The Shadowed Path

1. Reine-2

We spent the next hour in blessed silence. John looked out of the window or checked his watch. Ellerin drove. At times, the car floated and touched down so gently I doubted the humans could feel it. I suspected Ellerin avoided speed monitoring cables and other devices that would alert the authorities to his very fast driving. He pulled into a gravel parking lot on the side of a mountain at half an hour until sunrise. Here, away from the light pollution in the city, we had barely enough light to see by.

The silence when he cut the engine pressed in on my pointed ears.

He frowned at the sky. "Hurry, we're almost there."

Each of us grabbed our respective backpacks, and I gave mine an extra squeeze to make sure the present I’d bought for Kestrel was still in there. Not that I expected it to be gone, but when one dealt with Fae, one could never be sure. We had a different definition of gifts. They all had strings, which made me wonder about what I had been gifted when I'd gotten Kestrel's.

Our footsteps crunched along a path that turned from gravel to dirt and muffled our passage. About half a mile in, Ellerin led us off the path onto a small trail hidden by brush. No one spoke, which gladdened me because I could hear the birds and the forest creatures. Morning had its own rhythm, and the trees added their greetings as harmony to the brushes, snaps, and songs of the animals' waking and preparing for their days. Sir Raleigh trotted along beside me and looked around with wide, yellow eyes. The hoot of an owl momentarily silenced everything else, and Ellerin grinned and hooted back.

"What is it saying?" Kestrel whispered.

"Hello, and we're almost there."

Indeed, we walked into a clearing that looked like a campsite ringed with boulders. A pile of wood sat in a stone circle, and Ellerin rubbed his hands together like he was cold, then held them toward the wood such that his palms faced the stack. He murmured something, and it burst into green flame.

"What? How did you do that?" John asked.

"Magic, Dad." Kestrel bounced on her toes, her delight apparent in her grin. "Can you teach me to do that, Mister Ellerin?"

Ellerin chuckled. "Hush, and watch."

Rather than illuminating the boulders right away, the green glow crept through the air and along the ground. When it passed over me, it tingled like I'd been doused with fizzy soda. The boulders around the campsite reflected the light like mirrors, then grew taller until they took on familiar shapes—standing stones.

"What is this place?" John sounded more afraid than awed.

"A passageway. It will take us to the Shadowed Path." Ellerin paused for a second before adding, "It's not one of my usual entrance points, so be alert."

I'd never heard him sound anything but confident, and Kestrel and I exchanged worried glances.

"Wait." John paced back and forth in front of the fire. "I thought you were a guide, that's all. Not that you would put us in danger. There's enough of that as it is."

Ellerin chuckled, not in a friendly way. "All Fae are more than they appear, Doctor Graves. You and I have more in common than you think. And there is always danger along the Shadowed Path, especially for those who aren't sure about following it. There's no room for doubt in Faerie."

"Look!" Kestrel pointed toward the east, where the pink glow of morning sunbeams tracked through the trees. When the light reached our circle, it concentrated itself into a rectangle under the one pair of stones that held a plinth on top of them, forming a doorway. The glow prevented me from seeing what was inside.

Kestrel started toward the doorway, and John grabbed her arm. "What are you doing? This is ridiculous. I've changed my mind. We're going home. Ellerin, give me the car keys. I'll make sure it's returned."

"Dad, come on. We talked about this."

He turned her and held onto her upper arms. "Kestrel, sweetie, there's a difference between danger in theory and practice. We don't have any skills that could be helpful here."

"Dad, I'm a Paranormal Bureau of Investigations agent."

"You're a rookie who's still in training."

"Still, I have skills." She shrugged, but he held tight.

Ellerin walked over to them. "Stop it, you're hurting her." He gently pushed John away from Kestrel until John let go. "Only those with true commitment to their course can walk the Shadowed Path. She's an adult and can make her choice. The question is, what will you do?"

John looked at the ground, his expression stricken. "You don't understand. I've lost her mother. I can't lose her, too."

"You can't wrap her in tissue paper and keep her on a shelf."

John raised his head and nodded. "You're right. But I can keep her from doing something rash, stupid, and dangerous." He lunged toward Kestrel, and she darted away and through the portal.

"Kestrel!" John yelled.

"She's made her choice. May blessings be on her and the path favor her." Then Ellerin rushed through after her.

I arched an eyebrow at John. "Your call. How committed are you to your daughter?"

"How dare you question me?" he growled. Then Kestrel's scream split the air. He didn't hesitate—he sprinted through, and I followed.