Veda shrugs. “That’s Carrick’s job.”
Of course it is. He gets rewarded if I help stop it. There’s no avoiding the bitterness welling within me, followed by another wave of grief over what I’ve lost. Not only my sister, but also my normality.
Tears start to prick at my eyes, but I don’t even bother to try to blink them back as I stare at the bottle on the table. In a small voice, I admit, “I don’t want to be a part of this. I’m scared.”
I’m stunned when Veda’s hand reaches out to take mine and she squeezes it. Immediately, my grief evaporates. While I don’t feel euphoric, I feel more in charge of my emotions.
Veda just eased my pain by whatever magic gods hold, but I guess that makes sense if she’s the god of Humanity.
“I’m not going to tell you that you have to participate,” Veda says. “You have a choice. You can walk away, move as far from Seattle as you can, and hope beyond hope that something else will happen to divert the prophecy. But you need to know, chances are the prophecy will be fulfilled and you and your loved ones are going to be in great peril along with the rest of the world.”
“I feel there’s an or,” I murmur.
“Or,” she drawls with a smirk. “You can fight and try to change the course of the future. You can put your destiny in your own hands, and you’ll have some measure of control.”
I hate she’s making sense, but ultimately, she’s said nothing that convinces me. Like she just said, perhaps something else will happen to stop the prophecy, and, let’s face it, it might not be as doom and gloom as we think.
Veda’s smile lessens into one of understanding mixed with slight disappointment. “I can see I’m not making an impression, but the drops are there to use if you want to broaden your support system. Actually, it might also help protect them because, surely, you know you’re still in danger. Word will get around there’s a human with special powers to see beneath the veils. Their proximity to you could make them targets.”
My stomach pitches. This was not something I had given much credence to, preferring to believe their ignorance would keep them safe. But guilt by association is a terrible thing.
Veda stands from the chair, a clear indication she’s said all there is to say. Because she’s a god, I feel compelled to exhibit my best manners, so I stand as well. I’m not sure if I should curtsy, bow, or shake her hand.
Apparently, none of the above as Veda steps in close to me, puts her hands on my shoulders, and gives me a fairy light kiss on each cheek. When she pulls back, her eyes, which are a beautiful silver-gray, laser onto mine. “One last piece of advice, and I don’t say this lightly. But you can trust Carrick. I promise he’ll protect you and always look out for your best interests.”
“But he’s in it for the reward you’ll give him,” I say, my tone overly surly.
“Is he now?” she replies with a laugh as she steps back. “You may be right, but you may be wrong. What I can tell you is that Carrick is someone who is a hundred times deserving of a reward, so I personally am not peeved about that being a carrot.”
I frown, not sure if that makes me feel better or worse about him.
Veda steps back, inclines her head, and smiles fondly. “Good luck, Finley. I wish you well.”
I’m not sure if it’s for flourish or it’s just the way gods are, but she explodes into a bazillion fine sparkles almost smaller than dust in a ray of sunshine that quickly dissipates, leaving me alone out on the upper deck.
For someone who just had a conversation with the god of Humanity who is older than time, I feel amazingly calm. Maybe it’s more of her magic she used on me. If so, I’ll allow myself to be grateful for that.
I reach out, hesitating only slightly, before I grab the bottle of drops. I don’t think I can tell my friends what’s going on, but I pocket it all the same.
CHAPTER 4
Carrick
They sat at an outdoor table on the patio of Carrick’s condo. It was overcast but, so far, no rain had fallen since the sun had risen. It was foggy across Puget Sound, and the Olympic Mountains were completely obscured, but it didn’t make the view before them any less beautiful.
But none were paying attention. Breakfast had been served and finished over an hour ago, yet their conversation continued with a hot carafe of coffee sitting before them to replenish their mugs.
Carrick had called this meeting so that a plan could be put into effect. It had been three days since Finley’s twenty-eighth birthday where Carrick and Finley both witnessed her sister transform before their very eyes into a Dark Fae.
And Carrick had no doubt in his mind that Fallon was indeed dark. He’d seen the way Finley had reacted to the vibes her sister—well, former sister—was putting off, and it was almost harsh enough to drive her to her knees. Finley had said she’d never felt such evil in her life. While none had definitive proof the nature of her feelings matched up to whether a fae was light or dark. They’d seen enough correlation over the last few weeks to believe it was a reasonable assumption.
Joining Carrick to his left was Zaid, his longtime trusted and loyal friend. Zaid was a daemon, the offspring of a union between a Light and Dark Fae. His mother was light, a gentle and timid soul, but his father was as dark as pitch and as malevolent as they come. Daemons tend to take after one parent or the other, but Zaid had often straddled the line.
To Carrick’s right was another friend, this one entirely human. Titus was an annihilator, a well-trained brand of warrior who hunted the fae and daemons that were acting on their evil impulses. He lived primarily in an alternate dimension called Semper Terra, but traveled the world helping to protect an unsuspecting society against the danger of dark daemons and fae. He had come to Seattle almost a month ago to train Finley how to appropriately defend herself or launch an aggressive physical attack, if need be.
This was important because once word got out that Finely—a mere human—had abilities to see beneath the glamours that concealed the very existence of fae and daemon alike, she would become a target. The Light Fae would want to use her to help hunt Dark Fae, because same as annihilators, they couldn’t abide the evil creatures that had slipped through small tears in the veil that separated earth from the Underworld. They didn’t do this out of any loyalty to humans, but rather to protect their own realm of Faere. The Dark Fae would merely like to kill her because she could identify them. They were the main threat she faced.
Now, it might just be her biggest threat is her sister Fallon.
For now, things were stacking up to be problematic. The Council of five gods announced there was a prophecy of doom coming that would put earth at great peril. It was vague as all prophecies are, but Carrick became embroiled when the god Rune offered him a chance to gain Ascension if he helped thwart the prophecy.
But Ascension wasn’t something Carrick was focused on at this point. His concerns were how to get Finley on board with accepting her fate, that she is an integral part in stopping the coming darkness. He’d worry about his reward later.
Carrick wasn’t bothered by her reaction when she left. Her denial was fueled by fear and mistrust. He let her walk out of his condo, knowing she probably needed some time to process everything.