Dirt filled Ivy's vision and overwhelmed her senses. She tried to scream for help, but the clay infiltrated her mouth. She clawed at the soil around her frantically until her nails broke. She refused to die in a sea of dirt – or more accurately by her own element. She wouldn't have the Earth turn on her in such a cruel way. The longer the soil pressed against her, the weaker she grew. She began to run out of steam when a gargled voice grabbed her attention.
"I see movement."
The sentence barely reached her through the layers of dirt, rock and other debris piled on top of her. She felt shuffling and pressure from digging before hands reached down to yank her out.
"Ivy!" The figure enveloped her in a suffocating hug, the pair of them on their knees.
Ella's face swam in front of Ivy. For a brief second, Ivy feared she was in the middle of a dream. How could Ella and the others have found her? Ivy stayed mute as Ella squeezed her even tighter.
"I swear if they hurt you..." Ella left the threat unfinished, the temperature rising around them. She got to her feet, pulling Ivy with her.
"I'm not dreaming, am I?" Hunching over, Ivy looked around in fear that Tatiana was playing mind games with her. She stood back up and looked at Ella with wide eyes. "You're really here?"
"We're really here." Ella draped an arm around Ivy's shoulders.
Marina bounded into Ivy from across the field and wrapped her arms around Ivy's waist. Sighing, she buried her head into Ivy's chest.
"We found you." Marina tightened her hold, voice cracking. "We weren't sure if we would."
Running a hand over Marina's dark hair, Ivy rolled her head back and took in her surroundings. They stood in a clearing in the middle of the forest. The cell had completely caved in, making Ivy wonder where she had been held. She breathed in and filled her lungs with the cool crisp night air. How she had longed to breathe fresh air again. An almost full moon hung low in the sky, acting as nature's version of a streetlight.
"Did we find her?" Aura's voice sliced through the forest. Her red locks came into view. Ivy met her gaze, seeing the dread and relief pooling in Aura's eyes. Aura flew to the group, pulling everyone in for a hug. "Oh thank the heavens."
They stood like that, basking in one another's presence. Their love poured into Ivy, reinvigorating her from the torment she had faced. A gray wolf padded into Ivy's peripheral view. The others seem unaffected by it, which left Ivy even more perplexed. Squinting, she realized the gray blur had been the wolf from the Hunter's Moon, which meant...
"Griffin."
The name slipped through her lips effortlessly, pulling up a trail of warmth from the pit of her stomach. As Ivy detangled herself from group, Marina squeezed her elbow.
"We wouldn't have found you without him." Marina's sentence hung in the air, the meaning clear as day to Ivy.
Water gathered in the corner of Ivy's eyes. Her breathing became more labored as she fought back the emotions that threatened to overcome her. She never envisioned having a knight in shining armor. Her mother had drilled it into her that Ivy could save herself and that she couldn't count on anyone else to step in and rescue her.
Rocking back on her heels, Ivy ran a hand over her face and down her jawline. The realization crept over her. It started at the furthest corner of her mind until it stared back at her head on. Griffin may have been a knight in shining armor, but he brought with him three other knights in the form of her sisters. Tears slid down her face, landing in the dirt. It took all her energy not to fall with them.
"Did we break her?" Ella asked from behind, a hint of playfulness in her tone.
Shaking her head, Ivy cracked a smile and wiped away the tears.
"Phew, she laughed," Aura said, playing along. "Definitely not broken."
Ivy froze at the feeling of Aura's hand on her shoulder. Ivy gripped the hand and squeezed, her eyes still locked the wolf.
"Go," Marina prompted, waving her hand toward him. "We'll be here. Go. We'll start looking for the fairy."
Queen Tatiana had slipped from her mind while Ivy had basked in the company of her sisters. They couldn't leave the rubble without finding her. No way did this collapsed cell kill the fairy queen.
Mustering up all her resolve, Ivy crossed the broken earth to come face to face with Griffin, who was still in werewolf form. Her footsteps caused him to pause his digging.
Her body sizzled. The heat spreaded from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. It only intensified when she met his amber eyes. The light color contrasted with the charcoal fur. She remembered seeing the amber before, but it was even more striking while he was in his werewolf form.
"Hi there." She ducked her head, tucking her curls behind her ears. Ivy trembled, the nerves coursing through her veins. She had never been this close to a werewolf.
Griffin lowered his muzzle into her reach. When Ivy didn't do anything, he nuzzled against her shoulder, almost knocking her sideways. Her arms flailed around her as she fought to maintain her balance.
"Don't forget how strong you are," she laughed, straightening up. She put a hand out and ran it through the fur between his eyes, which closed at the motion. "Feels good, huh?" Griffin rubbed up against her, more gently this time. "This still seems weird. I'm petting you like a dog."
He pulled his head back and cocked it to the side. The amber pools sucked her in, but she didn't stay in them too long. She couldn't risk drowning in their warmth. Ivy moved to his side, her hand running through the soft fur. She had dreamt of feeling this since the first encounter when he saved them and did it exceed her expectations.
"We'll have to talk properly once you're back in human form." Ivy took a fistful of fur and let it go. If he was tall when he was a human, his werewolf form made that look tiny. Even on four paws, he towered over her. She barely reached his torso. No wonder the wolf and human sides reflected one another. Griffin was a sizeable man, and his wolf embodied that.
"Any luck locating Tatiana?" Ivy turned her sights on the pile of ruble. The Queen had to be there. No one had seen her emerge from it. Either she was still buried by the debris or she had disappeared from underneath by way of tunnels. Ivy would have justice, or at least her revenge, no matter how long it took.
Ivy centered her mind on the dirt. The door to her powers remained locked. She struggled to link with something, anything, but even her vines were out of reach. The mental door wanted to burst off the hinges. Hell, she wanted to kick it down, but every attempt to tap into her powers came up empty. Griffin kept digging at her side, stopping when she groaned. He barked to alert the other witches. They appeared within seconds.
"What's wrong?" Marina said. Dirt blotches covered her knees and the edge of her shirt.
"I'm still blocked," Ivy moaned, falling to her knees. She began digging with her bare hands."
"Ivy, you don't have to – " Aura started but Ivy cut her off.
"No, I do need to do this." Ivy pressed on, the ground flying around her. Once it proved to be uneventful, she moved to the next spot. "Tatiana did this. I won't rest until we have her."
Ella made a sound, but words never left her mouth. Ivy didn't need to look up to know that Marina had been the one to silence Ella with a look.
"Aura and I will take this quarter," Ella said, motioning to what would have been the far side of her cell, or that's what Ivy thought.
"Griffin, can you dig over there?" Ivy pointed to a spot a few feet in front of them. "I feel like that might have been where she stood."
He did as he was asked. His trotting caused the ground to reverberate around them. Griffin got to work, his fur matting with the dirt.
"Marina – "
"I'm right here," she said, sliding up to Ivy's side and took her hand. "I'm right here, and I'm not leaving."
Looking at their hands intertwined, gratitude filled Ivy's heart, replacing the anger that had started to root. A calm ebbed at her, no doubt Marina's influence. Ivy blocked it the best she could. She needed the adrenaline and anger to survive this night. She hadn't told them about what happened. If she lost the drive, Ivy knew she'd be in a puddle of tears.
"Let's find this bitch," Ivy growled, resuming her digging.
Marina gripped Ivy's upper arm and tried to calm her down. Ivy shook Marina off, her frustration escalating. She didn't want to be calm. Couldn't Marina sense that? Ivy wanted to be furious. She feared what she would feel once she came down from this anger and opened her heart back up. The rage fueled her.
After what felt like hours of digging, Ivy collapsed onto her back. Her eyes roamed the starry sky. The last time she had stargazed was on a date with Hunter. He had surprised her with a picnic under a full moon in the middle of a forest.
"C'mon babe, it'll be fun," he had said wrapping his arms around her waist in the dining room. With the lack of serious pollution and lights, Malachi Peak made for optimum stargazing place. "When was the last time we did something this spontaneous?"
"Hmmm," Ivy tapped her chin, "I think in college? We were so much more adventurous back then."
"There's nothing stopping us now," Hunter whined, dotting kisses along her neckline. Ivy closed her eyes at the contact and reached back to grip him.
"All right. Stargazing tonight it is."
Hunter whooped and led her to the living room. He revealed a picnic basket and blankets, all pre-prepared.
"You knew I would say yes, didn't you?" Ivy shook her head, slipping on a jacket. Hunter shot her a mischievous grin over his shoulder.
Tears pooled in the corners of Ivy's eyes as the nostalgic memory played like a movie. That felt like a lifetime ago when times were much simpler. She brushed the tears back, the cool mud smudging over her freckled skin. She grumbled and earned the attention of the others.
"What is it? Did you find something?" Ella's voice rang through the air. Dead leaves crackled under hers and Aura's feet as they approached Marina and Ivy.
"No, I just got mud on my face." Ivy pointed to the stains on her cheek. A half-truth was still a truth, right?
" I have heard that mud is good for the skin," Aura said casually, suppressing a giggle. "It has many moisturizing qualities."
Ivy hurled a snowball of mud at Aura who redirected it at Ella with a flick of her wrist. The goop hit Ella across her midsection, the brown standing out on her green sweater. Ella's jaw about hit the floor. Aura howled with laughter, oblivious to the new mud ball flying her way. This one hit her in the neck, the goop contrasting against her pale skin.
"Ewwww," Aura cried, fanning her hands around her face. "Marina, rinse this shit off...please."
Marina raised a hand, but Ivy threatened to hurl a mud ball her way, a childish grin overtaking her features. Marina lowered her hand and held it up in defense.
"No can do," she said, giggling. "Ivy's got a mud ball teed up if I do."
"And you're more loyal to her?" Aura scoffed jokingly. She waved her hand at an upward angle, and a gust of wind dredged up loose mud that hit Ivy and Marina.
Looking back at Griffin in his wolf form, Ivy sent him a smile. They held each other's gaze long enough for Ivy's cheeks to glow a light pink. Griffin padded over, lying down to put his head in Ivy's lap.
"That's no fair," Ella huffed, pointing at the werewolf. She took her seat on the other side of the divide. "Now we can't hit you with mud. You've got a guard dog."
If werewolves could smile, Ivy swore that's what Griffin did. Her hands played with his fur, still marveling at how soft it was.
"Glad we got a mud fight out of our system," Aura said joining the rest of the group on the ground. "Ivy, I think we need to call it a night."
Ivy surveyed the scene. They had likely dug to the cell itself and past it. There was no sign of Tatiana. She must have escaped. There was no other option. The damn Queen had slipped through their grasp. Ruffling her curls, Ivy sighed and attempted to let go of the negative thoughts that popped up like gophers in her head.
"I think it's time," Marina grabbed Ivy's forearm. Ivy felt nothing. Marina was actually refraining from influencing her feelings.
For some reason, this struck the final blow in Ivy's wall. The anger dissipated and left sadness and exhaustion in its wake. Ivy fell into a heap of sobs, face planting into Griffin's fur. She rolled onto her back at the lack of oxygen and the taste of dirt.
"How could I be so stupid?" she muttered over and over while tears fell unencumbered down her cheeks.
Hands detangled her from Griffin and pulled her up off the ground. Ivy paid little attention to the path they took to reach the car. Next thing she knew, she was in Marina's lap with Marina reminding her that everything would be all right.
In that moment, Ivy wondered if everything would work itself out. Pessimistic thoughts of failure whispered their dangerous attacks in her ear in an effort to sow doubt. Despite all that, deep down, she knew she'd make it through this with these three extraordinary women around her.
A/N
Hi y'all. Time for another chapters, along with some updates.
Good news, California and the West Coast are doing much better. At least in California, the smoke is starting to subside, if only a little.
Got some awful news over the weekend, so I've been trying to deal with that and process it.
I'm almost caught up to the chapters I've typed so I better get on typing the rest...eeek!
Somehow I hit a 1000 reads last week. So crazy to me I started this as just one of my side projects, a passion project really, and just kept rolling and rolling. Ivy had been on my mind for years. Always popping up when I least expected her to. I just couldn't give her up. buttttt I'm going to save this sap for when I actually finish the book. lol. Still more chapters to go!
Also THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE LOVE YOU'VE SHOWN THIS.
Wishing you all a great week <3