by R L Medina
Grayson’s arm landed on my shoulder. I turned to him. He shook his head at me. “It’s pointless, Rose. She won’t help us. Fairies only help themselves.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I may have fairy in my blood, but I’m still elf.”
Elf? I gaped at her. I’d never met an elf before. According to the GRIMMs, there were very few left. I couldn’t remember anything I’d read or learned about them. Nothing that would help me sway her.
“Now, let’s hurry this along, witchlings. I’m getting bored.”
I bristled at her casual tone. Was our fate, the fate of the whole world, so unimportant to her? My lip curled in disgust.
“We need something to track the vampire.” Ash spoke up.
The witches looked at each other. Folding her arms across her small frame, the fairy-elf glared at us. “You got nothing, huh?”
Ash hesitated. “If we can just find something that could link us to her…”
“What kind of witch can’t perform a tracking spell?”
Ash’s eyes flashed with anger. “I can. I just need the materials.”
“But, Ash… we can’t use our magic yet. It’s been too soon since the summoning. You need to rest,” James whispered to her. Or thought he was whispering.
With a heavy sigh, the princess spread out her arms. “Once again, everything is up to me. I guess this is part of the curse of being the most powerful. It’s a heavy burden to bear, but who am I to complain?”
The air grew colder as her hands flew, words spilling out in a chant. I stepped even closer to Grayson, unsure of what was happening. My skin tingled, and a shiver ran down my spine. More shadow magic?
Her eyes closed as she waved her arms in the air, wind stirred around her tutu and hair. As quickly as it had started, it stopped. Warmth returned to me, my fists loosening.
She opened her eyes and smiled. “Found her. No thanks to you.”
With that she turned. “Come along, witchlings. Unless you’d rather stay behind and be split in two atop the altar.”
I startled at her words, the image making me shudder.
“That’s not going to happen,” Grayson promised.
Nodding in acknowledgment to him, I followed the rest as they started for the stairs.
Once the others were ahead, I turned to him. “Are you going to tell me what that was about? With the shadow magic?”
He stilled. “I’d rather not.”
Anger rolled through me. “What are you hiding, Grayson?”
He whipped back to me. “What are you?”
My fist clenched. “I’m not one of them if that’s what you think.”
“I know.” His eyes searched my face, lingering on my lips.
My heart sped up. Heat spread across my skin and my throat turned dry. I didn’t move.
He glanced away, breaking the moment. “Why didn’t you tell me? Who you really were?”
“I couldn’t. Not with the compulsion ring—”
His eyes widened. “Compulsion ring?”
Right. He didn’t remember.
“Sorry. I forgot my tío erased your memory. To keep you from knowing who I was.”
A muscle twitched in his face. I didn’t blame him for being angry. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like for someone to mess with my memory.
“I would have told you eventually… I just didn’t have time, Grayson. The attacks started as soon as I got to the academy and… everything else I told you was true. My parents are dead, and they left me with this mess.”
He nodded, face softening. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry you felt you couldn’t trust me. I’m your friend, Rose.”
Warmth filled me. His mouth said friend, but his intense gaze said much more than that.
We were the last to climb the stairs. The fairy paused at the top and turned to us, a finger to her lips. “I can’t hide you all in the shadows, but I can make your feet silent. The rest not so much, so shut the hell up.”
My eyes widened at her.
“Once I have the queen, I’ll drop the wards and you’ll be free to go. Now, follow me and don’t make a sound.”
Dread coiled tightly within me. How was this going to work? There were fourteen of us. Fourteen that she had to lead down the halls into who knew where. What if they had guards set on the queen? Were we going to have to fight?
I bit my lip. I didn’t care about the vampire. I wanted to get to Javi. We were running out of time to save him.
Grayson walked beside me, withdrawing his gun from thin air. It was the same trick I’d seen Javi do so long ago in the cemetery. The memory was vivid in my mind. Oh, Javi. Please be okay.
We hurried to catch up to the others as the door opened. My heart hammered against my ribs and despite the pain that still wracked my body, I was ready.
The fairy led us down an empty, dimly lit hall. Where were the witches? Or the shifters or vampires? Hairs on my neck bristled. I could feel the presence of something. An invisible, powerful force. Magic? Unlike the others, I was still discovering it for the first time. It was hard to wrap my head around, but the sensation was as real as anything I experienced.
Real—actual, real magic.
I shuddered. All of it at the coven’s disposal. My eyes darted to Ash and the others. Did they have enough skill to face the older witches? Not to mention the shifters and vampires that were probably waiting for us once we found the queen.
Trying to stay positive and as confident as Grayson looked, I pushed down the emotions and steeled myself for what was coming.
After a couple of turns and twists, we found ourselves in a large room. Some kind of sitting area. The décor spoke of old money, a place where important people of the past gathered for drinks and gossip. Now it just looked like the perfect setting for a horror film.
Where were we? An old haunted house didn’t seem like the best choice for their hideout unless they wanted to be found.
The fairy turned to us. “Right down this hall and through the door.”
Ash stepped forward, but the princess held up a hand. “Hold on, witchling.” Her eyes swept across the room. “They got a lot of security in there. You, witchlings, ready for a fight?” She grinned.
Her amusement and excitement made my stomach lurch. Grayson waved his gun in response. “Ready when you are.”
The others murmured their agreement. I nodded along, but inside dread rolled back and forth. I didn’t even have a weapon or magic.
“Here,” Grayson pulled out a knife and handed it to me.
My eyebrow arched. It was a different one than the one he’d let me borrow before. That one I’d lost. I squeezed the hilt, letting the cool metal warm in my hand and gave him a firm nod.
“Ready.”
The fairy swung the doors open.
21
Snarls echoed ahead, but I couldn’t see anything over the heads in front of us. The witches and fairy princess strode forward, Grayson and I bringing up the rear. We fanned out in the massive room and I stuck right by Grayson’s side.
The queen stood in the center, chained to the carpeted floor. From what it looked like, the room had been a large bedroom, but there was no furniture in it now. Three shifters and two vampires stood between the queen and us. All of them turned at our approach. My heart sped up as their eyes narrowed and faces morphed.
Before they could attack, the fairy princess raised a hand and a dark cloud rose from her palms. I watched, stunned as the clouds transformed into… dragons? One of the vampires made the mistake of standing in the path as one of the smoke-like creatures took flight. Bones snapped and the sound of ripping flesh made me turn my head. The vampire’s scream echoed in my ears followed by the unearthly shrieks of the dragons.
Not smoke monsters. Real—they were real.
The witches scurried back as the fairy unleashed more of the creatures.
“Stop! The others are going to come. Get the queen and let’s go.” Ash’s voice rose above the roars and snarls.
With another wave of her hand, the fairy sent the dragon creatures at the remaining guards. They made quick work, leaving their carnage behind. I turned my head and fought the rising waves of nausea.
The room fell quiet once more as the dragons vanished.
She glanced at Grayson. “The perks of shadow magic. I barely have to lift a finger. Of course, you’d never be able to do what I just did. Not in your short life, darling.” She winked.
My head whipped toward him. “Grayson?”
He glared at the fairy and didn’t respond, his jaw clenched tight.
“We are running out of time. The others will be here any minute,” Ash interrupted.
The fairy shrugged and sauntered toward the vampire queen. We stood watching. I refused to drop my gaze, not wanting to look at the gory bodies littering the floor.
Still chained, the vampire queen’s head snapped toward us. Her eyes drilled into the fairy. “You. What do you want, Maloret?”
She chuckled. “It’s nice to see you too, Damaris. Chains, huh? That’s a good look for you.”
The vampire snarled, lunging for her. “What are you doing working with the coven? I thought you worked solo.”
“Oh, I’m not here for the supreme. I’m here for you.”
I watched as the vampire stilled. Her eyes narrowed. “I don’t need your help, fairy.”
“Who said anything about helping you?” Her smile turned wicked.
The witches paused, uncertainty flashing on their faces. I held my breath waiting for the shit to hit the fan. Did they have some kind of rivalry or something?
Turning to us, the fairy waved her hand. “The wards are down. You have exactly twenty minutes before the witches get them back up. If I were you, I’d scram.”
I looked from her to the vampire. “What are you going to do with her?”
The fairy smiled. Long tendrils of smoke swirled around her and the vampire. My eyes met the vampire queen’s. Fury flashed across her face. Dark clouds grew, obscuring them from our sight. We stepped back. Air whooshed around us, chilling me to the bone. As quickly as it came, it left.
The shadows dispersed, coldness still lingering. They were gone.
My mouth dropped. “A portal?”
Ash shook her head. “No. Shadow magic. She’ll still need a portal if she plans to take the queen out of our realm.”
I gaped at them. They didn’t seem at all concerned about the vampire though it was them that gave her up to the dark fairy. Whatever happened to her would be our fault.
“Come on, we have to go.”
“Not so fast. You said you’d heal our friend.” Grayson stopped the witch.
“There’s no time for that. Your friend is probably dead anyway,” James snapped.
Ash bent to pick up the broken chain from the floor. “Here. Take this. I’ll enchant it and you can use it to help heal him. He’s still going to need a real healer, but this will buy him some time.”
She closed her eyes and squeezed her fist around the piece of metal.
“I could have done that,” Grayson muttered, shaking his head.
Ash handed it to me, and I felt a small vibration from it. The magic at work.
“I thought you couldn’t use your magic after the summoning? Are you sure this will help him?
“It’s just a simple healing spell. Didn’t take me much magic. It will help. But you aren’t going to have time to save him and escape. The coven is probably already on their way.” She turned to James. “We have to get out of here. Now.”
He nodded and ran to the window. “Come on, everyone out this way. Hurry.”
Ash ushered the others toward him.
I gaped at them. We were at least two stories high. How could they escape from there?
“Rose, we have to go. Come on.” Grayson tugged me away.
It felt weird to leave so quickly without even a goodbye, but there was no time. We headed for the door. When I glanced back, Ash was helping the last witch through. Her eyes met mine before Grayson pulled me forward.
We rushed down the hall, our footsteps thundered against the floor. I winced at the sound. Too loud. The witches would hear us. Why hadn’t they already come after the dragon attack? Did they not hear us?
Grayson motioned for us to pause. My heart raced, my whole body tense as we waited for the footsteps to pass.
Could they sense us? The fairy-elf’s magic only dropped the wards. It didn’t make us invisible to the witches. I curled my fists and tried to stop the trembling.
Don’t let them find us.
Grayson led me past the large sitting room and down another hall. How big was this house? Voices called from the other side. Grayson pushed me into one of the rooms and stood by the door, listening.
My heart raced. The witches? We only had twenty minutes. How were we going to get Javi and get out in time? I stared at Grayson’s back as questions surfaced. The elf claimed he had shadow magic, like her. Fear crawled over me.
“Grayson, what did she mean about you having shadow magic?”
He flinched and turned his head slightly. All I could see was the side profile of his handsome face, illuminated by the sliver of moonlight that poured in from the window.
His face moved toward me, the burning in his eyes made my stomach somersault. Was he going kiss me?
I stilled. His blue-gray eyes held me captive. I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to. A voice in the back of my mind told me to hurry. We were losing time. Javi.
Then his lips crashed against mine and the voice fell silent. Warmth spread through me. His lips were rough and chapped from our current ordeal, but I didn’t care. I kissed him back, letting out the emotions of the recent events. Then I thought of Javi and guilt flooded me.
I pulled away, lightheaded and flushing.
Grayson’s eyes flicked away from me. “We should go.” A roughness edged his words.
“You didn’t answer me. About the shadow magic.”
He sighed. “If I tell you, will you promise not to tell anyone else?”
I blinked. My mind was still stuck on the kiss and then Javi. What the hell was wrong with me? My cousin was holding on for his life waiting for me to rescue him and all I could do was suck face with Grayson? I was officially the worst person ever.
“Rose?” The desperation in Grayson’s voice snapped me to the present.
My chest tightened. This was no small secret.
“I promise.”
Before he could tell me anything, an invisible force blew through the room, breaking the doors off their hinges and sending us reeling. Grayson leapt to his feet, hand ready to cast. I scrambled to stand beside him.
Another force barreled into us, knocking me back. Grayson disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
I screamed. Gone? Was it the elf-fairy again or the witches? I swallowed the lump in my throat. Or had he abandoned me?
Anger stirred in my blood as witches poured in and surrounded me. I held the knife Grayson gave me though what it could do against the witches, I didn’t know. How much time did I have now before the wards were rebuilt?
“There you are.” The guy witch from earlier stood in the doorway.
He glanced around, eyes narrowing. “Where is your friend?”
I glared back at him.
Chuckling, he shrugged it off. “Don’t worry. We’ll find him and you’ll be reunited soon. We’ll get the others back too.”
My eyebrows shot to my hairline. How did they know? Everyone made it out but me. Me and Javi. Nausea hit me like waves. If the wards were already up, I was stuck.
I’d lost my chance.
“It’s time to start the ritual. To collect your blood.”
An icy rush of fear overwhelmed me. It was happening. This was actually happening. I held the knife in front of me and swished it in warning.
“Where are my friends?”
He smirked. “They’re still here. Some of them. Come with me and I’ll show you.”
My eyes dar
ted across the room. The other witches were filing in. There was nowhere to run, and I couldn’t fight them all off. My chest tightened. How could Grayson kiss me one second and then abandon me? Unless… he didn’t have control over it.
That thought scared me more.
“You can come along nicely or by force. Either way, you are coming with us.”
I glared at the witch and his monotone voice. He was in control of the situation and he was loving it.
“Fine. Take me to him.” I tried to infuse authority in my voice.
Make it sound like the vampire queen or the elf princess. I raised my chin and met his eyes, but his amused smirk made my hackles rise.
Two of the witches grabbed my arms and pushed me forward.
Red dotted my vision. “I said I was coming. Let go of me.”
“Bring her to the altar,” their leader commanded.
They surrounded me. My bare feet fell against the soft carpeted floor as they ushered me out of the room and into the hall. Panic flared to life.
The altar. The ritual.
“The witches are gone. The firstborn. They’re gone. You won’t be able to do the ritual.”
I sounded hysteric.
They didn’t respond.
Time seemed to rush by as we made our way down into the depths of the house. Back to the basement?
With every step bringing me closer to the end, a million memories flashed in my mind. Papi and I back in the vineyard. Marta’s homemade churros. My old dog, Roxie. Mom’s letter and the sword. Rafael and the wolves. The club on fire. Then there was Javi. Tío, Tía, the twins, and the academy. Shiloh. Brady. Grayson. Damn it, Grayson. Was he okay? Were the others?
A lump grew in my throat. The words the witch spoke earlier repeated in my mind. You can’t escape fate.
We descended another flight of stairs, and I realized it wasn’t the basement they were leading me, but even lower. An underground bunker?
The earthy smell of dirt and decay filled me nose. Little orbs of light flickered around the wide room, illuminating a stone white altar in the center. Flowers and leaves blanketed the dirt ground and vines grew along the base of the altar. Anger rolled like waves inside me. It was beautiful. Unfairly beautiful. Why should the place I died look like a dreamscape world?
