A Faerie's Secret

Chapter 3

Three

I finish packing another box of painting supplies just as the hand mirror on my desk begins playing music. It’s a lively melody composed by one of my friends from Ellinhart Academy. At least, we were friends before she started listening to the rumors about why I left my last school. She became distant after that, and I haven’t heard from her since summer break began.

I cross the room to my desk and see Zed’s face swimming in the mirror’s surface. Biting my lip, I consider ignoring the call. I sent him a message last night to say I no longer need his training services, but I didn’t go into detail about why. He probably thinks it’s because of the embarrassing half-kiss outside my house two days ago. The kiss that makes me want to shrivel up with mortification every time I think of it. Ignoring his call would be immature, though, and I’m supposed to be showing Zed that I’m not the child he thinks I am. I pick up the mirror and touch one finger to its surface. “Hey,” I say with a cheery smile on my face.

“Uh, hi.” In the mirror’s surface, I see him raise a hand and scratch his hair. “So, I just saw the message you sent last night.”

“Yes, um, I have good news.” I bounce onto my bed and tuck my hair behind my ear. “I’m finally joining the Guild.”

“What?” Zed’s eyebrows shoot up. “Are you serious?”

“Yes, it’s definitely happening. Well, almost definitely. Ryn’s still finding out what the exact process will be, but I’m pretty sure he can get me in. And I know how you feel about the Guild,” I add quickly, “so you don’t have to be happy for me. But I think it’s—”

“Of course I’m happy for you.” A relieved smile spreads across Zed’s face. “I was thinking maybe you didn’t want to train because of … you know, what happened the other evening when—”

“No, of course not.” I wave a hand and roll my eyes to show him how silly that would be. “And I’m sorry for making you feel awkward, by the way. I don’t know what came over me.”

“So … you and I … we’re okay?”

“Of course.” I give him another bright smile he hopefully can’t tell is fake. “I’m over that, don’t worry.” By ‘that’ I mean him, and by ‘over it’ I mean I’m not. But I will be soon. I’ve got way more important things to focus on now. Important things that include me getting my own guardian weapons, learning how to kick some evil ass, and uncovering dangerous Unseelie plots that threaten to destroy the fae realm. At least, that’s what I imagine guardians do once they’re fully trained.

I blink as an image of me brandishing a glittering sword while I stand victorious over a fallen foe threatens to sneak past my mental wall and broadcast itself across my bedroom. I push the thought aside as Zed says, “When will you begin?”

“I don’t know. Ryn’s still finding out details from the Council.” And hopefully those details don’t include ‘Sorry, Miss Larkenwood, we don’t accept trainees older than thirteen.’ Anxiety tightens my insides. It would be just my luck to have the Guild refuse my application after I’ve finally got Mom to allow me to join. “Anyway, I need to carry on packing.” I hold the mirror in one hand and use the other to wave a pile of sketchbooks into a new box. Pencils scattered across my desk fly back into a glass holder, which joins the sketchbooks in the box. “People will be here first thing tomorrow morning to do the moving spell.”

“Moving? Why are you moving?” Zed’s expression morphs into that infuriating one he wore when telling me I’m still a child. “Calla, you know you don’t actually have to live near the Guild you’re training at, right? You can use the faerie paths to get there every day.”

I bite back the urge to tell him I’m not stupid and that of course I know that. “We’re not moving because I’m attending a Guild. We’re moving because of the intruder who got into our house the other day.”

“Intruder? What happened? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I managed to fight him off and then he ran away when Dad got home. The point is, Mom freaked out and decided we have to leave. Dad promised to get the latest, most complex security spells, but it made no difference. An hour after it happened, Mom had found somewhere new for us to live.”

Zed rubs a hand over his jaw. “That’s extreme.”

“Yeah, well, that’s my mother.”

“I don’t know how your dad puts up with it.”

“Probably something to do with the fact that he loves her,” I snap. I’m usually fine with Zed making fun of Mom right along with me, but since he rejected me and probably went straight home to laugh about it with his girlfriend, he doesn’t get to make snide comments about anyone I care about anymore.

“Uh, anyway,” he says. “I just wanted to check that our agreement still holds. You know, now that I’m not training you anymore.”

“The agreement where I don’t tell the Guild you’re still alive with active markings and access to your guardian weapons?”

“Yeah, that.”

“Of course I won’t tell them. I gave you my word, remember?”

He nods. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

“And I appreciate everything you’ve taught me. I’ve come a long way from that scared little girl you met in—” At the sound of a knock on my door, I look up. The door is closed, though, so hopefully the person on the other side didn’t hear any of my conversation with Zed. “Gotta go,” I say to him. I touch the mirror to end the call, then leave it on my bed while I open the door.

“Ready to join the Creepy Hollow Guild?” Ryn says the moment I swing the door open.

Excitement explodes inside me. “Really? Are you serious? They’re letting me in?”

“Of course.” He tilts his head forward, giving me that overconfident grin of his. “You didn’t doubt I’d be able to make a plan, did you?”

I let out a wordless squeal and clasp my hands tightly together.

“I don’t know what you’re getting so excited about,” Ryn says as he walks past me. He swings my desk chair around and sits. “Guardian training is seriously tough.”

“I know.” I pretend-swoon onto my bed. “It’s going to be amazing.”

He laughs. “You might want to look up the definition of ‘tough’ in the next few hours, or you could be in for a nasty surprise when your training begins.”

“I don’t care how tough it is. It will still be amazing.” I grab the nearest cushion and hug it to my chest as I sit up. “So when do I start? Did you convince the Council to let me join the fifth-year trainees?”

“Hey, it was hard enough convincing them to let you join at all. They gave me their usual story about statistics showing that those who begin training at a younger age make better guardians than those who start later. So I reminded them that your father was an excellent guardian before he left the Guild, and that your half brother is possibly the best guardian the Guild has ever had—”

“You so did not say that to the Council.”

“—which means you’ve clearly got stellar guardian blood running in your veins. Then I told them you’ve been training in private for the past four years, and they found that very interesting. I even included the story of how you heroically rescued your mother from a dangerous intruder who was bent on killing you both.” Ryn pauses as a smile stretches across his face. “They liked that bit.”

“So …”

“So here’s the bottom line: You’ll be allowed to start with the fifth-year trainees if, by the time the new training year begins, you’ve managed to pass the final written exam for first, second, third, and fourth year. You’ll also need to complete ten different landscapes in the Fish Bowl, ten assignments with a mentor assisting, and ten with a mentor observing.”

I stare open mouthed at Ryn. I told him I could manage this, but now that he’s saying it out loud, it sounds like an impossible amount of work. “And I need to complete all that in two months?”

“One month.

“One?”

“First years get two months over summer break. After that, everyone gets one. Unless you’re a particularly enthusiastic trainee, in which case you continue with your own private training during vacations.”

“One month,” I murmur. “I can do that. I can make it happen.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’ll just spend every waking hour either studying or training. It’s a lot, but I can do it. And hopefully Mom won’t mind me coming home at odd hours after the assignments. I mean, she’s cool with this whole guardian idea now, right?”

“Well, I actually spoke to your mother about that.” Ryn tilts the chair onto two legs, then lets it drop back onto the floor. “If you’re going to pull this off, you need to be completely focused on training and studying. No distractions. Not moving house, or painting, or drawing, or those arguments you and your mom like to engage in at least once a day.” He gives me a knowing look.

“Those are called discussions,” I tell him matter-of-factly.

“Those are called loud. I’ve heard far too many of them.”

“So what’s your solution?”

“You come and stay with me for the next month.”

I pause, gripping the cushion tighter. “Seriously?”

“It makes sense, considering I’ll be the one mentoring you until the new training year begins.”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

“THAT IS SO COOL! Oh, wait.” My shoulders sag as I realize there’s one person, aside from Mom, who might not be wild about this plan. “How exactly does your wife feel about someone else living in the house with you guys?”

“His wife,” says a voice from the doorway, “is thrilled to have you staying with us for a while.” Violet leans against the doorjamb and beams at me. “I might even assist with some of your training if I’m allowed to.”

“Yes!” I fist-pump the air, then jump up and throw my arms around Vi. “Okay, let me try that reaction again. THAT IS SO COOL!” I shout. “Ryn, you’re gonna be the best mentor ever. And I can’t wait to come stay with you guys.”

“Hey, keep it down.” Vi steps into the room and shuts the door. “Don’t let your mother hear how excited you are to leave her.”

“And I am going to be the strictest mentor ever,” Ryn adds. “I told everyone on the Council that you’d easily be ready in a month, and I had to convince them I wasn’t just saying that because you’re my little sister. So I’ll be making sure you work your ass off to prove to them that I’m right.”

“And to prove it to myself,” I add as he stands, “because I know I can do this.”

“Good. Anyway, I need to meet with my team now and explain that I’m taking on the temporary position of mentor for the next month. They’ll have to get on with saving the world without me.”

“Whatever.” I grab my abandoned cushion from the bed and throw it at him. “You’re not really in the middle of saving the world, are you?”

“Apparently he’s always in the middle of saving the world,” Vi says, rolling her eyes before removing her amber from her pocket to check a message.

“Since it’s confidential,” Ryn says with an annoying smirk, “you’ll never know.”

“Fine. One day I’ll have top-secret assignments too, and you’ll wish you knew all about them.” I try to look as smug as he does, but the moment is ruined when I remember something important I wanted to ask him. “Oh, hang on.” I lower my voice and lean forward. “Did you find any record of someone called Tamaria?”

“Tamaria?” Ryn asks without blinking.

“Oh come on, I’m not an idiot.”

“Meaning …”

“Meaning I know there’s something weird going on here. Mom was adamant that I’d never attend a Guild—right up until the moment I mentioned the name Tamaria. Then suddenly everything changed. She said she doesn’t know anyone by that name, but obviously she’s lying. And I know you can’t stand unsolved mysteries, so I’m pretty sure you went straight back to the Guild and searched their records for someone named Tamaria.”

Ryn watches me carefully, the hint of a smile on his lips. “I’m also not an i***t,” he says eventually. He leans against my closed door beside Vi and folds his arms. “Who were you talking to when I knocked on your door just now?”

Shoot. How long was he listening outside my room before he knocked? I fold my arms over my chest to mimic his stance. “If you’re not an i***t, then you already know.”

He nods slowly. “I’m curious. Do I know this private trainer of yours?”

“No. He was never at your Guild.”

“Ah, so he’s a guardian. Interesting.”

Vi elbows him as she writes a reply on her amber and absently says, “Don’t be nosy.”

“Thank you,” I say to her while mentally kicking myself for revealing that Zed is a guardian. “I’m not telling you anything more about him, Ryn. He’s been helping me out all this time, and I don’t want to get him into trouble.”

“Okay,” Ryn says with a shrug. “You know I’m going to find out eventually, though, right? Just like I’m going to find out more about this Tamaria person and who the intruder is.”

“So you did look her up,” I say with triumph.

“I did. I found three women by that name who’ve been mentioned in Guild records over the past few centuries, but none of them were involved in any criminal activity. Is there anything you can tell me about the intruder that might help?”

I picture the intruder in his hooded coat. “Well, I’m pretty sure he was a faerie, since he had two-toned hair. Black with dark red, maroon streaks. And his eyes matched the maroon, of course. What was weird, though, was the scar running down his left cheek. Because if he really was a faerie—”

“—then his skin shouldn’t scar,” Ryn finishes.

“Right. Unless, of course, he was exposed to that metal Prince Zell was so fond of.”

Vi lifts her head as Ryn pulls up the sleeve of his right arm and looks at the pale scar that rings his wrist. A memento from an encounter with the Unseelie Court years ago. Vi has one just like it. “Interesting,” he murmurs, then lowers his hand. “Thanks. That’s helpful.”

“So will you tell me if you find out anything?”

“Probably not.”

“Ryn!”

“Hey, remember the part about you fitting four years of training assessment into the next four weeks?”

I bite my lip. “Uh huh.”

“That starts tomorrow. No excuses and no distractions. So you’d better rest well tonight, because you’re about to work harder than you’ve ever worked before.”