I didn’t have time to think about why the gateway wasn’t working, so instead, I did the only thing I could do.
I ran toward the forest leading to the faery realm.
The darkness enveloped me as I ran past the tree line and into the thick foliage. I ducked behind a tree and peered around the massive, green, mossy trunk. The demon thug, with knife in hand, had stopped at the clearing well before the forest and was now staring into it. He backed up a few feet. I waited, holding my breath.
Would I be able to hide in here? And for how long?
He didn’t do anything for a few minutes except look at the forest, attempting to peer inside.
Why wasn’t he chasing me in here?
I kept waiting, barely breathing, for a few more minutes, wondering desperately what he was going to do next. He looked confused, his large Neanderthal-like forehead creased in concentration. He rubbed a hand over his stubble-covered head.
Go away, I thought fiercely. Leave me alone.
Then, as if he’d heard my thoughts as readily as Michael could pick up my telepathy, he turned around and began walking back toward the castle.
I let out a deep breath I hadn’t even realized I’d been holding. My hands were shaking so badly I had to press them against my sides or I’d end up dropping my shoes and purse. I closed my eyes and tried to calm down, but that seemed like an impossibility.
Everything had gone wrong. Why did I ask to come back to the Shadowlands? I should have just drunk the potion yesterday as soon as I’d gotten it, and then none of this would have happened.
But, no. That wasn’t right, either. I would have been safe and I would have forgotten all about this, but it wouldn’t have changed much. My father would still be poisoned and on the verge of death. My aunt would still be scheming to become queen, and what impact would that have on the worlds the Shadowlands protected in the first place? And Michael . . .
Michael.
Was he okay? I wondered if that creep had hurt him or if he had managed to use his amulet for protection. And if so, had he used up all his power? Was he unconscious somewhere and completely helpless?
Michael! I channeled my thoughts telepathically. Are you there? Can you hear me?
There was no reply, only silence.
Could I turn Darkling if I focused hard enough? Even if I wasn’t experiencing high emotion? Could I make myself change?
I thought about trying it but stopped myself. When I’d changed before, I’d only been in half-demon form for a few minutes before I shifted back to normal. That wouldn’t even be enough time to get back to the castle, let alone try to help anyone. And besides, just because Elizabeth was evil didn’t mean that she’d been lying when she’d told me about Darklings dying from using their abilities. It was still a risk I didn’t want to take.
Not yet. Maybe soon, but not quite yet.
A sudden noise distracted me from my thoughts. There was a rustling sound close by. I tensed and listened hard, but there was nothing else.
Just my imagination.
Then I felt something warm nudge at my elbow and almost jumped right out of my skin. I looked down with horror, bracing myself for the worst, but then let out a long, shaky sigh of relief.
It was just a horse standing next to me in the lush forest backdrop.
A white horse. Pure white.
It looked slightly sparkly, actually.
And the sparkly white horse had a golden horn protruding from its forehead.
It wasn’t a horse at all. I’d been nudged by a unicorn.
A freaking unicorn.
I stared at it dumbly. I’d never seen a unicorn before. Mainly because, along with demons and faeries, I didn’t know they actually existed. After the experiences I’d had, I half-expected it to bare long, sharp fangs and try to attack me, but it didn’t, so I studied it some more. It was absolutely beautiful—smaller than a regular horse, with a completely white coat and sky blue eyes. The spiraling horn looked as if it were made from pure gold.
“I suppose you’re going to tell me that dragons really do exist, too,” I said after another moment of stunned silence.
The unicorn didn’t reply.
“You wouldn’t happen to know where I can find a gateway to the human realm around here, would you?” Maybe I’d gone a little crazy from all the panic and fear. I was probably headed into a new mental category altogether.
The unicorn moved away and began to graze on a patch of grass and blue flowers at the base of a tree. I looked around me for the first time. The forest was so thick I couldn’t even see the sky. It felt like dusk in here, quiet and dark, and it smelled fresh and alive.
To the far side of the tree was a small creek that led deeper into the forest. The unicorn moved over there after nibbling on the grass for a moment and bent its head to drink. I walked over to the creek, watching where I stepped since I was still barefoot, and when the unicorn didn’t run away I tucked my purse under my arm and stroked its pure white mane with a shaky hand.
“What am I going to do?” I asked, feeling tears getting ready to fall again.
“Unicorns don’t talk, actually,” a voice said and I froze in place. “And it’s a bit late, but I should probably let you know it’s against our laws for an outsider to touch one.”
I turned slowly.
A guy leaned against the tree I’d hidden behind. At first glance I could tell he was very cute, with cropped chestnut brown hair and dark brown eyes. He wore tan-colored leather pants and a canvas tunic.
Tension flowed through my body again as I immediately put up my guard. “Who are you?”
He tilted his head as he took in the sight of me. “I was about to ask you the very same question.”
“I’m Nikki.” I held on to my shoes so tightly now that the straps were leaving a red imprint on my skin.
“I’m Rhys,” he said. “Nikki, you look absolutely petrified.”
He said it very coolly, very casually, but it didn’t set me at ease. What did he want? What was he doing in the forest?
But he was correct. I was frozen in fear and that wasn’t going to help at all. I forced myself to calm down.
The unicorn wandered away from the creek and deeper into the forest, apparently unaffected by the anxiety that must have been coming off me in waves.
“What are you doing here?” Rhys asked.
I glanced around. “I’m . . . I’m hiding from someone. I didn’t have anywhere else to go.”
His eyebrows raised. “Hiding from somebody who wants to hurt you?”
I nodded shakily. He studied me so intently I felt even more uncomfortable for a moment. But he didn’t make any move to come closer to me; instead he stayed by the tree, leaning against it as if he were hanging out at the mall food court having a casual conversation with somebody passing by.
“I think I know who you are,” he finally said. “It took me a minute, since you’re better looking than I thought you’d be, but I think I’ve got it.”
My cheeks flushed. “Look, Rhys, can you help me find a gateway to the human realm? I have to get to one so I can figure out what to do next.”
“You’re the princess, aren’t you?” he asked.
I blinked at him.
“King Desmond’s secret daughter,” he clarified, as if I didn’t know what he was talking about. “Gossip gets around quickly in these parts.”
I nodded cautiously. “That’s me. Who are you?”
He crossed his arms. “I already told you, I’m Rhys.”
“Do you live here?”
“I do.”
I looked around again. My feet were growing damp from standing on the cool mossy ground. “This is the faery realm?”
“That’s right.” He looked up at the tall, thick trees that surrounded us. “This forest is the very edge of its north border and the kingdom is several miles south. Nobody from the Shadowlands or beyond ever comes in here.” He crossed his arms and smiled at me. “I’m actually very surprised to see
that you did, especially considering who you are.”
I craned my neck to peer through the thick trees and out to the clearing again. Maybe Rhys could help me. He studied me intently, as if he’d never seen a teenage girl up close and personal before. I guess I could work with that.
He was so relaxed and friendly that just being around him was beginning to put me a little more at ease. Not much, but a little.
“The guy who was chasing me seemed afraid to come in here,” I said.
I remembered what Michael had told me about the faeries. How they were territorial and fierce, but not evil. I held on tightly to that thought.
“I imagine that he was afraid.” Rhys stepped away from the tree and took a few steps closer to me, and then I could see his wings. Maybe it was because my head had been too filled with worries and stress to have clued into the truth yet.
I swallowed hard. “You’re a faery?”
“Good guess.”
His wings were very different from demons’ wings. Where mine and my father’s were black and leathery, Rhys’s were fine and thin, white and delicate. Beautiful, really. Like something out of a fairy tale—which made a lot of sense, now that I thought about it. The surface of his wings glistened in the small amount of light filtering through the leaves above and showed different colors swirling around on the surface in an opalescent blend—pink, blue, green, purple.
“My realm is rarely bothered by unwanted visitors,” Rhys said.
“Your realm?”
He casually ran a hand through his short brown hair. “I’m the king here.”
My eyebrows went up. “You’re the king? But you’re so young.”
“You’re not the first person to say that.” Rhys grinned. “Faeries are known to live for a very long time—hundreds of years, actually. But I’m only sixteen.”
“Me, too.”
I took another moment to look at him from hair to feet. He was barefoot just like I was. Other than the wings and the slightly pointed tips to his ears, he looked like a normal human teenager.
He laughed and turned around slowly. “Like what you see?”
My cheeks warmed again. “Look, Rhys, I have to go. I can’t stay here any longer. Can you help me find a gateway to get home?”
He drew closer until he was only an arm’s reach away. I watched him cautiously but didn’t feel afraid of him anymore. He was even better-looking close up. He reminded me of Michael a bit with his earnest but guarded gaze. Michael wasn’t quite so quick to flirt and joke around, though.
Rhys narrowed his eyes and peered at me. “You live in the human realm?”
“Uh . . . yeah.”
“I’ve never visited there before. I’ve always wanted to.”
“Look, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m in a lot of trouble. I have to—”
“Is it Elizabeth?” he asked. “She’s responsible for all of this angst you’re experiencing, isn’t she?”
My eyes widened. “Do you know her?”
“She wants the throne. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to get it.” He took a lock of my hair between his fingers and studied it as if he’d never seen anything like it before. I inhaled sharply, but didn’t move away from him. Then his brown eyes returned to mine. “I met her once and could easily sense the darkness she tries to hide. She’s really quite horrible.”
“She’s poisoning my father. That’s why he’s dying. I have to stop her.”
“Good plan.” He cocked his head to the side and his gaze moved down to my dress. He reached out to touch it and I finally backed away from him. He was very touchy-feely. “You’re a Darkling. It’s strange, but I can’t even see much demon in you at all. I can sense it, but I can’t see it. And I’m not sensing any darkness in you. I wonder why that is.”
“Darkness?”
“Of course.” He smiled, but continued to assess me as if I were on a slide under a microscope. “As I said, gossip travels fast around here. When word got out that King Desmond had a daughter—a Darkling—and that you were going to visit, my advisors and I were quite concerned.”
“You were concerned about me?”
He nodded slowly. “Can’t be too careful about these things. Especially if one takes the dangerous history of half-demon and half-human Darklings into consideration.”
I felt like he was talking in circles and I was already dizzy to start with. I was wasting time trying to figure him out. I had more important things to think about.
Like, what was Elizabeth doing? Was my father still fighting to live? I hadn’t drunk the potion, so I figured I would know when he finally . . . when he died. I’d feel it and more than likely, from what I’d gathered, I’d be summoned to the castle where I’d be stuck until I died. Which, if Elizabeth had anything to do with it, would be about ten minutes later.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about,” I said. “Dangerous history? Being a Darkling is like having a birth defect, I think. I’m lucky to have lasted as long as I have.”
He took that in and studied me for a moment longer. “Actually, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Darklings are powerful, scary creatures if not taken care of properly.” He shrugged. “Considering that they’re made up of two of the scariest, most unpredictable creatures in the universe—demons and humans—this is not difficult for me to believe. It’s one of the many reasons why human/demon relationships are forbidden—”
“Forbidden?” I didn’t know that.
He nodded. “It’s strictly forbidden. So we don’t have a bunch of dangerous Darklings running amok.”
I frowned. Powerful, scary creatures? “How do you know this?”
“It’s my duty to know these things—to be advised about my enemies. Everything I do and learn is to keep my land safe from those who might do us harm.” He took another step closer until we were almost touching. “I expected such darkness from you, Nikki. But I sense nothing but light. This is very strange, indeed. I need to consider this.”
“Does that mean that you’ll help me?” I asked hopefully. “You don’t want Elizabeth ruling the Shadowlands right next door. She’s evil.”
“She is that. But she is a demon, so it’s not exactly unexpected, is it?”
“My father isn’t evil.”
“Your father”—Rhys paused—“is still a demon and unpredictable by nature. He will do what is necessary to achieve his goals, no matter the cost.”
Frustration welled inside of me. “He’s dying. And you could help me save him.”
If the king of the faery realm would help me out, maybe I didn’t have to go back to my world just yet. I could stop Elizabeth. I could demand that she give me the antidote . . . that is, if she hadn’t destroyed it already.
I didn’t even want to consider that possibility.
I had to remind myself that all was not lost. Everything could still turn out okay. I felt a ray of hope shine through my fear.
“I’m not helping you,” Rhys said. “Even though the Shadowlands is an important barrier for us, it is not our only option for safety and self-preservation. Faeries have nothing to do with demons . . . and especially not Darklings. Ever.”
“But—”
He held up a hand. “Is that the real reason why you entered my forest, Nikki? To ask for my help? Or is it something else entirely? Are you using a spell to hide your darkness from me? To try to trick me, to take my land, destroy my people?” His calm façade was slipping a little and there was a glittering in his eyes that was anything but friendly. “Because I’d strongly advise against that.”
Was he serious? “No, of course not. I’m just hiding here.”
“A Darkling would never have to hide from anyone or anything.” His eyes narrowed. “And how you were able to touch the unicorn is curious to me. Your magic must be very strong to trick a creature like that. They are repelled by anything remotely impure or . . . demonic.”
I narrowed my eyes as well. “Maybe that should tell you something. I’m
not one of the bad guys.”
“Perhaps.” His lips curled to the sides and his gaze swept slowly over me again. “You’re definitely not what I expected. But it doesn’t change the fact that you’ve still trespassed onto my land. You’ve touched one of my unicorns. The penalty for that is death.”
I shook my head, the new swell of fear making my head ache badly. I glared at him. “Get away from me.”
A trace of fear moved behind his eyes and he took a step back. I wondered for a moment if my eyes had turned demon red. “Are you going to take Darkling form to defend yourself from me?”
I frowned hard. “I . . . I don’t know. Maybe I will.”
He pressed his lips together, any friendliness on his handsome face only a memory now. “Whatever magical deception you’ve created here has also worked on me. I find that I like you, Nikki, despite what I know you are. Maybe I’ll let you live if you get out of my forest in the next ten seconds and promise to never return. Do you agree?”
My headache eased slightly. If he liked me, maybe I could still convince him to help. “But, Rhys . . .”
He drew a sword out from a sheath on his back and pointed it in my direction, almost touching my throat. My eyes widened in shock. “Ten,” he began. “Nine . . . eight . . .”
He wasn’t kidding.
I turned and ran away from the king of the faery realm as fast as my bare feet could carry me. I cleared the last tree when I heard him get to “two” and then I didn’t hear anything after that, but I kept jogging with my attention over my shoulder, waiting for a swarm of angry faeries to come flying out after me.
But there was nothing. It was a huge relief.
That guy was crazy. Territorial. And completely impossible to talk to. And he was the king? I felt sorry for the other faeries.
Out of everything he’d said, the one thing that confused me the most was the part about Darklings being fearsome creatures. For that brief moment, the cocky Rhys had looked at me with fear in his eyes.
He was afraid. Of me.
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