Journey into the Realm: The Stolen Child (Journey into the Realm Series) (2 page)

I have promises to keep.

I couldn’t ignore them forever.

***

Someone knocked at my door.

I reluctantly withdrew from Nathan and sighed. “That must be Jacqueline.” I sat up and ran my fingers through my tousled hair, trying to look like I hadn’t been kissing Nathan only moments ago.

Nathan followed suit and rested his head against my shoulder. His heavy sigh made me pause. “I’m just meeting with her. I’m not leaving yet.”

“I know,” he said quietly, but I could tell he wasn’t reassured by my words.

The knock sounded again, harder this time. “Is she persistent or what?” I muttered, sliding off the bed to slip on my flats.

I turned around when Nathan didn’t answer. He was lying down again, looking up at the ceiling. Everything inside me felt heavy and knotted.

“I’ll be right back,” I told him softly.

I didn’t think he heard me, but I didn’t wait to find out because Jacqueline’s knocking was giving me a headache and all I wanted to do was return to Nathan. I had to leave now; otherwise, I never would.

Jacqueline’s grim expression greeted me as I stepped out into the hall. I closed the door and nodded to her, uninterested in speaking. She started walking almost immediately, and I was nearly jogging by the time I caught up to her.

We hurried downstairs to the second level and entered the parlor where Brielle was waiting. I noticed Addison’s presence as well. She resembled her brother so much that I couldn’t stop an image of Stellan from invading my mind. I pushed down my sadness before it could consume me as we timidly exchanged smiles. Addison wasn’t bothered by my newly discovered fairy heritage, but ever since her brother’s murder, conversation between us had been awkward and strained, neither of us able to put what had once connected us out of our minds.

Brielle beckoned for me to sit down just as Jacqueline left without being dismissed. Confused, I turned my attention to Brielle, who had claimed her own seat across from me. She wore an emerald green gown that reached the floor, lined with emeralds at the bottom hem. Her sleeves went to her elbows, hemmed with emeralds as well. She had a darker green sash tied at the waist and was wearing her usual emerald jeweled crown. Around her neck was a pendant clustered with jewels of all kinds, which she wore because of her power to use gems to perform various abilities. It was a complicated but potent set of skills.

The jewel she was wearing so much of today, emerald, was used for healing. I remembered that all too well from the time she had used the gem to save my life when we rescued Zora. I had been badly burned by Finn the fire fairy general, and Brielle had been the only one able to save me.

The new Queen looked magnificent but so unlike herself that it almost brought me to tears.

I could hardly recognize the Brielle I first met eight months ago in the royal who sat before me, and I was slightly afraid of what might happen to me. If Brielle, the elfen who had sworn she would never change, had turned into this, how would I be able to keep myself from changing completely, even more than I already had since coming to the Elf Realm and realizing my Golden fairy heritage?

I finally took my seat. “Queen Brielle, you asked me to come,” I reminded her, both eager and a little fearful for the conversation to begin. “And we both know what this is about, so perhaps we should just get on with it.”

“What have I said about calling me by my title?” she asked, turning her head away from me, like she was afraid to meet my gaze. Brielle, afraid of me? It was unheard of, but I didn’t know how else to explain her reaction to me.

“Okay then, fine.
Brielle
, you asked me to come,” I repeated.

“Yes, I did,” she said quietly. “When you first came here two weeks ago, you said you were ready to end this war. We decided that you would leave the day after my coronation.”

I nodded. “I remember. I haven’t changed my mind.”

Brielle rose from her seated position and crossed to one of the many windows in the parlor. I couldn’t tell if she was actually looking at something or if it was just a way to keep from seeing me. “But the terms have.”

“What?” I asked.

“The terms have changed,” the elfen said.

“What does that mean?” I asked. When she didn’t answer, I looked to Addison. “What does that
mean
?”

Addison, who stood near the door, wore an expression of alarm, like all she wanted to do was escape.

Frustrated by my unanswered question, I sighed loudly. “Brielle?”

“King Vortigern assumed you would try to travel to the Golden Fairy Realm to meet with Queen Titania, so he bribed a group of Woodland fairies to devise a certain spell, one that put restrictions on the Magical Realms – a spell that applies only to those with elfin blood,” Brielle explained.

I swallowed dryly. “What kind of restrictions?”

“The only way you can travel to the Golden Fairy Realm is by traveling through the other four Magical Realms first. That means going to the Mermaid Realm, the Flower Fairy Realm, the Woodland Fairy Realm, and then to the Element Fairy Realm before being able to enter the Golden Fairy Realm.”

I raised my eyebrows, unconvinced that this was such a complication. “That doesn’t sound too difficult. I’ll simply make a new elf circle each time I cross into a Realm. I won’t even have to move very much.”

“There’s more, Ramsey,” she said quietly. “Along with the offerings necessary to cross into the Realms, you will need the crown of each Realm’s ruler.”

“What do you mean, exactly?” I asked.

“That means, for example, when you travel to the Mermaid Realm, you must persuade King Almog to give you his crown. Then mermaids will need to make a portal with their magic for your transport. You may only use an elf circle to reach the Mermaid Realm. From then on, you must rely on each Realm’s inhabitants. Once they make their own version of the circle, place the crown and the offering inside, then you may leave.”

I sat back in my seat, dumbfounded. “How could Queen Titania let this happen?” I asked.

“As you have heard countless times already, Queen Titania chooses not to meddle with the war. She probably doesn’t even know of the spell.”

“Then how do you suppose she will listen to me if she doesn’t care?” I wondered. “What if going to the Golden Fairy Realm does nothing?”

Brielle didn’t respond. I shook my head, fists curling in anger. “This is impossible! How am I supposed to get King Vortigern’s crown if he is the one who came up with this idea?” I cried.

Brielle’s expression brightened. “When you reach the Element Fairy Realm, you must find the rebellion. From this rebel cell you will receive all the help you need.”

Now I was
really
confused. “What rebellion?”

“When I returned home from Aubrey after our ability school closed, I received a letter from an Element fairy named Joseph. He started a rebellion against Vortigern several years ago, and Element fairies disgusted by his reign have gathered to oppose him. I told Joseph about you, and I can assure you that the rebellion can get you to the crown.”

“How do you know Joseph is trustworthy? What if this is just a trap Vortigern is using to reach me?”

Brielle scowled, finally looking like her old self again. “I’m not as dimwitted as you think. Of course I was apprehensive at first, but I realized his sincerity rather quickly.”

“What made you trust him?” I asked, too stubborn to let this go just yet.

Brielle grinned. “He told me Vortigern has an ulterior motive.”

I gaped. “Vortigern has an ulterior motive?!”

She nodded. “I always knew there was more to this war than a stolen fairy child and misplaced pride. Why else would Vortigern let this go on for thirty years?”

“So what is it?” I asked, eager to know.

“Well, I don’t exactly know what the motive is,” Brielle admitted. “Neither does Joseph. But he did say that the war with the elves is just a distraction to hide what the King is actually planning.”

I rolled my eyes. “Way to get my hopes up,” I muttered, crossing my arms against my chest. “I still don’t know if I trust this rebellion guy.”

Brielle glared at me. “You have no other choice. Joseph and the rebellion are your only hope to steal Vortigern’s crown.”

I groaned. “Fine, let’s say I trust him. How do I find him once I reach the Element Fairy Realm?”

“He couldn’t disclose his location in his letters for fear of them getting into the wrong hands, so you should ask for ‘the man in red.’ That’s all the help I can give you,” she admitted.

“All right, and who am I supposed to ask?” I wondered.

“You’ll know who to ask when the time comes,” the Queen explained.

“I thought only fairies were supposed to be vague,” I remarked bitterly, shaking my head.

“Elfen queens too,” she mocked. “And please tell no one of my correspondence with Joseph. Spies are everywhere. I can’t trust anyone else with this information, not even our closest friends.”

What she meant was that I couldn’t tell Nathan. I swallowed dryly. A secret between us didn’t sound like a good idea. But this was the Queen’s request, so I had to obey.

We watched each other silently. I finally remembered that Addison was in the room with us. I turned my head to see her still waiting by the door.

“What do you think?” I asked my friend and former rescuer. “Is this journey too risky, or should I blindly follow Brielle’s advice?”

Addison left her post at the door to sit down next to me on the couch. “The journey is too risky, but you knew that already.”

I nodded slowly, unable to lie to her.

She took my hands and squeezed them lightly. “And you didn’t have to ask for my opinion. You’ve already made your choice.”

I sighed. She was right; I had.

No matter how dangerous or completely absurd, I had to journey through the Realms to reach the High Queen. She was the only one who could stop Vortigern, and I was the only one who could possibly convince her to do it. And if the King did indeed have an ulterior motive, he needed to be stopped before he could succeed.

“I’m in,” I said, acknowledging my choice.

Suddenly Brielle looked nothing like a royal and everything like the wild elfen I had met what now seemed like a lifetime ago. She threw her arms around me and squeezed until I choked.

When she finally let go, I had only one question: “Can Nathan come with me?”

***

I returned to my room and found Nathan waiting where I left him. I felt my anxiety reach new heights as I sat on the bed next to him. He reached out as if to welcome me into his arms but refrained when I crossed my arms rather than accept his embrace. Ever since Stellan’s murder, I had experienced mood swings around Nathan. Sometimes I was eager to explore the uncharted territory that was our relationship, kissing him and practically gluing myself to his side. Other times I yearned for the days when we were only friends because those days were simpler. Stellan was still alive then. So was Queen Taryn. And I wasn’t half-fairy.

With all that had transpired in such a short amount of time, I often wondered if it was selfish for me to have Nathan’s love. I also couldn’t allow myself to be distracted by him, and although I found myself giving in to temptation more than refusing it, I really did try to keep some distance. I needed time to move past my grief. And despite my love for him, my primary focus had to be ending the war. I knew our relationship was strong enough to endure. I just wasn’t sure if Nathan knew that. I wanted to assure him that it wasn’t his fault and ask him to be patient with me, but every time I opened my mouth to begin, words failed me.

“So, what’s the plan?” Nathan asked slowly, tentatively. He knew my moods – though not the reason for them – and had already realized that I was in a fragile state. One wrong word and I could end up shutting him out. It was horrible, but it was the truth.

“We leave early tomorrow morning,” I told him.

He balked. “
We
? But I – how could I – what do you mean?”

I gave him the shortest possible version of my meeting with Brielle, leaving out the part about Joseph and the rebellion as Brielle had requested. When I finished, I could tell that he didn’t know what to say. If I weren’t in one of my moods, he would probably have hugged or kissed me, glad that I wasn’t going on this journey alone, relieved that I was including him. But I wasn’t accepting physical contact, so he just sat and watched me until I couldn’t take his silence any longer.

I bit my lip. “So, are you coming? I mean, you can’t follow me all the way to the Golden Fairy Realm, but you can at least travel with me until we reach the Element Fairy Realm.”

He nodded and hesitantly placed his hand on my knee, as much affection as I would allow at this point. I smiled wanly and leaned into him, resting my head on his shoulder. I felt him relax. I was slowly melting from the cold statue I had been moments earlier. But we both knew I wouldn’t melt completely. Not for a while, at least.

“Aimee and Tavis are here,” he said, deciding to drop a huge bombshell on me out of nowhere.

I jerked away from him and met his emerald gaze. “In the palace?”

“Yes,” he confirmed. “They arrived while you were meeting with Brielle.”

“You’ve spoken with them?” I assumed.

Nathan nodded. “They came to apologize for treating you so coldly after your return to Birchwood. They want to make it up to you.”

I hugged myself as tightly as I could while still being able to breathe. “It’s too late for that now. I have a journey to take.”

Nathan sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, which had grown longer during our stay at the palace. “Can’t you at least meet with them before we leave? They’re truly sorry; I can tell.”

“So what?” I asked, standing up and crossing to the door. I couldn’t be around Nathan anymore. Too many conflicting emotions. I needed some air. “I don’t need an apology. I just need this war to end.”

I opened the door.

“Where are you going?” Nathan wondered. His voice was gentle, but I could still tell how irritated he was by my antics.

“Nowhere.”

I stepped out into the hall and shut the door before Nathan could respond.