Page 99 of Faerie Hunted

I’d never been more grateful for another living being in my life. The tears just kept coming and I didn’t want to stop them. Not when they fell from gratitude and happiness and absolute pure love for this little pixie. She’d never backed down from a challenge and she’d always been willing to listen to me gripe even on her own hard days.

She knew how rough it was to be away from your family.

“Would you be willing to watch the house for us? Let us know when Uncle Will leaves. I think we’re too late for him to still be at the office.”

“I’m more than happy to assist. Whatever you need.”

“Please let us know when he’s gone, then.”

She shot me a look that said I was not getting off the hook for disappearing without a trace, then zipped off, leaving a trail like a lightning bug behind her. The after image faded and in the quiet of her departure, I was keenly aware of the moms watching me.

25

Iflashed them a toothy grin. “What?” I asked innocently.

Livvy hunkered down beside me, settling her back against the oak’s trunk while Laina craned her head as though she could still see Elfwaite.

“You have a pixie friend. Do you know how incredibly rare that is, Tavi?”

Another rarity, when all I wanted was to be normal.

“She’s one of the best people I know,” I stated.

“It only goes to show the prophecy was right,” Livvy said decisively. “You are the one who will unite the races, Tavi. I’m more sure of it now than I was before. There is something about you that draws others to your side, without the use of manipulation.”

I cleared my throat, uncomfortable with this line of conversation. My skin prickled. “I’ve been meaning to ask you more about that, Livvy. About the sentient being that is Faerie.”

“The goddess.” Livvy was solemn. She inclined her head.

“I’ve always heard it was a legend, not real. I find it fascinating you were able to speak to it. To her. And to understand her words of wisdom.”

Something incomprehensible splintered through my chest. I was holding on to the fragmented pieces of me for all I was worth, but life kept beating me down.

Snuffing them out until I felt lost.

Livvy’s presence was a gift but it was also suffocating.

She fixed me with a grave expression. “I don’t know much. I’m sure there are scholars out there with better access to records, more complete knowledge than what I’ve learned from my experiences. I’ve only received one visit from Faerie. And I was lucky enough to be granted that one.”

“But you spoke to her.”

My mind twisted up in terrible knots.

Livvy shifted, uncomfortable, and drew her knees up to her chin. She wrapped her arms around her legs and darted a glance in my direction.

“She came to me in a dream after I approached the witches. I knew I was pregnant. Or at least I knew I would be, that things had worked this time.” She blew out a sharp breath. “A dream, but not a dream. It was real. I felt her all around me. She spoke to me through a humanoid face. The face of the goddess. And it filled me with such hope and grace…”

Livvy trailed off and I noticed Laina had been hanging on every word. Her eyes seemed filled with pain, although I wasn’t sure if it was the mention of the goddess or of the witches.

Her people.

“Tavi.” Livvy said my name with the purest love. “It’s okay to be scared. It’s okay to wish for something else, but you need to know you’re strong enough to handle anything.”

She held my hand. I was hardly able to believe we were together, talking to each other, as though past and future collided and granted us this one slice of present. A gift.

“What’s the matter?” Livvy asked when I stayed quiet for too long.

Her concern dug into my spine, adding to the sense of unease. “Why would Faerie want me? How did I get witch blood?”

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