Free Chosen Darkness (Chosen Series) by Fawn Atondo Page A

go find a way to make this better.
    Alex held her as the light of dawn touched the sky. He held her even as the light stuck her and she once more became a dog. He then got up without a sound. He didn’t have the heart to tell her goodbye because it would only make it so much harder to leave her behind
     
     
     

     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Nine: Tide Pools
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Falyn stood on the cliff top, watching the waves as she had every day since she’d awoken to find Alex gone. And while she was used to roaming around as a wolf, this was different. This dog was not anything close to what her wolf side felt like. Being stuck, unable to change back, was the most horrible feeling of all.
    As the days turned into weeks, Falyn was getting stir crazy. She paced so much Break often sent her outside to walk it off.
    The next full moon was tonight. Falyn was more than ready to take on her human form again. This time she was going to tell Break she had to go find Alex. True, she might not be able to get her powers to work in order to open the stupid gateway, but maybe just showing up would be enough. If there was one of these Immortal Guards there, surely he would let her in.
    It made sound reasoning to her and she hoped it would to Break. After all, Alex was her friend too and she wouldn’t want him trapped in the other world either.
    The moment Break finished the changing spell, Falyn shared her plans with her.
    “I’m sorry, Falyn, but you can’t go seeking the gateway as a dog. In that form you have no powers and my magic is linked to this pool only,” Break informed her sadly.
    “Then I’ll go as a human,” Falyn announced firmly.
    “How are you going to go as a human when you only have one night a month like this?” Break asked.
    “Damn it, Break, can’t you change me at the Gate itself or something?” Falyn demanded, her voice going up a notch.
    “The gate is across the sea at Stonehenge. How exactly do you plan to make it there in one night?”
    Break’s logic was starting to wear on Falyn’s nerves!
    “You’re a mermaid; don’t you have magic?” Falyn cried in frustration.
    “I have some magic, as you know, but nothing that will get you to England fast enough.”
    With a loud sigh, Falyn gave up arguing and picked up the clothes Break had laid out for her. She got dressed and then ate dinner with Break, trying her best not to be mad at the friendly mermaid. None of this was Break’s fault.
    Still, she had to wonder if Break could help her more than she was letting on. A gut feeling she had told her Break was not being one hundred percent honest with her.
    After dinner, Falyn went to walk along the beach, hoping the night air would take some of the edge off of her frustration. What she was not excepting was the dark shadow on the beach. The man just seemed to pop out of the shadows, making her heart stop. Falyn’s first thoughts were her father had come for her. But as the moon cast light on the figure, she saw it was her grandfather.
    Still a little uneasy, she made her way to him. Stopping a few feet away she waited for him to turn to her.
    “Falyn, it’s good to see you.” He smiled at her.
    “I can’t say I feel the same…” She trailed off, not knowing what else to say.
    “I told you what the price would be, didn’t I?”
    His reminder did nothing to cool her rage.
    “Yes, but I didn’t think it would be so hard!” Falyn snapped at him.
    “I understand, be glad you did not have my fate.” His words made her look at him sharply.
    “What do you mean?”
    He seemed unharmed as she looked him over.
    “Your father found out quicker than I thought that I had helped you, and now I stand before you a mere ghost.” His eyes darkened with sorrow.
    “What do you mean, a ghost…? He killed you?” Falyn was in shock.
    “Yes, and now I come to tell you the mermaid has found a way to keep you human longer.”
    Those words sent a rush of hope