Page 42 of The Mating Quest

Their laughter broke the tension, to her relief. Ilana set to toasting hermarshmallow.

Truth was, she’d met Plyx about 200 years ago, when he lived in the Fae Winter Kingdom. They became friends, slipping into the Skin world now and then to play pranks. One of those pranks went askew about 67 years ago when a vicious troll caught them and almost stabbed Ilana. Plyx intervened, and lost part of his ear in savingher.

For his transgressions in pranking the Skin world, Plyx was tossed out of the winter kingdom. He wandered with her for a while, but she realized their paths had to part because the dangers she faced, and tried to vanquish, were too much for the little goblin. He’d agreed to find safe territory to avoidtrouble.

She wanted him to be safe. Plyx was loyal and nearly sacrificed himself once forher.

Friends like that were hard to comeby.

The world around her was different, hard to recognize, hard to reconcile with when you had lived more than 700 years. Oh she’d kept up with the culture, the technology, and the trends. Ilana had an android cell phone, knew all about texting and Google and Insta and even toyed with a Facebook account for her amusement. It was the other changes that rocked her back on herheels.

The spreading evil in the world, the indifference, the lack of empathy and compassion were too much. The “me first’ syndrome she often encountered. She felt stuck, the world around her too different to make adjustments as she had in thepast.

Life seemed uncertain, balanced on a sword’sedge.

Everything seemed out of her control, and she tired of walking this earth. Plyx had passed on and he washappy.

She wished she could behappy.

“When I die, if I die on this quest, I want to be cremated. Not buried. I want no markers for my grave because I fear some demon might find my body and use it.” Dakota’s face was fierce as she poked at thefire.

“It is something we all must consider, as werewolves of the Wyld. We are supposed to wield incredible power and I would not wish evil to use my body after I am gone,” Chloeagreed.

Nia sighed. “You are all so morbid tonight. It’s your last night here at the ranch. Can’t we simply enjoy theevening?”

She couldnot.

“You can take my body. Bury me far beneath an uncaring earth. My soul will find a way back to the welcoming night,” Ilana whispered, staring straightahead.

“That’s so sad, Ilana.” Chloe, the sweetest and gentlest of Ethan’s sisters, put a hand on her arm. “You must not be so sad all the time. Life is filled with good things aswell.”

The men returned to the fire and sat. A flicker of power sang in the air and gray fog rolled in. Out of the shadows of firelight and flame, Caderynappeared.

He sat next to Tristan. “I heard you werecelebrating.”

Tristan tossed him the bag of marshmallows. Caderyn eyed them as if they were wrigglingsnakes.

“Those things look deadly. Almost as deadly as the toxic beetles I battled back inEgypt.”

Fascinated, she listened, the others enthralled as the Shadow Wizard regaled them with the tale, which she suspected was embroidered to make it more colorful. Then the men began telling stories of fights they’d had against evil. Finally Ethan asked her what her greatest fightwas.

She didn’t want to share. But the night ahead of them looked long, and he truly seemed interested. Not to use the information against her as others had, but perhapscuriosity.

“When I was younger, and roaming the world, I became aware of a group of ogres who had been captured by Dark Fae. They were slaves. Beaten, abused…the females.” She shuddered. “I tried to free them, but a Mage’s powers are useless against powerfulFae.”

Caderyn, polishing his dagger, nodded. Ethan frowned. “Why didn’t you call upon the Crystal Wizard foraid?”

A short, bitter laugh. “Oh, I called. And he never responded. I suppose his voice mail was full at thattime.”

Caderyn stopped polishing his dagger. “Or perhaps the ogres were too terrified themselves to ask for Xavier to free them, and you, living here on Earth, were more suitable to freeing them from theiranguish.”

Ilana narrowed her eyes. “Me? I’m nowizard.”

“But you are a clever Mage who moves swiftly through the night and has freed such creatures prior to that,” he pointed out, aiming the tip of his blade ather.

“Right…absolve your brother wizard of allblame…”

The Shadow Wizard threw the dagger at her. She caught it by the hilt. Ethanwhistled.