As Lacey roused from a heavy slumber she became aware of the coolness of the air and it's loamy fragrance. The ground was lumpy as if she were on a bed of earth and rocks.
Her clothes felt as damp as a flower in the dew of the dawn. She half wondered if she was still dreaming as she sat up to take in the shafts of light that burst through the gaps in the leaf canopy above. Now she became fully awake, perhaps more fully awake than she had ever been.
Something felt different, very different although she couldn't place what it was yet.
There were no paths around her and no sign of another person. As far as she could tell she was alone with the birds who made their carefree song around her, and in that sweet melody she felt even more alone.
She looked around and noticed that she was sitting in a circle. A circle full of candles and what looked like black ash.
She jumped up frightened. She was wearing a black dress that appeared to be soaked. She had not imagined anything. No, she had not, she was really sleeping amidst a circle of lighted candles.
She slowly lifted her feet, moving closer to the edge of the circle.
She was trembling in fear, she had no recollection of how she had got there, worse, she didn't know how she would leave even if she wanted to.
But as she tried to cross over the circle something repelled her. As if she had tried to dip her hands inside a living burning flame.
And the force was so strong that it sent her sprawling back to the floor on her butt and scrambling.
What the hell was going on?
She looked around angrily.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
A voice said from behind her and she turned and found the woman who called herself her mother smiling at her. She was also wearing a shimmery dark gown and she was smiling at her. Lacey didn't find their resemblance comforting at all.
She had a small bowl in her hand.
"What am I doing here?"
She asked and Yvaine shrugged.
"Why can't I leave this circle?"
"Because I don't want you to."
She simply replied as she set the bowl aside.
"If you look at it closely you'd see something black. It's called Ashwood."
"It forms a circle of protection. It can be used to keep people out of danger and also keep people in the circle."
She explained and Lacey frowned.
"But why am I in here?"
She asked and her mother smiled.
"Why else wouldn't you be? You'll reach the peak of your Settling soon
And very soon you'll become a full Fae."
A Fae. Aidas had briefly explained the concept to her. They were Supernaturals, that was the little she knew.
And her mother had mentioned it to her. But it didn't make it any less confusing.
"Why am I in this circle? Am I going to hurt anyone?"
Her mother smiled.
"Well... Sometimes, the first burst of power from your transformation can be very uncontrollable if not managed properly. I ensure you, you're far away from civilisation as it is."
"You won't be hurting anyone."
Not if I can help it. She said in her mind as she gave Lacey another convincing smile.
Lacey looked around.
That bit was true, she had no idea where they could be. If Aidas or even Hunt had any hope to even find her, would they even look for her here?
She asked herself with bewilderment on her face.
"Is this what killed Lila? Is this why she died?"
"So many questions about Lila. For someone who had never met her you seem to be very curious about her life."
"Well... If she was Fae too just like me she must have gone though the same thing I did."
"I just want to know how she handled it."
Lacey added in the end as she hugged herself. The slight chill in the forest was starting to get to her. She didn't understand why she had been so hot earlier.
"She handled it perfectly. She made full transition without any complications."
"Do you want to know what her power was?"
Her mother asked with a smile and Lacey raised her eyebrow.
"What was it? I thought we all get the same power..."
She said and her mother shook her head.
"Oh! Some do. Some can have as much as three. Others quite less."
"I won't raise too much of your hopes though. Your sister had one. I guess that's how it is for half breeds."
"If she survived the transition... Why did she die?"
Her mother sighed.
"She wanted to go home. She was still extremely weak. I warned her to stay back after exerting so much energy but she didn't listen. She left on her own accord."
Yvaine lied smoothly. If Lacey was ever going to trust her, she had to lie about what happened with Lila.
Lacey raised her eyebrows, she couldn't tell of her so called mother was lying or not.
"And what are we exactly doing here?"
She said as she looked around. Suddenly she noticed that her mother's hands were behind her back. They had been like that the entire time , like she was hiding something.
Lacey pointed to her.
"What are you hiding?"
She asked and her mother exclaimed as she slowly unfolded her hands, to slowly reveal a knife.
"Oh it's really nothing."
Lacey took several steps back, forgetting she was in the circle before her foot hit the transparent force field for the second time.
It hurt like bitch! She thought as she hissed loudly. But she kept her eyes glued on her mother.
"Why do you have that?"
Yvaine dropped the knife slowly as she raised up her hands in surrender.
"Don't panic! I just need a little of your blood!"
"Get me out of here!"
Lacey screamed as she hit the imaginary wall of fire again as she tried to get out.
Her hands felt like it was burning from the impact. She screamed.
"Lacey calm down!"
Her mother shouted and she paused.
"I swear to you I'd never hurt you!"
"Coming from someone who abandoned me ever since I was born I don't believe you!"
Lacey screamed as she rammed herself against the barrier again.
Her whole body felt like it was burning as she fell down again from the impact.
On the floor with her vision clouding and her eyes stinging with tears, she decided to try another tactic.
Wait till her mother came close enough to take the blood from her.
"It's almost time."
Yvaine said as she watched the colour of Lacey's tired eyes slowly changing into a molten gold.
Her dark hair was matted on her head and she was panting heavily.
"What do you mean?"
"How do you know?"
She asked as she started feeling a slight tingle in her gums. She quickly touched her teeth.
Her canines. They were growing.
"What! What? What's happening to me?"
She panicked as she touched her mouth.
Her mother smiled.
As she walked closer to her daughter.
With a single wave of her hand she blew the ashwood away.
Walking into the circle of candles with the knife and bowl in her hand.
Lacey was too preoccupied in her transition to see what was happening.
Before she knew it her mother snatched her hand with an iron grip and held her down while she slashed her wrist.
She gave a bloodcurdling scream as she tried to scramble away.
"Stay down Lacey!"
Her mother grunted as she held her bleeding wrist over the bowl.
"Get away from me!"
She shrieked! Raising her hands up, she felt a powerful force surging through her, she directed it in front of her mother and in less than a millisecond Yvaine was sent flying and landed hard on her back.
Yvain was momentarily shocked as she fell in a crumple of dead leaves and hit a tree trunk too hard. She frowned as she pulled herself up slowly. The pain quickly subsiding as she healed herself. She composed herself quickly. Lacey was running away...
She had to catch up with her before she was too late.
She needed her power.
"Aidas wait!"
Imelda called out frantically as she chased Aidas down the streets.
He ignored her, if it was about work he was absolutely not interested. All he wanted to do was go back and continue his search for Lacey.
"Imelda! If it's about the club it can wait."
"Oh no! Its not I promise you it's not about that!"
"In fact you're going to want to hear this."
She said as she stopped while panting out loud.
Aidas turned to look at her.
"Well? What is it?"
"Remember I told you I was going to keep my eyes on Azure?"
Aidas nodded as he massaged his temple.
"Well I finally have something on her."
"Imelda hurry up with it!"
"Yes! Well, I've been keeping tabs on her ever since that day when she bit Lacey and I even got more interested when I noticed she hasn't been coming to the Night Court."
"A few reports just came in and she was spotted around Lacey's building a couple of times. There are pictures of her around the building."
Aidas raised his eyebrow.
"Azure?"
He asked and Imelda handed him the pictures. They were grainy, but he could definitely make out Azure on the other street watching... a few pictures showed her disappearing behind the building.
"And? Is there more?"
He asked and Imelda grinned
"Of course there is. We've managed to pin her location these last few days. She keeps going to one place."
"That's when it finally hit me. She's probably working for Lacey's mother."
"But why would Azure do something like this? It's unlike her?"
He said and Imelda shrugged.
"Do you want to know her location or not?"
"Of course I do."
"Well, it's Northwood. A few miles away from the City. At least that's how close enough we were able to trace her to. She's been very careful in hiding her location. "
Aidas shook his head in disbelief. And that was the reason why Imelda was his second in command. Foresight. What he failed to see she always saw right away. She was always several steps ahead.
"You kept tabs on her for so long without telling me?"
Imelda shrugged.
"You two had history together. I wanted to make sure that I found something on her before coming to you."
"Well. Thank you and best believe you're getting a raise after this. I need to go."
"Wait! You're going alone?"
She asked with concern and Aidas nodded.
"Yes. I can handle it."
"You should go with backup."
Imelda warned.
"And what about Hunt? Are you going to tell him?"
Aidas made a face.
"No. I'm not."