Dolmarehn - Book Two of the Otherworld Trilogy (12 page)

These stones, though rather large, were pebbles in comparison to the monoliths of Stonehenge.

Cade nodded and gave me a calculating look.  “Stonehenge, in the mortal world, is the most famous example, but several exist.  They help the Druids channel Eilé’s natural power more efficiently.”

I arched a brow at him.

He sighed, though not with impatience.  “Try to picture the sun shining on a cloudy day.  Although the light reaches the ground, it’s even brighter where the clouds part.  The sun’s radiance is emitted everywhere, but is concentrated only in certain areas.  The stone circles help concentrate the earth’s magic because they are an extension of Eilé herself.  Stone being of the earth, and placed in a circle to extend towards the sky, helps channel the magic from the ground and pulls it upwards.  Before the glamour can escape and becomes part of the soil once again by falling in the form of rain, the person calling upon the magic stands in the center of the stone circle and absorbs the power into their body.  It isn’t the only way to absorb magic, but it is a quicker and more effective way to do so.”

In a weird, science fiction sort of
way, what he said made sense.

“So, like a gas station of sorts, for someone who uses magic.”

Cade grinned and his green eyes flashed more towards brown.  “Yes, that’s also a good explanation.”

I smiled, the usual response whenever I saw Cade do the same.

“Now, although the stones have been knocked down, we should still be able to channel some power.  In fact, I’m glad most of them aren’t standing.  If the magic of the earth is prevailed upon and answers in full, the result can be rather, uh, overwhelming.”

That sounded a bit daunting.  Cade had said the purpose of my visit to Eilé was to soak up magic, but surely he didn’t mean for me to recharge here in this fallen circle where I could potentially damage myself.  I had no idea what I was doing, after all.

“So, you’re just going to show me the process this first time, right?”

Cade’s responding grin seemed almost wicked.  I caught my breath.  This expression proved even more disarming than his cheerful ones.

“No Meghan.  We came here so you can learn what it
feels
like to channel your own power.”

“What?”

Was he serious?  He wanted me to step into the ring without first showing me?  Was he crazy?

“Cade,” I said, licking my lips nervously, “are you sure this is a good idea?  I’ve never done this before, I don’t even know if I really have any power, remember?”

“You do,” Cade insisted, “trust me.”

“Yeah, okay.”  I snorted softly and crossed my arms.

“Come on.”

He reached out and took one of my hands, pulling me towards the center of the circle.

I was anxious, though I wasn’t sure why.

He placed me in front of him, keeping his hands on my shoulders, my back to his chest.

“Now,” he whispered right behind my ear, “we ask Eilé to recognize your power, and to feed your own glamour with her magic if it is hungry.”

I
quiv
er
ed
.  Cade made it sound like I had some living creature inside of me.  He confirmed as much when I asked him.

“Your power is a living thing, just like you and all the parts that make you Faelorehn.  Your lungs need oxygen, your stomach craves food.  Your heart desires love.”

I drew in a breath at that.

“Now close your eyes, and let us both take from Eilé what she has to offer.”

“Do we need to say anything special?” I blurted.

He shook his head.  “No.  Just let your senses become aware of the presence of the earth around you.”

I did what I was told.  I closed my eyes and let myself drift, soaking in the gentle, cool caress of the fog and the spongy softness of the moss below my feet.  I let my nerves take in Cade’s presence and my fingers and toes began to tingle.  The forest was silent, until a soft chant, not terrifying or demanding, but celebratory, began floating through the air.  The scent of old woods, wet stone and deep earth surrounded me, and when Cade sighed and gently pushed me away from his body, I almost fell on my face.

I looked back at him and blushed.

He smiled, his eyes so dark green they appeared black.

“Did you sense anything?” he asked, his voice a whisper.

“I, I think so,” I croaked.  “I noticed the presence of nature, but nothing else.”

Cade’s brow furrowed and his intensity seemed to lessen.  He drew a deep breath and raked a hand through his hair, stepping closer to me.

“You would’ve known if you felt it.”

“Felt what, exactly?”  I wanted to know.  Perhaps I did perceive it, whatever
it
was.  Or maybe my glamour was a dud.

“Your own magic awakening, but don’t worry.  Sometimes a person’s magic will stay hidden and safe within them until something profound happens.  I hoped coming here would do the trick.”

He shook his head and the corner of his mouth curled up.

“What?” I said, nervous.

“I might as well tell you what to expect, just in case your glamour decides to wake up when I’m not around to explain.”

“Or perhaps I was right.  About not having magic,” I mumbled, disappointment hitting me like a load of bricks.

Again, Cade shook his head.  How could he be so confident I carried any glamour when I couldn’t even sense the magic myself?

“The sensation is like a warm blossom, opening up and sending fire through your blood.  Not an unpleasant experience, but one that can be uncomfortable at first.  One day you’ll learn to welcome the flow of your magic, and to wish for it.”

Okay, I’ll bite.  “And where exactly does this magic reside?”

He took another step towards me, that dangerous look gathering in his stance and flashing in his eyes again.  I found the simple act of breathing difficult.

“Here is where you’ll sense your power growing.”

Cade placed his hand on my chest, right below my collar bone, slightly above and to the right of my heart and against the bare skin where my shirt collar had fallen open.

I tensed and my heartbeat sped up.  I was almost certain the tingling of my nerves was due to Cade’s touch and not the result of any power or magic awakening, but I’d stayed the night in the middle of the woods in the Otherworld.  I must have been ‘recharging’ even before this early morning visit to the ruined henge.  Surely I would have detected something by now.

And then it started.  A tiny itch that soon turned into something else, something sharper, clearer.  The sensation began as a small pinprick and soon unfolded within my chest cavity, as if I were growing a second, more permeable heart.

The experience wasn’t unpleasant, just different.  I imagined I had a tiny sun lodged within my ribcage, keeping my heart company, and it had grown so large its brilliance began spreading throughout my whole body.  I felt light on my feet, as if I could fly by simply spreading my arms and reaching towards the sky.

I met Cade’s gaze, and noted the grin on his face.

“Now, here is something you can do with that power, should you wish to.”

And before my very eyes, he dissolved into our surroundings.  I gasped and started when his hand left my skin.  I reached out, grasping nothing but thin air.

“Cade?” I whispered.

The mist in the trees had lifted a little, but the woods were still so ethereal; so Otherworldly, and the few stones that remained standing resembled sentinels watching my every move.

“Cade?” I asked again, louder this time.

Meridian chattered from her watch above us, breaking the relative silence.  I stretched out a hand, trying again to touch an invisible Cade.  I imagined I looked like a little kid at a party, blindfolded and wandering aimlessly as I tried to locate the piñata.  I also felt foolish and a little annoyed.  Why was Cade messing with me?

“Glamour has many wonderful uses,” he said from somewhere behind me.

I turned around and began groping in that direction.

“Invisibility being one of those uses,” he continued from a different location.

I growled and started heading the other way.

“Makes it easy to sneak up on people,” he whispered next to my ear, his warm breath
sending goose bumps down my neck
.

I whipped around, partly in reaction to being startled, partly because I wanted to catch him.  My hand brushed his . . . shoulder?  His arm?  Then he managed to slip away again.

I huffed a breath of frustration and just walked, full force, towards where I thought he might have headed.

Halfway across the stone ruin, someone grabbed my arm and spun me around.

Before I could voice my protest, a gentle hand came to rest on my shoulder, and then on my cheek.  Something warm, soft and inviting pressed against my parted lips, and I realized Cade was kissing me.  My eyes widened and I gasped, inadvertently deepening the kiss.  Moments seemed to pass by and I barely recalled wrapping my arms around my indiscernible companion, returning the kiss with equal strength.

Cade pulled me closer and ran his fingers along the back of my neck and through my hair, as if he feared I would run away.  I lost track of all sensations except for the touch of his skin, his unique scent and the glowing joy that was my very own Faelorehn power, now a pleasant warmth coursing through me.

Eventually, Cade broke the kiss and stepped away from me.  I opened my eyes, not realizing they had been shut.  I was too overwhelmed to speak or even think, but it didn’t matter.  Cade materialized before me, a slow, eerie process, and I found the expression on his face to be almost heart-breaking.  He looked guilty, remorseful, regretful.  Disappointed.

My own elated joy vanished in a heartbeat.  What was wrong?

“Forgive me Meghan.”

His voice was ragged and he ran his hands through his hair, keeping his eyes lowered.  I should have been grateful, for my own were filling with tears.

“I got carried away with the moment.  I’m sorry for my behavior.”

I’m not
!  I wanted to scream, but clearly he believed he had made a mistake.

He held out his hand and smiled, but he still wouldn’t meet my eyes.  “Let me return you home before you are missed.  I can teach you how to channel and use your glamour another day.”

Fighting the tears of hurt and confusion, I stepped ahead of him and followed the trail out of the woods.  Meridian swooped down to dart in and out of the oaks in front of me.

Sorrow
?  Her mind brushed against my own.

Yes
, I returned,
but it will fade
.  I hoped.

She released a mournful cry for my sake, but sped on ahead, keeping a lookout for hostile faelah while we made our silent, somber way back to the dolmarehn through the misty woods.  Fergus came up from somewhere down the path and trotted past us, leaving Cade to trail behind.  The hound seemed relaxed, his ears pressed back against his head.  I wondered, as we moved further towards the stone gate that would take me home, what conversation he was sharing with his master.

-Nine-

Solstice

I was stuck in a bad mood all the following week, snapping at my friends or simply ignoring them when they asked me menial questions.  It was stupid and selfish of me, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Cade’s kiss and why he had been so eager to disregard it.  Had I disappointed him somehow?  Would he completely forget me now and leave me to fend for myself?

Coming up with the ‘juicy details’ Robyn insisted on learning the moment she saw me on Monday morning had been even more trying on my nerves.

“I want to know everything!” she hissed in excitement as she pulled me off to the side so our other friends wouldn’t hear.

I had to thank her for that much, at least.  I wasn’t ready for the boys or even Tully to know about Cade, especially since I sought out Robyn’s help and not hers.

I shrugged, forcing the bitter
disappointment to go away.

“Did you kiss him?”

I blushed so hard it sent Robyn into a fit of hysterics.

“Spill Meghan!”

“Spill what?” Will asked as the bell warned us to get to class.

“Nothing,” I grumbled as I shuffled away from them.  Robyn’s giddy laughter chased me all the way back to class.

At lunch time she bullied me into giving her more details, so I made up some story about how, yes, we kissed, but the experience hadn’t been all that exciting and rather disappointing.  Well, it hadn’t been disappointing on my end, but I wasn’t about to tell Robyn that.

Robyn crossed her arms and scowled.  “Well, if you spend the night with him again, I hope you get a whole lot more out of him than a kiss.”

I gasped in shock, hitting her on the shoulder.

“Ro-
byn
!” I hissed.

She only grinned impishly as she rubbed the spot I had smacked.  “What?  Don’t tell me you haven’t thought about it.”