Page 40 of Whispers of the Water

This way.

The orbs floated past me, and I quickly followed behind them. I was afraid I’d lose sight of them in the dark, but they seemed to glow white from the inside, almost like moonlight reflected off the water’s surface. The way they floated through the air was so graceful and magical, which made sense since it was magical. I was thankful that they kept a fairly even pace.

After making a few turns and hopping over some fallen trees, I came to a small stream farther back in the woods that most likely connected to the lake somewhere, though even the lake had disappeared behind me. The three drops of water exploded and fizzled back down into the brook. I glanced around for Dallas, but I came up with nothing. Thinking that maybe I’d done something wrong, I pulled out my phone to call her when, across the stream, Dallas leapt out from behind a tree.

I nearly jumped out of my skin with a scream at her sudden appearance, which sent her into a fit of laughter.

“Oops. Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Sure you didn’t,” I said, finally joining in with her laughter once my heart was done reassembling itself.

Relief and a warm rush of euphoria washed over me at her presence. It had only been a few days since I’d seen her, but oh, how I’d missed her and the sound of her laugh.

Dallas had her fiery red waves piled up in a messy bun. She wore a pair of joggers and a t-shirt, which all hugged her fit and muscled body. She’d always had toned arms and legs, a firm stomach, and a butt many envied. I’d assumed it was from a love of fitness—one of the few things we didn’t share—but now I knew it was from all the years of training she’d gone through. As my personal guard, she had to be in excellent physical condition.

Dallas’s full, pink lips broke out into a wide smile, and she ran toward me, leaping over the stream like it was nothing. Suspecting her intentions, I ran forward and met her open arms with my own. We hugged each other tightly, and I inhaled her familiar scent—lavender with a hint of honey.

“I’m so proud of you,” Dallas cheered and pulled back to look at me with vibrant green eyes. “I knew you’d figure it out. You used the water! All on your own!”

Grinning, I said, “Well, I figured what was the harm in trying. Stumbling around in the dark with no guidance wasn’t working.”

“What else have you managed to do with your awakened abilities?”

I told her about all the other incidents where I’d accidentally tapped into water, ending with my most recent episode when Rune and I were in the bathroom.

She held up a finger for me to pause there. “Okay, first of all, what the hell? You’ve been leaving out major, steamy news. We will definitely come back to that, and you’d better not leave out any juicy, naked detail. Second, I guess you’ve noticed by now that your abilities are tied to your emotions.”

I sighed. “Sadly, yes. It’s frustrating to say the least.”

She smirked and mumbled, “Oh, I’m sure you’re frustrated.”

I smacked her arm, and she laughed at my flaming cheeks. Leave it to Dallas to tease me about my unfulfilled sexual desires.

“Well,” she started once she’d finished laughing. “You’ll be happy to know that your power will stop responding like that eventually. It’s only responding to every heightened emotion right now because it’s still very new. The water is getting a feel for your bond and vice versa. Once you’ve gotten used to your powers and established a solid relationship, the water will only react when called forth or in circumstances when it senses real distress.”

“How do I control it until then?”

“You’ll have to get a better grip on your emotions. It’s hard, I know, but until that bond and trust is established, the only way to control it is to not let your emotions get the better of you. At least, not while you’re around any water.”

I groaned. “Easier said than done.”

Laughing, she tugged on my hand and pulled me over to the stream. “That’s why we’re doing this. Thankfully, since it’s still new, you have to be right next to water for it to react, but as you hone your abilities, you’ll be able to tap into water at greater distances. It just takes time, but you’ll get the hang of it, I promise. You were born to be a powerful Fae. It’s literally in your blood.”

“Why? Because I’m a Princess?”

She shrugged. “Sort of. More so because you were bred to be a badass.”

I frowned, not liking that word. Bred. “You make it sound like I was a science experiment.”

She scrunched her nose at that. “No, definitely not. I guess it does sound weird since you don’t know our history. Your advisor will teach you everything you’d possibly need to know once we go back to the Water Fae Kingdom, but for now, I’ll tell you a piece of your own story.”

Excitement flooded my senses, making me shift impatiently on my feet. I’d spent so many endless years wondering who I really was. There were nights when I’d lie awake, glaring up into the star-sprinkled sky, and I’d wait for a shooting star to streak against the midnight void so that I could make a wish for my real parents to find me. I wanted to know who I belonged to, what my mother smelled like, what my father did for fun. To suddenly have all of those truths at my fingertips felt like being suspended in midair.

Exciting yet terrifying.

“When I say you were made to be a powerful badass, I mean it,” Dallas started. “For centuries, our Kingdom had focused on ensuring the most powerful of Water Fae led our kind, and they did so by producing an heir even more powerful than the last. Your father, King Khal, was born to the previous rulers and was an incredibly gifted Fae. When he came of marrying age, all of the most powerful women in the Kingdom were called together to compete to prove who was the strongest. It didn’t take long for everyone to realize that person was your mother. Alesta.

“She came from a powerful family line, but her abilities were still uncharted. We’d never seen someone so strong. They were immediately married, and after a few centuries, they finally had you. You were born from two of the most powerful Water Fae to ever exist, which means you are capable of things that others have only ever dreamed of.”

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