Chapter Thirty-Eight
Charles?!” My voice sounded strangled. “Is that you?!”
The very same. I could hear the smile in his voice, and I almost cried from happiness.
“So, wait. Are you Charles or a yew tree or the Rootstone Guardian?”
Once you awakened the stone, I travelled back to Neamh so you and Owen would think I was missing and have a reason to work together.
With the Rootstone gone now, my original purpose no longer exists.
I stay now only for you and Owen, but when this is over, I intend to join Marion, Sophie, and Ava in the Veil. ”
“You can do that?”
Yes. There’s a reason yews have long been associated with the afterlife, and why we are often found near graveyards.
“So, is Owen a Druid as well?”
Yes, but he is also the grandson of the Rootstone Guardian and, as such, one of the strongest Veil Walkers I have ever known. The Tree Spirits trust him, and so they let you pass.
“Maybe he should face Craos next time,” I muttered.
Owen would never have been able to do what you did by the river, and he would not have survived in a fight against Craos.
None of us would. Shamus, Freya, and I barely survived the first time Craos entered Earth, and even then, we had to change, forever losing who we once were.
No, you’re the only one with any chance of saving the world, Ms. Kira. Never doubt your worth or abilities.
“But how?! What am I supposed to do?”
Charles sighed. I don’t know. But you are not alone, Ms. Kira. Don’t forget that.
I wiped a tear from my cheek. “When I woke up, you were there. But now you’re a tree…”
You may see me appear from time to time as Charles. I like getting around.
Hope made my heart skip a beat. “Could you—could you take his form now? I miss my friend.”
There was a pause and then a shimmer in the air, and Charles shuffled toward me using a long, gnarled root as a walking stick, his eyes bright while a soft smile turned up the corners of his mouth.
A sob caught in my throat, and I threw my arms around him. Resting my chin against his shoulder, I closed my eyes and inhaled a scent I hadn’t realized I had grown to love: earth and wood and leaves carried on the wind.
“There, there, Ms. Kira. It’s alright.” Charles patted me on the back, and I eventually pulled away.
He fixed me with his steady gaze. “You did well. Travelled the world. Had adventures. Made some friends along the way.”
“And met a nice guy.” I found a smile at last, and we linked arms, climbing up the stairs of the Yew together.
“I told you it would work out between you two, didn’t I? I had a feeling, and I was right!”
“You did.” I laughed. “Owen is…everything.” We strolled down one of the garden paths, eventually finding a bench to sit on. For a time, we watched butterflies flit among the flowers.
“How did you know Owen and I would fall in love?” I finally asked.
“Didn’t know for sure but hoped and suspected.
I can see everyone’s life force—threads of light that intersect and weave, some passing each other or mingling for only a short time.
Some travelling together for most of their lives.
I have found over my many years that the brighter the life force, the more important the role that person will play in the shaping of the world.
I suspected that you and Owen would be central in the coming battle against Craos since your two threads shine more brightly than most.”
“Can you see where the threads lead? Can you see how the final battle ends?”
Charles was quiet for a long time, staring out at the garden. “No, I cannot see the future. But I suspect I will not survive.”
I couldn’t breathe. “Why?”
“I’m already dying, Ms. Kira. My roots are bleeding. My needles sparse. I no longer regenerate like I used to. I’ve been alive for thousands of years, and protecting the last of the magic in this world has taken its toll. Should I fall—”
“How do you know I’m the key to winning the battle?” I interrupted, unable to bear the thought of losing Charles again. Not after I had just found him.
His eyes slid to mine and whatever he saw there had him thankfully dropping the subject of his death.
“I don’t. But sometimes hope is better than a plan.
Sometimes, you just need your troops to believe.
” He tapped his walking stick against the ground.
“But yours and Owen’s threads shine brighter than all the others.
It has to mean something. After thousands of years of waiting, I have to believe that there is a way to defeat Craos. ”
“Did you know when the seal shattered that Craos had cast his seed into Aed’s bloodline?”
“No. I had no knowledge of that until the first time I saw you the night you moved into the house next door. I sensed his darkness within you then. I warned Shamus and Freya and decided to watch you before I let you hold the stone. For eons, I thought I was keeping the Rootstone safe until a Druid with enough power could bind it with the others and reforge the seal. Imagine my surprise when I realized it was a descendant of Craos that had the power we had been waiting for.”
“If you knew who I was, why would you trust me with the Rootstone? What if I had betrayed you and joined forces with Aed and Craos?”
“Humans think that just because they are the child or descendant of a certain person that they will follow in their parent’s footsteps. But children are not their parents. Everyone has their own story to live. Their own choices to make.”
He fixed me with his steady gaze. “I knew who you were the first time I saw you, Ms. Kira. But you showed me such kindness at our first meeting. I kept the stone from you anyway. Wanted to test your strength of character, so I waited and got to know you over the summer. But my initial instincts were correct. You’re a good person. ”
I smiled at the memory of our first meeting. “I remember that day.”
“You were rushing to work—” Charles began.
“But your walker wheel was stuck in a pavement crack,” I added, nodding.
“You didn’t hesitate to help, and then you stayed and chatted even though I knew you were late.”
“After work, I brought you cookies—”
“Which were completely inedible, by the way, but I softened them with milk.”
I laughed. “And here I thought you just loved milk! You drank a lot!”
Charles harrumphed. “I appreciated the company. Didn’t want to hurt your feelings. I enjoyed sitting on my porch and chatting.”
“And before long I was packing boxes and listening to your stories.” My heart warmed at the memories.
“I was lonely, I’ll admit,” Charles continued. “I still miss my Marion something fierce.”
“I was lonely, too.”
“I know. Never change, Ms. Kira. Never lose your kindness, empathy, and curiosity. I’m proud of you.
If life is a game of chess, you’ve played the role of almost every piece.
You started as Sylvia and Todd’s pawn, became a knight coming to my rescue and protecting Owen and your friends.
You rose to the level of bishop with your strategic planning and took on the powers of a rook—” He flashed me a quick grin.
“—or a raven. But you, Ms. Kira, were always destined to be a queen. And a queen can move in any direction she needs.”
I smiled. “Who’s the king, then? Owen?”
Charles expression grew thoughtful. “I don’t think so. But I’d reckon the enemy king is Craos. And only you can defeat him.”
We fell into silence for a few minutes while I considered his words.
“Why didn’t you teach me about my powers when we first met?”
“Honestly? I wasn’t sure how to train a child of Craos. I needed to observe you first.”
I studied him, trying to understand his mindset.
For over eighty years, he had been a man who lived his life among humans.
But before that, he had been a tree for thousands of years, waiting and watching people go about their lives.
I guess it made sense that his methods were a little unorthodox.
As a magical being who had spent most of his life observing instead of living, he would have fallen back into old habits when unsure of his next step.
He let out a delighted laugh. “I sent those four attackers after you in the park. They weren’t Shadowbane at all.”
I gaped at him. “I knew they were different! The portal hadn’t even opened yet. Why?”
“So, Owen would have a chance to be your bodyguard, of course. I’ve seen a lot of men protect their ladies like that. I protected Marion once, too, a long time ago. She fell in love with me on the spot, and it worked for you, too, didn’t it?”
The conniving old fox. I fixed him with a stern expression. “Anything else you’d like to confess?”
“Let’s see. Never got my walker wheel stuck.
Don’t even need a walker.” He tapped his walking stick against the ground and threw his head back, cackling with glee.
“Oh, and I might have nudged the university’s HR department to hire Shae.
Figured you needed a fellow Druid friend.
And I washed out the road to your cottage to give you and Owen more time together. ”
I was too shocked to respond. Maybe we’d been chess pieces, but Charles was the grandmaster, orchestrating our lives and placing his pieces where he needed them, planning every move far in advance.
He may have started out by only observing, but when the moment to act had arrived, Charles had seized the opportunity to set events in motion that would allow him to realize his ultimate goal of defeating Craos.
“So, could you choose any form?” I finally asked, deciding I could never be mad at Charles for manipulating us when he was trying to do the right thing.
“Yes.”
“Any age?”
“Yes.”
“Then why continue to appear as an old man? Not that I mind. Just curious.”
“I grew into this body. Spent decades aging. To appear young again would seem…odd.”
That made sense. “How about animals? Could you appear as an eagle? A wolf? A toad?”
Charles sniffed with disdain. “I am an ancient and revered entity. I would never lower myself to appear as a toad.”
“But you could?”
A pause. “Yes.”
I stifled a giggle. “Owen will want to know you’re alive. He feels bad for not visiting more, especially after Marion died. He wants to hear your stories.”
“I’ll see him soon enough. For now, I want to spend my time with you.”
My eyes misted with tears, and I laid my head against his shoulder. “I’ve missed you, Charles.”
“I’ve missed you, too, my friend.”