Across the River
Meanwhile
When the drawbridge fell, Amelia turned to the others and said, “Be ready to run for it.” Michael wasn’t sure he was up to much more running, but he thought he could handle the hundred or so feet between him and the drawbridge. His heart gave a painful lurch that had nothing to do with his gunshot wound when he saw Jen and that other woman walking Emily across the bridge, and then he had to bite his lip to keep from shouting when the golden bars filled the entryway, trapping Jen and the others inside.
Amelia muttered a very unladylike curse as the portal closed. To make matters worse, Maeve’s people moved to block the bridge, like they were expecting invaders.
The sound of a hunting horn rang out, and Eamon groaned.
“What is it?” Michael asked.
“Fiontan and Niamh are coming,” Eamon explained. “They are among the other rulers. They must have followed Maeve.”
Athena smirked. “Hang on to your hat. This will get interesting.”
“How interesting?” Michael asked.
“War,” Eamon answered.
Men on horseback topped the nearby hill and rode full-on toward Maeve’s people. Michael couldn’t tell how many there were, they rode by in such a furious blur, but he got the impression of great numbers.
Then yet another group appeared. These looked less fierce. They weren’t on horseback and they didn’t carry lances, swords, or spears. They looked more like they were set to party everyone to death, and they were dressed like something out of a badly colorized black-and-white movie, but then one of the men pulled a Tommy gun from inside his coat, and Michael realized they were serious. “I knew Niall and Orla wouldn’t miss this,” Eamon said with a nod. Still more groups arrived, all in historical attire from various eras. It was like a mob war had broken out on Halloween.
“What do we do?” Michael asked anyone who might have an answer.
“Nothing,” Amelia replied. “We let them fight it out, and if we get a chance, we run for the drawbridge.”
If Michael had any illusions about how dangerous fairies were, they were shattered by the battle that broke out among them—a battle that stood between him and Jen, Sophie, and Emily.