Free Across the Veil by Lisa Kessler Page A

withdrew a tiny orange gem. It caught the light as he placed it in the center of her outstretched hand. “Slip this into his pocket or his bag. I will be able to find him. Anywhere.”
    She rolled it across her palm. The surface was smooth and the gem itself was nearly weight-less. Her eyes turned up to meet his. “It’s enchanted?”
    “Just be sure the stone is placed in his keeping. I will handle the rest.”
    “And my mother?”
    “Will never know we have laid eyes on each other.”
    She closed her fingers around the tiny stone. “I don’t want to do this.”
    He reached over to lift her chin. “If you want to stay here with the humans, then you have no choice.” His smug expression was back in place. He bowed his head. “Farewell Princess Talia.”
    Color stained her cheeks. She slammed the door behind him. He was such a stodgy, aloof, cold-hearted lech. She couldn’t believe her parents betrothed her to such a bastard.
    She was an infant at the time, but that was no excuse.
    Talia checked all the blinds to be sure there were closed, and then plopped down on her sofa. With the tiny gem on the end table, she closed her eyes. Using faerie magic in the human world was a risky business. The magic was unstable. There were many obstacles this side of the veil that didn’t exist back home. Radio, television, and cell phone waves altered the energy in the air around her, sometimes magnifying her intent, until a simple spell of silence could suddenly render the person mute for days.
    She’d learned quickly not to rely on magic on this side of the veil, but welcoming her power back into her body still felt natural, like a warm blanket on a cold night. In her mind, Keth stared at her with his intense, icy green eyes and his long black hair. Where Faldo was light, Keth was dark -- polar opposites. Faldo reveled in his family’s station in Summerland, while Keth rebelled from his station and sought to make his own way in the world. Faldo’s silver eyes were cold and unfeeling, while Keth’s had a tint of jade that burned with emotion.
    Rage, love, passion, joy -- it all stormed in his eyes.
    While her heart’s magic churned, her skin started to glow. The shadow of a vine darkened around her wrist. It was childhood magic, but those spells were often the hardest to break. A pure unwounded heart carried more magic than the most experienced Fae conjurer.
    The vine darkened, sprouting leaves and braiding itself around her wrist. When the tingle left her skin, she opened her eyes and stared down at the markings, tracing it with her finger. Keth would now bear the same mark.
    And he would know who put it there.
     
    ***
     
    Keth nailed the vampire with a spin kick to the face. The immortal crashed against the brick wall before hitting the pavement face first. In one fluid motion, Keth pulled the stake free from the inside pocket of his trench coat, but before he could jam it through the vampire’s chest, pain wrapped itself around his wrist. He lost his grip on the stake, and instinctively pulled his arm in close to his body.

With his other hand, he reached out toward the vampire. “ Oighríonn tú . Now!”
    The vampire hissed, straining against the spell. Keth picked up the stake, clenching his teeth. Hot fire burned through his veins and up his arm as he watched color rise through his pale skin, gradually taking shape.
    The vine. Talia needed him.
    Clasping the stake in his other hand, he growled, “ Scaoilim. I release you.”
    With fangs bared, the vampire dove for him. Keth spun, staking the vampire from behind just as the final strand of vines braided Keth’s wrist. While the vampire shriveled to dust, he opened and closed his hand. The pain lessened to a tingle.
    He kicked his boot through the dust, scattering the remnants of his attacker. Normally he’d clean up the ashes, but right now, he didn’t have time. He had to hurry.
    ***
    Keth slid his Ray Ban sunglasses over his light green eyes and pulled away