Chapter 8

The walk home shouldn’t have been long, but he was reveling in his thoughts and the memory of her body pressed against his. It was almost impossible to believe that Aislyn had agreed to marry him. How had he become so fortunate to have the most beautiful lass in the world as his own?

Soon enough, he found himself standing outside of his own door, and he realized he was also quite lucky that nothing had snuck up on him out of the shadows as he made his way home since he was paying absolutely no mind to his surroundings and would have been an easy target should anything, earthly or other worldly, chosen to claim him.

He was still soaring when he quietly opened the door. However, he needn’t thought of disrupting his family members’ sleep, as all three of them were up, and clearly something was not right. Genty sat in a chair near the unlit fireplace, her mother on the floor beside her, holding her hand while Granddad stood behind her, his hands pressing on her shoulders. His sister was sobbing so hard, her entire body shook with each mournful sniffle.

Aaron closed the short distance quickly, coming to a halt right in front of her. “Genty? What happened?”

“Oh, Aaron, thank God,” his mother said, bringing herself to her feet and wrapping her arms around him. “I was so worried about you.”

“I’m fine, Ma. I walked Aislyn home. What’s wrong with Gen?”

“It was just awful,” his mother began, turning back to face her oldest child who could hardly catch her breath, she was crying so hard. “They were attacked on their way home. She hardly made it out alive.”

“Oh, my God,” Aaron exclaimed, nearly unable to believe the story. He dropped to his knees and flung himself at his sister, his arms encircling her waist. “Are you all right, Gen? Please tell me they didn’t hurt you.” He began searching her arms and neck for scratches, knowing even the smallest scrape could lead to an infection.

“She’s fine,” Granddad assured him. “We’ve done a thorough check over.”

“They didn’t touch me,” Genty managed to get out between sobs. “It was everyone else.”

“Everyone?” Aaron repeated, scooting back on his knees so that he could look up at her.

“Yes,” she confirmed. Though tears still rolled down her cheeks, her breathing was becoming more even. “They came out of the bushes, near Min’s home. Loughlin shouted for us to run, and I took off into the fields. Min did, too, but she stumbled. Quin stopped to help her up and then… all I heard was screaming. I took shelter behind a tree, unable to run further, and I could see them, outlined against the night sky. Four Dark Ones, three of my friends, all being taken. I knew there was nothing I could do to help them, and so, once I caught my breath, I took off running again, leaving them all behind.” Her eyes began to gloss over then, shock taking over. Shaking her head slowly, she said, “I just left them behind.”

“You did what you had to do,” Granddad assured her. “You did what Loughlin insisted you do.”

“I was a coward,” Genty insisted, her head resting against her elbow on the small dining table. “I should have stayed and fought for my friends.”

“If you had, they’d still be gone, and so would you,” her mother argued, using her hands to dry the tears that streaked her daughter’s face.

Aaron was silent for a moment, but he could feel the anger building up inside of him. That sound he and Aislyn had heard, that must have been one of the Dark Ones during the attack. “I’m sorry,” he began, standing in front of his sister, his arms crossed. “I should’ve been with you.”

“I’m so glad you were not,” Genty assured him. “I don’t know what I would have done if I needed to protect you, Aaron, but I certainly wouldn’t have run away. They might have gotten both of us.”

Running his hand through his hair so forcefully that a few strands actually came out, Aaron exclaimed, “We cannot continue to live like this. In fear for our lives day after day. The number of crosses in the cemetery continue to grow, the fright in the eyes of the children, in their parents, is more evident each time another attack such as this one occurs. How much longer will we sit by and do nothing?”

“There’s nothing we can do,” Granddad insisted. “We have the agreement.”

“The agreement?” Genty said, turning so that she could look up at him. “Loughlin was a member of the Order, Granddad. You know that. So was Quin. If the Dark Ones can claim us now, then why can we do nothing in return?”

“Do not speak those words,” Granddad replied, his voice a sharp whisper. “Do not speak of them, or they will come.”

“They will come anyway,” Aaron said, his hands on his hips now. “Is there truly nothing that we can do, or have we only said that we will not because of this so-called agreement?”

His Granddad dropped his eyes, his shoulders slumping. “There is nothing we can do. We are powerless against them.”

Aaron knew his grandfather to be an honest man, but something about the way he said those words let him know he was not being truthful now. “Then why is there a difference between the members of the Order and the others?” he asked. “Surely there must be something to distinguish us.”

“If there ever was, no one knows what it is now,” Bree said, standing next to her daughter’s chair. “Although I think there must be something as well. There were rumors when I was younger, stories of defeated Dark Ones, banished to ash.”

“We will speak of this no longer,” Ferris demanded, pounding his hand on the table loud enough to leave it quaking for several seconds. “We are part of the Order, and we shall honor the agreement. At least, as long as I walk this earth, that is the choice my clan, the McReynolds clan, will uphold. Anyone who wishes to do otherwise may leave this house!”

The air between them was thick for several seconds as they all stared at Granddad in stunned silence. After a few moments, Genty rose from her chair, smoothed her gown, and said in a hauntingly calm voice, “I will be leaving. If not tomorrow, then the next day. I can no longer stay in a country that allows its people to go hungry while sending food abroad, who refuses to address those we do not speak of, who treats us as if we are slaves.”

“Oh, Genty,” Bree said, tears streaming from her eyes. “Where will you go?”

“To America,” she replied, as if her mind had been made up for quite some time. “I have a bit of money I’ve saved from the sewing I’ve taken on, and while it isn’t much, it is enough to make passage. Loughlin spoke of coming with me….” Her face was brave and her voice didn’t waiver, but Aaron could see her beginning to crack as she spoke his name. “His sister lives there, in Boston. I shall join her family there.”

Leaving their mother gasping, Genty finished and turned to go. Bree’s hand shot out and caught her daughter’s shoulder. “Might we speak on this in the morning, when cooler heads may prevail?”

“My head is cool, I assure you,” Genty replied over her shoulder without turning to face her mother. “We can talk about it, but I will not change my mind. This Ireland is not the one in which I wish to raise a family. If you choose to stay, then, I’m afraid we must live our separate lives.”

In all of his years, Aaron had never heard his sister speak to their mother in such a fashion. As he watched her ascend the ladder to the loft, he realized she must already know that he had asked Aislyn to be his wife. Without her little brother in the house to watch over, Genty would be free to pursue the life she’d always dreamt of. Now, however, thanks to the Dark Ones, she’d be forced to find someone else to live out those dreams alongside.

Aaron swore he would never let anything of the sort happen to his sweet Aislyn. If there was a way to protect her, he would find it—or die trying.