Page 58

Jack

S av pushed off the tree. “We’re going to Earth. Together.”

Saying nothing else, she locked her gaze on the path ahead, jaw set so tight a muscle twitched in her cheek.

I wanted to tell her I wasn’t like the people who sought to use her here, but right now, I was just another man in her way. Much as I was loath to put any space between us and even though all I really wanted was to be closer, I had to give her time to process her latest revelations.

“Getting to Earth is simple. Put the place you want to go in your mind and don’t deviate from that thought.” She narrowed her eyes at me as if accusing me of getting this wrong before I’d even tried. “But we must think of the same place or we won’t end up together.”

I straightened, breathing easier. I wanted to apologize again. It was clear she was hurt by the prince of summer’s declaration. I’d never felt so much power coming off a creature in my life. Not that I had much experience with fairies.

The most powerful creature I’d met before him was the princess of spring. Her power had seemed endless, but when the male on the summer side of the border—naked as the day he was born—made his presence known. It was like a wall crashed down and all that terrible power bowled over me.

I’d struggled to speak—to move—and his strange magic held me in place. But even as it wrapped around me, something inside me rose to meet it, fighting to throw off his hold. When I could finally say something, I got out one sentence before his magic was back, choking my very lungs.

I was tiring of people calling me a pet, but the hurt on Sav’s face when he told her he’d asked for her hand punched a hole straight through my chest. Did she have feelings for him? I couldn’t tell, but the news had shaken her. Was there anyone in this forsaken place who didn’t want to marry Sav?

Jealousy burned low in my gut. I shoved it down, reminding myself I was the one she’d remained with through this journey.

I was the one she chose repeatedly. A tiny voice in the back of my head said it was only because she, like Hazel, didn’t think I’d survive on my own, but I ignored that voice.

Soon we would be back on Earth and then I’d know the truth.

“Where are we going?”

Sav twisted her hair into a knot, tying the loose strands in place.

“I don’t want to come out near the AFF. Seelie portals aren't like Unseelie ones.

We can divert from the main access point by a slight distance if we picture a place in our mind.

" Her brow furrowed. "The farthest we can go is Times Square. There's a wide alley behind Hershey’s Chocolate World. Have you been there? You’ll have to picture it.”

My lips tipped up. “Of course I have.”

She nodded. “Good. To get to the human realm, you'll have to walk this path.” She pointed to a long trail—lined in bowed branches—that shimmered at the end, seeming to disappear into some invisible distance. “Think of your destination and no matter what, picture nothing else. Don’t be distracted by anything you see, hear, or think. Your senses can’t be trusted once you enter. ”

Her eyes met mine. “Jack. I mean it. No pretty flowers, no trees singing you songs. You must picture your destination in your mind and leave it there. Once we’re on the path, we won’t be aware of one another. The time it takes depends entirely on how determined you are to get there.”

She looked away, glancing over her shoulder. “Creatures have died on the path, lost and unable to find their way.”

A light coating of sweat prickled my brow, and it wasn’t entirely because of the heat near the summer border.

“Don’t worry. Just put everything else out of your mind and focus on going home.”

Home. Was that what Earth was for me now?

Did I belong there? Dane certainly would have locked me up in one of his cages if he’d seen me in the spring court prison.

But Sav wasn’t sure what I was, and that meant Faerie wasn’t my home either.

Earth was the place I needed to go to stop Dane, to help the creatures he’d trapped and take him down.

Whether it was home or not, it was where I needed to be.

I nodded.

She searched my face. “You go first. I don’t want to step in there, and some new fae creature snatches you up before you enter.”

I deserved that.

I stared down the path, exhaling a long breath, knowing when we reached Earth everything would be different. All the moments we’d shared in Faerie, good or bad, were ours. Leaving felt like abandoning what we’d experienced here together.

I spun, meeting hazel eyes that sparkled in the midday sun. “Thank you for not giving up on me.”

She stepped forward, and I moved, meeting her halfway and wrapped my arms around her, dipping to press my nose to her hair. I let her scent envelop me, cocooning me in a place I never wanted to leave. If I belonged anywhere, it was here.

“Be careful, okay?” Her words sunk into my chest, nestling deep.

The moment my foot touched sun-flecked earth, the sounds and smells of Faerie evaporated. Here, no wind rustled the leaves; no birds chirped. It was unnaturally still and silent. I took another step, staring straight ahead, and pictured the Hershey Chocolate Factory.

A memory, long buried, rushed in. Mom held my hand, tugging me through the door. “Anything you want, my little prince.”

I smiled up at her. Her face flickered in my memory, changing from the one I’d always known—the face that looked at me with so much love. It was distorted at the edges and her hair, normally as black as mine, shimmered in the light, appearing silver.

I tugged my hand out of hers.

“What is it, my sweet Jacaranda?”

I blinked, the name warming something in my chest, and shook my head. My mother was always doing silly things like that. Calling me fun made up names or telling me wild stories of lands we’d never traveled to.

When I looked up again, her face had returned to its natural shape, her hair dark, like mine. Only her eyes remained different, still green, but brighter than they ought to be.

“I’m excited about candy!”

She grinned and held out her hand.

I took it, and we stepped into the store. My eyes went round as I spied rows and rows of chocolate and high overhead, the largest candy bar I’d ever seen hung from invisible wires.

My mother pressed her hand to her temple.

“What’s wrong, Mom?”

She shook her head. “Nothing, my love. Go. Pick out some candy. Anything my prince wants for his birthday.”

I laughed, darted into the store, and grabbed a plastic bag. I scooped up chocolates of all shapes and size, filling my bag to bursting.

Glancing back, I frowned at my mom standing outside the store. When her eyes met mine, she dropped her hand from her forehead and waved. We had driven into the city for my birthday. It was our annual tradition, but this year I didn’t know if she was up for it.

I hefted two full bags to the counter, beckoning her inside. The sooner we left, the sooner we could find a place for her to sit and rest. She joined me at the counter, leaning down to dig in her purse.

The salesclerk weighed my bags and looked up. “That’ll be forty-nine, twenty-five.”

“Of course. One moment.” My mother fished around in her purse and pulled out a long, slender leaf.

I snorted, waiting for her to pull out real money, but the salesclerk took the leaf, holding it up to the light. He pressed a few buttons on his register and it slid open. He reached in, pulling out three quarters and held them out.

My gaze swiveled between the man and my mother waiting for someone to shout: “Gotcha!” or “Surprise!” but my mom just turned to me.

“Jack, these quarters are for you. An extra present on your birthday.”

I shuffled forward, holding out my hand, and the salesclerk dropped three shiny objects into my outstretched palm. Mom watched me expectantly, and I swallowed, forcing a smile onto my face. “Thanks, mom.”

Her brows furrowed, but she said nothing, grabbing my bags of candy and motioning for us to leave the store. I trailed her, desperately trying to make sense of what I’d just seen.

She glanced back, beaming. “Do you want to take your candy to the park and enjoy it there?”

I nodded slowly, searching her face. She seemed to feel better. We turned toward Central Park. Mom slowed, waiting for me to catch up, and handed me a bag. “Will you share a piece with your mother?”

I smiled, already knowing which she’d ask for. It was the reason I’d put so many of the peppermint chocolate kisses in the second bag. My mom loved anything to do with Christmas, and her chocolate preferences were no exception.

She untied the bag, fished out the candy, and unwrapped it.

We walked the fifty blocks from Times Square to Central Park, racing one another to see who could eat the most candy before we got there. When we reached the park, my mom stopped and reached into the bag again. “Here Jack. I have something special for you. You’ll need it for what’s coming.”

She held out her hand, and I opened my fingers. Instead of a candy as I’d expected, a ball of glowing light pressed into my palm. She closed her hand around mine, squeezing tight.

I looked up. “What is it?”

The scene before me glitched—some other version of the park overlaying the one from my distant memory.

It was jarring, and it jolted me back to reality. I had left my path and had deviated. I had to turn around before it was too late. I spun, but my mom’s hand snaked out, locking me in an iron grip.

“Ow.” I yanked against her hold, but she didn’t release me.

“Let’s go, Jack. To your father. To Central Park, where everyone who cares about you is waiting.”

I pulled harder as her face changed, morphing before my eyes into my father’s. My legs gave out before I could move. I hit the floor hard, scrambling backward on my hands as if I could claw my way out of the vision.

“Come home, Son. We miss you.”

“No. I hate you and I’ll stop you.”