BRIDGER (33 page)

Memaw nodded at me, looking at Liam out of the corner of her eye.
 
“We can discuss this later, Ashlyn.”

Liam looked into my eyes fiercely.
 
“Ashlyn, I
want
to protect you.
 
It’s an honor to be your Protector.
 
Don’t try to take my job away.”

Looking intently into his eyes, I knew in that instant I would take his job away in the attempt to not take his life if the opportunity arose.

TWENTY-SIX

Walking back to the house, Liam was silent. We held hands as Memaw and I discussed the next few days’ worth of lessons she was planning.

“Of course, all you need to do is see this demonstrated once and you’ll be just fine.” She was ticking weapons off on her fingers that she wanted to instruct me on how to use over the next week. Reese and Mary would probably pass out if they knew I was a master at beheading pixies in seventy-four different ways.

It was thrilling to take everything in. “Is there anything else I can do?”

Memaw beamed.
 
“There’s a possibility you will be able to do magic.”

Liam looked up, interested in Memaw’s musings.
 
“You mean she’ll be able to do real magic? Like pulling rabbits out of hats or serious stuff like blowing things up?”

Memaw chuckled. “Faerie magic is a bit different than what humans think of when they imagine magic. Basically, I’m assuming Ashlyn will be able to do everything the Changelings are capable of, plus the Glaistigs.
 
That makes her the most formidable human, Changeling, or Glaistig ever.
 
She’s the most perfect hybrid that could have ever been created.”

Looking at it that way, I was a little of everything, but not quite anything. One of a kind. I had always felt different, but never could have imagined just how right I had been.
 
“So what’s my place?”

Memaw smiled.
 
“The Glaistig will give you an assignment.
 
I would assume you will assist me in taking down Ankou once you’re completely trained.”

I nodded.
 
At least he would get his comeuppance for breaking apart my family.
 
“What about Jamie?”

Liam pulled us to a stop.
 
“You aren’t ready for that fight.
 
Leave that one to me.”

“Why am I not ready?” I said, indignant.
 
“She killed Dad and tried to kill me.”

“She was also your best friend,” Memaw said.
 
“You’ll be biased.
 
You won’t be able to look past the friendship you’ve built when it comes down to it, which is what she’s counting on.”

I looked down at the ground, lips puckered while focusing on taking the stairs up to the deck one at a time.
 
“I could handle it.”

“You’d be surprised,” Liam said.

Memaw walked to the back door in front of us, looking back to smile once more.
 
She was so proud.
 
I smiled back, happy to finally understand everything and be able to contribute in some way.

“You’ll get your chance, my girl,” she said.
 
As Memaw reached for the sliding screen back door, I saw Jamie at the same time Liam did: a second before Memaw turned her head back around.

“Emily!” Liam exclaimed, pushing me behind him and tackling Memaw to the ground, crashing through the screen door still closed.
 
There was a muffled cry from Memaw as she hit the floor, obviously shocked from the attack from behind.

I ran forward, the spear still in hand.
 
Liam and Memaw were in a tangled mess on the floor. Leaping over them, I rocked on the balls of my feet, ready to spring when the opportunity presented itself. I twirled the spear to hint to Jamie of what was next to come.

Jamie grinned, staying casual.
 
Backtracking to the couch against the opposite wall, she put her arm around Chris who was lying there.
 
He had his feet up the way he always did when he was taking it easy.
 
It was as though he had never seen Jamie’s psychotic alter ego.
 

Jamie looked as though she was genuinely excited for this little reunion. “Hey there, bestie.”

Taking three steps forward, I didn’t ease out of my crouch. The tip of my iron spear was pointed directly at her heart.
 
“You lost the label ‘bestie’ after you tried to kill me in Ireland.”

She took one last step back nonchalantly. “I see iron doesn’t affect you like it does Tess.”

“Which should be a good indication to Chris I’m not what you’re telling him I am.”

Chris looked between us, confused.
 
His face said that he had been led on. He never had been able to keep a good poker face. Turning my attention to him but keeping tabs on Jamie’s movements in the corner of my eye, I lowered the spear a hair.
 
“Hey, Sasquatch.” It was the best I could do to start a normal conversation.

Instead of his usual goofy grin, he sneered.
 
“You lost the right to call me that when you took my sister.”

I took two steps back, putting my heels up against Memaw and Liam who were still on the ground untangling themselves.
 
Glancing back for a split second, Liam was busy pulling Memaw out from under him.
 
When I looked back to Jamie, she had settled herself on Chris’s lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
 

Chris didn’t look particularly thrilled about this setup, but also didn’t look completely disgusted.
 
That was irritating.
 
I couldn’t believe he could swallow the lies she was feeding him. I held my hand out in a token of good faith, coming so close to the two of them that we could touch. “You know she tried to kill me in Ireland, right?
 
That’s where all this craziness started.
 
You know all this since you’re buds with her now, I’m sure?
 
I didn’t take anyone; I’m still the Ashlyn you grew up with.
 
We can explain everything if you’d just trust me and stay here with us.”

He ignored everything as though I’d said nothing at all.
 
Letting my hand fall, I looked around our living room.
 
Everything was still in place; the cream walls were adorned with our family photos.
 
Chris and I were smiling down on us from practically every angle. Someone had even started a fire in the fireplace.
 
It was ironic I had brought Jamie here the first time to meet my family - to become part of it - when in actuality she was going to break us apart.
 
She had done her job well.
 

Remembering Chris probably didn’t know everything, I blurted out the one thing eating me alive as I looked into Jamie’s smiling face.
 
“She killed Dad.
 
Did she tell you that story, or did she leave that one out?”

The results of the information were immediate.
 
Chris’s face crumpled in pain as though he had been burned with a hot branding iron.
 
He turned his face to Jamie, eyes thin as he tried to keep the tears from coming through his eyes.
 
“Tell me she’s lying.”

Jamie ran her open hand along the side of his cheek, looking as soft and motherly as she could in the gesture.
 
“Chris, do you think I would do anything to hurt you?
 
I was trying to get Ashlyn away from you, so you could be safe,” she said, her skin turning to the green it was the day she attacked me.
 
“I thought it was you and her above the ice.
 
I had been sent to save you and your mother from her.”
 

By the end of her explanation, she had shifted to her real form.
 
Chris had obviously seen her this way before; he sat still as she continued to stroke his face and neck, which was becoming more girlfriend-like and less motherly with each passing second.
 
Chris closed his eyes, either enjoying this or doing a very good job of pretending.
 
I was beginning to be nauseated from the display.

Leaning down and rocking onto the balls of my feet, I prepared to knock Jamie into next week for even thinking of touching my brother.
 
However, before I could completely commit to the motion, Liam called out from behind the rest of us.
 
“Ashlyn, we have a problem.”

I didn’t take my eyes off Jamie.
 
“Worse than the one I’m looking at right now?”

“Only if you think Emily bleeding is worse,” he said in a terse tone, obviously trying to stay as calm as possible.

Refusing to take my eyes away from Jamie, I took one step back.
 
“How bad?”

“Jamie got a switchblade in her before I could get her to the floor.
 
I fell on top of her, making it worse,” he choked out. “It’s not a human switchblade.”

Jamie was grinning broadly, Chris’s eyes still closed.
 
How he could sit so contentedly while Memaw was injured was beyond me.
 
“What do you mean, a
human
blade?
 
Is there another kind?”

Liam sucked in a breath.
 
“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Ankou gave me some of his worm blades,” Jamie said lazily, getting off of Chris’s lap.
 
She ran another small switchblade between her fingers.
 
“Liam can tell you all about them.
 
Chris and I really need to go.
 
I hope you enjoyed seeing him, but I can’t promise you anything more than this visit.
 
Chris will be very busy soon.”
 
She smiled and then leaned in to kiss Chris.

That did it.
 
My legs sprang into action.
 
In the air a moment too late, she and Chris disappeared into thin air.
 
I connected with the couch where she and Chris had been seated, tipping it over. My legs crashed through the window behind the couch.
 
Lying on my back, legs dangling out of the now broken window, I assessed myself.
 
Once I was sure there was nothing wrong but a gash in one leg and broken pride, I clambered out of the shattered windowpane.
 
Climbing over the now up-turned couch to finally look at Memaw and Liam, I let out a sigh of relief.

It didn’t look so bad.
 
I pulled the tiny glass shards out of my thigh as I walked over.
 
There was a small puncture where Jamie’s blade had connected with Memaw’s collarbone.
 
A tiny trickle of blood had already congealed, sealing the wound back together.
 
In a few moments’ time it wouldn’t even be noticeable.
 
“What’s the problem?
 
You made it sound like she was dying or something.”

Liam looked up from Memaw, his blue eyes cold steel.
 
“Ash, this is bad.
 
Look at her arm.”

My eyes ranged down to Memaw’s left arm.
 
About four inches away from the puncture wound, a small bump was moving along the inside of her bicep. Every couple seconds it would stop and disappear for a few moments, then resurface just below the skin, continuing its journey down to her fingertips.
 
It looked like a beetle was underneath her skin.
 
I wrinkled my nose in disgust.
 
“What’s that?”

Memaw opened her eyes weakly.
 
“You need to get me to Adaire.
 
Now.”
 

She gasped in pain.
 
As seconds trickled by, her gasps were becoming more pronounced and only came when the bulge disappeared.
 
My stomach churned. It was obvious that whatever the moving bulge was, it was doing damage to her internally.
 
I looked to Liam for answers. “How? Why? What is that thing?”

Liam nodded and then got to his feet, lifting Memaw in the process.
 
“The worm blade does exactly what its’ name implies.
 
The blade doesn’t do much damage to a person when cut by it.
 
If left even barely in the skin, though, the blade burrows in and makes its’ way through the person’s body.
 
If you don’t get her to Adaire soon, it’s going to cut all the muscles in her arm to pieces, then move onto the next limb.
 
She’ll bleed internally and be left as a shell.
 
It’s the only weapon that can kill an immortal.”