OLD FLAMES

I was halfway to Lend's house when a huge spurt of fire shot up into the sky from the pond. I yelped and ran, the afghan trailing behind me like a dark shadow. It slipped and I looked back to grab for it, slamming right into Lend.

We both fell on the ground. "Are you okay?" he asked, searching my face. "What was that?"

"Probably the dragon. I think I pissed it off."

"The dragon's here? Why? What were you doing?"

"I got lured down to the pond by a bunch of paranormals. Including your mom."

"She's there?" He sat up and looked in that direction; the fire was gone now, thank goodness, but I thought I heard voices arguing.

"Yeah. Listen, Lend. They want me to open the gate for them and all the other paranormals. Your mom asked me to." And suddenly it hit me-when she said all the paranormals on earth, she was including Lend in that. Ah, bleep. "They want to leave. All of them. Go back to wherever they came from. Probably with you," I whispered.

"What did you say?" I couldn't tell from the tone of his voice how he felt about it.

"I said no. I just-I'm done. I don't know how to do what they want me to, and the idea of trying terrifies me. I'm done with the supernatural drama, tired of being caught up in the middle of it, tired of being a pawn in their stupid prophecies and petty fights. After everything that happened with Vivian and Reth, even Jack-I don't want any of it. No gates, no other worlds, no being used. I just want here. With you."

He was quiet for a while...too long. Oh no, what if he wanted to go with them? What if he thought his mom was right and that I should try to open a gate for them? Would I try if he asked me to? Would he take me with him? Did I even want to go with him if he chose that? If I survived opening the gate, that was.

He reached out a hand and stood, helping me up. With one last look in the direction of the pond, he put his arm around me and turned us so we faced the house. "It's your choice, Evie. And for the record, I think you made the right one."

"Yeah?"

He squeezed me. "Yeah. Let's go home."

"I don't think we should go," Lend said, frowning at his dad the next morning.

"Nona asked very nicely. They only want to talk," David said.

"I've already heard what they had to say." I sat next to Lend on the couch with my arms crossed. His thumb pressed circles into the tight muscles along my neck. "I'm not interested."

"She implied there was more to it than you let them say last night. Something with what the Unseelie Court is doing."

"Again, not my problem. I didn't ask to be involved in any of this." It was easier to be annoyed with them than to feel compassionate. If I was annoyed, I could dismiss what they wanted instead of feeling guilty for not helping.

"But you are," Arianna said softly from the doorway. I hadn't heard her come in. She looked beyond tired, her shoulders stooped, hands shoved in the pockets of her black jeans. "At least get all the details before you decide to turn your back on them."

I threw my hands up in the air. "Fine. We'll go to the diner, Nona can tell me everything, and then I can say no. Okay?"

David and Arianna nodded, and Lend stood. "Let's get it over with, then."

We piled into the car, Arianna in front with David. He looked at Lend in the rearview mirror. "Did you talk to your mother last night?"

"Nope. And I'm not going to if she's trying to take advantage of Evie and force her to do something she doesn't want to."

I put my head down on his shoulder. We were in this together, and Lend was right. We made our own choices, regardless of where we came from or what we were. He'd taught me that. I wasn't going to choose to be used. I put my hand over Tasey's reassuring bulk in my purse. I didn't belong to IPCA or to the paranormals.

The diner was empty when we got there except for Nona, Grnlllll, and the selkies. Scowling, I sat down next to Lend at a table. Arianna hesitated, then muttered something about picking up some of her stuff and walked straight back through the kitchen and upstairs. I guess she didn't belong at this conversation anyway since she wasn't one of the paranormals looking to go back home.

David pulled up a chair and Nona sat across from me. "Thank you for coming, Evelyn."

Well, at least she wasn't calling me child. "Yup. I'm here. So talk."

"It is not only for our sake that we ask this of you. I know how you have struggled to build a place for yourself in this world. But even that place is threatened by the faeries' continued presence here. We have indeed been working with the Seelie Court."

"I knew it!"

"But only because their desires align with ours. We have let go of our ancient enmity in order to move forward. I would ask you to do the same."

I sat back and shook my head. "It's not your place to ask, Nona. I've got nothing against you, really, but I don't like any of this. You'd make me sacrifice everything I have-quite possibly my life-for something I don't think I can even do. And I don't want to. If the faeries got you all here without an Empty One, they can figure out a way to get you back." There was no reason for me to be in the middle of this. I was sixteen-wait, seventeen now-and this shouldn't be my problem.

"It is not simply that. Being here has separated all of us from what we were and should be. We have dwelt here too long, and we can feel that the time is drawing quickly to a close where it will be possible for us to rejoin eternity. If we cannot get back soon, very soon, we will become permanent fixtures of your Earth. Some of us have been too far removed already. But it is more than concern for ourselves. The Dark Queen has been making-"

Light drew my eyes and I whipped my head to the far end of the diner. A faerie door traced itself onto the wall and, in all his golden glory, out stepped Reth.

"I can't believe you brought him into this!" I said to Nona, standing in a rage.

"Time to go, time to go, time to go," Reth said, striding straight toward me and grabbing my arm. He looked strange, though, his usually pristine clothes slightly rumpled and an expression on his face I'd never seen there before and couldn't quite place.

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" I yanked my arm back, and then I realized what the look on his face was-panic. Reth didn't do panic.

David and Lend both stood, and Lend put himself in front of me. "Get out," he said.

Reth ignored him. "Nona, we're discovered. Gather everyone; I will do my best to keep Evelyn alive long enough to meet you."

"Excuse me?" I stretched my fingers out, eyes narrowing. I hadn't forgotten Reth's part in all this, what his court did to my mother-using her to make me and then discarding her, letting her die somewhere, broken and alone, while my alcoholic faerie father lost me. "The last time we were together I said I'd kill you if I ever saw you again. Do you really want to find out if I was serious?"

"I sincerely hope I have the chance to. But now we are leaving." He shoved Lend aside and wrapped an impossibly strong arm around my waist, pulling me backward. I screamed as Lend and David jumped on him, but Reth flicked his free hand and tossed them both aside. "I am sorry about that."

"Stop!" I shouted, bucking my legs to try and throw him off balance long enough to get my hand around to his chest. He grabbed both my wrists with one of his long-fingered hands to immobilize my soul-sucking powers, but then froze.

"Wretched fates. Too late," he whispered, staring out the window. I matched his gaze and was nearly blinded as white light exploded in the middle of the street, followed by a window-shattering boom.