by Noree Cosper
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Lili spoke up. “My sister may not want to take such extreme actions, but I will.”
I stared at my empty cup and then to her as my mouth gaped open. She began to chant under her breath. Exhaustion washed over me triple fold. My eyes fluttered and I wavered in my seat.
Betrayed by witches. I should have known better than to trust anyone in a Fae’s palace.
Colin caught me as I toppled forward.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “But this is best for you.”
6
I sit on the floor beside my mother’s chair in our two-room cabin and play with a small wooden doll as she mends my coat while humming my favorite tune. The fire crackles in the potbellied stove and the scent of stew wafts from under the lid of the pot on top.
Mother leans down and plays with a lock of my hair. I smile up at her. She pulls me into her lap and wraps me into a hug. The heady scent of roses surrounds me. I stiffen as goosebumps run down my back. That’s not right. Mother is supposed to smell like pine, sometimes like burning wood. Yet this rose smell is of something familiar, something dangerous.
“I love you so much, my bright little witch,” she says. “Do you love me?”
I open my mouth to say yes but the words don’t come out. Instead, I seem to choke on that rose odor. I push away from her, climb down and face her with narrowed eyes.
“You’re not Mother,” I say.
A scowl forms on her face. “This would be much easier if you would just love me. I see I need more personal time with you.”
The cabin dissolves into motes of light that flare, blinding me for several moments. When I can see, I find myself standing on the edge of a lake. Ice spreads across it, turning it into a pale remembrance of Aegean blue. I gasp and take a step back. I’d been here before. Being here means I’m asleep and it’s too late for me.
“Wake up,” I scream into the gray sky above.
A woman’s laugh, like wind chimes, rings out behind me. “You know that won’t help.”
A chill deeper than the cold around me slides up my spine as I turn around. Nimue stands behind me with her long black hair blowing in the breeze. The scent of roses, her scent, rides on the air. Her silver dress flutters as she steps towards me. How could such a thin material keep her warm? It must be something to do with her magic. The same magic that has now caught me.
I gulp, leaning back. My gaze darts to the dunes of snow that stretch past the horizon.
“There is no point in trying to run. This is a dream, after all.” Nimue’s scent, a mix of spice and musk, fills my head and leaves a dizziness as she draws closer. “And now I have found you beyond dreams, my sweet Aneira.”
She reaches for me and I slap her hand away. “I’m not your anything.”
Her jaw hardens and the smile on her face becomes brittle. “Oh, but you made the deal. I fulfilled my end. It’s time for you to pay up.”
“We never completed the deal. You cheated us.”
She shrugs. “I don’t see Dylan complaining.”
I grit my teeth. “Of course not. He’s under your power now. You promised us comfort in exchange for our dreams, not slavery.”
“I give my Dreamless purpose and love. You wanted the same thing. Now, it’s time you stop running.”
My fingernails dig into the palms of my hand as my fists clench. “No.”
She exhales in a huff. “Do you really think another Fae can protect you?”
I stiffen. “What are you talking about?”
Her laugh fills the air again. “No force, no spell can protect your dreams from me while you bear my mark. I will find you.”
The skin under my left breast twinges at the mention of the mark it bears. The world around me dims and I fall to my knees.
Not even witch magic can protect me against her? I can’t keep running forever.
“There’s no point in running at all,” she says. “Interesting that you would run to him, of all Fae. This makes things even better.”
She steps forward and tilts my chin up to meet her eyes, gold with tiny slivers of ice in the irises. My pulse races and black spots dance in my vision. She is too close. I have to get away. A scowl twists her lips down and she pushes me away.
“You stink of fear. Disgusting.” She steps past me onto the lake and the ice melts away. She slips lower into the dark depths of the water. “We’ll see each other soon. Don’t think about running. It’s already too late.”
7
I woke with a start. My whole body jerked under the plush blanket. I sat up, still gasping with sweat pouring down my face.
I lay in the bed of my temporary room. A fire roared in the hearth, but it didn’t alleviate the chill in my bones.
Morphy fluttered from the window sill and came to rest on my pillow. He peered down at me, his amethyst eyes swirling. He must have felt my panic through our lifebond.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“She knows.”
I flung the covers aside, hopped out of bed, and marched to my door, ignoring Morphy’s continuing questions. I yanked the knob and it swung open hard enough to crash into the wall. Huh. I guess Colin had told the truth that it would stay unlocked at least. I glanced down at my arm while still holding the knob. It was free of bandages and the wound was gone. So was the pain. Mai must have taken advantage of my sleep to perform some intensive healing. With narrowed eyes, I gritted my teeth and stepped out into the hall.
“Where are you going?” Morphy followed after me.
“I need to have a few words with Colin.”
I tramped down the hall, lit by bell shaped electrical lights that hung on the walls, and up a second set of stairs with Morphy flying behind me. One of the triplets leaned against Colin’s double doors with her arms crossed. Her eyes narrowed as she glanced my direction.
“Seriously? He needs someone to stand outside his room at night?” I muttered.
She stood straight, though her arms remained crossed. “Do you need something?”
I raised a finger. “Hi…which triplet are you?”
Her eyes narrowed further into slits. “Eryn.”
“Great, Eryn, right.” I pointed to the door behind her. “I need to talk to Colin, right now. And why are you guarding him now, and not on our little tour?”
“Who said we weren’t?” She tilted her head at me. “He’s busy. You can wait for when he decides to speak with you.”
“Yeah, I don’t have time for that. You need to move.”
“Not going to happen,” she said.
Morphy cleared his throat. “We have a bit of an emergency. Perhaps you could see if Colin would be willing to see us?”
“Emergency?” She chuckled. “Your bed not soft enough?”
“I doubt you’d be able to wrap that little mind around what’s going on. That’s why I need to talk to Colin,” I said.
She glared at me. “Go back to your room before I make you.”
I bristled. “I guess we’re going to do this the hard way.”
She smirked. “This should be fun.”
She spread her legs wider and brought her fists up as if she planned on boxing with me. As amusing as it might have been to see which of us would win at fisticuffs, I had no time for this bullshit. This witch was nothing compared to what was coming. I was about to do something I always told myself not to, but I’d had enough.
My fingers circled the medallion under my shirt as I breathed in and whispered. “I am the wolf, and this may not be my den, but I huff and puff, and blow those doors in.”
I exhaled the remainder of the air in my lungs. The breath grew into a gale in the mere inches it had to reach Eryn. It hurled her into the doors. They blew open with the crack of snapping wood.
Colin sat up in his huge bed, as did the other two triplets, Leri and Gwen. They didn’t bother to cover their bared breasts as they glared at me. A flush crept up my cheeks at the way the sheet barely covered Colin’s naked form.
Oh, right. What did I think he would be doing? Sleeping?
Too late now.
I set my jaw and stepped into the room. Morphy hovered in the doorway, rubbing his front paws together fretfully. Leri and Gwen hopped out of bed and stalked towards me without even bothering to cover themselves.
Colin’s wide-eyed gaze traveled to where Eryn was picking herself up in front of me. “What the hell?”
“You drugged me,” I said.
“So, you decided to blow my door down and Eryn with it?”
I shrugged. “I asked first. She wouldn’t move.”
“That’s a bit much,” he said. “How did you even do that?”
Eryn joined her sisters and they attempted to close in on me. I moved to the side so I could keep them all in my sights. Morphy fluttered in between me and them.
“Could we please talk about this?” he asked. “Before things get broken besides doors?”
“I’m not here to fight,” I said. “At least not physically.”
“Girls, back off,” he said. “Let’s hear what she has to say before any more of my room gets destroyed.”
They all took a step back, but kept themselves between Colin and me. Leri walked to a divan at the foot of the bed, took a silk robe, and pulled it on. Gwen pulled a spaghetti strapped gown from the end of the bed and slipped it over her head. I kept my gaze on Colin’s face, though it wanted to travel down those hard pecs and toned abs. I licked my lips.
Focus, Aneira.
“You forced me to sleep,” I said. “Look, It’s not that I’m not grateful to you and Mai for healing me, but you should have respected what I wanted.”
“You needed it,” he said. “And as you can see, no Fae forced you to dream.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” I said. “The Fae here weren’t the only reason I didn’t want to sleep. I was running from another Fae, but she’s found me, thanks to you. Now we’re all screwed.”
His laugh wrapped around me like an embrace I had to shrug off, though part of me didn’t want to. “You’re worried about another Fae? Don’t be. I told you the Palace is protected.”
I blew a puff of air through my nose. “You are dumb if you think that will stop Nimue. She already found me through your great protections. Look, I’m leaving. I figured I’d warn you since you did save me and all, but you’re on your own.”
Colin’s shoulders stiffened and the sheet slipped lower as he sat up straighter. “How do you know that name?”
“How do you know her?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t worry about her too much,” A male voice, like a caress of velvet on skin came from the hall.
A Fae stepped through the doorway and surveyed the mess with a smirk on his sculpted lips. His hair flowed down his shoulders and bare chest like a crimson river. Pink stained the cheeks of the triplets as they bowed to him, their gazes never leaving his statuesque form. This had to be Rhydian.
Colin’s eyes widened. “Dad, what are you doing here?”
“I came to see what the noise was about.” His gaze landed on me. “So, this is the witch that is causing all the commotion.”
I lifted my chin and met his gaze. The azure of his eyes pulled me in and a drowning sensation filled me. Soft fingers caressed my cheek and slid down my neck. I gasped and jerked away from him. How did he get that close?
In my moments lost in Rhydian’s presence, Colin had gotten out of bed and put on a pair of pants. Leri and Eryn stood on either side of him, while Gwen lingered closer behind Rhydian. All three looked ready to leap at me, if I made one move.
Morphy’s wings fluttered near my ear. “It’s all right. He’s not going to hurt you.”
I shot Morphy a glare. “Seriously?”
“You bear Nimue’s mark,” Rhydian said.
I pressed my lips in a thin line and stared at the floor.
“No need to deny it. Mai has already found it.”
“What? When the hell did she see it?”
“How do you think you ended up in your current clothes? Colin?” He waved toward me.
I looked down. Instead of the leather pants and tank top I’d been wearing, I was now dressed in a thin white shirt and loose shorts.
Heat flooded my skin. I’d been so caught up in wanting to yell at Colin I hadn’t paid much attention to what I was wearing. The central heating of the Palace hadn’t helped let me know my new clothing was so skimpy.
“She shouldn’t have been looking that close,” I said. “Not without my permission.”
“She’s a healer. She wanted to ensure there weren’t any hidden injuries,” Rhydian said. “But that’s not the point of this conversation. You have Nimue’s mark and she has found you.”
“Which is why I’m leaving. Tonight.”
“You have a better chance here instead of out in the middle of nowhere.” Colin walked to stand slightly in between Rhydian and me. “She’s just a has-been old hag. Dad can take her out.”
“She’s still a powerful Fae enchantress,” Rhydian said. “However, this time, she won’t have the Prince of Dreams in Arcadia to step in. This is my Palace. I rule the land here.”
Wrinkles formed on my brow as I looked between Colin and Rhydian. How did these two know Nimue? Both seemed to act like she wasn’t a big deal, but Rhydian’s last words indicated he’d had a run in with her before. And what did the Prince of Dreams have to do with anything? Still, the idea of staying here when Nimue’s army showed up sent a chill up my spine. I’d rather be far away from this place.
“Great. You have nothing to worry about. On the other hand, I’m out of here.” I pushed past Rhydian towards the door.
“I could remove the mark,” Rhydian said.
The world seemed to slow around me. I stopped and turned back to him. “What?”
“If it’s gone, you don’t have to run anymore. You could sleep when you want.”
“You can do this?” I asked.
“We are of equal power, she and I,” Rhydian said. “However, I would have to replace her mark with mine.”
The tiny spark of hope guttered and died in my chest. I would just trade one Fae master for another. The time would come when he would force me to do something I didn’t want to. I’d be running again.
“No, thanks. I’ll take my chances in the Wyrdlands.”
Before they could respond, I slipped past them, rushed back to my room, and changed into my leather pants, boots and a wool sweater. I grabbed my backpack leaning against the bedpost and began stuffing the rest of my clothes scattered on the floor inside. Next went the little pouches of herbs laying on the nightstand. Morphy flew in and landed on my pillow, watching my every move.
“This is a bad idea,” he said. “Where are we even going to go?”
“I’ll figure it out once we’re gone,” I said. “I can’t be here when the Dreamless come.”
“You really need to get out of this flight mentality you’ve had since Arcadia,” Morphy shook his head. “It’s going to get both of us killed. At least this place is fortified, and well stocked. And both Rhydian and Colin have treated you well.”
“He offered for me to become his property instead. How is that any better?”
“Do any of the witches look enslaved here?” he asked. “They took you in and treated your injuries.”
“And they drugged me.” I stepped back and scanned the room for anything I missed before I attempted to close my bag with one good hand. “We’ll figure something out. You can find some good hiding places in the Wyrdlands, right? We’ll wait out her army and then head to the Respite.”
Morphy shook his head. “We’re going to die.”
Colin opened the door and stepped inside. He’d taken a moment to put on a shirt. “Aneira, wait.”
“I don’t have time to wait. I need to get as much distance as possible.”
“You’re not even fully healed. You still have a broken arm.,” he said. “We can protect you here.”
“In exchange from my f
reedom.”
“We’re at this again? Have any of the witches here looked like they are slaves?”
“Are they free to leave?”
“Yes.” He let out an exasperated sigh. “I’m not sure why they would. Only crazy people want to run around the Wyrdlands instead of here.”
I sucked in the side of my cheek and glared at him. “A mark is different though. Apparently, Nimue can find me anytime I sleep. It would be the same with your father.”
“Are you really comparing my dad to this enchantress?”
An alarm blared, cutting off what I was about to say. I glanced between Morphy and Colin with wide eyes. I hadn’t been fast enough.
Nimue’s army was already here.
8
Minutes after the alarm started, one of the triplets rushed into the room. She grabbed Colin by the hand and yanked him towards the door.
"We have to go," she said. "An army is attacking the palace."
Colin waved her off. “Give me a moment.” He turned back to me. “You won’t be able to leave now. The Palace has been sealed. Come with us. We can wait this out. Dad should be able to handle this fast.”
"She can fend for herself." The triplet—this had to be Eryn—shot me a glare before yanking on his hand again. "She wants to leave anyway. She can go with them for all I care."
"No," Colin said. "We're not leaving her behind."
I tied my bag with my hand and teeth and put it over my shoulders. "No need to worry about me, Prince. I'm good at making it on my own."
"Like in the snow a few days ago?" He broke away from Eryn and grabbed my hand. "We're going the same way, out the door. We might as well go together."
"Fine.” I pulled away from him. “Come on, Morphy."
Morphy flew past us into the hall, scanning both directions for any sign of intruders. Eryn emerged next and led us down the nearest staircase. Shouts and cries filled the air as witches and Fae bustled past us, some carrying weapons and others bags of hastily-gathered supplies.