Chapter 16 #2
He pulls open the hole in Raef’s shirt, exposing the nasty puncture wound. It already looks darker, more swollen, and webbed. It’s spreading. He pulls the lid off the small bottle in his hand, then uses the small brush inside to swipe some of the liquid on the wound.
Daegan tenses, and I fear he’s about to protest, when the wound immediately begins to subside, the purple webbing visibly retracting before our eyes. Raef sucks in a deep breath, opening his eyes slowly.
I breathe out the deepest sigh of relief.
“You were right,” Raef mumbles, grinning up at me with his crimson eyes like none of this ever happened.
I smile, trying to hide any last remains of the worry that was all over my face. “I’m right about a lot of things. Be more specific.”
“I would’ve brought shame upon my family name for centuries if I were taken out by a fuzzy fucking plant-spider.”
We both laugh, and notice Daegan looking between us, unsmiling, like he’s still a little worried. And a little angry. Then his eyes lock on mine, like he’s searching for something. What, I don’t know. I couldn’t begin to guess what bitter ramblings go through his head.
“Don’t insult my crawlers that way,” our host interjects.
He’s just returned the healing serum or whatever it was to his cabinet, while Raef crawls off the table, poking at his almost-healed wound curiously.
He takes a knee beside me around the table.
“They are my beasts.” His words are stern and possessive, but his expression and demeanor are still as calm as a hidden pond in the darkest hour of the night.
“They almost killed us,” Daegan spits out with ire.
“Well, I cannot simply let just anyone wander into my forest, can I?” He crouches down until he’s on both knees, facing us from across the table. He sets down some items he’s retrieved from the kitchen, then gestures for Daegan to join us around the table.
Daegan shoots him a glare, remaining planted in the corner with his arms crossed.
“Naturally,” our host mutters under his breath.
“So, you are Maethrel, right? The witch?”
“Yes.”
“Are you the only one? Are there others of your kind?”
“We are not here to talk about my history. I know what you are here for. You seek answers. Guidance.”
I sit up straighter, glancing nervously at Daegan and Raef.
I try to ignore Daegan who’s watching me with intense focus from his corner, and instead keep my eyes on Maethrel as he assembles his bottles and trinkets.
It’s making a lot of clinking sounds, which is a little awkward in this quiet cottage.
“Relax,” Maethrel says with a calming hiss, drawing out the last sound. “They are going to find out. It is inevitable. And you cannot succeed without them.”
My heart races, and I begin to panic internally.
I’ve kept this to myself for years. All of the lonely hours spent in the library, the determination to find the answers.
All because I’ve been surrounded by my own kind—elves—who cannot be trusted with this because they’re comfortable with where they sit in the hierarchy of our continent.
I didn’t know who to trust, why anyone would want to ruin what we have.
Perhaps I could have found some allies among them.
I don’t believe that all elves would be okay with knowing the truth of what’s happening to other species out there, but I couldn’t risk exposing what I was doing to my father.
I still feel Daegan’s stare burning a hole into me, but I can’t meet his gaze right now.
Instead, I focus on Maethrel. Up close, he’s almost beautiful in an ethereal way. The glow of his white hair, his pale eyes, the sharp cut of his jaw and cheek bones that are almost feminine. He has black piercings along his ear and a hoop through the skin between his nostrils.
We continue to sit in silence as he mixes liquids together in a cauldron in front of him.
Feeling antsy and impatient, I finally risk a glance at Daegan.
He’s chewing on his bottom lip, his fingers playing with that piercing in his eyebrow, looking at the floor with intense concentration.
I still haven’t had time to process what happened back in the forest, but I play it back in my mind now as I watch him.
What I can recall, anyway. I have so, so many questions.
He somehow made fire? He also… called me “Elle” while we were being attacked?
I don’t think he’s even bothered to speak my full name out loud, let alone a nickname. What was that about?
I continue to study him, and I think how he would almost be beautiful, if it weren’t for his permanent scowl and horrible personality.
His full lips, deep blue fiery eyes that always look tired, unimpressed, or angry, shaggy light brown hair that I’m now realizing always somehow looks good without him even trying, and his smooth skin that’s just a few shades lighter than the hair.
All those things would be an irresistible combination for any girl, if it weren’t for his completely off-putting demeanor.
He’s certainly not as pretty and charming as Adrian.
There’s a ruggedness about him. And a rudeness.
He looks up, catches me staring, and holds my gaze with a flat expression.
I scowl and look away.
Clearing my throat, I address Maethrel. “What are you doing?”
He looks up at me finally and grins. He flicks a powder into his mixture with a dramatic flair, continuing to smile at me like a maniac through the smoke rising from it.
He grabs my hand so fast I can’t even process it, then cuts my palm with a jagged blue stone and holds it over the smoking cauldron.
I still get queasy with the image of blood or violence, but for some reason it’s not as bad when it’s my own.
Still, my mouth hangs open with shock as he drops my hand, and Daegan and Raef are both tense, ready to go on the offense again. Daegan has taken a few steps from the wall, but he’s stopped in the middle of the room now, his hand on his sword at his back.
“What was that?” Daegan demands in a gravelly tone.
“Relax, blue one. She’s fine.”
I glance at my hand, then shrug at Raef, who looks at me with concern. “I’m okay.” Why they’d care, I don’t know.
Maethrel sits back, and all our gazes shift back to him. His eyes become distant, and his voice takes on a slightly more eerie tone. I glance at my hands, nervously playing with them, because as he begins, I realize I’ve heard this before.
“Cut by one born from ember, the witch’s blood must flow once more.
The diadem of the elves shall be set upon flame’s brow,
and the blade that drank the dragon’s heart shall rise again.
Yet not till the four are gathered and kindled in the fire of their foe shall the sky be freed of its shroud.”
Halfway through the passage, I lift my eyes to Raef, then Daegan.
They’re both locked in on Maethrel as he recites the lines.
Daegan takes a few more small steps, his mouth hanging open just a fraction.
It’s the most caught-off-guard I’ve ever seen him.
I’d take satisfaction in the moment under different circumstances, but unfortunately my stomach is swirling with too many nerves.
By the end, Daegan’s expression is puzzled. They’re both stunned into silence. Finally, he snaps his mouth shut, shifting his gaze to me.
“You’ve heard this before,” he says calmly.
I nod. “It’s why we’re here,” I reply softly.
“You want to break the curse?” he asks, surprise and skepticism lacing every slow, uttered word.
I nod again.
“Why?” he presses, genuine curiosity painting his expression.
“I have my reasons,” I respond.
He tilts his head at me, the curious expression remaining. “And you trusted us to come? Knowing we’d likely find out your little secret?”
I don’t react for a moment. I’m still not completely sure I trust them. But with this, I do. I nod, then look away. We don’t have all day to talk about who trusts who, and what this means from here on out.
“You’ve come in hopes that I can help you locate the items,” Maethrel states.
“I already knew that passage. You didn’t have to be so dramatic about it,” I tell Maethrel. He grins.
“There are other purposes for why I did that. Now, tell me. What have you found so far.”
I release a breath and look down. This is the difficult part. The part where I have to admit my failures. “Nothing.”
Maethrel lifts a brow, sitting still. Making the silence seem thicker than air.
“Well, the diadem. I think it’s in the castle somewhere.
Elves are too full of themselves, and too selfish to let such a relic get far from them.
” Maethrel grins, nodding in acknowledgment.
Like he already knows but doesn’t want to tell me. For whatever reason.
Daegan listens with rapt attention. I would almost dare to say that he looks… excited. He’s still hiding it well, though.
They’re all waiting for me to continue. “That’s all I have, unfortunately.”
“Why does it say four, but there are only three listed?” I shift my gaze to Daegan, nodding in agreement. It’s something I’ve also been pondering since I found the passage.
“That’s one of my questions,” I say.
“Is the fire the fourth item?” Raef chimes in, sounding utterly lost but completely giddy all at once.
“I thought that at first, but I don’t think so. It talks about reuniting the four items before casting them into the fire.”
Daegan nods like he agrees. Raef looks baffled.
Maethrel looks at us smugly, like he knows every answer but he’s waiting for us to reach it on our own. It’s quite annoying.
“Care to offer any insight?” My tone is snarkier than I’d normally be.
He slowly nods his head. His silence making me even more angry. What did I come all this way for if he has nothing new to offer me?
“Can you tell me about the witch part?”
He raises an eyebrow, urging me to continue with his eyes.
“It doesn’t need to be her, right? Because if it does, we’re doomed. She’s been dead for centuries.”
“The witch who cast the curse?” Raef asks.
“Yes.”
“What happened to her?” Raefs asks again.