Between Shadow & Ruin (Fangs & Fae Saga Book 2)

seven.

I went with Zane and Val to the fae realm. Val was going to do her usual checking up on things and I was going to see Isabel with Zane about Odie. Isabel was the best healer in the realm and most of the healers learned from her. She had short cropped hair, bright blue eyes and looked hardened – like life had worn her down. She had some wrinkles around her eyes and forehead and wore loose fitting robes typical of most of the fae. She was an eighteen-hundred-year-old fae who had been practicing healing since she learned how to use her magic.

While Val went to a meeting with the Elders, Zane and I went to Isabel. She had a smaller building at the end of one of the "streets". This is one of the first times Odie had been old enough to know what was happening in the fae realm and every time we brought him, he was excited. Zane stopped at the food vender and Odie picked out his favorite pastry. Zane paid the vendor as Odie ate away, skipping along. When we reached Isabel, Zane carried Odie inside and I was blocked by an arm in the doorway.

"No vampires," I heard her raspy voice say. Despite her being the best healer, she hated me and the feeling was mutual. We didn't want to bring Odie to her, but it wasn't exactly like we could bring him to a human doctor or even a witch about this. Val's servant was good at healing, but Isabel was who Val trusted for this, so we had little choice.

"I'm the Eminence's wife, and a mother to the child you are about to see," I answered.

"I said 'no vampires'. It doesn't matter who you are to her." Zane looked back at me. He knew how I felt about Isabel – he felt the same way.

"It's okay, Liz. I'll take care of this." He walked with Odie inside. I pulled a cigarette out and lit it, crossed my arms and leaned against the building, annoyed. About ten minutes later, a small woman came outside.

"Ma'am?" her voice was so soft, I almost didn't catch it.

"Yes?" She looked like a younger, unhardened version of Isabel, like she hadn't come across the woes of life.

"Isabel says you can come inside. Your son won't stop crying and he's already tried to blast her into the other room. He won't let her look at him unless you're there." I ashed the cigarette and tucked it back into my pack.

I walked into the building – it was dark, smelled damp, and potions and herbs lined the walls. Flowers grew in pots along the windows – and followed the small woman. Odie wailed at the top of his lungs. I slowly opened the door and could see the trails of magic Odie had thrown in desperation. Zane sat in a chair in the corner of the room, his legs crossed, his body leaned back, and stared at his fingernails while Isabel cowered behind another chair.

"Momma!" Odie jumped off the table and hugged my legs. "Momma! You're here!"

"Yes, I am. Now you have to behave in order for Isabel to look at you..." I sat him back on the table as Isabel stood up from behind the chair. She walked towards Odie and grabbed his hand.

"Well, it's nice to see someone is getting their magic!" she said, in a high voice. "Now, what's the problem, Mr. Kozial, what brings you in?" Zane gave me a look before answering.

"Our son, as you can see, is getting his magic and we just... well we want to make sure that everything is okay."

"He seems fine. What are you worried about?" Zane looked at me again.

"Odie says he can see magic," I said. "We want to make sure that that's okay. I know fae children can absorb magic, and he has four vampire relatives. Is he going to absorb more from us?" Isabel kept looking at Zane as if I never spoke. I tried to control my facial expressions as Zane repeated what I said.

"Well, what do you mean by 'seeing magic'?"

"He said something last night about being able to see the magic surrounding his parents. He said it was purple?"