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I lifted my hand, warding Circe off from coming closer, from saying anything.
“That wasn’t real.” My stomach twisted into a knot of panic, and I couldn’t breathe. I felt chilled right to the bone, and I struggled to think straight. When I lifted my hand to my mouth again, my fingers trembled.
“Come on, let’s get you some tea,” Circe said gently. “Then I’ll tell you what you just saw.”
“You know?” I whispered.
Circe squeezed my hand. “I know. It’s going to be okay, Danna. I promise.”
I shook my head. “You don’t look terrified of what just happened.”
“I’m not,” Circe said.
4
DANNA
Istood in my small kitchen in a daze as Circe put the kettle on the burner to boil water. She moved with fluid grace, certain of herself. I felt like a wreck, unraveling at the seams.
Circe didn’t say anything while she prepared teacups with the herbal tea leaves she always brought me, packing the leaves into individual strainers. When the kettle boiled, she added hot water to the cups, and the smell of herbs filled the kitchen.
“Here,” she said, finally speaking, and handed me a cup.
The strainer’s thin chain had been wrapped around the ear of the cup, so I could pull it out easily, but I always left it in. The stronger the tea, the better.
We walked to the living room. Circe made herself comfortable, kicking off her flats and tucking her feet underneath her on the couch. Instead of doing the same, I perched on the edge of the couch. I sipped the tea, and slowly, as if it defrosted me from the inside out, I started to relax.
“How much do you know about the enchanted world?” Circe asked.
I frowned. “What enchanted world?”
“Hmm,” Circe said. “You haven’t heard of anything like it at all.”
I shook my head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I thought since Emmie…” Circe glanced at me before she looked around the room as if she could find answers tucked away in the corners. “I’m going to have to start from the beginning. It’s going to sound crazy, but hear me out, okay?”
I sipped my tea. I felt like I was stuck in a dream. Or a nightmare. Everything had a surreal quality to it.
Was this it? Was this where stress finally caught up to me? I was having a mental breakdown—that had to be what this was.
“Humans aren’t the only creatures that inhabit the Earth,” Circe said.
I narrowed my eyes at her. “Yeah, obviously. I mean, there are all the animals and birds and stuff…” The moment I said it, I felt stupid.
“That’s not what I’m talking about,” Circe said softly. “There are others, too. Angels and demons, although we don’t see those beings on earth often.”
“I don’t believe in stuff like that.”
“Vampires and shifters,” Circe said.
“What?” I asked, frowning now.
“And fae.”
I shook my head. “That’s all the stuff of fairy tales.”
“I know it seems that way, because we’ve hidden this world from you for centuries, but there are few humans who are aware of what’s going on. Not a lot, getting them involved is a dangerous game to play, but there are those—”
