Crest (Book #2,Swift Series)

by Heather London

  “Aren’t you coming in?” I asked, turning my head to meet his gaze. “I’m sure Jackie has some food for us.”

  “No, I’ve got some stuff to do, but I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow morning.”

  “Okay.” I tried to hide my disappointment. It just felt like Collin and I had kind of, sort of became friends today. As much as he had gotten on my nerves the last few days, I had to admit, it felt nice to have him around. “I’ll see you later then. Thanks for all your help today.”

  “No problem,” he answered as he began to walk backward towards the street. “You did amazing, by the way. I have to say that I’m quite impressed. Tomorrow we will work more on that energy transfer spell and I’ll show you a few more spells I’ve been working on.”

  I smiled, still feeling the energy from flying home buzzing throughout my body. “Sounds good. See you tomorrow,” I said, turning back to head inside.

  “Hey, Meredith,” he called, stopping me. “If you ever need me for anything or just want to talk, I live two houses down.” He pointed towards his house. “It’s the house with the rooster mailbox.”

  “Thanks.” I smiled and headed through the door, peeling my coat off and hanging it on the rack next to me.

  “Meredith, is that you?” Jackie called.

  “Yeah, it’s me.”

  “Perfect timing. I’ve just finished with dinner and I can’t wait to tell you the exciting news I have for you,” she said, walking into the dining room with a couple plates full of food. “I’m sure you’re starving so sit down and we can get started.”

  As I sat down at the table I couldn’t help but feel at ease. It was just a few days ago when I got here and I wasn’t sure how the two of us would get along. Jackie’s personality was so different from mine, she was brash and spoke her mind, but so far things had been nice and comfortable between us.

  Before Jackie would tell me her exciting news, she was eager to hear about my day. She seemed pleased to know that I had improved my flying and was happy that Collin and I were getting along better. I wanted to tell her about the energy transfer spell that Collin had taught me, but I wasn’t sure how she would react. She seemed like the type of person who would be pretty open about it. It was just the other day when she said her friend, the one who could possibly help me in contacting the council, was a bit of a rebel to clean magic. The last thing I wanted to do was get Collin in trouble, or tell his secrets without his permission, so I decided to keep it to myself.

  “Well,” Jackie finally began, smiling with anticipation, “my friend is back early. The one who I said could possibly help you in contacting the council.”

  I nodded and my stomach squeezed as a feeling of hope shot through me.

  “I saw him today and he’s agreed to meet with you. He does seem curious to know why you want to contact the council, so just be prepared if he asks you.”

  I nodded again. I hadn’t thought much about what I would say when and if he asked me that question. I couldn’t tell him or Jackie the truth without telling them the entire story, but I wasn’t prepared to do that, yet. I could understand why he would ask that, though; knowing that it’s rarely done and it requires a lot of power to do it.

  “When can we see him?” I asked. There was no guarantee that this man could help me contact the council or that the council would even hear me out, but it was the most hope I’d had since I’d been separated from the Harpers.

  Jackie laughed at my eagerness. “Well, we have to work on his time. He’s a busy man and has a few things to catch up on, but he told me that he would be in touch shortly.”

  I swallowed hard, trying to force down my disappointment. “Okay, I can wait a little longer.” What other choice did I have?

  After helping Jackie clear the table and clean up the kitchen, I was eager to get my tired body to bed. Today was one of the most exciting days I had ever had as a witch, but also one of the most tiring. As much as I hated to admit it, there were days with Abby where I felt like I’d learned something, but most of the time I was left with how I could’ve done things better. Today was different. I’d always had trouble with flying, but after today, I realized that it was the fear I couldn’t get over. With Collin’s help, I felt like I had made a major breakthrough in conquering that fear. Then, of course, there was the awesome, totally unbelievable energy transfer spell. I wasn’t sure what it was about his training techniques that were so different from Abby’s. Maybe it was that times had changed and teaching techniques had evolved, or maybe Collin was right when he said that I just needed a little extra push. I needed to be challenged a little more.

  Just as I told Jackie goodnight and was heading down the hall to my room, she stopped me.

  “Meredith,” she called.

  “Yeah,” I said, turning around to face her.

  “I just wanted you to know how happy I am that you’re here. There are things that I regret in my life and one of them has always been the relationship your mother and I had. It’s frustrating to think about all the time we wasted without speaking to one another, and if I’m being honest, I would have to say that is was probably all my fault. In the past I’ve learned that I’m too stubborn for my own good, but I hope that you’re happy here, and I hope that my friend is able to help you find what you’re looking for. I know that it’s too late for me to change the past, and it may seem a little silly to you, but I feel like I’ve gotten a second chance with you being here. I just wanted you to know that.” Her expression was thoughtful.

  For a moment I couldn’t think of what to say in return. Although Jackie seemed like a woman who spoke her mind, she didn’t seem like the type of person to get sentimental or emotional. We shared a long gaze and before she turned back around, I felt compelled to say something. It wasn’t in my character to get emotional or sentimental, either. Actually, it wasn’t in my personality to let anything out, I usually kept it all bottled up. It wasn’t until that night Blake forced me to open up and talk to him on our way to Tinker’s Island that I begin to realize it wasn’t healthy for me to keep things in. It’s important to let people know how you feel, whether you’re grateful, sad, angry, or happy.

  “Jackie,” I said, taking a step towards her. “I just wanted to say thank you for everything… for agreeing to help me, for allowing me to stay here, and for being so nice to me. What you said about getting a second chance, I get it. I know you and my mother were different, but I can see that you’re a lot alike as well. It’s really nice to be around family.” I smiled.

  She smiled and her face brightened. “Goodnight, Meredith.”

  “Good night.”

  When my head hit the pillow, I let my mind wander freely and pictured Blake’s face. It was something that I tried not to do too often because of the pain it caused my heart. However, after all the progress I had made in training today, plus how well things went with Jackie tonight, I felt like I deserved some reward. There was also the fact that seeing him again was finally a real possibility. I tried not to let the hope of meeting Jackie’s friend and contacting the council get me too excited, but it was hard not to. So I allowed myself to picture his face for a few seconds, giving me a small amount of bliss before falling asleep.

  The next morning I woke up to whispers coming from down the hall. At first, I thought I was dreaming, but after laying there for a minute, I realized that I was awake. My feet hit the cold ground and I shuffled my tired body to the door. The training from the day before must have wiped me out even more than I thought it had because the effort of making it to the door was almost too much for me. Just as I pulled open my bedroom door, I looked down the hall and saw the blurred vision of a man standing near the end of it. It took a moment for my eyes to focus. When they finally did, the man glanced back for a moment and our eyes made contact before he hurried out the door. My body froze as the image of the man triggered a memory for me, but I couldn’t place where I’d seen him. The more I tried to concentrate, the more I realized that my body felt
strange, different. I began to make my way down the hall, and with each step I took, my body began to ache more and more. When I rounded the corner, Jackie was sitting at the kitchen table, reading the newspaper and drinking some tea.

  “Meredith, you’re up early.” She seemed to be startled by my presence. Maybe I looked as bad as I felt. The way my body ached, it was becoming clear to me that I was possibly coming down with something. Great, this was the last thing I needed right now. I’d made so much progress in training. The last thing I wanted was to get sick and prevent myself from making even more progress.

  “Who was that man at the door?” I asked, wrapping my arms around my body that was now covered in chills.

  She looked around the empty room, shaking her head. “What man? No one was here.”

  Had I just imagined the man? No, it couldn’t have been. I saw him. I recognized him from somewhere. “Huh, I—I swear I saw someone.” I shook my head, trying to clear my foggy mind. Even now, I was having trouble distinguishing if what I’d just seen a few seconds ago was real or if it was just my imagination playing tricks on me.

  “Here, sit down and let me get you some tea. You look exhausted. I guess training has been pretty difficult on you.”

  It was strange because with each second that passed the more tired and exhausted I felt. I’d never felt like this after Abby and I trained. Could Collin’s training have wiped me out this much?

  “Sure, tea would be nice,” I murmured.

  Jackie left the room and I drug my tired body over to the table and sat down. The moment my butt hit the chair, things got even worse. The room began to spin, my head felt heavy, and my legs and arms felt tingly, like they were going numb. Something strange was happening to me. I laid my head down on the table, hoping to stop the nausea from coming with the spinning room. Then, all of a sudden, my vision tunneled and everything went black.

  When I opened my eyes Collin was standing over me. He was calling my name, telling me to wake up. When did Collin get here? Why am I lying down on the couch?

  “Collin? When did you get here?” I asked, trying to wrap my mind around what was going on.

  “About ten minutes ago. You were unconscious at the table so I moved you to the couch,” he said casually.

  What?! “What happened?” My voice was sounded strangled.

  “That’s what I would like to know. Don’t tell me you’re coming down with something. That would just totally screw up my training plan,” he said in an overdramatic, mocking tone. “But, I’ve got say it’s weird, I’ve never heard of the flu or a cold causing someone to be unconscious before.”

  I began to sit up and the room spun with my slightest movement, sending me right back down to the couch.

  “Easy now, sunshine. How about you just stay down until Jackie gets back.”

  Gets back? I wondered. “Where’d she go?”

  “She’s trying to be all mum like and went into town to get you some medicine,” he said, leaning over and grabbing a magazine off the coffee table.

  “Great,” I moaned. This is just perfect. Just as I start to begin training, actually start making some progress, my stupid body has to give out on me. It feels as though the universe—or magic— is against me or something.

  A few minutes later, the front door opened and Jackie came through it with a brown paper bag. “Oh good, you’re awake,” Jackie said as she took off her jacket and hung it on the coat rack.

  “Yeah, feeling better actually.” It was strange because in just the last couple minutes I had begun to feel better. My head was still foggy, but it didn’t feel as heavy and the room didn’t seem to be spinning when I sat up. My body still felt weird, too, but it wasn’t achy like it had been. Could I have been cured? No way, the flu lasts a lot longer than a few hours. A few days, at least. What on earth was this?

  “Well, I still think you should take it easy. I’ll be right back with a glass of juice and some vitamins.” She smiled at me before heading towards the kitchen.

  I looked back towards Collin. He was looking at me strangely. “What?” I asked.

  He squinted his eyes at me, like he was studying me. His look made me feel uncomfortable. “Collin, stop—whatever it is you are doing—you’re freaking me out.”

  “When did you start feeling ill?” he asked.

  I shrugged. “When I woke up, I guess.”

  He nodded his head, looking towards the ground. “And what was happening when you woke up?” he asked, looking back up and meeting my eyes.

  “Uh, nothing,” I replied, wondering where he was going with this.

  “Nothing, huh? Think, Meredith, what was happening when you woke up?”

  I closed my eyes, trying to dive back into my memory bank. “Well, when I woke up, I thought I heard voices, then I began to feel strange and when I looked down the hall, I thought I saw a man leaving out the front door.”

  “Okay, what happened next?” Collin asked, his tone serious.

  “I asked Jackie about the man and she told me that no one had been there. That’s when I started to feel really weird. Jackie offered to get me some tea and I sat down at the table. That’s all I remember.” I opened my eyes to find Collin staring at me intently. Even now, I began to doubt seeing the man, thinking that I’d just been dreaming or was seeing things.

  “Interesting,” he said, biting his lip. “And this man... what did he look like? Did you recognize him at all?”

  As a distorted picture of the man reappeared in my mind, it strangely felt like I’d been punched in the stomach, taking all the air out of my lungs. I knew I’d seen him before, or at least, I thought I had, but I still couldn’t place where it had been. “I can’t remember.” My voice was barely above a whisper.

  I looked back over to Collin who was still staring right at me. “What is going on in that strange head of yours, Collin? You look like you are trying to put some puzzle together.”

  He put his finger against his lips, as if to quiet me and then jerked his head towards the kitchen. He then mouthed, “We’ll talk later.”

  What the heck was going on? My stomach clenched at his strange behavior. Why was he trying to be quiet? Did he not want Jackie to hear him?

  Just then, I heard Jackie’s footsteps coming down the hall towards us. “Here you go. I have some orange juice and a few vitamins. These should help you feel better,” Jackie said as she entered the room and set a tray on the coffee table in front of me. She leaned over and felt my forehead before giving me the glass of juice and some pills. “You feel okay to me, but maybe I should take your temperature, just in case.” She turned to leave and I looked towards Collin who was following her every move.

  I couldn’t help it. I had to know what the heck he was thinking. “Collin,” I whispered through my teeth. He didn’t break his focus on where Jackie had disappeared around the corner. “Collin,” I said a little louder. Finally, his eyes met mine and I mouthed, “What is going on?”

  He got of his chair and quickly made his way over to me, kneeling down beside me. “You need to pretend you’re feeling better, whether you are or not. Insist that we need to leave in order to train. Something weird is going on here. I’ll explain more when we’re out of here.” His voice was urgent, but barely above a whisper.

  I could already hear Jackie’s footsteps coming back down the hall. Collin hurried back over to his chair.

  “Okay, open your mouth and we’ll see if you have a temperature,” Jackie said, reaching the thermometer out to me.

  My focus shifted back to Collin. His eyes opened wide as if ordering me to do what he’d said. I panicked; I wasn’t sure what to do. He was scaring me. He was acting as if we couldn’t trust Jackie and by his expression, I could tell that he was serious.

  “Um, I’m feeling a lot better. I don’t think I need my temperature checked.” I stood up, instantly feeling my wobbly legs beneath me. I grabbed the couch for support. “Collin and I need to continue training. I don’t want to waste any more of the
day.”

  “Are you sure?” Jackie asked, looking perplexed. “You still look a little weak. I think you should stay in today. Collin, don’t you think so?” Jackie looked towards Collin.

  “Well, she looks better than she did when I arrived. I agree with Meredith. She really needs to continue her training.” Collin took a few steps towards me.

  Jackie stood there for a moment, staring at Collin, but then said, “Okay, you’re the teacher; just don’t push her too hard today.”

  He nodded and began to walk past me and towards the door. “Let’s get going, Meredith.”

  I turned to Jackie and smiled, a part of me feeling bad that we were leaving on such short notice after she had taken care of me. “See you later. Thanks for the juice and vitamins.”

  “Of course.” She gave me a curious look, like she knew I was keeping something from her.

  When Collin and I were about a hundred yards from the house, I took a step in front of him, cutting him off. “Okay, you are going to tell me what the hell is going on. You’re acting as if we can’t trust Jackie.”

  He sighed, looking at me. “I don’t know who to trust, Meredith. It’s difficult for me to explain. There was some vibe in that house that I didn’t like.”

  “Vibe?” I huffed. I was just an insensitive jerk to Jackie because Collin felt a vibe?

  “I sensed something when I first got there this morning, but was quickly distracted when I saw you lying with your head down on the table. Jackie was acting strange; she hurried out of the house mumbling something about you being sick and how she needed to get you some medicine. After I carried you to the couch, I had totally forgotten about the vibe I had felt... Until Jackie came back, that is. Something is going on with her. She may be the reason you are feeling like this.”