by Valia Lind
I bring my head forward, my eyes directly on the group in front of me. And then, there's a smile on my face.
The magic is eager.
The magic is ready.
And so am I.
I blast it forward, zeroing on the wolf creatures, sending a mental block to anyone else in the path who isn't an enemy. It's almost as if I can see it happening. My magic covers the innocents and obliterates the evil. One by one, the werewolf creatures explode.
Dead.
Dead.
Dead.
My power spreads across the whole village, protecting and destroying and still I have more to give.
Then, when the village is clear, the magic snaps back into me. I drop to all fours, breathing heavily. Derek is there, and I see his hand reach for me before he stops. Raising my head, I find his face full of wonder and horror as he stares at me.
"What? That's not one of my bookish powers?" I chuckle, but it turns into a cough. I used so much power, it has drained me. But I also feel more me than I've ever felt before.
“Avery—"
"Don't tell me my hair is all green now."
"No, but you have wings."
I take one look behind me and then everything goes dark.
I wake up in my own bed, or the bed that's been designated for me. Nora is by my side the moment I stir, reaching for a glass of water.
"Here, drink this."
I take it gratefully, my throat completely parched. When the glass is empty, I hand it back. Then, Nora is there helping me sit up more fully.
"What happened?"
"What do you remember?"
"Magic practice. The attack on the village. My powers—” I sit forward, twisting to look at my shoulders but nothing is there. "Did I dream them?"
"No."
This comes from the doorway where Derek has just entered. He looks relieved to see me. Then the queen walks in. Nora stands and curtsies, but I don't even bother. If I wasn't a fan of this woman before, I'm definitely not a fan of her now. She was having orgies within the palace walls while her people were getting slaughtered right beyond them. She will never have my respect now.
"Is there anything you want to tell me?"
"You should really up your security measures in the villages." I don't even hesitate. She's pissed at me, but I'm just as angry at her.
"You think you are so funny. Who are you? What is the meaning of this?"
"Lady, I have no idea what you're shouting about. You're the one who came to find me remember? All I did was read a book."
"Don't sass me!" Her voice rings out all across the room, shaking the walls. It takes her two steps and then she's in my face. "You possess the power of Faery. How?"
She's only a foot away. I can see anger dancing in her eyes. When I met her, I thought her beautiful, and she really is. But she's also hard and ruthless, like the broken pieces of a vase. And ugly on the inside. Maybe that's what makes her such a powerful ruler.
I'm not here to cower at her bullying. Because that's what she's trying to do. My father has raised me around powerful people for this exact reason, so that I could hold my own. So, I lean forward, bringing myself right into her personal space.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
I don't blink, making sure she understands that I will never yield to her. It might be foolish to keep antagonizing her like this, and it will probably be the end of me one of these days. But I'm not going to be accused of something that's not my fault, and I will not be punished for doing everything I could to save those people.
"You think you are so clever, little girl. But you do not know who you are messing with, child."
"Right back at ya." I smirk, and I'm not prepared for the slap across my face. My head falls back against the pillows, but I don't stay there. Immediately, I'm back, holding her gaze. I can feel the imprint of her palm across my cheek, but I still don't back down. The pain I can nurse later. Right now, I need her out of this room.
"You will learn your place. Count on that, Miss Kincaid."
She doesn't wait for a response and I don't give one. I watch her walk out of the room before my eyes turn to Derek. He watches me with that blank look on his face. When he turns to follow his queen, I notice his hands are clenched. The moment the door closes behind him, I fall back against the pillows.
“Oh, Avery." Nora is by my side immediately as I raise my hand to my cheek.
"Do you think you can get me a cold compress or ice or something?"
"Yes, absolutely."
“Nora?” She stops at the doorway, “Is the little boy okay?”
She knows exactly who I’m asking, the little boy at the village. Nora smiles before replying.
“Not a scratch on him.”
She leaves then and I lay there, giving myself a moment to feel it all. Tears leak from my eyes as fear grips my heart. Pulling my knees toward me, I hug them to me, feeling like the loneliest girl in the world. If I give myself the chance, I think I would sob my heart out. But I can't. Wherever this strength is coming from, I have to hold onto it with everything I got. Once the darkness of night comes, maybe I can cry a little more, and maybe I can dream about my family and everything I've left behind. But right now, I have to stay strong.
When the door opens, I wipe at my face quickly, ready for Nora. But it's Derek who steps back in.
"Where's Nora?"
He doesn't reply. He simply walks over to the bed and takes a seat near me. That's when I notice he has a towel in his hands.
"May I?"
I nod, so he reaches for my face and turns it, placing the cold bundle to my cheek. We stare at each other, unblinking. When I reach to take the bundle from him, our hands entwine for a second.
"I can't protect you from her," he whispers, not removing his hand, even though I can hold the bundle now.
"I don't expect you to. She's your mother." Even in this situation, I don't think I can see him going against her to save me. Especially since it would be full-time job.
"No, you don't understand. I can't. I'm physically incapable."
Realization dawns on me. He has shared a real secret with me, something I don't think anyone else knows. She has power over him. I bet she would hurt him if she knew he told me.
"What happened out there?" I ask instead, giving him an out so we don't have to talk about it anymore. And because I want to know.
"You wiped all of them out with your magic. I have never seen anything like it. And then, the most beautiful translucent wings burst out of your back, as if they've been waiting to be free."
His voice is full of awe as he speaks, but I'm shaking my head.
"That makes no sense."
"It would if you had fae blood in you."
"No, I'm part witch, part shifter. My mother is a wolf shifter, and my dad is a witch. I never knew what that made me."
"A little bit of both… and—"
"And what?"
"And you have fae blood in your veins." There are those words again.
"That's not possible."
"Anything is possible."
"I'm already a mutt. That's all there is to it."
"No."
"Yes! I'm nothing special. I'm just a mixture of all the magical leftovers."
"You and I both know you are much more than that."
I glance at him again, at the intensity in his words. He reaches over pushing the hair out of my face and behind my ear. And then, I feel the most amazing tingles work their way from my ear over my neck.
"What are you doing?"
"Looking at your pointed ears."
"What?"
I push past him, dropping the cold compress and getting to my feet. He helps me stand when I sway, but then I retract my hand, heading to the mirror. Moving my hair out of the way I find myself looking at pointed ears, much like those on Derek.
"I don't understand."
"I think I do."
"What are you saying?" I can't seem to take my ey
es off the slightly pointed ears.
"That you were glamoured to look a certain way," Derek replies, standing behind me so that I can see his reflection in the mirror. "Your father made a choice, and you had to pay for it."
"By what? Living the life of a lie?"
"If that's the way you want to look at it."
"How do you know it was my father?" I can't get over this.
"If your mother is a wolf shifter, he's the only option."
All of this is too much. I have powers I don't understand. But I guess that's true two times over now. I stare at myself, at the new me, and I can't wrap my mind around it. I thought that it was the magic of the book that was fueling my newfound strength, but what if it's Faery itself? If what Derek is saying is true, then I have finally come home.
Chapter 23
The queen summons me the next morning. I've hidden my ears from everyone but Derek so far, but I'm sure that's going to come out soon enough. I asked him what the deal was with my wings, and he said some fae have them as a display of power. Or a conduit. Since they've disappeared after the fight, I'm putting that problem on the back burner for now.
Now, Nora and I are walking toward her war room. I'm once again dressed in one of the dresses Nora picked out for me. This time it's a deep blue, halter top style maxi dress. It’s probably the simplest piece of clothing in that closet. Still, it sparkles as I walk, and somehow, that makes me feel better.
When we enter, Queen Svetlana is sitting at the head of the table, her advisers talking around the table as she listens. Nora steps back to stay at the doors as I continue into the room. Everyone stops and stares at me. Honestly, I can't even begin to guess what they're thinking.
"Feeling better, Avery?" It's the first time she's called me by my first name. I have no idea how I feel about it. There's an undercurrent to her words, but I decide to be polite.
"Yes, much better. All the rest has done wonders for me."
She narrows her eyes at my tone but doesn't comment. Instead she stands, then she motions for someone to come over. Derek steps up, coming to stand near me.
"You have finally reached the next level, Avery," the queen says, coming to a stop in front of us. "You wanted more power, and you have it. Now, you have to use it."
"What do you mean?"
"It means that I am sending you on a mission. You and Derek here, since you work oh so well together." She's smiling, but there's no kindness in that expression. I force myself not to look at Derek, but she can tell that too. She's a queen for a reason, I suppose. "I need you to retrieve one of the books."
"They're not at the palace?"
"Of course not. We too know how to hide our treasures. Retrieve it and you may use three passages as practice. But only those I pre-approve."
It's hard not to show my excitement, as I would absolutely love to try out some of those spells. Instead, I just keep my face as impassive as possible, waiting for her to finish this little speech. She moves closer, so that now she's speaking only to me.
"Do not think that you are not a pawn here. My eyes are everywhere and so is my magic. If you cross me, you will pay for it." She steps back, giving me a bright smile. "Now is this not exciting?"
"Absolutely." I reply with my own fake smile in place.
She lets me leave but keeps Derek there. I don't even look at him as I walk out of the room. Nora hurries beside me, chattering about packing and how careful I'll have to be and how dangerous the area she's sending me to is.
"You know where I'm going?"
"The guards talk, Avery. And they especially talk to me. You have to promise to be careful."
The way she's looking at me, I don't think you can fake that kind of emotion. In the time that I've been here, we've become something close to friends. When we reach our room, someone is waiting in front of it.
"Is it true what they're saying?" Julian asks as Nora pushes past us and into the room. I motion for him to follow as well, because at least in the room I can pretend no one is listening.
"To what exactly are you referring?"
"The wings, Avery. You have wings?"
"Do I look like I have wings? You shouldn't believe everything you hear in palace gossip." I give him a small smile, but I'm not fooling him. Even though I apparently don't suffer from the fae rule of no lying. Thankfully, he seems to see through my bluff. But he doesn’t push the issue too much.
"What now?"
"Now, she packs because we're leaving as soon as you're ready," Derek announces as he walks into the room.
"Oh look, the whole party is here."
I study each face, the three fae that have become my only companions. I don't have any idea what to think. I can't trust myself to trust them, because clearly, I'm not the best judge of character. But also, how am I supposed to trust anyone when I no longer trust myself?
The only thing I can do is focus on the task at hand.
"Nora says where we're going is dangerous. Is that true?" I direct my question at Derek. He watches me for a moment before nodding.
"It's near the front lines of eastern front. The Ancients seem to be pressing in on us from every side."
"Derek, that's near—” Julian begins, but Derek cuts him off with a look.
"No, please share. It's near what?"
The boys exchange a look, but neither speaks. Nora grunts before turning to me.
"It's near the forbidden forest. The uncharted part of Faery."
"Right. Where all the scary... I mean scarier monsters live." But I'm missing something. All three of them share some other secret I'm not privy to. "What? You all forgot how to speak?"
"You know this errand is a sham, right?" Derek finally speaks up, and I roll my eyes.
"I was hoping not, but I'm not that naïve. I expect her to have something up her sleeve.”
"Well, there's a way for you to learn more about your powers. But it would involve going through the forbidden forest."
Of course. Why would I expect anything else?
I turn away, heading to the window to give myself a moment to come to terms with everything that's happening. And it's happening so fast. Every time I think I've found my footing, something knocks me down again. On top of everything else, I now have to figure out this whole who-I-am business. But maybe this explains, at least partially, while I feel so connected to this land and its people. I called them mine before I knew what that meant.
"I heard what she told you." Derek comes up to stand beside me at the window. I still don't understand where he stands. One minute he's my friend, the next, an enemy. Sometimes he looks at me like I matter, and then, I'm nothing to him. Now, he's going to try and help me outwit the queen? It's exhausting trying to guess who he is. It's a ride I don't want to be on.
"I think she meant for you to hear," I reply. I’ve already decided to keep him at arm’s length. Why is it so difficult to keep to my own decisions?
"You're right. Do you still think coming here was the right choice?"
"No. I don't know. A part of me, I guess. I wouldn't have known I have these powers until I stepped foot in Faery, that much I do know. But what does that really make me? I don't even know."
"It doesn't matter."
"Doesn't it?"
"It doesn't matter now, and we both know that. You have a choice to make. Will you let the past rule your present or will you make your own way?" Derek angles himself so he can look me right in the eye. He's right of course, but there's no way I'll admit that any time soon.
"You'd like me to make my own way because that would lead me to follow you to whatever battlefield the Summer court is fighting at."
I turn away, frustrated with the fact that there are no good choices.
"No." That one word stops me. I look over my shoulder to find Derek's whole body one rigid statue. "I would personally never force you to fight. But that is one of your options."
The saddest part of all of this is that I can't trust anything he's saying. How do I know he'
s not here to make sure I play my part? The Summer Court needs me. I've seen the hunger in Queen Svetlana's eyes. She craves ultimate power, and with me by her side, she’d have an upper hand in every battle.
The Ancients are at her gates. While I don't like her, she is a strong ruler, and she will do what it takes to stay that way. But I now have a chance to become something more than just a pawn, regardless of what she threatens.
When I decided to come to Faery, I decided to give them a chance to teach me about my power. Then, I discovered that I'm made up of even more bits than I thought. It's time to do what I came here to do. Even if I end up all on my own, I have to give it a try. So, I turn to Derek with Julian and Nora standing behind him, and I give them a wide smile.
"Let's go to the forbidden forest."
<<<<>>>>
Can Avery survive Faery long enough to learn about her heritage and save those she loves?
Find out in Blood of the Fae - coming January 2021!
Click here to preorder today!
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Next in the Fae Chronicles series
Preorder today: Blood of the Fae
I thought I could stay hidden. But Faery had other ideas.
Can I stay alive long enough to figure out my magic and save those I love?
Featuring a fierce heroine, a broody prince, and all things magical, Blood of the Fae is the second book in this fast-paced young adult paranormal romance series from the USA Today bestselling author Valia Lind!
