“Then how do you use it?” I demanded, giving her hands a slight squeeze to emphasize my desperation as my gaze darted from her to Cynnia. “You cast spells. You make plants grow. You change the weather. You control animals. All of this is accomplished through earth magic. I need to be able to do these things, or at least understand how these things are done. In this fight, it’s not enough that I am an old nightwalker or even that I am the Fire Starter. When I am here at the place of the sacrifice, I am a danger to myself and those around me.”

Shelly’s hands slid from mine and she sat back on her heels before me, confusion filling her lovely face as her blond hair slipped down around her cheeks.

“I don’t understand,” Cynnia whispered.

“I can feel the earth’s power when I am here,” I said.

“Just here or when you’re near a swell?” Cynnia quickly inquired, causing my brow to furrow at her word choice.

“A swell?” Shelly asked, her gaze darting over to the naturi.

“It’s one of the places on the earth where the crust is the thinnest. It’s where the power flows up through the center of the earth to the surface. It’s likely these are the places that Rowe has been holding the sacrifices; they would provide him with the power he needs to break the seal and open the door.”

“Yes, when I’m near a swell, I can feel the power of the earth,” I said with a nod. I threaded my fingers together, twisting them tightly as I continued my story. This was information that I wasn’t sure was safe in the hands of the naturi, but at the moment I didn’t see that I had much choice. We had already gone over much of this the previous night in the woods, but I was forced to leave that place with only a weak barrier spell in my back pocket. After walking around Cuzco and feeling the power in the air, I knew I was going to need a stronger plan of attack to survive the encounter at Machu Picchu. “It’s more than that. I can feel the power from the earth pushing against my skin, trying to enter my body.”

“I’m assuming that you allow it to enter,” Shelly said, a frown pulling at the corners of her lips.

“No, not intentionally.”

“Mira, why not? That’s a wonderful gift that you’ve been given,” Shelly said, rising up on her knees with newfound energy. “It’s like the earth is reaching out to you. It’s not the same for earth witches. We have to reach out and tap the energy in the air that we can find. Being here, with the power so thick in the air, it’s easier for me now, but for it to come searching you out…it’s…it’s like an honor.”

“But I can’t feel it when I’m not at a swell,” I countered.

“You said that you didn’t intentionally allow the power to enter your body, but it has in the past?” Cynnia asked. She had crawled a little way from the wall and was now seated closer to me and Shelly.

“When I create fire at the swells, the earth power rushes into my body. I can’t stop it! It fills me, consumes me until there seems to be nothing left inside of me except for this power. The only way to get rid of it is to create more fire, but it never seems to be enough.”

“And it never will be,” Cynnia said with a sad shake of her head. “How do you finally get it to stop?”

“Blood magic. It pushes the earth magic back out of my body,” I carefully said, avoiding mentioning that Danaus served as my source of pure blood magic, given his bori nature. “I want control of this. I want to be able to use the earth magic that pours into my body, but I also need to be able to shut it off. Can either of you teach me that?”

Cynnia hesitated, but Shelly quickly spoke up, laying her hand on my knee. “I can.”

I looked over at Cynnia, who refused to meet my gaze. “Your usefulness is dwindling.”

“Please understand my point of view, Mira,” she said, slowly lifting her eyes to meet mine. “You’re already the stuff of legends among my people. Am I to be the one responsible for making you even stronger? More dangerous not only to my people, but to the entire world?”

“And what happens if we don’t?” Shelly snapped, raising her voice toward the young naturi for the first time. “Your sister Aurora will come through and kill us all. I don’t always agree with Mira’s methods, but at least in her version of the world, there’s a place for humans.”

“You’re food!” Cynnia snapped. She balled her hands into fists and tried to jerk her hands apart, but the chains kept her bound. “You’re cattle to them.”

Shelly jerked back, looking as if Cynnia had suddenly smacked her. Her mouth hung open but no words came out.

“It’s true, Shelly,” I gently said. This time I laid a hand on her shoulder. She flinched under my cool touch, but I refused to move my hand away. “Nightwalkers cannot exist without humans to feed upon, but that is not the only reason we seek to protect you. Humans are also our friends, our enemies, and our lovers. No matter how long a nightwalker exists in the shadows, at some time we always find ourselves establishing some sort of relationship with a human. It’s where we started as creatures and it’s something that we cannot completely escape.”

“They’ve hunted you,” Cynnia argued through clenched teeth.

“And we’ve protected you,” I calmly said. “We are neither villains nor saviors. We simply are a part of this world as much as humans are.”

Cynnia stood and took a couple steps toward me, her fists trembling in anger before her. “And we deserve a place in this world just as much as nightwalkers.”

“I’ll agree with that as long as you’re willing to share it with the rest of the races. Look me in the eye and tell me that is Aurora’s plan.”

Cynnia held my gaze for a second then blinked and turned away from me. “She doesn’t want to share,” she whispered, her slender shoulders slumping in defeat. “She never will share with the humans.”

“And because of that I will not stop fighting the naturi. Give me a naturi ruler that understands coexistence and I will consider putting down my sword.”

“Consider?” Cynnia asked, turning back to look at me, one eyebrow arched in question.

“Your brother and many others are responsible for much I will never be able to forgive. I cannot learn to forget so quickly,” I said in a cold voice.

“I thought the saying was ‘forgive and forget.’”

“I know my limitations. There will be no forgiveness.”

A sigh from Shelly drew my attention back to the earth witch. She was trapped between two warring races. Her only chance was to pick a race that would protect her survival, which meant siding with the nightwalkers. But Cynnia was right. Humans were little more than cattle to us. Cattle and a bit of violent, ugly amusement when the mood hit us. The lesser of the two evils was still evil.

“From what it sounds like, Mira,” Shelly slowly began, moving away from my touch as she kept her eyes on the worn and faded carpet beneath her knees. “You’re trying to act as a battery for the energy that is coming into you instead of a conduit.”

“I’m not trying to do anything,” I admitted, struggling to keep from sounding defensive. “The first couple times it happened, I wasn’t trying for it. It just happens against my will.”

“Then the earth must recognize you as an outlet because of your ability to manipulate fire,” Cynnia volunteered sullenly. She returned to her place on the floor against the wall, her arms wrapped around her bent legs. “To stop this from happening, you can simply stop going to the various swells around the world.”

“Nia,” I murmured in the gentlest voice I could muster amidst my growing frustration. “I have to stop the door from opening.”

To my surprise, Cynnia closed her eyes and a single fat tear rolled down her cheek. “I know.” What she also knew was that many of her own kind were going to be killed in the ensuing battle for Machu Picchu tomorrow night.