Watch Me Burn: The December People, Book Two

by Sharon Bayliss

  “I’m distracted. I don’t know if it was a ghost or what, but it was a reminder. A clue I’m on the wrong track. She wanted me to remember what she said before. About misdirection. I’m misdirected, James. It’s what the magician wants.”

  “What?”

  “Where is my phone?”

  “What you saying? That the good doctor didn’t start that fire? This is some kind of trick?”

  “I don’t know if he did or not, but I know it doesn’t matter. Not right now, anyway.”

  “What do you think you’re being distracted from?”

  “I don’t know. Something bad happening to someone I love. Because I’m not watching over them. Because I’m a fool. Where is my goddamn phone?”

  “It’s here,” James handed him the phone.

  As the most likely to find trouble, he called Emmy first. As the phone rang, he pulled back onto the highway heading toward the motel, too close to an oncoming car that blasted its horn.

  “David!” James looked as if he prepared to grab the wheel.

  Emmy picked up on the second ring.

  “Where are you?” David asked before she could say hello.

  “At the motel, with mom. Where are you?”

  “So, you’re both fine?”

  “Yes. Why?”

  “I know you never listen to anything I say, but I’m begging you…stay there. Please, please stay there.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “Where are your brothers?”

  “I’m…not sure. Patrick’s car is gone. They probably went to get food or something.”

  “Dammit. Okay. Stay there, Emmy. I love you.”

  “Wha—”

  He hung up the phone and called Patrick. Xavier rarely had his cell phone on or with him. But Patrick always had his with him. He’d seen him sleeping with it in his hand on more than one occasion.

  He heard Patrick’s recorded voice on the voicemail. “I’m not in. Leave a message.”

  “Patrick, this is your father. Some kind of magic is happening. You have to call me back, immediately.”

  He tried Xavier and heard, “The person you have called has a voicemail box that has not been set up yet. Goodbye.”

  “Damn this thing.” David opened his window and chucked the phone into oncoming traffic.

  “Oh my God,” James said. “That was stupid. For so many reasons.”

  “No. I rely too much on my phone. I’m not thinking like a wizard.”

  “Yeah, but still. There is a reason why wizards still carry cell phones. Steve Jobs bested us on that one.”

  “Stop talking. I need to think.”

  athan didn’t know if he wanted to see a car come around the building. If he did, then someone could help him. But then someone would also have to see him handcuffed to a pole. He could cast a summoning spell so the closet person would decide to come behind the building. But he couldn’t cast a spell to get the handcuffs off. He tried. He thought maybe he could burn them off. But he only managed to make the metal hot, which left scalded rings around his wrists, adding a fair amount of pain to everything else. Eventually, he’d have to give up and summon someone. His eyelids hurt when he blinked, which meant the sun had burned him to a crisp. And without water soon, he might have a serious problem.

  Half the time, being a wizard was useless…God’s joke on them. They had the power to get almost anything they wanted, but handcuffs thwarted them. God said, “Hey, you down there. You think you’re so great? Try this.” And then, God laughed while Nathan burned his own damn self trying to get out. As Emmy had said, he may be a master of the flame, but his flesh burned like anybody else’s.

  When a car did come, Nathan could sense it before he could see it. He should have cast a summoning spell. Then, someone random would come around the corner. Some Mundane. They might laugh at him, but that would be all. He’d waited too long and someone who could do much worse had found him.

  His father’s car came around the side of the building and stopped in front of him. He could tell by the jerky way he drove that he was mad. But when he got out of the car, he just shook his head. His look said something between, “you’re disgusting,” and “you’re an embarrassment.”

  “How did you find me?” Nathan asked.

  “You’re not as sneaky as you think you are.”

  “You knew?”

  “Of course. Nothing gets past me. I would offer up some kind of punishment, but that seems hardly necessary. I couldn’t think of a better way for you to learn your lesson about winter wizards. Maybe I should leave you here for a while. And you can soak it all in.”

  “Fine. Leave me here.”

  “This is just like you. You didn’t like that we were paying attention to Julie instead of you? So, you try to get our attention by fooling around with a winter wizard? I have bigger concerns.”

  Nathan felt shaky—either from fury or dehydration. Probably both. “No,” Nathan said. He should say more about why everything his father had said had been so wrong, but he couldn’t find the words.

  His father examined the handcuffs and snickered. “Look what you did to yourself. This is crude magic. You have to go for the lock.”

  “I can’t do that.”

  His father put his thumb on the lock and after a moment, Nathan heard a click, and the handcuffs clattered to the ground. His father examined his hands in that annoying clinical way only a doctor could.

  “So, when you found out I was seeing her, you burned down their house?”

  Dad slapped him in the face. The sunburn made the slap hurt much more than usual.

  “How dare you,” he said. “I’m no monster. They’re the villains. Not us.”

  “Then who did it?”

  “Doesn’t matter. I’m sure they deserved it.”

  “I’m sure they didn’t.”

  Dad had the flame in his yellowish-green eyes that made Nathan think he might hit him again. But instead he just shook his head.

  “You’re an idiot,” he said, with a tone that implied hitting him wasn’t worth his time. “I think maybe we should have you dated again. I would swear you’re a spring wizard.”

  “I need water.”

  “We’re going back to the forest. Your mother ran off and I think she went out there. And we’re picking up your brother. It’s your job to keep an eye on him and you’re not.”

  “He’s fine.”

  “Just get in the car.”

  Patrick hated sneaking out with Mom passed out asleep, but he had to. They couldn’t wait any longer. Xavier had this strange, unstable quality to his energy, like he would soon either explode or fade away. Patrick didn’t feel like waiting around to see which way he went. He hoped looking for Evangeline would keep him focused and present.

  They went to the gas station where Evangeline had disappeared. They got out of the car, and Patrick thought he could sense the summer wizards from a distance. But it was hard to tell. The temperature gauge in the car said 109 degrees, which made it the hottest day of the year so far. Summer wizards around or not, summer itself had attacked mercilessly. The heat made it hard for Patrick to breathe. The blinding sun made it hard for him to open his eyes. They couldn’t search out here for long.

  Patrick suggested they go inside the convenience store to buy water, and he picked out a couple of two-liter bottles. Xavier drifted toward the potato chips, and Patrick grabbed his arm. Xavier jerked back and looked ready to strike, as he always did when someone touched him.

  “Stay where I can see you,” Patrick said.

  “I’m not a child.”

  “Come on, you know why.”

  Xavier grumbled something and took the water Patrick handed to him. Patrick didn’t think that Xavier would get caught in the snare, but the possibility scared the crap out of him. Emmy bringing Evangeline here and losing her, and then Patrick bringing Xavier here and losing him, was too stupid and horrible to consider.

  Xavier did as Patrick asked him, and stayed close as
they bought their water and went back outside. At least, he stayed as close as he ever would to another human being.

  “They’re here,” Xavier said.

  “Summer wizards?” Patrick asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “I thought so.”

  “How many do you think?”

  “I’m not sure. Not that many.” Xavier pointed toward the woods. “They’re not far.”

  “Well, I’m not going to go home with my tail between my legs because summer wizards are here,” Patrick said.

  “Fuck, no. Of course not.”

  “Alright then.”

  Patrick followed Xavier into the woods. The thick pine trees provided shade, but somehow it felt hotter here. He could see the heat distorting the air. He hoped this meant a winter witch as cold as Evangeline would stand out in contrast.

  “Do you sense her?” Patrick asked. “Evangeline?”

  Xavier stopped and listened for something, or felt for something. “Yeah, I do.” He whispered the words with reverence, like a prayer.

  “Good. Then, she’s alive, right? We’ll find her.”

  Xavier nodded. “I think she’s alive, but…I don’t know. Something’s not right.”

  Patrick didn’t want to hear what wasn’t right. He could guess well enough. He hoped Evangeline frightened her captors and much as she frightened him. But he knew if she could have overpowered them with magic, she would have already come home.

  They both froze. They heard footsteps crunching the dry leaves on the ground. Patrick knew if they could sense the summer wizards, then it worked both ways. They couldn’t hide from each other for long.

  “Xavier, I’ll distract them,” Patrick said. “You stay hidden, and then keep looking.”

  “What? No.”

  “You’re a winter wizard. They might try to hurt you. I have a better chance.”

  “Dammit, Patrick,” Xavier whispered, while Patrick headed straight towards the footsteps.

  The summer wizards caught sight of Patrick emerging from the trees and aimed guns at him. With as much as Patrick had recently learned about “good” wizards, he had not expected the guns. At closer inspection, the guns looked like hunting rifles, meant for deer and not people, but still deadly.

  Patrick put his hands up. “I’m unarmed,” he said.

  The two boys looked close to his age, although the taller one might be older. They looked similar. They both had bronze-colored hair and yellowish-green eyes. Their skin glowed, subtle enough that someone could mistake it for no more than good health and time spent in the sun, but Patrick knew better.

  “Who are you?” the younger boy demanded.

  By the look in their eyes, they didn’t recognize him. That nagged at Patrick. He wanted to know if they had set the fire. His rage needed somewhere to go, but he wanted to know for sure. He wanted revenge. He didn’t know how he would get it, especially since they had the guns. And unlike him, they knew how to practice magic. But he needed to know.

  Of course, they could not recognize him and still be the arsonists. Summer wizards wouldn’t care about their names and faces. Dark wizards should burn.

  “Oh, my God,” whispered the older boy. He looked at Patrick with so much awe and fear that Patrick had the instinct to look behind him to see who he really looked at. “Luke, stay back.”

  “What?” asked Luke.

  The older boy lunged toward Patrick. But when he came close, he lowered his gun and surprised Patrick by reaching out and grabbing his arm. Patrick didn’t have a chance to resist. The touch gave him a nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach, and not just because it was a strange thing to do. But he dropped his arm after a second or two.

  “God, no…” he said.

  Luke had moved closer, but still had his gun aimed at Patrick’s head. “Nathan, what is it? Is he…another one?”

  “It’s not possible. It couldn’t be…but I think so.”

  “I’m another what?” Patrick asked.

  “Why are you here?” Nathan asked. He asked the question with complete incredulity, as if Patrick walking out of the woods was as unlikely and strange as if the tooth fairy popped out in front of them.

  “For the same reason you are, I assume. I’m looking for my little sister.”

  They glanced at each other. “You mean, Evangeline Vandergraff is your sister?” asked Nathan.

  “How did you know that? How do you know her name?”

  “It was on the news, bro,” Luke said. “Calm down.”

  “What’s your name?” Nathan asked.

  “Patrick Vandergraff.”

  “But Evangeline is not really your sister, right?” Nathan said. “Not by blood.”

  “Uh, yeah, she’s really my sister. We have different mothers, but the same father. It’s none of your business, anyway.”

  “Vandergraff had two of them?” Nathan said. “What are the chances?”

  “Two of what?” Patrick asked, his voice dripping with venom and impatience.

  “You sure you have the same father?” Luke asked. He didn’t snicker, but he might as well have. The implication dripped all over his tone.

  Of all the ways this interaction could go, he didn’t know how the hell they had gotten here.

  “Yeah, I’m sure, asshole. You better watch what you say about my mother.”

  Luke laughed. “Right, because winter wizards never cheat.”

  “That’s right, they don’t.” Patrick didn’t know why he said it—something so untrue, but he couldn’t abide these random strangers insulting his family out of nowhere.

  “Well,” Luke said, “He may be only half dark, but can lie as well as the rest of him. At least, he knows how to lie to himself.”

  What the fuck was the matter with this guy?

  “You want to hear something true?” Patrick asked. “I don’t know about the cheating and lying, but yeah, my family is dangerous. And we stick together. I don’t know what you plan on doing with those little toys you got in your stocking from Santa, but if you hurt me, or if you have or will hurt anyone else in my family, you will invoke a wrath you can’t even imagine.”

  “I don’t doubt it,” Nathan said. “Listen to me.” His voice pulled at him like gravity. “Nothing we have said or nothing you have said up to this point matters at all. Don’t let it distract you. The only important thing is what I am about to say right now—you need to leave this place now and do not come back. You are in serious danger here.”

  Patrick thought he might catapult out of the forest. He backed up automatically.

  Patrick heard a stick crack behind him. Xavier, no. No. No. He pleaded with him in his mind. Let me handle it. Don’t make it worse.

  Patrick turned and didn’t see anyone.

  “I knew someone was out here with you,” Luke said. “I can sense them. Who is it? One of your supposed siblings? If they’re going to be cowards and stay in the shadows, maybe we should give them a little incentive. Burn them out.”

  The word burn made Patrick’s mouth dry up. Arsonists or not, that worked as an admission of guilt. He felt magic building in him, sliding up his spine. But he didn’t know what to do with it. However, things happened so fast, he didn’t have much chance.

  “Luke, don’t you dare,” Nathan said.

  “Oh, are you afraid it’s your girlfriend? I’d love to meet her,” Luke said.

  “I swear, if you…”

  Nathan didn’t get a chance to finish his threat. Luke dropped his gun on the ground, as if it was nothing more than a ridiculous plaything. Luke had this look his in eyes—pain—as if he himself burned from the inside out. Then with a flash, Luke thrust the burning outward. Patrick felt an intense thirst. And his skin felt so dry that it might flake right off. The heat came with a sense of impending doom. As if it would never rain again. It meant drought. Famine. Death. Apocalypse. A sense of burning so deep it could cover the whole world.

  Luke released this feeling from inside himself. As much as Patrick d
espised Luke, he would never think of summer wizards the same way again. Winter might be dark and cold, but man, summer was a nasty bitch too.

  Patrick feared to open his eyes. He felt certain his eyeballs would dry up and turn to glass, but he felt his arms and found that they weren’t on fire. To some extent, it had to all be in his head. He opened his eyes, and saw that although the impending doom might be in his head, the fire was very real.

  The dry, drought-ridden land around them began to smoke. Then, piles of leaves and branches erupted into flames all around him, as if the air itself had ignited them.

  “Why don’t you come on out now, you frigid bitch?” Luke said.

  Patrick heard Xavier cough and wheeze from not far away. As he feared, he hadn’t run, and now he would burn. Patrick picked up the gun Luke had discarded and pointed it at him. Nathan pointed his gun back at Patrick.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Nathan said.

  Luke didn’t care about the stand-off. He headed toward the coughing, with that same pain in his eyes as if he prepared to release another blast.

  The radiant heat in the air made the guns crack and sizzle. Patrick knew the gun would fire on its own or explode in his hands, so he dropped it. The same thing must have happened to Nathan because he dropped his too.

  Patrick turned to tackle Luke. This might cause him to spontaneously combust, but he had to do something. If the heat felt horrible to Patrick, a September, it had to be agonizing for Xavier. Besides, Luke could cause a full-on wildfire. The dry trees lapped up the flames eagerly. It was possible none of them would make it out alive.

  But Patrick didn’t have the chance to grab Luke. He heard this cracking, splitting sound, as if the air itself had cleaved in two. Xavier had come out of the forest to face Luke…or at least, Patrick assumed it was Xavier. Whatever Luke did to project the light, Xavier did the same thing to project his darkness. The darkness obscured his features. Against the blaring heat, he appeared as a black hole shaped like a boy. Patrick couldn’t say what felt worse, the heat coming off Luke or the absence coming off Xavier. “Absence” was the only word for it. More than cold. More than darkness. You could experience cold and darkness. This was oblivion, the absence of all experience, of all vision, and sound, and feeling. If Luke could set the world on fire, Xavier could erase it from existence.