Ryder settled into the chair beside me, grabbing one of the leather-bound journals. I regarded the symbols scrawled across one of the open books in front of me and then the metal box, which had several symbols on it. When I turned the box to get a better look at the markings, gold writing ignited on the surface, and I yanked my hand away.
“What the hell,” Ryder muttered, leaning over with me to watch the delicate penmanship move over the smooth surface.
“Can you decipher it?” I asked while meeting his stare, noting the deep frown in his forehead.
“No,” he admitted while slowly turning the box to watch silver lines twisting through the gold. “I’ve seen these markings before. In the cave where I proposed, there were similar ones.”
“How can that be? How would she even know how to draw them? It isn’t like she has ever been inside the cave, Ryder.” My heart thundered against my ribcage. Sweat trickled down my neck, and worry settled over me. Ryder grunted when the box dimmed, and then the light extinguished. “I don’t know, but if the mansion holds knowledge and she had nothing else to do, she probably saw it there. It would make sense for her to spend her hours learning. It’s hard to know anything without her here to confirm or deny it, Pet.”
I pushed away from the table, turning to face Ryder. He frowned, rising to scan my pinched features. “I’m going to Club Chaos and getting some fucking answers.”
“The club is no longer accessible, I’m afraid. Lucian closed the entrance when the shit from the fae prisons slowly worked its way to his doors. They’ll be here in two days for the celebration of the winter solstice, though. He and Spyder are bringing Lena and the babes so that they can experience it now that she’s a witch again. It was supposed to be a surprise for you.”
“Are you wooing me, Beast?” I teased as he smirked while lifting his hand to scratch the back of his neck.
“I don’t woo. I wreck your sensibilities and leave you sore. You know that,” he stated pegging me with a savage visage that promised more nights of sin and unbridled lust in my near future.
“You woo,” I countered with a slow smile. “You woo all of me, and so much more.” Reclaiming my seat next to him, I pulled a notebook toward me and started flipping through it.
He smiled warmly, slowly moving closer to kiss my forehead. “You’re a horrible liar.” Leaning over the table to rest his elbows on it, he read beside me.
To prevent the ending that fate has chosen for me, I must be in two places at once. One must be hidden, and the other must be with him. If I am to split myself apart, I need to find the ether that was stolen and consume it until no one can decipher the real half from that which will appear full. I am more than the skin I wear or the soul I house. I’m not what I was born to be, but so much more than fate understands. I will either unite the ether and the land or destroy them both. The visions are blurred and filled with paths that make little sense. I will no longer trust them and, instead, forge my path to choose my fate and where I belong in both worlds. If my mother can decide her own destiny, then I can choose mine as well. When fate calls, I’ll answer with a battle cry so loud it will awaken those who slumber in the ether. I will sic them on it until it bows before me. I’ll not cower or back down from a fight. I am my father’s daughter with the warrior's soul of my mother embedded in my bones. Let him come for me, and I will fight him until his ire calms and his soul ignites the light within mine as surely as I will light the one inside him. He may be the king, but I was created to become his queen.
“He’s a king, but of what?” I ask, shoving the journal over so Ryder could read her words.
“If her mind was fractured, this could mean nothing.” He scanned the words before his golden gaze rose. “How would she know about the ether in the temple?”
“I don’t know. I guess her visions might have shown it to her? It would be the only thing that made sense.”
“Indeed,” he mumbled, closing the journal. “Let’s put this aside until we can speak to Spyder. Right now, we should focus on what I discovered while I was out tonight.”
“And that was?”
“Several of the missing fae.” His tone was in exhaustion, and the way he stared at me sent worry rushing through me.
“That’s good,” I stated, knowing from the look in his eyes that it wasn’t.
“They were in the Fairy Pools,” he said slowly, as if he were picking his words. “The water is crimson and completely frozen over. I punched through it and felt my way into the depths. They’re layered beneath the frozen surface, and I would estimate at least three hundred bodies are trapped there. The springs that feed the falls are littered with skinned fae, and their blood is draining into the pools. I don’t intend to keep it from my family. I’d rather we’re prepared for an attack than be surprised as we were last time.”
“No hint or clue to who did it?” I asked cautiously.
“No, but I left men there to continue to search and watch for whoever it was to return to the scene.” He looked exhausted, and wariness etched the lines of his face. “The weather is hindering more than just supplies. It’s making it hard to bring people here from smaller villages, or for them to reach safe points we’ve created for them. People are beginning to whisper about the weather.”
My stomach somersaulted, and I nodded in agreement. “The storm isn’t on its way, Ryder,” I whispered barely loud enough to be heard over my blood pounding in my head. “It’s here, isn’t it?”
“I’m afraid it might just be, and you were correct, Synthia. We can’t run from it because there’s nowhere we can go to escape what is coming. Whatever it is, we’ll face it together like we do everything. You’re my other half, and together, we’re unstoppable. Let’s go inform the others and figure out our next move.”
Chapter Fourteen
We renovated the great hall to prepare for the coming festivities. I’d repainted the space with a deep, midnight-blue paint with silver molding adorning both the ceiling and walls with a Celtic symbol for family. The marble flooring was white with swirls of silver, and the decor giving the room contrast was delicate shades of silverish-blue strewn throughout the room. The high, spacious windows that offered views of the courtyard and more intimate gardens added light to the already glimmering chamber.
I’d arranged hundreds of lights, which glistened from strings and wrapped around tree branches that’d been gathered to decorate the area. Enormous chandeliers gleamed with ropes of quartz that generated prisms of rainbows on the marble. At night, the entire area imitated the night skies of Faery and had stunned the fae who had seen it already. It was as if no one before us had ever thought to bring the beauty of the realm into their homes.
I’d included the faint perfume of pine needles, spiced cider, and mulled wine as an afterthought. The lone tree I’d arranged was humming with teeny fairies, who unsuccessfully worked to save the thing, unaware that it wasn’t real. Admittedly, I reveled in seeing the evil things striving to preserve the plastic tree. It was the simple things in life that I’d discovered held joy lately.