I flip the page and start scanning for something useful. The longer I have the book open, the worse the chill gets. The pages feel odd to me. Not like paper. And then I realize what they are. "Human skin."
Pete leans over the book to examine it. "There is precedent for that, even in our world."
Es wrinkles her nose. "Ew… this falls into the category of shit I don't need to know about."
I sigh and push on, reading deeper into the text. "Here. Finally. Something." I point to a section they can’t read.
"It says the Druids and Spirits have a shadow form, that which taps into the Darkness. The power of light and dark. Life and death. Creation and destruction. Sometimes this form manifests when the Wild Ones are in grave danger. However, this power can also be summoned at will by those with the right knowledge." I close the book and put it back into the leather wrap. "Varis knew all this. He knew this is the information I needed, and he didn't tell me."
"How do you summon the shadow form?" Pete asks, eyeing the book with a frown.
"Under the light of the moons at midnight I must chant the binding words and connect with my Spirit," I say.
Es walks over to the door leading out to my balcony and opens it, letting in fresh air and a stream of sunshine. "It's sundown. We have time. What should we do until midnight?"
I shrug. "Hang out? Pretend life is normal? Catch up? We've hardly had time to just talk since we got here. Come on. Let's find somewhere in this pleasure domain to drink coffee and eat junk food and talk."
With that plan set, we leave the Pleasure Palace and explore Dean's realm, stopping at different vendors to try their wares and eventually settling on a little cafe by the water.
Once we have food and drink, I look at my best friends… really look at them… for the first time since I pulled them into this mess. "Are you guys okay? Is this completely freaking you out?"
Pete shrugs. "It's actually pretty cool. I mean, there are things I miss. Like phones."
"And television," Es says with an exasperated sigh. "What do people do here to relax?"
I laugh. "I don't know. I haven't had much time to relax since I got here. Unless you count my time in the dungeon relaxing."
Es shutters. "No, thank you. I can't believe that bastard did that to you. I'd cut his manhood off myself if I could."
"Thanks," I say. "But he'll get what's coming to him."
"Are you happy here?" Es asks. "Are you happy with him?"
"I could be," I say honestly. "When I spent my month with Fen in Stonehill… yeah, there were problems, and everyone here seems to be at war with someone, but we also found a routine. I trained with Fen in the mornings and worked with Kayla learning blacksmithing in the afternoons. At night, I would study everything I could about this place under the watchful gaze of Kal the Keeper. I made friends. I learned a lot. And…"
"And you fell in love with the tough-on-the-outside-soft-on-the-inside sexy Prince of War," Es says, finishing my thought for me in the way only she can.
"Yes, I suppose I did." I think of Fen and wish he were here with us now. It worries me that he's gone into enemy territory. But he should be back soon. "Without Fen, I’m not sure I’d want to be here, but I don't have a choice. I signed a contract. And… this is where I'm from, at least half of me."
Es shakes her head. "That must be so cray-cray! Being a Fae princess after spending your life thinking you're just a poor kid in Oregon."
"It is a bit surreal," I admit.
"There's something I've been meaning to ask. How do you handle… womanly things?" Es raises an eyebrow as if I should know what she's talking about.
"Womanly things?"
She sighs. "You know what I mean. I may have the parts, and sure, they don't all work. But I am familiar with the plumbing. You're young. Fertile. And prone to that monthly visit from every woman's most despised aunt. At least in our world you have the marvels of tampons and pain reliever. What do you do here?"
I laugh. "That's your big question? We're in a magical world with vampires and Fae and dragons and you want to know what I do for my period?"
"It's a legit question," she says. "Don't tell me it wasn't something you worried about too."
"To be honest, it hasn't been as bad as you might think," I say. "While this place looks very medieval, it's not. Not when you factor in magic and strong influences from our modern world. They can't replicate everything, but they've made a go of it with some things. And there's a potion I drink once a month that all but eliminates cramps and bloating. If I could bring it back to our world and patent it, I'd be the richest person to ever live."
"That's not so bad then," Pete says. "But… how much longer until you think we can go home?"
"I don’t know." I don’t know when we will defeat Levi. And if we lose, they might never go back. But I don’t have the heart to tell them. "I'm so sorry I pulled you into this. Do you hate me?"
Es sips her drink and laughs. "Darlin', this is the first vacation I've had since I started working when I was thirteen. We are surrounded by eye candy galore and all the food and drink we could want. We're good."
"And I'm getting training I could have never imagined," Pete says, his face lighting up. "Varis is amazing." Then a shadow falls over his eyes, probably remembering the book we borrowed.