Page 110 of A Legacy of the Light

“Good morning, Elsie. Did you enjoy your evening?” he asks, looking over the leggings and sweater I haven’t bothered to change out of.

“I did, although the wine isn’t being kind to me today,” I reply with a smile, rubbing my forehead.

Finneus smiles but it doesn’t reach his eyes.

“Is everything okay?” I ask. Finneus is usually a warm and welcome presence but, right now, tension rolls off him in waves.

“Yes, dear. I’m going to get straight to it. Would you mind drawing me the symbol you mentioned yesterday?”

I look around to make sure no one else is here. I trust Finneus. He wouldn’t bring it up if someone was in earshot. I take the pen and paper he offers me and draw out the symbol from Granny’s journal that I have tattooed. Four circles overlap each other in the middle. Where they meet each other creates a complex pattern that I always thought looked like a flower. I love how they interlock and create a myriad of patterns depending on which way you look at it.

When I hand the paper back to Finneus, the same tightness from last night returns.

“What is it?” I ask quietly.

“This symbol isn’t on just one of the sealed doors, but all of them.” He pauses and something twists in my stomach. “It’s the emblem of the Darrow family.”

“But I thought the royal emblem was the one that’s on all the banners,” I say, lowering my voice. “And what’s on the Craobh.”

“It is; that’s the symbol of Elfayne. But this,” he points to the paper on his desk, “is the symbol of the Darrows.”

I stare down at the symbol, then back at Finneus. The puzzle pieces are in front of me, waiting for me to put them together, but something is stopping me.

“What are the names of your parents? And your grandparents?”

I realize then that Tavish had only introduced me as Elsie, and Finneus hasn’t asked me any further questions about them.

“My mom’s name was Heather, Helen was my granny, and Paul my grandpa. I never met my father and I don’t know his name.”

He taps his chin as he paces again.

“And your family name?” he asks.

“Aitken.”

His pacing stops.

“Finneus, can you please take me to the chambers? I need to see them.”

He nods and hurries into the stacks with me right behind him. “This way.”

We pass row after row of books and Seòlta scattered every fifty rows or so. The shelves get older the further back we move. We pass the area with the desks where I had been doing my research and Finneus keeps up a pace that has me almost jogging to keep up. Finneus isn’t a tall man, only a few inches above my five feet seven, but he’s sure as shit fast.

“What does it mean?” I ask.

“I think you might be right, Elsie. I think your family is somehow descended from Seelie. But not just any Seelie. I think it’s the Darrow family. It’s the only way your grandmother would have the Craobh Beatha, or know about the symbol.” He takes a sharp left and I almost crash into the bookshelf in an attempt to keep pace.

“There’s one way for us to find out,” he continues as if he’s talking to himself.

“Finneus,” I say as we approach the back of the library. The wall is as smooth as a mountain face can be, made of dark gray rock with shelves carved into it. Finneus ignores me and takes a sharp right, walking along the wall until we reach a part where the stone is so smooth it looks polished.

“Finneus,” I try again, frustration and fear creeping into my voice.

He turns to look at me, his intense gaze softening when he sees the worry in my face. “I’m sorry. This is . . .” he pauses, unable to find the words.

“What does it mean?” I ask again. “If Granny was descended from Seelie? From the Darrows?”

“I don’t know,” he replies quietly.