Free The Aetherfae by Christopher Shields Page A

that is the most beautiful shade of lime green I’ve ever seen.”
    He glanced at her, his pupils dilated. “My eyes? I’ve heard that before.”
    “No, your skin.”
    “Cow.”
    “So, Kermit, how much will you give me for another Dramamine?”
    “You would do that, wouldn’t you?” he groaned. “Name your price. I’m dying.”
    “Relax, Ronnie, I can eliminate your nausea,” Pavati said. “Place your hand in mine.” She reached back with her palm outstretched.
    “Shouldn’t you have both hands on the wheel?” he asked, eyes watering.
    “Give me your hand, or empty your wallet for a drug that will not be half as effective,” she said.
    Ronnie gently grabbed her hand and then relaxed in the seat, exhaling a long slow breath as she worked her magic.
    “I guess the Fae don’t believe in capitalism,” Candace said, grinning.
    Pavati laughed. “No, I believe in balance in all things. There is no balance in a world where a few own a lot of things they do not need, and a lot of people struggle to find the things they do need, now is there?”
    Candace nodded and sank back in the seat, her eyes focused out the window at the passing landscape of evergreen and deciduous trees. We drove through the forest past a place called Pine Lake, and then southerly through a more mountainous area. It was all very striking—I’d never pictured New York as a place filled with forested hills and small lakes. Pavati pulled off at a small store, brown with a green roof and a couple of gas pumps in the parking lot out front. It stood in a stand of tall pines with a lake as a backdrop.
    “Stretch your legs, get something to eat, and we’ll be leaving in ten minutes. Do not use your cell phones, though.”
    “Why no cell phones?” Doug asked.
    “If my kind are looking for you, it will not be long before they check phone records. Use cash.”
    Doug’s face turned red. He got out of the car and slammed the door behind him.
    “Doug, are you okay?” I asked after catching him by the parking lot.
    He put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “Why shouldn’t I be all right? I didn’t know if you were dead or alive, Maggie. I didn’t even know if you’d remember who I was.”
    “Doug…”
    “Don’t start apologizing again—that’s all you did before you ran off to Florida. I get what happened—what’s still happening. Just own it, but don’t expect me to be all, hey, it’s cool you’re not dead, and by the way, what classes are you taking this fall. I’m a little freaked, Okay?”
    “Okay,” I said.
    He frowned, looking up at me out of the corner of his eye. “I don’t know what to think about being hunted, and don’t get me started on the giant bird thing last night. Ronnie wasn’t the only one who thought he was about to die. What in the heck are we doing? Why are we headed to…well, first questions first: where are we headed? Crap, I haven’t even asked.”
    “Vermont, for the time being.”
    “Vermont. Why Vermont…oh forget it, I don’t even want to know. What I do want to know, and what nobody seems to want to talk about, is for how long?”
    “I don’t know, Doug. I don’t.”
    “A week?” he asked, crossing his arms. “A month? A year?”
    “Like I said, I don’t know, so I can’t tell you that. I just know that they were coming after you. If we hadn’t found you…”
    “I know—we’d be dead. I’m not mad at you, Maggie. I owe you my life. It’s just so much to handle right now. I can’t even call my parents to let them know I’m okay. You know, with practice starting in a few weeks, my dad didn’t want to let me go. I’m supposed to be on campus in eighteen days. Dad’s going to start worrying when I don’t call him this morning. I promised, 10 a.m. That’s in fifteen minutes.”
    “Crap. We’ll find a way, I promise.”
    He shook his head. “It’s okay. I’m eighteen. I’m supposed to be rebellious, right?”
    “Well, when you call him, you can always tell