The swamp seemed to close in around us, blocking out the sun and sky, even the sounds of the birds were muted under the low hanging branches.
“Quinn,” Bres said.
I paused, waiting for him to catch up rather than look over my shoulder at him. I couldn’t meet his eyes; there was too much between us. For all that, we’d only known each other a short time.
“What?” I asked when he reached my side.
“Before we get there, I have to tell you something. I need to say it before I lose the chance,” Bres said.
I was shaking my head before he finished speaking, still not willing to meet his eyes. “No need to confess, Luke told me that you’d Charmed me.”
The silence lasted for a split second. “WHAT?”
Cringing, I turned to face him. “It will wear off, right?” His eyes were wide and his jaw was hanging open. With a shiver that ran through his body, he seemed to wake up. Brushing past me, he changed the subject completely.
“There will be a choice when we get to where ta Cauldron is. Only one of us will be able to go through at a time.”
“Fine, then I’ll go through.” I said, letting him change the subject. I didn’t want to rub it in that I knew he’d tricked me. The swamp reluctantly let go of my foot with a slurp, as I stepped over a downed and rotting tree.
“No, Quinn, do you not hear what Fianna is saying? You could very well die if you go through ta gateway, if that’s still what you must step through?” He aimed the question at Fianna who lifted her hand.
We stopped, and there ahead of us was the gateway to the Cauldron. Or should I say, gateways.
4
Two large arbutus trees were mirror images of each other. One was the brilliant gleaming red skinned trunk that stood out even in this darkened swamp, the other, though the green leaves and twisted growth were the same. The trunk was blackened as if by a fire or bolt of lightning.
Fianna pointed. “There is your choice, Quinn. The gateway of gleaming bright represents the fae who have only good intentions, those who seek to do what is right, the ones who will give up their lives for the greater good.” Shifting ever so slightly, she pointed to the blackened tree. “There lies the gateway for the dark fae, those who have seen that which is good and turned away, those who would murder to achieve their goals, the ones who will only do what is best for themselves, forsaking the greater good.”
My eyes flicked back and forth between the two trees. “And I have to choose what? The one that I think the Cauldron is in?’
“No, you have to choose the one that you believe yourself to be. If you choose correctly, the Cauldron will wait for you on the other side. If you choose incorrectly, you will die,” she said.
Bres touched my forearm, the heat from his fingers made me jerk away from him. “That is why I should go, Quinn. I know what I am. I am one of the dark fae; there is no question.”
I shook my head, “No, that’s not true. I know you.” Even as the words slipped past my lips, the truth of them hit me. I knew him as if I’d known him my whole life. He was no dark fae, no matter that we were at times on opposite sides. Even if the bugger did Charm me.
Reaching out, I touched his hand, tentatively at first. “This is something I have to do. It is not on your shoulders. It isn’t your fault that Luke is hurt so badly.”
“If I go first, and fail, you still have a chance. You are the one ta prophecy speaks of, and if it’s right, you are ta only one who can save us from Chaos.” He brushed his fingers along my jaw, his eyes softening. “I’m doing this for you, Quinn. I’m sorry,” he said as his hand dropped. I didn’t understand what he was about, not until it was already happening. He grabbed my hand, and then spun me around. Pushing me, he sent me into the deeper water, and I tripped over a submerged log, my body getting sucked under by the swamp. Fighting to reach the surface, I pushed off the mushy bottom.
“Bres!” I screamed, as I broke the water’s surface, already knowing that I was too late. A flash of light and the dark gateway swallowed him whole. Damn him and his heroics!
I struggled forward, tangling once more in unseen roots under the mud slurry of water. Fianna stepped in front of me. “Give him a chance to be your hero, Quinn. It’s what all men want.”
She came to my side and helped me to my feet. The water and muck clung to me as if it were a second skin. “I’ve yet to decide if you are twice blessed or twice cursed,” she said.
Wiping my face, flicking the mud off my fingers I shivered. “What do you mean?”
“To be loved by not one, but two men of strength and heart. It is a blessing to have one, but two? I’m not so sure I’d want that even for myself.” She stared at me, then cocked her head to one side, so like her little sister it gave me a chill.