26. Anevae

The following day, I awoke to Eiri lying in bed with me. She was playing on her phone, waiting for me to wake up. As I stirred, she looked over at me and smiled.

"How are you feeling this morning? Any better? How did you sleep?"

Rolling onto my back, I stretched. "Too many questions at once, Eiri."

"Well?" Eiri asked, pushing me for an answer.

"I slept alright. I dreamed about Caellaias, or at least the version I made from Momma's stories. I feel okay, though. I want to talk to Maeyve later."

Eiri dropped her phone on her chest and stared at me. "Vay, do you really think that's a good idea?"

Sitting up, I pulled my knees as close to my chest as possible. As I looked over at Eiri, I sighed. I was still nervous about opening back up to Maeyve, but she could help me, and I didn't want to get my parents involved. I felt betrayed by them.

"What other choice do I have?" I inquired. "We've already established that I don't want to involve our parents. Where else are we going to get information?"

A while later, we sat silently eating our breakfast, unsure what to say to the other. Eiri was persistent about exploring the grounds, but I couldn't bear the thought of going outside.

When Eiri finished her breakfast, she put her plate in the sink and said, "I think I should head out. I have an interview this afternoon but don't hesitate to call me if you need me. And please let me know how your discussion with Maeyve goes."

"Okay. Thank you."

"I'll call you after my interview. Love you."

"Sounds good. Love you too," I said and gave her a hug.

She stepped outside, and I watched her walk to her car. Once she was safely inside, I locked the door before heading to the greenhouse. I didn't want to go outside, so I would have to document my outdoor experiments from inside.

While I was checking my indoor experiments, there was a quiet knock on the greenhouse door. I jumped when I heard the sound, and my heart began pounding. I spun around to find Maeyve standing on the other side of the exterior door.

I walked across the greenhouse and cracked the door. "Hi. I'm actually kind of glad you're here."

"I need to explain some things to you," Maeyve said calmly.

"Okay. Come inside," I said as I stepped aside to let her in. If she had wanted to hurt me, she would have done so by now. Once she shuffled past me, I snapped the door shut, not wanting to let anyone or anything else in.

"I promise, no one is out there. I've been scouting the perimeter all morning. I needed to make sure you were safe. I can't bear the thought of something happening to you. Hell, I can't even handle being away from you anymore," Maeyve confessed.

"Thank you."

Maeyve sighed and looked at me. "Please understand that I had no idea who or what you were when you moved here. I'd like to tell you about my life before I came to this realm. Can we please sit for this? It's going to be a very long story."

Nodding, I motioned for her to go into the living room, where we sat opposite each other on the couch.

With a deep breath, she began her story. "My time in Caellaias was rough. My mother was a fox shifter who one day met an incubus. He tried to use his abilities to seduce her, but she was somehow able to deny him. That angered him, and he raped her. As a result, she ended up pregnant with me. Her family shunned her for having a baby out of wedlock, regardless of the circumstances surrounding my conception.

"Homeless, pregnant, and on the streets of western Maiviraea, she began working in a brothel to make ends meet. She found a new family there with the other girls, but my mother was an outcast thanks to her job. We didn't have a lot of money, so I received the bare minimum with my schooling. Being half-blooded and the daughter of a prostitute, people constantly looked down on me.

"Around the time I reached puberty, my mom wasn't making enough money to support us anymore. So the madam, Madam Tanith, forced her to pull me out of school, and she put me to work doing odd jobs to earn my keep. A couple of my old classmates were kind enough to bring me some of the study materials as they continued their education. I worked on that in my downtime to keep me busy. But if Madam Tanith caught me, I was lashed. There was nothing I could do to hide from her. She had eyes and ears everywhere." Maeyve shifted uncomfortably in her seat and began twirling her hair around her finger.

Sadness filled me. I couldn't keep myself from reaching out and grabbing her hand to show my support and ground her. My own trauma made me acutely aware of how talking about it could transport you back to that place. I'd experienced it every time I thought about Ambrose.

A tear rolled down her cheek as she looked down at our hands. "When I began to mature into a young woman, Madam Tanith ordered the other succubus in our brothel to teach me how to use my abilities. It didn't take long before I became proficient in my succubus skills, but with more practice, I learned I could use it for other purposes, like calming people.

"By the time I was thirteen, I had already seen my first client. The other succubus found out about my calming abilities during one of our training sessions, and she reported it back to Madam Tanith, who demanded to see me right away. She had developed a scheme that involved me using my abilities to lure powerful clients to her establishment. Night after night, I went out and convinced higher and higher-profile clients to come back to the brothel with me. I never found out what she did to them once I got them there. That guilt followed me for years.

"But I continued doing it because I was told these contracts would lead me toward freedom. It was all lies, of course. Lecherous old men were drawn to my younger, more ‘perfect' body. I was one of the madam's prized possessions, and she wasn't about to let me go."

Closing her eyes, tears began streaming down her face. I pulled her into a hug and whispered, "I'm so sorry you went through all of this."

When her breathing evened out, she pulled back to wipe her tears. When she met my gaze again, she continued, "By the age of fifteen, I was no closer to the freedom I had been after than when I started. When I brought it up, she continuously put it off, making excuses as to why she couldn't grant it. For several years, I felt like there was no way out, and I contemplated killing myself. My mom was never aware of what the madam was asking me to do, but she didn't seem to care either. The only thing that mattered to her was the family she had found in the other workers in the brothel. But there was no room for me within that family.

"One day, I left for a contract Madam Tanith had placed on the northern lord of Maiviraea. Wandering through the woods, I found a large cave at the base of the Kolathus mountains. Curiosity got the best of me, and I entered it, finding the portal that led to these woods. I explored for a few days and got acclimated to the land. When I walked through the portal, it was autumn, and the trees had just started changing. It was mesmerizing compared to the way it happens in Caellaias. As much as I just wanted to rest and enjoy this new place I'd found, Madam Tanith would certainly be sending someone after me, so I went back to formulate a plan.

"When I returned to Caellaias, I finished my journey to the capital of northern Maiviraea, Rilias. While I wandered the capital searching for the lord, I stopped for food. There was a small tavern I went to every time I was in the capital called ‘The Sollamthus Palace.' As I sat there waiting for my food, a woman approached me and asked if she could sit with me. I wasn't sure who she was, but I felt at ease the moment she sat down. Her floral scent told me she was a faerie. When I asked how I could help her, she smiled and said, ‘You should be asking how I can help you, my dear.'

"When I asked who she was, she claimed she was a distant relative of the royal family but refused to tell me any more than that. After that, I tried to wave her off, thinking she wanted something from me in return, but then she told me she could help me escape, and my world stopped. I hadn't told her anything about my situation at that point, so I became defensive. After laughing, she explained that one of her powers was sensing distress, and if she touched me, she could see the cause. When she offered to help me again, I asked what she wanted, and she told me that freeing me was her repayment. I was confused, but I went along with it. I couldn't live the life I had anymore.

"Using her glamour magic and other resources, we found a deceased being, glamoured it to look like me, gave it my magical trail for a few weeks, and covered mine for a few days so I could escape to the home I live in now. I've been in contact with a few people who've told me Madam Tanith believed the corpse was me and showed no remorse for the potential that she pushed me to commit suicide. My mom, on the other hand, supposedly still grieves for me. To my knowledge, no one has ever tried to come looking for me. Because of everything I went through at that brothel, I vowed that I would never force myself onto someone again," Maeyve finished in a whisper.

We sat in silence as I processed everything. After she had a moment to compose herself, I whispered, "Maeyve, I'm sorry. I have a question, though. The way you explained everything seems like it's been a long time. You don't look to be a day over your mid-20s. May I ask how old you are?"

Maeyve didn't look back at me when she answered, "I'm around seventy years old. When we reach the age of twenty, we don't really age much and can live for thousands of years."

"Wow. Do you ever wish you could go back but live a different life?"

Maeyve huffed and responded, "No, I really don't. I enjoyed the scenery of the areas I visited, but it was an awful place to be for me. Even if I went back, too many people could recognize me. I was never truly happy until I moved to these woods –"

"Wait," I interrupted. "How long have you been here in your home?"

She looked up at me. "I've been out here for about fifty years."

I felt tears begin to well up as I processed everything she had been through. Without thinking, I pulled her into a hug. I felt guilty for how I had treated her. After hearing her story, I started to feel like I could understand her more—understand how much my accusations had hurt her.

I reached up to caress Maeyve's cheek, urging her to look at me, and whispered, "I'm so sorry for how I treated you yesterday. I really should have taken the time to listen to you. I was just scared and needed to process everything. Thank you for sharing your story with me." After a few beats of silence, another question popped into my head. "I am curious about how you're able to survive out here. How do you get food, clothes, and toiletries?"

Maeyve smiled. "Well, I was connected with one other being from Caellaias, who's been hidden among humans for decades. He used to give me odd jobs and, in exchange, provided me with food and necessities. If I didn't need anything, I would request money in exchange for my services. Unfortunately, he left the area recently to protect his growing family."