by Karen Lynch
* * *
I halfheartedly strummed a few chords on my guitar and stood it on the floor propped against the bed. Flopping onto my back, I stared at the ceiling without seeing it. I thought about reading a book or watching a movie on my laptop, but I couldn’t summon enough energy to do either.
The door creaked softly. A few seconds later, Kaia jumped gracefully onto the bed and lay beside me with her large head on my stomach. I scratched behind her ear, and her loud purr filled the room. She’d taken to hanging out in here and had even slept on my bed last night. I wasn’t the best company, but she didn’t seem to mind.
I stared at the high ceiling and wondered what my family was doing now. Mom and Dad were probably lounging on the deck of Lukas’s island home while Finch and Aisla ate fruit until they passed out. I smiled at the image even as my chest tightened. They’d been gone less than a day, and I missed them so much it hurt.
When I’d told my parents about Davian, they had agreed with Lukas that the best place for me was at his building. Lukas suggested this was the perfect time for them to take him up on his offer to use one of his properties. Mom had always wanted to see Italy, but they chose the Brazilian island instead. It was tropical, private, and the perfect place for my parents to rest. Also, it wasn’t listed among Lukas’s holdings, so there was no way anyone could find them there.
Lukas had made all the arrangements, and they’d left yesterday after a tearful goodbye. I wanted to go with them, but Lukas said I needed to resume training now that my Fae magic was growing stronger. I’d been here for four days, and all I’d done so far was the same conditioning workout from before my conversion. I could leave the building but only with him or one of the others, which meant hunting was out of the question. I felt useless, and I was bored out of my mind.
“Knock, knock.”
I raised my head to look at Conlan standing in the doorway of the library…or should I say my bedroom? They had completely transformed the room for me. Except for the new bed and wardrobe, it held most of my things from home. It was a comfortable space, and I loved the fireplace and queen bed. I just needed to get used to thinking of it as my room.
“Hey.” I sat up, earning an unhappy growl from Kaia.
“Faris and I are thinking about trying an Italian place for lunch. What do you think?”
I stroked the lamal’s fur, and she stretched contentedly. “Whatever you bring back will be good. I’m not fussy.”
Conlan walked over to stand at the foot of the bed. “We thought you might want to come with us. There is a restaurant in Venice we’ve been wanting to try.”
That got my attention. “Venice…as in the city in Italy? You’re going to create a portal to Italy just to visit a restaurant? I thought you didn’t use magic for portals unless you have to.”
“We make some exceptions.”
I shot him a knowing look that said he wasn’t fooling me. They knew today was hard on me, and they were planning this outing to cheer me up.
A smile pulled at my lips. “I’d like that.”
“Good.” He turned to the door. “It’s still cool there at night, so you might want a light coat.”
I scrambled off the bed and changed into fresh jeans and a nice top. Grabbing a coat, I went to the living room where Conlan waited with Faris. Lukas had gone to the Agency with Iian and Kerr earlier and hadn’t yet returned.
“I had another thought while we were waiting for you,” Conlan said.
I raised my eyebrows. “Must have been a quick thought. I didn’t take that long.”
He laughed. “Since we’re using a portal, it would be a good time to show you how it’s done.”
“Really?” I asked eagerly. I’d seen Lukas create them a number of times, but he did it too fast to follow his actions.
“She’s not ready for that,” Faolin said from the kitchen, putting a damper on my newfound happiness.
“I’m not going to have her create it.” Conlan winked at me. “But I think she can handle learning the basics.”
I was quick to agree. “Yes, I can.”
He pointed at the door. “The wards on the building require more complicated magic. Let’s do this outside.”
“Okay.” I followed him out to the private parking lot. It was an overcast day, but there was no cold nip in the air. Spring had finally arrived.
Conlan turned to face me. “What do you know about the barrier between this realm and ours?”
“I know it’s made up of a balance of energy from both worlds. Our atmospheres are so different because of the amount of magic in Faerie that they form a layer where they meet.” I shrugged. “I’m sure there is a more scientific explanation.”
“Yours will do.” He waved a hand through the air, leaving a scattered trail of glittering particles in its wake. “The barrier is not a solid thing, so some of the energy from Faerie leaches through to this side. The trace amounts are so small they can’t affect this world, but a faerie with enough magic can isolate and manipulate them. Watch.”
He raised both hands, palms facing me, and moved them apart. I stared at the soft blue magic pouring from his hands and attaching to the particles in the air. He moved slowly enough for me to see how he used the traces of magic in the barrier as building blocks and filled in the blank spaces with his own.
“Wow,” I whispered. “That’s amazing.”
“There is more to it than harnessing the magic in the barrier,” said Faolin, who had followed us outside with Faris. “It requires both strength and concentration to not only open the portal but to open it where you want to go.”
I watched Conlan release the magic and lower his hands. “That makes sense. You wouldn’t want to make a mistake and end up in the Seelie court.”
“That wouldn’t happen because citizens of one court cannot create a portal to the other without permission,” Faolin said. “But you could end up in the middle of nowhere if you don’t know where you’re going.”
Faris snorted. “It’s no wonder you are the life of all the parties at court, Brother. Stop ruining our fun.”
Faolin didn’t smile, but I caught a flicker of amusement in his eyes. He waved a hand at us. “Carry on.”
Conlan looked at me. “You give it a try.”
I shook my head, laughing. “I can’t do that. I don’t know how to use my magic.”
“Here, let me help you.” He took my hand and raised it. My fingers twitched as a light stream of magic came from his.
“Do you feel anything?” he asked.
“It tingles.”
“Good. That means you can feel my magic. I’m going to slowly pull away, and I want you to keep reaching out for the magic.” He did as he’d said, and the flow of his magic trickled away.
I could still sense something, but it was too indistinct to touch. After a minute, I dropped my arm. “I felt it, but I couldn’t connect the way you did.”
Conlan chuckled. “I’d be shocked if you could on your first try. As Faolin said, it takes a lot of strength, more than a new faerie has. Do you remember how weak I was after Davian’s men had me in iron shackles? I didn’t have the strength to create a portal, and I have been doing it for years.”
I thought back to that day. He’d barely been able to produce magic until I’d put the goddess stone in his hand. It had restored his strength, and he’d had no problem creating the portal. I was a faerie now, but the stone wasn’t affecting me the same way. Why was that?
“Can we try that again?” I asked.
He lifted my hand and used his magic. This time, when he released me, I took the stone from my hair and held it in my other hand. The effect was instant. It was like a massive adrenaline rush along with a feeling of euphoria that made me lightheaded.
After the initial shock of it passed, I concentrated on the particles of magic Conlan had exposed to me. This time, they came into focus with crystal clarity. “Whoa!” I breathed when lavender magic poured from my hands. “Are you guys seeing this?”
Someone spoke, but I was too mesmerized by the sight of my own magic to focus on the words. I thought about touching the particles in the barrier, and my magic moved to do my bidding.
My body thrummed with a low current of electricity when I connected with the barrier, and instinct took over. I remembered what Conlan had done, and I emulated it. Only I didn’t stop. I imagined a portal like the ones I’d seen him and Lukas create. A hole formed before me.
“Jesse, no,” Conlan shouted. I felt his hand brush my arm.
Then I was sucked into a gray void.
Chapter 8
I stumbled and righted myself. Spinning, I looked for the portal, but it was gone. There was nothing but a thick gray fog.
Panic threatened to choke me, but I pushed it down. I’d been here before with Conlan, which meant it had to be a part of Faerie. And he’d created a portal out of here, so I could, too.
I still had the stone in my hand, so I did exactly what I’d done to create my first portal. It was much easier to connect to the magic from this side of the barrier, and an outline of a portal began to appear. I imagined the parking lot behind Lukas’s building. I could do this.
“Jesse.”
I spun around at the woman’s voice, but all I saw was fog. Thinking I had imagined it, I returned my focus to the portal. It grew as big as a door, and I could make out the faint shape of a building on the other side.
The fog swirled, and I thought I saw a shape coming toward me. My heart thudded, and I lost my concentration. The portal began to close.
No. I pushed my magic into the portal. As soon as it reopened, I jumped through it.
I nearly fell when my feet hit uneven ground instead of flat pavement. Dread coiled in my stomach, and I straightened to look at my surroundings.
I was standing on a beach, facing the ocean where huge swells rose and rolled toward the shore under the first light of day. Turning, I found trees and greenery and noticed a few tall palm trees. A dozen feet away, a large turtle left a trail in the sand as he made his way to the water.
The roar of the waves drew my gaze back to the ocean. I squinted, and this time, I could pick out the dark shapes of people on boards. Surfers.
Relief filled me. If there were people here, I hadn’t landed on some deserted island. My shock had worn off enough for me to take stock of my surroundings. It was windy but warm, and the sky told me it was not long after sunrise. That meant I had travelled west to an earlier time zone. California maybe?
I did a quick calculation. California was three hours behind New York, which would make it mid-morning there. It was definitely earlier than that here. That left…Hawaii. I was in Hawaii. The question was which one of the islands was I on?
I reached for my phone. No need to panic. I’d call Faolin, and he’d trace my phone. Then one of them would come and get me.
Only my phone wasn’t in my back pocket where I’d put it before I left my room. I patted all my jeans pockets frantically as if the phone would magically appear in one of them. It took a whole minute for me to realize what had happened. I’d entered the portal without warding the phone like Lukas did, and Faerie had destroyed it.
“Okay, now you can panic.” I looked both ways on the beach, but I was alone. Those surfers had to come in somewhere, so I jogged along the beach until I came upon a duffle bag and some men’s sandals. I sat in the sand beside the bag and waited.
Forty-five minutes later, two of the surfers walked out of the water with their boards under their arms and headed to where I sat. When they drew near, the men slowed and shot me suspicious looks. Both looked to be in their early twenties with dark hair and the tanned glow of people who spent a lot of time in the sun.
“Can we help you?” one of them asked warily.
I stood and brushed sand off my jeans, which looked out of place here. “I hope so. Do either of you have a phone I can use?”
“You broke down?” the other asked.
“More like stranded.” I wrinkled my nose. “It’s a long story.”
“Ah.” The first one smirked and bent to unzip the bag. “I have a few of those to tell.” He unlocked a silver phone and handed it to me.
“Thanks.” I punched in Conlan’s number and let out a breath when it started to ring. I hoped he didn’t reject the call because of the unknown number.
“Hello?” he said in a voice laden with tension. I cringed at the thought of what he’d been going through in the last hour.
“It’s me.”
“Jesse? Oh, thank the goddess!” There was a rustling sound and a muffled, “It’s her.”
The next voice to come out of the phone was Lukas’s. I couldn’t tell if he was furious or worried when he said, “Where are you?”
“Uh…one second.” I pressed the phone to my chest and looked at the two men who were watching me. “Where are we exactly?”
The two of them shared a look, and the one who had loaned me his phone snickered. “You really did have a fun night. We’re at Pua’ena Point on the North Shore.”
I repeated that to Lukas, and he, in turn, said it to someone else. I waited for an awkward thirty seconds before he said, “I’m on my way.”
I handed the phone back to its owner. “You’re a lifesaver. Thanks.”
“Whoa!” he said, his eyes going wide at something behind me.
I spun and saw Lukas stepping from a portal a few dozen yards away. He looked angry enough to uproot the trees as he strode toward us, but I didn’t think I’d ever been so happy to see him. I ran across the sand, meeting him halfway, and threw my arms around him.
I was prepared to be yelled at and scolded, and I wouldn’t complain because I deserved it. What I didn’t expect was for him to wrap me in his arms and hold me tightly against him like I might vanish at any moment.
He murmured something in Fae I couldn’t understand, but no translation was needed to hear the worry in his voice. Guilt racked me for being reckless and making him and the others worry.
“We had no idea where you’d gone, and there was no way to trace you.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” I said against his chest. “I was stupid, and I never should have tried that.”
Lukas released a ragged sigh. “Sometimes, mi’calaech, I don’t know if Aedhna sent you as a kindness or a test of my sanity.”
I smiled. “Maybe I’m both.”
He dropped his arms and took my face in his hands. I tilted my head back to meet his blue eyes, and my belly did a flip at the flare of heat in his gaze. His head lowered, and I held my breath in anticipation of the first brush of his lips against mine.
Someone hooted nearby, and the moment was gone. I wanted to cry when I turned to see the two grinning surfers watching us. More people had left the water and were walking over to join the men. This quiet beach was suddenly getting a little too crowded.
Lukas took my hand and led me down the beach, away from the men. We entered the privacy of the trees, and a thrill went through me at being alone with him.
My hopes of a kiss were crushed when he turned away and created a portal. I tried to hide my disappointment when he took my hand and we entered the stone courtyard. For the first time, I had no interest in seeing more of the place before he opened the second portal to his living room.
To my mortification, the whole gang was there waiting for us, and I had to explain what happened after I apologized for my little stunt.
“If it’s possible to shorten a life, you did it with me,” Conlan teased good-naturedly.
Heat crept up my neck. “I swear I’ll never do that again.”
“Lukas,” Faolin said in a more serious tone. “The king sent a summons for you. You’re needed at court.”
“I’ve been expecting that. Send word that we’ll be there within the hour.”
I relaxed, grateful for a reprieve from the scolding for my reckless behavior. At the same time, I hated the thought of him leaving. “How long will you be gone?”
; “Several weeks, at least.” He paused. “We are all going.”
“Oh.” I tried not to show my dismay at the thought of being here alone for weeks. Kaia entered the room and came up to rub against my hip, and I reached down to stroke her head. “I guess it’ll just be us girls.”
Lukas’s brows drew together, and then his eyes widened slightly as if he’d made some realization. “When I say all, that includes you. You’re coming to Faerie with us.”
* * *
“You don’t have to be nervous,” Faris said when I rejoined them in the living room, less than an hour after Lukas’s little bombshell. “We will be with you.”
I swallowed dryly. “I’m not nervous.”
I was terrified, but I was too proud to tell any of them that. This wasn’t like travelling to another country, which I’d also never done. We were going to a whole different world where I knew only a handful of people and very little about their customs and way of life. Plus, the little I’d heard about court didn’t make me eager to go there.
Faris’s expression said he knew I was lying, but he let it go. He gave me a reassuring smile and took my small bag from me. There wasn’t much I could bring with me aside from some photos and a few books. Anything with metal in it was left here, including my guitar.
They’d even given me a Fae shirt, pants, and shoes to wear with the assurance I’d get a new wardrobe there. The clothes were made of a fine material that felt cool against my skin, but I already missed my jeans.
Lukas walked over to me, and I relaxed a bit. I didn’t want to be dependent on him for anything, but his nearness eased my anxiety.
“You ready?” He took my hand, sending a delicious shiver through me.
I smiled up at him. “Lead the way.”
Faolin stepped up and quickly created a portal. Iian, Kerr, and Conlan went through first, followed by Lukas and me. Faris and Faolin came last with Kaia. We emerged in the now familiar courtyard, and I felt a few seconds of panic when the portal to my world closed behind us.
Lukas’s warm hand squeezed mine, and he lowered his head to whisper softly, “Breathe, li’fachan.”