by Shea Berkley
Ryne’s mother came up beside us and took off her shawl. “Take this, and tell us what more we can do.”
“Other than finding me some rope? I need you to stay away,” I said, accepting the shawl she held out to me. I looked at them both pleadingly. “I don’t know what she will do if she sees either of you. We cannot risk it.”
Ryne’s mother slipped her hand into her husband’s, drawing his gaze. “She’s right.”
With a sigh, he hung his head and gave a reluctant nod.
I rose up on tiptoes and kissed his brow. “All will be well.”
When the mist rose, I would be on the shore, waiting for Ryne to come home. Nothing would stop me from making that a reality.
Never trust a nix.
The horizon lay clear before me. Midnight had come and gone. I let my hand wander to the shell which I’d found not too far from the remaining crumbs of the loaf and partially pecked wedge of cheese the sage had given me. I drummed my fingertips against it, debating if I should call the nix or continue to wait? The temptation caused my fingers to wrap around the shell, but at the last moment, I pulled away. I had to wait. She would come. She wanted the necklace more than Ryne. She would come.
I built a small fire to chase away the chill of night and sat beside its cheery flames. I wondered how Ryne had survived this long in the nix’s world. What magic had she cast to keep him alive? And why would she want to keep him out of all the men she had captured? It didn’t make sense. Had she truly fallen in love with him? Goosebumps rose along my arms at the thought. To be loved by a nix would be a frightening thing.
The flames grew smaller as the moon began its descent and the night neared its darkest hour before dawn. I stood and paced. What if my aim was off? What if the nix ripped the rope from my hands? I bit my lip. Worry tore at my confidence. I fixed my gaze on the horizon and any change it brought. And then, in a blink of an eye, the mist bubbled from the water, growing larger and thicker with each breath I took. I quickly removed the necklace and twined it within my fingers, the rocks resting easily between my knuckles, then grabbed the rope and hid it behind my back. When the mist rushed ashore, my nerves tingled like a spring coiled too snug, and I tightened my grip on the rope as I waited for the nix to appear.
Within moments, the water gurgled and the head of a man crested the lake’s surface twenty feet off shore.
I squinted, trying to peer through the thickening mist. “Ryne.”
I stepped forward, right to the edge of the water, and then stopped. Why was he just hovering there? Why did he not come to me? A chill crept over my heart. I quickly tossed out the rope, and it landed only inches from him. “Ryne, grab the rope,” I shouted.
He looked at me, but said nothing. Did nothing. “What is wrong? Tell me?” I willed him to move, to take the rope, but instead he slowly sank beneath the surface of the lake and vanished.
“Ryne,” I screamed his name over and over again. Tremors seized my body. The rope fell from my fingers. I wrapped my arms around me, wishing they were his. I stood at the water’s edge and willed him back, and just when I thought my heart would break, the nix appeared.
She rose from the water, her hair instantly drying into silken waves that curled round her. She cast a sad look at me. “So you see, he is well. He wishes nothing to do with you or your world. He has returned to mine and will stay there forever.”
I stood rooted to the spot. I was in shock. Despair ran like ice in my veins. Though my mind warned of my danger, that I was too close to the water, I couldn’t move. The nix walked right up to me and stopped.
“Poor human,” she cooed.
I saw her move. I saw her lift her hand, but my body refused to stir. Her gaze followed her hand as she stroked my cheek with the tips of her fingers, the touch gentle, yet chilling. “His love for you is gone.”
As suddenly as my paralysis came on, it disappeared, and I knew. Whoever that man had been, it hadn’t been Ryne. Never trust a nix. With great delight, I pulled back my arm and slammed my stone-wrapped fist into her jaw, spinning her to her knees.
“He. Is. Mine.” I spat the words into her stunned face.
There was no question, I was in trouble now. I quickly went to the fire, pulled out a branch with one end spitting flames, and spun to face the nix. I advanced on her, brandishing my weapon before me. “You have proved nothing, and the necklace is mine until I hear from his own lips he does not love me.”
As the nix stood, clouds darkened the sky and the wind whipped the water higher. My once flaming torch sputtered and died. The tide rose, and the nix slowly advanced. “Know this. When I am through with you, you will beg for death.”
I would die. My heart yearned for Ryne to know I had done all I could to save him. And then a noise sounded behind me. Ryne’s father stepped forward. He held a spear in one hand and a net in the other. “Leave her be,” he boomed into the rising wind.
The nix stilled, and even backed up when he jabbed the spear forward and swung the net as if to catch her.
“Give me the necklace,” the nix wailed, even as she moved back.
“Bring Ryne back,” I demanded.
“Never. Trust is something I can no longer afford.”
I held up the necklace so she could see it, ignoring the waves crashing closer and closer. “If you want this, there is only one way to get it.”
The nix stared at the string of stones the wind whipped against my hand.
“It’s your move, nix,” Ryne’s father said.
The nix swung to face him and hissed. Without warning, a gust of wind stirred the sand into a swirling funnel. He threw his hands up to protect his eyes and the nix snatched the net from him and flung it high into the air where the funnel whisked it out of sight. Ryne’s father grabbed my hand and tried to pull me behind him.
The energy the nix was using to sustain her magic was taking a toll on her. The color of her skin had begun to fade and her beauty held an evil slant to it. I should have been terrified, but all I could think of was Ryne.
I yanked my hand free and stepped forward, holding out the necklace like a wriggling worm on a hook. “Let Ryne speak for himself, and I will give you the necklace willingly. I promise.”
Her gaze returned to the necklace and greedily watching it. I could see her weighing her options. With Ryne’s father so close and the spear tightly held in his hand, and dawn only moments away, there was little she could do. Her gaze snapped to mine. “You have proven yourself as deceitful as the others. I will not bring him here. Tomorrow night when the moon is at its zenith, I will take you to him.”
She was giving me an option that had little risk for her and a great deal for me. How she would manage the feat, I could not fathom. All that mattered was that she would take me to Ryne. We would be together, and together we could win.
I nodded. “I shall be here, Nix.”
Her eyes flared with triumph, and as soon as the nix dove into the lake, the wind stilled and the water calmed, and the first rays of dawn broke through the dark clouds and sliced through the mist, cutting it to shreds until it was no more.
An intense wooziness settled over me, and I shot a glance at Ryne’s father. He stood tense, disquiet draining the color from his face. “God save us, Nari. What have you done?”
The sky spun, my knees gave way, and he jumped forward and caught me in his arms. Ryne’s mother burst through the trees, her face a mask of fright, just as a large goat and cart ambled forward from the opposite direction, the sage snapping heavily at the reins. They all converged on the same spot and stared at each other before looking back at me.
“Well,” the voice of the sage stabbed at the air. “That was not what I’d hoped for, and everything I feared.”
20
Ryne’s father carried me to the cart and settled me on the seat with the help of his wife. The sage pressed a cup of her cool mint tea in my hands while she threw an anxious glance at the calm waters of the lake. “A deceptive calm. I feel her anger b
urn.”
She hopped out of the cart, walking stick in hand and went to her bag tied to the short bed behind the seat. With a tiny grunt, she hefted the bag closer. The heavy thunk the bag made as it scrapped along the planks caused me to jerk and the tea I held to slosh on my skirts. With shaking hands, I put the cup down. I was a physical wreck. My nerves stretched to their limit. I felt ill prepared to deal with anyone let alone the sage. But there was no avoiding her. When I looked back, the sage held a severe eye on me.
An uncomfortable silence fell. I shifted against her stare and looked away. Why was she here? What had I done to curry her disfavor?
Her eyes narrowed on me. “Never trust a nix.”
So that was it. She thought I’d disregarded her advice. I had not, though that didn’t stop a measure of guilt from riddling my mind. “I know.”
And I did. But if I erred, it was not done as a deliberate act of defiance. “My only thoughts were of Ryne.”
The sage frowned harder. “She has every intention of killing you.”
“I know.”
“I do not think you do.”
The sage went to a downed tree and sat, her small frame tottering upon the huge trunk. She gripped the top of her walking stick and leaned forward, her gaze intense. “A nix’s feelings are too elemental, too naïve, if you like. She wants, therefore she takes. Her life is that simple. The true nature of a nix was never intended to be harsh. What she understands of evil is a shallow mimicry of what man has taught her, but it is always lethal.”
Alarm rippled across Ryne’s father’s face. “Finally some sense. Nari cannot meet with the nix tomorrow. She does not understand the risk.” He turned toward me. “I have already lost a son. Must my mistake harm you as well?”
I jumped to my feet, fearful he would somehow stop me. “I have to go. If there is even a slight chance I can save Ryne, I will take it.”
“You heard the sage, Nari,” he said. “You can’t trust the nix. She will kill you.”
I climbed out of the cart and faced him, my back straight, my mind made up. “Then I die, but it will be a death worth risking. Ryne would do the same if the nix held me prisoner.”
“Of course he would, but he’s—”
“A man?” the sage sniffed. “Do not belittle Nari’s path because she is a woman. You are wrong. She knows the risks.”
“Do you?” Ryne’s mother stepped close and swept my hair from my face. Sorrow flowed from her very core. “You know I want him back too, but what I just saw, the fierceness of that creature. If you died…”
I’d grown my entire life without the tender caress of a mother, and her honest show of affection nearly undid me. I bit my lip and forced the feelings away. I would not let Ryne down. “It is my choice to make.”
“Then it’s settled.” The sage jumped to the ground and returned to her bag. With a great deal of digging, she pulled out a dagger, its blade long and dark. “Soon after you left, I had another vision. I saw you beneath the water, facing the nix. A turn of events I did not foresee before you left. Because of it, I have brought you two more gifts. One has an obvious purpose,” she said and held out the dagger. I accepted it, though I was revolted by its filth. Its weight lay thick in my fingers and the darkness covering the blade appeared to be…
“Is that blood?” To my horror, it still looked fresh. A shiver of disgust ran through me.
She retrieved it from me and placed it on the seat where I’d been sitting. “My magic has preserved the blood of the only thing that can pierce the nix’s heart.”
I waited for her to tell me more, but instead she touched the golden belt she wore around her waist. It immediately slipped loose, like a thick coil of living, molten gold, lengthening in her hand until it looked like a rope. “And this. A gift you will need, but one I hesitate to give to you. The magic it holds is extremely unusual.”
Fascinated, I made to touch it, but the sage pulled back.
“The rope will do whatever the owner tells it to do. But there is a catch. You must keep it with you at all times. Wear it as a necklace, or a bracelet. A belt such as I. It will accept whatever job you give it. But once you break the bond of ownership, it will never obey you again. You can only break contact with it for the most dire reason, and then for only a short time.”
She stared deeply into my eyes. “You say you love Ryne more than your own life.”
“I do,” I hurried to assure her.
She closed her eyes and scrunched up her nose. Her face wrinkled with concentration. A faint chill rushed in, but it soon dissipated. Her lids flew open, and her gaze softened with dismay. “I wish I could see into his soul, but I cannot. The nix’s magic interferes with mine.” She glanced at the golden rope. “There is a degree of anxiety, a great hesitance on my part…”
The gray in her eyes deepened with uncertainty. “Nari. Does Ryne love you?”
I opened my mouth to reply, but she held up her hand. “You must be sure of your answer. Something tells me it is of the utmost importance. If he has fallen under the nix’s spell, you could be trapped in the lake forever. Make no mistake. You risk your life by what you are about to do. Are you sure his love is true love?”
Nothing would ever make me believe Ryne would willingly choose to stay with the nix. I knew he loved me. All the significant moments–good and bad–in our shared life whipped through my head. The constant thread we shared grew stronger, knitting a picture of our past, present and future together in a way that could not be denied. We were meant for each other.
I refused to let anyone rip that joy away. I slipped my hand in my pocket and wrapped my fingers around the handkerchief. The nix had brought me the cloth, had told me Ryne did not wish to leave her, but it was not true. I stood before the concerned gaze of the sage and said in an unwavering voice that rang loud and clear, “He loves me as I love him.”
“Then hold out your hand.”
I did, and she let the rope slowly coil into my palm as she recited something in an ancient language. When she said the last word, she let the end of the rope drop and I felt a nip of energy rush through my hand. I glanced at her, and she sighed. “Let us hope you can find its use before it’s too late.”
I slipped my fingers around the golden coil, feeling a warm glow flow through my fingers as I did. Its smoothness calmed me; its crafted perfection thrilled me. I thought it would make a pretty bracelet, and it suddenly slipped along my wrist and wrapped it in a thick loop. Not one flaw could be seen along its shining length.
“It’s beautiful, but how can such a little thing help me?”
“I am not sure. I have given you what I can. My visions show me that the nix will take you deep into the lake. But that is all I know. Wherever she has taken Ryne is not a simple place one can walk out of. If it were, I think we are all in agreement, he would be here now.”
The sage picked up the blade from the seat and placed it in my hand. “You must kill her, Nari. It will not be easy. Harm may find you. Do not give up. You must strike the nix’s heart with this blade. Only the heart and only with this dagger. Then, and only then, will you be free.”
Ryne’s father stepped forward and shook his head. “This is madness. There must be another way. Her anger stems from me. I should go.”
“No.” The sage’s compassion was tempered by the harshness of her words. “In your ignorance, you laid the fight at your son’s feet, and through his love, it was passed to Nari. There is nothing we can do now but pray.”
Night fell, and the moon began its climb. Its half sliver valiantly poured light down on the lake and the sandy shore. I retucked one of Ryne’s cloaks closer. The feel of the soft, well-worn fabric from a pair of his old trews and shirt comforted me, though they hardly warded off the descending chill. I came to the break in the forest where the shore met the woods and huddled in the shadows, cautiously surveying the area. All was quiet. Too quiet. The sage had refused me any company, even Ryne’s father, who had blustered at her plan and who insis
ted he follow.
“This is Nari’s journey,” she had reiterated to us all.
So here I stood. Alone.
My limbs quivered as I stepped beyond the trees. “I am doing this for Ryne,” I told myself. But the wait, the not knowing what to expect or how I would deal with it…it was that which was tearing a hole in my confidence. I brought my fingers to the smooth, stone necklace encircling my throat. “For Ryne.”
I glanced up at the moon. How such a beautiful night could hold a storehouse of impending misery was unfathomable. It was a night for lovers. For soft kisses and whispered promises. I thought of all the tender moments Ryne and I had shared, and I desperately wanted more. I would risk all for more. My very life.
If my fear caused me to refuse this journey, my love for Ryne would keep me here, staring out over the lake, forever a sad, lonely woman. I shuddered at the thought. When the nix came, I would do whatever she asked. I would not leave my love in her hands a moment longer.
The half crescent slipped higher and higher, and higher still until it hung over the lake, spreading its soft glow from shore to shore. The time was nigh. Expectation surged through my veins. The reflection of the night stars danced on the water’s surface...and then, just along the horizon, the mist appeared. It grew thick, billowing along the surface toward me like a wall of liquid silver. When it came ashore, it hit me with a mighty force, causing me to stumble back a few feet. The mist rose higher, springing around me as it enveloped my body in a world of white. Its heaviness dampened the sound of the lake lapping at the shore even as my vision grew cloudy. My lungs expanded as I fought for air, but only found vapor. I clutched my throat. Was it possible to drown while on dry land?
I coughed and sputtered. My eyes watered, adding to my misery. The wall of pure vapor pushed past me and I found myself in a pocket of lighter mist. As I blinked to clear my vision, a large, unfamiliar shadow rose. It was not the nix, but something more powerful and far more terrifying to behold. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Dragons weren’t real. But here one materialized seemingly out of nowhere, a creature just as mythical as the nix and far more threatening. Waves rose against the huge body as it slid soundlessly through the water. I staggered back, my mouth agape, my heart frozen in my chest. I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t run. I could only stare in disbelief at the monster rising from the mist. The dragon’s massive triangular head towered over the lake, and when it dipped its head, its horns jabbed at the mist, causing the heavy vapor to spin and roll off their evil points.
