The Flight of the Coveted Luna : The Scion Book 2

Chapter 6

Gia

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We drove to Heidrun’s forest in contemplative silence, and soon we were walking through the dense trees. I remembered the first time I’d been there; the trees no longer seemed unwelcoming. In fact, it was the opposite; they felt like they were embracing me.

On a whim, I touched the core of my energy and opened my senses. Warm earth energy washed over me; they were happy to have us, their energy aimed at revitalizing our bodies. The air was purer, feeding my lungs.

I reached out and touched an enormous old tree as I passed and had a fleeting vision of its creation. It was shocking. The landscape was completely different, and a much younger and radiantly beautiful Heidrun was bent over, planting seeds. How could that be? I could sense that the tree was old, and by its size, it had to have been there for more than a hundred years. The mystery around Heidrun increased; just what was she and, by extension, what was Noah?

How did I even manage to see that? I’d had dreams, yes, but never waking visions. Did the tree show it to me? I began to wonder at the hidden powers of nature, what lay under the surface, beyond our perception.

We came to the clearing, and I decided to wait for Scarlett there, soaking in the forest’s energy. Even Scarlett looked a little better.

“I’ll wait here; you go on and tell him. You should have some privacy, well, as much as you can in a glass house,” I said and giggled.

“Thanks, Gia, for everything,” Scarlett said and kissed me on the cheek.

She turned and walked to the cottage. Noah was sitting on a couch, reading, but jumped up and rushed to her as soon as she entered the room.

He took her hands in his and looked at her; I imagined he was asking if there was a problem. Then his body froze for a moment. Scarlett froze, too, probably holding her breath. I was, too, hoping for a good outcome.

Noah moved and lifted Scarlett in a bear hug, twirling her around. His face split in a wide grin. I exhaled, and the forest hummed with energy. Could the trees feel their happiness too?

When he finally put her down, he cupped her face and kissed her gently, sweetly. Then he dropped to his knees and kissed her belly, talking to it. I turned and slowly made my way back to the car; the moment was too intimate, and I felt like an intruder. It was enough to know that they were happy, and Scarlett could relax. Judging by Noah’s reaction, they would be just fine.

I wondered if Davin wanted children, not that I was ready by any means. I supposed he would need an heir, but besides that, did he really want to be a father? Did he want a family?

Did I?

Suddenly a chilling thought popped into my head, and I froze, stiffened with fear. What if I turned out like my father? What if I tried to harm my children? Warm energy washed over me again; the trees were offering me comfort. I sighed, relaxing a little. It wasn’t something I needed to address right that minute, but it was probably something I needed to discuss with Davin.

I tried to brush the feeling off, but a tiny sliver of dread remained stubbornly in the back of my mind. I came to the edge of the forest and could see the car. I slid down and sat with my back against a tree, unwilling to leave the warm embrace of the woods. The energy was soothing, lulling me to sleep, and eventually, I closed my eyes.

“Daddy,” I squealed as he chased me around the field of pretty wildflowers. He caught me, lifted me into the air, twirling me around and kissing my cheeks. I laughed. My heart was full, and all was right with the world. I remembered the moment; I must have been around five years old, and my father had taken me to the lake to explore, just the two of us. His booming laugh echoed across the space as he tossed me into the air; my dress billowed around me and I shrieked. It felt like I was flying in the clear blue sky.

“My precious princess,” he said as he caught me, “There’s no need to worry; I’ll always catch you.”

“Luna.” I came to as Scarlett patted my arm gently. “Are you okay?”

Scarlett hunched over me and wiped my cheeks. I’d been crying. My chest felt heavy; it was just a dream, but it was a real memory from a time before my world had shattered and my heart had broken.

“I’m fine, sorry. It was just a bad dream.” I got up and dusted my pants.

Noah was standing at the car, a pile of books in his hands. I smiled and wiped my face too.

“Congratulations,” I beamed as I walked towards him and clapped him on the back. “I’m so happy for you.”

His look of concern changed to pure joy. He was over the moon and clearly very excited to be a father.

“Thanks, Gia.” He grinned as Scarlett unlocked the car. We piled in; I sat in the back, knowing that they wanted to be close to each other now.

“Scarlett, I’d like to postpone the tour if you don’t mind. You and Noah should celebrate.”

It was true that they needed to spend time together, but the dream had also rattled me. My sleep had been dream-free for a while, and here I was dreaming in the middle of the day, of my father no less.

“Are you sure, Luna?” Scarlett asked, frowning at me in the rear-view mirror.

“Of course. We can do it tomorrow. I’ll be joining you for training in the morning, and we can head out after breakfast,” I said.

Scarlett’s eyes widened in surprise, and then she looked happy.

“Do you really have to train?” Noah asked Scarlett, concerned.

Oops, he was already a protective father.

“I won’t be doing any hand-to-hand combat,” Scarlett said, “just some exercise to keep fit, I promise.” She smiled at Noah indulgently. They were so sweet.

“Okay,” Noah relented, and a comfortable silence fell between us, except I was preoccupied with thoughts and lingering feelings from the dream.

There was one thing that would take my mind off it, my ancestral diary. My mother had given it to me the week before, and I had already spent countless hours learning Gaelic and painstakingly translating it bit by bit.

The diary was dusty and leather-bound, the script meticulous and neat-definitely the work of a woman. The ink had faded over time but was still legible; my family had taken good care of it.

I could have sent it to an expert, but something told me not to allow just anyone to read it. It might hold important secrets, family secrets, and considering everything we’d been through, I trusted my instincts.

On my way to our room, I stopped and asked one of the staff, a young girl, to bring some tea. I would most likely be spending the rest of the day there.

I settled in at the desk by the large window overlooking the gardens. As stunning as the grounds were, it didn’t distract me in the least. The words in the diary were far more fascinating.

From what I’d gathered so far, the diary was written by the matriarch of the O’Cleirigh clan, one of the oldest clans in Ireland. Eithne (pronounced Enya) had married Cathal (pronounced Co-hull) and had started her diary at the beginning of their life together.

As they moved to a different region, Eithne described seeing auras and helping her husband distinguish friend from foe, along with being able to tell when people were lying. That must have been useful, and I was a little envious. The couple had quickly gained power and, since they were fair, many good friends. They had formed a community and built a good life.

Eithne had only ever told her husband of her powers. It ran in her bloodline and was passed down to every female child. There had been occasions in the family history where the women would be kidnapped and used for their power or even sold into slavery, prized by wealthy monarchs and cut-throat businessmen alike. Eventually, they kept it a closely guarded secret and only told their husbands if they were treated well. Cathal adored Eithne by her account, and together they seemed like a power couple.

A knock at the door broke the silence; the tea had arrived. I opened the door and the girl, not much younger than me, placed the tray on the desk. She had a slight built, thin, waif-like, and long, dark hair that fell to her waist.

The tremor in her hand caught my attention, and I looked at her carefully. She was pale and looked nervous, her movements jerky and stiff, and she had a light sheen of sweat on her forehead.

“Hey,” I said, gently taking her by the arm. Her entire body jerked in surprise. “Are you okay?” I asked, my brows furrowed. Why was she so spooked?

“I’m fine,” she said hastily and clearly terrified. She moved quickly toward the door, her hand still shaking as she reached for the handle and left.

That was odd. I looked at the tray; it held a teapot, a cup, a saucer, a sugar bowl, and a milk jug. Nothing unusual. I opened the pot and sniffed it; it smelled fine. I touched my energy and opened my senses. I nearly fell over as I looked at the teapot again; a dark mist swirled around the pot, and the sudden smell made my stomach turn.

What the hell?

Someone was trying to spell me, and it was a nasty one. The girl may have been forced to serve me the tea, but it was unlikely that she had concocted this potion; her aura was blue, and her inexperience and perhaps unwillingness had given it away. I shivered involuntarily; I would have drunk the tea without pause were it not for her weird behavior.

I thought of all the red auras in the pack; which of them had done this? Could they dislike me that much? Maybe it was Davin’s grandmother or perhaps his father. Then there was Alpha Matthew who I’d embarrassed at the last Elite guard meeting, but he didn’t belong to this pack, hadn’t been there since.

I’d have to find the girl and question her in private. I’d have to watch my back and check all my food magically. Life as the Luna Queen truly wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.