Page 18

He hesitated, glancing between my bloody arm and the writhing water behind me. “Go!”

A naiad leaped from the water, swiping for me, and I ducked out of her way, crashing against Jack’s chest. “Move before they eat us.”

Finally, he backed up, trudging out of the lake, and spun around, holding out a hand. I took it and he pulled me up.

“Sally, you’re hurt.” Jack’s grip tightened on my arm, and he lifted it. “This will get infected if we don’t treat it. There’s no telling what bacteria is in that lake. Not to mention what sort of poison those animals might have in their talons.”

I pulled my arm free from his grip, scowling at him. “I’ll be fine.” Poison. Animals. Just the reminder I needed that he was the son of the leader of the AFF. No pretty face was enough to erase that fact.

Jack held out his hand again. “You’re bleeding. Please. Let me help.”

I stepped around him, but he moved, blocking my path. “Sally.”

I sighed. It was a useless exercise, considering the wounds were half healed already, but I held out my arm for him to inspect.

Warm fingers wrapped around my wrist, and a slight shock of electricity jolted through me.

I started, backing up, but he held me in place.

I looked up, studying his face as raven brows bunched in confusion.

I’d felt nothing like that in another’s touch. The energy humming in my veins where he touched me was intoxicating, making me want to lean into it.

His calloused finger brushed over red lines that would be gone within the hour.

I hadn’t considered how slowly a human healed, but as he leaned close, my heart clattered against my ribs as his head dipped lower, inspecting what remained of the gashes.

He wiped away the smear of blood left behind, and I tensed in his hold.

He looked up, emerald eyes burning as he searched my face. There was no fear or disgust, only an intense interest and maybe…I shook my head. I was cold and wet. His hands were unusually warm. That was all.

“It seems you don’t need my help.” He released me, stepping back to let me pass.

A shiver danced along my spine, and I stood frozen for a moment.

Jack cleared his throat. “Sally.”

All the heat building in my chest fled, a stone settling in my stomach. It was one word, but every muscle in my body tensed, sensing the danger in it. Should I run? What would he do if he knew I wasn’t like him? The clatter of my heart became a drumbeat.

“I know you’re not…Human.”

My veins iced. Should have run.

“I’m not upset,” he hurried to say. “I think we can help each other.”

I exhaled slowly. I had two options: attempt to keep up the ruse or come clean and give him enough truth to convince him to come along. And if he wouldn’t come, I would just have to force him. I went with option b.

“How did you know?”

The tension building in the air dissipated, and a laugh punctuated his exhale.

“I’ll admit, you had me fooled for a while, but humans don’t run that fast or,” he glanced down at my arm.

“Heal that quickly. Not to mention, no human would think of going to the fairy courts for help. The only information I have about the courts is that they’re based on the seasons, and I live with a man who’s obsessed with you guys. ”

The dimple appeared in his cheek as his lips tipped up.

A small smile crept onto my face as my heart found its normal rhythm. “No one else knew.”

His smile fell. “Dane did. I should have realized it sooner. He wouldn’t have chained a human up that way. He was playing some game with you. I don’t know what,” he ground out. “I’m just glad you got out of there before something happened.”

I swallowed. If everything I’d been through didn’t qualify as something , I’d hate to think how Jack defined the word. “So why help me in the bar?” I backed up, leaving the lakeshore and moving along the trail to Turtle Pond, bare feet freezing on the thin sheet of ice coating our path.

Jack followed. “No one deserves to be treated the way Dane treats your kind.”

“My kind…”

Jack grimaced. “Anyone. Regardless of species.”

“I see.” I swatted blades of grass so long they brushed my thighs and wriggled my toes to keep the feeling alive in them.

“So, it’s not because you like the way I look?

You would have helped anyone in my position.

” I glanced back. Jack was slowing. This could go south quickly.

I needed to think of a reason for him to want to come.

He stuffed his hands into his pockets. “I would have done something for your friend if I could have without…” He trailed off, not finishing his thought.

The memory of that betrayal stung, but I hadn’t stayed to save her either. “You still can. Come with me to Faerie. If they hear from a human how the fae are being treated, they’ll have to believe it.” I spun around, pressing my palms against Jack’s chest.

He stopped, looking up. “Faerie isn’t a place for people. I don’t heal as easily as you do. You’re safe there, but I wouldn’t be.” His gaze dropped to my now unmarred arms.

“You’d be with me. You would be fine.”

Jack searched my face, lips tipping up, and his dimple made another appearance. “Is there some sort of protection for traveling in Faerie with a high fairy?”

“What makes you think I’m high fae?”

“You look human. It’s only the high fairies that look human, right?”

I dropped my hands. Was I making a huge mistake?

He was Dane Clyde’s son after all, and he called me fairy instead of fae, reminding me of the divide between our species.

What if I was the one being played here?

What if this was a ploy to learn how to get into Faerie?

I was about to show him exactly how to do it.

“Why didn’t you give me away in the bar?”

Jack’s brows furrowed, and he pulled a hand out of his pocket, running it through inky hair dusted in snowflakes. It fell in long strands over his jaw, hiding the smooth cheek that no longer held his dimple. “I didn’t know what you were then.”

My brows dipped. “So what? If you had, you would have left me to be recaptured by Dane?”

He reached for my hand, and I flinched away from him.

His fingers scraped through his hair again, and he met my gaze. “No. I would have helped you no matter what. I don’t care that we’re different.”

I turned, resuming my walk along the path.

Jack wanted to be a hero. He was the son of the vilest human alive, but I couldn’t believe he was the same cunning, devious sort of man.

I may be making the greatest mistake of my life, but I believed him.

If I was wrong, it might end up costing the fae everything.

As we neared Turtle Pond, an eerie quiet settled over the park.

“Sally…I can’t—” Jack started, but I held a finger to my lips as goosebumps pebbled my arms. Whatever he’d been about to say could wait. Now, the only thing that mattered was not disturbing the silence.

He must have sensed the danger because he nodded, pressing his lips together, and I leaned down, plucking a snowdrop blossom from the mound of snow at my feet.

It wilted the moment I pulled it from the magic-laced earth, unable to sustain life outside of Faerie.

In Faerie, snowdrops dotted the winter court, blooming year-round, even in their frigid climate.

A bit of magic was all they needed to thrive in the bitter cold.

I plucked a second blossom and handed it to Jack. “There’s no going back now. She’ll kill you the moment you try to run. Watch my feet and no matter what, don’t make eye contact.”

Jack swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Who?”

“The Bitter Wraith.”

Jack’s gaze darted to his feet, and his heart beat a frantic rhythm in his chest. Good. He knew who she was.

The snow flecked ground became a sheet of ice as we stepped onto the frozen pond, and my bare feet screamed in pain. “Hold your stem out.”

I glanced sideways, watching Jack’s big hand cup the delicate flower as he held it up. His eyes lifted to mine, and I shook my head furiously, mouthing, “Look down.”

His gaze dropped just as an ear-splitting scream rent the air.

The hairs on the back of my neck rose, but I kept my gaze trained on the frozen pond at my feet.

Abruptly, the terror-inducing scream cut off, and the stem was plucked from my grasp. Slowly, I lifted my chin, meeting the Bitter Wraith’s black eyes. Her inky, almond-shaped orbs narrowed on me, and she sniffed the air.

I leaned back as she pressed her nose to my neck and inhaled deeply. Her gaze moved to Jack, and I sucked in a breath. His snowdrop was trembling in his grip, but he kept his eyes trained dutifully on his shoes. He was a fast learner.

The Bitter Wraith moved, closing in on Jack, and my heart climbed into my throat. I needed him alive.

Pressing her nose against his collarbone, her midnight tongue darted out, licking up the column of his throat. She leaned back, leaving his offering in place. Her gaze darted back to me. “No passage for you.” Her voice, harsh from disuse, grated against my ears.

“Wraith. I must go to Faerie. They’re killing the folk. We have to stop them.”

Her eyes gleamed in the moonlight. “What do I care for their plight?”

Her words were oddly metallic as the magic coated my mouth. “They killed the Winter Hag,” I whispered.

Her head jerked back to Jack. And I threw up my hand. “Don’t harm him. I need him.”

She quirked one snowy brow, the motion camouflaged by her matching white skin. Baring her teeth, she snapped at his outstretched hand, now trembling violently. The scent of his fear was inciting her. In a moment, I would lose control of the situation.

I took one step back, and the ice across the pond cracked. I took another, and a massive fissure zigzagged over the frozen pond. The air grew thick with the scent of ozone. My lungs refused to expand as if she were commanding me not to breathe.

“Jack,” I whispered. “When I tell you, run.”

He glanced up, only for a moment, but it was enough. An ear-splitting wail erupted, sending several small creatures flying in every direction.

Grabbing Jack’s hand, I turned, damning formality and yanked him after me. A spattering of tinks erupted into the air, and the leathery flap of a harpy’s wings raced behind us as the Bitter Wraith stepped out of the pond.

Jack’s heavy footfall and the warmth of his hand in mine were my only reassurance that he was behind me as we ran. I gave up all pretense at humanity, running at fae speed, not stopping until the Wraith’s screeching cry was nothing but an echo in my eardrums.

Sliding behind a large oak tree, I tugged Jack with me, and he leaned into the tree, sucking in air. He had struggled that time to keep up, but he had impressive stamina for a human.

“You okay?”

“Still breathing.” He met my gaze. “Barely.”

“She denied our passage.”

“Yeah, I noticed.”

I smirked. “You handled it better than I expected.”

He pushed off the tree, straightening, and took another large gulp of air. “Do cab drivers and doormen scare you? It’s a part of life now. You get used to it.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Have you had many run-ins with creatures like the Wraith?”

Jack tucked his hands into his jeans pockets and looked away.

After a long pause, his gaze trailed back to me.

“I’ve been helping the ones trapped by Dane.

I’ve spent a little time among them. Sometimes the scariest ones were the kindest.” His eyes ran over my face.

“And the prettiest ones were often the worst.”