Wulfric

Arlo's snores and the soft clacking of Edmund's knitting needles made up the soundtrack of our drive. I was happy to handle all the driving so they would be free to amuse themselves however they saw fit. This was a trip for my liberation, after all. And I was itching to take action. Though the trip was taking far too long, being the person behind the wheel made me at least feel like I was doing something to make it go faster.

We went over a pothole I really should have been able to avoid, except that I kept getting distracted. That, and it was getting harder to stay focused on the seemingly-never ending highway. It was monotonous, and my mind was full of anxious thoughts. Arlo jolted awake with a low cry of surprise and one of Edmund's knitting needles went flying up into the air before he deftly caught it.

"What was that?" Arlo asked.

"Sorry, go back to sleep," I said.

He rolled his neck and stretched out his arms as much as he could in the limited space around him. "No, s'okay. I'll just wake up stiff and sore. Aging is a bitch, and sleeping in cars is for the young."

I snorted. Arlo was in his twenties. His early twenties. He didn't know true aging yet. Edmund bit his lip, adopting a fretful expression. "Wulf? I think we should stop for the night. We're only a couple of hours away from the magic shop, but they're already closed for the day. And there's an exit coming up with some decently-rated hotels."

"No hotels," I answered immediately. No way was I risking going out in public and meeting my soulmate just when I'd learned how to avoid them forever.

"I don't need a hotel," Arlo assured Edmund. And then I felt bad. He was only here to help me. This whole trip, this incredible opportunity I had, was only because of Arlo. And even without all that, I needed to take better care of Edith's grandson.

"Fine," I relented. "Pick a hotel."

"And you'll... what, hang out in the car all night?" Edmund asked skeptically.

I didn't think I was capable of sitting still. "Maybe I'll do some sightseeing." All this road was starting to get to me, anyway. I was too used to being surrounded by the lush greenery of forest life around my cabin. After almost a day spent staring at concrete, I was fairly sick of it. Yes... a break did sound good.

Edmund studied me, then smiled a bit. Of course he'd caught on to my change in mood. "I'll go with you. I'm not tired."

That was said almost as a joke. As vampires, we were incapable of sleeping. Our bodies simply didn't need it. "Sounds good."

Edmund rerouted our navigation to a hotel, and it was a mark of how exhausted he was that Arlo didn't try to talk us out of it. I shouldn't have pushed them this hard, especially Arlo. I'd hoped we could make it to the shop before closing today, but that was obviously too ambitious. I hadn't quite accounted for just how often Arlo would need to stop.

It was a good thing I was on my way to thwart the curse. I couldn't imagine having so many bodily needs. Stopping to eat and drink, stopping for the bathroom, stopping to walk around a bit to prevent blood clots. Stopping to sleep. It was all too much.

By the time I pulled into the parking lot not ten minutes later, Arlo was sagging against the door again. His eyelids fluttered as he fought sleep, and he brought his hand to his mouth to block a truly massive yawn. Guilt churned in my stomach again.

"I'll go in and book you a room," Edmund said.

"I can do it," Arlo protested.

"No, you stay here. I'll be right back."

It only took Edmund a few minutes before he was back, cheerfully climbing into the car and holding up a key card. He caught sight of Arlo's pathetic, slumped form in the back seat and smiled affectionately. "You know who he reminds me of?"

"Hugh," I answered at the same time Edmund said his name. Hugh had been third-eldest, after Henry and Rosalind. He could sleep anywhere, and had frequently gotten in trouble for falling asleep in the middle of his chores and during his lessons.

"Do you remember that time we found him asleep in the barn?" Edmund asked.

"In the middle of winter," I added, snickering.

"And when we got him inside, Mom wouldn't let us take him to his room before she yanked off his shoes and counted to make sure he still had all his toes," Edmund continued with a laugh.

"I still think he made it out without frostbite by snuggling the pigs for warmth," I said.

I tried to picture the scene, but I couldn't. I barely remembered my mother's face. She died long before cameras were invented, and we were too poor to spend any money on having our portraits taken. All I could really remember at this point was a wealth of dark, glossy hair, high cheekbones, and a bright smile. I couldn't even...

I squeezed my eyes shut and wracked my brain, desperately not wanting it to be true, but...

I couldn't even remember her eye color.

Edmund gently woke up Arlo and passed him the key card. "Room three-fourteen. Third floor," he said softly.

"Thanks," Arlo mumbled. He climbed unsteadily out of the car and Edmund smiled ruefully at me.

"I'd better take him up to his room," he said. I nodded and watched as Arlo leaned on Edmund the entire way across the parking lot.

I tried to imagine feeling that way, feeling so tired my steps would weave. Or so tired I'd fall asleep anywhere, even a freezing-cold barn. How terrifying it must be for your body to fail you thus.

Edmund didn't take long to return. "Ready to go?" he asked, not bothering to get into the car.

I shook my head. I wasn't in the mood for a walk anymore. If I had my way, I'd drive to the magic shop heedless of the late hour, and I'd be ready the instant it opened for business in the morning. That restless need to move hadn't declined with the setting sun.

"I found a state park not too far from here. It's supposed to have excellent hiking. It'll be more fun than this parking lot," Edmund cajoled.

"Fine," I sighed. Only because I didn't want to subject him to sitting in a dark parking lot all night, and not at all because I was a sucker for good hiking.

Though I did have my favorite hiking shoes in the trunk.

Edmund climbed into the passenger seat and we were off. It felt like one of the countless adventures we'd had over the years, just me and Edmund and a dark swath of new territory. It was a good reminder of what I stood to gain if I learned to avoid my soulmate. I could see a path where nights like these went on for decades, for centuries. And I wanted it.

--

Arlo gave us the silent treatment for the remainder of our drive the next morning. According to him, Edmund woke him up during a really good dream. Also, he was angry to have been woken up at six in the morning at all. In fact, if I had to guess, I'd say most of his ire stemmed from that. Arlo was not a morning person.

"Okay, take the next left," Edmund said. I did as he said and turned onto a typical residential street. It featured perfect rows of neatly manicured lawns, wide sidewalks, and houses that were only a little bit different from their neighbors. I drove maybe halfway down the street when Edmund said, "Slow down, it's that one there."

We all stared at the house across from where I parked on the street, the house that apparently hosted a magic shop. "Are you sure this is the place?" I asked skeptically. It looked about as typical as all the other ones around it. I was afraid we'd go knock on the door only to be scolded by a soccer mom.

"It matches the address Arlo gave us," Edmund said, looking to Arlo in the back seat.

He pulled out his phone and after a few taps confirmed, "Yeah, this is it."

We all stared at the house again. I'd be home free soon. As long as my soulmate didn't work in the magic shop and wasn't an early-morning customer, at least. Jitters coursed through my body and made me tremble. I was trying to defy fate. Suddenly, it seemed unlikely my soulmate wasn't inside that house. After all, it was fate's best chance of forcing them on me.

"So, are we going in or what?" Arlo asked impatiently.

His question kicked me into gear and I climbed out of the chair. Edmund and Arlo followed, but stayed behind me all the way up the driveway. I thought I could just barely see something shimmering over the door, something purplish. When I looked at the door straight-on, it disappeared, but if I looked out of the corner of my eye... yes, it was definitely there.

Rather than making skin contact, I kicked the door with my boot. Only seconds later, a woman opened the door with raised brows and a defiant gaze. Her dark hair was pulled back in a haphazard chignon, and her glare was in no way lessened by her small stature. "Hey, it's rude to kick a person's home," she said.

I stared at her, wondering what I could possibly say to that. I wasn't going to apologize. Luckily, Edmund stepped in. "I'm sorry about that."

Her gaze flicked to Edmund before settling back on me. "Does your brother always speak for you?" she asked.

How did she know he was my brother?

I didn't like this place.

Glaring at her was stupid, but I did it anyway and it had a strange effect. She laughed and stepped back, holding the door open for us to come in. "You're not so bad. I'm Safiya. Welcome to my home."

Scratch that. I didn't like her. But I didn't have any better options, so I cautiously stepped into... yup, a completely typical-looking home. Or so I thought, until I looked to the right and saw what was very clearly a magic shop through the archway. There were several aisles made up of tall wooden shelves, with a cauldron standing out prominently in front of them. A handle stuck out of it, moving in slow stirring motions even though no one was anywhere near it.

"What, have you never seen a magic shop before?" Safiya asked, her tone smug.

Another woman stepped into view. This one had none of Safiya's energy or smugness. Her visage was all kindness and polite welcome, until she looked at Safiya with a faintly scolding expression. "Please stop terrorizing our guests," she said in a voice that really should have been recording meditation apps. Just hearing her settled me, and I wondered uncomfortably whether she had some kind of spell cast on her voice to control people's emotions.

"I keep waiting for you to learn how to have fun, but you never do," Safiya complained. She turned back to us and flourished her arms toward this new person. "This is my sister, Glenna."

Sisters? Really? I looked between them for some resemblance, but their countenances were so different that I thought they'd be easy to tell apart even if they were identical twins.

"I'm Edmund. This is my brother, Wulfric, and our nephew, Arlo."

"Nephew?" Safiya repeated, intrigued. "Vampires have a human nephew?"

Once again, I didn't like how much Safiya seemed to know about us. What was she?

"It's sort of a long story," Edmund said.

"Well, why don't you have a seat in our parlor and tell us how we can help you?" Glenna offered.

Arlo snorted, then snapped a hand over his face in horror. "Sorry, I wasn't laughing at you," he said.

Glenna waved him off graciously. "Please, don't worry about it. I'll just go get some tea and we can have a chat."

No way would I drink anything handed to me by either one of these people even if I didn't run on blood, but I didn't argue. The three of us settled in on the eclectic seating options while Safiya perched in a lion-footed armchair, eyeing us with a sly expression.

It wasn't long before Glenna came back with a tray bearing a steaming teapot and four stacked mugs. I shot Arlo a warning glare, hoping he understood that he was under no circumstances to drink that tea. He smiled and nodded in response, which was not at all comforting.

"Who's the fourth mug for?" Edmund asked. I frowned, counting the non-blood drinking members of our little group and coming up with three.

"A dear friend of ours. He'll be here shortly."

I stood up, prepared to march out of that house and never return. No. No way was I meeting some strange guy brought here by these two. Soulmate tracking or no soulmate tracking. But Glenna moved quickly to stand in front of the door. "He can trace soul bonds," she said. "That's what you came here for, no?"

I squinted suspiciously at her. I didn't buy her sweet, innocent, polite act for a second. At least her sister was openly obnoxious. "How do you know that?"

"I can see flashes of the future. I called him while I was preparing the tea. He's almost finished in his garden for the morning and then he'll be right over."

But what if he's my soulmate?

My stomach churned and I debated how smart this whole plan had been. Maybe I should just go back to my cabin and...

And, what? Hide myself and Edmund away forever?

Besides, if this guy could locate soulmates, surely he had met his own already.

That thought successfully calmed me down, and I returned to my seat next to Edmund. Glenna poured three mugs of tea and Arlo didn't hesitate to take a big gulp of his. His eyes widened and he licked his lips. "Mmm! This is amazing!"

Glenna blushed prettily and said, "Thank you. It's a brew of my own creation."

"If more tea tasted like this, I wouldn't be such a coffee person," Arlo complimented, and went in for another big mouthful.

I looked to Edmund in alarm, but he was too busy staring toward the magic shop with wide eyes to pay the rest of us much mind. "What sorts of things do you sell?" he asked.

"What sorts of things do you want?" Safiya answered, her eyes glinting.

I must have been the only sane one here, or maybe there was some spell that hadn't quite worked on me. Arlo and Glenna sat with their tea while Safiya got up to show Edmund around the magic shop. He lifted his brows at me, as though asking if I'd be okay, and I nodded even though I really didn't want him going off with her alone. Edmund was an adult and could make his own decisions.

Thankfully, we weren't kept waiting for long. Someone appeared behind the couch Glenna and Arlo were sharing, someone who looked like no one I had ever met. He was like something out of a sci-fi movie, some alien creature I couldn't place. He had honest-to-goodness pointed ears, hair that looked like it had been spun from gold, and bright golden eyes that landed on Glenna and filled with affection.

She gracefully rose from her seat to hug him. "Fen! Thank you for coming."

"No problem," he said. "Amara's with her tutor and Zale's caught up in meetings that I am happy to skip. So, thanks for offering me an alternative."

Those strange eyes fell on me and Arlo, then on Safiya and Edmund as they entered the room. Safiya pointed at me. "That one wants your help. Though, I think you'd be better of helping out the others. They're much nicer."

She winked at me, as though to say she was just teasing. But who teased someone they'd just met? Fen seemed to know better to take her too seriously, though, because he fixed his gaze on me. "What can I do for you?"

I stood so we'd be on-level. "I need to find my soulmate."

"Need to?" he asked curiously.

"It's important," I said. That only seemed to make him more curious, but I really didn't want to get into the details and I didn't see how it was his business, anyway. "Can you do it?" I asked.

He rubbed thoughtfully at his chin, still studying me. "I can," he said slowly. A thrill rushed through me, quickly dampened by the caution in those bright eyes.

"Hang on," Arlo said. "Are you fae?"

Fen finally shifted his attention away from me. "Yes."

My stomach sank. I'd heard all about fae. They never did anything for free, and took debts very seriously. "What do you want in exchange for finding my soulmate?"

He crossed his arms and tapped his fingers in thought. I saw when he seemed to make a decision. "I want the truth. I want you to tell me why you're seeking your soulmate."

"What? Why?" Surely, I couldn't have heard him correctly.

He nodded and walked to sit across from me with long, fluid steps. "You're different from my usual clientele. You look restless. Pained. You don't look like someone wanting to find their perfect match."

Because I'm not.

But at least now I understood the shadow in his eyes when he looked my way. It was mistrust. And that, I could understand. "If I explain myself, you'll help me?" I confirmed. Fen nodded, so I launched into the explanation. I told him everything. "I'm cursed. My whole family is cursed." I explained what happened to each of my siblings in turn, and that it was my turn next.

Throughout it all, Fen just stared at me, golden eyes wide with surprise. "But why do you need me? Won't you meet your soulmate soon even without my help?"

"You don't get it," I said, irritated. "I don't want this. I don't want any of it. I don't want to be human, I don't want a soulmate, and I don't want to make my little brother go through this after the curse has had its way with me."

He seemed stunned by this. His eyes were wide and sorrow-filled. But he nodded slowly. "Alright."

He held out his hand to me, but I wasn't quite ready to take it. First, I pulled a kerchief out of my pocket and bound it around my eyes.

"You just see them, and you know. There can be no doubt."

I wasn't sure how literal Edith was being when she said that, but she wasn't taking any chances. I reached out blindly in Fen's direction. Warm fingers closed around mine, and within seconds, we were away.