Stone of Hope

Chapter 3

It seems Ash isn’t the only one keeping secrets, and for the first time in our relationship, I feel like the time is right to tell him about my strange ability. My breathing is erratic as I push the words out. “Ash, I’m unique, too. I?—”

“I know you’re a half-breed,” he interrupts gently.

My eyes snap to his, alarmed by his phrasing. “What do you mean, half-breed?”

His eyes search all around us and I’m afraid to ask what he’s looking for. “A half-breed shouldn’t exist,” he explains. “It’s strictly forbidden in all the kingdoms. The realm’s bloodline must remain pure.”

My nostrils flare in anger, and before I know it, my hand flies towards his face. With lightning speed, his grip tightens on my wrist the instant before my hand would’ve connected with his jaw. I try with my other hand, which he catches just as easily. “We dated for four years!” I snarl, hurt. I jerk my wrist, but his iron grip doesn’t loosen. “Let go!” I growl.

“Jewel, breathe.” He eyes me warily, but his grip begins to slacken. “Everything will be fine,” he murmurs in a gentle tone.

“You led me on all this time – not to mention lied to me – and now you’re telling me everything will be fine?” I contemplate trying to punch him again.

“I haven’t led you on.” His eyes plead with me, but I’m disgusted by his very presence.

I open my mouth to respond, but then close it as the seeds of doubt begin to trickle in.

“No, I haven’t,” he repeats firmly.

“How can you stand there and calmly call me an impure half-breed?” My voice is weak, the fierceness of fight beginning to ebb, leaving me with feelings of hurt and betrayal instead.

“There’s always been something here drawing me towards you,” he admits quietly. “I can’t explain it.” He points to my heart and his. “Each time I must leave your realm, the energy that connects us suffocates me the further I travel away from you. Did you feel the pull when you came to the portal?” I nod my head yes. “That’s the same pull I feel towards you,” he confirms.

My mind spins with a jumble of lies and secrets, but I can’t pick an emotion to settle on. I need information, facts, so I decide to dig a little deeper. “How can you move so fast?”

Unsurprised by my question, he answers proudly, “I am a Seeker for my Kingdom, the North. It’s my job to find what the Northern King, King Forrest, wants before the other four kingdoms find it.”

“That doesn’t explain how you can move so fast,” I insist. “Is it a troll thing?”

“Trolls do move faster than humans, although some are faster than others.” His chest puffs out a little as he continues, “I am both the fastest and strongest in my kingdom, which is why I was chosen as our Seeker. The gifts I was born with got me this role.”

I take a step closer to him, fascinated. “What other gifts exist?”

“Some trolls’ gifts allow them sharper senses: sight, smell, taste, or touch. Then there are rarer gifts such as Healers or Dream Walkers.” My eyebrows shoot up. Sensing my piqued interest, he explains, “The Dream Walkers can meet with you in your dreams. Then there are those who have the gift of precognition, those with Portal Sight, or those who can Gift Portal Sight onto others. But only Elders can reward their Gifts. If you are given the Gift of an Elder –”

My anticipation gets the best of me and I blurt, “Can anyone wield fire?”

“No troll can control fire or create it out of thin air, if that’s what you’re asking.” His eyes hold mine intently, his eyebrows knitted in concern as he observes me. “No one has the ability to control the elements here.”

“So my dad can’t wield fire?” I ask tentatively.

He shakes his head. “No, he’s a Seeker like me, the fastest and strongest from his kingdom.” He tilts his head, pausing for a moment to examine my face.

Pulling my necklace out, I pace as I fiddle with its silver pendant and contemplate all I’ve just heard. My dad and Ash kept secrets from me, but apparently my dad also kept secrets from Ash, since I don’t think he knows I can wield fire. How can I be the only one? No wonder my dad is so understanding with “my rare gift”. Even just scratching the surface of what Ash has revealed, their world seems exceptionally remarkable, to the point of unbelievable.

A small flicker of hope fills me as I think of my dad. Maybe now he’ll give me answers.

Ash gently plucks the silver pendant from my hand and tucks it back underneath the hem of my shirt. Our eyes meet. “Jewel, I know this is a lot to take in, but you have to know I’ll help you any way I can. However, my immediate concern is if you’re feeling ill. Humans do not fare well with the transition to this realm.” His hand is blissfully cold as it presses against my forehead.

“What does that even mean?” I scoff.

He patiently tries to explain. “There are other realms out there that don’t have laws about pure bloodlines.”

“Other realms? What realms?” I whisper-shriek, my mind careening off in a million directions.

“I’ll get to that,” he admonishes, a small smile softening his words. “We don’t know how, but some humans are able to enter our portals, although they fall ill soon after. It’s as if there’s something in their DNA that resists the environment, or maybe the pull of the portal is too hard on their body. In any event, they never last long enough to find out the reason.”

“And the other realms, meaning…?”

He goes into schoolteacher mode as he explains, “There are several realms that have resorted to mixing their bloodlines due to falling birth rates; the Fallen, fairies, and elves, to name a few. But not all fare well with the human race.” He steps closer. “That’s why you must tell me if you start to feel sick.”

“Ash, I don’t feel sick; I’m freaking out! You just admitted there are realms other than Earth that include fairies and elves, plus, there’s a very real possibility I might get sick and die just by standing here! Don’t you understand you’re talking about my life?” I reach out a hand and place it on a nearby tree, finding comfort in the feel of rough bark to help ground myself in reality once more.

Sensing I’m about to lose it and need a distraction, Ash picks me up, cradles me tightly to his chest, and begins to walk. I curl in on myself, my mind reeling with the fact I might not be able to get back home.

“Talk to me, Ash. Distract me.”

He lets out a long sigh. “I don’t know what else to say.”

“Let’s start with something simple. Are those real gems on the ground?”

“Yes. Our realm has more precious stones than your world, because we try not to disturb or harm our natural habitat as much as possible.” Warming up to the topic, he continues, “That’s why they look like gems in the ground, because they have naturally been polished from years of being trodden on and exposed to the elements. Besides that, they don’t carry the same value here that your world gives them. Once we reach my kingdom, you’ll see that everyone is wearing them, although some colors are rarer to find than others. Certain colors are normally reserved for royalty.”

That must be how Dad gets money,I marvel. At least that part makes sense. It also explains why my mother’s necklace just holds a silver pendant. Gems don’t matter to him. “Why are you taking me to your kingdom?”

“I can’t take you back to your realm because I will not risk you going back through the portal. I’m hoping your dad’s DNA will keep you safe here. You will soon get to meet my kingdom’s royal family.”

He takes a deep breath, but no sound follows. His head snaps to the right, then the left, his eyebrows narrowed as he tunes his senses. His hold tightens when a horn sounds.

“Another has entered,” he whispers to himself.

It’s the same sound I heard at the old farmhouse. He crushes me to his chest and picks up the pace, running as if I weigh nothing. Tall, flowery bushes tickle my ankles, stirring up a honey scent. Ash quickly maneuvers sideways, avoiding a tree’s oversized leaves. He runs at a speed faster than humanly possible. But I guess he’s not human, so…

The passing scenery whips by my face in a blur. Ash suddenly darts to the right and a tiny cabin comes into view. Before I know it, he circles the small structure and places my feet on the steps, feeling along the top of the doorframe for what I assume is a key. He slowly removes a string that was placed across the seam of the door. He turns to me triumphantly and my eyebrows rise.

“The front door is always locked. This string is how I know if anyone has entered my house.” He extends his arm gallantly as the door opens. Always a gentleman.

Sliding by him, I see the inside of the cabin is small but quaint. While the space is rustic, it’s well cared for with gleaming wood floors, wooden walls, and solid wood beams across the ceiling. A couple windows line each wall with sheer curtains hanging over them. It holds a bed, kitchen, and dining area all in one open space. Besides the front door, there’s another door that I assume leads to the bathroom. Ash watches me take it all in, his cheeks heating as I eyeball his bed.

I smile to reassure him. “It’s nice.”

“I’m never home, so I don’t need much,” he admits with a shrug.

An uncomfortable silence descends for a moment, and I grasp onto a topic quickly. “What does the horn mean?”

Seeming relieved by having something to do, he begins, “The horn you heard was not my kingdom’s. Each time someone crosses the boundary, a fraction of magic comes through with them. A small number of trolls have been gifted to sense that change in magic, and they sound the horn when the magic reveals it’s not a troll who entered. Since you’re part human, I assume the horn was about you. That’s why I wanted to get you to my house just in case they come looking.” He guides me to the kitchen table and pulls out a chair, ever the gracious host. “How are you feeling? Do you want something to drink?” He moves toward the cupboards and grabs a glass.

“I’m fine,” I answer, inwardly rolling my eyes. “But I still don’t understand what you’re doing in my world, attending my high school. I certainly wouldn’t go to school if I didn’t have to.”

Opening his mouth to supply a witty remark, he’s interrupted by the sound of marching footsteps approaching rapidly from outside. Ash looks toward the window and goes rigid beside me. Several voices carry through from the outside. Through the window, a man as large as Ash approaches.

Ash jerks me to my feet and shoves me toward the other door. “Stay in there until I say it’s safe,” he warns. Moving as quickly as I can, I run and shut the door quietly, keeping my breaths shallow. I hear the front door open, followed by Ash’s hearty greeting as he invites the man inside. The way he rushed to hide me inside the bathroom, I would’ve thought the newcomers meant trouble, but from what I can hear, they seem like friends. I strain to pick up fragments of their conversation through the crack in the door.

“Paul, I brought you inside to show you something,” Ash begins. “As you know, I often travel to the human world looking for the stone, and I communicate with many of their people. Well, this time, one got across. Half of one, anyway. She’s half-human and half-troll, from another Seeker I know from Ray City.”

“Is she ill?” I hear surprise in Paul’s voice. Do they think I’m going to die?

“No, actually she’s fine,” Ash replies. Footsteps approach my hiding place and I cringe. I take a step back and watch as the bathroom door opens and reveals Ash standing on the other side. “Jewel, will you please come out? It’s just my friend Paul and his army.” His voice is gentle, coaxing.

I give him a puzzled look, hissing, “Why hide me, then? You scared me to death!”

Ash smiles, explaining, “I didn’t know who else was with him, and whether they were here because of the horn or something else.” He pauses and grabs my hand. “Come on. I’d like you to meet Paul.”