“Let’s get out of here.” I slung one of his arms around my shoulder—geez, he was huge—and somehow got him to his feet. We staggered over to Callie and Bethany, who were watching us with wide eyes, but who sprang right into action, no questions asked, when I said, “We need to get him away from Randy. Now.”
As we hauled Faelan away from the group, I felt it. A shift.
Nothing dramatic. No tremors, no eerie winds. Just a faint thickening in the air, a subtle press against my skin, like stepping into humidity after standing in crisp, open air. Bethany muttered something under her breath, probably thinking it was just the weight of the situation, but I wasn’t so sure.
Faelan was heavy, not just in size but in presence. His breath labored, like he was forcing each inhale, keeping himself together through sheer will.
I stole a glance back.
Randy had turned his attention back to the group, completely oblivious, talking about strengthening the ritual. The others were nodding along, humoring him.
We had to move.
Callie led us toward the tree line, away from the open firelight and deeper into the dark. But even as we walked, I noticed something was…off.
The trees were too green. The leaves seemed too thick, too lush for this time of year. A low-hanging branch brushed against my shoulder, and where I swore those branches had been bare minutes ago, tiny buds were beginning to bloom.
I slowed. “Guys—do you see this?”
Bethany’s brow furrowed. “See what?”
I brushed aside a fresh sprig of ivy that hadn’t been there before. “This is totally out of season.”
Callie took a step back. “Okay. That’s not normal. But there’s no way Randy has some magical power to make plants grow.”
I 0pened my mouth to agree and wave this off as some kind of weird coincidence, but then I looked at Faelan.
His skin wasn’t pale or sickly, butwrong. Like a tree that had been stripped of its bark.
This was serious. “Randy may not have power. But that ritual? It wasn’t just a bunch of nonsense.”
Bethany twisted the hem of her sweater for dear life. “But, even so. We’re talkingRandyhere.”
“The earth listens,” Faelan said. “It doesn’t question the heart of the one who speaks, nor does it pause to ask if the words are meant to be said. And so it answered him, though his tongue faltered and he didn’t understand what he asked.”
Callie shifted her weight, glancing between us. “Hold on. You can’t mean to say….” She laughed nervously. “I mean, sure, you look the part, but obviously you’re not—”
I barely heard her. My mind was racing, replaying the last few minutes—the thick air, the fresh ivy, the way Faelan had justdropped. And the way Randy, oblivious as ever, had plowed on ahead.
“What did that idiot actuallydo?” I whispered.
Faelan lifted his head to meet my gaze fully. His irises still held that eerie green glow, just faintly, but enough to make my breath hitch.
“It was no invocation he spoke. It was abinding.”
The weight of the word hit me in the chest.
Callie gave a short, disbelieving laugh. “Oh, come on. Randy mispronounces half the words in the dictionary. You’re telling me heaccidentallyperformed a real-life mystical binding? Of the Green Man himself?”
Bethany’s voice dropped to a whisper. “But he didn’t even know what he was saying.”
“We need to get Faelan farther away from this ritual,” I adjusted my hold on his arm. “Before they screw it up even worse. And not a word of it to Randy.”
Bethany nodded, stepping in to help, and together we got Faelan moving again. Callie hesitated, glancing back toward the clearing where Randy was encouraging people to add their “vibes and intentions.”
I tightened my grip on the Green Man, taking on more of his weight. “We hide him somewhere safe. Then we figure out how to fix this.”
8
