by Lola Kidd
“Do you think they’ll come back?” Sarah asked.
“The Lost Tribe,” Deanne said. “Let’s not make them into bogeymen. They’re flesh and bone and can be killed just like any one else.”
“A witch accepting a wolf’s claim,” Ursula circled back in the conversation. “That is very strange. Is there any way to break it? I’m sure we can figure it out, but I think she’ll really appreciate being free of the wolf once she’s home. If we wait, he’ll never leave her side.”
“And that’s a bad thing?” Sarah was indignant. “He followed her into the lost dimension. We should let her decide what she wants to do.”
Ursula opened her mouth to respond, but Jamie held up her hand. “Let’s not do this now. We’ll search for spells to break the claim, but that isn’t our priority right now.”
They both nodded.
“What about the vampire?” Deanne asked. “She gave us the information about Cross and Rory. Do you think she’ll help more?”
“Hard to say,” Jamie admitted. “Melody only does what’s going to benefit her. I don’t think she’d go against her maker, but I do think she wouldn’t stand in our way if we came to cut his head off.”
“It really is all Olaf’s fault,” Ursula said. “The vampire’s daughter got hurt, the wolves lost their alpha’s son, we lost Rory, and the entire supernatural community is at risk now. What did he even get out of this?”
“As far as we can tell, nothing,” Magda said. “He did all of this for nothing!”
“That’s why you can’t trust a fae,” Beatrice said before disappearing again.
“I think we should ask for more help,” Sarah said. “One of us should go to the council.”
Jamie shook her head. “We have something else in mind.”
After Melody had found them and told them that the Lost Tribe had taken Rory and Cross, Jamie had contacted the US representative to the witch council. There would likely be another all supernatural meeting called again. Whatever the Lost Tribe was up to, it would affect their entire supernatural community again. Of course, witches were the most at risk. The witch council had yet to offer help in getting Rory back.
“The council is only interested in keeping the Lost Tribe away,” she explained. “Our interests don’t overlap here. We need to get a portal open to get Rory and Cross back to our side.”
“I knew this was probably the plan, but wow is that risky,” Ursula admitted. “What if one of them escapes?”
“We can’t worry about that,” Deanne said. “I support your decision. If it was one of my little brothers over there, I would do anything to get them back. I would hope my sisters would back me up.”
Sarah nodded. “I agree. God forbid it was one of my kids, I would stop at nothing. If they’re going to get over, we’ll take care of it.”
“Good,” Jamie looked at Ursula. “If you don’t want to take part in this, I would completely understand and wouldn’t force you to participate.”
“I never said I wouldn’t help,” Ursula said quickly. “I will help, but I want us to think about each choice we make. This will have major consequences.”
“I appreciate that,” Magda said. “I’m really going to need someone to keep me grounded in all this. The need for vengeance will overrule all prudent judgment on my part.”
“Well, if we’re all in. What’s the plan?” Deanne asked.
“We’re going to try to open a portal, of course,” Jamie said.
“How the hell do you plan on doing that?” Ursula asked. “Didn’t it take an army of witches to do that last time?”
“No. The army of witches was to force the Lost Tribe into the dimension,” Jamie corrected. “Opening the portal's a cinch really. The hard part is opening it near Rory so she can hop through.”
“That’s where I come in,” Beatrice said, reappearing. “I can go over and recon for you guys. There are only a few hiccups, it should be easy.”
“Hiccups?” Magda asked.
“You know the time difference,” Beatrice said. “It passes much faster over there. Once I find her. We’ll have to agree on a time and place for you to let her hop through.”
“I didn’t know about this time difference,” Magda said sharply. “How much is it?”
Beatrice screwed her face up as she thought. “It will seem like a few weeks to her by now already. It could take a month or two their time for me to get back here and another week or so before you can do your thing.”
Magda fell back in her chair. Who knew what would happen to Rory in all that time.
“Why did they take her?” Ursula asked. “I still can’t see any reason for them to take Rory of all the other witches in the whole world.”
Magda got up and left the room. They heard the front door open and slam shut.
“Don’t take it personally,” Jamie said. “She didn’t want to be here when I told the rest of you.”
The women looked at each other and then at Jamie.
“Is it bad?” Sarah asked.
“Not at all,” Jamie said, smiling for the first time since she came back to Cleary. “I think Magdalena is embarrassed and blames herself for this. It really isn’t that big a deal. I think by not telling anyone, she’s built it up in her mind as a huge event.”
“Well, spit it out already!” Ursula said. “I’m on pins and needles over here.”
“I’ve been around for a lot longer than a few of you and remember, but Rory’s father was a member of the Lost Tribe. I’m sure that’s why she was taken.”
No one said anything.
“I think that might have been mentioned earlier in this whole fiasco,” Ursula said finally.”
Jamie shrugged. “Maybe, but it wasn’t my secret to tell. It doesn’t change anything either. We needed to get working on this portal immediately.”
Part Three
One
Something rough and wet was stroking Rory’s face. She tried to brush it off, but it returned every time. Whatever it was, she wished it would stop. She had been having the most wonderful dream and it kept waking her up. As much as she swatted it away, the wetness returned. It wasn’t until she heard the werewolf whine did her eyes snap open.
She sat up quickly and Cross had to back up to avoid her head.
“Did I pass out again?” she asked. “Could you please shift back? I really want to be able to talk to you right now.”
“Yes, why don’t you?” a clipped voice said from behind her. Rory looked around but didn’t see anyone. She knew it must be a dark fae. One had pulled her into this damn dimension so they couldn’t be far away. She was beyond happy to see the wolf though. She thought she was imagining him running toward her as she was pulled into the portal. Everything had gone black the minute she passed through.
The Lost Dimension looked nothing like she had imagined. In her mind it was a barren wasteland with sand and beating hot sun twenty-four hours a day. She really did belong in the Midwest. Her version of hell was too much sun all day. It was nothing like that though. Where she was sitting looked much closer to a children’s illustration of a fairyland. It was green and lush. There were trees and there was even a babbling spring just a few feet away from her. The grass under her hands felt softer than any grass she had ever sat in.
She pulled some grass up and let it fall through her fingers. “Can you believe this is the ultimate prison? I mean this place is straight out of a fairytale right here.”
Cross whined and pawed at the ground. He circled a few times behind her.
“I know there’s someone here.” She could feel the magic. In Olaf’s home, the magic had felt dark and dirty, like falling into a pit of syrup and mud. Here she felt great. All her aches from fighting Violet and Melody were gone. She honestly felt like Superwoman. There was nothing that was going to stop her from getting her and Cross back to the right dimension. She really wished one of those fae would show their face now. They would be no match for her.
Cross snarled and all
the fur stood up on his back. On the other side of the small stream, a woman appeared. Rory squinted and tilted her head. The woman looked familiar.
“How are you feeling?” the woman asked. “You passed out as you came over, but I couldn’t get close enough to examine you.”
Rory patted Cross on the side. “Good.”
“Do you know who I am?”
“The evil bitch that kidnapped me and put everyone I love in danger?”
The woman smiled. “Is that really how you talk to your sister?”
“My sisters are on the other side of a portal in the good dimension. You know, the one you were kicked out of.”
The woman snorted. “Those women are your magical sisters maybe. Me? I’m blood.”
It was Rory’s turn to laugh. “I don’t know what your game is, but at least I was able to get a laugh out of this whole thing.”
“I would think my face alone should convince you,” the woman raised an eyebrow. “I know it’s like looking into a mirror when I see you.”
Rory’s stomach turned. That was why the woman looked familiar. The woman was taller than Rory and had to be older. Besides the brunette hair, the woman’s facial features looked like Rory’s. They had the same blue eyes, small mouth, and pert upturned nose. If the woman smiled, Rory expected to see a dimple in one check.
“You can see it now,” the woman said. “My name is Sophia and I’m Queen of the Northlands Fae. I’m going to go back to my village now since your little dog won’t let me close to you. You can follow me back to the village if you choose.”
Sophia walked away into the forest.
“Holy shit!” Rory laid her head on Cross’ side. “Are you going to change back now please? I can use my magic here so I’m not a sitting duck or anything.”
Rory conjured up some men’s clothes to prove her point. Cross finally transformed back and grabbed the clothes. Rory pulled him into a tight hug.
“You’re shaking,” he said, holding her close. “Can you get us out of here?”
She pulled back. “I’m not sure. I think I can. I’ve never done the spell before though. It’s a little advanced for me. There’s just as great a chance of me breaking us into a million little pieces or opening a portal to a real hell dimension.”
“That doesn’t sound too promising,” Cross pulled her back against his chest. “We can always stay here. This place doesn’t look so bad.”
“Don’t joke like that.”
“Sorry. I was trying to lighten the mood,” he kissed her hair. “At least we’re together.”
She pulled away. “Yeah, it’s really great to have a friend in a time like this.”
“Friend? Are you fucking kidding me, Rory?”
“What?” she bent down to feel the water in the stream. “You are my friend, aren’t you?”
“I think I’m a little bit more than your friend.”
“This is why I didn’t want to sleep with you,” she sighed. “Look, not to be a bitch in this difficult time and after all that you did for me, but we’re just friends. I know we have this claim thing, but that doesn’t mean you can inflate things and make them more than they are.”
He narrowed his eyes. “So we may die any second here. Who knows what this fae bitch has planned for you. Yet, you still want to do this ‘we’re just friends’ bullshit?”
“I’m not having this argument with you,” she said, standing up and shaking her hand off. “You know my position on ‘us.’ I’m going down to the village. I want to look around a little before we leave.”
“Hold on!” Cross grabbed her by the arm. His beautiful face was contorted in rage. “You can’t just walk on down to the dark fae village.”
Rory snatched her arm away from him. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do. I was invited by the Queen after all. I think I’ll be ok.”
She couldn’t believe he was being so closed-minded. She was curious. The Lost Tribe had a name for themselves and a queen. This was more than she had ever been taught. Her lessons on the Lost Tribe, the Northlands Fae, had focused on how bloodthirsty and evil they were. If Sophia had attacked her right away or tried to kill her, she wouldn’t be so keen to go visit the fae. None of that had happened though. Sophia hadn’t even hurt Cross who was acting very aggressively.
“What’s wrong with you? This isn’t like you at all,” Cross said, grabbing her arm again. “Aurora! We need to get back to our own dimension now. The faster, the better.”
“I know.” She pulled her arm away and narrowed her eyes. “Keep your hands off me. You don’t own me and you don’t control me. If I want to go to the fae village, I will. You're welcome to come, but you can’t stop me.”
She stepped over the river and went to the trees where Sophia had disappeared to. She stopped and looked over her shoulder. “We were never even friends, you know. I think ‘just friends’ is a big improvement. At least it’s a place to start building an actual relationship.”
She steeled her spine, held her head high, and marched into the trees.
***
Cross wanted to scream. He wanted to hold Rory down and yell in her face until she opened the portal to get them home. Neither of those things were going to get him anywhere. He shifted again, picked his clothes up, and raced after her. He didn’t like this place. There was too much magic. It was obvious the Lost Tribe had magically terraformed this dimension when they were imprisoned here.
He had to admit it looked beautiful. Smell aside, the place was great. The ground even felt firmer under his paws. He was sure he could run for miles and miles and miles if he wanted to. The water in the stream was cool and under the magic smell it was cleaner than any water he had smelled on Earth. He was sure the village was going to be perfect when they got there. There was fruit growing from the trees in the forest and he longed to stop and try just one bite. They looked like plums but more purple. His wolf wouldn’t let him stop.
The strangest part of it all was that the second he had come across the portal his wolf had calmed down. They weren’t in immediate danger anymore. He had only gotten anxious again when Sophia had showed up. Not showed up, when she had made a move toward Rory. Had she stayed on her side of the stream, his wolf would have had no problem with her. All of his senses were telling him this place was safe but had too much magic. He wouldn’t tell Rory that of course. She was already acting strange enough as it was.
‘Just friends.’ She really took the fucking cake with that statement. He dodged a root that was poking up as he trotted up next to her.
“Glad to see you decided to come along,” she said. “Can you believe I have a sister?”
No, actually he couldn’t. Sophia did look very similar to Rory, but that didn’t mean they were sisters. People were bound to have a doppelganger in a population of six billion. Looking sort of like someone didn’t make them your sister. He stopped and shifted back. She slowed down while he was putting his clothes back on. It wasn’t a good idea to walk into a dark fae village shifted. Just because Sophia hadn’t tried to kill him didn’t mean her people wouldn’t. He felt more powerful in this dimension, but he wasn’t about to try to go up against a village of dark fae.
“I don’t think she’s your sister. She just looks a little like you.”
“A little,” Rory smirked. “She looks exactly like me except with brown hair.”
“Has your mom ever mentioned a sister before?”
“No,” Rory said thoughtfully. “But she never talks about my dad. As far as I know, he was just a guy traveling through Cleary. They met at the café and had a one night stand.”
“Whoa, so you never knew him at all?”
“Nope. She didn’t even know his last name.”
Cross wasn’t sure what to do. Should he hug Rory? He had an absent parent himself, but it was by choice. His mother was a werewolf too and had no interest in raising a son. He saw her every few years, but they weren’t close by any means. He couldn’t imagine not knowing a parent. That was s
eriously fucked up.
“If Sophia is telling the truth that would mean your dad could be a fae.”
“Hmmm. I guess you're right. I automatically assumed he would be a human who happened to get around.”
Cross laughed. “The Lost Tribe was banished hundreds of years ago. Last time I checked humans have a pretty short shelf life. He would have had to be a fae too.”
She might not actually be lying. He just couldn’t see what she had to gain from taking Rory. So what if they were sisters? Would she really put her sister in that much danger just to meet her?
Cross could see houses in the break ahead. He put his hand on Rory’s arm but didn’t grab at her. “Remember that these are the same people who killed Elena.”
Rory nodded. “I know. They may have, but I have to know.”
He nodded and followed her into the village. If she was going to go, there was no way he was letting her do this alone. She could try to friend-zone him as much as she wanted. She was his mate and he was going to stand by her.
Two
The village matched its locale. Seriously, the place must have been designed by Wells. It looked was so picturesque, but there was definitely an air of unease around the place. That might have just been me though. The fae walking around didn’t seem to have any trepidation. Most were sitting on the ground or beds of leaves they had arranged. They gave Cross and Rory a glance as they passed, but none had gotten up to take a closer look.
“Jesus is everyone here good-looking?” Cross whispered as Rory came to a stop.
“It would appear that way. It reminds me of that book where all the pretty people lived on the surface and the ugly people had to live below ground,” Rory said. “I think we found Pretty Town.”
Cross looked at one of the topless fae sunbathing on a chair a few feet from them. “I don’t want to see how bad the ugly bunch are if this is ‘pretty’ here.”
