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  Calum thought she avoided the subject because his mother couldn’t deal with Finley’s new reality. Calum had tried several times to read her thoughts, hoping to learn the full meaning of the verse, but Kenzie was skilled at what the Sidhe called shutting the door to their mind. She easily kept the meaning of this verse locked deep inside.

  But there were other ways.

  “Good morning, Calum.”

  He turned his gaze to the coffee bar where Kenzie was chatting with his sixth-grade English teacher.

  “Hi, Ms. Green,” said Calum, hanging Wrecks’ leash by the door. Wrecks bounded to the café, nearly wagging himself in half as the woman stroked his head.

  “Are you ready to get back to school?” asked Ms. Green, tucking a small crystal vial into her purse. Calum immediately recognized it as one of Kenzie’s romance herbs.

  “No,” he answered too quickly. It was always weird seeing his teachers outside school, running loose, forcing themselves on society. He never seemed to be able to talk to them in anything more than one syllable words. Calum thrust his hands into his pockets, suddenly unsure of what to do with them.

  “Me either.” Ms. Green laughed as she gathered her things, including a bag filled with books. “Thanks, Kenzie. I’ll be in touch. Enjoy your summer vacation, Calum. Good luck in seventh grade.” She smiled at him before leaving.

  Calum waved back awkwardly. He spent the next few hours helping his mother with hungry customers on tight lunch schedules. With perfect timing, the lunch rush died down right after Kenzie served the last slice of her famous Chocolate Fae cake. It was a modified version of Devil’s Food and she always had just enough for every customer. Dessert at Siopa Leabhar came with a free cup of the house tea, a sassafras blend that made one thirsty for books. Kenzie helped customers return to work on time by serving the tea in a to-go cup. Regulars brought their own mugs and sipped their tea as they browsed the stacks.

  After lunch, Calum and Kenzie unpacked bestsellers, magazines, and travel guides. They set them up in various displays throughout the bookstore. One small table beside an overstuffed chair was reserved for books written by local authors and Calum added a new title to this group. Finally, they rearranged armchairs and ottomans to make room for their summer reading display. Kenzie draped a purple cloth on a special table and Calum loaded it with copies of Freak the Mighty, The Cay, and all the other books on the middle- and high-school reading lists. Before long, several copies of each title had been purchased by a steady stream of Calum’s classmates who begrudgingly visited the bookstore.

  “Is it okay if Laurel and Daniel come by later?” Calum asked as he and Kenzie closed Siopa Leabhar for the day.

  “I forgot to tell you,” said Kenzie, turning the OPEN sign to CLOSED, “Andrea called this morning to say she has some good news. I invited the whole family to supper. We’re grilling out. The Dunbars are coming too.”

  I wonder what’s up, thought Calum. Laurel didn’t mention a thing.

  “We’ll find out soon enough,” said Kenzie.

  Calum snapped his fingers and Wrecks raced over to him. He hooked the dog’s leash to his collar and followed Kenzie outside. They walked home quietly, enjoying the late afternoon sunshine. As they fell into a rhythm, Calum thought about the sparks. He willed a premonition to his mind, but felt nothing. When Kenzie gave him a curious glance, he knew she’d read his thoughts. He gave her a weak smile.

  “Yeah, that would be an excellent talent,” said Kenzie. “But I’ve never heard of anyone having that ability, not even in the old stories.”

  Her words confirmed Calum’s decision to keep the sparks a secret.

  Chapter Two

  Talents

  As they rounded the corner to Stone’s Throw Road, Gus waved to Calum from the backyard. Calum waved back before going inside and upstairs to his room where Hagen was using his laptop.

  Calum tossed a paperback copy of Homecoming to his cousin, who caught it, then held the book away from his body as if it were a deadly virus.

  “Why? Why spoil a perfectly good day?” asked Hagen.

  “You’re welcome,” said Calum.

  “Laurel seemed pretty eager to come over,” Hagen said in a matter-of-fact tone as he tossed the book onto Calum’s bed.

  “She wants more lessons for some reason.”

  “I think there’s more to it than her wanting lessons. I think she wants us to do something for her, and I don’t think her parents will like it.” Hagen raised his eyebrows and grinned wickedly at Calum.

  Hagen’s theory proved correct a couple of hours later. Laurel made her appeal while Daniel and Calum played a video game.

  “Come on, Calum. It would be so easy for you to do it,” she pleaded. “You already know the Ceremony of the Three Clans.”

  “Of course I know the ceremony,” said Calum. “But when they did it for Gus they had Donnelly, Tullia, and Uilleam. Sidhe from three different clans. Right now it’s just me and Hagen. We need one more Sidhe from a different clan to give talents to anyone.”

  “Maybe not,” said Daniel.

  “What do you mean?” asked Calum.

  “He means he was in that clan for almost seven years,” said Hagen, clearly reading Daniel’s thoughts. “He thinks he can represent the Devil’s Peak clan.”

  “I’m not sure it works that way,” said Calum. “But let’s say it does. What’s the big hurry? Granddad said you would get the talents when the time was right. You don’t know him like I do. There’s a reason for every single thing he says.”

  “He said Laurel would get the talents when the time was right, but what about me?” asked Daniel. “Besides, Finley could be dead before the right time comes.”

  Calum winced at the word dead.

  “Sitting here doing nothing isn’t working for me,” said Daniel.

  Hagen raised an eyebrow. “What are you saying?”

  “I’m saying if I had your talents, I’d be using them to find Finley,” said Daniel.

  It happened too fast. Calum had been focusing on Hagen’s thoughts, but his mind shifted away for one second, and that’s all the time it took for Hagen to fly across the room and drag Daniel to his feet. They tumbled into Calum’s desk, knocking over a can of soda. The foamy liquid sprayed the wall as the can hit the floor.

  “I appreciate your concern, but Finley’s my cousin, my blood,” said Hagen, his face inches from Daniel’s, and flush with anger. “Calum and I are not just sitting around here doing nothing while he’s missing.”

  Easy, cousin, Calum silently urged Hagen. Let’s hear what he has to say.

  Calum remembered the time he watched his Uncle Donnelly torture a dark Sidhe who had been tormenting a classmate’s father. It had scared Calum to see Donnelly behave that way.

  Hagen’s just like his father sometimes. Uncle Donnelly’s from a dark clan—

  Enough of that, Calum, warned Hagen.

  Calum had once again locked onto his cousin’s mind and he felt a pinpoint of Hagen’s anger turn toward him. Hagen released Daniel who stumbled backwards a few steps.

  Laurel moved to Daniel’s side, glaring at Hagen, who walked away from them and slumped into a chair.

  “I’m sorry,” said Daniel, looking from Hagen to Calum. “It’s just…I’ve been having these dreams about Finley. I don’t know where he is, but I know he’s—”

  “He’s what?” demanded Hagen, sliding to the edge of his seat.

  “He’s suffering,” said Daniel, roughly wiping a tear from his eye. “He’s suffering and I’m doing nothing to help him.”

  Calum glanced at Hagen. Finley was like a brother to him.

  “Look, I’m sorry, Daniel,” Hagen said more kindly. “I’m just frustrated.”

  Daniel nodded.

  “We’re all frustrated. That’s why we want the talents,” said Laurel, putting an arm around her brother’s shoulder. “We want to help you find Finley.”

  “Okay.” Calum sighed. “I’ll talk to Mom about it. Maybe
she can get Granddad to change his mind, but I wouldn’t count on it.”

  “That’s all we ask,” said Laurel.

  Kenzie called from downstairs. “Supper’s ready.”

  The four friends joined the adults outside at picnic tables loaded with hotdogs, hamburgers, potato salad, and great glasses of iced tea. Calum thought Andrea Werner looked different. She had certainly brightened since Daniel’s return, but today she looked even happier.

  “Enough already,” said Kenzie. “Everyone’s here. What’s the good news?”

  “Yes, out with it,” Tullia Dunbar demanded.

  Andrea looked at her husband, Rob, then burst out excitedly, “We’re going to have a baby!”

  The adults jumped out of their seats and surrounded the Werners, blurting out questions about due dates and whether it was a boy or a girl.

  Calum looked at Laurel. “Did this slip your mind?”

  “Mom and Dad told us last night, but they made us promise not to tell anyone,” Laurel explained. “Mom’s going to the doctor next week to see if she’s having twins again.”

  “Twins,” said Hagen. He turned to Daniel. “Congratulations?”

  “It won’t be that bad.” Daniel grinned.

  “Better you than me,” said Hagen. “Another sibling? Maybe two? I don’t think I could take it.”

  “I’m sure your brother and sister feel exactly the same about you,” said Laurel, laughing.

  Gus opened a bottle of sparkling apple cider and toasts were made. When the bottle was empty and only the Dunbar family remained, the cleanup began. It was quick work as Sidhe used the cover of darkness to magically clear away dishes and leftover food. Even Brytes and Will joined in, playing an odd sort of basketball game with a trash bin that waited with its lid propped open like a hungry mouth. Will squealed with joy when an empty charcoal bag flung itself into the bin.

  Calum crossed the backyard to join his mother and Tullia at one of the picnic tables just as ketchup and mustard bottles raced each other back to the kitchen.

  “I’ve already called Uilleam,” said Kenzie. “He’ll be here within the hour.”

  Calum wondered for the millionth time if he would ever be able to completely protect his thoughts from other Sidhe.

  “You will,” said Kenzie. “You’ll get the hang of it when you go back to Sidhe School this summer.”

  Although Calum never believed he’d feel this way about going to school, he actually enjoyed Sidhe School. He’d begun his education last winter in Level Four. He hated having missed classes in levels one, two, and three. But when Finley was abducted all those years ago, Kenzie would not allow Calum to return to the Otherworld. The only class he had attended was Astronomy in Level Four. It was supposed to be the last level, but his teacher Twicely Keane had slipped up when she told Calum he’d learn about blocking thoughts during the upcoming summer session.

  Since then, Calum had questioned Kenzie about the possibility of more classes at Sidhe School. Her answers were convoluted, offering neither a “yes” nor a “no” to his question. But he hadn’t given up trying to find out.

  “How’s that going to work, exactly?” asked Calum. “I thought Level Four was the last class.”

  Kenzie smiled at him and Calum held his breath. Was she finally going to open up about the big secret of life at Sidhe School beyond Level Four?

  “Nope,” said Kenzie. “You’ll just have to find out like I did.”

  Calum sighed. He was eager to return to Tusatha Public House, and not just because he would finally learn how to close the door to his mind and protect his private thoughts. He was also looking forward to spending several weeks in the Otherworld. Calum wasn’t limited to the Tusatha Mound either. He was old enough now to travel to any mound in the Otherworld and he couldn’t wait to start exploring.

  “Everything in moderation,” said Uilleam, joining them at the table. He kissed Kenzie on the cheek.

  “And you’ll have to take Hagen with you on your explorations,” said Kenzie. “He’s got more experience than you at traveling around the Otherworld.”

  Calum was bugged that she’d once again read his thoughts, but he didn’t argue with her. In fact, he’d never thought not to bring Hagen. He knew things would be more interesting if his cousin traveled with him.

  Much more interesting, Hagen added, sitting beside Calum.

  Donnelly chuckled at this exchange as he and Gus sat at the end of the long table.

  “To what do I owe this pleasure?” asked Uilleam.

  Calum sucked in a deep breath. His thoughts of Laurel gave him the courage to begin his well-rehearsed speech. “Laurel and Daniel want to get the talents.”

  “Absolutely not,” said Uilleam, holding up his hand as if to stop Calum before he really got going with this idea. “Laurel is not ready, and neither is Daniel.”

  “But Granddad, they have a very good reason,” said Calum. He explained Daniel’s dream about Finley.

  “Maybe, somehow, Daniel knows something,” said Hagen.

  “Daniel’s dreams have nothing to do with Finley’s whereabouts,” said Uilleam. “He’s having those dreams because he was close to Finley. That’s all.”

  “But why is it taking so long to figure out Brownshire’s curse?” asked Calum.

  Uilleam explained, “We know fero tuli latum means ‘to carry.’”

  “Not this again,” said Kenzie.

  “This. Always,” Uilleam said firmly. “You will have to accept it, MecKenzie, no matter how painful.” He turned gentle eyes on her before continuing. “While we know what the phrase means, we don’t know if the verse has the same outcome when spoken by a brownie.”

  “What do you think the outcome is?” asked Calum.

  Donnelly opened his mouth to answer, but changed his mind when Kenzie shot him a threatening look.

  “We’ll know for sure when we locate Brownshire,” said Uilleam.

  “Brownies usually travel with dark Sidhe,” said Donnelly. “I remember one from my childhood who may be willing to translate the verse for me.” He raised an eyebrow, looking at Kenzie as if asking for permission. She remained silent and he continued. “But I haven’t been able to get back inside the Hobayeth Mound to ask him.”

  “What should we do about Andrea and Rob?” asked Gus. “Daniel’s convinced them he was taken by dark Sidhe. But I can tell Rob thinks there’s more to the story. It’s only a matter of time before they sort it all out.”

  “Maybe it would be best if we told them ourselves, rather than wait for them to put the pieces together,” said Kenzie. One look at her father’s face and she added, “But of course, we can’t.”

  “We have enough on our plates without testing the waters with Andrea and Rob, or having to worry about Laurel and Daniel suddenly having Sidhe talents,” said Uilleam. He looked at Calum and Hagen. “You two will be off to Tusatha for your summer lessons. No one will be here to help Laurel and Daniel adjust. I’m sorry, but this will have to wait until the right time.” He said this with such finality Calum knew it was the end of the discussion.

  Chapter Three

  The Wrong Time

  To say Laurel was irritated at the delay in receiving Sidhe talents was a gross understatement. She was positively furious when Calum and Hagen broke the news to her the next day at Siopa Leabhar. She stormed out, vowing never to return. Calum breathed a sigh of relief when she returned a few days later. He had grown to like Laurel and he’d miss her if she were truly out of his life.

  Like last summer, Laurel was a regular visitor to Siopa Leabhar. This summer, she brought Daniel along too. At first he was edgy, jumping every time the shop bell chimed. A few days later, he seemed to relax and trust he was in a safe place.

  After much grumbling about being allergic to books, Hagen joined them at the bookstore where, in a compromise, an interesting exchange of information was taking place. Calum and Hagen taught Laurel and Daniel about Sidhe verses and traditions. Daniel shared all he had learned durin
g his captivity inside a dark clan. Calum was astounded to find out what dark Sidhe considered normal behavior and punishment.

  Daniel told them about severe beatings, withholding food and water, and tormenting duine daonna for sport. None of this surprised Hagen, having heard similar stories from his father about the Hobayeth. The more Calum learned about dark Sidhe, the more he appreciated Daniel’s quiet strength.

  Calum was impressed by Laurel’s restraint in waiting a grand total of three weeks before approaching him again about receiving the talents. He had known she would not let the matter drop entirely before he and Hagen left for Tusatha Mound for their summer education.

  Calum, Hagen, Laurel, and Daniel were in the courtyard behind Siopa Leabhar the day before the start of Sidhe School. They were lying on their backs, heads clustered together on a patch of grass in the middle of Kenzie’s garden. They’d spent an hour identifying shapes in the clouds that rolled in, bringing the daily delivery of late afternoon thunderstorms.

  The four friends were obscured from view by tall black-eyed Susans, Russian sage, and the purple cone flowers Kenzie harvested for her cold remedies. Calum often used this spot as a refuge from difficult customers. The sweet-smelling lavender plants calmed him and today they seemed to be working overtime in putting him into a relaxed state. He thought about the perfect day as he lay in the grass, catching rays of sunlight that stretched through the banks of clouds.

  “Today’s a good day,” he said.

  “Only one thing could make it better,” said Laurel.

  Calum recognized the tone in her voice and knew what was coming. He sat up, resigned that his perfect day was about to come to an end. He looked down into Laurel’s face. You are one stubborn duine daonna.

  Hagen laughed.

  Laurel rolled her eyes. “You guys are really annoying when you read each other’s thoughts.” She sighed loudly and sat up. Hagen and Daniel did the same and the four made a tight circle on the grass. “Look, Calum,” said Laurel. “Daniel and I have been practicing every single day. Besides, Daniel’s spent more time in the Otherworld than either of you. He deserves to get the talents. Please don’t make us wait until you get back from Tusatha.” Daniel didn’t say a word, but it was clear by his expression he was as eager as Laurel to get on with it.