The Witches of Merribay (The Seaforth Chronicles) (25 page)

“My sister is not just a visitor there
. She has—”

“
Become one of them. It was her own choice, too. She fell in love. Now, is there any other wish? I can't stand here all evening discussing the goings-on of the Fae. If you must know, ask her yourself.”

“What about the mark
—Magella's mark? On her inner arm.” I pointed to my wrist area.

She closed her eyes briefly, as though she were focusing on Zinnia
. “I see that the mark has already been lifted.”

“How?”

“I do not know yet.” She appeared to look somewhat uneasy about the question. “Now, tell me your wish.”

How could Zinnia's mark have been removed
? The Fae must have the power to remove such things. I thought for a moment about what my wish should be.

“My fathe
r…he is spellbound. He was in fairyland and—” I said.

“I cannot break the spell of a human returning from fairyland
. You must go to the land of the light elves. Once there, you ask for a remedy. They can assist  you.”

I looked to Drumm for confirmation
. He nodded his head as though he approved.

“Well
, what about my friend Ian? He is in a wheelchair and—”

She interrupted
. “This I can do. But…well, come closer.”

I bent down, and she put her hand over my eyes, and instantly I saw a vision of Ian being able to walk again, only to have another accident a week later, taking away the use of his legs again.

Aggie patted my arm, consoling me. “Sometimes it is not worth fighting fate. It will only bring more heartache.”

“Well, what can I wish for then?”

“A unicorn? A house by the sea, perhaps?”

I thought about asking her to break the curse on Izadora
. I knew what her answer would be: “Not until they all learn to get along.”  Besides, I didn't think Izadora minded living in the tree house. She had become accustomed to it.

“I know what to do
. This whole mess started as a result of my father and grandfather lying to the family about a hunting trip—”

“Well, no
. They were on a hunting trip—just not the kind you thought,” GG Edmund said, defending them.

He had a point.

I recalled what GG Edmund had been trying to tell me at the battle zone. It was something about Aunt Cora's fiancé. How this had all began.

“Before I make my wish
, GG Edmund…or should I call you ‘Great-Grandpa Monty’?” I asked.

“No
, no. Certainly you must continue to call me Edmund. That is, after all, my middle name. I've always preferred it.” He stood close to his mother, and she beamed up at him with pride.

“Tell me what you kn
ow about all of this. How did it all begin? Why did Izaill have my father taken by the Unseelie? Tell me what you know, from the beginning.”

He slid his hands into his pocket and tapped his foot
. “Where to begin? It all started with your aunt Cora. She lost her fiancé twelve years ago. It was the day before their wedding. Aunt Cora's dog, Peppers, chased a deer into the woods—and oh, how she loved that little dog. After he hadn't returned for over an hour, Aunt Cora sent her fiancé into the woods after him. Well, he never returned either.

“
For some time, Aunt Cora thought he had gotten cold feet and took a chance at a getaway, while he could. She later learned through a rune stone reading with Magella—yes, you heard me right, Magella—that he had been taken by the Fae.

“Aunt
Cora would never be the same after that. She has been in a deep depression for over a decade, moping about, reading romance novels, and drinking wine to fill a void that can't be filled. After all, she believed it was her fault; she sent him in after the dog.

“
I had gone away for a year before all of this had transpired, before Aunt Cora's fiancé had been taken. I had told Izadora that I was leaving, so that hadn't been a lie. I just never told her when I returned.

“
Anyhow, no one could reach me for help at first. Only Ian's father knew how to find me. Ian was in the process of taking over his father's affairs, and it took some time but he finally tracked me down. When I returned, the window of retrieving Aunt Cora's fiancé had closed. There is a window. If you can retrieve the person within seven days, they will come home unscathed. It was too late.

“
This spring, after watching your aunt Cora sulk for over a decade, your grandfather couldn't take it anymore. He thought he could do something about it: barter with the Fae. Well, you don't barter with the Fae unless they want to be bartered with. I tried to tell him that. And he was angry that I refused to help. And so, he called your father to assist him.

“
I had a bad feeling of what was to come. I warned them not to go, but they would not listen. Izaill spotted them first. He always has a way of messing things up. A greedy, deranged soul, he is. He commanded his group of Unseelie to capture your father. He had a bright idea that he could get the younger generation of Seaforths to bend to his will and take the forest from the McCallisters. He knew that I could get them to sign it over to him. And whoever has the papers for this land owns it. And believe me, the papers are strict law. They can never be destroyed. They were put together by a great wizard…but I digress from the point. That's another story altogether.

“
Getting back to the point, I knew he'd eventually be coming for you, too. He knew you were part light elf, that he could use you against us. That is why I came forth. I almost came out of hiding beforehand, but certain things had to play out. I knew Izadora would look after you. Ian kept me well informed. I was sorry to hear about Zinnia, but as it was stated before, she made her own choice.

“
But an important piece of information about Aunt Cora's fiancé is he was never taken by the Unseelie. He was taken by the
Seelie,
the good Fae. They reside in different areas of fairyland. It’s almost like a veil separates them. He would be harder to get back. But your father…” He rubbed his temples with his hands and continued. “I had a plan of my own to find your father, but when I found out you had been seeing Izadora, like I said, I let things play out. If anyone could get him back in one piece, I knew it had to be her. She has more gifts. I do not. I am more human than Fae.”

“Enough of story
time.” Aggie patted GG Edmund's shoulder and then focused on me. “Tell me your wish, as I intend to leave soon. My disappearing and reappearing skills are not up to par, for I have been underground too long. And so I must fly.” Aggie urged me to answer, tapping her left foot with impatience. “Plus, I still have something that needs doing.”

I thought long and hard about what he'd just said
. I felt sorry for him in a way. He had never wanted anything to do with his crazy siblings; he had tried to walk away. What a mess. And it all stemmed from my aunt Cora. That should be it then, the end to the story.

“I'd like to have my aunt
’s fiancé back,” I said.

“Ok
ay.” Aggie closed her eyes and breathed deeply, as though in meditation. We all watched, occasionally exchanging looks. Five minutes later, she said, “I've located him.” She stretched her back, rubbing the lower half. “But if I bring him back, he will not be the same. I will do it, as it is your choice. But he will definitely not be the same; he's much different than you think he is.”

I hauled in a long breath, held it for a moment
, and let it go. If I had her bring Aunt Cora's old fiancé back, and he was not the same, what good would that do my aunt? He had been taken by the Fae years ago. If my father had been there for a much shorter period of time, returning with a longing to go back, then what would my aunt's fiancé be like? I pictured him returning and becoming demented, pining to return to fairyland and breaking my aunt’s heart all over again. The better choice would be to leave him where he was.

My great-grandpa shook his head from side to side
. Apparently he too thought it would be unwise.

“My wish is for Aunt Cora
…to find true love, and to be happy.”

Aggie smiled broadly
. “I believe that is a good wish.” She held her head up to the sky, swung her arms out to the side, circled her hands through the air once, and brought them above her head.

“It will be done.
” Reaching in her pocket, she pulled out a piece of thin, red braided rope. She tied the rope into a knot and handed it to me. “Give this to her. Her true love will find her. Whoever it may be, he will find her.”

“Well done, Ivy.
” Great-Grandpa grinned.

I had one more question about all of this
. “
How did you break the spell to release Aggie?”

“Easy
. I knew once you mentioned that Izaill had put a spell on Aggie and that she was buried up in unconsecrated ground, that he had used her old book of spells. I used to study mother's old book of spells as a boy. Anyhow, I remembered the grave curse. Mother knew that I would know. It's rather simple. When he set this spell, he had to use a pure white stone marker, to keep Mother bound in the ground, and he had to find a Hawthorne tree. He engraved a symbol on the bottom of the stone as a key to the spell. To break the spell, one must dig up the grave, hand the victim a bag of special herbs, and bury them until the next full moon—which just happened to be tonight. The next step would be to turn the white stone over, look for the mark he used. In this case, there was a circle. He had broken a Hawthorne branch from the tree and circled her grave three times, sealing the spell. All I had to do was break a Hawthorne branch, carry it in my power hand, which is the right hand for me, burn the branch”—he stopped midsentence to rub his elbows and then held his hands out, igniting fire—“which I have no problem doing ,as you can see. Then I had to walk counterclockwise around the grave, and it's done. I didn't even have to dig her up. The dirt shifted and was sucked up until she was out. Then it dropped back into place.”

“A job well done, my boy
. He always did have a good memory. The best, in fact.” Aggie shined with pride.

“Such a mama's boy.
” I looked up to see Izadora leaning against the railing.

“He's your favorite
, too,” Aggie said.

“Yes, he's my favorite too.”

“But I thank you for digging me up and handing me the herbs. He couldn't have done it without you,” Aggie said.

“How did you know where she was buried, Izadora?
” GG Edmund asked.

“Izaill
. He told me what he'd done. Right before he cast the mother-maiden-crone spell. He always has to gloat about his genius,” Izadora answered and then yawned.

The fire in
Great-Grandpa Edmund's hands still burned, and I stood back amazed at the blistering heat that radiated forth—and yet his hands were never harmed.

He noticed that I'd veered away and said, “Oh
, I apologize.” He extinguished the fire from his hands in an instant.

Aggie, eager to be on her way, said, “Ivy, I will also leave you with this.
” She walked to the edge of the wood line, clapping her hands. “Solstice! Solstice, come forth.” The wood line was lit up by the light of the full moon.

I couldn’t imagine what she was doing
. Was she calling forth the summer solstice? The winter solstice? Was she about to change the weather? We watched as she clapped her hands louder this time. “Solstice! Come forth!”

Thud
, thud, thud, thud,
could be heard off in the distance. Moments later it stopped. Through the forest edge, the most beautiful horse walked into the grassland where we stood. My heart beamed with joy. I jumped up and down like a five-year-old, clasping my hands to my chest.

“No way!
” I said. “Really?”

He was white with big black spots
; one was on his hind quarter, left-hand side, and some were on his legs. Starting from the head, his mane was black; at the halfway point, it turned pure white. White, thick hair draped over his lower legs, like that of a Clydesdale horse.

My chest tingled
; I felt as though I had won the lottery.

“He is a beauty!
” Izadora bellowed down.

“Magnificent!
” GG Edmund added.

Aggie patted him on the back as he walked over to stand next to me and Drumm.

“Beautiful.” Drumm gave him a thorough inspection.

“He's mine?
” I asked.

“Yes
. He is a free horse, you see, no one owns him. But he will be your best friend, loyal to the end. He will live with you here.”

Drumm laughed at my excitement
. “He is an elven horse.”

He had to be at least eighteen hands
. Drumm stood a few inches taller than his back.

“He'll take good care of you on your upcoming trip
,” Aggie informed me.