Page 50

I put my arm down and took a small, experimental breath. Not perfect, but much better. “I need to learn that trick.”

“Simple magic,” Ari said. “All the fae can do the smaller tricks, but most of us are limited to our talents with bigger magic.”

“Like metal?”

Ari nodded. “A little more complicated than that, but yes. I’m not only limited to metal. I can manipulate stone as well. You would consider me an earth mage if I were not fae.”

My heart pounded as we rounded the corner to the place my mother and Liaza had kept me for so long. Ari’s mouth tightened as she spotted the cell.

The door hung open, lopsided on the metal frame as if someone powerful had slammed it open. Twisted through it was the mutated rye plant Evie had used to kill Liaza.

“Shit,” Ari breathed, staring at the still dripping thorns on the plant.

“Evie was angry.”

Ari snorted. “Understatement. There was a vampire here.”

She walked over to investigate the dried blood on several of the thorn tips. “Dead,” she mused. “True dead, I take it?”

I nodded.

“Good.” Ari brushed a hand down the plant’s stalk. “Evie’s power is unusual in how she can manipulate things to grow outside of their natures. This is rye, yes?”

I nodded.

Ari frowned. She ducked under the stalk and stepped into the cell. Her sharp gaze swept the small area, lingering on the hole where the rye plant originated.

“Clever girl,” Ari breathed. She turned to me. “How?”

I told her exactly what I’d done. By the time I finished, Ari’s eyes shimmered with tears. “She’ll pay for what she did to you. I swear it on the Mother’s name.”

“Not if I get to her first,” I said softly.

Ari’s lips split into a savage grin. “Deal.”

The fae crouched and touched the torn-up flooring. Her eyes glowed a molten silver for a brief moment before fading into her normal color. A bright flash of magic blinded me before Ari stood and brushed her hands off. “Your blood was all over the cell. Thought it might be a good idea to wash it away just in case anyone with ill intentions finds this place.”

“Thanks.” I don’t remember how much I bled. By the time it was over, spilling blood had become a daily occurrence. “I’m going to do some looking around. Meet back here in a little while?”

Ari’s face softened. She knew I wanted to be alone. “Sure. I’ll check around the kitchen and outside.”

She walked out the door, leaving me alone inside the house I thought for sure I’d die in.

I took a moment and closed my eyes, sending a tendril of magic throughout the house. I’d already checked twice now to ensure we were alone, but I couldn’t help checking one more time. My mother would haunt me for the rest of my life, and even when she was gone, I knew I’d still be checking over my shoulder.

No heartbeats. No traces of new magic. I willed my heartbeat to slow down. There’s no one here but me and Ari. Ari is a friend. She would never hurt you.

But how could I know? Who was she really? She was fae. Powerful. And I was…me.

Moira. Weird muddy blood with a whole lot of trauma and very few coping mechanisms. Ari could snap her fingers and break my neck.

Yes, so why are you freaking out now that you’ve accepted her help and traveled thousands of miles away with her?

I closed my eyes and let out a slow breath, allowing the panic to slowly fade away.

Once I felt a little more settled, I walked down the small, destroyed hallway into the room I’d last seen my mother in.

The room I died in.