Shifted

Chapter 24: Moher At Last

Over the next 24 hours, we spent each minute wisely, only sleeping when we needed to. We used the rest of our time for last-minute training and planning. We boarded our plane the morning of the wedding and would be to Moher within about four hours, including the drive from the airport. Addison and Charlotte settled in the row in front of Kit and me.

After we stuffed our bags under the seats in front of us, I anxiously fiddled with my necklace, letting the jagged edge of the natural stone pull against my finger over and over. Thoughts of Emery - Irie - no, my mom kept reeling through my mind.

What would I say to her when I saw her again? How would I explain who I was, and even worse, what happened to her? I pulled my duffel from under the seat and dug around in the small zipper pocket. I found the delicate silver locket she had given me and put it on for an extra dose of strength.

Tracing my finger around the shiny silver circle was comforting as I thought about her. I opened it to see the plaid and Celtic engraving again. It felt like it had been ages since that night at the castle when Irie had sent it to me. I attempted to read the words but couldn't make heads or tales of them.

"Kit?" I whispered, nudging his arm as he dozed beside me. He jerked awake and grabbed my arm in fright. "Oh, I didn't mean to startle you, are you okay?"

"Sorry, my dreams have me restless," he yawned. He spotted the locket I was holding in my fingers and squinted at it. "Well, I'll be damned, love. Where did you get that?" he asked in surprise.

"Irie, well, my mom gave it to me when we were last at Moher," I told him. "Can you tell me what it says?"

Kit looked me in the eyes, his aura suddenly a somber purple. "Certainly, I can. It says 'Luceo non uro', which translates to 'I shine not burn'."

"I shine not burn," I repeated. "Where have I heard that before?"

Kit swallowed uncomfortably, his telltale sign that I was welcome to shift him so he wouldn't have to say it aloud. His memory flashed in my mind immediately, Declan and Freyr, my father, on the rainy cliffs. They had been shouting at each other over Irie and things had gotten ugly with name-calling. Freyr turned to confront Declan one last time, yelling "I shine not burn", before stomping in the other direction again.

I quickly pulled away from Kit's thoughts before the part where Freyr slips, but my mind went there anyway. Quickly after, I realized what this meant.

"My mom remembers me!" I shouted. Strangers all around shushed me and Charlotte and Addie spun around in concern.

"What?" Charlotte whispered, trying not to further disturb the quiet flight.

"My mom, Irie, she remembers me! That's why she gave me this," I exclaimed, holding out the locket. My sisters just looked at me in confusion, and I waved them off. "I'll explain later," I whispered and they turned back around. Kit took my hand, smiling at my happiness.

"Are you ready for today, to face Dillon?" he asked.

"I think so," the happiness quickly slipped from my face.

I would have to go along with this wedding as if everything were okay. I wondered how Dillon would react when we got there. At least I knew I'd be able to tell just how he felt, after nearly two weeks of training with Kit. Kit was positive I'd be able to both Mind and Feeling Shift Regulators with ease.

I clutched the locket the rest of the flight, running through Kit's plans for the wedding all the while. He would be with me as support the entire time and we would have the benefit of a large crowd on our side. Kit estimated that there would be several hundred guests, and while that may not be too daunting to Declan, it may distract him long enough that we could avoid him for a majority of the night.