by E A Foley
“You fucking asshole,” she growled at him.
“You agreed to the terms of the contract.”
“But he’s in school!”
“Not in Davis, he’s not.”
“Give me one good reason I shouldn’t take your life right now.”
“I’ll give you eleven. Cirrus, Violet, Rozlynd, Rowen, Aerianna, Thorin, Gavin, Kyxy, Kylee, Morrigan, and Zarina.” He cocked his head and gauged her present state. “I should say twelve and count him too, shouldn’t I?”
“You’d kill your best friend? Your girlfriend?”
“There are always casualties in war. You could end this yourself if you wanted to. All you have to do is agree to be my private tutor. A willing tutor,” he amended. “Teach me everything I ask and none of my people will harm any of your friends.”
“How many loopholes are there in that statement?”
Jaden smiled in response.
“I thought as much. Excuse me, I have to get to class,” Iris refrained from shoulder-checking Jaden as she walked past him. She fumed on her way to class. Couldn’t believe Jaden. Didn’t know how he’d fallen so quickly. Her mind wouldn’t let it go during class. Anytime there was a pause in the lecture, her thoughts jumped to Jaden. If she couldn’t control them, she wouldn’t get through the quarter.
Iris made straight for her shift at the lab after class. Thankfully, she was the only one there today. Work didn’t go any better than class had. Iris locked up and headed to a rarely used bathroom. She needed to go somewhere where she could think undisturbed. Mind still distracted by how big of an ass Jaden was, she pulled as little power into her being as possible.
Iris formed and stepped through her doorway. She didn’t care where it led her as long as she was alone. She opened and closed the door before she thought to figure out where she was. A familiar tingling sensation gave her pause. She looked up. Trepidation crept into her chest. Caused goosebumps to cover her arms. She was knee-deep in snow in her old practice glade. With another magic user.
“I thought you were dead!” Brett said a few feet behind her.
Before Iris’s brain could switch gears and form a protective barrier around her, he squeezed her to him in a hug that compressed a few of her ribs. Brett released Iris from the hug but clung to the outsides of her arms before she had a clue what happened. Or why.
“You were on Earth’s twin—Gemina Terra—weren’t you? Smart move going to the only place he couldn’t follow you. Are you all right? Truly all right. You look good. And you feel so much more powerful. I don’t think he’d stand a chance against you right now. I tried to stop him. I swear. That man is manic though.”
“What?” Iris demanded. Her brain tried to cognize the slew of information Brett vomited on her in less than thirty seconds.
Brett gave her a soft smile. Opened his mouth to say something. Raised a hand to caress her cheek. Iris’s mind surged into motion before he could get a word out.
“Wait,” she took an awkward half-step back through the dense snow. “You knew Jaden captured me? That means your dad is the Oculus Prismatic he’s bound to now, doesn’t it? And Zarina and Morrigan, I suppose.”
Brett nodded. Averted his eyes a little.
Iris continued before he decided being here was a bad idea. She needed information. “And you were at the castle he imprisoned me in. You were the one always staying in the shadows, weren’t you?” Her anger grew.
Another nod.
“You advised him to stop playing games with me. Told him I’d die in the dungeon. Were you also the one who moved me to the tower?”
“I was,” Brett made eye contact with Iris this time. Seemed happy he’d done something good for her. Or perhaps it was that she realized it was him without him needing to tell her.
“Were you also there when he tortured me?”
He swallowed. Opened and closed his mouth twice before responding. “Just once. For a few moments. I couldn’t stand what he did to you. I left the castle the day after I moved you into the tower. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to make him stop. Jaden had my dad’s permission to use any means possible to get you to teach him. I tried. I swear! But I couldn’t go against my dad’s desires.”
“And now?” Iris asked in a much softer voice and tone. She didn’t know what prompted her to ask, but there was something different about Brett. She could sense his inner turmoil. Though she hadn’t realized it at the time, he felt the same way Jaden had in the months leading up to his joining Mr. Moreno.
“Now I’m not sure,” Brett said with a shake of his head and an awe that showed he couldn’t believe what he said. “I’ve never been so torn in my life. I’ve always followed my father’s lead and . . .” he shook his head again. Couldn’t finish his thought.
A tightness filled Iris’s chest. She actually felt sorry for the guy. Brett was no longer the bully from her childhood or the asshole that taunted her throughout high school and most of college. He was an unsure young man trying to break ties from someone who had control over him both emotionally and magically. She couldn’t imagine what that was like.
Silence stretched on between them. Brett looked like he wanted to reach a hand toward her. Her momentary sense of empathy vanished. Iris prepared to take another step back. A chill settled in her eyes.
Brett’s gaze roved her face. The movement of his arm stilled. “How did you get free?”
“Violet.”
“When did you get back?”
“This morning.”
“How did you keep it from Jaden?”
“I didn’t.”
“He knows you’re back on Earth?” he furrowed his brows at her.
“Yes.”
“All of you?”
“Yes.”
“And he hasn’t captured you again?” Brett’s eyes widened and the volume of his voice rose a few decibels.
“Obviously.”
“How? I thought for sure it’d be the first thing he did.”
“He tried, but we came to an agreement that Davis is a neutral ground so my friends and I can all graduate.”
“Just Davis?”
“Yes.”
“Then what the hell are you doing here? He could be here any second. He knows this glade. He’s been here before. Why would you risk—”
Iris’s ears stopped registering Brett’s words. A low buzzing punctuated by the fast beat of blood flooding her veins filled her ears.
“What do you mean Jaden has been here? The only people who know about this glade are you, me, your dad, and those poor saps you were training for your dad the day you tried to rewrite my memories. Or whatever the hell you tried to do.”
Brett stared at her. Iris’s brain kept churning. It landed on the only logical conclusion of how Jaden would know this glade.
“Wait! Do you mean to tell me that Jaden was here that day? That he saw what you tried to do to me and did nothing to help me?”
Silence surrounded them. Iris didn’t realize she’d been shouting. Her palms hurt where her fingernails dug in. She unclenched them. Continual heat boiled in her eyes. Without a doubt they were bright green. Brett looked pale. He nodded but didn’t look away. Iris threw her head back. She let out a short snort of disgust and opened a doorway home. If she stayed any longer, she didn’t know what she’d do to the man. He was smart enough not to follow her.
Iris stepped into her bedroom. She threw her backpack onto her bed. Glad she had enough sense not to hurl it at the wall where significant damage probably would have happened to her laptop.
A soft knock sounded at her door. “Iris?” Violet called. “You all right? Can I come in?”
“Yeah. Come on in,” she said as she flung herself into her desk chair.
“What’s up?”
“Jaden attacked Nimbus after he dropped me off at class this morning. Then I went to my glade without thinking this afternoon and Brett had the nerve to be there. Why are men such assholes?” Warmth spread through her veins. She kept it f
rom reaching her eyes. Focused on turning them blue.
“Not all men are.”
“You’re right,” she agreed.
Violet stared at Iris for a while. Her eyes wide and concern written all over her face.
“I’m fine, Vi. Don’t worry.”
“No, you’re not. I know you too well. Please, Iris, don’t do anything stupid.”
“I won’t. Jaden already informed me that Nimbus is fair game and if I attack him or any of his followers—even in retaliation to them attacking Nimbus or Rowen—that our contract is void. I know better than to risk voiding our contract, so don’t worry.”
Violet nodded. The tilt to her head and slight crease of her brows told Iris Violet didn’t believe a word she said. That all she’d done was increase Violet’s concern. Iris sat up in her chair.
“Come on. Aren’t I supposed to create a shared calendar so we all have each other’s schedules?”
“Yes, you are. You want some help?”
“Sure.” Iris pulled her laptop from her backpack. “Want to head to the living room?”
“Sounds good to me.” Violet led the way down the hall and Iris followed.
They sat down on the couch together and Iris opened her laptop. She sat there for a few seconds staring at her desktop.
“Maybe start with opening Google?” Violet asked.
Iris nodded and did as her best friend suggested. She clicked on the app's icon and navigated to the Calendar app.
Anger built within Iris as she worked on a shared calendar. She brooded on everything.
The need to create the calendar.
The stupidity of Jaden.
Brett’s unwanted concerns for her.
Mr. Moreno’s manipulation of the truth. Of her friends.
Chaos’s manipulation of all of them.
By the time she’d set up the calendar, Iris only registered her internal hate.
That was until someone touched her arm and she was transported back to the tower room in the castle. Jaden’s hand wrapped around her neck, choking off her ability to breathe.
Chapter 16
Iris ripped her arm from the person’s grip. Her eyes came back into focus. She sat in her living room. Nimbus was next to her on the couch. He removed the laptop from her hands and placed it on the coffee table. Pulled her to him. Held her tight. Iris let fear and anger flow out of her. She squeezed her eyes shut. Forced her breathing back under control and sighed.
When she’d calmed herself down, Iris wrapped her arms around Nimbus. She increased the pressure of her hug to let him know she was better before pulling away so she could see his face.
“Violet called. She said you were on a path to self-destruction.” He tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “She wasn’t wrong, was she?”
Iris shook her head. Embarrassed. She looked around for Violet, but she and Nimbus were the only two in the living room.
“Everyone is at Cirrus’s. I said we’d be along shortly. You okay? Or do you need a few more minutes?”
“I’m good. Thanks,” she added with a soft smile. She leaned in to kiss him. His right hand slid under her chin and back so his fingers intertwined themselves in her hair. “We should go.”
“We should,” he agreed with another caress to her cheek.
Nimbus rose and held a hand out to Iris. She took it and formed a doorway to the guys’ living room. Even before stepping through, Iris could tell all her friends were there. She hadn’t noticed it earlier since she was distracted by Jaden, but their auras were significantly more obvious. That meant it’d be even easier for others to track them. It only added to her concern.
“Hey guys,” Iris called as she stepped into the full room.
“Hey!” a chorus of voices called back.
“Pizza’s on the way,” Rowen added.
“Cool. And thanks. I’ve set up a shared calendar, so add your schedules to it as soon as possible. If you haven’t already heard, Jaden attacked Nimbus earlier today, so he’s made it clear he knows about the loopholes in the contract we made this morning. Rowen . . . I’m sorry.” She didn’t know what else to say.
“Why are you sorry? You’re not the asshole in this situation. You got Jaden not to attack most of us. I’d say ten out of twelve is pretty good. Did he attack Nimbus while you were with him?”
“No. He waited until Iris was several steps away from the 4Runner,” Nimbus spoke up. “I sensed him draw in power and put up a barrier before he even released his request. I wasn’t concerned. He’s not nearly as powerful as any of us.”
“Yes, but I wouldn’t put it past him to train twice as hard now to catch up in strength and power,” Rowen told Nimbus.
“Me neither,” Iris added. “He took it upon himself to me that if I used magic on him I’d void our contract. When I didn’t, it disappointed him so don’t be surprised if he tries to bait you guys into attacking. Roz, I know he can get you even more worked up than me, so I wouldn’t put it past him to attack Rowen sometime when you’re around.”
“I bet he will. Thanks for the heads up.”
“Sure thing. Oh, and—”
The doorbell rang before Iris finished her thought. Thorin answered it. He returned with a stack of pizza boxes and headed straight to the kitchen. “Come grab some. Like Iris said earlier, we still want to make it to rehearsal tonight.”
“You sure that’s still a good idea?” Cirrus called back.
“Why wouldn’t it be? There are five of us and two of them. If anyone shouldn’t show up, it’s them.”
“I’m with Thorin,” Kylee said as she grabbed a plate. “I’ve already decided not to let them get into my head. It’s what they want. You know, to mess with our heads.”
“Maybe get us to fail a class or several so we’ll get kicked out of school,” Kyxy offered.
“Perhaps. Or maybe they just want to scare us into never leaving our apartments again,” Sienna added. “Whatever their end goal, you guys are right, we can’t give into the fear they think they’re instilling in us.”
It was the most logical thing Iris had heard since coming back to Earth. She let Nimbus lead her to the kitchen. Thorin turned on some music and they spent an hour forgetting about Jaden. They opted to take the 4Runner to rehearsal and park on campus. It turned out there was nothing to worry about. Neither Jaden nor Zarina were there.
Iris dropped everyone off at their apartments before heading home. As she grabbed her stuff to get out of her car, the passenger door opened.
“What?” she groaned at Brett as he closed the door behind him.
He shook his head.
Iris turned to get a good look at him. He stared at his open palms where they rested on his knees. His body slumped forward and his chin almost touched his chest. Brett refused to look at her. The same tugging sensation from their earlier meeting pulled at Iris’s chest. She swallowed. Suppressed the urge to offer words of comfort or grip his shoulder.
“You want to talk?” she found herself asking anyway.
Brett let out a short burst of air through his nose. He shrugged and shook his head once in the negative.
Iris shifted in her seat so she could face him. He looked so deflated. So lost. So unlike the Brett she knew. Silent moments turned into minutes. Still, Brett didn’t say or do anything.
“Look,” she began not knowing what to say. “Jaden is probably watching me—or having me watched. If you don’t want him telling your dad you’re meeting with me in secret or whatever this is, you should probably get going.”
Brett sat there for a few more silent moments. He nodded and left without even glancing at her. She hadn’t a clue what to make of his actions. Iris rubbed at her forehead and eyes as she crossed the street and unlocked the door to her apartment. She said goodnight to her roommates and headed straight to bed.
Thoughts of Brett consumed Iris the following day. They were only shunted to the side when she wondered what Jaden was up to. Both men infiltrated her mind throughout the day—n
either were pleasant. She hated not knowing what was going on. And the waiting game.
As Iris left her last class of the day, she decided the best thing to do was find a way to take her mind off things. Her phone rang. She pulled it from her back pocket. The screen displayed an unknown number. She silenced the ringer and unlocked the phone.
She wanted to talk to Nimbus about non-magic stuff like school and what he liked to do on weekends. His favorite foods. What he liked to drink. All the things they hadn’t discussed since she’d been so focused on training her friends.
“You don’t have his number, you idiot,” she told herself as she stared at her Favorites screen. “How do you not have his phone number?”
“Well, you were on Gemina Terra,” she mumbled in response.
“Right. I didn’t even have my phone there. Wouldn’t have it now if Cirrus and Aerianna hadn’t gone back to the hotel for all our stuff.” Iris shook her head.
“Now what?” she asked herself. She stopped walking and looked up. She’d made it to the center of the quad. Her feet must have been carrying her to the bus. A glance at her watch told her she’d missed it. There’d be another in fifteen minutes but taking the bus home would only keep her mind brooding over what to do about Jaden and Brett.
A desire to do something filled Iris. She needed to take some kind of action. She turned around. Headed toward the library. She was guaranteed to find a quiet corner there to transform into her true-self and form a doorway somewhere so she could work on new magical tasks.
Before entering the library, Iris searched out any nearby magic users. There were a few on campus—in classes if she judged their locations correctly—as well as several around Davis. Jaden was at Zarina’s. No one was close enough to sense her create her faerie-sized doorway.
Iris hummed as she walked around the library. She took the stairs up a few floors, found an area that was almost deserted, and continued to the bathroom in the back corner. No one saw her enter. More importantly, no one was in the bathroom. Iris shimmered into her faerie form. She had to use a little magic to shrink her backpack, but not enough for anyone to sense what she’d done. A moment later she formed a doorway to her practice meadow. She had no desire to see Brett again. And no clue what to say to him in his present state.