is seeking out this Chaos. . .”

I lifted my hand, stalling him. “
He is
.” The scene of Balor and the Banshee Queen hadn’t left me.

He nodded, his jaw tight. “Fine, you believe it. If that’s the truth, he’s going to
be more powerful than anyone else. You will need every advantage
,
and that includes training.”

Before I could shoot back my argument, the ground heaved under our feet. Pavement cracked down the middle of the road as the earth groaned. Stumbling
,
I fell to my knees, Luke dropping down beside me. Ten seconds and the earthquake passed, only the distant rumble of an aftershock
,
and the damage to the road showing the power of what had just happened.

We stood, my legs wobbling
,
but not from the earthquake.

“I don’t suppose you asked Nuadha about Lir
,
did you?” An idea was forming, one that I hoped was wrong. Please let it be wrong.

Luke flushed, “I did. He’s missing.” He put his hand on my shoulder. “You’ve thought of something, haven’t you?”

Nodding, I tried to gather my thoughts, tried to put them in order. “Cora, you said that Chaos was hidden away by Lir
, right?
”

She nodded; I went on. “And Balor is trying to free Chaos.”

Another nod. “Then is it possible that Lir is helping Balor?” I didn’t want that to be the truth, but it made too much sense not to be a possibility.

Cora tipped her head first one way then the other.
“I suppose
;
but they don’t like each other.
Part of it’s that
they each had a taste of your mother.
But mostly it’s because
b
oth
of them
have great control over
water;
the
creatures
in it
and
the water itself.
They’re rivals.
Lir is the more powerful of the two,
so
he would be a
strong
ally
if
Balor could convince him. But I don’t think that would happen.
It’s m
ore likely
that
Balor has eliminated Lir somehow
, moved him from the playing field
,
so to speak
.
”

Cora mentioning water creatures
made me think of my last diving experience. I’d been attacked by a shark
;
a black tipped reef shark.
A species n
ot exactly known for their ferocity. Three other divers had tried to help me
,
but it wasn’t until I used my dagger
that
the shark
had
released me. And then it swam away as if it
hadn’t been
interested in me
in the first place
.

“
Can
Balor control sharks?” I asked.

They both tried to answer at the same time
.
Cora won out. “No, that particular beast has always been Lir’s to control. Something of a pet you might say.”

Already Luke was disagr
e
eing. “That’s not entirely true.
Card can control them too
.”

“Card?” I asked.

“Lir’s son, heir to the kingdom
,
and all that.” Luke paused and looked over at me. “I guess that would make him your half brother.”

Well that was a bit of a shock
;
a
half brother? The last thing I needed now
w
ere
more siblings to worry about.
Shaking it off, I asked what I hoped woul
d be the final question. “So are you coming with me, Luke, to stop Balor from getting Chaos, or are you going to do what Nuadha wants?
”

Luke slowed. “
You’d make me choose?
”

I put my hands on my hips. “If I’m going to be this
C
hosen one, destined to meet Balor on the field of battle, I’m going to do it my way. You aren’t going to drag me around anymore. I lead, you follow.”

He stared at me, his eyes and body not giving away even a hint of his thoughts.
Suddenly, h
e
held out his hand to me
.
I took it, lacing our fingers. “I’m with you, Quinn. All the way.”

I smiled up at him. “See, that wasn’t so hard.”

He gave short bark of a laugh. “Actually, I was already coming to that conclusion on my own. Nuadha made it very clear that he was to be the one to meet Balor on the field of battle.”

Frowning
,
I pulled my hand
away,
the day’s warmth making our skin sticky with sweat.
“I thought I was supposed to do that.
Not that I’m complaining, just confused.
”

“You are
,
”
Cora said, but Luke wouldn’t meet my eyes.

“What?” I asked
him
.

“Nuadha does not believe you are the one the prophecy speaks of and he has convinced the rest of the Tuatha that the prophecy itself is nothing more than the ramblings of a dotty old oracle.”