He tipped his head, smirking. “I’ve never blushed in my life, nor do I intend to start now.”
A sassy retort shriveled on my tongue as we passed the first sapling oaks at the edge of the woods. The air changed at that moment, and the skin tingled to my hairline. With a shiver, I clutched my cloak with one hand and peered into the forest. Nothing moved, or appeared out of the ordinary to blame for the odd sensation.
Thickening undergrowth and trees soon crowded together. The road had narrowed significantly into something closer to a forest path, and rather than running directly over the hilltop, it veered to the left for a more gradual incline. Urging my horse forward, I noticed Ailish sat straighter behind Henry, her grip loosening somewhat on his sides.
Keen interest lit her face. “Do you feel it?” She tilted her nose upward to inhale a deep breath of the forest air. “These woods be ancient.”
A morbid thought struck me that Ailish might be relishing the scent of death. I would have asked outright if we were alone, but I didn’t dare remind Henry of her particular goddess blood and risk a discussion of her subsequent gift.
Henry surveyed every inch of the woods ahead of us. From the tight set of his mouth, he didn’t like what he saw.
I shifted slightly in the saddle. “Is everything all right?” Even speaking softly, my voice seemed to echo amongst the trees.
He turned to me, and I started from the vivid green of his eyes, as though the irises had somehow caught fire.
“Your...your eyes...”
He blinked several times. “What’s wrong with them?”
The color had returned to the usual earthy green, flecked with gold. Dumbstruck, I stared at him in silence, searching for any trace of the previous color.
“Is something the matter?” he asked.
In truth I didn’t know, for either I had suffered a hallucination or Henry had been temporarily altered. Neither option proved comforting, though any further discussion would need to wait until we were alone. “The trees are playing tricks with the light,” I said instead.
Henry nodded, accepting my answer. “Miss O’Bearra’s right about these woods. They have a strange feel to them, though I think there’s more to it than their being ancient.”
“What do you mean?”
He considered before answering. “I don’t know exactly, except a strong sense that there’s more here than meets the eyes.”
Ailish exhaled another breath. “Be thankful for that, milord, for there’s things about not meant for our seeing.”
Henry chuckled darkly. I remained silent, the skin tingling once more over the backs of my hands, as though to confirm that she had indeed spoken the truth.
Cresting the side of the hill, the path dipped downward into a slight vale where it continued on flat ground along a meandering streambed. We followed this, keeping to our own thoughts, when we reached the charred remains of a hollowed-out tree trunk.
“This must be it,” I said.
The answer came a few yards later with the appearance of a narrow trail that branched off from the main path over the streambed. Henry went ahead, guiding the stallion over the moss-covered rocks through the shallow water. At the first tentative step, Ailish again buried her face into his greatcoat. I followed behind, one hand tight on the cantle to keep from pitching forward if the mare lost her footing on the slippery surface. Safely across, I reined alongside Henry.
“We be close now,” Ailish said, turning to look at me. Excitement pinked her usually pale cheeks.
“You seem rather anxious to meet Deri’s stepmother.”
“Her da be known amongst me kind afore she killed him, so I’ve a keen interest to see the widow.”
Henry tensed visibly. “You should have told me we were meeting more of Cailleach’s descendants.”
Ailish didn’t hesitate. “Don’t know what she be for certain, milord, other than a widow.”
Henry looked at me, and for a moment I feared he would try to order me back to town. No doubt seeing the futility of such a demand, he settled instead for an irritated sigh.
“Let’s get this over with.” He urged his horse into the lead position, and we started single file along the trail.
Other than a handful of evergreens, the trees were mostly stripped of their foliage. Wind blew overhead, rattling the skeletal branches and any remaining leaves. On occasion, a gust would dip lower, but for the most part we remained sheltered between the two hills. Mist gathered on the undergrowth and around tree trunks in ethereal forms that tricked the eye and dampened my cheeks. I glanced up at the overcast sky, thankful for any extra daylight as we threaded our way deeper into the woods.