by Joshua Roots
I shook my head. “It’s for Quinn.”
Dad placed a hand on my shoulder. “That I also understand.”
* * *
The late September sun beat down on the cemetery, baking the large crowd of mourners. Kids fidgeted in their tiny suits while parents struggled to keep them calm. Sweat trickled down my chest as I stared at the tombstone.
I’d seen far too much death in my short lifetime. We learned in school that Warlocks, like Healers, often suffered more than their fair share of loss—but that didn’t make it any easier.
Death was the end, the punctuation mark on a person’s life. Some finished with a simple period, but others with a large, flashy explanation point.
Hopefully mine would be the latter.
With any luck, that was still a long way off.
Quinn leaned against me. “That’s a lot of people.”
I looked at the crowd again. “Obviously they were deeply loved. Or rich.”
She laughed softly.
“I’m serious. You’d be amazed how many ‘loved ones’ come out of the woodwork when a gigantic trust fund is on the line.”
“You’re a nut,” she said, slipping her hand into mine. “But you’re my nut.”
I liked the sound of that.
She gave me a small kiss. “Thank you for joining me. I’ve never enjoyed coming here alone.”
“I don’t blame you. Cemeteries are spooky places. They remind us of our eventual demise.”
“They also remind us that we need to stop dying and start living.” She wiped her eyes. “I’m tired of hiding, Marcus. Tired of running and tired of being afraid of what might happen. It’s time for me to come out of the shadows.”
“Really?” I asked, taken aback by her comment.
She nodded. “I nearly died at the National Cathedral—”
“Actually, you did die. Your heart stopped and everything.” I fought the lump that had formed in my throat.
“I got better,” she replied.
She was being funny, but I wasn’t laughing. “That was all Devon. I may not like or trust the guy, but there’s no debating the results. He performed nothing short of a miracle to save you.”
“I’m indebted to him for life. Literally and figuratively.”
Hopefully the Elder would never try to collect. If he did, he’d have to deal with me first.
“Seriously, though,” she continued. “It’s time for a change. That’s why I needed you here. I have to say goodbye to my old life and hello to a new one. You’re part of that.”
An excited warmth spread within my belly.
“There’s no need for us to have Steve’s talk, by the way,” she added, as if reading my thoughts. “This thing we have? I’m in if you are.”
“I am.” I’d never been more certain of anything.
She gripped my hand hard. “I never doubted that. You are, if anything, very transparent with your feelings.”
“I hate being easy to read.”
“You’re not. At least, not to most people. You throw up walls of humor to hide your true emotions, but I feel like I can see past them pretty easily. That’s not a bad thing, mind you. It means that I get the backstage pass to you.”
I warmed all over. “That you do.”
“So, am I officially your girlfriend now or what?” she asked with a slight grin.
I sighed dramatically. “Stop smothering me, woman.”
She laughed. Several mourners nearby glared. We both waved and turned back to the headstone. Quinn gazed at it, then inhaled.
“Hi, Mum,” she said. “I’m sorry I haven’t visited in a while, but things have been crazy. Dad’s still on the run and I don’t know what’s going to happen with him. But I wanted to come here and tell you that I’m done with it. I love him and I miss him, but he’s become an emotional anchor. What the Council did to him twenty years ago was unforgiveable, but he’s chosen the wrong path and I’ve allowed his choice to drag me down with him.
“It’s time for me to stop pretending I’m finding myself and actually do something with my life. I know you wouldn’t approve, but I’ve decided to enter into Huntress training.”
I blinked in shock. Her eyes never left her mother’s tombstone.
“I’m good at tracking things,” she continued, “and our abilities with Shadow Dancing will give me an edge. And before you say it, I know it’s still illegal, but I’ll deal with the Council on that matter if it ever comes up. But I wanted you to know that I’m not doing this alone. That’s why I brought Marcus here with me.” She nudged me in the side. “Say hi.”
I waved at the tombstone. “Hello, Mrs. Fawkes.”
“Mum, you’re not going to believe this, but Marcus has made a dent in the armor of those who screwed Dad. He believes there are still more elements to the story, but if that’s the case, then I believe with all my heart that the people responsible are terrified. They’ve come after him with everything from guns to paranormal assassins—yet he managed to take out one of the major players in all this drama. We’re still missing raw evidence, but if anyone can prove Dad’s innocence it’s Marcus.
“I also wanted you to meet him. He’s a pretty special guy. He makes me laugh. I think Dad approves of him, but his opinion is swayed because Marcus risked his life for us. Me? I just want to be around him because he makes me happy. And hopefully that will make you happy, wherever you are.”
She took a deep breath. “So, that’s it. I just wanted to catch you up to date, tell you I miss you and introduce you to my new boyfriend.”
I loved how that title sounded on her lips.
She fell silent. We stood there, holding hands, enjoying the buzz of insects flying between the fresh flowers on the graves.
“Huntress training, eh?” I finally asked.
“Yeah. Been working with your mom and some newbies the past few months. It’s hard work.”
“Is that where you’ve been going?”
She nodded. “I didn’t want to say anything because I still wasn’t sure if it’s what I wanted to do. But the more I learned, the more I realized I could make a difference. And I’m not too bad at it. Your mom is a hard-ass, by the way. Doesn’t let up.”
Well that explained a lot. Both about Quinn’s absence and my mother’s.
Still, the thought of my mother teaching my girlfriend brought a whole different level of awkwardness to the table. Family dinners were going to be so weird.
But I was proud of Quinn for taking a leap of faith.
She sighed, looking back at the tombstone. “It’s cathartic, you know? Baring your soul.”
“That’s the rumor.”
She put her head on my shoulder. “How are we on time?”
I glanced at my watch. “We’re good. Want to get coffee on the way?”
“How about ice cream instead?”
A half hour later we were enjoying the cool comfort of industrial air-conditioning as we finished our dessert. Meredith stepped out of the office space and waved at us.
“The Pastor is ready.”
I stood, my heart rate skyrocketing.
“You don’t have to wait,” I said to Quinn. “I can call you afterward.”
She smiled. “Marcus, I’m fine. You do your thing. I’ll be here for you.”
That alone gave me the courage to follow Meredith.
I shook Rado’s hand. “Hey, Pastor. Thanks for seeing me.”
“Anytime.” Rado motioned for me to sit. “Before we begin, I wanted to thank you for seeing to it that Father Pierce’s murderer was dealt with. He was a good friend and a great man.”
“Just doing my job.” I hoped it didn’t sound flippant—it was the truth. If there was one thing I’d come to accept over the past year, it was that I did have a mission in life. I might not be the best Warlock out there, I might stumble and fall, but I’d keep getting back up. Keep throwing myself into the fight. Because I was willing to do whatever was necessary to shield this world from the evil that preyed upon it.
That was the calling for Shifters. And I was worthy of my family’s name.
“So, what did you want to talk about?”
I thought about the death I’d seen recently, about the joy I’d experienced when I’d lost control of my emotions and my powers, and the struggle to learn to contain them. I thought of Rancin and how much devastation one person could cause. I thought about the people who were killed, caught in the wake of my collateral damage, of Steve, who was waiting for me to pick him up from the hospital, and about the pretty woman that I knew would always be there for me.
“Actually,” I said, “quite a lot.”
* * * * *
Find out how the Marcus Shifter Chronicles began with Undead Chaos—available now!
Undead Chaos
The job was simple: decapitate the zombie, get paid, get out. Warlock Marcus Shifter followed the plan perfectly.
The corpse, however, did not.
Now there’s a body on the loose, accusations of illegal necromancy are flying, and the answers are waiting in the perilous alleys between the mortal and paranormal worlds. They’re no place for someone who mostly gave up magic after a childhood accident. And given his tendency to shoot off his mouth and his Glock, Marcus is having a hell of a time digging up more than just bodies.
When an apocalypse-minded megalomaniac threatens Marcus’s family, things get personal. Marcus will have to embrace the magic he’s been avoiding for years—and even that might not be enough to save the world from a hellish demise.
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About the Author
Joshua Roots is a car collector, beekeeper and former marine. He enjoys singing with his a cappella chorus, playing video games and reading comic books. He and his wife will talk your ear off about their bees if you let them.
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ISBN-13: 9781426898747
Summoned Chaos
Copyright © 2014 by Joshua Roots
Edited by Mallory Braus
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