Rising Moon (The Rune Stone Trilogy) (13 page)

             
"
I didn’t even think about it, really.
"
Terra shrugged.
"
I can barely control my own abilities. I think it would be absurd to try anything more.
"

             
Aylin smiled. Terra was wiser than she had given her credit for.

             
When Terra woke up the next morning she found Blake sitting at the dining room table with his packed suitcase by the front door.
"
You’re leaving?
"
She dropped into the chair next to him. His face was twisted with pain and sadness.
"
Something has happened,
"
Terra guessed, being jolted straight.

             
"
Yes. It’s Mom. She called last night while you were out with them,
"
he said coldly and his eyes wouldn’t meet hers. She knew what she would see in them if he would look at her. He was angry with her, for forcing him away from home to run after her while she dealt with her own issues.
"
She ended up going to Urgent Care last night because she had passed out a few times in the last few days. Susan, her neighbor, took her and I guess they moved her into the hospital in Grand Marais and kept her overnight for observation.
"
He still wouldn’t look at her. He couldn’t look at her because he knew if he asked her to come with him she would, but not because she felt concern for their mother. It would only be because she is trying to make up for what she had put them through.

             
"
Did the doctors give any indication as to what it might be?
"
She was sitting rigid in her chair, gripping the arm rests until her knuckles turned white.

             
"
No. They’re going to run some more tests today. I need to go home to be with her. This would be a whole lot easier if we were at least all in the same state,
"
he scowled.

             
"
I should come with you.
"
She looked down into her lap.

             
Blake sighed and closed his eyes; he couldn’t believe what he was going to say to her.
"
No, you should stay. You’ve made a lot of progress here in the last few weeks. When I get there I will see how serious it is. I will call you and let you know what they say and then you can come. But don’t come back just because you think we need you. Come back because you want to be there for her.
"
He stood up and walked around the table and knelt in front of her.
"
Remember that we love you, and you love us too.
"

             
Terra threw her arms around his neck.
"
I do love you and mom.
"
She let the tears fall and dampen the shoulder of his t-shirt.
"
Call me right away when you know something. Please.
"
  

             
When Terra returned that evening from work she
sat in her tiny backyard, and propped her back against a tree. She closed her eyes and dreamed of home. She missed the lake, the bookstore, her mom, and her home. The memories brought tears to her eyes and she swiped at them with the back of her hand when they trailed down her cheeks. She would go home soon, she just didn’t know exactly when.
             

             
The light began to change as the sun lowered in the sky, giving her surroundings an orange glow. She closed her eyes and tried to push home out of her mind.

             
Exhaustion overwhelmed her and Terra drifted off to sleep. She dreamt of wandering around a forest, with the sound of a waterfall close by. She felt calm and at peace with her bare feet on the cool grass. Her eyes fluttered her open and her hand twitched on the ground, touching a fleshy stalk. She looked down and saw the delicate pansies that surrounded her hands.

             
The forest was dark in the late hour; the moon’s light didn’t reach the forest floor. Aylin was bare foot and felt the cold, hard earth under her feet. She could see her breath coming out in puffs of steam. The bitter cold air told her it must be close to winter. Her flannel pajama pants and shirt did nothing to protect her from the cold. She didn’t know these woods, and they felt completely foreign. The trees were bare, stripped of their leaves. There were no sounds of wildlife, only the crunching of brittle leaves with every step she took. One of the gifts of being a faerie is to move through the woods in absolute silence so they wouldn’t disturb nature, which meant she knew something was terribly wrong. She couldn’t move silently. Tonight she moved with heavy feet.

             
At the sound of a branch cracking she moved to a squat as she turned around to find what followed her. Eliana stared wide-eyed down at her. Her lips were blue from the cold.
"
Where are we?
"
she whispered.

             
Aylin rose to stand again.
"
I don’t know.
"
They brought their hands up at the same time, and waited for the heat to rise in their palms. But none came.
"
Are we human?
"
Aylin wondered.

             
"
Shit!
"
El hissed as they crouch down again at the sound of footsteps.

             
"
Aylin?
"
Terra whispered to them. She came around a tree, holding her elbow in her hand.

             
"
What happened to you?
"
Aylin went to her and brought Terra’s hand away. Her elbow was scratched deeply and bleeding.

             
"
I fell. I think I tripped on a rock or something.
"
She winced when Aylin pressed her shirt against it.
"
It’s so cold.
"

             
"
There is something very wrong here.
"
El joined them.
"
Do you know this place?
"
Terra shook her head as she looked around.

             
"
Maybe we should split up, see if we can see something we recognize.
"
Terra suggested.

             
"
No, we are going to stick together,
"
Aylin said firmly.

             
"
Aylin!
"
El called back to her, and she started running away from them.

             
"
El!
"
Aylin and Terra hurried after her. Aylin saw what had El running. The Rune was off in the distance. She picked up her pace when she saw the glow around the large stone.

             
"
No!
"
Aylin screamed.

             
When they broke through the trees into the clearing Aylin dropped to her knees and sobbed into her hands. El knelt beside her and held on to her shoulders. Terra was frozen in place, with shock.

             
The Rune was broken; a deep crevice had broken it into three pieces. The glow that they had seen around The Rune was the power of the elements. It was now gone. The symbols that had once covered the white stone were fading, disappearing before their eyes. The magic was gone.  All that remained was cold, hard stone.

             
Aylin woke in her bed sobbing.
"
Aylin!
"
El exploded into her room.
"
Oh thank god.
"
She climbed into her bed and wrapped her arms around Aylin’s neck, squeezing the air out of her lungs.
"
It was just a dream.
"
El was crying too.

             
"
It’s okay.
"
Aylin calmed her sobs and ran her hand down El’s back.
"
Yes, it was only a dream.
"
She pulled El away so she could look at her.
"
We had the same dream then.
"

             
El shook her head in despair.
"
The Rune.
"

             
"
The Rune is intact. They didn’t get to it. It was a dream. Bad one at that.
"
Aylin pushed El’s hair behind her ears.
"
It’s okay.
"

             
"
It was so real.
"
El sniffed and wrapped her arms around her middle.
"
The cold, the horrible feeling…
"
She brought a hand to cover her heart.

             
Aylin had felt it to. When they had gotten to the clearing it was like her heart had turned to stone. It had turned hard and cold, just like The Rune.
"
Come on. Let’s get some water.
"
She pulled El out of her bed and went downstairs into the kitchen. She barely had the glasses down when Terra burst through the back door.

             
"
The Rune!
"
she exclaimed.
"
It’s been destroyed!
"
Her eyes were blazing with fear. Her hands trembled at her sides and she dropped into the chair.

             
"
It was a dream Terra.
"
Aylin went to her and wrapped her arms around her. Terra’s skin was cold to the touch.
"
It’s okay.
"

             
"
You had the dream?
"
Terra gasped.

             
"
We all did.
"
El nodded, taking deep breaths.

             
"
It was real!
"

             
"
No, it wasn’t.
"
Aylin stood and decided on making one of El’s herbal blends of tea to warm them up. She put the kettle on and turned back toward them.
"
If it was real you would feel it still. But you don’t. Panic maybe, but that’s it. Did you run all the way here?
"
Terra’s home was on the other side of the downtown, and their home was near Orca Point. It would have been an almost twenty minute run.

             
"
Yes, I ran here. I was terrified!
"
Terra dropped her head in her hands.
"
It was the witches?
"

             
"
I believe so. It was a warning, I’m sure of it.
"
Aylin crossed her arms.
"
They know who we all are now, not just me. It could be a warning that we are not a secret anymore.
"

             
"
Couldn’t they just say ‘Hey, I know you’re a faerie,’
"
Terra said with sarcasm.

             
"
That wouldn’t be as much fun, would it?
"
El dropped into the chair next to Terra. She snorted and plucked at Terra’s nightshirt.
"
Nice pajamas.
"
It was a very old cotton football jersey that was worn thin, and in some places had small holes.

             
"
You too.
"
Terra frowned at the satin tank and shorts.

             
"
Thank you.
"
El ran a hand over her hip on the slippery fabric.

             
Aylin set cups of peppermint tea in front of them and sat down.
"
I don’t think we should take this lightly, even if it is a warning. It’s a threat. I think we are going to have to push back soon. Let them know they’re getting too close.
"

             
"
What did you have in mind?
"
El asked.

             
"
I don’t know yet. But attacking us like this isn’t okay with me. I wonder if there is a way to put up a block.
"
She looked into her mug of tea.
"
I’m open to suggestions.
"