“You’re late.” I smiled.
“Think of it as a chance to practice patience.” He threaded his fingers with mine and delicious warmth traveled up my arm.
“Well, thanks for the save — again. What is that, number three?”
“Four." His eyes locked on mine.
“Right.” I laughed.
“Not that you looked like you needed saving.”
Was that a hint of jealousy?
“I figured Julien would monopolize you all evening if he had the chance. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to persuade you to dance with me.
The intensity in his voice made my knees weak. “You thought you would have to persuade me? Dancing with you gives me another chance to ask questions.”
“Of course,” he mused. “I see you met Taryn.”
“Yes, I did. Although, one doesn’t exactly meet Taryn, so much as orbit her.” My chest throbbed. I wanted her to be right about his feelings for me.
He laughed. “What did she say?”
“She told me I should stay away from you.” I met his gaze head on. I didn’t think I’d ever be brave enough to tell him the rest of her theories.
“Well… she’s probably right.”
I stared, amazed, as his gaze dropped to the floor. Spasms of fear shot through me, fueled by memories of his hostility a few days ago. Part of me felt disappointment at the idea maybe they were both right, but the overwhelming security I felt when I was with him pushed it away. He could never be a threat. This had to be something else.
“So are you going to?” he asked, slicing through my thoughts.
“Going to what?”
He moved closer. I froze, my breath catching in my throat.
“Stay away from me?”
“I-I’m not sure if that’s an option.” I swallowed, forcing myself to stay calm. “Given the circumstances.”
He blew out a long breath. A million different emotions crossed his face before he looked away.
The music dropped into a melodic lilting tune, sounding vaguely like the Celtic love songs Neil played in the kitchen at Lemon Balm. It made my chest tighten just thinking about home.
“Here, I have something for you.” Adrius held out a tiny box similar to the first one he’d given me.
“Another gift? What’s the occasion this time?”
“Does there have to be a reason for everything with you?”
I didn’t know what to say, so I let him place the box in my hand. This time, when I opened it, the contents startled me. Pulsing in a bed of moss was the most exquisite oval charm. The center was an opal and it was coiled with silver tendrils. As I stared at the charm something shifted, and the center of the stone became an eye, crimson and lidless. I gasped nearly dropping it.
Adrius made eye contact with Hawthrin across the room and exchanged a subtle nod. “It’s hard to explain to someone who doesn’t believe in prophecy.” He smirked. “But essentially this charm can only be activated by the Chosen One. And it gives the wearer the gift of insight. It’s called the Inner Eye.”
I gawked at it like he’d given me a live tarantula. “What do you want me to do with it?”
“Trust me. Just try it.” With deftly moving fingers, he attached the charm in place on the silvery chain, where it nestled at the base of my throat. A surge of warmth radiated from it, causing my chest to flush with blotches of redness.
“Don’t worry,” he said, stroking my flaming skin. “That reaction won’t last. It’s the energy realigning yours. Now, listen.”
I squinted with pursed lips, but tried to do what he instructed, not sure what I was supposed to hear. At first there was the usual party noise, laughter, music, tinkling glasses. But then I listened deeper, and there were voices… but not words, thoughts. I’d been able to see pain in people for years, but it was never like this. This was a front seat in the minds of everyone around me. I looked into his eyes and as clearly as if he’d spoken them aloud I heard. You are so incredibly beautiful this evening. I smiled, embarrassment flooding my face and slipped the necklace off. “That’s… wow—” I didn’t know how to finish. “Thank you.”
“It is something that may prove useful, until you’ve come into your own powers as a seer. And it evens the playing field a little. Direct eye contact amplifies and tunes in to thoughts.” He touched my hand. “Keep it on. You’ll get used to turning it on and off at will. The same way you can keep people out of your thoughts at will.” Then he grinned and the thoughts I could hear so clearly, faded away.
A provocative drumbeat caught our attention as the music shifted, deepening into a slow sultry rhythm. Adrius held out his hand. “Now, would you like to dance?”
“Um, sure.” I laughed nervously, crooking an eyebrow at the hordes of couples already swaying and grinding on the packed dance floor, pressed up against one another in sensual tango-like moves.
Taking my hand, he led us past the crowded dance floor, out onto the balcony, under the balmy starlit night. Rows of yellow-flamed torches flickered to the slow beat of the music. He twirled me under his arm toward him, in a classic ballroom dance move.
“Impressive,” I said, wishing I’d taken Mom up on it when she’d pushed me to take dance lessons. “But not enough to distract me from my mission of getting answers.”
He drew me in tighter. Close enough to hear the rhythmic thudding of his heart. Or was it mine? His fingers trailed down the length of my spine, stopping at the small of my back.
I shivered.
“Really?” There was a sparkle of amusement in his voice. “That sounds like a challenge.”
“Bring it,” I muttered, already finding it difficult to think clearly.
Spinning me around so my back pressed into his chest, his fingers splayed across my abdomen, pinning me to him as his hips rotated slowly to the music.
"Are you still thinking of your questions?" he murmured against my neck.
Tiny goose bumps spread across my skin under the tickle of his breath.
"Uh-huh."
He lifted my arm up to graze the back of his neck, then with a feather light touch, his fingertips traced the length, under my arm, tricking down my ribs. "What about now?"
“Unfair.” I gasped. My arm floated down involuntarily.
“What do you mean?”
“I can’t think clearly when you do that.
With another sharp twirl, I was facing him again, his arms locked around my waist. “You mean this?” He anchored his hand under my thigh, drawing my leg around his hip as he dipped me back in a deep plunge. His nose swept the arc of my body then he pressed his lips to the hollow of my throat. My breath hitched as he placed the briefest kiss, before pulling me upright.
“Yes,” I exhaled, breathless. “That.”
He laughed, taking pleasure in the strange effect he had on me. It was like the dizziness of Faerie wine, only so much better. He was a far more skillful dancer than his brother, leading me in ways that totally camouflaged my own total ineptness.
Julien watched from the sideline. His scowl deepened, then he twisted on his heels, marched to the bar, and ordered several flaming drinks in crystal shot glasses. The satyr lined them up in front of him, and he downed one after another.
I rolled my eyes. “He needs to drink just in case we didn’t already know he was bad?”
Adrius gave a dark laugh and shrugged. “Classic Julien. It’ll be even more amusing when he’s too drunk to find the door.”
He twirled me under his arm again.
“It is so amazing in here. Like a scene from a movie.”
“You need to get out more,” he said with a dark chuckle.
“Hey, I get out plenty, thank you very much.” Not that I’d gone to many dances. I had taken Davin to Abby’s brother’s wedding. We danced and laughed for hours before taking off at midnight to hang out at the beach. Those were in his pre-Brianne days. That night had been one of my best memories, but it didn’t come close to touching this one, being here in a fantasy place, tucked in the arms of a fairytale prince.
“Where did you learn to dance like this?”
Adrius spun me away from him in a graceful pirouette that made me look like I knew what I was doing. Layers of iridescent chiffon twirled around my legs, as he pulled me back into his arms.
“I’ll tell you a secret, but you have to promise not to laugh.” He sounded serious.
“I promise.”
“I can’t dance.” His face was deadpan.
“You’re not serious.”
“At all,” he whispered.
I pulled back to look into his eyes, certain he was joking.
With arched brows, he nodded. “It’s true. I took endless lessons from Hawthrin as a boy, and again from tutors in the village Amourent, where we attended what you’d call school. My father decided it was unacceptable for his sons to not be skilled in all the finer social graces, so he insisted they find a way to teach me.”
He twirled me under his arm.
“But it was hopeless, I had two left feet. Julien has always been more apt at things like that. He has a talent for the social refinement, in spite of his sociopathic tendencies.” His laugh was bitter.
“So what happened?” I asked, catching sight of Julien roaming his hands over the girls hitting on him earlier.
“They were running out of time and patience, with one teacher giving up after another, and I still was no further along than when I began. It didn’t help I had no interest in learning. But the instructors were terrified of my father’s wrath, so they consulted with the high order of the witches to spell a potion.
“A dancing spell?” I fought back a giggle.
“This is the first time I’ve really put it to use since it was cast. Glad you think it is working.” He smiled, his amber-olive eyes reflecting the warm candle flicker.
“Hmm… Magic… Very useful.” A small snicker escaped.
“You promised no laughing, remember!”
“Sorry.” I lowered my voice to sound artificially somber. “I am deeply sorry for your challenge. Actually, I can empathize. Social graces have never been my thing either.”
“You, the Faerie Princess… the Chosen One, who captures all the panting puppy-dog-eyes of hormone-riddled, human boys… lack social graces? I disagree. You obviously do not see yourself the way others see you.”
How do you see me, Adrius? I searched his face, desperate for the answer to a question I’d never have the nerve to ask.
We waltzed away from the archway leading to the hall, the humid twilight air caressing my exposed back, as we danced under the blanket of a starlit sky.
“May I be the hundredth one to tell you how beautiful you look?”
“Technically you’d be the second. But I appreciate the thought. I kind of feel like Cinderella.” I laughed.
“A fairytale for a Faerie Princess. Seems fitting.”
“Let’s see… wicked great aunt, check. Handsome prince, check. No fairy godmother, but I do have a wizard. Now if I can get my hands on a pumpkin coach and a glass slipper…”
“I’ll see what I can do.” He laughed.
As we moved in each other’s arms, a sudden cold chill ran through me. It was the sensation that we were being watched. From the corner of my eye I saw something move against the dark shadows of the trees. In a place where trees could move, it seemed silly to be concerned, but the chill I felt wasn’t going away, rational or not. It darted through the tree tops, invisible in the darkness, yet I could make out a vague silhouette of wings… but the span was too large for a bird. I drew closer to Adrius, who either didn’t notice or was unconcerned.
I was going to mention what I saw, or didn’t see, but decided against it, not wanting to give him yet another thing to tease me about. Everyone already joked I jumped at my own shadow when something went bump in the night. And here in Mythlandria, something always went bump in the night.
I’m not sure if it was the night air or the stars or the crazy fireworks exploding inside me, but when the song ended and Adrius led us to the bar on the veranda, a burning question came to mind, and with an unprecedented act of bravery, I forced myself to spit it out.
“This may sound crazy,” I said as he ordered two electric blue drinks with floating petals. “But what’s with the static charge I get anytime you touch me?” The second the words were out of my mouth I felt like an idiot and my cheeks flushed with heat.
Adrius scanned my probably bright red face and held back a grin. “It’s the frequency difference between immortals and humans. But lucky for you, you’re only half human. Otherwise, my touch might fry you like that.” He snapped his fingers.
I couldn’t tell if he was joking or actually serious. “So, if I were to, say, lean in and kiss you—”
“You want to kiss me?” His eyes lit with wicked amusement.
“Hypothetically speaking,” I countered, my pulse accelerating.
“Alright.” His mouth twitched into a faint smirk. “Well, hypothetically, it would be like a mild electric shock… not strong enough to stop your heart, but you would definitely feel it.
“I see.”
His face inched closer. He didn’t make any move to touch me, yet my skin tingled from the nearness of him.
“Basically, you’re saying it would be a bad idea then,” I said, tilting my face upwards.
He shook his head from side to side but mouthed, “Yes.” His gaze dropped to my lips.
Lifting onto my toes, I bit my lower lip to settle my swirling stomach. “Guess I should stay away,” I murmured.
“Mmm hmm…”
His head tilted forward and his lips lightly brushed mine. It didn’t last long, but in that swift moment thinking became impossible and a million tiny sparks surged over my skin like fireworks. Wasn’t sure if I was glowing, but I felt like I was.
“Like I said — bad idea.” He exhaled, and I could taste the sweetness of his breath.
“I think I was the one who said…” He leaned down and kissed me again before I could finish, his hands resting on my waist.
I felt the explosive warmth as an electric current rippled through me, heightening my senses. I pressed into him, opening to the sensation. My heart didn’t stop. In fact, it was doing the exact opposite, racing faster than humanly possible. The air filled with his scent and a sharp buzzing echoed in my ears as I arched backward.
A few seconds or an eternity later, he pulled away, breaking the current snapping between us.
I gasped and staggered forward, limp in his arms.
“Are you alright?”
He sounded worried. Why did he sound worried? His kiss was amazing. But… maybe mine wasn’t.
“I’m… I’m…” I wanted to say I was fine. Better than fine. And that the only thing wrong was that he stopped kissing me. But the words wouldn’t come out. I couldn’t catch my breath and that buzzing wasn’t going away. Why was it so loud?
“I knew this wasn’t a good idea.” Regret coated his voice, and I was immediately wracked by guilt because his conscience was bothering him and I didn’t want him to feel bad. Not after something so incredible. The kiss was my idea, in spite of knowing the incredibly real consequences. My fingers and toes were numb to prove it.
“Lorelei.” His voice was agonized now. “Say something. Please.” He stroked my hair, bearing my full weight effortlessly against him.
“I’m fine… just need… catch my breath… make the buzzing stop.”
I drew in a shaky breath, my lips still quivering from the touch of his.
The buzzing was fading and I could feel my fingers again. I lifted my head, and met with olive eyes full of concern.
“Wow. You weren’t kidding,” I managed, with a weak smile. I’d never been kissed before, so I didn’t really have anything to compare it to. But I doubted kissing a regular guy could ever come close to this. It was so worth the lightning zap. Absently, I reached up to make sure my hair wasn’t standing on end. It was the only part of me not tingling. Maybe I did watch too many movies, I decided, lowering my hand.
“So much for hypothetical…” He grinned and handed me my drink.
I returned his smile, making a mental note to cancel my spy mission with Taryn. That kiss told me more than her plan ever could.
The band struck up a recognizable chord. The familiar melody to “No Return” swelled from the bizarre instruments. I narrowed my gaze and Adrius winked.
“A special request,” he said then pulled me close as he sang the words in my ear.
Hearing it again brought mixed emotions. I was afraid he’d wonder why I wasn’t singing with him, and I’d have to explain the embarrassing and terrifying run-in with the green Faerie and Redcaps, but that fear had little time to manifest.
Julien leaned against the door frame, eyeing us. I averted my gaze when our eyes met. There were enough potential saboteurs to my wonderful evening, no need to ruin things by giving him any incentive to join us. I’d hoped he would walk away, or find someone else to annoy. But that would have been asking too much. It was Julien after all. Gauging by his slight sway, he’d done one too many shots of something at the bar.
“Perfect,” I muttered under my breath as he sauntered toward us, a determined grin plastered on his face.
“I think you’ve hoarded her long enough, brother. Perhaps she might like the opportunity to dance with someone else for a change. Or are you already taking away her right to choose?”
Adrius winced, his eyes darkening. I looked from one brother to the other, wondering what sort of code they were speaking. I could hear their words but the meaning was lost on me. I tried that inner listening the necklace was supposed to help with, but elves were master seers by nature and kept their thoughts well-guarded.
But Julien’s comment meant something to Adrius who tensed and dropped his arms from my waist. He pivoted to confront Julien.
My stomach flipped. I had an uncomfortable feeling about the tension in the air. Stepping toward Julien, I lifted my chin and spoke firmly.
“No one is making choices for me. I choose to dance with Adrius. And I choose not to dance with you.”
Julien’s smirk grew wider, his eyes still glued to his brother’s. “She actually believes that? How fascinating. Wonder how long it will last.”
Adrius’s cool detached manner crumbled and he stepped closer to Julien, their faces a few inches apart. “I suggest you leave — Now,” he snarled in a voice almost too quiet to hear.
Julien lithely stepped aside, just out of arm’s reach. “Clearly you’ve spent too much time with those Neanderthal humans,” he admonished in his typical mocking tone. “They’ve dulled your senses, including your sense of humor.”
Adrius turned to me. “Let’s go, Lorelei.”
“And don’t get me going on your confrontational attitude. Tsk tsk. What would your mother say?” Julien shook his head disapprovingly. “If she were alive to say anything, that is.”
Adrius inhaled a ragged breath. His eyes filled with a rage that sent a pang of terror down my spine.
In a move so quick I didn’t see it, Adrius was in front of Julien, grabbing him by the shirt and pulling him closer. “If you ever mention her again, I will kill you.”
Like lightning his hand clamped around a thin bladed sword. He thrust it against his brother’s throat.
I gasped. “Adrius, no!”
The brothers stood frozen in place, eyes locked, neither one backing away, Adrius enraged, Julien somehow amused.
“Don’t do this. You’re brothers!” I begged, my voice rising an octave.
Adrius released him and stepped back, opening his arms to the side in an invitation. For a moment I thought they were listening to me. But as I watched, my panic swelled.
“Need a minute?” Adrius said, his expression unwavering. He circled him, lifting the point of his sword and aiming it between Julien’s eyes. “I can wait.”
“I’m ready any time you are.” A split second later Julien’s hands were wrapped around the hilt of a similar sword, holding it relaxed by his side, a dark smirk in his eyes.
Adrius crouched in a battle stance ready to attack. They stalked like animals in the wild, feral and savage. Adrius barely saw the roundhouse kick coming in time to leap back. Julien’s foot swept past his face within millimeters. I gasped.
Adrius attacked, driving his sword at his brother’s ribs, while Julien was coming out of the spin. He recovered, leaping away with a taunting laugh. “You cannot win this, Adrius, I am faster and far more experienced.”
“I can still take you apart.” He growled. In a flurry of movement difficult to see, he lunged, his blade catching Julien’s.
I cringed at the screaming of steel scraping against steel. Julien thrust his blade at his brother’s chest. With the twist of his wrist, Adrius deflected it in perfect timing.
Mouth agape, I stood helplessly, as the two engaged in a fight that was as lethal as it was beautiful to watch — a choreographed dance to the death. I couldn’t breathe. Paralyzed with fright, I watched wide-eyed as they lunged at one another with blurring speed, leaping lithely out of the striking range of the blade. The barbaric clang of cold steel, the two lunged and parried, dodging skillfully away from the other’s attack. Adrius spun around, and for a fraction of a second his eyes met mine. He lost his footing and stumbled. Julien pointed the tip of his sword at his throat, sighting down the length of the blade, his eyes narrowed. Panting, they glared eye to eye, as Julien pressed his blade into his brother’s skin. A trickle of blood leaked from a tiny incision.
“Julien, please,” I said softly, as the smell of rust and salt rocked my stomach. “You don’t want to do this.”
I wanted to run to him and place my hand over his wound to heal it, but the air was closing in on me and I sank to my knees to keep from collapsing.
“Just stop.” The words had only but left my lips when a thunderous crack shot through the sky. The sound was deafening, too loud to be thunder. It was followed by a rolling rumble that shook the ground where we stood. For a moment, I was too frightened to be nauseous. I stared up at the night sky. Tiny white flecks were drifting to the ground. The air felt cooler, as though the temperature had dropped by several degrees. Goose bumps raised on my arms. Another crack ripped through the night, its booming echo ricocheting throughout the darkness. The small white specks were falling heavier now, collecting on the ground in a fine powder. I held out my hand to collect some. It was snow. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, it was snowing, and getting heavier by the moment. Even the feuding brothers took notice, setting aside their duel to scrutinize the bizarre change in weather.
“Unbelievable,” Adrius spat, sheathing his sword abruptly. It collapsed to a third of its original size. He leapt to his feet moving swiftly to the balcony’s edge. The winds picked up. Swirling snow whipped around making it difficult to see. My open-toed sandals were blanketed in snow, and uncontrollable chills wracked my body.
Adrius glanced over at me. “Go inside,” he ordered.
Stubbornly I refused. “What’s happening? Where is all of this coming from?”
“Lorelei, please…” he implored.
“It’s the Ice Witch,” Julien replied, ignoring his brother. “She’s coming.”
Adrius shot his brother an angry look.
“She deserves to know. She is the Chosen One after all.” Julien surveyed me with a serious gaze. “She likes it cold. It makes her travels more comfortable.”
I blanched. “She’s coming here? But why? Why now?” Fearful knots wormed their way into my stomach, as I struggled to understand.
This time it was Adrius who replied. “She’s testing. Seeing if you have developed any of your powers yet, how strong you are. Trying to see how far she can push things. We aren’t in any real danger. Not yet. This is nothing compared to what she’s capable of.” He had to shout over the roar of the winds.
Torrents of snow whipped around us in the maelstrom. If this was only a sample of her fury, what would they do when she unleashed her full power? I shuddered, and realized they actually meant we… what would we do? If I really was their Chosen One, then their fate was my fate. Scarier still, was the knowledge I had no idea what I would do.
A sudden flurry of activity and the sound of raised voices caught our attention. Hawthrin and the king stormed outside, followed by several knights. I recognized some of them as Elven guards of the Citadel. They held back the panicked crowd, urging them to remain inside.
The king glanced briefly at our trio, taking in his sons’ disheveled appearances and blood-stained sleeves before turning his full attention on the wizard. Hawthrin was standing at the edge of the veranda, staring calmly into the sky, his lips moving silently.
“What is he doing?” I whispered.. I felt like a kid in school, talking when I wasn’t supposed to be.
Adrius moved closer, his arm protectively wrapped around my waist. “He’s summoning. It’s an incantation to counter the witch’s magic.”
“Will that stop her?”
He looked down at me, his face grave. “No, Lorelei. Only you can do that.” My stomach did that familiar flip-flop thing.
The wizard’s chanting grew louder, his baritone resonance filling the skies. Brilliant blue bolts of lightning shot through the darkness, emanating from his staff held high in the air. Gusts of wind blew at a furious pace, whipping the powdery flakes into a blinding frenzy. Warm air hit cold, producing hail the size of gravel. Icy wet pellets stung my face and the wind-chill plummeted to sub-freezing temperatures. Wave after wave of shivers wracked my body and not just from the cold. Although I was freezing I could not tear myself away from the amazing scene. Not even the promise of warmth from the glowing fire-lit hall mere steps away was enough to draw me from the scene. Adrius noticed my trembling. Without a word he removed his jacket and placed it around my bare shoulders. I felt the warmth of his body heat immediately as it blended with his intoxicating scent. I snuggled deeper into it, letting the heat revive my numb limbs.
Watching me curiously, he shook his head. “You know, you could just go inside.”
“N-n-no,” I stuttered through chattering teeth. “I h-h-have to see wh-what’s going on.”
“You’re so stubborn,” he replied, with a half-smile.
The party watched as the wizard fought the elements, sending the blizzard into a violent twister. Agonizing shrieks screamed through the night, as if the winds themselves were in unspeakable agony. I was glued to the electric neon display. Riveted in horror and wonder, I huddled closer to Adrius with every blue flash that lit up the darkness. With an agonizing howl, the spell broke and in a voracious reverse vacuum, every particle was sucked violently back into the sky. It was quiet. Surrounded once more in darkness, the balmy night air engulfed us as if it had never left. Not a trace of the wintry weather remained. Every last flake was vanquished from sight. The howling winds had subsided, leaving in their place an eerie silence. Almost too quiet.
The moment didn’t last long before the doors to the veranda were thrown open and the jubilant cheers rang out. Taryn rushed over, her eyes wide as she looked me over.
“Mythlandria has never seen snow before now. Are you alright? How could you bear to be in the midst of the Ice Witch’s storm? Didn’t you find the cold unbearable?” She stared at me still cloaked in Adrius’s jacket with a mixture of wonder and suspicion.
“I’m used to the snow, so it really wasn’t that bad,” I lied. Drearyton saw its fair share of blustery weather but nothing close to this experience. Taryn shot Adrius a quick glance. “Oh, of course,” she said quietly.
Adrius kept glancing at the door, like he was searching for something or someone. He’d been at my side most of the evening, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be searching for someone else. This whole world of theirs was crawling with pretty faces. Then his expression hardened. He clamped onto my hand and led me through the crowd toward the railing while my heart raced to the staccato beat of the music. I pushed back my hair, damp from the melted snow, as he flagged a nearby server. The servant disappeared and then returned with a garment in his arms, which he handed to Adrius.
"Here. Put this on." Adrius held up a crimson, hooded, velvety robe encrusted with glittering diamonds. “I’ll be right back.”
“What is it?” I asked, holding it like it was a ticking bomb.
“Just… stay here.” Then he pushed his way through the masses without a backward glance, disappearing in the swarm.
Taryn looked at me with both brows raised, but I could only shrug. She fingered the robe inquisitively. “…The Cloak of Ana.”
“Who?” I frowned.
“The Faerie queen who lived in an enchanted mountain castle, until fortunes changed and she one day met with the king of the demons, and from then on, her body and soul belonged to him.” She blinked at me. “Surely you’ve heard of it?”
I shook my head and handed her the cape. “Keep it for me, will you? Thanks. I need to find Adrius.”
The throng around me grew denser. Apparently everyone was more interested in how I survived the storm than anything else. More and more curious beings fired questions in rapid succession, to which I repeated the same feeble explanation I gave Taryn.
“But how could you withstand it, being of the bloodline of the summer faeries?” A crumpled woman persisted. It was the kind of question to which there was no answer. I still hadn’t come to terms with any of that. Shifting uncomfortably, I craned my neck to search for Adrius. But he had disappeared among the mob of leaping and gyrating bodies. Apparently nothing smacks a party into high gear in Mythlandria like the cold hand of danger. The music pulsed with a frenetic beat, and despite the lateness of the evening, there was no sign of the festivities winding down.
I excused myself, dodging further questions with one lame excuse after another. Winding my way down the staircase, I wandered into the garden. It was calmer there, only a few couples littered among the trees — lovers enjoying the moonlight once more, now that the threat was over.As I walked along the manicured path, I deeply inhaled the warm fragrant air. I tried not to make my search obvious, but I wanted to find Adrius. I had to know what happened to the Ice Witch. Eventually I came to a round stone patio, from which branched four different paths. Perched on the edge of the surrounding stone wall, I took a moment to soak up the night air and the warmth that was only now returning to my toes. I kicked off my spike-heeled strappy sandals and bent down to massage life back into one partially defrosted foot.
It was the sudden cold gust of wind that stopped me. I slipped my shoes back on and stood motionless. The Ice Witch… She was back, and this time I was alone. Unprotected against whatever she might attempt. Panic rose in the pit of my stomach, and I scanned for a safe place to hide. Not that that would do any good. She was a witch. Any shelter I came up with would be transparent to her.
But what came next I was completely unprepared for. Had I not already been so freaked out I might have lost it completely. A being, terrifying and beautiful descended in front of me, a black feathered wingspan blocking all light from the moon and stars. There was nothing but his presence as he walked toward me in a blinding white glow that outlined his blackened frame. I sucked in a breath of cool thyme-scented air as his porcelain-like face came into focus.