BRIDGER (45 page)

Memaw chuckled.
 
“Easy on her, Roslin.
 
She has a point.”

Rolling her eyes, Roslin stuck her tongue out at the both of us.
 
“I’ll let it slide this time.
 
I need to get back to Adaire, anyway.
 
Ash, you better be able to show me some magic tricks next time we hang out.”
 
Winking, she disappeared from sight.
 
Pink and purple wisps of smoke that matched her hair wound into the air in her wake.

“Her portal is in this forest outside of Tess’s house?” I looked up at Memaw, surprised.

Memaw laughed.
 
“I have no clue.
 
It might be.
 
More likely, though, she’s just gone to wherever her portal is in the world.”

“You can do that?” I said incredulously.
 
Memaw’s ability to show up at the most inconvenient times in my life suddenly made sense.

“Oh yes,” she said, chuckling.
 
“We can disappear and reappear wherever we want in a heartbeat.
 
We just have our one portal to Adaire.
 
You, on the other hand, have the ability to go to Adaire wherever you are, whenever you like.
 
One of the perks of being a Bridger is that you aren’t limited by what limits us.
 
You know no boundaries.” The jealousy was thick in her voice.

I smiled at this neat revelation of superiority to my grandmother.
 
The sound of a scuffle not far away drew me away from the conversation at hand.
 
Jesse was on the ground wrestling with one of the Changelings while Liam held ropes at the ready.
  
The other Changeling was already hog-tied and being sat on by Issac.
 
Desmond was cheering Jesse and Liam on wildly, as though he was watching one of his soccer matches on TV.
 
“Come on, Jesse, you’re supposed to be the expert!
 
I already have mine bagged and tagged.
 
Let’s go!”

Jesse grunted and flipped onto his stomach, pinning the Changeling against the ground.
 
Cursing, the Changeling began to shift but Liam was there immediately with the rope.
 
Tied by his hands and feet, Jesse lifted the faerie and tossed him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
 
“Let’s go,” Jesse grunted. “I don’t want to be here when the next crack opens up.”

Desmond strutted past; he was proud of his catch.
 
Apparently he had already completely forgotten about his attack on his comrade-in-arms, which just so happened to be me.
 
Memaw grabbed his arm, causing him to drop the Changeling on the ground.
 
“I believe you owe my granddaughter an apology,” she said, trying to sound threatening.
 
A smile played around her lips that she fought to keep inside, knowing I would be mad if she laughed.

Desmond apologized, shrugging and snorting at the same time. He tossed his Changeling down unceremoniously, and I cringed at how hard the thing hit the ground. “Sorry, Ash.
 
You do a good impersonation of the buggers.”

I shook my head, knowing this story would circulate for a while.

Struggling to upright itself, Issac came from behind and put his foot on the Changeling’s back to pin him to the ground.
 
“Where do you think you’re going?
 
We might have questions for you.
 
What’s your name, you nasty thing?”

“Issac, he’s not going to answer any questions if you’re mean to him,” I chided.
 
I wasn’t planning on starting a Changeling rights movement anytime soon, but if we were trying to find out where Ankou was keeping Memaw’s daughter, MaKenna, Tess’s son, Aiden, and my brother, Chris, we should probably play nice.
 
At least, it seemed like a good place to start.

Issac looked at me disdainfully.
 
“Changeling, you’re lucky the girl has a soft spot for you.”

Desmond picked the Changeling up once more and threw him over his back.
 
Grunting, the Changeling threw me a contemptuous glare, then stared at the ground. Maybe it was wrong to care, but I did, all the same.

WHERE TO FIND ME

Visit www.megancurd.com for the latest information on BRIDGER,
and other upcoming novels from Megan Curd!

Megan Curd graduated from Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minnesota with a degree in Intercultural Studies. She has enjoyed traveling to many different countries and working with young adults of all ages.

When not writing, Megan enjoys spending time with her family, snowboarding, and playing the occasional video game. Megan resides in Wisconsin with her husband, son, and two dogs.