Weald Fae 03 - The Aetherfae

  Hours later, we drove to the southwest through Pennsylvania on Interstate 81. The sensation of driving into a trap gripped my consciousness. It wasn’t her compelling me, either. It was something else. I tried to take an innocuous deep breath to calm down, but Doug and Mom noticed, and then everyone did—they began to panic, and the voices in the car just grew louder and louder.

  “Please, just calm down for a minute.” I said. I searched through the glove box and grew silent.

  “What are you looking for?”

  “A map.”

  “Just use your phone.”

  “I can’t, I don’t want them to track what I’m doing.”

  “Can they do that?” Mom asked.

  “Mom, last summer we walked into a hospital with Mitch, and one of them compelled everyone to in the lobby to forget they saw us. Another erased the video footage on the camera. They control energy with as much dexterity as you have with clay. Perhaps more. They can listen to cell phone conversations because they read the energy. They can…wait a minute…”

  “What?” Doug asked.

  “Something just came to me. Where are we?”

  “We just crossed a river through some town. It was...um…um,” Doug stammered.

  “Harrisburg,” Candace said. “It was Harrisburg.”

  “That’s right, Harrisburg,” Doug said. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Just keep driving. This may not work because I have to hide our scent, but Billy told me that the truck was sealed--that’s why they couldn’t follow us out of Florida. I think I can do that, but she’ll sense my Air barrier—”

  “The shield thing. How can you hide our scent?” Doug asked.

  “I may not be able to, and we’ll find out soon enough, but if I use Clóca, that may hide the Air barrier…I don’t know, I’ve never tried to wrap a shield inside a shield.”

  “You can do it, Maggie, I know you can,” Ronnie reassured me.

  “Clóca?’ Doug asked.

  “More stuff I can do. Did you see me disappear, or rather, not see me when I disappeared back at the farm?”

  “Yeah, you popped in and out…that sucked, I thought you were—”

  I cut him off. “I think I can mask us for a little while and make us disappear…maybe long enough to get away from her.”

  “Maggie, will we not also lose the Ohanzee?” Candace asked.

  I craned my neck to face her in the back row. “We might, but they know where we’re going. She doesn’t. It’s a risk.”

  “Take it,” Mom said. She smiled, boosting my confidence.

  “Everyone concentrate on the road, don’t think about anything else. I’m going to drop the barrier for a second.”

  Just like Doug suggested, I turned my phone on and pulled up the navigation feature. Just ahead was the Pennsylvania Turnpike—it meandered westward across the state to Pittsburg. I clicked downtown Pittsburg as a destination and got directions. I studied the roads on our route and found what I was looking for. With a quick flick of my thumb, the phone powered down, and I knew where Mara would be within a few seconds—ahead of us a mile and a half. I would have preferred more distance, but that had to do. I flung the Air Barrier around us again, sealing the inside of the car like Tse-xo-be had done. I hope we don’t run out of oxygen.

  “Doug, take the exit for the Pennsylvania Turnpike. It’s up ahead, Highway 11.”

  “And then?”

  “And then we’ll play it by ear, but you will have to be careful. If this works, we’ll be invisible to her and everyone else on the road—you may need to drive on the shoulder when the time comes.” It would be very dangerous. There was so much traffic.

  Doug wrung his hands on the steering wheel and exited onto Highway 11. Nervous tension filled the interior of the Lincoln.

  “About a half mile ahead we’ll exit onto the turnpike,” I said. The traffic moved slowly and for a moment we were stopped at a traffic light. I think we all felt better when the SUV started moving again.

  “Arby’s…” Mitch said, “I’m so hungry.”

  “I’m sorry, Mitch, not yet.”

  “I know, sis, I’m just saying, a stop would be nice.” He groaned when we drove past a McDonalds.

  Doug exited right again and we merged into traffic. “What lane?”

  There was a tollgate just ahead. I hadn’t seen it on the map, but I got another idea and modified my plan. “There isn’t a divider between us and the oncoming traffic on the other side…the express, no ticket lane. Slow down until you have a clear path, then punch it.”

  “Punch it?”

  “Yes, but after we go through, drive until I tell you and then make a quick U-turn.”

  He shook his head and grinned. “Hold on.”

  Doug floored the Navigator and it shot through the toll plaza. There was a commotion as soon as the big Lincoln lurched past the gate. He accelerated toward a sweeping curve to the left. As we approached the curve I channeled Clóca around the car. My Air barrier weakened, but held.

  “Now, Doug, turn around.”

  He slammed the brakes and lurched at the wheel. The big Lincoln leaned to the right as we crossed both lanes of oncoming traffic, and straightened out on the shoulder.

  “Floor it,” I screamed, struggling to maintain both barriers.

  Doug’s right leg flexed and the SUV lurched forward accelerating back to speed. We careened wildly past a silver minivan and then rocketed back toward the tollbooths. As we neared the toll way, Doug aimed for the express.

  “No, get behind that semi—as close as you can get and follow it through,” I said through clenched teeth.

  We switched lanes, narrowly missing a pale blue Toyota. Doug inched up behind the semi and waited for it to pull forward.

  Candace’s voice caught my attention. “Oh, Maggie?”

  A red semi slowly inched up behind us. The driver was slowing down, but not enough.

  “He’s going to hit us,” Mitch said. “Hey slow down…stop!”

  “Mitch, he can’t see or hear us.”

  Doug inched up further until I felt my barrier make contact with the back of the trailer.

  “Move, will you!” I screamed.

  I spun back around to see nothing but a large chrome grill closing in on the back glass. I strengthened my shield and hoped it would be enough. The front bumper of the red Kenworth pushed against the Clóca barrier, and my concentration started to slip. I fought to keep it in place and closed my eyes, preparing for the inevitable impact. Incredible pressure bore down from the front and rear, and my connection to the elements felt tenuous. Like juggling a tall stack of plates teetering on one hand, I focused on nothing but the barriers. As the wailing sirens of a police car in pursuit of a phantom SUV finally disappeared in the distance, so did the screaming inside the passenger compartment.

  Almost as quickly as it started, the pressure released—disappeared—and I waited for the impact. I knew we’d be crushed. I rocked back in the seat as the SUV slowly moved forward and then accelerated. We moved back and forth violently. The clattering sound of a diesel grew louder for a few seconds as we passed a large truck. The noise gradually grew more distant, drowned out by the Lincoln’s V8.

  “You can open your eyes now. We made it,” Doug said.

  “Maggie, absolutely never do that again,” Mom said in an agitated voice.

  I wanted to take a deep breath, but that might shake my concentration. Gradually I opened my eyes, but let nothing interfere with the barriers. “Go right, back onto Eleven. Remember, they can’t see us.”

  “Yeah, no shit…um, sorry, Mrs. O’Shea,” Doug said.

  “Douglas, you only said what I was thinking. Where are we going?”

  Still focused on the barrier, I said, “Away from here, as quick as you can.”

  Doug yanked us onto the shoulder several times trying to avoid drivers who were unaware of us. Several cars missed us my inches, each time causing a collective gasp and exhale.

  “Yo
u know, this invisibility thing, it isn’t nearly as much fun as I thought it would be,” Ronnie quipped.

  It struck me funny and I fought to keep control. “Ronnie, don’t be funny right now, please, I’m trying to concentrate.”

  Talking to himself, he said, “Psssh, that’s like telling Chris Evans not to be hot—she asks the impossible. Can’t put this genie back in the bottle.”

  “Ronnie!” I giggled nervously, struggling with my connection. “Please!”

  “Okay, girl, I’m done.”

  Driving was slower going than normal. Cars crept up behind us, forcing Doug to move onto the shoulder, and sometimes off entirely, to let them pass.

  “We need a less travelled road.”

  “I agree. Less traffic sounds great.”

  We made our way to a narrow, two-lane road called Gettysburg Pike and drove. Twenty minutes into our escape, to avoid a woman turning in front of us, Doug wheeled onto the shoulder of oncoming traffic and clipped a mailbox, sending splinters of wood flying over the windshield. My barrier kept it from doing any damage, but it scared everyone in the car.

  Traffic got lighter the farther we drove, but the shoulders grew narrower, steeper, and the trees grew right up to the road. We passed old two-story red brick homes and wood-frame farmhouses. Crisscrossing from one road to the next, we slid through Dillsburg without a fender bender. We stuck to the smallest, least travelled two lane roads we could find. Passing half a dozen hamlets and countless farms, we travelled southward until the sun set and it became too dangerous to drive farther. Doug slowed and pulled off the road to the gate of a grassy field.

  “What now?” Doug asked.

  I took a deep breath. “We see if it worked.”

  I kept the Air barrier in place and let the rest of the world come rushing back in when I dropped the Clóca. I sent my mind out in all directions and sensed nothing. No Fae around. Then I closed my eyes and projected. My mind raced down a road, an Interstate, heading toward the sunset. Mara had fallen for the ruse, and was searching for us on the turnpike miles away. That won’t last long, but it’s some time, nonetheless.

  “Hit the lights and drive.”

  “Sis, I’m really hungry.”

  “I know you are, Mitch, I’m sorry—we’ll look for a drive through in the next town.”

  “What is the next town?”

  “Mitch, you’re about to visit Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. We’re about two miles away—I saw a sign a mile back,” Doug said, grinning at Mitch.

  “Do they have a bathroom? I’m not complaining, but it’s been seven hours and we need to stop,” Ronnie said.

  I didn’t like dropping the Air barrier and leaving a big cloud of scent, but we really didn’t have any choice. We drove around Gettysburg until we found a buffet named after a civil war general. It was full of people. Perfect.

  In my head I wrote, Billy, you here?

  There was no answer.

  After a quick meal, I closed my eyes at the table and projected. Like every other time, I couldn’t see Mara, but this time my mind raced back to the tollbooth, and then slowly began to spiral out. Crap! She’s hunting for us. I focused on Tse-xo-be. I felt his presence and the rest of the Ohanzee even closer.

  I concentrated on one thought: “We’re in Gettysburg.”

  Instantly, they flashed away. By the time we made it to the parking lot, I heard Gavin’s baritone voice in my head. “Brilliant move, Clóca and Air—it took us an hour to figure out what you did. At first we thought Mara found a way to hide you. She can’t be far behind.”

  I wrote, She’s not. She was just at the tollbooth. She’s searching now. We need to get moving.

  As we crossed the parking lot, an enormous silver and maroon motorhome pulled between us and the Lincoln. A small bald man flung open a door and smiled at us. “You ready?”

  Doug and I exchanged looks.

  “Come on, we don’t have all night. Your friends are waiting inside,” he said.

  “Maggie, it’s okay, get in,” Gavin silently reassured.

  And the little man? I wrote.

  “Compelled. Sorry, I know you hate it, but I’m not calling the shots.”

  I didn’t like it, but I wasn’t going to argue about it, either. I turned to Doug. “It’s for us.”

  We loaded the motorhome and the little man drove us south. Wrapped in Clóca and safe for the time being, I drifted to sleep wrapped in Gavin’s arms.

  TEN

  CASTLING

  “Maggie, we’re here,” Gavin whispered, his voice just louder than the sound of the rain outside.

  Reluctantly, I forced my eyes open. “Where is here?”

  “We’re in Arlington, Virginia. Just across the river from Washington, D.C.”

  I noticed it was light outside, but not bright. “What time is it?”

  “Eight.”

  “Eight? How long have we been here?”

  He tenderly caressed the side of my face, igniting the nerves throughout my body. “All night. You needed the sleep.”

  He was right, of course—I had been exhausted. I rubbed my eyes and looked up at him, drawn in by the devilish smile on his face. “What?” Despite trying to subdue it, I felt a big, goofy grin form on my face.

  His voice was barely a whisper in my head. “You’re beautiful when you sleep.”

  I wondered why he said it silently until I realized that there were eyes on us. Doug, Mom, Mitch, all of them were watching me. A little embarrassed, but happy that Gavin showed discretion, I sat up and smiled. Doug exhaled. He clearly wasn’t happy. Mom, however, seemed at peace for the first time since before Dad died. There was a slight smile on her face, and her beautiful features were soft this morning.

  “Morning,” she said.

  “Morning. Did you sleep?” I asked.

  “I’ve been awake for a couple of hours, but yes, I did sleep.”

  “What have you been doing for two hours?” I asked.

  The corners of her mouth turned up and she blinked slowly, her brown eyes settling on mine. “Billy and I talked.”

  “About?” I asked playfully.

  “You, of course.”

  It felt good to have Mom smiling at me. I wanted nothing more than to talk, really talk, but that would have to wait. Without being told, I knew I needed to track Mara.

  She waited and watched fifty feet above a rain soaked parking lot. At some distance I felt another Fae I didn’t recognize. Beyond it, still another. Before I let my tether draw me back to the RV, I’d counted fifteen of them. All were converging near the buffet we had visited the night before.

  * * *

  In slickers and ponchos, we slogged through puddles past the Lincoln Memorial. Gavin walked beside me with a backpack slung over his shoulder, drops of rain rolling down his long, straight nose and over the exposed portions of his angular cheekbones. He looked beautiful wet, catching the attention of nearly everyone we passed—I wondered whether that was part of the Fae plan, since nobody paid a bit of attention to me.

  There were thousands of people between us and the Capital building in the distance. Gavin explained that there was a rally planned. He expected a crowd of a hundred thousand by one o’clock. The more, the merrier.

  Past the World War Two Memorial and the Washington Monument, we headed straight to the Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian. It was my first trip to Washington, so like my brother, I found myself gawking at the architecture despite that I was fully in flight mode. At the dark glass entry to the Air and Space Museum, Gavin took Justice’s leash, transforming it into the leather harness of a service dog. I laughed as they walked up to the doors. The considerable line that had formed there parted as we neared—Gavin compelled them. I felt him disable the metal detectors and tried to remember how he did it. We walked right through security, meeting nothing but smiling faces.

  The remaining Fae, except Wakinyan, entered the building above us but remained in Naeshura. Wakinyan would meet us later if this worked.
r />   “Give me a few minutes to clear them, then go to the restrooms.” Gavin and Justice walked ahead.

  Much to Mitch’s dismay, mom clutched his hand like he was four and in danger of getting lost.

  “Mom, are you scared?” I asked.

  “Uneasy. I’m not sure I like the idea of being changed into someone else.”

  Mitch exhaled loudly, seemingly excited to get a new look. “Gavin said it won’t hurt, Mom.”

  “I’m not worried about it hurting. I’m just not ready to look in the mirror and see someone else looking back,” she said.

  “Mom, it’s just hair and eye color—like contacts and a dye job. It’s not permanent,” I tried to reassure her.

  “I know.”

  Gavin’s voice rang in my ears., “Now.”

  “Okay, let’s go. See you in a few,” I said, as Grandpa and Mitch turned and followed Ronnie and Doug.

  Tadewi waited in the restroom with Sinopa, Faye, and an Ohanzee I didn’t know. Mom stopped when she saw them and tried not to look nervous.

  “This is Aiyana,” Tadewi said, nodding to the bewitchingly attractive brunette standing next her. Aiyana nodded slightly, lowering her doll-like brown eyes for a moment. “She will take Sophie’s place.”

  “Thank you,” Grandma said, wrapping her arm around Mom’s.

  Grandma’s eyes were big, but she didn’t seem nearly as nervous as Mom, who had wrapped her arms around her stomach again in a protective gesture.

  “The baby will be fine, I promise.” Tadewi said, smiling warmly.

  Candace walked forward, giving Faye a hug. “Mrs. O’Shea, I’ll go first. Ladies, make me a blonde and beautiful.”

  I laughed at her confidence, hoping it would rub off on Mom. From the roots, Candace’s hair color changed from dark auburn to medium blonde in a cascade, pulling up in loose curls. Faye’s transformation occurred simultaneously, taking on Candace’s features exactly. Candace looked back, her warm hazel eyes turning blue, and smiled. Even though the oval shape of her face and her straight nose were familiar, I had to admit that if I saw her on the street I wouldn’t have recognized her.