“Fae rebels brought it centuries ago and gave it to humans to hide. They thought that if it was in a remote area in another realm, it would be impossible to find. Even they didn’t know where it was ultimately hidden.”
“Why hide it? Why not destroy it?”
Rime shakes his head. “It can’t be destroyed. The results would be…cataclysmic.”
In other words, to destroy it, you’d have to deploy it. I fiddle with the handle of my coffee cup. “How did Brier find out about it?”
“We’re not sure. But we know he’s very charismatic, the type who can persuade others to spill secrets. It wouldn’t be difficult for him to find out if a rumor was actually true.”
The gears in my brain are grinding so hard they’re starting to smoke. I get to my feet. “I’m gonna get more coffee. Do you need anything?”
Rime looks up at me with those puppy-dog blue eyes—eyes that aren’t real but a glamour. “No, thank you. Take your time.”
He knows I need a moment to process all he’s said. And I make the effort, I really do. But it feels like I’m trying to learn Chinese in an hour. Two weeks ago, I was a typical human being, believing mankind was the center of the universe. Now I’m sitting across the table from a faerie, discussing a threat to both our realms. My bubble has officially burst. What else is out there? Nymphs, demons, angels, vampires? The living dead?
No, I’m not going there.No snowballing, Betts. Focus.
From what Rime is saying, Nàdar is in big trouble. This Brier sounds like a potential despot to me. If he’s trying to get his hands on some sort of weapon of mass destruction, then he certainly isn’t planning to rule by reason and justice.
As the barista refills my cup, I peek over my shoulder at Rime. He’s not exactly trembling in his black boots. At a nearby table, three girls keep looking up from their books to ogle him. When I return with my full, steaming mug of coffee, he’s smiling at the redhead directly across from him.
I snort. “Do I need to put blinders on you?”
He sits back in his chair and grins. “Human women are lovely. Much more delicate than Nàdarian females.”
Interesting. Perhaps that’s why Leo always felt the need to protect me. “Don’t be fooled by our appearance.” I say. We may not be trained with swords and daggers, but we still know how to cut deep.
When I hear a giggle behind me, I roll my eyes at Rime. “Can’t you glamour yourself to be ugly?”
“You’ve seen my red eyes.”
“They’re not ugly, just shocking.” They’re beautiful actually, like the faes’ unglamoured faces. A beauty that sets your heart racing and plunges you into that narrow gap between fascination and fear.
I stir three packets of sugar into my coffee and rest my chin in myhand. “If you’re so close to finding this weapon, then why do you need us humans?”
“We’ve gotten as far as we can get with our methods. Leo and Robin have read all the old journals. They’ve done the research and geographical…”
“Wait a minute.” Coffee sloshes as my cup slips from my fingers and nearly misses the saucer. “Does any of this have to do with the Roanoke Colony?”
Rime blots the light brown splatters with our extra napkins. “It was a settler from the Roanoke Colony who was given the weapon and charged with hiding it.”
My jaw nearly hits the table. “How? Why”
“I’m afraid I don’t know the details.”
But Leo does.
I’m not sure why it’s taken me this long to put the pieces together—information overload, perhaps—but suddenly it all makes sense. Now I know why Leo was always camping out in the library by the sixteenth century history books. Why there are a bunch of names and email addresses stuck to his freezer door.
Why he was always needing to “help Robin with something.”
What I thought was a scholarly fascination was actually a hunt. He and Robin have been searching all this time, trying to get ahead of Brier.
I prompt Rime to continue, “And they’re absolutely sure this weapon-thingy ishere?”
“Yes. But within this area, it could be anywhere. Tucked away in a bookcase, buried in a hill or at the bottom of the river.” He shrugs. “We’re not even sure where to start looking.”
I think of the French Broad meandering for miles through the forest and between the mountains. “And we psychics do?”
