Raven The Fire Blood Amulet

Chapter 3

Markus c***s his head at the small frail girl curled up in a ball on the large double bed in the center of the large room, a deep frown etched between his eyebrows. Junaid, his wolfwalker escort, passed him into the room with a tray of food and immediately the girl jumped up to hug the huge man. His eyes narrow as he watches the interaction between the two. Junaid, entices the girl with the food on the tray and she eagerly eats what he offers, beaming at him. He could feel the connection between them, he could just not pinpoint the origin.

“Junaid is the only one that has been able to get that close to her,” Janelle whispers next to Markus where they were standing in the doorway, “she trusts him.”

Markus looked around, the room was bare except for the bed and an old wooden cabinet, his eyes returning to the girl.

“What is it exactly that you require from me, your highness?” he asks, his voice lowered so that only Janelle could hear him. Janelle touches his arm lightly to pull him out of the room into the wide hallway.

“I have done my research on you Markus,” she smiles, her eyes narrowing slightly to study Markus’s face. She touches his bruised jaw and he flinches.

“I would have expected nothing less…again…what is it you need me to do?”

Janelle leans back against the wall, her hands behind her back. Markus lets his eyes drift over her. It should be a sin to be blessed with such beauty. Her golden hair was tied back in a thick braid and she was wearing a blue layered dress, the fabric around her legs were sheer to expose the creamy skin. The low cut bodice revealed a cleavage that promised more.

Markus inhales then exhales, as he waits patiently for Janelle to respond.

“I need you to help her,” Janelle states, looking him now directly in the eyes. Markus sighs.

“You will have to be more specific, your highness, help her with what exactly, I do have many talents as you well know,” he smirks, which rewards him with a small scowl, “a memory wipe? New memories? Personality switch?”

“I need you to teach her how to use her powers before...”

“Powers? Who is she?” Markus asks, cutting the queen off, and she pushes herself away from the wall.

“Her name is Raven” she answers, “and she is a fey.”

“A fey?” Markus laughs in disbelief, but it fades quickly when he sees the seriousness on Janelle’s beautiful face, “that is impossible, feys don’t exist anymore…”

“I did not believe it myself, but…” Janelle quickly looks into the room, “come with me.”

Janelle starts to walk down the hallway and Markus follows.

Janelle leads him into the study and for just a moment looks unsurely at Markus before walking around to sit behind the large desk. Janelle stares at the intricate wooden box on top of the desk. It had terrified her at first to discover the truth about Raven. As a wolfwalker she was in her own right a powerful being, a shifter that can transform between wolf and human at will, with abilities far superior than a human’s.

Faes are creatures of legend, powerful beings with devastating magical abilities, and they were the mothers of the wolfwalkers, their creators. But they were supposed to be dead, extinct, killed centuries ago, after the war that had laid waste to the world.

“Where did you find her?” The question was asked quietly as Markus sinks down onto the couch opposite the desk.

“We rescued her from Jean-Paul Ducreux.”

“Ducreux?” Markus frowns, there had been rumors over the last few days that Jean-Paul Ducreux had fled Wintersvale, like a dog with his tail between his legs, some even thought him dead.

“Yes, I had some business with him and he brought the girl with him, and I persuaded Monsieur Ducreux to give me the girl.”

Markus raises his eyebrows, persuaded?

“She was bonded to him,” Janelle’s face scowled, “but he released her before he had worn out his welcome…”

“How the hell did someone like Ducreux bond a fey to himself?”

“I doubt he knew of Raven’s true lineage, if he had…”

Markus nods, it was unlikely if a first level magician like Ducreux knew he had a fey in his possession he would not have given her up so easily. But then again, did he give her up willingly?

“How do you know she is fey? If in fact she is one at all…”

Janelle had known a man like Markus would not believe her without evidence.

“Markus…” Janelle’s voice was soft and he watched her as she opened the wooden box. Her hands disappear inside and she carefully lifts out the red opal amulet.

Markus jumps up horrified, “what the hell?” Learning about a being that has been murdered out of existence that was still alive was one thing, but to see the one thing that could bring destruction to everything was another.

“Destroy it!” Markus scowls furiously. Is Janelle mad?

“I can’t do that Markus,” Janelle shakes her head standing up, “we need to protect her, help her…”

“Then destroy the amulet.”

Janelle walks to stand in front of Markus, holding the amulet out towards him and he staggers backwards.

“Do you believe in fate, Markus Courtenay?”

“What?”

“Do you believe in fate, Markus?” Janelle repeats her question.

Markus stares at Janelle, her eyes were wide and he could see the tiny golden flecks floating in their blue depths.

“If you mean…that we find ourselves to be in a certain place at a certain time in the moment we are meant to be…then yes” he breathes.

“It was no accident that I had to travel to Bridgewater and ultimately discover the amulet in Ducreux’s possession. I did not know about Raven, until she came here. I was initially only interested in the amulet, but when I saw Raven I knew there was a connection.”

Markus sits back down, rubbing his forehead, he was starting to get a headache. Markus’s eyes fell to the large red opal. It was dull and looked heavy. His coven has volumes of scripts on the history of earth. And he had been privileged to be able to study most of them, the history of the Fae being among them.

It had been those stories his grandmother had told that had enthralled him the most when growing up. About the beautiful Fae that wielded magic beyond all imaginings, creatures of immense power that could change everything around them. They who had helped shape the world and then destroyed it.

Janelle could see the struggle on Markus’s face. She needed him. Raven needed him.

“You are the Red Hood Enchanter, Markus. We both know the power this amulet represents and we both know what could happen, if a Fae is bound to it”

“Then destroy it!” Markus says with clenched teeth.

“If this is Raven’s amulet, then you know destroying it could kill her,” Janelle grabs Markus’s hand thrusting the amulet into it, “but what if she binds herself to it?”

“What?” Markus frowns, puzzled, the amulet burning into his palm. Janelle returns to her chair behind the desk. She remains quiet watching Markus stare at his hand like he was holding the devil himself.

Markus shakes his head, he had forgotten that the amulets had been forged from Fae blood and if this was Raven’s, destroying it would indeed kill her. The amulets were created to bind a Fae to serve a master. He has never heard of a Fae being bound to her own amulet. Was it even possible?

What the Queen of the Wolfwalkers was suggesting was madness. Yet, a Fae exists when there should be none and a Fae Amulet when all had been destroyed…