Twenty minutes late to the meeting, Izzy and Bain entered the dining hall. All eyes landed on them. Kat smirked, and Izzy knew she felt the after effect of what had made her and Bain late to this meeting.
“Nice of you two to join us,” Rowan quipped.
Bain pulled a chair out for Izzy as Cree stood. “Actually, I need to borrow her. Izzy, can you come with me please?”
Izzy kissed Bain. “Behave,” she whispered before following Cree to his office.
“Did you dream last night?” he asked as they took seats opposite one another in the sitting area of his large office.
Izzy furrowed her brow. “I did.”
“Mind if I take a stab at what you dreamt about?”
“By all means.”
“You were in a field, with me, the brothers, and Holly. There were people down all around you and flakes of snow began falling upon us. Am I right so far?”
Izzy’s eyes had widened. “Yes, and it was the first dream that I saw something other than just the snow. What does it mean?”
“It’s a warning, Izzy. In your dream did you recognize any of the bodies on the ground?”
She shook her head. “Why?”
Cree smiled, but Izzy could see something was off. “Just wondering.”
“Oh crap, Esperanza,” she breathed.
“What of her?”
“Oh, Cree, I am so sorry I didn’t know what it meant… She’s with Darion.”
Cree nodded. “Yes, we know that, we received that message. He and Esperanza were very close in their youth; we believe she is safe for now.”
“No.” Izzy shook her head. “No, they’re true mates. I saw their mark. And she will stand at his side when he comes against us.”
Cree studied her closely. “I saw none of this.”
Izzy’s face looked pained as she locked her gaze with his. “Because I touched you.” She spoke softly, regret apparent in her voice. “I stole your visions; we’re just sharing them now as your gift dissipates from my system. After the day I ran into you, I started having vivid dreams, and then they turned to just the snow and the feeling of cold and… despair. I could feel more than see anything, and then, just last night, I saw the dreams clearly again. I don’t know how I missed this.”
“It’s not your power. You wouldn’t know how to interpret it or that they were anything more than a dream.”
Izzy and Cree rejoined the others a few minutes later. Lothar lifted his gaze to them, instantly feeling Izzy’s distress. “Everything alright?” he asked, standing as they approached the table.
Izzy forced a smile. “Everything is fine. Just hungry is all.”
Bain stood and pulled her chair out. She sat, and he slid his plate to her. “Eat, sweetheart.”
Izzy thanked him and grabbed her fork, but really, she pushed the food around and made polite conversation with the others. She saw Lothar as he kept eyeing her. She finally mouthed, “We’ll talk later.” And he dipped his chin in acceptance.
Later wouldn’t come anytime soon.
Izzy sighed, content to be in Bain’s arms. She sat between his thighs, her back pressed to his chest, and his wings wrapped around her to cut out the cool air. The blanket they sat upon lent a small amount of warmth to their romantic evening. It was a beautiful night; the sun had set just minutes before and now the moon shone off the lake in front of them. The sky was clear and crisp and the blue moon seemed to eclipse the sky. Even the Northern Star or the Immortal Heart seemed engulfed by the massive moon.
“It’s beautiful,” Izzy said as she rubbed her cheek against his, a small amount of stubble scratching at her face. Lifting her hand, she rubbed along his jaw.
“I know, it’s time to shave.” He chuckled.
“I don’t mind it one bit… It’s been a rough twenty-four hours for you. Are you okay?”
Bain nodded. “I am still trying to wrap my head around all of this. I’ve hated and blamed Evan for so long that my mind is having trouble reconciling the fact that he is now sleeping in the palace, can walk in the sun because of our blood, and that he never did anything other than what Holly had asked him for.”
Izzy smiled. “He’s not as bad as you thought.”
“I still hate the bastard… but no.”
Izzy looked back to the sky. “So tell me the story of the Blue Moon.”
“It’s our version of the winter solstice.”
“But you don’t have winter.”
“Well, not like the Human World does. But we recognize the seasons as the rebirth of the magic that fuels our world.”
“How long does it last?”
“The moon will be like this for the next twenty-four hours. It will even be visible in the daylight.”
Izzy turned to look at him, her memory niggling at her. “Wait, it will be up with the sun tomorrow?”
Bain nodded, his brows furrowing at the realization that haunted her face. “What is it, sweetheart?”
“I need to speak with Cree,” she said, pushing up from her warm cocoon in his arms.
Chapter Thirty-One
“Cree!” Izzy was breathless as she burst into Cree’s office.
He was on his feet and moving towards her before she’d even made it to the center of his office.
“What’s wrong, Isabelle?” He lifted his gaze from her to Bain, who stood behind his mate. Bain shook his head as he shrugged his shoulders. “She didn’t take the time to explain it to me before she made a beeline for you.”
Izzy took a deep breath. “It’s tomorrow morning, just as the sun will just be taking over the sky.”
Cree studied her face. “Isabelle, calm down and explain to me what’s happened.”
She gasped again, her eyes wide. “Cree, I know when they will come at us.”
Cree moved her to the sitting area. Taking a seat opposite her and Bain, he sat forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “When?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“How do you know?” he demanded.
“It’s the Blue Moon.”
She remembered seeing the fading anomaly in the cool morning sky as the Dark marched upon them.
“I remember thinking the sky looked weird in the vision of Esperanza, but I was so focused on her standing at Darion’s side and the mark that I forgot about the moon appearing in the sky with the sun. They’re coming in the morning.”
Cree lifted his gaze to Bain. “Put the guards on alert. Then collect up the others and meet us back here in twenty.”
Bain dipped his chin, kissed the top of Izzy’s head, and disappeared from the room.
“What are we going to do?” Izzy asked.
“We prepare and wait for them to show up on our lands.”
“Why? If we know when they are coming, why don’t we make a preemptive strike?” she asked. Sure, she knew nothing of war plans and strategies, but taking the war to Darion seemed like the logical way to go.
“Because, we have a peace treaty. If it is to be broken, it will happen by the Dark’s hand, not ours.”
Izzy shook her head. She didn’t understand many of the rules the Fae lived by, but she understood what honor was and that’s what Cree was speaking of. As much as she wanted to take the fight to Esperanza and Darion in the hopes of keeping the people she loved alive, a big part of what made the Light Fae, and especially her new family, so remarkable, was their honor. It was truly what separated the Light from the Dark.
“Will we at least be waiting for them?”
Cree grinned. “Of that you can be sure.”
There was a feral glint in his eyes. He was not about to take this lying down. Cree’s gut twisted, but his mind refused to let the fear and knowledge that things could go terribly wrong take over.
Izzy nodded and tried for a smile.
Rowan entered the room then. “Tomorrow we take a stand.” She and Cree then carried on a conversation that Izzy was unable to hear. She waited silently for the others to join them. Bain returned shortly after Rowan
with Lothar, Holly, Uriah, Kale, and Kat, then Evan and Synawen. Bain kept his distance from the vampire, but at least this time he didn’t growl and snarl at the man.
“Now I want to know exactly what you both saw,” Rowan said as she took a seat in Cree’s chair.
Cree smiled at Izzy encouragingly.
Izzy took a deep breath. “I’ve been having vivid dreams; I just didn’t know what they meant. Not until Cree and I talked a bit about them earlier and then tonight when Bain and I were talking about the Blue Moon, something important clicked.”
Rowan nodded. “Go on.”
“I saw Esperanza and Darion together. She wears a mark like Kat and Kale. Only theirs is an infinity with a black rose. She’s his true mate.” Izzy waved her hands in the air. “Crap, I am getting off topic. Ok, so that’s a big deal, I know, but more importantly, they were moving through a forest. They stopped when they saw us and from around them came a… well, an army.” She looked to Evan. “There were vampires on the front lines. Is that possible? I know you can day walk, or whatever you all call it, but what about your coven?”
Evan shook his head. “No, but it has nothing to do with day walking. It’s the moon. It blurs the lines of day and night. The Blue Moon is the one time of year that vampires can walk in daylight.”
“What else did you see, Isabelle?” Rowan asked, drawing her attention once again.
“Uhh, there were ogres, and a bunch of different magic flying around.” She shook her head. “I don’t know. That's all I can remember.”
“Did you recognize the surroundings?”
Izzy closed her eyes, pulling at the memory. “It’s the north forest where it opens to the meadow near the lake.”
Rowan nodded, and then looked to Evan. “This would be the time I call you and your coven for help.”
“Syna, get Sergio on the phone. Tell him to put a skeleton crew together to stay at the compound and then to get the rest of our enforcers to the forest portal. I will meet him them there in two hours.”
“On it.” Syna walked from the room, pulling her cell out as she went.
“Rowan?”
Rowan looked to Bain, sadness in her eyes as they locked with his. “I have no answer, Bain.”
“I’ve not yet asked the question.”
“You don’t need to. I know what you’re concerned about.”
Kat cleared her throat and all eyes fell to her, where she stood with her fingers laced with Kale’s. “If she really is his true mate, then you must understand that she won’t let harm fall to him and vice-versa.”
“You are saying not to trust her.” Lothar arched a brow as he looked to Kat.
“I am not saying that she will raise a sword to any of you, but she will not allow you to raise a sword to him. She is not your ally, and I would venture a guess that she will be renouncing her allegiance to the Light to be sworn to the Dark.”
Bain looked to Rowan. The only way a Fae could realign themselves was with a ceremony conducted by their current leader, meaning Rowan would have to agree to let Esperanza go. Rowan shook her head at Bain’s unspoken question. She wasn’t sure what she would do if it came to that. Could she let her mother go? Could her heart survive the added pain and guilt? She already felt responsible for the situation that put Esperanza into Darion’s hands.
“We need to focus,” Rowan said, standing from the chair. “Evan, go get your vampires and meet us back in Cree’s office as soon as you can. We have battle plans to discuss.”
Evan left the room in search of Syna.
“Kale, I want you, Bain, and Lothar to clear the north villages. Bring the refugees here; we’ll set up housing in the courtyard if we have to.”
“I can help with the housing,” Holly offered.
“Can you conjure housing now?” Rowan asked.
Holly shrugged. “Maybe, I am a pretty good with my conjuring and like Bain said, Tyr’s magic should strengthen my ability. So yeah, I know I can help.”
Rowan smiled. “That’s what I wanted to hear. Okay Izzy, you and Kat start collecting blankets and provisions. Holly doesn’t need to conjure what we already have. Cree, you get started on strategy. Okay, everyone get to work except you, Uriah. I’d like a word with you.”
The room cleared, leaving Uriah and Rowan alone.
“Are you okay? Bain told me you chose to walk instead of fly the other day, and it got me thinking that I haven’t seen you spread your wings since returning from the club fire.”
Uriah tilted his head, choosing honesty… well, mostly. He assured his queen. “I am still healing, but I am fit to fight and protect our people.”
Rowan studied him momentarily before smiling. “You would tell me if something was not right, wouldn’t you, Uriah?”
Uriah dipped his chin. “I would burden you if necessary.”
“Alright. Many Blessings, Uriah.”
That brought a smile to his face. He bowed to her and repeated the ancient words. “Many Blessings, Rowan.”
“Now, go see what Cree needs of you.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
“Kat?” Syna called.
Kat turned to the voice that had called to her. She smiled as Syna made her way over. “What do you need, Syna?”
“Evan thought I might be able to help you and Izzy get things set up out here.”
Kat looked around the courtyard that was quickly filling with the conjured cottages Holly was creating.
Holly had said she wasn’t sure she could create cabins, but she underestimated herself. Small stone cottages were dotting the courtyard, quickly filling the space with shelters for the displaced Fae that were already trickling in. Bain and Kale were working their way through the outer villages and should be done any time now. Kat felt the pressure as the minutes ticked away. Looking up at the sky, she could see that sunrise was only about seven hours away.
“Sure, all the help we can get would be appreciated.”
Syna grabbed a stack of blankets and followed Kat into one of the cottages. Syna was impressed with Holly’s magic; the cottage was one large room and one small bathroom. The large room had a fireplace, a double bed, and three small, twin-sized beds. In the far corner were a kitchenette and a dining table. It wasn’t fancy, but it was cozy and safe within the curtain walls of the Light Fae stronghold.
“Are you okay, Syna?”
Syna blinked and nodded “Oh yeah, fine. I’m just impressed with what Holly has done here.”
Kat looked around the small cottage. “It is impressive, but what I mean is… are you going to be okay? None of what is coming in the morning is going to be easy.”
Syna smiled softly. “I am trying to be. I never planned to come back to the Middle World, but this side of it doesn’t seem so bad.”
“It’s not. Rowan leads in a much different fashion then Darion does. Are you going to be able to face him come the morning?”
Syna straightened her spine and nodded. “I think it’s time.”
Kat pulled her into a hug. “I will stand next to you. We’ll face him together.”
Syna squeezed Kat and held back the tears that threatened.
“You won’t be standing alone.” Syna and Kat broke apart to see Evan standing with at least two dozen vampires just outside of the cottage’s open door.
Kat’s gaze found Jameson and then Christian. She smiled at both of them as she and Syna exited the cottage.
“We need to find Cree and go over the plans for the morning, but first I wanted to check on you.”
Syna hugged Evan and whispered something in his ear that Kat couldn’t hear. When she pulled back, a dark-haired vampire stepped forward and patted Evan’s arm as he walked by. “I’ll be right back.”
Sergio moved past the group to where he’d spotted Holly. He didn’t even pause in his movements as he approached her. Holly turned in time to throw her arms around his neck and let him hug her hard, her feet lifting from the hard ground beneath them.
“I was so worried abou
t you,” he breathed into her hair.
She squeezed him a little harder, and he set her down. “I’m sorry.” She smiled sheepishly. “I didn’t mean to flash.”
He nodded and smiled at her. “I know, but it was before even then.”
She nodded. He had been the one to bring her to safety, to bring her to Evan after the Club was attacked. But he was talking about times long before even then. He’d always worried about her. He had befriended her immediately when Evan brought her into the coven. He had cared for her, and Holly knew that all those times of harmless flirting were not exactly harmless to his heart. He loved her. She could see that without question now as he gazed down at her. He knew the truth. That she didn’t love him, not like he did her, and that she wasn’t coming back to the coven.
“I am sorry, Serg,” she said softly.
He smiled and cupped her cheek. “Never apologize for getting what you want and for finally being happy. That’s all I ever hoped for you.”
She threw her arms around him again and hugged him fiercely.
“All I know is you better come visit, and I better get an invitation.”
Holly tilted her head. “Invitation?”
Sergio chuckled. “To the hand-fasting ceremony.”
“What makes you think there will be one?”
“Because I see the way Lothar is looking at you, and it’s not a secret that there was something between the two of you before you came to live with the coven.”
Holly smirked, raising her voice slightly, so all the vampires watching them could hear. “Evan has a big mouth. He always has.”
Evan chuckled and shook his head. “Come now, Sergio, before you get me in trouble.”
Sergio hugged Holly once more before jogging off to head into the palace with the coven.
Holly turned to see a grinning Izzy. “What?” she asked.
“Did Lothar tell you what I used to do for a living?”
Holly shook her head. All Lothar had told her about the woman was that she took damn good care of her stubborn brother.
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