Dolmarehn - Book Two of the Otherworld Trilogy (9 page)
Read Dolmarehn - Book Two of the Otherworld Trilogy Online
Authors: Jenna Elizabeth Johnson
No, she would refuse to help me and when I wouldn’t see things her way, she’d threaten to bring it up with my parents and that was too much of a risk.
Robyn on the other hand . . .
At the end of the day on Thursday I managed to pull Robyn aside after school.
She gave me one of her questioning looks and I told her what I had to say was top secret. Her dark eyebrows lifted with interest. She pulled a soda can out of her backpack and popped it open, taking a sip as she eyed me expectantly.
Taking a deep breath, I delved into the story I had invented. I needed her to cover for me at some future date; to say I planned to spend the night on the weekend.
“Not that I’m agreeing,” she said in a casual tone as she examined a dark red fingernail, “but my parents are going to a church convention this weekend. They’re leaving Friday and coming back Sunday.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“Oh Robyn, could you please pretend I’m staying the night Saturday? There is something I have to do and I can’t tell my parents, and it will take longer than a day.”
I should have known better than to lay all this out before her and not expect to make some payment in return. This was Robyn, after all.
“Okay, I’ll cover for you,” she eventually conceded, her voice cool and in control. “But you have to tell me what is so important that you’ve got to lie to your parents and stay out all night.”
I grimaced. I knew this was coming, and whatever I told her next had to be scandalous enough to garner her support.
I took a deep breath and said, “I’m meeting a guy.”
Robyn nearly choked on her soda. She coughed a few times, but once her breathing returned to normal she shot me a pointed glance. “Are you freaking serious!?”
“You can’t tell anyone, okay!”
I looked away and scowled. Why hadn’t I come up with a better story before pitching this to her?
“Way to go Meg! Oh, you
have
to tell me about him. What’s his name? Is he cute? Does he go to our school?”
I blinked, stunned. She was actually smiling.
“I’m going to give my mom and dad your cell phone number,” I continued. “I’ll tell them your parents don’t ever answer the phone unless they recognize who is calling. So if they call you, say I’m in the shower or the bathroom or something.”
“Wow Meghan,” Robyn said with a mischievous grin, “must be some guy.”
“It’s not what you think,” I mumbled back.
Well, at least I was pretty certain it wasn’t what she thought.
“Uh huh, sure it isn’t.”
“Thanks Robyn, I owe you one.”
“I want all the juicy details when you get back. And I hope we get to meet this mystery man some day.”
“Okay.”
I waved a hand over my back as I started off across the track, seeking the path leading off into the swamp. When I reached the oak tree closest to my house, I pulled off my backpack and ripped a piece of binder paper out of a folder and dug around for a pen. I quickly wrote a note to Cade, telling him I was free this weekend to go to Eilé with him. I rolled the letter up and placed the small tube in the knothole.
Once inside, I found the house dark and empty. Thirty minutes later, Mom arrived with the boys. I told her about my plans for the weekend, how I was staying over at Robyn’s.
“That’s nice honey. It will be good for you to get out of the house for a while. Just be sure to leave their number.”
I grinned to cover my grimace, trying not to feel guilty about my double lie. Not only would Mom and Dad be appalled at my intention to spend the night with a boy, but they would never let me stay over at a friend’s house if their parents were gone.
Shaking off the pall of guilt, I descended into my room, turned on some music and tackled a pile of waiting homework.
The next morning I checked the oak tree and found a reply.
Meghan,
I’ll meet you tomorrow morning in your backyard before sunup. Be sure to set two alarms this time.
-Cade
I sighed, my breath forming a cloud in the early December air, and folded the note up, placing it in my pocket.
As I walked to Tully’s to catch my ride to school, the anticipation which had begun as a small kernel started expanding in my stomach. I was going to the Otherworld with Cade, to stay overnight. I tried to hide my smile, but Tully noticed.
“Have a good dream last night or something?” she asked as we climbed into her car.
My grin widened. “You could say that.”
* * *
An annoying buzzing sound woke me way earlier than was considered decent by most people. I groaned and cracked open an eye. Four in the morning. Why on earth had I set my alarm clock for that early? Then my mind cleared. I shot up in bed. Cade! The Otherworld! I tossed my sheets back and started getting ready. I had a small backpack loaded with what I’d need: a change of clothes, a few sna
cks, necessary toiletries . . .
I scribbled a note to my parents, explaining that I decided to go over to Robyn’s early and I’d be back on Sunday. It was a Saturday morning. They wouldn’t be up until at least nine, so hopefully they’d think I had left around eight, not five. I crept upstairs and left the note on the island in the kitchen where it would be found.
I did one last check after returning to my room, then stepped towards my desk and coaxed Meridian awake.
Danger
? she sent.
No, journey
, I returned with a bit of joy.
She fluffed her feathers and grumbled in her avian way, but didn’t protest as I shifted her onto my shoulder.
The morning was cold when I finally escaped the house. Darkness shrouded the sky, but eventually my sight adjusted and I spotted Cade and Fergus standing at the edge of my backyard. I moved quickly over to them.
Cade had his hood up and I couldn’t see his face, but I heard the humor in his voice when he said, “Right on time.”
He shifted and in the dim light I could barely make out a hand reaching in my direction. I stepped back in surprise.
“My power is stronger than yours at the moment Meghan. Let me guide you in the darkness.”
Laughing nervously and shaking off my unease, I took his hand and the reassuring grip warmed me.
When we reached the mouth of the small cave that would take us to the Otherworld, the black sky had lightened to deep blue. Cade dropped my hand as we started making our way in the dark once again. I was nervous and my heartbeat increased as we moved forward. Images and memories from the last time I’d experienced this flashed through my head. For a moment I was convinced I wouldn’t be able to go through with this after all, but the tightening of Meridian’s claws on my shoulder and her soft,
Protect
, brushing my mind reassured me and gave me new courage.
After taking several steps into the cave, Cade stopped. He reached back and took my hand once more. He laced his fingers with mine and tightened his grasp.
“Do you trust me Meghan?”
His voice was soft, almost pleading. I swallowed and tried hard to discern his expression in the dark. The paltry amount of light reaching this far into the small cavern glinted off his eyes, giving him the appearance of a demon trying to tempt me into doing something evil.
“Yes,” I answered, my own voice a mere whisper, “I trust you.”
“Good.”
He gave my hand a quick squeeze, and then I was pulled forward into the icy abyss that loomed before us.
Dolmarehn
The experience of passing into the Otherworld brought back unpleasant memories from several months ago. The ancient chill swirled around us, making me dizzy and breathless, but during the whole ordeal Cade held on tight to my hand.
Mist and a frosty air greeted us on the other side, and I had to exercise a great deal of self control to keep from bolting back through the dolmarehn. The familiar stones, like the lifeless bodies of some long forgotten beings, loomed in the fog, reminding me of my last visit here.
Cade must have sensed my unease, because he moved closer and pressed a hand to the small of my back. I almost leapt out of my skin.
“It’s okay Meghan,” he whispered, “the Morrigan isn’t here.”
Forcing myself to relax, I stepped forward. I knew she wasn’t here, but the mere familiarity and memory of this place put me on edge.
Meridian flew from my shoulder to join Fergus, chattering with joy. I smiled. She must recognize her homeland.
Magic
, she sighed contentedly against my mind.
I winced as fresh guilt for keeping her in the mortal world for so long washed over me.
We left the haunted hillside and the tension drained from my body. Cade found a path and we started to follow it, moving further and further away from the dolmarehn. For about thirty minutes we walked along a wooded ridgeline, but I never could see far enough past the mist and trees to get a better view of what lay ahead of us. We moved steadily uphill for quite some time before stopping for a break, and I wondered where we were going.
Before I got the chance to express my thoughts aloud, Fergus loped up, his long tongue lolling and a mischievous grin on his face. He came to rest beside Cade, leaning affectionately against his thigh and gazing up with longing.
Cade spoke a few words in the language of the Otherworld and gave his dog a scratch behind the ears.
Meridian found her favorite spot up against my neck and settled in for a snooze.
Good exploring
? I sent to her mind.
Happy trees
, she responded,
snacks
.
I smiled. Who would have ever thought I would be so pleased by the thoughts of a bird?
“So, uh, where are we heading exactly?” I said as we began walking once more.
Cade cast a glance over his shoulder and gave an impish grin.
“You’ll see.”
I snorted at that, slightly worried but also excited.
The scenery changed once we started heading downhill again. This time the trail wasn’t surrounded by looming oaks, but was open and spacious. Enormous broken rocks littered the ground and the fog lifted enough to reveal the frost dusting the earth like powdered crystals. I sighed in appreciation, slowing my step in order to store the enchanted scene in my memory.
Unfortunately, the magic was broken when the trail curved around a massive tree and something dark appeared out of the corner of my eye. I gasped and pressed myself up against Cade’s back. An animal about the size of a pig and close enough in resemblance to one was standing on the trail eating something. Only it wasn’t a pig. At least not a live, normal one. The creature had the coloring and rotten look of one of the Morrigan’s faelah. As soon as it spotted us, the Otherworldly boar let out a terrible squeal and took off.
“Fergus, go!” Cade shouted, his voice rumbling in his chest and reverberating against the cheek I had pressed against his back.
He twisted around to find his spirit guide trailing behind us. The hound released a single, sharp bark, then growled and bolted after the demon pig. Meridian screeched from above, darting after Fergus.
Help. Spot ahead
, she sent me. I let her know her efforts were appreciated.
Cade had stopped moving the second I’d plastered myself against him. As we stood there waiting, I asked, “What was that?”
“Mucdiahb,” he said, the cut of his mouth grim, “evil pig.”
I fought the temptation to wrap my arms around him.
“How is it evil, exactly?”
“Other than the fact that a mucdiahb will attack and kill just for the fun of it,” he replied as he took a tentative step forward, “it will readily do the bidding of the Morrigan. They generally stick to the woods, but on occasion they wander out into the open. They are a great nuisance to the wildren of the Weald.”
I allowed him to step away from me, but scanned the other boulders for more mucdiahb, just in case one was hiding and waiting to pounce on us.
In order to keep my nerves settled, I asked, “The Wildren of the Weald?”
He only smiled and returned his eyes to the path ahead, his step more confident than cautious now. We had started ascending back into the forest after crossing the creek running alongside the bottom of the open gully.
“The wild children of Eilé,” Cade finally answered, giving me a hand-up through a rather steep part of the trail.
His face took on a dark, regretful pretense. “The unwanted children of this world.”
I furrowed my brow and my mouth dropped open.
Un
wanted children? Were there no orphanages or foster homes in the Otherworld? I bit my lip. Of course there weren’t. Wouldn’t I have remained here if there had been some sort of child care system to take me in? Might I have ended up with these wild children had I not been sent to the mortal world?