by Gina LaManna
“You are not like him,” Ranger X said, tilting my chin upward. “You are mine, you belong to this island, and you are good.”
My breath died as he locked his lips on mine with a ferocity that told me he’d never let go. My heart thudded against his, and I let my arms wrap around his sturdy back.
“Someday, Lily Locke,” Ranger X whispered against my hair. “I’m going to ask you to marry me. And when I do, I’m going to tell you that you make me the happiest man alive. That you are the brightest star in the darkest sky, and that you’re the only truly good part of me.”
He hesitated, stroking my hair, holding me close.
“And then,” he continued. “I’ll make my final wish—a wish I can’t tell you because I need it to come true.”
“Cannon...”
“Once I have you forever, I will need nothing else.”
My throat parched from pain, and my eyes red from crying, didn’t seem to bother X. He leaned in, pressing another kiss to my lips that stopped my heart. When he finally pulled away, I raised a hand to my chest and gripped the locket that’d been passed down to me from my mother. It was warm to the touch.
“I know she would’ve liked you,” I whispered. “If only she could have met you.”
“If only.” X reached for my hand, held it to his side. “Shall I take you home?”
“Tell me one thing.” I didn’t want to ask, but the question had been burning a hole in me. “How long will you wait? For me?”
Ranger X smiled. Then he reached over and brushed my wild hair away from my face. “Until the world ends, Lily Locke.”
Epilogue
ONE WEEK LATER
“Make it stop,” I instructed, lounging against a wall of blankets. “All the way.”
X stood on the edge of the cave deep in The Forest. Ranger X extended his hands, glowing gold, and brought the waterfall before us to a complete stop.
“Now make it change directions and flow the other way,” I said.
He let his hands drop, giving me a cheeky smile as he turned and let the water return to its normal flow. “You know that’d take every last ounce of my strength, right? You don’t want that.”
“Oh really?!” I shrieked as his hands reached for me, plucking me from the blankets and moving me onto his lap. “And what might you need energy for?”
I curled against him in our makeshift camp, the cozy little nook where we’d set up a bed and bonfire for the evening. We’d returned to our date spot from just before the mess of Wishery had begun, deeming it a secluded portion of this island reserved just for us.
It was here that we’d decided to travel together once a month. Ranger X could hone his powers under my tutelage, or my bossiness. He’d prevent another bout of Lumiette from happening, and as a bonus, we now had a standing date together once a month. An escape, a private getaway, for just the two of us.
Especially after the excitement from our previous week, we’d needed a break—a break from people, from reporters, from my family. From the thoughts and dreams that plagued me—the ones where I looked into the mirror to find my mother with a locket glowing bright around her neck.
Once here, we’d been able to finally relax. This evening, Ranger X wore nothing except a pair of shorts. He’d been working with the waterfall, practicing his telekinesis, and doused his only shirt. I certainly didn’t mind; my hands trailed over his shoulders, so strong, so defined. His back, his chest, his waist.
Meanwhile, he laid back, easing me against him into the little crook in his arm where I fit snugly, like I belonged. He took one of my hands and laced his fingers through mine.
“Thank you,” he murmured between kisses along my cheek, my neck, my shoulders. “For coming out here with me.”
“No need to thank me,” I chirped. “I’m having a fabulous time.”
He laid me down beside him, then rolled over so he was on top of me. The way he’d moved, he had me pinned to the blankets.
Those dark, chocolate eyes warmed as he watched me, studied every millimeter of my face. Now and forever, I was his, and his alone.
“What are you thinking?” I whispered.
A pop in the distance sounded, and in an instant, my tender, sensual Cannon vanished as he coiled into Ranger X, and we lost all train of thought. Creeping along the edge of the cave, he huddled against the ledge and gestured for me to shrink back and stay quiet.
I didn’t argue since I didn’t have all that much clothing on myself. So, I pulled the blankets up to my chest and watched through my fingers.
Ranger X listened, almost catlike in his stance, as another sound crackled, and then another. It didn’t make sense; we had told nobody where we’d gone. Even if we had, the journey to reach this location was a difficult one. It would have to be someone familiar with The Forest, familiar with X, with The Isle, with—
A gargling sound matched the exact moment Ranger X stretched his hand out, a beam of concentrated light shooting straight ahead and pulling a body from the shadows. Much like the night of The Core meeting when he’d first exposed his powers on Harpin, a man now dangled from thin air just feet before the cave.
“Liam!” I wrapped the blankets around me like a toga and stumbled into a standing position. “What are you doing here?”
Though he hung off a cliff, suspended by nothing but Ranger X’s mental power, he didn’t flinch. Liam’s face remained passive, and his figure limp. Not an ounce of fight in him.
“I’m sorry to interrupt,” he said, gasping for air. “But I couldn’t risk anyone finding out about my visit.”
“Because you’re working with him!” Ranger X’s concentration was funneled entirely toward keeping Liam suspended, so I did all the talking. “You traitor! To think I trusted you. We trusted you.”
“I did what I had to do. I’ve been in talks with your father for years, Lily, and without me, you wouldn’t have escaped,” he said. “Jonathon and Peter—who do you think set them free?”
“You’re doing what’s best for yourself, not for us,” I spat. “Maybe you let them go, but only after I caught you there. You’re scrambling, Liam, and I’m not falling for it.”
“Don’t believe me then. I will prove myself to you. I know where they’ve gone.”
“How do we know it’s not a trap?”
“You... don’t.” His breath became more ragged as Ranger X cinched tighter. “But I’ll tell you, anyway.”
“Then speak.”
“They’re in transit now,” Liam gasped. “If you can get to them in the next two weeks, the rest of the prisoners will be freed.”
Ranger X twisted his hands, bringing Liam’s feet to rest against the edge of the cliff. X approached him slowly, cautiously, and when he spoke, his words were edged with the hint of death. “I don’t have to tell you what will happen if this offer isn’t genuine.”
Liam shook himself off. “Of course not, and I’d expect nothing less from you, Cannon.”
We both froze at Liam’s use of Ranger X’s name.
“I know more than the two of you could ever imagine,” Liam said as an explanation. “And believe it or not, this visit has nothing to do with The Faction or its prisoners.”
“Then why did you come?” I asked.
“I need your help. We need your help,” Liam said. “The entire world needs your help.”
“My help?”
“There are things at play here bigger than The Faction. Bigger than your father, bigger than you and me. Lily, there are things I wish I could tell you, but...” Liam swallowed, looking to be in excruciating pain as he struggled with his next words. “I can’t,” he gasped, the pain seemingly physical. “You don’t have to trust me now, but listen. Give me a chance.”
“Why did he take me? Is it because I’m his daughter?”
Liam’s face contorted in a new form of pain, a form that told me it wasn’t inflected externally. “No.”
“You once said that you have a vested interested in me,” I said. “
Why me?”
“There’s a prophecy,” Liam said. “And you, Lily, are the key to it.”
“Lily?” Ranger X snapped. “What does Lily have to do with any of this?”
“It’s not Lily herself, but someone very close to her.” Liam closed his eyes. “I can’t say anything more on it.”
“This prophecy,” I said. “That’s why he went through all of this to bring me to him? To try and make me see his side?”
“Let me put it this way: when this prophecy comes true,” Liam groaned, forcing the words out as if it seared his throat to speak. “Whoever is on your side will rule this world.”
“That’s impossible,” I said. “Who came up with this nonsense?”
“I cannot...” he gasped, his voice whistling, as if there were something preventing him from saying more. His face crumpled, his skin red with the effort of speaking. “Please.”
“When can you tell me more?”
He merely shook his head. “I can’t...”
“Lily,” Ranger X said, his eyes lighting in recognition. “He can’t. A curse, an enchantment—something. Liam, if you can’t tell us more, what can you tell us?”
“The Master of Magic,” Liam said, his voice raspy. “He is the next target. And if the Master of Magic—the master of all things paranormal, the one responsible for every thread of magic in this universe—is...disrupted, everything will perish. This is the reason Lucian reinstated the SINGLES program to begin with—to prepare for the battle that will destroy magic as we know it. Wishery was just the beginning, a stop along the way. I’m asking for your help.”
“I need more information,” I said. “This Master of Magic—”
“Is real,” Ranger X confirmed. “Also known as the creator of magic, maker of magic...”
“And without this person...” I looked to X. “What would happen?”
“Our world would crumble.”
“He’s correct.” Liam gave a terse smile. “Will you help us?”
Ranger X nodded toward me, his face pale. “It’s your decision, Lily.”
I took a long, shuddering breath, then raised my eyes to meet Liam’s gaze. “Where do we start?”
The End
Author’s Note
ISLANDERS,
Thank you for reading! I had so much fun writing this story, and I hope you enjoyed returning to the world of The Isle! Stay tuned for the next installment coming soon. To be notified when it releases, please sign up for my newsletter at www.ginalamanna.com.
Happy reading!
Love,
Gina
Thank you...
To all my readers, especially those of you who have stuck with me from the beginning.
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See other books by Gina here:
List of Gina's Books!
Gina LaManna is the USA TODAY bestselling author of the Magic & Mixology series, the Lacey Luzzi Mafia Mysteries, The Little Things romantic suspense series, and the Misty Newman books.
List of Gina LaManna’s other books:
Lola Pink Mystery Series:
Shades of Pink
Magic & Mixology Mysteries:
Hex on the Beach
Witchy Sour
Jinx & Tonic
Long Isle Iced Tea
MAGIC, Inc. Mysteries:
The Undercover Witch
Spies & Spellbooks (short story coming soon)
Reading Order for Lacey Luzzi:
Lacey Luzzi: Scooped
Lacey Luzzi: Sprinkled
Lacey Luzzi: Sparkled
Lacey Luzzi: Salted
Lacey Luzzi: Sauced
Lacey Luzzi: S'mored
Lacey Luzzi: Spooked
Lacey Luzzi: Seasoned
Lacey Luzzi: Spiced
Lacey Luzzi: Suckered
Lacey Luzzi: Sugared
The Little Things Mystery Series:
One Little Wish
Two Little Lies
Misty Newman:
Teased to Death
Short Story in Killer Beach Reads
Chick Lit:
Girl Tripping
Gina also writes books for kids under the Pen Name Libby LaManna:
Mini Pie the Spy!