Through the Door (12 page)

“What do you mean, for a while?” Cedar asked. “You’re here now.”

“It’s been a long time since our people have made regular visits here,” Finn answered. His face darkened, and he glanced at his father, as if he was asking for permission to continue. His father’s expression was carefully guarded, but he nodded slightly.

“There was a war in Tír na nÓg, and our side lost,” Finn explained. “Those of us who survived escaped here. We were looking for help, and a chance to rebuild.”

“Okay, so you’re, um, ancient Celtic gods, but you’re here, pretending to be humans,” Cedar said, hearing how ridiculous her own words sounded. She wished Jane were with her.

“We’re not gods,” Riona said softly, “although we were once worshipped as such. We’re a different race, you might say. And, yes, we’ve been trying to blend in.”

Across the room, Molly grinned at her. “They say we’re fairies now!” she said, putting her hands behind her back and flapping them like wings. Rohan shot her a look, and she dropped her hands back down to her sides, the grin sliding off her face.

Fairies,
Cedar thought.
Eden would like that.
“What does this have to do with Eden?” she asked. “The thing she can do with the doors, is that because she’s one of you, because she’s half Tuatha Dé Danann?” Cedar forced herself to look at Finn, who looked nervous but nodded silently. At least she had her answer to that question. Only now she had about a thousand more.

“And Nuala?” she asked, turning to look at Rohan. “You said she put a spell on Jane. Is she a witch? Can you all do magic?”

“We are not witches and wizards, or fairies. This isn’t some child’s game,” Rohan said.

“I didn’t say—” Cedar started, but Riona interrupted.

“I suppose you might call it magic,” she said. “But we’re all different in our abilities. Nuala has a very rare gift. She has the ability of persuasion, let’s call it. Even when she’s not trying, she exudes a sort of charm that makes people trust her and want to do what she says. But her ability can be very, very powerful when she taps into a deep emotion or desire inside the person she is trying to persuade.” She paused, searching for the right words to explain it. “She’s like a very good salesman, in a sense, or a fortune teller. They’re experts at reading people, at figuring out what they really want to hear. Nuala’s gift is more than just good instincts, however. She can see inside a person and know his or her true heart. And that, combined with her gift of persuasion, means she can convince anyone to do almost anything, as long as there is a tiny kernel of desire inside that person, even if they don’t admit to it to themselves. She just needs the tiniest of hooks, and she’s got you.”

“That sounds horrible,” Cedar said.

Riona looked sad. “It is not a gift I would wish for myself or my children, no. Life has not been easy for Nuala because of it.”

“So that’s how she convinced Jane to forget what had happened—because Jane didn’t want to be there in the first place,” Cedar said.

Riona nodded. “More than that, she didn’t want you to know what had happened, that she had been neglecting Eden. Her guilt was the only hook Nuala needed. But once Jane knew she was forgiven, everything came back to her.”

Cedar could tell that the others in the room were getting restless. A few of them were huddled together, whispering. Even Nevan kept glancing toward the door. But Cedar didn’t want to stop asking questions, not now that she was finally getting some answers.

“So why did Nuala take Eden? Why does she want her ability?” she asked.

Finn glanced uncertainly at his father, and Cedar wished he would stop doing that. It made her think he wasn’t telling her everything. “We’re not sure, but we think she might want Eden to open a sidh back to Tír na nÓg, so she can return.”

“Why would she need Eden? If she wants to go back, can’t she just go the same way you came?”

“That way is closed,” Finn said. “Lorcan, who rules Tír na nÓg now, was tracking us. He was on our heels, and we couldn’t risk him following us through. So my father sealed the sidh we traveled through, and it was the last one, in either direction. Eden is the only one among us with the ability to open the sidhe.”

Cedar pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to keep everything straight. “So Rohan can seal a sidh, but none of you can create one? Then who made the one you came through?”

“He’s dead,” Rohan said.

Cedar waited, in the hopes of more information, but Rohan’s face told her the subject was closed. “And if Eden opens the sidh to Tír na nÓg, Nuala will let her go?”

At this, Finn’s body became very still. Cedar glanced at him and frowned. Finally, Rohan answered, “We don’t know.”

Cedar felt this sink in, slowly, painfully, like a boulder gradually settling to the bottom of her stomach.

“Now perhaps you can answer some questions for us,” Rohan said. “You told us last night that Eden can’t open a sidh to a place she hasn’t seen before. Correct?”

Cedar nodded, the stone in her stomach lightening slightly. “I think so. I mean, we only tried it once, but it didn’t seem to work.” She looked at Finn. “She thought she’d be able to find you. She wanted to go wherever you were, but we didn’t know where that was.” She ran her fingers through her hair, feeling oddly relieved. Eden was still missing, but at least she was still in this world,
her
world. She wasn’t out of reach—not yet.

Finn, seeming to sense her thoughts, reached out to touch her hand, but she withdrew it. “I’m sure she’s okay,” he said. “Nuala needs Eden. She’ll be sure to keep her safe.”

“Will Nuala put a spell on her like she did with Jane?” Cedar asked.

“She might try, but I don’t think it will work,” Finn answered. “My father and I both share part of Eden’s gift—we can close but not open the sidhe. It makes us immune to the rest of the Tuatha Dé Danann. It’s both good and bad, I suppose. Nuala cannot persuade us, and that’s a good thing.
And we can often help break Nuala’s spells on others, as my father did with your friend. On the other hand, Nevan can’t communicate with us. Sam makes the most extraordinary music, but we can’t hear it. We’re just…closed. Murdoch’s daggers can still stick us, though. We’re only immune to the abilities that affect the mind or heart. But it does mean that Nuala won’t be able to control Eden that way.”

“Is it normal that Eden can both open
and
close the sidhe?” Cedar asked.

Rohan answered, his voice brusque and impatient. “I think that’s enough questions for now,” he said, breaking away from them abruptly to exchange words with Dermot and Anya.

Cedar turned back to her coffee, trying to make sense of this new reality while painfully aware of Finn’s silent gaze on her back. He had returned, as she had always hoped he would, but he wasn’t who she thought he was. He was a…she didn’t even know what to call him. A god? A superhero? She thought of Zeus and Thor and all the other myths she’d heard and wondered if they were real too. She felt beyond stupid. She had been closer to him than she had ever been to anyone else in the world, and yet she had suspected nothing.
Nothing.
And now she was caught up in this world where, despite her protests, she knew she did not belong. She glanced at Finn over her shoulder, and he gave her a tentative smile. She looked away. She had to stay focused on finding Eden, no distractions.

“Okay, listen up,” Rohan was saying in a loud voice. “Now that Miss McLeod here has had her history lesson, we can get on with finding the child.”

“What’s the plan?” Nevan asked. “We’ve already looked everywhere for Nuala, and all our allies have been alerted.”

“Wait,” Sam said. “We’ve been going about it the wrong way. We’ve been looking for Nuala, but we should be looking for what
she’s
looking for.”

Nevan scrunched up her nose, which made her look like a pixie more than ever. “What do you mean? What is she looking—ohh,” she let out her breath.

“What? What is she looking for?” Cedar asked, confused.

“Of course! You said it yourself, Cedar. See, I told you she would be helpful!” Nevan said. “Eden can’t open the sidh to Tír na nÓg unless she knows what Tír na nÓg looks like! Nuala’s not stupid—she’ll figure that out pretty quick, or Eden will tell her herself. So she’ll be looking for a picture or some kind of depiction of Tír na nÓg. Right?”

“That’s ridiculous,” Anya said with a scowl. “How could she do that? No one knows what Tír na nÓg looks like except for us, and there aren’t any pictures of it.”

“You might be right, Anya,” Riona said. “At least, I haven’t seen any. Has anyone else?”

They all shook their heads. “We can’t rule it out, though,” said Dermot, who had come to stand beside Finn. “I mean, just because we haven’t seen them doesn’t mean they don’t exist. Our people have been interacting with humans for centuries. Maybe someone else left something here, a photograph or a drawing. Would that work? A drawing?”

Cedar shook her head. “I don’t know. The only things that worked were photographs—a wall calendar, actually—and images she saw on TV. I tried drawing a sketch for her of a place in Vancouver, but it didn’t work. I think it would have to be a photograph, or pretty close to it.”

“The kid’s got a point,” said Felix, who still stood behind the bar. “Here’s my question: is that ginger-haired bitch just
lookin’ for a photograph or drawing, or is there some other way she could show the wee girl what the place looks like?”

“Don’t call her that,” growled Murdoch. “We still don’t know for sure she’s got anything to do with this. And even if she did, you can’t fault her for wanting to go home.”

Felix cleared his throat. “Fine. If it’ll make you shut yer mouth, I’ll rephrase my question. Is
Nuala
looking for a picture, or is there some other way?”

“I could show her,” Nevan whispered, a worried look on her face. Everyone looked at her.

“I could put an image of Tír na nÓg into Eden’s mind. It’s been over thirty years since I’ve seen it, but I can still see every leaf. Do you think Nuala has thought of that? What if she forces me to show Eden?”

Cedar was surprised by Nevan’s words. She didn’t look a day older than eighteen. How could she have been in Tír na nÓg thirty years ago, and have a clear memory of it?

“But you’ve tried to contact Eden, and it didn’t work,” Riona said reassuringly. “Her mind is closed to you, just like Rohan’s and Finn’s are.” Nevan nodded, but the crease between her eyebrows remained.

“I have an idea,” Finn continued. The others looked at him expectantly. He cleared his throat nervously. “What about Brighid?” he said.

Cedar didn’t know who Brighid was, but apparently everyone else did, judging by their response. Molly smiled and said, “Ooo, yes!” while Felix snorted and Sam, who had been rubbing Nevan’s neck, looked up and said, “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“Look, I know she’s chosen a different path than we have,” Finn said, “but that’s why we should talk to her. Maybe she
knows something we don’t or can at least point us in the right direction.”

“Who is Brighid?” Cedar asked.

“You know, Saint Brigit!” Molly said, giggling.

“What?” Cedar asked, confused. Riona gave her daughter a smile. “I don’t think Cedar is Catholic, dear.” Then she turned to Cedar. “Brighid is one of us, a Tuatha Dé Danann. She is one of our Elders, one of the first who came to this world. However, she chose to leave Tír na nÓg many years ago; I think it was around the fifth century of your time. She said she preferred the company of humans to the company of gods. And she’s lived here ever since, under various guises, of course, including a saint,” she said, glancing at Molly. “We don’t have much to do with her, however. She prefers not to involve herself in our affairs.”

“Wait, she’s
how
old? Don’t your people…die?” Cedar asked, looking at Finn.

“We do,” he said. “But not of old age. We can be killed by violence. We don’t age, not physically, once we reach maturity. We stay that way forever.”

“But…” Cedar looked back at Felix, with his grizzled white beard and toothy grin.

He laughed, showing his gold teeth. “I’m a healer by nature, but I can also whip up a right nice aging brew for those of us who want to blend in. I’m actually as young and virile as yer man Finn, here, and twice as charming,” he said with wink.

Rohan interrupted. “Enough questions, I said. Finn, go ahead and call Brighid.”

“Speaking of charming,” Murdoch muttered.

Finn blushed and gave Murdoch a dirty look. “She was fond of me for a while,” he said to Cedar. “But nothing ever
happened between us. She knew my heart belonged to someone else.” Their eyes met for a heartbeat before he looked back at the group. “I’ll give her a call. I’m sure she’ll be willing to help.”

Finn disappeared into the kitchen and they all sat in silence, waiting. A few minutes later, he came back out, looking nervous.

“Well?” Murdoch demanded.

“She says she’ll tell us what she knows about depictions of Tír na nÓg. She wouldn’t say more on the phone, but it sounds like one exists and she knows where it is.” He hesitated and looked at Cedar. “She wants me to go see her in New York. And she wants me to take Cedar with me.”

“Why me?” she asked.

Finn’s cheeks reddened, but he held her gaze. “She says she wants to meet the woman who nearly drove me mad.”