The Forgotten Ones

at this. “Breanh,” he murmured.
    “And that means...what?”
    “Breanh is Aoife’s adviser. He’s the one who introduced her to dark magic in the first place. I’m sure he’s trying to find Aoife right now.”
    The way Liam was talking now, fast and without really looking at me, filled me with dread.
    “Wait a sec! That doesn’t really tell me anything. This guy is the one you think will hurt Mom?”
    For a moment, Liam just looked down, his jaw working. When he finally raised his eyes, his expression was tight and reserved.
    “If Breanh discovered why I’m here, he’ll use your mother against me. In order to get Aoife back.”
    “I’m guessing letting Aoife go is out of the question?”
    Liam sighed. “It would just make everything worse if we released Aoife at this point.”
    “Worse for who? How can I keep my mother safe if she’s now some evil fairy’s bargaining chip?”
    Liam sighed again, heavier this time. He looked up at the house where my mother was probably watching the early talk shows.
    “The workers will keep him away for now, I think. But the nighttime is more of a concern. Stay inside today. I think you’ll be safest there.”
    “No way,” I said, raising my voice. “I can’t just stay home and hide. I need to do something, find a way to protect her.”
    “I just need to speak with Niamh, We’ll figure something out.”
    “No, that’s not good enough.” I was nearly shouting, but the words died in my throat as Ethan’s pickup truck pulled up next to me.
    Liam turned and walked quickly into the woods in the opposite direction of the workers.
    Ethan hopped out of the truck, shutting the door with a thud . “Good day for a run,” he said with a smile.
    “Oh, yeah.”
    He turned to look at me then. I felt like he could see past all my secrets, so I quickly looked away.
    “I just have to go over some things with these guys,” he said as he gestured toward the lot next door. “But, after that, I’m free for awhile. You wanna grab lunch?”
    “Actually, I was thinking I’d like to spend a little time with my mother before I take over for Lenny at the store.”
    Ethan nodded slowly, rubbing his hand across his chin. His gaze traveled in the direction where Liam had walked off. “I was hoping to talk to Liam for a minute today, too. Think he’ll be back?”
    I was caught off guard. “I don’t know. He didn’t say.”
    “I had thought...” He struggled to find words, but I already knew what he was going to say.
    “What, Ethan?” I asked, keeping my voice low and cool. “You won a bet . What more do you want?”
    “So, that’s it?” He straightened up. “I think we both know it was more than that.”
    I felt backed into a corner, so, I used the only weapon I had. “I’m sure it’s hard for you to believe,” I said, adding ice to my voice. “But, it’s true.”
    “Fine.” He shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded. “I guess I’ll see you around, Al.”
    He narrowed his eyes and stared hard into mine, stripping me of the last of my defenses. Without another word he turned and walked away.
    I headed inside. It really was a scorcher outside. As I headed up the stairs to take a shower I wiped the sweat from my forehead and the tears from my eyes.

The hardware store was slow that night, and it was even harder to get through the hours than usual as I was constantly fighting back tears. When I could finally close up, I went straight home. I hadn’t heard from Liam yet and it was nearly seven, and between worrying about my mother and replaying my conversation with Ethan, I was completely exhausted and beyond emotionally drained.
    Thankfully, everything was quiet when I got home. I walked into the living room to find Gram sitting on the couch folding laundry.
    “Just the person I was thinking of,” Gram said as I dropped my purse on the sideboard.
    “Hi, Gram. Where is everyone?”
    “Your mom is upstairs lying down. Pop is down in the cellar, I think.”
    I sat down in the recliner and leaned my head back for a minute.
    “Are you feeling okay, honey? You look a little pale.”
    I yawned and settled further into the chair, opening one eye to look at her. “Just a little tired, that’s all.”
    Gram stood and hauled the laundry basket up to her hip. “There are leftovers in the fridge, I’m just going to put this laundry away, and I’ll heat something up for you.”
    “I can manage,” I said, stretching one more time before I stood.
    I