My rightful home … Just the thought made me want to retch out the bile coming up my throat.
I didn’t know what to think. I was angry, depressed, and confused all at the same time. I couldn’t say which emotion was winning in the race for dominance. Questions and thoughts spun through my head as I tried to recall everything Luce had told me, as I tried to piece it together and make some sort of coherent story out of it. But, really, before I could even hope to do that, I had to accept his words as true, and that’s where I was having a tough time. Yes, I could tell Rand still doubted, but I knew I had to make this decision for myself.
Could everything that Luce told us be true? That was the one-million-dollar question. Granted, I was sure that parts of his story had been fabricated, other parts skipped, and still others completely exaggerated. But I couldn’t help walking away with the feeling that it was essentially true. Bryn really was my fraternal twin sister, and we had been born from fae and Elemental parents. Most important, the Lurkers didn’t want to hurt me, they only wanted to claim me as one of their own.
What did I think about the whole twin sister thing? I couldn’t really say. I mean, from the moment I met Bryn, I’d had the uncanny feeling that she and I were somehow connected. My reaction to her had hinted at intimacy, a mutual understanding. But at the same time it was hard to get the warm and fuzzies when it was obvious that Bryn hated me and, worse, she was a Lurker, and thus my enemy. It was almost like this bitter twist of fate had been designed to test my sanity and my ability to cope.
The one thing helping me to hang on was that Rand finally knew where I was, and I knew he was working on rescuing me. But as I thought about it, doubt began to churn in my stomach. I had to ask myself if I really believed that Luce would announce the location of this Lurker camp so readily, and so quickly. Then I felt a stronger surge of doubt: Rand’s.
Jolie, his voice suddenly sounded in my head.
Rand, this isn’t safe, I barked back at him as I stood up and closed the blinds in the living room. I felt as if Lurker spies could see into my mind as easily as they could see into the living room. Someone could be listening.
I could sense his dilemma. We have no other choice. I can’t communicate through our bond, although I have tried.
Quickly then, I answered him, already afraid that we were being overheard.
Luce lied to you, Jolie. You aren’t in Tennessee and you aren’t in the Smoky Mountains.
My anger overwhelmed me. It was now more apparent than ever before that I couldn’t trust Luce—he was no good. How do you know?
Mercedes was able to perform a Liar’s Circle on Luce.
How?
Our bond is strong enough, Jolie, that she was able to use me as a link to you and Luce.
Wow, I thought, my eyes reaching for the ceiling.
At any rate, the Liar’s Circle revealed that what Luce told you about your location was a lie.
Anger burned in my throat again. Then where am I?
I felt more doubt flowing through me, followed by a sense of helplessness, worry, and determination. We don’t know yet, but I promise we are working on it night and day. There’s just too much magic buffering wherever you are—it’s basically impenetrable.
So what do we do now? I asked him, the hopelessness of the situation hitting me hard.
He was quiet for a few seconds and then I heard him sigh. We continue to try to figure out where you are, and as soon as we do, I’m coming for you … we’re coming for you. He paused for a few seconds as more fierce resolve flowed through me. We’re coming for everyone.
Then there would be a battle! I kept my realization to myself, not wanting to broach the topic over the insecure line. I felt worry saturating my gut—my own. Rand was too busy dealing with his own anger. Nausea worked its way up my throat and I had to magick it away.
I have tarried long enough, and if it’s true that someone is listening, we aren’t safe discussing this any longer, Rand finished.
I nodded and resigned myself to doing everything I could to find out where the heck we were. I was going to continue to give Rand as much information about this hellish place as I could through our bond.
Jolie, just focus on yourself, focus on your own safety and protection, he continued. Whatever choices you make, make them solely on that basis. He sighed, long and hard. I will get you out of there soon.
I love you, Rand. I thought the words and automatically felt an answering of adoration well up inside of me. But while the feelings elated me, I felt tears prick behind my eyes. No one had a clue where I was, and escape seemed impossible, such an improbable feat. But I couldn’t allow myself the luxury of moping. I had to be strong—I had to try to figure my own way out of here in case Rand and Mercedes couldn’t locate me.
Jolie, don’t give up, I told myself resolutely.
And for the first time in a long time, I felt my other side agree. No, I will never give up.
There was a knock on the front door, and worry immediately suffused me—Rand’s. I tried to calm him down, but it wasn’t any good. Strangely enough, as soon as I pulled open the door and found Bryn standing before me, his worry subsided, and I had to admit, mine did too.
“I—” she started, and clamped a hand over the back of her neck, appearing restless and frustrated. “We need to talk,” she finished, then pushed past me, showing herself into my house.
“Okay,” I said, closing the door behind us. When I turned around, I noticed that she’d already made herself comfortable on my couch.
“You should sit,” she said, and motioned to the chair just beside her.
I said nothing. I just took a seat and faced her, faced my sister.
“I’m sure this is as much of a surprise to you as it is to me,” she started, and then shook her head, almost angrily. “Surprise doesn’t begin to cover it.”
“Yeah, I’d say this is one of the bigger shocks of my life.”
She nodded. “I … uh, I’m not good with this sort of stuff,” she started.
“What, being nice?” I asked, and then laughed, helpless to resist the fact that I desperately wanted to reach out to her, to be close to her, to understand our sisterly bond. But as soon as those feelings suffused me, I had to remind myself that she was first and foremost a Lurker.
“I’m sorry about the circumstances,” she said. “I’m sure it was pretty crappy to find out that your mother wasn’t your real one.”
“And what about your mother?” I asked, realizing I hadn’t even tried to put myself in her shoes.
“I have always been told that my mother died in childbirth, like what Luce told us. Only I wasn’t aware that she was fae. I thought both she and my father were Elementals.”
I nodded, silently appreciative of the fact that she and I were even having this discussion. It was suddenly clear to me that Bryn had to be interested in getting to know me better too, which was probably the reason for this visit. “And what did Luce tell you about your father?”
She sighed deeply, running her hands through her hair as she shook her head in obvious frustration. “That he’d died shortly after my mother did and Luce also believed my father’s death was at the hands of your people.”
I immediately wanted to change the subject. The best course to maintain the friendliness between the two of us was to steer clear of anything that would serve as a reminder that we were technically enemies. “I know what Luce has planned for us.”
She glanced at me and quirked a brow, interested. “Go on.”
“I reanimated one of your dead Daywalkers,” I said flatly, watching her as her eyes narrowed and disbelief pasted itself across her face.
“You did what?”
I shrugged. “It’s my gift. Just as you can heal people and eavesdrop on their thoughts, I can reanimate the dead.”
Her eyes went wide and she studied me suspiciously. “I’ve never even thought that was possible.”
I grinned and raised my brows. “If you don’t
believe me, ask Luce.” She frowned and then simply nodded, saying nothing. “ ‘There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy,’ ” I said, quoting Hamlet, the very words Rand had uttered to me in the first few days of our acquaintance, when I’d doubted the fact that I was a witch. I was suddenly overcome with a feeling of longing and homesickness. I yearned to see Rand in the flesh, to feel his strong arms around me and to rest my head against the warmth of his chest. But I pushed the feelings down. Now wasn’t the time.
“Nice,” she said with a small laugh that sounded sad more than anything else.
“Luce believes that together you and I will be strong enough to heal the Daywalkers, to reanimate them and free them of their disease.”
She nodded, but didn’t seem surprised. A second or two later a familiar expression of suspicion closed over her face and she regarded me snidely. “And you expect me to believe that you’ll willingly go along with this?” She laughed cynically. “I know you still consider yourself one of them.”
I nodded, unable to deny the truth in her words. If there was one thing I felt I could rely on about Bryn, it was her honesty. She didn’t seem to possess Luce’s gift of bullshit. Instead she respected only the truth—plain, sterile facts. As strange as it seemed, I suddenly thought that Rand would respect Bryn; they appeared to be cut from the same cloth, only from two completely different colors. But anyway, I was sure that trying to pull a fast one on Bryn would be a waste of time and, moreover, I didn’t want to disrespect her by even attempting it. And so I decided to be truthful with her. “I’m just trying to survive.”
She nodded and glanced down at her hands, spreading her fingers wide and then scrunching them into fists again. When she faced me, she nodded again. “That’s the best thing you can do. As I mentioned earlier, you should do exactly what Luce tells you. I’m sure you think he’s this helpless, old, silly man, but he isn’t. He’s powerful. More powerful than you can ever imagine, and what’s more, he’s smart and driven. He has an agenda.”
It seemed she was warning me, because she didn’t want to see anything bad happen to me. Or maybe I was just extrapolating. Either way, I recognized that I had an opportunity here. Maybe I could ask my sister some of the questions that were still pounding through my mind. Whether she would answer them was anyone’s guess. But if I didn’t try, I’d never know, right?
I took a deep breath and for the next couple of seconds we just looked at each other, neither of us saying anything. I broke the silence. “How many of you are there?”
Bryn glanced at me and smiled knowingly, like she was completely on to me. “Pass.” It was her turn to inhale deeply. “Is there a King of your people too, or are you the only monarch?”
I was quiet for a few seconds, but then I realized I’d have to hand over information if I expected to get any in return. “Just me.” She nodded and narrowed her eyes as if to say, Well? It’s your turn. “How does one become an Elemental or a Daywalker?”
“Elementals are either born from Elemental parents or humans can become Elementals through a ceremony of magic. True Elemental power only comes with age.”
I frowned. “You’re only thirty.”
She nodded and smiled smugly, crossing her arms against her chest as she leaned back into the pillows of the sofa. “I’m considered an enigma … as I’m sure you are.”
I nodded, unable to argue with her. “And the Daywalkers?”
“Daywalkers are born that way, through the union of two Daywalkers.”
I tapped my fingers against my knee as I digested the information. “So Daywalkers can’t turn humans like vampires can?”
Bryn frowned and eyed me. “Daywalkers and vampires have absolutely nothing in common. It’s like comparing a spaniel to a wolf.”
I laughed, I couldn’t help it. “Is that the only comparison you guys know in this place or what?”
She started to frown, but the frown slowly gave way to a smile and then a laugh. “You want to know what’s the funniest part about that?”
“Sure,” I said, feeling myself drawn to her. I really wanted to like her. I mean, she was the only blood family I had left. And what was more, she was likable. She was strong-willed and opinionated, yes, but she was also funny, and I was beginning to see a more sensitive side to her.
“Luce says that bit about the spaniel and the wolf all the damn time and it drives me nuts!” She laughed and shook her head. “I can’t believe I actually stole it.”
“I can see how it would get on your nerves,” I offered.
She stopped laughing, but the smile was still etched on her lips. “So anyway, no, Daywalkers can’t turn humans. The only way to create another one is through a Daywalker and Daywalker union.”
“Not an Elemental and a Daywalker union?” I specified.
She shook her head. “We have strict rules that disallow us from procreating with one another. We keep our lines strictly separate, otherwise our powers would be highly weakened.”
My eyes reached for the ceiling as surprise echoed through me. I wasn’t sure why I was surprised, but I was nonetheless. The Lurker way of living was just so foreign to my own. “Luce said it was rare for Elementals to birth males?” I said, broaching the next question on my mind.
“It’s my turn,” Bryn interrupted, and I merely nodded, realizing she was right. “Does the prophetess actually exist?”
I swallowed hard, not wanting to answer this question. In the back of my mind I could feel Rand affirming the notion. I hadn’t realized he was still with me, and knowing he was still there caused a sense of warmth and happiness to crawl through me. I felt much less alone.
Bryn started laughing, and I glanced up at her in surprise. “Your expression was response enough,” she admitted, and then nodded. “Interesting.”
Irritated at my inability to hide my emotions, I turned to the next question on my list. “So are Elementals born of Elemental parents stronger than humans who are turned into Elementals?”
She nodded again and started playing with her hair and shaking her knee as if she had trouble sitting still. It seemed Bryn was one of those people who was overflowing with energy and constantly needed an outlet. “Humans who become Elementals by way of magic are the least powerful of our kind. Males who are born of Elemental parents are the most powerful, but as Luce told you, they rarely survive.”
“How many purebred male Elementals are there?”
She shook her head and stopped playing with her hair. “Pass.”
“Are you planning on waging a war against my people?” I asked, my voice tight.
She was quiet for a few seconds and her eyes were hollow, her lips tight. “I think you already know the answer to that one.”
I was consumed with thoughts after Bryn left, and I didn’t know what to focus on. Realizing that I was also exhausted, I opted for bed. I decided to give my brain the hiatus it so desperately needed so I could conserve my strength for the next day. I exhaled a long breath and started for my bedroom, still feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. What would tomorrow bring? While I was eager to learn more about Bryn’s history and my own, I was nevertheless wary about the source of the information. I wondered how much Luce was coloring the truth, how he was using it to suit his own ulterior motives.
I closed the bedroom door behind me, pulled off the white sweatshirt Bryn had given me, then took off the equally nondescript white T-shirt and the blue pants, which reminded me of hospital scrubs. I piled them neatly over the back of the chair and stared at myself in the mirror. I was wearing only my bra and underwear. I turned to check out my profile and noticed I really didn’t look pregnant at all. As soon as the thought entered my head, I felt a bout of nausea again. It was like the baby was reminding me she was most definitely there with me. I smiled as I magicked the nausea away, still studying myself. No, I didn’t look any bigger. In fact, my stomach looked flatter than it usually did, and overall it appeared that I’d lost at least five
pounds. That didn’t surprise me, considering the fact that I hadn’t been eating much lately. ’Course, the stress alone had probably caused the weight loss.
I have to be better about dealing with this stress, I thought to myself. For the baby’s sake, I had to stay as healthy and worry-free as I could. It was a monumental task that I had no idea how to accomplish.
Just take everything one step at a time, I advised myself.
I turned from the mirror and walked over to the bed. I was about to settle myself in for the night when I had the sudden and distinct feeling that I wasn’t alone. I felt the tiny hairs on the back of my neck stand at attention. Something wasn’t right—it was an instinctual response and one I’d learned not to ignore.
Before I could take another breath, I heard a swoosh, interrupting the otherwise still air, and felt someone appear just behind me, pulling me into him as he cupped my mouth. I began struggling against him until his scent bathed me in its spicy male cleanness. I stopped my struggle and felt relief flood through my mind and body.
“Poppet, do not scream,” Sinjin said.
“Sinjin,” I breathed when he pulled his hand away from my mouth. I gripped each of his arms and hugged myself with them, grateful to feel his presence behind me. I didn’t even care that I was basically naked because my response wasn’t sexual. It was pure joy. I spun myself around and threw my arms around his middle, pressing my head into his chest as I hugged him. I could feel his surprise at first, but moments later he wrapped his arms around me in return.
Then I looked up at him with shock in my eyes. “Sinjin … how did you—” I started.
“I tracked you, love,” he responded with that devilish smile I adored. He was dressed all in black, as always, and he blended in with the night, indistinguishable from the shadows.
“You tracked me?” I repeated in a whisper, suddenly afraid that my quarters might be bugged.
Sinjin smiled at me again, and all the stress that had been building inside of me dissolved. It was strange because I recognized our precarious position, but there was something about Sinjin’s easy coolness that absolved any panic. I took his hand and squeezed it as I smiled at him, so incredibly happy to see him, and to know he was okay.
Something Witchy This Way Comes: A Jolie Wilkins Novel Page 19