Faerie Winter

Kaylen—Caleb—and I started the War. Last time I spoke to her, Karinna was among them.”

She left the room before I could ask anything more.

I shelled acorns while I kept watch over Ethan. Twice more his bandages smoldered, and I doused his hands in the water. The second time the charred bandages crumbled away. I wrapped new ones loosely around his burns. I could have called Mom up to help me, but I didn’t. How much longer did I have to fear hurting her with my questions?

How could she and Caleb possibly have caused the War?

The sun grew low as I continued shelling. I heard a soft creak on the stairs. Matthew stepped into the room with another nutcracker. I gave his hand a quick squeeze. His fingers were cold. He sat, and we shelled together.

Matthew looked toward Ethan. “How is he?”

“About the same.” I wanted to reach for Matthew’s hand again, to warm it between both of mine, but then I wouldn’t be able to work.

Matthew picked at a stubborn bit of shell. “Gram’s going to tell them about Ethan at the Council meeting tonight. She says it’s best they hear it from her.”

“Kyle probably already told his mom. She’s in a foul mood today. She’ll want to send Ethan away.”

Matthew tossed the acorn shell into the growing pile beside me. “The Council will likely be split. Gram says it’s going to be a long meeting.”

I listened to Ethan’s steady breathing as I took another acorn from the sack. If we sent him away now, he’d die in the forest and the snow.

Matthew pressed his lips together. “We won’t let them make Ethan leave. I already spoke to Hope and Seth. Charlotte, too.” Those were all the older Afters. “If this town wants to send him away, they’ll have to get past all of us first.” He looked at me, and I knew he wanted to know if I’d stand with them. He’d always stood by me, even when I’d done little to deserve it.

I hesitated, then voiced my fear aloud. “What if Ethan really is a danger to our town? We don’t even know that Ben’s death was an accident. And even if it was, it’s an accident that could happen again.”

“We’ll deal with it.” Matthew sounded very sure.

I envied his certainty. “I won’t let you stand alone, if it comes down to that.” My fingers tightened around the acorn. The Council made the rules for Franklin Falls. What would happen if we challenged them? “It’s risky.” I was shivering. I just couldn’t seem to get warm this winter. Matthew put his arm around my shoulders, and together we watched the rise and fall of Ethan’s chest.

“Nothing’s safe,” Matthew said.

I knew that better than anyone. I turned to him. Strands of blond hair fell around Matthew’s face, and his eyes were strangely bright. I shivered harder. Then, since I was already being brave, I leaned forward and brushed my lips against his.

He didn’t pull away as I’d feared. With a soft sound he drew me closer, reaching up to run his fingers through my hair. His musky taste reminded me of the smell of his wolf’s fur. The acorn in my hand pattered to the floor.

The rustling of blankets made us pull abruptly apart. Ethan sat up in bed, staring at us.

Matthew’s ears flushed red. My face burned. I wondered if Ethan could see the way the taste of Matthew’s lips lingered on mine. The boy’s eyes hardened as he focused on us. He didn’t trust us.

I didn’t fully trust him, either. “How are you feeling?”

“How do you think I feel?” Ethan huddled down among the blankets. “But at least I’m still alive, right? I ought to be grateful.” His voice was bitter, as if maybe he wished we hadn’t saved him.

Why had he come to our town if he didn’t want to be saved? “What are you doing here?” I demanded.

“Looking for someplace safe.” There was a challenge in Ethan’s words.

I couldn’t promise him safety. I didn’t try. “Where are you from?”

“Clayburn.” Ethan looked down at his hands as if seeing the bandages for the first time. His breathing sped up.

I thought of the maps I’d seen. Clayburn was one of the nearer towns, about a day’s walk away. “Was Ben from Clayburn, too?”

Ethan bolted to his feet, blankets falling away, nightshirt barely covering his knees. “How do you know about that?” He backed through the doorway and into the hall.

“Ethan!” My voice tightened around the call. I couldn’t let him go. I had to know why he was afraid, and whether his magic had truly killed, and, if it had, how likely it was to kill again. “Ethan, stop!”

He jerked to a stop, just as I’d commanded. I felt the cold thread of my magic stretching between us.

Fear crept into his eyes. “You did that before, too, didn’t you? Just like she did.”

“Like who did?” I walked past Ethan, putting myself between him and the stairs. Matthew followed with the water basin.

“Let me go.” Smoke rose from Ethan’s bandages. “Let me go or I’ll kill you, I swear it.”

“Liza.” There was a warning in Matthew’s voice.

I ignored it, keeping my gaze and my magic focused on Ethan. “Like you killed Ben?”

Flames burst through Ethan’s bandages. The magic binding him to me burned away as charred linen drifted to the floor. The boy drew his hands together, cupping a ball of fire within.

Matthew flung the water at him. The fire hissed but didn’t go out. The scent of damp coals filled the air.

Matthew held the basin in front of us like a shield. “Easy, Ethan. We won’t hurt you.”

“You won’t, maybe.” Ethan’s dark eyes reflected the fire he held. I felt its heat against my skin. Flames cast light onto the basin Matthew held. Brightness filled my sight—No. Not now. This was no time for visions. I tried to turn away, but it was too late. I had no choice but to see—

Cloaked figures following a river toward a town. One of them—a girl my age in a cloak the bright green of mulberry leaves—hesitated a moment, drawing back her hood to reveal long clear hair and bright silver eyes. Faerie eyes, I thought, and then I saw—

Flames consuming the town’s houses. Snow sizzled as burning timbers crashed to the ground. Smoke billowed up and I saw—

Ethan watching the houses burn, the clear-haired girl’s hand on his arm. She smiled at him, and he smiled back. Neither of them moved to stop the flames. Neither did the younger children arrayed around them. Those flames burned brighter, and by their glow I saw—

Fire leaping from cupped hands to catch at a doorframe. Heat pulsed against my clothes and skin as wood burned—

Metal clattered as the basin hit the ground. Matthew grabbed my arm, and I realized these flames came from no vision. They were real, and they wreathed the doorway to Mom’s room.

Chapter 4

Ethan stood amid the flames, fire streaming from his hands to the doorway, from the doorway into the room behind him. The burned-plastic smell of melting nylon filled the air. Smoke billowed around us, clogging my throat as Matthew pulled me farther from the door.

Footsteps pounded up the stairs. Mom ran to us, her body hazy through the smoke. “Get out. Both of you.” She pushed past to grasp Ethan’s nightshirt. His collar burst into flame,