by Мишель Роуэн
"He did?" She looked surprised. "What did he say?"
"Lots of things," I replied, just before Michael and I disappeared around a corner.
He picked up his pace, my hand now in his iron vise of a grip.
"I never should have brought you back," he said. "I'm so stupid."
"So it's true? It's all true? Elizabeth is-" "Shh, not here. It's too dangerous."
We reached the spiral staircase and began to descend it so quickly I nearly slipped a few times. When we finally got to the bottom, Michael pulled me right toward the front doors, which immediately opened for me. I picked up my shoes from where I'd left them for safekeeping.
"Michael, talk to me." My voice shook. "Are you in on this? Are you helping Elizabeth kill my father?"
I still couldn't believe what I was saying. Finding out my father was dying was one thing. But poisoned? It was too horrible to contemplate.
He stopped walking and spun around to face me, the expression on his face distraught. "Of course not." "Then how do you know?"
"I've been suspicious of her motives for some time and you just confirmed it for me. When I came back last night after seeing you home, she asked me questions about you. She wanted to know everything. She wanted to know if you'd drunk the potion and I told her you weren't ready yet. She wasn't happy about that. I didn't know why, but the way she was acting was very telling. When I guessed, she nearly…" He blinked. "She nearly killed me right then and there. But she didn't."
I could barely breathe. "Michael-did she hurt you?"
He shook his head. "No, but I wouldn't put it past her." He grabbed my hand and pulled me around to the right side of the castle, away from view. "You need to leave. Right now. You need to go back home. Drink the potion. It's the only way you'll be safe."
My head was spinning. "I can't do that."
"She might not look like it, but Elizabeth is very worried about you, and not in a caring-aunt kind of way. She is afraid that you won't drink the potion and when the king dies you'll become queen and ruin her plans."
"But I don't understand. What are her plans? She'll be trapped in the castle when she's queen."
"It's Kieran. Elizabeth has always wanted power, but he's the one who's in charge. He's convinced her that now is the time to completely join the Shadowlands with the Underworld. Because she loves him, he'll be able to manipulate her. He'll control the barrier that separates Hell and the Underworld from the faery and human realms."
I put a hand over my mouth in shock. "And my father has no idea?"
"She puts on a good act. She's probably been putting on the same act her entire life. She fooled me. She fooled you. She comes across as so nice but she isn't, Princess."
I thought about how I'd also been fooled by Chris, who seemed so popular and great to be around, until he attacked me in the back of a limo.
Appearance means nothing. It only hides what's underneath-be it good or bad.
I blinked slowly. "She's the one who sent the guy with the knife after me, isn't she?"
He nodded. "She isn't playing games. When the king found out about you, he was very happy to learn he had a daughter. She pretended to be, but I could see that she wasn't. I couldn't imagine why at the time…"
"She prevented you from coming to see me today, didn't she? That's why you weren't around earlier?"
He nodded again. "She wouldn't let me leave. The king is weakened, so she was able to steal some of the kingdom's energy to let her thug come after you. Twice now." His jaw tightened. "When he failed, she allowed me to see you. To try to convince you to drink the potion once and for all. And if I failed
…" He swallowed hard. "She wanted me to kill you."
My eyes widened at that. "What!"
"I wouldn't do it. I'd never hurt you, Princess. But I knew I had to make her think I was willing. It's the only way I could protect you. Then when you wanted to come here again…" He rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand, his face haunted. "I couldn't refuse you. But I thought maybe if you were here and drank the potion in front of her, then she'd know for sure. You'd have your peace of mind at seeing your father again, and Elizabeth would have her proof that you weren't trying to stop her. If I told you, I would have been putting you into even more danger. You never should have figured it out." He touched my face then. "You need to leave. It won't be long before she realizes you're not downstairs waiting for her."
"Why didn't she just try to kill me when we were alone upstairs?"
"The moment you returned to the Shadowlands, the king would have sensed your presence. He'd know if she killed you here, so that's stopping her. She's still uncertain how weak the king is. He's incredibly powerful when he's at full strength-much more powerful than she is. If he had the slightest inkling that she would hurt you, he would be furious."
I tried to think clearly but it was a struggle. "Elizabeth. . she said that for every potion they make in the Underworld, they make an antidote. Do you think there might be an antidote for the poison?"
He shook his head. "I don't know. But there's no time for that. Princess, you have to go now."
"I can't leave my father. I can't leave you." "You have to." Have to.
I grabbed my potion bottle and squeezed. "I don't have to do anything if I don't want to."
"Princess, now is seriously not the time to be stubborn." His expression softened as he looked into my eyes. We were talking so closely that we were nearly hugging. His arms were around my waist.
The castle doors opened up again and Michael moved a bit so he could look around the corner. When he turned back to me his expression was even more tense than before. "It's Elizabeth's thug."
"The one who tried to kill me?"
He nodded. "She's sent him to find you. She must know you've already left the castle." He pulled off his sweatshirt and wrapped it around my shoulders to keep me warm. "Go. Run to the clearing and go through the gateway. I'll hold him off for as long as I can."
"He's going to hurt you."
He touched his amulet. "Not if I hurt him first."
"Michael. . you can't-" "Am I interrupting?" a deep voice asked.
I slowly looked to the side to see the brute standing there, a smile curling up the corners of his mouth.
"Princess," he said, "it's time for you to come back inside. Elizabeth wishes to talk with you."
"Just talk, huh?" I could barely breathe.
He grabbed for my arm but Michael pulled him away from me and pushed him up against the wall. The brute backhanded Michael across his face and he went spinning, but the moment the creep came at me again Michael grabbed him hard around his neck.
"Nikki!" He used my real name then. "Go now. There's no time. Run!"
The thug was fighting to get Michael off him, and since he outweighed Michael by at least sixty pounds it wouldn't take long.
"Just go!" Michael yelled at me and his words finally broke through my shock.
Elizabeth wanted me dead. She'd poisoned her brother, more than likely her father as well, and I was the last thing standing in the way of what she wanted.
Fear trumped anger this time and, with a sob, I turned away from the castle and ran as fast as I could.
I ran until my bare feet began to bleed from stepping on the rocks; until I felt the cool grass under my feet and the temperature immediately warmed up as if by magic. I held my shoes by their straps in one hand and my little purse in the other and I ran faster than I'd ever run before. I tried not to think of Michael fighting to give me a chance to escape, but it was impossible. I had to get home where I could hide. I'd figure out what I had to do next once I was there.
"Stop!" A deep voice bellowed from behind me and I took a quick peek over my shoulder. It was the thug and he was running after me. What had happened to Michael? My heart twisted and I nearly tripped from losing my concentration. But I kept running.
The gateway shimmered and swirled its kaleidoscope of color as I made a beeline toward it, my heart drumming wildly i
n my chest.
But just before I reached it, the gateway. . disappeared.
Chapter 18
One moment my escape route to the human realm was there in front of me and the next it was gone. I skidded to a halt, craning my neck from side to side, looking all around the grassy clearing.
Where did it go? How was I supposed to get back home without it?
I couldn't, that's how. It was impossible.
Elizabeth's henchman was still thundering across the field toward me and I only had a split second to figure out what I was going to do next.
Panic shot through my entire body and my head screamed out in pain. I welcomed it this time, though. Maybe I could bring out my Darkling. The creep hadn't fared so well against demon-me before.
But nothing happened. No sparkling sensations under my skin. No energy balls to throw to protect myself. No horns. Just plain old Nikki Donovan, barefoot, wearing Michael's dark blue sweatshirt over my borrowed lavender designer dress.
I didn't have time to think about why the gateway wasn't working, so instead, I did the only thing I could do.
I ran toward the forest leading to the faery realm.
The darkness enveloped me as I ran past the tree line and into the thick foliage. I ducked behind a tree and peered around the massive, green, mossy trunk. The demon thug, with knife in hand, had stopped at the clearing well before the forest and was now staring into it. He backed up a few feet. I waited, holding my breath.
Would I be able to hide in here? And for how long?
He didn't do anything for a few minutes except look at the forest, attempting to peer inside.
Why wasn't he chasing me in here?
I kept waiting, barely breathing, for a few more minutes, wondering desperately what he was going to do next. He looked confused, his large Neanderthallike forehead creased in concentration. He rubbed a hand over his stubble-covered head.
Qo away, I thought fiercely. Leave me alone.
Then, as if he'd heard my thoughts as readily as Michael could pick up my telepathy, he turned around and began walking back toward the castle.
I let out a deep breath I hadn't even realized I'd been holding. My hands were shaking so badly I had to press them against my sides or I'd end up dropping my shoes and purse. I closed my eyes and tried to calm down, but that seemed like an impossibility.
Everything had gone wrong. Why did I ask to come back to the Shadowlands? I should have just drunk the potion yesterday as soon as I'd gotten it, and then none of this would have happened.
But, no. That wasn't right, either. I would have been safe and I would have forgotten all about this, but it wouldn't have changed much. My father would still be poisoned and on the verge of death. My aunt would still be scheming to become queen, and what impact would that have on the worlds the Shadowlands protected in the first place? And Michael. .
Michael.
Was he okay? I wondered if that creep had hurt him or if he had managed to use his amulet for protection. And if so, had he used up all his power? Was he unconscious somewhere and completely helpless?
Michael! I channeled my thoughts telepathically. Are you there? Can you hear me?
There was no reply, only silence.
Could I turn Darkling if I focused hard enough? Even if I wasn't experiencing high emotion? Could I make myself change?
I thought about trying it but stopped myself. When I'd changed before, I'd only been in half-demon form for a few minutes before I shifted back to normal.
That wouldn't even be enough time to get back to the castle, let alone try to help anyone. And besides, just because Elizabeth was evil didn't mean that she'd been lying when she'd told me about Darklings dying from using their abilities.. It was still a risk I didn't want to take.
Not yet. Maybe soon, but not quite yet.
A sudden noise distracted me from my thoughts. There was a rustling sound close by. I tensed and listened hard, but there was nothing else.
Just my imagination.
Then I felt something warm nudge at my elbow and almost jumped right out of my skin. I looked down with horror, bracing myself for the worst, but then let out a long, shaky sigh of relief.
It was just a horse standing next to me in the lush forest backdrop.
A white horse. Pure white.
It looked slightly sparkly, actually.
And the sparkly white horse had a golden horn protruding from its forehead.
It wasn't a horse at all. I'd been nudged by a unicorn. A freaking unicorn.
I stared at it dumbly. I'd never seen a unicorn before. Mainly because, along with demons and faeries, I didn't know they actually existed. After the experiences I'd had, I half-expected it to bare long, sharp fangs and try to attack me, but it didn't, so I studied it some more. It was absolutely beautiful-smaller than a regular horse, with a completely white coat and sky blue eyes. The spiraling horn looked as if it were made from pure gold.
"I suppose you're going to tell me that dragons really do exist, too," I said after another moment of stunned silence.
The unicorn didn't reply.
"You wouldn't happen to know where I can find a gateway to the human realm around here, would you?" Maybe I'd gone a little crazy from all the panic and fear. I was probably headed into a new mental category altogether.
The unicorn moved away and began to graze on a patch of grass and blue flowers at the base of a tree. I looked around me for the first time. The forest was so thick I couldn't even see the sky. It felt like dusk in here, quiet and dark, and it smelled fresh and alive.
To the far side of the tree was a small creek that led deeper into the forest. The unicorn moved over there after nibbling on the grass for a moment and bent its head to drink. I walked over to the creek, watching where I stepped since I was still barefoot, and when the unicorn didn't run away I tucked my purse under my arm and stroked its pure white mane with a shaky hand.
"What am I going to do?" I asked, feeling tears getting ready to fall again.
"Unicorns don't talk, actually," a voice said and I froze in place. "And it's a bit late, but I should probably let you know it's against our laws for an outsider to touch one."
I turned slowly.
A guy leaned against the tree I'd hidden behind. At first glance I could tell he was very cute, with cropped chestnut brown hair and dark brown eyes. He wore tan-colored leather pants and a canvas tunic.
Tension flowed through my body again as I immediately put up my guard. "Who are you?"
He tilted his head as he took in the sight of me. "I was about to ask you the very same question."
"I'm Nikki." I held on to my shoes so tightly now that the straps were leaving a red imprint on my skin.
"I'm Rhys," he said. "Nikki, you look absolutely petrified."
He said it very coolly, very casually, but it didn't set me at ease. What did he want? What was he doing in the forest?
But he was correct. I was frozen in fear and that wasn't going to help at all. I forced myself to calm down.
The unicorn wandered away from the creek and deeper into the forest, apparently unaffected by the anxiety that must have been coming off me in waves.
"What are you doing here?" Rhys asked.
I glanced around. "I'm. . I'm hiding from someone. I didn't have anywhere else to go."
His eyebrows raised. "Hiding from somebody who wants to hurt you?"
I nodded shakily. He studied me so intently I felt even more uncomfortable for a moment. But he didn't make any move to come closer to me; instead he stayed by the tree, leaning against it as if he were hanging out at the mall food court having a casual conversation with somebody passing by.
"I think I know who you are," he finally said. "It took me a minute, since you're better looking than I thought you'd be, but I think I've got it."
My cheeks flushed. "Look, Rhys, can you help me find a gateway to the human realm? I have to get to one so I can figure out what to do next."
"You're the
princess, aren't you?" he asked.
I blinked at him.
"King Desmond's secret daughter," he clarified, as if I didn't know what he was talking about. "Gossip gets around quickly in these parts."
I nodded cautiously. "That's me. Who are you?"
He crossed his arms. "I already told you, I'm Rhys."
"Do you live here?"
"I do."
I looked around again. My feet were growing damp from standing on the cool mossy ground. "This is the faery realm?"
"That's right." He looked up at the tall, thick trees that surrounded us. "This forest is the very edge of its north border and the kingdom is several miles south. Nobody from the Shadowlands or beyond ever comes in here." He crossed his arms and smiled at me. "I'm actually very surprised to see that you did, especially considering who you are."
I craned my neck to peer through the thick trees and out to the clearing again. Maybe Rhys could help me. He studied me intently, as if he'd never seen a teenage girl up close and personal before. I guess I could work with that.
He was so relaxed and friendly that just being around him was beginning to put me a little more at ease. Not much, but a little.
"The guy who was chasing me seemed afraid to come in here," I said.
I remembered what Michael had told me about the faeries. How they were territorial and fierce, but not evil. I held on tightly to that thought.
"I imagine that he was afraid." Rhys stepped away from the tree and took a few steps closer to me, and then I could see his wings. Maybe it was because my head had been too filled with worries and stress to have clued into the truth yet.
I swallowed hard. "You're a faery?"
"Good guess."
His wings were very different from demons' wings. Where mine and my father's were black and leathery, Rhys's were fine and thin, white and delicate.
Beautiful, really. Like something out of a fairy tale-which made a lot of sense, now that I thought about it. The surface of his wings glistened in the small amount of light filtering through the leaves above and showed different colors swirling around on the surface in an opalescent blend-pink, blue, green, purple.
