Chapter 4

I woke with a start, my breathing violent and uncontrollable.

The only light comes from the embers of the slowly dying fire. It's the middle of the night yet I find myself pacing the living room, unwilling to fall back asleep.

I walk through the darkness towards the locked bedrooms. I decided then that I would break down the doors if I had too, my curiosity getting the best of me. The thought of using my miniscule body against the solid wood door is laughable, but what other–

My racing thoughts are stopped in their tracks.

The second from last door, the one with the interlocked spirals upon it, is ajar. Every ounce of my strength was used to attempt to open it to no avail. I listened for the sounds of footsteps, movement, breathing…yet I heard nothing. There was no one in this cottage with me.

I push open the door, no longer willing to wait for answers. I flick on the light switch and weak light fills the small room. On one side there is a bed, on the other stacks of journals fill the massive bookcase that take up the fall wall. Each journal has a different year carved into its spine, each one in the correct numeric order.

I stand in the doorway, every fiber of my being screaming at me to turn away, that pain is the only thing that stands before me.

The pain, the wanting, the longing…it is what has kept me going all of these years. Without it, would I have found the strength to keep going?

I take a step forward, swallowing the fear. I search the journals for the year I was born and the year my mother died. I sit on the floor, journals in tow, and flip through the pages until I find the date of my birth.

July 16th, 1970

My beautiful daughter was born today. I can already see her mother's fierceness in her, she fought very hard to come into this world. She looks so much like her grandmother, I would give anything to be able to show my mother how amazing her grandchild is.

I close the journal for a moment, grounding myself. I stand and grab more, hesitant to reach for the one with 1992 carved into its spine. Had my father known this would be his last year alive? Did he regret the choices he made?

I reach for it, unable to resist.

I make myself another cup of tea and fall into the sofa, my father's journals spread out before me. With one last deep breath, I begin my search.

February 1st, 1973

Katherine is a wildfire. She knows so much about the world already. Her mother says she gets it from me, but I think our daughter is already a lot smarter than I will ever be. Her favorite animal is a wolf. My small and delicate three-year-olds favorite animal is a wolf! Her grandfather would have loved that about her. I will have to write to Duncan and tell him.

June 3rd, 1974

Rebecca doesn't understand why I want to homeschool Katherine. She doesn't understand my fear of sending Katherine out into the world, why I am so hesitant. I hope that one day I will be able to tell her. I cannot lose the love of my life.

July 16th, 1977.

Katherine turned seven today. She is growing up so fast, I wish that I could stop time, make it slow down at least. Rebecca is growing restless again. How can I explain that I am just trying to protect her? Protect Katherine?

September 9th, 1977.

The bags are all packed, I am going to tell Rebecca the truth tonight. I have to leave, I have to leave my family to keep them safe. I should have a long time ago. I saw the shadow today, I felt it. Aoife warned me this would happen, that I could not run away from it. I thought that I could and now my family is at risk.

September 10th, 1977.

Rebecca is dead, the love of my life is dead. The shadow killed her, I could not save her.

October 1st, 1977.

I do not know if my soul will ever heal. I had to leave Katherine behind, I had to keep her safe. The look in her eyes...I know that she will never forgive me, but I hope that one day she will understand why.

I cannot help the tears that cascade down my face. The shock that overwhelms me is excruciating. My mother...my mother was killed. My father had run to keep me safe. Before arriving in Skye, I would not have believed these letters, I would have thought he was a mad man. Now…I have seen the shadow he wrote about, felt it. What I had gone through was not a dream, it was real, it had happened.

With shaking hands I reach for my father's last journal, incapable of reading the rest. I open the journal slowly. Inside there are no words, only an envelope with my name written upon it.

I open it immediately.

Kathrine,

I will be gone by the time this letter reaches you. I do not have much time left. I am so sorry that I left you, I know that I will never deserve your forgiveness. There are things I had to hide from you and your mother to keep you safe. I wanted to protect you from my past. I have come to the realization that I can no longer hide the truth from you. I cannot explain everything, not in one letter. There is a world hidden right before your eyes Katherine, a world that you belong to. I tried to keep you from it, but now you must return. You must return to Skye, the future of our world depends on it.

You are Katherine Baird, the last Heir of the Royal Baird family. You are our last hope, Katherine. I believe in you with everything in me, my fierce beautiful daughter. Your mother and I will always be with you. Always.

With all of my love,

Your father

I drop my father's letter in my attempt to try to wipe away the ocean of tears that seep from my eyes. I want to curl into myself, protect myself, yet I cannot run from the pain within me.

Everything has changed. My entire life, everything I believe in...I was not abandoned. My family was ripped apart, torn away from me.

I stand, unable to stay still. Not knowing why, I reach for my fathers map and stuff it into my back pocket. I take one step and the sound of a door releasing from its latch stops me in my tracks.

I feel frozen, unable to move a single muscle as the door handle hits the wall with a soft thud. There are no footsteps, no creek of the rickety floorboards.

I'm alone, I'm safe, I'm…

I can hear the siren's song again, she's closer now, she is in the cottage. I step towards her voice, unable to resist her calling. My body is not my own as I follow the voice. The hallway is dark, lit only by the soft light coming from the open doorway at the end of the hall, from the door that had been locked. I am a ghost in my own body, completely entranced by the song of the siren as she tells me to come closer.

I step through the arched doorway.

Blinding light erupts. I gain enough control of my body to shield my face from the light. The siren's song begins to dim, her job is finished. I slowly remove my hands from my face and open my eyes.

I am frozen solid once again, my mind unable to comprehend what my eyes are seeing.

This is no room…this is a portal. To where I did not know. All I know is I am somewhere else, gone from my world and transported to a world that is not my own.

I stand at the beginning of a stone path lined with vibrant blooming flowers, their sweet fragrances filling the air. Beyond the path, rolling hills of lush foliage and massive boulders covered in moss flourish. Butterflies of every color emerge from the sun-kissed flowers, I can hear the hum of their fragile wings as they surround me. A thick forest stands tall in the distance, the trees dark and waiting. At the end of the path stands a golden gate, encased in the same ivy and climbing roses the cottage bares.

My mind, my body, is not my own as I walk towards the gate. I cannot look away, I cannot stop…I must go through the gate, to find the siren who sings such lovely songs to me.

Step by step, I am getting closer. Close enough to see the thick air that seems to flow in the archway of the enchanting gate. What would it feel like to touch it? To feel it on my skin?

"You cannot go through that gate, little fox." That voice, that terrible and horrifying voice, purrs from behind me.

The shadow is here, it has found me again, and yet I cannot stop. I can feel the darkness slowly ebbing towards me, preparing to swallow me whole.

"Do you like the pain?" The voice is closer now, whispering into my ear. "I can give you more…I can make it hurt worse fox, just tell me how you like it."

"Stop!" I scream, at myself, the voice. I need to stop walking, I need control of my body, I need to run.

"One more step…" the voice purrs once more.

I take a step, unable to control myself.

Shadows wrap around my arms, my legs, my throat…

I try to scream, use all of my strength to fight the onyx ropes but they only grow tighter, the one wrapped around my throat beings to constrict my airway. With a harsh whip I feel my body flying backwards, away from the gate and back into my world.

My back slams into the wall first, I feel the skin on the back of my skull split open as my head takes the second blow. I fall to the ground as the shadow releases its grip. The arched doorway slams shut, shaking the entire frame of the cottage.

"No!" I scream, ignoring the blood running down my skull as I rush to open the door.

I was so close to knowing the truth, to going through the golden gate. I slam my fist into the wooden door, over and over, unleashing years of built-up anger. I feel my knuckles splitting open, feel the warm blood dripping from my hands.

I slam my fist into the door until the pain is so excruciating that I can no longer bare it. I can hear the siren singing again, this time her voice aches with sorrow. I rush towards her voice, wanting to show her the pain that she has caused by showing me the secrets of this cottage and then taking them away.

"What do you want from me?" I try to yell, my voice hoarse and broken.

The living room is dark, the fire has gone out completely. I follow the sirens voice through the hallway that leads to the kitchen, to the large bay window. The pain in my knuckles vanishes as I take in the sky.

Something is terribly, terribly wrong.

A large black and purple shadow engulfs the entire sky. Thick rods of lighting shoot down from the heavens, striking the small village on the cliff. Fire erupts, and then so does the screaming. Had my father sat at this table, waiting all of these years, for this to happen? Was there something in this house I could use to save these people? To save Aoife? Duncan?

The terrified screams of the villages people grow stronger. I want to help them, to save them…but there is nothing I can do. Anger and sadness engulf me whole.

My palms begin to burn. In an instant it feels as if my palms are drenched in fire. I fall to my knees, gasping at the pain. I face my hands towards me and whimper as delicate swirls of gold began to carve themselves into the center of my palms.

I am frozen again, my brain unable to take in the chaos ensuing around me. The world I knew is over, it would never be the same. I was not ready for this, to die or to fight. I feel like a child in this moment, a child that wants her parents but who would never have them.

"Get up Katherine, you have to fight." My father's voice rings through the entire cottage.

"I don't know what to do…those people, your people…" I was sobbing now.

"Follow them, return to Skye."

"Who? I'm alone, Dad. I'm alone!"

My voice echoes in the empty kitchen, the presence of my father is gone. I can hear voices coming from the living room, familiar voices. The wood floor creaks as they near the kitchen, coming towards me. The air becomes heavy just as it had in the café at the edge of the cliff, and in this very moment I know that magic is near.

I look through my tears to the two people standing over me, both lookedhuman…the women's figure and eyes are so familiar, yet she has the features of a doe. Half human, half deer. The man towers over the woman, his skin the color and complexion of an emerald stone. Sitting atop the man's shoulder is a shimmering light, and within that light is a small human with delicate fluttering wings.

A faerie.