“Come back into the other room. Let us explain,” Eldon says.

I glance back at Clover. She doesn’t appear to be in any pain, in fact she looks the perfect picture of health. “You’ll tell me everything?” I ask.

“We will tell you what we can,” Avery says.

We take a seat in the outer room on some wooden chairs that are covered in a soft moss-like material. It is surprisingly comfortable. Ezra stands behind me, his arms folded. Avery and Eldon sit opposite. Eldon considers me. He has a warm, friendly face, but I can’t help but feel suspicious.

“Clover made the decision to become fae a little over a moon cycle ago.”

“But why would she choose to become fae? I don’t understand. Clan Terra are cursed, just like Ezra, Rhain, Devin. Just like all of the people of Clan Lux. Why would she want that?”

“Clover is gifted, Accacia. She has a special connection to all things growing. Much more so than many of our people.”

“Yes, back home she was always able to revive plants that seemed dead to me. It isn’t a surprise what you are saying, but what has this got to do with her decision to become fae? How can a person even become fae? I didn’t know such a thing was possible?”

“Anyone born of the clan can become the creatures Queen Adrielle created when she cast the curse. Did you not know this?”

“Hold on a minute. Are you saying that I can become a vampire if I choose it?” I twist in my seat to look at Ezra. He looks as stunned as me.

“Yes. You are the missing daughter of Clan Lux, are you not?”

“Well, yes but…” I say, turning back to face them.

“Even if that were true, Accacia will never become like us. She is here to break the curse, not to join us. I will not allow it,” Ezra says, resting a hand on my shoulder. His touch makes my skin pepper with goose bumps. Ezra mutters under his breath and removes his hand quickly.

“Ezra’s right,” I say. “Why would I choose to become a vampire? I’ve spent most of my adult life trying to find a cure for this disease I thought I had. Now that I know it’s a curse, I want to break it.”

“We understand. But for us, the people of Clan Terra, it is different. The curse Queen Adrielle cast means we are connected to the forest. We cannot leave because we are trapped here. You have seen the vines, have you not? Our essence, who we are as a people, is bound to the earth, to the trees, to the plant life, to very soil you walk upon.”

“What about the pods? I have seen none since arriving here. We were under the impression you were confined to them too,” Ezra asks.

Eldon shakes his head. “Not anymore. When we were first drawn down beneath the earth we were all confined to the pods. For a long time, we were trapped within them, asleep. Then one day, they began to open, and we awoke here in this place. We built a life down here, beneath the trees that grow above ground. We are, however, still confined to the Forbidden forest, above and below ground. We cannot go beyond the limits of the forest in our fae form.”

“But you can in another form?” I say, remembering the saplings Clover had been so excited about and the pods they grew into.

Avery shrugs. “Yes, but only for a short time. That magic does not last long. We took a chance, and thankfully Clover found us. If she hadn’t, we would have perished anyway. That’s why we had to return because, no matter what, we are bound to the forest.”

“Clover chose to return with us. Just like she has chosen to become fae. To help cure the disease that is taking over the forest,” Eldon adds.

“Tell us about it,” Ezra says.

“For some years now, the Forbidden forest has been sick. If the forest dies, we all die. Eldon, Jael and I were sent to find Clover, to bring her back here in the hope that she will be able to save our people from certain death.”

“But her purpose is to break the curse so that you are no longer bound to the forest. Not to become like you, not to be imprisoned in the same way,” I shout, unable to help myself. “Why would Clover walk willingly into a cursed life? Why would she choose to be fae? It makes no sense. None at all.”

Avery’s face lights up. “Clover is special, Accacia. There are things we cannot explain, things we are forbidden from revealing about the fae to anyone outside of Clan Terra. But will you trust me when I say we have her best interests at heart. Clover has made a decision that will help all the people of Clan Terra. She is selfless and good.”

“I know she is. She has been my friend for most of my life,” I snap, unable to accept what Avery and Eldon are telling me. “How can I believe a word you are saying? I can’t even speak with Clover to see if you’re telling the truth. You said she speaks of me often, you implied you can converse with her as well, but how is that possible given she’s asleep?” I shout, pointing towards her sleeping figure in the other room.

“We can communicate very well. I believe you have experienced our form of communication already, have you not?” Eldon says patiently.

I narrow my eyes at both men, refusing to listen. “You’ve used your magic on her, haven’t you? She doesn’t know what she is doing, and I am telling you now to stop. You stop this. You let her go.” I stand up, anger coursing through me.

“That is not how it is,” Eldon says. “We would never do anything to hurt Clover. Jael, Avery and I are the three fated to be with her.”

“Fated? What are you talking about now?” I ask, but wave my hand in the air as Avery begins to speak. “I don’t care what you say. I don’t believe anything you tell me. Clover warned me away. She said I was in danger. You have trapped her here. This is all a lie.” I stand up and run back into the bedroom. Ezra is by my side in an instant. “We need to get her out of here, Ezra. Please, will you help me?”

Ezra places a hand on my shoulder, just as Eldon and Avery enter the room. The three men exchange looks. “Accacia, look at me,” he says, pulling me around to face him.

“What?”

“I do not believe these men are lying to you. I believe them when they say they have Clover’s best interests at heart.”

“Rubbish. She is under their spell. She wouldn’t choose a death sentence like this. You heard what they said, the forest is dying. If she becomes fae, she will be connected to the forest as well. She will die, just like the rest of them.”

“What makes you so sure? Clover has spent her life studying, growing, cultivating plants. Look at this place, Accacia. What if Clover being here will save the forest. What if that’s her destiny?”

I shake free from Ezra’s hold, frustrated that he is taking their side. “Studying plants is one thing, becoming fae and being bound to this forest is quite another. Clover is sensible. She’s a scientist, like me. She wouldn’t make a stupid decision like that.”

“Clover is from Clan Terra. She has their blood running through her veins. Before the curse, these people were already connected to the land, gifted with the ability to grow crops. The prophecy has brought her home to her people. This is her fate. I do not believe that is a bad thing.”

“Damn it, Ezra, they’re lying! They are using her for their own gain. I know it,” I say, my voice cracking with emotion.

“Eldon and Avery, they are not lying. I believe this is the prophecy happening as it should. You have to trust me on this, Accacia.”

“Trust you? How can I trust a man who would rather walk away from his people, from his brothers, from me, because he is too afraid to live? I know what I felt when I took your blood, I know what I felt when we kissed,” I shout, rounding on Ezra. I push against his chest, not caring that I am revealing how I feel. “I know you felt it too, that connection. Yet still you refuse to let me help you. So not only will I lose you, I will lose my best friend to this curse and I will probably lose Rhain and Devin too, if the fae king has his way.” I turn back to Clover, falling to my knees beside her. “Wake up, Clover, please. You don’t have to do this,” I say, pressing my face into her hair.

Ezra doesn’t attempt to comfort me, or even tell me I am wrong, he simply walks from the room. I can hear the low murmur as he talks with Eldon and Avery next door, but I am too exhausted to try and listen in on their conversation. After a while I get up off the floor, slide into bed next to Clover and fall asleep.