Page 190 of A Courage of the Chosen

“So could Seelie wield shadows and not go bat shit?” Rach says, a hopeful hint to her voice.

“No, just like you need the power of the sun to see the moon, you need mist to wield shadows without it turning you into the worst version of yourself. Mist and light wielders can only use so much of their power before it weakens them, because they do not have the shadows to feed it.”

“Balance,” I say, and Ishbel confirms it.

Blades of grass around us ripple harder than they had done in the gentle breeze we can’t feel, and the earth beneath our feet quakes.

“We’re running out of time.” Ishbel takes on an urgent tone, her hands coming to rest on my shoulders.

“What’s happening?” Rach says as leaves on the tree above us begin falling, the earthquake becoming more violent.

“War,” the Seelie goddess states solemnly.

My gaze finds Rachel’s. “We have to go.”

Ishbel’s grip tightens on my shoulders. “Listen to me, Elsie. You have the power within you. Trust your heart to lead you on the right path.”

Granny wrote those exact same words to me in her letter.

“All that is, belongs to you.”

I nod, hoping that all of this will make more sense in the time it takes for us to find Callahan and Brodie.

Another tremor rocks us, and I grab Rachel’s wrist. “Come on, they need us.”

My best friend turns to me, her chin wobbling. “They need you, Els, not me.”

Rach wriggles free, and Ishbel moves to stand next to her.

“What do you mean?” My question slips out low and quiet.

“You tried, but it wasn’t enough.” The first tear falls onto Rach’s face, and my throat works to swallow.

“But you’re here, we’re here,” I object thickly.

Ishbel remains serious. “This is a space in between.”

“Between what?!” I yell.

“Life . . . and the beyond,” she replies.

The same orbs that gathered around Ishbel after she died appear in a line behind her and Rach, and my skin breaks out in a cold sweat as their focus hones in on me.

Colors flash across them, and as I study each of the ten in turn, something different swims through my veins.

Life and death. Fire and water. The sun and the moon. Each bearing a uniqueness that inhabits them.

Their voices come from nowhere as the Seelie spirits speak as one. “You took too much. She cannot be saved. You must be the one to return and right the wrongs.”

“But . . . Rach?” I flit my gaze to each of them, pleading with every glance.

“Only you,” they reply.

More tears cascade down Rachel’s face, and I begin to object, but she cuts me off. “It was always going to end this way for me.”

“No,” I sob, clamping a hand over my mouth as I turn my gaze to the woman next to her. “Please, no.”

“You must go now, child,” Ishbel says with silver-lined eyes.