“It means I am a keeper of knowledge and magical enchantments. Although my own powers are limited, I’m privy to information that could alter the course of our worlds if not kept secret.”
“What sort of secrets?”
“Secrets about the future of Faythander—things no one should have to know.”
His words sent chills down my spine. “What are you talking about? What secrets?”
Before he could answer my question, the ground shook violently, stronger than any of the other tremors thus far.
“We have to get out of here,” I shouted. Small pebbles fell from the ceiling, and a crack split the rock in the wall as I helped Maveryck stand.
He grabbed the staff, and together, we dodged the falling rocks to make it to the portal. I choked on the dust filling the air as rocks plummeted from the ceiling, and I winced as a sharp stone hit my back.
“Do you have my crystal?” Maveryck called.
“Yes.” I pressed the gem into his hand. His eyes locked with mine.
“Are you ready?” he asked me.
No. I wasn’t ready. He’d died and come back to life, making me realize the feelings I had for him weren’t connected to any spells or enchantments. I had to tell him how I felt, even if he forgot.
“Maveryck,” I said, “I wanted to tell you… before we leave.” The rumbling increased, and if I weren’t holding onto him, I would have fallen. “I need to tell you something,” I shouted.
“Tell me what?”
“I think I’m falling in love with you, too.”
“What? I thought you hated me.”
“I do. But sometimes, I also like you. I only realized it once you died.”
“Then I’m glad I died!”
“Me too!”
Large boulders smashed to the ground, exploding into tiny pieces.
“We should probably go,” he shouted.
“I know.” But as I held to him, gripping his hand and feeling his pulse beneath my fingertips, I didn’t want to leave. What would happen when we forgot everything? “But I don’t want to forget you.”
The ground stopped rumbling, although an occasional rock still smashed to the ground. The sudden silence made my ears ring. Looking behind us, I found the entrance blocked by a pile of rubble.
We only had one way out.
Losing my memories of him was inevitable.
“Isn’t there some way to avoid the memory loss?” I asked him. “Your powers—you said you were a druid—can’t you use a spell of some sort?”
He shook his head. “I wish I could, but only a memory charm would allow us to keep our memories.”
“Then it’s hopeless?”
“No. We’ll lose our memories, but our emotions will remain unaltered. We’ll still feel the same way about one another, even if we don’t know why.”
Sighing, I turned back toward the portal. It wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for.
He took my hand and gently kissed my knuckles. “I won’t forget how I feel about you.”
Sappy moments were most definitely not my thing. I would always prefer fighting to kissing. Well, almost always. But right now, since I wouldn’t remember anyway, I cupped his cheek in my hand, leaned forward, and gave him a gentle kiss.
“Neither will I,” I said.
Together, we faced the portal. As we approached, Maveryck’s crystal reacted with the energy, glowing with a white-hot light that blinded me as we stepped through the magical barrier.
#
I awoke, and I was freezing cold. Trying to get my bearings, I realized I lay in the snow alongside the frozen lake’s shore. The sun shone bright overhead, a quarter past its zenith, meaning it must have been mid-afternoon.
What? Hadn’t it been night?
Glancing down at my body, I gasped, and then I sat up.
“What am I wearing?”
Beside me, Maveryck stirred. Shocked, I found him clothed in only a pair of pants. He sat up as well, looking dazed as he rubbed his head.
“What happened?” he asked.
I scanned the surrounding area, searching for some explanation for the apparent time lapse. The staff lay not far from us, but I saw no signs of the wraith. I grabbed it and attempted to stand, but a wave of dizziness washed over me, so I remained sitting.
Maveryck took the staff from me and ran his hands over the wood. The runes etched into the staff’s surface glowed faintly, and a crystal around his neck also lit up. He grabbed the stone and then turned toward the lake. The ice shimmered a bright blue, the same color coming from the staff. His eyes widened as he looked from the lake to the staff.
He cursed.
“What’s the matter?”
“It seems we may have been caught in a portal.”
“What?” My stomach turned queasy as the implications sank in. If we’d been caught in a portal, did that mean we’d lost all our memories? Judging by the clothing I was currently wearing, I must have been forcefully coerced and possibly tortured into wearing such a thing. And Maveryck… what had happened to his shirt?
“What’s the last thing you remember?” he asked.
Concentrating was hard to do with the fog muddling my brain. “We’d been in the silverwitch’s vault. We stole the staff, but when we escaped, my brother and Olive got trapped inside, and several of the wraiths chased us here. We fought them off, and then… ” I closed my eyes. The sun was too bright as it reflected off the snow, which didn’t help my blooming headache.
“The staff,” Maveryck said. “It reacted with its reflection in the ice, didn’t it?”
“Yes.” I crossed my arms in an attempt to generate warmth. “But what does that mean? What happened?”
“It must have opened a portal to Earth Kingdom. Since we’re both alive, we have the staff, and the creature is gone, it seems we were successful in our quest.”
“Successful? I disagree. I would never wear such a thing unless it was against my will.” I picked at the gauzy fabric. What an impractical piece of clothing.
The cold air helped to clear my head, and the dizziness began to dissipate. Maveryck stood, leaning against the staff as he walked toward me.
“We should get off this mountain and try to make it back to the Wult inn while there’s some daylight left. After that, I intend to find out what happened to our lost companions.”
“I agree.” I still felt unsettled at the prospect of losing my memories, but there was nothing I could do about it.
Maveryck reached his hand out toward me, and I stared up at him. Wind whipped snow particles around him, shimmering like tiny diamonds as they stuck to his skin. A powerful sense of longing stirred inside me as his gaze met mine, confusing me. I pushed the feeling aside and grabbed his hand, but when my skin touched his, the powerful, almost painful feeling of longing washed over me again.
After I stood, he didn’t release my hand as I’d expected. Instead, he only stared at me, his expression mirroring my confusion. Despite the snow, heat welled inside me, and I forced myself to catch my breath.
What had happened in Earth Kingdom?
Had I fallen for Maveryck? The thought seemed ludicrous on every level possible. He wasn’t my type. He was cold, emotionless, and horrible in a fight. Besides, I’d sworn never to fall in love again. But as we descended the mountain, the air grew warmer, and as it did, the shell covering my heart melted the tiniest bit.
Perhaps this wasn’t the end.
This was the beginning.
Acknowledgements
If you’ve read the acknowledgements in Silverwitch, I apologize for being repetitive. Since I wrote this novella at the same time I wrote book four, many of the names are being repeated:
My heartfelt thanks goes out to the ladies of Clean Teen Publishing: Rebecca Gober, Courtney Knight, Melanie Newton, and Marya Heiman. They took a chance on my books and helped the Fairy World MD series become a reality.
Next, I want to give
a huge thanks to Leah Alvord for being my beta reader on this project. A huge thanks also goes out to my editors: Courtney Whittamore, Cynthia Shepp, Kelly Risser, and Pamela Renfroe.
My PA, Courtney Whittamore, who is a true blessing in my life and I thank God every day for placing her in my path when I needed her the most.
To Misty McDavitt, who possibly has the hardest job of everyone. She watches my kids while I steal a few hours to write. Being the mother of said kids, I know that is no easy task.
To my small group of fans who are growing in number—thank you all! Your encouraging words help keep me going through the tough times.
To my family: My mom and dad, who read my books even when they don’t have to, and still somehow think they’re good.
To my husband, David, who has always been supportive.
And to my kids, I have loved each one of you since the day I met you—and possibly before that—and I always will love you.
Last, to my Heavenly Father, who saw fit to give me the talent to write—and many more blessings that I couldn’t possibly list here.
About the Author
Tamara Grantham is the award-winning author of more than half a dozen books and novellas, including the Olive Kennedy: Fairy World MD series and the Shine novellas. Dreamthief, the first book of her Fairy World MD series, won first place for fantasy in INDIEFAB'S Book of the Year Awards, a RONE award for best New Adult Romance of 2016, and is a #1 bestseller on Amazon in both the Mythology and Fairy Tales categories with over 100 reviews.
Tamara holds a Bachelor's degree in English. She has been a featured speaker at the Rose State Writing Conference and has been a panelist at Comic Con Wizard World speaking on the topic of female leads. For her first published project, she collaborated with New York-Times bestselling author, William Bernhardt, in writing the Shine series.
Born and raised in Texas, Tamara now lives with her husband and five children in Wichita, Kansas. She rarely has any free time, but when the stars align and she gets a moment to relax, she enjoys reading fantasy novels, taking nature walks, which fuel her inspiration for creating fantastical worlds, and watching every Star Wars or Star Trek movie ever made. You can find her online at www.TamaraGranthamBooks.com.
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