“Thanks.” We went in opposite directions at the bottom of the stairs. When I reached the terrace, I was surprised to see a whole flight of pixies in full armour in the soft light cast by the lighting, Rasta at the forefront. It’s too bad there wasn’t a way to actually communicate the nature of the emergency or details through the bracelet.
Who says there isn’t? You need only ask, you know.
I slid to a stop. The whispered voice in my head was not Zara’s. Um, Zara, did you hear that?
I did. I couldn’t decipher the feelings I was getting through the connection now. Jealousy? Unease? A little fear? All of the above, Roxanne. Except fear. And definitely not jealousy.
You do realize what all of the above actually means, right?
She didn’t bother to answer that. Just be careful. For all of our sakes.
Her not-so-subtle reminder that there were more than just our two lives at stake wasn’t lost on me. The future of familiars and witches depended on me not getting myself killed before the kits were ready to bond with their witches.
She will be safe, Guardian. I looked down at the softly glowing sapphire. The pixies were all watching me during this silent exchange. Rand raised a brow, as if silently asking me if everything was okay. I nodded and forced my shoulders to relax.
Rasta bowed. “Madame Witch. We answer your call.” She looked around with a sharp eye. Then her gaze fell to my bracelet, which was still glowing. “Is the battle over?”
“There isn’t a battle. Well, not yet. I, uh, called you to ask for your help. We may have located the missing children of the water fae and are going to try to rescue them. We don’t know what we’re up against yet, so it might be dangerous. In fact, it probably will be. If you aren’t able to help, I completely understand, but I’d prefer to have you at my side.”
Rasta’s chin went up, her eyes flashing with determination and more than a little bloodlust. “Of course we will help. The water fae have long been our allies and all fae children are precious. Your battle is our battle.” The flight hovering behind her cheered, raising their swords. After having seen the tiny warriors in battle more than once, I was glad they were on our side.
“Do all of you want to go?” They wouldn’t take up much room on the boat, but I worried about getting to the boat without anyone seeing them.
Rasta looked over her shoulder at the warriors, considering them. “I will need to send someone back to my mother, to inform her of these events. You,” she pointed at one of the bucks at the rear. “Report first to Queen Astra, then inform the new mound of our mission.” The buck saluted, then turned to go, his shoulders slumped in disappointment. “Wait.” She turned back to me. “How long before we leave?”
“Oh, maybe fifteen minutes? I still have to inform the water fae.”
Rand leaned toward me. “Gloria and the guys are already talking to them.”
“Okay, less than fifteen,” I amended.
Rasta gave a curt nod and addressed the waiting buck. “You heard her. If you can make it to the mound to let Queen Astra know what’s going on quickly, you may appoint another to go to my mound. Should you make it back here before we leave, you’ll go with us.” The young buck flew off almost before she’d finished speaking, his body barely more than a blur as he raced for the trees.
“Thank you.” I knew we’d need all the help we could get, but how were we going to hide them? Shaking my head, I held back a sigh. We’d figure it out.
Movement on the stairs caught our attention. The Draftmans, Gloria, Dorn, and three other water fae I hadn’t seen before stepped past the shadows cast by the terrace lamps. Dorn pushed forward to address me.
“The children, you know where they are?” he demanded.
Rand quickly moved between us, effectively blocking Dorn from reaching me. The water fae glowered down at him. Stepping to the side, I held up a hand, hoping to calm both men down. “We’re going after them. We don’t have an exact location yet, but we will soon, that’s all we’re waiting on. We found one of the people involved and he will lead us to them.” Inside, I prayed this was true.
The anger and tension rolling off all of the water fae was palpable. Dorn’s dark eyes took in the pixies behind us, then came back to me. “I will prepare our warriors. How will you send word to us?”
“Oh, um . . .” Faltering, I scrambled for an answer. Zara? A little help here?
Sebastian should be able to communicate everything to him if he lowers his mental shields.
Eyeing him, I wondered what the chances of that would be. “One of the familiars will be accompanying us. He can keep you informed if you’ll, um, lower your . . .” I tapped my head.
Dorn cocked his head, then nodded. His gaze narrowed and he looked around the area again. “Where is your own familiar? Will she not be by your side?”
I opened my mouth to respond, then snapped it shut as Zara ran from the house and leapt into my arms. I have no idea how I managed to catch her as deftly as I did, but I hoped the move looked as smooth as it felt.
It is not for you to question a Devraux Witch! Zara’s green eyes blazed with indignation. From the corner of my eye, I saw Gloria hurry toward the house, probably heading for the kittens.
Dorn took an involuntary step back, his gaze averted. “My apologies to you both.”
Trying
