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I forced my voice to come out light and teasing. "Only if you're wearing footie pajamas. "
He laughed. "I'll see if I can find a pair. See you soon. "
"No, you won't," I whispered too softly for him to hear, then walked out the front door toward the trees. It was dark now, and bitterly cold. I had no idea how many hours I'd been awake at this point-the last time I remembered sleeping was on the couch just after saving Lend. I was so tired I wished I were the one who'd drop instantly to sleep, because then I'd "accidentally" walk into the room with Lend and have a perfect excuse for not doing things I knew I should.
Alas. Miles to go before I sleep.
"Reth?" I called, wrapping my arms around myself and squinting into the darkness. The hairs on the back of my neck rose as I remembered being tased out here. In spite of what David said about protections, maybe I shouldn't be here alone. "Reth?"
"He's not here," Arianna said, and I jumped and shrieked in fright. She was standing just past the tree line. I swallowed hard, disturbed. I could see her soul, glowing in the black night. I couldn't usually see hers so brightly; I hadn't been able to see any this clearly since the night I took all the souls from Vivian. Just how much had I taken from the midnight faerie, anyway?
"Chill, Evie. You look like you've seen a ghost. Which, for the record, are way less cool than vampires. Reth's with everyone, hanging out at the pond, being immortal and whatnot. It's pretty rocking. "
Great. Exactly where I wanted to go right now. To the pond, with dragons and sylphs and selkies, oh my.
"Of course that's where he'd be, because my night keeps getting awesomer. What are you doing out here?"
"You know. Hanging out. Being all immortal and whatnot. "
"Where's Jack?"
"He went to the Faerie Realms to eat and sleep. Said he'd be back later. "
"I have to find Reth and make sure he's okay. Come with me?"
"Now, now, you aren't afraid of monsters in the dark, are you?" I caught a flash of her eyes, winking wickedly at me.
"No," I said, shivering. After all, I was one of them.
I walked slower and slower as we got closer to the pond. I could see them already, bobbing and dancing and swirling through the night, all the lights of the souls there. The souls waiting for me to save them, to send them home.
Oh, bleep, I didn't want any of this. I didn't want this pressure, this weight on my shoulders. This whole mess had nothing to do with me. But it seemed like no matter how hard I fought against being involved in paranormal drama, I kept getting sucked back in. I guess it was my birthright, the only thing left to me by my broken and gone mother and my broken and gone faerie father.
I stopped, staring through the trees at the pond, at this world and this life that I was integral to but completely not a part of.
And then. . . I thought of all the paranormals who meant something to me. Nona and Kari, who had sacrificed themselves to keep me safe. Lend's mom, and everything she'd done for him. Even Reth, who put himself in harm's way to protect me. Lish. My Lish. All these paranormals needed me, and as much as it terrified me, could I really turn my back on that? Could I really refuse to at least try to help them, no matter what it might cost me?
Could I really value my own soul over all the beautiful, brilliant souls in the darkness in front of me?
"Evie?" Arianna asked, noticing I wasn't keeping up with her.
I wiped my eyes, overwhelmed. "Go ahead. I'll be there in a minute. "
She nodded and walked through the edge of the trees to the pond. I heard a low murmur of voices greeting her and wondered how much time she'd been spending out here. Under other circumstances I could imagine hanging out down there, gawking at all the strange paranormals, maybe even getting to know the cranky dragon. But in that daydream Lend was with me, holding my hand. And there wasn't terror and pressure and doom hanging over everything.
I sighed and leaned against a tree.
"I assume you are looking for me. " Reth's voice sounded more like copper rather than his usual gold.
"Yup, I suppose I was. How are you feeling?" I stood straight and turned around, then gasped. His soul. I'd forgotten what it looked like. But. . . it was different, too. Whereas before it had been unmoving and crystalline, now it seemed to shiver around the edges.
He smiled at my reaction, the stupid smile of his that was like he knew something you didn't. And he knew something
I didn't pretty much all the time, so it was pretty much every smile on his face.
"I need to go to the Faerie Realms," he said.
"Okay. Good. You should go. " I looked to the side, bothered by the intimacy of the moment. It wasn't like I knew anything more about him by being able to see the shiny, shivering gold of his soul, but it still felt weird. I wanted to make him put on another shirt, or a coat. Or a tent.
