by Allison Rose
Jeanine left the door open in obvious invitation as she made her way back to the table. It was then that Kelty noticed the other figure in the room. He leaned against the wall, mostly in shadow. The human that was most displeased at the demise of their leader. Adam.
Kelty hesitated. They must have more of the magic that allows them to see. Or they took so much they are permanently altered. But what do they want?
She knew Nola still spoke to these humans at school, but Kelty still viewed them with distaste, remembering what their magic had done to her woods. “Where is Nola?” she asked, the words coming out a little hoarse, and with a lingering feeling that she was doing something forbidden by speaking with the humans.
Though it was beginning to seem like the draining effect on faerie magic was not directly caused by contact with humans, as she had previously believed, the fear was so ingrained in her it was hard to ignore.
Jeanine plopped back down at the table and elegantly crossed her long legs. “We were going to ask you the same question.” Despite her flippant attitude, her eyes had worry lines around them, and her shoulders held a tension.
An uneasy feeling grew in the pit of Kelty’s stomach. Nola is missing.
Adam said nothing, and they both looked at her expectantly, still standing out on the deck.
Kelty swallowed and took one step into the house. She stopped there. “Where was she last seen?”
“Someone last saw her leaving the school with Cameron four days ago,” Jeanine supplied. “Her friend, Lauren, is missing as well. We don’t know anything other than someone has been passing around notes to some of the students. We told Nola about it before she disappeared.”
Kelty’s worry grew. She would investigate this, especially if her friend was involved.
“Does it involve any faeries? Do you know?” Kelty asked. Please, let it not be Fable.
“Maybe,” Jeanine said at the same time Adam said, “Yes.”
Jeanine turned to frown at him, then turned back to Kelty. Kelty felt a twinge of appreciation for the girl. “We do not know either way,” Jeanine said.
“The notes sound just like our benefactor,” Adam argued.
A flash of panic went through Kelty.
“On paper,” Jeanine said. “Doesn’t mean anything.”
Adam’s scowl deepened.
“So, anyway, do you have any idea who could be behind this?” The look in Jeanine’s eyes was earnest, surprising Kelty.
Perhaps these humans who once tortured Nola have become her friends. But they will not be any help against Fable if it is him.
“I will find her,” Kelty said aloud, frustration in her voice. Then she begrudgingly added, “Stay away from the wood. It is not safe.”
Adam looked offended at the notion. Jeanine nodded once but then said, “If it is our former benefactor, we are already involved. He may come for us eventually.” Her eyes dared Kelty to disagree.
Kelty sighed impatiently. I don’t have time for this, but this one is smarter than I realized. “I will send someone to follow you should I discover the threat is faerie.”
She turned to leave, mind already on how she would confront Fable, when Jeanine spoke again.
“They will be searching the woods soon. It was well known that Nola spent her afternoons there.”
Kelty closed her eyes in frustration. Humans always have to complicate everything.
“I will deal with it,” she said over her shoulder as she stepped back out onto the deck and took flight.
Stay strong, Nola.
Chapter 21
Fable didn’t show up at Bliss for the next few days.
The humans were allowed free rein of the castle. Mostly, they lounged and talked and laughed. They didn’t seem to want to do anything else. It was as if all motivation was gone, as well.
Nola managed some conversations with Lauren. Her friend only remembered the good times. And when Nola prompted her about a negative memory, her friend simply stared at her with a blank look.
Conversations with Cameron were even worse. It seemed as if the whole ordeal with the dark magic and his previous run-in with the faeries was gone, wiped clean. He looked at her like he barely recognized her.
Allora seemed to draw a sick sort of fascination from Nola and Briar’s presence. She had a gift for listening in, unseen. Nola was now in the habit of checking rooms for the green faerie before she entered, but Allora always popped in unnoticed at some point, startling Nola with her swift quietness.
Nola grew increasingly frustrated. They were getting nowhere. As much as she dreaded meeting Fable, it was beginning to look like the only chance they would have of leaving. Briar had a theory that Allora was purposely stalling whatever sort of experiments they had going on there so that Nola and Briar wouldn’t see. That maybe this was a test to get whatever information they wanted about Nola.
After the shock of the first day wore off, Nola decided she didn’t care if this was a test. She would get the humans out no matter what it took.
The situation almost had Nola laughing. In what story would the villain avoid conflict with the hero? Briar gave her a weird look. That made her want to laugh even more. Now I’m the weird one he can’t figure out.
She spent her time with the humans trying to figure out how to free them. Briar tried his best to crack Allora; their snarky comments could be heard throughout the castle.
Nola was also growing increasingly worried about her parents. They probably think I ran away to live on the streets or something. I should’ve gone back and left a note, but no, I had to rush into this. But as she looked at her friends and what they had become at the hands of the faeries, she let the regret slip away. She was the only one that was going to fight for them. Even if no one ever knew the truth, but they got out of there, Nola wouldn’t care.
Despite the weirdness of Bliss and the pressure of trying to figure out an escape, Nola had never felt physically better. She hadn’t had a fainting spell. Her head felt clear, body energized. Briar kept up the magic around her that made Faerie less harsh on her senses. Until the third night they were alone, and he suddenly called it back to him. It almost glided across her skin as it went back to him.
The room suddenly seemed abnormally bright. Her heart rate sped up, lungs expanding to take in as much of the fresh air as she could. She wanted more of Faerie, all of it.
But I can’t react like this all the time, she thought, trying to control herself. Her body was filled to the brim with energy. She wanted to run around, to laugh, to cry, anything but stand still.
I probably look incredibly dumb. I don’t want to be the dumb human. I am part faerie.
She repeated that to herself a couple of times, focusing on keeping her feet rooted to the ground. She still wore her sneakers, not daring to put her dirty human feet on the ground of Faerie, but it was easier this time to imagine herself as part of the land, an extension of it. The hyperness gradually faded, bringing with it a sense of pride. Kelty would be so proud, she thought. A pang came with thinking of her faerie friend and of home. In her still semi-heightened state, she almost burst into tears.
“Good.” The word startled Nola out of her melancholy. She quickly turned her gaze to Briar. She had almost forgotten he was there.
“What?” she managed to ask. Her own voice sounded different to her, a little too loud.
“You should get used to Faerie without my magic surrounding you,” he explained patiently. His voice sounded different, too. Nola wondered how she hadn’t noticed earlier how smooth and almost musical his voice sounded—hypnotic. She never wanted him to stop talking.
“There may come a time when I will not be able to protect you,” he continued.
“Hmm.” Nola nodded, still lost in the sensations around her.
The magic snapped back into place along her skin this time. Nola blinked and actually stumbled a little, though she had been standing still. She found the bed and sat, Briar’s words finally sinking in.
“You think we may not be able to get out of here for a while,” she guessed, staring down at the stone floor. A sinking feeling started in her stomach.
“Your friends are deeply trapped in their own minds. Allora is still stalling. Fable is avoiding Bliss.”
Nola took a breath in as she considered the reality before them. And I thought it would be as easy as walking in, demanding my friends back, maybe having a little skirmish, and then leaving.
She looked up at Briar. “I will not leave without them, but you still can.”
His eyes widened at the thought. “No.” He said the word like he couldn’t imagine why she would ever suggest that.
“It might be the best plan we have,” Nola continued reasonably. “You can leave and get help. Get Kelty and Rowan. Find out what Fable is doing. Come back for me.”
“By the time I get back you may be lost like the rest of them.” He crossed his arms and his wings fluttered a little as he said it.
Still, Nola dug her heels in. “And what if that doesn’t happen? You don’t think I can last two minutes on my own,” she accused.
“Not because you are weak,” he said, expression still tight. “Because as soon as I am gone, Allora will do everything in her power to make sure you end up like the others. She may not be powerful, but she’s smart. She’ll use them to get to you. She may even kill them, or threaten to. Or she will come directly at you. You have power, but it’s unpredictable. You may not be able to hold her off for long.”
Nola sat stiffly as he listed off all the horrible things that could happen. Then she said softly, “And if I asked you to go?”
If it was possible for his expression to get darker, it did. His whole body stilled. There was a moment of tense silence.
Nola immediately felt guilty for phrasing it that way, as if she wanted him to leave. And then she wondered why she felt guilty for that.
We’re not even friends, are we?
“I could not bear it if he did to you what he has done to me,” Briar said, intensely. “But if that is truly what you wish, I will leave.”
She didn’t feel the least bit relieved, though she was getting what she wanted. She wracked her mind for something to soften the blow of her request.
“When?” Briar asked before she could come up with something.
“Two more days?” Maybe we can pull off a miracle before then. She wasn’t too fond of the idea of being alone in this place as the only sane human.
“Fine.” Briar bowed his head stiffly, as Nola had seen him do to Kelty before.
No, she whined to herself. I never wanted to be that person. I’m not bossy or in charge. Or anything like that. I just want to get out of here with my friends.
She didn’t say any of these things, though, fearing she would only do more damage to their weird and fragile relationship, whatever it was.
Chapter 22
Ducking into the trees at the edge of Nola’s yard, Kelty landed high up on a branch, placing her hand on its bark and urging her magic down into the tree. She thought of Fable and his energy, asking the trees to search along their network, urging them farther than she ever had before. After only a few moments, she was pleasantly surprised as the trees showed her where Fable was, somewhere deep within the wood where the empty throne sat and where she had first met the Court of Outcasts. Whether that was because of her power or Dane’s attentions, she wasn’t sure, but she didn’t wonder any further and took off to corner Fable before she lost her chance.
He stood next to the throne that was supposed to be hers, leaning one slender hip against it.
Before he could say anything, Kelty touched down, met his unnerving gaze, and demanded, “Where is Briar?” She hoped the question would throw him off, and give her a clue if Briar and Nola were together.
Fable raised questioning eyebrows. “I do not keep track of his doings.”
“There is also a human girl, who frequents the wood, I have not seen for a time. I find it suspicious both of them have gone missing.”
“I know nothing of them,” Fable said evenly.
Liar, Kelty thought. He did reveal that he knows of Nola, though. Maybe they’re together. She tried to think of another way to get the information she needed out of him. She doubted she could convince him magically.
Fable cocked his head and an excited smile crossed his thin face. “It appears our lessons will begin on a rather interesting note. Am I lying when I say I know nothing?”
Kelty pushed down her fear, centered herself, and tuned into her spirit power; truth-seeing was something she was familiar with at least. Sending it up into her own head, she focused on his energy.
A tinge of black surrounded him. “You lie,” Kelty said, venom in her voice.
He knows. They better be alive and whole.
His smile grew. “Yes. Now make me tell you the truth.”
Kelty wanted nothing more than to do so, but she had no idea how. And she figured it would mean looking into his mind, something she never wanted to do.
It was then she remembered she was supposed to allow Rowan to accompany her.
Moon above, what have I done?
“Just tell me where the human girl is,” she snapped.
“What convinces another to do something?” he asked her instead.
Kelty suppressed the urge to hiss at him. Maybe if I play his infuriating little game, he will be forthcoming.
“They want it,” she answered.
“Yes. Make me want it. Influencing is not about what you want, but the other’s desires. And you have the power to push them toward whatever you wish. Make them feel that telling you is the right thing to do. Make them feel it, and you can have any information you wish.”
“Is that what you do to the Court of Outcasts?” Kelty asked abruptly. “Make them want to be here?”
“They are here because they have nowhere else to go. And I have provided for them a reason for being.”
He truly believes that, Kelty thought in wonder. “You have coerced them into serving me.”
“Sometimes others do not want what is good for them. It is a kindness to make them want it.”
Kelty blinked, a little stunned at the truth in his words. But did that really make it right?
She shook her head and reminded herself of her purpose. “Where is the human girl?”
“Make me tell you the truth,” Fable repeated, eyes daring her.
Kelty breathed in, and on her exhale she sent a wave of influence toward him. You want to tell me where they are.
“Weak,” Fable said mercilessly. “You have given me no reason to do as you wish. Again.”
Kelty bristled as his tone hardened, but she continued. You want to tell me where they are. It is important they be returned home to those that care about them.
“You think I care for such things? Again.”
After another few attempts, Kelty was breathing hard despite not being physically exerted, and her patience was growing thin.
I do not think he will ever want to tell me anything. It would give me too much power. He is playing with me.
Her mind worked frantically to think of a way to convince him. Nola’s life may depend on it. Maybe even Briar’s. Think. There must be something I can give him.
“What is it you want?” she asked him, giving up on her weak attempts at influencing him with spirit.
Disappointment flashed over his face. “That is for you to figure out.”
Kelty clenched her teeth. Infernal spirit-users. “You can at least tell me if they are well.”
Fable’s eyes flashed at that, and she felt that dangerous caress in her mind. “I will tell you nothing until you deserve it.”
She stood very still, as if that might convince him to leave her alone, heart beating frantically. He could easily take away any memory, anything she loved, any knowledge that kept her alive, anyone—faerie or human—that meant anything to her. He could erase it all so easily.
Then Fable’s face smoot
hed. He withdrew from her mind. “That is enough for now. Rest brings clarity.”
Anger sparked within her. “No—”
He raised his delicate brows in warning as he cut her off. “Do not follow—or I will pay your potential a visit. This time, he may not survive—at least not as you knew him.”
With that, he spread his white wings and took off into the trees. Kelty clenched her fists, wings fluttering.
He has Nola. He is now threatening Rowan to keep me away. And despite all my power, I have no idea how to thwart him.
* * *
Kelty faced Rowan outside her home tree after an explanation of her encounter with Fable—and how she had been so focused she forgot they agreed to see him together.
Rowan’s expression grew stonier with every word. A muscle in his jaw twitched as she finished. Anxiety churned within Kelty.
Then he spread his wings and took off, landing in the trees above and disappearing into the foliage.
Tears pricked at Kelty’s eyes. She rushed into the solace of her home tree.
I should have been thinking about him. How do I fix this? Maybe this is why we are not partners. I am the problem.
Hours later, after Kelty laid down and doused the light from her Telk stones, Rowan returned.
Kelty’s hopes rose, another apology on her lips, but he merely lay beside her with his back turned. Silent tears rolled down her cheeks as she tried to sleep and failed.
When dawn came, they readied for the day without speaking. By his stiff movements, Kelty could tell he was still mad. She feared anything she said could never make up for it, so she kept her lips sealed.
But they ruled a court together. After Kelty refreshed herself and ate some of the berries Dane had improved—which gave her an energy burst she desperately needed, but couldn’t fix her current problems—Kelty steeled herself and broke the silence.
“Can you keep an eye on the outcasts today?”
“What will you be doing?”
“I need answers. And Fable has them.”
“And if he breaks you in the process?”
Kelty lifted wide eyes to Rowan’s face. Is he trying to order me around because he cares? Why won’t he say it?