Chapter Twenty-Two: Clark Endless
1056 Words
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CLARK ENDLESS
The last time that I came to faerie, was when I had s*x with the faerie that had made herself look like Emma to me. It had not been my proudest moment. It took everything in my power not to go back, to make it a routine simply so I could fantasize about her under me, in me. Me inside of her.
Because none of it had been real. In London, I had had a few s****l encounters, but I hadn’t had a serious relationship. I focused on work, on school. Anything to forget about something that couldn’t happen.
The years passed in a blur, without me seeing much of my siblings, of my family. Until I got the call from Bradley that Oberon had paid him a visit, telling him that Emma was trying to get out of the bargain by marrying someone else. That we needed to head to New York immediately, to talk some sense into Emma before she did something absolutely ridiculous.
I was grateful that Louisa had access to a portal, because if we’d had to take a plane, I would have been drunk by the time that we got there. The thought of Emma being with Oberon made me sad, but I accepted it because it was beyond my control. The thought of Emma being with someone else made me absolutely furious.
Now, being back in faerie, knowing that Emma was near it was like I could breathe again. There was laughter nearby, and one of the trees came to life, morphing into a womanly like shape.
It was a nymph.
She smiled at me. “Oh, you smell lovely,” she purred, “I couldn’t help but come out to see you when you arrived. I know exactly who you are. Red hair. Freckles. You’re one of the Endless boys, but not quite.”
“I’m the adopted one,” I replied, probably a little dryer than I should have. I had said it so many times in my life, you would have thought that I would have been used to it by now. But the thing about not knowing who you were was that it ate at your soul, festering, a kind of wound that could never be fixed.
Even if the truth was found out. Because for every truth found, there was always something lost in between.
She smiled again. “No. That’s not it. There’s something more to you. Something fae about you.”
“So I’ve been told,” I said, “but I’m as human as they come.”
I pulled down my t-shirt a little, revealing the faerie rune I’d had tattooed onto me at eighteen. “Wouldn’t be able to put this on if I hadn’t.”
She smirked. “Perhaps, or you’re made of something even stronger.”
I shook my head. “I’m not here to talk nonsense and riddles. I’m here to find Hecate.”
“Such intimacy with The First Witch,” the nymph said, “she’s a dangerous one to know.”
“There are few in faerie who aren’t.”
The nymph grinned. “Smart boy. Just look for the cottage. She’ll be there. Or she’ll find you.”
“Look for the cottage? I need directions.”
“The forest directs those who know what they want. I should know. I am the forest. Good luck, sweet Prince. You’ll need it on a quest like yours.” She reached out with her finger made of bark to stroke my cheek, roughly, yet intimately against my skin. Then, she transformed herself, back into the tree.
“The forest directs those who know what they want? f*****g faeries,” I muttered, shouldering the back pack I’d brought with me as I kept on walking.
Faeries were not able to lie, but they could withhold, misdirect, or trick. Which somehow, made them even more cunning to deal with. Not having any choice in the matter, I kept on walking, hoping Hecate would reveal herself to me without me having to walk too far.
As I walked, I came to the center of the forest. There, in all it’s glory, looking as if it had sprung from the trees themselves, was the castle. I had seen it many times but had never been inside before.
But Emma was there.
As far as the faeries were concerned, I was her brother, wasn’t I? I had a right to see my family. Surely, they wouldn’t keep me from her if I tried….
Except she wasn’t the purpose of my mission. I was there on behalf of Ben, who needed rescuing, and if I let Ben die, I could forget even the possibility of Emma. I kept on walking, past the castle, even though every part of me was screaming to go inside. I didn’t need to cause trouble with Oberon. Especially if I had a shot in hell of being with Emma.
I hoped the journey wouldn’t take too long, but the hard thing about faerie was that sometimes things got in your way. Tried to distract you from the path that you were on. Every step I took, I thought that I would come across something, someone that tried to distract me.
But soon, I neared a cottage, that I knew had to be The First Witches. There was no one else around for miles. I walked towards it and raised my hand to open the door. But before I even could, the door opened, revealing the last person I thought to see there.
Tatiana. The Queen of Faeries. All blond and golden, looking directly at me as if she had been waiting for me. “Clark Endless,” she said sternly, “you’re late.”
“I’m…what?”
“Late,” she said, “I expected you here several hours ago. Come on in. We’ve much to discuss.”
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