I studied their skin in the low light—sometimes shiny, other times not—as it twisted and turned up their wide, round bodies. It rippled weird, almost like an accordion—is that what it was called? I desperately tried to grab at a hazy image of the musical instrument, but the harder I tried, the more faded the memory became. I gave up trying to remember what I was thinking about. Instead, I let my eyes follow these strange chaps as they moved about, securing the new detainees.

  Both were facing away from me, and I couldn’t see their features under the large hats they were wearing in the low lighting. It wasn’t until they moved to leave that I got a good look at their strange caps and realized they weren’t caps at all but part of their heads.

  “You’re mushrooms!” I blurted out, unable to stop the shock. “You’re . . . you’re plants!”

  No wonder I felt a connection. They had earth magick like me—they were earth magick incarnate. I’d never seen anything like it before. Plants with living breathing consciousness, living the same as any man or Fae.

  “Wait!” I said, reaching toward one of them. “I want to talk—”

  Before I could say anymore, one of the caps on the mushroom man burst open, sending florescent glowing spores spraying into the air. I snapped my mouth closed, raising my hands to cover my face, but the effort was too late.

  Leaning backward, the wall caught me as I slid to the floor. I saw the other prisoners slump in their restraints, the human hitting his head as he fell to the side.

  Poisoned. It was my last thought.

  Groaning, I lifted my throbbing head. I did a quick sweep around the room. The guards were gone, and the wall appeared to be stone once more, hiding the door. I glanced at my new companions. Both seemed to be out cold still. This didn’t surprise me because I’d seen the blast coming and attempted to protect myself from it. These guys wouldn’t have seen it due to their blindfolds and breathed in a hefty amount. I had no idea how long they’d be unconscious.

  Leaning forward, I tried to tell if they were breathing. Heaven help me if I was in here with two dead dudes. All I needed was to be stuck with a couple of smelly, rotting corpses.

  “Hey!” I called out, my eyes flitting back and forth between them, looking for any signs of life. Nothing. I couldn’t tell if they were breathing in the low flickering torchlight.

  Sighing, I scooted my hips away from the wall and stretched my leg out. Kicking one of the booted soles of the dark-haired human. His foot shifted considerably but didn’t seem to cause much else in the way of a reaction.

  Well, damn. I glanced over toward the Fae man, studying his long blond hair as I considered whether to kick him. Were the Fae easy rousers? I had no idea. What if this guy came up swinging? Glancing back toward the human, I decided to take a second shot at him first.

  This time I aimed for his other leg, kicking it as hard as possible. “Hey! Are you okay?” I shouted at the same time. “Answer me! I’m trying to help you!”

  In truth, there was nothing I could do to help them, but I didn’t want them to die either. “The way I see it,” I continued on loudly, “we’ve only got each other to find a way out of here, but we can’t do that if you don’t wake up.”

  The blond one shifted slightly, and he groaned. “Lower your voice, please. My head is pounding.”

  “Yes, I’m aware of that,” I replied, relieved that at least one of them was stirring. I scooted against the wall. “We’ve all been poisoned,” I replied in a quieter tone. “I was trying to make sure you were alive. I don’t know about your buddy. By the way, your hands are free now. You can remove your blindfold.”

  Gingerly, the Fae man lifted his blindfold, blinking heavily as he let his eyes adjust to the low lighting. Suddenly, he leaned forward. “Seth?”

  Shocked, I sat straighter. “Do I know you?” Oddly enough, he did seem somewhat familiar, but I couldn’t place where I might know him from.

  “It is me, Rowan.” He placed his hand on his chest. “I knew you were closer. I could feel the bond growing stronger. I just did not realize you would be right here.”

  Turning to the man beside him, he ripped the blindfold from his face and started shaking him. My surprise grew when I recognized his face as well as my own, but I still couldn’t place him.

  “Who are you?” I said, my words coming out more like a choked whisper. If the Fae heard them, he didn’t show it.

  “Jett!” he practically shouted. “We have found Seth! Jett! Wake up!”

  “Would you shut up?” Jett mumbled, his head lolling a bit to the side. “What does a guy have to do to get some sleep around here?”

  “Wake up!” Rowan shouted. I was shocked when he slapped the guy across the face.

  Immediately, the man went rigid, his eyes flaring bright red as he stared at his assaulter.

  “Holy shit! He’s a demon!” I shouted, shifting backward, and standing, but there was nowhere to go. Leave it to me to think the human was less scary than the Fae. This guy would want to drink my blood! This situation had just gone from bad to worse.

  I tried calling my magic, but it was dampened. Maybe that meant their powers were, too.

  “Look!” I raised my hands. “I’m a prisoner here also. I wasn’t trying to upset anyone. I just wanted to make sure the poison they sprayed on us hadn’t killed you.”

  The dark man rose, his red eyes never leaving me. He moved closer, as far as his chains would let him. Suddenly, a tear fell over the rim of one eye. “Seth? Is that you?” he asked as if he was afraid to believe it.

  I took in a deep breath. Something big appeared to be happening right now, but I wasn’t exactly sure what that was. Reaching for the crystal on the string around my neck, I gripped it, seeking comfort from something familiar.

  Even as I did so, I realized that, somehow, I was mistaken about these two people. Now that I looked at them better, they didn’t seem familiar. Another thought occurred to me then. Maybe these men had been involved in the search to find me and had been captured.

  “I’m sorry. I appear to be at a loss. You clearly know who I am, but I don’t recognize you. Perhaps you’ve been helping my grandfather search for me?”

  “Your grandfather?” the guy called Jett asked. “Seth, both of your grandpas have been dead for years.”

  Nothing he was saying made any sense. “I believe you have me mistaken with someone else. I spoke to my grandfather, Damien Cummings, the day I was abducted. I assure you he was alive and well.”

  Jett crossed his arms and sighed. “You’ve been tricked. That’s not your grandpa. He’s Kenna’s. Where is Kenna, by the way?” He glanced around the room as if he might’ve missed her in a corner.

  Confusion settled over me. How did this guy know Kenna? I decided to address what I could explain. “Yes, Damien is Kenna’s biological grandfather, but he also adopted me as a child. Therefore, he is grandfather to us both.”

  Something flickered in Jett’s eyes. “So, you and Kenna have been raised as siblings then?”

  I nodded. “Well, yes, of course.” I noticed Jett seemed clearly relieved by that information for some reason. “But as I said before, we are not related. Once we grew older, our feelings developed more. We recently united as man and wife.”

  Jett’s face went gray at my remark. Even his companion didn’t seem to like that news, but I couldn’t come up with a reason why they would even care.

  “You’re married?” Jett asked, appearing to almost choke on the question. “To Kenna?”

  I nodded. “Yes. We’re expecting our first child together. Why?”

  Jett staggered backward, hitting the wall behind him with a thump before sliding down into a seated position. He grabbed two fistfuls of hair, and a low painful wail rose from him.

  “Oh, please God, no.”

  Shocked filled me as I watched this stranger begin to sob on the ground in front of me. He was clearly very distraught. It was almost as if someone he loved had died. I didn’t know how to react. I simply stared back and forth between him and the Fae, who eyed me warily.

  “Would somebody please fill me in on what’s happening? I’ve never been so damn confused in my life.”

  The Fae, Rowan, rose and stepped toward me. “I know this is confusing. You are not privy to certain information, which is making you feel out of sorts.”

  “Can you tell me what’s going on or not?” I snapped.

  “I can,” Rowan replied. “But to do so, you will have to trust me. Can you do that?”

  I glanced between him and the guy on the floor. It wasn’t like they could hurt me. Any magick was bound by the room. Jett hadn’t moved from where he sat, the tears of his misery making wet spots on the stones beneath him. He was clearly distraught.

  “Trust you, how?” I asked, wondering if I was about to make the biggest mistake of my life.

  “I am going to give you some information. You can decide what to do with it. I just want you to realize no one in this room will force you to do anything. Any choices made will be done willing by you, or not at all. Are you in agreement with that?”

  I hesitated, but his eyes seemed sincere, so I nodded. “Agreed.”

  The Fae man nodded. “The easiest way to tell you what is happening is to show you. I need you to remove the crystal stone you have hanging around your neck to do that.”

  Shaking my head, I took a step backward. “I can’t do that. Grandpa Damien gave this to me as a child. He said I was never to take it off, not even to bathe. It’s a strong protection stone. Removing it will make me vulnerable to the magickal powers of others.”

  Rowan nodded. “I understand that. The stone is doing its job very well, and under normal conditions, I would never ask you to remove it.” He gestured to the room around us. “I am sure you have tried to use your powers in here, and it has not worked. These cells are made to dampen the powers of magickal beings, but it does not interfere with the magick in that stone.”

  “Why do I need to take this off?”

  “Because you already have the information you are seeking. The stone is keeping you from remembering it.”

  I took a step back. “You’re lying. My grandfather would never try to trick me.”

  “Fine. Prove it by taking the stone off.” Jett was the one who spoke this time. Without wiping at his eyes, he rose to face me. “Take it off, then. Drop it on the floor over there beside you. Neither of us can reach it. If you have a problem, all you have to do is grab it and put it on.”

  Glancing at the floor beside me, I knew he was right. They wouldn’t be able to get the stone. If I took it off and nothing happened, I’d prove I was right. They’d have to believe me.

  “Fine,” I replied, more than happy to show them how wrong they were. I reached for the cord, lifted it from my neck, and carefully placed it on the floor.

  34

  Seth-

  * * *

  The room, which moments ago had been so quiet one could hear a pin drop, suddenly filled with a loud rushing sound. Images flashed before my eyes, moving so quickly I felt dizzy. I reached for the wall I could no longer see. My life disappeared like smoke, replaced with the memories of someone entirely different.

  Me. This was me. The real me.

  Reaching out, I steadied myself against the wall as I tried to regain my balance before I hurriedly moved to the end of my chains. I couldn’t help my smile. “You’re alive!” I practically shouted as he reached for me, grasping me by the forearms. It was all we could reach. He smiled as he studied me.

  “Nice to see you again, buddy,” he said. “You’ve been missing for a while.”

  I released him, suddenly remembering what I’d seen moments ago. I stepped backward. “You’re a demon.” It wasn’t a question. “What happened?”

  Jett sighed. “It was the only way Vance could think of to save me after Prince Ding Dong tried to run me through.” He gestured loosely toward Rowan but didn’t seem upset. “Don’t worry, though,” he continued before I could ask him more. “Vance and I are the new and improved versions of demons.” Lifting his shirt, he showed me a strange glowing tattoo on his chest. “This tattoo was made with Fae blood. It should keep the cravings away for the rest of my life.”

  “Wow! That’s incredible!” I said, genuinely amazed. “I feel like the Universe has just given us the best gift possible. Kenna is going to flip when she finds out you’re . . .” My sentence dwindled to a stop, and a realization hit me full force. “Oh, shit. You’re . . . alive. You and Kenna. She . . . she . . .” I turned away, trying to get a handle on my overwhelming emotions. “She was devastated about you.” I punched the wall, ignoring the pain that shot up my arm. “I’m going to lose her, aren’t I?”

  Jett had been her first choice, and he held her heart. There was no way I could compete. It was like someone sucked my air away. I tried to drag in a breath, but I was frozen.

  “Seth, breathe,” Jett said sternly before suddenly punching me in the chest lightly.

  Reflexively, I gasped, taking in a deep gulp of air.

  “Come on. Sit down and put your head between your legs.”

  I did as he directed, feeling stupid for the signs of shock I was exhibiting, but I couldn’t control it. I loved Kenna. She was my world—she and our baby.

  The baby. Was it even mine? Or was it someone Jett unknowingly left behind? I didn’t know what to believe anymore. While I was overjoyed to see my best friend alive, his presence could literally mean losing everything else I loved.

  “I’m sorry,” I mumbled, feeling like a jackass. “It’s great to see you, Jett, but honestly—”

  “You feel like someone took a dump on your whole life?” Jett supplied. His chains rattled as he moved near the wall, leaning against it, and folding his arms. “I mean, I’m just guessing, but that’s kind of how I’m feeling at the moment.”

  “You?” I said with a half-laugh. “Why would you feel that way? You’re about to win the day and get everything you’ve ever wanted.”

  Jett eyed me for a moment. “Do you really think Kenna is that shallow? There’s no way she’s leaving you when you’re having a baby with her.”

  “If the baby is even mine. She’s been with both of us.”

  “Well, it sounds like the two of you have been pretty happy together from the little bit I’ve heard.”

  “Of course, we were,” I replied, irritated. “We had no memory of anything that had happened.”

  “So, your memories were gone immediately?” he asked.

  I shook my head. “No. We were kept in a crypt for a while, but our memories were intact then. Kenna was a basket case. We both were. Your death really messed with us, but especially her. She didn’t want to exist without you.”

  “I’m glad you were there for her,” Jett said somberly. “Truly, I mean it.”

  “She didn’t sleep with me then,” I rushed to assure him. “Damien tried to force us together, but when we resisted, that’s when he hatched plan B. We were just puppets in his little game with Vance, apparently.”

  “Is he as bad as everyone makes him out?” he asked, seeming curious.

  “Worse. He will stop at nothing to get what he wants.”

  “And what is that, exactly?” Rowan asked, finally interjecting himself into the conversation.

  I shrugged. “He claims to need an infant’s blood to raise Dee Dee from the dead. To be honest, we haven’t even seen Dee Dee since the battle on the road that day. So, who knows what is going on?”

  “Did Damien ever mention her?” Rowan asked.

  “Only to say she was out rectifying her wrongs.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Jett asked.

  “Apparently, she wasn’t supposed to lose her hold on Portia and let her get away.”

  Rowan tapped his fingers on the stone. “I feel like there is more to this plan than just this. I mean, it is clear Damien is in league with the Dark Court. What I do not understand is what he offered Queen Luna to make her such a willing aid?”

  “Uh, can a ghost possess a Fae Queen?” I asked, the answer seeming super clear to me.

  Jett’s eyes widened as he stared at me. “Shit.”

  “I think we just found the missing Dearg-Due,” Rowan said, releasing a defeated sigh.

  “But if Dee Dee knew Seth was here, don’t you think she’d be all over him?” Jett asked. “Hasn’t she been after him since he was born or something?”

  Rowan shrugged. “Maybe she does not know you are a prisoner here, Seth. But if you meet the queen and she throws herself at you, we will know for sure that our hunch is correct. It would also explain why after years of tentative peace, the Dark Fae would move to do this.”

  “We need to let someone know. If Dee Dee has possessed her, wouldn’t that make her loyal followers on our side?”

  “Not unless we could prove the duplicity,” Rowan replied. “Even then, her followers could use this as a reason for an uprising. They could say that our Fae kingdoms used Dearg-Due to undermine their queen so we could gain control of them. I am having a difficult time deciding how we are going to convince them of the truth.”

  “Well, first, we have to prove it,” I added. “There’s no point in saying anything if it isn’t true.”

  “Plus, it’s not like we’ve been invited to hang out in the throne room or anything,” Jett reminded. “Until our status here changes, there’s not much anyone can do except hope for the best.”

  Picking up the cord around the stone I’d been wearing, I glanced at it. “Well, we have the three of us, some shackles, and this crystal. Let’s try and formulate a plan, and maybe by the next time this door reappears, we’ll have a way out of here. At the very least, we can catch each other up with what happened while we were apart.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Jett said, sliding down the wall until he was sitting. “You go first.”