Something new and amazing happened this time and I watched as a new feeling enveloped me. The vine continued to grow, but not on me. Part of the vine unrestricted itself from my hand and wrapped around Kamdyn’s wrist, slithering up his arm, effectively tying us together. Kamdyn’s fingers tightened around mine and I looked up at him to see his beautiful smile. A smile I missed so much.
It had only been a couple days, but it felt like forever.
It almost was.
“Leave, leave now.” Rhyannon’s voice broke threw our wonder but I noticed she did not move to touch us.
“I will go with you,” a voice said beside us.
“I will go, too.”
Kamdyn and I both spun our heads to see both Halo and Devlin at our side. Devlin gave me a reassuring smile that helped me believe everything would be all right. Eventually, anyway. Halo still looked passive, showing no emotion on his stoic beautiful face.
Devlin nodded and we started out, heading toward our only exit.
A roar reverberated through the room and we spun in time to see Corrigan’s body disappear in a shroud of blackness. The entire room gasped as we all looked around, up in the air. But he was no where to be seen.
“Run!” the Queen yelled. Still struck stupidly immobile, someone grabbed me an tugged as we raced for the doors.
Just as we were about to reach them, a sweep of black smoke swirled around our faces and the King materialized. “You will not leave,” he screamed, his face twisted in fury. “You will not take her from me.”
Standing frozen in place, I didn’t know what to do. We were trapped with no other way out besides through Corrigan.
Strong hands gripped my shoulders and spun me around. Devlin stood there, a serious expression crossed his face. “I will keep him busy while you escape.”
“Devlin…”
“I will meet you. I promise, once you are safe, I will come to you.” I opened my mouth to protest but he covered my mouth with his hand. “No, I must do this. For you.” He pierced my eyes with his emerald gaze and I couldn’t help but feel like I was losing. I nodded as he bent over to kiss my cheek and whispered, “I will be there; I told you I can no longer live without you.”
He fiercely pulled a sword from his side, that I had not seen there before, and in a flash of dark metal, he stormed toward the King.
Corrigan smiled, a smile that was anything but friendly. The expression twisted his face is such a way that for the first time, he wasn’t the handsome king. I realized, he was depraved.
My stomach lurched and I quickly swung my gaze away as memories surfaced. Quick flashes that I barely caught sight of before it would shift to another. The one thing that remained constant was that feeling of wrongness.
In the background of my thoughts, I heard a booming laughter as swords clashed.
“You just put it together, didn’t you, Trystie?” He laughed again and launched toward Devlin.
I had barely noticed through everything that most of the crowd had pushed up against the far wall refusing to be a part, for or against, the fight with their king.
My focus was drawn to Corrigan like a magnet forced to metal. His eyes caught mine in that second and he smirked before he once again disappeared in a swoop of darkness.
Without knowing where he had gone, his sinister voice echoed throughout the room. Every occupants gaze spun around, trying to pinpoint his direction.
“Trystie? Do you have something to ask me? I know you do, I can see it in your eyes,” A gust of wind blew by my head. “smell in on your skin. Do you remember the day we first met?”
My mind reeled as the scent triggered another memory. “That was you wasn’t it? Outside the restaurant? But, it wasn’t…”
He laughed again, dripping with malevolence, as he dove around the room. “I certainly couldn’t go out looking like myself, could I? I needed you to see who I wanted you to see. That was Halo.”
I felt the air stir and his voice landed in front of me. “Do you want to know what your friend tasted like? What the other girls tasted like?”
My entire body stiffened, as did Kamdyn and Halo, just before Corrigan appeared inches in front of me and retched me from Kamdyn, ripping us apart. The vines covering us screamed at the violence and flashed a violent red light before slithering out of view as if they had never been there. The pulsing of their unwanted retreat reverberating throughout my entire body. The King held me tightly against his body, his left arm reaching over my shoulder, his hand firmly gripping my throat, holding me immobile. I watched as shock and anger along with a readiness to fight filled my three guys. All ready to lunge, I shook my head as much as I was allowed.
“To be honest, none of those disgusting humans were very tasty.” He slapped his lips together as if disgusted. Tightening his grip, he pulled me back further, tighter against him. My back now firmly against his chest, I could feel his heart beating, his sharp intake of breath, the rumble of his voice in his chest. He leaned down and sniffed along the line of my exposed neck. “You, on the other hand, I have no doubt would taste better than Faery wine.”
His tongue darted out and dragged up the line of my throat. I tried to repress my shiver of revulsion.
“That was you! This whole time you let me think I had done it? Even when you knew how I felt?
“It was only a means to an end.” He shrugged casually, as if we were talking about what they were going to have for dinner and not who he had killed to get what he wanted.
“And what exactly is the end, Father, because this isn’t what we discussed.”
“Well, as you know, I am the King. And I will do anything I damn well please!” Corrigan’s head bent down again. “Now, my dear, we are going to finish our bonding ceremony.” His lips caressed over my neck and his teeth scraped over my skin. Not hard enough to break skin, but enough to hurt.
“Corrigan,” the voice was calm, whirling its way through the tense air. “You know you can not do this.”
“My Queen,” he said with a mocking tone and lifting his gaze. “You, out of everyone, should know I can and will do it. And once it is done, no one will have even a fraction of the power to stop me.
“I have had everything planned out so well. Once I found where Kamdyn was, I was planning to send Halo out for an ultimatum. What I never expected was this beautiful girl. But she isn’t exactly just a girl, is she.” His sharp nail ran down my cheek. “No, she is much, much more. A surprise that I was more than willing to accommodate. After I realized what she could do with her dreams, well, everything just fell right into place. Even Halo’s feeling for her. Very unexpected, but ultimately served it’s purpose. I am sorry to have to hurt you, especially with how reluctant you have been in the past about a bonding. But it will pass.”
The longer he talked, the madder I got as missing puzzle piece after puzzle piece fit into its empty slot. Everything since I had moved here had been planned out. Every move I had made was watched and calculated. Even my dreams had been under surveillance and somehow tampered with.
Was anything in the last few months real?
I felt the sting of fresh tears and my stomach boiled over. No! My mind screamed. I watched Kamdyn, Halo and Devlin’s eyes, as well as the rest of the entire room, shifted their attention onto me. Eyes wide with confusion. But I had no time to register it, before my body began to tremble.
Corrigan cursed loudly in my ear and Rhyannon smiled just as he screamed in pain and dropped his confining hold.
No more than a heartbeat later a strong wind swirled around me, wiping my hair and pulling at my dress. A cyclone of wind engulfed me bringing with it the calming scent of spring rain in the woods. My eyes closed and my arms lifted as if felt like my body had become the air twisting around me. Given the intensity of our situation, I suddenly felt calm and comfortable as my body slowly evaporated, vanishing into the consuming, twist of strong winds.
Not understanding what I had done, or how, I panicked, getting the impression I was hig
h in the air and had no idea how to get down. My heart raced and my body solidified, plummeting to the ground just behind where Devlin, Kamdyn and Halo stood.
Halo dove for me just before my body managed to hit, softening the blow as he twisted us in the air letting his body take the assault instead of mine. I opened my eyes to see his burning into mine. For the first time, I saw genuine concern and feeling in his eyes.
“Go, Halo. Run!” Devlin screamed.
Halo blinked the emotion away and gathered me tightly against his chest and with Kamdyn close behind, ran for the door, while Devlin drove for the King.
Just before we round the corner I opened my eyes again over Halo’s shoulder and got one glimpse of Corrigan’s arrogant face. His eyes flicked over as we were about to disappear, flashing red with fury, his last words echoing down the empty hall as we ran.
“I will find you, Trystessa. You can not get away from me that easily.”
The resonance of clanging swords dimmed as we took off. Then other sounds, sounds of thunder, fighting, strange cries. War. The strong sounds filled the dead air around us, chasing us in our escape.
“Don’t listen,” Halo ground out in a growl. “Cover your ears. Now!” I clutched my hands tightly over my ears, while Halo put a hand over mine and squeezed me against his chest. But it was too late. The cries and screams had seeped in and would not be blocked out.
A low hum started just under my fingers, uncomfortable but tolerable. Until it started to intensify. The humming became a vibration, that became a quake and then… I screamed as my head seemed to throb and explode. My vision flashed in thousands of bright blinding lights that warped and blurred my vision. The noises continued to seep further and further into me, deep into my bones.
Into my soul.
I was distantly aware of a high pitched screeching and that my lungs and throat burned like I was on fire from the inside out.
Consumed, blazing and empty, my mind finally broke and everything went black.
Chapter Twenty Eight
My intake of breath was sharp and painful. My eyes opened slowly, as if they forgot how, like they had been closed for too long. At first I saw nothing, my eyes refusing to focus. I blinked a few times in an attempt to clear my vision. A single candle flame gradually came into focus across the large room. It’s only light dancing, creating jumping shadows that moved erratically around me. Attempting to sit up sent a shooting, electric pain coursing through me and in those couple inches I managed to move, I slumped back down again.
“No, my lady. You must not move yet.” The feminine voice was strained and unfamiliar. I caught movement in the corner of the room and my gaze shot over toward it, seeing for the first time I wasn’t alone.
The small woman, Fae?, hurried toward me. She reached for a cloth to my right, dripped it and wiped my forehead. I felt instantly soothed and calm and knew that what she was wiping over my head wasn’t cool water. It smelled like dried flowers and herbs; thistle, chamomile and something sweet I couldn’t pin.
“Is that better, my lady?”
I opened my eyes and stared at her. “Who are you?”
She back up slightly, clutching the cloth tight to her chest and averting her eyes. “I am sorry, my lady. The Queen asked me to stay by your side until you awakened.”
“What happened?” I asked closing my eyes as I allowed the tension that was building to ease.
“You are very strong, my lady. We had no doubt you would be well again. I shall go and alert them that you are awake.”
Before I had the chance to respond, the woman swept from the room. I tried to look around more, to see where I was. The flickering light barely cast enough illumination to break the darkness. But I wasn’t afraid. I felt completely comfortable here in the dark. From the flickering of shadows, I managed to make out the large canopy bed I was occupying. I could tell from the little bit of light that it wasn’t a normal bed based on the misshapen corners and pieces that moved slightly as I watched.
A sudden feeling came over me that I was no longer alone. My body tensed as I stared toward the closed door. No one had come through and no one was here that I could see. My eyes were then drawn to a deep shadow by the door. As I watched it moved, I noticed it wasn’t in that same dance as the other shadows moved. I closed my eyes and let me head fall back, softly, against the pillows.
“I know you are there, Halo. Please come out.”
He stepped out, forming his body from the very shadows he once hid. He wore an expression of surprise briefly before he rearranged his features into concern. He hesitated, only for a moment, before he ran quickly to my side and took my hand. His hand was warm and comforting. He brushed his lips across my knuckles and smiled, his eyes flashed red, betraying an emotion I couldn’t see.
“You are awake. I was so…”
“I’m fine Halo. Where am I? Why am I here?”
“You are in the Queen’s summer house, until you get better. That is why I am here.” He smiled and pulled back his hand. “I know this is going to seem… odd, but I need you to trust me. After this, we can go home.”
“You’re father…”
“It’s okay, we’re okay for now. Please, don’t ask anything else. Just take what I offer so we can leave.”
My eyes widened as he brought his wrist to his mouth and bit down. The blood welled and spilled over the edges of his skin, dripping on the floor. He raised his wrist and offered it to me.
“Please,” his tone was nothing but begging. Worried.
“What will it do to me?”
“It will help heal you. Please, Trystie, trust me.”
“And will it do anything else to me? To us?”
He closed his eyes and waited. “Yes. Maybe. I’m not sure.”
“What will it do?”
“How about I tell you what will happen if you don’t. If you can’t bring yourself to do this, you may die, Trystie. As in, you will not come back. As a final attack, my father called the Sluagh after you, to kill you or bring you back to him. But the way you are now…” He shook his head. “You will not survive if you do not do this.” He sighed and his voice became filled with pain. “You care about me so little that you could not put aside the drawbacks of sharing my blood to save your own life?”
“Halo,”
“No, I… Things are different. You know me. You know what happened, all those things that made you think of me as a monster. They weren’t me, and you know that now. Please, just push aside all your doubts about me and do this. If for no other reason than to save yourself.”
Meeting his eyes one last time, I made the decision and brought his wrist to my lips.
Chapter Twenty Nine
I woke up in my own bed, in my own home the next morning. But this time, I was completely alone. And for once, I wasn’t happy about it. Now that I was home, I was expecting to be ambushed about disappearing for, actually, I’m not even sure how long. But to my surprise, Kimber only scolded me for missing that one day of school. Turns out, I wasn’t gone for days. It was only one. I was more than a little confused, to say the least, but I wasn’t going to fight her on it. If it kept me out of trouble, I guess I would just go with the flow. At least until I got some actual answers.
I spent the entire day alone. I ignored the hard knocks on my door from Kimber and the text messages from Jayson. He even stopped by. Even from my bedroom, I heard as Kimber explained that I wouldn’t come out and I wasn’t talking to her either. That she would let him know if anything changed.
I was momentarily surprised by my acute hearing but then I remembered all the other things that seemed different about me. Besides my really good hearing, my eyesight seemed much better. I felt light and strong and, incredibly, I felt better than I had ever felt in my entire life. I noticed that even a small scar that was on my knee was no longer visible.
I needed answers and I was going to get them.
Early the next morning, I drove up to Halo’s house. Kimber had let me borrow
Justin’s car for the day, but I’m not entirely sure of her motives yet. But now wasn’t the time to think about it. I had other things, many other things on my mind. So many things that I had trouble sleeping last night. Going to sleep in my room last night, alone, I felt just that, completely alone. I guess I had gotten used to someone either being there with me or at least knowing someone was close by. I felt protected and with all of the guys in my life no where in the area, I was lost.
Pathetic, I know.
I shook off any and all unease and shut off the car. I guess I was a little earlier than Halo was going to like considering the roll of light fog that was still hovering over the lawn and at the edges of the woods. Oh, well. I didn’t get much sleep, no neither would he. He’d get over it. I shrugged and headed toward the front door. I knocked, twice, and no one answered.
Standing around in the cold and waiting, I started to get aggravated. Checking the door, which was unlocked, I let myself in.
I slowly walked into the large, quiet house. He was definitely still sleeping. I made my way up the stairs and toward his bedroom door. But instead of knocking, I turned around and walked to the room that I had stayed in, where all my things still were.
“Going somewhere?”
I turned to see Halo leaning against his open doorway, arms crossed over his shirtless chest. He smiled then rolled his eyes.
“You are aware of how early it is, right?”
“Yeah, sorry. I couldn’t sleep last night and… I couldn’t wait any longer.” I stopped and looked away, almost ashamed. “I guess I needed to be near… I guess I was lonely.”
“Didn’t sleep well, huh? Never heard that excuse before.”
“Shut up, it’s not an excuse.” Then I walked toward him and flung my arms around him. “Thank you,” I whispered as he slide his arms around my waist.
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