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I definitely did not want to go back to
Petrona and I was afraid of what the queen might do to me if I did.
Returning to Louisiana was out of the question. I did not think
that I could bear to live there without my family, and I had no
idea how I would be able to support myself. I was really in
trouble.

I had only sat for a short time before I
heard Kailen start to stir in his bedroom. “Good morning Princess,
I mean Callie.” He said as he entered the living room.

“Good morning.” I replied as I smiled at him.
“Kailen, how did you know that I was the princess when I first
arrived in Drake?” I asked.

“That is an easy question, Callie.” He said.
“I could tell by your wings.”

“My wings? But I thought that you could not
see my wings.” I said with dismay.

“You could not see your wings Callie, to me
they were the most beautiful wings that I had ever seen.” He said
and I started to blush. “They are even more beautiful than your
mother’s were, and hers were lovely.”

“What did my mother’s look like?” I asked
wishing that I could have seen them.

“They were silver and trimmed in gold. They
were very beautiful. Your father’s were steel grey and outlined in
black, but I have never seen any that were quite like yours.” He
explained.

“But everyone here has beautiful wings, how
are mine any different?” I asked.

“Yours are true to your bloodline, Callie.
Only a true heir has wings of gold or silver.” He answered with a
smile. “Actually, I have never witnessed anyone with gold wings
before. It is quite rare. As are the designs that cover them.”

There was no denying who I was now. “Why
didn’t anyone in Petrona notice my wings then?” I asked.

“Petrona stays shrouded by a powerful glamour
spell. The queen wants to pretend that she is human. She feels like
they are the superior beings because they live on the surface while
we have been driven here.” He stated.

I was trying to let all of these things sink
in when Kailen finally broached the subject that I had been
dreading all morning.

“We need to start preparing a proper house
for you today, Callie. Once we get the main structure built, you
can come in and decorate it to your liking.” He said.

“Kailen,” I said hesitantly. “I can’t stay
here. The queen’s guards are probably out searching for me right
now. There is no telling what she would do if she found me here. I
can’t put you or these kind people in jeopardy like that.”

“Callie, where else will you go? You have no
choice. We will consider you our true queen, and we would proudly
protect you until our last breath.” He pledged.

“I do not know where I will go, and I am very
honored that you would offer such a kind thing. But, I can’t
accept. I planned to continue through the tunnels until I could
find a place of my own, far from the reaches of the queen and her
guards.” I answered.

“You can’t keep running away Callie.” He
looked at me very seriously. “And you would never last for very
long on your own like that. This place is your home, always.
Petrona is your home as well. You just have to claim it.”

That all sounded good, but I knew that my
life would never be that easy. I needed to find some place that I
could call my own. Some place that I would have time to learn about
the fairy ways without others getting hurt trying to protect me. If
I ever did want to be queen, I needed to be prepared to take over a
powerful woman like Lilith.

“Kailen, I am only an eighteen year old girl.
Last week I was still going to high school. I have only known that
fairies existed for a few days. I know nothing of being a fairy
princess, let alone a queen. I have only discovered that I had
wings just yesterday. I cannot take on Lilith. Not now. There is so
much left for me to learn. I have to go. I have to leave today
Kailen, before they track me here.”

Kailen sat looking down at the floor. He did
not say anything for a long time. When he finally looked up at me,
he locked his eyes with mine. “Callie, if you must go, if there is
no other way, then I am going with you.”

“No Kailen. I could never ask you to do
that!” I said in alarm. “These people need you here. You can’t
leave them.”

“They will do just fine without me. My
brothers are here, and so are many others that are capable of
leading them if they need it. I have no other ties to this place
and you need help. You could never learn to fight or use your fairy
magic on your own. You can’t do this by yourself, Callie.” He gave
me a stern look, and I resigned.

“Fine.” I said. “If you truly want to come
with me, then I can’t stop you. But, you have to know that I have
no idea where I am going. I am pretty sure that Lilith’s guards
will be looking for me and I do not know what they will do to me,
or to you if they find me. Brokk has already tracked me in the
human world. He should have no trouble tracking me down here.”

I found myself absent-mindedly twisting
Brokk’s ring around my finger.

“Ugh, Brokk.” He groaned. “I know the
consequences. I know exactly what you are up against. All of the
people from Drake came here at some point to escape Lilith’s wrath.
I also know that it will be different with you. She will want to
make sure that you never come back to claim the throne. That is why
I can’t let you go alone.”

Kailen went about the village making
arrangements with his brothers and some of the other men and women.
In Drake, there were no kings and queens. There was only a village
council that was made up of several members of the community.
Kailen’s departure meant that someone would have to be elected to
take his place, but the council felt sure that a suitable person
could be found to take his spot.

We spent the rest of the morning gathering
supplies. Kailen found two large backpacks that he stuffed with as
much food and water as we could carry. Plus blankets and a few
changes of clothes. He also brought along a large knife that he
strapped to his waist. Once he was certain that we had everything
that we may need, we said goodbye to the villagers. We would be
leaving during the night, once everyone was settled.

I sat on the bed in Kailen’s home while he
paced the floors in the living room. We both should have been
resting for the long trek ahead of us, but there was a strange
tension in the air. I could not put my finger on it, but obviously,
Kailen felt it too.

I stepped into the living room and watched
Kailen as he walked in a circle from one end of the small room to
the other. He stopped and looked at me when he heard me
approach.

“Something is not right.” He said. His eyes
glowed with nervous anticipation.

“What do you think it is?” I asked
softly.

“I am not sure but I think that we should go.
Now, before it is too late.” He whispered.

I nodded my head and collected my things. We
stepped out of the house into the shroud of night. Most of the
lanterns had long been extinguished in an attempt to conserve their
precious oils. Kailen stayed close behind me as we made our way
through the maze of wooden shacks toward the exit.

Kailen froze and pulled me back by my arm as
we heard a loud commotion at the entrance to the cavern. We peered
into the darkness, searching for some explanation of the sound.
Three shadowed figures moved into cavern through the doorway and
stood as they glanced around at the village.

“Search every corner! Bring the villagers out
and question every one of them! I want to find her fast so that we
can get back to the city!” One of the men called.

Before our eyes, an army of the queen’s
guards poured into the cavern. Each heading off into a different
direction. They kicked in doors and forced people out of their
homes as they searched each one for a sign of me.

“We have to do something!” I said to
Kailen.

“No, we can’t Callie.” He said. “It would be
worse if they actually found you here. The villagers can take care
of themselves. This is not the first time that they have
encountered the queen’s guards. Come on, this way.”

He led me behind a row of houses and to the
far wall of the cavern. He pointed to a small hole at the base of
the wall and said, “Through here.”

“We can not go through there!” I argued. “We
will never fit.”

“We have to, Callie. Crawl through it, I will
be right behind you.” He urged.

The sound of the guards drawing near was all
of the encouragement that I needed. I got down on my knees, took a
deep breath, and crawled in through the hole. The rocky walls
ripped at my skin as the passage narrowed. The gravel beneath me
imbedded painfully into my palms and knees, and I whimpered in
pain.

“Just keep going Callie, it’s not far now.”
Kailen called from somewhere behind me.

I pushed on into the total darkness. I felt
like the world was closing in and about to swallow me up. I tried
hard to control my breathing, taking in long slow breaths as I
moved forward.

I had to hold in a scream as something small
and furry scampered across my hand. I did not know if I would be
able to stand it much longer. I wanted to curl up into a ball and
cry. I still could not believe what was happening to me.

The passage turned at a sharp angle and once
I was past it, I could sense the air change. I let out a sigh of
relief. I knew the end of the tight space was approaching.

I tried to hurry myself along when suddenly
the ground beneath me gave way and I tumble out of the wall and
landed onto the hard tunnel floor.

Chapter 8

“Callie!”

I heard my name, and I recognized the voice,
but it was not Kailen. I righted myself and leaned my back against
the hole, hoping to deter Kailen from spilling out into the trap. I
did not notice any sounds coming from inside so I could only assume
that he heard it too and waited.

“Brokk?” I asked, as I peered into the tunnel
toward the figure now running towards me.

“
Callie, you are okay!” He said as he
dropped to his knees in front of me. “We have been searching
everywhere for you! What are you doing out here?”

“What do you want, Brokk?” I could not hide
the ice in my voice.

I began to brush the dirt and gravel from my
palms and knees. I was trying to do all that I could to avoid
having to look into his eyes. I feared that if I did, our crazy
bond thing would cause me to get all loopy and I would end up back
in his arms.

“Callie, I am so sorry. Please, let me help
you up. We have to get you back to the city.” He tried to pull me
from the floor by my arm but I jerked it away. He looked at me in
confusion.

“Callie, please. I said that I was sorry.
Just let me help you get back to the palace, we can talk about
everything later. But right now we really need to go.” He
insisted.

“Hold on a minute Brokk!” I yelled as I
jumped to my feet. “There is nothing to talk about and I am not
going anywhere with you. You knew what Lilith had planned for me!
You knew and you just left me there! You knew that she was going to
kill my parents! That is why you went back!”

I could no longer hold back my tears. Seeing
Brokk was just more than I could take.

“Okay, I knew that she only wanted to use you
for her own benefit, but I also knew that she would never hurt you.
I was afraid that she might try to harm your parents, and yes, that
is why I went back. Nevertheless, I was too late Callie, and I am
so sorry for that. Please, just come with me now and we can fix
this.” He pleaded.

“Fix this? How can you fix this?” I
stammered. “You stole me away from the only home that I ever knew!
You brought me to that awful place where I was locked away like
some kind of animal! You say that she would never hurt me, but what
was she going to do after she was through with me? Do you think
that she was really going to let me go?”

“Queen Lilith would never hurt you, Callie.”
He said as his blue eyes started to get misty. “You have to know
that. I am sorry that you were not happy with your arrangement
there, but if we talk to her. If she knew how unhappy you were, I
know that she would change things.”

“
She killed my family! Do you really
think that she cares if I am unhappy with my
arrangements
?” I yelled. “And you, you did
nothing to stop her! You just let her destroy everything that I
have ever loved! You knew what she was going to do and you never
said a word!” I had just about all that I could take of this.
“There is no talking to her, you know that as well as I do. She
brought me here to use me, and when she was through with me, she
would have killed me too. Just like she killed my
parents.”

I sobbed so hard that tremors racked my body.
I could barely stand.

“Callie that is enough!” He growled as he
moved for me. “Let’s go. Now.”

He grabbed hold of my arm and started to yank
me down the tunnel. I don’t know what came over me but I jerked him
back. Shock registered on his face as he turned to look at me.

He moved toward me again and this time I did
not hesitate. I lifted my leg and kneed him in the groin with all
of my might. He crumpled over clutching himself, and I followed up
by delivering a massive blow to the left side of his face.

His head flew back with the force of my fist,
knocking him off balance. He landed onto the floor with a thud. I
leapt on top of him, straddling his waist. He struggled to sit up
but I would not let him. I raised my fist and landed blow after
blow to his face.

I could not stop myself. The rage and despair
from the events that took place over the last week came boiling out
of me with every strike of my hand. I could feel my tears burning
my eyes but I ignored them. I wanted nothing more than to hurt
Brokk, just as he had hurt me.