Page 103 of Solstice

“There’s no time to explain,” Abigail said. “You have to trust us and do what I say.”

“Isn’t that my whole life?” Henry rolled his eyes but trotted dutifully along. We ducked behind the door and took the steps two at a time. Ivy struggled in her enormous, obnoxious dress, her arms one giant poof of sparkling fabric as she walked. I held up the back of it, and goddamn it, if this was just the train, what did the rest of the thing weigh?

The king used his black mist to peck at the top of the floor-to-ceiling windows like a million tiny birds. It surged upward, a dark blanket consuming everything it touched.Chirp. Chirp. Peck. Chirp. Peck.The sounds unnerved me, tickling my molars like nails on a chalkboard.

Once we were on the lowest level, Ivy pulled her phone out of her purse to call Carter one last time. On the second ring, he finally answered. She put it on speaker.

“Carter, he’s here,” Ivy said, cutting him off.

“Fuck.” He sounded restless and exhausted. “Where are you?”

“We’re still in Mount Vernon,” Ivy said.

I took the spot in front of her, grabbing her hand while I led her through the hallways we’d used to run through as children. “We’re leading him away. We have one of his primary targets.”

Fury burned through me as we ran, at fucking Evelyn for being such a goddamn pain in the ass, at the king for being such a show-off, and at Siobhan for not coming through for us. I thought fairies were supposed to be honor bound by their oaths or some shit. Where was that now?

Fuck her, fuck Donnelly, and fuck Finn. All that planning, all that scheming, all for nothing.

“Is he still in London?” I asked, my hand on her waist to halt her from turning around the corner. I peeked first, checking both directions before guiding her and her siblings into the basement hallway. The world grew blacker and that dreadful sinking feeling in my stomach intensified, putting even more pressure on my lungs as we walked. The atmosphere reeked of magic, seeping in through the cracks in the cinderblock walls like mist. Unlike the queen’s energy, which radiated with vibrance and life, this echoed the pain of hollowness. This scratched at my insides like the worst depression in the world, like absolute torture that would never end.

“Yeah,” Carter said. “But I can be in DC soon. I’ll call Miri.”

I held back a growl as the thought of Miri broke my heart. “Have you talked to her?”

“Yeah,” he said. “It’s not good.”

Not good?What could be so complicated she couldn’t share it with us? Whatever. Not the time to discuss it. We needed to get to safety first.

“Be careful,” Ivy told him.

“Of course, Weeds,” Carter said. “I love you.”

“I love you.”

The muffled conversation on the other end of the phone made me pause. It sounded like Carter said,“Lizzie?”

Lizzie? What the hell was his sister doing at his hotel?

“Poppy? What are you doing?”

“Poppy?” That got my attention. “Did he say Poppy?”

Ivy froze, and her siblings looked at each other while Poppy and Carter argued.“Is the king making you do this?”

“No, it’s not the king,”Poppy said.“I just thought you should say goodbye.”

The fear and trepidation rose in me, and I understood what was happening. Poppy had Lizzie. Was this what the king had asked of her? Why hadn’t she contacted me? Or did she realize we had the queen and retaliated?

“Carter!” I shouted, trying to get his attention, trying to tell him to get Lizzie and get out of there.

But it was no use because Carter shouted,“Poppy, no. Wait. Poppy. Stop!”

And then the line went silent.

“Carter!” Ivy tried to call him again, but it went to voicemail. “Shit!”

Her red-rimmed eyes met mine, and I ran my hands through my hair. I had told Poppy not to make any drastic decisions without cluing me in. Something was wrong. Was she stealing family members? Was this part of his plan?

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