BRIDGER (44 page)

Stepping into the house, it was certain that when Tess closed the door, my world was never going to be the same.
 
At the same time, there was no doubt I was destined for this.
 
Hearing the door click as Tess locked it back, I turned to her.
 
“You ready to hear what I was thinking?”

Tess nodded.

I smiled.
 
“Then let’s do this.”

We walked to the kitchen.
 
No matter what happened, I knew I always had my family to count on.
 
We would get our loved ones back.
 
I could bridge the gaps, and that was what was going to happen.
 
I would go to Neamar and save my family.
 
Afterwards I would burn that bridge down somehow and never look back.

Smiling at Tess, I laughed at my insane plan.
 
“Tess, we’re going to hell, and we’re coming back to tell the tale.”

She hugged me, laughing.
 
“I’ve always enjoyed warm places.”

* * *

Two weeks later Liam returned to Ireland. He’d surprised both Tess and I one morning. He just showed up on the front door step and refused to tell us how he’d gotten there. Any time I would question him about it, he’d just smile and say, “Emily took care of it.” My imagination would run when he said that. Memaw had a lot of tricks up her sleeve.

As we sat around the table, Liam took up one whole side while he read the newspaper. Tess and I were on the other, with me nearly falling off. Liam slammed the paper down in frustration. “Another three year old went missing in Tinker’s Cross last week. No body found.”

Tess sighed. “They’ll never stop until we can cut them off.”

Liam looked at me intently. “Have you ever seen a Changeling, Ash? A live one?”

I stopped eating my pancakes. They’d gone cold, anyway. “No. That’s the problem. I can’t imagine one in my head. I can’t shift if I can’t see it.”

Liam looked at Tess, questions clearly being asked without verbalizing them. Tess sighed. “Fine, take her tonight. But for the love of all that’s holy, don’t get caught. I can’t have either of you getting hurt.”

Liam laughed and got out of the bench he’d constructed with two chairs. “Ash, come on, let’s prep.”

I looked at Tess, questioning her sanity in allowing Liam to do whatever it was he had planned. She smiled at me and nodded in Liam’s direction. “Go. He’ll keep you safe.”

In the back of my mind I wondered if I would be the one to keep him safe.

THIRTY-FIVE

Dressed in all black, Liam crept through the woods behind the university. Except for an occasional crack of a twig, he was soundless.

I followed close behind, trying to figure out what we were doing. Suddenly he stopped and put his hand out behind him, stopping me from hitting him in the back. “Listen,” was all he said.

Straining my ears, I heard voices. “Ankou will not like this. You can’t think they won’t notice.”

Another voice cackled. It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. When it spoke, it was a deep, rough voice. “They won’t notice a thing. I’ve been doing this for ages. That’s what Changelings do. It’s natural.”

Twigs began to snap, and the two voices came our way. Liam grabbed my hand and pulled us down into a ravine a few feet away. The talking voices stopped. “Did you hear something?” The higher pitched voice said.

“Probably just an animal.”

Footsteps came toward the ravine. I pressed myself harder against Liam, willing myself to be small and inconspicuous. I peeked up, hoping to catch a glimpse of what could be a changeling.

I caught the glance as it looked away.

Its eyes glinted in the moonlight like an animal. Its bare feet were covered in grey hair. When it turned to leave, I scrambled up the side of the ravine to get a better look.

It stood maybe four feet tall. From behind, it moved like a chimpanzee, but had human elements to it as well. I couldn’t have imagined this thing if I’d tried.

Liam began to hiss, “Ashlyn, get down here right now! You’re going to get caught!”

Too late.

The Changeling turned around and smiled right at me. “You looking for someone, mortal?”

I locked up. The Changeling walked toward me, his teeth rotted. I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. The Changeling lifted his hand, where a ball of red light began to emerge. “I was supposed to take a child tonight, but you look like much more fun.”

Liam came out of nowhere. Shoving me out of the way, he ran forward right as the red light exploded from the Changeling’s hand. It hit him square in the chest, but not before Liam had gotten his arms around the Changeling.

The Changeling yelled for his counterpart, but no one came. “Dalbach! Dalbach!”

I ran forward and realized that Liam was gasping for air. He was fumbling for something in his pocket. There was a hissing of air in the darkness, then suddenly the Changeling exploded into dust.

Liam was coughed as he rolled over. “Where did the thing go? I didn’t do anything to it.”

“I did, child. Now get out of the woods before you get yourself killed.”

That was a voice I knew. “Reuben?”

The gigantic man stalked forward, his stance still like a hunter cornering his prey. “I took out the other one he was with moments before you caught this one’s attention. There was a third, but it disappeared before I could get to him. Why are you out here? Emily would flay you alive.”

“I…I was trying to find out what a Changeling looked like.”

Reuben cocked his head to the side. “Now why would you need to know that?”

Liam’s gasping coughs became more pronounced. Reuben leaned over him, putting a hand on his chest. The green light that snaked down his arm and onto Liam’s chest made it impossible to look away. It slithered along his chest, into his nostrils and mouth. It was eerie and unlike any other magic I’d seen. Liam coughed once more, green smoke coming out. “What’d you just do to me?”

Reuben stood up, brushing off his arm. “Healed you. Your lungs would have collapsed within another five minutes. You’re welcome,” he looked back at me. “Now why would you need to know what a Changeling looks like?”

“Just curiosity.”

He smiled. “I see. Well, you know what they say about curiosity.”

Liam interjected, standing between Reuben and I. “She’s not a cat, so problem solved.”

I didn’t want to cause more problems, so Liam being defensive with the committee’s largest member wasn’t a great idea for our situation. I put my hand on his shoulder. “Liam, he didn’t mean it like that.”

Liam didn’t back down. He and Reuben stood toe to toe for a moment, Rueben looking down into Liam’s eyes. The green light returned to snake between Reuben’s fingers.

As quick as the light had come, it went away. A smile crept across Reuben’s face. “You’ve got spunk. No wonder you’re her Protector. It seems Emily was right about you.”

Liam said nothing, but stayed rooted to his spot. Reuben continued. “There are evil things in these woods. Evil things that are following you two. It’s best to not meet them on their territory. Go home. Stay hidden. That is, if you want to live.”

Liam nodded, then gathered me in his arms. “We can take care of ourselves, but thank you for the caution.”

Reuben nodded and disappeared in a wisp of green smoke, leaving me more unnerved than before he came.

* * *

Back at the house we relayed the message to Tess. She nodded, her hand over her heart. “It’s a miracle Reuben was here. He’s harsh, but he’s telling you the truth. It’s best if you would just lay low.”

Liam smiled. “Well, at least we know what a Changeling looks like now, right, Ashlyn?”

I smiled and nodded. I was still jittery from our last conversation. Liam rubbed my shoulders. “Want to see if you can shift?”

There was no way to not try after what we’d gone through. I stepped to the middle of the living room and focused. Seconds later I was a foot and a half smaller with nasty, fuzzy feet. I didn’t want to know what my face looked like.

Tess jumped back. “Holy crow! You look just like one of them!”

I smiled, then changed back. “I won’t use this unless absolutely necessary.”

Liam came and wrapped his arms around me. “We’ll be with you every step of the way. We’ll get our family back. We’ll be a family again.”

Turning to him, the excitement in his eyes confirmed that notion. He really thought I could do this.

I leaned in and kissed him. “It’s going to be okay. We’ve got what we need now. It’s game on.”

He smiled and kissed me once more. Holding me tight, he whispered in my ear. “Glad I’m on your team.”

With his help, with my family behind me, I would do this. I would put things straight. I would be the Bridger.

HERE IS A SNEAK-PEEK OF THE UPCOMING
SEQUEL TO BRIDGER,
TRAITOR
:

ONE

Sprinting headlong toward the glowing crack that was emerging out of thin air, I willed my spindly legs to go faster.
 
Two Changelings were behind me, keeping pace.
 
I felt their ragged breath on my neck and launched myself forward, leaping through the air like an Olympic hurdler.
 
It was way more awkward jumping in Changeling form.
 
How they managed to do anything with coordination was a mystery. A moment later, the magnetic pull from the crack sucked me in.

Holding my breath, the suction of being yanked through the crack was like being flushed down a toilet. I emerged on the other side and gasped for air.
 
Before having a chance to catch my breath and shift, a hammer connected with my face.
 
Keeling over backwards and seeing stars, the crack pushed two more beings out of the gnarled hole in the tree.
 
The Changelings made it through before the crack resealed.

I was disoriented.
 
Which end was up?
 
The surrounding voices were male as I attempted to push up off of the mossy ground.
 
The forest behind Tess’s house was teeming with life.
 
I felt a gentle hand connect with my forehead, pushing me back to the forest floor.
 
“Let the boys do their job,” Memaw said in an amused tone.
 
“They certainly enjoy being Protectors, don’t they?”

Gently pulling me into a sitting position, Memaw held me against her shoulder.
 
She clucked her tongue in distaste as she ripped off the helm of her bloody skirt and pressed it to my forehead. This couldn’t be sanitary, but there wasn’t much purpose to argue with her. “Desmond got a bit overexcited, didn’t he?
 
Liam isn’t going to be happy that he hurt you.”

The blood was pulsing out of the gash in my forehead. I gasped in pain as Memaw moved the rag to keep the blood from congealing in the bandage.
 
It would help later, although it hurt right now. “I hope Liam beats the snot out of him,” I murmured.

“I, for one, would have liked to have seen you use the magic we’ve been working on.”

This voice came from the trees surrounding the opening in the forest where we were all situated.
 
Roslin was leaning leisurely against an oak tree, as though she were enjoying a picnic in the sun.

“Sorry, Rozz, but there wasn’t an opportunity to do much of anything since I got sucker punched to the ground straight out of the gate,” I said irritably.
 
Roslin was my best friend besides Reese and Mary these days, but sometimes she could be such a pain.