World of Aluvia 2 by Amy Bearce Read Free Book Online

reminding herself to stay calm. “Sierra, I need to talk to you about what happened today. It’s serious―Donovan came here, with another man. I had to dive into the ocean to escape them.”
    The plates Sierra was holding clattered to the table. “What! Are you hurt?”
    Sierra rushed over again. Her eyes were wide, eyebrows tilted up in worry, reminding Phoebe again of why it was she put up with such over-protectiveness. Sierra really did love her. She just had a hard time admitting her little sister was growing up, especially after almost losing Phoebe four years ago.
    Phoebe thought about what she told Tristan. Could she really keep the secret of the mer-skeleton and the scary sea creature from Sierra? There had been a time when the two of them shared everything; it was Sierra and Phoebe against the world. She really missed that. She missed the big sister who used to make up silly rhymes and sew stuffed animals for her. Where had
that
Sierra gone?
    She’d gone on a quest to save Phoebe, that’s where, and the fairy keeper who’d come back was a different person. Happier, but with a new mission—a mission bigger than the needs of one little sister.
    Then Sierra grabbed Phoebe’s shoulders and hugged her tight again, and Phoebe couldn’t hang on to her irritation. Guilt pricked her conscience.
    “I’m okay. But the men were here earlier and could still be around.”
    Sierra blanched. “What? What happened?”
    “I was down at the coast again this afternoon―”
    Sierra cut her off, her hand making a slicing motion as she lost her tenuous hold on her infamous temper. “Argh! You and that ocean! So you
did
leave the house! I swear one of these days you’re going to grow scales from all the time you spend at that smelly place! If you had stayed home like I asked you, you wouldn’t have had to deal with those men. Old Sam would have warned you if anyone was nearby, and our locks are made with the finest steel money can buy. You can bet I made sure of that before I left this time.”
    Phoebe gasped in sudden understanding. Rage boiled, at sudden flashpoint. She pointed a shaking finger at her sister.
    “You
knew
. You knew we were in danger and didn’t warn me.” She turned on her heel and stormed to her room, throwing herself onto her pallet in the little space that had once been
theirs.
    Phoebe held her pillow and waited for the tears to come. But today, her tears remained trapped inside. They clawed at her stomach like wild animals but couldn’t push past the sense of betrayal.
    The knock a few minutes later was not unexpected. But Sierra’s relative calm was.
    “You want to talk about what happened? We assume you went with Tristan and Mina, given that you’re soaked,” Sierra said.
    Corbin peeked around the edge of the door. The others must have arrived for dinner. Perfect timing. Now she could tell
everyone
what she’d been up to in their absence.
    The gentle fairy keeper’s dark brown eyes were soft with some emotion. Pity? Sympathy? Knowing Corbin, it was both. “Hey, kiddo. We need to know what happened. Are you okay?”
    Phoebe dragged herself into a sitting position. “You have some time?”
    “For you?” Corbin said, putting his hand on Sierra’s shoulder when she scowled and opened her mouth. “Of course.”
    Sierra pursed her lips, though her anger was evident by the two bright red spots remaining on her pale cheeks. Guilt stung Phoebe again. She had disobeyed, and they’d been worried. But then she remembered they had essentially lied to her, hiding the knowledge that Bentwood’s old dark alchemy crew would be around. Phoebe loved her sister and friends, but they just couldn’t accept she was growing up.
    “You can stop glaring at me like that, Sierra. If you’d told me Donovan and his men were coming after me, you can bet all your fairies I wouldn’t have left the safety of the house.”
    Sierra paled. “They came for
you
? Micah, get in here!”
    Micah glided in from the