Sinjin frowned. “Afraid of what, poppet? Why would he be afraid?”
Rand’s face colored as his lips tightened into a straight line. I wasn’t sure if it was due to Sinjin avoiding the question or the fact that he called me poppet.
“Don’t fuck around, Sinjin. He knew Jolie had special abilities. What was he afraid she was going to do?”
Sinjin sighed as if he were not up to a long explanation. “No reason to be a wanker, Balfour. He did not want Jolie to bring the prophet back.”
“What prophet?” Rand snapped.
I sighed, here was where the long and convoluted story started. “Bella wanted me to bring back an old woman whom she thought was some prophet. She believed the woman could change history but she had the wrong person.” Hmm, maybe it wasn’t as long a story as I’d imagined.
“I’ve never heard of any prophet,” Rand said, chewing his lip. “Jolie, you said the woman wasn’t a prophet, though?”
“No, she wasn’t.” But my mind wasn’t on the prophet. I was more concerned with our future—what it meant that we no longer had the support of the many creatures we’d been counting on. “Rand, now with Gwynn and Ryder and God knows who else on Bella’s side, what does that mean for our army of recruits?”
Rand chuckled but it wasn’t a happy sound. “We have no army. Half the recruits were from Gwynn’s side.”
“Sounds as if you need my help,” Sinjin said. He studied his fingernails as if he had zero interest in our conversation.
Rand turned his angry eyes back to Sinjin. “I wouldn’t say that yet,” he snapped.
“And Trent’s pack?” I asked. “What of them?”
Rand nodded. “Trent’s pack is still with us. The wolves are the only creatures we have. Everyone else has fallen through.”
“And the fairies?” I continued.
Rand shrugged. “They’re still neutral. I’ve tried to get them to side with us but they’re avoiding it at all costs. We are in a very bad position.”
“I can help you,” Sinjin said again.
“That would require my trust, Sinjin …” Rand started.
I stood. “Rand, stop. Think about it. We do need Sinjin’s help. Just put aside your differences for a minute.” I turned to face Sinjin. “How many vampires are in your lead?”
Sinjin frowned. “Hundreds and two hundred or so follow Bella.”
He stood up and faced Rand, suddenly interested. “With our forces, you would be more than able to confront Bella’s vampires.”
“Then is that your decision?” I asked Sinjin. “Will you side with us?”
Sinjin shrugged and Rand took a step closer to him, until they were eye to eye.
“I will consider you against me if you aren’t with me,” Rand said between clenched teeth.
“You always were so dramatic, Balfour,” Sinjin replied and his lips broke into a grin as if he were incapable of taking anything seriously. “I have been with you all along.”
“Why not let me know then? Why pretend you were with Bella?” Rand demanded.
Sinjin shrugged. “I am a vampire—I owe you nothing. Varick told me to protect Jolie, and that is what I did.”
“Let’s forget all that now,” I said, forcing myself between the two. We didn’t have time to argue. “We have a major problem here and we need to figure out what to do about it. Rand, with Sinjin’s vampires and the wolves, do we have a chance?”
Rand glanced at me and then his gaze returned to Sinjin. “Doubtful. Bella has all the demons, half the wolves and half the vampires.”
“And if we got the fairies on board?” I asked. “Would we have a chance then?”
Rand cocked his head and tapped his fingers along his chin. “Yes, we would have a good chance.” Then he shook his head. “It’s pointless even discussing it. They’ve already made their decision.”
“We have to give it one more shot if they’re our only chance to defeat Bella,” I insisted.
“Jolie,” Rand started.
I took a step closer to him. “Please! We have to try. Who is the person who makes the decision on whether or not they join?”
“The king of the fairies, Odran,” Rand said.
“Can you at least get him to meet with us?” I asked.
Rand nodded. “I can try.”
Sinjin stood up and clapped his hands together. “I must be returning to my room, the sun is not far. Shall we resume this delightful conversation this evening?”
Rand gritted his teeth. “Yes.”
“Very well, until tonight. If you need me, I am two doors down,” he said with a smile aimed only at me. “Though I will not be able to assist you until the sun goes down.”
Sinjin started for the door.
“Thanks Sinjin,” I said.
He smiled and bowed. Rand scoffed and turned away from him, apparently ill at ease with the idea of working with the vampire. Sinjin quirked a brow, kissed the air and blew it toward me, then he left.
“You shouldn’t trust him,” Rand said, turning back to face me at the sound of the door closing.
I wanted nothing more than to avoid Rand’s paranoia. So he’d been sort of right with Trent, who cares? I was pretty sure he was wrong about Sinjin. “Please, Rand, I’ve had about three hours of sleep.”
He didn’t respond and I didn’t care. There was so much to do, so much to worry about, and I had no idea what to concentrate on first. It was overwhelming and exhausting all at once. I couldn’t help my yawn.
“Jolie, you should take a nap.”
“I’m fine,” I said but just at the mention of a nap, my entire body heaved with the need to lie down and close my eyes.
“You need some sleep. It’s going to take me a while to get a meeting with Odran and you need your energy.”
“I don’t have time,” I started.
He frowned. “Jolie, we have all day.”
I took a seat on the bed and sighed, starting to untie my shoelaces. I dropped the shoes from my feet and looked up to find Rand watching me. As soon as our eyes met, he closed the distance between us and dropped to his knees. He held each side of my face between his palms and there was a pain in his eyes I’d never seen before.
“I will never let anything happen to you again,” he said and kissed me.
~
The sun streamed through the windows, and I rubbed my eyes against the onslaught of day. Forcing myself to sit, I stifled a yawn and stretched my arms and legs. The room was quiet. Too quiet. I glanced around and realized Rand was nowhere to be seen.
Eager to hear of any news, I tossed aside the blankets and hobbled to the bathroom. I turned on the cold water and washed my face, hoping to wash away my lethargy. Drying my face, I walked back into the room and my gaze fell to the alarm clock on the bedside table. Noon.
“Sheesh,” I whispered to myself and tossed the towel on the bathroom floor. I’d slept over six hours. It wasn’t a good feeling—we had lots to do and Rand shouldn’t have let me sleep for so long.
I sat back down on the bed. What to do now? I didn’t get a chance to make a decision before the door flew open and a smiling Christa swept inside.
“Jules!” she cried and threw her arms around me.
My cheeks were already wet with tears before she even reached me. “Chris, God, it’s so good to see you.”
She pulled away and faced me with blurry eyes. “I was so worried about you, Jolie. And, Rand, I’ve never seen him so completely miserable. God, I’m so glad you’re back.”
She wiped her eyes against the sleeve of her sweatshirt and seemed to be getting herself under control. I sniffled and wiped my eyes, trying to do the same. “God, do I have so much to tell you,” I started.
“Did Bella hurt you?” she asked.
I just shook my head, not wanting to revisit any of the painful and ugly memories.
“Ah, the happy reunion,” Rand’s voice interrupted and I turned to see him standing in the doorway, a brown paper bag in his hand. “I broug
ht a late breakfast.”
I smiled and took a seat on the bed. Christa sat next to me. Rand handed us a bag of croissants, scones, and muffins. A breakfast of champions, as far as I was concerned.
I reached for a croissant.
“I was able to get a meeting with Odran,” Rand said as he relaxed into an armchair near the bed.
“Odran?” Christa asked.
I nodded and chewed until I was able to swallow my mouthful. “He’s the king of the fairies. Our plan is to try to convince him to join our side. Otherwise, it’s hopeless. Bella will easily defeat us.” It was the Cliff’s Notes version.
“Oh,” Christa nodded. “When are we meeting with him?”
Rand arched his back, stretching his arms above his head before returning them back to his lap. “Tomorrow morning.”
“Fantastic. Where?” I continued.
“Odran lives in Glenmore Forest in Scotland.”
“How long will it take us to get there?” Christa asked and I could already see her picturing men in kilts.
Rand shrugged. “All day and into the evening. It’s not close.”
“So …” I started.
“Maybe eight or nine hours.”
Christa groaned. “Ugh, I hate road trips.”
I stood up and the same feelings of anxiety I’d been experiencing since yesterday returned anew. “It’s past noon now, we need to get going.”
Rand nodded. “Odran was kind enough to offer us hospitality in Glenmore tonight. But you’re correct, we should leave soon. It’s going to take a while to get there.”
“Why can’t we ever fly?” Christa moaned.
Rand chuckled. “Because, Christa, there isn’t a direct flight.”
“Fine. Then I’ll go pack,” she said and started for the door. “It shouldn’t take me long.”
“What of Sinjin?” I asked, remembering we’d planned on seeing him this evening.
“Odran is our priority,” Rand answered and his eyes told me not to argue with him. I imagined he was finding it difficult enough to be allied with the vampire. And anyway, Odran was our priority.
I nodded and neared the desk. Grabbing a sheet of paper, I wrote:
Sinjin,
We’ve headed to Glenmore Forest in Scotland. We have a meeting with King Odran in the morning. Please call Rand’s cell phone tomorrow and we will give you more instruction.
Wish us luck!
J.
Then I jotted down Rand’s cell number and sealed the letter in an envelope. I wasn’t sure why I bothered writing the letter—if Sinjin really wanted to, he could track me since he’d had my blood. Then I remembered that Ryder could too. For all I knew, maybe he and Bella were tracking me now. I had to swallow the bile that immediately rose up my throat.
“Rand, Ryder can track me.”
Rand’s color drained. “He drank from you?”
I nodded and Rand shook his head. “Don’t worry about that now, Jolie. We’ll be safe once we reach Glenmore. Fairy magic is too powerful for Bella.”
“Okay.” I thought it best to leave out the part where Sinjin had drunk from me also. We needed Sinjin and if Rand knew that little tidbit, I didn’t think he could handle it.
“If I ever see Ryder again, I will kill him,” Rand said, his eyes deadly.
I didn’t respond, didn’t tell him that I was reserving that honor for myself, but pulled open the door and headed down the hallway to Sinjin’s room, hoping and praying Bella and Ryder weren’t hot on our tails.
TWENTY TWO
Trees, trees everywhere but not a place to sleep.
I leaned forward, my breath fogging up the window. In fact, I could see nothing but trees.
“There’s nothing here,” Christa said.
That was an understatement. If Rand thought Christa would sleep in a tent, he was mistaken. Sorely.
“Where are we staying?” I asked.
Rand smiled and put the Range Rover in park at the mouth of Glenmore forest. “Here.”
“Here? Are we camping?” Christa asked, her tone issuing a warning that Rand’s answer better not be a “yes.”
“No,” he said and reached inside his pocket, pulling out a gold key. It was about as long as my middle finger and just as thin.
“This will lead us to the fairy village within Glenmore.”
“Where’d you get that?” I asked, in awe. A fairy key … I don’t know—it just sounded so Harry Potter.
Rand shrugged. “As soon as Odran invited us, it appeared in my palm. He said we should just follow it, and it will lead us where we need to go. Everyone ready?”
“Yeah,” Christa answered, pushing open her door. “What about our stuff? How long are we going to have to walk? My bag isn’t very light.”
“Leave all your things here. You’ll have no need for them in Glenmore. The fairies do things a little differently,” Rand answered.
It seemed like he was purposely being vague and I didn’t bother insisting that he enlighten us. I was still tired. It was just past 11:00 p.m., but it felt like I’d been awake an eternity. My nap hadn’t done much for me.
I unbuckled my seatbelt and opened the door, feeling the cold air rush in like ghosts. Well, hopefully wherever we were going, it wouldn’t take long to get there. Walking in the middle of the night in the freezing cold wasn’t my idea of a good time. And knowing the unreliable UK weather, we might just find ourselves in a downpour.
Christa and I joined Rand and watched as the key poised itself in the palm of his hand and like an arrow, pointed forward.
“Wow, that’s weird,” Christa said.
“Fairy magic,” Rand answered with a half smile.
We started walking in the direction the key initiated and found ourselves in the thick and dense forest and wouldn’t you know it, raindrops started falling, plunking themselves against my head and face like Chinese water torture.
“Does the key say how long it will take to get there?” I asked grumpily, knowing the answer was a “no” but wanting to share my sour mood, all the same.
“No,” Rand answered. He kept his palm out in front of us and the key pointed forward like the figurehead of a woman on a ship. It was just missing a set of huge boobs.
Ferns brushed against my legs and the moss below my feet was like walking on sponges. Well, one thing I could say for Scottish forests was they were beautiful.
After ten minutes of walking straight, I wondered if the key might’ve been lost. It would have had us turn somewhere, right? How long can you just walk straight? The rain had steadily increased and now the Chinese water torture was more of a downpour. And no one had brought an umbrella. Not that you could have opened it anyway, the trees and foliage were so dense.
“This is fun,” Christa snapped and I couldn’t keep the smile from my face. I guess I wasn’t the only one in a foul mood.
The key then jumped once and faced left, looking like a pointer who’d just found a dead duck. So the thing was working. Smiles alighted on Rand and Christa’s faces and I had to wonder if they had also been doubting the key’s navigational ability.
“Are there any scary things in the forests of Scotland?” Christa asked, peering around her as if she thought one of those scary things might jump her any second.
“Such as?” Rand asked.
“I don’t know, like bears and snakes and bobcats.”
“No bobcats. But I think they do have snakes here?” I asked.
Rand nodded. “Black Adders are the most serious. They’re poisonous. No bobcats but they do have wildcats.”
“What’s that?” Christa asked, her voice high and pitchy.
“It’s basically a feral pussycat,” Rand answered. “The worst it could do is scratch you.”
I laughed. “I think we have more to fear from the rain than we do from animals out here, Chris.”
The key jumped in Rand’s palm, as if annoyed we weren’t paying attention to it, and then aimed itself slightly right.
“I
think it wants us to go right,” I said.
“A right would take us directly into that tree,” Christa said and pointed at the tall pine in question.
“Perhaps it wants us to walk to the tree,” Rand answered with a shrug.
The pine was bigger circumference-wise than any other trees near it, about as wide as the width of Rand’s Range Rover from driver’s seat to passenger’s. That was its only defining characteristic, otherwise it was just another tall pine tree.
Rand walked directly toward the tree until he stood before it. The key continued to point forward and hopped up and down as if it had to go to the bathroom. He took another step until he could touch the bark. The key lurched from his palm and thrust itself into the bark of the tree, then it cranked to the left and the inside of the tree suddenly became transparent.
“Whoa,” Christa said and stepped forward, peering through the tree. I stepped beside her and could see everything behind the tree as if I were looking right through it.
“Who wants to go first?” Rand asked.
Neither of us volunteered.
“Why don’t you go first, Rand?” I said sheepishly.
Rand smiled and with a salute, walked into the tree and disappeared. Christa and I faced each other and I took her hand. My heart was pounding like a son of a bitch.
“Ready?”
“Yeah,” she said with a nod. The tree was wide enough for us to walk through together, so that’s exactly what we did. I closed my eyes and took a step. It was like I was walking through warm water, balmy waves washing over me.
Upon coming out on the other side, I’m not sure what I noticed first: the blooming and enormous flowers growing as tall as my hips; the glowing pixies numbering in the hundreds as they flew from flower to flower; the thatched-roofed houses; Rand in a kilt; or Christa and me in long dresses. I think Rand in a kilt won out.
“What the?” Christa started, looking down at herself. As soon as she saw Rand, she started giggling.
I, myself, couldn’t giggle. He looked like a wet dream come to life. His kilt was plaid green and blue and his chest was bare. He was wearing what looked like sandals with leather straps criss-crossing up his calves like what you’d see on a Roman soldier. I had to wonder if there was anything under the kilt. I mean, come on, how could I not?