“Trust an Immortal! I see you give me no credit.”
“You’re upset,” he said. “How can I help?”
“There’s more. He said his rebellion was a smokescreen.”
Winter raised an eyebrow. “Smokescreen for what?”
“For me. For you. He claims he needed to get you to reveal me. All of it—the rebellion, the war, the morphs, all orchestrated to uncover my identity, just so Chaos and I could have that chat. Insane.”
Winter flared his nostrils, realizing he had been played. His features became rigid. He took a sip of his drink, having nothing to say.
“Does that upset you? That he outplayed you? Is it all a game to you two? Some macho rivalry that has terrorized the ages?”
“Chaos will say anything, he always finds a new angle,” he said, coldly. “And if you think he outplayed me, what do you think he’ll do with you?”
“You both do that, say anything to get what you want,” I said. “How are you any different than him?”
He came to me, grabbed both my wrists and lifted me to my feet. “Why don’t you come out with it, Luna Mae? Say what you want to say.”
“Fine,” I said, shoving him. “You’ve always known about me. You planned to use me all along. And you’d love nothing better than to command me for the rest of my life.”
He pressed a finger to the top of my head. “What have I told you about trusting Chaos?”
“Guess I fucked up that command, Commander. You know what? You’re so full of shit.” My resentment was no longer hiding itself. “And to think I had convinced myself you couldn’t lie.”
He moved to the window. He stayed silent a long time, peering outside, the bright sun lighting up his tan face. “You were given to me,” he said.
“Given to you? I’m not anyone’s possession. I’m a person, not a pawn in these games you Immortals play.”
“If I wanted you to be my pawn,” he said, staring out at the sea, “why would I have revealed your true nature? Any other magistrate would have taken you young, before you knew who or what you were, they would have trained you, broken you and shaped you. I allowed you to grow up with as little interference as possible, to form your own personality. I let you live, really live, have a life.”
I fought back a tidal wave of misery and wretchedness trying to overtake my heart. He had just confessed to everything Chaos had said.
“I can’t believe you have sanctified your role in all this,” I said, sucking down the desire to sob. “Tell me, what were you hoping to achieve?”
He finally turned to me, his eyes burning with intensity. “You were to submit to me of your own free will as a fully grown, mature adult.”
I scoffed. “Well, you fucked that one up.”
“That was the plan,” he said. “The old plan. It changed.”
“Oh, here we go,” I said, covering my ears.
“Listen, Luna, after getting to know you, the person you have become, my focus changed. I recognize you as an equal. I have no wish to deceive or possess you. To thrive, you must be in control.”
As he spoke, I remembered the kiss, but I also sensed he wanted me in every way. No matter what he said, he wanted to possess me, my mind and heart. He would control me that way, his Mist Rider, under his thumb. There was a savagery inside his eyes that betrayed him. He’d been fighting the urge to grab me and force me to submit to him, his rule, his body, his idea of the perfect world. The effort must have been colossal. It was not just Immortal men who desired such a total ownership over a woman.
“I will be no man’s plaything,” I said. “I do not and will not submit to anyone at any time for any reason. You got the wrong witch.”
“I know this, Luna Mae, Sophie of Astoria, last of the Mist Riders.”
“You forgot future Ethnologist,” I said. “At least I chose that one.”
Our eyes lingered on each other, unblinking.
“Have you watched me since I was a child?”
Nothing.
My head felt like it was shrinking, trying to make sense of things. “How do you mean I was given to you? By whom? My parents?”
He raised his chin a little, then breathed out hard through his nose. It was clear I would not get one word from him on that subject.
“It’s okay,” I said. “I’m sure Chaos can answer that one.”
“Chaos is toying with you, can’t you see? He’s enjoying this whole sick crusade,” Winter said. “He thinks he’s saving the world and he thinks they’ll love him for it.”
“This is not about Chaos,” I said. “It’s about you, still keeping things from me, like you have been doing since my birth.”
His face softened. “Some things are better left unsaid, Luna. Letting go is not always giving up. If you dig too deep, you’ll never find your way back to the surface. I’ll stay out of your life. I’ll leave San Diego, but you must promise to stay far away from Chaos and his diseased mind.”
I impulsively slapped him across the face, delighting in the sound of my nails scratching his cheek and jawline. He hurled a ring of pulsating energy around my feet and I crushed it instantly with my own growing powers.
We faced each other for a moment. Muscles on his neck twitched, the boiling wrath pulsing inside his blue irises scaring and thrilling me. I expected him to pounce, to rip me to pieces. I maybe even wanted that.
Then his face relaxed, all of a sudden, and regained its calm. Winter’s transformation was so drastic, it chilled me all the way to my core.
Wake up, Luna girl, while there’s still time.
“You know what? I think I’ll take your suggestion,” I said, walking to his door. “I’ll stay away from his diseased mind. In fact, I’ll stay away from both your diseased minds.”
The immortal bastard didn’t know what to say. He started to look like a sad little puppy. “Good,” he finally said.
Looking back one last time, I smiled. “It’s better than good, it’s great. In fact, it’s the best idea you ever had.”
I left Winter like that and walked out into the California sun.
CHAPTER 31
____________________________________
TWO MONTHS LATER
Lily and Faion laughed their asses off. They looked ridiculous in matching Santa hats and beards. The mall was bustling with shoppers, trying to get their final gifts on the Sunday before Christmas. Total mall mayhem.
“What do you guys think? Does this scream Lucia?” Lily said, throwing a thick, pistachio mohair shawl around her shoulders.
I felt the soft wool, so smooth and cozy. I immediately decided to buy one for myself to keep me warm during the long, cold nights in Sweden.
“Is she a hipster?” Faion said, nose in the air.
“Honey, we are Latin women, our hip game is strong,” Lily said.
I loved watching my friends happy together.
Faion picked up a silk, off the shoulder, gypsy-style blouse. “That’s more like your momma,” he said. “She so bougie.”
Lucia was a little bougie and, more importantly, completely recovered. Thankfully, she didn’t remember the horrific encounter we had in the parking garage or her mysterious, immortal boyfriend.
Chaos had made good on his promise and released Lucia. The idea of her having been his lover, even for a short time, still made me cringe.
“Silk gets my vote,” I said. “Lucia is a summer-all-year type of gal.”
Lily shrugged. “You guys should stay here for Christmas. I get that being home for the holidays is a thing, but I’ll miss your stupid faces.”
“You’re going to see this stupid face running, not walking, back to my Gran’s yams and ham. Sorry, chica! No bueno.”
Part of me wished I could stay with Lily and Lucia, too, but it was time to have it out with Grandma before leaving for Stockholm. Chaos had not returned. That left Grandma to shed some light on who I really was, where I had come from, and how an Immortal Magistrate figured into all of it.
A text fl
ashed on my phone’s screen. I blushed reading it.
The fountain below. Can we talk? Emmet.
I leaned over the railing. There he was, next to the fountain on the ground floor of the mall. He had on his wine-red leather jacket that I loved, his hair brushed back and still wet. An older man in his sixties stood a few feet from Emmet, reading a brochure. Their resemblance was uncanny.
Emmet waved.
“Who’s the boy toy?” Faion said.
“A friend,” I muttered.
“That’s Dr. Groshek, I presume,” Lily said.
I rolled my eyes. “I’ll be right back.”
It took me a while to find the right escalator. I tried to speed up the descent by walking as well as riding down. I smiled when I noticed Emmet waiting for me at the bottom.
I was feeling grateful that Lily had dragged me to the hair and threading salon that morning. My brand new caramel highlights had blended nicely with my dark brown hair that fell to my shoulders in thick curls. I’d had a pearl facial and had my makeup done professionally. I felt pretty.
One look into his welcoming eyes and that boy was forgiven. “Are you following me again, Emmet?”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Total coincidence, I swear. I’m here with my Dad. Christmas shopping.”
“I saw him,” I said. “Is he…?”
“A shifter? No, that’s Mom.”
“Is she here?” I said, glancing at the people near his Dad.
“No, she’s back in Rhode Island. My parents divorced. When I turned eighteen, she returned to her pack.”
“But not you.”
“Not one for packs,” he said, smiling. “I’m a lone wolf.”
“And a clever boy.”
He nodded. “Want to grab a cup of coffee?”
“Emmet, that’s sweet, but do you think it’s a good idea? We can’t just forget who we are or what happened,” I said, as much to myself as to him.
“When I first saw you that day outside the library, I knew you were different, I sensed the magic, but that’s not why I liked you. I was attracted to Sophie, the basic girl, not Luna.”
“Are you saying Luna’s not all that?”
“You know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I do, and it’s nice,” I said. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re okay and thank you for being there for Rob. That was really cool.”
“There has to be a way to start over, Sophie,” he said. “I’m willing to do whatever it takes. A chance, that’s all I want.”
It was tempting. He was tempting. In another time and place, I might have started kissing him right there at the bottom of the escalator. We would be great together. It would be wonderful to have a strong guy by my side, someone who would have my back, who I could talk to about anything, magic included. That wouldn’t be such a terrible thing.
Alas, I sighed. “I don’t have time for dating, Emmet.”
A fleeting sadness flashed across his eyes. “Then let’s be friends.”
“I’m leaving. First to Oregon and then to Stockholm.” I lowered my eyes. “Getting close to me is not a safe place. I’m not looking to add to the number of people I need to worry about.”
“Ouch, that means I didn’t make the cut,” he said. “You know, I can take care of myself.”
We were more alike than I cared to admit. “I know and that’s what you should do, take care of yourself. That will make me happy.”
“Well, as long as you’re happy,” he said without conviction.
“You’re a great guy, Emmet. I know that now.”
“I knew it the whole time,” he said. “I have to go. My dad’s wandering near the Victoria’s Secret shop.”
I laughed. I missed him, but I’d made up my mind.
“Go wrangle your dad,” I said.
“On it,” he said and started walking away. “I won’t give up on you.”
His stubbornness was a thing of wonder. I stepped onto the up escalator and watched him walk away, a terrible ache in my heart.
Farewell, sweet Emmet.
***
Here we were, Faion and I, at Gate 24, waiting to board the plane to Portland. It was the first leg of my trip. After Christmas with Grandma, I’d visit my mother in the Deep Down, then back to San Diego, before taking off for Stockholm in mid-January. It all sounded delightfully normal.
“It won’t be the same, you know,” Faion said.
“Astoria?”
“No, San Diego… without you.”
“What will you miss most? Drooling demons chasing us, Immortals threatening us with bodily harm, or cannibalistic dreams?”
“Well, when you put it that way, you were the worst friend ever.”
I grinned. “I’ll miss you, too, Faion.”
An announcement came through the speakers.
Attention, passenger Sophie Collinsworth travelling on flight AS 1959 to Portland, please report to the information desk immediately.
“Did they just call your name? Faion said.
I nodded. “Yeah, that’s odd.”
“They better not kick you off the plane.”
That would be awful, but I knew it happened. I ran down the steps to level 1 and headed for the Terminal 2 information desk.
I had to push through a group of excited tourists, but then I saw him, leaning against the information desk, elbow on the counter. He was wearing a blue blazer over a cream shirt and casual gray pants. His right hand fumbled with a pair of dark sunglasses. He looked like a 1960s movie star.
No fucking way. Winter.
He spotted me standing fifty feet away. He walked over to where I was frozen in place. “Good, I made it in time,” he said.
“In time for what?”
I looked around. We were standing in the last place he would try to kidnap me, security guards stationed in every direction, a crowd of people armed with iPhone cameras.
“I’m going to do something very stupid…” he started saying.
Oh boy, here we go…
“… and trust you with the whole truth.”
Oh, another guy on a truth mission. I was surprised there was no confetti shot out of cannons while sweet music burst forth from the airport’s speakers to celebrate the moment. Men.
“What Chaos told you about Düsternis and the magistrates preparing to take over the world, it’s all true. They have Eternals on their side, too.”
An overwhelming urge to bitch slap him till the end of time made my hands itch. “Now? You choose to come clean here and now?”
“It was two decades ago that I came upon the information. I was the one who brought it to Chaos. I suggested we should consider intervening. Chaos shut me down cold. Whatever Chaos is planning, it’s not to save the world.”
I closed my eyes. “I have a flight to catch.”
“You want to know why I chose to shield you?”
“Honestly, I’ve moved on,” I said. “I don’t care anymore.”
“Hear me out, Sophie,” he said, honoring my preferred name. “I stripped you of your etheric essence when you were a child. I found you a home, a safe home, as a lunar witch. I did that to shelter you from the upcoming war.”
“Well, now I’m grown up,” I told him. “Your babysitting career is over.”
“You were too innocent. Your face was like bottled sunshine. I didn’t want Düsternis to get his claws in you and consume the best part of you. But now, yes, you know everything, because Chaos duped me, and he duped you. There’s no way to run or I would absolutely tell you to run. We’re stuck in this and I wish I hadn’t pulled you into it.”
“A therapist is more qualified to listen to this, Jonas. I’m going to miss my flight.”
“Luna, together we can stop the Council. I can’t do it without you.”
“I’m sure you can,” I said, locking onto his eyes. “But I’m not going to let you suck me into it this time. We’re not some crime fighting duo. I’m just a girl waiting for a plane, going home for the holidays. That’s a
ll I want to be, it’s all I can be, I don’t want to become like you or Chaos.”
“You have to be trained, guided, so you can resist Düsternis when he comes for you. Luna, we’re running out of time. When the Eternals and the Divines and the Shadows come, what will you do?”
“I don’t know, kick their balls?” I told him, losing interest. “I tell you what, your best buddy, Chaos, he wants the same thing. You guys should hook up and take care of this. You know, be Epic. Get the band back together. Put your crazy ass evil minds to it. Hey, it might take 100 years, but that’s a drop in the bucket for you guys. You’re Shadows after all, no mountain too high.”
“You’re not listening.”
“No, you’re the one not listening. I’m done with you and your lies. I’m done with raving lunatic Chaos. If you decide to come after me, be prepared for the fight of your life. I know I will be and I’m not easy to kill.”
The air clamped around me like a vise. I walked away, cursing under my breath. I stole a glance back to make sure he wouldn’t fry the whole terminal with a hissy fit of high-voltage rage.
He did not move—the fire burned in his eyes. I broke into a trot to get as far away from his depressing vibe as possible. This wouldn’t be the end, we both knew it, but I wouldn’t waste more time worrying about the future.
All we have is right now.
“We’re boarding,” Faion said, beaming at my return. “Everything okay?”
“All good. Had the wrong name,” I said, wrapping my arm in his arm.
We found our seats and buckled up. My story had just begun to unfold, adventures awaited. I would not rest until I uncovered the truth about my birth, my mother, my past, about my lost father.
I was stuck in this thing, but aren’t we all? Life’s messy and we can never rest until we know that our people are safe, until the basic and charmed folk alike can smile widely in the warm sun of a new day.
Once airborne, I felt free. San Diego blurred into shapes and earth colors, lively like a gathering of dolphins, pulsating, unaware of the magic that sparks in the shadows of its streets, parks, even beaches… unaware of the scattered entrances to the hidden world… unaware of the ancient grudges and the eternal isolation of the Deep Down, that invisible realm full of wonders known only to them in myth and legend, where spells can topple kingdoms and a pale horse runs wild through the mists of destiny, searching for a rider.
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