Page 63 of Dryad’s Treasure

“Please, Keir. This is no small thing I ask. Should I fail, you will be the final defense against Verona. Run. Hide. Do not fight her or Axios. Protect yourself and the eggs. Knowing you are here, that I am leaving the eggs in such formidable hands will allow me to concentrate on the fight at hand. Please. Do this for me.”

Keir’s hesitance was clear, the conflict a physical pain.

“He will not be alone, Keir,” Elvira said, her form beginning to dissipate. “The dead do not appreciate being disturbed.” Elvira disappeared with those parting words. When I looked to Tabitha, I could see her eyes were now ebony black.

The room shook again. This time, I swear I heard something that sounded like thunder rumble through the compound. Jima grabbed his seat cushions before finally losing the battle with his ferret side and shifting. I couldn’t blame him. As for me, branches sprouted from my fingers, winding their way around a nearby piece of furniture, anchoring me.

“Go,” Tabitha said. “I will give you what aid I can.” The air stirred around Tabitha, an icy chill sweeping through the room. “Elvira is correct. The dead are displeased and more than willing to lend a hand.”

The compound shook again, and I tightened my branches. Gray was close and moving closer by the minute.

“Help me move the table closer to the fire,” Keir said, voice stern but otherwise devoid of emotion. “It’s only going to get colder in here with Tabitha pulling the warmth from the room. The eggs need heat.”

I moved, lifting and moving the table while Keir cradled the eggs in his arms. The fire whistled and flickered as air drafts moved through the chimney. Once the table was settled, Keir placed the eggs back into their nest.

We’d barely gotten the eggs settled when Gray burst through the door. Gray’s eyes frantically searched the room as he ran straight for me, slamming into my chest with an “oomph.” I vaguely heard Henry mutter a curse before he was tossed from Gray’s body to mine.

“What’s going on?” Gray asked, his voice muffled against my chest. The compound shook even harder this time. Wrapping my branches around Gray, I held him close. I checked on Tabitha only to see that her feet were no longer on the ground. She hovered just above it, head thrown back and wind holding her aloft. Intentional or not, Tabitha was leaching all the warmth from the room. That was decidedly not a good thing for our wyvern eggs, and I was glad Keir had thought to move them closer to the fire.

“Verona’s back,” I finally answered. “And it looks like she brought her brother along as well.”

“Shit. How long until Thalia arrives?”

“Too long,” Keir answered.

Gray chewed on his lip as another thundering crash shook the compound. This deep underground, it was impossible to hear what, exactly, was going on above us. “Two against one. I don’t like those odds.”

“Elvira’s helping,” I said, unsure if I was attempting to ease Gray’s worries or my own. Never in my life had I felt so incredibly useless. I was a dryad. I was no less impervious to fire and acid as anyone else in this room.

Gray’s eyes traveled heavenward, staring at a ceiling and at least three floors between ourselves and the wyvern above. “Can we call Thalia? See if there’s any way she can get here sooner?”

“She’s on an airplane,” Keir answered. “I’m not sure that will help.”

“But she’s not traveling alone.” My frantic gaze fell on Keir’s body, searching for his phone. “Lazarus said as much. If she’s got guards, I can’t imagine they’re as old and frail as Thalia. I’ll bet you they can fly.”

Keir’s deep brown eyes lit up. “It’s worth a try.” Snagging his phone, Keir pulled up a number and hit send. My eavesdropping was interrupted when Gray grabbed ahold of my face, pulling my attention to him. “Even if that works, it’ll still take time. Time we might not have.”

It wasn’t that I disagreed, I simply didn’t know what else we could do and said as much. Unfortunately, Gray had other ideas. “I’m a will-o’-the-wisp,” Gray needlessly pointed out.

“I’m aware. I don’t see what that has to do with⁠—”

“What are we best at?” Gray cocked his head to the side. “What is it everyone fears we can do or will do to them?”

I started to blurt out the word, treasure, but swallowed it down just as quickly. That wasn’t what Gray was talking about. I knew that down to my very core. What I also knew was that I didn’t like what he was implying. “No,” I flatly said. “You are not going out there.”

Gray’s face softened into a sad smile. “Oh, honey, you don’t get to decide that for me.” When I started to protest, Gray placed his finger over my lips, silencing me. “I know, and I understand. But even if I can draw one of them away, it will give Lazarus more of a fighting chance.” Gray gave me a saucy wink as he pulled away. I wanted to wrap my branches around him, hold him tight and never let him go. My branches refused to grow.

“I need you to anchor me, Martin. Call me back and don’t let me go. Do you understand? I need you to be you, to be the strong, steady oak dryad I love. Can you do that for me?”

I could. And I would. “Whatever you need,” I answered, voice raspy.

“Thank you.” Gray stood on tiptoes, pressing his lips to my cheek before cool, blue flames filled my vision. Gray’s wisp form slipped through my arms, heading skyward and toward the ceiling. I heard treasure’s call, begging him to turn around and find it. Treasure wasn’t what Gray needed right now. He needed clarity and focus. I could give that to him. Pushing every song away, I watched Gray’s wisp form sharpen before it disappeared, heading skyward, away from me and toward danger.

Twenty-Six

Grayson

What were will-o’-the-wisps exceptionally good at, beyond finding treasure? Leading others away from treasure, often to their deaths. It was a deserved stain upon our reputation. It was the reason most other species didn’t trust us. It was the ability I pulled on now, hoping beyond hope that it would be enough to catch at least one of the wyverns’ attention.