A Craft name. Maddy hadn’t read a great deal about modern paganism, but that sounded familiar. Living in the Bible belt, she supposed having a code name made a certain amount of sense. “Whatever works.”
As Anthony headed down a narrow hallway, Maddy lowered herself to the couch, Anna on one side and Fen on the other. Anna eased closer, brushing shoulders with Maddy, but Fen held himself apart. Was he bothered by their potential link? They hadn’t discussed what had occurred when Anna had followed him earlier, though they’d had the chance on the car ride over. Maybe none of them wanted to find out what would happen once they did.
A moment later, Anthony led a woman about Maddy’s age into the room. Her warm beige skin had a green tinge, and deep shadows curved beneath her brown eyes. Even her dark hair hung in lank clumps around her face. The woman—Sparrow, presumably—sniffled and then rubbed a tissue against her red nose.
Fen darted to his feet. “Here. You can sit by Maddy so she can examine you.”
The woman halted. “Examine?”
“I’m in training to be a healer,” Maddy said softly. A bit of a stretch, that claim, but it was technically true. “With magic, that is. I’m not allowed to use my talent to fix the problem yet, but I can scan you to find out what is wrong.”
Lial hadn’t given her that restriction, but Sparrow didn’t need to know that. No one needed to know that.
After studying her for a moment, the woman sneezed again. Then she relaxed, nodded, and continued forward to claim the seat Fen had abandoned. “I guess Anthony told you to call me Sparrow.”
“Yes,” Maddy answered. “Is that okay?”
“Please.” Sparrow nibbled on her lower lip. “I don’t understand what’s going on with me. As far as I know, my parents haven’t had any weird things happening, but if Anthony is right about me having fae blood, you’d think they’d show it first.”
Anthony leaned his hip against the back of the loveseat. “I was just telling you what I sensed. Anyway, genetics is weird. If each parent had a small percentage of fae genes that made it onto your X chromosomes, you might end up with more of those traits than either parent alone. Each egg and sperm get a different combo of genetic material, so even a sibling—”
“Cool,” Sparrow interrupted. “But can we not? I’m freaked out enough without the scientific analysis.”
“Sorry,” Anthony mumbled.
Maddy did her best to look reassuring. “Mind if I go ahead and scan you? It might help answer your questions, but I’m not sure how comfortable you are with magic.”
“Well, I got a lot more familiar with it at our last circle,” Sparrow said, flicking a knowing look at Anthony. “We both did. As long as it doesn’t hurt, scan away.”
Maddy closed her eyes, trying to tune out the others. No easy feat with two potential mates and two strangers in the room, but she managed. As soon as her mind was clear, she stretched out her hands and extended her energy. Gently. Tentatively. She directed it toward Sparrow, brushing against the other’s power with a soft mental hand.
Surprisingly, the woman’s shields were formidable. Not dangerous, exactly, but it took Maddy a fair bit of time to weave around and through them until she could get to the heart of Sparrow’s magic. Her shoulders drooped with exhaustion by the time she managed it, and she was so tired she didn’t immediately notice the dark, sick pulse coating Sparrow’s light like oil on feathers.
Maddy almost tugged herself free out of reflex, but she forced her energy to remain in place so she could probe the magic glowing green to her inner sight. Not the healthy green of life, either. This was the fearful color of the sky before a tornado. The tinge of a sick person’s skin before they vomited.
And it settled near Sparrow’s center, a splinter of evil much like the energy Fen had once borne in his heart before Aris had cured him.
How was this possible? Fen’s splinter had been caused by Prince Kien. The madman had shoved his poisoned spell through her friend in a last attempt at revenge before his death. Later, another illness had taken root in Fen, this one affecting his immune system despite having a magical origin. A disease, though elves and fae didn’t catch diseases as humans did. None of them were sure whether the splinter had caused his illness or if it had been unrelated, but at least Lial had managed to heal the second one after Aris had cleansed the first.
Maddy scanned Sparrow again to be sure—but no. This little fragment of evil wasn’t what was causing Sparrow to be sick. As Anthony had diagnosed, that was a cold virus. Enough of an anomaly among the fae, whose bodies used magic to cleanse away illnesses before they happened, but Maddy estimated that Sparrow had a minor portion of non-human blood. At that level, the occasional short-lived cold wasn’t uncommon.
At least it hadn’t been before magic had reappeared on Earth.
She returned herself fully to her body, and almost at once, the weight of her effort hit her. Maddy slumped back against Anna, who shifted to support her. Rubbing at her eyes, Maddy shoved aside her exhaustion and straightened with a grateful glance at her girlfriend.
“So, uh, where do you live?” Maddy asked, hoping her words didn’t slur.
Sparrow stiffened. “Why do you need to know that?”
“I don’t mean the exact location,” Maddy rushed to add. “Just the general area. The last time I saw the sickness that’s attacking your energy, it was in Fen.”
At Maddy’s gesture, Sparrow frowned over at Fen, who had gone still and solemn at the news. “He looks okay. And I still don’t get what that has to do with where I live.”
“I’m just trying to figure out how you came into contact with the same source. There’s…there’s a lot to explain, so bear with me.” Maddy took a deep breath. “A few months back, an evil prince from the elven world of Moranaia was trying to poison Earth’s energy. His plan ended when he was defeated on his home world, but he managed to send poison through to here. As far as I was aware, only Fen and one place on Earth were affected.”
“An elven world,” Sparrow whispered. “If not for the last few weeks, I’d think you were crazy as shit, girl.”
Maddy laughed. “Trust me, I know.”
His expression now blank, Fen pushed away from the wall where he stood. “You can’t confirm the location unless you clear it with Dria.”
Dammit. Maddy stifled a groan, but she couldn’t deny the truth of Fen’s words. No one in the human world was aware of the outpost, at least as far as they knew, and she couldn’t do anything to risk that. Not without permission. Anyway, the only person capable of healing this type of poison was Aris, a mage who was able to channel and direct pure life energy, and he lived on Moranaia. Hopefully, she could speak to him and Lial about it during her visit.
“I guess it doesn’t matter where you live, at least not at the moment,” Maddy said. “I think I know someone who could help, but he’s Moranaian. How about you stay here with Anthony, if it’s cool with him, and he can let me know if you get worse. Or I guess you could text me yourself if there’s a problem.”
Anna rubbed Maddy’s shoulder. “You’re going out of town tomorrow, love.”
“I’ll give them my number,” Fen said softly. “I could probably get a message through.”
Sparrow’s eyes shifted to Anthony as she sneezed again into her tissue. “I don’t want to put anyone out. I can hunker in my room and avoid my roommates.”
“No,” Anthony said with a firm shake of his head. “I’d rather you stay here if you’re okay with it. I’ll be in class or at the clinic most of the time, anyway, but I’ll be able to check on you when I’m not. You tested negative for the flu, but a cold virus might not act the way I’d expect with this weird energy thing. Makes me uneasy.”
The two stared at each other for a long moment before Sparrow finally nodded. “If it’s really no trouble.”
“You’re my friend, not trouble.”
Another wave of exhaustion rushed through Maddy, and she almost slumped against Anna again. At Fen’
s frown of concern, though, she forced a smile and stood. “I don’t think the virus will interact with the energy poisoning, but I’m glad you won’t be alone. You should probably trade phone numbers with Fen before we leave, though. I’ll see if I can get that helper I mentioned to come here, but it might be a day or two.”
“Wait,” Sparrow said, a hint of panic in her tone. “A cold is one thing, but you didn’t tell me what this dark energy is going to do. Am I… Could it kill me?”
Maddy thought back to what she’d found during her examination. The poison hadn’t been as severe as what she’d seen in Fen’s heart, a tiny splinter compared to a log. And without the poison pulsing in the energies of the Earth, the effects didn’t appear to be as dire.
“I don’t think so,” Maddy finally answered. “You’re nowhere near as sick as Fen was. Just rest and try to stay calm. He went weeks with the same thing at a far more advanced state. We’ll be able to help you.”
Some of the fear eased out of Sparrow’s face, but it didn’t leave Maddy’s heart. Please don’t let me be giving her false assurances, Maddy prayed to any deity willing to listen. Though her words had probably been true, there were no guarantees. Was this the fate of the healer? The curse? It was a weighty thing to be someone’s hope, and it would only get heavier as she advanced with her training. Hopefully, she’d be able to bear the burden.
And not kill people—that would be a good start.
Holy hell, this entire situation was fucked.
Light flickered against Fen’s closed eyelids, the flashes as chaotic and random as his life. His head rocked against the headrest, and the temptation to lie down in the back seat of Maddy’s car pulled at him. Maybe he could curl up around the pain of existing. Of course, he’d long ago learned the futility of that. He would keep existing, and it would keep sucking.
Horrible enough that he’d inadvertently killed his own cousin with that ill-thought energy poisoning spell. Fen had deserved the splinter of darkness that Kien had hit him with, and he’d deserved to get sick again not long after. Sparrow? She was innocent. The poor woman hadn’t even known she had fae blood, and now she bore the same poison that had afflicted him.
Would this shit ever end?
The car came to an abrupt stop, shocking Fen from his thoughts. He cracked open his eyes to see that Maddy had pulled the car into a driveway in front of a series of condos. He blinked and rubbed his face. Had something happened that he wasn’t aware of? He’d assumed they would drop him off at Vek’s house.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
Maddy only glanced at him through the rearview mirror, but Anna turned in her seat, a serious expression on her face. “You’re sleeping on our couch.”
He stared at Anna. “What?”
“It’s almost one in the morning, and Vek’s house is up the side of a damned mountain on the other end of town,” Maddy answered for her. “I’m too tired to drive that far. I asked Anna before we left, and she agreed. Unless it bothers you to stay over?”
Fen sat forward until he could rest his arms on the back of their seats. “I don’t mind. But…”
“We’ve both worked all day,” Maddy said, impatience and exhaustion warring in her tone. “Whatever you’re going to say, just spit it out.”
He winced. “Sorry. I worry about causing more…awkwardness. We haven’t talked about what Vek so kindly revealed, and I can’t help but notice how mad you seem about it.”
Maddy’s expression softened. “I’m not mad, Fen. Not really. But I admit I don’t know what to do about it all. Right now, I want to get some sleep and see if my brain works better tomorrow. I’m too tired to sort out my emotions.”
“Fair enough,” Fen said.
“Hey, if you spend the night, we can talk about it in the morning before Maddy leaves,” Anna said.
“Yeah,” Fen answered, knowing there was a bitterness to his tone but unable to stop it.
It was going to be a special kind of hell sleeping a room away from his potential mates, especially with so much hanging between them. He’d probably spend the night staring at the ceiling. The discomfort would be worth it, though, since it would save Maddy from having to drive when she was clearly exhausted. It wouldn’t be fair to ask her to do that, and calling for a rideshare would be rude after their offer. He didn’t want either woman to think he disliked them.
Far, far from it.
With a tired sigh, Fen shoved the car door open and unfolded himself from the back. The thud of their doors closing echoed along the quiet street, making him wince, but he followed the ladies into the house without comment. No need to disturb the neighbors further. They didn’t deserve the same level of exhaustion he was sure to end up with.
While Maddy gave him a short tour of their small condo, Anna grabbed him a blanket and pillow. The living room was clean but a little cluttered, with books crammed into every conceivable inch of their bookcase, papers and pretty glass paperweights scattered across a tiny computer desk, and a couple of cups and plates on the coffee table. There were a few dishes in the kitchen sink, and in their room, the rumpled covers on their bed revealed their lack of care for the small details.
But it was a homey kind of disorder.
Anna had found bedding by the time they ducked out of the half-bath tucked next to the laundry closet. Grinning, she held out a pale pink and brown blanket. “Hope you’re not the kind of guy who cares about colors.”
Fen snorted. “Nah. The color of my blanket is pretty far down my list of fucks given.”
He thought he caught the sound of a stifled laugh from Maddy, but when he glanced at her, her lips were merely twitching. “So what do you have to clear off that list to make it a big deal?”
“Honestly?” he asked as he took the blanket from Anna and unfolded it. “I’d say just about everything. People stress out about the strangest shit.”
Anna chuckled. “So true.”
Fen plopped down on the couch and shoved his pillow against the armrest. “Okay, you two go to bed. I’ll be fine out here. Pink blanket and all.”
It was true, even if he didn’t sleep.
After Maddy and Anna bid him goodnight, Fen stretched out on the couch and tugged the blanket over his lower body, though it wasn’t cold in the room. It was just comforting somehow. His nose twitched, and the scents imbued in the cloth hit him as he tucked it under his chin. It smelled like both women. Clearly, too. Maybe they cuddled on the couch beneath this very blanket.
Fen groaned low in his throat at that mental image, but he cut the sound off before the women could hear. Yeah, sleep wasn’t likely with pictures like that running through his head, and that one had been fairly tame. It would be less so if he imagined himself sliding under the blanket with them and—
Shut the fuck up, brain.
Pinching his eyes closed, Fen forced himself to recount every unpleasant thing he could think of…and he was burdened with more than his fair share of those memories. Finally, his body began to calm, and he allowed his thoughts to drift. He could get through this. He would.
Chapter 8
Blood.
Too much blood.
Fen tried to scream, but no sound came out. No, no, no, no, no.
No.
He threw himself across his father, his hand slapping across the ragged gash on the side of his father’s neck. How had it happened? Fog clouded his mind, and his body trembled with cold and fear. How?
Maybe he’d done it.
But he never drank from his father’s neck, and he didn’t need much blood. Just a few drops now and then. Dad didn’t care, but he was pretty clear about how much and how often Fen could take. It was one rule Fen had never broken.
But maybe…
He shoved his ear against his dad’s chest, but there was no sign of a heartbeat. Already cold. Fen’s vision wavered, and he bit his lip until his own blood filled his mouth. It didn’t give him energy, though. Only more agony.
See what you’ve done?
Fen jerked his head up, looking frantically around the room for the source of the voice.
No one. Nothing.
Could’ve been his conscience, right? He’d done it.
He must have killed his own father.
Finally, Fen let loose the scream.
The wail of pain cut through Maddy’s dreams and straight into her soul. With her own cry, she shoved herself upright and peered at Anna. Her girlfriend grumbled at being shifted aside, but she showed no sign of having screamed. Had it been part of a dream? She pushed back her tangled mass of hair and tried to clear her thoughts.
Another shout sounded from the direction of the living room. Male. What…? Maddy gasped and scrambled out of the bed as realization hit. Fen. She headed for the door, not stopping to explain when Anna stirred in the bed.
Maddy raced down the dim hall and into the slightly brighter living room, a bit of illumination flowing in from the kitchen. At the sight of Fen, though, her steps hitched. The blanket was tangled around his legs, and he thrashed his arms as if he was under attack. A low, keening moan filled the room as she sank to her knees at the side of the couch, just out of his reach.
“Fen,” she said firmly.
He didn’t seem to notice.
Hesitantly, Maddy placed her hand on his forehead and gave a slight shake. Fen jerked and punched out at the air—in the wrong direction, thankfully. Some terrible dream obviously held him, and she had no idea how to free him without causing him more distress.
Then Anna knelt down beside her. “What happened?” she whispered.
“A nightmare?”
“Fen!” Anna shouted, but when that only led to more thrashing, she placed her hand against his head, her fingers brushing Maddy’s. “Try a trickle of healing magic?”
Maddy tensed at the doubt in her love’s voice, though it was well-deserved. “That would probably make things worse.”
There was a good chance Fen wouldn’t suffer any harm from her magic, but she wasn’t going to risk it over a nightmare. Stroking her hand across his hair, Maddy considered what to do. Was Fen a heavy sleeper, or was the dream that powerful? When the floor began to tremble beneath them, evidence of his earth magic, she suspected the latter.
Ascent Page 8
