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“Well, Lights be damned,” Ezra says loudly.

  The light withdraws into the stone almost instantly and I find myself staring at an opening carved into the very tree itself. When I peer inside I can see nothing but the beginning of a set of stone steps leading down into darkness. I turn to Ezra, my mouth dropping open in shock. None of this makes sense. My scientific brain is reeling from the absurdity of it all.

  “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go.” Before I am even able to protest, he places his hand on my lower back, guiding me through the doorway. The moment we step inside the hollowed-out tree, the entrance seals shut behind us. It has the same earthy smell as Clover and, somehow, I find comfort in that. She is down here somewhere, and so too are Rhain and Devin.

  “Looks like the only way to go now is down,” Ezra says.

  “How will we get out?” I say, unable to hide the tremble of fear in my voice.

  “I have no idea, Accacia. But if there is a way in to the fae realm, then there must be a way out. Do not be afraid.”

  “I’ll try.” If I can survive a curse upon my head, being kidnapped by Roland, and the halflings’ attempt to kill me, then I could conquer my fear of confined spaces too. “So, the fae live underground?” I say, placing my hand on the wall of the tunnel to steady myself. Dirt falls away as I run my fingers along it. Beneath them I can feel the smooth curve of something embedded within the wall itself. The light from the stone is still glowing, so I hold it up against the wall, trying to see what I am touching. My hand falls away quickly as a vine as thick as my arm starts to pulse. Within seconds the walls light up with luminous green vines twisting and tumbling over each other, highlighting our descent into the earth below.

  “Shall we?” Ezra says holding his hand out, and even though I don’t need him to show me the way now that I can see, I take it anyway.

  We step downwards, following the winding stone staircase as it twists into the depths of the earth. The green vines in the walls glow as thousands of tiny orbs of light pulse beneath the surface. They remind me of how blood cells would look moving through a vein.

  “Do you see that, Ezra? I have a feeling these vines are more than just a way to light the tunnel.”

  “Yes, I was thinking along the same lines, Accacia.”

  “Oh, how so?”

  “When Queen Adrielle cast the curse, she trapped the people of Clan Terra within the forest itself. Tying them to the earth they once loved, making it their prison. Like we are prisoners of the light, they are prisoners of the earth.”

  “What are you saying, that these vines are the people of Clan Terra?”

  “In a manner of speaking.” Ezra frowns, placing his hand against one of the vines. It seems to brighten under his touch.

  “But what of the fae you saw taking Rhain and Ezra? They could move freely. They’re human still, or at least part human like the wolf-shifters.”

  “I am not saying the vines are the people of Clan Terra, but the lights that float within them. I don’t know how to explain it…”

  “Try. It can’t be any crazier than what I am thinking.”

  “Could it be possible that each of these lights represent the consciousness of each member of Clan Terra?”

  “You mean that a part of their soul is trapped within these vines?”

  “Something like that…” Ezra stops, the look on his face thoughtful.

  “What is it, Ezra?”

  “Something has been puzzling me ever since I saw the pods in your friend’s greenhouse.”

  “Go on.”

  “If the people of Clan Terra truly are confined to the Forbidden forest by the curse Queen Adrielle cast, how did those three pods come to grow in her greenhouse?”

  “Hold on a minute,” I say, remembering the conversation I’d had with Clover a few weeks ago. “The last time Clover and I talked, she told me about these unusual saplings that she had found in her forest. She had been so excited about them. She explained how she thought they were a new species. Those saplings must have come from the Forbidden forest. They must have grown into those pods.”

  “Yes, that would make perfect sense. The portal opened up on the edge of the Forbidden forest. Clover must have entered, seen the saplings and taken them back to her greenhouse, cultivating them there.” Ezra grins. Something inside my chest does a little flip-flop at the way his grey eyes light up. It’s like watching the sun emerge from a storm cloud.

  “Then it would appear that the fae have found a way around the curse.”

  “Yes!” I exclaim.”

  “Which means…” Ezra starts, clearly thinking along the same track as me.

  “Which means the fae must have believed Nostra, that they want to try and break the curse too.”

  As suddenly as it appeared the smile slips from Ezra’s face, the storm cloud returning. “Perhaps not all. Clover came to you in your sleep. She warned you away, Accacia. She wouldn’t do that if all the fae were in agreement. Not to mention the fact that Rhain and Devin have been taken. There might be a faction within the fae who want to break the curse, but I suspect many more are not so keen about the idea.”

  “But don’t they want their lives back?”

  “You have to remember Queen Adrielle is powerful. Breaking the curse is dangerous for everyone involved. There will also be some who have become accustomed to their gifts, who enjoy the life they lead, and there will be others who simply cannot remember life before the curse or the freedom they once enjoyed.” Ezra sighs.

  “Then Clover could still be in danger?”

  “Yes, very much so. As are my brothers.”

  “Then we should hurry,” I say, rushing down the steps.

  Eventually we reach the bottom and find ourselves in a small, stone room. The shape of the room is odd, not square or even circular. In fact, if I am not mistaken, it is in the shape of a pentagon. Set in each side of the pentagon are five wooden doors. They all have a different flower or plant carved onto the surface. One has a rose, another ivy trailing across the surface. There is a bluebell carved in the third door, then a sunflower, and finally a dahlia. How strange. Perhaps this is a fae thing? I walk towards the centre of the room, stopping at a stone dais. Engraved upon it is a symbol. It is a pentagon again, but within its centre there is a circle. Lines divide the shape into five and meet the central circle. Each line has another circle centred upon it. I run my fingers over the grooves, wondering what on earth it all means.

  “What now?” I ask Ezra, feeling completely bemused.

  He scratches his cheek. “I haven’t the faintest idea,” he says, moving from door to door. He gives each of them a gentle push to see if any will open. None of them do.

  “I feel like Alice in Wonderland,” I mumble, half expecting to see an ‘eat me, drink me’ sign.

  “Alice in what?”

  “Nothing, nothing,” I say, feeling slightly hysterical.

  “What about the stone? It opened the door above, perhaps it will open one of these too.”

  “Good idea,” I say, walking over to the nearest door. It is the one with the sunflower. I hold the stone up and wait. Nothing. I push against it, still nothing. I do the same for each until I am finally faced with the door that has the rose carved into its surface. Ezra is standing behind me, peering over my shoulder.

  I hold the stone up, but still nothing happens. “Now what?”

  “Honestly, I have no idea, Accacia.”

  “Damn it,” I say, slamming my hands against the door. I don’t know who’s more shocked, me or Ezra, as the door swings open with a gentle click.

  Chapter Six

  We step through the door and onto the brow of a hill that falls down into a sweeping valley below. Above our heads there is an impossibly high ceiling covered with millions of fireflies all twirling and moving about one another. They illuminate the space so brightly it is as though we are standing in the mid-day sun. I close my eyes, and something close to hope expands in my chest. Just beneath the surface of Ev
er Vale is a whole new world just waiting to be discovered. No wonder the fae didn’t take kindly to trespassers. If this was my home I would want to keep it a secret too. In the distance I can see another large forest, and within it lights dotted amongst the trees.

  “What’s that over there?” I say, pointing in the direction I am looking.

  Ezra shades his eyes from the light. “There appear to be buildings amongst the trees. Maybe that is where the fae reside, a city perhaps. I am too far away; my eyesight isn’t as sharp as it was before…”

  I snap my head around. “Before you gave me your blood? It’s okay, Ezra, you can say it. Believe me, I am very much aware of the precarious situation you are in. There is a solution, a very simple one.” I hold up my wrist to him.

  “No,” he says, quietly. “No, Accacia.”

  I almost stamp my foot in frustration, but I don’t. “Fine,” I say, trying hard not to show my emotions. “We are here to save our friends, nothing more, you’ve made that abundantly clear. Should we head in the direction of the city or take another path?”

  “The stone brought us this far. I think we let it decide which path we take,” Ezra says.

  “Okay.” I pull the stone free from my pocket once more, the tiny light still flickering within it. It vibrates gently in my hand. I look over my shoulder one last time, expecting to see the door we had entered through but find that it has disappeared, replaced instead with an expanse of endless green meadow. I don’t need to feel the magic of the place to know that it is there, the disappearance of the door is testament to that.

  “Which way?” Ezra asks. A light breeze tousles his hair as he looks about him.

  Although he still appears tired, there is something different about him. It is hard to put my finger on, but he seems lighter somehow. Is he feeling the immediate effects of this place as much as I am? I have only been forced to live in darkness for twenty-seven years, the people of Clan Lux have suffered for so much longer than that. Even though this isn’t real sunlight, the illusion is hard to ignore. Forced to live in darkness, this is an illusion that we could easily accept as reality. I imagine what it would be like to live here in this place with … Stop, Accacia, I tell myself.

  “Accacia, which way?” Ezra repeats.

  “Hold on,” I say, shaking my head free of these dangerous thoughts. This isn’t our reality, this is fae magic. Holding out the stone in front of me, I wait for it to vibrate.

  “This way,” I say, pointing to a copse of trees situated in the opposite direction to the fae city.

  We walk together down the hill. A rabbit hops across the grass in front of us, its fur sleek and shiny, oblivious to our presence. I stop, watching it move across the meadow. It turns to look at me. It has startling green eyes, just like Clover’s.

  “Accacia, look,” Ezra says, tapping me on the arm, his attention drawn elsewhere. He points to a blaze of orange that dashes across the meadow.

  “Was that a fox?” I say, as it disappears into a thicket filled with bright pink flowers beyond which a stream glistens with purple hued water. I don’t know what I am more fascinated by, the fox or the stream and its strange coloured water.

  Ezra shakes his head. “I believe it was,” he laughs. The sound of his laughter is as foreign to my ears as this place is to my eyes.

  As we reach the bottom of the hill and walk in the direction of the small wood, the pulsing of the stone becomes more urgent, the vibrations becoming an almost steady thrum. Just as we are about to enter, a small deer, no bigger than a dog, walks directly across our path. It looks up at me, tipping its head to the side, then trots off, not afraid in the slightest. “How is any of this possible?” I ask. “The animals, the meadow, the forest. This huge, cavernous place?”

  “I do not know,” Ezra says, stepping up beside me. If I didn’t know him better, I could have sworn tears were swimming in his eyes.

  “This place, it reminds me of the Ever Vale I once knew before the curse. Before all our lives were shattered by Queen Adrielle. Logic tells me that this must be some kind of illusion, a place conjured from the memories of Clan Terra and kept in place by some kind of ancient magic. But I would gladly trade my immortal life above ground to live a few days in the light down here. The pain would be worth it.”

  “Then it is just as well you found us first, my friend, because if the fae king knows you are here then you’ll end up in the same predicament as your brothers. Believe me, you will be wishing that you never set foot inside the Forbidden forest if the king gets hold of you.”

  We both turn towards the voice. Out of the trees walks a man with tan skin, a mop of curly brown hair tipped at the ends with gold, and the same striking green eyes that Clover had in my dream last night. He is bare chested and wearing a pair of long silken trousers. He is extremely attractive in an earthy kind of way.

  “You’ve got five seconds to tell me who you are and where my brothers have been taken,” Ezra snaps, stepping in front of me.

  The man chuckles. “You nightwalkers are all the same. Such bad-tempered creatures.”

  Nightwalkers? I guess that was what the vampires were known as here.

  “Your name, Lights damn it,” Ezra growls.

  “I am Avery, and your brothers are being held prisoner in the fae city, awaiting trial for trespassing. If they are found guilty they will be imprisoned for all eternity within the earth and roots beneath our feet.”

  “You mean they will be buried alive?” I grab hold of Ezra’s arm to steady myself, a rising tide of sickness washing over me. Ezra places an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to him.

  “I am afraid so.”

  “When is their trial due to take place?” I ask, trying to hold my voice steady.

  “Two days from now. Jael is representing your brothers. There could still be a chance that he can persuade the king to see sense.”

  “Who is Jael?” Ezra asks.

  “He is a friend, someone you can trust. He holds some sway with the fae king.”

  “I don’t give a damn. I am going to get my brothers out of there now.”

  “It would be unwise to rush in without thinking this through. It is still possible that your brothers will be freed without any harm coming to anyone.”

  “Possible, but not certain?”

  “Not certain, no. The fae king is a… complicated man.”

  “And why should we believe a word you say? Why should we trust you?” Ezra says, narrowing his eyes at Avery.

  “Because one, I have not used my magic on you, even though it would be much easier if I did and two, I am one of the three. One of Clover’s three. She wears our ring.” Avery’s gaze falls on me, lowering to my hand and the ring that sits on my middle finger.

  “You know of the prophecy?” Ezra questions him.

  “I know a lot of things, my friend, but we must go now before they find you. It is not safe for you to be wandering out in the open like this. It is a miracle you have not yet been spotted. Although I suspect Clover has had something to do with that.”

  “Clover? She’s unharmed?” I ask, relief flooding through me.

  “Of course she is unharmed. Did you not hear what I said? She wears our ring.”

  “Where is she? I need to speak with her.”

  Avery steps aside. “Then you should come with me. She has been waiting for you.”

  “Waiting for me? But she tried to warn me to leave. To run. Why has she changed her mind?” I ask, uncertain whether to trust this man.

  “That was before.”

  “Before what?” I press.

  “Before she realised that you would risk everything just to know she’s okay and that you wouldn’t believe she’s okay until you spoke to her yourself. She said you were determined. Clover talks about you often. She has missed you greatly.”

  “How do I know you are not going to lead us to the fae King? That this isn’t all just a ruse.”

  “She thought you might say something like that too,
so she gave me a message to repeat to you. She said it would persuade you once and for all that you could trust me.”

  “Okay then, what’s the message?”

  Avery starts to sing the first verse of Could it be Magic by Take That. I watch him, my eyes widening in surprise. This has been our favourite song since we were teenagers. Clover and I would sing it over and over again until our voices were hoarse. We spent hours imagining what it would be like to be married to Mark Owen or Robbie Williams. It’s beyond surreal watching Avery, a fae, sing it now.

  “Alright, alright. That’s enough, I believe you.” Despite myself, a smile pulls at my lips. Only Clover would ask a fae man to sing the words to a Take That song. But it had worked, there is no denying that he knows her. Avery takes a bow, his green eyes alight with mirth. “She thought you might enjoy that. She suggested you could teach it to one of your nightwalkers. That we could maybe sing it to you together?”

  I look at Ezra who is scowling. “Erm, I’m not sure that would be a good idea at all.”

  Avery glances at Ezra and grins. “No, perhaps not.”

  With that, Avery spins on his feet and enters the small wood. Ezra and I follow close behind.

  Chapter Seven

  Stepping through the copse of trees, I feel a familiar sensation slither over my skin. It’s not unlike how it felt to walk into Nostra’s hidden hamlet the first time. This time my eyes are wide open as I enter.

  “Well, Lights be damned,” Ezra says.

  “More fae magic?” I ask.

  “No, not all fae, witch too,” Avery says, with a knowing smile.

  The copse isn’t filled with trees, like it appears from the outside. Instead there is only one tree. A gigantic beast of a tree, of the likes I have never seen before. Its circumference must be at least the size of a large tower block back home on Earth. There are windows carved all the way up the trunk, illuminated from within. In a few of the dwellings nearer the ground I can see people moving inside. Strings of white lights hang from every possible branch. Perched atop the branches that stretch out from the trunk are small huts, and between them are wooden walkways joining one to the other. I tip my head backwards. There appears to be no end to the tree. It just grows up and up until it is lost amongst the cloud of fireflies that hover above us all.