“Where in Light’s name have you two been? Devin went looking for you some time ago, seeing as I am unable to leave this damn prison,” Ezra says the moment we enter Nostra’s home. He is furious. I have no idea whether he or any of the vampires sleep, but Ezra looks like he needs a good night’s rest. There is a grey look about his face, and he has dark shadows under his eyes. Then I remember the fact that he still refuses to take my blood and what that means for him.

“Calm down, brother, all is well.” Rhain guides me in, his hand resting on my lower back.

“Calm down? You tell me to calm down, when you were the one who was about to return yourself to the Light!” Ezra storms.

“Don’t be a hypocrite, Ezra. Isn’t that your intention too?” I say, not able to help myself. “After all, you refuse to take my blood…”

Nostra, who is quietly watching the exchange, considers me for a moment. “Accacia speaks the truth, does she not?” he says, turning his attentions to Ezra. “It is why I have kept you in this prison, yes?”

Ezra crosses his arms. “It is not the same,” he mumbles.

“No?” Nostra shakes his head.

“Enough, Nostra. There is no changing my mind.”

Rhain holds up his hand. “Please stop. The Claiming is complete. We just got a little side-tracked. I am here now, brother, all is well.”

“Damn you, Rhain.” Ezra looks at him and I can tell he wants to say much more but he holds his tongue. He glances at me and his jaw tightens.

Nostra beckons us over, and Rhain and I sit at the kitchen table.

The room is warm, heated by an open fire. Mr Tickle is lying in front of it on a worn rug, stretched out, warming his belly. It makes me smile, I am glad he is safe. I can see something cooking in a large earthenware pot, hanging suspended over the fire. I am so distracted by the beautiful smells of slow-cooked meat, herbs and spices that I am not as surprised by the magic as I should be. My stomach rumbles.

“You are hungry, Accacia?” Nostra asks.

My stomach rumbles loudly once more and instantly a bowl of stew and a spoon appear on the table in front of me. A moment later I am eating, not able to hide my appreciation for the delicious food.

“Apologies, Cia, I hadn’t considered your needs…” Rhain says, looking guilty.

“It’s fine, I wasn’t really hungry before,” I mumble between mouthfuls.

Ezra shakes his head. “You need to take better care of her.”

“You all need to take better care of her,” Nostra says.

“I can take care of myself,” I say, placing the spoon back in an empty bowl.

Rhain and Ezra laugh simultaneously.

“What’s so funny?”

“Have you forgotten what has happened these last few days?” Ezra reminds me.

“Of course I haven’t forgotten. May I remind you that I was perfectly fine before you three brought trouble to my doorstep.”

“You were never fine, Accacia,” Nostra interjects. “Your fate was always sealed.”

“The prophecy?”

“Indeed.”

“I still don’t understand how I am supposed to break this curse.”

“Not just you.” Nostra glances between Rhain and Ezra. The look he gives them has me wondering again about the prophecy and whether they are refraining from telling me all of it. “There are four other missing daughters. Each of them must be located and brought back to Ever Vale. Blake returned a few weeks ago. I told him of the prophecy and sent him on his way with the locator stone. I am hopeful he will return shortly with the missing daughter of Clan Spiritus.”

“A few weeks ago? How could he have come to you a few weeks ago? We only saw him the day before yesterday. And how in Light’s name did he find the portal? We didn’t tell him the location,” Rhain says, concern creasing his brow.

“Firstly, he is a wolf. They are gifted trackers, it wouldn’t have taken him much to find your trail. Secondly, as you are probably aware by now, time runs differently here. You may have only seen him yesterday but just over a moon cycle has passed since he came through the portal. It has been almost nine moon cycles since I saw you three last.”

“Nine moon cycles?” Rhain says aghast. “Queen Adrielle will surely have noticed our absence?”

“Relax, brother. On my request, Lissa has told the Queen that you three are hunting a pack of rogue wolf-shifters. It is not unusual for you to be gone for this long. She suspects nothing.”

“Lissa, eh? She has spirit. I liked her when we met.”

A smile flitters across Devin’s face. “Yes, she is indeed very likeable.”

“Who is Lissa?” I ask.

“Lissa works as chamber maid for Adrielle and has access to the Queen’s most inner sanctum. She helped us open the portal into Earth. Lissa is one of us, though she was born to the curse. You see, Queen Adrielle murdered her parents, so she has every reason to want the witch dead. No offence, Nostra,” Rhain says.

“None taken,” he replies.

I raise my eyebrows. “Born to the curse? You mean you can have children?”

“Yes. A female clan member can bear one child. It is cruel, no, to be born into a world of darkness, forced to drink blood to survive, to become the Queen’s property from the moment you are born? It is as Queen Adrielle wished. Lissa is unluckier than most because she must suffer the Queen’s demands daily.”

“But isn’t she afraid of getting caught?”

Nostra looks at me and frowns, tapping the table with his fingers. “She is clever, she will survive.”

“You say nine moon cycles have passed since Rhain, Ezra and Devin left. How long is a moon cycle exactly?” I ask, a thread of worry circling through my thoughts.

“One moon cycle is the time it takes for the full moon to go through its different faces and become full once again,” Nostra explains.

“On Earth we refer to that amount of time as a month, or thereabouts… So, that would mean one day on Earth is approximately a month here in Ever Vale.” My hand flies to my mouth, covering my shock when I realise what that means for Clover.

“Oh my god. The last time I spoke to Clover was almost two Earth weeks ago. Which means she has been here in Ever Vale for months. She’s probably dead already,” I say, tears instantly pricking my eyes. The guilt I feel is immense. I should have gone to find her the moment I arrived in Ever Vale, but that would have meant Rhain’s death and even considering that makes me feel sick.

Nostra places his hand over mine. “Erza told me of the pods you found. He explained that your friend Clover is an arborist and what that means. I do not believe your friend is dead. I believe she has been taken by the fae. Clan Terra were a people who cultivated the land, and for half a century now the forest has been sick. They may have taken her to ensure their survival. There is also something else I must explain…”

“Go on,” I say, relief that she could still be alive calming the rising sickness I feel.

“I visited the Forbidden forest some years ago to tell the fae of the prophecy. I took them the stone which I spelled to find their missing clan daughter.” Nostra turns to Ezra and holds his hand out.

I watch as Ezra drops a huge emerald into Nostra’s palm. “Ezra found this stone amongst the foliage of the pods back at your friend’s place.”

“You mean...?” I start.

“Yes. I believe Clover is none other than the missing daughter of Clan Terra.”

I sit back in my chair, shaking my head. “I don’t believe it. All this time we’ve been friends, and we had no idea about our past or where we came from. What are the chances?”

“I do not believe in coincidence, but I do believe in fate. You were destined to be friends. Before the curse, the people of Clan Lux and the people of Clan Terra were close. Their crops grew abundantly next to the Light fields, that is why the Forbidden forest grows next to it now.” Nostra hands me the emerald. “If you wish to find your friend, you will need to use this to locate her.”

“Will it work? Rhain said the stones were spelled in such a way that only the clan’s men chosen to find the missing daughter could use them.”

“That is quite correct, but you are forgetting one thing. I am a witch and that was my spell. I have updated it for you.”

“Hold on a moment, Nostra. Accacia is not going into the Forbidden forest,” Rhain says adamantly. “You are the only person who has ever returned from that place. It is not safe. Why don’t you go back? It should not be Accacia.”

“That would be unwise. The fae did not take kindly to my intrusion the last time. Besides, I cannot leave here. I am hopeful Blake will return soon. Then there are the angels…”

“You mean to say that you have already persuaded Clan Vitae to find their missing clan’s daughter?” Rhain says.

“Actually, that was Lissa. She was the one who persuaded the angels, not me. As I said, she is quite gifted. Queen Adrielle has quite the foe in young Lissandra.”

“I hope to meet her one day,” I say.

“You will. But first we must discuss your journey ahead. You are determined to find her, yes?” Nostra says, stating the obvious.

“Yes.”

“I will take Accacia,” Ezra interrupts. “We had a bargain, Accacia and I. She promised to undergo the Claiming and in return I agreed to take her into the Forbidden forest. Once that promise is fulfilled I am indebted no longer and will be free to return to the Light as I choose.”

“You made this bargain with Ezra… you didn’t want to undergo the Claiming?” Rhain appears hurt, which surprises me a little.

I take hold of his hand. “Yes, it’s true. I was so worried for Clover, it was all I had to bargain with. Then, once I found out that you had returned here to sacrifice yourself, I realised I didn’t want you to die…”

“You didn’t want the guilt, you mean.”

“No, that is not what I mean. I didn’t want you to die because I care for you, because I wanted you in return,” I say quietly.

“I am glad of that, Cia,” Rhain says, brushing a tender kiss across my lips.

Nostra turns from watching our exchange to address Ezra, his strange purple eyes glowing. I’m certain that if I look close enough, I’ll see flames alight in them.

“So, you are still intent on killing yourself?”

“We have discussed this, Nostra. I cannot betray Thalia’s memory. The Joining was sacred, and I have no desire to partake in that ceremony with anyone else again.”

“But Thalia is dead, brother. It has been a thousand years, you are joined to her no more,” Rhain says.

Ezra stands and yanks Rhain’s collar, bringing his face close to his own. His eyes are full of rage, of hurt and pain. “Don’t you think I know that? I have missed her every damn day of my Light’s forsaken life. I loved her, I loved our daughter. No one can replace them. Now, or ever.” He lets go of Rhain, who sinks back in his chair, silent.

Ezra is breathing heavily and I feel for him, I do. Yet I cannot help but feel hurt by his words. “Ezra, I am sorry for your loss, truly. I would never wish to replace your wife. I just want…” I sigh. What do I want? I’m honestly not sure. Part of me wants to not feel responsible for his decision. After all, if I hadn’t run from them and burnt so severely, Ezra wouldn’t have felt obliged to give me his blood. Another part of me, the part that is confused by these strange new feelings, wants Ezra to want me. Who is this person I have become? First Rhain, then Devin and now Ezra. This isn’t me, or at least not the me I knew before these men, vampires, came into my life.

“I will help you find your friend and then I will take my life. That is my decision,” Ezra says softly. He looks at me, but his eyes do not meet mine.

“And what of the prophecy? What of the fate of your clan, your brothers, Accacia? Have you not considered what your actions would mean for them?” Nostra says in frustration.

“Once I have helped Accacia, you must choose someone else to be the third. It does not have to be me,” Ezra says, avoiding my gaze.

“Are you certain of that?” Rhain asks.

“I am.”

Nostra catches me looking at Ezra and our eyes meet. “Then so be it,” he says.

“This is stupid, dangerous. We’ve only just got Accacia back and both of you are willing to risk her life? I do not agree. I forbid you to go,” Rhain says.

“Forbid me?” I laugh. “You may have claimed my body, Rhain, but you haven’t claimed my own free will. I need to know Clover is okay. Nothing will stop me from finding her, not even you. This is non-negotiable.”

Behind us the door opens and Devin walks in, breaking the sudden tension that has filled the room. “Well then, it looks like we are all taking a trip into the Forbidden forest. When do we leave?”