by Rye Brewer
I quickly realized that we weren’t heading to one of the cottages. We were walking along the road which led up to the castle. A feeling of cold dread settled over me. “We’re going up there?”
“Of course. What did you think?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I didn’t think.”
“I don’t know where Elewyn lives,” he explained. “But I know she’ll be visiting her brother. She did every day. This is the surest way to find her.”
“I see.” I squared my shoulders and decided to brave it out. I had asked for this, after all. I’d practically demanded it.
The stones which comprised the wide pathway were slippery with the misty rain which fell in sheets, soaking into my robes. What a miserable place. And we were going to stay there during my training.
It was actually a relief to pass through the raised iron gate—who raised it, I didn’t know. Maybe it raised itself when two outsiders who meant no harm approached.
I was so unfamiliar with what witches were capable of. The sensation of eyes following us made my skin crawl, but that sensation faded once we were inside the wall. A quick walk through the stone courtyard, lined by lit torches which somehow survived against the wind and rain, and we were inside an entry which reminded me of the fortress back on Hallowthorn Landing with its lack of light and the feeling of almost oppressive bleakness.
“Come on.” Stark must have sensed my hesitation.
He took my hand in his and led me straight up a wide set of stairs and through a narrow corridor. He had been here before, then, to the cell of this prisoner. Unless his cell and the one we were about to visit were near each other.
“Are you all right? Being here, I mean?” I shuddered when my arm brushed up against a thick web. The corners and doorways were full of them.
He snorted. “Ironically, I feel safer here than I do anywhere else. There are no vampires to threaten me here.”
We came to a stop at a particular cell, the first one we’d passed which wasn’t empty. I felt a sort of tingle running through me when I stood too close to the metal bars, as if the enchantment wouldn’t let me come too close. I took a step back.
The man inside the cell let out a humorless chuckle. “You’ll learn.” These were only two words he offered in greeting.
He was tall, lanky, dressed in black. A foreboding figure. He made me uneasy, though he didn’t make a move or speak a threatening word. Perhaps that was why. I couldn’t understand why he looked at me the way he did. Like he was examining me. His dark, probing eyes crackled with intelligence as he stood at attention, hands folded in front of him.
“Sara, this is Elazar.”
Oh. That explained it. The necromancer. No wonder he was so unsettling.
I nodded in greeting, not knowing what to say. What did a person say to someone like him? He was good-looking enough—not nearly as handsome as Stark, but not ugly or deformed or evil looking. It was those eyes. And the way his face didn’t move as he observed me.
Footsteps approached from the direction opposite the one we’d come in.
I watched two female figures gliding down the corridor—at least, the long robes they wore made it look as though they were gliding over the dirty, stone floor. The one who led the way was small, with sharp, narrowed eyes and long, brown hair which trailed down her back in lustrous waves.
“Samara,” Stark said, greeting her with familiarity. She barely made eye contact with him before going to the bars to Elazar’s cell, staring longingly at the prisoner. So, she was in love with him. It was written on her face.
“It’s the same every day.” The other woman had spoken.
I turned, as did Stark, to look at the other woman.
She was tall, willowy, with nearly black hair and deep, dark eyes. Like those of Elazar. And it hit me that this must be his sister.
She smiled at Stark—a little too warmly, I thought.
“Sara, this is Elewyn,” Stark said.
She hardly noticed me. She was too busy sliding her hands over his shoulders before winding her arms around his neck and hugging him for far too long.
Who the hell did she think she was?
Who was she, anyway?
For all I knew, they had a past. It was clear from the way she held him that it wasn’t in the past for her. It was very much a present thing.
When she finally let him up for air, she let her hands linger on his arms for absolutely no reason as she stared deep into his eyes.
My palms began to tingle. Oh, no, not this again.
I focused the way Stark had taught me, envisioning the light in my core and begging the impulses to concentrate themselves there instead of shooting from my fingertips.
I could barely keep myself under control. It was like I had never trained at all.
“Are you all right?” Stark asked, finally noticing when I tucked my hands under my arms.
I nodded. “Just a little chilly.”
“Sara.” Elewyn pronounced my name as though she were examining a brand-new species. I hated the sound of her voice.
“I’ve brought Sara here because she needs your help,” Stark explained.
“You know I would do anything to help you, Stark.” Just like that, she became a doting lover.
For all I knew, that was what they used to be. How could he do this to me? Didn’t he know it would be painful, forcing me to spend time with someone who used to mean so much to him?
When he clearly still meant so much to her?
She drank him in with her eyes as he explained in a murmur the nature of my situation. Samara and Elazar might as well have been in their own world, miles away from mine.
I stood alone, hands still tucked under my arms, wishing more than anything that I had never told Stark to bring me. Being trained wasn’t worth it if I had to face humiliation every day. And it was humiliating, no question. Sparks threatened to shoot from my fingers at any second.
Elewyn managed to pry her eyes from Stark long enough to take me in again. “You’re in need of training, then,” she decided.
I came close to congratulating her for being such a genius. But I refused to make a fool of myself, for Stark or anybody.
“That’s right.”
“I’ll do what I can.” She smiled at Stark, an almost simpering smile.
He was oblivious. Typical of a man. “I’ll take Sara to one of the cottages,” he said. “But we’ll be back once we’ve had the chance to rest for a little while.”
“I’ll be here—but you knew that, or else you wouldn’t have come here first.”
Oh, the smug familiarity in her voice. She thought she knew him so well. Maybe she did. Maybe I’d never had a chance, to begin with and had only been fooling myself. I was nothing compared to this tall, beautiful, powerful, self-possessed witch.
I managed to wait until we were alone in one of the dark, tiny little cottages closest to the castle before turning on him. I barely even had time to look around or take in my surroundings before it all came rushing out.
“Were you going to tell me about your past with her?” I slid the hood of my robe over my head, then let the wet garment fall to the floor. I didn’t care if it got dirty at that moment. I only cared about one thing.
Stark started a fire with a sweep of his hand, and his expression in the light from the flames was tense—and a little confused. “What? What past?”
“Oh, Stark. Spare me. I saw the way she looked at you. The way she touched you. Like you belonged to her.”
To his credit, he managed to hold back a laugh. “Please. There was never anything between us! Are you going to let that get in the way of what needs to be done now?” He picked my robes up from the floor and hung them over the back of a chair, close to the fire. Steam rose up from the fabric.
“Never anything? You’re sure about that?” I asked, suspicious.
“Even if there was, it wouldn’t matter now.”
“Evasive answer.”
“I’ve
already told you there was nothing,” he said, growing exasperated as he removed his own robes and hung them up to dry by the fire. “I refuse to have an argument with you over this, when there isn’t anything to argue about.”
“Why does she act as though there was a past, then?”
He shrugged. “Why don’t you ask her? Because I certainly don’t know. Anything between us is all in Elewyn’s imagination. I’ve never had feelings for her, not for a minute. You can believe that.”
And I did believe him. I believed he meant it. I didn’t, however, believe that Elewyn would be particularly kind to me once she knew there was something happening with Stark.
In fact, thinking back on the look in her eyes and the way she’d let her hands linger on Stark’s arms, I wondered if she’d want to teach me at all.
After all, I was her competition.
34
Anissa
Scott looked around Hallowthorn Landing with as much interest as I had when I’d first arrived. It was definitely a world apart from the one he knew. It occurred to me that he hadn’t done nearly as much traveling between worlds and dimensions as I had. He’d been removed from so much of what we’d done since our first meeting.
I wasn’t interested in looking around. I wanted to find my parents, if they were still here. I didn’t think Gregor would leave with anything resembling haste—he was too happy to be with Mom again. Sure enough, the two of them sat near the water, on a bench by a pair of fishing boats which bobbed up and down in time with the gentle waves.
Mom’s face lit up when she saw me—no, I guess it was already lit up from the inside. She was happy, too. I was so glad to have brought the two of them back together. The first thing she noticed was my ring. Just like a mother.
“He moves quickly, doesn’t he?” she laughed gently as she examined the antique setting. “It’s very beautiful. Just what you deserve.”
Gregor came over to admire it, too, smiling and giving his approval in a gruff voice. As close as I would get to approval from him.
“I’m glad you’re here,” Mom said. “I was about to go to Sara’s room to leave her a note, letting her know I’ll be staying in Avellane for a while.”
“Really?” I glanced at my father, who looked like he was about to burst with glee.
She nodded, also brimming over with gladness. Her eyes shone like they were lit from within. “I only have to go back to ShadesRealm to collect a few things first.”
“Don’t you need Allonic to create a portal into ShadesRealm?” She shook her head. “Will you be creating a portal of your own?”
Another head-shake. “I don’t need a portal—and I don’t have the skills to create one, so it’s a good thing I don’t need one. There’s an entrance near a cave. I can enter through there from the human world and course to the tower, then course back and return to the human world. I know where the entrance to Avellane is—near the League headquarters.”
“That’s right.” I remembered the cave; that was the way that Jonah took me into Sanctuary that first time, so long ago. Felt like ages ago.
“I’ll be waiting for her there, at the entrance to Avellane,” Gregor promised, then shot Mom a dissatisfied look. “I would much rather go to ShadesRealm with her…”
“And I’ve already told you, that would be too dangerous.”
“I agree,” I added, remembering the trouble we’d already been through. “The shades are very particular about who they allow into their realm. It’s best she goes alone.”
He shrugged, though it was a grudging shrug. “I’ll take your word for it.”
And that was the closest we would get to him agreeing with us. I knew I’d have to take what I could get.
Mom stroked my hair with her usual, gentle touch. I would never get tired of feeling that. “I can’t wait to arrange your wedding,” she said, her voice soft with wonder. “I never have thought I would get the chance to say that, much less to look forward to doing it. My little girl, getting married.”
“Not so little anymore,” I reminded her with a smile.
“You’ll always be little to your parents,” Gregor reminded me, looking just as thrilled as Mom did.
I couldn’t ask for more than that. I gave Mom one more tight hug, holding her as close as I could. There was so much more for us to do together. I could hardly wait.
Fane and Scott approached us.
Fane cleared his throat. “Are you ready to move on?” he asked. The impatience in his voice was obvious.
“Wait a minute. I haven’t seen Sara yet. I told you—I don’t want to go anywhere without seeing her first. I need to know she’s all right.” Scott was adamant.
I was surprised he’d been silent all that time.
Mom looked at him over my shoulder. While she didn’t know him, she spoke with gentle understanding. “She’s been very busy with her training, even I’ve barely had the chance to see her.”
“Training?” Scott asked, more confused than ever.
I winced.
He had no idea, but Mom didn’t know that. Rather than waiting for her to explain, he asked another question.
“You’re just going to leave her alone here and go to Avellane?”
“I trust Stark. He’ll take care of her.”
I winced again as Scott’s emotions wrote themselves all over his face. “Who’s Stark?” he asked in a cold voice.
“Her teacher.” Mom was still unaware of exactly what she was saying—of who Scott was to Sara, or rather, who he’d been to her. Who he still thought he was.
For all I knew, things were still the same between them, but there was no way of telling until I spoke to my sister. Much of her life had changed.
Even so, there was something in her voice, maybe in the way she hesitated just a beat before speaking, that told me she was aware of something different between Sara and this Stark person. Something complicated. Only I would’ve noticed that slight hesitation. Maybe Gregor, too, but he didn’t know just what had already passed between Sara and Scott.
“Why does she need a teacher?” Scott asked, raising his voice. “Why is she even in this area? It’s for witches, isn’t it? Why would she be training here? Training for what? What could they teach her?”
“Scott, I know this is a lot to take in all at once,” I said, hoping to get through to him before he really blew his stack. “It’s a long story, but I’m sure Sara will tell you all about it someday.”
He wasn’t satisfied by a long shot, but Fane’s hand on his shoulder was a silent reminder that there were other things to be concerned about. Like the reason we’d left the high-rise in the first place. He remained silent, though it was obvious he was stewing.
Felicity, who I’d forgotten was even there—she was good at fading into the background and being discreet—stepped up.
“Are you ready?” she asked Mom, and I guessed she was going to create the portal which would take her back to the human world. Mom nodded and gave me one more hug before stepping into the swirling light. She paused to smile one more time at Gregor before she did, and he looked as though he were the happiest man alive.
“We’d better go, too,” Felicity reminded him, tugging his sleeve.
We exchanged a single, private look—both of us grinning over Gregor’s obvious excitement, the way a single smile from my mother could turn him into a fluttery, lovestruck boy all over again.
I gave him a brief hug and said goodbye to Felicity before the two of them stepped through another portal, on their way to Avellane.
All I could do was silently wish my parents luck and happiness—as I knew they wished the same for me.
35
Anissa
“Now, are we ready to go?” Fane asked, more impatient than ever. I gave him credit for waiting as long as he had.
“You mean you didn’t enjoy spending time with your future in-laws?” I asked with a knowing grin.
“That is quite a stretch,” Fane replied, with a grin of his own. A
t least he was willing to joke with me.
“I’m glad the two of you are having such a good time,” Scott fumed.
With my parents away, he felt free to go back to being angry. I felt sorry for him, but I also had very little patience for his attitude.
Clearly, I wasn’t alone.
“Come with me. Both of you.” Fane put an arm around his youngest son’s shoulder and led us both to the same bench where my parents had been sitting together when we arrived. He sat Scott down and waited until I was seated before he said, “Scott. We need to talk about this.”
“About what?” Scott was obviously in no mood to play along.
“You know what I’m talking about. Sara. You’ve been on edge ever since we met up back at the high-rise, and all over this girl. Perhaps it would be wise to take a step back, regroup, and wait things out. You can’t force her into anything, especially when she’s busy with something we know nothing about.”
I appreciated his wisdom and knew he was right. Things had changed, far more than either of them were aware, and I wished I were at liberty to explain exactly what had happened to my sister. I couldn’t betray her like that. I could only hold my tongue and wait for Scott to reply.
When he did, it was with characteristic impatience. “Who do you think you are?” he snarled. “Some sort of advice specialist? Don’t make me laugh. You’re hardly a sterling example of parenting, Fane. Now isn’t the time to step up and make up for lost time.” The way he spat out his father’s name—new name—chilled me to my core.
“Scott…” I tried to warn, but he was having none of it.
The last thing we needed was for him to alienate his father even further.
He barreled on. “For example, your little girlfriend. You know, the one who’s pregnant with a baby she shouldn’t even be having. A hybrid baby that will only complicate all our lives. A baby who might even cost Sirene her life, seeing as how she might not even make it through the delivery. Meanwhile, our mother’s body is out there—she might even still be in there, for all we know—and you’re busy with a witch! But you’re going to give me advice?”