I smiled, and closed my eyes, feeling my clothes change around me until the feel of leather, tight against my breasts, covered me. The tops of my breasts were pushed in by a comfortable leather vest, and leather pants that hugged my frame, while giving me enough room to move in. I felt Larissa’s hand on my face, warm for the moment until death would claim her again, as she ran a finger over my face, leaving behind delicate Celtic markings in blue woad paint for strength, and courage.
“Holy shit, Syn, Keira Knightly has nothing on you,” she whispered as I weaved my hair into leather straps that would hold it back from my face.
“Okay, dropping the darkness. Wish me luck, Lari. You might be getting company on the other side.” I smiled, as she frowned.
“You won’t die, Syn. It’s not your time to go. You have to live. Consider this, if the world of Faery dies, so too does this one. You and Adam have always been special; you can do this. You were meant for greatness, and that comes with a certain price that has to be paid.”
I met her eyes and nodded. “I don’t want to hate Adam, Larissa, and I don’t want to resent Adam because we were forced into this. That’s what scares me, and well, I’m just not attracted to him—not after having Ryder.”
“You won’t hate him. You know he is driven by a need to fit in. He was ripped from his family by you, and now that he has them back, he’s fighting for a way to keep you in his life, because you’re all he has left of this world. He’s just as afraid as you are, but he’s stubborn and, worse yet, he’s male, so he won’t say it, but he needs you in his life. His world is changing just as much as yours. He’s a strong, proud man, and will not admit to being afraid of losing you, but he is.”
“I know, and I feel horrible about it. But I can’t change the past!”
“Exactly! That’s what we keep telling you, and yet you keep holding it inside. Let it go! Quit thinking everything is your fault, and just let it go. I know you thought you did when I died, but I felt your pain. You and Adam both held me here; and limbo sucks. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s not too bad, but eventually I would like to see my parents before I choose to be reborn.”
“I don’t know how to let go. I feel too much, and there is so much I could have changed very easily had I just done something differently. I’ve been holding this in and using it for strength, if I let it all go, what the hell will I have left?”
“You will be who you are destined to be. Now, tap that line, because Ryder looks like he might be able to breach the shield with that glare alone.”
I turned, and looked directly at him, his golden eyes piercing to my soul as he took in my garb. His eyes lowered slowly until they reached my feet, and then came up slowly as a smirk kicked up the corners of his beautiful mouth, even though he still held his lethal glare in check.
“Laugh it up, Fairy,” I mouthed the words to him before turning to face Larissa as she held out her hands. I’d made the shield so I could speak to Larissa alone, so no one outside could hear us—well, at least those with Fae hearing. “On three, Lari,” I said, reaching down to pick up the daggers before counting under my breath.
We touched fingers as we had done so many times as children, and combined our strength. She was giving me a good jolt of energy, considering she was a ghost. I opened my eyes and watched her chant. She was as beautiful in death as she had been in life. Her natural curls flew around her face as she chanted the words with her eyes closed. The other ghosts were chanting, and with every word the power inside of me grew in strength.
When she opened them, I released her hands and stepped back. I could hear Ryder and Adam both speaking to their men, trying to figure out how to remove the shield and get inside of it before I could tap the line. Both of those ideas would fail.
I braced my body and placed my hands at my sides as I sent out feelers for the closest leyline. I sent a silent prayer to any God who would listen, and tapped the line.
~~~~*Ryder~~~~*
“Get that fucking thing open, right fucking now!” I snarl as fear tightens my chest and makes me careless. I hate that I feel this; this fucking need to protect her even from her own stupidity. Nothing I tell myself makes it go away. She’s inside of me, like a drug; I crave her.
The beast wants me to drop the veil that would expose us to her enemies. I growl at him. I’d made a promise to Syn that I’d keep it up so that her Fae assassin wouldn’t sift out as soon as he sifted in. The magic veil is an old Fae trick used to hide entire armies from those opposing us. Child’s play, but it takes more concentration that I could be using to break through her fucking shields.