By the time he had spoken with Airell’s mother and father, and his own parents, Tiernan’s head ached and his muscles were tense.
To keep Airell and Urien from facing judgment and subsequent punishment, Tiernan had simply stated that his obligations in the San Francisco Otherworld would detain him. The handfasting date would need to be rescheduled for another six weeks. Neither his parents nor Airell’s had been pleased by his announcement
Once he finished his immediate tasks, Tiernan found himself in the forest again. The ground was damp and the air smelled of recent rain and pine trees.
His stride was long and purposeful as he headed toward the transference point where he was told the Great Guardian would aid him in returning to San Francisco. He must return at once to aid his fellow warriors in stopping the Balorites and Fomorii from releasing Balor’s body and soul.
He still had difficulty pushing the image of the two lovers from his mind. Somehow, someway, he would come up with a solution.
A minuscule spark of light flickered in the forest, catching Tiernan’s attention. It was directly in front of him. The Great Guardian’s essence, perhaps?
No. He frowned as the spark hovered in the forest. It was unusual in its energy patterns—neither Fae nor Elvin created. As he watched, it grew into a small bubble of golden light, suspended over the leaves and dirt of the forest.
Tiernan pushed his long coat aside and rested one hand on the sword sheathed at his side. He moved closer to the now dancing glowing orb. It glittered, causing leaves to sparkle and surrounding rocks to glow.
He approached the orb slowly and his gaze narrowed. He didn’t know why he had to get closer to the golden light, except that his gut told him to.
A sudden flare nearly blinded him.
Tiernan stumbled toward it—as if something shoved him from behind.
He struggled to regain his balance and back away, but the light surrounded him, gripping him tight like a lover’s arms.
With a jerk it yanked him forward and snatched him from the forest.
A mind-bending sensation shot through Tiernan. A force thrust him forward, faster than he could ever have imagined flying. Colors in brilliant shades of the rainbow flashed by.
In the next moment the force flung him into stormy skies.
He hurtled through the air—toward a petite figure at the other end of the light.
Tiernan braced himself for the impact.
He grabbed the being in his arms. It gave a cry as he slammed into it. He twisted in the air and came down hard on his back.
Air whooshed from his lungs and his head struck the ground. He maintained his grip and managed not to roll over again, despite the power of his momentum.
When he could focus, he took in the being on top of him—the woman in his arms—as she raised her head. Shock coursed through him like wildfire as he recognized her.
“Ask and you shall receive,” she murmured before he could say a word. “I wished for a gorgeous man and I got one.” She rose and sighed as she straddled him. “Sorry to break it to you, but I really would rather have gone home.”
“Copper Ashcroft?” Tiernan managed to get out despite the fact that the air had been knocked from his lungs.
The woman placed her palms on his chest, pushed herself out of his arms, and slid off him. “You know me?” Her cinnamon eyes were wide and disbelieving. “Who are you?”
Tiernan eased himself to a sitting position so that he was looking directly at Copper. Her hair was mussed and her Faerie kisses stood out against her now pale complexion. She looked dizzy, as if she might faint
He steadied her by grasping her shoulders. For a moment he couldn’t speak, and she remained silent with her lips parted.
She had an amazed and shocked expression on her features. She looked almost exactly like her picture except that her hair was longer and she was even more beautiful—the picture had truly not done her justice. She smelled of apples and cinnamon.
“Okaaaaaay.” Copper’s heart pounded so hard her breasts actually ached. “Try telling me what’s going on. And who are you?”
The man’s grip was so tight on her arms that she was sure he was going to leave bruises. “Tiernan,” he said in an Irish brogue, his features composed as if he slammed into women every day. “I am Tiernan of the Tuatha D’Danann.”
The extra jolt of her heart sent blood rushing to her head and she wondered if maybe her magic had backfired so badly that she was imagining things.
“D’Danann? The Fae warriors?” She shrugged away from his grasp. “This is nuts. Where did you come from?”
She tried to catch her breath as Tiernan held up his hand and gave her a sign to slow down. She took a deep gulp of air that somehow didn’t want to move past her pounding heart.
“I know your sister,” the man called Tiernan said. “Silver has a picture of you that she keeps in her home.”
Copper couldn’t stop another rush of questions. “Is she all right? What’s happened? Ohmigoddess. Did she summon you? Why would she take such a risk? Where is—”
Tiernan put his finger to her lips and shushed her. “There are only so many questions I can answer at a time.”
Copper nodded and bit her lower lip, trying to keep from grabbing him, shaking him, and begging him not to talk so blessed slow.
“Your sister is doing well,” he said, his deep blue eyes focused intently on her. “Silver summoned me and my brethren to assist her and the D’Anu Coven in battling the Fomorii.”
On hearing this, she couldn’t keep her mouth shut. “The ancient sea gods? The demons sent to Underworld?”
The infuriatingly calm man gave a single nod. “There has been a battle—or better to say several battles—in your city of San Francisco.” When she nearly busted out with more questions he held up his hand and she bit her lip again. “But we defeated a good number of them.”
“I had dreams,” Copper let spill out. “Of what must have happened. I didn’t know for sure if they were just dreams, but they must have been visions.”
Tiernan wondered just how much information he should give her. Copper’s mother was dead, and no doubt that was something she didn’t know. It should be up to Silver to tell Copper once they returned to San Francisco. News like that should come from a family member with those Copper loved surrounding her.
Buzzing came from around Copper’s head before Tiernan caught sight of a honeybee. He swiped at it, trying to knock it from the air.
“What are you—” The bee landed on her nose.
Tiernan raised his hand to flick it off, hoping it wouldn’t sting her.
But instead Copper’s eyes nearly crossed as she looked down at the honeybee on her nose and she smiled. She brought her finger up to the bee, which crawled up and onto the back of her hand.
“This is Zephyr,” she was saying. “My familiar.”
He frowned. “A bee familiar?”
“Yup.” The bee flew off her hand and buzzed angrily around Tiernan’s head before flying to her and coming to a rest on the curve of her ear.
She wrinkled her nose as she looked at Tiernan. “He’s a little ticked at you right now.”
“Great,” he muttered. “But if he stings me, he’ll die like any other bee.”
“Ah, that’s where you’re wrong.” Copper pushed her hair back behind her ear, and Tiernan could see the bee more clearly now. If bees had an expression, the damned thing wasn’t too happy at this moment.
“As I said, Zeph’s a familiar,” Copper continued. “Familiars always have some kind of magic. He can sting multiple times, and he never loses his stinger.” She gave Tiernan an impish grin. “It’s best not to piss him off.”
“Terrific.” A fat raindrop splattered on Tiernan’s face and he looked up at the swirling clouds overhead. “Do you have shelter?”
“More or less.” Copper pushed herself to her feet and tugged down a strange tunic that reached her thighs. It appeared to be made of vines and leaves, and caressed and clung to her body in ways that made his gut tighten. “But I have to take down the circle before we go anywhere.”
He forced himself up to a standing position as more raindrops splattered both their faces and their bodies. She looked up at him and he realized how petite she was—more so than even Silver.
Copper picked up a copper and crystal wand and pointed it as she moved counterclockwise in a large circle around them, murmuring a short, singsong chant.
After she reached the point where she had started, and finished her chant, she grasped his hand with her free one and led him toward an outcropping of rock. “Come on.”
The instant her hand touched his, he felt warmth spread throughout his body and a tingling sensation that went from his head to his toes.
The witch didn’t seem to notice as she tugged on his arm, and he followed her to a low shelf. He frowned at the sight of it, unsure whether his bulk would comfortably fit beneath the overhang.
“It’s all I’ve got, but it’s been home for what seems like forever,” she said as they reached the meager shelter. “Come on.”
She crouched and crawled beneath the overhang and he almost groaned at the sight of her body that was barely covered by the vine and leaf tunic.
What in the gods’ names was wrong with him? He had just shot through the Veil to Otherworld, found Silver’s sister, and he was having erotic thoughts about her?
Fat raindrops splattered on Tiernan’s head as he shrugged out of his long black coat and shoved it into a corner of the shelter. He unfastened the sword belt that held both his sheathed dagger and sword. Gripping his belt, he did his best to crawl in beside her. He banged his head just hard enough that a sharp pain shot through him.
“Gotta be careful in here,” Copper said and placed her wand in a corner of the shelter.
Zeph zoomed around their heads as they settled into the place. The honeybee perched on a rock that jutted out in a corner of the shelter.
Tiernan’s head brushed the top of the rock and he knew if he moved too quickly in any direction he would surely thump his head again.
Grass, leaves, and vines rustled beneath him as he settled himself. He placed his weapons belt beside him, out of the rain. He and Copper both sat cross-legged, facing each other. It was the best they could do.
For a long moment they studied one another, and Tiernan couldn’t think of a word to say.
The pounding of Copper’s heart had slowed, but her limbs still trembled. She felt tremors of excitement and incredulity throughout her.
The man she gazed at was one of the sexiest she’d ever remembered seeing. His hair fell to his shoulders, and his eyes were a piercing blue.
And his build—it was amazing that he had been able to fit into the shelter at all. Now that he’d taken his coat off, the sleeveless leather shirt he was wearing allowed her to view the carved muscles in his biceps. His powerful thighs flexed beneath his leather pants.
He was so damn hot, and she’d been without a man for so long. If she wasn’t so worried about everyone she’d left behind, she’d jump him right now.
Outside the rain began to pour down in sheets. Drops splattered inside the shelter, leaving a slight chill on her skin. She leaned forward and her pentagram earrings swung at her ears.
Tiernan cleared his throat. “How did you get to this place, Copper?”
She twisted her lips in a grimace. “Some warlock named Darkwolf came up on me on the D’Anu beach. I—well, I tried to send him to Otherworld. My spell hit some kind of shield.” She gave a shrug that was lighter than she felt. “I ended up here.”
“Darkwolf,” he growled. “I have seen and know of the bastard.”
“You do?” Surprise shot through her and then her scowl met his. “If not for that shield, I wouldn’t be trapped here.” She sighed. “At least I didn’t end up in Underworld.”
Tiernan braced one hand on the floor of the shelter. “The Fae—perhaps even Mystwalkers or Shanai—any one of those beings could have assisted you in getting to the Elves, who would most likely have returned you to your home world.”
Copper wasn’t sure what his reaction would be when she told him that she was pretty sure she was still trapped, and he was trapped with her.
Well, at least she wouldn’t be alone.
She tried to push away the selfish thought. “There’s some kind of barrier,” she said in a rush. “It’s like an invisible electric shield that keeps us inside and I think keeps anyone outside from seeing us, or we them.”
Tiernan narrowed his focus. “Us?”
Copper gestured outside toward the pouring rain. “There are Faeries, Pixies, Brownies, an Undine, and Drow that are stuck here with me.” She brought her hand down to caress the soft leaves of her vine dress. “Somehow we all have been trapped here for who knows how long.”
For a long moment Tiernan couldn’t find words. Then very slowly he said, “We are contained within this meadow.”
She nodded and brought her gaze resolutely back to his. “We’re stuck. Good and stuck.”
Tiernan refused to believe there was no way out. “Perhaps my arrival has broken through the shield you speak of.” Copper brightened at once. “That would be too cool.”
He frowned. “Cool?”
Her voice was lighter. “When it stops raining we can check.”
“How did I come to be here?” he asked.
Copper bit her lip again in a way that he found innocent yet enticing, and that somehow managed to distract him from what could be a disastrous situation.
“Well,” she started, “I was performing another spell to try to get out of here. For some reason it brought you here instead of letting me out.”
When he narrowed his eyes, she hurried to add, “I didn’t mean to. I wanted out.” She gave a half-smile. “I know, I know.” Her eyes met his head-on. “I said ‘ask and you shall receive.’ But I was joking.” Then under her breath, “Sort of.”
Tiernan started to rake his hair in frustration, but his knuckles rammed into the sharp rock above his head. He sucked in a rush of air and shook his fingers.
Copper took his hand and he felt that same flood of heat he had experienced earlier when she led him into the shelter.
She examined his knuckles. “You’re bleeding.”
He pulled his hand away from hers and rubbed his knuckles on his breeches. “I have experienced far worse injuries.”
“I’ll bet you have.” She turned to look out into the rain that was coming down harder. “One thing about this place is that there are no bad guys to worry about—unless you could consider the Drow bad.”
She turned her head and gave him a teasing look. “Unless you’re a bad guy.”
He did not know where it came from, but he said, “With you I could be, Copper.”
It was one of those moments where they silently studied one another.
Finally, she said without a smile or hint of emotion, “I bet you could be.”
Tiernan shifted, uncomfortable from both the cramped quarters, and the heat that had just flamed between the two of them.
“How have you survived here over a year now?” he asked.
She gave a little gasp. “It’s been over a year? You’re kidding, right?” He didn’t answer and her eyes widened. “I can’t believe it. Time—it’s passed so strangely here. I didn’t know how long it’d been, but I really didn’t believe it had been that long. My parents and sister must be worried crazy about me.”
Tiernan remained silent, feeling a twinge in his gut at what was sure to come. He wanted to put it off as long as possible. He truly did not wish to be the one to deliver the news of her mother’s death.
“Wow.” She braced her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands. “A whole year. I’ve missed so much.”
“That you have,” he said quietly, then found himself somehow glad that Copper had not been in the fight against the Fomorii, even if it meant she had been trapped in this prison in Otherworld.
“So tell me everything,” she said, drawing his attention back to her. “I’m dying to know what’s going on.”
Tiernan’s body tensed as his thoughts returned to his urgent need to hurry back to the San Francisco Otherworld. “The Balorite warlocks and the Fomorii demons are attempting to free Balor’s body and soul.”
Copper’s eyes went incredibly wide. “No way.”
“Your sister and Rhiannon scried this,” he said, “and we believe we found evidence to support it.”
He explained about the parchment and the shapes upon it that could be a doorway and a sacrificial circle. What he did not tell her was that Silver scried that Copper was the sacrifice.
“We believe they,” he went on, “or with the aid of other beings, are digging deep below the surface of Otherworld.”
“Oh, my goddess.” She slowly shook her head. “This can’t really be done, can it? Balor’s body and soul released?”
Tiernan clenched and unclenched one fist. “It is possible.”
She looked at him with both disbelief and anger. “I’ve got to get home and help Silver!”
“As I need to return to assist.” Tiernan explained how the D’Danann Enforcers were working with the San Francisco Paranormal Special Forces and the Coven of gray witches.
Copper blinked. “Coven of gray witches?”
Tiernan could not help but feel restless and impatient to leave. However, he forced himself to slow down and explain how the gray Coven came to be.
She rubbed the heel of her hand against her forehead. “I don’t believe it. Silver kicked out of the D’Anu Coven? Rhiannon, Mackenzie, and the others leaving? This is all so surreal.”
“Much has happened over the past weeks.”
“What I really need to know,” Copper said, “is everyone okay?”
He sighed. “No. A couple of witches from the D’Anu Coven were murdered by the Fomorii, as were law enforcement members led by the human Jake Macgregor, and some of my kinsmen. A few witches and apprentices went to the dark.”
Copper’s expression changed to one of horror. “Who—what—how?”
“I do not know the names of all of the dead.” Fury seared his veins at the thought of those who had been taken from her world and his. “Many of the demons responsible have been sent back to Underworld.”
He clenched his fist. “But not before we destroyed as many as we could. Unfortunately, a fair number did escape.”
“The D’Anu don’t believe in killing.” Her face twisted with obvious anger. “But right now, I can’t help but think the Fomorii deserved it.”
She leaned forward and placed her hand on one of his knees, her expression intent, serious. “What about my sister? My mother and father?”
He paused, finding it difficult to tell her the truth.
Copper’s whole body began to shake as she waited for Tiernan’s answer. He was taking too long to respond and fear clawed her throat. “Tell me!”
He took both her hands in his and held them tight, and her fear rose. “Silver and Victor are fine.”
“My mother?” Copper felt as if her head were going to explode. “Tell me she’s okay. Please.”
He cleared his throat. He could not evade such a direct question, and he knew it. “She was mortally wounded.”
“Mortally wounded?” Copper’s voice came out hoarse, disbelieving. She snatched her hands from his and clapped one over her mouth, holding back a scream. She hadn’t heard right. Moondust wasn’t dead. She wasn’t.
“No.” She dropped her hand and shook her head. “She can’t be.”
“You have my greatest sympathy,” he said in a soft voice. “I am sorry.”
Copper bolted out of the shelter, into the pounding rain, and screamed. When she reached the apple tree, she clenched her hands. She hit it with one fist, then the other, and then again and again as she continued to scream.
Tears poured down her face, washing away with the rain. Heat then chill, heat then chill.
She was beating her fists so hard blood began to stain the trunk of the tree. She didn’t care if she pissed off a Dryad.
All she cared about was her mother. Her mother, one of the most caring, loving, and beautiful things in her world—gone.
No. She hit the tree again, punctuating the word as it slammed through her thoughts. No, no, no, no!
The next thing she knew, her arms were pinned to her sides by a strong embrace, and she fought to get away. She screamed and screamed, her cries never ending as she kicked back with her bare feet at the same time.
“My mother isn’t dead!” She fought him harder. “My mother isn’t dead!”
The man holding her said nothing, but didn’t let her go.
She fought and fought him.
Finally, after what seemed forever and no time at all, when she had no more strength left, she sagged in his embrace. Her legs refused to support her anymore.
Tiernan turned her around and scooped her up into his arms. He cradled her, whispering soft words in Gaelic, a language she’d heard but didn’t understand.
The words soothed her, yet they didn’t. Nothing would calm the pain eating away at her heart. Nothing she did, nothing he did, could bring back her mother.
Rain continued to pound down upon them. Copper’s hair was drenched and tumbled across her eyes. Her face, arms, and legs were wet, but the vine and leaf dress remained dry, as the Faerie magic shielded it. Tiernan continued to speak in the strange tongue as he gently stroked hair away from her face.
She found herself gripping his wet leather shirt, burying her face against him, and crying so hard she thought she’d never stop.
Tiernan’s heart ached for Copper, and it was almost as if her pain were his. He felt every scream, every sob, to his very bones.
Eventually Copper collapsed from exhaustion in Tiernan’s arms. Her grip on his shirt lessened and cries no longer spilled from her lips. Her body sagged and her eyelids fluttered and closed, but her body continued to shake.
Tiernan carried her through the endless rain to the small rock shelter. Her skin was cold against his chest, and he knew he needed to give her what warmth he could. He settled her on her side in the shelter so that her back was facing him, and he crawled in after her.
He took his coat and covered her with it. He wrapped his arm around her waist as he molded his body to her length, tucking her head under his chin and holding his arm tight around her belly.
He held her, wishing there were some way to take away her pain.
When Copper woke, her eyelids felt heavy and swollen. Her head ached and pounded as if her heart beat inside it. Pain shot through her as she moved her arms. Her whole body felt as if she had been running and running for days.
For a moment she felt disoriented, as if she’d had a bad dream that she couldn’t quite remember.
Then everything came rushing back to her.
Her mother was dead. Dead.
Pressure built behind her eyes, but no tears would come, as if she were beyond crying. Her pain was so intense that she was aware of nothing else.
Numbness and disbelief at losing her mother made her heart ache as if it were actually breaking. It took her breath away and it felt as though she couldn’t inhale. She was so swamped with an emptiness, a hollowness she knew would never go away.
Anger rose from so deep inside it felt like evil tingling through her limbs. At that moment she hated the Ancestors, the gods and goddesses, and everyone else in all the worlds. She felt forsaken, alone, cheated.
Something stirred behind her and she stiffened. She felt a firm body melded against hers, and something unfamiliar draped over her. When she glanced down she saw a man’s arm wrapped around her belly.
Tiernan. The man she had somehow summoned. The D’Danann warrior who had given her the news of her mother’s death.
A part of her felt relief that her sister and father had lived, but the pain of Moondust being taken from her was so great she could barely think of anything else.
She turned over, her muscles protesting with her movements. When she faced the man, she found his eyes open, his expression one of concern.
Tears she didn’t think existed washed down her cheeks and she buried her face against his chest again and cried.
When her tears would no longer come, she let out a long shuddering sigh. She felt warm, cared for in his strong arms, even though she didn’t know him. His scent of leather, male, and rain somehow comforted her.
She drew back a little in the cramped quarters and wiped the back of one of her hands across her eyes. “Thank you.”
“There is nothing to thank me for,” he said in that deep Irish brogue. “If I had acted sooner—perhaps she would have lived.”
Copper stilled, and her throat nearly closed off. She forced herself to swallow. “I would like to get up, please.”
Tiernan rolled away from her and into the early morning sunlight. He crouched and extended his hand to help her out of the shelter.
Copper allowed him to assist her in getting to her feet, but then she mumbled, “I need a few moments alone.”
After she shrugged off the coat and tossed it into the shelter, she walked around the long outcropping of rock and went to the location she used to relieve herself. She always buried her remains. The Fae cared for the place with magic and it never smelled or looked bad. It simply appeared to be a clean patch of earth.
When she returned, she avoided Tiernan’s gaze and cleansed her hands in the portion of the stream that flowed into the lower basin. Water dribbled over that basin and vanished into the ground, between rocks and the earth.
The water felt cold and bracing, and seemed to reduce the pain in her hands from slamming her fists against the tree. Her hands were swollen and raw and it was hard for her to even open them.
She splashed a large handful of water on her face. The swelling of her eyelids and the ache in her head seemed to lessen as she splashed handful after handful of water onto her face.
When she thought she could look at him without bursting into tears again, Copper turned to Tiernan. He had simply stood and watched her, waiting for her to finish.
She almost threw herself back into his arms, needing to feel that human closeness to comfort her. Even though he wasn’t human. Even though she really didn’t know this man—this D’Danann.
Instead she shook the water from her hands and looked toward the apple tree. Her voice sounded rusty and unused as she spoke. “That’s your breakfast unless the Faeries are in a particularly good mood.”
He didn’t say anything, just looked to one of the flatter rocks on the outcropping. She glanced at it and saw more food than the Fae had ever left her before, and she almost burst into tears again. They must have felt her pain, must have offered the food as a way of expressing their sorrow for her.
All Fae foods were now familiar to her, but the Fae had never given her so much at one time: a pile of pine nut seed cakes; apple chews; bread made from roots that tasted like pumpkin, along with a flower petal butter to spread over it; and wild berry tarts with the shell made of grass blended with seeds and nectar. It didn’t sound very appetizing, but the Fae had a way of making everything taste delicious.
Some kind of creamy Fae salve that smelled of marigolds rested on a large leaf from the apple tree, and she knew it was meant to apply to the wounds on her fists.
The first thing she did was spread it over her hands. At once the swelling lessened and the pain and cuts vanished so that her skin looked normal again. As she was a witch, her wounds generally healed faster than normal, but this salve was amazing.
Copper took Tiernan’s hand, where he had scraped his knuckles last night, and applied the salve to his almost healed scrapes, then let his hand go.
She wasn’t hungry, but she didn’t want to insult any of the Fae, so she moved to their offerings and picked up a wild berry tart. Tiernan came up beside her and took one of the tarts and bit into it while he watched her.
Copper nibbled hers and felt a burst of comfort and warmth, as if the Faeries had put into the food some kind of spell that would soothe the ache inside. Likely they had.
Zephyr buzzed out of the shelter and onto her ear as she ate from each offering. She felt stronger with every bite, more able to face what would come next.
The food and the sense of comfort her familiar was channeling through her made Copper feel as if she could better face the truth.
Mother is gone.
She ground her teeth. Somehow, she had to get them out of there and find her mother’s killers. But first she needed more information from Tiernan—yet she wasn’t sure she was ready to hear it.
After they each finished their more than healthy breakfast, Copper settled on the wet grass at the base of the apple tree and hugged her knees.
Zeph zipped from one brilliant flower bloom to another by the Faerie mound. The air smelled of rain, apples, and early morning sunlight. Through the leaves of the tree she could see the sun beginning its rise in the now cloudless sky.
How could this day be beautiful when her mother was dead?
Copper felt so, so empty inside. Moondust’s passing had created a huge void that would never be filled. She knew her mother would not want her to be sorrowful. Moondust always said to rejoice for those who went on to Summerland.
Copper let out a deep shuddering sigh. Rejoice. Right.
She choked back more tears and waited for Tiernan to join her. He hadn’t said a word since he had told her he felt some responsibility for Moondust’s death.
“Tell me what happened,” she said when Tiernan sat beside her.
He was quiet for a while before he began the story of her parents coming to aid Silver in the fight against the Fomorii. How they were kidnapped, how they refused to turn to dark sorcery to assist Darkwolf in conjuring more Fomorii.
He didn’t go into detail when he told her that her mother had been murdered by the Fomorii queen on Samhain, and she was glad for that. She didn’t think she could take what were surely grotesque details of her mother’s death.
He also told her why he felt some responsibility for her mother’s death.
Silver, Hawk, Cassia, and Mackenzie had been trapped by the Fomorii during that battle on Samhain.
Tiernan and the other D’Danann could do nothing for fear of the four of them being murdered by Darkwolf and the Fomorii. They’d had to wait until the right opportunity to strike, and that was too late for Moondust.
Copper couldn’t find it in her to blame him for anything. It wasn’t his fault, even if he thought he could have better protected her mother.
When he had finished explaining all that happened, Copper couldn’t speak for a long time. She leaned her head back against the damp trunk of the tree and water leaked from the leaves above to splash on her upturned face.
She didn’t mind. It somehow made her feel more connected with the world she now lived in. The tree Dryad hadn’t punished her for hitting the tree, so maybe she understood.
Guilt stabbed at her like angry knives. If she hadn’t been banished to this place, she would have been in San Francisco to help Silver fight the Fomorii. Between the two of them they could have saved Moondust.
“If I had just been there,” a voice said, and then she realized it was coming from her. “I could have helped. Could have kept her from being murdered.”
Tiernan placed his hand on her knee and squeezed. She turned her head to look at him and met his blue eyes.
“Do not blame yourself.” His eyes held a world of caring. “You had no choice. You could not go to your family.”
“But if I hadn’t been so stupid.” She banged the back of her head against the tree trunk. “If I hadn’t followed my dream-vision and gone to the beach that night, and if I hadn’t tried to banish that warlock, I would have been there for them.”
Her breath caught and she stared straight ahead, seeing nothing but a memory of Moondust. “At least I could have said goodbye to my mother.”