Arranged (Arranged Trilogy Book 1) (6 page)

O
nce back in
the house I searched out my mother. Of course she was in the laboratory with Henrek.

Even though she knew of my entrance she didn’t turn. Except for her thumb and forefinger idly tracing the medallion on her necklace, she stood motionless as she stared down at the reports Henrek was going over with her. With a smile she eventually glanced up at me.

As soon as she saw my face she knew something was wrong.

With a quick pat on Henrek’s shoulder she glided across the room toward me. Grabbing my arm by the elbow she led me over to one of the chairs. I dropped into the seat.

She regarded my stricken face with sympathy. “The meeting didn’t go well?”

Crossing my arms over my chest I leaned back in the chair. “You could say that. Why didn’t you tell me that Michael didn’t know we were dark fae?”

A line creased her forehead. With a shake of her head, she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. “What happened? Tell me everything.”

I explained the attack by the chimera and the human’s reaction. My mother’s hands covered her face. “I knew I should have insisted you stay here. Or at the very least I should have joined you.”

“Yeah, well, what’s done is done. He says he no longer wants to go through with the repopulation. That he doesn’t want to be responsible for bringing more darkness to Earth.” I gritted my teeth and met my mother’s gaze. “Why weren’t you upfront with him? Or at least fill me in to keep my mouth shut?”

“Because of this very reason. I knew he wouldn’t want anything to do with us if he knew our backgrounds. And I also knew you would insist on telling him so he could make an informed decision.”

As much as I hated to admit it, she was probably right. “I also told him we were royalty.”

“What?” My mother shot up from her chair in disbelief. She stared off, shaking her head as if I’d really let her down.

I shrugged. “I didn’t think it was a big deal. I still don’t. Besides, that’s the least of our worries.”

My mother composed herself and sat back down. “What if he tells his family? If he really feels that making halflings would be bad for Earth, I fear he’ll turn against us. We really don’t know him well enough to think otherwise.”

She had a point. Maybe I should have tried harder to patch things up with him, but I was so annoyed and taken aback by his reaction.

“Did he say anything else?” She rubbed the back of her neck to ease her tension.

I shook my head. ”No, he just said he needed time to think.”

“We need to find him.” She gave me a grim look.

“And do what? What would you do if he told you he was going to tell his parents the truth?”

My mother’s shoulders slumped. “We’d have to get rid of him. Henrek has more than enough of his DNA to proceed without him.”

So much for my argument that we weren’t murderers
, I thought grimly. “Mother, we are not going to kill a human when we are here to save them.”

“Sometimes sacrifices have to be made. One life for increased population.”

I knew her argument was logical, but there was no way I was going to allow her to kill Michael. What if the halflings looked like him—how could I face them? No, I had to find a way to change his mind.

I rose to my feet, determined. “Let me talk to him first. If I can’t get through to him then maybe you can. But you must promise me you won’t do anything rash without my consent.”

My mother stared at me for a long moment. “You already have feelings for this boy don’t you?”

I shrugged. “He’s nice. Just misguided. In a way I can understand his stance. He doesn’t know our kind or our ways.”

Suddenly, I was struck by an idea. “Mother, what if I took him to our realm and let him see our land and people? Perhaps that would be enough for him to change his mind. Right now he’s being ruled by concern for his people. If he understood we meant him no harm …”

She was silent, lost in thought. “No, I don’t think that is wise. We don’t know how he’d handle going through the portal. There must be another way.”

Knowing arguing with her was useless, I racked my brain for another idea, but I had nothing.

Just then there was a knock on the door. Both of our heads snapped up. Had he already returned with members of the rebellion? No, I didn’t sense enough energy for that.

My mother’s feet echoed as she crossed the room and swung the door open.

Michael stood on the other side. There was a large gash on the side of his face, blood dripped down onto the stark white floor. Concerned for his safety, I rushed forward. “What happened to you?”

“I was attacked on my way home.”

“By what?” I demanded. My throat tightened at the thought of someone bringing harm to him. Using my power I willed a cloth to wipe his face. First I laid my fingers across his cheek, instantly healing the large cut, and then wiped the area clean.

Even Henrek had left his work and was standing by our side.

“I’m not sure. It was very small, walked on hind legs, and had large talons.”

“What color was it?” my mother asked. I could feel the tension leaving her shoulders.

“Red with beady eyes.”

“Oh, it was just a baby demon. You’re lucky the mother wasn’t nearby or you wouldn’t be standing here,” she said with warmth in her voice.

My mind raced. Did his return mean he’d realized his mistake?

“Why did you come back here? Have you changed your mind?” I asked, hope in my voice.

He shook his head. “No, I just didn’t know where else to go. If there were any other creatures, I didn’t want to lead them back to my family.”

But it was okay for him to lead them back to us?
I thought bitterly.

As if he could read my mind, he said, “You’re obviously capable of handling yourselves. There has been enough death within my tribe.”

My mother clapped her hands together. “Guards, do a clean sweep around the facility. If there are any demons, destroy them at once.”

The door opened and closed. Michael’s brow raised at my mother. “Ghost soldiers? That’s even weirder than I would have imagined.”

My mother gave him a half smile. “No, Michael, they are as real as you and me. I understand my daughter informed you about our linage. I’m the queen of our realm. And yes, we are dark fae. Our magick is formidable, and in the wrong hands it could be catastrophic. But you must understand our kind is not inherently evil. We are a caring race.”

He ran his hand through his thick, tousled hair.

“Please have a seat.” She nodded at the chairs. “Henrek, I’d like you to stay as well.”

The strange man took off his glasses and rubbed his nose, but without arguing, he sat down across from Michael. I wanted to remain standing but found myself sitting in the seat next to Michael. He didn’t even glance over at me.

“Is it true you no longer want to go through with the DNA splicing?”

He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “I’m sorry, but I can’t do it. I know I told you I was in, but I’ve changed my mind. You withheld vital information.”

My mother sighed. “Nothing has changed. Just your perception.”

Michael glanced at Henrek. The slightest frown of puzzlement crossed his handsome face. “Even you have to admit this is a disaster waiting to happen.”

Henrek shrugged. “Not necessarily. You don’t understand how much we can manipulate the genetic coding. If there is something that you don’t want the hybrids to have, we just remove it. It’s quite simple really.”

Michael straightened in his chair. “So you could take their dark magick from them?”

My mother and I exchanged a glance. That request was out of the question. Without our powers what would be the sense in the experiment?

He nodded absently. “Sure, but that defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?” Henrek set his glasses back on his nose.

My mother sent a wave of calming energy throughout the air. “Henrek is correct. We need the halflings to have magick so they can repair the land. And hopefully, eventually, they will mate with the humans, increasing the population. Within a few generations the magick would mostly be bred out, but it should be enough time to bring the planet back in balance.”

“What you’re saying is there would be more dark magick in the land than humans.” He stood up. “I’m sorry, but I can’t be a part of this.”

My mother tensed.

I tried to swallow but I couldn’t.

Please, don’t strike him down,
I begged.
Let me talk to him on my own.

Her unwavering gaze locked on mine before she stood up. “Michael, you have every right to back out, but you mustn’t tell your family of our plans.”

He closed his eyes and dropped his head into his hands. I knew this was too much to lay on his shoulders.

I interrupted, “Let’s make a deal. Spend the next few days with me before you make your decision. If you decide you can’t go along with our plan, we’ll leave you be. You know the Earth will not last much longer as it is, but we will go home, knowing we tried. There is no way we could remain here if the truth came out about our linage, and your father’s sect wouldn’t rest until we were dead.”

Michael ran his hands over his face and nodded. “Fair enough. Five days, and if you haven’t changed my mind you’ll leave?”

My mother shot me a skeptical look, but I nodded my head in agreement. “Five days. Since our time is limited, are you able to join me now?”

“I should probably get back home. I’ve been gone long enough.”

I wanted to argue with him, but instead I said, “Two hours.” In truth, I didn’t want him to leave while he was still mad at me.

Michael considered me for a moment, and at last yielded with a resigned sigh. “Two hours, not a minute longer.”

I hope you know what you’re doing, daughter.

We don’t have much choice at this point,
I replied mentally.

M
ichael regarded me warily
. “You want to do what?”

“I want you to take me to your tribe.” Yes, it was crazy, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

He shook his head. “No way. They would kill you on the spot, and then your mother would kill me. How about you come up with another plan?”

My anger rose but quickly dissolved. His concerns were legitimate. I also knew my mother would not approve of the idea. I was going to have to find a way to sneak out, which would be difficult seeing as my guards were invisible. I wish I was able to counteract my mother’s spell so I could see the guards at least momentarily, but my mother knew me well and she would have a fail-safe in place.

My mind raced with possibilities. “How many people are in your tribe? Do you ever get newcomers?”

He stared at me and scratched the side of his neck, debating whether to answer me or not. “Fifty-three. It’s rare but yes, sometimes someone will hear about us and seek us out.”

Worst case, I could handle that many people. Hopefully there would be no issues, but I’d been taught to always be prepared.

Of course, it meant I would have to do something I swore I would not do on Earth. But the cause was worthy enough to justify it. I closed my eyes and internally rearranged my energy field until I took on a completely different form. My hair was now chopped off, dirty blonde, my eyes both a faded blue, my body was taller and slimmer, giving me the appearance of lack of food, and my clothes were torn and dirty.

Michael took a step backwards. “What the hell? How did you do that?”

I lifted a shoulder. “Magick.”

His eyes wandered from my face to my feet. “You look completely different.”

My mouth twitched. “That’s kinda what I was going for.”

He pulled his gaze away, a troubled expression on his face.

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t know. I mean, if you have the ability to change your form so quickly how do I even know you’re who you claim you are? You could be like some old man or something for all I know.”

I laughed abruptly. “I promise that you have been seeing the real me. Here, give me your hands.”

Hesitantly he placed his large hands in mine. I willed memories to telepathically enter his own mind. They were of me from a newborn on. Every important memory I could recall was played before him like a dream. All of my ups and downs, the trials of growing up, my kingdom fighting for my mother, the death of my father, my mother leaving, even Aiston. When I felt he’d seen enough I pulled my hands away.

“Now you know me better than anyone else.”

A frown crossed Michael’s face. He stared at me for a long time. Even though I was in a different form I felt like he was looking at me.
Really looking at me.
I’d just let him see inside my soul. What happened next was up to him.

“Okay, I’ll take you. But you have to promise you won’t hurt anyone. And also I’m trusting you with our location. You have to understand the enormity of this.”

I did understand. “As long as they leave me alone they have nothing to worry about, but I’m not going to promise I won’t protect myself or you. I will promise that I will keep my identity a secret. Besides, I have less than two hours left of your time. How much trouble could I get into?”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” he mumbled under his breath.

I didn’t know how to get around my mother’s cloak for the guards, so I decided the best course of action would be to cloak Michael and myself until we got out of there.

Without telling him what I was about to do, I set about breaking down our energy fields and glamoured both of us, leaving a trace of our energy bodies in the room. That way my mother wouldn’t be able to sense us if we had to walk by her.

Getting out of the building was easier than I expected. The hardest part was getting Michael to keep his mouth shut once he realized we were invisible. He was completely freaked out by it, which I had to admit was pretty cute. But the last thing we needed was for my mother to find out. She’d forbid us to go.

After we were at least a mile away from where we were staying, I uncloaked us, remaining in the new form.

“We need a name for you,” Michael said, giving me a once over. “Tulupea is just not going to work.”

“What’s a good human name for a girl?”

Michael shrugged and continued walking. “What about Sarah?”

I nodded. “Ooh, that’s very unique, I like it.”

He gave me a quizzical look but didn’t say anything.

I wasn’t sure why it was important for me to see where he lived, but it was. Hopefully I could make a difference in some small way so he would understand that I wanted to help, not harm, the humans.

The damp heat caused my clothes to cling to my skin. When I got back home I’d have to take a long bath. We didn’t have drastic temperatures like this on our realm.

We ventured deeper into the fallen city than I’d been before. A stench I couldn’t place filled the air. We passed through much destruction before leaving the buildings and entering into a sparse patch of woods. It was nice to see greenery even if it was few and far in-between. I looked over the somber landscape with a heavy heart. In the distance I could see miles and miles of rough terrain.

Even though I longed to be back at my homeland, I was glad to have met Michael, and even Henrek. I had to keep Michael safe at all costs. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to him. I would protect him with my life, if I had to.

Now I just had to convince him to come back on our side.

It took close to forty-five minutes to make it to the compound, which meant I only had about an hour to spare. Not much time to change Michael’s mind about me.

They were surprisingly well hidden. I wouldn’t have stumbled upon them on my own, that’s for sure, which also meant they were paranoid. Yet after running into the chimera, I could understand their need for seclusion and paranoia.

They lived in a sectioned off cave system. Before we even made it to the entrance, we were surrounded by armed guards. Hopefully, things didn’t get ugly.

Michael held up his hands. “I found this girl wandering on her own, and I thought I’d bring her in and feed her before she continued on her way.”

The guards lowered their blades. One of the taller guys came forward. “Dad’s in a mood, so I’d make sure to stay out of his way.”

This was obviously his brother. I’d always envied the bond between siblings. I wondered what “in a mood” meant.

Michael nodded, but didn’t say anything.

I stood there feeling awkward.

“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your pretty little friend?” His brother took a step closer, his eyes leering down the length of my body. Every muscle tensed. I really hoped he wasn’t going to cause trouble.

Michael took both of his hands and pushed his brother backwards. The guy stumbled and had to regain his footing.

“She’s mine,” Michael practically growled.

My head jerked up.
I’m what?

His brother laughed. “Hey man, can’t blame me for trying.”

I sagged slightly as the tension left my body. For Michael’s sake, he better hope he was just talking tough.

Michael roughly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me forward. “Sorry about that,” he mumbled. “I didn’t want him to give you a hard time. As you can imagine, there aren’t a lot of potential partners in this area. I should have given this more thought. If I’d been thinking I would of had you change into a boy. This could get nasty.”

Inwardly I groaned. The last thing I wanted was to cause more trouble for Michael.

“Just make sure you stay close. I knew this was a bad idea.” He blew out a breath. “Why’d you want to come here anyway? I’m not sure what you are trying to prove.”

All I wanted to do was get through this and get back to my room. I didn’t relish the idea of being in the home of the very people that tried to kill my mother. “Can you just take me to your water supply? And then we can leave.”

He winced. “Our what?”

I stopped and glanced over my shoulder to make sure no one was in hearing range. “I can charge the water with my energy. It will heal your people and also help your plants grow.”

His eyes widened in surprise. “You’d really do that?”

I nudged him with my elbow. “What were you expecting me to do?”

“Honestly, I have no idea. I just couldn’t tell you no when you looked at me with those big pleading eyes of yours.”

My heart skipped a beat or two. Could he possible still be attracted to me even though the idea of me being a dark faery repulsed him?

“Let me bring you in to meet my family and then I’ll show you where our water comes from.”

Great.
Just who I didn’t want to meet.

We trudged down a rocky hill, and I had to hold onto Michael’s arms to keep from losing my footing on the loose rocks. Touching his warm skin sent a thrill through me. I had to pull myself together. Too much was at stake. My focus right now had to be on convincing Michael that the merging of our kind was a good idea. Not on how his muscles rippled when he moved, or the way he seemed to still be seeing me, Tulupea, when he looked at me, and not the form I’d taken on as a human. Being near him made me feel alive in a way I hadn’t known until now.

Once we reached the bottom of the rough terrain, we climbed over large boulders until we stood before what appeared to be the opening of a cavern. I could hear muffled voices in the distance.

Michael stopped and turned toward me. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“Yeah.”
What other choice did I have?

He draped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into him. My eyes widened in surprise. And then I remembered what he’d said earlier about there not being many females in the area. He was putting on an act, and I had to play along. It was easier than I would have thought to melt my body into his. The warmth of his skin sent a wave of calm through me.

As soon as we stepped through the cave, heads snapped up. Michael hadn’t been kidding; I only saw a couple of women and about a dozen or more men. They were all focused on me, making me very uncomfortable.

I really hoped I didn’t have to access my magick in here. But there was no way I would allow someone to harm me.

One of the women stepped forward. Her hair was long and dirty, braided to keep it out of her face, which was sunken and her eyes vacant. My skin prickled. “Michael, what do you have here?”

“Mom, this is Sarah. I found her wandering and brought her in to have something to eat. I hope that’s okay?”

The woman grunted. One of the men came forward. He was large and had the same color eyes as Michael, his hair receded, but the resemblance was unmistakable. He extended his hand and I grabbed the rough, strong hand in my own. “Sarah, it’s a pleasure.” His voice was smooth, inviting.

I found I liked this man even though I knew he was in charge of the rebellion. His manner was charismatic. Even in this short introduction I could see how he could rally a crowd.

“Thank you.” I glanced down at the ground.