“Someone has kidnapped Ronnie’s daughter Luna.”
Her eyes widen. “Oh, no.” She wrings her hands, conspicuously not mentioning the Baby Nabbers at all.
“Obviously, it’s not the kidnapping ring out of PA. But we think we know who did it.”
She shifts on the cushion while her eyes wander around the room. “Who is it?”
When her gaze returns to me, I take the leap. “Ashley, we know who you are.”
“What?” she asks, squinting. “Who do you think I am?”
Be careful how you say it, Gwyn. “We, the Bearsden Coven, know you’re a Tylwyth Teg fairy. I found the hair dye under the sink.”
Her jaw drops, and then she laughs, starting with a chuckle and ending with full-blown guffawing. She clutches her abdomen, patting it until she calms down enough to talk.
“Gwyn, I’m not a fairy. Have you lost your mind?”
Fuck. I swallow. Twice. I’ve made a gargantuan mistake. Or have I? I chant to summon my magic. The amber glow radiates from my fingers, and I test the room for residual magic. Yes. It’s floating throughout.
“Oh, my goodness!” she shouts. “Jeff told me about your skills, but I didn’t expect it to be so powerful.”
“He told you about us, then?” I ask, lowering my hand as the glow dissipates.
“Yes. Of course. He loves me and Aidan. We confide in each other.”
“Sure, he did. Ashley, I know you have love for those humans, but I’m pleading with you as a loving mom. Please, give the children back to their human parents. Return Luna to Ronnie and Derek.”
She shakes her head several times. “I can’t give them back, Gwyn. Because I’m not a fairy.”
I wrinkle my nose and squint. “I’m confused.”
She gazes at Aidan, still playing quietly in the corner. “But he is. Well, half of him, anyway.”
Holy crystals. My lips part, words failing me as I wait for her to explain further.
“His father was Tylwyth Teg. His name was Emrys. I met him in PA, where I was finishing my Ph.D. He was monitoring a landscape design project at the college I attended. When I passed by one day, he started up a conversation. He stopped me every time I passed by. He was so handsome and charming—but mysterious. We were together for months.”
Ashley pauses, glancing at Aidan. “When I asked him about his family and his past, he evaded the questions. One day, I followed him home as he left campus and peeked into his house window. I saw his wings sprout from his back and froze, imagining I was hallucinating. He caught me staring at him through the glass and ran outside, begging me to come in so he could explain. He confessed about being a fairy and pleaded with me to stay with him. That’s when he asked me to marry him.”
I have to interject. “Did he cross over through the portal in the Celestial Gardens?”
“Yes. He was sent to find a few Tylwyth Teg females who snuck over—to force them to return to their realm in the Otherworld. He created a human cover as a landscape designer while he searched for them. But then he met me, and we fell in love. Knowing we may only have a few months together, I got pregnant right away. I had Aidan nine months later. Emrys was so overjoyed, he made the decision to stop looking for the others and remain in our world.” She tears up. “It was an accident that he fell on that iron spire. It was a nightmare when the police found his body mummified. The forensic team could never explain it. But I knew.”
I rub my temples. “Shit. Give me a minute. I have to process this. So…Jeff told you about the Bearsden Coven. All this time, you were aware we were witches?”
“Once he discovered the truth about Aidan, he told me about your existence, in case I needed your help.”
I lecture her, a scolding tone in my voice. “Both of you should have told us about the Tylwyth Teg invading our world. You knew the dangers. Now a fairy has stolen Luna and the other children. We could have taken precautions—searched for the fairy.”
“I’m sorry. I realize that now, but I truly thought the Baby Nabbers ring was kidnapping the children. For two years, I've been worried about my son exhibiting magical powers. Luckily, he never did. Then I went for a walk with him in the park. When we stopped at the bog to throw stones in the water, something mysterious happened. The misty fog hanging over it shot a stream of something at him. I screamed and shouted at the perpetrator to stop. Then I picked him up and ran home. After that, strange things started to happen.”
“He sprouted wings?” I ask with a raise of my eyebrows.
“Oh, my goodness. You saw that?”
“Yeah. But I thought it was because of… Ashley, a Tylwyth Teg must be living in the bog and hiding the children there. When you got close, she must have detected Aidan and made a connection of some kind. Being near fairy magic isn’t a good idea. In fact, you need to know a prior tenant of this apartment was a Tuatha Dé Danann. You should get out of your lease and move. Make up some kind of shit excuse.”
She scans the apartment. “I’ll pack up right away. Jeff will help me.”
“If you can’t get out of the lease, don’t worry. I’m sure Jeff can cover the rent.”
She tilts her head to the right. “He has that kind of money?”
I chuckle. “Oh, yeah.”
I stand and walk to the door, Ashley on my heels. I glance back at Aidan. “You were never worried about the Baby Nabbers snatching your son. You were scared the Tylwyth Teg would scoop him up and take him back to the Otherworld. It’s why you dyed your hair brown, isn’t it? To avoid attracting more of them to you.”
“Yes.” She strokes her brown hair. “The threat has followed me everywhere. Emrys warned me of the danger. It’s why he left me that book as a reference. It contained stories to help me identify other Tylwyth Teg.”
“Do you know who she is?” I ask.
“No. She’s cunning and may not have revealed herself to anyone. Most likely she’s hiding in the bog—their safe place. I tried to communicate with her that rainy day in the park, worried she would come after Aidan. I figured no one would be there.”
“Did she answer you?”
Ashley shakes her head almost imperceptibly. “No. I don’t think there’s a way to retrieve the children. You and the Fellowship, the coven, must figure out how. Please, find the Tylwyth Teg fairy and send her back, so she can’t do this again.”
“We will,” I say, laying my hand on hers. “I don’t know how, but we’ll figure it out. Is there anything in your husband’s book that could help us?”
