Feyland: The Dark Realm

Chapter Thirty-One

That night Tam’s sleep was broken again by the low call of the Wild Hunt’s horn, the baying of demon hounds. They seemed closer this time, and he hunkered down in his sleeping bag and tried to think invisible thoughts. Not here. Nobody here.

Cold light was leaking into the sky when he finally fell asleep.

The Bug woke him up early, asking where they were going to go that day. For a moment, Tam thought about dropping him off at school and spending the day sleeping. But no - they had to keep together and out of sight for another day or two. The Bug was way too conspicuous, and the system could easily get to him at school. All it would take was one call from a teacher and, poof - little brother whisked off.

He was not going to let that happen.

So he pried his eyelids open and dug up a couple protein bars for breakfast, then took the Bug to the mall. Peter amused himself by looking in the windows of all the stores, and talking about everything he saw. Even though the money was running low, Tam bought them both ice-cream bars.

If - he swallowed hard - if Mom didn’t get free of the system, he’d need to get a job. Not the errands he ran here and there, but something more serious. A steady job, that also gave him time to look after the Bug.

Sure. And money would just drip down on him from the trees, too.

At least there weren’t any cops around at the mall. He didn’t message Jennet, though he wished he could. Wished he could dive into Feyland with her and fight free of everything, the two of them emerging strong and victorious. Wished he could tell her how crappy his life was, how tired he was of being the glue in his family. Wished he could take her hand and touch the softness of her hair. He needed to feel something soft, in a life that was so full of hardness.

But the messager stayed at the bottom of his bag, silent and dark.

# # #

 His sleep that night was filled with restless dreams. The Dark Queen, so beautiful she made his breath freeze, stood before him.

Tamlin, she whispered, in a voice like smoke and snowflakes. She reached out, and her hand was cool on his cheek, her fingertips tingling along his skin. I am waiting for you.

His body yearned forward, but his feet were rooted fast. Frustration climbed up his throat. Why couldn’t he go? He was ready, more than ready to obey her summons.

Laughter chimed about him, a shimmering silver light that coalesced into three faerie maidens, dancing. They pulled scarves made of cobwebs and moonlight behind them. Whenever one brushed against him he felt it, bright and aching. The touch made him shiver with fear, with longing.

The queen stood farther from him now, watching from the shadows, her eyes luminous with mystery. I am waiting.

Tam wrenched forward, but the faeries were gone. Instead, the Black Knight was coming at him, his sword raised. With a shout, Tam lifted his hand, unsurprised to find his own sword there. The two blades met with a furious clang - and he was suddenly awake, heart racing, in the darkness of their makeshift shelter.

A different kind of noise jolted through him - a clatter of metal. The alarm he had cobbled together, a precarious balance of metal scraps across the door, had fallen. Beside him he felt the Bug stir, and he knew his brother was awake, too, and listening.

He groped under his pillow for the knife. Slowly, silently, he drew it out and shifted his grip on the handle. Breath barely stirring in his lungs, he listened. No footsteps. No light. No sound.

Wait. A skittering across the cracked cement floor. A faint rustle. And then laughter, impish and otherworldly. There was something familiar about that chiming sound.