I rush into the thicket of woods, pushing vines and tree limbs aside to find Archie. He’s stirring in a clump of dried leaves, rubbing his head. He’s alive. His coat is torn and blood seeps from a cut across his cheek and chin, the one without the scar. I exhale and run to him.
“Are you OK?” I ask, inspecting the abrasions on his face.
“Aye. But I’ll have a few bruises. Nothing a little healing magic can’t remedy.” A blood droplet rolls down his cheek, and he wipes it with his glove.
“You have a deep cut. I should heal it, or you’ll have a scar.” I chant, calling on my magic.
“No time for that. Besides, it’ll match the one on the other cheek. Where’s Alys?”
“I failed. She’s in the bog. I couldn’t stop her from seeking refuge within the protective bubble she’s created.”
“You’re unharmed, though?”
“Yeah. I had time to cast a protection barrier spell before she hit me, too. I threw a magic fireball at her, but she got through the shield before it reached her.”
“She must have sensed we were coming back. Caught me off guard, but it won’t happen again.” He pushes himself up and wobbles. “Shite. She walloped me good.”
“Can you fight? Maybe you should sit for a bit?”
He stands straight and wipes his cheek again. “Those children don’t have time to wait. Let’s get going.”
We retrace our steps out of the woods, our feet crunching dry leaves and sinking into the damp mulch below. When we reach the trail, the rest of the Bearsden Coven is huddled together in front of the bog, dressed for the icy temperature in winter coats and hats. Ronnie and Derek are just arriving. My best friend plods along with her boyfriend’s help.
“There they are!” Shane shouts.
Elijah points across the trail. “Near the woods!”
My fellow witches and Derek approach us with questioning looks.
“What have you been doing?” Leslie asks. “We saw your car in the parking lot and expected to find you here waiting for us.”
Agnes scowls. “What the fuck? You really thought you had time for a quickie in the woods? Now?”
“Your head is always in the gutter, Agnes,” Spence says, chuckling.
She snickers. “I call it like I see it.”
I grimace. “What? For fuck’s sake, Agnes. No. That bitch struck Archie with a bolt of fairy magic. Sent him flying into the woods.”
“And he’s still standing?” she asks. “Don’t fuck with an ancestral witch, I guess.”
The young witches run to him, asking him overlapping questions and checking his wounds. “Are you hurt badly?” “How strong was her magic?” “Where is she?” “Should we prepare for her to attack again?”
“You’re bleeding,” Tyler says, chanting to summon his magic. “Can I heal you?”
Zoe raises her hand. “I wanna help, too.”
Archie rubs his rib cage. “No need. I’m a wee banged up, but I’ll heal.”
Trinity pushes the young ones aside. “Give him room to breathe. Archie’s weathered worse than this.”
Derek removes a rib brace from his backpack. “This will help until there’s time for magic healing.”
“Thank you.” Archie pulls down the zipper of his coat. “I may need help with the wrapping.”
“No problem,” he says, pulling the brace around his torso. “I can’t thank you all enough for trying to get Luna back to us.”
Ronnie scans our impromptu circle. “I’m not at full strength right now, but I’ll do what I can.”
“We certainly can use you,” Trinity says. “But remember, Luna needs you. Stay as far back as you can from the thick of it. I would like answers about the fairy, though. Besides the wings, how will we recognize her? Blond hair and fair complexion, I assume.”
“You bet,” I say with a nod. “But hold on to your beanies. It’s Alys Morgan.”
“Alys Morgan?” Skye asks, a perplexed expression freezing her face. “The councilwoman?”
Elijah gapes at me. “Are you sure, Gwyn? The fairy must resemble her. I worked with that woman every damn week. I noticed nothing about her that would point to being a Tylwyth Teg.”
“The councilwoman does keep to herself,” Shane says. “But I noticed nothing suspect when she came into the store.”
“Aye,” Archie replies. “It’s definitely Alys. She was walking on the trail when we arrived to check out the bog. We turned back to meet you at the trailhead to give her time to finish. But Gwyn had an epiphany on the way after Alys spoke to me.”
Leslie tilts her head. “What earth shattering words were they?”
“She hit on him again, right in front of me,” I say, frowning.
Spence guffaws. “That was the revelation? If making a pass at Archie is the sole qualifier, then we have hundreds of Tylwyth Teg living in Bearsden.”
“Very. Funny.” I throw him a side-eye.
