Page 106 of Fang Fiction

Even as Tess was flabbergasted by Nantale’s betrayal, she couldn’t help but be impressed by her ruthless loyalty to her clan.

“Except now we’re all trapped here,” Tess fumed. “How am I supposed to help you if I can’t get back to New York?”

“I am still trapped here,” Nantale clarified. “You are not.”

“But—the bridge!” Tess sputtered.

“There is another way across the river, a boat. As far as I know, I am the only vampire who ever discovered it. You will find the boat tied to a dock at the base of the cliffs beneath the bridge. There’s a stairwell you may walk to reach it.”

“So you knew,” Tess marveled. “You knew that destroying the bridge would intensify my motivation to find a way off the island, without actually trapping me here.”

“I never asked to be a leader. But it’s a burden I carry with pride.” Nantale lifted her chin, then nodded toward Artie. “Ride quickly. I need to ready the clan in case Felix plans to attack us tonight—that may be part of his strategy. But you must go. Callum is waiting. Do not fail us, girl.”

Tess nodded, tears in her eyes. Part of her wanted to go back into the compound, to change her clothes, to say goodbye to Sylvie, but she knew there wasn’t time for any of that—she mounted the horse and started riding like hell. Artie was equal to the moment, cantering furiously down the paths they’d trod together weeks ago, before Callum had even been injured, before he’d meant anything more to her than a character in a story. She couldn’t believe how listless she’d felt then, how adrift. Now, wearing the dress Sylvie had made her, the necklace Callum had given her, charged with a mission from Nantale, she’d never felt a stronger sense of purpose in her life.

When they reached the bridge, Tess dismounted and looked for the stairway Nantale described—it was carved into the cliffs, nearly invisible if you didn’t know where to look. And at the bottom, just as Nantale had said, there was a dock and a rowboat—both made of crystal, of course.

Tess took a deep breath. It felt like everything was happening too quickly; Tess’s time on the Isle had transformed her life, and now, in an instant, it would be over.

She stroked Artie’s neck. “Thank you for everything,” she murmured, and he nuzzled his head against hers. “You know how to get home?”

He looked at her, seeming to understand. She gently slapped his haunch, and he took off into the night.

The top of the stairway was drenched in hot sunshine, at least twenty feet out of the darkness so no vampire could reach it. Tess rushed down the stairs and flew down the dock, climbing carefully into the crystal rowboat.

Tess quickly noticed she had a problem, though: The boat had no oars.

“What do I do?” she muttered. “How do I get to Bar Between?”

As soon as she said the words, the boat set into motion, pulling away from the dock and speeding across the river. The short journey was unbelievably beautiful, the lilac water spraying alongside the boat, the sunlight glittering in rainbows as it refracted through the jagged remnants of the crystal bridge overhead. But Tess couldn’t appreciate it—all she could think about was getting back to New York, and to Callum, before it was too late.

The boat docked on the other side, and Tess disembarked and ran through the little forest clearing as fast as she could until she reached the dome made of petrified wood she’d come through what felt like forever ago. She took one moment to turn back and see the Isle—it seemed so small, all the way across the river. Would she ever see it again? It didn’t matter now. She walked up to the dome, pushed the door forward, and walked through, off of the Isle and back to the bar between worlds.

Chapter 27

“What happened oh my god that took forever I was so worried are you okay?!” Flora rushed over to the portal Tess had just walked through. They were in the main bar—the same room Tess had left to walk onto the Isle.

“I—” Tess wasn’t sure what to say, but it didn’t matter because Flora just kept right on going.

“I mean, I was kind of shipping you and Felix, don’t be mad, he can be annoying but he’s so cute, you know? And Callum seemed all broken and kind of deranged, but then you really brought him out of his shell—”

“How much of my time on the Isle did you watch, exactly?” Tess broke in.

“Tess, it’s literally my job to monitor the vampires! And you were the first human ever to go there, obviously I was gonna keep track of what was happening! When the bridge blew up I was like OH SHIT, but I knew the boat was there, so I was hoping you’d figure it out—and then you didn’t, but anyway it was good Nantale knew about it. God, she’s iconic, right? Omg, and can we even just discuss that Octavia’s been back here this whole time? And now Konstantin has her and Callum both? Oh man, what are we gonna do?!”

Tess’s face fell. “I was kind of hoping you would know what to do?”

“Me?!”

“Yeah, I mean, you did all that magic with the tarot card, and got me out of the castle—didn’t you have some kind of plan?”

“The tarot card?” Flora frowned. “What do you mean?”

“It changed,” Tess explained. She took the card out to show Flora what she meant—except now it was back to its original state, with the blindfolded woman in the circle. “When I was in Isobel’s room, it showed me how to use the dagger to open a secret doorway.”

“That wasn’t me.” Flora looked impressed. “I told you, I can only watch the Isle—I can’t make anything happen there. None of us can.”

“So then how…I mean, who did it?”