by ERIN BEDFORD
I heard what he was saying, and I understood everything... but it didn't make it any better. At the end of it all, the one thing I got out of that was that he didn't trust me. Ian didn't trust me to keep my mouth shut about it. Hell, he didn't even trust Aidan since he made him undergo a magical pact to ensure his silence.
"That's sad, Ian." I finally said after a moment, shaking my head as I chewed my lower lip.
"Why?” he asked in confusion. “I'm doing what I love."
"At what cost?" I countered, stopping to look at him. "If you have to cut off everyone in your life to make something of yourself in this profession, is really worth it?"
Ian opened his mouth to retort, but then he clamped it shut, his brows furrowing. "I don't know."
I gave a small, pitiful smile. "Well, then I guess until you do, this is it for us. I won't be pushed away like this, to be put second all the time. Especially for something you won't even share with me."
"But Max..." Ian grabbed for me, but I backed away, unable to bear him holding me to do what I needed to do. "I love you."
Tears burned my eyes as I shook my head and wrapped my arms around myself. "Not enough to trust me. I'm sorry." I twisted away from him and ran down the hallway, no longer caring if people stared.
Thankfully, Ian didn't follow me this time. When I arrived at my room, Callie was there, waiting on my bed. Despite my confusion at her presence, there was some small relief to knowing my best friend was here right after what just happened. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand as Callie stood up and came to me.
Without a word, she wrapped her arms around me, holding me tight. I sank into her chest and just gave in. Racking sobs filled my chest, and I let them all out, feeling completely at ease with my best friend. After all, she had seen me at my worst and would never judge me for anything I did, even crying over a guy.
After I cried my heart out, I sniffed and wiped my eyes. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, Cal, but what are you doing here?"
Callie leaned back from me and smiled shyly. I'd never seen her that way before. My Callie was the confident, take no shit from no one type, and this one was almost bashful.
"I'm here to see Chad. We're gonna go out in a bit, but I wanted to check up on you. My best friend radar said you might need me right now."
I gave a sad laugh. "Well, it's on point."
Callie led me over to my bed and as we sat down, she turned to me. "So, tell me about it."
I sighed and explained everything. All of Ian's secretiveness. The crap with Beth Ann. Everything. It felt good to get it out. While some of it was out in the open, especially Beth Ann’s worst antics, I'd been holding in so much of it for a while now, not sure how to handle it and not wanting to bother Callie. She had enough going on in her life than to listen to me whine about my many boyfriends.
"So you and Ian broke up?"
I nodded. "Yeah, I think so."
"Are you going to get back together?" Callie cautiously asked, her dark eyes focusing on me.
I sighed and shook my head before collapsing onto my bed. "I don't know. Not until he can start trusting me. We can't be in a relationship where he holds a huge part of himself back from me."
"Maybe it's like the military?"
I sat up and frowned at her. "What?"
"You know, like special ops.” Callie leaned down to lay on her elbow. “My cousin was stationed in places all over the world, but he couldn't even tell his parents where he was or what he was doing."
"That's not the same thing."
"How do you know it isn't?” she astutely pointed out. “You said he made even Aidan do a binding spell to keep his secrets, and aren't they best friends?"
I sighed. "Yeah."
"Then obviously it's not you he doesn't trust. It's everybody else,” Callie mused. “If the field is as competitive as you said, then he's probably just making sure that he doesn't let anything slip. And you know how I am with secrets. If I don't keep it a secret from everyone, then I can't keep it from anyone."
I arched a brow. "And what pray tell are you keeping a secret about now, oh best friend of mine?"
Callie ducked her head and blushed. Like, actually blushed. She never did that!
"Callie,” I drew out. “Is this about Chad?" I poked at her with a smile. "Do you lurve him?"
"Stop it.” Callie pushed me away with a giggle. “And he's still engaged to the Wicked Witch of the South remember?"
I rolled my eyes and groaned. "That poor guy. His parents must hate him to pair him with Beth Ann."
Calle snorted, rubbing her ribs with her hand. "Yeah, she's a ball and a half. I'm still sore where she tried to kill me with my own corset."
"I doubt she'd have killed you,” I pointed out. “Knock you out? Yeah. But murder in the middle of a school event? Not likely. There were too many witnesses."
"Didn't keep her from trying," Callie retorted with a grimace and then her face changed to a more serious tone. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about in any case."
"Oh yeah?" I shifted around to face her. "What is it?"
Callie played with the comforter on my bed not meeting my eyes. "So... Chad invited me to go back to California with him."
"What?" I gasped, my eyes wide and my heart jumping into my throat. "Why? Why would you do that?"
Callie glanced up from the bed to meet my eyes. There was excitement there but a bit of hesitation that I hoped wasn't because of me. I hated to think she was too scared to tell me things.
"They recently added a human integration program there and he said he could help me get into." Before I could ask more about it, she jumped right in. "It's really cool. I'd get to learn all about the magical world and even learn a few trades like potions. Maybe then I'll fit in more with you and your crowd."
"Callie," I touched her hand with a softness in my voice, "you are my crowd. No matter where I am or who I'm with, you are my number one."
Callie laughed, throwing her head back so that her dark tresses fell down her back. "It's fine, Max. Really. You have your hands full right now, you know, with all the balls you're juggling." When I arched a brow, she added with a salacious wink. "And I do mean that literally. It'll be nice to have a change of scenery. You know I've always wanted to go to California, and now’s my chance."
"Plus, Chad will be there?" I slyly slipped in, making her blush again. "So, what do your parents think about it?"
"You're not mad?"
I shook my head as I held her hands tightly. "Why would I be? If this is what you want to do, then go for it. It's not like I have much room to talk. I did ditch you at Brown for this place." I glanced around the room.
"Yeah. You're right. And about my parents? I haven't told them yet." She sighed and sagged into the bed. "I'm sure they're gonna flip out because I'm switching yet again to another college. The upside is that they won't have to pay for this one. They have a scholarship that comes with the program. I just have to keep it head down and not get hexed in the meantime."
I snorted. "You? Keep your head down? When has that ever happened?"
Callie laughed. "You're right. Never."
"When do you leave?" I asked after we stopped laughing. "I'm assuming you'll be around until after the games at least."
As she nodded, Callie pulled out her phone to look at something. "Chad wants me to come for the summer. Hang out and get to know the area before school, so I think I might go. That way maybe by the time school starts, I have all my homesickness out of the way."
My eyes got misty. "Well, I'm going to miss you."
"Oh, Max! Me too! But we'll see each other every break and the time will fly by. You won't even notice I'm gone."
That I knew was a lie. I'd notice every second of it.
Chapter 20
The day of the big event came, and I was more than ready. Out of all the events, this one would be the most physical. The rest had challenged my brain, but this one... for this one, I got to shoot people.
> I scanned over my reflection one more time in my mirror taking in the outfit I'd bought with Aidan and Ian. My chest tightened at the thought of Ian, but I pushed it away. It was for the best... I hoped.
Looking up at Aris as she hovered above me, I quirked a brow. "What do you think? Think I’ll strike fear into the hearts of my enemies?"
My guardian light bobbed, and whether or not that had anything to do with my question, I took it as a yes.
"Good." I picked up my gun and held it over my shoulder with a triumphant grin. "I'm ready."
The Potion Ball event was being held in the empty woods near the campus that would be spelled off from those who didn't already know it was there. This kept the humans from accidentally wandering into the magical battlefield and ending up turned into a duck or something worse.
This event was much bigger than the others and there wasn't a live audience to cheer us on. The game would be streamed back to the school via magical divination sensors and flying cameras where everyone would watch it on a bank of monitors set up in the auditorium. That would keep all the spectators safe while also making it less likely someone would cheat by giving away the positions of the teams.
I was giddy with excitement and had to shake my hands to keep them from freaking out as I made my way to Aidan’s Jeep. We were going to ride over to the field together where we'd convene before the big battle. Ian was supposed to ride with us, but when I got there, I was relieved to find that he wasn't there.
"Let me guess, he's indisposed?" I mockingly used air quotes and didn't even pretend to hide my snarl.
Aidan jerked his head in response while Paul and Dale sat in the back seat with wary looks on their faces. I didn't know if Ian told them that I'd broken up with him yesterday, and I wasn't in the mood to start crying again so I kept my mouth shut for now. I planned to do a lot of therapeutic release today in the woods.
Then I'd deal with Ian.
Aidan drove us out of the parking lot of the school and turned onto the road. The trip was short which was good because the tension in the car could be sliced with a knife. I didn't know if the guys were trying to be cautious around me or what, but I appreciated the quiet. I needed to keep my head in the game and not wind up in an argument with another one of them.
When we arrived at the lot near the woods, it was already packed with vehicles. People were pouring out of them to gather near the entrance gate in the wards. Aidan pulled us into a spot but before he could finish stopping, I jumped out of my side of the Jeep.
I jogged over to the group of students all waiting for the Headmaster to give the beginning speech. Headmaster Swordson had dressed for the part today. Instead of his usual three piece suit, he wore a pair of grey cargo pants and a long-sleeved ribbed shirt. It looked kind of silly on the old man with the bit of a paunch around his belly and those small reading glasses. He had even marked his face with black paint on each cheek and looked far too excited for the day’s events.
"Welcome! Welcome! This is the final event of this year’s MagiX Games! I hope you have all had a wonderful time at our glorious Winchester Academy. It has been our pleasure to host the games this year and hope to do it again in the years to come." He let out a little chuckle. "As well as bring home a trophy or two."
The crowd laughed with him politely. Off to the sides, I could see a floating camera moving with the Headmaster, making sure to get in every single word. There were probably more in the woods, no doubt, laying in wait for us to come through. They wouldn't want to miss a single part of the game plus they kept the contestants from cheating or using lethal potions.
The Headmaster continued on to explain the rules of this event. "As you know, there will be one team for each school. You will tie your school's marker on your left arm. It is up to you to be sure to know who you are firing upon before shooting." His eyes grew serious as he scanned the lot of us. "In the real world, you can never be sure who is your friend and who is your foe. There will be no exceptions. If you are out by one of your own, then you are out. Now..." He paused for emphasis. "The goal is to be the last one standing. Whichever team is left when all the others have fallen wins. If there is a tie by the end of the day when the whistle is blown, whoever has the most players left will be declared the winner."
The crowd of students began to get restless. Each of us was more than ready to get into position and start taking our opponents out. Without realizing I was doing it, I searched Beth Ann and her Blue Bonnets out in the crowd. She stood in a hot pink and black outfit much like the one that Ian had wanted me to wear. Her red hair was pulled back into a long ponytail, and her manicured nails held onto her gun so daintily that I wondered if she even knew how to use it. My own fingers curled tightly around my own weapon, the urge to shoot her now almost too hard to resist.
"Hey, eyes front, tiger." Paul placed his hand on my shoulder and his mouth at my ear. "Don't look too eager to get her."
I flicked my eyes over my shoulder and snorted. "Wasn't trying to hide it."
"Still,” Paul chuckled, “it’s best not to paint a target on your back from the get go."
I gritted my teeth together and bit out, "Fine."
Headmaster Swordson completed his little speech, and the crowd roared with excitement. The energy and magic in such a small area made the air crackle around us. It made it hard not to be amped up, let alone trigger happy.
The guys and I followed the directions for our side of the woods where we and the rest of our team, which included Trina and Sabrina plus a few I didn't know, was to enter. Once we reached our designated entrance, one of the game judges spelled each of us so that we could enter and leave the game area freely. Since Winchester Academy was winning we were allowed to go into the woods to before the others, to hide and strategize, then the Blue Bonnets, then the Calis. Finally, whoever else was still in the game would be let in. I didn't care about them. Only the Blue Bonnets. We were only beating them by a few points, so whoever won this last game would be put over the top. It would make or break us.
"Make sure you don't go out of bounds," Dale told me as we moved through the woods. We had ten minutes to get in position before the next group will come in. "If you are not in the marked grounds when the game ends, you won't count as having played. The ones you shot won't count, and you will be one less body for us."
I nodded in understanding. "Don't worry. The jaws of life couldn't get me to cross that line."
"So why don't you girls guard the flag?" one of the guys, I think his name was Jared, suggested as he pulled his mask over his face.
"Fuck that!" Trina snapped before I could even get the words out myself. "That's so sexist. We are not going to just wait in the background while you guys get all the glory."
"Here, here!" one of the other women in our group pounded the air.
Jared tried to argue, but Paul put his hand up. "We don't have time for this. Aidan and Dale are the best at strategizing, so where do you want us?"
The two of them looked at one another and then across the area. Dale pointed at our flagpole. "Getting a flag is an important as keeping others from ours, so we need our best shooters here guarding it. That would be Aidan, Paul, and Jared. Trina and Max, you're both small and can blend in better with the terrain than Sabrina and Christy." The other girls gasped in horror, and Dale gave an apologetic shrug. "It's true... plus who wears bright colors to a Potion Ball match?"
Sabrina glanced down at her yellow and black outfit, then shrugged as she looked at her nails. "I'm meant to stand out, not hide in the shadows."
"Which is why you will be the distractions,” Dale continued. “You'll draw the others’ attention away from Max and Trina so that they can get one up on the other teams. Remember, we only need one flag." Dale scanned the group and then shoved his own mask down over his face. "Move out!"
I pulled my mask over my face and touched hands with the guys before heading deeper into the woods. Trina and I moved together, keeping an eye out for any of the other conte
stants. Our arm bands were green, and the rest of them shouldn't be anywhere near us.
"I think we should split up. There are plenty of flags to choose from. Everyone will be aiming for ours since we're winning," Trina told me as we paused by a cluster of trees.” If Sabrina and that Christy girl do their jobs, they'll drive attention toward them, leaving everyone else's flags free for the taking."
I nodded in agreement and scanned the area. There were dense trees to the back, but the front section of the forest had a lot more skinny trees. That made it both harder to hide and easier to see someone coming.
"I'll go this way.” I gestured with the barrel of my gun.” Circle around the back and sneak up on one of them," I explained, my palms sweating at the prospect of getting into a shooting match. It was a heady sensation. The adrenaline pumping in your veins, not knowing if you'll win or lose.
One could get addicted to it if they weren't careful.
Trina jerked her gun toward the front. "I'll go the other way. Maybe we'll head them off in the middle."
"Good luck." I smiled through my mask though she couldn't see it. We bumped fists and each headed in our respective directions.
I only moved a few feet before a whistle blew through the woods. I glanced up, I knew what the sound was. All the players were in the field. The game was about to begin.
I moved quickly through the woods, snapping twigs and jumping logs on my way. Since I was far enough into the woods, I figured I didn't have to be quiet just yet.
Minutes passed tensely. I'd been walking for a bit now, and besides the sound of shots further behind me, the air had been pretty silent. There weren't any animals to be seen, probably scared away during the set-up of the arena. I'd feel bad if I accidentally shot a rabbit with one of my shocking potion balls or worse, the paralysis one! They could get eaten because I shot them instead of Beth Ann's smug face.