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  Tabitha choked on something before a grin split her face. “Child, we’d have no problem if we could just get you to focus that power of yours more often. If I had any doubt you were the Nexus before, they’ve vanished.”

  I grimaced. “Control?”

  She nodded. “Control.” In an abrupt motion she was on her feet.

  I still hadn’t sat down, so it was easy for her to pull me deeper into her chamber. She ambled toward a bookshelf, motioning me to follow.

  Just like my room, her walls were sculpted dirt; while a mixed up mess of tree roots and gemstones made up the ceiling. Kind of brought to mind a starlit sky, in an odd way. The moist earth infused the air with a rich quality, reminding me of my days spent training with Jett. I missed him quite a bit and hoped we could settle into a friendship at some point. I could see why Mom had relied so heavily on him. He was solid and strong, just like his element.

  We stopped in what looked to be nothing more than a hallway with a bookcase against the wall. Tabitha pulled a large tome off her dusty shelf, brushing the cover lovingly with her fingers. I sidled in next to her and peeked at the book. It was old. Way older than Lily’s journal had been. The spine showed centuries of wear, even missing in a few spots, which exposed the folded vellum. The fivefold symbol was embossed into the aged leather.

  She lifted her face toward me, her near white eyes seeming to focus on mine. “In the beginning we had to learn too.” She opened the book near the middle. “For instance, this entry will tell you the secrets of water weaving.”

  “What’s that?”

  She smiled wistfully. “The technique changes the molecules to a slightly negative current. This allows us to fuse the water into a solid surface.” She grinned at me. “Mighty helpful when you’re stuck in a pinch and need a barrier or even something to walk on.”

  Yeah, you’d think that would work, unless of course you’re facing a pissed of water lord that wants to force you to bond with him.

  She chuckled. I wasn’t sure if it was in response to my thoughts or to her own inner workings. “In my early days, I once used this technique suspended a hundred feet over a rushing river. Back then there weren’t many bridges in the mortal realm, and I had need of a quick escape.” Her eyelashes brushed her pinked cheeks. She looked so young just now. Once more I found myself aching for a canvas and brushes. One day, I promised myself. If she’d sit for me, I was going to paint her. A smile tugged her mouth. “I’d love to, child.” She opened her mouth as if she was going to continue, but no words came out. She swallowed hard, blinking a few times before she patted my hand. “I can’t deny it’s a bit flattering to have you find me so interesting.”

  Who wouldn’t? I shrugged wondering what had made her so sad. “Thanks for agreeing. Sorry to interrupt your story, though. I was enjoying myself.”

  A bright bounce came to her face all of the sudden. “I’ve got many more where that came from. Perhaps one day I shall tell you my favorite story…” She hesitated a bit too long before she said, “Once everything is settled. Shall we find a more suitable place to talk?”

  I nodded and followed her deeper into her chambers wondering if I would ever understand her. Each room that connected to the last had minimal furnishings. I found myself wondering why she hadn’t made the place a bit homier.

  She chuckled. “I have what I need. When you’re given access to anything you could possibly desire, you soon discover what really matters in life. It’s not the things, my child.” She squeezed my fingers as we walked. “But I think you know that already.”

  I did. Money hadn’t made Cassie happy. All she’d ever wanted was to have her dad home, and mostly all she ever got was a present shipped from some far corner of the world. His travel totally made sense to me now, but now that I knew who he really was it was easy for me to see how and why Nigel Lambert had distanced himself from his family.

  We came to a small seating arrangement with a couple ratty loveseats facing each other. An area rug anchored the furniture, but it still felt like an island in the cavernous room.

  Even though it was technically bright enough, I wished we had some table lamps to liven up the place. Just like that, two blazing lamps appeared atop rich mahogany end tables on either side of the sofa without another thought. I gaped.

  Tabitha’s face snapped toward mine. “About that, Rayla. You need to be careful who you show this power to. Once you are back in Eirie you will be watched constantly.” Her cool fingers clamped around mine. “Tell me you understand how important this is. You can’t even trust the lords with this knowledge.”

  I tried to remember if any of them had seen me do this kind of thing…but I couldn’t recall anything specific. “I think I get it, but I’m hoping it won’t come to that.”

  As long as I was distracted, the nausea wasn’t too hard to bear. I might be able to learn to live with it.

  Tabitha grunted. “Heath has already explained that your discomfort will only intensify.” She patted my leg. “I know you want to believe you will not have to face Ammon again, but I am afraid it will be sooner rather than later. Take heed of my council, child.”

  I nodded. It was all I could do. For so long now I had ignored the advice of my friends. Was Tabitha my friend? I still wasn’t sure, but I’d learned enough to understand I needed to change how I did things where the fae were concerned. If the council found me, I didn’t know what they would do. I was just lucky the dark realms were part of Faeresia.

  Tabitha faced me. “Don’t you feel the oppression down here?”

  What was she talking about? If I had to describe a feeling in the air, it would be anticipation—nervous excitement even. It was like the dirt walls hummed with it.

  She shook her head. “You have a strange connection with the creatures. I’ll give you that, but you don’t know the half of what exists in this place. Pray you never have opportunity to find out.”

  I repressed a shiver.

  She would know, but if I had learned anything at all from my experiences, it was that I’d never be able to tell who someone was by how they looked. Sometimes pretty packages are just that, and sometimes the most grotesque creature you could ever imagine has the heart of an angel. It would be hard for me not to flinch when I saw some of the creatures down here, but I was still determined to help them. They didn’t deserve the punishment they’d been dealt.

  “You’re still making judgments, child,” said Tabitha in a soft voice.

  “I know.” I gave her a sad smile. “It’s hard not to.”

  “Discernment is not the same as judging, Rayla, even if human dictionaries say so. We all have to make decisions based on limited information. In time, you will know the difference.”

  I nodded. “I just hope it isn’t too late. I do realize what’s at stake here.”

  She smiled at me. “I know you do. Now let’s get to work. There’s no telling just how little time we have.”

  Chapter Two

  Tabitha worked with me for what felt like days, although no more than a few hours could have passed. She read from her book and laughed with me, telling me about her experiences in the mortal realm. I thought she was going to try to train me like Taylor and Jett had.

  Not so much; although, she did show me how to block anyone from my mind. Where Jett had told me to have faith, she’d shown me how to believe. She was an amazing teacher, and I hoped to one day be able to spend more time learning from her.

  When I’d asked her if my new mind block would work on Heath, she just shrugged.

  It was great to see her at ease, even if it was just a show. If I had to guess I’d say she was pretending for my sake. No matter what she did, she couldn’t disguise the set of her shoulders or the worried tilt to her eyes. There was something she wasn’t telling me, but it was her secret to keep.

  Never in my life had I felt so humbled. By the time she was done explaining things to me, I knew what I had to do, yet my fear hung around me like a wispy fog trying to gather substanc
e. I’d never found going it alone easy. Maybe no one does, but the thought of facing the fae council without Heath or even Tabitha to back me up had me shivering inside.

  Sure, I’d been able to use my power when I needed it, and I was grateful for that; but after talking things over, I realized I didn’t want to rush in guns blazing.

  Somewhere along the way I’d developed a love for the fae, not just Heath, Tabitha, or even Gibbit. Lysanne had been invaluable to me, helping me to get through my stay in Ingnis. In fact, most of the fae I had met had been my kind of people.

  There were always those like Ainessa and my mom’s bondmate, Theran, whose desire for power eclipsed any compassion they may have once had in their soul, but I firmly believed most fae were good. I was pretty sure the majority of them would be shocked to know what had happened to those who were banished to the dark realms for nothing more than disagreeing with certain council members.

  I definitely was. The more Tabitha told me, the more I wanted to help change things. Ainessa wanted to wipe the slate of this world clean. Even if I disregarded the people that would just cease to exist if her plan succeeded, I couldn’t ignore the wrongness of destroying a perfectly good planet full of pretty good people.

  She was short sighted if you asked me, but she had made it clear she didn’t care what I thought. Her attempts to get me to trust her had never quite taken. Her pretty words and beautiful face had seemed sincere, but underneath it all I still caught her true meaning. At the end of the day, I couldn’t let her have my power, and I would do anything necessary to keep her from getting it.

  I turned toward Tabitha and asked, “Are you sure about this?”

  She winked at me. “As sure as I can be. The future is not set, Rayla. You make your own destiny, yet there are certain markers, call them pivotal character truths, that never change. I know you better now, which helps me guess what you’ll do in a given circumstance. I’m rarely wrong.”

  My brows rose, but I quickly recovered. “You once told me I was unpredictable. And what about the prophesy?”

  Her light eyes closed and she nodded. “You have been the only exception. Many years ago I looked into the future for the very first time. The prophecy was what I saw, but that vision has changed every day since I met you. You, it seems, cannot be written.” When she opened her eyes again, they pinned me where I sat. “I make no promises to you, but I will support you any way I am able, even if it means betraying a people who embraced me when I had no home left. It is imperative that you prevail.” Her expression shifted to utterly serious. “Be warned, child. There is a darkness surrounding you I cannot penetrate. I first noticed it when you were battling Ainessa for control before you came here. It is an old darkness I have no name for. This unseen threat could not have been anticipated, but whoever it is has been strong enough to block my probing. You must be wary. If this threat shows himself, you must be willing to act, no matter the consequence.”

  Of course there was something else. Wasn’t there always? No use in whining. It was what it was. “So, it’s a man?”

  She closed her eyes and stayed silent for a few moments. Her fingers slid over mine in a casual grip and her eyelids moved rapidly as if she was viewing an internal movie. Unlike so many times before, I felt no pain. She let go and sat back. “The energy is definitely male.”

  Male? That was weird. “Is he working with Ainessa?”

  Her voice lowered to barely above a whisper. “I cannot say. He is strong. Stronger than any force I’ve encountered in quite some time. He is not a stable force. He shifts and changes like the days of a year.”

  “And you have no idea who he is?”

  She took in a deep breath. “I had hoped spending time with you would reveal him to me, but he has remained hidden, despite all my attempts. Whoever he is, he has been watching you for a long time now.”

  I glanced around Tabitha’s quarters, considering what to do next. If I hadn’t been so nauseated I might have asked her to stay a while. “Well, I’d better see what Heath’s up to.”

  “We all have purposes to fulfill, Rayla. No matter what happens, know that you will always be looked after.”

  After that she left, wandering deeper into her chambers, not bothering to see me back to my room. I’d expected Heath a while ago, yet when I entered the darkened tunnels, he was nowhere to be seen. I sighed and focused on trying to figure out where we’d come from. Every so often a sconce lined the walls which at least made the tunnels bearable for me. The problem was, once I was out of the thin circle of light, darkness consumed everything. I just concentrated on moving from one pool of light to the next.

  Without warning a high-pitched hum sounded in front of me. The haunted movements of the Alp-lauchra was something I’d never forget. I stiffened. I tried not to, but after Gibbit showed me how fast the pint-sized creatures could strip flesh from bone, I couldn’t really help myself.

  Their leathery wings, only about two inches wide, made a horrible squeal that sounded a bit like crickets on crack. I stopped cold, forcing myself not to scream, to hold still, to let them pass.

  Surprisingly the swarm slowed down then hovered a few feet in front of me. One of them separated from the pack, jetting up near my nose. I flinched, but I still managed to smile.

  The skeletal face inches from my own tilted then nodded. A sneeze threatened to take me until I thought I’d burst from the pressure. In a swift motion it flew the other way and then back as if pointing that I was going the wrong direction.

  My eyes narrowed. “I need to go that way?” I asked, pointing with one hand and bringing the other under my nose.

  It was in my face in a heartbeat, giving me a quick nod.

  “Wow, thanks so much. Achoo. Do you think you could lead me back to my room? Achoo.” With Zach after me, I didn’t dare linger in the tunnels.

  It nodded again.

  The minute it no longer lingered near my nose, my sneezing stopped. I gave a shrug then followed the creatures through the caverns, homing in on the sound of their fluttering wings. They kept close, so I didn’t lose my way. I knew full well I would have never found my room on my own.

  Why was everything so far apart down here anyway? Just because they had so much room to work with didn’t mean they should use it.

  When we reached my doorway the leader of the group motioned for me to enter. I swiftly complied but hesitated just inside the threshold. “Hey,” I said, working on my courage. “Do you guys want to come inside for a minute? I’ve got something I need to talk to you about.”

  The leader nodded and they bolted into my room. The group moved as a collective, zigging and weaving in a way that would make any dance group envious. In an extremely creepy way, it was also beautiful.

  I didn’t wait to speak up. “I’d like to name all of you.” I picked through the skeletal faces. “Where should we start?”

  The leader was in my face like a cockroach on yesterday’s breadcrumbs. She gave a couple vigorous shakes to her head, which immediately produced a rapid fire sneezefest from me. She gave me a slight frown and backed away. I wasn’t certain how I suddenly knew that it was really a she, but it was unmistakably clear now.

  I frowned right back at her. “Why not?”

  She shook her head then shot out the door. The rest of them followed. Faster than I could blink, they were gone.

  I didn’t dare question them again without backup, so I ambled over to the bed, curling over my stomach to ease the nausea. My muscles sighed when I laid down. Trying to get comfortable, I grabbed a few pillows and positioned them behind me. Where was Heath, anyway?

  After a while of being alone, and having nothing else to think about, my thoughts drifted to the cause of my discomfort. I’d never thought I’d see the day I would do anything to avoid Zach, yet here I was.

  Guilt and a bit of remorse coiled inside my throat. The torture Zach and Luke had faced when the Order captured them was completely my fault. If it wasn’t for me they might have taken some
precautions when they investigated the island. Ainessa hadn’t wasted any time in absorbing their power. It had something to do with that ring she wore, I was sure of it. The thing had shimmered on her finger like the North Star when she pointed it at me. I shivered, remembering that horrible day.

  Suddenly, I couldn’t stand to be alone a second longer. A growing ache in my chest spread through my body, and all I could think about was having Heath’s arms around me.

  Not knowing what else to do, I tested my connection to him. “Heath?” I asked.

  His chuckle reverberated in my thoughts before he answered me telepathically, “So impatient to get me back into bed?”

  I laughed, and my whole body tingled for his touch. “I can think of worse things.”

  “Well, that’s comforting,” he said from over my shoulder.

  I jumped off the bed so fast my head swam with dizziness. “You’re such a jerk!”

  He gave me a decided mischievous smile moments before he shot toward me. I squealed, trying to get away, knowing it was no use. Even now his pirate smile got to me. I couldn’t be sure if he was going to kiss me or make me walk the proverbial plank.

  “Maybe a bit of both?” he suggested, waggling his dark brows.

  My grin probably covered my whole face. Too bad it didn’t last long. I had too much on my mind to keep myself in the moment. Now that Heath and I were officially out of hibernation I needed to find Aunt Grace. We needed a plan to get Travis back. Creed could only do so much with the Order involved and the chances of him succeeding were pretty slim. “So?” I asked when Heath didn’t automatically tell me what he’d learned.

  “What?” he said.

  “Aren’t you going to tell me what you found out?”

  “Nope.”

  “Heath!”

  He smiled, but wariness lay behind it. His voice was tender, overly so. “I really shouldn’t, Rayla.” Even before he finished I knew I wasn’t going to like what he had to say. “Who knows how long you’ll be able to fight the bond. Once you’re back on the surface, Zach could gain access to your thoughts. I would be foolish to give away any tactical advantage we might now have.”