Мишель Роуэн - Reign or Shine

"Stop!" A deep voice bellowed from behind me and I took a quick peek over my shoulder. It was the thug and he was running after me. What had happened to Michael? My heart twisted and I nearly tripped from losing my concentration. But I kept running.

The gateway shimmered and swirled its kaleidoscope of color as I made a beeline toward it, my heart drumming wildly in my chest.

But just before I reached it, the gateway. . disappeared.

One moment my escape route to the human realm was there in front of me and the next it was gone. I skidded to a halt, craning my neck from side to side, looking all around the grassy clearing.

Where did it go? How was I supposed to get back home without it?

I couldn't, that's how. It was impossible.

Elizabeth's henchman was still thundering across the field toward me and I only had a split second to figure out what I was going to do next.

Panic shot through my entire body and my head screamed out in pain. I welcomed it this time, though. Maybe I could bring out my Darkling. The creep hadn't fared so well against demon-me before.

But nothing happened. No sparkling sensations under my skin. No energy balls to throw to protect myself. No horns. Just plain old Nikki Donovan, barefoot, wearing Michael's dark blue sweatshirt over my borrowed lavender designer dress.

I didn't have time to think about why the gateway wasn't working, so instead, I did the only thing I could do.

I ran toward the forest leading to the faery realm.

The darkness enveloped me as I ran past the tree line and into the thick foliage. I ducked behind a tree and peered around the massive, green, mossy trunk. The demon thug, with knife in hand, had stopped at the clearing well before the forest and was now staring into it. He backed up a few feet. I waited, holding my breath.

Would I be able to hide in here? And for how long?

He didn't do anything for a few minutes except look at the forest, attempting to peer inside.

Why wasn't he chasing me in here?

I kept waiting, barely breathing, for a few more minutes, wondering desperately what he was going to do next. He looked confused, his large Neanderthallike forehead creased in concentration. He rubbed a hand over his stubble-covered head.

Qo away, I thought fiercely. Leave me alone.

Then, as if he'd heard my thoughts as readily as Michael could pick up my telepathy, he turned around and began walking back toward the castle.

I let out a deep breath I hadn't even realized I'd been holding. My hands were shaking so badly I had to press them against my sides or I'd end up dropping my shoes and purse. I closed my eyes and tried to calm down, but that seemed like an impossibility.

Everything had gone wrong. Why did I ask to come back to the Shadowlands? I should have just drunk the potion yesterday as soon as I'd gotten it, and then none of this would have happened.

But, no. That wasn't right, either. I would have been safe and I would have forgotten all about this, but it wouldn't have changed much. My father would still be poisoned and on the verge of death. My aunt would still be scheming to become queen, and what impact would that have on the worlds the Shadowlands protected in the first place? And Michael. .

Michael.

Was he okay? I wondered if that creep had hurt him or if he had managed to use his amulet for protection. And if so, had he used up all his power? Was he unconscious somewhere and completely helpless?

Michael! I channeled my thoughts telepathically. Are you there? Can you hear me?

There was no reply, only silence.

Could I turn Darkling if I focused hard enough? Even if I wasn't experiencing high emotion? Could I make myself change?

I thought about trying it but stopped myself. When I'd changed before, I'd only been in half-demon form for a few minutes before I shifted back to normal.

That wouldn't even be enough time to get back to the castle, let alone try to help anyone. And besides, just because Elizabeth was evil didn't mean that she'd been lying when she'd told me about Darklings dying from using their abilities.. It was still a risk I didn't want to take.

Not yet. Maybe soon, but not quite yet.

A sudden noise distracted me from my thoughts. There was a rustling sound close by. I tensed and listened hard, but there was nothing else.

Just my imagination.

Then I felt something warm nudge at my elbow and almost jumped right out of my skin. I looked down with horror, bracing myself for the worst, but then let out a long, shaky sigh of relief.

It was just a horse standing next to me in the lush forest backdrop.

A white horse. Pure white.

It looked slightly sparkly, actually.

And the sparkly white horse had a golden horn protruding from its forehead.

It wasn't a horse at all. I'd been nudged by a unicorn. A freaking unicorn.

I stared at it dumbly. I'd never seen a unicorn before. Mainly because, along with demons and faeries, I didn't know they actually existed. After the experiences I'd had, I half-expected it to bare long, sharp fangs and try to attack me, but it didn't, so I studied it some more. It was absolutely beautiful-smaller than a regular horse, with a completely white coat and sky blue eyes. The spiraling horn looked as if it were made from pure gold.

"I suppose you're going to tell me that dragons really do exist, too," I said after another moment of stunned silence.

The unicorn didn't reply.

"You wouldn't happen to know where I can find a gateway to the human realm around here, would you?" Maybe I'd gone a little crazy from all the panic and fear. I was probably headed into a new mental category altogether.

The unicorn moved away and began to graze on a patch of grass and blue flowers at the base of a tree. I looked around me for the first time. The forest was so thick I couldn't even see the sky. It felt like dusk in here, quiet and dark, and it smelled fresh and alive.

To the far side of the tree was a small creek that led deeper into the forest. The unicorn moved over there after nibbling on the grass for a moment and bent its head to drink. I walked over to the creek, watching where I stepped since I was still barefoot, and when the unicorn didn't run away I tucked my purse under my arm and stroked its pure white mane with a shaky hand.

"What am I going to do?" I asked, feeling tears getting ready to fall again.

"Unicorns don't talk, actually," a voice said and I froze in place. "And it's a bit late, but I should probably let you know it's against our laws for an outsider to touch one."

I turned slowly.

A guy leaned against the tree I'd hidden behind. At first glance I could tell he was very cute, with cropped chestnut brown hair and dark brown eyes. He wore tan-colored leather pants and a canvas tunic.

Tension flowed through my body again as I immediately put up my guard. "Who are you?"

He tilted his head as he took in the sight of me. "I was about to ask you the very same question."

"I'm Nikki." I held on to my shoes so tightly now that the straps were leaving a red imprint on my skin.

"I'm Rhys," he said. "Nikki, you look absolutely petrified."

He said it very coolly, very casually, but it didn't set me at ease. What did he want? What was he doing in the forest?

But he was correct. I was frozen in fear and that wasn't going to help at all. I forced myself to calm down.

The unicorn wandered away from the creek and deeper into the forest, apparently unaffected by the anxiety that must have been coming off me in waves.

"What are you doing here?" Rhys asked.

I glanced around. "I'm. . I'm hiding from someone. I didn't have anywhere else to go."

His eyebrows raised. "Hiding from somebody who wants to hurt you?"

I nodded shakily. He studied me so intently I felt even more uncomfortable for a moment. But he didn't make any move to come closer to me; instead he stayed by the tree, leaning against it as if he were hanging out at the mall food court having a casual conversation with somebody passing by.