MEMORIES
30
- ALANIS -
I ’m not sure how much time has passed. I’ve heard hushed words and whispered prayers to the Gods for so long that time has blurred. I know without a doubt that Malakai and Kailu have been by my bedside the entire time. If one must leave, the other is here.
A slight flicker of light catches my attention. I’m trapped in my own head, darkness all around save for that flicker. I reach a hand out and gasp when I see my fingers. I have a body in whatever subspace this is. Did I enter some kind of weird in-between world?
I walk towards the light until I find a flickering flame, a lone candle sitting on a windowsill. A flower box with peonies decorates the otherwise dark surroundings .
I know this place. This was my home in the Caselian Realm. I peer inside the window and see my mother and father, and my heart clenches. Gods, I miss them.
“Tiernan, I’m worried. It happened again. She got angry , and when she slammed her door , it sent a shockwave through the house. The poor dog scampered off and hid under the bed. This power inside her is growing each day.”
My father grunts. “I know. I found someone who may be able to help us control whatever power it is. I ran into him when I was at the bookstore. He told me he has ancient texts and scrolls that might help.”
My mother weeps, the memory striking me in the center of my chest. At the time, I didn’t realize they were discussing me. I was just a seven-year-old girl who had no idea of anything going on, no idea that I was releasing power and worrying my parents.
The memory fades, and another one takes its place.
“You have strong emotions, little one. I found someone who has been helping me so that I can help you.” My father speaks softly to me.
My fifteen-year-old self looks at him with tired eyes.
“Any time you get overwhelmed or your emotions start to control you, just take a small sip of this.” He hands me a bottle that contains a silvery liquid. I make a face of disgust and he chuckles.
Oh, how I miss his laugh.
“It won’t be forever. Eventually this medicine will regulate those emotions and keep them under lock and key, so you don’t have to worry about them overwhelming you.”
It’s exhausting, these extreme emotions and the unexplained things that happen when they take hold of me. I take a deep breath and grab the bottle.
My father runs his hand over my hair. “It’s all right, little one. This will help.”
I look out at the cornfield and take a sip, my body revolting at the liquid.
The cornfield burns.
I know this day. The day that solidified my fate. A day that I will forever hate, but don’t regret, because it brought me to the Primal Realm.
It brought me to Kailu and Malakai.
Conversations echo around me, so I try my hardest to open my eyes for Malakai. I hear the worry in his voice as he talks with Kailu and sense his nervousness when a familiar voice confirms there has been no change.
“Whatever blocks her mind, or maybe even her soul itself, is causing her to struggle. It’s making it more difficult for her body to fight the unconsciousness.”
I recognize the voice now. Sarya. The Elf. When did she get here?
Malakai groans. “Is there nothing we can do?”
I don’t hear any response.
“Malakai, get some rest,” says the queen. “You are of no use to her this tired.”
Gods, please take me back to him.
To both of them.
A tingle in my fingers, like pins and needles, is the first hint that I’m finally back in my body. My eyes are crusty from days of being closed. I glance around the room, the black satin sheets I lay on give away that I’m in Malakai’s bed back at the castle. The room is dim, save for the dappled sunlight peeking through the curtains. Malakai’s head rests on the mattress and he leans forward in the black leather chair he pulled to my bedside, his breathing deep as he sleeps. I tentatively lift my hand, my muscles heavy as if I was trying to lift a hundred-pound weight. My hand bumps Malakai’s which rests below his cheek.
It jolts him from his slumber. He snaps his head up, liquid silver eyes locking onto mine. Fierce. Unyielding. And full of love.
“Firecracker.”
- MALAKAI -
Her ice-blue eyes stare into mine, my heart beating for the first time in three days. I take her face between my hands and kiss her like my life depends on it.
Her screams of pain in that meadow nearly killed me. Even in those minutes, I refused to look away from her. I wanted the last thing I saw to be her, my mate, not the bloodthirsty Amorak.
I pull back from the kiss, running my hands through her hair and over her body, searching her for any pain or injury we might have missed. It seems as if the Elves were right. She shows no signs of physical injury apart from some bumps and bruises. Throughout the entire battle, I kept her in my sights. I watched her handle the sword like a warrior, slashing through enemies with control and ease. It had to be the sexiest fucking thing I have ever seen in my hundreds of years of life. Even now I can feel my arousal at the memory of it.
She smiles at me. A soft, tender thing as she runs her fingers over my face. I watch her eyes trail down my chest, catching on the scars from the beast’s claws.
“You were dying,” she whispers.
I swallow hard. “Yes. I was.”
Her eyes meet mine once again. “I felt it. Your pain. I could feel your heart slowing.”
I carefully climb onto the edge of the bed so I don’t jostle her healing body. “I’m here, firecracker. I’m with you. It’s all right.”
I try to soothe her, but her pain is palpable. I know the feeling. In the moment, even with my fatal wounds, I feared for her. I feared the possibility of never seeing her again, but more than anything, I feared she would also fall to the Amorak.
The world needs her.
Gods, I need her.
Looking at her now, she needs me just as much. Not to protect her or coddle her, she is quite capable on her own, but to be her partner.
To love her.
Her tears fade and her body sags with exhaustion. “We should probably get some food into your system.” I go to get up, but her grip tightens.
“Please stay with me.”
I nod. “I will, I’m just going to stick my head into the hall and call for a few friends. They haven’t strayed far since we got here.”
I stride to the door, quickly calling out to Kailu, who I know has been living in the library across the hall these past three days when he’s not at Alanis’s bedside. He peeks out, concern etched across his face.
“What’s wrong?”
I give him a bright smile. “She’s awake.”
He doesn’t pause, just sprints across the hall, so fast I hardly see him move. I hear Alanis giggle and I think my heart skips a beat at the joyful sound. Gods, please let him have a bond with her. I fear if not I may lose them both to grief.
And then Hannah turns the corner as if summoned, her eyes snapping up when Alanis lets out another soft laugh. Hannah stares at me in shock.
“She just woke up,” I say. Hannah more than anyone has been an absolute wreck this entire time.
She walks slowly to the room, peering in through the crack in the door. Tears fall from her eyes as she lifts a shaky hand to cover her mouth. I place a tender hand on her shoulder.
“She’s all right,” I whisper, trying to offer comfort to her.
When we came through the doors of the palace, we were drenched in blood and barely standing for our wounds. Siveral and Hendrix were carrying me, the blood loss sending me in and out of consciousness. Kailu carried Alanis. I remember a gasp drawing my attention. Hannah and my parents stood in the foyer, eyes wide in horror. My mother raced towards me, Hannah towards Alanis. Shockingly, my father also went to Alanis. I’m still unsure why. I haven’t had much chance to talk to him.
Thankfully, Hannah is useful with healing remedies. She worked alongside the healer to treat all those who were injured, including myself.
She tentatively steps into the bedroom and I follow, spying Alanis and Kailu sitting close, their noses almost brushing. Then Alanis looks up, locking eyes with Hannah.
“Hannah.”
Kailu moves back to make room for her.
“Alanis Bowman, I should throttle you,” Hannah says in anger. “You promised not to do that to me again. You promised ! I thought you were…I thought—” She looks at the wall, letting her sentence hang in the air.
Alanis reaches for her, grasping her hand. “I know. I will make it up to you, I swear.”
Hannah scoffs. “Yeah, better be something good. I think you took ten years off my life.”
Alanis smiles. “Something good, huh? Like helping you mend your garden that is probably pretty screwed up right now?”
Hannah grimaces at the thought. “Yeah, that and more.”
“I could always help hook you up with a certain handsome, blond Fae?”
Hannah bites her lip to hide a smile.
“Come on, girls. I’m right here. If you want a piece of me just let me know, I’m happy to oblige,” Kailu says in a cocky voice.
The women laugh. “Not you, Kailu, another blondie. This one has a little longer hair,” Alanis jokes even though her eyes betray how tired she is.
Ah, the quiet human has a thing for Siveral. I smirk at the blush staining Hannah’s cheeks.
“Alanis, you are the worst,” she says with a smile.
The door opens. “Sis.” Elion’s voice is filled with relief.
I motion for everyone to leave the room. “I’ll be just across the hall. Say my name when you want me back, I’ll hear you.”
Alanis smiles. “Damn Fae hearing. Kind of annoying you’re so handsome and you have all those special gifts.”
I give her a sly grin, “Oh, baby, you know you love my special gifts.” Winking at her, I leave the room, laughing at the sound of Elion gagging.
“Can I never catch a break?” he mutters, and Alanis laughs and says, “Nope.”
I walk to the library to find Sarya scouring books for answers of what ailment plagued Alanis, and what power she possesses.
“Any luck?” I ask.
She shakes her head, looking thoroughly annoyed. “I’m afraid not. I think the only way to find out is through her coven.”
I’m just about to open my mouth when Elion steps through the door. I raise an eyebrow at him.
“The King asked for a moment alone with her.”
The shock at that statement halts all conversation. Before I can say anything, a figure appears out of nowhere against the nearest bookshelf. Sarya hops up, brandishing her dagger. Kailu pales, but manages to unsheathe his sword. It’s only myself and Elion who hesitate, as the figure of a woman appears.
I can hear Elion’s heartbeat pick up, but not in fear.
Interesting.
The woman moves closer. “Is she all right?”
“Yes,” Elion whispers as he walks to her and cups the Banshee’s face in his hands. “You shouldn’t be here. He will punish you again.” His voice is soft. He cares for her.
She bites her bottom lip. “I had to know. He was livid that his plan didn’t go accordingly. Then, when I was scavenging for him, I overheard soldiers in a pub. They said she hadn’t woken up after using her magic and no one knew why.”
“She just woke,” Elion says. “We still don’t know what happened.”
The woman pulls a small book from her pocket. “This might help.”
Elion takes the small black book and her hand.
“Eli, I have to go. He will notice my absence soon.”
Elion grits his teeth. He clearly doesn’t want to let her go, but he does. “I hate him.”
Her fingers run along his jawline. “Help your sister. End this.”
And as quickly as she came, she left.
“Do you know her name?”
He turns toward me with sad eyes. “No. She doesn’t even know it.” He walks towards the table, gently laying the book down to stare at it, as if it might come to life and attack him.
“Are you all right?”
His eyes snap to mine. “I know this book.”
I look at the inconspicuous tiny book and find nothing particularly special about it. “Did you find it where you found the scroll?”
He shakes his head. “No, it’s from home.”
I nod. “Have you read it before?”
He looks at me, eyes filled with grief and confusion. “No, you don’t understand. This is from home . The Caselian Realm. This was my mother’s journal.”
It’s then I notice the gold engraving on the spine: Matilda
“How did the Banshee get it?”
Elion swallows. “I’m not sure. The last time I saw it was when she was writing in it. That was the night before she died. It should be nothing but ash; fire burned through that entire camp.”
I frown. “Unless there was someone else there who took the journal before the attack. Someone who escaped.”
Elion looks to me. “Who? I knew everyone; no one would have stolen from her, let alone abandon the camp.”
I shake my head. “I’m not sure, but I’m damn sure we are going to find out.”
- KAILU -
I feel lighter than I have in days.
Alanis is awake.
My heart thumps an erratic beat. Seeing her smile again practically sent me to my knees. When Malakai first burst through the door, all manner of awful outcomes raced through my mind. When his words finally sank in, I raced to her side. Pushing into her room, I spotted her ice blue eyes first. They locked onto me instantly, and all the air in my body left me in a rush. Her bright smile filled the room and I pulled her into a rough kiss.
Her giggle thawed the remaining icy shards of fear that had taken up residence in my body. Truly, I thought we would never have another moment like this.
It happened so quickly that I can’t even recall what exactly it was. One second everything that mattered in my life was hanging in the balance. The next, gale-force wind threw the creature back, across the bridge. Then it tucked its tail between its legs and fled.
Now here we are, faced with her mother’s journal, Elion cautiously flipping through entries. Each one he passes leaves me more and more aggravated. Malakai bristles in irritation.
This woman was supposed to care for Alanis. It’s easy to see that she did so in Alanis’s early years, but as Alanis began to grow, so did her powers.
Malakai grunts. “This will break her,” he whispers.
“She deserves to know,” I snap. “And we will be there for her in the aftermath.”