Free Emerald Isle by Barbra Annino

skeptical, but not enough to care, thankfully. She wasn’t nearly as curious as Anastasia. She didn’t have the need to understand everything all at once, just accepted things as they were.
    Birdie was ever so grateful for that.
    The girl shrugged and said, “Okay. Let me know if I can help with anything.” She shuffled down the hall, struggling with the oversized coat.
    Fiona called to her. “Be right out with that soup, sweetheart.” She spun to Birdie and said, “I’ll handle this. You see who’s calling.”
    Badb, or the woman who called herself Badb, walked up to the cage. She winked at me, and with a wave of her arm and a shudder from the tree, the bars instantly melted into a thousand fluttering blackbirds that flew up into the evening sky.
    I folded to the forest floor.
    Hand on my sword, I called to Thor, who was still wriggling around on his back. The dog perked his ears, righted himself, and trotted over to me.
    Danu took a seat on her throne, produced two ruby-encrusted goblets, and invited me to join her.
    It was just the two women, Thor, and me. I saw no one else as I scanned the woods, and decided that my chances of escaping were pretty damn good. I tapped Thor on his backside and bolted in the opposite direction of the two women, pumping my legs toward the pathway and the light still shining through it.
    I heard Badb say behind me, “You see why I trapped her?”
    The fireflies wove through the trees. I had the sensation they were leading me to a way out of this nightmare, so I ran faster.
    As soon as I reached the mass of tiny orbs, they burst into flames that showered down in front of me. I jolted to a stop.
    And right before my eyes, the flames transformed into people. Fair-skinned, lithe, two-armed, two-legged people.
    I think I passed out for a moment, because the next thing I knew, I was sitting in a drafty palace with twenty-foot ceilings, crystal-clear windows, and three bronze chandeliers anchoring the room.
    Danu said, “There she is. Welcome back.”
    My mind was fuzzy again, same as before when I woke up in the birdcage. I moaned. “My head hurts.”
    Badb poured a yellow liquid into a pewter goblet and handed it to me. “Drink this. It’ll clear the web from your mind.”
    “No way, Elvira. I’m not touching anything you want to offer me.”
    She rolled her eyes and turned to Danu. “Are you certain this is the one?”
    Danu walked over to us and took the drink from Badb. “Have faith, maiden. The web is hard on the senses.” She handed it to me, her eyes warm.
    “Where’s Thor?”
    “Your familiar is fine. He’s having a rest.” Danu offered the cup again. “Go on, you’ll feel better.”
    I took the goblet and sniffed. It smelled like May wine. Sweet honey and citrusy orange blossoms. I took a small sip, and instantly my thoughts cleared and the pain vanished.
    I downed the whole cup and stood, feeling fortified. “What did you mean the web is hard on the mind? What web?” Was I trapped in the Internet?
    Danu cocked her head and smiled. “The Web of Wyrd, of course.”
    Of course.
    “So what you’re saying is—” I started.
    Danu cut me off. “Welcome to the Otherworld.”
    I turned to the woman with the jet-black hair. “And you are…”
    She bowed. “Badb, warrior goddess of the Morrigan.”
    I flicked my gaze to the red-haired woman. “So that would make you…”
    “Danu, mother goddess of the ancient island. And these”—with a sweep of her hand, the far wall fizzled away, revealing a cheerful scene of a village at work—“are my people.”
    It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t. “The Tuatha Dé Danann.” I looked at her, incredulous. “This is a prank, right? A birthday gag? Did my grandmother put you up to this?”
    Danu parked her hands on her hips. “Why don’t you pinch me to see if I exist?”
    Tentatively, I reached forward and she zapped me with some kind of electric current.
    “Ouch!” I wiggled my fingers.
    “Not very bright,