Chapter 31 #2
“I have one more thing to do tonight before I get some rest. Tomorrow, I plan to go out and settle this once and for all.”
Rowan exhaled a deep sigh. “Figured as much.”
“I don’t think she will have many allies. And if she does, if things go well tonight, she won’t have them for long.”
“Dare I ask?”
I had hope and a plan. Nothing concrete. “Mum’s the word, just in case it doesn’t work.”
He sighed against my hair. “Evie, international woman of mystery.”
I pulled away and went straight to the fridge. A tray of sandwiches made by Rowan’s cook was calling my name. Rowan grabbed the lemonade and we headed back outside to help Pax get acclimated to his new home.
A couple of hours later, I retreated back to the old cottage I stayed in when I first arrived. I kept a lot of plants in here and occasionally used it as a workspace, but tonight, I had something very specific I was working on.
Mom shimmered in half an hour into my experiment. I asked her to come to see if what I was thinking might be viable. I’d spent the last few hours hunched over the coffee table, carefully creating something I’d never done before.
When I made Seymour, I was pissed off. When I made Hannah, I was in a softer mood and wanted to give a plant lover a special gift. Both had turned out unique but not quite right.
Mom got onto her knees beside me. She tied her hair in a knot and fastened in on top of her head.
The sound of soft pecking alerted me to a new presence. I turned and smiled as I saw who awaited me at the window.
“Mind if I let him in?”
Mom glanced over her shoulder to see Poe. “Oh!” She smiled. “Not at all.”
I got up to open the back door. Just as I was reaching for the handle, Mom spoke again. “You can invite the phoenix you stole from me in, too.”
I winced. “How long have you known?”
Mom’s soft snort of laughter made guilt churn in my stomach. “How long did you think it would take before someone noticed a multi-colored glowing bird flying through the air over a Shifter Lord’s Keep?” She rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Evie. And not only that, the Lord you were dating at the time.”
“In my defense, you were the wicked stepmother back then.”
“I’m well aware,” Mom said primly. “But I would like to meet Poe’s companion if you’ll allow it.”
I opened the back door. “Fetch Fee,” I said.
Poe paused, tilted his feathery head and eyed my mother. Mom stayed still and let him examine her.
He made a quorking sound. “Evie mom good?”
Mom gave Poe a sad smile. “I had to pretend for a long time, but you can see my heart, Poe.”
Poe studied her for a long moment, dipped his head, and flew away. I waited by the back door for a few moments until Fee streaked through the sky. Mom sucked in a gasp and came to her feet.
“Oh, Evie. She’s stunning.”
And she was. Fee was fully grown now, her tail feathers several feet long and her wingspan even wider. Her feathers were a bright mix of vivid orange and royal purple, and her eyes had turned into a shimmering crystalline shade that constantly changed.
We didn’t see much of the birds anymore, not with the expansion of our territory. They’d taken to exploring far and wide but were never far from each other’s sides.
“Hi Fee,” I said, holding out my hand. She shifted in a flash of light to a smaller size and landed on my hand. I brought her inside, Poe following close behind, and shut the door.
Mom stared at the bird with wide eyes. Fee didn’t go to her, merely watched her with those strange eyes.
I stroked a finger down her back. “This is Cliona, Fee. My mother.”
Fee tilted her head back and forth.
Mom bowed her head and laid her hand over her heart. “You are magnificent.”
Fee gave a little trill.
“Hold your hand out,” I said.
Mom raised her head and blinked, suddenly unsure.
“It’s okay. She won’t go if she doesn’t want to.”
Mom slowly held out her hand. Fee trilled once more and hopped onto Mom’s arm.
“Oh my goodness.” Mom let out a delighted laugh. “You know, I’ve had birds my entire life, but none that looked like Fee. And never a phoenix. Do you realize how lucky you are to have such a close relationship with her?”
I guess I never really thought about it. She needed help, so I helped her. “She’s fast friends with Poe. And I can’t take all the credit. Caelan had her for quite a while.”
“The Lord was good to her?”
“Poe and Fee explored every inch of his territory. He never caged them.”
Mom tentatively stroked the back of her head. “Do you know the legend of the phoenix?”
I researched enough to know what they needed to survive and some of their powers but never did a deep dive. “Not really. I know they are powerful healers, and they’re rumored to be able to resurrect the dead.”
Mom’s lips quirked into a smile. “That and more. This little girl can grant immortality if she so chooses. But you can’t force her. She has to choose you.”
“Fee!” I gawked at the bird. “Raising the dead and throwing out immortality to the worthy? You’re going to be a busy girl when you’re all grown up.”
Mom chuckled. “She is all grown up. But Fee hasn’t chosen anyone yet. Not that she could in a place like this. Everyone here is immortal, are they not?”
“I think so.”
“Hmm. Well, phoenixes go where they are needed. Maybe she’s not ready to answer a call yet.”
Someone knocked on the front door. For crying out loud. I left Mom with Fee and answered the door. Tess, Ash, and Moira stood there holding wine and something that smelled amazing in a takeout bag.
“You up for a visit?” Ash said. “We haven’t seen you in a while.”
I was always up for a visit with the dryad and his companion banshee. “Come on in. As long as you share whatever’s in that bag.”
Ash grinned. He brushed a kiss over my cheek and walked in. Tess, looking pale and lovely in a lavender sweater and jeans, gave me a quick hug. She paused when she saw my mother, swallowed hard, and came inside.
“Hello, Tess,” Mom said.
Tess dipped her head. “Hello, Cliona.”
They’d never have the kind of relationship Moira and Mom did. Not with Mom being her queen and the experiences Tess had growing up. When Mom pretended, she did it hard core. She had a lot to make up with everyone, not just me.
Ash stopped abruptly when he spotted what I was working on. He handed the bag to Tess and crouched down to peer at the small seedling. When his eyes met mine, he let out a surprised chuckle. “You figured it out. Hot damn, Evie. I knew you would.”
I blinked. “This will work?”
Mom lowered herself to the floor gently, Fee still perched on her hand. “The dryad is correct. I’m glad he came. He is more adept with natural magic than I am. I can help you with the fae side, and Ash can help guide you as I assume he’s a little better with trees than you are.”
I shrugged. “Most of the time, I use vines and flora. Trees are an afterthought. Though I did just create those bristlecones.”
Ash blinked. “A bristlecone pine? When you went to Caelan’s. You’re keeping it alive in Texas?”
I nodded and briefly explained what I’d done. When I finished, Ash sat back and gawked. “You created a network of ancient pine trees to hold enslavement bonds and threaded them to each other so they could travel wherever they pleased, both freeing them and ensuring they didn’t die.”
I squinted at him. “Um. Yes? I think?”
Ash let out a bark of laughter. “We have dedicated scientists who spend their entire lives trying to understand physics and quantum mechanics, and mages who do the same with magical theory, and here you are busting out complicated magic using logic and trees.”
Tess let out a warbly giggle. “As much of a disservice as it was not to train Evie in all her magic when she was younger, it did force her to use her magic intuitively. She bypassed all the rules no one ever told her about and created her own. That’s the way magic should be, isn’t it?
Intuition driven by will and formed with one’s innate power? ”
Man. Sometimes Tess dropped serious knowledge. We all stared at her for a long moment, before Ash smiled. “Yeah. Tess. That’s exactly right. I couldn’t have said it better.”
“I never thought of it like that, but I guess you’re right.” A thought occurred to me. “Is this why I’m having so much trouble with Dad’s magic lessons?”
Mom’s brow furrowed. “I—I want to say no, but this would make so much sense.” She let out a disturbed chuckle. “I feel befuddled. I never feel befuddled. Have we done a disservice to all our children by being so formal with their education?”
“I don’t mind being a science experiment as long as it helps other people,” I said dryly. I had some training, but I never knew who I truly was, so the education I received was lopsided at best. Add in the Chimera attack and well, here we were.
I stared down at the seedling. “Mom. Can you take us somewhere this evening?”
“After dessert,” Ash said. “We’ll go with you.”
“Did you bring enough for Moira?”
He rolled his eyes. “Of course I did.”
“I’m texting her right now,” Tess said.
Forty-five minutes later, we were full of pie and hope. We stood on the edge of Donovan’s old territory and Rowan’s. I held the small seedling in the palm of my hands. We’d worked on it a little more at the cottage, but to test it, we needed to plant it first, then encourage it to grow.
Dad and Moira had popped in, and Rowan and Ethan tagged along when they saw us all piling out of the cottage. Ethan had sworn up a blue streak when he spotted Fee.
He slapped his hand over his chest like a senior citizen having a heart attack and screeched, “Is that a godsdamn phoenix?”
Rowan nodded, a sober expression on his face, though his eyes twinkled with mirth. “Yes, yes it is.”
“Fucking hell,” Ethan said under his breath. “And you signed up for this?”
I didn’t hear what Rowan said, but Ethan shot him a dark look.
My friends stood in a semi-circle watching quietly as I crouched to plant the seedling. “No idea if this is going to work,” I whispered.
Ash put his hand on my back and bent beside me. “Have faith. You’ve done amazing things, Evie. Consider this one more thing to add to the list.”
I smiled up at him. “I’m glad you’re here.”
Ash’s eyes grew suspiciously moist. “I’m glad for many things, and you are at the top of the list.”
I reached back with a dirty hand and squeezed his fingers. Ash went to his knees and started digging out a small hole.
I gently placed the seedling inside.
“Start with the roots,” Ash encouraged. “They’re the most important part.”
I held out my hand. “Want to do it together?”
Ash smiled. “Truly?”
I nodded. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
We closed our eyes, and together we worked as one, deep into the night. When the work was finally done, we marveled at our handiwork.
A tree double the size of a redwood loomed above us, sparkling with emerald and watermelon tourmaline colored magic.
Ash and I hadn’t created a specific kind of tree.
We formed it to suit our wishes and our purpose, Ash’s magic adding a touch of dryad power to keep the hybrid healthy and hale.
As an added touch, Ash could now transport to the tree any time he wished because a piece of his magic lived inside.
Branches swept down from the trunk, some lying heavy on the ground. The leaves were soft and a bit fuzzy, pink and white blooms on the tips of the branches.
“Whoa,” Ethan breathed.
Tonight had been a lot of firsts for the poor Shifter Lord, and one of the few times he’d seen my magic doing something other than slamming him around or antagonizing them.
“This is amazing,” Moira breathed. She ran her fingers over the trunk, magic swirling over her fingertips.
“What’s it for?” Ethan said.
“I’m not sure it works yet,” I said, squinting up at the sky. “But if it does, you’ll know.”
“When will you know?” he asked.
“Tomorrow morning.” I could feel Danu’s lurking presence. She was waiting to catch me off guard, but it wouldn’t quite work out that way.
Tomorrow, I’d deliver myself to her like a Christmas gift.