Dolmarehn - Book Two of the Otherworld Trilogy (16 page)

We left the dark basement several minutes later, all of us a bit humbled by what the Cauldron had revealed.  Okay, maybe
I
was humbled, but my male companions were most likely just staying silent for my sake.

Alannah met us at the top of the staircase, her pretty face sporting a frown when she spotted me.

“What did you do to the girl?” she insisted as she pulled me away from Cade’s supporting arms.

For a few moments, he didn’t loosen his grip.  Was Cade reluctant to let me go?

“She wanted to see my Cauldron!”  The Dagda sounded defensive.

Alannah’s eyes grew huge.  “The Cauldron!  Dagda, you know what kind of magic that toy of yours holds!”

The Dagda blustered, and I almost giggled.

“
Toy
?  My Cauldron is
not
a toy!”

He sounded more insulted than angry, so I shook my head and pulled away from Alannah.

She protested, but I managed to find my voice.  “No, I’m okay now, I promise.”

We moved into the hall and Cade gazed towards the door.  The Dagda, who had been grumbling about women and their fussing, recognized Cade’s glances.  His slight irritation melted away and his shoulders slumped.

“Don’t tell me you have to be going already!”

Cade cringed a little.  “I’m sorry, but Meghan still lives in the mortal world with her family.  They’ll notice if she’s missed longer than a couple of days and I want to show her one more place before she returns to them.”

Sighing hugely, the Dagda gestured in the direction of the entrance and called out, “Brennan!  Come fetch my foster son’s horse.  He is leaving me and taking this wonderful girl with him.”

A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth, despite the Dagda’s woeful tone.  I found comfort in knowing my presence would be missed.

All of the Dagda’s . . . girlfriends? (I still wondered about their relationship with him) bid us a warm farewell.  Alannah actually gave me a hug and I felt myself warming up to her.

The Dagda himself walked us out.  He embraced his foster son, slapping him on the back with such force I thought he might have cracked a few ribs.

“Don’t stay away for too long this next time around.”

Cade promised to visit again soon and when the young man from earlier led Speirling around the hill, he jumped up onto his back and waited for me to join him.

I turned to the Dagda one last time.

“It was really nice to meet you.”  I extended my arm for another handshake.  “And thank you for showing me your Cauldron, it was beautiful.” 
And so full of wonderful magic
.

Instead of shaking my hand, Cade’s foster father scooped me up into one of his intense hugs.  I didn’t even have time to suppress my squawk of surprise.  Fortunately, he didn’t seem to mind.

“Promise to visit me again Meghan dear.  And if that boy should ever mistreat you, you are more than welcome to come live here.”

He set me down and held on to my shoulders so I wouldn’t collapse.  His smile was infectious and he said, “I’ve always wanted a foster daughter.”

Tears gathered in the corner of my eyes.  He meant every word.

“I-I promise,” I managed, returning his smile before I joined Cade.

As we made our way through the hills and out across the plains again, Cade asked me quietly, “So, what did you think of the Dagda?”

I contemplated that for a minute, but I had formed my opinion the second I first saw him.  “He’s wonderful Cade.  You were lucky to have him as a foster father.”

Cade’s laugh danced through the air, adding to the glorious happiness and sense of belonging that suffused me.

“Yes, but don’t you go falling under his spell.  He is far too charming for his own good.”

I grinned.  After all, he
did
have a point.

-Eleven-

Wildren

Dark had fallen by the time we reached the castle and the sound of the waterfall greeted us when we entered the courtyard.  Cade caught me as I half-fell, half-slid off of Speirling’s back.

“Sorry,” I mumbled, slightly embarrassed.

“It was a long ride, no apology needed.”

Cade waited until I steadied myself before letting go of me.

“Think you can manage climbing a few flights of stairs?” he asked.  “The only functional rooms are on the third floor.”

I nodded sleepily.  Tired or not, I could walk up stairs.

Cade inclined his head, then turned and whispered something to Speirling, slapping him lightly on the rump after removing the bags from his back.

“This way,” Cade said, climbing the short staircase below the castle’s entrance.

He pushed on an iron ring and the door swung open with a slight creek.  Pitch blackness and a bone-deep chill greeted us inside.  Cade picked up a torch, lit the top, and started leading me through the grand entrance hall and up the stairs to the upper stories.

Seeing clearly in the dark proved difficult, but as my eyes adjusted I noticed bare stone walls and beautiful architecture.  I wondered what this place looked like when someone lived here; when the castle had been filled with furniture and tapestries.  The pictures I built in my head made my skin tingle.  How wonderful it must be to live in a castle.

By the time we reached the third floor, the chill had managed to seep into my bones.  The rooms at the end of the hall appeared to be the most damaged and I caught a few glimpses of the white waterfall through a gaping hole in the back wall.

Cade stopped at the first door on the left.  He opened it and then waited for me to walk in.  Like the rest of the castle, the chamber was dark and cold, but I could make out a pile of wood next to a fireplace hidden in the shadows.

“This will be your room Meghan.”  His tone was somewhat careful.

I turned and arched an eyebrow at him.  “You make it sound like this is your castle and your rooms to hand out.”

I bit my cheek when I saw him flinch.  Maybe I should have worded my thoughts in another way, but I found it strange that we were camping out in an abandoned castle.  I mean, this place had to belong to someone, right?

Cade sighed and walked over to the fireplace.  He added a few logs to the hearth and soon had a blaze going.  I hadn’t heard him strike a match, so I wondered if conjuring a flame might be another use for his glamour.  Once the fire started blazing, the room became flooded with light and I gasped.

The apartment was gorgeous: two large, tall windows dominated the opposite wall and a carved, four poster bed took up the center of the room.  A stuffed chair and a wardrobe occupied one corner and a thick carpet covered the floor.  The colors were welcoming as well: pinks, greens and golds.  Not overly feminine but soft enough to make the space pleasant.

“This is my castle, more or less,” Cade said softly, still kneeling beside the fire.

I blinked away my admiration of the room and gaped at him in surprise.

“What do you mean, your castle?”

He took a breath and ran his fingers through his hair, standing up as if every joint in his body ached.

“It was left in my keeping.”

I cleared my throat, then asked Cade the next obvious question, “Who left it to you?”

His gaze grew cold.  “My mother, with the help of the Dagda.”

Something about his tone warned me not to press further, so instead I asked him another question.  “Why didn’t you tell me this was your castle before?  When we camped in the hills?”

He sighed and settled his hands loosely on his hips, dropping his gaze to the floor.

“I was a little embarrassed, to tell you the truth.”

He glanced up and caught my surprised gaze.  He gave a half grin.  “I didn’t want you to think less of me after coming to this place.”  His gesture was meant to include the whole castle, not just this room.  “It’s not exactly in pristine condition.”

I simply stood and stared at him for a good thirty seconds.  Was he serious?  The slight reddening of his cheeks and the way he broke my gaze was answer enough.  He
was
serious.

Swallowing back my own reluctance, I crossed the space between us and wrapped my arms around him and leaned my head against his chest.  The hug was innocent, one I hoped showed my appreciation.  Cade returned the embrace and seemed to relax.

“It’s beautiful Cade, all of it,” I said softly, breathing in his unique scent.  I could so easily fall asleep leaning against him, and I almost did.

“That is why I took so long to contact you after . . .” he let his words trail off.  I knew what he was referring to, but I didn’t press him.  Bringing up the awkwardness of what had happened when we had camped on the hillside would only ruin this moment.

He took a deep breath.  “I wanted to make up for my behavior and ensure you had a decent place to stay when you came to visit Eilé.  So I spent the last several weeks preparing this room for you.”

I jerked my head up and pulled away from his embrace.

“Cade!  You didn’t have to do that!”

He nodded slowly.  “Yes, I did.”

A long silence spread between us and Cade got a strange look on his face again, the one that made my heart flutter and my stomach twist into knots.  A log crashed in the fireplace and sent a flurry of sparks up the chimney, breaking the spell.

“I had better leave you then.  I know you’re very tired.  If you need anything at all, I’ll be in the chamber across the hall and two doors down.  Your bag is in the bathroom through that door.”  Cade pointed to a door I hadn’t observed earlier.

“Goodnight Meghan.”

He moved silently through the room, pulling the door shut as he left.

“Goodnight Cade,” I whispered to the emptiness.

* * *

I woke up to the sound of something scratching against the window.  Grumbling, I rolled over in bed, luxuriating in the thick, warm sheets.

I ignored the noise until a single thought pierced through my mind:
OPEN
!

I bolted upright and blinked the sleep out of my eyes.  Early morning light flooded the room and yesterday’s memories came hurtling back.  The Dagda, th
e Cauldron, Cade’s castle . . .

OPEN
!

I jerked my head towards one of the tall windows, barely making out the fluttering of white feathers through the frost-encrusted glass.

Meridian!

I threw the sheets back and scurried to the bay window, hissing when my bare feet left the carpet and hit the cold stone floor.  I had to climb up onto a stone bench to get it open.  I flipped the latch and pushed, and a very disgruntled Meridian tumbled in.

Ice
, she sent. 
Outside, all night
.

She flew over to the fireplace and fluffed her feathers.

A pang of guilt hit me.  I’d been so distracted by the castle last evening that I’d forgotten to call her in.  I walked over and stoked the embers, hoping they’d offer her some heat.

I’m sorry girl
, I sent.

Her psychic voice
grumbled but soon the tremors
stopped.

While Meridian warmed herself by the fire, I returned to the window and gazed out.  My mouth dropped open when I noticed the snow on the ground, not much, but enough to paint the landscape white.  The view from this spot was wonderful: a slight glimpse of the rolling farmlands, grey forest and silver creek flowing below.

A soft knock at the door made me squeak and bolt away from the view outside.

“Meghan, may I come in?”

Cade, of course.

“Uh, just a moment!”

I quickly shut the window and threw a sweatshirt on over the camisole I’d worn to bed.  I was just glad I had flannel pants on instead of something more revealing.  I opened the door to find Cade, wearing his traveling clothes.

“Oh,” I said, feeling somewhat foolish, “is it time to go?”

“I thought I’d get dressed first, and while you’re getting ready I’ll fix us something to eat.”

“Okay, I can be ready in fifteen minutes.”

I smiled and closed the door, rushing to get ready.  I rummaged through my backpack and found my spare set of clothes.  I brushed my hair and teeth in the bathroom Cade had pointed out the night before.  To my delight, it appeared the Otherworld, although lacking many of the technological advances of the mortal world, did have something akin to modern day plumbing.

After I was finished, I quickly made the bed and coaxed a much warmer Meridian onto my shoulder.  The fire had nearly burned out, so I left it.  Sighing, I peered around the room once more, secretly hoping one day I’d come back.

Cade met me the moment I stepped into the hallway and handed me a granola bar.  Shrugging, I took a bite and soon realized I was ravenous.  The bar was delicious.

Instead of heading back downstairs, Cade led me to the end of the hall.  I followed him over a small stone wall, well, what used to be the back outer wall of the castle but had since caved in, and out onto a wide patio built up against the hillside.