The Enchanted Crossroads

by Dora Blume

  Leif walked to the middle of the mat on the floor. “Have a seat.” he motioned to the mat in front of him. I sat cross-legged across from him, staring into his eyes. It felt weird to be sitting on the floor, but I would do anything to prove I didn’t have powers. I’m not sure if that would be a good or a bad thing. If I didn’t have powers, would they hurt me because I knew their secret? Now my mind filled with a new set of worries. I felt like I could trust Leif, but what if he was wrong? What if I’m not a witch and he revealed his secret world to me? What would he do to me then? Questions filled my mind as I stared back at him. I chewed on the inside of my lip.

  “Kaira, you need to quiet your mind to concentrate on your power.” He cocked his head to the side and spoke like he would to a child. I was not a child and his tone was irritating.

  I huffed out a breath, “Fine.” I took a deep breath and tried to quiet my thoughts. It was easier said than done considering my life had gotten a little stressful over the last twelve hours.

  “Kaira,” His tone was more irritated as he said my name.

  “Yeah, yeah, do you know how hard it is to quiet your mind when your whole word changed twelve hours ago? Give me a minute.” I closed my eyes, so I couldn’t look at him. He was making me feel insecure. I usually felt calm around him, but his tone was making me feel inadequate. When I peeked through my lashes, he was still staring. “I have no idea what I’m trying to do? Where does your power come from?”

  He scratched the stubble on his chin. I bit my lip as I watched him. Something about his long fingers stroking the hairs on his chin conjured images of where I wanted his hands to be. Having those long fingers against my skin would be amazing. I had to shake the thought from my head and focus. I realized in my haze I hadn’t heard what he’d said.

  “Excuse me?” I said.

  “Well,” he studied my expression and the side of his mouth quirked up. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been trained on how to use my power. My parents had me training as soon as I could. I began using my power at six.” He rested his hands on his knees.

  “Great, so you don’t know either. What the hell are we doing here then?” I threw my hands in the air. “I just want to know what the hell my damn power is, even though, I don’t think I have one. I just want my damn life back.” I pounded my fists on the floor next to me and the cloth on the table erupted into flames.

  “Well, what I was going to say was our power is typically triggered by our emotions. Once we figure out what emotions triggers it, we can harness the energy to control it. Apparently, your emotional trigger is anger.” He stood and pulled the cloth off the table and began stamping it out on the mat.

  My face must have gone through at least three shades of red as I watched him stamp out the fire. “Wait, you're saying I did that?” My eyes were wide as I pointed at the singed blue cloth.

  “Ah, yes, I’m saying you did that. You need to figure out how to channel your anger so you can control it. If you’ll excuse me. Now that I know what your power is, I’m going to grab a fire extinguisher.” He strode out of the room while I continued to stare dumbfounded at the cloth.

  My power is fire. How could my power be fire? I thought. I looked to my hands. I opened them, palms up and tried to get angry again. I wanted to see if I could hold a ball of fire. Wouldn’t that be cool? I concentrated on my hands but nothing happened. I blew out a frustrated breath.

  I closed my eyes and conjured up a memory. It was the day my father had left; he’d dropped to his knees and told me he couldn’t come back. He apologized to me, but even then I could see the insincerity of his words. A tear slid down my cheek and I could feel heat in my palm. I opened my eyes, and I was holding a small ball of fire.

  I lifted my mouth in a wistful smile. I wasn’t sure I wanted to have this gift if it meant I had to conjure up that memory to make it work. I looked up to the door and Leif was leaning against the open doorway.

  “You’re a quick study.” He gave me a crooked smile. He walked closer and kneeled down in front of me. He reached his hand to brush my cheek. He moved his hand back to his heart. “Did you know there’s a saying, if you catch a tear and hold it close to your heart, a part of that person will stay with you forever.” His eyes glistened as he stared into my eyes.

  “No, I’ve never heard that before.” My voice was thick when I spoke.

  “I’m sorry for whatever you had to think about to conjure your power. Do you have an idea of how it works. You seem to be doing just fine without my help.” He smirked looking to my palm. I still held a small ball of fire. “Remind me not to piss you off.” He sat back across from me.

  “Yeah, I think I know how it works now. I have to be honest; I was hoping it wouldn’t work.” I shrugged, looking to my hand, then meeting his eyes.

  “I know. I could feel you had a strong gift. I’m surprised you didn’t know about it. Anything else ever erupt into flames when you’ve been angry before?” He watched as I thought about it.

  “No, not before today.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek.

  “Hmm, that’s peculiar.” he scratched his chin again.

  “Why?” I asked,

  “Because, we’re born with powers. They don’t manifest this late in life. You should have been able to access your power since you were little. I don’t know what would have made it dormant all that time.” He bit his lip and stood. “We may need to continue in the library. I have some things I need to look up.” He stood in one fluid motion. He held his hand out to me. I took it, squelching the flame and let him help me to my feet.

  “What do you need to look up?” I asked.

  “Spells to bind someone’s powers. I don’t know who would have done this or for what reason, but somebody had to have put a binding spell on your powers. It’s the only explanation for you not having them this whole time. It had to be a powerful spell to last as long as it did. Otherwise, you would have some memory of accidentally starting something on fire. Your power isn’t one that’s easily hidden.” He spoke quickly as he walked down the hall. I followed. I wasn’t sure what to say. I didn’t have a single memory about accidentally starting something on fire. I think I would remember something like that. I hurried behind but stopped short when Leif opened the door to the library.

  I was awestruck. There were large mahogany shelves lining the walls from floor to ceiling. Books filled every shelf. I’d never seen so many books in one place before. In the center of one wall stood a desk with a brown high-back chair. Two other chairs sat in front of a fireplace. It was cozy in here. Leif walked to one of the shelves and pulled down a book. Then he walked to a chair at the table on the other side of the room.

  For some reason, it reminded me of the table I used to work at in the library at school. There were six wide chairs with brown leather seats. The chairs looked like they belonged around a dining table. It looked more like a reference area. I loved this room. I wanted to snuggle up in one of those chairs with a good book and a fire blazing. I could stay here for hours. When Leif looked up at me and cleared his throat, I sat down.

  “So, this book is filled with older spells. I’ll show you more later. It would be good for you to spend some time reading about your power.” He handed me another book. “This one gives some background to elemental powers such as yours. Flip to the fire starter section.”

  I set the book in front of me and opened it. “What exactly are elemental powers?” I asked.

  “Powers based on the elements. Yours is specific to fire. No mage has more than one power over the elements so you only need to focus on fire. There may be some useful information for you in it.” He looked down to the book. Then he returned to his own reading. I could take a hint. He wanted me busy while he studied his spells. I’m sure he was getting tired of having to explain everything to me. I didn’t have an aversion to reading the book. I had spent hours in the reference library at work. I was always looking up past precedent about my cases. This wasn’t much different, well mayb
e a little.

  I flipped open the book and read down the table of contents. Fire was the third chapter, although I wasn’t sure why. It seemed like it should be either the first or the last. All fire did was destroy things. Of course, I’d gotten the power of destruction. It made sense I had been destroying relationships my whole life. I blew out a breath as I flipped to the page I needed.

  I noticed Leif watching me for a moment before he went back to reading. I decided I should take this seriously. The idea that I could actually start something on fire was a chilling thought. I needed to find out how to control it. Plus, if anyone tried to attack me again, being able to throw fire would come in handy.

  When scanning the pages, I got more of a history lesson than anything practical. It talked about the first mages to yield the element of fire. I read how if one wants to be able to channel fire, one has to channel their passions into something useful. Apparently I was supposed to be an artist instead of a lawyer. Who knew? I was looking for a quick way to channel my power into something useful and this book talked about finding balance within yourself. It was nauseating. I closed the book with a hard thump.

  Leif looked up to me and narrowed his eyes. “Not finding what you’re looking for?” he asked, his voice piqued.

  “No, all it talks about is history and finding balance. I just want to know how to start a fire with my hand and control it if I’m attacked again. Why isn’t anything like that in there?” I slid the book further from me on the table.

  “I’m not sure you can learn that from a book. Did it say anything about possible extensions or other mages with the same gift? It’d be nice to know what your strengths and weaknesses are with a power like fire.” He eyed me with a curious look on his face. I wondered if he knew exactly what was in that book and had only given it to me to keep me busy.

  “There was information about other mages. I only skimmed it though. I don’t really want a history lesson on other mages who have power. Isn’t there a how to manual or something around? Cause that would really be helpful.” I crossed my arms and sat back in the chair.

  “We don’t really have any how to manuals on craft. Sorry to disappoint.” One side of his lip curved up as he watched me sulk.

  “Why not? It would be useful. What’s in the book you’re reading?” I asked.

  “It’s a history of old binding spells.” He pushed the book forward on the table. He tapped his finger on a page. “I think this is the spell that was used on you. It can only be broken by the person who cast it. They have to rescind the spell with their own blood or when they die. It’s the only way it can be reversed. I’m curious as to which is the case with you.” His eyes met mine, and I felt a chill go down my spine. I liked the way his eyes lit up when they looked at me. It felt like he was devouring me with his heated gaze.

  “I have no idea. As far as I know my family is alive and well.” I shrugged.

  “Why don’t you tell me about them?” He sat back in his chair studying me.

  “Why don’t I impale you with this pen?” I quipped.

  “Do you have a problem talking about your family?” He asked one brow raised.

  “My mom’s great. She’s a nurse at Abbott-Northwestern. She saves lives every day.” I smiled as I thought about her. She was probably worried about me. I usually called her on the weekend, but she knew I was working on some big cases. She probably figured I had forgotten. I tended to forget things when I was busy working. She had always understood and shown nothing but love to me.

  “What about your dad?” he asked.

  “Did I mention the impaling thing? Yeah, don’t go there.” I narrowed my eyes and clenched the pen in my hand.

  “So, do you think your father could have been the one to bind your powers?” he scratched his chin. I was liking it a little less now. I bit my lip. I didn’t know Leif, not well enough to go into this history. I clenched my hands into fists. I was not talking about my father with him.

  “No idea.” My jaw set as I stared at the open book.

  “Okay, how am I supposed to know if it was him?” he asked.

  “You’re not.” I crossed my arms over my chest.

  “Kaira, what if he is the one who bound your powers, and he’s dead?” His tone was soft, but I wasn’t budging on this. I didn’t talk about my father. He had left, end of story.

  “Good riddance. It doesn’t change anything. I didn’t have powers a few days ago, now I do. What will knowing about my sperm donor help? I don’t think it will.” I looked at the serene painting on the wall behind Leif. I didn’t want to meet his eyes. I knew he would either be looking at me with pity or judgement and I didn’t want to see either.

  “Kaira, don’t you want to know how it is you have powers?” His eyes were soft as they studied me.

  “Not if I have to find my father.” I stood and stormed out of the room.

  CHAPTER 4

  I went into the kitchen. I wasn’t sure where to go. This wasn’t my house, but I had to get away from Leif’s questions and prying eyes. Haskell walked in a minute after I did.

  “Hey love,” He stopped in his tracks and looked at my face. “What troubles you?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it.” I crossed my arms over my chest and sat in one of the chairs.

  “Okay, well, I’m going to make some lunch. How about a grilled cheese with tomato soup? You look like you could use some comfort food.” He swaggered over to the refrigerator without waiting for a response.

  “That would be great, thank you.” I smiled at his kindness.

  “So, Haskell, What do you do around here besides cook?” I asked. The only thing I’d seen him do so far was cook.

  “Oh love, I am the oil that keeps this operation running. Did Leif not tell you anything about sages? We have the most important role in our world.” He straightened his back as he spoke, then went back to buttering bread for the sandwiches.

  “Not really, what is a sage? He mentioned something about you being the guardians of witches. If that’s the case, wouldn’t you guys know about me?” I asked.

  “Sages, love, are guardians yes, but we do a lot more than that. We are often the researchers of the Mage society. We discuss different happenings with each other, so we can guide our charges better. We’re basically the comunicationalists of our world.”

  He put the sandwiches in the pan and turned to face me. “As for knowing about you, I’m looking into it. Someone should have known your mother was pregnant. I’m not sure how she would have been able to sneak that past her own guardian. I have searched for your name in our databases and am coming up blank. It’s like you appeared out of nowhere. Which shouldn’t have happened. I’m also looking into getting you a guardian. A mage shouldn’t be galivanting about in our world without a sage.” He smirked and turned back to the stove.

  “I’m not sure I need a sage. I don’t plan on sticking around. I need to get back to my job. I have an appearance in court on Monday. If I don’t get back to my house to get my stuff, I’ll lose my job.” I drummed my fingers on the table while I watched him pour soup into three bowls. He passed a plate to me with a sliced sandwich and a bowl of soup next to it. He’d even garnished the soup with a sprig of parsley floating in the middle. “Thanks,” I said.

  I could feel Haskell’s eyes on me as I pulled one half of the sandwich away from the plate. The cheese stretched as I pulled the two halves apart. “Love, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you can’t go home right now.” He sighed after finishing.

  “Haskell, I hate to tell you this, but the only way you’re keeping me from going back to my house is to restrain me.” I eyed him before taking a bite of the sandwich. I moaned when the hot cheese sandwich melted in my mouth.

  Haskell bent so his eyes were directly in front of mine. “Restraints can be arranged, love.” He wiggled his eyebrows at me before taking a step back. “Excuse me, I have to let Leif know lunch is ready.” His voice changed to a dark warning. “Don’t go anywhere.�
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  As I sat there, a chill ran down my spine. I liked Haskell. He seemed like a fun guy, but in that moment, I knew he could also be a dangerous one. It didn’t matter, neither of them were stopping me from going home. I had a life to get back to and there’s no way I was leaving my clients high and dry.

  After a few minutes, Leif strode into the room. He had changed out of his workout sweats and was now wearing a pair of jeans, hung low on his waist. A black t-shirt hugged his torso and I couldn’t help but lick my lips as I watched him continue toward the counter.

  “So, I hear you’re trying to go home?” he said as he pulled out the stool next to me.

  “I have to get my stuff for my deposition on Monday. I have a life and I can’t lose my job. I need to go back to my place.” I picked up the second half of my sandwich and tried to ignore the look Leif was giving me.

  “She said the only way she was staying is if she was restrained. Sounds like we’re about to have a fun afternoon.” Haskell wiggled his eyebrows as he slid onto the stool opposite me.

  Leif continued to study me as he took a bite of his sandwich. Finally, he turned toward the counter. “Fine, I’ll take you to your apartment.” he said.

  “Really? I honestly thought I would have to either sneak out or fight you.”

  “I have a feeling you would figure out how to get there, regardless. I’d rather just take you than have to try to save you later. What’s so important that you’d risk your life to go back?” He took another bite of his sandwich, eyes still trained on me.

  “Ah, I want to keep my job. I’ve worked hard to climb the ladder and I don’t want to jeopardize it. I help a lot of people with my pro-bono work, and I can do more for them as long as I’m still employed.”

  It was the reason I worked where I did. Sure, I could have gotten a job at legal aide to help people. It would never match the resources I had at Whitney. Plus, they never questioned me on those cases. As long as I kept up my own workload, they didn’t care.