by Wendy Knight
He stared at her for several long seconds, unable to register anything beside the feel of her skin against his lips. And then her words sank in. “You can’t be serious.” he jerked away from her hand. “Destiny, the way I feel didn’t start at the battle—”
“Yes,” she said firmly. “That’s the magic of the potion. It makes you feel like you’ve always been in love. In a week, maybe two, it will be gone.”
“How do you know?” he snarled. “You’ve used this potion, Destiny? Have you ever felt its magic?”
She blinked at him. “What?”
“Have you ever been in love because of a potion, Destiny?”
“No—no.”
“Not now, either?” he asked quietly, moving closer. She swayed toward him, but then her eyes darkened and she straightened, stumbling back.
“No. I didn’t get hit with the potion.”
He felt like she’d crushed his soul under her pretty bare foot.
“Come on, Destiny. This isn’t a potion. I’m in love with you. And I know you feel something. I’ve seen it in your eyes. In the way you move and the way you talk to me. We’ve been through too much for you to say it means nothing.”
Her eyes filled with tears that snaked their way down her cheek. “I’m sorry, Quin. It’s just a potion.” She backed away from him, put one hand to her mouth and spun away with a sob. She raced for the house, and he stood by her truck and watched as she slammed the door behind her.
****
“I HAVE A MEET tonight. Are you coming?” Destiny stirred her oatmeal but didn’t look up.
“Of course we’re coming. We’ve come to every one so far, haven’t we?”
Destiny snorted, drawing X’s with her spoon. “There’s only been four that I’ve been awake for, and one I didn’t run in.”
Fate tugged on one of her braids. “But you ran in the other three and we were there for every one of them.”
“Yeah. Thanks.”
“What’s up? You haven’t been this noncommittal since Quin left.”
Destiny winced at the sound of his name in her head. It felt like it shot straight down to her heart. “He transferred out of my chemistry class. He said it was too hard.”
“The class, or you?”
Destiny rolled her eyes and finally looked up. “Me, dork. He’s like a chemistry genius.”
Fate shrugged. “If it hurts so much, why don’t you—”
“It hurts because of a potion.”
Across the kitchen, Alina slammed the milk on the counter. It splashed over the mouth of the carton and splattered across the counter. “Destiny, that is enough.”
Destiny’s eyes widened and she looked to Fate for help. But Fate was staring open-mouthed at their mother, and was no help at all.
“What’d I do?”
“This stupid love potion excuse to keep you from ever hurting the way I hurt. But you know dang well, young lady, that I hurt because of a choice, not a potion. And now you’re doing the same thing.”
Destiny’s eyes filled with tears and Alina immediately softened. She slid around the dinette and sat next to Destiny, stroking her hair. “Baby, if it had been a potion, how do you explain Luca?”
Luca, who had practically spent every waking moment for the last four weeks at their house. Luca, who had already told Alina he would marry her one day. Luca, who Fate called Dad like it was just another day in paradise.
Luca, who had nursed Destiny back to health and told her he’d beat Quin with a baseball bat the first day Destiny had come home from school crying because he was avoiding her. Luca, who promised he would never leave them again.
“I can’t explain him. And I can’t explain Damien. But—but I can’t get hurt. I’m not strong like Fate. I’m not strong like you. I’m afraid if I get hurt I’ll hide in the shadows and forget — forget how to come back out.”
It’s dark in the shadows. And safe there.
Fate scooted closer and laid her head on Destiny’s shoulder. Her long white hair came dangerously close to Destiny’s oatmeal. “That’s what I’m here for. No matter how dark those shadows are, I’ll pull you out. You can’t hide from me.”
Destiny hiccuped. “It doesn’t matter anyway. He won’t come near me.”
Fate sat up. “So chase him down. You’re the runner, right?”
Destiny snorted. “You’ve seen him run.”
“So run faster.”
Destiny smiled.
“So… we’re doing this, right? We’re going after Quin?” Fate clasped her hands together and held her breath.
“I don’t dare.”
Fate leaned over and peered into Destiny’s face, upside down. “That’s why I’m here. To pull you out of the dark.”
Yes. Alina had run because of a heartache, but it had come from her sister, not a boy. And Fate wasn’t like that. Fate could never be like that. Her sister who could shine like the sun would never let Destiny get lost in the shadows, and she certainly wouldn’t chase her into them. How Destiny didn’t know that by now was a mystery. No matter what happened with Quin — if they didn’t get their happy ever after, if he did end up breaking her heart, Fate would find her. She wouldn’t let Destiny get lost in the shadows.
Destiny took a deep breath. “Okay. Okay. I’ll find Quin.”
“And?” Fate raised an eyebrow, still upside down.
“And I’ll tell him how I feel. Happy?”
Fate grinned.
****
QUIN MANAGED TO AVOID her all day. Destiny left to go to her meet, and when she got back, the school parking lot was empty except for a handful of cars by the football field. Quin’s jeep was one of them.
Practice had gone late that night.
Destiny got off the bus and started for her truck. Fate wasn’t here. Her mom wasn’t here. She wasn’t brave enough to track him down in front of his team and profess her undying love.
Instead, she turned for her truck. She would go home, take a shower and make a plan for next week.
Except.
Except she heard his voice from across the parking lot as she had one foot on and one foot off the bus, and she felt the bars lower dangerously across her mind. A warning, her destiny telling her she was heading in the wrong direction. No matter what the outcome, Quin was obviously an important part of her future.
Swallowing hard, she turned again, this time toward the football field.
Basically, she was just blocking the door of the bus, turning in circles, while her entire team waited to get off. She stumbled out of the way, muttering to herself.
“Hey, good job today, Destiny,” Sienna called as she jumped off the bus and headed for her mom’s car across the lot. Emmry bounced after her, Farrah close behind and Jessica followed. The captains, Shad and Elyse, gave her a high five as she passed them. The season was almost over, and her heart hurt knowing she wouldn’t be spending most of her life with these people anymore. “Good job, Destiny,” Kalel said, raising his hand.
She smacked it. “Good job, Superman.”
Lucas, Andrew, and Julian jumped off the bus and ran across the parking lot like they hadn’t just run two miles at one of their fastest times of the season. John, Aldridge, Jackson, and Hyrum followed.
“I was wondering if you were ever going to let us off,” Jackson said. The rest snickered and waved. She waved back, they made fun of her weak stomach. It was a story that wouldn’t die. And also, something about ninety-nine percent.
Kyle followed them, eating his celebratory cake. Always, with the cake. Matthew was right behind him, but he didn’t seem to notice the cake much at all.
“Good job, Destiny,” Carson called as he, Rees, and Spencer got off the bus.
Destiny smiled and waved. “You too.”
She couldn’t very well walk up to Quin with her whole team watching, so she hung around the bus, waiting for everyone to get off. Oriah, Rylee, Brookell. Branson, Coleman. This team was like family now. She’d miss them when the season was over.
Bella, Lucas and Charlie were the last ones off. She waved and watched as they disappeared in all their random directions, and then she slid around the bus, hiding in the shadows.
And she watched Quin. He ran like the warlocks were after him. He didn’t laugh like he did the first time she’d watched him play. His eyes were dark and he didn’t smile, but he moved like lightning, and he was formidable. And beautiful.
It broke her heart.
She almost turned away, but she couldn’t. Not because of the bars, but because she knew he was what she wanted now. He was what she wanted to run to every time she ran. She went to school and she watched for him, she drove down the road and she searched for his jeep. She used to daydream, but now her brain was broken and it only thought of him.
She swallowed hard, trying to find courage somewhere. Warlocks, she could face. Quin? Not so much.
The football went wide, hit the pole, and tumbled like a wounded duck through the air. It landed only a few feet from where she stood, and Quin jogged over, jumping the fence and landing in the parking lot on the other side.
She picked up the football, turning it over in her hands while she waited for him to see her. But he turned in a slow circle, looking for the football, and she realized belatedly that she had hidden in the shadows again. “Fate, where are you when I need you?”
“Right here.”
Destiny smiled and sucked in a breath.
“Destiny?”
She froze.
Quin pursed his lips. “I know I saw the football land and I can feel you. What do you want?”
She tossed the football out of the shadows and Quin caught it easily. “I found your football,” she said quietly.
He raised an eyebrow. “So you did.”
When she couldn’t make her mouth work, the smirk died and he started back, tossing the football easily back to his team.
“See ya.”
“Quin, wait.” She left the shadows, blinking against the sun. He stopped but didn’t turn around.
“Destiny, I told you I can’t do this. I don’t believe in your stupid potion, and it hurts too damn much to wait for it to wear off.”
“I’m really hoping it won’t.”
Quin froze and then turned slowly on one heel, the pebbles crunching under his feet. “What?”
Her hands were shaking, so she hid them behind her back, longing for the safety of her truck. “I—I believe in potions. I couldn’t make them if I didn’t.” She nodded, agreeing with herself.
He didn’t.
“But—but I use them as a shield because I didn’t want anyone to ever hurt me the way my mom hurt.” She inched closer to him, since he wasn’t running. But his face was unreadable, his eyes hidden in the shadow of the brim of his hat. “But then I lost you and I realized that — well, my mom pointed out — it wasn’t the potion that hurt me. It was me. I was hurting me by staying away from you. And I’m tired of hurting.”
She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed the smell of him. The sound of his voice.
Actually, that was wrong. She’d realized constantly and painfully how much she’d missed the smell of him and the sound of his voice. The way his eyes lit when he smiled. The strength in his chest and the way she fit perfectly against his shoulder whenever she couldn’t hold herself up any more.
Quin’s lips tightened. “Hurting isn’t a reason to chase someone down, Destiny.”
“No.” She shook her head. “But—but love is.” She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her chest. “I love you, Quin,” she said quietly.
For several long, silent seconds, he said nothing, just studied her. She braced herself for pain, told herself she was strong enough to do this, that even when he told her to leave him alone or go to hell or whatever he would say, she wouldn’t regret telling him. He should know. He should know that she loved him.
He crossed the space between them in two strides, catching her around the waist with one hand and pulling her against him. His other hand cradled her cheek, tipping her head up as his lips crushed down on hers. It was everything she’d ever daydreamed about in all her broken fantasies. Heat curled her toes, raced through her blood, set the magic in her on fire.
“Quin!” someone yelled from the field.
Quin pulled away, just enough to see into her eyes. “I’ve wanted to do that since the day we met.”
She rose on her toes, kissing him again. “Took you long enough.”
PRINCESS OF THE DAMNED
Prologue
Landon had never seen his own reflection. He saw hers instead. He grew up watching this girl in the mirror grow with him. Grew up memorizing every feature, every movement, every horror she endured. He could see into her palace, into the darkness she was trapped in.
When he was little, he told his parents about her. His parents thought she was an imaginary friend, and they humored him. But she didn't go away.
She couldn't see him, but the older he got, the more she sensed him.
And then she started talking to him.
She didn't need the mirror. She couldn't see him at all, but that didn't seem to matter. When she was alone, she sang to him. And she told him her nightmares. Except the nightmares were her life.
She was a captive of the Queen of the Damned.
And when Landon was seventeen, he fell in love with her.
Chapter One
Landon watched Eiress while he brushed his teeth and got ready for school. There was nothing else he could do; she couldn't even see him, but he was loath to leave her. She sat in the middle of her bed, rocking back and forth, humming and petting her pet dragon. Tears slowly soaked her cheeks and every so often, she would sob. The ball must have been horrific last night.
He put his toothbrush away and closed the mirror, trailing his finger down the reflection of her cheek, as if he could dry her tears.
She smiled and raised her head a little. "Thank you," she whispered.
"Any time." Landon smirked, because he knew she couldn't hear him, and yet here he was, talking to the mirror again.
Some people might think he was crazy, talking to a mirror.
Of course, if they knew he was actually talking to the princess trapped inside, they'd have him committed right away.
That was why he'd given up telling anyone about her.
"Landon! Cassie's here!"
Landon swore, backing away from the mirror. With every step, Eiress's shoulders hunched and she curled in on herself even more. "I'll be okay," she said quietly.
With one last, desperate look, he stumbled away, feeling his soul tear slightly as he left the bathroom. He rounded the corner, grabbed his bag, and jogged down the stairs. He caught another brief look as he passed the front hall mirror—Eiress crying over her pet dragon.
It nearly froze him in his tracks.
"Hey babe. We're gonna be late." Cassie almost hit him with the door as she stuck her head in, frowning. "I knocked like ten minutes ago."
This happened, sometimes. He'd get lost in the mirror, end up standing there for hours when he thought it had been minutes. Usually when she needed him most.
He tore his gaze away. "Sorry. Let's go."
He opened the passenger door for Cassie, like a good boyfriend would, and mechanically settled behind the wheel and started his truck. Cassie lived three houses down. Her family had moved in last summer, and he'd been giving her a ride to school since the first day of class.
He wasn't exactly sure when he'd become her boyfriend, though.
She chattered while he drove, something about her job and how her boss was a jerk. It took her all the way to school and into first period to tell it, and he half-heartedly attempted to listen.
School was the same, voices and conversations that he barely heard.
"Landon, what can you tell us about the American Revolution?" "Landon, explain to me how you come to the correct answer for this equation." "Landon, don't mix baking soda and vinegar. You'll cause an explosion!"
After that, he fought harder to get Eiress out of his head. At least until he got to work after school.
His mom owned an antique store. He helped out when he didn't have football practice, and since it was April, that meant every day. He didn't mind though. The job was easy, and as a bonus, there was an ancient, mysterious mirror framed with ornate mahogany. For some reason, his mom had never been able to sell it.
Probably because Landon had changed the price to $2 million, and she'd never noticed.
Of all the mirrors he'd seen Eiress in, this one fit her best.
He dropped his bag behind the counter, helped find places for all his mom's new treasures, cleaned the glass display cases, and finally settled down next to the mirror to do his homework.
Eiress looked up, her bright red hair and bright red lips the only color in a world of grays, whites, and blacks.
And she smiled.
His heart immediately broke and healed, all at the same time. To say she was beautiful would be an understatement. To say she was astoundingly beautiful when she smiled was akin to blasphemy. It was like looking into the sun. She made the pale skin work, and the elaborate dresses she always wore—like something out of the Renaissance period, only enhanced her beauty. Landon had drawn her a few times, in regular girl clothing, pretending she went to high school with him.
It didn't matter what she wore. She was still heartrendingly beautiful.
Eiress held up her knitting. "I'm making Kaida a sweater. He wasn't thrilled about the measuring part, but he'll get used to it. Without his fire, he's nothing but a lizard." She grinned as the little dragon curled around her wrist, settling in her palm, and hissed at her. "But such a cute one."
In her world of nightmares, she'd rescued Kaida when a dragon had attacked her castle. The dragon had been killed, and the evil souls had gleefully killed the babies in the nest left behind. All except Kaida, who Eiress had rescued and named after the brother she'd left behind when she'd been taken. The brother she hadn't seen in fourteen years.
Eiress kept talking, and while Landon hadn't been able to focus on one single word all day long, now he heard nothing except her voice. The cars outside, the customers, his mom, they all faded into the background, and it was just Eiress.
