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Talion neatly sidestepped Maggie’s questions by ignoring her. “As Kenhel was saying, there are no true tales left about us on Earth, only half-forgotten lies. What truth remains has seeped into distant memory. It had done so before we even left your kind to its own devices.”
Cal hesitated, glancing at Relian before looking back at his father. What did he mean by “left”? Were the elves once part of their world? There were so many unanswered questions that tumbled around in her head that she didn’t know where to begin. “The veil—I still don’t understand what it is. I know it’s some sort of doorway between our worlds.”
Talion glanced at her. “That’s a fair enough definition. The magic that ties nature and elf together also formed the veil. But even that is about as far as our knowledge stretches.”
“That’s what Relian said. But we want to know more. We’ve been here for nearly four months and still know virtually nothing of it.”
Talion nodded approvingly. “What little we can tell you of the veil is best started at the beginning.”
Maggie nudged her under the table and mouthed, “About time.”
All three elves watched them. Had they somehow overheard or lip-read what Maggie said? She thought it possible because Relian did show a beginning command of English. Cal wouldn’t be astonished if he actually knew more than he let on. She’d actually tried to trick him into revealing his knowledge once or twice, but it hadn’t worked.
She suspected there were still many secrets between them, and the possibilities of that had been on her mind frequently. Even her teenage years, which were largely messed-up due to the mist and Relian, had been haunting her lately. Something was hovering on the edges of her mind, but she could never figure out what it was.
“Relian, would you like to tell the tale?” asked his father.
“Nay, I learned it from you and my tutors, as I was not much out of childhood when it occurred. So I believe you are best situated to speak of it with assurance.”
Talion seated himself at Cal and Maggie’s end of the table, so he was adjacent to them. He was quiet for a while. “So much hinges on the veil.” Whatever else he thought, he didn’t voice and only offered a smile as his eyes cleared. “In truth, at one time there was no veil. Humanity and elf-kind had once been wary friends, but that slowly changed with the inevitability of time.”
That answered Cal’s question about whether elves had ever lived on Earth—now to discover what had made them leave. Whatever it was, it probably wouldn’t paint humans in the most favorable light.
Talion continued. “When mankind started to forget the bonds of friendship and, instead, cultivated fright and distrust of elves amongst themselves, the veil began to appear. It took many centuries to happen. As fear poured into the making of false, hurtful stories, my people retreated. We learned to distance ourselves by disappearing behind the veil and venturing out less frequently. The mist, which always signaled the development of the veil, formed before us in times of need. By the time most of us had abandoned humanity, the veil had such a grip on the two lands that even we were hard-pressed to cross easily back and forth. After the final passage, the stories of our previous presence passed into legend and myth.”
Maggie’s eyebrows drew together in puzzlement. “You mean that the veil only hid your homes away at the beginning, not separating them by dimension or whatever this is?”
Talion smiled. “No, it was always a dimensional shift of some kind. It just became more permanent as time carried on.”
“Oh.” Maggie said nothing else.
Another thought popped into Cal’s mind. “Wait, is travel still possible? It must be. Maggie and I are here.” She stared at him with narrowed eyes. “Why do you act as if the veil won’t let us go home now?”
Relian let out a slow breath, his jaw twitching. “Because it won’t, at least not until your year is up. Travel for us is still possible, but the veil governs it on its own terms. Very few of us have wanted to leave the relative safety of our lands for the unknown. Except for the occasional scout or two we sent every few hundred years, traveling through the veil has been frowned upon. After all, we willingly left Earth, so why return?”
“Curiosity?” Cal couldn’t imagine that a small yet sizable portion of the populace wouldn’t have a thirst for adventure. Exploring a world they’d long left behind sounded like an exciting tale to her. Maybe this was one major way in which elves and humans differed?
Relian shrugged and leaned back into his chair, still keeping a firm grip on her hand. “I’m sure we’ve had a few sneak onto Earth when the veil has made itself known, but for the most part, our people are happy here.”
“If people do go, wouldn’t their disappearance be noted?” Cal asked.
Kenhel snorted, propping his elbows up on the table. “People disappear all the time. On purpose or through attack. Sometimes they come back. Sometimes they don’t. I’m sure it’s the same way back on Earth.”
“Yeah,” both she and Maggie said at the same time. At least they’d found out a few answers. Talking about answers... Cal looked at Relian in bemusement. So that was the origin of all fae stories. “It’s hard to believe that Maggie and I are in a place that used to be a myth back home.”
Relian squeezed her hand. “Some would argue that reality is as much myth as anything else.”
Cal sent him a suspicious stare. “Oh no, I don’t want to talk philosophically with you all. I’m not falling into that trap.” She wasn’t about to open that can of contention. Given the collective ages of the elves assembled—something she could only guess at—she wouldn’t come out ahead in that discussion. Age didn’t always equate with wisdom, but that many years had to count for something.
The elves’ laughter rang out. Maggie scooted closer to Kenhel, and Cal watched her with curiosity. Was it just to be nearer to him or farther from the king? Kenhel seemed to like Maggie and she apparently felt the same, so was more than friendship in their future? Maggie gave no indication either way but had spent a fair amount of time in his company. Cal wanted her friend to be happy. Still, as she didn’t know her own future here, she didn’t want to push Maggie toward something that might not last.
As Relian drew circles over her palm with his thumb, contentment flooded her. At times like these, the attack from a few days ago seemed so far away. So did all the issues that could plague a relationship between her and Relian.
She touched her neck. The skin bore only a slight mark from the dagger, and Eamon had been banished. Time did solve some problems, but would it solve all?
