First Thirst (Craving 1)

I had a vision that your father and I would not always be here with you, so I planted a memory of us in your mind and tried to answer some of the questions you might ask. Go behind the door with the crest.

I don’t see it.

Don’t open your eyes—open your Shama, call on it, command it!

“What are ye doing, lass?” a voice at my back asked.

Devin snapped me out of it and I was just a little irritated at the interruption. I wanted to find that door. I wanted to listen to my mom’s voice…see her smile, see my dad.

I frowned at him, sighed, and said, “Trying to find some magic that will help.”

My cell phone rang.

I took it out and saw it was from Jeremy and said, “Hi, what’s up?”

“I’m out on a job, but I am on my way back to the castle. Get ready, I will need your blood. We are going to install a Druid Blood Ward.”

Click and he was gone.

My blood?

Luckily, I was already dressed in comfortable gray sweats and a matching gray and blue tank top. I hurried downstairs to the library. I lit a few lamps as the sun had not fully risen, and the sky appeared to be overcast.

I heard Devin rustling on the other side of our transparent divider and turned towards him as he asked, “What is it? What has happened? What did Jeremy want?”

“Jeremy is on his way back…we are, apparently, going to install the Druid wards now.” I hesitated and then dove in. “Devin, whenever I see you…whenever we interact, you appear to be in something of a jungle terrain. Is where you are now the only viewing area you can see MacLeod through? When you are elsewhere in that realm…can you see MacLeod, or only when you are here in this one spot?”

“Only here. Apparently the transparent wall between our worlds allows me to see all of the castle and its immediate grounds,” he answered, and directed an intense gaze at me. “Why do ye ask?”

“Because,” I realized I was truly on to something, “that means this…where you stand, is where the original portal is. Where you stand…where you view MacLeod, that is the other end of the portal. Where was my grandmother, and Allora, when she created the portal?”

“In m’bedroom,” he said thoughtfully.

“That is important. Don’t you see? Magic is pretty specific to its elements. Certain elements control portals. Your portal would have my grandmother’s mark, a blood-mark, so once I find the elements she called on, and add my blood, I am pretty sure the portal will open.” This notion had me excited. It seemed so simple that I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of it immediately.

“A portal? Jeremy and I considered so many different things, but we never thought of a portal. Ye must be in the right of it. Bloody hell! Of course,” he said with enthusiasm.

“Yes, and I’ve got to get to work on this,” I told him, expecting him to leave me to do my thing.

“Aye, I’ll just stand nearby and make certain ye aren’t interrupted by anyone who shouldna be interrupting ye,” he said in the voice of a man who didn’t mean to be dissuaded from what he obviously saw as his duty.

I grimaced and waved at him. “Whatever. Quiet…I need quiet.”

“Why, what are ye meaning to do?”

“Go into my Shama,” I told him impatiently.

“Aye, then,” he said, folding his arms and taking a stand.

I shook my head and closed my eyes, only mildly disconcerted by his presence, and yet somehow pleased that he was there ready to warn me if anyone, even Mrs. Tunny or Davis, peeked into the library.

“Right, here goes,” I said out loud.

* * * * *

I was shaken out of my Shama by Jeremy, who marched into the library calling my name, “Bobbie!”

“Yes, yes,” I said, getting up from the winged chair that hid all of my body and most of my head.