by Shona Husk
He’d come for her. Tears of relief flooded her eyes. He pulled her the rest of the way through the door. Emily was still screaming and holding on as though Leira was her lifeline out of the hell she’d made. Julian held on to Leira with one arm, keeping her close. Leira gripped his shirt. She was never letting go of him. The last thing she remembered was Julian prying Emily’s fingers off her ankle.
* * * *
Julian looked into Emily’s eyes, then pulled her off the very wounded Leira. Emily had had her chance to change and instead she had chosen to destroy as many lives as possible. Her lips moved, begging.
How could she ask him for help after she’d shot him this morning?
He hesitated. Could he take them both out of here? The smoke was thick in the hallway and he couldn’t carry both with his wounded arm. He made his choice and picked up Leira.
In those few seconds Leira had gone limp against him. Please don’t let her be dead.
As he’d started running up the stairs the fire truck had pulled up, but he hadn’t waited for them, even though they had yelled at him to stop. He wasn’t leaving Leira in there. He didn’t care what she’d seen in her vision. The future could be changed.
She had to be alive. She was naked and covered in blood. She wasn’t moving. He wasn’t sure she was breathing. He couldn’t stop to check her pulse until they were out.
Firemen raced up the stairs past him.
“There’s someone else,” he called, but he didn’t know if they’d heard him.
He kept going down, and the air became clearer. Leira was dead weight in his arms. His bicep was burning from the strain and he was sure the wound was tearing open.
There were people waiting to take her when he reached the bottom. He didn’t want to let her go in case he didn’t get to hold her again, but they had to do their job. He knew that, but it was still hard to let go. Someone was telling him off for being a foolhardy dickhead and trying to be a hero. They didn’t understand that he was immune to fire. Another person was congratulating him for finding a survivor.
As he laid Leira down on the stretcher, he saw the full extent of her injuries before a sheet was draped over her body to give her some privacy. She’d burned her clothes away. There were stab wounds on her chest. Had they punctured her heart or lungs? Both calves were wounded. One with multiple punctures, one gunshot.
His father pulled him away so the medics could do their thing.
He should do something. He could help her heal. He tried to shrug off his father. The paramedics were checking her pulse. Was she alive?
They didn’t pull the sheet over her face. Then they started putting in an IV line. She was alive and the fear that had wrapped around his heart eased. This time he let his father pull him away. He wasn’t in the right frame of mind to help. Nor could he work magic here where so many people would see.
There were other police here now and his father escorted him over to them. He wasn’t ready for their questions. How could he say that he’d left someone inside? He’d left Emily inside when he might have been able to save her. He closed his eyes and saw her pleading, heard her crying. He’d left someone to die. He turned to face the building. Had the firemen reached her in time?
If he hadn’t have gone in, it would have been too late for Leira. His arm throbbed. A fireman came out of the building carrying a body. The man shook his head when a medic raced over.
Emily was dead.
That should bring some kind of relief, but it didn’t. He looked away. His father was talking to him, made him sit. He was given some water. There was still smoke pouring out of the building just like Leira had seen. But she was alive.
Julian sat on the edge of the car park curb. His gaze fixed on where Leira was. Medics were still moving around her. They’d be trying to stabilize her. As long as she didn’t stop breathing or code she’d be okay. He hoped.
A cop was in front of him. Talking. Julian tried to focus on what people were saying to him but couldn’t. All he could think about was Leira covered in blood and crawling away from Emily. If the other three Guardians had joined her, every Albah in Perth would’ve been dead. They would have lost their leader, and they’d have fragmented further until they blew away like ash. He was not going to stand by and let the Albah die out.
“Julian.” His father squatted down in front of him, blocking his view of Leira. “You need to answer the questions.”
Right. Yes. He’d been answering questions all morning. This was starting to look more than a little dicey for him. He’d been in the wrong place too many times.
The cop wanted to what had happened and why he was there.
Who had he pulled out of the fire?
Why had he run in?
Could he identify the other body?
How did he know both parties?
And around it went. The fire got put out, but no one was allowed back in yet until the building was assessed. This was the second time an apartment block had gone up. The cop wanted to know why things burst into flames around him. Julian wanted to laugh but it wouldn’t form.
He couldn’t tell the police the truth, so he lied. Perhaps Emily had lit the fire and had planned on leaving Leira there to die while she fled? It was a flimsy reason, but much more palatable than the truth. Plus Emily had set fire to his place. Not that the cops had been able to pin it on her. Now it was looking like they would.
Now they were taking the threats against him seriously.
Too late. They didn’t understand the true threat. If the cops knew about Albah and Guardians, they would’ve moved faster and seen it for the hate crime it was. Unless they turned a blind eye because they had decided they didn’t like magic users.
He looked around but the ambulance with Leira inside was gone.
His heart hollowed. He hadn’t realized how much she meant to him. How much he wanted a future with her in it until it had almost been taken. He couldn’t imagine her not being around. He wanted to be able to wake up with her. Talk magic, work or whatever with her.
A chance to have a relationship instead of joining for survival.
But they had survived.
They had changed what Leira had seen.
What happened next was up to them.
Chapter 19
Julian sat shirtless in the salt circle with his father and brother. His father had managed to give him an earful—which was no less uncomfortable at thirty than it had been at thirteen—and still thank him for saving Leira. Saba was with Leira, or at least at the hospital waiting for her to come out of surgery. No news so far.
He had avoided going to hospital, but then his wounds hadn’t been life-threatening, and in the fuss, everyone had forgotten about it. However, he still needed to be healed.
His father put his hand over the front of the wound and his brother the back. He was very glad that his brother hadn’t left yet as this was a two-person job. This was also the first time they’d healed a bullet wound. Julian was hoping it was the last time he’d get shot.
While his father had been shot and stabbed, he’d always played by the human rules, except for a little accelerated healing. But then he’d had to because of what he did. Too many people would ask the wrong questions if he’d showed up at work fully healed the next day.
His father grunted and magic jolted through Julian.
The bullet moved in his arm, and then was sucked out. He hissed at the pain that raced through him as his partially healed flesh tore. That hurt almost as much as getting shot.
His brother’s hand was warm on Julian’s skin. Maybe he was just cold. He was tired, but he wouldn’t be able to sleep.
“Am I doing this right?” Kirin asked.
Julian glanced up at his brother. “Don’t say that. Act like you know what you’re doing.”
A patient needed to hear confidence, not questions, but Kirin hadn’t done a lot of healing. He didn’t do much magic at all. It was one of the reasons th
eir father was keen to send him out with Archie for a little bit, so he could get a better feel for his earth magic. The only reason Kirin was in the circle was because their father had insisted that he needed the practice before he left and that healing was taxing—which it was. Though not nearly as much as his father had claimed.
“What? I don’t want to give you a hideous growth…you know, aside from your head,” Kirin said.
“Boys.” Quinn had his eyes shut. “I have to pull out the bone fragment that’s in there. The bullet chipped the bone. Can either of you feel that?”
Julian concentrated on the magic. It was easier to go into the wound and feel every torn muscle fiber and capillary now that he wasn’t supplying the energy. He’d done such a rough job in the coffee shop, just enough so that the medics wouldn’t want to make him sit and stay. “Yeah, I can.”
His father wasn’t going to pull it out with tweezers either.
That weird suction started again, the bone fragment tearing through what Julian had healed as it wiggled its way free. Blood ran down his arm. There was no blood magic being used to heal him, though. Today enough blood had been shed.
“Think you can finish, Kirin?”
Julian glanced at his father. “Is that really a good idea?”
He didn’t want his brother mucking it up.
“He needs the practice.” His father dropped the bone fragment into the container with the bullet.
“Really? Last I checked I wasn’t a guinea pig.” He’d rather do it himself than let his brother have a go.
“I don’t seem to recall you complaining when you were the one playing doctor,” Kirin said.
“I am a doctor—”
“Whatever, you’re such a baby.” Kirin’s hand warmed and the heat spread through the wound. Kirin had drifted from job to job. Right now, he was working as a laborer. He had no idea what he wanted to do.
If Julian concentrated, he could feel the tissues knitting together. He didn’t like the sensation, but it was over in a few minutes. The bullet hole became nothing more than a red scar. Not the prettiest scar. Kirin could’ve made that a lot tidier. However, Julian kept his mouth closed. Kirin could’ve also made it much worse.
Dad inspected the healing. “Not bad.”
“Well, I know I’m no doctor.” Kirin stepped back.
“You haven’t had much practice with big injuries. It’s a good job.” Dad looked at Kirin.
Julian glanced over his shoulder at his brother. “Thanks.”
His brother didn’t smile. There had always been competition between them. That had been another reason why he’d gone to Sydney. Ever since Julian had saved his brother, Julian had been the star, the early magic user, the smart one. In high school, he’d seen how much that was hurting his brother so he’d made space for him by leaving. Instead he’d widened the gap between them. He’d seen how close Leira was to her sister. Julian didn’t have that with anyone in his family. His family wasn’t that close.
Dad let the circle go and broke the ring of salt. “I don’t want to be repeating that. No more heroics, okay?”
“Yeah.” It wasn’t something he wanted to repeat either.
They all checked their phones, which had been put on silent while they were busy. Nothing. No news about Leira.
His father responded to a couple of messages. “Dale asked if you were okay.”
“You didn’t tell him off, did you?” It was the kind of thing he could imagine his father doing even though he worked with Dale and had known him for years.
“We had a professional conversation about limits when dealing with Albah business,” his father said.
“You want humans on our side.” Alienating Saba’s partner wasn’t a smart move, especially if more Guardians would follow.
“I don’t want you put at risk again.” There was no arguing with that tone. Julian had heard it too often.
“Dad, I’m not a kid. I asked for help and advice and I got it. At least it’s done.” There would be no more problems caused by Emily. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her, latched on to Leira. To drag her back into the inferno or to force Leira to save her? He’d never know. Did Leira know? He wanted to speak to her.
“At what cost? Archie is going to have my hide.” His father shook his head.
Julian couldn’t imagine anyone tearing into his father, especially not another Albah. But then Archie wasn’t just anyone. He looked away, wishing his phone would buzz and save him from scrutiny. The phone stayed silent.
Kirin flicked on the TV. “Stuff is all over the news about the fire and the hero doctor. Someone filmed you coming out of the building on their phone.”
“Great. Everyone is a reporter.” Dad raked his fingers through his hair, making it stand on end. He walked over and sat on the sofa. It wasn’t the lead story—a plane missing the runway was—but it came in second.
The news station ran the footage. There was Leira in his arms. Unconscious and naked, although not much could be seen as he’d been holding her close. Had she woken up at all? Probably not. Once she was out of surgery they’d keep her sedated for a while to let her body get over the shock.
He needed to see her. The need was bone deep.
The reporter had spun a story about a jilted lover turned stalker that had ended in disaster.
Julian winced, he was not looking forward to going into work after this. He could only imagine what the nurses would say. While the story was kind of true, the biggest part was missing. “Can you imagine what the news would be if they had reported the truth?”
“Witch hunter tries to take out well-known fire witch and fails?” his father said.
“No, Guardian attacks and tries to murder peaceful Albah.” That was more what he’d been thinking.
“Do you watch the news, Jules? Have you seen the wars happening? People don’t like each other already. They’re going to hate us.” Kirin stood. “I’m going out. Meeting some mates and going to the speedway.” Julian and their father turned to look at him. “What? The danger is over and I want to make the most of civilization before I get shunted off to the wilds to get in touch with my inner earth god or something.”
When had his brother stopped wanting to use magic altogether?
Dad laid a hand on Julian and shook his head. “Have fun. Text me if you drink too mu—”
“I’ll be fine. Night all.” Kirin scooped up his keys and walked out.
“Is he all right?” Julian said.
“Yeah. That’s why I’m sending him off to be with Archie. I’m hoping she can inspire him. When you left, he stopped even trying to use magic unless he absolutely had to.”
“And you let him heal me?”
“He’s good at it. For a while wounded animals would make their way here and he’d fix them up. Then he started turning them away. Said he didn’t want to be surrounded by their pain.”
Julian could relate to that. He’d learned to shield himself from the worst of it working in a hospital. But he’d also learned how to help people. Maybe he needed to pull his brother aside.
Not that his life was together at all, it was falling apart in his hands and he wasn’t entirely sure how it had happened. But as sure as he believed in magic, he also believed in rising from the ashes.
* * * *
Julian stood in the doorway to the hospital room for a moment, before going in. Leira lay still in the bed. She was alive, and that meant he could help. But his chest was tight. It had been so close.
Saba sat with her sister just as silent. She glanced up. “I thought you were another doctor.”
“Not here.” He picked up Leira’s chart and flicked through the notes. He needed to know what was wrong and how badly she’d been hurt. Not all the news was good. She’d been stabbed by a garden fork and had an infection. Had the doctors made sure there were no flakes of iron in the wound? Of course not. They would’ve cleaned the wound, though. Her lungs had been damage
d from smoke inhalation, but otherwise she had no burns that were worse than a sunburn. That was how close it had been. If he’d left it to the firemen, she’d have been much more badly burned. “How is she?”
“You tell me. She hasn’t woken.” Saba held her sisters hand as though she could stop her from leaving.
He wanted to know what Saba thought, or had seen, not the doctor’s notes. “They’ve taken her off the meds, so she should be waking soon.”
“I know. Can you…?” She glanced up at him, then at Leira.
She wanted him to use magic. He didn’t know what he’d be able to do and he couldn’t create any miracles by accident. “Silver would be better.”
“I’ve given her some.” Saba pulled out a bottle of colloidal silver. “It’s the best I could do, but that won’t make her better faster.”
“It’s better than nothing.” Humans who used too much turned blue. He’d never heard of it happening to an Albah for the simple reason their bodies used it up, something to do with the magic in their blood. Something that couldn’t be studied because no scientist knew they existed. For all he knew the drugs they were giving her were reacting differently to the way they would in a human. They could be making her sicker. He looked at the door. “I’ll have a feel.”
Saba nodded and shut the door. She pulled a piece of chalk out of her pocket and drew a faint white circle on the grey linoleum. Julian could feel it even though he could barely see it. “That’s a good idea.”
“I didn’t think flinging salt or sugar around the hospital room would be wise.” She gave him a ghost of a smile. “I knew you’d come.”
He wanted to ask if Saba had done another reading for Leira to see if she lived, but he knew that the future could change. He’d make sure she lived.
He sat on the edge of the bed and closed his eyes. The energy gathered and his palms felt warm. A different kind of heat than when he was using fire. This one came from deep within as though he drew on his own life force. Maybe he was. He should ask about it, learn some more. The idea of taking six months off work and going to Spain to see some other fire-using men was very tempting. He needed to get away from here for a bit. But he couldn’t leave while Leira’s fate was uncertain. He didn’t want to leave her.