The Forgotten Ones

the table.
    At any other moment, I’d have paid money to see the incredulous look on Liam’s face. But the beginning of a plan had taken root in my mind. And in order for it to work we needed to hurry.
    I stood up and walked straight out the door without another word.

I counted my steps as I walked away from Niamh’s house. Frustration and panic boiled inside me, but I needed to keep calm. I stopped walking when I realized Liam wasn’t with me.
    I was not going back in there. The Danaans were lovely to look at, but their behavior was not normal. It was as if they were made of stone, incapable of emotion.
    Minutes passed and Liam still hadn’t come out. I paced back and forth in the field, willing myself not to panic. When the front door slammed, I turned to see my father at my side in an instant, his expression wary.
    “You’re taking all of this too well,” he said, his brow furrowed.
    I sighed, knowing this would be a fight. “I’ve come up with a plan.”
    He stiffened. “Oh?”
    “You and I are going to go find this Aodhan guy and bring him back here,” I said, nodding toward the house. “I can tell those two are at least a little afraid of him. We need someone on our side.”
    “Absolutely not,” he said.
    “Niamh doesn’t care about my mother,” I said. “Who knows what she’s doing now? If you want to find my mom, you’ll come with me to ask this guy for help. Otherwise, I’ll go alone.”
    “You’ve only seen a handful of the Danaans, Allison. You don’t understand what you’re dealing with. Did you hear what Tagdh said in there? They’re draining the blood of humans. Aoife’s folk are involved in all sorts of forbidden magic.”
    “All I care about is getting my mother home safely. Are we supposed to just sit around until Niamh comes back before we do anything?” I put a hand on my hip, acting braver than I felt. “I get that Breanh isn’t someone I can face on my own. But maybe Aodhan will help us.” I paused. “I have to do something, and if this is all I can do, I’ve got to try.”
    Liam looked away from me, past the trees to the hills in the north. After a few minutes, he exhaled and looked back at me.
    “I suppose you’re right. We need to do something and waiting on the whims of Niamh is not looking like much of a plan now.”
    “I'm ready. Are we going to... run again?”
    “I guess that was more uncomfortable for you than I expected.” He took a couple steps toward me, put his hands on my shoulders, and looked into my eyes. I stared back, and then everything went black.

    A young woman with fire-truck red curls and multiple facial piercings clings tightly to a guy’s arm as they walk through a large, mirrored door. The guy is tall with black gelled spikes and tattoo-covered arms. She scans the darkness surrounding them while they walk toward an alley. He looks pleased at the way she is pressed tightly to his side.
    “ Tori, look, there’s nothing there. It’s okay.”
    The woman pouts her full, black-painted lips and buries her face in his arm, making a low whimpering sound.
    “ Seriously, how many of those drinks were for you, and how many did you give Val?” he asks her, laughing.
    “ I’m not that drunk, Wes. I’m telling you I heard something.” She pulls away from him and smacks his arm before the heel of her black boot catches on a crack on the sidewalk, making her stumble. The guy kneels by her side as she examines the tear in her black fishnet stockings.
    Without either of them noticing, two tall shapes move out of the shadow of a striped awning, heading straight toward them.
    “Allison.” My eyelids fluttered open to Liam staring down at me in concern.
    I took a deep breath and blinked, trying to figure out where I was. I lay in the center of a double bed, in an unfamiliar room. A motel room?
    The walls were dingy white and the bedspread smelled like fabric refresher—chemicals covering unwanted body odor. There was one large window with its floral drape pulled closed. On the bedside table, a tiny lamp cast shadows on the wall, and the alarm clock flashed 12:00 in red.
    “We’re in a motel in Thunder Bay,” Liam said. He was sitting on the side of my bed, looking down at me.
    I sat up and stretched my arms over my head and yawned. “Did you cast a spell on me?” I asked, moving my fingers and toes, feeling a little groggy.
    “No, not exactly. Mind magic doesn’t really work like that. I was able to coerce you to go to