Yasmine Galenorn - Night's End

We made it to the table, where Regina passed her hand over the crystals, and once more we took hands, with Kaylin draped over Check’s shoulder. The room vanished as we fell back into the swirl of time, rushing every which way to return to the mansion.

I shuddered as the room began to materialize again—we were back in the small chamber, safely away from Crawl.

Turning to Regina, I gazed at her softly. “What happens if he ever gets free again? Can he get loose from his prison now?”

She regarded me quietly. “We have built in safeguards against that happening again. To be honest, we thought he was safely locked away the first time. It never occurred to us that anyone would be foolhardy enough to ever set him free. Geoffrey showed us that we cannot afford to trust even those closest to the Crown.” Regina passed a hand across her eyes, and I thought, for a moment, she looked almost human. Her lip twitched, and a vague wash of pain swept across her face.

I took a stab in the dark. “Geoffrey was a surprise to you, wasn’t he?”

The Emissary stared at me, her hand back by her side. For a moment, I thought she wasn’t going to answer, but then she gave me a faint nod. “We did not expect his disloyalty. We all go through loyalty tests—those of us within close proximity to the Crown. He passed his last. . . . There is unrest in the Vampire Nation because we now realize that at least some of the Vein Lords can—”

“Fake out the test.”

“Yes, that is one way of putting it. We never realized that was possible. So one of our tasks now is to develop a new form of testing that eliminates the chance for deception.” She paused, then glanced at Check who was studiously ignoring us. “You yourself now understand the nature of what it means to be a royal—and what it means to not know whom you can trust. Cicely, when you take a position of power, it means leaving activities, and people, behind. You can never be as free as you were. Even when you were under contract to my brother, you were freer than you are now.”

I nodded, absorbing her words. She was trying to help me. For whatever reason, she was doing her best to give me advice, and I’d be a fool not to pay attention. Regina might be harsh, and frightening, but unlike Lannan, she was all business, and she thought in terms of power and how to play it. She respected me more now because I had taken the throne.

Even though the thought rankled a little, I wasn’t letting myself take offense. There was a mindset that went with power. And there was a mindset that went with being a vampire. Something about the turning brought it out, that much I understood. Though we might not like it, it was simply a fact. With the ability to destroy others, to turn them into the living dead, with the ability to control through glamour, came a certain arrogance. It was what it was.

I thought carefully before I spoke, because what I was about to say would affect the Court of Summer, too. But it seemed a good time to broach the subject.

“Will the vampires stand with us against Myst? And if we do defeat her, will we be able to forge an alliance afterward? As bad as the Indigo Court is, given what we saw down in the sewer system—with the creatures from the depths—we must think of the possibility that there are more dangerous beings in the world. In New Forest. I would prefer we work together to keep the town safe.”

Regina regarded me quietly, then said, “I cannot give you an answer—the final word must come from the Crimson Queen, of course. But I will do my best to convince her that such an alliance would be the best way for us to move into the future. The Fae Courts are changing. The Consortium must follow suit. And the Vampire Nation? It would do well to heed the signs of evolution.”

With that she moved to open the door, and we were once again back in the Regent’s office.

Kaylin was beginning to come around as we schlepped him onto the sofa. Rhiannon, Grieve, and Chatter turned to me. I was about to speak when Chatter interrupted.

“I take it he’s loyal to the Courts, or you would have let Crawl slurp him up?” The callous note in his voice startled me, but he just shook his head when we all turned to look at him. “You know I’m right. As much as I know this pains you, Cicely and Rhiannon, I also know we cannot allow our Courts to be endangered.”

“Chatter is right.” Grieve stood back, folding his arms across his chest. “So Kaylin passed the test?”

I nodded, thinking back to what Crawl had said. “Kaylin has a destiny that is going to take him away from us. And, I think, away from Luna.”

“I think I may know what it is.” Kaylin sat up at that moment, wincing. “I never want to see that freak again, but I’m glad I went. There was something playing in my mind—something I’ve been dwelling on ever since I was hurt. I haven’t said a word about it, because I didn’t know if it was just my imagination or not. But Crawl . . . he confirmed what I thought.”

“Are you all right?” I rushed over, kneeling down by his side.

“Well, it wasn’t a walk in the park, and I feel like I’ve been hit by a sledgehammer—my head feels bruised inside and out—but I’ll be okay.” He accepted the glass of water that Regina offered him, drinking it greedily. “I feel dehydrated.”

Regina motioned for Lannan to get the pitcher and refill the glass. “You probably are. The Blood Oracle . . . well . . . Let’s just say he has more than one method of attack. And his touch is as unpleasant as his presence.”

“What did he confirm, Kaylin? We heard what he had to say, but what was he talking about?” I had a nasty suspicion but was hoping I was wrong.

Kaylin was unusual. We’d been in the Court of Dreams, talked to the King of Dreams who was the lord of the Bat People. The night-veil demons had chosen the Bat People as their children, but with Kaylin, it was a little different. His mother, one of the magic-born, had been possessed by one of the demons during her pregnancy. It had died, but its soul bonded with the child in her womb. The King of Dreams had told us there were a few others like him—a new generation.

“I must return to the Bat People and learn from them. There are things I need to know for my future. While I don’t know what that future is, I knew in my heart long ago that it would lead me far from New Forest into a different realm.”

“I had a feeling that might be it. You have to return to the Court of Dreams, don’t you?”

He nodded. “There are things only the Bat People can teach me. I think . . . it’s the only way. They said I’m part of a new generation. I think I’m going to be at the forefront of . . . whatever my people will be called.” He hung his head. “I should never have led Luna on. I don’t want to hurt her.”

Biting my lip, I decided to just be upfront about what I knew. “Kaylin, Luna cares about you, but she’s still uncertain. She’s held back. I asked her, while you were hurt. She told me because the future is so tenuous, she wasn’t letting herself fall for you.” Even though I knew the news might hurt him, I hoped it would alleviate any guilt he was feeling.

Kaylin’s gaze flickered to meet mine. “I hope you’re right.”

With a heavy heart, I asked, “Are you feeling up to helping us? I know it’s going to be hard for you to check Luna. Probing anybody’s mind can’t be pleasant.” And having Kaylin’s demon in my mind hadn’t been pleasant, either.

He pushed himself fully to a seated position. “Yeah, I’m ready. But . . . are you going to tell them first? And for me, it helps if they’re asleep—or drifting off. I work better during that time, being a dreamwalker.”

Kaylin could travel the astral, in body and in spirit. That was how he could get into people’s minds. The night-veil demon just made the process easier for him. I still wasn’t entirely clear on what a dreamwalker was or how they became one, but I had the feeling he’d been born that way. Most of the magic-born had one innate ability over the others. I was a wind witch; Rhiannon worked with fire. Leo had been gifted with herb crafting. Anadey, Peyton’s mother, had been an anomaly—she’d been adept with all four elements. Peyton’s magic came out in divination.