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  Aerin drew in a shaky breath and lowered her voice, no longer trying to hide her feelings of betrayal. “I don’t have any feelings one way or another about either of those women. Like everyone else involved, I have moved on. I just want to protect the Court’s interests. What exactly are you trying to say?”

  Silence filled the room, making every noise and movement of those in the room loud and awkward. No one would meet Aerin’s gaze.

  The Queen turned to Aerin with a fixed stare. “I don’t think you’re right for this mission,” Queen Donagh said with finality. “Not at this point or in this manner anyway. I think your talents might be better suited elsewhere.”

  “I agree with the Queen,” Cian said. “We need to try a different angle. I don’t think Ashling will let Aerin approach her again and given Dierdre’s reaction to my attempts to explain everything to her, she may have concocted some story that would make Ashling incredibly leery of strangers. She might even leave Ireland immediately if Dierdre warns her or if Aerin traumatized her like Kalen inferred.”

  Aerin sat up straight to defend herself one more time. “So just like that, you’re going to hand this mission over to someone else? Nobody else is acquainted with the particulars of this mission. Not only have I memorized all the information in Ashling’s file, I’m thoroughly acquainted with all the facts and the people involved. I stayed on the case, searching the dead ends and listening to Foundation chatter for the past twenty years when everyone else accepted the girl was dead. Even Cian had given up. Without my diligence in monitoring the Foundation’s movements, we wouldn’t know the girl was alive and currently in Ireland. Bringing someone else up to speed at this point is risky.”

  Tears sparkled in the corner of her eyes. Kalen watched without emotion as she took a few deep breaths to regain control of herself before arguing her case again. “While Cian knows the facts, he cannot play the long-lost father and swoop in to bring her to us. We all know he can’t be trusted when it comes to that girl and her mother. They already tricked him once.”

  Aerin trembled when she heard the collective intake of breath of everyone in the room. Cian stared at her with ill-concealed hostility while Kalen merely smirked. Kalen could tell she was getting desperate. He understood her anger, but he couldn’t help but hope Aerin’s meltdown worked in his favor. Being the lead on this case would solidify his power at Court.

  Lost in thought and seemingly ambivalent to the emotions swirling through the others, the Queen turned her back to the table and responded. “You briefed Kalen on the files, and you chose him as your partner. If he is good enough to be your partner, he is good enough to take the lead. This mission should be his now. Besides, if I remember correctly, Kalen was the one who originally persuaded the Court to keep this case open. He never believed the girl died.” Pausing for a moment, she made eye contact with every member of Court. “Does anyone except Aerin disagree with this decision?”

  Several seconds passed without any other objections to the Queen’s proposal.

  Cian cleared his throat. “I agree with Kalen as Aerin’s successor. He is the only suitable option at this point. Aerin has shown her inability to remain detached from her personal feelings, and I object to her involvement. However, I do have some notable concerns about Kalen’s ability to execute the mission without causing any harm to my daughter. Perhaps the three of us could speak in confidence after this meeting is adjourned.”

  Kalen stiffened at the criticism, but nodded.

  “Alright, if there is nothing further, everyone else is free to leave,” the Queen instructed the members of the Court. Aerin lingered by the door. Flicking her wrist at Aerin, the Queen said, “Thank you for your attendance and information but you are not needed further today. I will meet with you later in the day to discuss any remaining concerns in private. I won’t waste Cian and Kalen’s time on a matter that is resolved to the majority’s satisfaction.”

  Kalen watched Aerin and the remaining members of Court shuffle out of the room. He wasn’t in the mood to rehash old business with Cian. He and Cian hadn’t been friends in a long time, but they both respected each other’s abilities. When the door closed, Kalen looked to Cian. “What’s this about?”

  “I want to make sure there are no misunderstandings going forward. I don’t like the direction Aerin took with Ashling, so I think it would behoove us to define the mission to avoid further mishaps.”

  “Define away,” Kalen interjected with an amused smile as he brushed lint from his sleeve.

  Cian cleared his throat. “You have been known to pursue your own interests to the detriment of the mission, and I don’t want that to happen with my daughter.”

  “Don’t you think that criticism is hypocritical when you’re the reason we’re in this predicament in the first place?” Kalen said.

  Cian clenched his jaw, openly angry that Kalen tried to distract him by alluding to his failures with Dierdre. “Perhaps, but I don’t need to explain myself to you. You’re not my keeper.”

  “And you aren’t mine,” Kalen countered. “I don’t need to explain my actions to you.”

  “I didn’t ask for an explanation. I’m just giving you a friendly warning. I don’t want Ashling to be used as a political pawn.”

  “When I dropped Dierdre off that day, I didn’t know what you and Aerin would be talking about.” Kalen knew that wasn’t entirely true, but he had hoped Cian would finally sever his relationship with Aerin. Instead, when Dierdre had walked into their house, interrupting Cian’s conversation with Aerin, she wouldn’t listen to reason. She accused him of using her and threatened to keep Ashling from him and Cian just let her walk out the door.

  “But you knew she was there,” Cian said through clenched teeth.

  Kalen shrugged. “You didn’t bother to stop her from running. It didn’t look as though you cared.”

  “Ah, there’s the cold, self-serving Kalen we all know.”

  “You’re calling me self-serving? That’s rich. This whole debacle happened because you acted in your own self-interest,” Kalen countered. He couldn’t explain why he let Dierdre walk into that conversation between Cian and Aerin other than he didn’t like Aerin around Ashling. What he did ruined their friendship, but he hated that Cian let Aerin manipulate her way back into his life.

  The Queen waived her hand to silence both of them. “Kalen, Cian, I don’t think this is the time or the place to go through this. I would consider it a personal failure if she won’t come with us willingly. I don’t think anyone wants to consider the alternatives. Let’s put aside our personal differences and focus on making this a success.”

  “You’re right,” said Cian. “Despite everything that has happened, Ashling is my daughter, and I don’t want her hurt emotionally or otherwise. I want the transition to go as smoothly as possible. Kalen, I know you can be very charming, but it would be in all of our best interests if you kept your distance from her, if you know what I mean.”

  Kalen snapped his head in Cian’s direction and met his eyes with a hard stare. “My only objective is to complete this mission in a satisfactory manner, and I’ll use anything at my disposal to make that happen. That being said, I am not in favor of cultivating a messy emotional attachment on her part in order to facilitate her compliance. Regardless of what happened with Mary Margaret, it’s not my style.” Kalen pinned Cian with his eyes. “That’s what you’re implying, right?”

  Cian did not answer but stood firm, holding Kalen’s stare.

  “Let’s keep this conversation professional,” the Queen said. “I don’t care what you do, Kalen. Just make sure she will cooperate with us when she gets here. She’s no use to us otherwise.”

  Kalen nodded. “I might need to hold her until the portal is open for a successful crossover. I don’t think a hotel is secure. Can I still access the safe houses?”

  “Yes, they’re available. They aren’t maintained but they will provide shelter and privacy,” the Queen replied as sh
e walked out of the room.

  “My old house is open and maintained,” Cian added after Queen Donagh left.

  “I know,” Kalen responded.

  Kalen and Cian eyed each other, and then, without exchanging another word, both turned and walked out of the chamber, going in opposite directions.

  Chapter 4

  Avery never had been in the habit of waking up slowly. She was more likely to be energetic and disgustingly animated while Grace, her roommate of six years, threatened her with death or bodily harm at least once a week if she didn’t keep to herself in the morning.

  This morning, when she opened her eyes, she was disoriented and not entirely sure where she was. She lay motionless in bed until her memories caught up with her. Then everything filtered back: Dierdre, the plane ride, the hotel, and the bizarre conversation with that woman in the pub. At that thought, she sat straight up in bed and groaned. She felt groggy from the sleeping pill she took last night to adjust to the time change. Shaking her head, she hoped to clear the fogginess out her mind, but it didn’t work. Her thoughts weren’t sufficiently coherent to explore the conversation with that woman from the pub, so she decided to ignore it entirely for now.

  Peeking at the alarm clock, she grabbed a bottle of water balancing precariously on the edge of the nightstand. She quickly drained all of its contents and plopped backwards on her pillow, letting the empty water bottle tumble to the floor. After a few more minutes of trying to ease her drug-induced stupor, she pushed the sheets back and headed to the shower, thinking it might shock her system awake.

  She stood in the shower letting hot streams of water pelt her skin until she felt as though she had dispelled some of the mental fog and tension that settled into her mind overnight. When she was done, she could hear her phone ringing, but instead of running to answer it, she took her time drying off every inch of her body and going through the ritual of getting dressed.

  Finished getting ready for the day, she sat on the edge of the bed and stared out the window, trying to find an ounce of motivation to leave her hotel room. She dreaded the awkwardness of being face-to-face with Dierdre for the first time in over a decade and was more than a little frightened to see Dierdre looking so ill. Her aunt tried to warn her, but she could tell from the tone in her aunt’s voice that Deirdre’s appearance would be shocking.

  The phone on the nightstand reminded her that someone had called earlier. She scrolled through her email and text messages, checking for anything work-related requiring her immediate attention. Groaning, she saw Grace had emailed and texted her several times last night and this morning to see if she arrived safely. Grace wasn’t going to be happy she forgot to call her. Avery touched Grace’s number on her cell phone display and waited.

  Grace answered almost immediately. “Avery, thanks for making time to call your one and only best friend,” Grace said sarcastically. “I had visions of you dead in an alley somewhere.”

  “No such luck for you. I’m sitting in my hotel room in Galway.”

  “What’s the name of the hotel in case I need to find you?”

  “It’s the Harbour Hotel.”

  “What are your plans? Have you seen her yet?”

  “No, when I talked to my Auntie Catherine last night, she wanted me to come over sometime this afternoon.”

  “How is the old harpy? Is she still playing the guilt card?”

  “She tried, but I cut her off before she could get in the full swing of things,” Avery responded dryly.

  “You should be a master at deflecting her criticisms by now. So, you have some free time. What are your plans for the day?”

  Avery flopped backwards on her bed, laughing. “Oh, I don’t know, I thought I would walk around, take in the sights, find my soul mate. Maybe I’ll treat myself to an extravagant lunch or blow all my money shopping. Anything to take my mind off seeing Dierdre this afternoon.”

  “Speaking of finding your soul mate, did you go out last night and enjoy the nightlife?”

  Avery rolled her eyes. Grace always asked predictable questions. “Knowing I’d have to report back to you, I went to a pub for dinner. I didn’t want to disappoint you and all that.”

  “Tell me. Did you take off that ‘Do not approach me sign’ long enough to meet any interesting men? Irish men have a sexy accent and a quick fling would be a good way to make this trip less painful.”

  “I don’t know where you get these ideas. Men don’t approach me because I’m boring.”

  “Whatever. You know you’re beautiful, right? When are you going to stop hiding? Did you play the moody, unapproachable tourist or did you talk to anyone?”

  Avery snorted and ran her hand through her bangs. Grace was beautiful. She, on the other hand, never felt comfortable with her appearance. She looked different from other people and inside she feared she was different. “You certainly like to pry.”

  “So you did meet someone? Do tell.”

  “It wasn’t the interesting Irish man you’re envisioning, but I did have an entertaining conversation with the woman next to me at the bar. I think she had one too many drinks.”

  “That’s not the type of amusement I had in mind.”

  Avery lowered her voice, uncomfortable discussing her encounter last night. Saying it out loud made it real, and she didn’t know if that was a good thing. “Seriously, Grace, she was a little creepy. She said she knew me and that I’d lived in Galway before. She asked what my name was these days.”

  “Huh, weird. Did she say anything else about this mysterious, secret life of yours?”

  “Funny! I’m not interesting enough to have a secret life.” As the words fell out of her mouth, she felt a pang in her stomach. She may not have a secret life, but she did feel the need to hide her thoughts from people. “She told me to call her to talk before the end of the week. She shoved her business card into my hand as I was leaving.”

  “You aren’t going to call her, are you?

  “God no.”

  “What’d the card say?”

  “I didn’t look. I don’t even think I kept it.”

  “What’d she look like—some crazy old lady?”

  Just the thought of her appearance gave Avery pause. “I don’t know, blonde, nondescript. It’s not important. Then, when I was walking home, it felt as though someone was watching me. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just being paranoid.”

  “You probably are.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence. Anyway, I have to go. I’m going to miss the free breakfast.”

  “We can’t have that. You need all your money for that shopping spree. Don’t forget to get something for me.”

  “Of course. Talk to you soon.”

  “Don’t be a stranger. You know I’m here if you need to talk.”

  “Yeah. Thanks,” Avery responded before hanging up.

  Ten minutes later, Avery found herself sitting on a bench in Eyre Square, people watching and thinking about her visit with Dierdre and Auntie Catherine later that afternoon. Based on the conversation with her aunt yesterday, she didn’t think she would get much information from her mother. She was too ill. If she wanted answers, she should have forced the conversation years ago. Still, coming to Ireland to say goodbye was probably a good thing. Being here wouldn’t pile another item on the lengthy ‘what if’ list in her relationship with her mother.

  Watching carefree tourists meander through the square, laughing and taking pictures, she was envious her first trip to Ireland was not the one she dreamed of taking for the last five years. She wished she could forget about the unfolding drama and have fun. But that wasn’t going to happen because, despite Dierdre’s failings as a parent, Avery couldn’t bring herself to enjoy this trip when Dierdre was dying.

  She pushed herself off the bench and absent-mindedly strolled toward the narrow, winding lanes of the medieval part of the town. Stopping to check the menu of a restaurant, she noticed a small sign for the New World Foundation for Celtic Studi
es out of the corner of her eye. She pulled her cell phone from her pocket and confirmed it matched the address Peter emailed her at the fundraiser. Tucked in a narrow multi-story building, the Foundation building had worn gray stones on the main story and faded orange stucco above. She reached for the door handle and tried to turn it, but it was locked, so she rang a nearby intercom.

  Avery flinched when she heard a woman’s voice laced with static coming from the intercom. “Can I help you?”

  “Yes. I’m Avery Conner from the New York office. Thomas Flannigan is expecting me.”

  “Do you have an appointment?” The woman inquired.

  “No, but like I said, he knows I’m in town, and he should be expecting me.”

  “I’ll check to see if he’s available to meet with you.”

  Feeling awkward lurking on the street outside the locked office like a vagrant, she scanned the sidewalk to see if anyone watched her. She relaxed when she didn’t see anyone interested in her. Trying to remain inconspicuous and avoid eye contact with anyone passing by on the sidewalk, she turned to the side and leaned against the sidewall of the entrance while she rubbed her hands together to warm them from the cold air.

  Despite her efforts, she couldn’t rid herself of the prickling sensation on the back of her neck, telling her someone or something watched her. Gingerly, she raised her head to survey the area again, and she noticed a man looming in the shadows of a building across the narrow street with his fedora pulled low over his eyes, obscuring his face. He stood in the shadows, diligently avoiding looking in her direction. He was a lean, tall man in a dark overcoat. She stared at him, trying to determine whether he was watching her. Almost as if she had called his name, he looked up and she found herself looking directly into the stranger’s glittering, emerald green eyes. She felt an immediate connection with him, an electric current pulsing through her body. He was darkly handsome, with a wide sensual mouth, classical facial features and midnight colored hair just long enough to peek out of the bottom of his hat. She hesitated, the connection between them mellowing then sending trails of heat cascading through her body. It felt as if she were being cuddled in a warm breeze that floated through her hair and down her clothes with an unholy promise of warmth.