My phone had been buzzing the entire morning. Last thing I needed was another text from Brianne filling me in on Venus and Adrius. They’d been seen together more times than I could count over the past couple of days since our breakup. I was waiting patiently, holding my breath for them to leave. To return to their world, and leave me alone in mine.
It buzzed again, vibrating against the table. I pulled it out to check the messages. Peterson. He wanted me to meet him at the library.
Without bothering to change out of my yoga pants and tank top, I jumped into my car, slammed it into reverse, and sped towards the library.
He was waiting for me when I came in, seated at a small table with an empty chair across from him.
He stood up as I sat down.
I was in no mood for false pleasantries. “You called and I’m here. But if you don’t answer my questions, I won’t be next time.”
He nodded, then gestured for me to proceed.
“What happened to Camilla?”
“She was executed. I don’t know more than that.”
“Not off to a very good start. Who do you work for, really? Must be someone powerful to have access to so much knowledge they can alter a person’s powers.”
He didn’t reply.
“If we’re going to work together then I think you owe me info. I want to know more about the IOMBD.”
He sighed. “I haven’t much time for your curiosities, Miss Alundra. IOMBD was the original name. We refer to it as MBD these days,” he said. “Your great aunt came to us. Not the other way around. She willingly offered us information. About you. Your family. And your heritage. She feared winding up like her sister, and so she agreed to work with us. Then something changed her mind. She went on the run, but our organization does not take kindly to traitors or those who renege on their deals. She might have been trying to save you, but she should have worried about saving herself.”
“So you’re saying my aunt was helping the witch hunters who came after my grandmother.”
“Your grandmother was helping us too, in her way. She was determined to keep you and your mother safe. And in exchange offered us updates on the comings and goings of your father, and those like him.”
“You mean Zanthiel?” I nodded gravely. They’ve known about him this whole time. Even my grandmother knew he existed.
“Your grandmother did not fully trust him. But it seems you do?”
“Yes,” I said flatly. “I do. He’s saved my life on more than one occasion.”
“Hmmm. Admirable, though uncharacteristic, considering.”
“Considering what?” I urged, completely impatient.
“That he is a cold-blooded killer.” He said it without blinking an eye.
I swallowed. There wasn’t much I could say to that. It was true, it just wasn’t his whole truth. But something told me Peterson wasn’t the least bit interested in the truth. His organization had already convicted them, sentencing them all to death. Even the witches back in the day were given trials before they were hung. This had nothing to do with truth or justice or anything like it. It was a power-hungry grasp for control rooted in nothing more than blind fear.
“How have you been able to keep tabs on all of them?”
“A tracking spell.”
I stared at Peterson without blinking once. “A tracking spell. You have a tracking spell.” I could hardly wrap my brain around it.
“We’ve used it for centuries to keep tabs on the beings that cross over into our world. There are a lot of them who, what would you say, need to be kept under close watch. Like your friend Zanthiel, for one.”
“Zanthiel? Why? I mean why is obvious; he was a Shadow fey. But why him in particular? Has he done something to make himself a target?”
“They are all targets, Lorelei. Including your elf prince.”
I winced. “Don’t call him that. He has a name. They all do.”
Peterson leaned back against this seat, folded his hands together, and rested them under his double chin. “You speak of them as though they were human. They’re not. And as such, we cannot afford to think of them that way. You understand that I’m not eager to learn their names. It doesn’t matter.” He leaned forward. “They do not matter.”
“What about me and my mother and Gran… is that what you think of our kind as well?” I bristled.
“Witches are different. They share the same genetic makeup as humans, and as such are less unsavory. Naturally, the council must keep a close eye on them as well, in order to prevent any mishaps. It’s all in the name of protecting our own.”
I nodded. “Protecting the humans.” Something I was not and would never be. In that moment I understood why my grandmother had hated this man so much. She saw him for what he was. A hater with nothing but ignorance and fear ruling his every action. No wonder she’d wanted him dead.
“She tried to kill me once. Your grandmother,” he said as if picking up on my thoughts. He couldn’t of course, he was just a human.
“Really.” No surprise there. “Well, my grandmother was a kind and gentle woman so if she wanted you dead there must have been a pretty good reason for it.”
He chuckled. “There was. We were trying to take you from her. But we failed. And she failed. And I advised the council to wait and let things play out. I knew one day they’d come for you. And so we’ve been patiently waiting for that day to come. Little did I know you’d find your way there and bring back so many with you.”
“And if you had, you might have done things differently.”
“Yes. I might have ordered your execution instead of granting your release.”
I should have been disturbed by what he said, but I was strangely unfazed. He wasn’t the first man in power to want me dead. Nor would he be the last before all this played out. “Well, I’m still alive and I plan on staying that way. So let’s get to it. What is it you want with my father’s gemstone? What will it do for you exactly?”
“For me personally? It will allow me to sleep at night knowing that none of their kind, or yours, can ever hurt any of us again.”
I watched his expression grow distant. He’d lost someone close, I could see it. That was what fueled his vengeance. We were finally getting down to the root cause of his hatred. “Someone you cared for was hurt before, weren’t they? Were the fey responsible?”
He didn’t respond.
“Witches, then? There has to be a reason you want all magical beings wiped from existence, Mr. Peterson,” I said.
In part I understood how he felt. Magic was at cause for so much of what had gone wrong in my life. It wasn’t a stretch that over time it could be seen as the root of all evil. But we weren’t all the same. Not all magic was dark.
Peterson straightened abruptly and rose from his seat. “Our conversation has come to a close, I’m afraid I have other appointments to attend to. I assume your relationship with the elf has ended since I’ve seen him with the redhead.”
My insides twisted, and I bit down on my lip to keep my emotions hidden.
“Yet you must return to their world to address your other concerns,” he said. “Bring me the necklace, Lorelei. It’s the right thing to do. For you. For us. And for them. No one else needs to die.”
I walked out into the parking lot in a mental fog. This was getting crazier by the minute. Not only was the Nevermore waging an internal war, they were at odds with my world, as well. How was I supposed to do anything about it when I had no idea who was even behind Peterson’s actions?
I’d searched the parking lot twice before remembering where my car was. I turned the ignition over. Nothing. I tried again. Still dead. Perfect. I climbed out and slammed the door.
Walking in the cool night air would do me some good. Hopefully shed some light on a dark situation. For a while I was lost in my thoughts. So much so I didn’t hear the footsteps behind me. At first. My heart froze in my chest. I picked up the pace, forcing my feet to move faster. Then with a deep breath, I stopped and turned slowly. I could feel a swell of power in my chest.
Tires screeched around the corner and a vehicle squealed to a halt in front of me.
Adrius lowered window of his uncle’s beamer.
”Get in the car, Lorelei.”
In the time it took to recognize the car, his presence became an unbearable weight in my chest. All the warning bells that went off in my head when I first met him were ringing again, this time too loudly to be ignored. I paused briefly as my heart skipped a beat, then forced myself to keep walking.
“I don’t need a ride. I can walk, thanks.” He was with Venus now. Who knew why he’d come. “What are you doing here anyway?”
“It’s not safe.”
I ignored him and continued walking. Why wasn’t he gone? That was the plan. He was supposed to leave and take Venus with him.
His car continued to roll along, keeping pace with me.
“I can pick you up and put you in the car, if you prefer,” he said.
“Why do people keep saying that to me?” There was little doubt from his tone that he meant it. But I didn’t care. It wasn’t his job to protect me anymore. We were over. He was supposed to be gone.
“Please, Lorelei.”
I stopped walking, rain soaking through my jacket, plastering my hair to my face. It reminded me of the first time he’d offered me a ride. Only then he hadn’t been glaring at me with cold distant eyes.
I climbed through the opened door and slouched into the seat.
Adrius eyed me quickly from head to toe. ”Are you all right?”
“Where’s Venus?” I was careful to keep my gaze fixed on the windshield.
“Venus can take care of herself.”
He spoke without looking at me. Everything in his posture implied don’t go there. But I was so not letting this go.
“We break up and five seconds later you’re with her?”
He exhaled an exasperated sigh. “Where did you hear that?”
“You didn’t answer my question,” I insisted.
“I’m waiting for you to ask something that make sense.”
Maybe it was gossip, exaggerated for my benefit; some remote part of me had considered that. But there was no denying what I saw. “I saw the two of you. Her arms around you. You didn’t seem to mind.”
He glanced sideways at me briefly.
“And she did something to you. A spell… remember the purple smoke?”
“You’ve seen her touch me before. Why is it such an issue this time?”
I stared into his empty eyes.
Why? Why? Because you’re compelled to love her when you promised to love me. Because she’s won and I lost a piece of my soul. Because I can’t bear the thought of the two of you together for even a second. I stared at him silently for a beat then looked away. “It’s not,” I said hoarsely, staring out the rain soaked window, while fresh tears threatened to further blur my view.
“If she’s going to leave you alone and follow me back, she has to believe she has influence over me,” he said.
Was that supposed to explain things? In some way it did. The binding curse was strengthening. I could feel it even if he couldn’t. Her hold on him was growing stronger now that he wasn’t held to me. I didn’t want to watch it happen.
He stared at me briefly, then turned his attention back to the rain slicked streets. In silence he navigated the winding roads. Ominous evergreens towered over us on both sides, holding us to this one path. Our only choice.
“You know Peterson isn’t safe. You should stay away from him.”
“Surprised you still care,” I muttered.
“I will always care, Lorelei. You ended things between us, remember? This was your decision. It does not mean I wish for you to come to any harm. That will never change regardless of what happens with Venus.”
The knife plunged deeper into my heart. I swallowed and bit down on my lip to keep from reacting.
All too soon and not soon enough, Adrius pulled into my driveway and cut the engine. He shifted to face me and from the corner of my eye, I could see the angles of his jaw clenched tight. How, after all we’d been through, could I still find him as beautiful as I did? It infuriated me and I closed my eyes to block out the vision.
His hand trailed along my face. I opened my eyes, hoping against the bitter reality that when I did it would be like it had been before. But instead he looked even more distant.
“Take care of yourself, Lorelei. Stay safe.” he whispered.
“That used to be your job,” Part of me wished it still could be. That the future we’d planned was still possible for us. That everything didn’t have to end.
His hand fell away and he shook his head. “I’ve never been able to keep you safe. We wouldn’t be here if I could.”
I reached for the handle, but couldn’t bring myself to open the door.
“We’ll be gone by daybreak. You have my word,” he said, without intonation. Warmth receded, leaving me with the familiar chill I knew so intimately.
I swallowed, but it did nothing for the lump stuck in my throat. All I could do was nod. To even open my mouth would risk an outpouring of bad judgment… words like I’m sorry, I was wrong, please don’t go. Nothing good could come of that. If he stayed, it meant more death. But what I feared even more was that he wouldn’t stay even if I asked him to, because it was too late.
Heaving a long sigh, I climbed out of his car with leaden limbs and slammed the door with a little too much force.
His hands tightened on the steering wheel, but he didn’t look away.
I sprinted up the porch steps to the door, pausing to look back once. He was watching me, the look in his eyes suggested he wanted to say something more, but he remained silent. I unlocked the door, stepped inside and locked it behind me. As he peeled out of my driveway for the last time, I slumped against the door.
Adrius was gone. I forced myself to keep breathing, afraid I’d forget how. Too much of my life remained beyond my control and I needed some of it back. Peterson was dangerous, but he was also right; I needed to return to Faery. I couldn’t walk around as the angel of death. It made me as much of a threat as Venus. There was only one way I could get back into Faery without Peterson’s help. Only one way I could go there and home again and not get killed in the process. I closed my eyes, and called silently into the air, knowing that Zanthiel would answer, because he also was willing to keep me safe.