Chapter 3

Over the next several days, the Dark Ones went on a spree that left many homes missing loved ones, a few of whom would return in nights to come to other homes nearby to make their own claims. And as each day went by, Aaron became more and more concerned, not just about the welfare of his own family and Kian’s but of Aislyn’s as well.

One afternoon, while working next to his granddad to clean the potatoes they’d just gathered, he decided to broach the one topic he was forbidden to discuss. At this point, it seemed like it just might be a matter of life or death.

“Granddad, can I ask you a question?” he asked as he brushed the sod from the brown vegetable.

“I think you just did,” his granddad replied, smiling at him through several missing teeth.

Aaron laughed only slightly at his grandfather’s attempt at humor. His heart was heavy. “I mean, I’d like to ask you a question, though I’m afraid you might get upset.”

“Why would I get upset?” the older man asked, stopping his task and looking at his grandson with concern. “Have you ever known your granddad to raise his voice?”

While the answer was yes, on occasion, Aaron knew that wasn’t what he was expected to say. “No, Granddad.”

“Well, then what is it, lad?”

Aaron cleared his throat and studied the potato bin. “Granddad, I’ve a friend I’m worried about. I’m afraid I don’t know much about the… agreement, and I was wondering if you could tell me if she might be safe.” He glanced up at his granddad and waited to see if it was safe to proceed.

Ferris adjusted in his seat. In a cautious tone, he said, “You know it is forbidden to discuss such matters.”

Nodding, Aaron said, “I have heard. I just… didn’t know what else to do.”

There was silence for a long while as the grandfather seemed to contemplate the question. After a bit, he asked, “What is the name?”

A lump in his throat prevented a hasty response. Eventually, Aaron managed, “O’Malley.”

“Which O’Malley, lad? There is more than one O’Malley family in Killarney.”

Though Aaron knew that, he wasn’t sure it would matter. He was a bit embarrassed to answer, as he hadn’t told his family about his affection for her, but eventually he said, “Aislyn, Granddad. Her name is Aislyn.”

His forehead creased, and he scratched the top of his balding head. “Aislyn O’Malley?” he questioned. “I’m not sure which one she is. Who is her father?”

“He was called Colin before he passed away,” Aaron explained. “Seana O’Malley was her great-aunt.”

“Oh, that’s right. Renny’s niece,” the old man nodded. “Beautiful girl.”

Aaron said nothing, only stared at his grandfather, blue eyes narrowed in anticipation.

“Well, my boy, if I’m not mistaken,” he began in a softer voice than Aaron had heard in a while, “it is the Seamus O’Malley family, the one that lives near the base of Mount Torc, that is protected as members of the Order.”

Feeling his breath catch and his heart seem to stop beating for several seconds, Aaron became sick to his stomach. The idea that Aislyn could truly be in danger was enough to make him panic. “Grandad! What can we do?” he asked, his voice quiet but the intensity evident.

With a shrug, the elderly man said, “Nothing, Aaron. I’m sorry. We have an agreement. It is the only way to keep our families safe.”

“But what about the other families?” He could feel the anger building up inside of himself. “They deserve to be safe, too.”

“There is nothing we can do.” He continued to shrug and shake his head, and his complacency was enough to make Aaron want to pick up the entire basket of potatoes and toss them.

Perhaps if he hadn’t been so full of rage, he’d have heard his mother approaching behind him. “Aaron? What’s the matter?” she asked. “Your face is as red as a cardinal’s breast.”

“Nothing to fret about, Bree,” Ferris assured her. “We were just talking about some important matters, nothing a woman need worry her head about.”

Seeming to accept that, Bree turned to Aaron and said, “Will you take these inside to Genty? She and Channing are getting them ready to take to market tomorrow.”

Without another word, Aaron rose and picked up the basket, steadying it on his hip as he made his way inside. He would not accept his granddad’s answer, but he wasn’t sure how to go about making a change either. And since he was forbidden from speaking about the agreement with anyone, it would make finding a solution that much harder.

As soon as he walked in the door, his sister’s face fell. “Aaron? What happened?” she asked. “Come, sit down.”

“It’s nothing,” he assured her, not sure he should bring up the subject with her or his brother. He set the basket down on the small table where they dined, adding it to the multiple baskets his siblings already had stacked there.

“Are you certain?” she asked. “You look upset.”

“You look angry,” Channing clarified from where he sat at the far end of the table, counting potatoes. He was thirteen, big and strong, nothing like his younger brother who was wiry and fast but not bulky.

“I’m fine,” Aaron replied, his fisted hands refusing to relax.

Genty’s eyes dropped from his eyes to his hands and then back to his face again before she said, “If you say so, little brother.” She cleared her throat and went back to tending to the potatoes as she asked, “Are you going with us tomorrow to deliver these? Onora has promised to be there. I can’t wait to see how large her belly has grown.”

Onora, who was seventeen now, had married a young man from the village late last year, and now she carried her first child. She had married an other, and now that they were wed, if the agreement were true, he would be safe, as would their children. While Aaron would not mind at all to see his sister, the thought of marriage, safety, children, and most of all, the agreement, made him angry again. “I think I shall go chop some wood,” he announced, and without even answering his sister’s question, he went back out the door to the wood pile in hopes of finding a way to unleash some of the rage he felt in his heart.

Later that night, as Aaron lay looking at the thatch above him, Genty rolled over and snuggled her head up next to his ear. He could hear his granddad snoring from his bunk below them, and though his mother had just put her sewing aside and turned to her own cot a few minutes ago, he could tell by the rise and fall of her chest that she was also in a deep slumber. “What is bothering you, little brother?” Genty asked, her voice a whisper in his ear.

He turned to face her, glancing over her at Channing who was also sound asleep. “I can’t speak of it,” he sighed.

Though the firelight didn’t quite reach the loft, he felt her nod her head next to him. “Can you indicate what it is that you cannot say.”

His sister was bright, and he was sure there would be a way he could voice his concerns to her without saying too much, should he choose to do so. He’d been keeping his anger bottled up for so long, it seemed like letting it out might be too explosive for such a small space. He took a deep breath and finally said, “It just isn’t fair. And I wish that it were.”

She leaned up on her elbow. “I understand. And I agree. But I don’t know what we should do about it. I don’t suppose there is anything that can be done.”

“I just wish I were older,” he continued, “so that maybe then I could keep… more people safe.”

The gleam from the fire off of her white teeth let him know she was smiling. “You mean Aislyn?” she asked.

He said nothing, only averted his eyes and resumed his staring at the ceiling.

“Aaron, even if she isn’t part of the agreement, she’ll likely still be safe. There are so many people, and even though it seems as if they are taking more and more each day, there are many others who will grow old with no fear of being turned or taken.”

Believing her would have been the easy thing to do, but her words were of no comfort. “I cannot bear to think of it,” he said, feeling a tear in his eye, which he hoped she could not see. “I cannot bear to think of any of it. It should not be this way.”

She smoothed back the hair on his forehead. “I know, little brother. But it is the way of it. And there is nothing that we can do.”

Aaron glanced up at his sister, pondering whether or not he was brave enough to tell her what Kian had said, that word he had used, the one he’d never heard before. Perhaps Genty would know its meaning. She was his best sister, his favorite of all, and he knew in his heart that if anyone could help him find a way, it was her. “Genty, have you ever heard of a Hunter before?” he asked, just barely a whisper.

“A hunter?” she repeated. “You mean, like those who claim the king’s deer?”

“No, I don’t think so,” he replied. “Kian said it the other day. I think it has something to do with the… them. I think there might be more to this understanding than we know about.”

“Oh, little brother,” Genty said, still smoothing his hair. “I think it best if we do not discuss this further, and that you and Kian don’t either. You are treading on thin ice, my love. I know that you are fearful for your friend, but I am certain that, if you pray for her each night, the Lord will look after her. And I shall say a prayer for her, too. Now, close those pretty blue eyes of yours and get some sleep. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow.”

He knew that there was nothing more to be said on the topic now. Clearly, Genty knew no more than he did, and she wasn’t willing to risk saying more even if she did. With a sigh, he nestled his arm under his head and considered her words. She kissed him gently on the forehead, and just as she was about to lie back down, he asked, “Genty, why do you stay?”

“What’s that?” she asked, her head hovering above the mat but no longer resting on her arm.

“I asked why you stay. Why haven’t you ever married? You’re nearly twenty.”

She giggled softly. “I told you long ago. I love you best, little brother.”

He turned to look at her as she rested her head. “That can’t be it.”

“Don’t worry yourself about me,” she assured him, gently pulling on the thin quilt that covered the three of them. “Someday, when you are older and have built a home of your own with Aislyn, then I will find a man and make a life with him. In the meantime, I will always be your Gen.”

As Aaron pushed thoughts of the Dark Ones and sweet Aislyn aside, he reflected on how lucky he was to have such a wonderful sister. At least he knew his Gen would always be safe from the Dark Ones. They could never take her. They had an agreement.