Was Ailith a seer? Alasdair wouldn’t like it, but she didn’t care what her cousin thought if this lass could help them find the bairns. “What do you see exactly?”
“Bairns inside a cave. Huddled together in the dark. They aren’t hurt but afraid. I have no idea where they are.”
Dyna had a sudden revelation. “Come with me. I think I know what you need.” She led Ailith up the stairs and to the parapets.
The door opened and Ailith stepped just inside the threshold.
Dyna said, “I think I found someone who can help us.
Avelina waved to her. “Of course, Ailith. Grab one of the stools.”
“What are you doing?”
Avelina explained, “We are trying to see if we can uncover where Heilyn is being held. I was hoping the seers would be able to find them. Right now, we don’t even know what isle they are on. Do you think you can help, Ailith?”
“I’m not sure, but I had another nightmare about bairns in a cave.”
“Then join us. Mayhap we can help you to see more, to bring that dream into the light, so to speak.”
Ailith sat down next to them, watching as Avelina encouraged them to repeat what they’d just done to see if they could get any more clues as to where the bairns could be. The clouds had formed, moving quickly across the sky, casting odd shadows across the castle and Mull.
Ailith’s gaze lifted with the others, unease settling low in her chest.
Without warning, her thoughts turned to Edan. The steadiness in his voice despite the grief he carried, the quiet strength in him when he spoke of his daughter. She barely knew the man, yet something in her stilled when she thought of him, as though a thread had been drawn tight between them, and she had not noticed until now.
Dyna moved into a circle again, taking both of her daughter’s hands in hers. “Let’s try one more time. If someone is holding bairns and we can help, we need to do whatever we can.”
“But what if we can’t see anything?” Sylvi asked, fidgeting from one foot to the other.
Tora rolled her eyes. “Sylvi, it’s not difficult. Just close your eyes. If it’s there, it’s there. If not, we’ll try something else.”
“But I don’t want to fail those children.” Sylvi stared directly at her mother.
Dyna squeezed her worrier daughter’s hand and said, “We’ll try again.”
“All right,” Sylvi said.
“We can’t give up so easily. I believe in our skills. Something was off before. I’m not sure what, but mayhap it has something to do with the sky. Mayhap we’ll have to try again at night.” Dyna paused for a moment then nodded to Avelina to start her chanting and humming. “Ailith had a dream too, so we’ll see if she sees anything. Do you understand, Ailith?”
She nodded, but then whispered, “I can see it happening. It was a long time ago.” Ailith had stayed silent until then, the blanket forgotten in her lap. Now her hand rose without her bidding it. Her gaze fixed on nothing.
“It happened in a storm,” she said, low. “A bolt of lightning. The hill opened from the inside. Something was waiting.”
The other three turned to look at her.
“Where, Ailith?” Avelina asked, careful.
“On Islay. A hill near the western shore.” Ailith’s voice steadied as the vision pulled her deeper. “It’s been opened before. A long time ago someone made a promise and broke it. The spirit that lives there is angry. He’s owed something. He says if the debt is paid, he’ll let the bairns go.” She blinked. The parapets came back to her in pieces—the stone, the wind, Avelina’s hand on her shoulder. “I saw them carried in.”
Dyna sat up straight. “Aye. You are seeing what happened long ago, and Tora is seeing them now. You are seeing why it happened, and Sylvi can hear them, can feel exactly what they are feeling. You are each seeing visions differently.”
“Oh, my word in Heaven,” Avelina whispered, the other three staring at her first, then at Ailith. “You are the fourth piece.”
“What are you talking about, Avelina?” Dyna asked.
Avelina stood and drew Ailith to her feet, then set her between Sylvi and Tora.
“Take their hands.”
