by E. A. Weston
“Tatiana, can you please stand up?”
Her pink hair blows across her face. Shaking her head, it falls back into place, and her wings flutter as she stands, still smiling at me.
“Come dance with me, Prince, it has been too long since we have been together.”
Following her down to the fire, we dance around for a while. All the time, I feel eyes watching me as I do. Looking around I find a handful of female fairies all staring at us.
“Do you know them?” I ask, nodding in the direction of the group.
“Yes.” She laughs. “They are my friends from the Fire Isle.”
Keeping my thoughts to myself, I finish off the dance and then excuse myself. Finding Ari and Avery by the banquet table, I walk up to them.
“I am going to go home, Ari, I am very tired.”
I kiss Ari on the cheek and warn Avery to take care of her. Within minutes, I am home in my bed, allowing the exhaustion to take hold of me. My dreams take me back to ten summers ago, to a beautiful silver-haired fairy. I have no reason why she is on my mind as of late, but in my dreams, she finally speaks to me.
“Killian, my prince.” Her smile warms my heart as I look at her.
“Prince Killian, I have come to warn you. Be prepared; you must follow your destiny.”
I call her name as she turns away from me, but she fades away slowly, still smiling at me. Waking with a start, I feel the early morning mist making its way through my window. I forgot to close the wooden shutters before falling asleep. The morning is dawning slowly with the sun rising from the east. Closing the shutters, I climb back into my bed, trying to relive my dream; screams pull me from my slumber. Bolting up, I pull on my training clothes and run from my rooms. The sounds of swords clashing and women screaming stop me in my tracks.
Looking around, I grab the nearest maid, shaking her shoulders. “What has happened?” Her face is white, contrasting with her blue hair.
“Attack.”
The only word she can manage causes my blood to run cold. Racing down the stairs, I unsheathe my sword. Jumping over the handrail, I land crouched on the second floor. Running, I burst into my parents chambers, but they are empty. Calling out through my bond to my mother and sister, I get no reply. The sounds of heavy footsteps outside bring me to a standstill. My heart beats like a drum in my chest. Taking a deep breath, I step out of the shadows, sword raised ready to cut down the fairy who dares attack my home.
“Killian.”
My mother falls back into the wall, clutching her stomach. Instantly, I kneel beside her.
“Mother, what has happened? Where are father and Ari?” Panic seeps into my voice as I place my hands over her wound to stem the bleeding.
“Son, my beautiful prince, you must go. Go to the human world.”
Shaking my head, I refuse to listen to her ramblings. Her hand grabs my tunic in a tight fist.
“Killian, it is just you and I now. Go, my son for I have not long left. Save yourself and the realm.”
Her words knock the breath from my lungs, and tears spring to my eyes.
My family is dead. All gone all murdered at the hands of a fairy attacking my birthright. No.
No, I will not just flee to the human realm.
I am a Tenebrosi warrior. I will fight and I will protect my mother.
Standing, I grip my sword, my heart heavy with pain, but beating with determination to find and kill the invader.
“Killian, please.” My mother’s whisper draws my eyes to her dimming golden ones.
“Please, my son. Trust in me; I know you will be back one day, but you must leave now. Promise me.”
“Mother, don’t ask me.” Falling to my knees, she grips my hand and smiles.
“Please, Killian. Do it for me; know that your father and I love you and we are so proud of you. But you must leave.”
Tears fall from my eyes as I promise my mother the one thing that goes against my will. I promise to be a coward and turn my back on my people. Her hand loosens its grip as the light dims in her golden eyes.
“Go, my son, before it’s too late. I love you.”
Pain rips through every fiber of my being. No amount of fairy magic can bring back my mother. She is gone to the land of souls to live out eternity with the rest of my family. Kissing her forehead, I untangle my body from hers, lifting her slowly to her bed. The sounds of fighting grow louder, but I don’t care. My mother is gone, my father and sister have both been killed, and I am the only one left.
“Go in peace, mother. I love you too.”
Leaving her body, I make my way through the hall and up the stairs to my rooms. I go unnoticed by those around me. Sliding the lock on my door, my legs carry me to a secret passage that will bring me out into the forest of souls. Whispering the words, I step through the wall, breathing in the dusty air. We haven’t used this passage in a long time, not since Ari and I were children. Making my way down the steep stone steps, I can still hear the sound of fighting and shouting. Although I go unseen, I can catch a glimpse of the destruction in the throne room through the family painting. It was enchanted to act as a one-way window. My soul dies when I see the room in ruin. My father’s throne has been smashed and is now on fire. Turning, I keep walking. My mind is numb as my legs carry me onwards and outwards, out deep into the forest of lost souls. Pain arcs in my heart, wondering if any of my family or friends have ended up here.
Their souls, roaming lost, taken all too quickly, and now they have no idea how to enter eternity. Reaching the boulder, I allow my body to hit the ground. The thick fire-bush, with its bright orange flowers and thorns that cause a blistering boils on the skin, stare at me. Mocking me with its beautiful yet deadly flower, reaching out I pluck one of the thorns from the stem. Holding it between thumb and forefinger, I examine this deadly piece of foliage.
Dragging myself to my knees with tears dripping from my eyes, I slice my palm with the sharp point of the thorn. My skin instantly blisters around the cut as blood flows to the ground.
“Goddess Celeste, I offer summer blood, warrior blood, and the promise never to reveal the portal. Please accept my offering and allow me entry to the human realm.”
I spit the words through a clenched jaw. The air in front of me shimmers like a drop of water hitting a still lake. Slowly I pull myself up and look over my shoulder, seeing the rising smoke from my home. Placing one foot through the shimmer, my mind urges me to go back—go back and fight like the warrior I am. But my mother’s pleas echo in my head and I take the final step through, leaving my world as I know it.
Chapter 4
50 years later in the Human Realm
* * *
Walking through the streets of Faircrest, I huddle into my coat a little more. It’s supposed to be spring, but winter is holding on like a screaming child in a candy store. There is a slight frost on the ground and I hear it crunch under my boots. “So cold,” I chatter through my teeth, but no one is around to hear me. Making my way down the cobble locked road, I arrive at Athena’s new age store.
Pulling my numb fingers from my pockets, I open the security shutter then let myself inside. Quickly, I march across the polished wooden floor to the back office and crank up the thermostat to a blissful 80 degrees. I know Athena will be pissed, but I don’t care. I never said I would work in the cold, just that I would work on Saturdays and maybe one or two nights during the week, depending on school.
My fingers are too numb to work on my jewelry line so I make a quick dash down to Starbucks, leaving the store to heat up.
“’Morning, Alex.” My smile brightens upon seeing my friend; she works here on the weekend and fills me up on free white chocolate mochas.
“You want to try a new drink?”
Her grin gives her away.
“Nope, my usual,” I chirp back to her, digging through the fridge for a sandwich to toast. I throw the ham and cheese panini up onto the counter and smile.
“Okay, give me five to get this done.
What time are you working until?”
She shouts over her shoulder from the back room where the panini toaster is located, her biker boot clad foot holding open the door. Most of the customers in here are regulars, so they pay no attention to her, with her crazy dyed black and red hair, and pierced eyebrow and lip. I remember the first day of college, two years ago now; she waltzed right over to me where I sat in the corner, trying to melt into the woodwork, and sat her butt in the chair beside me.
I was indeed terrified. Her hair was all black then and she had on a tank top, revealing her many tattoos. I had spent all of high school getting picked on by Savannah and her minions, then my parents went missing and still haven’t been found to this day, but Alex accepted me right away. Never once asking about my past and never offering her two cents on the mystery of my life. Of course, once I got to know and trust her, I opened up. I told her about Claudia, my best friend in school. Both of us have really light blonde hair. It’s practically white, but she had a beautiful face—her skin like porcelain. She looked like a doll, so petite and she had a weird tinkle sound when she laughed. God, I miss her too.
She came to live here in Faircrest the summer before senior year of high school. We hit it off straight away; we always joked that it was the hair that drew us together. She was the coolest girl I knew. We both loved making jewelry and decided to set up our own business, calling it C&R jewelry designs. Claudia and Reagan that is, but she left to go to college on the east coast and now I am here making our jewelry all by myself.
“Here, chick-ita.”
Alex smiles, handing me my coffee and panini. “So what time are you done tonight?” she asks again.
“Oh, whenever Athena or Jake show up,” I answer, holding my cup up in a wave as I open the door with my ass. I walk back to the store, which is still freezing. I’d swear Athena does it on purpose just to piss me off. Placing my coffee down on my little work- table, I flip the sign on the door to open, then settle down to munch on my panini. The store usually stays quiet this early so I don’t mind eating out in the front. Opening my binder, I check to see if I have any custom orders due today or tomorrow, but nope, nothing. No orders. So today will be a day of sitting back and being bored.
Looking around the store, I am reminded of the first time I came in here. It was with my mom about three years ago—she told me her friend had a store that sold natural gemstones and I should look into learning about them. At the time, I scoffed at her only because I had no reason to ever want to know about stones and tarot cards. Little did I know then that I would end up working here and learning everything anyway.
The night my parents went missing was the worst night of my life. I stayed in my house for a week straight, missing school and missing life. Claudia helped me through it. She made me get my butt up and get back out into the world. That was when we decided to make our own jewelry line. Part of me thinks she just wanted to keep my mind off the whole incident. Jesus, even to this day it hurts like hell. My mom and dad went to the movies on a Friday night, and that was the last I have ever seen and heard from them. The police conducted an investigation, finding no leads; it’s as if they up and fell off the face of the earth.
The house and all its contents were held up in probate court for a year. Finally, I was granted permission to live there because I was over eighteen, but by then I was already living with Athena and her son Jake. Athena took me in after a month of living in the house and eating cereal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner—she also agreed to let me sell my jewelry in her store in exchange for working there. I get to keep all earnings from my line and she pays me $10 an hour. It’s not much, but I get by. My parents haven’t been declared dead, so I have no access to any of their money, and because I am over eighteen, I am technically an adult.
So here I am, sitting in the empty store, eating my sandwich and dreaming of a better life when the bell rings above the door, alerting me to a new customer. Looking up, I see a woman and her daughter smiling at one another. My heart pings with hurt. Pushing my feelings aside and hiding my panini, I walk over to offer my help. They are just looking, so I return to my table. Pulling out my tools and my necklace tree, I load up some of my work for display. Sneaking a look at the customers, I shove the last bit of Panini in my mouth and chew fast.
“Oh, Mom, look,” the girl calls out, picking up one of my chains. Both of them admire my work and ask a ton of questions. I explain how I use all natural stones from the store and pull out my binder of photographs, showing off my work.
“So if we pick a stone you can make anything?”
“Yes, within reason.” I smile back to the young girl. Her eyes plead with her mother and her hands are clasped together in front of her.
“Okay, fine. This can be an early birthday present,” the mother answers. My fingers itch to get started, but the girl takes forever to pick out the perfect stone. I don’t mind, I get the same way sometimes.
“Here, I like this stone. Can you add some smaller ones too? You pick, I don’t mind.”
“Sure, I’ll make it special for you, but give me about three days to get it done.”
Once they leave, I get to work, glad of the distraction from the cold and emptiness of the store.
“So, are you going to eat lunch today or what?”
Looking up, I smile at Jake. He too is covered in tattoos and piercings. Jake and I are complete opposites, but we are as close as any brother and sister, if we were, that is.
“What the hell time is it anyway?” I ask, looking down at my cell phone. Crap, after 2 pm. “Yeah, I guess I should go eat something.” Standing, I stretch my arms above my head and yawn.
“I have something you can eat,” Jake calls out, grabbing his package. Rolling my eyes, I walk over to him and punch him on the arm.
“In your dreams,” I answer, grabbing my coat from the back of the chair.
“Yeah, that’s where all the good shit happens.” Jake smiles at me before disappearing into the back room. Taking off out the front, I hit Starbucks and hijack Alex. We walk down to the diner for lunch.
“So what’s the deal with tonight? You up for it?” Alex asks as she slides into the cracked red leather seat of the booth. Ignoring her, I pick up the menu and browse the lunch specials. Alex pulls the menu down from my face, giving me her best “you better talk or else” face.
“I don’t do nightclubs.” My answer is the same every time she asks.
“Reagan, come on! You never go out. You need to loosen up a little, live a little, get your butt out into the world and get some guy to smack it.”
My laughter echoes throughout the diner. “Are you insane?” I question her. She pulls her lip ring into her mouth and flicks it back out again, her eyes staring me down.
“Reagan, please, you know you will love it. It’s fairy themed.” She bounces on her seat. Reaching over, she grabs my hand, begging me over and over.
“Oh, my god, fine, Alex!”
Shit, did I just agree to go to a club? What am I even thinking? We spend the next hour discussing our costumes, which, by the way, I didn’t know I needed. Alex agrees to take me out shopping to put my get up together.
After work, I find myself standing in the weirdest store I have ever entered. The lights are dim, the smell is musty, and there are racks and racks of old costumes, wigs, and just plain weird shit. Alex is right at home, though—she flits around, pulling throwing garments over her arm.
“This?” She holds up a bizarre looking costume.
“No, I am not some 16th-century vampire. I thought this was a fairy themed thing,” I say, my voice flat and bored. Alex and Jake are the only two people in my life who know about my fairy obsession. Claudia knows, but I haven’t heard from her for a while. My mom used to sit me out on the back deck at night where we would watch the full moon shine like a spotlight, casting a silvery glow on the world.
She often told me the story of the fairy prince and the moon goddess—how the fairy prince would have to
give up his family and his land to come live in the human world, hoping to find his true mate. It was actually quite a sad story, now that I remember it. The prince would have to fall in love and so would his mate. She holds the key to his survival, but they would face tough times. If they ever made it back into the fairy realm, their love, trust, and friendship would be tested and only true love would prevail.
Jesus, that really was a sad story. I have no idea why my mom would tell it to me all the time. “Let’s get out of here, Alex.”
She scoffs at me and shakes her finger. “Not until you find something to wear. You are not getting out of it, Reagan.”
“I have something at home I can use,” I inform her. I know by the look on her face she doesn’t believe me, but she agrees to come home and check my closet. Once home, Jake invites himself into my room. Lying on my bed, he looks at us.
“Can I help you?” I ask from the closet where I am pulling open boxes from my real home.
“You know you can, but you keep knocking me back.”
Alex snorts at him while shaking her head. “Dude, do you ever give up?”
“Nope, why would I?” He smiles at me.
Jake is the same age as me, twenty-one, but sometimes he acts about sixteen. Especially when it comes to a particular part of his body. After searching through five boxes, I find my costume. Okay, so it’s about 10 years old, but all I want are the wings. My mom made them for me and I was the best-dressed fairy that Halloween.
“Okay, I found it you can both piss off now,” I call out, laughing as I do. Alex rushes back inside the tiny closet, squashing me up against the wall. “Backup.” I moan, pushing her out. Holding out my blue wings, I smile. “See told you.”
“Wow, they are so pretty.” Alex runs her fingers along the gauze-like material. Jake just shrugs and hops off the bed.
