“Bloody hell,” Cael murmured a heartbeat later.
Erith looked back at the magic. “It isn’t a wall, love. I suspect it’s a barrier that surrounds a certain area that has allowed the realm to begin to heal itself.”
“You said Rhi could destroy realms and create them. You didn’t say she could heal them.”
Erith shrugged. “Create. Heal. Same difference.”
“I’m beginning to understand why you’ve had an interest in her.”
“The question is, is she still the Rhi we’ve known?” she asked and began walking.
Cael quirked a black brow. “Meaning?”
“Did Rhi begin this before she fought Usaeil? If I had to guess, the answer is yes because it looks as if this has been happening for some time. Look how far the green extends.”
“The healing is significant. But you think the darkness has taken her.”
It wasn’t a question. Erith pressed her lips together. “Con said her eyes flashed red. And when I looked for her, I found her light encircled by red.”
“Rhi is strong. She can contain it. She has been for some time.”
“It might have convinced her to let it loose to battle Usaeil. Lest you forget, Rhi saw the queen kill Balladyn with a blade in the back.”
Cael made an indistinct sound. “Don’t remind me,” he said angrily. “That would be enough to turn a great many Light Dark, and Rhi and Balladyn were more than just casual acquaintances. They have a very long history.”
“Which is why I’m fairly certain the darkness has taken her.”
“Would she come here if it did?”
“Even the Dark appreciated the beauty that was the Fae Realm. And I suspect this was Rhi’s private haven away from everyone since she knew no one would look for her here.”
Cael reached for her hand. Their fingers tangled as they walked deeper and deeper into the territory, each lost in thought. Erith came to a sudden stop when she spotted something large in the sky and turned her head toward it.
“I’ll be damned,” Cael said as they watched the dragon flying through the air.
Erith recognized him. “That’s Cain.”
“And that’s a Dark Fae on his back.”
Erith saw the female the same time Cael did. What was a Dragon King and a Dark doing here? There was no way Con didn’t know about this.
“Did Con tell you anything about a King being here?” Cael asked.
She slowly shook her head. Was this Con’s way of getting back at her? It might be, and perhaps she deserved it.
Erith turned away from Cain and the female. “We need to find Rhi. We’ll talk to Cain later.”
“What if Rhi is with them?”
“No one can find her. Con is the one who asked me to locate her. If any King knew she was here, they would’ve told Con.”
Cael glanced at the sky again. “Maybe that’s why Cain is here.”
“Phelan searched for Rhi. If the half-Warrior, half-Fae couldn’t find her, then she doesn’t want to be found.”
“That could extend to us, you know.”
That wasn’t something Erith was going to allow. Cael must have seen that on her face because he smiled in return. The trek took them near a vast lake, through open valleys and up increasingly higher hills, and finally into a thick forest.
“She’s here,” Erith said in a whisper.
Cael’s face was set in lines of concentration. A moment later, he said, “I can feel her. She’s up ahead to the left.”
“I think it might be better if we surround her.”
“It’s just the two of us,” he said, then paused. “Three. There’s another King here.”
Erith smiled at Cael. He was gaining ground on the many and various powers he now had. “Impressive. You felt the King before I did.”
“That’s a first,” he teased with a wink. Then he walked to the right.
Erith took a deep breath and altered her course to come up on Rhi to the left. She didn’t need to walk. She was Death, after all, but she didn’t want Rhi to think she had come to claim her soul.
The sound of a waterfall could be heard over the noisy singing of the birds. It became increasingly louder the closer she got to Rhi. When Erith finally came to the waterfall, she could only stare in wonder at the height of it. A rainbow could be seen in the mist as the water tumbled into a myriad of rocks before eventually smoothing out into a small pond.
The perimeter of the body of water was lined with rocks, perfect seats to sit upon and stare at the waterfall. There was something familiar about it, as though Erith had seen it before. While the Fae Realm had once boasted many waterfalls, there hadn’t been one like this, of that she was certain.
She tilted back her head and looked at the top of the waterfall. Erith blinked, unsure if the rocks just happened to form what looked like a dragon, or if it had been done on purpose.
Then she realized where she had seen such a waterfall—Dreagan.
Now, she knew with unshakable certainty that Rhi had done all of this. Whether it was on purpose or was a byproduct of her sorrow was yet unknown.
Erith knew the Light Fae was here. It took her searching the area twice before her gaze landed on Rhi as the Fae surfaced from the water. Instantly, Rhi’s gaze landed on her.
“There’s nothing for you here, Death. Leave.”
Erith wasn’t used to anyone speaking to her in such a way. She raised a brow, ready to reprimand Rhi, when she decided that wasn’t the best approach. Instead, she took a deep breath and walked closer to the edge of the pool.
“I’m not here for your soul,” Erith replied.
Rhi snorted. “I wouldn’t care if you were. Besides, I highly doubt you’d come yourself. You’d have Daire or one of the other Reapers do it.”
Erith didn’t miss the jab Rhi took at mentioning Daire since Erith had had him following Rhi for months to keep an eye on her. “Don’t you want to know how I found you?”
“Nope.”
Out of the corner of her eye, Erith saw Cael move into place as well as the other Dragon King. She was more than a little surprised to see Ulrik, then again, perhaps that was a good sign.
Rhi’s black hair was slicked back from the water as she swam to the edge. She paused, treading water as she turned her head, looking straight at Cael. Then, slowly, she slid her gaze to Ulrik. Both men remained half-hidden in the foliage, unmoving.
“You’re healing this realm,” Erith said.
Rhi didn’t respond as she continued swimming. When she got to the edge, she rose from the water, completely nude. Cael and Ulrik averted their eyes as Rhi stared at them, daring them to look.
Con was right to be worried. The Fae Erith watched now wasn’t the same Rhi as before. She had been betrayed one too many times, and she had created a protective shell around herself that had nothing to do with the light inside her, and everything to do with the darkness growing within her.
Droplets of water fell from Rhi’s lithe form as she moved from rock to rock. She didn’t even attempt to clothe herself as she let the bright sun dry her. As she turned to Erith, black leather pants covered her legs, along with a form-fitting black shirt and black boots.
“I’m really tired of finding a sanctuary, only to have others invade it,” Rhi said to her. “Did it ever occur to you that I didn’t want to be found?”