by Lola StVil
Five lights left.
I stop trying to run and leap into the air instead. I land between Kane and the shadow man, shielding his small body from the atrocity behind me.
Four lights left.
“Kane, listen to me. How do we get out?” I shout.
He shrinks away from me, so locked in fear that he doesn’t know me.
Three lights left.
On a whim I crouch down and embrace him, pulling him close to me.
“It’s okay. You’re safe now,” I whisper soothingly.
His body goes tense, but he doesn’t fight me. He’s too afraid to fight me. He’s accepted his fate. He’s so conditioned to the vile treatment here that he doesn’t recognize a gentle touch.
Two lights left.
If fear keeps him locked here, then love and trust can set him free.
Come on, Kane. I will him to relax.
One light left.
“You’re safe. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
Nothing.
“Liam, I… I love you,” I stutter.
The last light is blinking out when Kane’s stiff body relaxes and he leans into my embrace.
I panting and gasping. I’m back in Pest’s lab. My throat is so dry it’s painful. I glance to my left and relief floods through my body when I see Kane sitting beside me, gasping for breath like I am.
His color has returned to normal.
He looks across at me and our eyes lock. The things I saw, the things he’s been through crowd my mind. No child should ever have to live like that. It breaks my heart to think about it, but I have to remind myself what he’s done to me. Nothing can excuse that. I was never the enemy, yet he treated me like one.
With an effort, I look away from him. I want nothing more than to jump off the table and embrace him, but I can’t allow myself to do that. I realize my hand is still in his and I pull it away.
I glance back at him. The relief that was on his face when his eyes were locked on mine is gone, replaced with a look I can’t read.
He turns to Pest.
“You had no right to bring her here and let her into my head,” he says.
His voice is cold and controlled, and somehow that’s more terrifying than if he was yelling. It’s clear he’s trying hard to keep his emotions under control.
“I know there are things you didn’t want to share, but I had no choice. You would have died if I hadn’t acted,” Pest responds.
Pest’s voice is equally calm. I’ve never heard Pest be so cool and collected. It works. It breaks Kane’s calm exterior.
“Then you should have let me fucking die,” he shouts.
He gets up and takes a step towards Pest. Pest holds his ground.
“Don’t ever do that shit again,” Kane shouts.
“You’re welcome,” Pest says sarcastically.
Kane throws his hands up in frustration.
“He’s right. You didn’t even say thank you.”
I’m back in control now, my breathing back to normal, and I perch on the edge of the table, my feet dangling just above the floor.
“To him or to you?” Kane snaps, turning back to face me.
“To him. I don’t need anything from you.”
“I know that,” he snaps.
“Good. Then we understand each other. We won’t be seeing each other again unless we are in battle.”
I jump down from the table and start for the exit.
“Got it,” he says tightly.
I know I can’t just walk away from him without acknowledging what I just saw. No matter what he’s done, he didn’t deserve that. He was just a child then. An innocent child.
I turn back to him.
“Before I leave, I need you to know two things.”
He nods at me to go on. The anger has left him, and he stands before me with a look of such shame on his face that I want to run to him and hold him and tell him everything’s okay. But it isn’t. And it never will be.
“First, I want you to know that what happened back then wasn’t your fault. You were just a child and the people who were meant to protect you failed to do so. I’m so sorry it happened—that you had to experience that.”
His face reddens at my words and he looks away. I don’t think I can bring myself to say the second thing I have to say, but then he looks back at me, and the shame and humiliation is gone. In its place is a mask of anger.
“I don’t need your sympathy,” he barks at me.
It makes what I have to say next a hell of a lot easier.
“The second thing I want you to know is that horrible past or not, you come near me or anyone else I love again, and I will end you.”
I can tell myself I’m over Kane all I want to, but the truth is my whole body craves his touch. I want to lie beside him, wrapped in his arms. I want to feel his hands on me, his lips. Most of all, I want to hold him and take away all the pain. “Arrggghhh,” I scream, banging my balled-up fists on the ground next to me.
Why does this whole thing have to be so damn complicated? Why can’t I just accept that Kane is a bad person and move on?
The constant battle in my heart is starting to irritate me. I’m so sick of these two conflicting voices arguing with each other in my head.
I close my eyes and tilt my head back, resting it on the scratchy surface of a tree trunk. I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“Screw it,” I say to myself. “I’m not some teenage drama queen that needs to write love notes in a journal or have Adele on repeat for twelve hours. Kane was a mistake, and I need to move on with my life. I’m a leader, dammit, and I intend to stay focused on my quest.”
I nod my head, confirming my words.
I’m done sitting here feeling sorry for myself. I stride purposefully to the house. It’s not until I’m in there that I realize I don’t have any idea what I’m going to say to the team when they ask me where I’ve been.
I don’t have to worry about it. The second I walk in I can feel the excitement in the air.
“It worked,” Perry announces with a big grin.
“What worked?” I ask.
“Millicent’s paper,” he replies.
My eyes open wide.
“You mean we know where Dax is?”
I smile back at the excited team. It’s about time we caught a break.
“So we can go find him now, and hopefully we’ll be able to convince him pretty easily to allow us through the shield and onto the Isle of Grey. We’ll have the second object in no time,” I say.
Good old Millicent. I never doubted you. Much.
“Not exactly,” Saudia says.
I sigh and sit down.
“What’s the catch?” I ask.
Regal hands me Millicent’s paper. I scan it, taking in the main details.
“Okay. So we have to find this Valerie girl. And she’ll be able to tell us where Dax is. That’s not so bad. Anyone know her?”
The team shuffles nervously. I sigh again.
“Someone just tell me,” I say.
“We know where to find Valerie. But she’s a fairy, Atlas,” Remy says.
I’m confused. How isn’t that a good thing? Fairies are sweet little creatures that are only too happy to help. Right? Well, it seems that yet again, the fairy tales I read with my mother as a child got it all wrong.
“How can I put this?” Remy goes on. “Fairies are—”
“Nasty little bitches?” Perry cuts in.
Remy throws him a look. “Tricky,” she finishes.
“How so?” I ask.
“A fairy cannot tell a lie, but they will do everything in their power to twist everything to their advantage. They’ll grant your wish, give you your heart’s desire, whatever you want to call it. But they want something in return. And it’s usually something you don’t want to give. And they talk in riddles. So, you have to be extra careful. Because the deal you make with a fairy isn’t always the one you thought you made.”
“
So, let me get this straight. What you guys call fairies, we call the devil?”
“Aside from the horns and the pitchfork? Pretty much, yeah,” Quinn puts in.
“Great,” I say. “Let’s go get tricked into selling our souls.”
“Atlas, we don’t have—”
“I know, I know. Just a phrase.”
We stand before a house that looks like a movie star should live here. Well, it is Beverly Hills. I’ve got to lose my preconceived ideas about what the creatures in this world are and how they behave. I imagined a cute little toadstool. Instead, I’m met with a super-modern building that’s all bright white walls and glass. A supersized swimming pool completes the mansion.
We make our way up the sprawling path to the door.
“Atlas, let me do the talking, I know you’re the leader, but you don’t know enough about the way Valerie operates to handle this one. Okay?” Quinn pushes.
I bristle at her choice of words, but I can’t deny the truth of them.
“Be my guest; I can’t say I relish the idea of dancing with the devil.”
Quinn gives me a look.
“Don’t make any references like that in there if you want to get out alive,” she snaps.
Quinn reaches up and presses the bell. The door swings open. We exchange nervous glances.
“Hello? Valerie?” Quinn calls out.
The door at the end of the long hallway bursts open and a woman stands there. She is tall, slender, and blonde. I can’t make out any other details from here.
“Well, what are you waiting for? Come in. Jeez, you want me to get the red carpet out?” she says.
Quinn steps in, and we follow her along the luxurious hallway. We go through to the room the woman has disappeared back into. It is large and tastefully decorated. The walls are all white, and the hardwood floor is mostly covered by a white rug that looks so soft I want to lie down on it and rub it against my face.
The furniture is soft enough to look welcoming but minimalist enough to look like it’s come straight from the pages of an interior design magazine.
The woman is dressed in a short, tight black dress. She turns to face us, and I gasp. I’ve seen this woman before. In a lot of movies. She is one of Hollywood’s sweethearts, and it seems her sideline, when she’s not tricking people out of their most prized possessions in exchange for what they need, is being an award-winning actress.
She laughs at the shock on my face.
“Relax, sweetie,” she coos. “None of what you’ve read about me is true. Well, at least half of it isn’t.”
She motions for us to sit down. We all pile onto a ridiculously long chaise lounge, and Valerie takes a seat opposite us in an armchair that looks big enough to seat three people. She wears a string of pearls around her neck and diamonds on her fingers and in her ears.
“We need… ” Quinn starts.
Valerie holds up her hand with an irritated clack of her tongue. Quinn stops mid-sentence.
Valerie pulls a small glass table on wheels from around the side of her chair. On it are several lines of white powder and what looks like a gold-plated drinking straw. She picks the straw up and inserts the end of it into one delicate nostril. She hovers the end over one of the lines of cocaine and snorts it. She repeats the process in the other nostril.
She replaces the straw and pushes the table back out of sight. She gives a theatrical sniff and wipes at her nose.
“Now. What can I do for you?” she asks with a slightly lopsided smile.
“We need to find Dax,” Quinn says.
Valerie’s eyes move from Quinn and come to land on me. I realize I’m staring at her. I try to look away, but I’m too late.
“Is something wrong, dear?” she asks.
I shake my head.
“No,” I say.
She continues to peer at me, and Perry nudges me. She wants more.
“I just… well, I’ve seen your movies. I guess I’m a little starstruck.” I smile. “And yeah. Surprised to see you since I was told your name is Valerie.”
“You didn’t think I went by my real name in Hollywood, did you? No one does, dear.” She laughs. “Now if we make a deal, maybe I’ll give you a signed picture.”
She turns back to Quinn.
“What makes you think I know where Dax is?”
“Because finding him is our heart’s desire, and you always know how to fulfill that,” Quinn says.
“Is it really your heart’s desire? Are you sure you wouldn’t prefer something else? Say, a boyfriend who only has eyes for you,” Valerie purrs.
She looks at Regal, who squirms. I can feel the color rising in my face, but luckily, no one is looking at me.
“I think I’m good there, thank you,” Quinn huffs.
“Don’t be so sure, honey. Just because you’re steak, doesn’t mean he doesn’t want a hamburger now and again.”
I know she’s trying to get a reaction, and I refuse to bite, but I’m annoyed. Did she just compare me to street food?
Valerie moves to Langston.
“Wouldn’t you rather wake that cute boyfriend of yours up from his coma?”
Langston looks down at the floor and shakes her head. I hope Valerie doesn’t push it because I’m not sure how long Langston can resist her offer.
“And you. You just want your girlfriend to put you above the drugs, right?” Valerie says to Saudia.
“Tracey isn’t my girlfriend,” Saudia snaps.
“But you want her to be.”
She turns her attention to Remy.
“Ah, now you I can identify with. You just want the pain to be gone. You’re not like these other selfish creatures who only want their love lives fixed.”
Remy opens her mouth and closes it again; a lost expression crosses her face. I know that expression. It’s the one you wear when someone pokes an open wound.
“Enough,” I say to Valerie. “Can you help us or not?”
“Oh, you’re a feisty one. Feisty enough to almost tame a demon. Almost, but not quite. Are you sure you want to find Dax? Or would your heart prefer me to take the darkness from Kane’s heart?”
“Finding Dax is essential to our quest. And there’s nothing more important than that to me,” I say.
She nods and throws her head back, bursting into loud, infectious laughter.
“Well, damn, girl,” she says.
“I don’t know if you’re lying to yourself or me. But I’m inclined to agree with you. Your quest is more important than any man. Honey, there are millions of men out there. Take a couple for a test drive before you buy one.”
I blush, but I hold her gaze.
“We didn’t come here for advice. We can watch Oprah for that. We came to find out Dax’s location. My team assured me you have the answers, but maybe you don’t. Maybe it’s all smoke and mirrors. Maybe you can’t deliver what we really want, so you’re looking for an easier option.”
Quinn gives a look that makes me want to undo the last few minutes, but I’m committed now.
“Oh, I can deliver. Make no mistake about that. But are you willing to pay the price? Are you willing to give up the thing that matters to you the most?”
“Yes,” I say without hesitation, looking her straight in the eye.
She doesn’t know everything then. She doesn’t know I already did that the moment I walked away from Kane in Pest’s lab.
Valerie turns back to Quinn.
“Okay then. Here’s the deal. I’ll tell you where your boy Dax is. But first, I need something from you. And because this is a team effort, it won’t be one thing. It’ll be three.”
“We’re listening,” Quinn says.
“The first thing is a tail feather from the Gardu bird.”
“But… but that’s impossible. The Gardu bird is extinct,” Quinn says.
“What’s a Gardu bird?” I ask.
I mentally kick myself when Quinn gives me another look, but I need to know exactly what we’re getting ourselve
s into.
“It’s a bird that eats shadows,” Regal explains. “If it gets your shadow, you’re dead. But if you can get a tail feather from the bird without it getting you, it grants you immortality for as long as you hold onto it. The bird is blind, so in theory, it should be easy enough to get its tail feathers. But its hearing is wicked sharp, and it’s damn good at hiding. But none of that matters, because like Quinn said, it’s been extinct for years.”
“Actually, that’s a common misconception,” Valerie breaks in. “The Gardu bird is a lot less common than it once was, that much is true. Years ago, a coven of witches decided that they wanted immortality for themselves. They enchanted the Gardu birds, forcing them all to flock to one place. It’s a small island off the coast of Italy. There’s only half a dozen left alive, but that’s where you’ll find them.”
“Wait, how is that our heart’s desire? What’s the catch?”
“There is no catch. I’ve wanted a Gardu feather for years, but I’m not willing to risk having my shadow eaten. You see, death is another misconception around the bird. If it eats your shadow, you don’t die as such. You remain forever trapped in your worst nightmare.”
Her words bring back a flash of memory of Kane’s Wave, and I shudder. I can’t imagine being trapped in my worst nightmare for the rest of eternity, but it sounds like it’s a risk we’re going to have to take.
“And if we fail?” Quinn says.
“Then you don’t get Dax’s location. No second chances. And you will have only twenty-four hours in which to complete the mission.”
We exchange glances. It sounds crazy. But I really think we can pull it off.
“Okay. So, assuming we get you the feather. What comes next?” Remy asks.
Valerie throws her head back and sounds out her ridiculously loud laugh again.
“Let’s call it a surprise,” she says.
“You mean you expect us to make a deal with you where we don’t even know the full terms?” Perry asks.
“Yup,” Valerie clarifies.
“And why would we do that?”
“Because when you’re desperate enough for information that you come to a fairy, you’re desperate enough to make the deal.”