With a groan, I slung his body and he hit a nearby tree, falling to the ground.
“Oh, my God, Winston!” I cried, running over to him and dropping to my knees beside him. “Are you okay? I’m so sorry.”
He laughed and shook some debris out of his hair. “Don’t be sorry, that was incredible. A couple of bruises are worth it. I want to try something else.”
He stood up and tried to hide a grimace of pain from me.
“Hey, Ethan?” he called over, and Ethan ceased what he was doing with Adelaide. “Can you help me with something?”
Ethan nodded and said something to Adelaide before jogging over to us. “I want Mara to practice levitating and throwing the both of us.”
“What?” I backed away. “No, no, no.” I swung my hands in a slashing motion. “I could barely lift you, there’s no way I can do both of you.”
“Mara,” he said warningly and I took a breath. “If we encounter a huge group of Iniquitous this comes in handy. The more you can shove out of the way the better.”
I let out a heavy breath. “Okay, we’ll try it, but if you both end up high in a tree I’m not getting you down.”
He chuckled. “I have faith in you.”
I backed away from them and they stood in front of me, about four feet between them.
Inhaling, I took a moment to gather my thoughts.
You can do this. No more doubting yourself.
With a groan, I felt my magic welling up inside me once more. Roaring, I shoved my hands out and the magic blasted out of me.
I didn’t even levitate them, but the force shoved them fifty feet away from me and out of the bubble we were protected in.
My hands dropped and so did my jaw.
They returned clapping. Both of their hair was sticking up in every direction and their clothes were ruffled and covered in leaves and bits of grass.
“Bravo,” Winston chortled. “I can’t wait to see you in battle.”
“You think I’m ready?” I asked.
He shrugged. “I could teach you new things for the next two years if I wanted, but you’re a natural and I think most things will come to you easily in the moment. You’re powerful for your age, that’s for sure.”
I smiled, pleased by his praise.
Some days, I felt successful, and others I felt like I was never going to get there.
We packed up and headed home for the day.
My thoughts drifted back to my dream about Thaddeus and his words about me having a brother. I wanted to believe he was lying, no one seemed to know about this child or they would’ve said something, but why would he? He didn’t stand to gain anything by telling me that.
If Theo was where Thaddeus was, maybe this was what was keeping him there. Or maybe he’d discovered my mom alive and was trying to figure out how to leave with her too. I wasn’t sure what I’d do or how I’d feel if she was alive. I mean, she was my mom after all, but I didn’t really know her.
There were so many unknowns right now, but one thing I was certain of was I’d have to confront Thaddeus eventually, and Theo wasn’t going to be one bit happy about it.
“Happy birthday to me,” I sang softly, looking out the window of my bedroom.
It didn’t feel like my birthday at all. If I hadn’t seen the day reflecting at me on the calendar in the room I would’ve forgotten.
Things had changed drastically in the last year. I felt like an entirely new person. I was stronger, but hardened to the world. What I’d seen was a drop in the bucket to what the Iniquitous were capable of, but it was enough to change me.
After a while, I forced myself to get dressed and head downstairs.
“You guys,” I paused, overcome by emotion.
Jee, Ethan, Adelaide, and Winston all stood in the kitchen, surrounded by homemade pancakes and a strawberry cake.
I shook my head. “You didn’t have to do this.”
“Did you think we’d forget?”
“It’s just another day,” I sighed. “I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”
Adelaide looked at me like I was crazy. “You’re our friend. We love you. It’s not another day to us.”
“But—” Winston held up a finger in warning “—don’t think this means you get out of practice today. We’re working on a freezing spell.”
I smiled. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
Pulling out one of the stools, I took a seat and Adelaide handed me a plate piled high with pancakes.
“For the record, I didn’t make those so if they’re shit you can’t blame me. I’m only here because I look fabulous in an apron and chef’s hat.” Jee patted the hat on his head fondly. My lips twitched from withheld laughter.
I poured some syrup onto the pancakes and took a bite. “They’re delicious. Thank you.”
The others each grabbed a plate, and Adelaide sat on the stool beside me while the others leaned against the counter.
Theo’s absence bothered me, but I tried not to let it show. He’d been silent the last few days and I was worried.
What if something happened?
What if Thaddeus killed him for real this time?
Why was he kept alive to start with?
I forced those thoughts out of my mind, refusing to let my worries bring me down, not when my friends had gone out of their way to make today special for me.
“How does it feel to be nineteen?” Winston asked me.
I laughed and thought for a moment, trying to come up with a serious answer. “It feels … overwhelming,” I admitted.
“Why?” He raised a brow.
“I have this feeling like something going to happen. It’s been too quiet, if that makes any sense.”
“I hope you’re wrong,” he replied, but I saw in his eyes he was worried too.
My eyes sought Jee and I found him looking down at his plate, his shoulders tense.
Slowly, he raised his head and when he looked at me I felt ice in my veins.
He’d seen something.
***
“I’m stuffed,” I declared, setting my cake plate down. “How you expect me to practice magic after this is beyond me. I need a nap.”
The cake had been delicious—so much so, I’d had two slices.
“You’re not getting out of it that easy,” Ethan warned.
“But it’s my birthday,” I whined.
Winston chuckled. “And you’re the reason we’re all doing this, so nice try.”
I smiled. He was right, after all. “Fine, okay. Let’s go.”
“Do we have to?” This time it was Adelaide complaining. “I’m with Mara. I need a nap.”
Ethan shook his head. “Nice try, girls. We’re going.” He pointed in the direction of the elevator.
“Be safe,” Jee whispered to him, and the two exchanged a quick kiss.
The four of us piled into the Range Rover, the guys in the front, with us in the back.
“I still haven’t mastered levitating like you did.” Adelaide frowned, her brows drawn. “I feel like I’m never going to get it.”
“It’s hard,” I agreed. “I had to stop overthinking it.”
“I thought finally coming into my magic was going to be fun, but with all that’s going on it’s really kind of scary, knowing I’m going to have to use it against the Iniquitous. I feel naïve for thinking I’d never have to face them.”
I reached for her hand and she smiled at me. “We’re in this together. You don’t have to be afraid of them.”
“I know,” she replied, and gave my hand a slight squeeze.
Adelaide was the sister I never had and I worried about her. She was kind, and warm hearted, with a whole lot of sass thrown in, but I didn’t want any of this to change her. Not the way it had me. I knew at my core I was still me, but I’d changed so much. Even though I knew Theo was alive now, it was impossible to shake how watching a sword go into him had changed me.
Vengeance still burned brightly in my veins.
For Steven
Pryce, the man who’d always be my real dad to me, for all the innocent enchanters they’d slaughtered, and for justice.
Too long had they terrorized enchanters, and it needed to end.
I was new to this world, but I didn’t think it was right for them, for us, to be afraid.
Maybe this was what I was born for, why I was chosen.
Could it be possible I was born for the sole purpose of killing my biological father and destroying the Iniquitous once and for all?
Ethan parked the car and we all hopped out, making the trek through the woods.
The sun shone through the trees, the green leaves glimmering. The air was warm, in the seventies, with a slight breeze.
I smiled as I watched a bunny hopping after a squirrel. The squirrel darted around and then ran up a tree and stood on a branch. The brown bunny stared up at squirrel in the tree before hopping away.
We stepped into the bubble and separated.
Winston laid his duffel bag on the ground and straightened to look at me.
“Freezing spells are pretty easy, but we’re going to start with small objects first. I’ll demonstrate.”
He bent down and unzipped the bag, pulling out an apple. He tossed it to me and I caught it.
“I want you to throw this toward me like you would a baseball and I’m going to freeze it. Watch me, okay?” He waited for me to nod. “Okay, now.”
I threw the apple and he thrust his right hand out, his fingers spread.
It halted in mid air.
He waved his hand and it unfroze, soaring into his hands.
“Ready to try?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m ready.” I shook out my hands to get rid of my jitters.
He tossed it and on instinct I pushed both hands out in front of me.
The apple exploded into a million tiny pieces, the juice spraying over the both of us.
“Well,” he laughed, “it seems you’re good at explosion spells but that’s not what I was going for.” He wiped a piece of apple off his cheek and dropped it on the ground.
“Sorry,” I said sheepishly, brushing some apple gunk off my arms.
He pulled another apple out of the bag. “Ready?”
I adjusted my stance and flexed my fingers. “Yeah.”
He tossed the apple and I saw in my mind how he’d done it and mimicked his gesture. This time the apple stopped and hung suspended in the air.
“I did it!” I cried, but as soon as I lowered my hand it dropped to the ground. “Oh.” I frowned.
“It’s okay,” he assured me. “You need to feel it more.”
“Feel it more,” I repeated. “Right. I can do that.”
I took a breath to calm and center myself.
Winston picked up the apple and returned to where he’d been standing.
I nodded when I was ready and he threw the apple into the air.
I did the exact same thing I did before, but this time I felt it. I threw my entire body into stopping the apple and when I lowered my hand it stayed where it was floating in the air.
“Excellent.” Winston grinned and clapped.
I waved my hand like he had before and the apple started moving again. I caught it and tossed it back to him.
We did it a few more times before moving on to another larger item—a basketball, which I had no idea where he’d gotten.
Something began to prickle along my skin—some sort of awareness.
I looked down at my arm and the fine blonde hairs were sticking straight up.
“What’s wrong?” Winston asked, picking up on my behavior.
“Someone’s here,” I whispered.
He paled and motioned for Ethan, telling him what I said, while I looked around wildly.
“We should be safe inside the bubble,” Ethan began. “No one should be able to see us or get inside.”
I looked around wildly, my whole body humming with awareness.
None of it seemed to make any sense, I couldn’t see anyone but I knew they were there.
My heart beat went out of control.
I glanced at the others. “It’s Theo,” I declared. “He’s here.”
Before they could blink, I took off running. “No, Mara!” Ethan called after me. “It could be a trap!”
“Mara! Adelaide, stop!” Winston screamed too, but their words fell on deaf ears.
Theo was here. I knew it and felt it with every fiber of my being. That wasn’t something I could ignore. I ran as hard and as fast as I could. Thanks to all the physical training I’d been doing I wasn’t even winded.
I ran and ran, stumbling over roots and twigs, but nothing was going to stop me.
I knew I’d left the shelter of the bubble, but the others still called from behind me.
They sounded far away, though, and I didn’t know how I’d run that fast. It was like my feet were forcing their way through the earth, being dragged like a magnet, back to the one they belonged to—to the person I was meant to stand beside, always.
And then, between two trees I spotted him.
He wore a black cloak, the hood drawn up. His head was slightly lowered, but I couldn’t help but notice his hair now hung past his ears.
“Theo.” I crashed into him, the two of us colliding with a force that could rival tectonic plates.
His arms wrapped around me and he buried his face into the crook of my neck. He inhaled deeply, and his breath fluttered against my neck.
“You’re here,” I breathed. “You’re really here.”
“I told you I’d come back to you.” He took my face between his hands and looked me over. I noticed the dark circles under his eyes, and how gaunt he looked, like he was malnourished. “You look good.”
“And you look like a caveman,” I joked, lightly tugging on his beard.
He traced a finger over my lips. “You’re more beautiful than I remember.”
“It’s a new shampoo,” I teased with a smile. “It gives my hair extra bounce.”
My smile quickly disappeared, though. There was no telling what he’d been through the last six months. Horrors, I probably couldn’t even begin to comprehend, and here I was joking like nothing at all had happened.
He cracked a half smile.
“Theodore!”
Adelaide collided with us and the three of us fell to the forest floor. We’d been so absorbed in each other we hadn’t even heard her, which wasn’t good. Anyone could’ve snuck up on us.
“Ade,” he chuckled as the three of us tried to untangle ourselves. “I thought you would’ve been happy I was gone.”
She smashed her closed fist against his chest and I wiggled away.
“How dare you say such a thing, you jerk. You’re my brother, of course I missed you, you big idiot.”
“And there’s the little sis I know and love.”
“Ugh, you’re such an asshole. Why am I even glad you’re back?”
She stood up and brushed dirt from her clothes.
Theo stood and offered me a hand. Once upon a time I would’ve refused his help, but now I wanted an excuse to touch him, because he was here. He was alive.
That meant more than anything else.
“Hey, man. It’s good to have you back.” Ethan clapped hands with him.
“Yeah, good to see you mate.” Winston jerked his chin in a nod, but I got the impression he wasn’t happy at all he was back, especially when his eyes drifted to Adelaide and quickly away.
I found myself clinging to Theo, afraid if I let go he’d vanish. His hood had fallen in the scuffle and leaves clung to his hair. I picked it out and he smiled at me.
“Happy birthday,” he whispered.
I’d completely forgotten. “I can’t believe you’re here.” I kept saying basically the same thing over and over again, but I couldn’t get over it.
For six months he’d been gone, and for the majority of it I believed him dead, even when I started hearing his voice.
“I’d never miss your birthday.” He ski
mmed his fingers over my cheek. “Never,” he repeated, and I got the impression he was speaking more for himself than me. His eyes flickered over my face, taking in the small differences that had appeared since the last time I saw him. Tearing his eyes from me, Theo addressed Ethan, “We have a lot to talk about. Can we head back to Jee’s?”
“You know about Jee?” Ethan blurted, perplexed.
“I could see through Mara’s eyes when I wanted, and hear too, so yes, I know.”
Ethan shook his head and muttered something about super freaky weird protector powers under his breath.
Theo smirked at me and I felt myself exhale a sigh of relief.
Despite the change in his appearance, and how it worried me, he was still himself and it’s what mattered most.
The five of us made the several-mile trek back to the car in record time, or maybe it felt that way since I was holding Theo’s hand for a change.
I’d never been able to hold his hand like this, not even on our last night.
We’d fought so hard to stay apart, and I still didn’t understand the reasons why—I didn’t think Theo understood it, either—that something as small as holding hands was monumental. It made me cherish the small things with him, the simple things. Every touch, every glance, was more meaningful. It packed a bigger punch.
The five of us piled into the car, Theo, Adelaide, and I squished into the backseat, while Ethan drove us back to the apartment.
Theo being back was going to change things, I hoped it wasn’t in a bad way.
With Theo, you never knew, but right then, having him back was more important than what might happen.
Theo wanted to take a shower first thing when we arrived at the apartment.
Jee didn’t even bat an eye when Theo walked in, and I figured he must’ve seen him coming—but he sure didn’t tell us anything, jerk.
I sat on the couch, my legs bouncing restlessly while we waited for Theo to return.
He promised to tell us what he’d learned while he was with Thaddeus. As much as I was anxious to hear it, I also didn’t want to know. I was sure there were parts which weren’t pleasant, and learning about how he’d been hurt and treated made me queasy.
“Calm down,” Adelaide scolded, placing her hand on my knee to stop the bouncing.
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