Page 20 of Shade of Ruin

He’s the only answer for this, though. Just like I didn’t pull away when Cole’s hands on my body made me feel things I wasn’t used to while we were training, I can’t pull away from the Shade when he makes me want to know him better. Like Vesta said so many times, my emotions can’t get in the way of what I need to do.

I look around the forest and find the closest clearing. It’s small, but I don’t want to go too far from Cole and our camp. I hurry toward it, sprinting part of the way and jogging the rest.

When I get there, I look around and feel happy with the selection. I can see much better than under the trees and we’ll be far enough away from Cole that he shouldn’t hear us talking. The last thing I want is to wake him up and let him catch me putting myself in debt with the Shade.

I take a few deep breaths and close my eyes. The image of the real Shade fills my mind. The way he’d looked when he’danswered my call. Dark shadows under a black cloak that pulled my gaze toward him. They’d called out to me.

Then I think about his hands. I see the black nails that felt so dangerous, yet whose touch had been soothing. I know he’ll mark me again

“Please come to me, Shade,” I say. The words come out confidently. A plea and a prayer. “Please come to teach me, Shade.”

Moments pass, my breath rising and falling as I wait. A hint of fear rolls through me as I question whether he’ll come. If he doesn’t, what will I do? I don’t have any other options. I need the power that lies in my Fae bloodline, but I don’t have a way to learn it. If Cole’s right, making a mistake could have me killing myself. I need the Shade.

Like last time, right before I’m about to give up, it’s like someone opens a window. A soft gust of wind blows by me, and I turn around to see the black cloak I’ve seen so often in my mind. “You came,” I say softly.

“You called.” His voice is like water over river rocks. Gravelly, but smooth at the same time. It’s seductive and kind and commanding.

“Yes, I would like to learn to use shadow magic. I think I can, but I don’t know how.” I try to stay calm, to not be too excited or too expectant. He could say no. Or I could be too weak. Maybe Cole’s right and my mother wasn’t strong enough. Maybe she was a Wyrdling too.

He steps toward me, getting far closer to me than I expect. “You know this will indebt you to me?” he asks, every word dripping seduction.

I nod my head, my mouth becoming so dry that I struggle to speak.Anything he wants.A dangerous agreement, but it’s one I’ve already accepted.

“I will pay the cost to have you teach me. I don’t know anyone else with shadow magic.”

The Shade stares down at me, and I look into that impenetrable darkness under the cloak hood. He nods to me, nearly imperceptibly, and takes my left hand in his. “Your mother has tried to keep you safe, Maeve Arden, but to learn to use your magic, you must allow yourself to access it.”

His fingers move to my mother’s ring, and I immediately tense, terrified at the thought of him removing it. Not so much of him stealing it since there’s no reason that someone as powerful as the Shade would have any use for a cheap bit of silver. No, the thought of it leaving my hand is difficult for me to accept. I’ve worn it so long, and I never take it off.

The way he holds my hand so gently reassures me, though. I know I have no reason to trust the Shade. There are no stories of his kindness, only his cruelness. Yet, that touchfeelslike something I can trust. Unlike with Cole, everything in me wants to trust the Shade.

He gently removes my mother’s ring, and though I feel nearly naked without it on, that storm that’s been raging inside me feels like the stopper on the bottle has been opened. “Now, attempt to create shadows. Lift your hand andseethe power flowing in your veins leave your body, just as you’ve imagined me. Your magic will flow like oil, clinging to any surface it touches.”

I look down at my hand covered in silver moonlight, and as I focus on the throbbing inside me, there’s a strange flickering on my palm, like the moonlight flashes in and out of existence. The darkness that appears and disappears doesn’t hide me, and it doesn’t last long at all, but something is happening. I have to strain, but it’s working. I’m creating shadows.

I look up at the Shade and say, “Is it supposed to be this hard?”

The Shade steps back, bowing his head and speaking slowly. He looks almost reverent, a servant rather than the most feared and prayed to being in all of Nyth.

“It is different for everyone. Your situation is unique. Your mother effectively cut you off from your magic for your entire life while most Wyrdling children discover their magic by the time they’re talking. There’s no telling how that has affected you and your ability to tap into the streams of power that flow through that hidden bloodline.”

I nod, accepting the possibility. It’s still more than I had ever imagined. The Shade says, “This is the first lesson. Practice it. Nothing else can be done safely until you can call shadows into being at will. Do not attempt to use your powers in any other way.”

“I won’t,” I say, pushing the power through my hand again and watching the flicker of shadows appear and disappear.

“Now, for my payment,” he says.

Saying nothing, I take a deep breath and put my hand out, palm up, to show him the previous mark on my wrist.

He takes my hand and, ever so gently, presses his nail against my wrist. There’s a sting of pain, and then it’s gone. When he pulls his hand away, a second tally mark lies next to the first. “Thank you,” I say to him as he lets my hand go. “Thank you for teaching me.”

“You bought that lesson, Maeve. There is no reason to thank me.”

He turns around to leave, but I catch his hand. The Shade recoils, immediately pulling away, and I let him go. I’d forgotten that in the world of the Fae, people aren’t… kind.

“You didn’t have to come the first time, and you didn’t have to come this time. Thank you. I don’t think there’s another person who could have helped me with either of my requests.”

The Shade pauses for a moment and bows his head slightly, every movement measured and purposeful. “You are… important, Maeve Arden. Your debts are valuable. Here’s a piece of advice for free. Wear your mother’s ring. There is a reason she left it with you. Until you are sure you are safe or very powerful, do not leave it off for long. That’s how the sand harpies found you before.”

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