The Last Changeling (22 page)

“I probably deserve to die for the things I've done,” I said softly, to the wind. “But if you let me live, I'll do everything I can to make up for it.”

I pulled myself through the opening and crawled around the backside of the trunk, where I wouldn't be seen. But I didn't climb down slowly after the others.

I jumped.

There came a whoosh of air, and I was flying. Then I was falling. The shock of my landing knocked the breath out of me. My leg muscles screamed for relief, but I couldn't rest.

Quietly, I picked up a branch that had broken away from the tree. My friends were nearing the bottom of the trunk. “Run to the parking lot,” I told them. “Let them see you after you've created some distance, but don't wait for me. Get yourselves out of he
re.”

“No,” said Kylie. “We're not leaving you.”

“I need you to,” I said. “I need the distraction. Please.”

She bit her lip. “Taylor. I—”

“I know.” I reached for her hand. “I love you guys too.”

“What are you going to do?” Alexia asked, gathering Kylie in her arms. She'd noticed the branch in my hand.

“I'm going to save her,” I said, tightening my grip. “Now go.”

She touched her hand to her lips, and then to my cheek. Keegan was nodding, holding my gaze. Then they were running as fast as they could, sticking to the outskirts of the cemetery so Naeve wouldn't know I'd stayed behind. As they reached the far side, they started screaming so that he could hear them.

They were doing exactly what I wanted.

I crept along the outskirts in the opposite direction. Toward the angel, where Naeve had fallen. He was standing now, laughing openly as they passed through the cemetery gates.

They made it.

He towered over Elora. “Such cowards,” he said, kicking her in the ribs. “This is what you have chosen over the Unseelie Court?”

Elora opened her mouth, but only blood dripped out. I watched her as I passed between the trees. It was clear she'd used the last of her strength to summon that gust of wind. Now her eyes fought to stay open.

No. Not now, please.

It wasn't supposed to work this way. The closer I got to her, the better chance she should have of surviving. But now, as I neared the back of the stone angel, Elora's body started to shake.

Not now. Not now. Not now.

“I suppose it's poetic,” said Naeve, “that you should live long enough to see them for the curs they are. Now you know the mistake you made in choosing them over us.” He knelt to stroke her cheek. But the movement wasn't meant to be comforting. It was a violation, just like everything else he'd done.

Something cold and gray opened up inside me, swallowing the parts that were able to feel happiness. Swallowing the parts that were able to feel compassion. I welcomed it, reveling in the numbness.

“Don't worry,” Naeve said, pressing his lips against her cheek. “I'll take good care of your mother.”

I touched the sharp tip of the branch I carried. With Naeve almost within my reach, my gray thoughts darkened to black. I didn't just want to hurt him. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to slide the edge of the branch across his neck and feel warm blood ooze over my hands.

Who am I?

I didn't recognize the person having these thoughts. I wondered if watching Naeve torture Elora had changed me. Made me into something darker.

But maybe that person had always been inside me, resting beneath the surface. Maybe the things I'd witnessed tonight had simply uncovered my true nature, the one I'd buried my entire life. I'd never had thoughts like these. Not even when my father had ripped out my heart and blamed me for the loss of it. Terrible thoughts raced through my mind, beckoning me to act.

I stepped up behind the angel as quietly as I could.

From above, the dark faeries tried to warn Naeve—at least, those who weren't trying to copy our escape and burn their way free. But they'd made a mistake by screaming all night. How was Naeve supposed to know that this moment was different?

“The Queen will be devastated when she hears of your downfall,” he said to Elora, shaking his head. “Her only daughter, defiled by humans.”

“Lies,” Elora murmured.

“I won't have to lie. That's the beauty of it.” He leaned in. “From the moment you were born, I warned her you would be drawn to this place.”

“Why … would I be drawn … ?”

Naeve laughed, the sound cutting like glass. “Why do you think your wings grew in so wretchedly? Why do you think I had to take them away? Unfortunately for your mother, you've always been your father's daughter.” He lifted a final, glittering shard from the dirt. “A pity you won't live to spill that secret.”

“Oh, I think she will.” I slammed the branch into Naeve's head.

There was a sound like bones cracking, and then he slumped to the ground. I stared down at him, triumphant. But the triumph bled out of me quickly, replaced by something colder.

Oh, God.

Naeve wasn't moving. A thin line of blood trickled away from his head. I watched it, mesmerized, as it meandered across the dirt.

He's dead.

But he couldn't be dead. He was a supernatural being.

I killed him
.

Seconds ago, I'd wanted to kill him more than anything. Now I felt the burden of his death pressing into me. I felt his blood on my hands.

I looked at Elora, begging silently for forgiveness. But what could she give me now? And how could I ever look myself in the face again?

“I didn't mean to,” I whispered, though it was a lie. “I'm sorry.”

Elora's eyes struggled to open.

I brushed the hair from her face. “I'm sorry for what I did. I'm sorry for wondering if you hurt that girl.”

She narrowed her eyes.

“The real Laura Belfry. But you didn't, did you? You never would have done that.”

She shook her head, barely. “But I might have
stopped
—”

“Don't say anything.” I pressed my face into hers, lending her warmth. “Just let me take care of you.”

More blood slipped out of her mouth. Some of it was darker, almost black.

“God, how could they do this to you?”

From the direction of the parking lot, I saw light. I turned, blinding myself for an instant. I realized my friends hadn't listened to me after all.

I realized they were waiting for us.

“I'm going to get you out of here,” I said, looking to the trees. The dark faeries were still captive, for the moment. “But I need to know if I should take these out first.” I gestured to the iron shards in her back. I had to force myself to look at them. “I know it's poison, but I don't want you to bleed to … ” I stopped, wiping my nose with my sleeve. “I don't want to hurt you.”

She opened her cracked lips. “Yes.”

“Yes, take them out?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.” I got down on my hands and knees, surveying the damage. Naeve had covered her upper back with the shards, everywhere her corset didn't cover, but I told myself I just had to take out one after the other. Eventually, they'd be gone. I circled the first one with my fingers.

Elora gasped. Even this caused her pain. The tiniest of movements.

“I'm so sorry,” I said.

I pulled.

Her body seized as the shard came loose. Blood-tipped and jagged, it fell to the ground. I made myself think of nothing but making a pile of them. I let no other thoughts get in.

Two, then three, fell beside the first. Then five. Then ten. Elora was still breathing; I knew because of the crying. I could hear footsteps approaching, and I hoped they were the steps of my friends.

But I couldn't focus on it.

T
hen I heard wingbeats, and I looked up. The faeries of the Dark Court had managed to break free. At least, one group had, and they were using branches burning with purple fire to free the rest. But the dark fey weren't the only ones with allies. Keegan and Alexia were now kneeling next to me. Kylie had her chair, and she was unscrewing a water bottle for Elora.

“Get the wings,” I said.

I don't know why I said it. But some part of me knew what would happen if we left them here, knew they'd be ripped to shreds or hung up in the Unseelie Castle in celebration of what Naeve had done.

Alexia grabbed them as the last of the shards from Elora's back hit the ground. The wings were covered in blood and dirt. So was Elora.

I picked her up as carefully as I could. “We're getting you out of here.”

She tried to wrap her arms around my neck, but they slipped away. Then she was just hanging there in my arms, not even shaking anymore.

“Let's get her to the car,” I said.

“And then what?” Alexia asked, following. “We can't take her to the hospital.”

“We'll figure it out.”

“I'll catch up to you.” That was Keegan.

I turned to find him kneeling next to Naeve. “No,” I said.

Keegan's fingers slid over Naeve's neck. “He's got a pulse. Barely.”

I closed my eyes. I felt relief, then fear. “There isn't time,” I said, eyeing the gates. I couldn't explain to him how it felt to hav
e someone's death on your hands. He wouldn't know until he was crushed by it.

“He hurt my sister. I'm going to kill him.”

“I wouldn't blame you if you did. But not today.”

Keegan stared at Naeve's body, his hands clenched so tight I didn't think there was any blood left in them. Finally, he stood up. “Fine. Let's get out of here.”

The dark faeries were closing in. We had very little time before they reached us.

We raced across the grounds. I tried to keep Elora warm by holding her against me. I didn't want to think about how quickly her body was losing heat.

When we reached our cars, Keegan started opening doors. “I'll drive. You take care of her.”

“Okay,” I said.

“Where are we going?” asked Kylie. She and Alexia were throwing stuff off the seats of Keegan's car to make room for us. “Should we go home? Keegan? We could take her—”

“No,” he said, catching his sister's eye. “We can't involve our families. Those
things
could come after us, and … ”

I closed my eyes, waiting for the truth to sink in, the
pain
that came with realizing you couldn't go home. But when I opened my eyes, Kylie was nodding. “We'll go to the coast,” she said. “Alexia's mom has a house there. If we drive fast enough, maybe—”

“It won't work,” said a voice from behind us.

Together, we turned.

Two massive black horses stepped toward us, unfolding feathery wings. Dark faeries. Enemies.

“Stay the hell away from here,” I snarled. I tried to lay Elora down in the car, but something stopped me.

Alexia
stopped me.

“It's okay,” she said.

“Are you kidding me? How could you possibly know that?”

“Because we've met before.” She turned to the horses. “You came back?”

“We could not abandon her,” the closest one replied. Her body appeared to be more vapor than substance, and her edges blended with the landscape.

Everything here is edged in shadow
.

Looking at Elora, I saw the shadows clinging to her as well. But these shadows were hungry. They curled into her skin as if tasting her.

She was dying.

No
.

“You can take her to safety?” I asked.

“Yes,” the horse said.

“Where? Not the Dark Court.”

“The Dark Court is our home.” As she stepped closer, I recognized the figure clinging to her back. Brad. “It is where she should be laid to rest.”

“Laid to rest?” My stomach dropped so hard I almost fell to my knees. “You're not even going to help her?”

“She is beyond help. We know of no magic that can heal this.”

“You're giving up?” Keegan asked, his eyes flicking warily to Brad.

“She has been poisoned with iron.”

“We can't just give up!” Kylie took Elora's hand. We all would have given her our warmth, if it came to that.

“There has to be something we can do,” I said, running Elora's story through my mind. There had to be an answer in there, buried like treasure in the sea. But each
time I dove under the waves, I was tossed out.

“There is nothing,” the closest horse said. Tears formed in those big black eyes. She was crying. The twins were crying. God, even Alexia was crying.

“There has to be
someth
ing
.” I slid my sleeve across my face, trying to center myself. “Iron. Iron is poison to faeries. Iron is starlight. We have to find the cure for starlight. No.”

I lowered my head to Elora's face. I knew I was getting further away from the answer, but I didn't know how to focus. The horses peered at us. There was no color in their eyes. No tiny spark of light.

Probably due to a lack of iron
, I mused, feeling delirious. My grip on reality was slipping away. Biting my lip to keep from drifting, I stared into Elora's now-open eyes.

For a second, I thought she was dead. My heart stopped. My breath. Eve
rything.

Then she blinked, and I looked at those eyes again, really looked at them. I was startled by the amount of light in them.

Must be because of the iron
, I thought, and shook my head at my own stupidity. Her eyes had always been bright—it had to be something else. Sunlight?

The sun is a star, you idiot. You absolute, complete—