Page 152 of First Light
Aisling’s eyes were wide, staring at Seren’s journal. “I could have made an antidote. When I saw what happened, I could have reversed the curse.”
“What?” Carys’s heart plummeted. “Then why did you let her die?”
“Everyone would have known.” Aisling looked up. “They would have known my potion had made her sicker.”
“So all you wanted was to save yourself?” Carys couldn’t hide the disgust in her voice.
“I couldn’t let him know.” Aisling’s voice was a soft whisper. “Howwould Lachlan ever love meif he knew? If I cured Seren, my life would have been over.” She shook her head. “I have nowhere to go.” She looked at Carys, and it was like a light switched on. “I have nothing if I don’t have Lachlan.”
Carys knew that Aisling was correct. If she’d been caught poisoning the heir of Cymru and the wife of the Alban prince, her life would have been forfeit.
The queen of Éire would have disavowed her own granddaughter to avoid a war, blaming Aisling for individual malice.
The one ally Aisling had was the person she’d killed.
“You don’t have to kill me.” Carys was starting to feel desperate. If Aisling could kill her best friend, killing Carys to hide her crime would be nothing. “I’ll go back to the Brightlands. No one needs to know. Maybe Cadell…”
Aisling walked over and stood in front of Carys, looking at her with dead eyes. “Your dragon will kill me the moment he discovers what happened, and no power in the Shadowlands will stop him.”
Carys was going to die because Aisling was one hundred percent correct.
“Please, Aisling.” She shook her head. “Let me go. I’ll tell Cadell that it was Regan. He’ll believe me.Ican stop him from hurting you. We can fly you away?—”
Aisling put a hand over Carys’s mouth. “I’m not going to kill you.” Her voice was eerily calm. “That would cause far too many questions. But you need to forget.” She lifted her hand away and smiled. “If you forget, then I can think up a story. I can fix all this, but you need to forget.”
“What?” Carys blinked. “Forget… what?”
Aisling walked over and lifted the journal. “Forget this. Forget Seren. Forget the Shadowlands. Forget Lachlan and Duncan. If you forget all of it, no one has to know.”
“What are you talking about?” Carys leaned forward, her eyes going wide. “I’m not going to forget everything just like that. And even if I did forget everything, how do you think you can get me home?”
“Regan can take you through a fae gate.” Aisling’s laugh was high and desperate. “She’s crossed the gates before. She said so.”
“You think I’m going to just wake up in the middle of a Scottish forest and not have any questions?”
Aisling’s eyes were bright, nearly feverish, as she danced from the book to the cauldron and back again. “That won’t be my problem, Carys. That will be yours.”
“Aisling—”
“Regan won’t kill you!” Aisling took a sprig of something from her basket. “Don’t you see? If you don’t remember, she won’t have to kill you. It’s the only way to keep you alive.”
The woman was losing it. None of this made any sense. “What about Cadell?”
“If you’re on the other side, the dragon will leave.” Aisling threw an herb into the cauldron and furiously stirred. “He’ll have to; the horde will call him back if his nêrys is gone.”
“What about Lachlan? Are you going to make Lachlan forget me too?”
Aisling’s eyes darkened at the mention of Lachlan’s name. “Lachlan can chew on stones.” She twisted her flushed lips. “I don’t care about him anymore.”
I don’t believe you.
“Okay, what about Duncan? He’s the most stubborn man I’ve ever met in my life. You think he’s going to just let all this go? You don’t—” She stopped short of telling Aisling about Duncan’s dragon-steel sword. “He’s dangerous, Aisling.”
“I don’t doubt it. And I don’t doubt that he’s in love with you—I see how he looks at you—but I don’t care.” She let out a slightly manic laugh. “They all just…loveyou. I don’t know why. I’m more beautiful than you are. I was more beautiful than Seren too.”
“You are!” It was true. Aisling was a stunningly beautiful woman.
“I’m quiet and reserved and… accomplished. I listen to their stories and their stupid,stupidjokes.” Her cheeks grew flushed. “I did everything I was supposed to, and it didn’t matter. He still loved her more.”