“I feel his energy, it’s weak. This is probably the cause of him not being a cat right now,” Audrey mentions.
I gaze off. “He’s dying,” I mutter.
“He doesn’t have much longer if he’s in this condition,” Akamu says.
I release a sigh and pull myself together, my hair fades back to its auburn color. “What can I do to save him?” I stare up at Akamu. He paces around the tent, moving his dreads away from his face. “Become one with who you are. Prove to me that you’re worth my help. Show me how different you can be, then sure, I’ll offer you my services.”
The wind outside blows against the tent and the flickering of the flames across from me are distracting. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I want to save my brother.” I hold back my growl.
“Then.” Akamu bends down to my level. “You will do anything and accept anything to save him.” Akamu raises his knife and cuts away the vines and weeds from his tent, exiting. I cover my face with my hands.
“I’m so sick of the riddles. I’m so sick of clues and running around for answers,” I breathe.
“Join us for tomorrow’s run. Maybe you’ll prove your worth to Akamu?” Rissa rubs my shoulder. She hands me a bowl of food. “Until then, eat. You will need the energy.” Rissa leaves the tent, and I eye Audrey and Charlotte.
“It’s the only way, prove yourself to Akamu. He knows more than what he says. I can sense it,” Audrey tells me, shrugging.
I press my lips. “I can sense it too.” I agree with what Akamu said. I will do anything to save my brother. If I need to spend some more time here, searching for who I am, I will. I never turn down a challenge. If this is a test to prove my worth, you bet I won’t be leaving this place without what I want. I won’t leave empty-handed. I lay down against a bundle of hide and gaze at the stars glimmering among the midnight sky.
***
“Wake up, and wear these,” a low grunt sounds in the tent. I squint my eyes up at a guy covered in face paint. “You’re lucky Akamu prevents us from gutting you alive.”
I get up, prepared for anything to happen. I search for my broomstick but it’s gone. “Your dark weapon is gone, witch,” the guy spits.
“Kazz, back off, right now.” Rissa hisses, pushing him aside. He looks away and curses under his breath, leaving the tent. By my side are brown clothing and a beaded necklace. I cling my fingers around the material and glance at Rissa. “Don’t mind him, he’s still warming up to you.” I look outside the tent. Kazz walks over to Audrey and gives her a hug, Charlotte punches his shoulder in play. They race down the rocky trails and into the forest, laughing.
“Warming up all right.” I roll my eyes.
“Don’t ponder. Let’s get ready for the day.”
Once I’m dressed in shifter clothes I forget how short my hair is now. I tie on some beads, patting down my tan clothes and fixing my necklace. Slipping my feet into my moccasins, I manage to keep up with Rissa’s brisk walk.
“We have a race every morning in the forest. We’re on the highest mountain in Serevil. The stream,” she says, pointing ahead of us. “Is on the other side of the forest. We end the race there and drink the fresh water.”
“What does the winner get?” I ask.
Rissa smiles. “I figured you’d ask. You get a bone.” She hums to herself and skips down the trail.
“Are you serious?” I stop in place.
“Better keep up, you’re missing your chance to prove your worth, missy!” she shouts out.
We’re on the edge of the mountain looking out at the stream. Jax is on the grounds with his feet in the water, his blue markings glowing. Aeron is in a tree, picking at a plant. I guess they deserve some time to themselves. Alice comes out of the forest. She kicks up her brown boots against a tree and crosses her arms.
“Two witches, two elves, and two shifters. Pretty fair.” I eye the crowd.
“I won’t be participating, I’ll be at the stream. You’ll know when it’s time to run,” Rissa says. She walks toward the edge, looks over it, and steps back, preparing herself. She chants out loud and leaps over. I run to where she fell. A white wolf pounces off the rocks, eventually landing on soft land, racing through the crisp, tall grass.
“This isn’t like tag. Elves may have an advantage in the forest. They’re evasive and skilled enough to maneuver the woods obstacles,” Kazz says. “The one thing they don’t have is speed and strategy, something shifters possess. You can use whatever is necessary to win.” The girl next to Kazz shifts into a burnt orange fox. Kazz shifts into a tiger and growls at us. They both turn toward the woods and place their front paws out, ready to dash. Alice kicks the rocks and fixes her outfit, ready to run. Audrey and Charlotte’s eyes beam green.
A rumbling shakes my feet, my heart picks up speed, something doesn’t feel right. I turn, witnessing a large boulder rolling down the rocky trail on the mountain. It’s coming our way. Whirling back around, I see that the group of racers have sprinted into the forest, leaving me behind. I breathe in and rush after them, leaping over a large root in the ground.
I clasp onto the bark of a tree and run on the branches. The boulder crashes into the forest. There’s a jolt of pain that strikes my stomach, the trees are in pain.
Their silent whispers cry out to me. Leaves are being stepped on from below, Kazz is running through on his way to the end of the forest. I feel my eyes beam on, and my hair fades to blonde. I’m going to do whatever it takes to prove my worth. I’m scratched by the fox in our group, my arm crystalizes, healing itself. I’m knocked off my branch from the impact.
I land on my feet, the boulder crashes to my side, but I roll over to safety. There’s another boulder behind the first one. I’m stunned in place. I notice a vine hanging from a tree, I bite on my bottom lip and grab hold of it.
Swinging myself back up onto a tree, I run down a swirly branch. Alice is on the ground; she trips and rolls down a hill, scratching herself up. She’s stuck in place, her ankle caught in vines and weed. The boulder is quickly closing in on her and if she doesn’t move, she’ll die. My heart drops. I want to win, but I can’t leave her to die here in the forest.
What do I do, what do I do? Think, think, think.
I scream at Alice, “Get out of the way!” She’s trying to move but she’s stuck. Turning her head, she notices the boulder coming her way. She fingers through the leaves, searching for something to cut the vines. I leap from my branch and run toward her. I splay out my fingers and wave my arm in the air. The vines release her, and I dive forward. We’re forced out of the way of the crashing boulder, but having this happen causes us to roll over to the edge of the forest, and onto a rocky landscape of gravel and dirt.
There’s a cliff coming soon. The edge frightens me and I prepare for us to stop, but it’s too late—we roll off the edge.
We’re free falling down the mountain. Alice’s eyes widen as she holds onto me. I’m not going to let us die from this. I wave out my hand once again and a force of energy kicks against my chest. As we fall into the mouth of the forest beneath us, a large plant breaks our fall. Weeds and vines wrap around us, securing us to the ground. All I hear is breathing, and my heart hurts from its beating. I’m shaking and so is Alice.
“You saved me,” she says, her mouth open in shock. “You had the chance to win, but you saved me.”
“I wasn’t going to leave you there to die, Alice.”
She watches me, pressing her lips together and gulping. “Thank you,” she says.
I circle my fingers, roots crawling up from the ground.
I place my palm on the bark of a tree. There’s warmth, there’s silence. The roots carry us through the leafy maze we’ve fallen into. Alice doesn’t say a word, however there’s a sense of relief being with her, saving her from the boulder.
I didn’t think of myself this time, and I’m satisfied with helping another. Alice took over the Shade, my mother’s curing facility, shouldn’t I have taken over instead?
It’s things like that, knowing I’m supposed to do something, without it even being mentioned. Jared and Mom both knew about the Shade, was it because I was becoming a myth? A monster?
“You know this is pretty cool.” Alice chuckles. “I would be afraid of entering forests, because I’d end up losing myself.” She turns to look at me. “When you carry the ability to have the forest lead you the way out of madness…” She shakes her head. “It’s a gift.”
Lead my way out of madness.
I glance over at Alice. “I think you just helped me.”
Alice’s face slowly becomes blank, puzzled by what I said. I flick my fingers, bringing the roots to a stop, they untwine from around our waist and gently place us on the ground. “What do you mean I helped you?” Alice asks.
“I need to become one with nature, or the forest, or with whatever Akamu said.”
I walk over to a tree. “I think I need to do something, but I don’t know until I do it.”
“How are you supposed to do something you aren’t aware of?” Alice says.
I breathe in and close my eyes. I take in the whispers that have been in my head for the longest time. They crying out to me, sniffles of sadness and anger. Placing the palm of my hand on the bark in front of me, a jolt of energy travels through my veins, and the cracked bark lights up. My fingertips warm up and then cool repeatedly.
My witch and elf markings sizzle, they burn and freeze, but stop abruptly. A pulse of green light travels through the woods, in between the large trees and ferns. My vision blurs, Donovan is standing in the secret passage in Vaelle where I first witnessed him killing my brother. The scene quickly changes. Someone familiar—Marcus, my father—enters the room. He speaks to Donovan with his eyes glowing purple. Donovan becomes hypnotized, he walks over to a weapon while Marcus smirks. The scene blacks out to my mother talking to Miss Canary. She’s being tied down to a stake. She’s crying as Marcus kisses her cheek. He holds a glowing rose. Miss Canary is chanting words, elf magic. The betrothal has been set and their wedding is soon to come.
I breathe in with the tree speaking to me and narrow my eyes. The pulse of green light races back toward me, separating my touch from the bark. I step back, my hands around my wrist, glancing up.
“Okay, what the hell happened?” Alice breathes.
“It spoke to me.” My mouth parts slightly, I’m now aware of the truth. “The tree, it’s seen everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“Donovan didn’t kill Jared on purpose, he wasn’t in his right mind when doing it. Marcus forced him to do the dirty work. Why did they need to kill Jared, though? It can’t be because of his pure heart,” I mutter. I remember the rose glowing, my mom tied up, and Miss Canary setting up the betrothal. My heart drops when I realize the reason. I turn around.
“Jared’s heart was the sole ingredient they needed—”
“To create the rose.” Akuma brushes between the ferns and plants in his leopard form. He shifts into a human. “I’m impressed you’ve become one with nature and saw the truth yourself. You became one with yourself and saved Alice. You aren’t like myths who’ve caused nothing but destruction, you’re more than that and you know it.”
I don’t say anything, I feel horrible. I’ve caused Donovan so much pain, and now I know why everything has been such a secret. I didn’t ask to be pulled into a family like this. Mom wanted to keep me safe, but I think I’m safer now that I know so much. She died because she didn’t tell me anything, she didn’t give me the chance. I clear my throat and run. I run through the woods and allow the forest to lead me. I reach the end, Audrey and Charlotte are cupping their hands into the stream, drinking water. Next to them is Donovan with his hands in his pockets, his same blue eyes staring at me.
Chapter 31
He walks over to me and grunts, “Come here.” He holds my waist, pulling me into him. Our lips connect, this kiss is everlasting, it’s our first real kiss. My arms wrap around his neck. It’s real to me, because my thoughts aren’t clouded with his past and what we’ve been through. It’s real to me knowing what he’s said was all the truth. I run my fingers through his hair, sighing in relief that he’s my stubborn witch forever.
“Everything you ever told me was true. You couldn’t have killed Jared.”
“Wait, what’s going on?” I sense him holding back a laugh.
“Are you serious?” I move from his grip.
Donovan shrugs, completely oblivious. “You kissed me and I wasn’t going to turn it down. I don’t know what I did, but I know I’d kiss you any day.” He bites his bottom lip and moves in closer.
I slap his arm. “The trees spoke to me. I know you didn’t kill Jared, idiot.” I shake my head. “The reason why you and Jared have lost your memory was because of my dad—he wiped them. Marcus made you kill Jared.”
“What? How?” he asks, his eyebrows furrow.
“I don’t know.” I wave out my hands. “Manipulation probably.”
Charlotte and Audrey step away from the stream and so does Jax and Aeron. “So I hope what we’re hearing is true. You found out that Marcus manipulated Donovan?” Audrey asks.
“Yeah, he did, and it’s not only that. Akamu told me to become one with nature. I touched a tree and it sort of showed me everything. It’s like all the trees are connected to one another and they’ve seen the truth that’s happened from years ago.” Audrey and Charlotte’s mouths part.
“That’s amazing,” Jax says.
I nod my head. “Yeah, I also found out that a pure heart is what’s preventing us from snapping my rose. It’s like the main ingredient in making the rose. Marcus and Miss Canary used Jared’s heart to make it.”
Akamu soon joins us near the stream. “They didn’t take out his heart as some of you are assuming. It’s elf magic. They stabbed his heart and used the blood for the rose. That’s why it’s freshly red and never rotten…it’s pure,” he explains.
“Well, that explains a lot,” Donovan says.
“You’ve shown me your worth, Eliza,” Akamu says. I smile. “Let’s get back to the tent and I’ll explain what you’re going to need to cure a pure heart.” Akamu shifts and leaps back into the forest. I glance over at my friends and Donovan.
“We’re almost there,” Donovan says, holding my hand. “We’re almost there, I can feel it.” I lower my gaze, releasing a sigh.
***
All the shifters sit around the pit, there isn’t a fire blazing like last night. Akamu stands up in a robe and walks around his group of followers and my friends. “The ingredients to cure a pure heart are not easy to obtain.” He sprinkles speckles of sand into the pit, a blast of blue fire lights up. “A corrupt mermaid’s scale.” He tosses in another pinch of sand, yellow flame twirls around against the wind. “A corrupt shifter’s tooth.” I glance over at Donovan. He’s paying attention to what Akamu is saying. We watch colorful flames flicker around. “A corrupt fairy’s blood.” Then Akamu stops in place, and tosses the rest of his sand into the pit. There’s a thunderous clap of flames crackling, bleeding into a deadly green. “A corrupt elf’s heart.” The group looks over at me. I think I know exactly which elf’s heart I want.
“Listen to me closely, watch the sun. I need all the ingredients to me by the tenth sun in the sky.” The shifter’s close their eyes and sway side to side. They snap their fingers, humming. Akamu kneels down to my level. Rissa is in her white wolf form. She sits next to me, humming against her sharp teeth and thick tongue.
“This is very important, Eliza,” Akamu says to me. “All ingredients must be gathered by a pure heart in order to cure another’s heart.”
“So I can’t be the one to get the items?”
Akamu nods his head, the sky becomes filled with gray clouds, and the wind picks up. The shifter’s white markings glow and their eyes beam yellow. Donovan scoots next to me, and holds me close.
“What did he say to you?” Donovan asks.
“He told me I can’t be the on
e to gather the items,” I say, pressing my lips together in worry.
“That’s all right, we’ll figure out how to get them.”
Akamu returns with our broomsticks wrapped up in cloths. “Remember, you have ten suns to get them back to me, then we will start the process of curing your brother.” The fire in the pit blows out, the shifters dance up, excited to defeat Ravamere and its new leader, Christian. They take my hand and force me to skip around the empty pit. Rissa runs around with us. Donovan tells me not to worry about anything, and I try not to, but I can’t help but think that this world’s fate lies in my hands, and the only other pure heart I know of is—Dawn’s.
***
“Hey, you don’t have to start looking for them right now. How about we get some real life fun for a change?” Donovan suggests. “We’ve been world hopping around, I think a nice cup of coffee could help.” We’re walking down the forest trails back to the portal to Richmond. I glance up at him and grin.
“I’d like that.” He holds my hand. Rissa is with us and so are the rest of my friends.
“I think we’re going to head back to the Shade and figure some things out with Alice, since she’s already left. We’re going to need to tell her about the ingredients and what not,” Charlotte mentions.
“You’re right, I’ll catch up to you guys a bit later.” We hug one another, then they leap into the glowing yellow portal. I wave bye at them both.
“I gotta get back to Mervil,” Jax says. I don’t think he knows that Elaena was killed by Christian. I hold back my thoughts and words and let him go. We’ve had enough for the day. It’s not my place to say anything. Before I can say bye to Aeron, he flies off into the sky. Donovan hugs me while we make our jump. There’s a blast that shoots in the air, the portal swallows both of us whole.
This time I land on top of Donovan. We both chuckle. I glance up to find the club is empty. We make our way out of the building. “They must be out and about, I guess,” I say.
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