The Order of Brigid’s Cross – The Faery Portal (Book 2)

Two-year-old Percy gazed in wonder at the large book on the floor. It had just played a trick he’d never seen before. It opened all by itself. Clapping his chubby little hands, he tossed a block at the book, and instead of landing on its pages, the block disappeared from sight. He tossed another. It disappeared too. He crawled closer. Surely the blocks must be somewhere nearby. He tossed another. It was gone. He looked around and saw his favorite teddy bear laying on the ground near the book. He crawled over to the bear, lifted it high, and threw it down against the book's pages. It was swallowed up completely. His little chin started to quiver, and he was about to cry when his bear reappeared and motioned for him to come closer. How odd. His bear had never done anything like that before. With a delighted laugh, Percy crawled to the book. Two centuries later, in an old book store in Evanston, Illinois, a shipment has just arrived from an old estate in England. The shopkeeper unpacks his treasures but then leaves for the night. Once he's gone, the book cover slapped open against the wood surface of the countertop, sending puffs of dust into the air. The cotton gloves, so carefully placed on the edge of the counter, slipped noiselessly to the floor. Shafts of illumination from the streetlamps in front of the shop riddled the work area with patterns of light and dark, highlighting parts and pieces of the unpacked treasures. Shadows danced inside the shop, and a breeze from nowhere filled the room. The old book shook, its illustrated pages fluttering wildly back and forth until it reached the center pages and froze. A shadow climbed from the depths of the bindings, pushing its way out from the ink and linen, the embossed gold and paint, the leather and twine. It pushed its way out of one realm into another, from faerie to earth, from yesterday into today. He stood next to the counter and slowly gazed around. It had been a long time since he had stood on the surface. He studied the shelves, his eyesight clear even in the dark. He didn’t know if the items were familiar because of the books he’d read or the memories he held. He inhaled deeply. Some of the scents were also familiar: old books, dust, lemon polish, and wood. But they were old memories, memories from his life before his escape. Sean O'Reilly and the other members of the Order of Brigid's Cross have to track down a changeling who has come to the Chicago area to seduce young women and bring them down to faery. But will one of their own become a victim to his dangerous spell?