Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
ABBY
“ A bby…”
There’s that voice again. The voice I’m certain isn’t Void’s and I’m almost positive holds no threat to me. Who or what it is, I can’t be certain, but the compulsion I have to follow it is just as strong as it was when it woke me from my nightmare.
“Abby…”
It sounds from the left this time, so I know I’ve wandered off course again. It’s nearly impossible to see in this forest, though with the sun slowly rising behind me, some of the blackness is turning to grey.
“Abby…”
That time it was much closer, as if the person who’d spoken my name should be just a short distance ahead of me. It’s led me to a round clearing and at the very center, something small is protruding from the earth. It’s still too dark to see it clearly, but for some reason I can’t explain, I know exactly what it is.
‘Abby!’
I freeze. That wasn’t the voice I’ve been following.
I whip around just as a massive silver wolf with amber eyes charges through the trees and into the clearing that could almost be mistaken for Rosewood, except for the fact that there are no buildings here.
‘You scared me,’ I tell Quinn through the bond, unwilling to break the silence in case the voice calls to me again.
‘I scared you?! Why weren’t you answering me? I thought Jade…’ He trails off, but I know what he means. Of course he would think that.
‘I must not have heard you. I’m sorry.’
Something in his expression tells me he knows there’s more to this. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘I was having a nightmare, but when I woke up, I kept hearing my name. It wasn’t Void’s voice, or any I recognized. I had to follow it. It was like I didn’t have a choice.’ I’m rambling, but his sudden appearance has brought me back to reality. This could have easily been a trap. I wasn’t entirely in control of myself and if Quinn hadn’t woken up, I might have found myself lost in the forest. For all I know, Void could have been the one to lead me here, and any minute, Guardians will spill out from the trees and surround us.
He looks around and sniffs at the air. ‘Why here?’
I point to the thing I’d spotted just before his arrival. As we take cautious steps towards it, Quinn’s eyes dart in all directions. If I’m feeling like this is a good spot for an ambush, then he’s absolutely aware of that fact and is likely formulating multiple plans of both attack and escape.
We come to a stop at the very center of the valley and I crouch in front of the rose that looks exactly like the magical ones that grow in Rosewood.
‘Is that…’ Quinn asks, momentarily distracted by the flower.
‘I’m pretty sure it is.’ Just as I was when I’d first seen them in Rosewood, I find myself compelled to touch the ashen petals. As my fingers brush against it, the blood-red interior brightens.
And then another flower blooms beside it.
And another.
And another.
Roses bloom around the first and spread outward in a large spiral—just as they’d grown in Rosewood. At the heart of them, the earth splits and a large stone rises up from the soil.
An altar.
My gaze flashes to Quinn and he’s so still that I’m not even sure if he’s breathing. ‘I thought you said these roses appeared in Rosewood after you were cursed.’
‘They did.’ His tone is flat. Fearful.
‘So then why are they here?’
His massive head nudges my leg, easing me back the way we’d come. ‘I don’t want to find out. We should go.’
He doesn’t have to tell me twice. In Rosewood, these roses had been a thing of beauty, but here? In this dark, empty forest? Their presence feels more like a threat than a gift. I don’t know who put them here or why they responded to my touch, but that’s something we can figure out in the light of day.
By the time we’d made it back to camp, the sun was up and Jade was gone. Quinn told me about his sudden appearance and that he was the reason he’d known where to look for me. I’m not surprised Jade stuck around, even if he’d make it impossible to find him. He might have even followed us back to Marein, and we’d have no idea.
When the islands that have become our home for the time being fall into sight, I breathe a sigh of relief. I don’t feel safe here, but I feel a heck of a lot safer than I did in the forest. Even though I haven’t admitted it to Quinn, those roses still have me spooked. Their appearance here proves that they had nothing to do with Imelda’s curse, which means their presence in Rosewood could have everything to do with Terranous—and me.
Things would be so much easier if Terranous would just speak to me. If he has a purpose for me, I need to know what that is. Especially now that both Lunalissa and Inferna have a Chosen in play. Jade said his purpose is to kill Void and me, but I don’t feel any such compulsion to end his life. Void? Sure, but that’s personal.
“You’re back!” a familiar voice calls moments before I spot Fern running down the beach.
Quinn takes my hand in his and abruptly pulls us forward, quickening our pace to meet her. “What’s wrong?” he asks, kneeling down to her level. At first I’d thought she was just happy to see us, but now that we’ve reached her, I can see that he’s the one who read this correctly. She’s clearly upset, though physically she looks unharmed.
“The sirens know what Kaylee is.”
Quinn scoops the girl up in his arms, and then we’re running. I know he’s slowing his pace so I can keep up with him, but I wish he wouldn’t. If Kaylee is in trouble, he shouldn’t worry about me.
When we reach the whirlpool, he comes to a sudden stop and sets Fern down. She takes off down the stairs, but he turns to me and takes my hand in his. “I’m sorry. I know you don’t want to be down there, but—”
I press a finger against his lips. “Lead the way.” If Kaylee needs us, there’s no way I’m waiting on the surface. I may not be able to use any of my new powers, but I still have my daggers.
By the time we reach the bottom, Fern has disappeared, but Quinn seems to know exactly where he’s going. We pass sirens along the way and, although they eye us warily, not one of them dares speak out against our presence. If they know who Kaylee is to them, I doubt they’ll object to her brother and his mate wandering the halls of her kingdom.
Gods, I hope they’re not forcing her into this. This is exactly what Quinn wanted to avoid. She may be Marein’s rightful ruler, but she’s still a child of sixteen. She’s not ready for this. Even at twenty-four, Quinn doesn’t want to think of himself as any sort of king. How is Kaylee going to be expected to rule—especially without the visions that apparently give her the right to do so?
When we reach the door to what was once the throne room—and might very well be again—Quinn doesn’t bother to knock. The wheel handle screeches with disuse, but the door itself gives no trouble as it slides open to reveal exactly what I expected.
I spot Kaylee immediately, with both Rhett and Merrick at her side. The other dragons stand a short distance behind them, arms crossed and claws drawn. At least Merrick is keeping his word.
Standing opposite them, is Erwyn, Aurelia, and a handful of sirens I haven’t yet had the pleasure of formally meeting. Our entrance hasn’t gone unnoticed. Whatever argument they’re having drops into a sudden silence as all eyes turn to us.
“Look who finally decided to join us,” Erwyn says, hard eyes on Quinn. I wouldn’t have expected anything else from this man.
Quinn tenses in response, but I can tell by the hardness of his jaw that this is him trying to control his anger. In an effort to prevent this from turning into an even bigger argument, I take a step forward. “Is someone going to tell us what’s going on?”
Erwyn’s gaze shifts to me. “Our queen has returned, and you kept it from us. Such treachery is punishable by death.”
“I will not tell you again,” Aurelia snaps. “Shut it.” Good for her. She may not be their leader, but she’s the only one who seems able to put Erwyn in his place and keep him there.
Kaylee speaks before he can argue. There’s something different about the way she’s carrying herself. She’s no longer the fearful child we found hidden away in the tunnels of Lunae. She’s strong and confident and, with her new mate by her side, looks like she really could step into the role of ruler. “As I said, I cannot weave.”
Erwyn slams a fist down on the table. “Lies!”
Rhett looks as if he means to step between them, but Kaylee places a gentle hand against his chest to stop him. “You wish me to be your queen, yet you don’t allow me to speak.”
“I do not wish for it. Our laws—”
“Your laws say that you are to be led by a weaver. I cannot weave without my other half.”
Other half? What is she talking about? In Rosewood, she described it as there being no visions—no colours. But there were colours in Lunae.
A memory pierces through the fog of confusion, and I see it all too clearly. The tunnels beneath Lunae. Kaylee in that dank prison. And Arabella. When they touched, they spoke in unison. Shared the same vision of Jade and Quinn fighting. They saw Quinn lose…
But then Kaylee attacked me.
Jade and Quinn felt it through the shared bond and came to help me. Kaylee’s actions that day saved Quinn’s life, but she wouldn’t have known to do that if Arabella hadn’t taken her hand.
“Arabella?” I sputter, shocked that it’s taken me so long to make the connection. “You need Arabella.”
“Who is Arabella?” Aurelia asks. She sounds exasperated now, as if this fight had been going on for quite a while before we arrived.
“Your other niece,” Quinn says with a grumble. “I understand your need to keep secrets about Jade, but withholding valuable information about our enemy served no purpose.”
“Knowing you share her blood changes nothing.”
I squeeze Quinn’s hand in a silent reminder to keep his cool. There will be plenty of time to get after her about that, but right now we should be focused on Kaylee and the revelation she just dropped on us.
“It changes everything!”
I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes. So much for keeping cool. Aurelia, at least, seems unperturbed by the outburst.
“All it has done is make her actions against you more personal. Imelda is not the issue at hand.” For once, I have to agree with her.
“Has anything like this ever happened before?” I ask. “Needing two seers to weave, I mean.”
“Only once in our history when a set of twins were born. They could only weave when they locked fingers.”
I think back to the mural in the cave but don’t remember seeing a set of twins, though I was a bit distracted by Imelda’s cold eyes staring back at me.
Erwyn speaks before I can. “Are you certain the other one is Imelda’s daughter?”
Is he implying that Sierra had another child? “Yes,” I tell him quickly. “I saw Imelda pregnant. Heard the screams the night Arabella was born. Saw the baby only hours later. She couldn’t have faked that.”
“And my mother only had one daughter,” Quinn adds. “Not two.”
Erwyn looks as if he doesn’t believe us, but Aurelia nods. “Then this should not be possible. Unless…”
“Unless what?” I’m surprised that the question came from Rhett. He’d been silent this entire time, but I can see a change in him since he and Kaylee accepted their bond. Imelda hurt Kaylee in ways we might never fully understand, but I haven’t a doubt that Rhett does. Even if she hasn’t told him, he’ll feel it through the bond. He’ll want Imelda dead as much as any of us, and if this is yet another thing she’s done to Kaylee, of course he’ll demand to know about it.
Aurelia and Erwyn share a look that has me more on edge than I have been since we entered this room. “Unless she visited the Spider.”
“Who is the Spider?” Quinn and I ask at the exact same moment.
“A mageborn,” Aurelia explains. “The daughter of a God and the last of her kind. She lives underground deep within the forest, striking bargains and taking lives. If Imelda made a deal, there may be no stopping this.”
Merrick steps forward. I’d nearly forgotten he was here. “Unless another deal is struck.”
Aurelia takes a step of her own. “You cannot be serious! Or perhaps you have been away for too long and have forgotten the stories. The Spider is dangerous.”
“And so is Imelda. I have to protect my unborn child, and I would very much like a weaver on my side.”
“And what if she kills you? We both know you do not want Jade to take your place as Regent. You cannot take that risk.”
“But we can,” I say, nearly regretting it when all eyes settle on me. The fear in Quinn’s hit me the hardest. “I understand that it’s dangerous, but if she can give us answers, then maybe she can tell us how to stop Imelda. Stop Void before he reaches his full strength.”
To my surprise, Erwyn is the first to object. “Or we could just take Imelda’s child. We do not need answers if we have her.”
“As much as I’d like to get her out of there,” Quinn says, “we can’t just march into Lunae. She’ll be guarded. Imelda will have no qualms about using her daughter as bait. This could have been her plan all along.”
I turn my attention to Kaylee. “Do you know anything that can help us?” She may not be able to see things now, but she has seen things.
“Visiting the Spider alters the path. There will be a cost, but the rewards will be great.” I don’t miss the flicker her eyes make to Quinn before they settle back on me. Her face is still and near emotionless, but those eyes… As they stare deeply into mine, I know that this is her way of asking—no, telling me that we need to do this. Why she doesn’t just say that, I can’t be certain, but whatever the reason, she doesn’t want her brother to know she wants this.
I square my shoulders. “The way I see it, we don’t have a choice. Imelda has already made it clear that war is coming, so we might as well get as much information from this spider as we can before she shows up on our doorstep for a second time.”
Quinn takes my hands in his. “Are you sure you want to do this?” I know what he’s asking. I’m not exactly a fan of the forest right now, and after what we found this morning…
“Yes. It’s better than sitting here and doing nothing.” And it is. Repairing buildings, growing vegetables, and learning the hand language of sirens can only distract me for so long. I want to be doing something real. Something that brings us one step closer to true freedom.
I almost miss Quinn’s slight sigh as he turns to address his aunt. “What can we expect in terms of a cost?”
Aurelia moves behind the throne and pulls out a small chest that must have been tucked away beneath it. “This is all the riches Marein has left. If you are to do this, offer them to her and pray to the Gods that it will be enough.”