Hidden Realms

by Dean Murray

  “How does joining a convent keep the fae away?”

  “They are not allowed to interfere with the endeavors of God, but the Order is what you should really be concerned about.”

  “But …”

  A knock sounded at the door. Jessica’s pointy chin preceded the rest of her face through the door. She smiled at the nun but didn’t even look at me. “I’ve checked the area. It should be safe to move her. I hope you’re right. I don’t want to lose all I have gained because she’s too stupid to hide from them.”

  “Jessica.” the Sister reprimanded.

  Jessica smiled. “It’s a sin to lie, Sister. I try my best not to break the commandments.”

  Sister Mary Margaret shook her head in a clear scold. “Be that as it may, child. Rayla has not had the advantages of your upbringing. Until recently, she did not even know she was an Elemental.”

  Jessica’s cold gaze landed on me. She took her time in appraising me before she shrugged. “I will attempt to be nice, but she has to do the same. I wasn’t the one who started this war.”

  I had no idea that we were at real odds. I thought we just had a mutual dislike of each other. I also had no clue what she meant. To my knowledge I had never done anything to her other than be a bit nasty, but I was curious now.

  The Sister opened a drawer and held a small box out for me. “Take this. Put it on and don’t take it off, no matter what you do. It won’t shield you completely. Nothing we know of can do that, but it will diminish your signal. The only way you will be detected is if the lords are in close proximity.”

  I opened the lid. Inside rested a stunning ruby ring. The marquee was inset into the most delicate gold setting. Intricate floral filigree wove up the band and around the stone. “I couldn’t take this. It has to be worth a fortune.”

  She frowned thoughtfully. “I suppose you could sell it, but the power the ring holds cannot be purchased. I would keep it close at all times.”

  I reverently slid the ring onto my finger and waited. I didn’t feel any different. “Are you sure this one works?”

  Jessica yanked my hand. “There’s only one way to find out. I’m going to be late for class, if you don’t get moving.”

  Sister Mary Margaret dismissed us and told me to come see her in a few days. I had no idea if I had that much time. Jett would not give up, and I was sure he wasn’t going to wait long before he came for me, with or without other people around.

  Jessica and I walked in silence to my room. How could she be an Elemental? I didn’t see anything special about her. In fact, she seemed rather plain. Although, I had to admit she did have good bones. Her hair was what made her look less than ordinary. It didn’t have a style. It just lay there limp, as if dirty brown spaghetti were plastered to her scalp.

  She scowled at me. “I don’t like this any more than you do.”

  Yeah, I was the one who started this. “You can leave if you want to.”

  She sighed. “I hoped Cassie was the Elemental. I was so excited to have someone to talk to …” She hesitated a little too long.

  I laughed. I knew exactly where she was going with this. “Until you found out it was me.”

  She smiled. It brightened her features and made her momentarily pretty. I hadn’t seen her smile very much. Was that part of the disguise?

  “So what did I do to piss you off so badly?” I asked.

  She seemed shocked by my question. As though I should have known how I had ruined her universe. “You took my job.”

  I grunted. “How was I supposed to know you applied for the position?” Cassie had told me Jessica came from wealth. Seemed everyone did but me. “Why would you want to work anyway?”

  “It’s why I’m here. I was trying to infiltrate the Order. I haven’t been able to get anywhere near the recruiters, and it sucks.”

  “I’d gladly give it to you. In fact, take my shift tomorrow night.”

  As if she read my mind, she asked, “What do you know about the Wayne brothers? Cassie told me you went to the mansion. Do you think you could get me in there?”

  Alex was difficult to gauge. She hardly seemed like Roger’s type. Besides, he seemed really into Cassie. Jessica was tall and lanky, with not much in the way of curves. Her hair was absurdly dull, as though she washed it daily in mud. In this light, the shadows under her eyes looked fake. The color of her eyes seemed off at this distance, too. Did she wear tinted contacts? I had never spent so much time studying a girl before. She looked artificial and not in a good way. “You might stand a better chance if you worked on your appearance.”

  She laughed as though what I had just said was the most absurd thing she had ever heard. “It takes me hours to get ready, as it is.”

  “I knew it. It is a disguise.” I walked over to her. “What do you really look like?” I yanked on her hair, but it didn’t come off like I expected.

  “Ow. You twit. What are you doing?”

  I backed up a few paces. “I thought it was a wig. How do you get it to be so ugly?”

  She glowered at me. “What if this was my real hair?”

  I raised a lock from her shoulder. “No one has hair this bad.”

  “I may have overdone it a little this time. Notre Dame is a hot spot, and I didn’t want to take any unnecessary risks.”

  I sat on the couch and pulled a pillow onto my lap, crossing my legs. “Jessica, how do I get rid of lords?”

  She sighed and plopped next to me. “You’ve just asked the golden question Elementals have been trying to answer for centuries, but to my knowledge, no one has found a way. I am sorry for you. I wish there was something we could do to hide you. We’re pretty much useless to you until you are beyond the age of power.”

  “What about the sanctuaries?”

  She shook her head. “You came from the only one we have. Grace asked me to look out for you the other day. I’ve been trying, but you haven’t exactly made it easy.”

  So much for plan A. Grace knew Jessica? So Sister Mary Margaret was who?

  I was sick of asking for explanations, but I needed all that I could get. At some point, I wasn’t going to be clueless. I longed for the day to come. I had to remind myself she grew up learning about this. “How does the age of power work, exactly?”

  I ignored the ‘you poor thing’ look she gave me and waited for enlightenment. “It is the only time your powers can be harnessed. When a fae bonds with one of us, they get to share our control over the elements. Once bonded, the fae has heightened power. It’s why they search for us, and it’s why a lot of us run from them. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to cause a tornado or some other disaster that kills people.”

  I hadn’t thought about the implications of having such a volatile power. I had only been worried about what would happen to my family if I were taken. Was Jessica’s element air? “So you’re saying that no Elemental in history has ever really escaped this fate?”

  Her gaze lingered on the floor, distant and vacant. “There is one way out.”

  Hallelujah. Just the thing I was looking for. I waited, if impatiently, for her to continue.

  Her words were a harsh whisper. “You have to let them into your soul for the bonding to take place.” She leveled her gaze to mine. “If you don’t, you die.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  I leapt to my feet. “What?” What kind of sick option was death?

  “Stop glowering at me,” Jessica said. “I didn’t make the rules. Great life we have, huh?”

  My anger slowly melted into regretful acceptance. I hoped this knowledge would be a power I could actually use. “I’m not going to wait here like a helpless fool to be taken at their leisure. Tell me more about Elemental power.”

  She looked at me warily and stood up. Instead of answering, she headed for the door. “I have to get to class.”

  “Skip it. I refuse to accept there is nothing to be done. We can figure out a better way.”

  She widened her eyes. “What makes you thin
k you’re smarter than the rest of us?”

  “I don’t; I’m desperate.”

  She laughed. It was a pleasant sound. “All right, but if you don’t come up with something good by my next class, I’m out of here.”

  I nodded. I checked my phone: no missed calls or messages. I had expected Zach to at least call me this morning. Had I finally scared him off?

  “We really don’t know much about how the power works. It’s dormant until the bond is complete. We interrogate every Elemental who comes with us, but specific memories of their fae life fade quickly. There is said to be a secret entrance into Faeresia, but if it does exist, we haven’t found it. I would love to get in there to see what I could learn. We do what we can, but it isn’t much.”

  I didn’t know a whole lot about Jessica, but there was one thing I needed to clear up. “Aren’t you still within the age of power?

  She scratched at her scalp. “I hate using this stuff. I will be so glad when I can go home. I’ll be twenty-four in three days. That’s why I was chosen. My mom was reluctant to send me, but I’ve been able to avoid detection better than anyone else. I’ve been working on a theory, but it’s a hard one to prove. I think paranormal investigative tools might be able to detect fae presence. But to really test it out, we have to put someone in danger. The fae stay away from Elementals once they are returned to the human realm. Hence, the other reason I’m here.”

  She was much smarter and way more interesting than I thought. “So that was why you were flirting so hard with Adam.”

  “It’s why I suggested IPS come here.” She waggled her brows. “He’s cute, don’t you think?”

  I nodded, but I hadn’t even considered it. I rummaged through my purse then, showed her the recorder. “He gave me this. I’m supposed to turn it on tonight.”

  She frowned thoughtfully. “Do you really think it’s a good idea?”

  Why wouldn’t it be? “He was upset about not being able to investigate in here, so he improvised. I didn’t think it would hurt anything to help him?”

  She shrugged. “It depends. If you caught something otherworldly on tape, things could get complicated. Can you imagine what would happen if humans found out that we are ruled by the fae? A certain amount of conspiracy theory never hurt anyone, but this kind of information would disrupt life in a way that wouldn’t do anyone good. It isn’t like we can kick them off the planet.”

  What a fantastic idea. I was going to have to let it steep for a while. “Wouldn’t Adam just think I recorded a ghost?”

  Her dubious glance didn’t give me much hope. “It’s possible, but what if he didn’t?”

  I bit my lip. “Even if he put it on the internet, most people would think it was a fake.”

  “I guess. There most likely isn’t anything to worry about anyway.” She smiled mischievously. “I know where he lives.”

  She was a little scary. “So you don’t know anything about Elemental powers?”

  “I didn’t say that. We have the ability to manipulate the elements. It is the same sort of power the fae have, but we haven’t found a way to access it without bonding. Brain scans in Elementals are very different than humans even though we have the same genetic make-up. We haven’t been able to pinpoint the cause of the differences. Our problem is that we haven’t had access to an Elemental while her power is active. We’ve performed experiments, but they haven’t resulted in useful data.” She started fiddling with her sleeve, looking away.

  “What are you not telling me?”

  Sadness enveloped her. “We stopped experimenting a few years ago. Our resources are limited, and it takes a lot to care for the damaged.”

  I shook my head. Elementals were being used by everyone. It was time we did something about the abuse.

  “Where’s your boyfriend?” she asked, as though trying to change the subject.

  “I haven’t heard from him today, why?”

  She pulled the curtains back and looked out the window. “I really should go, and I have strict orders not to leave you alone.”

  I took the not-so-subtle hint and called Cassie. She didn’t answer, so I tried Zach. He agreed to come immediately. I was glad because I didn’t want to be left here with just anyone.

  Jessica spent the next twenty minutes in the bathroom. She looked worse when she came out than when she went in. She had clearly put on make-up, but it was in all the wrong places. She’d gone overboard with the charcoal, as though instead of heading to class, she were about to audition for the role of Sallow Livedead: Queen of the Zombies. I wished I could see her real face.

  Zach avoided my gaze when he came through the door. He looked terrible, as though really worried about something.

  I gave him a belligerent look. “It’s nice to see you too.”

  He had me in his arms in less than a heartbeat. Once there, I wanted to cry. He was giving me silent permission to lose it, but I was over that. I had to do something about my situation before Jett or one of the others came looking for me. I glanced up at him. “I think I need to leave school.”

  He pulled away, his gaze guarded. “Where would you go?”

  “I thought you might have some ideas.” Without other sanctuaries, I was fresh out of ideas. “I can’t stay here.”

  He raised a brow. “What happened?”

  Why did I feel guilty about this morning? “I was nearly taken.”

  His voice was whisper thin. “I see.” He turned away from me. “How did you get out of it?”

  “A sister walked in on us. I was stupid. I’m not going to make excuses for myself. I’m so terrified, Zach. How can I fight this?”

  He glared at me, shaking his head. “What makes you think I have the answers?”

  When I touched his arm, he looked away. “Are you angry with me?”

  He sighed. His shoulders tightened, and he stepped away from me. “I have a solution, but you won’t like it.”

  “If it gets me away from Jett, I’ll do anything.”

  He glanced at me slowly. His eyes were intense, full of an indefinable emotion. “I never wanted this. Why did you have to be so …” He lowered his gaze.

  I closed the distance between us. “What?”

  He looked around the room warily, his gaze darting to every corner. “This is not the place to talk. Were you serious about leaving?”

  “I’m not going to wait for one of them to take me. I just hope I’m not as easy to find now.”

  He opened his mouth, as if to speak, frowned and closed it again. “Why wouldn’t you be?”

  I held out my hand. The fire in the ruby glinted as he pulled my fingers closer.

  “That’s a nice ring; very pretty, in fact.” He gazed at me through fringed lashes. His eyes blazed with intensity. “But what could it possibly do to protect you?”

  My skin was hot under his touch. “It’s supposed to dampen my signal. Whatever that means.”

  He dropped my fingers, as though shocked. “Look. I need to do something. Don’t go anywhere without me. I need to check on a few things before we can make any sort of plan.”

  Cassie came barreling into our room just as he walked out. Her eyes followed Zach out of the room. She nodded toward him. “What’s wrong with him?” She took one look at me and asked, “What happened?”

  “I’m fine. I just —”

  She gave me a knowing look. “There’s no point in lying. Why don’t you want to tell me?”

  Tears welled in my eyes. I batted them away angrily. “Is my life ever going to be normal?”

  Her face stilled. “No.” She sat beside me. “It can’t ever be again. You know about them, Rayla. More importantly, they know about you.”

  I sniffled. “I should have gone to Snow. I should have listened to Aunt Grace. I should have —”

  She stopped me with a hand on my shoulder. “The past is gone. I honestly don’t know if we can stop what’s in motion now, but we can try. Don’t give up.”

  Simple words: where was the substa
nce to back them? I was tired of worrying about the little things. I was tired period. “I’m not.”

  “Rayla.”

  I lowered my gaze from her intense stare. “I’ve had a really bad day. I just need some rest, okay?” I didn’t want to talk about my encounters with the lords yet. I needed some time to get my new reality clear in my head.

  She smiled kindly. “I’m going to Mass with Natalie. I’ll be back before dinner.”

  I shuffled toward the comfort of my bed. “Sounds good.”

  I lay down. I wasn’t supposed to be alone, but I didn’t know what else to do.

  . . . . .

  I woke to a loud banging sound and staggered to the door. Natalie was in hysterics. “Get your shoes!”

  “What’s going on?”

  “Cassie’s been hurt. The ambulance is taking her to the hospital now.”

  “Ambulance?”

  She shoved shoes that weren’t mine at me. “Hurry, Rayla.”

  . . . . .

  I drove. Natalie sat rigid in the seat beside me.

  “How bad is she?” I asked warily.

  My mind raced at the possibilities. The sun blazed above us, as if in direct opposition to my unsettled mood. What had I been thinking coming here? Why had I thought I could live a normal life?

  Natalie shifted uncomfortably. She reached out and turned on the heater. “I’m not sure. She was unresponsive when the EMTs started working on her.”

  She seemed really calm for someone who witnessed what sounded like a horrible accident. I tried to reel my anger in because I knew this wasn’t her fault. “What the heck happened?”

  She grimaced, staring at the floorboard. “We were on our way back to the dorm. Cassie invited me to get something to eat with you guys.”

  “I stopped to wait for her at the top of the stairs. Her foot was almost on the last step when she gasped and yelled something weird.” She looked over at me. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. “Then, she was falling backward. I raced toward her, but I was too late to stop her. She hit her head really hard on the landing. I got them to her as fast as I could.” She started sobbing, gasping for air. “I’m so sorry. I don’t know what happened. It was like someone pushed her, but nothing was there.”