side, we knew who we were up against. I wasn’t sure my human training would actually do any good against a dark fae who’d likely been plotting my death for years, but it didn’t change my stance on things. I was ready to find out what came next.
“So, what’s the plan now? I have my final meal, I die, and then you guys take me to Arvayta to be born again and we find this crazy dark fae?” I asked.
Mom glared at my crassness. “You’ve been hanging out with Jordan too long.”
Jordan grinned. “What your mom means to say is yes, that’s pretty much how it will go. You were born at 7:46pm, so we have until then to make the best of your last human hours. So, how about we head out to the falls before dinner and chat some more?”
The book I’d been given that began this whole conversation still sat in my lap, and I held it up. “What about this?”
“That you can worry about when we’re settled in Arvayta. Jordan is right. Go explore, but don’t be too long. Your mom has been working on dinner all day,” Dad answered.
Deciding I didn’t want to argue with him, I placed the book back in the box and set it on the table before taking Jordan’s outstretched hand. With one last glance at my parents, I smiled at them then left the house. My mom appeared as if she was about to completely lose her cool, and my dad seemed proud of me.
Suddenly, the fate of a world was sitting on my shoulders. I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready for it, but I was prepared to fake it for as long as it took to figure things out and preferably not die more than once in the process.
Chapter Four
When we arrived at the waterfall, Jordan cut through a path we’d never taken before, and when I tried to question her, she shushed me. Secretly, I sort of enjoyed that I didn’t know everything. The elation radiating from my best friend at being able to finally share this with me was too good to have ruined entirely. I’d have to give Stryx my thanks for being the pain he loved to be.
“So, where exactly are we going?” I asked as I pushed the umpteenth branch out of my face.
“To the portal,” she answered nonchalantly.
Air caught in my throat at her words. Even though I already knew there were portals out in the world from what Stryx had said, I didn’t expect them to be somewhere that just anyone could stumble upon.
Of course, normal hikers didn’t go off the beaten path and trudge through thick foliage, either.
When Jordan stopped, I ran right into her back, because my head had been down watching for more stray branches. I grasped her arm before she fell. “Sorry.”
She glared at me. “These sandals are not meant to get wet. You’re lucky I didn’t fall.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have worn them hiking like a city girl,” I retorted.
Jordan ignored my jab and moved over. “Look.” Her finger pointed to a small waterfall that was hidden underneath Multnomah Falls. It was maybe eight feet tall and just a few feet wide, but it shimmered like diamonds with the setting sun shining down on it.
A rock path was set in the shallow stream where water swirled, and little white daisies grew all around us. My foot lifted to step onto the first stone, but I quickly realized my own flip-flops weren’t meant for this kind of activity either and pulled back.
“So, this is how we get to Arvayta?” I asked when I finished my perusal.
“Yep. You won’t remember your first trip, so I thought I’d show you ahead of time. Does anything feel different to you yet?”
My head shook. “Nope. I’m still very human and still alive.”
She grimaced. “The dying part isn’t normal. I didn’t realize you’d have to do that. Most of us grow up in Arvayta, so our magic slowly emerges as we grow. Apparently, yours is going to burst out like a jack-in-the-box.”
“Ugh. Thanks for the visual.” Glancing down at my watch, I saw it was just before five. “We should probably head back. I want my final meal. No way am I missing out on the meatballs I smelled simmering earlier.” My mouth was again salivating at the mere thought of them.
She laughed at me but didn’t argue as she led the way home. It was only about a twenty-five-minute walk back