however. Her usual shine was diminished and her presence didn’t radiate the same effortless exuberance. Cole was drawn immediately to her eyes, and when she moved closer, he could tell they were now the color of moss that had never been touched by daylight.
“What happened was my choice,” Tristan announced. Since the other nymphs weren’t backing down, she approached Lexi and placed a hand on her smooth shoulder. “A choice that couldn’t have been forced upon me no matter who was asking me to make it.”
“The Skinners never stop asking,” Lexi said. “They’re never satisfied with what they’re given, and now we’ve all been corrupted.”
Waggoner shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “In case you haven’t looked outside lately, there’s a whole lot of corruption going on. From where we stand, it seems you ladies are doing better than most.”
Cole hadn’t taken his eyes off of Tristan, which had nothing to do with the beauty that still made every other beautiful thing in the world pale by comparison. She was one of the first supernatural beings Cole had met who hadn’t tried to kill him. He didn’t exactly swap greeting cards with the Dryad, but there was a connection between them similar to the one between a boy and the experienced older woman who’d lovingly given him one hell of a first time. “What’s the matter?” he asked her earnestly.
His tone, more than the words themselves, had an effect on Tristan. Her exterior crumbled just enough for him to see how much work was required to keep it in place. “Everyone,” she said with supreme authority, “leave us.”
“Who stays?” one of the armed guards asked.
“Cole and Paige,” Tristan told him. “Everyone else can move into the next room. There’s food there,” she said to Waggoner in a less severe tone. “Help yourself. If you’re going as far as you say you are, you’ll need all the nutrition you can get.”
After several affirming nods were passed between those concerned, the nymphs escorted Waggoner through a door at the opposite side of the room.
“The one with the beard seems new to the game,” Tristan mused as they left.
“That’s Waggoner,” Paige said. “He’s still wet behind the ears but stood up for me and a whole lot of people when things went to hell in Atoka.” She waited for the other two to sit down before making herself comfortable next to Cole on one of the couches.
“I heard about your home in Chicago burning down,” Tristan said. “That’s terrible.”
“What were those other girls talking about when they said you were corrupted?” Cole asked. “That is, if they were talking about you.”
“They were,” Tristan said with a single nod. “I was glad to help you in Atoka when the Breaking Moon rose, but I told you there would be a cost. I had to tap into darker energies, such as fear, hate, and rage.” When she said those words, her eyes took on an accusatory glint that was aimed at both Skinners. “There’s a reason we don’t use those energies. They change us.”
“But you’ll get better, right?” Cole asked. “I mean, you can’t have been the first Dryad to do something like that.”
“Definitely not. The only problem is that this sort of corruption makes us into something that isn’t Dryad. Human legends are filled with my kind as well as theirs. We are known as muses, mermaids, and sprites, while those others are commonly known as hags, cannibals, and . . .”
“Witches,” Paige said.
Tristan nodded and wrapped her arms tightly around herself. The sight of her purposely dimming her own light made Cole feel ashamed for asking her to go through the ordeal. It had been necessary, but that didn’t take anything away from the burden he now felt.
“The reason I detained you here isn’t to make you feel guilty,” Tristan explained. “And it’s not to show you what you’ve done to me. It’s to explain that your actions have consequences. Sometimes, I wonder if Skinners fully appreciate that.”
“Believe me,” Paige said, “we know plenty about consequences.”
“Can you know how the actions of every Skinner before you have impacted the world in which we live?”
Picking up on the new edge in her voice, Cole said, “I’ve only been doing this for a year or two . . . maybe more.” Images of his time as a Skinner rushed through his mind in a flash, leaving him feeling older than before they’d arrived. “I may not know a lot, but I know we’re not trying to leave anything worse than it was before we got there. It wasn’t even our choice for all of this crap to go public. Paige and I did our best to keep people thinking werewolves and vampires were just hoaxes and perverts trolling the Internet.”
“I know you mean well,” Tristan said as a patient smile eased across her face. “I also know you are trying to do good. That’s why I’ve agreed to help you as much as I have, even when it meant sacrificing a part of myself that I may never regain.” She shifted on the overstuffed cushions, drawing her legs in close. “I’m referring to all Skinner activity. The animals you kill have a place in our world. When too many of one species are lost, another takes its place. If one predator falls, another fills the gap. If no other predators fill the gap, more of the smaller creatures emerge.”
“Yeah, like Chupacabra,” Cole grunted. “I’ve still got the scars from those little bastards. The gargoyles seem to have gone back into hibernation for the winter, though.”
“You killed a Full Blood during the Breaking Moon,” Tristan continued. “Another will rise to take his place, just as one arose to fill the void left by Henry.”
“So what should we do?” Paige asked. “Just let them all go about their business so they can wipe us out?”
“It’s too late for that, I know,” Tristan said. “But you have to know that you cannot continue dealing with each individual fire that is started. You either need to commit yourselves to the larger struggle or step back and let the fires burn.”
Reflexively lowering her voice, Paige told her, “That’s why we’re going to Hungary. The Amriany are about to have the same problems we have here. For all we know, they may have already started.”
“Yes, things are just as bad there as they are here,” Tristan mused. “The Travelers have always been better at keeping things quiet. Why Hungary? Is that just where you intend on meeting the Amriany?”
“I thought Milosh and Nadya were based in the Czech Republic,” Paige said. “But they said they wanted to meet us in Hungary.”
“Do you know why?”
“Not yet,” Cole said, “but you do. Isn’t that right?” Seeing the guarded expression on Tristan’s face, he leaned toward her and ignored the tension he sensed from the armed guard that had remained posted near the door. “Does this have something to do with Chuna?”
Slowly, Tristan nodded.
“Chuna is one of the Mist Born,” Paige said. “That’s what Taylor told us. We don’t even know what that means. So far, a lot of this seems like just a bunch of disconnected pieces.”
“And yet you know well enough to leave the place where it seems you’re needed the most, so you can find the meaning to this particular piece?”
Knowing he was speaking for both of them, Cole said, “There’s really not a lot else for us to do.”
“Sure there is,” Tristan said. “You could keep chopping Half Breeds into pulp like the Army. You could follow the Nymar’s lead and sit in buildings purchased at a significant discount from frightened owners who are only thinking of surviving for one more day or are too enraptured to refuse the pittance they were given. You could even draw yourselves into a heavily armed cult with strongholds in three different cities like your fellow Skinners.”
“You mean the Vigilant?”
Tristan nodded.
Paige kept her voice level and quiet, so as not to further upset the guard, when she asked, “The Vigilant have strongholds in more than one city?”
“Yes,” Tristan replied, looking as if she was fully aware of the bomb she was dropping. “Three. At least, those are the ones I know about. The Vigilant have been trying to capture my sisters much like Jonah Lancroft did. As far as I can tell, it’s for the same reason. They want use of our temples as well as a fresh supply of Memory Water.”
Suddenly, Cole’s head snapped up and he drew in a quick breath.
“I’m sorry, Cole,” Tristan said. “But Memory Water won’t help rid you of the tendrils inside of you. Otherwise I would have offered you some when I helped get that spore out of you.”
