Chapter One
The arrow whizzedby my head, and the iron tip slammed into the tree behind me. The electric crack echoed through the silent forest. I dropped to my knees and rolled to the side on the carpet of fallen leaves, breathing in the scent of the rich dirt and the crackling decay of autumn. Heart thundering, my hand found the dagger strapped to my thigh. My fingers curled around thehilt.
Through the thick brush before me, I could see nothing more than the deep darkness of the night. The light of the moon and the stars was hidden behind a sea of clouds, morphing the entire forest into nothing more than vague dark shapes. Those thunderous storms that had plagued these lands had vanished, though the heavy clouds had remained behind. They were an ever-present reminder of the kind of evil I hoped I’d never have to faceagain.
I cocked my head to listen. In the past few weeks, my senses had finally begun to sharpen. They’d been slow to come, due to my years spent in the human realm. Before I’d come to Otherworld, I’d had no idea that fae existed, least of all that I was one of them. And certainly not that I was what they liked to call aGreater Fae. One who could harness the powers of all four seasonalcourts.
The secret, hidden daughter of the great Queen Marinherself.
And, right now, those gifts were being tested. I was out there alone in the forest with nothing more than my powers and my wits to identify the attacker lobbing arrows at myhead.
A distant crack echoed through the forest, and I strained to listen, letting my eyelids flutter shut as I sucked a long, slow breath in through flared nostrils. The problem was, of course, that the forest provided a chorus of sounds: the whisper of wind through rattling branches, the flutter of leaves as they scuttled across the ground, the chirp of birds and crickets, and the rustle of all the tiny little creatures that called this place theirhome.
But then that crack sounded again, a noise that stood out from the rest. A sound that didn’t belong to the chorus, like the striking of a wrong chord on the piano in the middle of thesong.
It belonged to my attacker. He was somewhere to my right. And close. Almost tooclose.
With my ears so tuned into the noise, I picked up the sound of something small rustling near where my attacker stood. It was so quiet and so soft that I never would have heard without my newfound hearing. I focused on that sound, letting my mind and my magic drift toward it. My eyes still closed, I reached toward the creature I’d just heard. A small, tiny rabbit with dark grey fur. How I knew what this small creature looked like, I didn’t know. But I could see it, so very clearly, in my mind’s eye. And it felt as though the rabbit was staring right into mysoul.
And then it welcomed me inside. Hesitatingly, I shifted further toward the creature, and my mind became a whirlwind. Suddenly, I saw the forest in a whole new light. Everything became a bit brighter, though the colors seemed to dull, and it was almost as if I could see everything around me in a full circle. It was if I’d had tunnel vision before, and now I could see the world in an amazing three hundred and sixtydegrees.
My heart thumped hard. What the hell was this? Was I actually seeing through the animal’s eyes? It seemed impossible. It seemed crazy to think. But I’d learned that nothing in Otherworld was trulyimpossible.
Regardless of what I’d just done, I didn’t have time to think about that right now. The crackling of my attacker’s footsteps was only growing louder. And it was coming straightfrom—
There hewas.
Ismiled.
With a sharp intake of breath, I pulled myself away from the animal’s mind and stood straight up from the brush. Tipping back my head, I called out to my attacker. “Nice try, Rourke, but I know it’syou!”
A shadow blurred in the corner of my eye as Rourke shifted through the brush a good fifty yards away from where I’d been hiding. He was still just a distant blob of shadows in this heavy darkness, but I knew it was him. Somehow, I’d been able to see through the rabbit’seyes.
As he strode closer, he gave a whistle to signal to the others that the test was done. Soon, they would join us, and we’d try again. This week’s focus was on my senses, which were improving day by day. That was what my life had been these past few weeks. Test after test after test. Training session after training session. Out here, in the forest, for as long as we could. And we’d keep going until I’d mastered all mypowers.
As Rourke strode closer, I could finally read the expression on his face, one that was full of incredulity and surprise. Rourke didn’t normally get caught off guard, and it made a small bud of satisfaction sprout in my gut. I shot him a grin when he reachedme.
He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “I have to admit, I’m impressed. I’ve had my powers for decades, but I can’t scent someone that faraway.”
I pursed my lips. Should I tell him? Keeping secrets from my instructors—my future mates—was never a good idea, but technically, I’d broken the rules. This training session was focused on my sense of smell. I’d been supposed to identify my attacker by scent. And there was a part of me—the mischievous Spring side—that wanted to have a little fun with this whole thing. Besides, hehadshot an arrow atme.
With raised brows, I leaned against the nearest tree trunk, feeling the rough bark on my bare arm. “Did you really have to shoot at me? What if you’d actually hit themark?”
“Adrenaline enhances your senses, so yes. It was the best way to get you primed to scent me. And it worked, didn’t it?” Rourke’s stoic expression softened, just a bit. “Besides, you don’t really believe I would have hit you, do you? I was aiming at the tree, Norah. Notyou.”
“You’re right. It did work. Does this mean you’ll let me have the rest of the night off?” I asked, my lips lifting into a slight smile. “I wouldn’t mind spending the evening back in my room…and you could always join me, ofcourse.”
A furious blush filled my cheeks. Even though we’d spent the night together, I still went red every time I thought of the two of us between the sheets. Mostly because it hadn’t happened again, and I was desperate to feel his hands on me. Sometimes, when we were training, I couldn’t think about anythingelse.
He raised an eyebrow. “As tempting as that is, have you already forgotten what Alwynsaid?”
My smile dropped away. “No. Of coursenot.”
Alwyn Adair, the Head Instructor of Otherworld Academy, had made a deal with me and my four instructors after the events that had taken place with Queen Viola and the Autumn Court. She’d finally conceded that we were in a pretty unique situation. As the daughter of Marin, it was only natural for me to desire the affection of more than one mate. Otherworld Academy had never had to deal with a Greater Fae before, and the rules and the magic that surrounded the place were meant for normal changelings. One changeling, one instructor mate, each somehow brought together at the Academy by a fate-like magic I didn’t quiteunderstand.
So, of course, my unexpected arrival in the Academy had thrown a wrench into the normal order of things. But after a lot of resistance, Alwyn had decided to make some concessions. She’d brought in new instructors for Sophia and Lila, and my four instructors now worked with me and me alone. To train me. To build up my knowledge of the realm and all its history. And to prepare me for anything that might be thrown my way, now that the entire realm knew that Marin had a daughter, one who was very muchalive.
In exchange, we had to behave ourselves, just like all the other changelings and instructors that called the Academy home. That meant “no funny business” on academy grounds. It was a rule I’d hated then, and it was a rule I hatednow.
