Flight (Children of the Sidhe) Read Online Free PDF Page A

. “I get it. Now go away and let time work its magic.”
    “ Time doesn’t have long. You’ll get the information I need, one way or another.”
     
     
    Six
     
    Nathan spent a little time looking out the window in his bedroom once it grew brighter outside the next morning. He ate his last protein bar from his bag, and drank more of the water from his bottle. Almost out. The food she’d shown him looked good, but if he could avoid it, he didn’t want to eat in Otherworld. Isn’t that how people were always getting trapped in the myths? Maybe that wouldn’t work on him since he was half Sidhe, but he didn’t want to take any chances.
    This was an odd place. He could see more from the window now and the light had a hazy, sparkly quality to it. The surrounding forest was obviously dense, and Nathan wondered how many Sidhe made their home here. It wasn’t like they were in a city. He could see nothing of other dwellings. Tessa’s own home was built into a hillside, like it had just grown up there naturally. He wondered how long her stone and earth house had stood. Inside it was plush, extravagant. Nathan suspected spell work was partially to credit for that.
    A movement at the edge of the forest caught Nathan’s eye. When he stared hard at it, he saw a little face peering at him, and a pair of sheer wings beating madly, the speed of a hummingbird’s. The thing capered closer, laughing, and careened about the window for a moment before fluttering back to the edge of the forest and disappearing in the thick foliage. As it went, it spouted a fine, sparkly dust into the air around it, and the stuff floated on the breeze.
    Nathan thought about the quality of the air and wondered how many of those little…creatures…it had taken to change Tir Nan Og in that way. And what effect did the powder they emitted have on people who breathed it? Or Sidhe who breathed it? And were there any other odd creatures out there waiting with their own lists of questions to be explored? Nathan abruptly shut down that train of thought. He was a wildlife biologist in the human world . Otherworld creatures were not his primary concern.
    This was probably all a figment of his overworked imagination. He must be in bed, still dreaming. His belly disagreed; that growl definitely said he was alive, in Otherworld and in increasingly desperate need of food from beyond the veil . So it was crunch time.
    Nathan emerged to see if his father had made a reappearance.
    In the living room, or study, or whatever it was to Tessa, he found his hostess along with a tall man crowned in a rack of antlers. Scratch that. It wasn’t a crown. Those were actually his antlers. So now this guy was the oddest creature he’d seen all week.
    The object of Nathan’s current fascination extended a hand and shook his with authority. “Hello, Nathan. I’m Ian. It’s good to meet you, and good to see you safe in Tir Nan Og, where you belong.”
    Nathan shook his head in disbelief, but chose not to respond directly to the assumption this Ian guy was making. He turned to Tessa. “Has Nemglan returned?”
    “No. But don’t worry, I’m sure he’s fine.”
    “Yes, your father is an experienced tracker. I am hopeful he’ll find Abarta and we can put an end to this rebellion,” Ian told him.
    “That’s not really what’s concerning me,” Nathan said, losing his grip on any intention to rem ain polite. “I don’t really care about whatever’s going on here. I don’t belong here. This Abarta character can’t be after me , because I only just found out about you people. What would he want with me?”
    “Your blood,” Tessa hissed angrily. “Do not pr esume to question Ian, the soon-to-be leader of the Sidhe. Abarta wants to assassinate you because you bear mixed blood.”
    Nathan stared hard at her, his face heating in fury. All he knew was that he didn’t want to be here, in Tir Nan Og. He clenched his jaw for a minute until he could trust himself to speak