Lure

  Part of me got it. The way they told it, humans did sound like the bad guys. But I couldn’t believe they’d torture random people. It’s not like we had anything to do with it.

  “Why can’t they get over it? How long has it been?” Eric asked.

  “The fighting has been going on for as long as anyone can remember. We finally came here in the Medieval period. For humans, it’s been a long time. But fae live a lot longer. The Seelie king’s grandfather was there when it all happened. My grandfather was there. It’s still personal for many of us.”

  I started to nod, but then I put her words into context. “Hang on,” I said. I tried to work out the math in my head. Only three generations in 1000 years? I studied Mom and noticed for the first time just how young she looked. She had no wrinkles or gray hair, not one. I always attributed it to good genes and the fact that she was always one of the younger moms. “How old are you then?”

  Mom looked embarrassed by my question, but Eric and I were both staring at her with wide eyes. “127,” she mumbled.

  “Holy shit,” Eric said.

  “Language,” Mom admonished him. “We don’t die from diseases or aging. We can be killed from injuries, but that’s it. We stop aging at some point and if we go unharmed, we could live forever in theory.”

  God, this was a lot to process. Would things ever be simple again? My brain felt full to capacity, although I doubted this was even close to being the end of it. I think Mom noticed my mental struggle because she stated, “That’s enough of a history lesson for now. Let’s focus on getting out of here. That’s what matters.” Her confidence wavered for a moment as she peered at Cearo. Cearo was back to her silence and studying the floor as if it held the secrets of the universe within it. She already had all of the universe’s secrets in her head though. “Will you help us? I’ll understand if you don’t want to.”

  I wouldn’t understand, I thought, but I didn’t say anything.

  Cearo froze like she’d been caught. I suppose the downside of having bright yellow eyes is that they are easy to track. She didn’t lift her head, but I could still see them land on each of us before flitting elsewhere around the room. It took her a full minute to come to a decision. Finally her body just sort of deflated and she gave a quick nod. “I have a map.” She got up and scurried into the maze of books.

  As soon as we couldn’t see her, Eric said, “So she hates us too.”

  “No, no, she isn’t like the rest of the fae. She’s not Seelie or UnSeelie, not influenced by all their attitudes and traditions.”

  “She sure seems to have problems with us,” he huffed. “Shouldn’t we get a pass since we’re half fae? We are your biological children, right?”

  I hadn’t even thought of that. We weren’t fully human. I tried again at moving the earth. Still nothing. Maybe we were adopted? But we looked like Mom and Dad. I was on the verge of freaking out again when Mom said, “Of course you’re my children. But your father was human, and besides David’s physical appearance, there’s been no sign that either of you has taken after the fae side at all. And believe me, I’ve looked for it. That means you will still be considered human here.”

  Eric was still irritated, but he didn’t have any more to say. In the new quiet, I said softly, “What makes Cearo so different?” I wasn’t annoyed with her like Eric. I just didn’t understand her at all. But I wanted to.

  Mom didn’t know how to answer this. She had to think about it for so long that I thought she wouldn’t say anything, but finally, “A lot of things are different. She’s the only one of us who never picked a side when the fae split. And she’s very old. I don’t actually know how old. I’m sure she was around before we came to this world though. She’s aslo the only one of us who can control all four elements.”

  “That’s why her eyes change color.”

  Mom nodded. “That’s why her eyes change. I have no idea how it happened. She doesn’t talk much, never says anything really personal.”

  “If she can control all of them, isn’t she really powerful?” Eric asked. Mom nodded. “Then why didn’t she pick a side?” Eric asked. “Wouldn’t they have forced her if she has so much power?”

  “I’m sure they’d try if they knew how to find her. But at this point they don’t even know for sure that she exists. She’s kind of like our boogeyman. She stays hidden so well that most people think she isn’t real. We joke that if you step out of line, she’ll get you.”

  I wanted to ask how Mom found Cearo and if Cearo ever really ‘gets’ people, but Cearo came back into the alcove at that moment. She looked sad, and I knew she must have heard what Mom said about her being the boogeyman. But she didn’t comment on it. She just sat down and laid a map out in front of us.

  The map was hand-drawn and showed the basic features of the land. The Seelie castle was on the west side, surrounded by the village and the town wall. Trees were drawn right up against it, representing the forest that started just outside the compound. Another castle sat on the east side, far away from the Seelie castle. This must be home to the UnSeelie. There was a village on its east side, as if it was hiding behind the castle. It had no wall surrounding it, just fields.

  Most of the land was forested, with a few fields, meadows, and marshes scattered about. Mountains rose up in the far west. The map ended there with no clue as to what was on the other side. A few rivers snaked through the land, but there was nothing noting any bridges. I wondered if the blue-eyed fairies could split the water like Moses when they needed to cross. Had Moses been a fairy? Nevermind, Cearo was talking again, so I needed to focus.

  “These are the gates,” Cearo told us, pointing to X’s dotted in seemingly random places. “We cannot go to this one,” indicating the one closest to the Seelie castle, “because that is where you came through and that is where the Seelie will be waiting for you.”

  “Can we get to this one?” Mom pointed to one nearly half way between the castles. “It leads to a forest in Germany not too far from a town.”

  “That one is always guarded, since it is near the border to UnSeelie land. We should go to this one.” She pointed to one I hadn’t noticed. It was in the far south, near the southwest corner, barely even on the map. “This one is remote and rarely guarded or used. It is on Seelie land, so we will not have to cross the border and risk alerting the UnSeelie to our presence as well.”

  “How long will it take to get there?”

  “It is far, but if all goes well, we could make the journey in only a few days, possibly a week.”

  “A week?” Eric was about to start protesting but one glare from Cearo shut him up.

  “That’s a long way. Are you sure it’s necessary?” Mom asked.

  “It is the only gate they do not regularly use.”

  Mom only took a moment to decide. “Alright, that is the safest option. Do you know where it leads?”

  “A remote cave near a fjord.”

  Damn, we were going to be far from home. But Middle of Nowhere, Scandanavia was probably better than here. Mom said, “I guess we’ll figure out how to navigate from there when we come to it. When should we leave?”

  Cearo stood and folded up the map. “You are all reaping the benefits of unicorn meat, so you will not need nourishment for a while. We leave now.”