Violet laughed. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”
Hugh stopped the car in front of a tall chain-link fence. Large signs spelled out the hours for the park. We were clearly outside of them.
We got out slowly. We were all in a hurry, yet not. Although we were in a rush to find answers for Daisy, the journey didn’t seem particularly enjoyable.
“We’re not supposed to take you through this way.” Violet spoke calmly.
“But you’re going to anyway.” Daisy closed her eyes.
“Yes. I really don’t care about the rules anymore.”
“Please tell me you’re not on a suicide mission.” That thought had already occurred to me, but I really hoped it wasn’t real.
“No. Not a suicide mission.”
“It’s closed right now, huh? You guys like breaking into places when they are closed.” Daisy looked all around her.
“We aren’t breaking in here. It’s ours. We just can’t use it when tourists are around.” Violet hesitated with her hand on the door handle.
“Gotcha.”
“Please tell me you’re going to return this car.” Daisy made no motion to move once Hugh parked.
“Why are you always so concerned with people getting their cars back?” Hugh studied her.
“Because people pay hard earned money for their cars,” she answered immediately. I knew it was for the same reason she cared so much about upsetting Allie. She had a guilt complex. I knew the feeling. I’d occasionally suffered from one myself.
“It’s just an item.” Hugh pushed the door open. “All items can be replaced.”
“Only if you have the money to replace them.”
“But they can be replaced.” He got out and went right over to the chain-link fence. He effortlessly scaled the fence and landed on the other side.
Violet got out to follow, but then leaned back in. “What he’s trying to say is that you should worry less about people’s things and more about people.”
“But you guys mess with people too.” Daisy got out and slammed her door. I hurried out through my side.
“We don’t hurt them.”
“Of course you do!” She threw up her hands. I didn’t immediately move to calm her down. She had every right to say her piece. “You hurt people by getting them in trouble with the people they care about, by taking things from them, by making them feel or think things that aren’t really their thoughts or feelings. That hurts them.”
Violet pressed her lips together. “We do what we have to do in order to survive. That’s all we can do.”
“There has to be another way.” She walked toward the fence.
“We’ll see what tune you are singing—”
“Enough!” Violet glared at Hugh through the chain link. “We need to move. No more arguing.”
“I’ll second that.” I’d held back so Daisy wouldn’t feel like I was trying to get involved in all her fights, but arguing about whether Allures hurt people or not would do absolutely nothing in the effort to keep her human.
“Agreed.” Daisy touched the fence. “Do we really have to climb a chain-link fence again?”
“You did fine with it last time, what’s the problem?” Violet scaled the fence.
“I’m glad I changed into pants.”
Hugh laughed. “Think a dress would get in your way?”
She didn’t answer. “Let’s get this over with.” She climbed up and over.
Violet was right. Daisy had no trouble scaling the fence. I followed closely behind, choosing not to use my wings in case there were security cameras. It would be easier to get our faces deleted from the footage than to explain a giant set of wings.
I joined Daisy inside the fence and walked with her toward the giant oak tree.
She gazed up at it. “Beautiful.”
The tall tree was beautiful. Its most striking feature were its low branches that stretched out in every direction and seemed to go on forever. There was something surreal about the tree.
“It’s been here for over four hundred years.” Violet stood right next to it. “It’s grown a lot, but it’s still the same tree.”
“Were you around when it was planted?” I asked.
“Didn’t you hear Georgina?” Violet wagged her finger in the air. “You never ask a woman’s age.”
Hugh laughed. “I don’t know why you are so hesitant to tell them your story, Violet. It’s a good one.”
“Why don’t you tell them yours, huh, Hugh? If telling stories is of so little consequence.”
He paled. “My story isn’t nearly as interesting as yours.”
“What’s Roland’s?” Daisy asked.
“It’s his to tell.” Violet touched one of the low hanging branches. “This is the part that is going to make you nauseous.”
“Touching the tree?”
“Traveling through it.”
“We’re really traveling through a tree?” Daisy’s eyes widened. “You have got to be kidding me.”
“With everything else going on, it’s the tree travel you can’t accept?”
“I can accept it in theory. I just can’t believe we’re going to do it.”
“You are both going to have to close your eyes.” Hugh put his hands behind his head. I couldn’t tell if he was stretching or flexing his muscles.
I ignored his display. “Why?”
“Because tree travel isn’t for humans or Pterons. It’s meant only for us.”
“And I’m practically an Allure.” Daisy put a hand on her hip.
“But practically doesn’t mean anything. You’re still human.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’ll close my eyes, but this had better not be a joke where you pretend we’ve been transported someplace but in reality we haven’t moved at all.”
“I wouldn’t worry about that.” Violet strode toward the tree. “I guarantee you’re going to feel it.”
“Why?” Daisy asked with alarm. “Does it make you sick?”
“Slightly.”
“Really?” I wanted to make sure she wasn’t messing with Daisy.
“Why are you surprised?” Violet watched me with curiosity. She seemed to like to study our responses.
“I’m surprised you’d subject yourself to something unpleasant. You can avoid anything you don’t like.”
She gently touched the trunk of the tree. “It’s one of the only way to get back home.”
“When we close our eyes, what happens?” Daisy slipped her hand into mine.
“We touch the tree and touch you guys. We all travel.”
“How do I know you won’t leave me behind?” She’d been almost too willing to bring me along with them. It made me suspicious.
“Because you’re holding hands. She’s not going anywhere without you.”
“So you say.”
“At this point, you are going to have to take our word for it.”
“I’m tired of people saying things like that.” I was used to being in control.
“Join the club.” Daisy leaned into my side.
Violet glanced up at the dark sky. “We need to do this.”
“Fine.” Daisy shut her eyes. “We’re ready.”
I closed my eyes and felt the ground begin to shake underneath us. I held onto Daisy’s hand as tightly as I could. I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn’t. It was as though gravity was pushing down on us at ten times the usual force. My body felt inside out, my ears, nose, mouth, and eyes burned, and I needed it to be over. The shaking died down, and it was replaced by the sudden sensation of falling. I felt sick to my stomach, and I worried about Daisy. She’d been sick even before this experience.
Before I could fully process it, our bodies made contact with the ground.
“Ouch!” Daisy cried.
“You okay?” I opened my eyes to find her sprawled out next to me. I still held her hand in mine.
“Is it over?” She blinked rapidly, still lying down.
I sat up. We were on a sand
y beach lying underneath a palm tree. I had no way to know how far away we were from Angel Oak.
“Violet?” I called out. A seemingly endless mass of dark blue water stood on one side of us, while a thick jungle stood behind.
“Where are they?” Daisy sat up, and I helped her to standing.
“I don’t know.” This was great. Fantastic. They’d transported us to some unknown place and dumped us.
“Where did they go?” She glanced around. “There’s no way they ditched us.”
“Right now it looks like they did.” I wanted to be positive for her, but realism was more likely to help us out of our current situation. “First things first. We have to figure out where we are.”
“You make that sound easy.” She dusted off her pants.
“We may only be a few miles away from where we started. Violet might have been making the whole transporting to another realm stuff up.” We’d definitely moved though. We were on a beach and not one I recognized.
“Do you really believe that?” Daisy gazed out at the dark water. “This doesn’t look like the Charleston beaches I remember, and look at that.” She pointed up at the sky.
“It’s the most logical answer.” I followed Daisy’s gaze and noticed an odd glowing red ball of light set in the darkening sky.
“What is that?” She pointed.
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
“Do we wait here or start exploring?”
I needed to come up with a plan and fast. Daisy was relying on me. I’d put my trust in the hands of the wrong people, and now we were wasting time. Maybe that was Violet’s plan all along. She wanted to distract us so we couldn’t stop the change in time.
Before I could formulate anything useful I heard something moving in the jungle behind us. I grabbed hold of Daisy’s hand.
“You heard that too?” she asked nervously.
I nodded. “Unfortunately, I did.”
“Maybe it’s just a squirrel.”
“Could be.” I doubted it. I had great senses. I always knew what was going on around me, but I couldn’t place it this time. I didn’t recognize what it was. Something was messing with me. Nothing felt normal, I was turned around.
The shuffling got louder, and it was joined by loud laughter. It was cackling that started in one spot, but then it continued all around us. We were surrounded.
“What’s going on?” Daisy trembled beside me. “Is this a joke or something?”
I turned so my back faced away from Daisy, but I held on to her hand. I transformed, allowing my large black wings to rip through my t-shirt.
I felt the familiar surge of strength as I fully transformed. I could handle anything that came our way. I’d protect Daisy no matter what happened.
“Look, we made him mad,” a tiny voice called out. “He has his wings out.”
“And his eyes are black.”
I hadn’t realized how complete my transformation was. I needed to hold onto my human side somewhat with Daisy close by.
A petite girl with a pale complexion and wild red hair walked into the clearing. She held her hands out in front of her. “We won’t hurt you.”
“Where are we?” I tried to stay calm, but my Pteron side was in full attack mode. If it weren’t for the girl’s small size it would have been worse. I was nearly certain she was some sort of Dryad, and they weren’t known to be violent, but I wasn’t willing to put my guard down.
The laughter grew louder.
“Hello. Could you stop laughing and tell us what’s going on?” Daisy sounded so calm and collected. I was impressed.
The laughing stopped, and at least a dozen people walked out of the woods from around us. They were all dressed in green tunics and brown pants. Although their skin tones varied, each one of them had the same shock of red hair that fell around them in wild waves. The Dryads I knew weren’t all quite so wild looking, but that’s what they had to be.
Daisy cleared her throat. “Uh hi. We’re lost and are looking for some friends.”
“You are an Allure?” One of the girls walked toward Daisy. “I haven’t seen a new one in years.”
“No. I’m hum—” Then she seemed to think better of it. “Do you know Violet and Hugh?”
“They were taken by the Force.”
I wasn’t sure what the Force was exactly, but I had a hunch. “The police force?”
The girl nodded. “Yes, but no one calls them police now. They’re just the Force.”
“Okay, but when were they taken? We were with them a few minutes ago.” I checked our surroundings. Hugh and Violet were nowhere to be seen.
“When they were transported. There was a bounty on their head.” A male explained.
“A big one.” The first girl to enter the clearing nodded. “Biggest I have ever heard of.”
“A bounty?” Were Violet and Hugh in trouble? Why would they have returned home then?
“The announcement gave no reasons.”
“This makes no sense.” Daisy dug her foot into the damp soil. “None of this makes sense.
“My bet is you’re going to have a bounty on your head too. You brought a Pteron into the Glamour Realm.” She pointed a thumb at me.
“I had a good reason to bring him,” she looked at me for help. “A good reason.”
I thought fast. “I’m escorting her home by order of The Society.”
“I thought you were with Violet and Hugh?” The male asked suspiciously.
“We were, but I was still her escort.”
“She’s been escorted. You may leave.” He moved his hand as if to shoo me away.
“He can’t leave yet.” Daisy squeezed my hand. “We have other reasons to be here.”
“Do you?” The girl asked. “This should be interesting.”
10
Daisy
What kind of mess were we in now? It was bad enough that Violet wanted to take us through some weird other world to get to Mount Majest, but now we were on our own, and both of us might be in trouble. What would happen if, or more likely when, these people discovered I wasn’t an Allure? Things were only going to get worse.
“What other business does he have here?” The girl asked again. I’d put my foot in my mouth, but I had to say something. Otherwise one of them might make him leave. Owen was strong, but who knew what these people could do?
“It’s private.” I tried to keep my voice firm. “Do you know how we can find Violet and Hugh? I know you said they’re in some sort of trouble, but maybe we can help.”
“Are you suffering from memory loss?” The first girl walked over. Owen started to move in front of me, but I stopped him. She wasn’t going to hurt me. She put her hands on either side of my head. “You’re not full Allure yet, huh? That’s the problem. Is this your first time in the Glamour Realm?”
“Yes.” Change of plans. Maybe playing on my lack of knowledge could be a help rather than hindrance.
“That changes things.” Something silent passed between the two.
The guy nodded and walked toward me. “What does it change? She’s still breaking the rules.”
“Not intentionally…” The girl rested her chin in her fisted hand. “Clearly Hugh made her before he could tell her.”
The guy shook his head. “There’s no way Hugh made her.”
“Why not?” the girl asked.
“It’s a completely different essence. It’s….” His eyes darkened. “It’s Taylor.”
“How could that be?” The once friendly girl stepped back. The others instantly looked suspicious. “She’s been missing… and this girl isn’t her.”
I shook my head. “It’s not like that. A witch… it wasn’t my fault.”
Several more of the people stepped closer.
“Honestly, it wasn’t my fault.”
Owen glared at the crowd, and they stopped. “Just tell them the truth.”
“The truth?” The angry guy asked.
“Yes. The truth. Roland made Daisy.�
�� Owen pulled me against his side. “Roland was made by Taylor.”
“Oh.” The girl sighed with relief. “Where is he?”
“I don’t know. Violet and Hugh were helping.” I went along with the story. It was easier and hopefully safer that way.
“You poor thing.” The first girl hugged me in an awkward way since Owen wasn’t budging. “Separated from your maker before you even understand the way of things.”
“That doesn’t explain why she’s with him.” The angry guy scowled. “She still hasn’t told us the truth about that.”
“I already told you. I’m her protection. The king assigned me to guard her until she found her maker. That was the secret. We had no idea there were still Allures around and now that we do; it’s our duty to make sure no harm comes to this new one.”
“The Society has changed…” The angry guy seemed lost in thought. “Do you have any idea where Roland might be?”
“With the Elders.” I had to risk sharing the information. It was the only clue I had, and if there was any chance these people could lead us there, I had to take the chance.
Several of them gasped. “Has he been summoned there?”
I hated lying, but what could I do? “Possibly. Do you know how to find them?”
“We can find the Elders, but that doesn’t mean they will see you.” The girl crossed her arms. “You are not even a full Allure after all.”
“I need to find him.” Then I thought of something. “Does the Force work with the Elders? Is that where Violet and Hugh would have been brought?”
The girl shook her head. “No. The Force is its own separate entity. .” She held out her hand. “I’m Sky by the way. Who are you?”
“Daisy.” We were lying about so much already. I decided using my real first name could be helpful.
“Nice name.” The angry guy held out his hand. “I’m Adrian.”
I accepted the surprisingly firm handshake. “Nice to meet you.”
I waited as half a dozen more introduced themselves. No one moved to introduce themselves to Owen, so I took care of that myself. “This is Owen.”
“Hi,” they mumbled before turning back to me. “You are just in time for the Blood Moon Festival.”
“The what?” Owen and I looked at each other.
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