Chapter 2 #2
He shrugs. “Maybe eventually. But the answer is humans. Humans are power to fae, and the Unseelie don’t have that.
It’s a huge disadvantage. So, if a human were to go into Unseelie territory, they’d be like a walking gift.
A gift of the gifted,” he muses. “Anyway, they might be able to position themselves to lead the Unseelie King into a trap where the Seelie courts may finally be able to take him down.”
Right. Definitely stepped into action movie territory. “That sounds super dangerous for a lot of maybes.”
“It’s not without its risks. But if someone pulls it off, they’ll be legendary. Not just among us but the fae too.” Matt sighs wistfully. “I’d definitely have Selena’s attention then.”
“Matt.” I pin him with a hard stare. “You cannot be serious about wanting to sign up for something like that.”
He won’t quite meet my eyes, and I know he’s thought about it.
“They’d never consider me with all this.” He gestures toward the medical cart.
For maybe the only time ever, I’m a little thankful for his condition. But just the reference to it has doused all his enthusiasm, leaving his shoulders hunched and expression downcast. We can’t have that.
“So, thankfully not serious about this secret mission in Faery but definitely serious about Selena.” I wink and paste on a blinding grin. “Does she know you like her?” I lean in. “Asked her out for a virtual date yet?”
“Ugh.” The eyeroll and toss of his hands into the air says I’m hopeless. “Come on, Aims. You know I haven’t.”
I shift on the bed to better stare him down. “Why not? It’s worth a shot, especially if you share the same interests.”
“Are we really talking about my love life right now? Or complete lack thereof?” He peers at me down the length of his nose.
“Mmhmm.”
When his scold morphs into a smirk, I know I’m in trouble. “I’d rather hear about yours.”
“Mine?” I lean backward so quickly I nearly tumble from the bed.
“It’s got to be more interesting than mine. Come on, spill it.” He crosses his arms, laptop momentarily forgotten. “I want to know who you’ve been so wrapped up in that you haven’t come to visit as much lately.”
The comment hits like a punch to the gut, and I can’t help but flinch.
“See?” He beams in triumph. “I knew it.”
But there is no one. There hasn’t been for an embarrassingly long time. “Matt, I—”
A soft rap at the door has us both jumping. I look back over one shoulder just in time to see the nurse crack open the door.
“It’s time to test your vitals again,” she says, “Shouldn’t take long.”
Oh thank God. I nearly leap off the bed. There couldn’t possibly have been a better time for an interruption, given the super awkward angle that conversation just tilted to. There’s no guy, Matt. I just haven’t been around because…
The blood pressure cuff the nurse pulls out may well have been around my neck, given how tight my throat feels. I’m genuinely surprised I can speak when I say, “I’ll come back in just a bit.”
“It’s okay,” Matt says quickly. “You can stay.”
I smile for his benefit. “I have to use the bathroom. You won’t even miss me.”
The gape he gives me in return says I’m an idiot. “There’s one right here.”
But I ignore it. My eyes sting as I turn around.
He has missed me. And I’ve missed him.
But my work in the lab… Doesn’t he know it’s all for him? I slip out the door and lean against the cream-colored wall. One deep breath after another, I calm myself down, the heels of my palms pressed to my eyes to hold back the tears.
Funny how loving someone can make you feel so good and so bad all at once.
A few seconds later, my panic has receded. I’ve had a lot of practice bringing it under control.
It’s not the bathroom calling my name, like I told Matt, but the breakfast I didn’t get around to eating.
I couldn’t manage it until I saw him. Honestly, I still can’t believe he’s at home and not the hospital.
But I guess we’ve reached that point where close calls have become too common.
And there’s little they could do for him there that an on-call nurse can’t handle at home with all the equipment we have nowadays.
The kitchen is just around the corner, but voices from the office stop me cold.
“So you’re just giving up then!” The door is closed, but that doesn’t stop Mom’s shrill exclamation from carrying straight through the wood.
Fuck. My shoulders drop. They’re fighting again, Mom and Dad. It happens all too often these days. It’s not that they don’t love each other. I know they do. But the stress of it all eats them alive, I think. Probably even more than me.
“I spoke with the head of the coven myself.” Dad’s voice is more even and a little quieter but still loud enough for me to make him out. “And she took the request directly to the Queen of Fire.”
I blink, my mind taking a few seconds longer than it should to comprehend what they’re talking about. This is about the fae, about the coven of gifted humans we technically belong to but have never been that involved in—much to Matt’s frustration, I’m sure.
“And they don’t want to help us,” Mom says flatly, voice still raised.
“It’s not that they don’t want to help, Naomi.
They can’t.” The door is still closed, but I can picture my father shaking his head, his hair—so much like Matt’s but liberally streaked with gray—swaying, the thin press of his lips, even the hunch of his shoulders.
“They don’t have the ingredients. They’re native to the Unseelie territory.
Unseelie, Naomi,” he repeats the word, as if it says everything.
And I guess it does. I may not have spent much time on matters of the fae, but even I know the Unseelie are little better than monsters, the foes of the Seelie courts that share their wealth and knowledge in exchange for humans residing with them, mating with them.
I give a little shiver. It’s all so weird, really.
Fantasy, or it would be to most, but it’s actually real.
“Why is it even in that book of theirs then?” Something heavy thumps on the other side of the door.
“How should I know?” Dad says.
“It’s like they’re toying with me. Trying to get my hopes up.” The words shift into sobs.
A deep sigh, then, “Come here.”
And I know my dad is holding her close, comforting his wife. That any sharp words a few minutes ago will be healed over by the closeness and connection between them.
Yeah, it’s definitely time for me to go. I turn for the kitchen, but the next words root me to the ground.
“But the potion could help Matt,” Mom’s voice breaks over his name.
“ If it existed. If it could be made.”
“It exists, Paul!” A sharp smack, a palm against a table, I’m guessing, comes through the door. “Why would the Seelie record such a thing if they couldn’t make it?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” he says with an exhausted sigh. They must have been at this for a while now.
“But we’re running out of time.” More sniffles from Mom. “You know what the doctor said. I can’t— I just can’t not—” Then she’s sobbing again, the words lost. The sound muffles as she likely leans into my dad’s chest.
All thoughts of food vanish. Something else entirely is taking up all the space in my brain, puzzle pieces shifting and snapping together to form a picture that leaves me swaying and tingling in equal measure.
I’m halfway back down the hall before I even realize I’ve moved. I don’t stop outside the door. Don’t knock. My focus is singular.
Matt’s head snaps up as I enter. “You’re back quick.”
“Told you I wouldn’t take long.” Maybe I smile. Maybe I don’t. I’m not sure. My idea is shouting at me now, and I can hardly hear anything else.
I sit on the edge of the bed, toes tapping silently on the rug until the nurse leaves. The moment the door closes, I turn to Matt. “Tell me more about this plot to entrap the Unseelie King.”