Chapter Eighteen

Later that same night…

In a room at Salem University Hospital, she stirred in her sleep. She turned, her long red hair spilling over the stark white pillow. The staff here called her Ariel, but once upon a time she had another name. A time remembered only in her dreams.

"Brianna" he called. "I'm coming to get ye!" The little girl giggled and moved farther back into her hiding place. She loved the castle she lived in; it had so many good places to hide. A couple of minutes passed with her pursuer wandering the pathways near her hiding spot. Finally he stopped a few feet away and scratched his head.

"Hmmm" he said loudly as he tilted his head. "Now I wonder where she could be."

Brianna laughed noiselessly. This was her favorite game. She jumped out in front of her big brother; her arms open wide as if to say, "Here I am!"

He laughed and snatched her up in his arms causing the little girl to laugh even harder. "Now I have ye! And I'm never gonna let ye go!" Her big brother said as he tickled her. He was actually her uncle; though at fifteen he was only ten years older than she. Their closeness in age had made them very close. That day Brianna was very upset, for her brother was leaving for school.

She heard her grandmother's voice floating up from downstairs. "Colin! Have ye found the little terror yet?"

"Yes, Ma!" he answered as he headed downstairs, the little terror in his arms. He stopped outside in front of the old castle and set her down on the ground.

Her grandmother came up to them, wiping her hands on her apron. "Ye'd better get going, son. Ye don't want t' miss the train."

The young man was about to enter the waiting car when Brianna latched onto his legs. He looked down to see the wee girl crying, hugging his legs firmly. He looked to his mother for help. He was saved instead by his older brother Tom.

"I've got her." At the sound of her father's voice she broke away from Colin toward her daddy who picked her up in his arms. Brianna cried onto her father's shoulder. He patted her hair lovingly, running his fingers through the thick mass of red curls. "I know, Brianna. I'm going to miss Uncle Colin too. But he'll be back before ye know it."

But she never saw him again.

Her dream changed, grew dark. Visions and images whirled through her mind. Men with guns charging into her home. Her grandparents lying on the cold stone ground, blood pouring from them in rivers that stained her hands and clothing. She ran and hid, but still he found her. He took her, and so many horrible things happened. She can't remember, she doesn't want to remember.

Ariel woke with a start. She got out of bed and looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. She looked with blankly staring eyes, barely aware of the world around her, lost in her own world. She went to the window and opened it. Soon she was on the roof of the building.

She opened her mouth, and as she has done every night, she sang her song. The mournful melody carried on the breeze, infiltrating the minds of the sleeping inhabitants of the town before her. If you could see her, you would probably say that she looked like an angel; radiant, glowing, long hair flowing around her. But just as most mortal ears can't hear her song, mortal eyes cannot see her either.

She has no knowledge of what she's doing. And in the morning, she will have no memory of it either. She sings in answer to a call deep inside her, a call to find herself and her family.

This is her song, a song of her life. It is a song of sorrow, a song of pain, a song of death.



When the evening falls and the daylight is fading,

From within me calls – could it be I am sleeping?

For a moment I stray, then it holds me completely.

Close to home- I cannot say.

Close to home feeling so far away.



Chloe stirred from her sleep, her troubling dreams disappearing like the whispered notes on the wind. She stood up and walked slowly to the window. She scrambled up the shingles and stood on top of the roof. She opened her mouth, in response to the summons, and continued the song she has been singing for months.

As I walk the room there before me a shadow

From another world, where no other can follow

Carry me to my own, to where I can cross over…

Close to home – I cannot say

Close to home feeling so far away

The two stood on their respective roofs, miles away from each other, their glowing lights shining like beacons in the night. Each felt like they were connecting with some long forgotten part of their souls, once more becoming their destiny.

Forever searching; never right.

I am lost in oceans of night.

Forever hoping I can find memories

Those memories I left behind.

Even though I leave will I go on believing

That this time is real – am I lost in this feeling?

Like a child passing through, never knowing the reason

I am home – I know the way.

I am home – feeling oh, so far away.



Colin tossed in his bed and whimpered softly. He could still hear their music. Twenty years and thousands of miles away, their music still haunted him. Reminded him.

He stood at their graves in darkness, with only a small flashlight to see by. He flashed the light on the tombstones, once again reading their words. He dropped white lilies on each of the graves as he said goodbye.

Shane Cassidy

1931-1982

Father.

Roma Murphy Cassidy

1935-1982

Mother.

Maeve O'Rourke Cassidy

1950-1982

Maeve was his cousin Sean's wife, who had been staying with them while Sean worked undercover for Interpol.

He looked at the last tiny grave, as bitter rage and grief surged through him.

Brianna Cassidy

1978-1982

Colin had rushed home after hearing the reports that violent fighting had broken out in nearby Dublin. Violent factions of the IRA had grown tired of waiting for Irish independence and so had taken matters into their own hands. His brother Tom was heavily involved in some of these factions and was believed to have taken part in some of the worst acts of violence ever committed in recent years. Colin feared that someone would seek retribution for Tom's crimes.

He returned home to find that someone already had. Their castle had been firebombed. The burned bodies of his family were barely recognizable. Brianna had been so badly damaged that only the size of her body, and her bright red hair identified her.

He looked out over their graves, wondering who could be so unbelievably cruel. To slaughter an entire family because of the actions of one man. He vowed to find the answer, and to bring that person to justice. But for now he had to think of his own safety. Close family friends had reason to believe that whoever killed Colin's family would be coming after him as well. That night he dropped the Cassidy from his name and adopted his mother's maiden name, Murphy. He left Ireland to stay with friends in Australia.

He left Ireland, but he could not leave Ireland behind. It stayed with him always, haunting him. His family stood before him in his dreams, pleading with him to avenge their deaths. He saw each of their faces. His last image before he woke was of his little niece Brianna, her green eyes burning into his mind.



Song credits: Evening Falls by Enya