Shannon Messenger - Nightfall

For Nadia and Roland,

best niece and nephew an aunt could ask for

(and not *just* because youre the only ones

though that does help) ;)

S OPHIE STARED AT the gleaming trail that wound down. And down. And down.

Disappearing into the misty shadows far below.

The path of ancient silver and gold stones shouldnt existand yet it had been there all along.

Hidden in plain sight.

Buried under lies.

Wiped from memory.

But never truly gone.

She glanced at her friends as they braced themselves for the dangerous journey ahead, and found their expressions mirroring her own.

Reluctant. Rattled. But also: Ready .

Whatever waited in those murky depths was far more than a secret.

It was an answer.

A truth .

And it was time to uncover it.

Time to stop believing the pretty stories theyd been fed all their lives.

Time to see their world for what it really was.

Time to take something back.

So togetheras onethey locked hands and started the long, slippery descent.

Into the past.

Into darkness.

Y OU REMEMBER ME?

The question slipped from Sophies lips before she could stop it, and the weighted words seemed to hit the floor of the messy bedroom with a thud.

The wide-eyed, trembling girl standing in front of her slowly nodded, and Sophies heart swelled even as it plummeted into the sour pit of her stomach.

Her little sister shouldnt remember her.

Technically, she wasnt even her sisterat least not genetically. Sure, theyd grown up together in the same house in San Diego, California, both believing they had the same parentsdespite the fact that Sophies blond hair and brown eyes didnt match her family of light-eyed brunettes.

But that was before .

Now they were in the after .

A world where elves were real creaturesand nothing like the silly stories that humans had invented about them. They were beautiful. Powerful. Practically immortal. Living across the globe in hidden glittering cities. Ruling the earth from the shadows.

And Sophie was one of them.

Born from humansbut not humanas part of a rebel groups secret genetic experiment called Project Moonlark. Her DNA had been tweaked. Her abilities enhanced and manipulated. All to mold her into something special.

Something powerful.

Something she still didnt fully understand.

And after years of feeling out of placeeven among the family she lovedthe elves finally showed Sophie the truth about her life and brought her to the Lost Cities. Theyd planned to fake her death to cover her disappearance, but shed begged to be erased instead, to spare her parents the grief of losing a child. So her familys minds had been washed by specially trained Telepaths, to make them forget that Sophie had ever been born. And theyd been relocated to a new city and given new names, new jobs, even the fancy new Tudor-style house that Sophie now stood in, with its quaint windows and wood-paneled walls.

But erased memories were never truly gone. All it took was the right trigger and...

I dont understand, her sister whispered, rubbing her eyes like it would change what she was seeing. You... shouldnt be here.

Major understatement.

Sophie wasnt supposed to know her familys new names or where they livedand she definitely hadnt been allowed to visit themto ensure that something like this never happened. And yet, here she was, raising a mental shield to block her sisters chaotic thoughts as they pounded through her consciousness like stampeding mastodons. Human minds were more open than elvin minds, and they broadcast everything like a radio station on full blast.

Listen, Amy

Thats not my name!

Sophie kicked herself for the slip. Right, I meant

Wait. Her sister mouthed the name a few more times, as if her lips were remembering the feel of it. It is, isnt it? Im... Amy Foster?

Sophie nodded.

Then whos Natalie Freeman?

Thats... also you.

AmyNataliewhatever Sophie was supposed to call hergroaned and pressed her fingers against her temples.

I know how confusing this must be, Sophie told her. Triggered memories tended to flash back in scattered bits and pieces, leaving lots of holes. I promise Ill explain, but

Not right now, a crisply accented voice finished for her.

Sophie flinched. Shed almost forgotten they had an audience for the Most Stressful Family Reunion in the History of Family Reunions.

Who are you? her sister asked, backing away from the guys standing slightly behind Sophie.

Thats Fitz, Sophie said, pointing to a dark-haired boy whose teal eyes flashed as he offered a smile that would put any movie star to shame. And thats Keefe.

Keefe gave her sister his famous smirk, reaching up to smooth his expertly tousled blond hair. Dont worrywere all in the Foster Fan Club.

Theyre my friends, Sophie clarified when her sister shrank back another step. You can trust them.

I dont even know if I can trust you . Her eyes narrowed at Sophies outfit: a fitted purple tunic with black leggings, boots, and wrist-length black gloves. Fitz and Keefe also wore tunics and pants, and while none of the outfits were that elf-y, they definitely stood out next to her sisters jeans and TARDIS T-shirt.

You trusted us enough to stop hiding, right? Keefe asked, pointing to the still-open closet door.

Sophies sister turned toward the dark nook shed emerged from, where most of the clothes had been heaped into a pile on the floor. I only came out because I heard you guys say youd get my parents back.

And there it was. The reason Sophie had broken all the rules and raced to the Forbidden Cities to check on her family. Shed spent months protecting her adoptive elvin parents, believing they were the ones that Keefe had warned her were in danger. But theyd both forgotten she had another family to worry abouta family without powerful abilities and bodyguards to keep them safe.

Can you really find Mom and Dad? her sister whispered, giving Sophie the cue to tell her, Of course we will! Everything is going to be okay!

Sophie wanted to. But... the Neverseen were behind this.

The same villains whod kidnapped Sophie, tortured her, and killed people she dearly loved. And no matter how hard Sophie fought to stop them, they always seemed to be ten steps ahead.

Keefe reached for Sophies shaky hand. Well get them back safe. I promise .

His tone was pure determination. But Sophie could see a shadow darkening his ice-blue eyes.

Guilt.

A few months earlier, Keefe had run away to join the Neverseen, planning to be a double agent and destroy the wicked organization from the inside outbut theyd played him the whole time, tricking him into leading Sophie and her friends down the wrong paths.

Part of Sophie wanted to shove Keefe away, let him shoulder the blame for every terrible thing that had happened. But deep down she knew he wasnt the only one whod missed the warning signs. Hed also been working every day to make up for his mistakes. Plus, it was dangerous to let him feel guilty. The elvin conscience was too fragile for that kind of burden.

So Sophie squeezed his hand, twining their fingers together as she turned back to her sister. Itll help if you tell us everything you can about the people who took Mom and Dad.

Her sister wrapped her arms around her stomach, which wasnt as plump as Sophie remembered. She looked taller now too. And her curly brown hair was cut shorter. In fact, everything about her seemed so much older than the hyper nine-year-old shed been when Sophie had leftand it hadnt even been two full years.

I dont remember much, her sister mumbled. Dad was helping me with my homework when we heard strange voices downstairs. He told me to stay quiet while he went to see what was going on, but I snuck out to the landing and... She swallowed hard. I saw four people in the living room wearing long black cloaks with these creepy white eyes on their sleeves. Mom was passed out over one of their shoulders, and another had a cloth pressed over Dads mouth. I wanted to run down and helpbut there were so many of them. And Dad stopped moving a couple of seconds later. I tried to crawl to a phone to call the police, but then I heard them say something about searching the rest of the house, so I ducked into the nearest closet and buried myself in clothes.