by Salem Cross
If I could find a witch who wouldn’t balk at the sight of me for being a mutt, I could ask them about the pentagram and the book I couldn’t retrieve. But I had no one. The only people I could talk to had up and left.
My anger flared as I headed to the workout room. How could I be useful to the Guardians if they didn’t include me? What information had they gathered from the two male shifters? They hadn’t bothered to share that with me. Where were they headed? Was it far? What exactly were they looking for? What did dark magic feel like? Would I be able to feel it, or was it a thing only Guardians could sense?
Autumn and Zyroe thought it was important for me to be here. How was I supposed to stop anyone or learn who wanted to open the gates if I got sidelined? Instead of learning, I was stuck sitting here and doing nothing.
I worked off most of my anger working on my MMA moves. Since I had woken up this morning, I felt stronger than I had in a long time. Was this a side effect of the Joining? Or was it because I had expelled enough power that my body could now function properly? Wherever this strength came from, I bathed in it. I had lost most of the muscle mass I had gained from years of training. But if I trained like I was now, I could be back to my peak physical state in no time.
When I was done, I changed without showering, and I left the house. Rylan could go screw himself if he thought I would just sit here. Outside, the sun was shining, the skies were blue, and the wildlife was out in full force. A rabbit darted away at the sight of me. Nearby squirrels chased each other on the ground before scurrying up into a tree. Above me, the cry of an eagle caught my attention, and I looked up to catch sight of the majestic creature.
What had Patricia been talking about? Life seemed to be thriving here, at least in this part of the park. I felt like I was back on the Appalachian Trail. Being surrounded by nature was soothing. As I headed into the woods to do some exploring, I could feel my anger ebb away.
As I walked, I made sure to keep a conscious effort to be aware of my surroundings. I wasn’t stupid; I knew danger could be lurking in even the prettiest of places. I also knew the Guardians wouldn’t have left me here alone without checking the area.
I walked for two hours, keeping my eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary. Unfortunately, nothing was amiss. While I could appreciate my surroundings, the mission to find something useful was a bust. The frustration I was feeling was now more towards myself than towards the Guardians. I turned to head back feeling defeated.
As I took a step towards the house, unease twisted my gut. I stopped, trying to gauge the sudden feeling. After a moment, I realized that I wasn’t feeling uneasy; the ghostly sensation was coming from Rylan. Just as it clicked that it wasn’t me, the feeling vanished and was replaced with alarm. Wherever Rylan and the others were, something had caused Rylan to worry.
Oh crap, had he come back and found me missing? I had forgotten my cell phone. Maybe he had tried to call when he couldn’t find me and worried when I didn’t pick up. Feeling a little guilty that he might be worrying about where I was, I took another step towards the house. As I started back, the oddest sensation of sand trickling down my neck and arms started up. I stopped and shuddered. Of its own accord, the power under my skin surged forward. I stared down at my hands and arms as small sparks twinkled around my skin. I stared astonished at the little light show. What was happening?
As I stared at my hands, a feeling of dread boiled up inside of me. An oily, dark impression of evil settled over my skin. Before I could react, my power erupted from my pores in a fiery blast. My scream of agony echoed in the woods around me. Fiery pain overwhelmed me as my power blasted outwards. My vision turned violet, a roaring in my ears started, and my heart raced.
Then I blinked.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself on the floor of the woods. Fifty feet in every direction the ground was blackened. There were piles of ashes where trees once stood and the soil around me was charred. The world was silent. The sun was still shining, but it was further west than I remembered. I attempted to push myself up, but the weakness in my limbs caused me to momentarily give up. I tried to drag in a deep breath, but my lungs felt deflated. My thoughts felt sluggish, and my body felt like it had taken a beating. My heartbeat felt strangely slow in my chest.
What the hell had happened?
I tried to gain my bearings. I could remember my power reacting to a weird sensation then… nothing. Fear twisted in my stomach. The last time I had lost consciousness while my power reacted was when Jasmine had tried to examine me with her mind. Oh god, what had I done while I was unconscious? My heart squeezed painfully in my chest.
I hadn’t felt this horrible when it happened with Jasmine. Somehow, this experience was different.
I attempted to get up, and this time I was able to make it to my knees. I dragged in another shaky breath, but it was just as hard as it had been before. My body was shaking from fatigue. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t stay here. I allotted myself a few minutes to collect my bearings before getting to my feet and forcing myself to move. I stumbled multiple times and even blacked out once on my trek to the house.
My heartbeat never regulated itself. Breathing felt like a monumental task. My vision blurred and cleared constantly. I tried not to panic. Panicking wouldn’t do me any good. The short gasps of air that I was able to draw in weren’t enough, and it scared me. My heart felt out of sync with the rest of my internal workings.
I cursed myself for walking so far into unfamiliar territory. It took forever to get home, but eventually, the house came into view. After I pushed the front door open and shut it, I stumbled and collapsed at the foot of the stairs. There was no way I could climb them in my state. The fact that I had even made it back to the house had been extraordinary. So, I sat there drawing in shallow breaths.
The house was silent. If the Guardians had been home, they would have heard me enter and come to investigate. Something was wrong. Where were the Guardians? Why had I felt Rylan’s uneasiness? What had they experienced? Were they hurt? A hundred different scenarios, all horrible, flipped through my head.
Just as fear for my Guardians boosted my energy enough for me to get to my feet, wheels driving on the gravel broke the silence. I heard a car stop, a door open, and then shut. My heart, already beating oddly, skipped a beat. The Guardians hadn’t taken a car on their journey. Who was outside?
A knock on the door caused me to jump. I stared at the door wondering if I should open it. Before I got the chance to decide I heard a familiar voice. I sighed in relief as Rylan’s voice drifted through the door. I couldn’t tell who he was talking to but the conversation was brief. After a few minutes, I heard someone climb back into their car and pull away.
Rylan opened the door and began to walked in but paused as our eyes met. If I had any breath to lose, I would have lost it over the sight of his chiseled abs. Of course flying to and from the shifter’s den would have required taking his shirt off so his wings wouldn’t destroy the material but he could have easily put it back on before entering the house. I was glad he hadn’t. I was momentarily stunned by his perfection. His gaze traveled over me, and he sucked in a sharp breath while his brows came crashing together. I looked down, confused at the alarm on his face. My clothes were shredded and had burn marks on what was left. I had been in such a hurry to get home that I hadn’t thought about my appearance.
Rylan was suddenly standing right in front of me as I looked back up at him, “What happened? Are you hurt? Mae, your lips are blue.”
He took my face in his hands. We both gasped at the contact. The veins in Rylan’s hands began to glow violet. Whatever power he had absorbed during our time together this morning cycled back into me. As my body pulled power from Rylan, I found it easier to draw in a deep breath. The fatigue clinging to my body evaporated. My heart fluttered painfully once, and suddenly, it was back to its normal rhythm. I braced my hands against his bare chest in relief.
That was when I noticed the drie
d blood.
“Rylan, who hurt you?” I gasped.
The initial wound had healed thanks to his quick healing Guardian abilities, but who had gotten close enough to wound him?
“Mae, tell me what happened to you,” Rylan demanded, ignoring my question.
I stared at the blood on his arm for a moment longer before I dragged my gaze up to his face.
“I went exploring after you guys left—” I paused to wince at the deep scowl he gave me. “I was on my way back when… Well, I felt you in discomfort.” I paused again, wondering how much more weirdness would come with this Joining process. “Then, I felt something in the air, and my power reacted to it.”
Rylan looked away from me. His jaw clenched and unclenched as he worked through whatever he was thinking. I could feel warmth in the pit of my stomach. The feeling was ghostly, which told me that I was sensing Rylan’s anger. When he looked back down at me, his expression was tense, but there was no anger there.
Before he could say anything, a door somewhere in the house shut. I jumped at the sound. Rylan’s hands fell from my face onto my shoulders to steady me.
“It is Jasmine and Arthur,” Rylan assured me grimly. “There was an… incident. Jasmine thought it was best to not draw attention to the park ranger who had come to check on us, so she and Arthur came around back.”
“An incident? What happened?”
“That depravity that Patricia warned us about affected Jasmine and Arthur. Luckily, it did not affect me, and I was able to step between them before someone was killed,” he answered.
I stared at him, stunned. I tried to picture all three Guardians attacking each other. The images in my head were sickening. All of us, except for Rylan, had been affected by the depravity that Patricia had warned us about. He had been right earlier. If I had gone with them I would have been in the middle of that brawl.
“Is everyone alright?” My voice sounded breathless. “What did the park ranger want?”
“Everyone will be fine. The ranger wanted to check in to make sure we were okay after the strange fire that broke out in the woods a few miles from here.” Rylan growled as he stared pointedly at me. “He must have been talking about your incident, Mae. What part of ‘stay here’ do you not understand?”
His tone should have grated on my nerves. Instead of annoyed, I found myself embarrassed. He was right; I should have stayed in the house. Then maybe I wouldn’t have blown up a section of the park. I sighed while my shoulders sagged.
“I’m not a fan of being told what to do. I’m sorry.” At Rylan’s exasperated sigh, I couldn’t help but give him a rueful smile. “Would it make you feel better if I admitted that you were right?”
Rylan scowled. “Right about what? That there is danger out there? Yes, I usually know what I am talking about,” he said as he ran his fingers through his hair in agitation. “It is foolish to think it was wise to wander these woods alone. Look at what happened when you left the house. You could have died because you are too stubborn to listen to me!”
“You know, I was surviving before I met you, Rylan,” I told him. “I don’t—”
“You were barely surviving,” he interrupted angrily. “Or do you not recall all the bruising and damage you were inflicting upon yourself just to maintain a semblance of control in your miserable life? Just now, Mae, I could feel your body was starving for power. Thank goodness your body took what it needed from me! What would have happened if I…” Rylan's voice trailed off as he looked away from me.
Suddenly, his body relaxed, and he unclenched his fists. When he turned back to me, his expression was a mix between concerned and thoughtful.
“Jasmine was right. When you have too much power in your system or when you are depleted of it, your body cannot function properly. We need to make sure you always balance the amount of power within you.” He paused. He reached up, and with the back of his hand, he let his knuckles trail down my cheek.
“It wasn’t like this before Autumn took me,” I said with a frown.
“You took the bracelets off to let it out when it got too bad,” Rylan reminded me. “I am sure it was the fear of letting too much out that kept you from draining yourself. We will have to look into this more. In the meantime, we need to pack. We are leaving.”
“Leaving?” I repeated. “Why?”
“Because it has become clear something is wrong here. Whatever is causing this mayhem in people is also affecting you. With how unpredictable your power is you could hurt yourself or someone else if you are hell bent on it. It is too dangerous for you to be in this area at all. Jasmine and Arthur will stay behind to do some more investigating.”
“But… But you just said you weren’t affected. If we leave, what happens if Arthur and Jasmine kill themselves? We have to stay together to figure this out.”
“Mae—,”
“No, Rylan. We aren’t leaving the others to fend for themselves. We are sticking together.”
“What happens tomorrow if we are all together and they attack you? I would kill them both if they tried. Is that what you want?” Rylan snapped. When I remained silent, Rylan continued, “This is not up for debate, Mae.”
I opened my mouth to protest but shut it. We couldn’t leave Arthur and Jasmine behind to figure out what was happening here by themselves. Who would protect them next time? My stomach sank. Something was going on in this park, which meant I needed to be here more than ever. Autumn and Zyroe were counting on me. But how could I make Rylan change his mind? At the moment, I couldn’t think of a strong enough argument that Rylan would listen to.
For the rest of the day, I didn’t see Jasmine or Arthur. While Rylan had been sure they were going to be alright, I wasn’t happy not being able to check on them myself. When I had gone looking for them, they were nowhere to be found.
Rylan had started making the necessary travel arrangements. I left him to it. If I stuck around, we would just fight. Everything in me screamed that leaving was a bad idea. We needed to stay to figure this out together. But how could I convince Rylan of that? If we left Jasmine and Arthur behind, they could kill each other. Then we would be no closer to having any answers, and we would have two dead friends. There had to be another way.
It was dark outside by the time I wandered out onto one of the three back decks. I had tried to come up with some sort of plan to stop Rylan, but I came up empty-handed. Feeling discouraged about the entire trip, I leaned against the railing and stared out at the woods.
“Good evening, Mae.”
I jumped at Arthur’s voice. I turned to find him sitting on a yoga mat in the shadows. He was dressed simply in a tee-shirt and sweatpants. It was the most casual I had ever seen him.
“I did not mean to startle you,” he said with a chuckle.
I sighed as my heartbeat slowed down. “It’s alright, I was lost in my thoughts and didn’t realize anyone else was out here. Do you want me to leave you alone?”
“No, please stay. I would appreciate the company.”
I recalled the last time Arthur and I had been alone together and internally winced. Rylan had thrown Arthur through a wall due to the wild possessiveness and self-preservation streak in a Guardian who had not Joined with their mate. I wondered how Rylan would react now and if I should still leave before something could happen.
As the thought crossed my mind, I dismissed the idea. If Rylan wanted to leave tomorrow, then this would be my last night with Arthur for a while.
“What are you doing out here?” I asked curiously as I walked over to him.
“I was attempting to meditate,” Arthur said with a sigh, “but my mind will not stop racing.”
“Oh, does it usually work for you? I tried once, and I just fell asleep.”
Arthur chuckled. “Yes, usually it does help, but that was before I met you.”
“What?”
“It was easier to still my wayward thoughts when I did not have emotions to stir up new ones and agitate the old ones,” Arthur ex
plained. “But working through this new phenomenon is beneficial for my mind.”
“Hopefully you can find a way to work through it by tomorrow since Rylan said we have to leave,” I said grimly.
Arthur sighed. “It is for the best that you are not here, Mae. What happened today… What I did today. It was shameful to behave in such a manner. I am a disciplined warrior and to be that out of control was... It was not honorable. If you had been there, you could have been hurt.”
“What happened?”
I sat down a few feet in front of him and crossed my legs. I watched Arthur’s mouth turn downwards. He reached up and grabbed his goatee thoughtfully before he answered, “I do not understand it. One moment we were searching the grounds of the pack’s old den and the next all I could think about was how dangerous Rylan and Jasmine were to me. I had to remove the threat to myself at all costs.”
I shivered at the thought of Arthur coming after me to kill me. Pushing away the thought, I asked, “Did you find anything before that?”
“No,” The disappointment that colored his voice was not about the lack of finding anything. I knew it was directed at himself and what he had done.
“I wonder why Rylan wasn’t affected but you two were?”
Arthur shrugged but said nothing. He looked up at the night sky.
“It affected me, too,” I told him, hoping he would forgive himself. Arthur turned his attention back to me. His expression told me he wasn’t surprised. Rylan must have said something to him. “I felt it coming, but I didn’t know what it was. Then I blacked out, just like when Jasmine had tried to do her examination on me. I woke up surrounded by disaster. Maybe it’s a good thing I’m leaving. I could hurt you.”