Page 101 of Magic and Muffins

“Do you feel it?” Vivian said, leaning forward to whisper in my ear. “The compelling need to turn back. I felt it the first time Orphia brought me here. It works on all the races except those who put it here. Makes you want to run, doesn’t it? The fae are tricky like that, aren’t they? They invite who they like and shun the rest.

“Let’s go inside and see what they’re trying to hide, shall we?”

He pushed me toward the gate and touched a swirly etching engraved in the metal at the top corner. The lock dissolved, and the gate swung open on its own. The feeling of wrongness and the need to leave vanished as soon as Vivian shoved me through. He followed, not closing the gate behind him.

“That’s better. Keep walking. You’ll like what’s next.”

My heels clicked against a smooth stone path completely clear of any trip hazards that led through the dark, narrow passage. When I emerged on the other side, I paused to take in what I was seeing.

The space, about the size of a city block, was part grotto and part glade. Tall, thin trees grew densely and rose high along the outer stone walls, almost obscuring the moss that clung to the rock. A bluish carpet of what looked like perfectly maintained grass covered the center of the space, bisected by a small river sourced by a pretty waterfall. And millions of little crystals that trailed along the ground lit it all.

In the center of the clearing, I spotted a circle of fist-sized stones almost hidden in the low-growing grass. Someone had set up a tripod facing the circle on one side and a large, thick post jutted from the earth on the other side. The post reminded me of a telephone pole but more diminutive, only rising seven feet. A pile of rope waited at the base.

Vivian pushed me forward.

“It’s not the best angle to see it from here. Keep going.”

Fighting the sinking feeling of dread that Vivian was close to obtaining whatever his goal was, I walked toward the tripod and the stone circle.

As I neared, the air within the circle moved. Or rather, it changed. I paused and took a half step back, then forward again. Whatever it was, it changed like those lenticular pictures that change appearance based on the viewer’s angle.

“And that, my little plasma muffin, is a fae portal. Wait until you see how it looks when you’re standing in front of it.”

He nudged me along, and I watched the air in the circle shift and solidify into a foggy haze that seemed to move. When I was just outside the stones, I could see a faint reflection of myself and the area around me.

“Because the portals are still closed, we can’t see into the fae realm. But their world is still there, on the other side, waiting to be unlocked.

“Here.” He took one of my hands and pressed something into it.

“In you go.” He shoved me hard.

The toe of my stupid shoes caught on a stone, and I tripped forward into the portal.

It felt like I fell into a pool of gelatin that hadn’t quite set yet. Thankfully, the thickness slowed my fall and prevented me from landing hard on my hands and knees on the other side.

Tiny yellow flowers bloomed prettily around my hands in the purple-blue grass. I pulled myself upright, looking at the mist hanging heavily in the air. It didn’t feel wet like mist, but it wasn’t smoke either. Whatever it was, it made it hard to see more than a few feet in front of me.

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Vivian standing there, grinning at me. His image shimmered like I was looking at him through heat waves rising off the blacktop in summer. Only, it wasn’t heat. It was a fae portal.

He’d pushed me into a fae portal!

Afraid of being trapped, I scrambled to my feet and shoved my hands through. The portal resisted then gave way. I only felt a moment of relief that I could escape before Vivian grabbed my hand and pried my fingers open, retrieving what he had given me before pushing me in.

“You make this too easy.” His voice sounded distant, like it was coming through a tube.

He plucked a small round stone with some kind of engraving on it from my open palm. Then he stuck my thumb into his mouth.

The feel of his tongue flicking over my skin and the scrape of his teeth sent a spear of panic through me.

I tugged back with all my might.

Grinning at me, he watched me stumble again.

I wiped my hand against my leg and felt something on my thumb. Shepard’s ring was there. Confused, I looked up at Vivian.

“Have you guessed it yet?” he asked. “You’re the bait, Everly.”

CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE

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