by Sadie Jacks
“I’ve got some things to share. About Asher. About my magic.”
Chapter 44 – Kiema
All eyes turned to me. I could feel my protective shell coming around me, but I was unable to stop it. My spine straightened; my hands folded at my waist. I even tried to tuck the sheet around me more firmly.
“I’m going to go put some clothes on. Excuse me.” I stood and strode to my rooms, head held high. My stomach twisted itself into knots.
As soon as I closed the door behind myself, I dropped the sheet and raced to my closet. I threw on stretchy pants, an oversized sweatshirt, and some socks. I didn’t bother with any undergarments.
The heavy silence as I returned to the living room let me know that I’d been the topic of discussion. Asher had moved from the mattress to a chair. The guys were sitting in the chairs in a loose circle around the mattress.
“I feel like I’m about to be chastised by a tribunal,” I called from the door of my rooms. “Is there another chair for me?”
Six butts rocketed into the air; six men offered their chairs. I sighed. “You’re all too sweet. I didn’t mean I wanted to take one of your chairs. I’ll just move the mattress up against the hearth. I’m getting a little chilled.”
Without another word, Ransom and Asher moved the mattress and piles of blankets directly in front of the roaring fire.
I smiled at them both. Kissed Ransom as I passed him. He growled low in his throat as he held my head still when I tried to move away.
“Kiema said she had things to share, Ransom. You can rub against each other later.”
The relaxed state I’d been striving for vanished in a millisecond at Atlas’ words.
A buzzing sensation near the back of my head told me they were all talking to each other mentally.
I rubbed at the spot.
“You’re right, Atlas.” I tucked away my embarrassment, something I’d gotten good at in my lifetime. I felt the professional Kiema sliding into place to combat my awkwardness.
The buzzing stopped as all the men resumed their seats and focused on me.
I remained standing. I felt the stress of being on display, of everyone depending on me to make sure things went well. This time it wasn’t my parents who would be disappointed in me. That I knew I could handle. No, it would be these men, Ransom, who I would be disappointing.
I didn’t know if I could tolerate that.
I took a deep breath, felt the professional healer role slide over my shoulders like an old, hated friend. Back straight, head held high, hands folded at my waist. I just stopped myself from trying to tuck in my old sweatshirt to my pants.
I felt the rush of heat in my cheeks. I cleared my throat. “When I healed Ransom the first time, his landscape was riotous with every color on the spectrum. That’s his magic. A fiber of black threaded each color. Asher had the same black fiber, but his colors were greens, browns, and golds. It reminded me of the forest.” I tipped my chin to the land surrounding the cabin.
“I was also able to talk to his spirit. Something I’d been too unprepared to even attempt with Ransom. His spirit threw me around a bit at first, but we got it figured out.” I smiled at Asher. “Once we worked together, it was pretty easy to follow the end of the healing ritual. I would be willing to bet that he’s completely healed now.”
I smiled and watched them as they began talking over each other. This was something I was familiar with as well. I settled into the background like slipping on a pair of old sweats.
Saint, much shorter in person than I’d assumed through the computer screen, watched me. The only one in the group not talking. I dipped my head at him.
He returned the acknowledgement but continued to watch me.
Pushing the conversation to the back of my mind, I studied Saint. He was only an inch or two taller than me. His skin was a golden brown, a shade or two darker than my own honeyed tones. His frame was slim, but I could see the muscles that spoke of hard work and rigid discipline. His dark brown hair and eyes were almost the exact same shade. Against the shifting firelight, pops of gold appeared in his irises.
Saint’s lips pulled into a slight smile, more of a quirk.
“Kiema?” Ransom asked. It sounded like he’d called my name more than once.
“Sorry. Yes?” I turned to him.
“You said that Ransom has magic,” Atlas said, his voice hard.
I nodded, a little confused as to his tone of voice. “Yes. I told Ransom that after the first day here.” I turned to look at the man in question.
A sheepish look covered his face.
“You knew? You knew and you didn’t say anything?” Atlas looked furious. So did Taryk for that matter.
“She told me. I didn’t believe it. You can even ask her.”
Five sets of eyes swung to me again. “It’s true. He doubted it the whole time.” I shrugged.
“You turned into a fucking chimera/griffin mix and you thought that was all Kiema?” Taryk asked, his voice was soft, but seething with rage.
All the other men stilled, pulled back into themselves.
Ransom blushed. “I’m sorry, Taryk. I truly am. It completely escaped my mind that she originally thought I had magic.”
Taryk got up from the circle of chairs and walked down one of the many hallways.
I looked back at Ransom. He shook his head.
“So colors means a person has magic?” Atlas asked me, pulling my attention to him.
I nodded. “Yes. Most people are a yucky shade of gray.”
“Ransom and Asher have magic.” Atlas made it a statement.
“They had color in their landscapes, so yes.”
Asher, Atlas, Saint, and Xander looked like they’d been slapped in the face.
We sat in silence for long minutes.
Ransom cleared his throat, pulling everyone’s attention.
“Kiema.”
I looked at him.
“You wanted to share something about your magic?”
“Yes. Of course. Most of the time when I use my magic, I feel an immense drain on my resources. It’s usually the reason I need to sleep and also why I experience physical limitations after healing someone.” I motioned to the blankets on the mattress. “This time, I feel full. Almost too full of magic. It feels more like my eyeballs are about to float around in my head.”
“Hell yeah it does, Ki-Ki. I got the goods.” Asher crossed his arms over his chest, a wide self-satisfied smile exposing his crooked front tooth.
I bit back the chuckle. “We’ll see about that.”
Ransom smirked at the other man.
“I would be willing to attempt healing all of you today and tonight, if you’re up to it.” I held up a hand. “And Ransom, before you start, this is my choice. No one gets to make it for me. You hate my parents, rightfully so. Do not presume to treat me as they did. I will not tolerate it.”
The muscles of his jaw flexed. “Can I speak to you privately?” The words came through clenched teeth.
“Are you going to yell or scream at me? Attempt to make me change my mind?” I raised an eyebrow.
“No. Of course not.” He looked insulted. “Your body, your choice. I support that. There’s something else I’d like to discuss with you. It pertains to the discussion at hand, but a different avenue.” He gave me a significant look.
“Then of course. Gentlemen, if you would excuse us, please?” I walked toward my rooms again. Waited for Ransom to move up behind me.
I opened my mouth.
He snarled under his breath. “In the room.”
The low smoky tone of his voice had my sex throbbing.
“Not for that,” he said with a smile as he pushed me through the door. Closed it behind us.
“I’m not going to try to change your mind. I’m really not. I would like to caution you about going too fast. If something about healing Asher goes wrong, you could compound those issues. Again, your choice. Additionally, don’t dress me down like that again. Espec
ially not in front of them. We have issues, we can resolve them in private. Lastly, why do you have a giant stick up your ass?”
I rocked back on my heels. “I…” I trailed off. Tried to get my thoughts in order. “I appreciate your concern. I will attempt to take it slowly given your hesitations. Thank you for thinking of me.”
He looked at me like I was crazy.
I felt my spine stiffen even more. “I apologize for talking down to you in front of your friends and colleagues. I will be more circumspect in my dealings while in a crowd.”
His eyes narrowed. “What the fuck is going on, Ki?”
I closed my eyes. Fought with myself. I opened my eyes, threw my hands in the air. “I feel like I’m on display! Like I’m stuck in another awkward orientation meeting set up by my parents. Everyone’s expectations centered on me. If something goes wrong, whose fault is it? Mine. Who gets puni—”
I cut the words off quickly. Cleared my throat. “Only this time it’s you and I don’t know how to handle that and I want to kiss you and punch you in the balls and then lick them better. You tell me how to handle this, Ransom, and I’ll do it. But you’ve got to give me something to work with. Am I a healer? Something more? Something different? I don’t know what I’m doing right now.”
His mouth crashed down on mine.
I felt my body melt into his. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I climbed his body and hooked my ankles behind his ass.
A buzzing sensation irritated my head.
He chuckled as I snarled.
“We do still have company, baby. As to who you are? You’re Kiema, the woman who saved my life, captured my heart, and set me on fire. Be you. That’s all I want. If that’s prim and prissy with the rest of them, great. If you want to be more relaxed, do that. I just want to see YOU shining out of your eyes. Not some awful puppet for your parents.” He kissed my lips quickly. “Okay?”
I nodded, a warm feeling invading my chest.
“And please don’t ever punch me in the balls. Licking them is fine, though, just so we’re on the same page about my balls.”
My head tipped back as I laughed.
“They’re waiting for us.” He led us back out of my rooms and into the living room. Xander and Asher had claimed the mattress. Miraculously, there was a space between them. A Kiema-sized space. A smile tugged at my mouth.
Ransom chuckled under his breath, set me to the side. He dive-bombed the empty space.
“Fucking hell, Ransom!” Asher pushed the bigger man off him.
“You still can’t touch her, so why put her in the awkward position of having to tell you no?”
“We don’t know if she can touch him,” Saint said softly. “Hell, she might not even want to touch him. We don’t.”
I bit my cheek to keep from laughing. Saint was sneaky with his humor, but man it tickled my funny bone.
Asher looked at me, brown eyes big like a lost puppy’s.
I rolled my eyes. “We can try it. But I touch you. Not the other way around.”
He practically bounded across the mattress, regardless of the two other men on it with him.
Both Xander and Ransom groaned as they pushed him off. He rolled off the side of the mattress, thumped to the floor.
I laughed, pointed him to sit on the hearth of the fireplace.
He sat still, his gaze locked on my face.
Taking a look behind me, I noticed I was once again the center of attention. Ransom winked at me. Shot me an air kiss.
I settled into my own skin. I could do this. I would do this. I wasn’t going to miss the opportunity to touch more people just because parts of the situation reminded me of my parents.
Taking a deep breath, I reached out and laid a hand on Asher’s bare arm.
The muscles flexed under my hand. I waited for the burn of a single flame. I ran my hand up his arm.
Nothing but the warmth of his skin against mine.
He shuddered slightly under my touch.
Immediately, I pulled my hand away. “What’s wrong?”
“It burns.”
“What kind of burn?” I asked.
“What kind of question is that? It burns like it's hot.” He glared at me.
I glared right back. “Don’t get snotty with me, Asher.”
The men sitting around watching us snorted with laughter.
“Does it feel like a single candle flame? A bonfire? Fireworks?” I asked, giving him examples.
He hissed. “More than a candle flame, less than a bonfire.”
I turned to the rest of the men. “That’s how it felt to me before Ransom had his first shift.”
“You think I’ll be a shifter, too?” Asher asked from beside me.
I shrugged. “I honestly have no idea. Nothing is working like it did last time. And that was nothing like anything I’ve previously experienced. Your magic isn’t quite the same as Ransom’s. You have fewer colors and they were pushing back the gray like they were all at war. Ransom’s looked like a party of some kind.” I shook my head, my hair sliding over my shoulders.
“I guess we’ll need to wait for me to heal the rest of you like Ransom suggested.” I peeked at the man in question. He looked like a cat who got all the cream.
“That would be best. This way I can track any changes that Asher might exhibit,” Atlas spoke up. “Thank you for your kind offer in healing us, Kiema. All of us are greatly appreciative.” He shot a look at Ransom, the barest hint of a smile pulling at his firm mouth.
“What’s wrong now?” I asked.
“Nothing, Kiema.” A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I was wondering if you would submit to a full physical examination, so we have at least a semi-working baseline for your own health and magical abilities.” Atlas watched me, zero expectation on his face.
Unlike the doctors at MagCorp, I felt like a person instead of a thing. He wanted to help me, not study me like a lab rat.
I looked at the rest of them. “You’ve all been examined?”
A chorus of deep male laughter filled the room, rolling over my skin like velvet. I shivered.
“We’ve been poked, prodded, tested, examined, and had it all done over again and again by our illustrious Dr. Atlas for most of our lives together,” Xander said. “He’s one of the best doctors I’ve ever seen. You’ll be in good hands.”
“Then yes. Can I have a copy of the results?”
Atlas looked at me a little weirdly.
I felt heat touch my cheeks. “I’ve never gotten to see any medical records before. Mine or anyone else’s. I think it would be interesting to be able to track changes like a line of credit output.”
Taryk walked back into the room. I couldn’t quite put a finger on the change in him, but it was there. Almost rippling under the surface of his skin.
Atlas called my name, shot me a brief smile and nodded. “Of course, you can, Kiema. I can even explain the results to you if you need help interpreting them.”
I felt my eyes light up. “That would be wonderful.”
“We’ll need to test to see if I can touch you with gloves on, or Ransom will have to do the blood draw.”
All the men recoiled, even Ransom.
“That’s fine with me.” I gestured for him to take Asher’s spot on the fireplace ledge.
I closed my eyes, started my ritual. When I was ready, I reached out a hand. “Seeker, are you ready?”
A long pause greeted me.
“Oh, ah, yes. I’m ready,” Atlas replied.
“Open your mind.”
I pushed out a long breath and touched him. I wasn’t sucked into his magical plane immediately. This time it was almost as if I had the option of leaving my body to join with his. I gave my permission and merged with Atlas on the spiritual plane. I did note that he had a triad of colors too: silvers that shimmered like mercury and sterling, fiery golden yellows, and stark whites. The thread of black summoned me, pulling at me relentlessly.
I didn’t have it in me to
look away from the healing he obviously needed. Just as with Asher, I wrapped a piece of my spirit around the throbbing ball of black of his own. Kept feeding it until it was encased in my own spirit.
“Kiema,” Atlas cautioned.
“Your magic is beautiful, Atlas. I can see it—the part that bothers you, hurts you. I can feel it. I can’t not heal it, Atlas. I’m sorry, I should have asked your permission.” I severed the tie binding our spirits together.
I completed the ritual and opened my eyes.
A bright green gaze drilled into my own.
It seemed like all the men were waiting, breaths held.
I waited for the vomiting to crimp my stomach. If nothing else, throwing up a weird ball of magic should have—
My stomach jerked as the magical sphere landed.
A trashcan was shoved in my face.
I hurled the magic ball up my throat. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve. “Here’s the last part of the magical news I wanted to share.” I handed Atlas the trashcan. “I’m pretty sure it’s a physical manifestation of my magic.”
Taryk stepped back, obviously the one to have handed me the trashcan. His brown gaze intent on mine.
“He’s magical as well?” he whispered.
I nodded. Leaning forward, I could almost feel the magic inside Taryk. Its essence brushed against my skin, like a sleek pelt. As I watched, Taryk’s chocolate brown eyes flashed brilliant green. They were back to milk chocolate before I could take another breath.
“I can help you, too, Taryk,” I whispered just as quietly.
He nodded.
I turned and walked to my rooms. Uncoded the doors, stepped inside, and then closed the doors behind me.
Chapter 45 – Ransom
Everyone but Taryk sat around like idiots staring after the woman who’d just healed another of our ranks, chucked up a magical ball, and walked away like it was a normal Tuesday afternoon.
Five faces swung to look at me.
I shrugged.
“I didn’t even get to take her temperature,” Atlas said stupidly, staring at the trashcan in his hands.
I burst out laughing. I’d told her to be herself. She’d done exactly that.