Chapter 2 Carwynn
CARWYNN
LUCKLAND—THE PRESENT
In many ways, Death’s embrace was where I was born.
I trailed fingers over the rough scar that sliced across my throat. A clean line from left to right, with uniformly spaced stitch marks along it. My pale skin only enhanced the pink discoloration.
The ridges and bumps soothed me as I ran my fingers over them.
Although a reminder of the most traumatic night of my life, it was proof I was still here, alive.
And being alive meant purpose. That purpose being .
. . well, no goddamn clue, really. But I needed to start by finding myself.
Whoever that was. Easier said than done.
A shadow darted across the room behind me. I whipped my head around so fast I nearly tore a muscle.
Nothing. Only my empty bedroom.
My inkling—my innately gifted sixth sense—sparked to life. Goosebumps pimpled down my forearms.
Sensing weird things like ghosts, shifts in energy, the dead, were all part of a normal day for me.
But ever since I’d arrived in the Ferie Realm and moved to Luckland, something had drastically changed.
I’d spent my entire life in the Human World, up until recently.
Spirits and shadows felt much lighter there.
But here, they were heavy, creepier even.
These shadows were something more. Every time they flickered at the edge of my vision, an unsettling weight plunged into the depths of my stomach. It felt off.
I shook off the remaining chill. Things were undoubtedly different here, and the moment my feet touched Ferie’s soil, my ability flared to life like never before.
My recurring dreams intensified tenfold, as if they were calling to me—one where I’d find a pink, egg-shaped stone.
The other, I’d appear in a cave, smashing a black box carved with gold markings.
Magical relics. Relics I’d spent years searching for, hoping to prove they were real, to no avail.
But the uptick in strangeness, I assumed, was all part of adjusting to the unfamiliar magic here.
I held a stunning lace choker up to my neck, clasping it in the back.
It was black, elegant, with a whisper of something gothic, like it’d been stolen from the withering hands of a dying queen in the pages of a long-forgotten fairytale.
My drawer had been filled to the brim with them in a variety of colors and textures, suited for every possible occasion.
It’s not that I found the scar unsightly. I knew others would. Superficiality on looks wasn’t only isolated to the Human Realm and drawing extra attention to myself was something to be avoided.
I rubbed my bare earlobe with a thumb and forefinger.
Gold. The outfit definitely needed a pop of gold. A color that would never go out of style in Luckland.
Opening my small jewelry box, my fingers traced the empty space.
Gone? What the hell!
I pulled open the top dresser drawer, disheveling the contents, angrily sifting through.
“Where are they!”
It took a half hour to settle on an appropriate outfit. I needed something enticing, yet sophisticated, so I finally decided on a black, long-sleeve sweater dress. It was form-fitting, in a classy-not-trashy way, and a tad low-cut.
Now, the beautiful gold earrings. If I could find them.
People said an outfit can speak volumes, so I was going for—I’m young but not dumb. Though, I could already hear David’s voice in my head yelling otherwise.
Since adopting me in my early teens, David had taken his role of overprotective father way too seriously.
A part of me got it—he was the one who’d found me as a kid, butchered in a cemetery, barely alive and bleeding out in a pool of my own blood.
He’d made a promise to my long-dead mother—his best friend—that he’d keep me safe.
So, yeah, finding your honorary kid sprawled out, throat slit, probably added a little trauma.
But I wasn’t a teenager anymore—nearing twenty-five—for god’s sake. He desperately needed to dial the dad energy down from maximum security prison to college dorm.
Especially after the Lochlainn incident. When David found out I’d told Lochlainn about my Soulsayer ability, and worse, used it in exchange for money, he went ballistic. Made me swear never to do it again.
My Soulsayer ability was a rare gift from Hallow Land—the place I was born. Not that I remembered it. But Soulsayers could speak to the dead, coax answers from the afterlife with the right object, or right mood. But they were only speakers. Sayers.
Soul Wielders were something else entirely. They didn’t just speak to souls, they commanded them. Bent them to their will. Legends said a Soul Wielder could extract a soul straight from a living body if they wanted to.
David told me those days were long gone. That Soul Wielders, like the Soothseers who could glimpse into time itself, were extinct relics from a darker age.
But lately, my abilities were changing, growing.
And a strange dark part inside of me grew with them.
It didn’t whisper anymore. It hungered. And honestly, that scared the living shit out of me more than anything.
It felt like a cold phantom living in the back of my mind, a reminder that I didn’t know who my biological father was, or what he was.
Practicing my Soulsayer ability helped keep the itch and daunting thoughts at bay.
I didn’t need the money—I had a job teaching at the Institute and David had me well cared for.
But I most definitely needed the practice to keep my control in check, and more than anything, I wanted to build a life where I finally felt like I fit in.
I swore to him I wouldn’t work for Lochlainn again. And yet, here I was, getting ready to go see him.
Whoopsie.
What David doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right? Besides, I was a grown-ass woman! He didn’t have to coddle me anymore. I could take care of myself. Sorta.
Slamming the drawer shut, I looked around the room.
Where the hell could they be?
My sights landed on a small hole in the wall. Ground-level, right next to the bed, something shimmered.
I already knew it wasn’t a cute, little mouse family living there.
“You little thieving cockroaches!” I growled, reaching into the hole trying to pull out the gold earrings.
One pulled out freely, but the other was snagged on something. My fingers explored inside.
There, I felt the earring and twisted it free. I drew my hand back when—
“Ow!” I yelped as something nipped down on the tip of my finger.
I launched backwards. A small bead of blood started to form, along with two rows of tiny bite marks.
“You little motherfu—” My words were cut off by my door swinging open.
Breena, my lovely fairy roommate, stood in the doorway. Beautiful black wavy hair spilled over her shoulders, gold-flecked freckles splattering her cheeks.
Her earthy green eyes bore into mine.
“What the feck is going on here?”
My annoyance built.
“It bit me! The little thief stole my earrings then bit me!”
She rolled her eyes, half-smirking.
“I told ya not to mess with ‘em—Brownies are not to be toyed with! They are the wickedest of sprites. They’ll make life a living hell if you keep offending ‘em!”
“Me? Messing with them?” My arm shot out, pointing to the crime scene. “They’re the ones who keep messing with me!”
Breena chuckled.
I couldn’t believe people actually tolerated having these pests in their homes.
I crossed my arms and exhaled.
“Can’t we call an exterminator or something?” My eyebrows lifted. “Oh! Maybe I can stick the hose in the wall and flush them out!”
Breena’s eyes went wide in shock.
“Shhhh! Bite your tongue, Carwynn! Ya don’t mean that,” she blurted.
She looked toward the hole apologetically.
“I swear she doesn’t mean that! Forgive her, she’s new around here.
Still learning our ways.” She reprimanded me with a look, then dropped her voice.
“They can hear ya! You better apologize.
Or leave ‘em an offering before they break our plumbing!”
I narrowed my eyes, whispering back.
“What am I supposed to do? They keep stealing my shit!”
“Show ‘em kindness, Carwynn! You’d be surprised.” An amused smile pulled at her mouth. “They are small but mighty. Ya don’t wanna be on their bad side. They’re ancient!”
I grunted, striding back to the hole.
“Fine!” I dropped the earrings down with a thud. “Take them, they’re yours. Truce?”
A moment passed.
Then, the tiniest transparent arm reached out of the hole. It grabbed the earrings and quickly retreated.
When I first heard we had Brownies in our house, I got excited.
Anything chocolate and decadent was my happy downfall.
In my first rude awakening, I learned that in this land, Brownies were tiny sprite-like creatures that thrived on being a complete pain in the ass.
They’d burrow into mound homes, curiously spying.
They’d either become a cute accessory to the home or an absolute plague.
In our case, I was settling on the latter.
They’d been stealing my stuff since day one.
Breena shook her head at me, still entertained by my misery.
“You’re the only one they steal from. I think it means they like ya!”
“Oooo, lucky me!” I said sarcastically.
Breena only laughed harder.
“Ya look fit by the way!” She motioned the outline of an hourglass with her hands. “Got a cute date?” She waggled her eyebrows.
“I wish!” I said, smirking. “No, I’m headed to the Golden Oak.”
Breena halted. Her sparkling freckles squished together along with her face.
“Ohhhh no. Your silver fox, fairy godfather is going to kill you!” Her eyes drilled into me. “Last time I checked, didn’t he say he’d drag your arse back to the Human Realm if he caught ya ‘working for that mobster again?’” She used her hands to quote David.
I dismissively waved a hand in response.