Everyone else gapes at Courtney, creating a cloud of hazy white. Still running in place to keep the blood flowing through his body to stay warm, Spence remains ready to lunge into the icy pond. Ronnie and Derek join us from behind the shrub, Ronnie’s expression set to kill as she looks at Courtney. John wraps an arm around his wife, worry distorting his face. Agnes begins the inquisition.
“Another fucking fairy? How many Tylwyth Teg crossed over through the portal into Bearsden?”
“I don’t know for sure,” Courtney replies, clinging to her husband. “But the gateway in the Celestial gardens isn’t the only one in the country. Hundreds could be living here now. Please, don’t be angry with me. I want to help.”
“There are more fucking portals?” Agnes asks.
“We’ll deal with that issue later,” Leslie says. “We must focus on the task at hand.”
Trinity pounds the dirt as she approaches Courtney. “You’ve lied to us since the fucking beginning. Pretended to be a novice witch. Helped Audrey Kenilworth infiltrate the coven when she was under the influence of a hex cast by her mother. It’s why you were expelled. Why should we trust you now?”
The young witches shout at Courtney at random, reminding her of all her past deceptions. Who can blame them? She invited this condemnation. Tyler remains silent, having not been in the knowing of his ancestral witch status during Courtney’s past transgressions.
John yells back at them. “I understand Courtney fucked up in the past. But Alys threatened to out her if she revealed Alys was kidnapping the children. I didn’t have any choice but to vote as she asked and appear to support her. We remained silent until Courtney couldn’t live with the guilt anymore.”
Ronnie stamps toward Courtney, her face twisted in rage, and gets right up into her face. “Alys took my Luna. How do we know you won’t turn around and steal more children like she did?”
“Indeed,” Leslie adds. “You are Tylwyth Teg. It’s in your nature.”
“I won’t because…” Courtney lays a hand on her coat above her lower torso. “I’m pregnant. Please, let me help you get Luna and the other children back.”
Seamus limps over to the newly outed Tylwyth Teg and lifts his hand, a blue glow emanating from his skin. Courtney flinches as his magic passes over her.
“I sense truth in her words,” he says.
Courtney pulls her arm from around John and points at the shimmering fog. “I am telling the truth. I can fly through the barrier and grab the children one at a time.”
A warm aura rushes through me, my witch’s intuition confirming her statement, and I unzip my coat. “I believe her. Tell us what to do, Courtney. You can’t possibly pass through the shield without Alys noticing. She’ll attack you and the children before you free them.”
“You’ll have to blast the shield with magic. Irritate her enough to come out.”
Zoe’s eyes widen, and she waves her hands in the air. “Whoa! Stop! I thought that was bad?”
“Exactly,” Tyler says. “We could hurt the children.”
“If you pierce the weak point in the barrier, you could. The rest of the surface should hold,” Courtney replies.
Shane inspects the area where the fog swirls in and out. “That should be easy enough to avoid.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Spence says. “Can I put on my fucking coat and shoes now?”
Tanner runs to him and helps him into his coat sleeves. “We should throw magic bombs at her one after the other—big enough to piss her off, but not enough to damage the shield.”
Archie rubs his goatee. “Aye. But we should prepare for her wrath as before. She’ll come after each of us.”
“Ronnie, you and Derek go back behind the shrubs for protection,” Trinity says. “But be prepared to help with all the children.”
“We can do that,” she replies.
“Absolutely.” Derek grabs Ronnie’s hand, and they return to their shelter behind the rhododendron.
Skye approaches the right side of the bog. “Why don’t I act as a liaison? When Courtney brings the children out, I’ll run them back to Ronnie and Derek?”
“Perfect,” Archie replies, motioning to us. “Let’s prepare, everyone.”
John kisses his Tylwyth Teg wife. “Be careful. Alys could come after you.”
“Don’t worry,” she says, cupping his cheek. “I can handle her. I’ll hide behind that enormous oak tree until the coven creates an opening.”
Courtney removes her coat and calls on her wings to expand from her back. Glowing in green and purple hues, they lift her off the ground, and she floats toward the strip of hazy white. No one can deny her unique beauty. Who can blame John for falling in love with such an exquisite creature? Even if she is a lying bitch.
We line up as we did before, except this time, I pull out Archie’s dirk and shove it under my belt. I don’t want to kill Alys, but she may give me no choice. Courtney signals she is ready as she hovers above the entry point.
Trinity addresses John. “Councilman, we need someone to monitor the trail for Unremarkables.”
“I’ll start up the trail immediately.” He stares at his wife from a distance, pressing his lips together. “Good luck, everyone.”
“I suggest we start on the left,” Elijah says. “Blast the shield every five seconds. Once we get to the end of the line, repeat as often as we have to until Alys surfaces.”
“And then what?” Tyler asks. “She’s gonna come after us.”
“We’ll have to defend each other as she attacks,” Archie says.
Trinity raises her hand, an amber fireball burning inches from her palm. “Tanner, you’re at the far left of the line. Whenever you’re ready.”
We all chant, forming balls of fire in each hand and wait for Tanner. He raises his arms above his head, and we follow his lead.
“May the gods be with us today!” he shouts.
