Chapter 9

Killarney, Ireland, 1847

The potatoes were nothing but black mush. He’d spent hours tilling the ground, removing the rocks, tending the soil, planting the seeds, and now, all he had to show for it was a handful of black death. While he’d had the forethought to plant a few other crops as well, the potatoes were the only way they had to make any money, and with the little home the villagers had helped them build at the end of last year when he and Aislyn had tied the knot, needing a bit of repair already, he could have used the money. Now, it would be nearly impossible to even buy seed for next year’s planting.

“What you got, lad?” Kian called, stepping through his acreage to Aaron’s. “All rot?’

“Yes,” Aaron assured him. “Nothing but stink and filth. You?”

“The same,” Kian nodded, his hands resting on his hips. “Shannon will have a conniption when she hears.”

“Shannon will understand,” Aaron assured his friend, though he wasn’t quite sure if that was the case. It seemed Kian’s wife should’ve been the one with the fiery red hair to match her temperament now that they were married.

Kian only shook his head and ran a hand through his blond hair. “Tomorrow, we should walk into town, see what the word is. Maybe someone has a solution.”

“While I find that highly unlikely, I will accompany you on your journey. I need to check on my mother and granddad anyway. Besides, it beats digging up dead potatoes.”

“All right,” Kian nodded. “I’m off to tell the wife. Wish me luck.”

“It’ll be fine,” Aaron assured him, but he wasn’t certain he spoke the truth. Shannon could be quite harsh when she wanted to be.

Pressing those thoughts aside, he brushed the dirt off of his hands on his trousers and made his way back across the five acres he worked towards his own home, hoping to find Aislyn inside. She would know how to calm his nerves and remind him everything would be all right.

A few hours later, they lie twisted in the bed sheets, her head resting on his chest. He could tell by her breathing that she was still awake, but holding her was one of the small things in life he still found pleasure in, and he stayed quiet, lovingly stroking the red curls that cascaded down her back and across the sheets, the contrast between the white linen and her scarlet locks only momentarily reminding him of the carnage the village had been dealing with lately as the attacks increased.

“What are you thinking?” Aislyn asked, propping her head up on one hand as she glanced down at him.

“I was thinking about how beautiful you are,” he replied, with a smile, “and how lucky I am to be your husband. How you are all I’ve ever wanted.”

She smiled at him and ran her hand down his chest. “You are too complimentary, my love.” Aislyn bent to place a soft kiss on his lips. “While I feel very fortunate to be your wife, I’m afraid we can’t eat or sell love. What are we to do?”

He hadn’t even told her about the potatoes yet. Clearly, she’d known from the way he’d acted when he came back in the middle of the day to find her. Aaron shook his head and ran his hand down her spine. Even though they’d been married for several months, he was always entranced by the creaminess of her skin. “Kian and I are going to walk into town tomorrow to see if we can find any answers.”

“No,” she said abruptly. “It’s too dangerous.”

Holding back a smile, he said, “Aislyn, you needn’t worry about me. I’ll be just fine. It’s the only way to discover if there’s a solution to this blight.”

“You know there isn’t,” she insisted. “The famine has been affecting Ireland for nearly two years now. Just because it has now reached us in Killarney does not mean things will be any different. If the other counties have been unable to find a solution, what makes you think we will do better?”

“We always do better in Killarney,” he offered, though he knew his own words were not true. If they were, the potatoes would be their first concern, not the Dark Ones.

“There have been so many attacks—in broad daylight—on members of the Order,” she reminded him, her green eyes quite serious. “You cannot travel now, my love. If something should happen to you, I don’t know what I would do with myself.”

“Nothing will happen to me, Aislyn, I promise,” he replied, tipping her head down to kiss her. “I will be safe, and so shall you. I won’t ever let anything happen to you.”

“I know you mean that,” Aislyn said, leaning down so that her face was hovering above his, as she softly stroked his cheek, “but there are some things in this world that are beyond our control, my love. If the Dark Ones wish to make a claim upon one of us, what can we do? We are only human after all.”

Rather than attempt to persuade her that he would fight off even Satan himself to keep her safe, Aaron pulled her down and kissed her. Gently flipping her over onto her back, he slipped on top of her. Gazing into those green eyes, he swore to himself he would never let the Dark Ones claim her, no matter what the price.

The next morning, he arose early before Aislyn was even stirring to slip out and meet Kian near the road that led into town. He was already there waiting, and the bags beneath his eyes showed that he had not had a restful night’s sleep. “Shannon didn’t take it well, then?” Aaron called as he approached.

“I do not wish to speak of it,” Kian said, attempting to place his disheveled hair back where it belonged, though his efforts served futile. “How is Aislyn?”

“Wonderful,” Aaron beamed. He didn’t like to go on about how incredible his wife was to his best friend whose marriage was not all that he had hoped, but in times like this, with her scent still lingering, he could not control his smile.

“I’m very happy for you,” Kian muttered, and Aaron assumed he truly meant it, even if he was annoyed.

“You will work things out,” Aaron assured him, but Kian did not answer, and so they started out in silence, only the sounds of the calling crows and other winged creatures disturbing the morning silence.