Dark Matter (22 page)

Twenty or so hellhounds were, absurdly,
playing in the yard. If I hadn’t already nearly been eaten by a
pack, I would have thought they were just a different breed of
domesticated dog. I pulled away sharply when one of them sniffed
the air and fixed his glowing yellow eyes on me.

I whirled around and gaped at Gibbit.
He smiled a bit sheepishly then walked out the door. I chased after
him.

“
You can’t be serious. Why
would you bring me here?” The borderlands scared me more than any
place I had ever been or imagined. It was the thought of the
unknown that ate at my brain. Styx had told me there were much
worse creatures than hellhounds here. I didn’t want to think about
that possibility.

He pulled his arm out of my grasp.
“This is the safest place for you to be right now. No one can find
you.”

“
Why isn’t that as
comforting as it should be?”

He just walked away from me without
responding. He was hiding something, but what?

I found my way back to my room and
plopped on the bed. I wasn’t about to sleep now. I had work to do.
I opened Lily’s journal and quickly found my spot.

My wedding day was probably
the oddest of my life. So much had happened since I came here, and
yet it had only been hours. A group of women took me to a large
room with a pool inside. They made me undress and ushered me into
the water. It felt strange against my skin as if it was seeping
into my insides. When they were finished primping and prodding me,
they took me onto a terrace…

Been there, done that. The fae are
anything but original.

My captor found me there in
the middle of a vast crowd of strangers. His eyes lingered on me
and a smile formed on his lips but his eyes held no emotion at
all.

The strange woman came
forward. He called her Tabitha. She looked at me and a pleased
expression settled over her features.

I was trembling from head to
foot but no one seemed to notice. Tabitha addressed the man at my
side, saying, “Taveon of Uldran, having been found a suitable match
for this Elemental, she is now yours.” She took my hands and
addressed me next. “Daughter of Air, we take you as our own. Your
gifts become our gifts. Your desires become our desires. Your life
becomes our life. You are one with us, in purpose and in heart. May
your strength magnify your house and all that dwell within. May
your union be unbreakable. May you grow together as the vines of
the valley and the roots of the earth. May your hearts beat as one.
May the creator bless your union.”

This was similar to what had happened
with Cassie’s bonding, but not exactly. What was the difference?
Was it because Cassie didn’t have power of her own? Was it because
she had not been claimed by any particular Element? I began reading
again, but the whole thing troubled me.

She took my hand and placed
it into his, saying, “Until the bond is ended.” The whole mass of
people raised their faces heavenward and repeated, “Until the bond
is ended.”

Particles of light swarmed
around us like a million tiny embers. The air grew thick with
energy that pushed at my skin. I shut my eyes tight and tried to
curl into a ball, but Taveon wouldn’t let me. He held my body in a
solid embrace. His fingers lingered under my chin then he lifted my
face toward his. My heart sounded like hoof beats in my ears. As
his lips approached mine, I said a silent prayer for help, all the
while knowing no one would be coming for me. This was my new
life.

The warmth of his kiss
spread through my entire body, and I found myself aching for him in
a way I had never known.

This was getting so intimate, I skipped
ahead a little. Okay, truth here, I peeked at a few things. I
continued reading for hours and even though I was completely
engrossed in Lily’s tale, I was beginning to think Gibbit had been
right about the book. I only had two pages to read and I hadn’t
found anything I would consider helpful. Her descriptions, as
before, were a bit distant in some places as if she only remembered
a few of her experiences vividly.

Lily had grown accustomed to the fae
realms rather slowly but eventually fell in love with her bondmate.
I had been right about one thing. Taveon of Uldran was Taylor. I
was surprised that he was actually pretty good to her. She
explained some of the things she had done with him. Most consisted
of court appearances, but sometimes they had been called to perform
other tasks in the mortal realm.

She never said who was doing the
calling, and it left me wondering who could possibly be
orchestrating fae life. I turned the last page and sighed. I had
expected more. What was I supposed to do now? I closed the book,
running my fingers over the cover one last time.

A jolt of electricity ran up my hand
and through the rest of my body. I dropped the book like a hot
coal. What had just happened?

I stared at it, waiting for it to morph
into a hideous beast or something worse. Using all my will, I shook
off my fears and reached for the book with tentative fingers. My
hand still hurt, but I was too curious to not pick it up. I nudged
the leather with the tip of my finger. Nothing happened.

I sat down by the book and grabbed it
before I changed my mind. The cover was still smooth and the pages
all looked the same, except, what was that?

The fivefold symbol was now on the last
page. It hadn’t been there before. My fingers found their way to
it, and I traced the circles like Roger Wayne had back at Notre
Dame. Air, Fire, Water, Earth, Void. My eyes filled with tears at
the mere thought of Zach.

I snapped the book closed.

A woman stood before me. I would never
forget her face, but the last time I had seen her, she had been
much older.

Sister Mary Margaret was very beautiful
when she was young. Her hair had been a waist length veil of
copper. Her eyes were just the same, except the lines had been
erased. She was wearing a flowing green gown and gazing at me as if
waiting for something.

“
Lily?” I asked. My voice
was tremulous and soft.

She smiled at me. “You have found my
book, I see.”

I blushed. I wasn’t sure why
exactly.

“
Oh, how exciting. I was
hoping something like this would happen. What is your name,” she
asked brightly.

“
Rayla.”

She gazed at me long and hard. “That is
not your real name.”

I scowled. “Why do people keep saying
that? It’s the one my mother gave me!” I hadn’t meant for it to
come out as angry as it had.

“
No matter, Rayla, you will
learn your true name in time. Your mother was a smart
woman.”

“
Why do you say
that?”

A broad smile slid across her lips.
“Look it up.”

“
My name?”

She nodded. I shook my head. Like I had
time for that.

Lily paced the room but didn’t touch
anything. “Why are you in the borderlands?”

“
How do you know where we
are?”

“
There is only one place
that feels like this.” Her eyes shifted with mischief. “Are you
going to answer me or should we play a guessing game?”

I’d had enough of guessing. “I’m
hiding.”

She raised a brow, giving me a dubious
look. “Don’t you know what lives here?”

“
I’ve seen the
hellhounds.”

She shook her head. “You should not
linger. The creatures are restless and hellhounds aren’t the worst
thing lurking in the shadows of this forest.”

“
So I’ve heard. Are you
really here?” I asked abruptly. This chitchat was nice, but it
wasn’t going to help me. Now that I knew how bad off Zach was, I
needed to get to him. Who knew what they had done to poor
Luke.

She laughed. “Why wouldn’t I
be?”

I reached a hand toward her, but she
shied away. “Do not touch me.”

“
How are you here? I’ve seen
you before, but you were—”

“
You mustn’t tell me of my
future.” She gritted her teeth. “I thought I had considered every
contingency.” She smiled wryly. “It appears I hadn’t considered
you.”

“
What do you
mean?”

“
I had no idea I could
actually be called into the future. You see, I have been learning
magic from an elf, and I asked him to show me how to bewitch the
diary you are holding. I thought it would be fun to be able to
interact with someone from another time, but I never thought I
would be transported physically.” Her eyes shone with curiosity.
“When are we anyway?” She shook her head. “Scratch that. I don’t
want to know.”

I gaped at her. I didn’t understand
what was happening, but she had to know something that could help
me. “So how are you here?”

“
I don’t know how to explain
it very well. Science has never made a bit of sense to me, but I
think I am, what did he call that? Oh, yeah, drifting. It’s similar
to that, but not on a physical plane. Part of me is here and part
of me is back home in bed dreaming right now and you…” She looked
at me and shrugged. “To put it simply, you called me
here.”

How did I do that? I just touched the
book. She was the one that put the spell on it. “Are you
sure?”

“
It is the only
explanation.”

“
Either that or Gibbit
drugged me and I am actually hallucinating right now.”

She smiled. “You know Gibbit? He can be
very useful.”

I thought so, especially considering
what he had just gotten me out of, but I wanted to hear her take.
“How’s that?”

“
He’s the most resourceful
troll in all of Faeresia. He can get you anything. I shouldn’t
really talk about the other things he can do.”

I didn’t care what she had
to say about Gibbit. I would make my own mind up regarding his
abilities
and
his
motivations. “Lily, I don’t want to seem rude, but I am new to this
Elemental business. Can I ask you some things?”

She sat on, or more like hovered over,
the chair in the corner. “Why not?” she said with a grin. “I
haven’t been able to speak to someone from the human realm in a
really long time, and I miss that. Everything here is sort of
boring, except for maybe the pixies. They
are…unpredictable.”

I got to the point. “Have you heard the
prophecy?”

She licked her lips and gave me a
conspiratorial smile. “Only part. They are very secretive about it,
you see.”

I sat up straighter. Part was better
than nothing. “Will you tell me?”

She sat there for a long time. I wasn’t
sure if I should say anything so I kept quiet.

“
I really shouldn’t…it isn’t
supposed to be repeated.” She winked at me. “I know how it feels to
be curious and have no one help you scratch that itch.” She rested
the tip of her forefinger to her chin, tapped a few times then
smiled brightly. “Okay, I think I’ve got it—what I remember anyway.
This is somewhere in the middle. I can’t quite recall the
beginning.” Her voice lowered dramatically. “
Unknown to all she waits in silent grief. Stronger than death,
her soul cries out for unrequited reprieve. Only through fault will
she be discovered.
There was something
about a deception gone awry. I can’t remember exactly, but this I
do recall because it is my favorite line.
Love illuminates the path to her heart. None can claim her
until she bestows the precious gift.
You
see there are many interpretations of what this means, but I think
she gets to choose.” Her voice went dreamy. “Wouldn’t that be
wonderful? To be able to pick who you want instead of the other way
around.”

“
Yeah, sounds
great.”

“
There is one more line
before the end. Why can’t I remember it?” She pursed her lips and
shrugged.

I gave her a wan smile. “It’s better
than not knowing any of it. No one will tell me
anything.”

She fiddled with a knob on the dresser
as if she was getting bored. “Give it some time. When they figure
out you aren’t the nexus they’ll tell you. I had to wait a hundred
years even though it was plainly obvious I couldn’t control all
elements.”

I tried to cover my surprise of how
open she was being about this, but I couldn’t be sure how well I
did. Lysanne had made it clear the prophecy was as sacred to the
fae as the bible is to a priest. “Why wouldn’t they want the nexus
to know what the prophecy says?”

She gave a delicate shrug.
“Well, from what I understand, there are many reasons. For one
thing, she could be swayed to make a choice that would have
disastrous consequences for everyone. You see it’s all in the last
line of the prophecy:
She is the bringer or
taker of life. Only her choices can mold the
future.
” She dropped her hand from the
dresser and sighed. “I’m sorry that’s all I remember. I wish I
could tell you more. You must understand something, though. Be
careful who you share this with. The prophecy condemns whoever
tells the nexus to a horrible existence.” She got a weird look on
her face. She studied me for a really long time, and I shifted
uncomfortably. “Wait a moment. You never told me what house you are
from. I can usually tell, but I’ve never tried like
this.”