Haley Hamilton

Prologue

Summer Solstice

Elideh

Elideh Danu could not believe, after years of searching, she finally found it. It must have been fate, because one minute, she was browsing in a local, second-hand bookshop, and the next, it was there: the lost faerie Book of Straun. A beautifully bound book in supple, emerald leather, radiating magic. Elideh purchased it from the shopkeeper, who couldn’t remember seeing it before, and had to stop herself from sprinting back to The Harbour Inn.

“Hello, Elideh. Productive day?” asked Mary, the innkeeper.

“Very much so,” Elideh shouted as she ran past, quickly making her way to the staircase leading to her room.

She flung open the door, locking it behind her, and sat on the bed. She pushed her dark hair behind her ear, and took a deep breath.

Then she opened the book.

Even with all the research about the fae she had conducted over the past decade, and even though she knew that they had once resided in these lands long ago, she was genuinely in awe of what was written in this ancient tome. Not only was it overflowing with fae history, but, to her astonishment, it was also a grimoire. She flipped to a page with beautiful, gold calligraphy and her heart stopped.

It couldn’t be.

There, written in gold, was a story that was strangely, eerily, horribly familiar.

Once upon a time, in a world where magic had to hide, there lived two sisters who loved each other very much.

The older sister, born of stars and chaos, and the younger sister, born of caution and light, were destined for greatness, but at a cost. 

Their parents cherished them above all else, and would pay the price for the forbidden love they shared.

But destiny cannot be changed, and fate cannot be thwarted.

And the sisters could not hide forever.

The darkness waited patiently, searching for a way to them. Though forces beyond their control propelled them toward the inevitable collision. 

But fate is not without mercy, and destiny is not without choice. Ancient threads began to weave together, connecting despite all odds. And the sisters could change the world, or damn it. 

Although she had never been able to confirm it, she believed that her and her younger sister, Ailia, were connected to the faerie realm she had been trying to find for so long. And this story, written in gold, resonated with a story she barely remembered. A story her mother used to tell her. Hands shaking, she turned to the next page, and nearly dropped the book. Elideh shook her head and pinched her arm, making sure this wasn’t a dream.

Holy shit. Holy shit. She found it. After all her searching, it was right there in front of her—a way to open an entrance to Elflaine. And if her suspicions were correct, if the story was true, she would be able to perform the spell. Today was Summer Solstice, one of the days when the veil between the realms was thinnest—one of the only days this spell would work. If she was going to do this, she had to act quickly.

Elideh wrote a note to Ailia, explaining everything she could. She would normally just call her, but didn’t want to hear the inevitable “Wait for me before you make any rash decisions,” or even worse, “Can you at least sleep on it, Elideh?” She couldn’t afford to wait, and if she was being honest with herself, she knew this could be dangerous, and she had promised her parents, all those years ago, she would always keep Ailia safe.

Besides, she would only stay in Elflaine for a couple of days. But just in case she couldn’t get back, she would leave the book at the inn for Ailia so that she wasn’t left completely in the dark. Although Elideh tended toward spontaneous decisions, she liked to have a backup plan.

After writing the note and stuffing it into the Book of Straun, she carefully put the book on her desk, knowing Ailia would notice it immediately. Elideh traced her hand over the spine of the book and wished she could take it with her. But Ailia would need it if something went wrong, and ever since the night their parents had died, Elideh had sworn to protect her sister.

She texted Ailia to get to Portpatrick as quickly as she could, gathered some clothes and a notebook, and threw them in a small bag. She was sure Mary wouldn’t mind if she left her things for a couple of days. Wasting no more time, she set off. She needed to be in a place where she could perform the magic without being found, and the ruins a short hike away would be perfect.

She slipped out of the inn without making a fuss over goodbyes and headed straight to the steep hill that would lead her to the crumbling castle. Elideh was not a runner like her sister, but she started jogging as quickly as she could through the mist toward her fate.

The wind was beginning to pick up, whipping Elideh’s dark, silver-and-gold streaked hair around her face, the mist growing heavier with every step she took. She glanced toward the sea, the waves angrily crashing against the cliff, but quickened her pace. She wasn’t going to let a little rain stop her.

The massive stone ruins of Dunsky Castle looked black against the pale gray sky, and Elideh walked toward the place where a door once stood, careful not to trip over the loose stones on the ground. She cautiously made her way through what must have been a grand hall at some point toward the back of the structure. It was strangely quiet, the stone walls blocking most of the wind.

Elideh unfolded the paper where she had written the spell, took a deep breath, and started reciting the ancient words. As soon as she had spoken the last word of the spell, a shimmery portal appeared not far from her at the edge of the treacherous cliff. She purposefully strode to the portal, sure of her choice, and walked straight through.

At first, there was a soft, still darkness.

And then starlight exploded around her.

And Elideh knew no more.

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