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TEAGAN LOOKED UP BEFORE entering the massive house. It was dark and gloomy just like something out of a Bronte novel, and she shivered at the thought. They entered a den of noise so loud Teagan had to cover her ears with her hands. Her head buzzed, and the rush of nausea returned. She couldn’t tell if this was Aoife’s empathic power or her own, but whatever it was, it hurt. As soon as they were inside the noisy house, Colin let go of her arm and took off in the crowd. Teagan hung back, ready to turn around and leave. She couldn’t take this. She couldn’t be here. There was too many of them. She looked around for an escape route like a wild animal in a trap.
“Hello Teagan.”
The sound of Aidan’s deep voice behind her made her tingle, and she turned to look at him, her heartbeat increasing. Why did he do that to her? Shouldn’t that be her reaction to Colin?
“What’s wrong? What is it?” Aidan’s voice was all concern for her.
“There’s too many of them. We can’t handle it.”
“We?” He looked confused, but suddenly he was there inside her mind with them. “You’re fine. There’s no need to have a panic attack; you are safe behind wards that will protect you against the darkest magic. Just stay within them.”
“Are you trying to compel me or something?” She yelled over the crowd.
“Me?”
“Nice try at playing coy, but I’m not buying it. You really want to help?”
He nodded, his face holding a certain sheepish grin at being caught.
“Get rid of everyone. Aoife’s part empath, part healer. We can’t handle this.” She gestured to the people gathered around the large room.
“You got it. Only the inner circle will stay.”
Suddenly, people began saying good bye, waving at one another, and actually leaving.
“What did you do?” she asked, a little creeped out by him.
“I didn’t do anything,” he replied.
“Hey Aidan, I’ll be seeing you around man.” The guy gave Teagan a wink as he walked by and smacked Aidan on the back.
“What is this a frat house?” She asked with a roll of her eyes as she watched the guy’s retreating form.
Aidan took Teagan’s arm, and the protective way he touched her surprised her as he ushered her up the open staircase.
“Wow, I’ve got to hand it to you. This place is amazing,” Teagan said in awe as she looked down at the open floor plan below.
Aidan let go of Teagan’s arm, stopping momentarily so that she could look around.
“Thank you. It used to be an old warehouse, but I remodeled it into a studio.” Aidan sounded pleased by her reaction, and she tucked that bit of information away.
Some studio. The place looked more like a museum. It was huge and dark. Four gigantic pillars dominated a more than spacious first floor. Aidan had sectioned the room off with groupings of intricate seating areas. Off to the left was an enormous open kitchen with nothing but top end appliances in sight. Teagan sighed, thinking that the entire half-way home could probably fit into his kitchen. Although the enormity of the living space was a little overwhelming, she had to admit that the house was very tastefully decorated. She’d expected dark and foreboding, like the exterior of the building.
The floors were large mahogany planks and the furnishings were an beige suede with multicolored, modern-looking, dark throw pillows. Metal tables and shelves, which housed various pieces of artwork, contrasted vibrantly next to the light furnishings they surrounded and picked up the hues of the pillows.
Well, I’m impressed. She looked to the far end of the room and noticed the entertainment section. A huge flat-screen TV, a stereo with a surround sound system, and a pool table confirmed any doubts Teagan may have had about his success. Teagan nodded in appreciation and preceded Aidan the rest of the way up the stairs.
They reached the upstairs landing, and she looked around curiously. It was the biggest loft she’d ever seen. There was a comfortable looking seating area, a fully stocked bar, and a huge oak desk. The room was divided in half by a wall of panels made completely of frosted glass. Teagan’s eyes widened, impressed with the sophistication of the room. Where the downstairs had been decorated in dark manly hues, the upstairs boasted a completely opposite color scheme. It was crisp and airy. White, tan, and sage were the dominate colors.
“Come, meet my people,” he said.
“Alright.”
A woman, looking about twenty-five, stood up from the couch where a small eclectic group had gathered and walked gracefully towards them. She had pretty, shoulder-length, strawberry-blonde hair that curled around her face and rosy cheeks. She was the girl Teagan remembered from Maggy’s inn. She must be part of the group. The young woman approached and stopped in front of them. Aidan pulled her forward and hugged her loosely, kissing her forehead in a brotherly fashion.
“Katie, this is Teagan. Teagan, this is Katie O’Tool. She’s Maggy’s niece. Hence the resemblance.”
Teagan held out her hand in a friendly manner and was surprised when Katie pulled her into a warm embrace instead of shaking it. Yep, she was just like Maggy. Teagan liked Katie instantaneously. She got good vibes off her, the kind that said Katie was full of life and compassion. When Katie finally pulled back from the hug, she kept her hand on Teagan’s arm.
“I’m so glad to finally meet you, Teagan. When we saw the guards, we knew we had to lose them, but then we didn’t even know where you went or if you were coming back. We didn’t mean to frighten you. You had the boys in a tizzy, that’s for sure.” She babbled, rapid fire at Teagan.
Teagan stepped back feeling a bit overwhelmed her, but she could tell Katie was only trying to be friendly.
“Yes, well,” Aidan said, giving Katie a warning glance, “Sometimes Katie can be a little-”
“Awesome.” Katie supplied, and chuckles filled the room.
“Katie, maybe you could get our guest a drink.”
Is this the part where the unsuspecting girl at a wild college party gets drugged? Teagan wondered if she should take the drink. Her gaze sought out Colin, but his back was to her.
“What’s your poison?”
“Huh?”
“Drink, hun. What kind of drink?” she asked Teagan, the laughter evident in her bubbly voice.
“I’m a margarita girl.” Teagan finally answered.
“Yay, my specialty!”
“But, maybe just water. I think I had a few too many pints earlier tonight.”
“You got it.”
Her nerves quieted as she took a sip of her ice-cold bottled water and started to relax.
“Ask him if he knows who’s after you,” Aoife nudged from inside.
“Shut it.”
“Excuse me?” Aidan said.
She nodded and took a deep breath. “Sorry, it’s the princess. Maybe you should get everyone up to date Colin, since I don’t even know anyone.”
She turned to look at him in his spot at the window, and her childhood memory flooded back to her. As if he sensed her relapsing to that time, he stepped forward to address the room and draw attention away from her.
“Introductions first, I guess,” he said clearing his throat, then as an aside to her, “if any of this is too much, let me know and we’ll stop.”
A look passed between them and a feeling, but what it was she couldn’t tell. Perhaps it was familiarity. Teagan moved to the recently vacated couch he indicated, and Katie helped herself to the seat beside her, sitting down with a cheerful bounce.
The rest of the group sat down as well. It was all so secret-clubhouse meeting-like. Clearly Teagan would be the main topic of discussion and she was extremely uncomfortable with that.
“This is just a small portion of the network of the Guardians of the Fae. You just met Katie. She’s the healer in the group. Ian and Airic, they’re goofballs but good backup in a pinch.” She could tell Colin said it playfully, so she smiled. “And I believe you’ve met Aidan a few times. He’s our leader.” Colin’s voice seemed to stiffen a bit.
“Everyone, this is Teagan McKenna...” he paused and looked at her for assurance, which she gave to him in the form of a nod. “And Princess Aoife.”
Suddenly, everyone except Teagan and Colin began talking at once. Aidan raised his hands and cleared his throat to quiet them, and they all seemed to calm down for the moment. Teagan figured that Aidan was the leader of the pack. He seemed to exude all of the Alpha traits.
“I don’t understand,” Katie said.
“She kind of looks like Aoife, but no one has seen the princess in over three-hundred years.” This was from one of the boys. Teagan wasn’t sure which one was which yet. She’d try to get to know them soon, she promised herself.
“Ah, care to fill them in?” Colin asked her. “This is kind of more your forte than mine.”
Teagan cleared her throat. She’d always hated the “Tell” at school. She stood up.
“My mother, Princess Aisling was ailing. She’d been living in the human realm while pregnant with me. Her and my father were hiding in the future. Basically, I was zapping all the immortality from her. Princess Aoife’s soul was dying without a host, so they devised a plan. Aoife would join with me until the time was right to separate, keeping me safe, while my father was left to raise me alone. He met and married my step-mom, the queen found me, Colin’s dad and my dad signed a blood contract, giving Colin protection of me, and then my dad split. Haven’t seen him since. Oh, and I’ve been in and out of half-way homes and insane asylums because they think I’m crazy.” She sat down and then quickly stood back up, forgetting something. “Oh yeah, I now have super strong powers that I can’t seem to control, and a chick called Aria told me to stay the hell out of Faery, which is where I have to go to return the lost princess so she can be heir, before the council deposes the Fae queen. So...” She sat back down.
“The lost Fae princess is inside you?” Katie asked.
“Yep. Well, her soul is. Apparently, her body is locked up in Faery.”
“Bro, you know that humans don’t go into Tir na nOg, right? We don’t even get to go there anymore.” This from one of the guys.
“You used to be allowed?” Teagan asked genuinely curious.
“We trained at the Academy, once upon a time,” Aidan said but didn’t elaborate.
Teagan looked around feeling like someone was missing.
“Wasn’t there someone else?”
“Another guardian?” Colin asked, but seemed confused.
“Yes. At the bar, there was another one with you. Where is he?”
Colin and Aidan exchanged a look that she didn’t like.
“He wasn’t with us,” Colin finally said.
“Yet, he was there for me. Did you see him grab for me?” she asked Aidan, knowing he’d had his eyes on her the whole time.
“We saw him trigger your magic, but we didn’t know who he was. Colin tried to chase him down, but we couldn’t follow his heat signature.”
“Maybe he’s the one after her.” Katie offered.
“Maybe,” a couple of them echoed, but Teagan wasn’t so sure. He hadn’t seemed like he’d meant her any harm.
“Any ideas?” Aidan asked the group.
Teagan spoke up first. “Yeah, find my dad. He’s the man with the answers, and if he had a way into Faery back then, he probably still has a way in. Maggy told me she hasn’t seen him in about eight years, so I’ve got no more leads on his whereabouts.”
“Colin, what if you traced him using the magic from the blood contract?” Airic asked.
“Would it work?” he asked Aidan.
“It’s worth a shot. Do you have the contract?”
“It should be in my late father’s vaults.”
The death of his father was news to Teagan, and she shot him a look of sympathy. He returned it with a kind smile, and that thing happened again, the same one as before. It was like a tiny twinge in her stomach. Like hot cocoa on a snowy day. Like the warmth of the sun’s rays as they caressed your face. Colin felt like home. He was her home. She locked eyes with him for a moment, wondering if he felt it too. He broke the stare first.
“I’ll leave tonight, provided you’ll look after Teagan.” He was speaking to Aidan now.
“Of course brother, you never need to ask.”
“We can ask around some of the meeting places. See if anyone’s seen Niel.” Ian offered for him and Airic.
“Sure, but I want you back quickly. Use the portals.”
Both of them got up to leave. As Ian passed her, he pointed at the houseplant on the table beside her, and she turned to look at what he was pointing at. Out of nowhere, a bud appeared from a small vine that grew longer as she watched. When the flower was at peak bud, ready to bloom, the vine twisted towards her and stopped in front of her. When it pulled back, the fully bloomed flower was in her lap, and a shocked look crossed her face.
Airic wacked Ian in the back of the head as he sank into a low bow. “Come on lover boy, I’m pretty sure that one’s taken.”
Ian’s face reddened as he left with Airic, and she could only imagine the one teasing the other relentlessly.
“Thank you.” She called after him. After all, she had been flattered by his gesture and his talent.
Ian turned and winked at her right before he was pulled down the stairs by a laughing Airic.
“Okay, that’s my queue to get home. Boys, wait up.” Katie gave her a quick hug and rushed after the other two.
Colin was headed her way, so she stood up, not sure of what to do to say goodbye to him. She felt like a handshake was too impersonal, but he didn’t really seem like the hugging type. He solved her dilemma when her took her arms, pulled her closer, and kissed her forehead the same way that Aidan had kissed Katie earlier. Teagan tried not to let the disappointment show.
“Stay safe will you?” She said.
“I’ll be fine. Stay inside the wards, please?”
She nodded, but he was already leaving, following the same path the others had taken.
That left her an Aidan.