The Changeling (Book One of The Síofra Chronicles) (25 page)

Chapter Thirty-One

The downside to still having a mortal body was that all my aches and bruises were there when I woke up the next day.  I was so glad to have Becca there to take care of me.  My parents had threatened to come up and collect me right away, but Becca had promised that we would be driving home as soon as her last final was over.  My dad hadn’t wanted to agree but they had to drive to Sacramento to pick up my brother from the airport.  As soon as Elliott had heard I’d been assaulted, he’d begged his leadership for emergency leave and left to go home.  He was going to be a handful, but at least if he was home, Becca could keep him from going off the deep end.

“I’m so sorry,” Becca apologized
tearfully for the fifth time that morning.  She looked beautiful even when she cried. I didn’t know how she did that. I only had one setting for crying. Ugly.  “I feel like I should have seen something.  I shouldn’t have pushed you to work things out with him.”

“There’s nothing you could have done
, Becca,” I insisted, trying to reassure her.  “I told you, that was the first and last time he ever put his hands on me.”  I regretted that I couldn’t explain what had actually happened because I knew she would continue to blame herself.

“Yeah well
, if he ever shows up here again, they’ll never find his body.  I promise you that,” she swore. 

I laughed.  She was too late. 

“So Miguel is going to come check on you before he and Ray head out, and I’ll be back as soon as my exam is over.  Keep the door locked. Call the police if you see anything suspicious…”

“Yes
, Mother,” I groaned.  “And I won’t talk to strangers or accept candy from strange men in unmarked vans.”  She was taking her overprotective nature to a new level, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop her.  If it made her feel better, who was I to stop her?

Her eyes softened and she hugged me gingerly, trying not to touch my cracked rib.  “Just be careful.”

I promised I would and shooed her out the door, locking it before I flopped on the couch. I flipped on the television, determined to lose myself in mindless daytime TV when a sharp knock on the door startled me.  I climbed to my feet, biting my lip against the pain as I turned the deadbolt.

“Did you forget your notes or something?” I asked as I swung the door open.

“Or something,” Finn greeted me, leaning against the door frame, a wry smirk twisting his face.

“What in the holy hell are you doing here?” I gasped, the color draining from my face.  “How in the holy hell are you here?”

  I looked past him, glancing around the neighborhood, making sure nobody else could see him.  Not waiting for a reply, I grabbed the arm of his shirt and tugged until he walked in the door, slamming it shut behind him.

“Look at that,” he said with a frown as he dragged his eyes over my frame, taking in the bruises and the bandages. “You survived, although I’m not sure I would say in one piece.  No offense
, Cassie, but you look like someone ran over you, backed up, and ran over you again.”

“Gee thanks
, Finn. You look awfully handsome yourself,” I deadpanned.

“I do
, don’t I?” he grinned. “See? I told you would come around to—”

“How are you here?” I demanded, interrupting him crossly. “And why are you here?”

He sat down on my couch and motioned for me to join him.  I would have kept standing just to spite him, but my body was aching so I sat on the farthest end I could.

“There are still a few paths back to the mortal world known only to me.  I knew after what happened with that damned Elf you got yourself involved with
, your pretty boy guardian would never let you out of his sight again, so I had to find someplace where he can’t see you—namely, here.”

My eyes widened in surprise, the words dying in my throat.

“How did I know about your Elf?  You didn’t think you drew all that magic by yourself, did you, sweet Cassandra?” He smiled darkly, something unreadable flashing in his eyes.  “I may not have realized what your boy toy was at first, but
I
never left you unprotected.”

“Then why are you here?”
I asked, feeling exhausted. 

“Because I need your help
, Cassie.  Word travels fast, and my mother has already heard that your boyfriend had slipped into the Dreaming.  She’s convinced herself that if they can get into the Dreaming, they can slip back into our world through the Pool of Dreams.”

“Can they do that?” I asked, my voice betraying my fear.  Dom had been bad enough
, but if there were more of them running loose in Otherworld, could they be stopped?

“Probably,” he shrugged nonchalantly. “But that’s not my concern.  My mother is going to close off the Dreaming to mortals
, Cassandra, and you and I are the only ones who can stop her.”

“Why do you need my help?” I asked warily, still trying to wrap my head around Finn being in my mortal living room looking like a regular human guy.  With his glamour hiding his oddly shaped eyes
, he was almost beautiful.  “I would have thought that a man of your immense ego would think he could stop the apocalypse single-handedly.”

“Because we are Anam Chara,” he said seriously, his eyes glittering.   “
Humans call them soul mates.”

“Bullshit,” I sputtered incredulously.  “We are not soul mates.  Do I look gullible to you?”

“Not particularly.  Nevertheless, we are soul mates.  Or soul twins.  The word doesn’t translate well and it doesn’t mean what you think it means.  We are two halves of the same soul, and unless we can learn to work together as one, everyone you love and care about in this world is in danger.”

“No.  That’s enough. I’ve heard enough.  I’m taking pain medication and I’m hallucinating. You can’t even be in this world
, let alone trying to convince me that we’re soul mates, so I’m going to kick you out of my house now. Then I’m going to go rest and we’ll pretend like this never happened.”

“Yes well, all that aside, I’m still here and the fact remains
—” Finn broke off as the front door opened and Miguel and Ray stepped into the apartment.  Saved by the besties.  Miguel stopped short and stared at Finn suspiciously. 

“Who are you?”
he demanded, glancing back and forth between me and Finn questioningly. 

“This is Finn,” I said hesitantly.  “He’s a classmate of mine. He was nice enough to bring me some notes on the final since I have to make it up after break.  But he’s leaving now, aren’t you
, Finn?”

For the first time ever, Finn looked flustered.  “Um, yes.  I’ll see you when you return then,” he said firmly, his eyes flashing his meaning.  “Pleasure to meet you
, gentlemen.”  He bowed stiffly in the same way he had at Court and quickly exited the apartment.

Ray and Miguel watched him
leave with raised eyebrows.  When they looked at me curiously, I shrugged at them.

“Exchange student,” I lied, waving my hand dismissively. 

“You okay, Cassie?” Ray asked gently, moving beside me on the couch.  “You’re pale.”

“I’m fine,” I
promised, my mind a whirl of doubt and confusion.  “I think I’m going to go lie down and take a nap.”

“Let us know if you need anything
,” said Miguel. “We’re going to hang out here in the living room until Becca gets home.”

I smiled gratefully and moved to my bedroom, gingerly lowering myself to the mattress and wincing at the pain in my ribs.

Finn showing up at my door had been a shock, but I wasn’t sure what was worse. His announcement that he and I were soul mates or his declaration that everyone I loved was in danger.  I wanted to call him a liar, just stirring up trouble for the fun of it, but I needed to talk to Aleksander and I had to sleep for that.

As my eyes fluttered shut and my body relaxed
, one thought kept returning to me and it made my blood run cold.

Fae couldn’t lie.

Acknowledgements

First and foremost I need to say thank you to my husband and best friend Ben, and my children who supported me and listened to me while I poured myself into this book.   You’re my rock and my everything.  I couldn’t do anything without you there next to me believing in me and telling me I could do anything I dreamed of.

Thank you to Carol who was the very first person I talked to about Cassie and her adventures, who has kicked me into action more times than I could count, was grac
ious enough to let me kill her, gave me chocolate when I was a good word monkey and helped take Aleksander from the bland good guy he was and help me give him some color and make him someone worthy of liking.  Lindsey and Jenn who answered endless texts, cheered me on and read my thousand and one revisions until I got it just right, I couldn’t have done it without you.  You are the best plot bunny breeders a girl could ask for.  To my other beta readers, Cheryl and Roxy, thanks bunches girls!  I also owe a huge thank you to Erin Westlund from Mel, Erin and Regina Read A lot for reading it before it was polished and helping me polish it until it shined.  I owe you some super hot aliens and one lickable gancanaugh.

Thanks to Mike who encouraged me to write this bad rad while it was still in my head and reminded me of all the stories we had to write back in Mrs. Holmes’ class in the fifth grade.  For my mother who always listened to my stories and in
stilled a love of reading in me, and still has the very first book I ever wrote back in kindergarten: The Bear Eats Cake.   Thanks for always believing in me Mom.  My lawn walkers who got me and got my story and encouraged me to be my nerdy self and fly that freak flag hard and to Ryan and Becky for being the best fauxmily a girl could ask for.

Finally to my publisher
, SJ Davis, who believed in me and in my story and gave me a chance to share it with you, Megan Thomason who helped me put together a blurb that became the pitch that got my book noticed, Stephanie White from Steph’s cover design who created the beautiful and amazing cover for my book, I’m floored by your talent and Mickey Reed, my editor who helped me fix this story so people weren’t whispering constantly and crying all the time.  They say the authors voice is what’s left when you fix all the flaws.  Thanks for helping me find mine.  Of course I also owe a huge thank you to all the authors in the #onehouseunited family.  You made me feel like an author when I still felt like a poser.  You guys are amazeballs and I love you for it.

About the Author

KR Wilburn has traveled the world with her family but currently calls Fairbanks Alaska home.  When she isn't writing about the creatures that intrigued her, she is busy studying nutrition science, and reading everything she can get her hands on.

She is the mother of six crazy, creative and hilarious children and married to her childhood best friend and hero Ben.
 When she isn't busy with her dogs Trouble and Denali, you're likely to find her in a corner with her nose buried in the latest Deadpool and Red Sonja comic books and counting down the moments until she can find inspiration capturing the perfect Aurora through the lens of her camera.

Interact with her on Facebook at
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and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/krwilburn