Beyond the Iron Gate (The Faery Meadow Book 1)

When Elaine didn’t move Lorcan grabbed her hand with a grunt and ascended into the night sky up and above the trees. Of course, the greenman way wasn’t the only way, but the method proved much less risky. It was how he planned to take her back. However, the greenman wouldn’t have it and refused to believe the sleeping woman who passed out was willing to leave her world for his.

“Where are we going?”

“A witch’s house. Her name is Gurnava and she’s a friend of my people. She lives out here somewhere...I think. She’ll have a portal for us to use to get to your parents.”

Elaine’s heart tremored with fear. A witch?

“I don’t believe you’re telling me the truth,” Her voice was lame and her eyes watered, but she bit back the tears. She spoke after swallowing bile, “Why would they send someone to get me now of all times? If they loved me, they would have come for me themselves -- a decade ago.”

Lorcan couldn’t argue with her, but faery folk had their own ways of dealing with children or halflings as he assumed she must be. He didn’t know why else she was so clueless about what he was and looked at him with fear rather than comfort.

“We don’t always get what we want.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you.”

Her comment went ignored as Lorcan spotted a puff of smoke emitting from a small stone chimney in the distance. “Oh look! We’re just about there.”

Elaine wasn’t even fully adjusted to the man carrying her in midair and when he spoke above her shoulder her cheeks blushed at his nearness. She briefly wondered how old he was, but the thought was fleeting as she reminded herself she shouldn’t care.

Eventually, the red-haired faery and woman landed in front of a humble home that resembled more of a shack in the daylight.

A tall green flowing cast iron lamp post stood up ahead of the cobblestone path leading to the small rectangular front door of the tiny house. A wooden plaque hung from the lamp post with the name “Gurnava” etched into its surface. The two windows in the front of the house were covered in black lattice of some sort and the stones of the house walls were grey with white cement pasting them together.

Inside the small spaces of the latticed covered window, on the left side of the door, a short silhouette moved and stopped. Elaine jumped seeing the dark brown eyes of a witch through the small holes. Lorcan, sensing her fear, gently placed his hand on her back and ushered her forward.

Well, he tried to, but she remained still. It was only until the witch turned from the window that Elaine moved her feet because she feared being left behind as he strode forward up to the house without waiting for her.

“Come on now, Elaine,” Lorcan said while looking back at her.

She gulped watching him knock on the door.

It opened after the second knock. The same brown eyes looked at her and then to her captor. The witch’s hair was long and black, but her face was more youthful than Elaine thought it would be when she spotted her in the window. Her outfit was composed of a black cloak and she wore no hat like Elaine thought she may.

The interior of the house remained hidden for the witch only opened the door wide enough to fit her head through.

“What can I do for you, Lorcan?”

“We need to use one of your portal’s to access the faery realm.”

The witch snapped, “Ah, I’m afraid they have all already been sold!”

She went to close the door, but Lorcan wedged his foot between the doorframe. He winced when the witch still tried to close it anyway catching his foot on the corner of the door.

“Ow!” Lorcan hissed.

Elaine couldn’t help, but giggle.

In her mind, he had it coming. Apparently, he and the witch weren’t estranged friends after all, and she marveled in relief, knowing they would not need to seek the creepy witch’s help. Lorcan awkwardly withdrew his foot and the door closed in front of him followed by the sound of a lock clicking into place.

“We have to get in there,” Lorcan gritted through his teeth while holding his throbbing foot in one hand and his dented boot in the other.

The witch’s strength had caught him off guard, but perhaps her powers were influenced by magic. He didn’t know what he did to put off Gurnava, he had come to her on several occasions to use her portals and she had a good reputation in the fae community.

“No way...”

“If we are stuck out here much longer we’ll be running into worse things than wolves!”

Elaine felt helpless and hated how Lorcan got to make all the decisions. She felt so confused and did not want him dragging her anywhere else.

He owed her more of an explanation and she was done playing guessing games. Her world around her began to cave in as she took in what facts she could about her situation. It was all she could do to keep her sanity.

The door to witch’s home opened once more. “Then just fly me back home!” Elaine whisper-yelled.

Only now, the witch was not there to greet them. Lorcan ran inside and Elaine not wanting to be left behind once again reluctantly trailed after him.

A very narrow wooden staircase was the first thing she saw upon entering the house. To her right was a spacious room, but it was empty. The walls, however, were covered with dead blackbirds and old rotting weeds twisted into shapes or perhaps garlands.

Elaine immediately wanted to leave, but Lorcan already scoped the room she watched and she hurried over into the kitchen which was also empty to meet up with him.

It was small and only lit up by a few candles in the center of the meager wooden kitchen table. Dark drapes hung from the window Elaine believed the witch had spotted her through. A cauldron bubbled quietly in the corner of the room where a dying fire lay beneath. The house smelled like herbs and lemon mixed with something foul, or what Lorcan believed, dead.

Even so, he kept the thought to himself to protect the sanity of the girl he was to bring safely home.

“She wasn’t lying, she really has no more portals left,” Lorcan murmured.

The sound of floorboards creaking above them upstairs somewhere in the recesses of the tiny house made Elaine’s heart hammer.

Gurnava’s voice came from upstairs. “Of course I have one left, but the reason I changed my mind about helping you is not out of sympathy! I need money and I...can’t squander my business with the likes of you.”

Something was coming down the steps and it sounded like it wasn’t just Gurnava. The series of thuds was so loud Elaine believed an elephant was coming down the stairs. However, when the witch reached the ground level with them she was accompanied by a tall square mirror. They followed Gurnava as she wheeled the mirror into the empty room with the creepy wall hangings.

Gurnana waved her hand over it speaking in what Elaine was fairly certain was tongues. Nothing on the mirror’s surface changed and the witch looked back at the two of them with a cat-like smile.

“Let’s go, please,” Elaine begged in a whisper to Lorcan, but her plea went unanswered as he pulled a golden locket out from underneath his shirt.

The witch nearly ran forward to take his offering. “Oh, that’ll do just fine. You kids will have to stay the night I’m afraid. There’s a spare room just upstairs right when you get to the top. The portal will be ready come morning.”

“Morning?” Elaine squeaked.

Lorcan gave her a look of warning.

Gurnava nodded at them like a bobblehead.

“I must find a few spells or two to get my old ward around it off. It’s my own personal portal that I rarely let others use. However, these are dark times and I can tell you’re in need of help. Rest well and do not leave your room until sunrise. Also, no funny business either. I do not run a hotel. If I hear so much as a whisper you will be back outside left to defend yourselves,” Gurnava told them while striding away with her newfound trinket.

“I am not sleeping here. We have to leave,” Elaine’s voice wavered.

She shrugged Lorcan’s hand off her shoulder. It felt heavy and she wanted nothing at all to do with any more of his nearness.

“It’s only one night. Tomorrow, you’ll meet your parents and you won’t ever have to see me again.”

“Oh please, you’re probably just going to leave me with this hag!”

A sharp cackle echoed from the kitchen and Elaine’s face paled. She quit pulling against Lorcan and became limp knowing the witch heard her.

The faery man was tired of her complaining and grabbed her arm roughly forcing her upstairs with him. They made it to the top of the steps. Lorcan saw a small bathroom down the short distance of the hall and another closed door in the same direction.

His voice softened, but only a little, “You’re going to have to trust me.”

Then, he quickly pushed Elaine into the tiny bedroom right ahead of them and closed the door.