by Bea Paige
“Where are we going?” Ezra asks for the hundredth time. I’ve been ignoring him until now.
I feel his eyes boring into the back of my head but refrain from looking at him, concentrating instead on the steady stream of traffic in front of me.
“To visit a good friend of mine. We’re almost there,” I say eventually.
“Almost where exactly?” Ezra snaps.
“Does it matter? I’m here, aren’t I?” I snap back, on the verge of tears.
He doesn’t mean it, Accacia. Ezra is only concerned for your safety, Devin says silently.
He could have fooled me, I reply, blinking back the tears that are threatening to spill.
“Will your friend be there?” Rhain asks, changing the subject.
I swallow a shaky breath. “I sure hope so, otherwise we’ll be sleeping in one of her greenhouses.”
“What is a greenhouse?”
I glimpse in the rear-view mirror at Rhain. He catches my eye and I feel a bolt of desire pierce my chest. My foot jerks on the accelerator and the car speeds forward. I would have hit the car in front had Devin not pulled on the steering wheel.
“Thanks,” I mutter.
“Rhain asked you a question,” Ezra snarls. Had I not been driving I think I would have smacked him in the face for being such an arsehole. Does he not see how difficult this is for me?
“If you must know,” I snap, unable to keep the anger from my voice, “a greenhouse is a place used to grow plants. It is made up entirely of windows to maximise the sun and the heat. Most plants grow well inside of them. My friend, Clover, is an arborist, she studies how plants grow. Her greenhouses are filled with hundreds of different species of plants from her travels all over the world. Her place is beautiful, but more importantly it’s the only place I could think of going to at such short notice.”
“We should have returned to Ever Vale. It would have been far safer. You are putting everyone at risk. It is selfish,” Ezra says, his voice cold and harsh.
“I’m selfish? You’ve got a bloody cheek,” I rage. This time, in my haste to get to Clover’s house, I purposefully step on the accelerator. In less than a minute we will have arrived and I’ll be able to escape from them all.
“Yes, that is what I said.”
I glare at Ezra in the rear-view mirror. “My whole existence has been turned upside down. In just two days, I’ve met you three sodding vampires, been attacked by a colleague twice, almost raped and tortured, drugged, burnt, bombarded with a desire that I don’t wish to feel because of some stupid Claiming that I don’t understand, almost killed again by some half-wolf, half-human hybrid, been faced with a real-life wolf-shifter and made to leave my home, and I’m the one who’s selfish.” I swerve into the part-hidden entrance to Clover’s house, almost missing it in my anger, and drive down the dirt track. I continue my tirade. Ezra has the good grace to remain silent. “Oh, and don’t let me forget the bit about the fact that my whole life has been a lie, that I am in fact the missing daughter of Clan Lux, where some demented queen wishes me dead for something I had no control over, given I was a damn baby when it happened!” I slam on the brakes just as I pull up outside Clover’s house and jump out of the car, storming off to the front door. Rhain follows me.
“Cia, don’t listen to Ezra right now. He’s not himself,” Rhain says, touching me on the shoulder.
“I don’t care. He’s an arsehole. I had to leave my home, damn it!” I turn from Rhain, not able to stand his touch either.
“What you said, about being bombarded with desire…” he stops, uncertain how to continue. I wait, not in the mood to try and make him feel better.
“I am sorry about the Claiming. Where I come from, it is welcomed. It is one of our most revered customs because of its rarity. Yes, there is attraction between clan members, but the Claiming is something altogether different.”
“Well, I grew up here and this kind of thing just doesn’t happen,” I say, absentmindedly pressing a palm against my chest and the desire burning there.
Devin approaches with Mr Tickle, who is sleeping soundly in his cat basket. I feel my out of control emotions dissipate in his presence, the relief is immediate.
“Is your friend home? All the lights are out,” he says.
“She didn’t say anything about going away.” I knock on the front door only to find it is open. That’s odd. It isn’t like Clover to keep the front door off the latch. I move to step inside but Rhain stands in front of me.
“Hold on, let me go first.”
“Fine, but I’m going in too. Clover is my friend and if she’s in there, you’re going to scare the crap out of her, just waltzing in all mysterious and broody with those teeth…” I say, my cheeks colouring at the look he is giving me.
“Then you had better follow me,” he says, stepping into the darkened hallway.
Devin places Mr Tickle on the porch and holds open the door. “After you.”
I glance over at the car to see if Ezra is coming too, but he’s nowhere to be seen. I find that I am glad.
Inside the house it is eerily quiet and I feel a sudden sense of foreboding. Waving Rhain and Ezra over, I point to the back of the house where Clover’s kitchen is situated. That is where she spends most of her time. If she is anywhere at this time of night, it is there. Her kitchen opens out onto the back of her property and there is a short walk across the back lawn to her largest greenhouse.
We move through into the kitchen. There is a half-drunk cup of tea on the table, stone cold and growing fur. I crinkle my nose.
“It doesn’t look like she’s been around for a while. When was the last time you spoke to her?” Rhain asks.
“A couple of weeks ago, I think. We usually call each other once a week, but we’ve both been busy with work. I should have called her Thursday evening, but I’ve been a bit distracted these past couple days. God, I hope she’s okay.” I bite my lip as a thread of worry weaves through my gut. She is my oldest and dearest friend and my only playmate while growing up until she moved away to this farm at fifteen.
“I’ll check the rest of the house. It might be best if you check outside,” Devin says. “Don’t worry, Accacia, I’m sure she’s fine.”
I press my lips into a hard line. I hope so, Devin, I say, and he squeezes my hand before leaving me alone with Rhain.
“Follow me,” I say, and walk outside before he can say a word.
Chapter Seventeen
Rhain and I check the nearest greenhouse and after finding no trace of Clover, make our way to the next one. The second greenhouse is smaller by half and situated nearer the edge of the forest that runs parallel to her land. This is where she nurtures her seeds into saplings.
Rhain is quiet, not attempting to talk to me, and I’m glad of it. Just being here with him is taking its toll. Sure, I can feel the gentle warmth of Devin’s presence in my head and without it I am certain that I would have done something thoroughly stupid by now, but the low hum of desire is still like an itch that I’m finding increasingly difficult not to scratch.
The night air is crisp, and decidedly colder than the last couple of nights and I feel chilled suddenly. Rhain, noticing my discomfort, removes his leather jacket and places it around my shoulders. I try not to breathe his scent in.
“Thanks,” I mutter, sounding entirely ungrateful.
“You’re welcome.”
I glance at him, at the long curls of his dark hair as they graze the length of his chin. I want to look away, but I can’t. My eyes trail down his neck and to the tattoo inked on his arm and I feel the sudden, overwhelming need to touch it. Rhain turns to me and grabs me by the shoulders, the tips of his teeth dropping towards his lower lip.
“Cia, don’t,” he says, stepping forward until we are just a hair’s breadth from each other. “It is getting more and more difficult for me to stop myself. I hear your heart beat faster, your breath hitch. I see your cheeks flush, the way you bite your lip. I know you are under the influenc
e of the Claiming, that you do not wish to feel like this, but I want nothing more than to make love to you and it is killing me. Literally.” He shakes his head and takes a step back. “You may have Devin helping you to dampen your desire, but I have no such help. I have not taken blood since last night and the effects are wearing off. It was a mistake coming out here alone with you.” He turns and walks back to the house and I can’t help but feel disappointed.
Thanks for the help, Devin, I say, wondering why he didn’t dampen my desire this time.
Accacia? Have I missed something? Devin responds, his voice loud inside my head.
Yes, you did. I nearly made a pass at Rhain. Where were you? I accuse.
Apologies, Accacia, I did not feel that…
What? Why? Surely the Binding isn’t running out already?
No… unless.
Unless what? I snap.
Unless the desire you felt was truly your own and not because of the Claiming.
That’s ridiculous, I say.
Is it? And I can hear the smile in Devin’s voice, even though I cannot see him. I’ll go and find Rhain, make sure he’s alright.
Any sign of Clover? I know it’s pointless asking, that he would have told me had he found her, but I ask anyway.
I’m sorry, she’s not here.
I sigh and look up to the dazzling stars above. Where the hell is she?
“You need to make your mind up.”
I spin around to see Ezra watching me. He is leaning against the greenhouse, his arms crossed against his chest.
“Don’t you start as well,” I snap. “It’s not my fault.”
“Apparently nothing is,” he says, glaring at me.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Ezra shrugs. “Nothing, it means absolutely nothing.”
I watch him as he pushes open the door to the greenhouse and steps inside. He’s got a bloody cheek saying things like that to me. I decide to have it out with him and follow him inside.
The moist air is noticeably warmer within the greenhouse, despite it being dark and cold outside. Clover has a special heating system hooked up to ensure that the optimum temperature for growing her saplings is reached at all times, so it shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but it is always so odd entering, as though walking into another world. It’s fascinating, the way she cultivates the plants. The ones in the greenhouse now almost reach the ceiling. There is a variety of different species, none of which I know the name of, but they are tall and leafy green. It’s like a miniature rain forest, smelling of damp earth and all things growing and alive.
I walk further into the greenery to find Ezra staring at three brown pods. They are over six feet tall and look like coconuts, only much larger, more oval shaped and covered with thick vines. Within each of them are more bizarre looking vines that twist and tumble over one another. The pods smell strange too, like human blood mixed with peat. What’s even odder is that the last time I visited Clover a month ago I didn’t notice these strange plants or anything remotely like them growing in the greenhouse.
“What are they?” I ask, not expecting any kind of answer.
“I’ve heard about these,” Ezra says, turning to face me.
“And?” I ask impatiently. The fact that Ezra knows what they are, worries me more than anything else.
“These pods grow in the Forbidden forest of Ever Vale.”
“The Forbidden forest?”
“If I am not mistaken, these are the pods that confine the people of Clan Terra, or at least what were once the people of Clan Terra before Queen Adrielle cast her curse.”
I look from Ezra to the pods and back again. The pods are open, does that mean…?
“It looks like the fae have been here, and if that is the case, Accacia, then there is a big possibility that your friend Clover is a prisoner of the Forbidden forest, or worse, dead.”
“Fae? What are you saying? Why would my friend be dead?” I shout.
“I’m sorry.” Ezra steps towards me but I back away.
“Don’t say that. Never say that.” I can feel my hands tremble as a sudden feeling of nausea rises up in my throat. A moment later I am throwing up again. Ezra makes no move to comfort me, he just waits until I am done.
“I don’t know how these pods got here, Accacia, but I do know that the fae are a race that even Queen Adrielle herself fears. Before the curse, Clan Terra worked the land. They had a gift, their harvests were always bountiful, and they lived happily farming the fertile soil in the eastern plains of Ever Vale.”
“And after the curse?” I ask, my voice shaking.
“They became part of the land they cultivated.” Ezra sighs and I am worried by the look of concern he’s giving me and what that means for Clover.
“How? What do you mean?”
“The moment the curse was cast a forest grew. It took over the eastern plains almost overnight.”
“What’s that got to do with Clan Terra, with these pods, with my friend?”
“We call the people of Clan Terra fae. It means from, they are the forest, Accacia. The curse bound their people to the earth, twisting their love for the land into their prison. I have not laid eyes on anyone from Clan Terra since the curse was cast. Though I have heard the stories, just like everyone else.”
I look agog at Ezra. “What stories?”
“Of people entering the forest, never to be seen again. It is rumoured the forest takes prisoner anyone who dares enter. Even Queen Adrielle will not step foot inside. There is only one person I know of who has entered the forbidden forest and returned to tell the tale. He was the person who told me about these pods and what he believes shelters inside them.”
“Who?”
“Nostra.”
“Queen Adrielle’s brother, the witch?”
“That is correct, Accacia. He will be able to tell you more about the forest and the people of Clan Terra. If anyone knows what has happened to your friend, it is he.” Ezra lays a hand on my arm. “We can talk to him. But it would mean you returning to Ever Vale with us. Like his sister, Nostra cannot come to Earth.”
I glance from the pods, to Ezra. “Do you think the fae took her prisoner?”
“I hope so, because I do not wish the alternative for your friend.”
“Neither do I,” I whisper.
Ezra considers me a moment. “I apologise, Accacia, for my behaviour towards you. I am concerned for my friend as you are for yours. Rhain is suffering. I don’t think he will be able to stand it for much longer. I see the pain he endures by refusing the Claiming. I do not want to see him die. He is a good man.”
I look away from the worry in Ezra’s eyes, not able to bear the pain I see there. Of course, he is concerned for Rhain. That is how I feel about Clover. If someone had the opportunity to save someone I loved but refused to do it, I would react in much the same way. I have the opportunity to save Rhain’s life, is it really that much of a sacrifice to sleep with him? People have sex with strangers every day for enjoyment, I would be doing it for so much more than that.
“Okay,” I say.
Ezra’s eyebrows knit together. “Okay, what?”
“I will partake in the Claiming. On one condition.”
“What condition is that?”
“You take me to the Forbidden forest, and we rescue my friend.”
As Ezra and I make our way back to the house, I feel the rush of Devin’s presence as his thoughts burst into my head.
So, you’ve decided to go ahead with the Claiming.
That’s right.
What changed your mind?
Ezra will explain. Where is Rhain? I ask, nerves filling my belly with what I am about to do.
He has gone to scout the perimeter, make sure there are no unwelcome visitors. Besides, he needs to clear his head.
Will you find him for me? Tell him I’ve changed my mind. That I will help him.
We walk into the kitchen just as Devin stands. “I will fetch R
hain. You are certain you wish to go through with this?” he asks gently.
I frown, not able to say what I really feel, that I am completely and utterly terrified. Devin looks over my head at Ezra.
“You have something to do with this?” he says, anger in his voice.
“Brother, this is Accacia’s decision. She has made her own mind up. I will come with you to find Rhain, there are things we must discuss.”
Devin turns back to me, his jaw clenched. Without saying a word, he pulls me into a hug. “Thank you,” he says, before stepping back and leaving with Ezra.
Feeling entirely sick for all sorts of different reasons, I head upstairs to Clover’s room to see if there is anything Devin might have missed. Upon entering, it doesn’t look any different to how it was the last time I visited. Like her plants, Clover loves to spread her stuff about her until it litters the floor like the leaves that fall from the trees in the forest surrounding her land.
Clover’s room is full to the brim with horticultural books. There are notebooks filled with drawings of the plants she loves so much in various stages of growth. I flick through a few and smile at her artistry. For a scientist, she sure has a creative side. Across the other side of her bedroom I can see that her wardrobe is thrown open and there are some clothes missing from the hangers. If she were taken against her will by the fae then, surely, they wouldn’t have allowed her to pack? I run to her bed and bend down, checking underneath. Sure enough her backpack is gone. Could she have left with the fae of her own accord? I sit down on her bed, thinking through our last conversation. She had been so animated about the saplings she had found growing in the forest on her land… On her land? Shit, could those saplings have grown into the pods in her greenhouse? Without waiting to think it through further I run out of the bedroom and straight into Ezra’s chest.
“Ezra, I think…” I stop speaking when I see the look in his eyes. “What is it?”
“Rhain’s gone.”
“What do you mean, gone? Where has he gone?” I say, feeling a rising unease once again. Damn these vampires and what they do to me.