“We’re going into that?” I whispered.
“Yes,” Finn said. “No fairy travels into the Mist intentionally, and glamour can’t be used there. Imagine us without magic?”
Sidelle shuddered.
“How are we going to get to the other side?” I asked.
“We’ll fly,” Sidelle said. “Our wings still work because they’re a part of us. They’re not glamour.”
“Does Angel Light work, K?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been in the Mist before.”
When Sidelle, Finn, Kieran, and Shay all opened their wings, it was like I was standing next to a green, blue, gold, and silver rainbow. The fairies’ wings were different from those of the angels’; they were smaller and iridescent, but each of my friends’ wings was beautiful in their own unique way.
Shay stood behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Ready?”
I couldn’t help beaming with anticipation. I leaned my head back against his muscular chest, pressed my hands over his, and stepped onto his boots. Closing my eyes, I remembered the first time he’d taken me flying the night I met him, and what a thrill it had been.
“I’m ready whenever you are,” I said.
He whispered softly into my ear. “We’re already moving, Zoe.”
I hadn’t sensed him taking off, but now I could feel the wind his wings created, moving my hair against my face. I opened my eyes, looked down, and gasped. Heights never scared me, but staring directly into the misty pit did make my stomach heave.
“It’s okay,” Shay said, tightening his grip. “I’ve got you.”
“I know you do.” I turned my head and placed a kiss on his cheek.
From the corner of my eye, I spotted Kieran and Finn behind us. Behind them, Sidelle carried Vash the same way Shay carried me. I peeked over at Vash’s face and gaped. His eyes were unnaturally wide, showing only a faint sliver of white. His arms floundered, forcing Sidelle to hold him tight against her body.
“Stop moving!” she yelled at him. “I’ll drop you if you keep squirming.”
“I was never meant to fly, Sidelle. Wolves like their paws on the ground.”
“Puppy.”
With a soft thud, she landed on the other side of the canyon. Shay set me down but didn’t release me from his arms.
“Remember?” he whispered.
“Yes,” I breathed. “I was thinking about that as we crossed.”
Sidelle snickered. “Get a room, you two. Sheesh. Even in the gray and dreary Mist, you can’t keep your hands to yourselves.”
“Be on your guard,” Finn said, sobering us. “We don’t know what’s out here.” He turned to Kieran. “Maybe you should see if your Angel Light works, just in case we need to see or something.”
“Good idea.” Kieran cupped his hands, and a white light appeared. He opened his palms, and it intensified. “Looks like it works.”
“Nice to know. I bet whatever else you can do will also work here.”
Vash, no longer in human form, shook like a wet dog then trotted ahead of us.
“I guess he doesn’t like flying,” I said.
“Or maybe,” Sidelle said with a smirk, “it scared the fur right off him, and he’s getting back to his inner self.”
I turned to Finn. “So, if no fairies ever come into the Mist, how do you know where it is?”
“I’ve heard rumors.”
“Hold up.” Sidelle stopped walking. “We’re going based on a rumor? Isn’t that a little, oh, I don’t know ... dumb? I mean, if you know of another one, and you know exactly where that one is, shouldn’t we be going there instead?”
“This one’s safer, trust me.”
“But we could walk in circles or never find it.” I shook my head. “How’re we going to find our way back if this doesn’t pan out?”
“I don’t think you have to worry about that, Zoe,” Shay said, pointing ahead of us.
As Vash passed through the trees, he rubbed his body on the bark, leaving a scent. He’d stop, sniff, then trot farther ahead and repeat.
“He’s marking the way for us.”
“Maybe it’s a good thing he came with,” Sidelle said with a shrug. “I guess puppies do have a use after all.”
Vash growled as if to say, “I heard that.”
The perpetual gray atmosphere weighed heavily on me, and I doubted myself more with every step. How could a seventeen-year-old girl save the world when she didn’t even have a license to drive? How could someone as good-looking as Kieran be my best friend? How could a plain-looking, average girl snag a gorgeous boyfriend like Shay? The answer? She couldn’t. My pace slowed as the questions swirled in my brain. Shay doesn’t love me. How could he when he looks the way he does, and I’m ... this? I dropped his hand.
“Zoe?” Shay asked, frowning. “What’s wrong?”
“Stay away from me.” I took a step back and folded my arms, sulking. “You’re lying when you say ‘I love you.’”
Sidelle turned back and stared at me. When I wouldn’t say anything more, she crossed her arms as well. “What’s gotten into her?”
“I don’t know,” Shay said. “She just started talking nonsense.”
“So now I don’t talk about anything important?” I yelled. “See? Just proves you don’t love me, since you apparently think I don’t have anything worthwhile to say.”
“Zoe?” Kieran stepped in as he always did and shook my shoulders. “What’s going on with you?”
I practically snarled at him, “Like you wouldn’t love to see Shay and me break up.”
He blinked. “I won’t deny that.”
“Why didn’t you ever ask me out? You had all the time in the world, and you let him beat you to it.”
“Hey, he’s not any better for you,” Shay objected. “I can make you just as happy as an angel could.” He stepped in, shoving Kieran to the side. “Besides, he’d probably try using Persuasion on you.”
Kieran shoved him back, eyes narrowed. “You know Guardian angels don’t have that ability.”
“What the heck is going on with them?” Finn asked.
“Stay out of it,” Sidelle snapped. “This has been a long time coming for them. Plus, it’s not like you know anything about love.”
Finn’s jaw dropped, looking as if she’d just smacked him. “What? I know plenty, Delle.”
Before I knew what was happening, Shay had punched Kieran square in the mouth. Kieran faltered, massaged his chin, then barreled into Shay, taking him to the ground. Fists punched, and legs kicked, but this time it wasn’t the beautiful dance I’d once seen them perform while fighting the demons in the warehouse or at my house.
Then Shay’s Nephilim Sword appeared in his hand, ready to strike. Kieran ducked in time to avoid getting hit in the head. He retaliated and shot Angel Light toward Shay. I watched them fight, doing nothing to interfere. Sidelle and Finn stood off to the side, no longer talking to each other. Vash hurried to my side and nuzzled my leg. “Zoe?”
“What? Have you come to pick on me now, too?”
“No. What’s wrong with them? Why is everyone fighting?”
“Like I have any idea.”
My sharp tone caused Vash to step back. “Zoe, this isn’t like any of you. Something is messing with your minds. It’s creating doubt, heightening fears.”
A sharp pain pricked the meaty flesh near my thumb, and I glanced down. A tiny stream of blood oozed out of my skin.
“You mangy dog. You bit me!” I stared at the tiny red river making its way into the center of my palm. I shook my head, and suddenly some kind of curtain opened in front of my eyes, and all was better in my mind again. “Wait. What’s happening?”
“I think it’s something to do with the Mist. It’s making everyone crazy. I had to shock you out of it.”
“But why not you?”
“Maybe because I’m in my natural form.”
I nodded. “Go help the others.”
While Vash nipped a
t the rest of our friends, snapping them out of whatever strange hold the Mist had on us, I sat on a boulder and looked around, searching for something different from the endless gray. Out of the corner of my eye, something shimmered. I rose to my feet and went to stand under a willow tree. Its branches bobbed and danced, though there wasn’t even a slight breeze. One by one, my friends stood by my side. No apologies were said; there was no need for them. We understood it hadn’t really been us saying those awful things.
“Why are we here?” Shay asked, looking up and down at the willow tree.
I held my palms up; a strange tingle danced across them. “I think this is what we’re looking for.” I said. “Can you feel the energy?”
“She’s right,” Sidelle said, eyes wide. “It pulses with a force that dwarfs my glamour.”
Without thinking, I reached for one of the lowest branches, wanting to feel its power, but Shay pulled me from my trance-like state.
“Don’t.”
“This is definitely it,” Finn said. “The leaves’ coloring isn’t right. There’s something off about it. And with our odd behavior ... yes, I’d say this is definitely the place.”
“I don’t know where this porta will take us,” Sidelle said, “but we should link hands and touch it together, so we don’t get separated.” She took my hand, and I grabbed Shay’s. The rest followed until we had our fingers locked, and we stood in a loose circle around the trunk. The last two of us grabbed a healthy handful of Vash’s fur. “So. You’ll get the same free-falling feeling as before. Are you ready? Finn? Do you want to or should I?”
“I’m not going with you. I agreed to get you to a porta, so I have. I didn’t know you wanted me to come.” He stepped back, out of Kieran’s reach. “You guys go before I change my mind.”
I looked at Sidelle. Her typical cheery expression had grown somber. “Fine, if that’s what you wish.”
“Can’t he come with us?” I whispered, squeezing Sidelle’s hand.
She sighed, obviously battling with her emotions. After a moment she gestured with her chin toward Finn. “Whatevs. Just get over here, would ya?”
She waved him forward, and after only a slight hesitation, he joined us and linked hands with Kieran. With his free hand, Finn reached for the odd-colored green leaves—but nothing happened. I didn’t get the sinking feeling, and the landscape was still in front of us.
“But I thought it was the porta.” Sidelle slumped. “It has to be. I can feel it. It’s just like the one in the field in Summer, right, Finn?”
He frowned. “Yes, but something’s different about this one. It’s like the porta is closed to this side and—”
A horrific sound shot into the sky, like thunder, only much louder. The draping arms of the tree parted and out stepped more than two dozen demon knights and Marqs. Vash charged the closest Marq, fangs bared, Shay brought forth his Sword, Kieran readied his Angel Light, and Sidelle and Finn called their glamour before remembering it didn’t work in the Mist. I summoned my Light as we backed away. Shay sliced the first few DKs who ran in his direction. He grabbed my hand and tugged me away from the action.
“Stay here.”
“Oh, no,” I said, yanking my hand out of his grasp. “We’re not having that discussion again, Shay. I’ve learned a lot since you were gone. I can handle myself.” To demonstrate, I shot a ray of purple Light toward an advancing DK, and it burned a hole into his chest, right where his heart would have been. The DK dropped like a sack of potatoes. “See?”
One corner of his smile curled up. “I stand corrected. Okay.”
Evidently, he didn’t believe me. “Look, I remember how it was at my house. You three could barely contain the dozen Marqs. You need my help, and I’m gonna give it whether you like it or not. Now go kill a few demons before I do it all myself.”
He smiled and did as I requested, running back into the fray with his sword swinging in all directions. Sidelle and Finn tag-teamed as much as they could, but without their glamour, they were useless against the Marqs. Over the centuries, Sidelle had obviously picked up some fighting skills, because I watched her neatly dropkick the nearest DK. Unfortunately, he was back up and gunning for her within seconds. But she was relentless, issuing kick after kick, punch after punch. Eventually, the DKs went down but not quickly enough. We needed to end this and fast. Vash couldn’t take on this many Marqs on his own. Yes, some of the Alpha’s strength had passed to him from his father, but it wasn’t enough to allow him to kill two dozen of them by himself.
Kieran’s Light shot across the area, finding its mark, and wrapping around one of the Marqs. I watched for another second then joined him. Gathering as much Light as I could, I watched Sidelle and Finn run past me and an idea hit. Just because their glamour didn’t work in the mist, didn’t mean I couldn’t draw from it. I found her green spark and his blue one, and when I merged them with mine, I felt stronger. A dark violet Light overpowered everything, and I used my mind to extend and retract the wall. When Shay screamed in pain bringing me back to the fight, I refocused on him and my other friends.
The orb wavered and then blew out like an explosion, shoving me and the fairies backward. The blast radius managed to take out half of dozen of the Marqs, but it still wasn’t enough.
“We can’t fight this many,” Kieran yelled. “We have to retreat!”
My Light was fading quickly. I wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer. Fatigue overpowered my body, and I could feel my legs giving way. Someone grabbed me under my arms and dragged me back, away from the fighting. I felt a warm body carrying me. The sounds around me grew quieter, and my vision dimmed.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Zoe
It was Shay who carried me away from the battle, leaving Kieran and Vash to hold off the enemy for a few more seconds, so we could get a head start. After hiding, dodging, and trying to outsmart and outrun our pursuers for what seemed like an eternity, we finally stopped to breathe.
“So we try the one in Winter now?” I panted.
“Yes,” Finn said. “It won’t be guarded.”
“And you know this for sure ... how?” Sidelle asked.
“Because no one knows about it besides the Queen.”
“And you.”
Finn nodded but didn’t say anything more. He continued to walk.
“How come we didn’t go there first?” I asked, but I didn’t get an answer.
After a few more hours passed, we finally stopped to rest and to find shelter. We were weary from the demon attack, and I was hungry. I imagined Shay and Vash were, too, but neither said anything. After Sidelle went to look for a place to hole up for the approaching night, I huddled next to Shay and fell asleep in his warm arms.
When I awoke, it was pitch black. My body jerked with panic.
“Shh, Zoe,” Shay said. “It’s okay. You’re safe. We’re in a cave. We didn’t want to use any glamour for light, just in case the demons were tracking us.”
I nuzzled into him. “Okay.”
“Go back to sleep. I’ll wake you when we’re ready to leave.”
The next morning we started back on our trek to find the Winter porta. At some point when the sun was high in the sky, we stopped, noticing how the landscape changed up ahead, transforming into a wintery land. Ice crystals hung from every tree, and a blanket of sparkling snow covered everything. Gray mountains dotted the horizon.
Sidelle looked back at Finn and nodded. He stepped closer to the invisible border—though perhaps it wasn’t invisible after all.
“We’ll need winter coats, boots, hats, and all that, Finn,” Sidelle said. “And anything else the boys can carry in backpacks, like sleeping bags and blankets. That sort of stuff. Can you manage that?”
“Yes.”
With a wave of Finn’s hands, a snowstorm started to brew all around him, engulfing him until we could no longer see him. All of a sudden his arm shot out, and he motioned for us to step out of Summer and come closer to him. We glanced at eac
h other, then at Sidelle, who nodded with determination. Taking the cue, I stepped out first. As soon as the first snowflake fell onto my head, I was covered in a hat, a scarf, a knee-length down jacket, and warm boots. Everything was in varying shades of dark blue. The outfit was nicer than any I’d had back home, and I appreciated Finn’s good taste in clothes. One by one, my friends emerged, decked out in dark blue winter gear. And just like that, the snowstorm stopped.
“Okay,” Finn said. “We should get started. It’ll be sundown soon, and we want to make it to Winter’s Pass before then. It’s just beyond that ridge.”
We stepped in line behind Finn, trudging through the snow, single file.
“Yeah, fine,” Sidelle said, walking right in front of me. “But can’t we just use our glamour to get there?”
“No. Mab would know, and we don’t want that. Not if we’re going to ...” He hesitated.
“Exactly where are we going?” she asked. “Where is the secret porta, anyway?”
“Um ... inside the castle.”
Sidelle froze. She stopped so suddenly I walked into her back. “Um, Finn? Did you just say the castle? You couldn’t have told us—me— sooner? How the heck are we going to get five of us into the castle and go unnoticed?”
“I haven’t thought that far ahead,” he muttered. “Come on. Keep going.”
“Can’t we go back to Summer and get Oberon to help get us out?” I asked.
“We’re closer to Winter now, and we’d waste more time backtracking,” Finn said.
“Should’ve told us that earlier,” Sidelle mumbled.
We were headed toward Aesculus, home of the Winter castle. From Sidelle’s reaction that was a bad thing. I didn’t know how long it would take for us to get there, or what we would find once we did. I couldn’t even be sure Finn wasn’t leading us into a trap. How could have it come to this?
“Um, can one of you tell me what’s with the castle?” I asked.
“It’s where Queen Mab lives. She’s the ruler of Winter,” Sidelle replied grimly.
Finn slowed his walk to keep pace with mine. “It’s where I live, too.”
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