The Secret Trinity Unearth (18 page)

“War?” I breathed.

“Yes, there has been an uprising building for years. When they believe the time is right, the Eartha Fae will declare war and try to conquer our world, killing us off for good. Whoever they spare will be turned into their slaves. I have been trying to protect our people. I didn’t realize the Eartha knew so much or I would have come for you sooner.” Now I looked at him stunned.

“You came to the U.S. just to find me? Our whole relationship has been a lie!” I could not mask the hurt in my voice and he grabbed my hand.

“No, of course not, I went to find you because I knew the Eartha Fae would be after you. I did not expect to fall in love with you.” His voice sounded desperate and his grip on my hand tightened.

“I wanted you here in Ireland, so I could protect my love. Please don’t be upset. It does not change how I feel about you. In fact, I feel even closer to you now that we don’t have secrets to hide anymore.”

He smiled, and kissed me softly but passionately. I wanted to be angry with him, to yell at him, but I had been no better in my deceitful actions. He just wanted to protect me, as I did him. I chose to let it go and move on, because my next question was painful, burning a hole in my chest.

“What about my birth parents? Where are they?” I held my breath waiting for the answer. Liam put his eyes to the ground which was not a good sign.

“I did not know the Eartha had found you. It is imperative for your safety, and your friends, that we are careful. Ireland possesses heightened energy because it is the birthplace of the Fae. We have the greatest population here, and the Isle’s energy makes our gifts stronger. We can protect you, but it is still extremely dangerous.” He did not answer my question.

“Liam…” I groaned.

He pressed his lips together studying the floor, “I don’t know where your parents are. The last I heard of them the Eartha had them in captivity.”

His words were quiet, and I felt sick to my stomach. The thought of the parents I have never known, sitting in a cell somewhere, prisoners in a war of the supernatural was just too much to take. I collapsed with my head over my knees, breathing heavily, trying not to be sick. Liam rubbed my back soothingly, letting me experience the grief.

“It’s okay. We will figure it out together. I know it’s a hard fate to swallow,” he said calmly, and he took my hand to stand up from the couch.

Without another word we went back to my room and Liam held me as I let my new world, my new life, permeate my being. Sleep would not come. Only a new reality of the unreal swam behind my eyes until dawn.

Chapter 24: Confessions

I had not slept a wink all night. I was still trying to process everything Liam had told me. I was caught in a war of the mythical Fae? I was in extreme danger. My birth parents were captive slaves to the Eartha Fae, and my dreamy boyfriend was much more special than I could have known.

It was too much. It was not real. I could hardly admit to myself I had magical gifts, and now Liam was telling me that not only did he have them too, but an entire community of Fae lived in secret among the humans here in Ireland. How could anyone wrap their brain around something like that? I felt Liam moving and I turned to meet his eyes.

He kissed my forehead, “Good morning, how are you feeling?” he asked with concern. I guessed that my eyes were puffy and tired, and he had asked in a rhetorical manner already knowing the answer. I sat up in bed and looked down at him.

“What am I going to tell Kayla and Morgan? I have kept this secret to myself for so long. I won’t even know where to start.”

He creased his forehead, “Are you sure you want to tell them?”

“I have to,” I breathed out the words, pausing between each one. “I unintentionally dragged them into danger. They deserve to know the truth.”

Liam sighed, “Maybe we can convince them to go home where they will be out of harm’s way.”

I shook my head, “I know them. There is no way they would leave me here alone, whether I tell them the truth or not. As long as they are here, they need to be told what is going on, especially if inexplicable flying rocks, isolated earthquakes, and god-knows-what-else is going to occur.” I got out of bed and went to the door.

“Ari, wait, this is a bad idea.” His voice had a strange edge that was out of place. I looked toward the bed and he was sitting up now.

“I am telling them the truth, Liam. I am tired of hiding who I really am. I could use a hand in giving them a demonstration so they will take me seriously, if you’re willing.”

I had never been so firm with him, but I had made up my mind about telling them. He looked irritated but got up to follow me anyway. Kayla and Morgan were already up having coffee in the kitchen. They were talking and laughing, but immediately stopped when they saw the grave expression on my face.

“Oh my god, you’re pregnant.” Kayla breathed. I shook my head quickly with irritation and went to pour myself a cup of coffee.

“What? No! For one thing, you have to have sex to get pregnant.” They eyed each other not quite accepting my comment.

“So why do you look like something I pulled out of the drain?” Morgan asked. Liam came beside me and put his arm around me, giving me the strength to say it out loud. It all just spilled out. I told them the whole story starting from the beginning.

I explained how I first levitated when I was five, about my stalker who tried to drown me when I was twelve, that I could actually see them the night of the police raid when we found them on the curb, concluding with last night and Liam’s confession that we were Fae.

They laughed in disbelief just as I had suspected. I did not blame them. Repeating it out loud I know sounded, well, absurd. Liam retrieved a glass of water and gave them the same demonstration he had given me last night.

After his waterball splashed back in the glass, we all stared at each other in a long, uncomfortable silence. Then Morgan dropped her mug of coffee, and the sound of it shattering on the kitchen tile made all of us jump. She didn’t even move to clean up the mess. They just stood there, immobile with shock.

“Liam, could you give us a minute? We would like to talk to Ari alone.” Morgan finally said. He simply nodded and turned to me.

“I have to make a couple of phone calls to discuss our next step. I’ll be in the bedroom if you need anything.” He gave me one more reassuring shoulder squeeze and went to my bedroom to give us some privacy.

“I don’t even know where to start. How could you keep this from us? And for so long?!” Morgan looked at me with tears in eyes. She never cried. I felt my throat tighten with guilt.

“I’m so sorry, but I am not like Liam. I can’t just turn these powers on and off. I didn’t believe it myself and I didn’t think you guys would believe me.”

Morgan scoffed and swallowed down her emotion, “You never gave us the chance to believe you.” She said bitterly, and I lowered my eyes to the floor.

“I know. I’m truly sorry. I thought I was protecting you. You guys are like my sisters and I will never keep things from you ever again.” I slouched, feeling ashamed that I had hurt them with my lies.

“Really, I couldn’t even admit this to myself until last night. I was afraid I was crazy or something,” I confessed.

“That’s not an excuse Ari. All of these years we could have been helping you figure it out!” Morgan crossed her arms, waiting for more of my lame excuses except I didn’t have any.

“I will never betray your trust again. I know I have really screwed things up. I just hope you can both forgive me.” I expelled a long breath, feeling oddly relieved that they knew the truth.

Finally Kayla spoke, “Wait, so you are telling us that was not an accident on the river, that this Eartha Fae tried to kill you!?” her face turned red with anger.

“Yes, and there are many more Eartha Fae here in Ireland. I am afraid we are all in danger. I am so sorry. I think you two should go home. I do not want you to get hurt,” I said.

“Only if you come with us,” Kayla huffed and Morgan nodded to indicate the side she had taken as well. I knew they would do this but I thought it was worth a shot. I knew they would never leave me here alone, because if our roles were reversed; I would have said the exact same thing, lies and all.

“You guys, I won’t be able to live with myself if something were to happen to you. I won’t let you stay here and risk your lives.” I tried, knowing this was a losing battle. Morgan tilted in toward me. Her arms still crossed.

“We are not leaving without you. Something about this still isn’t right. I don’t trust it.” It came out in a whisper, but the stern edge to her voice showed me I wasn’t going to win this argument.

I threw my arms up defeated, “Of course this isn’t right. Nothing about this is right!” I said exasperated.

Liam came out of the bedroom and sidled up next to me, “How is it going in here?” he asked. I just shook my head. “I told you they weren’t going to leave without me.” I explained, and Liam pressed his lips together, tight with worry.

“Damn straight we’re not leaving, not unless you come with us.” Kayla was pissed that I even tried to send them home.

“Ari’s birth parents are being held prisoner by the Eartha. Her tracing ability is our best hope of finding them.” Liam confessed. I snapped my head around to look at him as shock spread over my face. He had not mentioned this last night. I could help free my birth parents? It gave me something to hold onto, a sense of purpose.

I nodded my head, “That’s right, I have to stay. I am a part of this now.” I was conflicted. I almost smiled. Now I had a chance to rescue my birth parents; a moment of hope in this darkness.

Morgan crossed her arms again and I recognized the stubborn look in her eyes, “Well we might not be able to fly or move water, but I’m not going home while you stay here and get yourself killed. We are as much a part of this now as you. We are not going anywhere.” She said with finality and Kayla nodded along.

Liam cleared his throat, “If you insist on staying, I hope you will not mind that Adam and I will be hanging out here. You will need someone with fully developed abilities with you at all times, to ensure your safety.”

Kayla scrunched her nose, “Shannon might be the one to kill us then. I don’t know what kind of company you keep Liam, but I am fairly certain Adam was hitting on me last night while we were playing darts.” Morgan nodded along, witnessing the event.

“Shannon will flip if he starts hanging around here all the time. You could tell how upset she was yesterday,” Kayla concluded.

She had obviously picked up on the same foul mood from Shannon that I had seen. I looked up at Liam and his neck was stiff with tension.

He recovered and smiled warmly at Kayla, “I assure you, Adam is harmless. He is merely a shameless flirt, nothing more. I do not want to compromise when it comes to your safety.” Liam’s words were grave with seriousness, and Kayla just shrugged.

“So what do we do now?” Morgan asked.

“We continue on with life, but with greater knowledge of the world in which we live.” Liam replied.

“I know it seems strange, but we can’t tip off your families that something is wrong. I do not want anyone else coming here risking their lives. Now that I know the Eartha have eyes on us, we must continue on as if nothing has changed. If they suspect we are going into hiding, I fear an ambush. My people are working on finding us a safe house where we can develop Ari’s tracing ability to help rescue her parents. I know it’s difficult, but tonight we will put on our party clothes and celebrate the New Year.” Liam smiled brightly but it looked like that took a lot of effort and I shivered internally. He was worried.

“Um…I don’t know if I’m in the party mood,” I confessed.

Liam brushed my cheek, “You will have to try to find some happiness. The Eartha have to think that all is well, and they won’t risk kidnapping you in a public place. I will keep you safe, I promise. After all you are still in Ireland. You have your best friends, and you have me. I hope that is worth celebrating.” He brought me to his chest and hugged me tight. I saw Kayla and Morgan suppress gagging faces and I pulled away.

“Liam is right,” Kayla agreed, “we cannot hide in a box for the rest of our lives. If everything is going to turn to crap, we might as well have some fun while we can.” She was always so brave. I wish I had the same confidence.

Chapter 25: Countdown

We ate breakfast and hung around the apartment until nightfall. Liam waited until Adam arrived before returning home to get cleaned up. Adam seemed tenser, not his usual easy-going self. I didn’t know if it was because Liam had warned him to behave, or because he was uncomfortable that the truth was out in the open.

I tried to portray an excited disposition even though I felt like mush on the inside. I could not stop thinking about my birth parents. What were they like? Were they hurt or sick, or maybe they thought I was dead. I told myself there was nothing I could do until I developed my abilities, and Liam had said it was not going to happen overnight.

I put on a green sequined top which matched the emerald in my trinity necklace. I paired it with skinny jeans, black high heels, and a black cardigan for warmth. Liam had said people spilled out into the streets downtown and I did not want to wear a heavy coat all night.

Even Morgan had dressed up for the occasion, wearing a graphic tank top with a black, three quarter sleeve blazer and long gold necklace. I smiled wickedly when I saw her and she pursed her lips.

“Don’t say a word. I let Kayla do my hair,” she said through her teeth.

“It looks great!” I said happily, and it was true. Kayla had put Morgan’s hair up in a pretty French twist. It was only funny because it was so unlike Morgan to get dolled up and you could tell she was uncomfortable.

“See, I told you,” Kayla patted Morgan’s head like she was a cute lap puppy, and Morgan rolled her eyes.

“Hey Kayla, some clown called. He wanted to know if you stole his make-up,” Morgan said spitefully. Kayla stuck out her tongue and I laughed. Although Kayla was wearing bright red lipstick that matched her red top, she did not look like a clown at all. The red was a striking contrast to her dark chocolate hair.