Chapter Seventeen

 

Adrius sat next to me on the couch, his arm draped across the back. We had a couple of unsupervised hours after school before Mom returned from her rehearsals, and I made sure we took advantage of every opportunity to be together alone.

My cell rang but I ignored it. “Probably just Abby or Brianne,” I said.

“More scheming?” Adrius asked, still amused by their suspicious behavior at school.

“Sorry, I’m not at liberty to say.”

“I see. Then maybe I better head out and let you have at it.” He laughed.

I twirled a lock of hair around my finger. “Completely unnecessary,” I told him. “We still have another ten minutes. Plenty of time for you to spill what went down with you and Zanthiel.”

Adrius smiled. “Sorry. Not at liberty to say.” He leaned in to kiss me, but then leaned right past, and his hand reached for something behind me. He drew back and examined the stone cradled in his hand.

Frowning, I looked at it. I’d forgotten it was there, but I remembered where it had come from.

His stony eyes drifted up to mine. “This is Faerie ice,” he spoke in a somber tone. “Zanthiel’s been here.”

It was a statement, not a question. Apparently he knew where it had come from as well.

My gaze pulled away from the stone, back to his. “Yes, he was.”

I wanted Adrius to know everything, and my stomach still clenched a little where Zanthiel was concerned. But in the spirit of full disclosure I went with a direct answer.

“He gave it to me when I returned from Mythlandria. I was sick, and— he made me soup.” It wasn’t a memory I enjoyed thinking about. When his expression sharpened, I felt a flicker of irritation. “You remember, just after you tossed me out of your world and left me to wander in the cold, wet forest all night long?” I added.

It came out harsher than I meant and Adrius withdrew as though I’d slapped him. His face softened and flooded with remorse.

“You were there all night?” he whispered. Pain lingered in his gaze.

“Most of it.” I shrugged. “Long enough to catch a cold.”

He stared at his hands.

“It was my own fault— at least partially. I knew I was home, I was just— trying to find my way back to you.”

“And Zanthiel took care of you.”

I nodded. The pale green quartz-like chunk of Faerie ice was meant to be a souvenir of sorts, but I’d left it on the table and forgotten about it, not wanting any reminders of what I’d lost.

Adrius swallowed and remained silent for a time. “Lorelei, I love you. And with that love comes all of my trust. But—” he paused and stared into the corner of the room, jaw muscles flinching rapidly.

“But what?” I urged, touching his face and losing myself for a moment in the depth of his eyes. “What is it?”

“I should think it'd be obvious, especially to you.”

I flinched.

His face twisted with regret over the sharp bite of his words, but we were both too preoccupied to address it.

I nodded. “You think I'm in love with Zanthiel, is that it? Because we shared... a kiss. Not even a romantic kiss. A kiss I had to accept to save your kingdom from Octãhvia.” A kiss that was all pain and no pleasure.

“I'm not blind, Lorelei. Your connection to him grows. I see it every time I look at you.” The anger in his voice had been replaced by hurt. “I don't care about what happened before. That’s past. I care about what’s going to happen next.”

“Nothing is going to happen. Not with him.”

“Are you sure that is what you want? I've told you before, promises made in times of heightened emotions are sometimes hard to be kept.”

“I want you. Forever. Why are you suddenly so unsure of that?”

He frowned and pulled his hand through his hair. "I'm not. I apologize. It's just sometimes I forget that a bond does not dictate your heart."

"No more than yours does toward Venus," I said quietly. His hand stilled. "If that should ever change, I want you to promise me you will tell me."

"Of course, but I can promise you with just as much certainty it won't change. I'm in control of my future and my feelings. And I'm very clear about what’s real and what’s an illusion."

"Good."

The word implied the matter was settled, but it was clear in his eyes that it wasn't.

I kissed him, hoping my feelings were as clear to him as they were to me. I pulled back, dizzy from the intense electricity between us. His eyes had changed and I knew we really were good.

Message received.

There was so much history between them, yet the animosity they had for one another showed no signs of the close friendship they’d once shared.

“What happened between you too?” I didn’t know what to expect. The question had been met with pure hostility when I brought it up with Zanthiel. But Adrius and I were different. He wasn’t as afraid to share the parts of himself he used to keep hidden away.

With a heavy sigh he rose and walked to the window. “It was so long ago now…”

“That much I already know.” I smiled to ease the heaviness, but he didn’t return it.

“Her name was Isobel. She was good and kind and sweet.“ He looked over his shoulder at me, pushing the hair from his forehead. “A lot like you.”

I bristled. Who could blame me? No one wants to be compared to any girl from her boyfriend’s past, even if that past was decades ago. Could be worse. He could have been comparing me to Venus. I stifled the pangs of jealousy and braced myself for answers. “So what happened to her?”

“She died.” He turned slowly, staring into my eyes with an intensity that unnerved me. “The same day Venus was created.”

Bile rose in my throat and I couldn’t breathe or swallow or blink. I think I gasped, but I’m not sure how.

“What do you mean... created?”

Adrius stiffened, his entire body becoming deathly still. In silence he waited for his words to sift through my levels of understanding. Even as the questions were forming on my tongue, realization dawned. I already knew the sickening answer. “Isobel…” I could barely get the words out. If it hadn’t been painfully quiet in the house he never would have heard me. “She’s… Venus?”

He nodded slowly, never taking his eyes from mine. “Used to be. They are no more the same person now than… you and Venus.”

“No way.” I washed both hands over my face as I slumped back onto the couch. Frozen. Unable to process. Was this what shock felt like? “H-how? How is that even possible?” I whispered.

“Zanthiel was devastated by what happened. He couldn’t live without her. He used necromancy, black magic to bring her back to life. But dark magic always comes with a price. And the being he brought back was not Isobel. She bore no resemblance to her whatsoever. Her polar opposite, in fact.”

None of this was digesting. I kept turning his words over and over in my mind, and they made less and less sense each time. Adrius and Zanthiel, in love with the same girl? And that girl was Venus. I didn’t want to hear any more, I was still reeling from what I’d already heard, but I couldn’t keep from asking one more question.

“How did she die?”

He was scanning my face, trying to read what was going on in my head. But my thoughts were on lockdown. I couldn’t let him in if I tried. And letting him in was the last thing I wanted to do right now.

“This doesn’t change anything. It was a long time ago. And Zanthiel has paid the price for his decision,” he spoke with such heaviness it made my chest hurt. “We all are.”

“Tell me. I need to know.”

“There was— an accident during a battle.”

He said it carefully. Too carefully. Something about it gave me chills.

“She didn’t survive.”

“And who lost her… you or Zanthiel?” I asked, unable to bear hearing the answer.

“Lorelei.” He crossed the room to sit next to me. Then cupped my face in his hands. “None of that matters. All that matters is that I’m not going to lose you. Not to Zanthiel, or my father, or Venus.”

He pressed his lips to the top of my head. When I stiffened, his hands slipped away from my cheeks, leaving them cold and exposed.

“We’ll find a way to undo the magic sealing the veil. And if I cannot get rid of Venus, I will find a way to kill her myself.”

“You can’t kill her. It would be suicide,” I said quietly.

He sighed. “She won’t win. And this time her death won’t be accidental. We don’t need to talk about this anymore right now,” he said.

The fierce, quiet determination I’d come to know so well had returned to his voice. But talking about it was exactly what I needed to do. Questions lined up one after another, demanding to be answered.

My eyes narrowed. “What caused the accident? Whose fault was it?” There were always frustrating holes in every story.

Adrius moved closer to me and my hand stretched out to hold him back. It didn’t work. “You know it will always be you, Lorelei. Right?”

I didn’t respond. I knew what he was trying to do. “That’s not an answer. And I can’t believe you never told me this before.”

“There was never any reason to. It’s in the past. Over.”

“It’s not that over considering she’s here now, trying to get you back,” I bristled.

He frowned, debating whether to say any more. “There is one more thing you should know,” he said. “Zanthiel did not bring Venus back on his own. He had help. Very powerful help.”

“From who?”

An engine rumbled in the driveway and then cut off. My mother was home. As per usual, her timing was perfect and she’d be less than impressed to find Adrius still here so late.

“I should go.” He didn’t seem the least bit bothered by her timing. His lips brushed mine and as their warmth flooded me, all further questions faded to the background, leaving me fully immersed in this moment.

When he pulled away he gave me a soft smile and I sighed. He’d won for now. He didn’t want me to ask anything else and he’d made sure I couldn’t. His kisses still had that dizzying brain freeze effect on me. But it was temporary, and this conversation was far from finished.

Adrius placed the stone in a drawer, shut it and then took my hand. The front door opened and Mom stepped in. She frowned.

“Nice to see you again, Ms. Alundra. I was just on my way home,” Adrius said. Despite how curt she was to him, he was always courteous to her.

She nodded, even managed a brief smile, probably at the fact that he was leaving, and made her way toward the kitchen.

I gave him an exasperated smile as I followed him to the door. “You know, just because you’re playing unfairly doesn’t mean we’re done here.”

He grinned. “I know. When it comes to questions you’re never done. I’ll be close by.”

My phone buzzed again, this time with a text. I picked it up and frowned. “It’s from Venus.” I held it up to show Adrius. “She wants us to meet her in the park tomorrow night.”

“Why?”

“Apparently there is something else she wants.”

He shook his head. “Let’s talk about it later. Ignore it for now.” With a quick kiss, he left.

I shut the door behind him. Just ignore it. Cause that would go over well.

“Lorelei, make sure you lock up. I’m heading up to bed,” Mom called out.

I slumped against the door. Funny how empty a house can suddenly feel, even though I wasn’t alone. It was good though. I wasn’t up to facing normal conversations with my mother to discuss the normal events of our day.

I stared at the text. Adrius said Venus was good once. I couldn’t picture it and didn’t want to. That she used to be a different version of herself explained how someone as amazing as Adrius could have fallen for someone like her. As for Zanthiel—well that was another question. He’d loved her too. Enough to summon dark necromancer magic to bring her back from death. I hadn’t found out everything, but there was one thing I knew. My guardian faerie was partly responsible for the murderous witch trying to kill me and everyone I loved.

That night, I knew Zanthiel would come, even before I summoned him. The connection between us would see to that. When I walked into my room, he was there by the window, staring out into the night. Despite expecting him, seeing him startled me.

I tossed a book at him and he caught it midair without looking up.

“Something on your mind?” He drawled. He was still focused on whatever had his attention out the window.

“Darn right I’ve got something on my mind. I’m going to let you have the benefit of the doubt and give you exactly sixty seconds to explain what this is all about before I completely lose it on you.”

Zanthiel turned his head and focused his hooded silver gaze on me. “I think you might be asking the wrong person.”

“I’m asking you. It’s true faeries can’t lie, right?”

“Yes.” He eyed me with his suspicious chrome gaze.

“Then I want the truth. Tell me what happened between you and Adrius and Venus. Or should I say Isobel?” I watched closely, waiting for his reaction, unsure of what it would be. Of course there wasn’t one. And there was no reply. I folded my arms and scowled. “I think the truth is the least you owe me. Considering it’s your fault Venus is alive and here to end my life.”

My words hit a nerve, because he came the closest I’ve ever seen him come to flinching.

I sighed. “I have to know, Zanthiel, why were you and Adrius ready to kill one another over her?”

He squinted his silver eyes and leaned back. “Have you considered the possibility that perhaps you cannot handle the truth? Most humans can’t.”

“I’m not really human, remember?”

“I remember.”

I dropped onto my bed and laid back, staring at the ceiling. There was more to this story, and I’d never be able to sleep until I’d heard it. All of it.

“Adrius told me some of the story. I want the rest from you.”

“I guess it’s to be expected that you think his version of events is the truth,” he said stonily.

“Are you saying there are two versions of the truth?”

“Isn’t there always?”

“Isn’t there this time?”

He laughed. “Be careful, Lorelei. These are the type of I-said-he-said games Venus used to play. The ones that ultimately led to her death.”

“And reincarnation,” I pressed, refusing to back down.

His laughter stopped. And he fixed me with a cold metallic stare. “So he told you more than I believed he would. The elf is braver than I thought. But I’m sure his version did not include how Isobel died.”

“He said she was killed during the war.”

Amusement crept back into his eyes. “That is when she died. Not how.”

“How about this for a change: you just drop the games and be straight with me. How did she die?”

Zanthiel pushed off the wall and moved next to my bed. He braced one hand on either side of my legs, caging me in as he leaned over to peer deep in my eyes.

“There was truth in the elf’s words. I was responsible for bringing Venus back to the living. A mistake I admit. But there is a part of the story he left out.”

His gaze skimmed over the thin white tank top I was wearing, before returning to my eyes. Then he straightened and moved away from by bed.

I sat up, drawing my knees under my chin.

“It was not the battle that took her life,” he said, his voice dropping a degree. “It was your boyfriend.”

I frowned. “Adrius killed her?”

“Is that all you are going to say? Would you have the same reaction had I told you I killed her?”

I chewed the pad of my thumb, then blew out a sigh. “We’ll never know. Right now all I know is she’s alive and you were responsible for that. With help. Who was it? A powerful necromancer?”

“A powerful faerie.”

“I see. She wants me to meet with her. Did you know that?”

“Her agenda hasn’t changed. She wants vengeance. She wants you dead,” Zanthiel replied. He perched on the armchair across from me and I swung around to face him.

“That’s not all she wants,” I said. “She also wants Adrius back.”

His mouth set in a grim line as he leaned back and crossed his long legs at the ankles. “Does it matter what else she wants? If she gets the first thing, you will be dead.”

“Yeah, well at least everyone else would be safe, and—”

“And, you will still be dead.”

Digesting what I saw in his eyes, I clutched a pillow to my chest. My mind summersaulted from question to question. The whole thing was exhausting. “That’s why we have to stop her.”

“She has to be stopped,” he agreed, “but your plan won’t work. The elf will not be able to stop her while he remains bound to her. Her power over him will only strengthen in our realm. If I help you, we do this my way. Agreed?”

I looked at him, and a ripple of dread spread in my chest. Doing things his way meant three things for sure. Danger, deceit and death. Lots of it. But he was right. The magical bond tying Adrius to Venus was strong. And though he’d fought it before, there was no telling if he’d be able to do it again. I’d promised Adrius time before I turned to Zanthiel for help, but time was running out. I had to trust him. Among the lives lost, I could see how determined he was that mine was not one of them.

So closing my eyes I nodded slowly, and resigned to place my fate in the hands of a Shadow faerie.

“Agreed.”