Was I inside a car? I listened harder to the voices, gripping the tall grass to balance myself.
“I’m sorry, but I really can’t let you get in the way any longer.”
Who was that? I knew that voice.
“Hello?” I shouted.
“She doesn’t belong with two humans anyway. She will be the hero of the Seelie realm. The Elysian Fields won’t be able to keep her out.”
Wait, that was the pretty fairy! Why were they in the car? How come they’d left me behind?
My vision continued to pulse, hurting my head. What was happening?
“Not that she’d be refused anyway, being Artemi. The Elysian Fields are like your heaven. Unfortunately, the two of you will not be meeting her there anytime soon. Humans don’t belong.”
What? Why was the fairy talking about the Elysian Fields?
The anvil in my stomach flipped.
No. She was too beautiful and kind to be bad.
But Mom’s face was terrified.
Tears prickled my eyes, soon falling from around closed lids.
Why was Mom so scared? Why couldn’t she stop the car? It was going too fast! No!
I stood up and ran toward the house. I had to do something! I had to help them. The fairy was bad. How could she be the bad one when she was so pretty and nice?
The door slammed behind me as I grabbed the house phone. Who should I call? Mom was the only one I knew to call for help. But I had to do something. The car was going faster.
I frantically ran around the house, trying to figure out what to do. I couldn’t call the police. I didn’t know what I was seeing, and I didn’t have anybody else. The only people I had were in that car.
“What did you do?” Adrianna cried.
“Noooooooo!” I bellowed.
My body dropped to the ground in a pile of Mom’s gardening supplies next to the back door.
No. No. No. No. No.
It couldn’t. They couldn’t.
No!
She had hurt them.
The fairy had hurt them, and it was all because of me.
I stared at the ground next to where I had fallen.
I didn’t blink. I didn’t cry. I just stared, thinking about what she had said to them.
Hours passed. I shifted my legs. They had gone completely numb. I couldn’t even use them. I palmed the garden shears as I moved to my hands and knees and crawled out the back door.
My legs prickled and stung as I stood, my walk turning into a run.
The neighbor’s house was pretty far away, but I could make it. I needed to get help.