Beneath (15 page)

“Not by me, but by other Nykur families. As far as the boys are concerned, my world is their home now.”

“And my mother’s cousin Euan, all these years ago…” Ian said in a cracked voice.

“My mother’s family chose him for her. He’s my father.”

“And you chose Freya?”

Finn’s head came up sharply.

“No. No, that was a mistake. I never meant to take her, I swear.”

Ian opened his mouth to ask something else, but Ellen spoke before he had the chance.

“Why have the wolves broken through now?”

Finn shook his head. “They shouldn’t be able to,” he said, anxiety clear in his voice. “There are charms round the pool in my world that should stop them from getting through. My family should be checking them, making sure they work.” He drew a deep breath. “Please, let me go back to my world and find out what’s happened.”

Jess kept as busy as she could, so there wouldn’t be a chance for anyone to talk to her. She wanted to be alone in the dark with her thoughts, but there was the evening to endure first. Arnor, Magnus and Freya were to stay the night. The short winter day was already darkening and no one wanted to be on the road after nightfall.

Finn was gone.

To Ian’s fury, Arnor and Freya had let him go.

Jess had forced herself to be still, to look calm when he left, though her mind was churning.

He was safe.

He was leaving.

It was Freya who went through to the back door with Finn. Jess heard her voice as she said something to him, but not the words.

He was gone.

At last, she climbed into bed with a sigh of relief. A few minutes later though, Freya joined her.

“Move over,” she said as she finished braiding her hair. “It’s too cold to sleep in the other bed, and I have to talk to you.”

“It’s not
that
cold,” Jess protested, sliding over.

“I don’t want to be overheard,” Freya whispered as she climbed in beside her.

Jess rolled over to face her.

“Why not?” She found herself whispering in turn.

“I’m going out at dawn to meet Finn. He’s going to take me to the Kelpie world.”

Freya put her hand over Jess’s mouth to stifle her squawk of horror.

“Are you out of your mind?” she hissed.

“Just the opposite. This is what I need to do to fill in the last blanks in my memory. It’ll never be over for me until I can do that,” Freya whispered.

“He’ll never agree.”

“He already has. I spoke to him before he left. Made him promise to take me and bring me back. It was easy. He still feels guilty about taking me before.”

“What about Arnor?”

Freya made a dismissive gesture.

“Once I’m home safe he won’t care. I’ve left him a note so he won’t worry.”

Jess didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at that. Really, what she wanted to do was shake Freya until her teeth rattled.

“And what about poor Finn when your father – and my father – find out what he’s done?”

“But it’s
me
who’s making him do it. He doesn’t really have a choice. I made him feel he had no alternative but to do what I asked.”

Jess had no trouble at all believing that.

“I could go and tell them now what you’re planning, you know.”

“I know, but you won’t,” said Freya with absolute conviction. “I want you to come too.”

Jess sat bolt upright.

“You’re insane,” she hissed. “My father’s already furious with me.”

“Exactly. He can’t be much more angry with you than he already is.”

Oh can’t he?
thought Jess, but didn’t say it.

“Don’t pretend you don’t want to see Finn again. At least this way you can say goodbye to him properly.” Jess avoided looking at Freya’s face, tried not to let the idea of seeing Finn again take root. “There’ll be no harm done. We’ll be back before you know it.”

“I’ll have to come and live with you if my father throws me out, you know.”

Freya laughed under her breath.

“I’m not joking,” Jess said as she lay down again.

“So you’ll come?”

“How could I not?” Jess paused, trying to think this through properly. “What about wolves? What if there are more out there?”

“Finn’s already at the pool. He would deal with any more that came through. But we’ll take knives, just in case.”

Jess knew it was ridiculous to accept that as reassurance, but she let her desire to see Finn override her common sense.

Of course she had to go. Freya was right. Jess couldn’t let go of the chance to see Finn one last time, whatever the consequences.

Before dawn, they were up and dressing in silence. Jess decided to let Freya’s note stand for both of them. Nothing that she could have said would have been likely to improve the situation when she returned anyway.

They tiptoed downstairs and into the kitchen, to collect the two biggest kitchen knives and a lantern. Although the moon was nearly full, they would need some extra light once they were in the woods.

They made their way in silence out of the farmyard, past the stinking, still smouldering remains of the wolf pyre, unaware of the shadow that detached itself from the barn and slipped after them.

Grey light lay across Roseroot Pool. Mist floated just above the water, tendrils curling and twining through the trees. It was absolutely silent once they stopped moving, waiting for Finn to show himself.

His voice suddenly came from the trees behind them.

“I only agreed to take Freya. What are you doing here, Jess?”

Freya turned and answered before Jess had a chance.

“I asked Jess to come. I didn’t think you’d mind.”

He said nothing for a moment, then shook his head.

“One, two, twenty – what’s the difference?” he said with a shrug, but his eyes were fixed on Jess as though the rest of the world was invisible.

“In my world, you have to do as I say, Freya,” he added.

“I promise. I only want to see where I was, then I swear we’ll go.”

“All right. We need to wade out near the middle, then hold on to my hands and don’t let go.”

Finn led the way, and Jess walked into the achingly cold water, Freya a step behind. Finn ploughed on without looking back until he was hip deep, then stopped and waited for the girls to catch up. Jess wondered if she could still get to Finn’s world alone, was about to ask, when a figure hurtled out of the trees and into the pool, shouting. In the half light it took a few seconds to recognise Magnus.

“Get away from them! Leave them alone,” he yelled.

Freya grabbed Finn’s hand as Magnus plunged towards them.

“Never mind him, Finn. Just do it,” she urged him.

Jess reached out and grasped Finn’s other hand.

“Are you sure?” he said.

“Yes! Do it!” Freya yelled as Magnus lunged for her, and suddenly the water was over and around them and they were being spun around like leaves in a whirlpool. Jess held grimly to Finn’s hand, trying to hold that last breath in her lungs, trying and trying…

Just as it ran out, the hurtling, spinning water was gone, and she landed with a thud on dry land. After a few seconds Jess opened her eyes to broad daylight, and her heart surged as she realised at once from the shimmering air that she was in the Nykur world again.

She sat up. Finn was already on one knee, looking in horror at Freya, who was sprawled in a heap on the ground, limbs
tangled with Magnus’s.

Jess gasped. “Oh no.”

Magnus and Freya untangled themselves and sat up slowly, glaring. Finn was on his feet now, looking down at Magnus. Before he could say anything, Freya launched into a tirade.

“Magnus, you idiot, Finn hasn’t kidnapped us. I made him promise to bring me here to fill in the gaps in my memory, and I persuaded Jess to come with me.”

Magnus got to his feet.

“Is that true, Jess?”

“Of course it is. Do we look as though we’re here against our will?”

“You shouldn’t be here,” Finn said coldly. “This is none of your business.”

“Yes it is. But I’m not here to make trouble. I was too late to stop them going with you, but I can make sure they’re safe.”

“You think you can do that in my world?”

“I think so,” said Magnus coolly.

“All right then, let’s see,” Finn said, as though he was issuing a challenge. “All of you wait here until I check it’s safe.” He walked away a little.

Magnus relaxed visibly and looked round, blinking and rubbing his eyes.

Jess took pity on him. “It’s not your eyes. The light’s strange. I remember from when I was here before. Things look as if they’re quivering if you’re not looking straight at them.”

She hadn’t expected this surge of joy as her senses reacted to the heightened intensity of Finn’s world. She had forgotten how seductive it was.

“Do you remember that happening when you were here before, Freya?” she went on.

“No,” Freya replied. “But I remember the roses.” She was looking at a huge crimson briar.

Finn came back over.

“It’s safe.”

“I remember the roses from before,” Freya said to him.

“They’re not exactly roses,” he replied.

The others turned to him.

“Remember how surprised you were when you found I didn’t know how to shoot?” Finn said to Magnus, who nodded, puzzled. “This is one way we deal with the wolves here.”

“You turn them into roses?” Jess thought she must have misunderstood.

“Not exactly. We can lay a spell of illusion round a door to your world. If wolves cross the boundary, the spell twists their minds and makes their bodies take the shape of roses. Really, though, they’re still wolves; they’ve just forgotten. You should be able to see, if you look at one of them out of the corner of your eye.”

Half convinced Finn was simply making fools of them, Jess tried looking sidelong at a rose bush. Nothing happened.

“No: not like that. Look at me.” He moved into her line of vision. “But be aware of that bush that’s right at the edge of your sight.”

Jess did as he said, staring at him for once without having to look for an excuse. She gasped and looked round sharply. For the tiniest flicker of time, in the space between heartbeats, the briar bush had shivered into the form of a wolf, then back to a rose.

She heard Magnus and Freya exclaim as they too saw the bush’s true form.

“That’s impossible,” Magnus exclaimed.

“In your world. That’s why you need to know how to shoot.”

Magnus strode towards the nearest bush.

“Careful!” warned Finn. “They can still bite.”

Magnus paused.

“You said that to me when I was here before,” Jess remembered. “And I could have sworn that one of the branches moved so the thorns could get me.”

“It probably did,” Finn replied. “They don’t remember they
are wolves, but they still enjoy tearing flesh.”

The others looked at the bushes, grown suddenly sinister.

“But somehow, in spite of this, six wolves got into our world,” Magnus reminded him.

“Yes,” Finn said, suddenly distracted. “I need to find out why. Give me a minute to check something.”

He moved away from them slowly, eyes flicking between the ground and the briars and the trees. Jess tried to work out what he was looking for, but to no avail.

She turned back to Magnus and Freya instead, just in time to see Magnus, unable to resist, stretch his hand out towards a rose. So quickly that there was barely time to register it had happened, a long, barbed twig had whipped out and raked down his arm.

He jumped back with a yell and glared at the bush, cursing.

“Magnus, you great fool,” said Freya unsympathetically.

“It’s torn my jacket,” Magnus said in pained amazement.

“Well, it’s a wolf. It could do worse than that,” said Jess. “Let’s see your arm.”

Magnus took off his jacket and examined his bloody arm. The gouges in his flesh did look more like claw marks than thorn scrapes.

“You should wash it,” said Jess, ever practical.

“Not here,” said Magnus, pulling his jacket back on. “Why would I trust the water if the roses can do that?”

Jess looked back to where she had last seen Finn. For a moment she couldn’t spot him, then she realised he was standing in the fork of a tree. There was something in his hands, but she couldn’t make out what it was.

Leaving Magnus and Freya bickering, Jess made her way to the foot of Finn’s tree, being careful to give the briars a wide berth.

She leaned against the trunk and peered up at him.

“What are you doing?”

“Mending the barrier.”

She couldn’t see any barrier.

“What do you mean?”

“Just a minute. I”ll show you when I come down.” As he spoke he was edging out along a limb.

As Jess waited, she concentrated on the feel of the tree bark under her fingers, rippled like wet sand, warm with slow life. She watched Finn reach up to tie whatever he was carrying to the branch above, then swing himself down to drop neatly at her feet.

“Here.” He held something out to her.

It was a little garland, less than a hand span wide, woven of what looked like hair, with faded rose petals worked into it. Jess looked at Finn, waiting for an explanation.

“This is the enchantment,” he said, obviously expecting her to have understood already. “Wolf and rose, twined together.” When she still looked blank, he went on. “Wolf hair and rose petals worked together with my mother’s power. This is what blocks the door to your world against the black wolves. I can mend these, but only my mother can make them. It was my job to look after the barrier when I… before. It seems no one else has thought to do it.” He was trying to keep his voice light, but he couldn’t disguise the worry in it. “I don’t think any of it’s been checked since I left. I suppose my mother was too busy looking after Rowan.”

“Can I help?”

“You don’t have the skill – but thank you.” He scanned the trees in front of him for the next garland and, now that she knew what to look for, Jess saw it too.

“Are the others all right?” Finn asked.

“Yes. Magnus ignored your warning and got clawed though.”

Finn couldn’t suppress a smile. “I thought he would.”

“I think they’re coming.” Jess saw that Freya and Magnus had started walking towards them.

Finn turned her to him with a hand on her arm.

“Listen,” he said urgently. “I don’t want them here for any longer than necessary. I know you’ll have to go with them, but if I can make my peace with my family, maybe you could come back. I’d never make you stay, but…” He fell silent as the others came within earshot.

Jess was glad she didn’t have to answer. She was already confused enough. Finn and his world shouldn’t mean anything to her, but…

Finn worked his way round the remaining garlands, retying and repairing while the others watched.

He jumped down from the last tree.

“It’s done. The barrier will work now. The wolves can’t get through to your world any more.”