Page 119 of Crown of Tides and Fury

Rinky laughed again and the grounds laughed with her, splitting their sides. And through those sides, more things sprouted. Bigger things. Things that yawned and stretched and thickened into massive trees that threatened to pierce our snow globe. Pines and Box Elders shot up while Oaks and Rowans expanded like umbrellas, the latter with so many red berries on their branches, they fell like rain.

Hydrangeas, azaleas, and rhododendrons blossomed at the base of their trunks.

“If there is a land of fairies,” I whispered to Brian, “it probably looks like this.”

Slowly, slowly, the rumbles faded. Rinky extracted her hands from the grass and stood. A few started to clap, but when she didn’t turn, they stopped.

Had she changed her mind? If I had that kind of magic in my fingertips, would I be able to give it up?

I held my breath. For a long time, she just stood there. Her skirt had fallen back to the ground. I looked for Alwyn, but he remained where he was, his white suitcoat lit by the constant flames of the fire, his hands clasped in front of him, watching her. He made no move to break the spell.

A slight breeze rolled through the orchard. The fairy lights bounced excitedly, but then I realized there was no breeze. The shushing came from all around us, all at once.

Brian jerked with alarm, then pointed just above the apple trees. It looked like our green globe of protection was cracking. Black lines shot back and forth, marking where it would shatter. All around me, my friends reached beneath their finery for their silver blades. I found the sheath strapped to my leg and did the same.

Ivy, Wickham, and his sisters watched calmly.

Rinky suddenly raised her arms to the sky, her pink fingernails caked with dirt, and she laughed again. At the sound, the ends of those dark cracks exploded into a million more. Another explosion followed seconds later—tiny bubblegum pink blossoms blotted out the night sky beyond. Those cracks weren’t cracks, but vines!

It was like watching the buds of thousands of cherry trees mature in a matter of seconds. The roof of our snow globe was plastered with petals that reflected the lights from below, like moving the entire estate inside a tent.

We cheered, we clapped, and we caught our breath again as those blossoms began to rain down. Millions of them dropped, floating like snowflakes, unrushed and aimless. As they neared the ground, we found our voices again and giggled, oohed and awed when they landed on us.

Each blossom chimed and disappeared when they hit, and our protective bubble filled with the music of spent beauty. And in their place, the most delicious floral fragrance in the world. Thinking back, the closest scent I could remember was the smell from the Russian Olive trees blooming near rivers and creeks, back in Wyoming, during the first few hot days of June.

Sweet, unique…and stirring.

By the time the last petal sang out, my friends had all lost their minds. Everywhere I turned, couples were kissing like it was midnight, New Years Eve, including Rinky and Alwyn.

Brian and I looked at each other, considered it, then laughed.

While I waited for everyone to return to their senses, I transported myself back to the Fae King’s mountain retreat and thought about all the time Griffon and I had wasted…

I couldn’t say how many minutes passed before Wickham pounded his staff on the ground to draw everyone’s attention. Alwyn delivered Rinky to the fire, then stood back. With her face still flushed, either from the kissing or from wielding her power, I couldn’t tell. But I continued to be surprised when she, like Felicity, agreed to surrender that power to Wickham, for the “greater good.” When she glanced over her shoulder at Alwyn, I wondered if she’d found something to replace it…

The ceremony unfolded much like the first, but the mist that emerged from Rinky was purple. Once it was free of her, however, Wickham’s sisters were there to help harness it and guide it straight into its bottle. No detours to Soni, no side trips inside Wickham. It moved steadily where it was told, then slipped into its container like being sucked in by a straw.

I didn’t wait for Wickham to close it because my attention was on Rinky. When she collapsed, it was into Alwyn’s arms. With her smiling face turned my way, I could tell she was going to be just fine.

When I looked back at the table, I caught Wickham giving a nod to his wife just before he disappeared with the bottles in his arms. If anyone planned on having second thoughts, it was too late. Persi had been watching too, and our eyes met briefly. We didn’t need telepathy for our exchange.

That’s what he’ll do with your power, if he gets his hands on it.

I know.

* * *

That night,as I moved along with the mob toward the house, where champagne and Alwyn-caliber finger foods would be waiting, I counted myself blessed—not because of the food but because of the company.

We were a family. Oh, but they were an amazing bunch of oddballs. And Wickham had given me a legitimate reason to drop my grudges, save my pride, and stay—if I did, he’d protect Griffon all he could (whether or not Griffon needed protecting). It broke my heart to think I might have walked away from these guys tomorrow…

A magnum or two had been emptied by the time Wickham rejoined the party. With the weight of two Naming Powers off his shoulders, he looked younger. The first thing he did was grab his wife, kiss her thoroughly, then find Felicity and Rinky to thank them for their unfathomable sacrifice.

Urban watched Alexander and Davey pour soda pop into their glasses, then he scowled when he saw his wife doing the same. She noticed him noticing, then raised her glass and winked.

My eyes were glued to his face, watching for the moment he would understand. But he just kept frowning…until Everly came to him, kissed him, then whispered in his ear.

When the Highlander scooped his wife off her feet and marched for the house, everyone hooted and teased, probably thinking the smell of pink blossoms had finally pushed the couple too far. But I knew otherwise.

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