Ever Fade (A Dark Faerie Tale #9)

by Alexia Purdy

  It was ultimately a lot better than what the previous archivist had set up, but the sheer quantity of information—scrolls, diaries, journals, spell books, and more—was overwhelming. I could spend a decade of my life here and never get through a quarter of it.

  “James?”

  “Yes?” He didn’t look up.

  “You haven’t finished your meal. Eat up.”

  He muttered a response I barely heard as he reached out and blindly snapped up a strip of dried meat. Berries and other fruits, along with cheeses of different types, were laid out on a wooden board in front of him, but he’d barely touched any of it. He ate silently and only drank from his water cup when I reminded him to do that too. I shook my head, flipping through another book. The kid was skinnier than a twig, and if he didn’t eat, he’d stay short. Benton wasn’t that tall, but James would be shorter if he didn’t get the proper nutrition.

  Shade would want me to make sure he ate. I’d been doing this since she’d left, making sure her younger brother slept well, ate enough, got enough sunshine, was cared for. Everything she was supposed to be taking care of was now left to me. I wasn’t bitter about it; in fact, I didn’t mind young James’s company. He was observant and as smart as a whip. The kid was going places. I just wished Shade was around to see it all. She deserved to see it, to be part of her family’s lives. If there was anything she’d want as an Ancient of Faerie, it’d be to be a part of her children’s and her siblings’ lives.

  If I’d had one solid reason as to why she had abandoned us, then maybe I’d understand. But I didn’t, and the bitterness rose like bile in the back of my throat whenever I thought about it.

  “It doesn’t help to think about why she left, you know.”

  “What?”

  I jerked my head toward James to find him still flipping through the book he was studying, but he threw me a swift, knowing glance before going back the book once more.

  “About Shade. If I were you, I’d banish her from my mind. It only stirs up pain and suffering for you. I can feel it, you know. It’s one of my gifts. That’s what she used to call them. ‘Gifts.’ It’s more like a curse sometimes, especially when all I can hear is negative things.”

  I sank in my seat. “I’m sorry. I’ll be more mindful of my thoughts from now on. I didn’t know.”

  “It’s all right. We were just starting to figure this out when Shade had to leave. I was just saying that she really upsets you, so maybe try not to think about her. I don’t blame you one bit for that. I would do the same thing.”

  I didn’t know what to say but kept my eyes on James as he set down the book he’d been reading and took up another. I tried to focus on the books in my pile, but it was far too difficult. There had to be something here to help Soap, but it had eluded us so far. I wondered if maybe we were looking in the wrong place to start with.

  “I’ll be right back,” I notified James as I stood up and scanned the room. Where the hell was Rowan? More importantly, had Ciaran returned from his trip? I wanted to ask him, since he had helped arrange the archives along with her.

  I walked down an aisle of bookshelves to the end of the massive room. I’d never walked through much of the archives before. It was as mysterious as the first time I’d been here so long ago, but as I walked out of the main chamber, the place turned into a labyrinth. The halls were dark, lit only by occasional torches resting in sconces along the walls. Their feeble light allowed one to walk without bumping into things, but that was it. I let some of my inner fire burn through my glamour, illuminating everything in a glowing light. It helped me see where I was going as I followed the path. I reached another large room with a fire burning in the fireplace, crackling and sending sparks up into the chimney. I stared at it for a moment, wondering who had stoked it and where Rowan had gone.

  “Have you found what you’re looking for?”

  I spun around to find Ciaran emerging from the darkness. His gaunt cheekbones created shadows on his face that I could have sworn he hadn’t had before.

  “Ciaran… hello. I didn’t mean to interrupt, but I could use your help.”

  “Help with what?”

  “I need something from your archives. I need to find a way to break a sleeping spell created by an Ancient who has perished.”

  Ciaran nodded, folding an arm across his chest as his other hand reached up to scratch the beard growing on his chin. He was definitely far thinner than he’d been before, and the robes he wore—royal blue trimmed with purple edges—were well made, designed to hide his thinning body beneath.

  What was happening to him? Had Rowan done this to him? I’d have to ask James when I got back to the archives.

  “I think I read something about that in one of the volumes. Come on, I’ll find it for you.”

  We began walking the long path back to the main room, but I couldn’t hold back my curiosity anymore.

  “Thank you for doing this, Ciaran. You have no idea how much this will help.”

  “You need to awaken the sleeping prince, Rylan—‘Soap,’ as you call him. I’ve heard.”

  “Rowan has kept you up to date?”

  “Yes. She means well, you know. She hopes you find what you need here.”

  “Thank you. And what about you? Mutual congratulations are in order. Our children are betrothed.”

  “Yes. Just as Rowan would want.”

  “I don’t mean to sound harsh, and if I’m intruding, please forgive me, but you seem very indifferent to all of it. Are you all right?”

  “Well, since you asked, I’m not all right. But I will be very soon.”

  My eyes widened. Dare I ask?

  Ciaran seemed to interpret my silence as permission to keep going.

  “Living with an Ancient is draining, Summer King. You didn’t live with Shade that long after she was changed into an Ancient, did you?”

  I shook my head. “No. I lost her the moment she turned into one of them.”

  “You are a lucky man. You know they cannot live with anyone for very long because they drain their essence… their life. I am sickly, weak, though I am better because I leave often to visit other places. I do this to regenerate and recover. I don’t leave because I want to, but if I don’t, I’ll die.”

  I nodded, listening. “So you can’t continue to live with Rowan for much longer, can you?”

  “No. When she has our child, she will leave us forever. I am waiting for it eagerly.”

  “Do you not love her?”

  He nodded but closed his eyes, his weariness seeming to deepen as we passed into a shadow between the light of the torches. “Of course I love her. She’s the mother of my child, but I cannot take much more of her presence. It’s overwhelming and weakens me with each moment I am near her. I love to be with her, but we both know that this cannot go on. She must leave me when the child comes and leave the baby here as well. It’s not just about love. It’s about survival.”

  I closed my mouth, which had been hanging open. I’d been hanging on every one of his words. Rowan had not left her lover, but once she had her child, she would, just as Shade had left me. But his reason was a lot better than the one I’d been given: no reason at all.

  “That’s why Shade can’t return. It’s ingrained in her that she must abandon us, even if she doesn’t want to,” I muttered mostly to myself, but Ciaran nodded in agreement.

  “Exactly. It’s unfortunate, and I understand if you say it’s unfair, but we have our children to rear, and that is what counts. You have a brother to help you raise your children. I am in this alone. I do envy you somewhat, especially if you succeed in awakening Soap from his enchantment. I know that if anyone can do it, it’ll be you.” He held out a volume he had just plucked from a shelf. Just then James approached, eyeing the book with widening eyes.

  “Here you go!” Ciaran held the book out to me while throwing curious glances at James. The boy watched our interaction, never letting the book out of his sight. “The spell you need is inside
here. It’s from the previous Spring Ancient, named Johal, who wrote everything down. Luckily, we got ahold of her diaries. I hope it helps. Hello, James. Nice to see you again.”

  “Nice to see you again as well, Sir Ciaran.” James gave him a slight tilt of his head before shifting his gaze toward the diary. “Did Johal precede Rowan?”

  “Yes. She was Rowan’s predecessor.”

  “Isn’t it true that each descendant of an Ancient kills their predecessor?” James’s voice echoed in the cavernous room, and both Ciaran and I glanced at him, stunned.

  “Let’s not be so morbid, James,” I said. I wasn’t sure what was getting into him, but his lack of a filter concerned me, especially since Shade had left. He was a darker, sharper version of himself, and I noticed it had gotten worse since she’d gone.

  “I’m not being morbid. I just wanted to confirm it. It’s true, right, Ciaran?”

  Ciaran frowned, his eyes lowering in disapproval. “Yes. It’s true. Rowan killed her and took her place. Sometimes they do it willingly, and sometimes they are forced to take their place. It’s always different. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some things I need to attend to. Rowan is very close to birthing our child. I have to make sure all is ready.”

  “Of course. Thank you for your help.” I nodded at him as he walked away, not turning back to look at us at all. I wondered if this final exposure to Rowan’s magic would kill Ciaran. I didn’t know. I, at least, had not had to spend much of Shade’s pregnancy with her. I had not felt any of her Ancient powers consuming my own life force like Ciaran had. But at least the archivist had been able to spend time with the woman he loved.

  It made me wonder which of us was luckier.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Benton

  Anna looked like death, but there was a slight pink coloring returning to her cheeks. Or maybe I was hoping that there was. I took a seat in the hard plastic chair next to her bed, afraid to touch her. Her face was gaunt, as though she’d wasted away in the little time she’d been ill. What had affected her so? Were we saving her?

  I jumped from the chair when the nurse walked in and began resetting the IV pump.

  “Excuse me, nurse?” I ran my hand through my hair. I was letting it grow out, but at this stage, it was constantly in my face.

  She looked up at me and smiled. Crow’s feet lined her dark brown eyes, and her smile was gentle, as though she knew exactly how to radiate empathy. It was reassuring to say the least.

  “Yes? Can I help you?”

  “Yeah. Um… I’m Anna’s brother. I was wondering if you knew what was going on with her and if she’s getting any better?”

  “Ah, yes. I’m Nicole, by the way. I’ve had your sister since she arrived, and she’s made excellent progress. She came in with severe dehydration, which exacerbated a hidden heart defect, which the surgeon repaired. We’ve replenished her electrolytes with IV fluid and given her nutrition through the feeding tube you see inserted into her nose.”

  I’d heard all that already, and hearing it repeated didn’t tell me anything new. But I wasn’t going to snap at the nurse. She was just trying to help. “Oh, okay,” I said. “Thanks. And, um… will she be all right?” I wished Braelynn or Sary were here with me. They’d know exactly what this nurse was talking about and would probably know what had caused the issues in the first place.

  “She was very sick, but she was brought in just in time. We expect her to make a full recovery, but the doctor wants to keep her here for a few more days, just to be safe.”

  My eyes widened. “How many days?”

  The nurse threw me a sympathetic look. “I can’t tell you exactly. It depends on when she wakes up. Since she was so ill, we need to make sure her neuro function is good. We can’t do that until she wakes. It’s just a precaution. Most patients don’t come in with such severe dehydration and heart issues so young.”

  “Oh, okay.” I rubbed my chin, the stubble rough against my fingers. “That makes sense. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. My name, again, is Nicole. If you need anything else, feel free to push the call light, and I can answer you on my portable phone.” She pointed to a thick cell phone she’d pulled out of her pocket after showing me the button to summon her. I nodded and watched her leave, more confused than ever.

  I exhaled, closing my eyes as I sank into the hard chair once more. It was Faerie. The Land of Faerie had done this to her.

  I looked up at my sister again, a surge of anger flaring up inside. How could Shade not be here? Where had she gone after showing up to say Anna was ill? Wasn’t she curious as to why? There had to be something about Faerie that affected Anna. She already looked less ill than she had back at the Withering Palace. I had to figure out what had gone wrong and how to stop this from happening again. If she ever wanted to return to Faerie, I would need to find out.

  Plus, I wondered if whatever had struck her down would hit me too. We were more alike than Shade and me. I was human, Shade had always been half faery. Anna and I had no such bloodline. We had our witchy elemental powers, but they had obviously not been enough to protect her from this ailment. What if it came for me too? What if we had to leave Faerie forever?

  I stood up, suddenly feeling a panic slap me awake.

  James. James was still in Faerie. I had to get him out before anything happened to him too.

  Crap, crap, crap!

  I suddenly wanted to leave, but I couldn’t. I sat back down, tapping my feet, worried as all hell. What could I do? If Anna was this sick, I could get sick pretty darn soon too. So could James. How the hell could I find him now? Was he still at the Scren Palace? Dylan had made a point to not bring him to see Anna at the Withering Palace, which I totally agreed with, but was he still there?

  I pulled out the summoning orb to call Camulus. I wondered if he’d answer. It’d been a while since I’d summoned him. I hoped he would come, even though he knew I didn’t like him very much. Not since he had betrayed Shade. Okay, so he’d been forced to betray her, but still.

  “Damn,” I muttered. I had to grab Isolde first. I couldn’t just leave her in the waiting room. That would piss her off more than anything; she hated being left behind. I’d done that to her a few times, and she had made a point to say she would slap me next time I did. There was no way I could go now.

  As soon as this visit was over, I’d head out to get Isolde and then fetch James. I nodded, breathing out again, feeling slightly less agitated. Sitting in a hospital room full of bleachy alcohol smells made me feel nauseated. Somehow, I’d managed to stay out of a place like this, and I didn’t plan on ever being in one either. If whatever was affecting elementals in Faerie was dangerous, it could be that we weren’t the only ones affected.

  I leaned forward, watching Anna’s steady heartbeat waveform on the monitor. It looked good. Strong. She was trying to tell me something, I knew it. But what? How did I solve this while she remained unconscious? Would she even wake up? The nurse looked pretty confident, but we weren’t dealing with simple human ailments. This was caused by magic gone awry. It could still be wasting her away.

  If only there were a clue to find, I could start somewhere. Maybe I had to return to the Withering Palace to look for clues. Maybe someone had poisoned her. Nautilus would die for her, but he’d been the closest one to her when she’d collapsed. He couldn’t possibly hurt her, could he? I shook my head. No way in hell. He’d bleed to death for her. He was in love with her, and I was one of the few who knew that she was his new fiancée. Why would he want to kill her now?

  Either way, I had to keep him on my short list of suspects, no matter what. I hated to admit it, but anything could happen in Faerie. The fae were notoriously wicked and conniving. Although I’d met so many honorable and loyal ones, some couldn’t be trusted in the slightest. Any one of them was capable of hurting Anna if they wanted to or had some sort of hidden agenda.

  The only problem was, who or what could it be?

  Chapter Sixteen
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  Shade

  The fire and ice in my blood quarreled. I felt anxious, as though I could not sit still for much longer.

  “Can we go?” I asked, turning to face Corb as he sat next to me at the great table of ice set up with all sorts of food. It was odd being here in the Great Divide when I could see all the servants and everyone who belonged to the court. I almost preferred it to be desolate once more. The eyes of his servants were all icy blue, as though being here had turned them into a different kind of faery.

  “Soon. You still have much to learn, Shade.” Corb folded his hands together on his lap, studying me with his unusual eyes. They could shift between humanlike and his faery eyes easily now. I could tell the latter was what he preferred, for he kept them longer than the humanlike ones.

  “Like what?” I asked, reaching out to pluck a cherry off the plate of fruit in front of me. Everything was ripe, perfectly formed, and without bruising or marks. I wondered how the fresh fruit was acquired here when the ice would kill such crops in an instant.

  “You must learn how to slumber correctly.”

  I almost choked, spitting out the pit of the cherry at his remark. “Slumber? There’s a wrong way to do it?”

  “It involves a great deal of magic to seal a sarcophagus chamber.”

  “I know. I sealed Arthas into one once with the help of my brother.”

  “You don’t understand.” Corb leaned forward, drilling those unnerving eyes into me. “That was a prison slumber. A real slumber spell can only be undone by an Ancient’s descendant.”

  “Like I did with Kilara?”

  He nodded, sinking back into his chair. He relaxed, looking quite at home in his icy chair. He loved the cold, and it suited him. I was made of both ice and fire now, thanks to him. The cold no longer bothered me, but it remained out of my comfort zone. I craved the heat of the Scren Palace. Or maybe it was the people there that I craved.