Dark Side (Shifting Crossroads) Page 3

  “It isn’t that simple. It isn’t just one nightmare coming for you.”

  She paused with her coffee halfway to her lips. “Not one? How many?”

  He sighed, and his muscles flexed. “All of them. They are all coming for you, and they are coming tonight.”

  Elly nodded and inwardly braced herself. “Right. I had better make this a helluva concert then.”

  Chapter Four

  She began with the violin, filled the air with the sound of the harp and finished with long, slow songs on the flute.

  The waves of applause were gratifying, but when she had played for hours, it was time to get to bed to face her persecutors.

  Eric walked next to her, a sinister hulk in the darkness. He was trying to hurry her strides, but when he sped up, she slowed down. He was forced to slow down with her.

  “Why aren’t you bringing the harp?”

  She grinned. “Because it is a heavy fucker.”

  He paused, and she kept walking.

  Elly laughed when he caught up to her.

  His grumble was the audible equivalent of a pout. “That was not the answer I was expecting.”

  “I was plain old human for half my life until my ears sprouted. All of my linguistic talents hearken from that time.” She smiled brightly.

  “You don’t seem terrified about the nightmares.”

  Elly shrugged. “They will come, and I will fall into my dreams, and they will turn horrible. I can’t stop it, but there is no reason to be bitchy about it. I will live or I will die, but for now, I had an excellent night.”

  “You are an exceptionally peculiar young lady.”

  “Thank you. I do try.”

  She swung her violin case and hummed one of her favourite tunes. She forced herself to remain cheerful, the pain and panic would start soon enough.

  She was outside her door at the Axion when she turned to Eric. “I have it from here. Thanks.”

  “That is not the way it will work. I will come inside your room, and I will wait until the first nightmare arrives. From that point on, I will enter your dreams and help you fight them off.”

  Elly looked at his firm and capable muscles with wistful thoughts. “I don’t believe that would be a good idea.”

  “I believe that it is the only way you are going to make it out of this alive. In this quantity, the nightmares will keep you under until your body fails. When your family couldn’t scare you, they decided to kill you. The punishment that the mares are facing is extreme. They are only supposed to act when the target has been guilty of a social injury.”

  Elly tightened her lips and opened her door to a stranger. The king would have flipped his pointy ears.

  “Prepare for bed and settle in. I will watch over you.”

  Oh, that is going to be restful.

  Elly walked into the suite and settled her flute and violin on the bedside table. She grabbed her bag and walked into the bathroom.

  Taking off layers of performance clothing took time. Since she wanted to wear at least two of the seven layers of silk tomorrow, she needed to keep them relatively flat.

  Once she had all her layers except the wrap that she wore in place of a bra and the mini slip that acted in lieu of panties, she pulled on a long silky shirt that fell to her knees.

  The fey did love clothing that felt slick against their skin, and she was no stranger to the longing for the sensual comfort that it offered.

  With her clothing seen to, she unpinned her hair and brushed it. Her ears echoed with pain while she brushed until the waves of her dark locks with golden threads were hanging down past her breasts. She scrubbed her face and got it down to her normal colouring with all the glitter and glossy lips gone.

  Barefoot and exhausted, she pattered out of the bathroom and headed for bed. Eric was standing at the window, looking toward the huge swell of the moon.

  “Did you know it is always a full moon at the Crossroads?”

  She peeled back the duvet and settled into bed, pulling her hair away from her face. “So I have heard. It isn’t as important for fey as it is for shifters.”

  He glanced back at her and stared. “You...”

  She wrinkled her nose. “Right. I look human. Well, aside from the ears. And the magic.”

  “You look beautiful.”

  Elly stared at his shocked features. “What?”

  “Without all that... stuff. You look beautiful. I caught a glimpse of it earlier, but now, I am stunned.”

  She made a face and got into her sleeping position. “Turn out the lights. I am going to war.”

  Eric nodded and got an armchair, placing it next to her bed. In the next moment, he raised a hand and shadows snuffed out all the lights.

  “Good night, Elenora.”

  “Good night, Eric. See you in daylight.”

  She rubbed her cheek against the slick surface of the pillow and pulled the duvet up over her shoulder, forming a warm and protective cocoon around her.

  She breathed slowly and deeply, listening to the world around her and knowing only that her hearing would keep her safe. If she could identify the source of a sound, she could logic her way out of the nightmare. She had done it before, and she would do it again.

  * * * *

  Eric watched as Elenora fell into a slow and even sleep. He could hear the herd approaching on the spectral plane. His hands were tied, but the moment they used deadly magic on an innocent woman, he could thrash them within inches of their lives. It was unfortunate that Elenora had to take the damage first, but those were the rules.

  * * * *

  Elly was back at school, and her hat was in the hands of the teachers. Mrs. Kleg and the others joined in and threw the hat back and forth.

  Elly lunged for the hat with one hand, covering her enormous ears with the other. She changed hands, left and right, but she could never cover both.

  They chanted, and it rang in her ears. “Fey freak, fey freak.” It was an endless echo that she couldn’t stop.

  “Stop it! I am not a freak!”

  She felt the panic in her chest as she tried to fight the humans in the room. They all mattered more than she did for some reason, and they would destroy her.

  A hand rested on her shoulder. She turned and saw a man that she recognized, but she wasn’t sure why.

  “Elenora, please relax and look for the mare. She is in here somewhere.”

  “Who are you?”

  He sighed, and his expression said that he wished she knew why she knew him.

  “I am a friend, and I am telling you to find the nightmare. She is projecting this on you.”

  Elenora was still filled with heart-pounding panic, but she looked around, past the jeering crowds. “There. There is a dark horse over there, outside the doorway.”

  “Go to her and slap her on the backside.”

  “What?”

  “There is nothing like it to break away from the nightmare than a sudden jolt. A smack on the ass will do that.”

  She nodded and looked at the mare who glared back. The fear and panic still pulsed through her veins, but she ran through the crowd and bolted to the black horse with glowing red eyes. The beast seemed as stuck as she was, it reared and lashed out with its hooves, but Elly ducked around it and gave her a slap on her haunches.

  The dream shattered into glittering shards, and the sound of hooves came closer.

  The spell cast missed its target and hit the floor. Elly was standing on a pillar in the centre of the room, and another bolt of magic zigged past her.

  Elly looked down, and the floor around her was covered with broken glass. Her feet were bare.

  “What is going on?” she cried out, her body was still mid-adolescence, as the light shift she wore showed her.

  The instructors at the school were gathered behind the students, and they were all holding orbs of magic, pure fey magic.

  “You are fey now; figure it out. Yo
u can either use magic to defend yourself, or it will take you over, but you have to choose which it will be.”

  She stood and ducked as another ball of energy struck at her. “This isn’t my kind of magic, you know that!”

  One of the etiquette instructors smirked, “That is your choice. Perhaps you should exert more energy into being fey.”

  Another ball of power streaked toward her, glanced off her arm and spun her around.

  For some reason, they were in the ballroom. The portrait of the wild hunt was hanging at what her back had been facing. She looked at the horses and saw the one she was looking for.

  The glass below her was not a great thing, but a glance over her shoulder showed another ball of energy was coming at her. Elly stood up, stood straight and took the blast in the lower back, letting the momentum carry her up and toward the portrait. She flailed out and struck the horse, shattering the dream and dropping to her side in the meadow of the fey palace.

  She took the surroundings in, calmed herself and stood slowly, looking for a clue as to the terror that was going to strike her.

  So far, the first two had been based on her own experiences. They had been her worst fears at the time.

  The thunder of hooves was coming at her, but as she was already in the dream, she looked around for the actual horse.

  Two elven knights were galloping toward her with swords extended.

  “Shit.” She took a few steps and stopped. She looked down in horror. She was chained to the fucking ground. She was wearing a court gown of a dozen layers, and her foot was encased in a silver-threaded slipper, and just above that was a three-inch manacle.

  The first pass cut through the closure of her outer layer and another swipe hit her down the spine. The outer layer of silver silk parted and slid down her arms.

  She had a horrible idea that she knew where this was going. “Eric, if you could give me a hand here, I would appreciate it.”

  The elves wheeled their horses and came back at her.

  “What will help you?”

  “Getting my leg unshackled, but aside from that, I need the ocarina from my bag in the bathroom. Put it in my hand.”

  She dove forward as the elves reached her, keeping her clothing for this pass.

  She jittered and waited for the next phase. Elly flung her hands up to cover her face as they passed her, and when she lowered her hands, her body one layer lighter, she smiled.

  “How will that help?”

  She didn’t answer but put the small clay whistle to her lips. She trilled a light tune, and the lock popped loose. When she got her leg free, she aimed her magic at the base of the chain, and it came free.

  She tucked the ocarina into her gown and picked up the chain, jingling it lightly to get the weight. This was her dream, and this was going to work.

  “What are you going to do?” Eric’s voice was a low rumble.

  “I just need a horse. Once I have a horse, I can find the mare.”

  “Do what you want and then get on the horse on your left. The one without a saddle.”

  She grimaced as she watched the horses get closer. “I suck at horsemanship.”

  “Don’t worry; this one will be easy for you. Just grab him.”

  Elly didn’t have a chance to ask any more questions. She aimed to her left, and while one of the blades cut her gown, she sent the chain wrapping around the elf on the left, and with all her strength, she pulled him down.

  His horse slowed and stopped, the rich brown hide gleaming in the sun. She ran toward it and was interrupted by a black stallion with glowing blue eyes. He had come from the left, he had no saddle, and he was waiting for her. She wove her hand into his withers, and she jumped onto his back.

  “Thank you. This was the only way I could make contact. This dream was long and would have drained you by the time it finished.”

  She stared down at the horse under her. “Eric?”

  “You were expecting someone else?”

  He wheeled toward the last elf, and the horse shied away the moment that he got close. She clutched her ocarina and kept it in her hand.

  “Right, now where is my bitch of a sister. Ah, there we go.” He set off at a quick trot that turned into a ground-crushing gallop. Elly hung on and was surprised when the much smaller mare bolted from the woods, trying to outrun them.

  Elly knew what was needed. She waited until they pulled alongside and gave the mare a smack.

  The world shattered around her, and they came to in the court office.

  “Found her. Hold on.” Eric bounded over the courtiers, and they were chasing a nightmare through the halls of the palace before Elly even knew what torment the beast had in store for her.

  It was the beginning of a whirlwind cascade through her deepest fears, but Eric was with her the whole time, chasing down his siblings to break the spell.

  If she had ever guessed that this would be her fate, she would have laughed in their faces. Elly had been pretty sure she would never get on a horse again.

  Chapter Five

  “One more to go, Elenora. We just need to find Nishi, and your trial is over.”

  Elly swayed on his back and held onto her ocarina. She had used it twice to lure out the mares. Turning the trial from working through her mind to hunting nightmares was definitely a shift in her mental processes. Her body was tingling from the shock of the dozens of cuts and bruises that had been inflicted on her during her performance at the king’s bi-century party. The broken wine glasses had flown at her before Eric had found her again. It showed her that when he cornered, she needed to hang on or they would separate in the next dream. She didn’t want that to happen again.

  The final dream formed around her, and they were alone. The landscape was empty. Barren and cracked soil was under Eric’s hooves.

  “Where are we, Elly?”

  She frowned. “How are you talking to me? Your lips aren’t moving.”

  He chuckled. “I am physically speaking in your room while projecting myself into your dream.”

  “I had better have a coffee waiting when I get out of here. I think I want to keep sleep away for a while.”

  “I will make that happen. Drak will be at your side with a tray the moment we are done.”

  She smiled. “Great. I can’t wait. I hope he gets some of those muffins from the building next door.”

  “Is that the shifter bed and breakfast?”

  “It is. Don’t you know what it’s called?”

  “No. I simply followed you to the Axion.” He shook his horse’s head and slowly moved in a circle. “Now, where are we?”

  She looked around her, and her soul recognized the dreamscape. “We are where I am terrified to be.”

  “What?”

  “Completely alone. I can’t play, I can’t find an audience, and I can’t escape.”

  “But you are not alone.”

  She looked at his flicking ears and smiled. “No, I am not alone.”

  “Then, let us find the end of your solitude, and we will find Nishi there.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “If not, we run the other way.” He chuckled, and it filled her head.

  He took off, running at an easy gallop. Elly was praying that her thighs on the dreamscape weren’t connected to her physical body. She had splayed her thighs for so long that she was going to be walking like a gunslinger when she dismounted.

  The empty bronze crackle of soil whirred past for what felt like hours.

  Elly was shaken in every joint of her body. When he picked up speed, she eased upright again and watched as they overtook the nightmare. She ran, and he pursued until he was even with her, and Elly reached over and slapped the black mare.

  She was so tired that she was unable to regain her position on Eric’s back, so while she fell forward, her dreamscape shattered.

  Elly sat up screaming. Her hands were out to catch her from the fall, but there was
nothing but her bed, the light of the moon, and the man next to her with glowing ice blue eyes.

  Eric reached out and caught her hand. “You are back.”

  Her head was pounding, the light behind Eric was beginning to look like sunrise, and she was exhausted. “Is it over?”

  He nodded. “It is. Now, I need to go and attend to the ladies in question. We will get to the bottom of this.”

  She blinked and nodded. “Right.”

  A short knock on the door and Drak entered, looking a little rumpled at this time of night, or morning. “Miss Elenora, Eric requested a carafe of coffee for you.”

  She smiled and nodded. “That is exactly what I want. Thank you. Please set the tray on the bed.”

  “Right. I heard screaming. Are you all right?”

  “I am fine. Pretty sure. Almost positive.” She reached for the carafe, and the ocarina was still in her hand. It was scored by the clawing of her nails in the dream, but the rest of her body appeared fine.

  Eric leaned forward and poured her a cup of coffee. “How do you take it?”

  “Cream and two sugars, please.” She worked on prying her hand open. When she got the ocarina loose, she put it carefully on the bedside table. Massaging her hand, she paused and picked up the coffee cup that Eric held out to her.

  Drak paused, “Do you need anything else?”

  She sighed. “Do you have a medic on staff? I would like it if someone could do a scan.”

  “I could check your health if you would not mind.”

  She stared at him. “You know the spell?”

  “Of course. The Vorathian tomes are very detailed.”

  Elly nodded, “Right. Please. I want to know why I feel like hell.”

  Eric got to his feet. “I will leave you. I am sorry for the pain caused by my people.”

  She inclined her head. “Thanks for letting me wrap my legs around you for a few hours.”

  He was startled into grinning. “It was my pleasure.”

  Drak looked at them and then focused on Elly. “All right. Lay back and relax. I will try and get the spell set.”