Everything hinged on the decisions I made. Simone gave our hands a gentle squeeze and let go, closing her eyes and leaning against the trunk. A happy smile curved her lips. “Thank you. It’s been far too long since I’ve used my gifts.”
“Have you thought about asking Rowan? I’ve only met a couple of his people, but I know Rowan well enough to know he’ll utilize talented people.”
Simone cracked an eye open. “I’m loyal to you.”
I didn’t understand. “Thank you for that, but one doesn’t have anything to do with the other, does it?”
“It does,” Moira said. “If Simone was still in a Pack, but she’s not.”
Simone opened her other eye and frowned. But then she slowly sat up, her lips parting.
“Free agent, baby,” Moira said. “You can start charging for your services.”
Simone looked at me. “Don’t ask me. It’s your gift.”
“Yes, but you’re my…” Her brow knit together. “I’m sworn to you.”
“Only in that you have to protect my people. There’s nothing in our contract about acting as a freelancer.” I nudged her with an elbow. “I’m not Caelan. Use your magic wherever you have permission to do so. Charge for it. Hell, start a business. I might be the ‘official’ fae queen, but as you can see, things are a littleshaky right now.” I still hadn’t told them what was happening with my rule or what I’d promised my mother and father.
Time enough to deal with that later.
Rowan caught my eye and waved us back over, but when Moira wandered toward them, Simone tugged on my hand. “Evie. Stay back for a moment. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Concerned, I stopped and turned. Simone’s expression was serious, her eyes soft. “Everything okay?”
“Yes,” she assured me, “but there’s something you should know. I meant to tell you earlier, but other things were happening, and…” she exhaled. “Well, this will be hard to hear and might change things, but you deserve to know.”
My heartbeat intensified, and my palms went clammy. “Is this about Caelan?”
She tugged me down, and I sat once more, my back against the tree trunk.
“I’m sorry, Evie.” When she opened her mouth again, the words she said didn’t register at first. But when they did, the world fell out from under my feet.
Dad was lookingover our shoulders as we retook our seats. A tingle of familiar magic shimmered from behind, revealing my mother, casually dressed in a pair of trousers and a silk blouse, the same color as her eyes. Her hair was loose and curled, and her makeup, which she never needed, carefully applied.
Mom only dressed like that when she dealt with humans. She smiled at me as she came over, taking the seat Dad offered her. Poe and Fee had disappeared somewhere, and I made a mental note to speak to the raven to see if Fee was comfortable revealing herself to Cliona. I remembered the day I took the phoenix home and how worried I was the entire time as I waited forher to hatch. Mom had eventually revealed herself to not be the monster we all believed her to be, but Fee had never met her. I wondered if they would like each other.
“Evie?” Mom’s brow knitted with concern. “Everything alright?”
“Lots on my mind,” I said, smiling to wipe the worry from her expression. “Dad has something to tell us, and it’s been itching at him for hours now.”
“Danu,” Mom said. “We all felt her rise.”
“Something poisons the earth,” Dad began. “But the magic is more subtle than we would be.”
Mom’s lips pursed. “You think it’s a spell then. From witches?”
Dad nodded. “Much harder to pin down the identity of a witch than it is a god or goddess.”
“Every witch has a power signature,” Moira said. “If you show me what you’re talking about, I might be able to help.”
“Are there more places with visible damage?” I asked Dad. “Everything I saw was under the surface.”
“I haven’t seen them all.” He turned to Moira. “If you’re willing, I can quickly transport you to those places to see if you can get a read from them. Time is of the essence. The outskirts of Rowan’s land are damaged. Every day we delay, the Lord’s power will weaken.”
My attention snapped to Rowan. “Are you okay?”
“I’ve felt nothing so far,” the Lord said.
