Free Among the Unseen by Jodi McIsaac Page A

at her, and Cedar was reminded of Eden when she woke in the middle of the night and didn’t know where she was. Then Jane’s face crumpled and she started to sob. Cedar wrapped her in an embrace.
    “I…need you…to do something for me,” Jane whispered between sobs.
    “Of course,” Cedar said at once. “Anything.”
    “Please. Don’t let him cure me.”
    “Oh, Jane,” Cedar said, drawing her friend in closer.
    Several minutes later Jane was still crying, but she jerked up her head when the door opened. When she saw Felix, her lips drew back in a snarl.
    “Where is he?” she demanded. “What have you done with him?”
    “Can I talk to you?” he said stiffly to Cedar.
    Cedar joined Felix in the hallway, ignoring her friend’s fevered protests.
    “We can’t leave her alone for too long,” he said. “She might hurt herself.”
    “Did you find out how to cure her?”
    “It can be done,” he told her in a whisper. “I can isolate and remove the toxin, and she should recover. It’s just…” He glanced at the closed door, through which Jane’s sobs were still audible.
    “What is it?”
    “The toxin makes her believe she is in love with him, as you know. And obviously, it’s very, very strong. So the withdrawal will also be very intense. She will feel as though someone she loved more than anything in the world has died. I’m afraid it will be very painful for her.”
    Cedar winced. She remembered all too well the pain she’d experienced when Finn left her, how she’d barely been able to function for months. For Jane to have to go through such intense pain just because she’d tried to help a stranger seemed like the worst kind of injustice.
    “It’s the only way,” he whispered. “And I need to act fast.”
    “What can I do?” Cedar said.
    “Just being with her will help. The process won’t hurt her physically, but she’ll be in deep emotional grief.” He smiled sadly. “They say you can love even more after you know what it’s like to lose, right? So hopefully…” He didn’t finish his sentence, but Cedar could read the fear on his face. She tried to smile back at him.
    “It’s not easy,” she said. “But yes, love can come back.”

    Several hours later, Cedar lay staring at the ceiling, drenched in her best friend’s tears—and her own. Jane was finally asleep beside her. Cedar had held her down while Felix forcibly injected her with the antidote to Irial’s toxin. Jane had cried and screamed and cursed and begged them to let her die, but instead they’d only given her more until Felix was certain all of the toxin had been neutralized by the antidote. She closed her eyes and listened to Jane’s even breathing, glad that her friend had finally found some peace in sleep. She thought about what Irial had told her; now that she knew Jane was going to survive, her thoughts were returning to the Unseen. What could possibly be making the magical beings on Earth sick? Felix had examined Irial thoroughly at her request, and had found no trace of disease or decay, no poison, no obvious wounds. He had checked for viruses, infections, enchantments—everything. There was nothing to explain it. Cedar rubbed her temples. There was also the druid woman to worry about, and whatever she was hiding. And Eden…Cedar had missed most of her birthday. She had talked to her earlier using the starstone, so at least she’d gotten the chance to say good night. Eden had excitedly told her about her new presents, which had included her very own lute—which taught its owner how to play it—and a tiny dragon figurine, which came to life whenever you put it in fire. Cedar had taken this as a sign that she was forgiven for the party fiasco.
    Just a few minutes of sleep, she told herself, willing her body to relax. And when I wake, I’ll know exactly what to do about everything…
    The next thing she knew, she was sitting in a rocking chair on the veranda of the home where she was raised. The sun was