“No more fool than the rest of us,” a soft female voice responds.
I jump in my skin and quickly crawl backward until my back hits the caged wall. The metal of the cage rattles, and my heart thumps in my chest. “Who’s there?”
I hear a soft, sweet laugh. “A friend.”
I blink at where the voice comes from, the cage to my immediate left. There’s no spirit there, no call to my skinwalker side. I cock my head to my side and push a few stray hairs from my face. “What are you?”’
“A friend, I promise.” There’s a sharp intake of breath. “You’re hurt.” It wasn’t a question, but her tone is full of concern. How can she see me if I can’t see her?
I touch my bruised cheek and whisper, “I’ve had worse.”
“Oh, I know, Jinx Whitethorn.”
“Who are you?” I whisper more quietly, a sliver of fear curdling the blood in my veins. “How do you know who I am?”
I hear her scoot closer to my cage. “My name is Eliza Plaats. Or it was.” She laughs softly. “Semantics. My point is I’m a friend. Dyson wanted to come because of his ties with his past lives, but I beat him to the punch. You – what you are – is my area of expertise. I have blessed you, Jinx Whitethorn. And I had blessed the wolf you have in the pendant – sent her to you so that you may find your way.”
Great. This woman is crazy. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
She chuckles softly. “No, I imagine you don’t. The cat in the coven’s greenhouse? Have you seen her?”
“Yes . . .” I drawl out.
“She’s been watching you for me. Her name is Kat, spelled with a K. She’s the one who alerted me to your doings recently – the plans you and your friend made in secret.” She pauses. “You don’t have to be afraid of me. I would never – I’m not here to hurt you.”
I tuck the blanket around my shoulders once more. It had fallen loose when I scrambled away. “Oh really,” I mock.
“Yes,” she whispers kindly. “I want to help.”
I laugh darkly. “There’s not much you can do when we’re both stuck in a cage.”
“Who ever said we were stuck?”
I angle my head to face her voice. “What are you talking about?”
“Well, I’m not stuck because no mortal can hold me. And you’re not stuck because you’re a skinwalker, Jinx. You could change into whatever form you want and sneak through these bars. That’s not the only way you could escape, either. But,” her voice softens, “I think you want to be here. I think you’re punishing yourself. Or perhaps, you’re enjoying the quiet.”
“You think I’m enjoying this?” Anger drips in my tone. “Yes, I could easily call upon a mouse’s spirit and skitter my way out of here, but what would that solve? The shifters would sense me, or do you not know they have the senses of an eagle?”
“I know all about the shifters. Do you really think they’d see you if you avoided them? All you would have to do is sneak out the nearest window.”
I lift my knees to rest my chin against them. “I can’t leave.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m not the only one who needs saving.”
There’s a pause, two breaths worth, before she speaks again. “You want to save the others. The other shaman and your aunt and cousin.”
“That’s the purpose of all this. I didn’t get caught for fun or pain or whatever else you think I’m sticking behind for.”
“I see. Truly noble of you.”
“It’s not noble,” I grumble. “No one deserves a life with Wice and his sadistic wolves.”
“So then, you stay.”
“So then, I stay.” I bite the inside of my cheek then peer through my cell. “What do you mean that’s not the only way I could escape?”
“Ah, you caught that.” She shifts again, clothes sliding along concrete. “I know what you can do. My people tell me about it when they cross over.”
“What?” She starts to repeat herself, but I cut her off. “I heard what you said. What do you mean? Your people? Cross over? What do you mean?”
“I am the Fee of the Death Realm, Jinx Whitethorn.”
I stiffen, and my breath gets caught in my lungs. “That’s not possible,” I manage to squeak.
I hear the smile in her voice. “If it’s not possible, then what am I doing here? Look, Jinx. There’s not a lot of time. The shifters are searching for your mate, and you need to come up with a new plan because your old one has fallen apart. I’ve heard your prayers. All the fee have. Your pleas were loud and hard to ignore, especially for me. Especially when Allie Robins demanded an audience. Brave girl, by the way. Loyal, too.”
“You’re the Fee of the Death Realm,” I announce, more for it to sink in than a confirmation. “Allie crossed over?”
“Yes, along with many others who care for your wellbeing. Your aunt had bargained with me long before the others came to ensure you don’t join me on the Death Realm before it’s your time, and not by the Bane’s hand. I swore I would. I swore I’d try.”
“And –” I swallow hard. “And my father?”
She pauses. “Not yet. He lingers, waiting for his daughter to be safe. He’s spent a long time avoiding the Death Realm, and until this plays out, he’ll stay in the Tween.”
I know about The Tween. Jacob had told me that’s the space – a barren land that lingers between the Death Realm and the Earth Realm.
I close my eyes as my heart breaks. My father has been with me. My father has been watching me. Someone I don’t know loves me unconditionally.
“I’ve heard the stories. My aunt shouldn’t have bargained with you – with any fee.”
“I’m not sadistic, Jinx. The new fee are not like the old ones. I came of my own free will because I know what it is to be different and in trouble because of it. I know what it’s like to be desperate to save the people you love. My presence here will cost her nothing.” She pauses, and the silence pulls tight between us. I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how to respond.
“You need a new plan,” she demands again.
“Do you have any bright ideas? Because I’m all out of them.”
“Oh, I don’t think you are. I think you’re avoiding them.”
I glance away. “No. I won’t do it.”
“Jinx –”
“No!” I startle at the volume of my voice and spare a glance at the stairwell. “I won’t do it. I won’t wear someone else’s skin.”
I hear the grinding of her teeth. “Very well. What about commanding them then?”
Slowly, I turn my head back to hers.
Jacob Trent
As I lead the three witches and pack out into the back alley, I rub a hand over my head while squeezing the necklace with the other. Steam rises along the street and floats aimlessly about. There’s no breeze back here, and the way it blocks the sound of the city traffic makes the hair on my arms stand on end.