Abigail’s and Winter’s appearances both contrasted and complemented each other. The former’s skin was fair, the latter’s was a sun-kissed brown. Abigail’s long pale blond hair was pulled back into a neat French braid, while Winter kept her dark brown tresses in a sleek ponytail. Both of their faces had narrow, delicate angles that were envy-worthy. Winter, like me, was dressed in jeans and a simple t-shirt. Abigail had on gray slacks, a slim-fitting white shirt, and a pearl necklace and bracelet. She had slipped into her new role quite well and appeared to be enjoying the benefits of it.
At Abigail’s approach, Winter stepped back, keeping her distance. Abigail, seemingly incensed by it, made an attempt to get closer. Winter stepped back farther and shot her a harsh look that dared her to do it again. The bitterness that she felt over Abigail’s exploiting their former relationship had created an irreparable rift between them. The many apologies that Abigail had offered had been met with cold indifference, which to Winter was worse than hate, which was at least still rooted in some type of emotion.
“It’s good to see you, Winter,” Abigail said, but she maintained the distance that Winter had put between them.
“This isn’t a personal visit,” Winter said in an even tone. She looked around the massive home. Pale yellow walls surrounded the room, expensive-looking sculptures were placed in the corners, and art in ornate brass frames covered the walls. With the exception of the decorative stairs and art, it was minimally decorated.
“Is your brother here?” Winter asked.
Abigail shook her head. “You requested that we meet alone. He’s at a meeting, I stayed behind so that we could talk.” She directed us to the living room, which was definitely for short impersonal visits. The pearl-colored Chesterfield sofa that she had us sit on was as uncomfortable as it looked, clearly serving to hurry guests along on their way.
As soon as Winter sat, she asked, “How did you get the Tod Schlaf?”
Abigail tensed, scanning the immediate area before speaking. “The person that was able to acquire it for me is no longer available for such projects.”
Projects? Putting your brother in a catatonic state was a project?
“And why is that?” I asked. I wished I was better at detecting lies instead of having to rely on Winter, but at least everything that she felt was revealed on her face, including her disdain for the new information.
“Unfortunately, he is no longer alive.”
Yes, it was quite unfortunate, and I was willing to bet that Abigail had something to do with it. Perhaps he’d attempted to blackmail her and she’d considered him too much of a liability to keep alive.
“Well, we need one,” Winter demanded.
“I’m sorry, I can’t get you one. Other than visiting the dark forest to get one yourself, I’m not sure how you can get one.”
“Then get us into the dark forest,” Winter countered.
I didn’t want to go to the dark forest. We’d had to go there to find the antidote to the poison of the sleeper that had bitten Kelly. I’d seen how damaged Sebastian had looked when he’d come out of it. The most dangerous creations were kept in there—the ones the elves had created and considered failed experiments.
“I wish that was a request that could be handled as easily as before.” She sighed, and anger and frustration dulled her features as irritation forced her smile into a scowl. “The Makellos’ alliance with the witches has complicated things.” Fire blazed in her eyes at the Makellos’ ability to circumvent their rule. There was still that spark of jealousy of the self-proclaimed elite elves, who, due to their pure lineage, lived segregated from the other elves they deemed tainted from interbreeding with humans. The elite lived in the beautiful Elysian, which in contrast contained one of the most dangerous forests known to exist, where they kept their “magical mistakes”—animals so dangerous they had to be separated and kept behind wards to keep them from escaping.
Abigail and Gideon belonged among the “elite,” something that Abigail wanted, but because of Gideon’s contempt for them, they were never invited.
In addition to the latent hostility between the Makellos and the Abigail/Gideon duumvirate, dissension between Liam, the head of the Makellos elves, and the were-animals had been cultivated by Marcia, the head of the Creed, when Gideon voted against the Makellos in favor of saving Ethan. I should have known that would ignite an alliance between the witches and the Makellos. Because of Gideon and Demetrius, we’d gotten Ethan out of being “contained,” their florid word for genocide, by one vote from the vampires. I hadn’t seen that one coming, nor had anyone else—especially Marcia.
“I can see if Liam can be reasoned with. With the witches as allies, he displays even more arrogance and confidence than before, which has made him more difficult to tolerate and compromise with.”
More arrogant, is that even possible? He couldn’t be any more arrogant if he tried, but if he was allied with the witches, there had to be a renewed confidence and the power to back it up.
One of the agreements made between Abigail and Sebastian after we helped her with her brother was that she would incite a civil war between the different elves and in turn allow Gideon, who the were-animals had a shadow alliance with, to rule. This was proposed under the assumption that, based on the difference in numbers between the elves and the Makellos elves, Gideon would be the victor. But since the witches were now involved, that wasn’t necessarily the case anymore, and Abigail wouldn’t risk her position on a war she was confident they could win.
Abigail offered another apology but assured us that she would work on trying to get us into the forest. Winter didn’t seem convinced, but I was. Despite Abigail’s power-hungry ways, she seemed to be determined to obtain Winter’s forgiveness. But I wasn’t sure about her motives—was it sincere remorse, or putting herself in a position to exploit the relationship and Winter again?
Three days crept by and we weren’t any better off. We weren’t any closer to finding Kelly or uncovering anything about that strange magic I had encountered or the rabid girl that we had seen. After the Alphas had returned home, Ethan spent most of his time away, and I concluded he was looking for Chris, although he would never admit it to me.
The lack of progress made something like Abigail convincing Liam to allow us into the dark forest seem like a bigger victory than it was. Sure, why not go into a forest where the odds of your getting out were even worse than the already dismal chances of your getting in? But we were desperate and had limited options.
When Liam finally called to agree to a time, it was a good thing he couldn’t see the look of pure derision and disdain on Sebastian’s face. Perhaps Sebastian had thought the situation was going to be handled more amicably and didn’t mind Winter and me being in the office. It started out casual, cordial—yeah, sure, why wouldn’t it be?—two men of power who couldn’t stand each other, all in a day’s work. Quelle surprise when it slowly devolved into poorly veiled threats and outright insults.
“I helped you contain those creatures when your wards broke. I assumed you would be more amenable to repaying the favor. I’m not asking to use your people as an escort. I think we are more than capable of negotiating Elysian on our own. I am just requesting entrance into it. Why do you feel this is a situation in which I owe you another favor? As far as I’m concerned, the many resources we used to clean up that mess more than satisfy the debt I incurred the last time we went there, and in fact leave you with an arrearage.”
Of course, Sebastian didn’t point out that the ward had fallen because of the spell that I had performed. But Liam didn’t have a problem bringing it up.
“You have no proof that breaking the ward was our doing, and until you have that proof, I will invite you to not accuse us of anything.”
Did he just say that with a straight face?
“I understand that Marcia may have made you feel emboldened; she has a way of making even those that don’t have a chance in hell feel as though she is their savior. The C
reed, formerly the most powerful witches in the country, is down to just two. We did that. I don’t think this thing needs to be handled by force. I understand you are doing me a favor. I will reluctantly incur that debt because we have no other choice; however, I will remember this egregious lack of gratitude for our previous assistance.”
Liam’s voice was pitched lower, and I had to strain to hear him. “It is my understanding that you have the Aufero in your possession. I would like it. For that, you will have full access to Elysian and the forest.”
“No, it is best in our care, and I will caution you from taking your commands from Marcia. Do you understand what that object is capable of? As power hungry as Marcia has proven to be, you do not want her to have the ability to divest someone of their magic so easily. What will you do when she turns on you—don’t be so naïve as to believe she won’t once you’ve served your purpose.”
I couldn’t believe that Marcia was still after the Aufero. Had she taken up her former obsession once again now that the others had ruled against killing Ethan for being a dark elf? Or was this a way to get back at Josh?
We were probably overly cautious, but it seemed warranted. Liam’s agreeing to our visiting Elysian was something that had been initiated by Abigail, and we all had the right to be apprehensive. Where had she gotten the leverage?
Hours after Sebastian’s conversation with Liam, Sebastian, Ethan, Winter, Josh, Steven, and I were trekking through Elysian behind different guides than those we’d had the last time we’d visited. Before we’d been met by Liam, his stout look of contempt at our presence, and his military. This time he didn’t bother with any of that. Guides met us in front of the entrance to say the incantation that opened the doors to it. They were identical twins—amber eyes with flecks of red and fiery red hair that was so long it caused them to keep raking it back out of their faces. At the same time. Each time. When the coltish men asked us to follow them, it was in unison. And when they weren’t doing that, they were finishing each other’s sentences. The elves had the patent on creepy twins—fraternal but androgynous twins Abigail and Gideon, and now these guys, were prime examples. The odd looks that Josh, Ethan, Sebastian, and Winter gave them made it apparent that I wasn’t the only one wondering if they weren’t one of the elves’ odd creations that belonged in the dark forest, too. If they weren’t, the animals that they’d brought definitely were. Nothing as majestic as the creatures provided to us before, which had been a beautiful and enchanting blend of okapi and horse.
These monstrosities were a vile combination of many things. The long necks of giraffes were topped by horse faces. The brawny appendages of horses had been replaced by thick, powerful feline legs made for sprinting. Top them all off with horse tails, and there you had it. On our previous visit, we’d been treated as invited guests welcomed to enjoy the beauty of Elysian. Now it was very evident that we were unwanted interlopers.
Ethan looked at the guides with caution as they forced us in a single-file line, putting Ethan and me in front. Answering the curiosity on Ethan’s face, they said together, “I sense magic, it will help keep the rift open longer.”
The last time we’d come to the dark forest, Sebastian and Gideon had been the only ones to enter, and it kept trying to break open to retrieve Ethan. He struggled, fighting as it attempted to claim him, and it wasn’t until he shifted to his wolf that it quieted. I figured that it was because he possessed dark elven magic, but the opening was different than before. The edges of the wall formed little vines that looked like fingers, stretching out to receive us—to receive Ethan. They brushed against him.
I touched his arm. “It’s fine,” he whispered.
Is it? Magical walls forming fingers to touch someone is far from fine.
Despite my apprehension, Ethan stepped in first. I hesitated, making sure that Winter, Sebastian, and Steven were close. Josh stood a couple of feet away. He was going to stay behind in Elysian; we’d decided it was a good idea because of how upset and angry it had made our guide team. They took a few minutes from looking down at us to show their disdain. Josh was left behind in the event things didn’t go as planned. He was the anchor on the outside who could help get us out. Or so we hoped.
The slip in the divide closed before anyone else could come through after me. Had we been set up? I plunged my sword into it, and it closed around it. I pulled the blade out and looked back at Ethan; spastic rolls of platinum consumed his eyes, and his teeth were clenched, hard.
After taking several calming breaths, he looked around the area. “Dark forest” was a misnomer—it wasn’t much different than what was on the other side of the ward. Florets of greenery stretched over us; small man-made ponds were spread throughout the vast area. The plants were the oddest thing: they looked like flowering trees. Their stems were wide as tree trunks. Instead of green, they were variations of brown and hues of yellow. Like the plant Quell used to feed from, Hidacus, they moved as though they had life in them, a gentle beat at the nodes, between the stem and the internode. I stepped closer, and the beat increased. The metallic smell of blood inundated that air, covering the exotic scents of small buds of flowers that lingered throughout the space. Ethan turned his head to listen. I didn’t hear anything, but whatever he heard made his face falter into a grimace.
“Stay close,” he said as he started to walk farther. I thought the best plan was to get the hell out of there, but we might as well get what we had come for and then worry about getting out. I prepared myself for the worst of the various odd animals that I’d seen in Elysian and the horrible things I’d seen out of it—the monstrous way that Logan looked; Thaddeus, the Tre’ase that Chris had introduced us to; or even Ethos in his original form—and yet nothing looked like the mutated thing before us. Curved horns extended from a wolflike creature’s head. Large teeth made it difficult for it to close its mouth. The long, lean, sinewy body ensured that it would be quick. A kick from the stout legs and cloven feet would definitely cause injury.
“There are more,” Ethan said as I focused on the one directly in front of us. I wondered if this was just the first defense to getting farther into the forest. The last time we’d visited it, we’d been told the antidote for the sleeper’s poison could be found on the “vilest creature,” which in this place could be anything. I assumed the same would be true for finding a Tod Schlaf. How did we decide what was “vile” in this place? Sebastian had returned from the forest with talon marks on his shoulder. I looked up; a creature that flew would normally have talons, but in Elysian, it could very well be a mutated bunny rabbit.
The animals started to approach, slowly at first, studying us as intensely as we studied them. They were moving carefully, as if we were prey and they were just determining how to take us down. The strategic planning of a predator was something I was quite familiar with. I’d been around it more times than I wished.
“Do you think the horns are poisonous?” I asked.
In this forest I wasn’t putting anything past the creatures. Sleepers looked like insects, and I wouldn’t have suspected them to be as deadly as they were. The creepy-crawly that possessed the antidote looked like a wide leech. I had no idea what to expect. The mutated wolves attacked, speeding toward us, teeth bared, inhuman growls filling the air. Ethan waited, maintaining a defensive stance. I couldn’t do it—my fight reflexes were in full effect. I didn’t like being cornered. Three of them pounded toward me. One leapt, and I lowered my body to the ground, injuring the creature with a sweeping half arc of my sword that took it to the ground. I turned in time to dodge out of the way of the horns that were trying to impale me. It quickly retreated and advanced again. I spun around, bringing my sword down over them, cutting them off—one less weapon to worry about. It stumbled back, made a screeching sound, and attacked again, baring its teeth. I shoved the sword into the open mouth, and it made a gargling sound and dropped to the ground. Its mouth had closed around the blade, so I pressed my foot into its face to give me leverage to pull
it out. Fast-approaching paws pounded to my right and dirt kicked up as another animal’s powerful legs pushed him at speeds unlike anything a typical wolf could produce.
Magic. I raised my hand, feeling it unfurl in me, and shot it out, trying to push the animal away. Nothing. I turned and yanked at the embedded sword again, making hard jerks as I tried to dislodge it. Thankfully the dead thing’s teeth were clenched around steel and not me.
I pulled out the sword in time and readied to take out the other creature. Ethan grabbed it in a midair lunge, quickly stopping it.
We advanced farther, the sky darkening and quickly eclipsing into darkness. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the changes. “Dark forest” wasn’t a misnomer at all. Trees crowded the path, making navigation harder. Breathy sounds filled the area, and deep growls were so constant that they became nothing more than white noise. Ethan didn’t seem to be as anxious as me as we moved through the dim, portentous area, a space dominated by hisses, labored breathing, and predaceous movement of unknown animals that the elves had thought were a good idea to create.
“Why are they allowed to do this?” I asked.
Ethan’s low voice mirrored mine. “I’ve wondered the same thing. It has never been an issue, so we never got involved.” It didn’t affect the pack, so it wasn’t their concern, but a couple of months ago, the elves’ problem creatures had spilled into our lives. Animals of unknown destruction and devastation shouldn’t be able to be created for amusement. It was something that should have been addressed.
“I don’t think they should be allowed to do this. Not anymore.”
He stopped walking, his eyes narrowed on me. “But if they weren’t allowed, then what would be our option to stop Logan?”
Moon Cursed (Sky Brooks Series Book 5) Page 8
