Page 15 of Wind and Water (Reign of the Witch Queen #2)

Taking her hand, Corell eases the rudeness of her pointed finger. “Farress, while we have lived separate and safe for so many long centuries, it is clear the threat to Domhan is also a threat to our kind. As Birdie is our kin, we will help to fight for her freedom.”

A cheer rises, and Farress gives a short nod. “It will be as you say. The armor and weapons will be finished tomorrow. The blacksmiths have been tireless while you searched for the daughter.”

“Wren,” he says softly.

My name is repeated through the hushed voices of the gathering.

Farress bows her head toward me.

I stand and do the same for her. Right or wrong, it feels as if some gesture is needed.

“What would you like from us for your comfort, Wren Martin?” Farress steps toward me, but not so close that I need to crane my neck. She could have done so for intimidation purposes, but instead, she accepts her mate’s decision and is now the hostess.

My throat is dry, and my knees shake slightly.

It feels as if I’ve been presented to the queen and must think of something clever to say.

I know at some point I’ll need food and a place to sleep, but that’s not what I want at the moment.

“I’d like to meet the children who were taken by the witch queen if that’s possible. ”

She stares at me for a long moment and myriad emotions pass over her lovely face. From surprise to indignation and awe, she runs the gamut.

I stutter. “If…um… that's not permitted, I understand.”

Cocking her head in a similar manner to her mate, she smiles. “I expected something for your comfort, but your request is not forbidden.” She looks at one of the centaurs over my shoulder.

The crowd begins loudly exiting the pavilion.

When the noise dissipates, she says, “Why do you wish to meet our young?”

“It would comfort me to see the faces of the children and the reason for my mother’s sacrifice.

” Clearly, Momma thought these people were worth her life.

I like them, but I need more. I want to know what I’m risking everything for.

My feelings for Liam aside, this world should be worthy of Birdie Martin’s life if we’ve already risked that and more.

She gestures to us to exit out the back. “Are you soft of heart like your mother?”

“Both Martin women are kind as well as brilliant,” Liam says.

My cheeks feel as if they might burst into flames at any moment. A whirling wind creates a dust devil to my right. Whatever this is, I must learn to control it.

Taking my hand, Liam smiles.

Farress and Corell walk with us to a large house with a grand porch, complete with an oval table that King Arthur’s knights would have been proud of.

No chairs, but that makes perfect sense considering the way the centaurs seem comfortable to sit on their haunches.

The house sits half in the woods with the front looking out over the village.

“Your mother stayed with us. I hope you will do the same.” Farress clomps onto the porch. She walks to the open door and says something in a guttural language before returning her attention to me.

“Thank you. You are very kind.” I sit on a box that Corell brings to the table, which is too high for me, but I’m glad to be off my feet and wish I had appreciated the soft couch in the village more.

Liam sits beside me, his thigh touching mine as if we’ve spent years together.

It does feel as if I’ve known him all my life, and considering we’re literally from different worlds, that’s something.

His back is straight, and his tone is diplomatic.

“Corell, can you tell us about the tower in the lost lands? What is it made from? How long has it been there?”

Sitting across the large table beside his mate, Corell threads his fingers through hers.

“We started to sense the rise of dark magic from the west a few months ago. From the seashore, you can now see the top of the tower, though it’s a two-day hard ride from the shore.

It’s made of some kind of black stone, smooth, and catches the sun rather than reflects. ”

I stiffen as the description mimics what I saw last night. How is it that my dream was so accurate about a place I have never seen?

Liam’s hand on my knee calms me. He nods. “Wren saw such a place in her dreams. It was tall enough that even with magic, it should have taken far more than a few months to construct.”

“You speak as if you saw it too,” Farress says.

“I walked into Wren’s dream.” Liam’s voice softens as if he’s not fully certain he should divulge the information.

Not sure of the significance beyond it being impossible, I remain silent and take in every expression and all the information.

Farress’s ruby eyes widen. “Is dream walking one of your elven gifts?”

Jaw ticking, Liam pauses for a long moment. “Not until I brought Wren to Domhan.”

“Then the human from the prophecy awakened this gift.” Farress focuses on me. “What kind of magic have you been gifted with, Wren, daughter of Birdie?”

With both leaders of the centaurs staring at me across the table, my tongue feels too fat for my mouth.

“I… Um….” I take a deep breath. “Humans don’t have magic.

We can’t alter the course of another’s thoughts, and we don’t shoot lightning from our fingers or whatever other things elves can do.

I sometimes dream things that come to pass, though not always exactly as I dreamed them.

Since meeting Liam, I’ve created wind a few times, though I can’t control it.

It just comes when I pray and the need is great.

” I hold my breath, hoping I haven’t said anything wrong.

Liam’s hand tightens on my leg.

Covering his hand with mine, I take another shaky breath and try to calm my nerves.

Farress and Corell look at each other for several moments.

I wonder if they have silent communication. Can they read each other’s minds?

Finally, Farress looks at me. “Humans have no magic, and yet you do. This is likely why you are in the prophecy.” She looks as if she has more to say, but her cheeks flush and she demurs.

On a chuckle, Corell clears his throat. “To enter another’s dreams is an intimate connection. It is very rare in centaurs and reserved only for those who are…” He stares away as if searching for the word.

Taking a deep breath, Liam stiffens. He lets it out and says, “Mates in the old way. Fated by the old gods.”

“Yes.” Corell grins and pounds his fist on the table, pleased to have the information translated even when he couldn’t find the words in the common tongue.

Farress’s blush deepens, and my cheeks and neck are warm. She smiles. “Matings of this kind are not as common as in the age of the old gods. Though they do still happen from time to time.” She gives Corell a knowing look.

With a quick squeeze of my hand, Liam pulls away. “Perhaps it’s more useful to focus on the tower and what Venora has planned to use it for. Do you know how many entrances there are or how large the circumference is?”

“It is larger than our village from side to side and a perfect circle. I saw no doors.” Corell shakes his head.

“It was two days of hard riding. We exchanged Birdie for the foals. They were not there one moment and there the next, and Birdie was gone in a moment. I would have left soldiers, but there is no cover. On the ride back, we found floating debris and left two centaurs there to watch. It’s in water and extremely uncomfortable, and damages our hooves after a while.

Farress has sent replacements for them twice while I rode to find you. ”

“No doors.” Liam’s voice is barely above a whisper, and his eyes are downcast while he thinks. “It’s an obelisk.”

Both centaurs look as if they’ve been provided with an epiphany. They gape at him.

“There has not been an obelisk in Domhan since the ancient age, and even then, it is only theory and myth.” Farress sounds doubtful, but there is fear in her narrowed gaze.

“Um… Not to sound ignorant, but what is an obelisk beyond a tall structure? Obelisks have four sides. I thought this was round.” Everything that’s going on and the fact that the tower in my dream doesn’t match the technical description of an obelisk is what’s bothering me. I may actually be cracking up.

With a hint of a smile, Liam looks at me.

He’s so close; if he leaned in, he could kiss me.

He turns away too soon, as if he thinks better of our proximity.

“You’re right, of course, Wren. However, in some of the darker mythologies and dogma of the ancient age, the towers were built around the four-sided obelisk. ”

“What’s the purpose?” I wish I had a dozen books at my disposal right now so I could learn all the information about this ancient age of Domhan. I’m better with books than people.

The three of them stare a long time at each other. Finally, Liam says, “To focus power. Those in the light brought power from the sun and stars. The wielders of dark magic drew their power from the demon realm within Domhan. It’s called Coire.”

“Hell. She’s drawing her power from hell?

” I blink several times. Maybe this is all a dream and I can wake myself up.

None of this sounds real. It’s fantasy, horror, but not truth.

Yet Momma is gone, and I’m sore from riding a centaur for the better part of a day.

Clearly, either my dreams are more graphic than ever, or this is the new reality.

“My mother is in a tower designed to draw power from hell,” I mutter, but the effect is the same.

My gut tightens, and my eyes fill as emotions swamp me.

“We’re going to find her and bring her home, Wren.” Liam is making promises that he can’t possibly know will come to pass.

Even so, his words comfort me, and I dash away the tears.