Edan still struggled with this entire situation, turned to stare at Ailith, forcing himself to ignore her beauty. “I still don’t understand. Who else could recognize my daughter? I have to go inside.”
Lia stepped between them, her small size almost comical. She waved her arms, and her aura spread up to Edan’s height.
“What?” He took two steps back, not quite sure what the green aura meant, but he would respect it. She grew as quickly as the mound of the faery hill, and he didn’t like it one bit.
Ailith held her hand up, her voice stronger than he’d ever heard from her before. “You cannot go, Edan. The seers have each seen a different version of the same story. The hill will break if you step inside. The walls and the ground will fracture, and the consequences would be dire. We’ve gone over this with you. Please accept it.”
“I’ll get Heilyn and Milo and run out before anything happens.” To him, it seemed a simple solution: get in, grab the bairns, get out. Once they were out, he’d gladly let the entire hill implode.
Dyna shook her head emphatically, and Lia moved closer. “But you don’t know that. They’ve discovered the bairns are in a crystal cage with no visible lock. How will you get them out?”
Edan’s gaze traveled from one person to the next. “A crystal cage? Is this wee lass making sense to any of you? Do you always do what she says?”
Dyna opened her mouth to speak, but Connor set his hand on her shoulder, and he spoke instead. “Edan, we spent several moons with Lia many years ago. She is the only reason we areall here. When bairns were stolen from Duart Castle, she always accompanied us, protecting them from whatever evil we had to deal with. You can trust that she knows exactly what we should do. I would trust her guidance in this completely unless you are familiar with the Unseelie. My daughter and granddaughters have proven their seer abilities to all of us multiple times over the years. You are new to all of us, so I understand your need to question everything, but know that we trust her implicitly. If she says don’t go in, then you won’t go.”
Connor, always the old chieftain, crossed his arms then, changing his stance, and said, “And if I have to hold you back, know that I will. You’ll not jeopardize the lives of the ones who are chosen to enter. We all have Heilyn’s safety in mind, but there are other bairns we must save also.”
Lia nodded to Connor, then turned to him. “Edan, we are sending Ailith and John in first, with John as Ailith’s protector. You can describe Heilyn and Milo to them, and they’ll know who to look for, but don’t be surprised if they return without any bairns rescued initially. They’ll see them but probably won’t know how to free them. This could take two, three, or four visits.”
Edan’s eyes misted, his fingers going to his eyes to try to squeeze the wetness back in, the thought of what his sweet daughter was going through nearly overwhelmed him. Was she afraid? Were they being cruel to the bairns? Starving them? Making them do grueling tasks? He forced himself not to dwell on those horrid possibilities.
Sylvi whispered, “They’re sleeping. Do not worry about Heilyn. She’ll be fine once we find out how to free her from her cage.”
He whirled to face the lass, wondering how she would know exactly what he was thinking. He didn’t have to ask, she’d already been listening.
“I’m a seer. I can see your thoughts if I try hard enough.”
“Alright. I’ll go along with whatever Lia says to begin with, but I cannot promise I’ll stay out myself after a while. If I fear my daughter’s life is in danger, I won’t be able to stay back.”
Alasdair said, “I would expect that of you. We’ll be there to support you, MacRuari. We do not condone stealing bairns. It is the worst form of evil in my mind. But also know this. You entering after Ailith and John are inside is risking all of their lives. You’ll not get past my sword, MacRuari. They are my bairns, and I’ll protect them with my life.”
Edan hadn’t looked at it quite that way before, but he understood his position so he nodded. What he couldn’t do was predict how he would react when they were there.
Lia paced around the outside of the group. “Get some rest. We’ll meet by the stable at first light. Go home, Edan. We can stop along the way to meet you at the crossroads as we did before.”
Edan nodded, making his way to his horse near the path while the group dispersed and headed into the two cottages. “Ailith?”
She hadn’t moved yet, instead turning to stare at him. “Aye?”
The lass was so beautiful that she nearly took his breath away. How was it possible that she grew more stunning every day? She approached as he settled his horse and belongings, then turned his full attention to her. “I still hope to go inside the hill. I’ll not be able to stay back for long.”
Ailith waited until she was close, then whispered, “You cannot. Edan, I saw you die inside the hill, and so did Tora. The hill will not accept you. You caused it to implode, and your presence now would risk the lives of all the bairns. You have to let John and me find them first. Please. I know it will be difficult, but you have to let us try.”
Edan glanced over her shoulder, noticing everyone had gone inside except for Ailith’s sire, who stood on the step waiting for her. To his surprise, the door opened, and Emmalin tugged Alasdair inside, closing the door behind them.
Edan took the opportunity to take Ailith’s hand and lead her over to a copse for a moment of privacy. He had one thing to do before they returned to the hill. He cupped her cheeks, his thumb brushing her soft skin. All he could say was, “Ailith.”
His lips met hers, a need he was powerless to fight anymore. He’d been drawn to her since the day they’d met, their connection inevitable. Her lips were soft beneath his, tentative at first, and that hesitation nearly broke him. He gentled his touch, slowing his pace, reminding himself that this lass had lived a careful life, built on walls and wariness hard-earned. They’d shared a kiss before, but this was different. They’d both been fighting to understand a world unknown to them. He didn’t need to push her, but being this close to her was the one time when things felt right, instead of so immensely wrong that he couldn’t handle what was happening.
Her hands found his chest, not pushing him away but resting there, fingers gripping the wool of his plaid as if she needed something to hold onto. He lifted his head just enough to look at her, searching her face in the dim light. What he found there was not fear. It was wonder, wide-eyed and unguarded, the face of a woman who was just beginning to explore her feelings.
“Am I daft, Ailith? My daughter is missing, but you both haunt my dreams and consume my waking thoughts. You…” He struggled to form the right words. “You give me reason to push ahead. To hope for a resolution to this chaos.”
“Nay,” she whispered, peeking up at him. “Please don’t push me away because of your daughter. We’ll do this together. I want you close.”
She’d chosen him. That humbled him. Stumbling against him, she giggled, a sound that he wished to lock in tight, but he held her strong. He wasn’t ready to let go of her yet. Sounds of the lads wrestling in Magni’s cottage interrupted them, but he ignored it, tugging her nearer until their bodies melded together.
He kissed her once more, slower this time, his hand sliding from her cheek into the dark fall of her hair, tilting her face gently upward. Her breath came soft and uneven against his mouth, and he felt the small tremor that moved through her when he drew her closer, his other arm settling around her waist until there was no cold night air between them. She smelled of woodsmoke and heather and something he could not name but already recognized as entirely her. He would know it in the dark, and he knew he would for the rest of his life.
