More than a Phoenix

by Ashlyn Chase

  “Sure. And instead of taking a second job to afford another place, I can just churn out enough gold to stay here.”

  Dante had just exited his room, iPad in hand, but stopped in his tracks and hung his head. “I’m sorry, Bro. I didn’t mean that part about moving out.”

  “Good. I was hoping that was the case.”

  “You didn’t deserve that. I know you’re trying to look out for me, but…”

  “But deciding what’s best for you is out of line. I know.”

  Dante nodded. “I’m glad I didn’t have to be the one to say it. So, do you still want to go out tonight? I’m willing to wing it for you, if that’s really what you want to do.”

  “Yeah. I’d like to meet somebody. Even if it’s not ‘the one,’ I feel like doing things with someone other than my brother. No offense.”

  “None taken. I’m still bummed about Mallory, but I can turn on the charm when I need to—as long as we’re there for you, not me.”

  “It’s either that or stay home and set up an alchemy lab to keep me busy in my old age.” Noah was still planning to turn the tables, but he’d be a lot more subtle about it.

  Dante laughed. “Old age. What are you, twenty-three?”

  “Yup. And I’ll be twenty-four in about two months. I’m getting up there.” He aimed a teasing grin at Dante.

  “Yeah, and a month later, I turn twenty-six. When are you going to catch up, Little Brother? I keep trying to wait for you…”

  It felt good to be kidding around with his brother again. They had been living here for three years, ever since Noah had gotten through firefighter training and his probationary period. They’d had their ups and downs, but neither had ever talked about splitting up and going their separate ways…until today.

  Chapter 2

  Noah scanned the busy club. The lights were low, but it didn’t matter. Having paranormal eyesight was a plus in these situations. “Let’s walk the perimeter clockwise and check out the girls facing us, then get something at the bar and go back the other way.”

  Dante chuckled. “Yeah. If we swiveled to check out the chicks on the other side of the tables, it would be a little obvious what we’re doing.”

  “Exactly.”

  Noah led the way, making a note of the women Dante might like. Their taste in women differed greatly. That had been a plus, and would continue to be as long as he could find a gorgeous blonde with an athletic build for Dante sitting with a petite brunette for himself.

  The guys had passed only four booths when some big lug coming toward them barreled into Noah, knocking him sideways. To his shock and embarrassment, he fell and landed hard in the lap of some poor, unsuspecting woman. She squeaked a sound of surprise, but didn’t say “owww.”

  “I’m sorry. Are you okay?” He scrambled to slide off her lap. As he gazed at her face, her beautiful brown eyes widened.

  She looked familiar, and suddenly, it struck him. He had met her only that morning. “Dr. Samuels?” He struggled to leave the booth when she placed a warm hand on his arm.

  “I’m fine. Are you okay?”

  He paused at the end of the bench without getting up. Her voice was soft and kind. This was not the Dr. Samuels he’d spoken to sharply that morning.

  She scooted over to make room for him. “I’m sorry about our disagreement earlier. How’s your friend?”

  The woman on the other side of the table, who looked similar to the good doctor, slid over and patted the bench next to her. “Join us,” she said to Dante.

  He grinned. “Sure.”

  There was some kind of twinkle in his brother’s eye. Noah didn’t know whether that was a good thing or not. Hopefully, he was willing to consider a pretty brunette.

  “She’s not exactly my friend. Just an acquaintance. Someone we knew in high school.”

  “I don’t even know your name,” Dr. Samuels said.

  “Jesus. I’m an idiot.”

  “That’s an unusual name and job description…”

  Noah laughed and extended his hand. “Noah Fierro, and this is my brother Dante. We’re firefighters.”

  She smiled and shook his hand. “And I’m Kizzy. This is my sister, Ruth. She’s a labor and delivery nurse.”

  “Kizzy? That’s an unusual name.”

  “It’s a form of the name Keziah. I used to hate it, but now that the mean kids have grown up, I kind of like being different.”

  “Mean kids? Did you get teased about your name when you were younger?”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’ve heard them all. Dizzy Kizzy. Crazy Kizzy. And on humid days, even Frizzy Kizzy.”

  Noah chuckled, then quickly schooled his expression. “I like it.”

  “Does that mean you like her now?” Dante asked.

  Noah wanted to kick his brother under the table, but that wouldn’t look immature at all, he thought sarcastically. “If she likes me… At least it seems like she’s not mad at me anymore.”

  Kizzy laughed. “I was never really angry. I was just frustrated, and I guess I took it out on you. I’m sorry for my part in that argument. It was a crazy morning. Now that I’m off duty and I’ve had one of these lovely things”—she lifted her empty wineglass—“I’m feeling more relaxed.”

  “Let’s get you another,” Dante said. “What are you drinking?” He pointed to both Kizzy’s and Ruth’s wineglasses.

  The women glanced at each other, as if they could communicate without words as easily as he and Dante could.

  Ruth answered. “We both just finished a glass of Shiraz.”

  Dante rose. “Two more glasses of Shiraz it is. Ruth, would you like to come with me? I’ll need someone to carry Noah’s and my Coronas.”

  “I’m getting a Corona, I guess,” Noah said to Kizzy.

  “It’s Cinco de Mayo. Would you rather have a margarita?”

  “Nah. You had it right the first time.”

  Dante shook his head. “He’s not usually this much of a smart-ass,” he said to Kizzy. “You must bring out the worst in him.”

  He aimed a teasing grin at Noah. But before Noah could think of a comeback, Dante had slid out of the booth, taken Ruth’s hand, and helped her out as well. Then they disappeared, and Noah was alone with Kizzy.

  Her eyes had him mesmerized. They were almond-shaped, enhanced by thick black lashes and eyebrows. Her irises were such a dark brown that they appeared almost as black as her pupils.

  Suddenly, he was tongue-tied, and she lowered her gaze shyly.

  Oh no. Here comes one of those awkward silences.

  At last, she looked up. “I’ve never had a handsome firefighter fall into my lap before.”

  He chuckled. “I wasn’t really expecting to meet someone that way either.” He nodded toward the bar. “I was hoping my brother might find someone to hit it off with.”

  Kizzy sighed. “My sister is taken, and my future brother-in-law really wouldn’t like the competition.”

  “Oh well. He’s kind of stuck on Mallory anyway. It probably wouldn’t have been fair to your sister, now that I think about it.”

  “I understand. You had hoped to find him someone who wasn’t hallucinating. Is that it?”

  “Exactly.”

  “You’re a good brother. I don’t know if you can really influence someone else’s choices. I’ve tried without a lot of success.”

  “You don’t like your sister’s choice?”

  “Oh, no. He’s fine. I’m sure he’ll be good to her. She’s an L&D nurse, as I mentioned, and he’s a surgeon. They have a lot in common. But surgeons… Well, some of them have a god complex.”

  He had heard that, but hadn’t experienced it. “So, another family member in medicine. Anyone else?”

  “Yeah. My father. He’s a cardiologist.”

  “Wow. You have a highly successful family
.” Suddenly, Noah wondered if he was good enough for Kizzy. Sure, he was an EMT as well as a firefighter, but was that enough? If not, that would be a shame. He liked this Kizzy Samuels. Really liked her.

  * * *

  Kizzy was enjoying the Fierros’ company, but too soon, Dante wanted to head home. Noah bid them a reluctant farewell, and Kizzy wondered if she’d ever hear from him again. She hoped so. He didn’t ask for her phone number, but at least he knew where she worked.

  “He’s cute!” Ruth said as the guys walked away.

  “Which one?”

  “Both of them…but I was talking about the guy sitting next to you. Noah. He seemed—well, after the initial reaction—really into you. Do you think he fell in your lap on purpose?”

  She laughed. “No. I’m sure he didn’t. He landed pretty hard, and considering how our first meeting went, I’m surprised he didn’t run off as soon as he recognized me.”

  “Yeah, what was that about?”

  Kizzy just waved away the question. “Nothing. Just a triage decision he didn’t like.”

  “You must get that a lot in the ER. In L&D, the baby makes the decisions about who goes first. Still, I thought he might ask for your number before he left.”

  “Oh well.” Kizzy tried not to look disappointed. She was second-guessing everything she’d said to him—not only that morning, but tonight too. Why did she mention her future brother-in-law having a god complex? That wasn’t very nice. He might be wondering what she’d say about him behind his back. Not only that, but she had her own god complex to worry about.

  “There’s something else I need to talk about, and you’re the only one who would understand.”

  “Go ahead.”

  “I’m not sure we should talk about it here.”

  Her sister glanced around the busy, noisy club. “I doubt anyone could hear us, even if they wanted to. This might be the best place to talk.”

  “Okay. Well, it’s about our powers as witches. And because of the spell books, and the fact that we only have one of the three, our power to perform the impossible is limited to one save per day.”

  “Uh-huh. I know all that. What are you asking?”

  Kizzy sighed. “You’re more psychic than I am. I just wish I knew at the beginning of the day who would be the one to save.”

  “I’m not sure I’m much more psychic than you are, but okay. How do you decide now?”

  She shrugged. “It’s hit or miss. Sometimes I think I know, and I guess right. And other times, by the end of my shift, I’m kicking myself. Do I save the kid who comes in at eight in the morning, knowing that some brain surgeon or astronaut might show up in three or four hours? Or is the child more important?”

  Ruth took a sip of her wine and set it down, looking thoughtful. “I can see where it would be more difficult for you. For me, it’s not that hard, since most deliveries go as expected. If there’s one that’s really struggling and the child shows signs of stress, that’s the one I intervene with. Very rarely do I get two of those per shift, and if I’ve done the spell with the first one…well, the second one is in the hands of the gods and goddesses. Is that what you’re asking? What to do if you’ve already blown your magical load?” She gave her sister a lopsided grin.

  Kizzy chuckled. “Yeah, I guess that’s one way to put it. I don’t envy your having to go through hours of pain with a person, but at least that’s expected. When I see a person in excruciating pain, my heart breaks for them.”

  “How many cases do you get on an average day?”

  Kizzy snorted. “There is no such thing as an average day in a busy city ER. But I guess I can see anywhere from twenty to fifty patients in a shift.”

  “Yikes. Fifty? No wonder you’re confused. You have a lot to choose from.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Why don’t you ask Dad for advice?”

  Kizzy rolled her eyes. “He’ll just give me some pat answer like you do your best and that’s all you can do.”

  Ruth shrugged. “That sounds about right to me. What is it you would like to do differently? Eliminate the guesswork?”

  “Yes. Exactly. Do you think there’s a way you can tell when something major is going to happen, before the patients even show up? Or have a clue as to who’s most deserving of a miracle?”

  “So far, I haven’t been able to train my psychic skills to work that way, at least not consistently. I’ve been picking up some weird vibes lately, but I have no idea what it’s related to. At least not yet.”

  Kizzy picked up her cocktail napkin and began tearing it. “If only we had the other books. Maybe we’d have complete control over our powers. I know our great-grandma tracked two of them to Boston, which is why we’re here, but one went to South America. How the heck are we supposed to find all three without the ability to pinpoint them? And why can’t we, by the way?”

  “Silly woman. They must be protected by wards, just as ours is. I’m not sure I’d want all three. It’s tough, I know. You win some, you lose some. If we won all the time, don’t you know what would happen?”

  “Yeah. We’d be found out pretty quickly.”

  “Yep. And then what?”

  Kizzy sighed. “And then we’d be interrogated, expected to let everyone in on our secrets, other doctors would publish papers throughout the medical community, and we’d probably be kidnapped by the government and forced to work for the Department of Defense.”

  Ruth giggled. “You’re so dramatic. I doubt the government would utilize us for slave labor, but letting this stuff fall into the hands of certain unprincipled people could spell disaster. We’re healers. But we could harm, if we wanted to.”

  “Are you sure? We’ve never even tried to harm anyone.”

  Her sister winced. “I have.”

  She said it so softly, Kizzy wasn’t sure she heard her correctly. “Fudge cake! What do you mean? Did you do something intentionally?”

  After a brief hesitation, Ruth said, “We were little. Mom had just told us how we were different from other kids and how we had to use our power only for good while still respecting the free will of all humankind. She said if we wished anyone harm, karma would get us eventually…and then she explained what that meant.”

  “I remember that day.”

  Ruth picked up her wineglass and swirled the contents. “I wasn’t sure if she was telling us the truth, so I had to test it.” She set down her glass and clasped her hands. “You won’t tell anyone, will you?”

  “Of course not. What did you do?”

  Ruth’s face turned pink. “Remember the brat who used to live across the street? Eddie?”

  “Yeah…” Kizzy remembered how the neighbors across the street moved in a hurry. No one seemed to know why or where they went.

  “Well, he was teasing me, as usual, and I wished with all my heart that he would go away and never come back. The next day, moving vans came, packed everything up, and off they went. I don’t know for sure if that was because of me, but I think it must’ve been.”

  “And did karma kick your ass?”

  “Maybe. The guilt has weighed heavily on me ever since.”

  “I wouldn’t worry about it. I’m sure they had some kind of plan. People don’t just up and move overnight.”

  “Unless a witch cast a spell on them. What if they just found themselves driving a moving van across the country, no jobs, no home to go to…nothing but questions?”

  Kizzy gave that some thought. “I imagine they would have come back. If they hadn’t quit their jobs and sold their home, that stuff would still be waiting for them. Right?”

  “But I added the words ‘never ever to return.’”

  “I guess we can’t know. Unless you want to try to find them.”

  Ruth looked sheepish. “Do you think I should? I mean, I’d rather not. There’s not much I can d
o about it seventeen years later.”

  “You could just look him up on Facebook. If he landed on his feet, you can stop feeling guilty. If not, you can do a spell to help him and his family.”

  “I already tried a reversal spell. Because they didn’t come back, I don’t know if it worked or not. Thus the nagging voice in my head for seventeen years.”

  Kizzy winced. “Man, you were a naughty girl. I just believed everything I was told.”

  “You were older. I kind of wish Mom had waited until I was a little more mature and could have handled it better.”

  “I had no idea you were having any problem handling it at all.”

  “Why wouldn’t I? You’re having a tough time with it right now. And you’ve always been the smarter, more responsible one.”

  “I don’t know about that, but being responsible drives me up the wall sometimes. I don’t want to be responsible for picking and choosing who lives and who dies. Especially if several family members are involved. Do I save the mom, the child, or the father?”

  Ruth’s facial expression bespoke pity. Ordinarily, pity wasn’t something Kizzy wanted. Tonight, she did.

  “Have you ever thought about just not using your power?”

  Kizzy hesitated. “I’ve actually vowed not to and broken that vow in three days or less. When someone needs my help and medical help isn’t enough, I can’t refuse to use the power at my disposal. As long as I have enough strength in me.”

  Ruth reached across the table and grasped her hand. “That’s the sister I know and love. So I guess you’re stuck with it—the responsibility, the knowledge, and the power to save one human life that never would have made it without you. But only one per day.”

  Kizzy inhaled deeply and let out a long, resigned breath. “A blessing and a curse. What did I do to deserve this?”

  * * *

  “Hold that pose, sweetie. Oh, what a nice, big smile!” Mallory captured the picture before the squirmy, wormy toddler managed to break free of his mother’s death grip again, like Houdini.

  “He’s a live wire, isn’t he?” a baritone voice said.