“The ability to recall information eventually led to my studies in magical arts, and it is how I was named as a druid.”
“Druid?” I asked. “I am no magic user. What does that mean?”
His eyes twinkled, the purple flecks seeming to glitter. I’d always known there was something different about him, and now I knew why.
“It means I am a keeper of knowledge and magical enchantments. Although my own powers are limited, I’m privy to information that could alter the course of our worlds if not kept secret.”
“What sort of secrets?”
“Secrets about the future of Faythander—things no one should have to know.”
His words sent chills down my spine. “What are you talking about? What secrets?”
Before he could answer my question, the ground shook violently, stronger than any of the other tremors thus far.
“We have to get out of here,” I shouted. Small pebbles fell from the ceiling, and a crack split the rock in the wall as I helped Maveryck stand.
He grabbed the staff, and together, we dodged the falling rocks to make it to the portal. I choked on the dust filling the air as rocks plummeted from the ceiling, and I winced as a sharp stone hit my back.
“Do you have my crystal?” Maveryck called.
“Yes.” I pressed the gem into his hand. His eyes locked with mine.
“Are you ready?” he asked me.
No. I wasn’t ready. He’d died and come back to life, making me realize the feelings I had for him weren’t connected to any spells or enchantments. I had to tell him how I felt, even if he forgot.
“Maveryck,” I said, “I wanted to tell you… before we leave.” The rumbling increased, and if I weren’t holding onto him, I would have fallen. “I need to tell you something,” I shouted.
“Tell me what?”
“I think I’m falling in love with you, too.”
“What? I thought you hated me.”
“I do. But sometimes, I also like you. I only realized it once you died.”
“Then I’m glad I died!”
“Me too!”
Large boulders smashed to the ground, exploding into tiny pieces.
“We should probably go,” he shouted.
“I know.” But as I held to him, gripping his hand and feeling his pulse beneath my fingertips, I didn’t want to leave. What would happen when we forgot everything? “But I don’t want to forget you.”
The ground stopped rumbling, although an occasional rock still smashed to the ground. The sudden silence made my ears ring. Looking behind us, I found the entrance blocked by a pile of rubble.
We only had one way out.
Losing my memories of him was inevitable.
“Isn’t there some way to avoid the memory loss?” I asked him. “Your powers—you said you were a druid—can’t you use a spell of some sort?”
He shook his head. “I wish I could, but only a memory charm would allow us to keep our memories.”
“Then it’s hopeless?”
“No. We’ll lose our memories, but our emotions will remain unaltered. We’ll still feel the same way about one another, even if we don’t know why.”
Sighing, I turned back toward the portal. It wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for.
He took my hand and gently kissed my knuckles. “I won’t forget how I feel about you.”
Sappy moments were most definitely not my thing. I would always prefer fighting to kissing. Well, almost always. But right now, since I wouldn’t remember anyway, I cupped his cheek in my hand, leaned forward, and gave him a gentle kiss.
“Neither will I,” I said.
Together, we faced the portal. As we approached, Maveryck’s crystal reacted with the energy, glowing with a white-hot light that blinded me as we stepped through the magical barrier.
I awoke, and I was freezing cold. Trying to get my bearings, I realized I lay in the snow alongside the frozen lake’s shore. The sun shone bright overhead, a quarter past its zenith, meaning it must have been mid-afternoon.
What? Hadn’t it been night?
Glancing down at my body, I gasped, and then I sat up.
“What am I wearing?”
Beside me, Maveryck stirred. Shocked, I found him clothed in only a pair of pants. He sat up as well, looking dazed as he rubbed his head.
“What happened?” he asked.
I scanned the surrounding area, searching for some explanation for the apparent time lapse. The staff lay not far from us, but I saw no signs of the wraith. I grabbed it and attempted to stand, but a wave of dizziness washed over me, so I remained sitting.
Maveryck took the staff from me and ran his hands over the wood. The runes etched into the staff’s surface glowed faintly, and a crystal around his neck also lit up. He grabbed the stone and then turned toward the lake. The ice shimmered a bright blue, the same color coming from the staff. His eyes widened as he looked from the lake to the staff.
He cursed.
“What’s the matter?”
“It seems we may have been caught in a portal.”
“What?” My stomach turned queasy as the implications sank in. If we’d been caught in a portal, did that mean we’d lost all our memories? Judging by the clothing I was currently wearing, I must have been forcefully coerced and possibly tortured into wearing such a thing. And Maveryck… what had happened to his shirt?
“What’s the last thing you remember?” he asked.
Concentrating was hard to do with the fog muddling my brain. “We’d been in the silverwitch’s vault. We stole the staff, but when we escaped, my brother and Olive got
