Cursed and Crazed

by Sophia Stafford

  Gemma was sobbing and Jaycen couldn’t speak, her body was in shock. Which was why she didn’t notice the other man running down the hall towards her. That was until he flew back.

  Numbly, Jaycen turned to where the blast had come from. It was as if she had forgotten how to breathe when she saw Thornton standing there, looking back at her.

  Chapter 28

  “Are you okay? Jaycen, focus on me. Are you okay?” Thornton took her arm as his eyes scanned her body.

  She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t trust her eyes that he was really here.

  “Everyone, go home. We’re going to need some time with these.” Azrael kicked one of their attackers on the floor. Yet no one moved.

  Just like that Jaycen was back in control of herself.

  “What are you doing here? How did you find us?” She stumbled into the room, her hands still cuffed behind her back.

  “Stand still.” Thornton cast a spell, releasing her hands.

  “Thank you.” She smiled while rubbing her wrists. He smiled back. Yet it was so awkward. This was not how she had imagined their reunion. And she had imagined it when she was alone and had a second to herself. She had imagined it in so many ways, but none of them had the two of them standing a few feet apart, not knowing what to say.

  She turned and walked over to Gemma, wrapping her arms around her tight. “Are you okay?”

  Sniffling, Gemma nodded, wrapping her arms around Jaycen too. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. This is so strange; you don’t normally hug people.”

  “This is new. I’m getting into it.”

  “That’s fine.”

  Jaycen pulled back, nodding as a few of the kids scurried past her and the room. Both Sampson and Samantha were helping Deacon to his feet, Suzie however, was just looking at her.

  “Deacon okay?”

  “Yeah, girlie. Just got the wind knocked out of me, that’s all.”

  Blood was dripping down his forehead, but he was up and moving, so at least that was something.

  “How did you know I was here?” she asked Azrael as he shifted a few of the unconscious people around the room.

  “I didn’t. I was following them, hoping they’d lead me to Darius. They led me here instead. Probably better, you were in a tight spot. Thornton, however, was coming after you, I found him in the town.”

  “You came looking for me?” A thrill shot through her, a little piece of hope that maybe he still wanted this. Wanted them. A piece that told her she did too.

  Thornton seemed confused. “Of course I did. I managed to trace the call.”

  “Thornton? Thornton Krull?” Sampson asked, his face scrunched up in disgust.

  Suzie sucked in a breath: she wasn’t looking at Thornton in disgust, she was looking at him in wonder. And so were the others.

  They gave Azrael a wide birth as he moved bodies around as if he was picking up feathers.

  Thornton straightened, squaring his shoulders as he eyed up Sampson. “That’s the one. You’re a friend of Jaycen’s?”

  Sampson smiled, his eyes bouncing between Jaycen and Thornton. “Oh yeah. We’re friends, real good friends.”

  Jaycen looked over at him, frowning a little. Good Friends? They barely knew each other.

  Thornton didn’t reply, just eyed him up with a stony look.

  “Sampson, you need to help me take Deacon back home. He’s hurt.”

  “I’m fine,” Deacon assured, brushing the help off anyone who tried, even as blood ran down the side of his head.

  Azrael walked over to him with, the older man stumbled backward, clearly sensing something, but unable to put a finger on it.

  “No internal bleeding, just a cut on the back. It’ll probably need stitches.” Then Azrael turned back to his task.

  “How, how do you know that?” Deacon asked, confused.

  Azrael looked amused. “I can hear your blood.”

  One of the attackers started to come around, groaning as they opened their eyes.

  “It’s better if you guys head out. I have a few questions I want answers to, it’s probably best you don’t see it. Or hear it.”

  “Meet us back at Sampson’s, can you leave him your address?”

  Sampson was also eyeing Azrael, trying his hardest to hide his fear but it was creeping through. They didn’t know who Azrael was. She didn’t know who they didn’t know. But they didn’t. Yet they were afraid. And that was just Azrael. The way he carried himself with such ease and power.

  Yet Sampson gave his address and left the room, leaving Azrael with the team who was just about to kill them all.

  “He’ll be okay, won’t he? With them?” Sampson asked once they reached their cars.

  “Azrael? Yeah, he’ll be fine.” Jaycen’s handed hovered over the hand before stepping back and deciding differently. “But Thornton and I will walk back.”

  Gemma threw her a knowing looking before getting in the car, Jaycen waited for the others to leave before she even turned to Thornton.

  He smiled the kind of smile that made her stomach flip. She had missed him so much. What worried her was the possibility that he didn’t feel the same.

  “I hope you remember the way.”

  “Yeah, I do.”

  They waited for the cars to leave before Jaycen headed off in the same direction on foot, Thornton falling into step beside her.

  They walked like that for a while, in complete silence.

  “So is this it, we’re just going to walk back without talking?” Jaycen asked, hating how awkward it was between them.

  “I’m trying to think of what to say. For the past week and a half I’ve been seeing you everywhere, thinking of you constantly and worrying that you’re okay. Now you’re here and it’s like my mind still thinks you’re a dream.” He kicked the dirt as he walked, his hands in his pockets.

  Jaycen’s mouth opened and closed a few times, she knew she must have looked like a fish, but she couldn’t think of anything better to say.

  Then it all spilled out of her. “I felt like you were pulling away. It felt like I’d lost my magic, the only family I had left, and then you.”

  Thornton spun around and took Jaycen in his arms. “You lost your magic, but nothing else, you need to trust that. Listen to me, this is new, but we are strong. You just have to trust what you feel.”

  “Easier said than done when I’m getting further and further away, leaving everything behind. God, I felt like I’ve been losing my mind. Maybe I am still.”

  “We had a plan, it sucked, but we stuck to it, I had to pretend that you were dead, and I did. But no more pretending. I’m not going to have to worry that you’re safe because I’m going to know you are, I’m going to be right by your side.” He moved a piece of her hair away from her face, his fingers toying with the strand.

  “Sounds like a plan. Can you do it though, realistically? I’ve lost my magic, Thorn; I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

  “We’ll figure it out together. Plus, I think Benedict would get behind me being with you. He might think I could start getting you to actually listen to what he’s saying, because let’s face it, you never do.”

  She grinned. “I would have listened if it had been a better plan.”

  He shook his head. “No you wouldn’t have.”

  “So Benedict knows you’re here?”

  He smirked, pulling her a little closer. “By now, yes. But this is the way it needs to be Jaycen, us together. You without your powers, together. When you get your powers back, together. When we’re at school, together. We’re not splitting up again. This is us, got it?”

  She tried to hide her smile as she tilted her head, squinting as the light hit her eyes. “Check you out getting all bossy.”

  “I’m sick of people telling us what to do. Thinking they know what’s best when what’s really best is this. Us together. We’re solid, what we have here is solid.”

  Jayce laughed and threw her arms around his neck, forcing his he
ad down to meet hers in a rough kiss. It was clumsy, and messy as she caught him by surprise. He recovered quickly though, his hands gliding down her back until they hit her bum. With her mouth still on his, she squealed as he grabbed her, lifting her body and letting her wrap her legs around his waist.

  He pulled away a little, their noses still touching. “I can’t begin to tell you how much I’ve missed you.”

  “There are children present. Keep that in your bedroom where it belongs,” a woman’s shrill voice broke through the spell they were under.

  Jaycen’s head jerked back and looked over at a woman on the other side of the street, a small child holding her hand.

  “Where are your parents?”

  “In prison for murder,” Jaycen shouted back, jumping down from Thornton.

  “Oh my lord.” The woman rushed off, throwing them dirty looks as she went.

  Jaycen was still snickering as Thornton linked his fingers with hers and then gently pulled her to a grassed area behind one of the buildings where he urged her to sit with him. “Let’s just sit here for a minute.”

  “I can do that.”

  Thornton rested back, letting his elbows take his weight. “Relax with me.”

  She lay back too, resting her head on his stomach like she used to at school. “What did your parents think about you leaving?”

  “I didn’t ask for their opinion.” He shrugged simply. That surprised her, but she didn’t comment on it. “So much has happened recently, we have so much to talk about. But right now I just want to be.”

  They stayed on the grass for another five minutes, and for those minutes Jaycen could pretend they were back at The Cure Academy, just skipping class.

  But she couldn’t pretend forever though, so she stood up, holding out her hand for him to take. “Come on. A lot of people are waiting for us.”

  They walked the rest of the way to Samantha’s house, not really talking about anything

  It took a lot longer for them to get to Samantha’s but eventually, they turned onto her street. Jaycen pointed to which house it was and was about to walk in when Thornton stopped her.

  He waited for her to look at him before he spoke. “Are we good? Are you okay?”

  She nodded,. “Yeah.”

  “Then it stays this way. The decisions we make from here on out, we make together. Okay? We have a lot to talk about, a lot to get through, but this is us now, a team.”

  Now she laughed. “Yeah, I got that. We need a team name though.”

  “Please don’t give us a name.”

  “Honestly, I'm already thinking of them. I can't stop now.”

  She laughed as he pulled her to him, shaking his head. Jaycen leaned up and kissed him quick, just as the front door opened with an uneasy looking Sampson staring out at them. “Your friends back. The fast one.”

  Yeah, they really didn’t know who Azrael was.

  She nodded, following him into the house, Thornton right beside her.

  “He’s going to be a problem. Who is he anyway? Where did he come from?” Thornton asked, staring at the back of Sampson’s head.

  “It’s a long story. He’s cool, though.” They walked in the kitchen where Azrael was waiting with the others, no one speaking and everyone, but Azrael looked uncomfortable.

  Thornton made a noise from behind her. “Yeah, I got that by the close friend comment.”

  Jaycen thought on it, Thornton knew he had nothing to worry about, so she asked sneakily, “We’re not really friends. Unlike you and the brunette at my funeral.”

  “Who?”

  Jaycen loved that he didn’t know who she was talking about. She was still trying to wipe the smile off her face when Azrael cleared his throat, gaining everyone’s attention.

  “It went well. They all started talking, none of them knew exactly where Darius is of course. They have a few ideas’ though. People are already checking those leads. Right now Benedict wants to keep you moving Jaycen, which means we have to get going.”

  “Oh, okay, that’s fine. Are you coming with us then?” She scratched the back of her head. She had already decided that they needed to leave, so this wasn’t new or shocking.

  “For a while yes, until I’m needed elsewhere.”

  “It’s a good job we’re still packed then isn’t it?” Gemma smiled easily from the corner of the room.

  “You were going to teach us some stuff, you haven’t taught us anything,” Suzie pointed out, her face scrunched up in disgust and hurt.

  “And I was, but then we were attacked, remember?” Jaycen pointed out folding her arms over her chest, unsure where Suzie’s sudden hostility was coming from. She had honestly thought them fighting and then them being attacked together had bonded them somehow, she wouldn’t have said they were friends, but definitely not enemies. Clearly, she was wrong.

  “You can teach me things though. The way you fought back there; I want to learn,” Suzie continued with passion as she stood up

  “It’s safer if we leave as soon as possible. You can train anywhere, but we need to get Jaycen out of here. I don’t want to bring any more unwanted attention to your family,” Azrael interjected smoothly.

  What Jaycen didn’t expect was for Suzie to then turn on Azrael. The girl just didn’t have an off button, and she carried a lot of anger for someone so small.

  “You don’t get an opinion. Jaycen made me a promise. Who even are you? A werewolf? A vampire? Or just some dumb warlock that used all his magic for speed?”

  “Oh my…” Gemma breathed, biting her lip as she watched Azrael.

  “They really don’t know who you are,” Jaycen laughed, covering her smile with her hand.

  “Then tell us. Who is he?” Sampson demanded, picking up on his sister’s unnecessary anger.

  “They know of me.” Azrael twisted his head from side to side, looking completely unbothered by the outburst of the small girl in front of him.

  “His name is Azrael, and he’s an Angel. A fallen Angel.”

  Chapter 29

  “I thought you were a legend told to little kids to scare them. Like the boogie man.”

  That was what Samantha had said as she gulped down fear. Deacon had been sitting at her side, his eyes widening as he realised who he was standing in the kitchen with. This is what Azrael instilled in people. Fear. Pure, unfiltered fear.

  And Jaycen could tell he loved it.

  Sampson had pulled his sister back, holding her close to him and as far away from Azrael as she could be without her physically leaving the room.

  Azrael smiled a little. “Clearly I am very much real. But now we must leave, is everyone ready?”

  Jaycen and Gemma were saying their goodbyes when Jaycen overheard Deacon and Samantha speaking in the corner.

  “This is the time for us to strike. The buzz that Jaycen’s appearance has made is traveling the country. The troops are ready, the communicates are ready…” Deacon saw her first and stopped speaking as he stared at her, probably trying to figure out what she had heard.

  “I just want to come and say thank you, and goodbye.” Jaycen waved from the doorway, pretending that she hadn’t heard them plotting a strike, because of her buzz, it was very worrying, to say the least.

  “Of course. You can come back anytime,” Samantha said, her hand twisting her magical ring absentmindedly.

  “Stay in touch, girlie.” Deacon smiled as he lifted a hand.

  Jaycen waved back. “Bye.”

  She walked to the front door where Sampson was waiting for her.

  “Meeting you has been one hell of a journey,” he said, falling into step with her as they headed to the car that Thornton had come in.

  Jaycen snorted. “Thank you so much for your help. I held you hostage yet you went all the way to New York to get me. You saved my life.”

  Sampson looked overhead, his feet kicking the ground. “You did what you had to do, and so did I. I’m honestly glad I could help, that I could be a part of this.”

>   Jaycen snorted. “A part of me running around the world, hiding?”

  Sampson looked down at her. “No, a part of protecting our future.”

  “I’m not anyone’s future, and if I am, worry.” Jaycen looked back into the house. “I tried looking for Suzie but I can’t find her. Can you tell her I said bye?”

  “Yeah, of course.”

  She nodded and backed away to the car where everyone was waiting. “Stay safe, Sampson.”

  She slid into the back of the car next to Gemma, with Azrael in the front seat with Thornton driving.

  She stared out the window at the town, resting her head back against the seat. “A lot of people know I was here. Is there even a point in hiding it anymore?”

  Thornton twisted his head back to glance at her before turning back on the road. “They said they’d keep it a secret. I say we see how it plays out first, you never know they might keep it a secret.”

  “I heard them talking before we left. Talking about how I’ve created a buzz and the troops are ready. Ready for what I don’t know, but people knew I was here.”

  “Troops? Is that what he said? The troops are ready?” Thornton asked, tilting his head so he could hear better while still keeping an eye on the road.

  “Yep, that’s what he said,” Jaycen confirmed.

  Azrael turned to Thornton. “Does that mean something to you?”

  Thornton nodded slowly. “Yeah, are you and Benedict keeping tabs on a group of low magical users?”

  “Of course. We’re keeping track of a lot of groups, why?”

  “Back at The Cure I heard a recording of a man, he spoke about pulling everyone together and getting the troops ready. Are they the same group?”

  Azrael shrugged his broad shoulders. “Possibly. They’re a bunch of communities that have banded together, hoping their larger numbers guarantee their safety. I’ll let Benedict know on our next chat. We’re finding it difficult to pin down their leader, or leaders. They are not that great at communicating. They have truly little faith in The Cure.”

  Thornton snorted. “Don’t we all.”

  They drove for hours, with Azrael directing the way.