Chatoyant College Book 9: Sundered

Chapter 94: Afraid

Celao wrung his hands together, looking around nervously. Edie took a half-step closer to him. She didn't particularly want to be close to him—even under a human glamour he seemed slimy—but he looked like he was trying to escape, and she wanted him to know that wasn't going to happen. "Don't take me back there," he said.

"Oh, is that what you want now?" said Ever. She didn't really sound like she was asking a question. "You just grabbed my ankle so I would take you away with me, right?"

He grinned brightly. "Yes! That's exactly it!"

Corrie snorted. "I don't know why you stopped me from hurting him, Ever, but I don't think we can trust him."

Ever shook her head. "I don't think so, either, but I don't think he meant any harm. Celao, you'd better tell us the actual truth or I'll get you thrown in with Mardalan."

He shivered, but set his jaw stubbornly. "You couldn't do that."

"No? They wouldn't listen to me, sure, but I have friends who have friends. I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to convince Belara and Feloc that you were trying to set Mardalan free, and they might decide that was worth an even worse punishment."

He swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing dramatically up and down. "I just wanted to know where you go." He spoke rapidly, nervously. "You're always disappearing when you think no one notices. I didn't know you had human friends."

Ever frowned, obviously unhappy that he'd noticed her leaving. "And what were you going to do with the information about where I was going?"

"I thought maybe I could go there and stay there." He lowered his hands and looked around at the bare trees that surrounded them. "I don't want to be... there, anymore. I don't want to have to listen to them."

"You don't have to," said Ever with surprise. "What's keeping you there? You can leave whenever you want."

"You can't," he said almost angrily. "I know that much. You have to make sure nobody sees you leave."

Ever shook her head slowly. "That's different. I made a deal with them." Edie shivered, remembering how Ever had traded herself for Annie. If she left, or broke their agreement somehow, the court faeries would probably come back for Annie—and considering what they were doing to musicians now, that would be a very bad thing indeed. "If I can trick them, or make a new deal, then I might be able to leave," Ever continued. "But you didn't make a deal. Did you?"

"Not a big one." He looked at the ground. "Just that they would protect me as long as I stayed part of the court."

"Well, that's easy enough to get out of," said Corrie. "As long as you don't need them to protect you anymore. What are you scared of?"

He shook his head, still staring at the ground, and didn't answer.

"So you're scared," said Ever. "And if I let you go back there you'll tell them about my human friends, because you're scared of hiding anything from them." Celao nodded without looking up. "But maybe we can find some other way to protect you so you don't have to go back. I mean, I would hate to inflict Belara and Feloc on anyone who doesn't need it."

He looked up slowly. "You'd really help me?"

"I'm sure we can figure something out," said Dawn. "If you don't mind being a little bit in debt to humans." Celao winced slightly.

"Maybe Leila would be willing to protect him," said Edie. "She did say she would help Ever if she needed it. But we'd still have to find her first."

Ever looked around suddenly. "I forgot. Weren't we meeting Yedara here? Celao distracted me... but she's not here."

"No, she's not," said Edie quietly. Her stomach twisted. "We can't find her."

"Have you seen her at all?" Roe asked.

"No," said Ever. "And I wouldn't expect to, except that she might like to see her sister in a cage. Isn't she your girlfriend, Edie? And you can't find her? Maybe she's in the tree, sleeping."

"We tried to wake her up," said Corrie. She explained all the ways they had tried to see if Leila was in the tree. "We're afraid something's happened to her." She looked at Edie, and Edie shook her head slightly. She didn't trust Celao, and until they found Leila she didn't want anyone else to know about the memory blocks.

"Oh, you think the court faeries might have gone after her, right?" Ever shook her head. "I haven't heard anything about it, and there haven't been any more hunts. I can't think of any reason they would want her, either. Belara and Feloc would like to have her join the court, but not as much as Mardalan did, and they have other priorities right now, I think."