Rive (9 page)

“Dark
Sidhe
,” Victor said.

Celeste pushed her hand into Rylan’s. “That doesn’t sound good.”

“It isn’t. They’re ancient
Sidhe
, very few left. They only truly exist in the absence of light. Virtually undetectable and invisible,” Rylan said.

“And?” Celeste said. “So?”

Victor leaned closer. “They’re a treacherous and dangerous nasty sort. But they can get anywhere, hear anything in the Otherworld. The board made a ruling several years ago after some bad business that they would no longer contract with them as liaisons.”

“We’re not the board,” Celeste said. “How do we find one?”

Victor smiled. “I’m not sure, but we’ll figure it out.”

***

Celeste sat on the back steps of the center in Dublin, watching the sun fade from the trees in the backyard. The
Sidhe
were active, moving around her, watching her, using her to move to the Otherworld.

Rylan was back in Kansas, doing something. She wouldn’t be going back to school after this, but she didn’t want to think about that right now. She didn’t want to think about anything but the way the sun was hanging in the sky like a big orange ornament, dipping behind the hills in the distance. If she listened hard enough, she could hear the Dublin traffic beyond the stone wall.

She enjoyed the solitude. The guards backed off a bit in the compound, giving her time to breathe. And she loved Rylan, now more than ever, but she needed some space, and he did too.

Regina appeared beside her. “May I sit?”

“Sure.” Celeste scooted over to give her some space.

She sat, still managing to look poised with her knees folded up to her chest. Her light gray pant suit and sky-high black heels made a strong contrast to Celeste’s jeans and sneakers.

“Beautiful sunset,” Regina said. The very last swell of the sun cast them both in bright orange light.

“Yeah,” Celeste said.

Regina straightened out her legs and flexed her feet. “I’m old. Can’t sit like this for too long.”

Celeste laughed. “You don’t look or act old.”

“But I am. My time is coming soon.”

Celeste turned to face her, taking in her solemn expression. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying…” She looked away, and then turned back to Celeste. “I’m saying I’m not going to be around much longer.”

“What? What are you talking about? I don’t—”

Regina held up her hand. “It’s true. My time should have been up when you came into existence. It was my turn, and I was ready. But I see now that things are changing in the Otherworld, and will probably change in this world.”

“You’re freaking me out,” Celeste said. “What do you know that I don’t?”

Regina pulled her knees back up to her chest, eyes scanning the dark space in front of them. “That’s just it. I don’t know what’s happening right now. But I do know the seam between the two worlds must be kept shut.”

Celeste thought of all those things she had seen; the ancient ones, the very elements of life itself separating the two worlds, and the strange creatures no longer a part of human memory.

“I need you to listen to me very carefully, for I will only say this once, here and now. It will not be safe for us to ever discuss this again,” Regina said.

“Okay.”

Regina looked side to side, and then twisted to look behind them. Once she was satisfied they were alone, she spoke. “You are very powerful. You must figure out how to leverage it safely. Your powers are born of the very world itself.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Celeste snapped. She waved her arms around her. “What code are you speaking in? ‘Cause you don’t make any sense.”

“Quiet down, please,” Regina said, looking around them. “Your mother—”

“I have a mother. She is in Kansas,” she said. “I was dumped on a damn doorstep. That is not what a mother does.” The venom in her voice surprised even her.

“Right,” Regina said. “Your biological female parent hid you for a reason. Do you want to know what that is?”

“Because she’s a coward?”

“Yes, she was,” Regina said. Celeste tried to keep the look of shock off her face. “It was a pathetic attempt to hide you.”

“Hide me from what?”

“The
Sidhe.
”

“Why, Regina? Why would she do that?” Her voice had raised much louder than she intended.

“Your father is one of the ancient ones. Probably one born from the stars. All the light and fire. That is why you have your light. That is why you crave the dark, so you can fill it with light.”

Celeste pulled her slack jaw shut. “Is that possible?”

Regina pushed her lips together before she answered. “Probably took a human form, and, well…”

“Yeah, I get it.” Tears stung her eyes. “What does that make me?”

Regina grabbed her arm. “A force of nature. You are made of the very things the world is made of. You are an element of the universe. A true power.”

Celeste pulled her arm back. “Stop, please.” The tears spilled down her face. She knew it was true. Every single word. She didn’t want this power, or whatever it was. She didn’t want the responsibility.

“It is your responsibility to make sure the
Tuatha
bloodlines continue. You must have children with a
Tuatha
bloodline as strong as yours.”

“What?”

Regina tried to rest her arm on Celeste’s shoulder, but Celeste pushed it off and stood, backing away slowly. “I need to be alone.”

“I understand.” Regina stood too, slowly unfolding herself from the steps.

Celeste forced her shocked feet to move down the steps, into the darkness of the grounds and the heart of Dublin.

She had reached the edge of the circle of light made by the lamps on the institute exterior. She had one foot in the light, one foot in the dark, when Regina called her name.

“What?” she yelled behind her. She didn’t even turn to face Regina.

“Rylan. Let him go before you get him killed trying to save you from what you already are.”

The words chilled her all the way through, turning her bones into ice. Cold ropes constricted her chest.
Before you get him killed.

She stepped away from the light, embracing the darkness. She ran through the soft green grass, passed the manicured bushes. She reached the gate that separated the compound from the rest of Dublin.

She pulled on the heavy gate, but it wouldn’t budge even a quarter of an inch. It had a security camera and a keypad with a bunch of numbers. She started randomly punching the numbers.

“Yes?” a male voice said through the tiny speaker box.

“Let me out.”

“Your guards are advising me not to do that, I’m sorry.”

She pounded the numbers with her fists. “Let me out!”

“No.”

She stepped a back a few paces, staring at the Celtic pattern on the gate. She held up her hand, palm facing the gate. “Move!”

Power surged the grass and swirling night air around her. She took it in and pushed it toward the gate. The popping noises filled the air like gunfire as the thick iron shapes of the gate bowed out, creating a hole just big enough for her to step through.

She did just that, glancing once behind her to look at the freakish forged steel arms now sticking out from the gate like spider legs. She ran, away from the compound and away from her guards.

Chapter 10

The wide sidewalks of the edge of the city absorbed her footfalls. Night had fallen in Dublin, but in the relatively warm summer, people were still out. Walking their dogs, carrying shopping bags; normal people stuff.

She yearned for a second to be just like them, instead of her. Even as she walked, the
Sidhe
were all around here, moving through her. Power thrummed through her limbs, coming through the earth, the stars, the moon, and even the other people.

She only had a few minutes before the guards found her, but she relished the time alone. She found a small park with a stone bench ringed by trees. She slipped inside, safety wrapping around her as she sat in the ring of trees.

She tried to wrap her head around what Regina had told her. A child of a one of the ancient ones, the very beings that make the universe. The lightness, the darkness, the elements of nature.

Then there was Rylan. She longed for him now. She felt every mile between them and all the bad things that filled the space. She was a danger to him. She was supposed to make more
Tuatha
, which meant having children with a
Tuatha
bloodline.

Children were the furthest thing from her mind right now, but Rylan wasn’t. What if something happened to him while he was trying to protect her? She’d never forgive herself, never be the same.

Which is why she had to find out what exactly was going on, away from board politics.

“Ethan,” the name tumbled from her lips. He appeared before her, handsome with his strange plum eyes, not so much with the pointed teeth. He was one of the
Sidhe
who’d been there when she turned
Tuatha.

“My lovely Rua,” he said smoothly. He grabbed her hand, lightly touching his lips to the back of her hand. She fought the need to pull it back, away from those sharp pointy teeth. “I haven’t seen you in a long while, since you and you little friends ran into trouble.”

“Ethan,”—she took a step closer—“I need a favor.”

“Oh, darling. Anything for the most ravishing of all
Tuatha
.” He twirled his hand toward her as he made a polite bow.

“You’re laying it on thick.” She smiled.

He smiled back, pointy teeth at all.

“This is a secret,” she whispered. “I don’t have long before the guards find me.”

“I’m all ears.” He twisted his ponytail around his hand in a very human gesture.

She pulled him deeper into the ring of trees around the park. “I need a dark
Sidhe
.”

“A dark one, aye?” He tossed his pony-tail over his shoulder, smile tugging at his lips. “That’s very interesting.”

“Can you help me or not?” she hissed.

“Yes. Give me one day. Here, this time, tomorrow.”

“Thank you.”

He nodded again. “Your guards approach. I was never here.”

She glanced around, watching them close in on her little sanctum.

He touched her shoulder as he slunk away. “This is very dangerous, Rua. You have been warned.”

She watched him disappear, feeling him move through her to the Otherworld. She turned around, ready to go back to the institute.

Victor was there, a wall of muscle blocking her path. “Hi.”

“Hi.” She dropped her eyes.

“Who was that?”

She pressed her lips together.

“Okay, we’ll come back to that. Why did you run?” He crossed his arms.

“Because I can,” she said.

“Rua,”—he reached out his hand, and then pulled it back—“I saw you outside with Regina. What did she say to you?”

She swiped a hand across her cheek. “She said if I stayed with Rylan he would die.” She turned away, her waist length hair billowing around her as she moved. “She’s probably right.”

“What else?” He uncrossed his arms, strode to the bench, and plopped down.

“She said I needed to make more
Tuatha
.”

He slammed his hands down on his thighs. “There it is. Make more
Tuatha
babies. I’ve heard that almost every day of my life. Dad is not thrilled with me being who I am.” He shrugged. “He pretends I’m not gay even though I’ve never made a secret of it.”

She sat next to him, tucking her hair over her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“What else?” he asked.

“What do you mean?”

“What else did she say?”

Celeste bit her lip, pondering whether to tell the truth or not. “She thinks my father is one of the ancients.”

His mouth dropped into a long oval. “Like, ancient, ancient? One of the world creators?”

She nodded her head up and down, hair flowing around her face.

“Whoa. That’s a lot.”

“Yeah.”

“Damn. You’re powerful. You don’t need me, do you?” He stood from the bench, pacing around the circle of trees. “You need to practice. Figure out how to utilize your powers. You can defend yourself. I see this as a good thing.”

“If you say so,” she said.

“You going to tell me who that was?” he asked.

“A friend. He’s getting a dark one for us.”

He looked off to the side, pressing his lips together before he answered. “You’re full of surprises. That was dangerous, but damn,”—he gave her a full watt smile—“that was bad-ass.”

“Thanks.” She stood. “Does that mean you will be there?”

“Of course. You better tell Rylan about it too,” he said.

Guilt pressed on her chest. She moved away from him, back toward the wide sidewalk, leaving Rylan’s name hanging in the night air.

“Celeste?”

She paused in the midst of the trees. “Yeah?”

“Rylan is aware of the risks. Let him decide. Don’t be an asshole.”

“Shove it,” she muttered as she walked away.

He caught up with her. “You know I’m right and you better be going back to the compound.”

“Yeah, yeah. I am.”

He grabbed her elbow. “I can get us there faster.”

“No.” She pulled her arm back. “I want to walk. I want to move my legs like a normal person. I want to weave in-and-out of people. I want to look at the stars. Okay?”

“All right, fire lady.” He matched her pace, his long legs taking one step to her every two.

She glanced at him in profile. “What’s your deal with Tink?”

He smiled, full on with the dimple. “I’ve only known him a few weeks, but I really like him. I think there’s something there.”

“He’s special,” Celeste said.

He bobbed his head up and down. “Agreed.”

“Please be kind to him. He is good, through and through. One of the best humans I’ve ever encountered,” Celeste said.

“Hey,”—he stopped, waiting for her to stop too—“I’m a good guy. Don’t worry. You can trust me. With you, with Tink, with Rylan. Okay?”

She studied his face, but saw no signs of falseness. “Okay,” she finally said. “Tink is family to me. I hope you understand that.”