“I’ll do what I must.”
“How?”
He was starting to frustrate me. “I’ll decide when I get there.”
“It will not be easy.”
“You’ve mentioned it.” I tried to pull away. He pulled me closer.
“Kull, stop,” I said, but I made no effort to move away.
“You cannot continue to suppress your emotions.”
“I’m not suppressing anything.”
“You are lying.”
I tried to argue, but my brain wouldn’t come up with a good rebuttal, probably because Kull was right. A hard knot formed in my throat. I felt tears trying to form. This was the very reason I hated dealing with emotions.
He pulled me closer. I resisted at first, but finally, I let him hold me against his chest. The steady beat of his heart calmed me. A part of me realized this was worse than a kiss. If he’d kissed me, I could have rationalized that he only wanted me for sex. But he didn’t make a move, which meant he thought of me as more than an object. I was someone he cared about. It was just my luck that he’d forget it all in the next half hour.
When he released me, I turned away from him and headed off the beach. He trailed me, not speaking, until we reached my apartment. We gathered our things in silence. My hands shook as I opened my mirror. I hesitated before pressing my hand to the glass.
“The trip back will be worse than the trip over here,” I warned him. “Memory loss can be a huge stress to the brain.”
“I am prepared.”
“You’re prepared to forget everything?” I asked, not meeting his gaze.
“Olive, whether in Earth Kingdom or on Faythander, I am still the same person. That will not change.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.” He smiled. “The crossing can only affect our memories. It cannot erase our emotions.”
It was true. If that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t have any clients. “I guess you’re right.”
He caressed my cheek with his thumb in a slow, gentle motion. “You’re worrying too much.”
I sighed. Maybe I was worrying too much. He’d still feel the same about me, even if he couldn’t remember everything. “I guess you’re right.”
He nodded. “Should we return?”
“Okay,” I said, pressing my fingertips to the glass. “Whenever you’re ready.”
He stood close, the warmth from his body like a comforting blanket.
He’ll still be the same person. Don’t worry so much.
Trying to concentrate on the magic, I closed my eyes, pressed my palm to the glass, and let the spell escape my lips. The floor fell away as we crossed into Faythander.
The wind howled through my ears. Bright spots appeared in my retinas. Raindrops splashed my face as we entered the dragon’s forest. Opening my eyes, I felt the world spin around me. I steadied my breathing. The dizziness subsided a tiny bit, so I took in my surroundings.
Mushrooms as tall as houses sprouted around us. To me, this place felt the most magical in Faythander, though today, with the gray sky and soggy ground, it felt less so.
Kull stumbled. I grabbed his arm, and we ran to the nearest mushroom. We crouched beneath its broad dome as water streamed off the edges. I crossed my arms, though the dampness kept me chilled.
Kull sat beside me. His face paled. He caught his head between his hands, breathing heavily. I knew the crossing hadn’t been easy for him. Loss of memory was only one side effect. I sat next to him. After a few minutes, his breathing evened out.
He looked up, and then rounded, as if searching. “Where is my dinosaur trophy?”
Here we go.
“We agreed not to get it. I know you don’t remember, but you left it for good reason. My godson is in more trouble than we realized.”
“I agreed to this?”
“You did.”
He narrowed his eyes. “How do I know you aren’t lying?”
“I guess you don’t.”
“I wouldn’t have left without the skeleton. It makes no sense. We bargained. I never relent on bargains.”
“This time you did.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“A lot happened while we were there. My godson may die soon.” Saying it out loud was harder than I realized. “We’re still looking for Mr. Green, whoever he is. And I spellcasted the dream catcher.”
“Did you find its creator?”
“I did,” I answered after a pause. “I’m paying a visit to my father,” I said quietly.
“Then the elves are involved?”
“It looks that way.”
“Is it possible they attacked our light-rail’s carriage?”
“It’s likely. But I don’t think my father was involved.” He couldn’t have been.
Kull didn’t answer. Perhaps he didn’t want to offend me, but I knew he thought the same thing I did. My father had planned the attack on the carriage. He’d planted the dream catcher for us to find. He’d orchestrated the attack after we’d left the tombs. He was working with the goblins and the Dreamthief. He knew of my powers. He knew I was a threat.
I still didn’t know what his motivations were, but I would find out. Heaven help me, I would find out.
“How do you plan to travel to Lauressa?” he asked me.
I pulled out my mirror and found the dragon statue. The figurine warmed as I called the magic inside. I whispered the spell that would summon Fan’twar and then replaced the statue. “Same way I always do. Having a dragon for a stepfather comes in handy. I only hope he’s still here. He meant to travel to the outer islands. I pray he hasn’t yet.”
Kull nodded, his face drawn.
“I’m sure he’ll let you ride, too.”
Another nod. The steady pelting of rain broke up the uneasy silence.
“A dragon’s head would have been worth more than my entire collection combined. It makes no sense that I would have left it.”
Would he ever shut up about the thing? I wanted the old Kull back, the one I’d discovered on Earth. We’d grown close there, and now that we were back, I was stuck with stick-up-his-ass Kull.
“Is that the only reason you wanted it? Because it’s worth a lot?”
“More
