Shade ran around the table and embraced her mother. She knew the pain of her mother’s memory rushing back to her had taken its toll. She hadn’t expected to see Jade fall apart in front of all of them. There was nothing to do but hold on to her and let the grief pass. Eighteen years of living in a lie can mess with you immensely. Shade’s own tears streamed down her face, and wet her mother’s shirt as she rubbed her mother’s shoulder. Shade hated seeing her cry. She didn’t often break down, she was always the family’s rock.

As Jade’s sobbing quieted to nothing, Shade looked up to see that Benton had shuffled James and Anna out of the room to watch TV. Only Soap remained. He walked over and handed Shade two napkins. Shade nodded as he removed himself to join the others. Now alone, she pulled away from Jade to offer the napkin. Jade took it and wiped her face, sighing deeply and shaking her head.

“I’m sorry, Shade. I didn’t know when everything came rushing back to me it would get to me so badly. I shouldn’t have said those things. I do hope your friend is not too offended.” She blew her nose and sniffled. She looked at Shade with red-rimmed eyes and studied her daughter’s face. She reached out touching Shade’s cheek and smiled weakly. “It’s not easy loving a Faerie. No one can ever replace them, Shade. Usually, a human will love a Faery forever, but forever is but a blink in their lifetime. Don’t forget that. Never underestimate them. I lost years of my life because of it. Your real father may have loved me, but he did not ask me if it was okay to erase my memory and make me forget who I was, what I am, and who you are. It will never be okay.”

She sniffled again, wiping her nose and sighing as she gave a nod to Shade. “I’m fine now, please tell everyone I’m going to bed. I’m pretty exhausted from the shielding spell today. Good night Shade.” They stood for a moment, staring at each other when Jade broke the connection, and made her way to her room.

Shade’s eyes lingered in the direction her mother had gone. The weight of the world felt like it was pushing down on her and waiting for her reaction. She cleaned the table off and wiped the crumbs away, relishing the calm that the small effort of such a mundane task gave her.

Chapter Nineteen

THE FAERY WATCHED from the edge of the woods. Evangeline let the crisp breeze of wind play with her black as night hair as she leaned against one of the mulberry trees. She watched the house where her sister lived. Shaking her head, she smiled as she thought about living in the human world. Her mortal sister had chosen that life, and she hadn’t. They had both grown up in Faerie until she was around seven, then they had moved to this house with their mother, near the edge of the human and Faerie borders. Jade had stayed, and Evangeline had left as soon as she could to live and work in Faerie. Now, staring at her human dwelling brought a rush of memories; them as young girls laughing and dancing around the back yard. Their giggles echoed in her head as she stared at the soft glow of lights from the kitchen as they blinked off.

She knew why Jade had remained in the human world. She knew all about Verenis, and how hard Jade had fallen for the handsome Faerie King of the Southern Realms. She had warned her about falling in love with Fey. Watching her sister fall had not been easy. When it came to hunting Verenis by Aveta’s orders, no one could have gotten her to reveal his love for Jade. Even Evangeline had remained silent.

The Queen was none the wiser about her sister. Unfortunately, Verenis’ presence around Jade would not have gone unnoticed for long. Verenis had realized the danger of Jade’s discovery, especially with her pregnancy at stake. Vange had watched him erase her sister’s memory. Watched her forget everything under the spell, even her own sister. She knew immediately that Jade would not remember who she was or who Vange was either. It had pained Vange to turn away and leave, never to speak with her sister again for fear that Queen Aveta would kill Jade and her unborn daughter.

It had been eighteen years since that fateful day. Now, Vange was on the hunt for her niece on the Queen’s orders. She never would have guessed that Shade was that baby long ago that she had turned from to protect. Vange smiled, looking up at the twinkle of stars that gazed down at her. Oh, the irony of it all, thought Vange. She knew the moment she had seen Shade up close that she was Jade’s daughter. She looked like Queen Lana, but Jade’s features stuck out from her like a knife. Vange had hoped Shade wasn’t the long lost niece of hers, but alas, fate was not so kind.

Pondering what she would do or even say to Jade, she began her walk down to the house. Her long coat blocked the chill of the night, and she cast a floating witch light in her path to illuminate the way. Vange’s fire powers from her mortal mother were strong in her, just as they were in Jade. The Fey blood mixed in amplified them even more. There was nowhere she could go that she would ever be in the dark or cold with power like hers. She wondered if Jade was starting to remember anything. Memory charms fade with time, and it could very well be near the time to replenish the charms’ powers. She would have to do it since Verenis was now long dead. She didn’t want to do it, but if Shade was to stay safe, she had to make sure Jade remembered nothing.

Vange stopped abruptly, watching her witch light suddenly bounce off an invisible wall. Tilting her head, she scanned the dirt until she spotted what she was looking for. Crouching down she lit the ground around her with the witch light and frowned, noting the specks of still drying blood and salt trail. Standing again she reached out to touch the invisible shield before her.

Damn! Jade already knows.

The shield rippled under her hand and sent a vibration of pain up her arm. Pulling her hand away, she winced from the slight shock. Vange had no choice now but to call her sister out of the house and speak with her. The protection shield was strong. Even she could not penetrate it. She concentrated on the shield, feeling not one, but three powerful essences embracing the spell. If Jade had found two other Witches to perform the spell with her, they were now as safe as anyone could ever be in their own home from Faeries, lest hiding in an oubliette. No one could enter without their permission. No one and nothing could penetrate its magic.

Vange paced back and forth for a moment, thinking hard on what she would say to her sister. Maybe she could enter if given permission. She ran her power along the barrier again and found it laced with a disabling spell. Jade had foreseen something. Maybe she had known Vange would come back here for Shade. If she were allowed to enter the grounds, she would be stripped of her powers within the shield.

Clever, Jade. Very clever.

Vange swallowed back her frustration as she stared at the house beyond the barrier. It had become worn with the years. The exterior structure boasted peeling back old paint and fading bricks. She felt a twinge of longing as she scanned her childhood home. She had not felt the homesickness in so long that it felt nauseating, and made lose her breath as it socked her stomach. Squeezing her eyes shut, she breathed in until the pricks of pain eased away. Her eyes fluttered open and narrowed as she called out to her long lost kin.

“Jade! Jade! I need to speak with you! Jade!” Vange paused, waiting for movement from the darkened house. The lights flickered on inside and lit up the living room window. She grinned as she saw shadows shuffle behind the curtains, waiting patiently to see her sister once more.

Jade flung the front door open. The crack of the door slamming on the wall echoed across the empty yard. Shade, Soap, and Benton popped out behind her, eyes wide in surprise and puffy with sleep. They stopped as she came into their vision. Gaping at Vange, Shade looked the most baffled by her sudden appearance. She gripped her mother’s arm, but Jade shook her off. Nothing but recognition danced furiously in Jade’s tiger brown eyes.

“Vange, I should have known you would eventually come by here.” Jade’s voice dripped with resentment. Her face crinkled in a scowl as she eyed her sister. Realizing suddenly that Vange had remained outside the protective shield Jade had invoked, she smirked and started walking towards her sister.

“Mom, wait! Don’t go near her, she’s Aveta’s Lieutenant! She’s here to kill us!” Shade gulped back her panic as her mother waved her away. Jade came to stop near the barriers edge and gave her sister a once over. Jade’s lips pressed together hard as she took a moment to gather her thoughts.

“Sister, how good to see you after all these years,” Vange said. “I never thought I would ever see your shining face again.” She gave her a sinister grin as she patiently waited for Jade to decide what to do about her.

“Why’d you come here Vange?” A glimpse of pain flashed across Jade’s eyes as she glared at her sister.

“You know why. Verenis’ memory spell has obviously worn off. Unfortunately, I have come too late to salvage it. It could not be helped sister.” Vange’s face became serious as she watched Jade fume. She didn’t want to underestimate her, but she had to speak with her at all costs. She sighed. Diplomacy was going to have to win out tonight. “Look Jade. I swear I’m not going to hurt you or your daughter. I need to speak with you.” Vange glanced around, suddenly aware of how exposed she felt standing outside the barrier wall. “Please, let me in and I can tell you.”

“What makes you think that I would let a Lieutenant of Aveta’s near my home? You work for her, Vange! Why should I even trust you?” Jade frowned, ready to march back into the house and forget her.

Evangeline sighed. Her loyalties battled within. She watched her sister, her best friend, until she had left at the age of eighteen to explore the Faerie world. She felt a tug at her heart where it had remained cold and dormant for what seemed an eternity. Longing bubbled up into her chest and caught her in a state of emergency as Jade began to turn and walk away from her.

“Jade–stop, please, I’m still your sister.” Vange pleaded. “Nothing will ever change that. Not even Aveta. I swear to you, as my own Fey blood binds me. I will do and say nothing to harm you or anyone else in your home. Ever. I promise you this.” She tried to swallow as her mouth turned dry and her heart quickened in desperation.

Jade stopped in her tracks, seemingly torn between returning to the porch where Soap, Shade, and her brother waited. Staring down at the grass in the dark shadows cast by the illuminated windows, Jade wrestled with uncertainty. Turning back to her sister, she knew just what Vange had sacrificed in that one moment. Searching her sister’s eyes for absolution, she saw what she needed. Fear and sadness mixed and swirled in her sister’s dark eyes. Jade approached the barrier once more.

“Mom, no!” Shade yelped from the porch. Jade shushed her and waved her away, her eyes never leaving Vange’s. Her intense stare stabbed back at Vange, but the Faery Witch stood her ground. Finally, Jade sighed, releasing a breath that she had been holding for a while.

“Alright. I hold you to your oath, Evangeline. You will be powerless when you enter here. I made sure of it.” Jade’s hand pierced the barrier as she held it out to her sister. Vange nodded and took it, gripping it tight, and stepped through the threshold. A slight tingling rush swept through her as she crossed the barrier, making her dizzy for a moment as the magic swept over her, binding her powers completely. She shook her head and glanced up at Jade, a twinge of panic searing through her dark eyes.

“Don’t worry, the feeling isn’t permanent.” Jade stated blandly. “You will be right as rain when you leave our home. Come.” Jade waved her on and turned back towards the house.

Shade released her bite on her bottom lip. The coppery taste of blood tainted her mouth as she realized she had been clamping on it too hard. She eyed Vange as she passed her, and ducked into the house, not giving her a second’s look. Glancing at Soap, her displeasure spilled across her face.

“We can’t trust her, Soap. What are we going to do?” Shade said. Soap stepped forward, embracing her tightly as his long golden brown hair swept over her like a cape.

“There is nothing to do Shade. I think you shouldn’t underestimate your mother. She looks like she could probably handle herself quite well if need be. Besides, she has made sure we are protected here. I won’t let anything happen, okay?” He loosened his embrace as Shade nodded. She was slightly reassured, but still alarmed. She sighed as they turned to enter the house.

Chapter Twenty

“I NEVER COULD stand living here. The iron in the pipes and pans appalled me. You’re lucky it never fazed you.” Evangeline stood leaning on the kitchen counter with her arms crossed. She looked slightly uncomfortable, but tried to appear more at ease. She wasn’t used to being in this kind of situation. Being an Unseelie leader for so long, diplomacy was not in her vocabulary. Most things she just took with a fight. Now, observing her sister as she moved through the room made Vange wonder where her long lost peace had gone.

“Here, drink this,” Jade said, handing her a cup. “It will help with the iron effects since you have no power to shield you.” The cup was full of some sort of concoction she had whipped up.

“It’s not poison, is it?” Vange gave her slight nervous chuckle, attempting to cover up her reluctance.

Jade sighed. “No, it’s not poison. If you don’t believe me, you can just leave.” She slumped down at the kitchen table where Soap, Shade, and a sleepy looking Benton waited.

Vange glanced down at the swirled white fluid. The nausea from the iron in the house made her head swim, and had her dangerously close to fainting. She had envied Jade’s human resistance to the iron toxicity that her own Faery heritage cursed her with. At least with a shield of glamour, Vange had endured it quite well as a child. Now, it was like breathing in fumes of exhaust that penetrated down to her gut. No wonder we leave the cities to the mundane humans, thought Vange. She sighed and downed the potion with a quick swallow. The queasiness faded as the sweet liquid filled her stomach. It quieted the pain and dizziness so fast that Vange felt exhilarated to feel normal once again.