The Skye Trilogy: Isle of Skye, Isle of Night, and Isle of Dawn. * Bonus: Scrumptious Skye Confections Cookbook* (101 page)

I bit my lip to stop from crying. I can see he was sincere, but there was still that part of me that I had left in Fairlia that doubted his words. I was afraid that when he saw me control all these new powers he would have second thoughts.

“Don’t you dare insult me by questioning my feelings,” he whispered furiously

Shit, I thought. My block on my thoughts had been down, and he heard every word I was thinking.

“I could care less Willa if you are the most powerful being in the world,” he said. “You are mine and when I look at you I don’t think of you as anything but beautiful, stubborn, and courageous.”

“I don’t feel beautiful,” I said. “I feel like an alien is underneath my skin waiting to crawl out and rip me apart.”

Mathias looked thoughtful for a minute. “What color is this alien? Is she blue like Mystique from X-Men?”

I cocked my eyebrow at him and tried not to smile. “Yes, Mathias, I have a beautiful statuesque mutant underneath my skin just waiting to get out.”

“I still like you better,” he said

“Well, you better because you’re stuck with me.”

“Yes and that is my cross to bear,” he answered. “Are those burgers ready yet woman?”

I rolled my eyes at him before handing him the platter of burgers. I guess something’s would never change, no matter how much of a freak I became, and that thought made me deliriously happy.

We sat outside and ate in silence. I was glad that Mathias didn’t want to have some in depth talk while I was eating my double cheeseburger. I was way too busy enjoying my dinner. I knew that he was not going to wait forever, and as we finished up our meal I took a long sip of my glass of water before speaking.

“When we arrived in the Fire realm, and Patcoena told me that Summer had a vision of two guides helping us, I was pissed. I knew you would’ve been furious at the change of plans, and when I saw Jeremiah running to me, I felt joy and then fear. I realized it might be dangerous, but God help me I don’t know what I would’ve done without him.”

“Jeremiah told me Machall had come and fetched him from bed and that fear turned to anger. Machall showed up, and we had a little skirmish before he let me see his soul.”

“Excuse me?” Mathias asked in a low voice

“I saw his pain, and I felt his suffering,” I said. “I knew I had to be weary because he has the power to plant images in one’s mind, but nobody could fake that amount of agony.”

“You’re sure?”

“He had a mate Mathias,” I said. “She was a Fae that the Rau decided to turn into a vampire. They fell in love and were going to get married. When Fonn told Machall of his plan, he decided to turn him in for treason and that’s when Fonn and Sabine kidnapped Beatrice, wiped her memories of him and sent her out of Fairlia into the human realm.”

“He wants you to find Beatrice,” Mathias stated rather than asked. I smiled. Trust Mathias to get right to the point.

“Yes, he does,” I answered. “That’s why he initially wanted to help me, but I have to be honest we grew close in that short time. Not just me and Machall but all four of us. You can’t go through something like that without forming a deep bond. He helped me when I needed him too, and I will always be grateful.”

“Fine but just don’t expect me to have a beer with him anytime soon,” Mathias said

“I didn’t even know that you drank beer,” I said before shaking my head. “We found the cave and the whole experience was so weird. I felt like Luke Skywalker, you know?
‘The Empire Strikes Back’? He finds Yoda to train him and right before he leaves he goes into the cave. Yoda tells him he’s not ready, but Luke goes anyway…”

“Willa I’ve seen the movie,” Mathias interrupted

“Right, sorry,” I said. “So there I was being pinned to the wall with fire burning into every part of my body when he came to me.”

“Who came to you?”

“My great grandfather,” I answered. “The ghost of my great grandfather I should say. He said that I was brave and that I could survive this but mostly he talked in riddles. He said that I had to embrace the darkness before I could step into the light and all that good stuff. I was in so much pain I wanted to curl up on the floor and die. I even forgot who I was for a second.”

“After that we travelled to the Earth realm where we overheard a conversation with Machall and Lord Braonan,” I continued. “I think he can be convinced to fight for our side and that’s very good news. Between two Fae Lords, both my grandmothers and myself I believe that we can win this war.”

Mathias stared at me and didn’t respond. “What?” I asked

“Nothing,” he said. “What happened next?”

“O.M.G. is what happened next.” I smiled. “We went to Woodlia and met Polly’s parents.”

Mathias smirked, and I continued. “So did you know wood Nymphs fly around on tree vines like Tarzan? I cannot wait to rag on Polly. Then we met her parents who are very nice, but not traditional.”

“I take it Forrest offered you some of his home grown marijina?” Mathias asked

“You knew?” I almost yelled

“Of course,” he said. “I had Polly thoroughly investigated.”

“Did you also know her mom is a massage therapist who also helps men
get rid of any of their residual back up with an option on her massage menu known as the ‘Rub&Tug’?”

“That I did not know,” Mathias said in shock

“Oh yeah,” I said. “They also had an honest to goodness Elvis painting on their living room wall which actually was kind of cool. After our little visit there, they took us to this place in the woods near Polly’s tree, and it was there I absorbed the power of the Earth.”

“That was where it all began to change for me,” I said softly. “It tried to be gentle at first but I cannot even describe what it was like to be sucked into the earth’s core and suffocated by dirt.”

“Jesus Willa,” Mathias breathed

“When it was over I reverted back to being a child for a while,” I said. “Holly said because it was Mother Earth and that she put me through such trauma that I felt childlike fear. I came out of it, but it wasn’t easy.”

“I’m sorry you had to go through that without me,” he said

“I was mad at you a few times,” I answered. “I wanted you with me so much but honestly this was something I had to do myself, and if you came with me to the Air realm, they would have killed you.”

“Why?” he asked. “What happened there?”

“I met the Sprites who were a little weird but I found the King and Duchess to be very kind. I had to climb to the top of the mountain and stay there all night. Patcoena was worried that so much magic being absorbed over such a long period would alert Fonn to our presence. We sent Holly and Forrest back to Woodlia, and King Kasius hid Jeremiah and Patcoena in the church when Fonn came to sniff around while I was up there.”

“King Kasius?” Mathias asked. “He told you his name?”

“Oops,” I said. “Yes but please don’t repeat that. I wouldn’t want him to think he misplaced his trust in me.”

“I won’t ever tell a soul,” he said. “Why would I have been killed? I would’ve just stayed hidden with Jeremiah and Patcoena.”

I shifted in my seat and stared off into the mountains before answering. “Because that’s where I started to lose my mind. There would’ve been no way that you would have stayed hidden when you heard my screams.”

“Do you want to stop?”

“No,” I said. “I have to tell you. I have to get this out and then I never want to speak of it again.”

“Ok,” he said

“I never realized the full power of the air until it knocked me on my ass and forced me to listen to its true purpose. I foolishly thought I would have to be in some wild wind storm, but this was far worse. I heard my parents crying. I was so confused because it sounded like they were right next to me. I started hearing other people’s weeping, and that’s when I realized just how much the air fuels everything we do in our lives.”

“I can tell you exactly how you sounded when you roared as you found your sister dead,” I said looking into his startled eyes.

“I tried to use the fire and earth to help me but that only made the Air madder,” I let out a sharp laugh. “It got pissed off when I tried to knock myself out by hitting my head on a rock that I was pinned to for several hours.”

“I was filled with joy when I first heard the sound of a baby entering this world. I heard its first precious breath. Then I heard a gasp of air, and I knew that I was listening to someone taking their last breath. For hours that went on around me. My emotions were being lifted one minute and utterly destroyed the next. I’m not sure how I sat there. After a while, I just rocked back and forth with my hands over my ears.”

“I didn’t realize it was over at first but I didn’t care. I just sat there empty inside. I had nothing left Mathias. I didn’t know how I was ever going to walk back down that mountain. I thought that there was no way I could ever be around people again. I was scared that I would hear their thoughts and have to relive birth and death over and over again.”

“When I looked down I saw a dagger at my feet. I picked it up and placed it on my wrist,” I confessed. “I wanted to end my life right there. I was just about to make the first cut when I heard your voice in my head. I thought that in my weakness I had called out to you through our bond. You yelled at me in my head to get up and fight. It was only after a few minutes that I realized that it wasn’t you, but me projecting your voice. I didn’t want to die, and I sought you out for help even if it was in my own mind.”

“You saved me,” I said finally looking up and meeting his shocked gaze. “I’m embarrassed to admit that but you have to know how close I came to ending my life.”

“Willa,” he said hoarsely before reaching for my hand. I pushed him away though. I had to tell the rest of my tale because I knew once I was in his arms I would break down.

“You said that you wouldn’t have a beer with Machall, but I have to tell you something. I wasn’t going to, but I think you should know why I trust him as much as I do now. He took care of me after that Mathias. He bathed me like a child and told me a story to get me to sleep later that morning. If you were in the state I was in, and someone had helped you, I would sit down and share a drink with them.”

“He bathed you?” he asked in a low voice

“Really?”
I asked. “That’s what you got out of that story?”

“Sorry, the thought of another man touching you like that…”

“He didn’t touch me Mathias; he took care of me as a father takes care of his child,” I replied. “It was nothing sexual, to be honest, the only thing I could think about at the time was you.”

“I won’t kill him then.”

“Thanks,” I said ruefully. “When we got to the Water realm we also overheard Machall with Lord Cual, who is a sick fuck. Did you know he raped and killed King Kasius’ daughter?”

“What?” Mathias asked. “How come no one reported this act of atrocity?”

I just shrugged my shoulders. “He is evil and I don’t even want to go there right now. I tried to get to a rock in the water, but it took me a long time. We had a bonfire on the beach, and after the tide had come in, I stayed there on the sand and let it pull me out into the sea.”

“It wasn’t as harsh as the others which surprised me but what did throw me is that the Water wanted me to fight back with my other powers. I finally called them all, and that’s when it happened. I don’t remember too much, but I was aware that if I stayed in the water a little while longer I think I would’ve been fine. Unfortunately, they pulled me out too soon, and I can’t blame them. They didn’t know what was going on with me. They didn’t know that I wasn’t in pain but that I was floating happily.”

“It wasn’t until they took me to Sidra that things turned horrible. You see the elements do not want to hurt me. They want me to learn how to use them. I know this sounds crazy, but they do have a human energy to them.”

“Of course they do,” Mathias said. “That energy is your great grandfather.”

“How did you know?” I gasped in surprise

“Willa, it makes sense,” he answered. “These were your great grandfather’s powers. The energy you feel is his and I’m sure they have some protective instincts towards you.”

“I’m shocked that you got that right away,” I said. “I only realized it earlier.”

“When Sidra gave you the nectar it was like a poisonous liquid to your system. It was too much magic, and when Winifred tried to perform a healing spell it only made your pain worse.”

“How did you know?” I asked. “I tried to tell them but I couldn’t speak. I was honestly afraid that I would set everyone on fire like what happened before we left. I tried not to hurt you. I was so angry with myself that I had done that. I was also ashamed, so that’s why I called to the air so that everyone would get out of its path safely.”

“I know,” he said

“Well what now, Einstein?” I asked dryly. “How can I rejoin the living?”

“I think it’s going take some time Willa,” he said seriously. “I think you need to be comfortable in your own skin first before you subject yourself to anyone’s magic.”

“We don’t have time,” I said. “Fonn is not going anywhere. He will attack all of us.”