by Sophie Stern
Finding privacy in the city is much harder than I ever thought it could be, but the bench seems like a quiet haven as I pull the book out and yank it open. At first, the pages appear to be completely blank, which is perfect, really, since it means I grabbed the wrong book. That doesn’t make any sense, though, because it was so carefully hidden away. Why would Luther hide a blank book? Why would he hide it away? Why would he take the time to do something like that if the book didn’t have some value?
Surely, it must be worth something.
Surely, it must be the manuscript he was talking about.
“Okay,” I whisper. “Think.”
I flip through the pages, but they really are completely blank. There’s nothing there. It’s not like there’s invisible writing on them because there’s just...not.
“Why isn’t there anything here?” I whisper.
“Because you didn’t unlock the words,” a tiny voice says from beside me. My eyes go wide and I jump, turning to see who managed to sneak up on me. “Hello,” says a little boy. He must be around ten years old. He’s got a big smile and a mop of brown hair and big, bright blue eyes.
“Hello,” I whisper, wondering how he managed to see me. I used the amulet. It shouldn’t be possible. Then he smiles and winks at me.
“I’m a dark fae, too,” he says. He points at my necklace. “Your amulet won’t work on me.”
“But dark faes are banned from the city,” I whisper. “How are you here?”
“What? No, we aren’t,” he shakes his head. “That’s just something Wyatt says to the other towns. He started a rumor last year so no one would try to come in while he came up with his evil scheme to overthrow the king. He also started a rumor that we’re at war with other kingdoms, that we’re having a famine, and that there’s a drought. Oh,” the boy lowers his voice. “And he says the king likes the ladies.”
I stare at the kid, blinking.
Then I don’t say anything at all.
Am I dreaming right now?
Seriously, what’s going on?
“Let’s start with something simple,” I finally say. “My name is Rose.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he says. “I’m Greg.”
“Greg,” I reach out, shaking his hand. “How do you know about a plot to overthrow the king?”
“Oh, lots of dark faes know,” he says. “Wyatt arrested my mom and dad last year. That’s when he decided to ban anyone new from coming to town. He started a rumor that no dark faes can come to Dark Falls. He also said no vampires, no shifters, and no demons, of course, but that’s all a façade.”
Do I want to know how a little kid knows a bit word like façade?
“Uh, okay,” I say.
“Basically,” Greg comes over and sits beside me on the bench. “If you weren’t in the city last year, you can’t get in now. People think the king is a real asshole for instituting these policies, you know. They don’t realize he has no clue!” Greg holds his hands up like he just can’t believe it, and if it wasn’t such a serious situation, I might be tempted to laugh.
No, seriously, what kid talks like this?
“If your mom and dad are gone,” I ask. “Where do you live now?”
“With Luther,” he says solemnly. “But he was taken today.”
So that’s how this kid found me.
“You followed me,” I say.
“Yeah,” the kid has the decency to blush, at least. So he knows it’s creepy to follow people. That much is good, I guess. “Sorry about that, but you took the book, and well, I don’t think you would have taken it if Luther didn’t tell you.”
“Didn’t tell me what?” I ask.
“About it. You know, it’s got all of the antidotes in there. All of the recipes for the potions and everything: they’re all in there.”
“Anquan?” I dare to ask.
The kid nods.
“Yeah, it’s in there.”
“How do I see the spell?” I ask.
“You can’t,” he says sadly, shaking his head. “Only Luther can, and he’s locked up now.”
“What exactly is happening here?”
“Wyatt is making his move,” the kid shrugs. “He wants to be king. He has for a long time.”
“Why now?”
“He finally got enough demons to listen to him, I guess. He’s been rounding them up for a long time now. He uses them to keep people in line. We’re all scared of them and sometimes Wyatt lets them bite people.”
That explains the increase in demons near my home, I suppose. If Wyatt has been trying to overthrow the king and take the kingdom for himself, he would need a way to do that. He’d need a way to keep the kingdoms under his control.
Fear is a powerful way of controlling people, no matter where you’re from.
“I need to get to Luther,” I tell the kid. “My sister was bitten by a demon. She needs the potion. If I can’t use the book to make one myself,” I stare at the blank pages and flip them back and forth, as if doing so will suddenly make them appear.
“Your sister?” The little boy asks.
“She’s in Dark Village,” I tell him. “She was bit and it’s pretty bad. I came here to get the potion for her.”
“Wyatt destroyed Luther’s supply,” the kid says sadly.
“I saw.”
“Your sister, she’s pretty special to you, huh?”
“Yeah.” I look at the book again. Then I look at Greg. “How’d you come to live with Luther, anyway?”
“My dad worked for him,” Greg says. “They were friends.”
“And then Wyatt came for your parents?”
“It’s okay,” Greg says. “I know he probably killed them a long time ago. Luther told me. He said there’s no point in lying to me and giving me false hope.”
Wow.
Deep.
And how incredibly bold of Luther to be honest with a child. I wonder if I’d have the same guts. Could I tell a child that his parents were likely dead, murdered by the person who was trying to capture the kingdom for himself?
I’m not really sure.
“My parents are dead, too,” I tell him.
“Do you have anyone?” The boy asks.
“Just my sisters. Daisy is taking care of Tulip right now. Tulip is the one who was bitten. She was trying to save a little fairy girl from being attacked by a demon and, well, it attacked her instead.”
“What happened to the demon?”
“Tulip killed it.”
“Go Tulip.”
I smile and tousle the kid’s hair. Probably not the most polite way to interact with a little dude, but I can’t help myself. He’s adorable, and brave as hell.
“Yeah. Now I just need to find a way to get to Luther. I need to rescue him,” I say.
“So he can make you the potion.”
“Yes. That’s the plan, anyway. I don’t have much time, though.”
“How much time do you have?” Greg asks. His big eyes blink as he looks at me, patiently waiting for my answer.
“She was bitten a few days ago. The wizard where I live says she has, at most, one week to live. After that, even with the potion, she’ll be a goner.”
The thought makes my heart clench with sadness.
I do not want to lose my sister.
Not like this.
Not when she was bitten from trying to save someone.
It’s not a very fair way to die, is it? Doing something noble is supposed to get you rewarded: not hurt. It doesn’t seem right. It doesn’t seem like it should be the situation we’re in, but we are.
“Do you know where the wizard might be?” I ask Greg. He’s a friendly little boy. Perhaps I shouldn’t trust him, but I don’t get the vibe that he’s anything but what he says. He seems much too honest and straightforward to be sneaky. Then again, maybe he’s secretly working for Wyatt and he wants to lure me to danger. I don’t think so, though.
“Probably the dungeons,” he sighs. “That’s where
Wyatt takes everyone he captures.” Greg starts to dig a little hole in the dirt with the toe of his shoe. I know he’s thinking about his parents, and my heart goes out to the little guy. He hasn’t had an easy life. That much is obvious. In fact, he’s probably lost more than most people could ever even imagine.
“Hey,” I say, patting his hand. “It’s going to be okay.”
He looks up at me.
“Really?”
“Yeah,” I tell him, swallowing hard. Now I know that I need to find Luther for more than just myself. I need to find him before it’s too late because Greg needs him. Luther is the only person Greg has left in the world, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let a little kid suffer. “I’m going to go find him, okay? I’ll do it. I’ll find Luther.”
Greg wraps his arms around me in a surprise hug.
“Thank you.”
“Hey, it’s okay,” I hug him back and when I release him, Greg is looking at me curiously.
“I can’t go with you,” he says.
“I know,” I agree. “The castle is no place for a kid. No offense, but I’m not about to let anything else happen to you. Do you have someone you can stay with?” I’m not exactly a fan of trying to break into dungeons, but if that’s what it takes, then I’ll do it.
“No,” he shakes his head. “That’s not why.”
“What is it?”
Greg reaches into his jacket and pulls out a tiny corked bottle. Without a word, I know exactly what it is.
“How did you get that?” I ask quietly.
“Luther makes me carry it,” he says. “Just in case. It’s my only one. I...I want your sister to have it.”
My eyes tear up but I push those tears right on back. This kid whom I’ve only known for like, twenty minutes, wants to save my sister. Brave little thing.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I do,” he says. “You go save Luther for me. I’ll go save Tulip for you.”
“I can’t let you go to Dark Village on your own,” I tell him. “It’s not safe.” And it’s already early afternoon. The chances of him reaching the place by nightfall are slim. Even if he manages to get past the forest, it’s going to be pushing dusk by the time he arrives.
“Lots of things aren’t safe,” Greg says. “Go get Luther,” he says. “And watch out for Wyatt. He’s sneakier than you think.”
Suddenly, Greg snaps his fingers. A burst of smoke appears and when it clears, the little kid is gone. Okay, so apparently, Luther has been teaching the boy some tricks. Fair enough. Maybe I underestimated the little guy.
A wave of relief washes over me as I realize that he’s going to do it. Nothing is going to stop Greg from getting back to my sister. Part of me feels incredibly lucky that my day has turned out this way. Who could have predicted that Luther’s ward would be the one who saved Tulip?
Certainly not me.
But my day is far from over. The afternoon sun is high in the sky which means that I don’t have a lot of time before nightfall. I don’t know if there are vampires in the capital city, but I’m not about to be caught outside after dark and risk them wandering around and catching me. Apparently, Wyatt has his claws in everything that goes on. If what Greg says is correct, then the king is kind of totally clueless about the whole thing, which is great.
Just great.
With a sigh, I get up off the bench and look toward the castle.
Time to go sneak in.
Time to save a wizard.
Chapter 7
Rose
The castle of Dark Falls is menacing.
It towers over the city with its turrets and its lovely stone design. There’s even a fucking drawbridge. People are milling about, walking around, and acting as though the world isn’t basically ending all around us.
It is.
At least, my world is.
So much has changed for me in the last day. My world has fallen apart, broken, and been fixed all at once. Now I’m standing in the shadows, lurking like a villain, and staring at a castle that is both quite lovely and entirely intimidating.
It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen and to be honest, it’s not really something I want to see. I had planned to sneak into the capital city and sneak right back home. I didn’t plan on breaking into a castle and catching myself a wizard.
That wasn’t part of the plan.
Then again, plans change. That’s part of being a good fae, right? Part of being a fairy means being willing to adapt. The other part was supposed to be luck, but I think my sisters and I have proved that being a fairy doesn’t make us any luckier than anyone else. Daisy, at least, can fly. The rest of us...well, we’re usually just happy when there’s food in our bellies and our doors are safely locked at night. The vampires are much stronger and much more powerful than any of us. So we can speak to animals and we can communicate with insects. That’s not a very big deal when your opponent can bite you and drain your blood.
Not that the vampires want to eat fairies. As far as I know, our blood is toxic to them. That’s why they only feed on humans and wild animals. In some ways, the vampires are very humane when it comes to what they’ll eat. In other ways, they’re monsters.
As I stare at the castle, the urge to stretch my wings and flutter them is almost overwhelming, but I push my need back. I can’t risk anyone seeing their deep color. Greg might be right. Maybe it’s not actually illegal to be a dark fae in the city, but maybe he’s wrong. Maybe it’s very, very illegal and he’s just an innocent little kid. It’s hard to say.
Still, my heart is racing as I approach the castle. I stand in the shadows and spin my amulet. One of these days, my luck is going to run out. I didn’t know until today that anyone with an amulet can see anyone else with one. Apparently, all the charms in the world won’t matter if I’m facing down someone else who has something similar. It explains why Luther noticed me when he was being hauled away. Wyatt hung an amulet over his neck before the guards took him.
Who has the amulet now, though?
Surely they didn’t let Luther keep it when they threw him into the dungeons.
I shiver as I realize that Wyatt likely wears it when he wants to be sneaky. I just hope that it doesn’t give him an edge on me. He knows this castle better than I do. He’s lived here forever, after all. If he even catches a glimpse of me, if he even gets an idea that I might be coming to the castle, then he’ll be ready for me.
I can’t let him catch me.
I approach the castle cautiously, carefully. I stay in the shadows where nothing can see me. My mother was a shadow shifter. She could transform herself into a shadow with just a thought, just a whisper. All it took was hoping that she’d be a shadow, and then she would be. She had tried so very hard to help me and my sisters learn the same skill, but none of us had been able to.
Still, we’re all very nimble, and today I’m proving that by staying in the shadows where darkness lurks. I near the castle. The drawbridge is open, but as far as I can see, that’s the only way in. Could it be so easy to just walk up it and waltz into the castle? Perhaps not. I hesitate, watching and waiting. I don’t want to wait too long to make a move, but I also need to be smart about this.
If I screw this up, I’m going to do more than just hurt myself.
Greg could lose the only person he’s ever loved.
As far as I can tell, there are no side entrances into the castle. There must be, though. Right? Carefully, cautiously, I walk in the shadows. I move away from the drawbridge and keep an eye out for any other way into the castle. There are so many turrets that I’ve almost lost count. Then I see it.
A door.
It’s nestled in the side of one of the turrets. It’s just on the other side of the tiny moat. I don’t want to risk falling into the water, but I have a feeling that I can make it. That’s one of my fairy skills, I suppose: good instincts. My sisters don’t have that one. I suppose I should be grateful, but I can usually tell before I do something whether I’m go
ing to be successful or not. Perhaps the power would be better if I actually listened to it.
As it is, I most often just ignore it and then am disappointed when the results aren’t what I want.
Now, though, I have a feeling that if I hop, if I leap, that I can make it to the little ledge where the door opens. It’s probably three feet wide and just as deep.
I can definitely do this.
I glance around one more time to make sure that no one is looking. This side of the castle seems to be fairly empty. Then again, everything surrounding the castle seems to be a little bit empty. I won’t give myself too much time to think about that or what it means. Instead, I take a deep breath, I spin my amulet, and I run, charging toward the door.
And then I leap.
I can practically feel the fairy dust bouncing out of my skin as I soar through the air and land perfectly outside of the little door.
Well, then. That wasn’t so hard, was it?
I reach for the door and pull it open. It’s not locked, which seems unlikely, but I’m not about to complain. It’s just another bout of good luck, I suppose, and I’m starting to think that maybe my life is about to turn around in a wonderful way.
I step inside, pull the door closed behind me, and take a step forward.
“Well, what do we have here?”
Suddenly, my heart sinks when I turn and see none other than Wyatt.
The monster.
The maniac.
Apparently, I’ve chosen to enter the castle through his private study and he’s eyeing me quite curiously. It’s not a gentle kind of curious, like when a child sees a kitten jumping around in the grass or when someone notices a handsome boy for the first time. No, this type of curious is much darker. This type of curiosity feels more like a lion noticing that a tiny rabbit has wandered right into his cave.
And I’m the rabbit.
And Wyatt is the dangerous lion.
“I’m sorry,” I say slowly. How can I save my ass right about now? Is there anything I can actually do? “I thought this was the back entrance.”
