“Can’t say I planned to.”
Evie snorted.
Different worlds passed us by, images flashing with snapshots of fantastical places I never dreamed existed. Places where ice reigned, others with fire. Worlds of stone and gemstones, deadly and beautiful animals roaming grass plains dotted with flowers I’d never seen before. But they all had one thing in common.
“Evie.”
“Kinda busy, Rowan,” she barked.
“Look.” I pointed toward the left side, even though every single image had the same thing going on.
Evie turned her head, frowning. Her eyes widened the second she spotted the same thing I had.
“That’s what she wanted to show us,” she said quietly. “How can I stop this?”
Darkness was spreading through every world Evie opened, small spots corrupting everything they touched. Where the magic rose, plants and animals died.
“The fae are born from the heart of the world. Their magic depends on how strong the universal heart beats,” she said. “Who would poison something we’re supposed to love?”
She opened more worlds, searching desperately for one uncorrupted by the power, but there were none to be found. All around us corruption seeped.
“If this is a spell, we can find a way to break it.”
Evie sighed and leaned against me, her fingers moving to close the portals.
“Your magic is changing,” I said, watching how fast she worked to close everything as we sped through the world.
“I’m a living bridge to the fae realms.”
I hid my surprise, but Evie laughed. “After I destroyed the World Tree, the magic had to go somewhere. Instead of creating a seed to replant itself later, the damn thing decided I’d be a good substitute.”
“Shit,” I swore quietly. Evie had made no secret her time in the tree had changed her, but I hadn’t realized the extent of her power. Or how much it might come to haunt her. “Can you get rid of it?”
All the portals closed, but Evie didn’t pull away from me. Her scent floated up, tantalizing my senses. I wanted to turn her and pull her against me, but moving in this environment was too risky, and I wasn’t sure she’d welcome the gesture.
We had yet to speak about our kiss, not that now was the right time. I’d done it to jar her out of her panic, not realizing how touching her might shake me to my core.
She shook her head. “I don’t think so. Mom is hoping a seed will show up soon. Maybe if one does, my power will be absorbed into the seedling, where it should have been all along.”
“You think she’s right?”
Evie’s chuckle held a dark edge. “Not a chance. Fate loves screwing with me. Give it a week and maybe I’ll be able to grant wishes.”
“Hmm,” I teased. “That’s a handy power. I can think of some things I’d wish for.”
Evie laughed. “A harem of nubile women?”
I stifled my sigh. Her jokes were my fault. I’d teased her before about my dating life, and the other Lords had added onto my reputation because of my constantly single state, wrongly assuming I was a serial dater. I was anything but. Evie had only assumed what we’d all led her to believe.
And now I was paying the price.
“Evie?”
Her hands whipped up again. “Hold on. We’re almost there.”
Magic saturated our bodies as Evie opened another portal and steered us over. Seconds later, we were plummeting back into our bodies, the words I wanted to say replaced with a startled yelp at the abrupt drop.
Chapter
