Fates Altered: A Halven Rising Prequel

Theda had been taught by Fae elders and her family that nothing good came from intimacy with a human… But she was beginning to understand the temptation.

Alex left her room, but not before he’d driven her mad with his touches and kisses. She’d never experienced the storm of sensation that was attraction. She wanted it to last, but Alex had pulled away.

Her pulse still pounded and her body ached for his touch, but slowly she was able to think more rationally.

He had used more restraint than she. Never would a man in her realm have refused her; she was a princess. She would have given Alex her virtue, yet he had held back for fear they were going too fast. Perhaps they were, but with every fiber of her being it felt right to be with him.

Theda hadn’t seen a single one of her kind since she’d arrived in the Earth realm, but there was no guarantee the reprieve would last. And she didn’t want to miss a moment with Alex.

Her thoughts left her restless and unable to sleep for at least an hour after he’d left, when she heard the sound of talking coming from the living room.

At first, she ignored it, figuring it was simply Leti or Tony stopping by for something. Until she sensed the alarm in Alex’s voice.

She quickly got up and dressed, and walked out into the living room. Alex stood there looking out the darkened window, talking on a black device he held to his mouth.

He cursed in a form of Latin Theda didn’t understand, except for the part about a mother. “The sheep are where?”

“The highway,” Theda murmured. Right as the sound of Tony’s voice came through the black box and said, “They’re walking on the damned freeway.”

Alex glanced back at her, his eyebrows pinched together. He pressed a button on the communicator. “How the hell did they get out?” Then he said, “Never mind. Just grab as many workers out of bed as you can. We’ll help Jim gather up his flock. He’s been a good neighbor to Old Bob and would do the same for us.”

Theda walked out the front door onto the porch, listening to the sounds outside. She heard the sheep. They wanted to wander. And they were following one another, ambling. Many were in the range of the highway Theda had crossed when she’d first arrived.

Without a second thought, she pulled out her sack of allon powder she kept stashed on her at all times, even beneath the nightshirt she wore. She grabbed a pinch and set it in the center of her palm. With firm instructions to the sheep, she blew the powder into the air—along with her words.

Scratching noises, like those from the black communicator, came from behind. And Theda realized Alex had followed her out. She turned around suddenly.

He was staring at her.

What had she done? How would she explain her actions?

“Alex, you there?” Tony’s voice rang clearly through the speaker. “You’re never gonna believe this, but the dumb things turned around. They’re headed back in the direction of Jim’s property. I’ve got a couple of guys out here with me. We’ll keep an eye on them and make sure they make it back, but I don’t think we need to call in all hands. This one seems to have fixed itself.”

Alex took a step down from the porch and sat heavily on one of the steps. He set the device next to him and stared at his hands, his expression controlled.

Theda quickly put away the powder. She couldn’t lie. She could avoid, but Alex was intelligent; she wouldn’t be able to hide what he’d witnessed. She walked over and sat beside him.

Without looking at her, he asked, “Did you do something to make them come back?”

“Yes.”

“Will you explain it to me?”

She swallowed and stared off. “No.”

She couldn’t explain Fae magic. It was complicated even for her kind. Some possessed elemental abilities—power over nature’s elements—and others were able to manipulate the mind. But Theda didn’t want to tell Alex any of this. The more he knew, the more danger she put him in. He shouldn’t know anything about her kind. And if Fae nearby noticed the slight burst of power she’d released to help the herd… She couldn’t think of it, it would only increase her worries.

Alex didn’t press her further, but she could tell it bothered him as he quietly stood and walked back inside the house, murmuring something about getting sleep.

What she’d done, no human should be able to do. She was different. So far, he hadn’t demanded answers, but how long would that last?

When Theda finally fell asleep that evening, she dreamt of her family—and of a guard tracking her relentlessly in the Earth realm.

When Alex got home from work the next day, it was to find Theda sitting at the kitchen table chatting with his father.

His dad rose. “That’s my cue to leave.” He gave Alex a thumbs-up as he passed and walked to the door.

Alex stared at his father’s back, waiting for him to close the door before turning to Theda. “Why was he here?”

“Your father came over and introduced himself.”

Right. Alex should have done that. He wasn’t playing his boyfriend role very well. Though he’d made a damn good show of it last night with the good-night kiss.

“Your father is very proud of you. We talked about you and the farm.” She glanced down. “Farming is a common occupation where I come from.”

He removed his jacket, setting it on the hook near the door. He didn’t speak for fear she’d stop talking. He wanted to know everything about her. Especially after what he’d witnessed last night. He didn’t know how she’d done it, but she’d somehow made those animals turn around and return home.

There was no way he and Tony and a handful of workers would have been able to capture the entire flock wandering the freeway before one of the animals got hurt or killed, but Theda had saved them in seconds. It was incredible and terrifying at the same time. Because he’d fallen for her a little bit more last night, and he had no idea who she was.

She was different. He’d always known it. Different because of the way he’d felt about her from the start, and how quickly those feelings had grown. But also different for other reasons she wouldn’t explain. She was from some place he never could quite picture in his mind, and now he suspected something really out there. A different planet?

Shit, what the hell was he thinking? He didn’t know, but she wasn’t like him or anyone else. And he didn’t want to see her hurt because of the place she’d run from, or the things she could do.

Theda was working her way into his life, whether he wanted it or not, and he knew nothing about her. How would he find her if she up and left?

When she didn’t offer more about her people, he asked, “Can you talk about where you came from now?”

She glanced away. “No.”

He rubbed a hand down his face. “Don’t keep your past bottled up. If you aren’t comfortable talking to me, at least talk to Leti.”

She looked up pleadingly. “I cannot talk to anyone. I’m sorry, Alex.”

“Why? How bad can it be?”

Her face hardened and her chin rose. “You have no idea what you speak of.”

He threw up his hands in exasperation and a little anger. “Exactly, I don’t. And I want to. I want to understand how you talked to those sheep last night. Because you did talk to them, didn’t you?”

Instead of answering, Theda stormed to the bedroom.

Alex considered walking after her, then thought better of it.

He turned and left the house without bothering to grab his jacket. He climbed into his Jeep. He didn’t know where he was going, just out. Away. Because the more time he spent with Theda, the more he fell for her, and he couldn’t fall for her if he didn’t know who—or what—she was.