Forever Fae (Forever Fae #1)(43)
“Meliantha is right. I can’t feel Calista anywhere near here.” Elvena turns to Merrick.
“Can you feel her, Merrick?”
He says the same thing he told me, but now that he knows Calista is missing his face and voice show all the tension he must be feeling. I can tell he blames himself for Calista’s disappearance.
He replies worriedly, “I’ve tried to contact her, but I’m being blocked by something.”
“It’s the dark magic. She has to be surrounded by it, but she can’t always be, so when you feel that tension let up try to get in touch with her again,” Elvena instructs. She walks over to me and Merrick and reveals, “There is, however, a way for us to contact her in the meantime.”
It got everyone’s attention and we stood, silently waiting for her to continue.
She states, “If I use the magic within me combined with the bonds she has with both of you, there is a way we can contact her. The only catch is that she has to be near sleep in order for this to work.”
We both nod our heads and I exclaim impatiently, “It’s evening now so we have a good chance at contacting her. What do we have to do?”
“I’ll do whatever it takes to get her back,” Merrick says.
Elvena takes a deep breath and turns one of the table chairs away from the table. She motions for Merrick and me to pull up chairs around her. We form a triangle and both sit down in the chairs waiting for guidance on what to do.
Elvena explains, “In order for this to work, you have to clear your minds and focus only on Calista. I need you to picture, in your minds, the bond that pulls you both to her. Think of it as a string that physically connects you to her and follow it until you connect with her soul.”
Elvena grabs both mine and Merrick’s hands and holds on tight, giving a reassuring squeeze.
She whispers, “Now, close your eyes.” We both follow her orders and close our eyes.
“Where do you want the setting of the dream to be? If she is in distress and needs comfort, the place should be where she finds peace,” Elvena points out.
I blurt out quickly, “It needs to be by the willow tree at the lake.”
I can tell, even with my eyes closed, that Elvena is smiling at the suggestion and Merrick is scowling. Merrick takes in a deep breath and huffs it out angrily.
“The lake it is then,” Elvena says.
She takes another deep breath and lets it out slowly. Then she starts to speak in the Old Fae language. The Old language isn’t spoken often anymore. When the fae started travelling to the mortal realm centuries ago, the English language made its way here, along with other languages. Elvena continues her chant and I make sure to focus as hard as I can on Calista and our bond. It’s not hard to concentrate on her. I can still remember the way her hair smells, the glitter of gold in her bright green eyes and the way her body felt underneath mine by the willow tree. My body starts to feel like it’s going to explode with all the pressure around me. It quickly dissipates and I’m left standing by the willow tree at the lake in some sort of dream world. I look around and Merrick and Elvena are here with me, too.
“Now what do we do?” Merrick asks while looking around.
Elvena answers, “We wait for Calista to join us and it might not be a good time to tell her about Xylia’s parents. Let’s wait until she is safely home and has us all to lighten the burden.”
We agree and sit in silence, hoping and praying that this plan works. If it doesn’t, the hope of finding her will be slim. I don’t care what happens, but I do know that I will search for her the rest of my life, even if it kills me. I refuse to give up.
I look around the dream setting and I am amazed at how real everything looks. I see the spot where Calista and I had our little tryst and there on the ground are the different colored leaves. It tears at my heart to see them lying on the ground. I bend down to pick up the bright colored leaves that changed while we were so close to losing control. The memories are strong in my mind and I wish I could turn back the time and change things. If I hadn’t have doubted her, she wouldn’t have run away. This whole thing is my fault.
I look at the water of the lake; it’s so calm it looks like glass. There are no ripples or anything until I see a reflection appear across the lake. As soon as I look up, I see her. She’s wearing a bathrobe and she looks exhausted. She is standing by the lake on the other side so she’s a good distance away. I wonder why she’s in a bathrobe. I decide not to worry with that because all I want to do is hold her and tell her I’m sorry. She hasn’t seen me yet, so I yell out her name.
“Calista!”
Her eyes become focused and she looks at me first with confusion and then recognition.
“Ryder!” She exclaims with excitement. She runs as fast as she can and I do the same. I can’t wait to have her in my arms and explain how wrong I was. The distance feels like miles and the seconds it takes to reach her feel like hours. We close the distance and she jumps into my arms sobbing. I scoop her up into my arms, holding her tight. I pull back to kiss her with all my heart and soul and she responds with as much love and force behind the kiss as me. I don’t know how much time we have so I quickly tell her how I feel.
“I love you so much, Calista. I was wrong and I should never have doubted you.” I bury my head in her shoulder and breathe in the wonderful scent of her hair and her body. I kiss her neck and I can feel the chill bumps forming over her skin.