Swift
Page 22
I could hear yelling in the background, someone screaming to “Make it stop,” and I thought it sounded like Isaac. It was strange, because I didn’t know where all this power was coming from. Maybe it was from the anger that I felt toward Alex, knowing that he was responsible for my family dying that night in the accident. Or, maybe it was the fear that he would take away the people standing beside me, the people that I now cared about deeply. I squeezed my eyes tighter, forcing myself to push out every thought, allowing my mind to concentrate. Then I heard a loud slamming noise. I saw the church doors crashing shut in my mind.
“Meredith, let us take it from here,” Samuel said, placing his hand on my arm. I kept my eyes closed, afraid that if I opened, they would find a way to escape. “Meredith, please,” he asked again.
I opened my eyes and saw Samuel’s pleading eyes staring me.
He then turned to Blake and Abby, nodding his head. “We will finish this. Take Meredith back to the house.”
Blake scooped me up in his arms, and then we were flying. He was much gentler with me that time than on the way over. I leaned back to feel the cold air on my face. My body felt weak and exhausted. I wondered if this is what it felt like to use the type of magic I had just performed.
It was not long until we were standing on the front porch of the Harper Estate. My heart ached for Abby. I hoped that one day she would be able to forgive me.
“Where’s Abby?” I glanced around, searching for her, my voice cracking.
“She needs to be alone right now. But she’ll be okay,” Blake answered.
It was a couple hours later when Samuel and Annette got home. Their expressions held both relief and sadness, relief that it was over and sadness that Abby was suffering. No one spoke about what had happened back at the church after Blake, Abby, and I had left. I knew deep down what had happened.
I waited up all night until Abby finally came home. There was no way I could sleep until I looked into her eyes and saw forgiveness. I was lying in Blake’s arms when I heard her footsteps walk past his door.
Without even having to ask, Blake lifted his arm. “Take all the time you need.”
I crept slowly toward the closed door at the end of the hall, not knowing if this was the right time or not. But I had to at least try and talk to her.
I knocked lightly and heard a faint voice telling me to come in. “Abby,” I said as I entered the room. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry. I can’t imagine how you feel toward me right now.”
She looked at me with a curious expression. “Meredith, you saved my life, my family’s life. I will forever be in your debt.”
“But Isaac ...” I whispered.
“It was difficult for me to see past my love for him, but I realized long ago that I had lost him. It just took me until today to see it. He was too far gone for me to bring back.” She sighed, looking blankly at the wall. “You did amazingly today. You should be proud.”
“It was nothing, really.” I shrugged. “I just closed my eyes and did what you taught me that day in Steer Swamp. But I had this overwhelming feeling within me. I can’t explain it.”
“Well, it’s clear that you have amazing power within you, and you’ve just scraped the surface of it today.” She smiled. “Get some rest. We can talk more in the morning.”
I put my arms around her and held her for a long while. When she finally drifted off to sleep, I slowly walked back down the hall to Blake’s room. The door was cracked open, and I pushed on it gently, hoping not to wake him. But once I got close enough, it was clear he was still awake.
“You didn’t have to wait up,” I said.
“I would wait forever for you.”
I melted back into his protective embrace. The warmth of his body and smell of his skin sent me into a peaceful trance at once. His warm lips pressed upon my forehead, which sent a shockwave of pleasure through me.
“It’s all going to be all right now.” He sighed.
I lay there, exhausted from the day. It was just over twenty-four hours ago that I had read the paper and seen that the Harpers were going to be killed. Now I was back in 1905 and had stopped it all from happening. Relief washed over me, knowing that the people that I had come to love were all safe. It should’ve given me the desire to sleep, to let my body rest and recover. But I was scared to close my eyes, scared that when I woke up, Blake would not be there, holding me in his arms. What would happen when I woke up? Would I be still be in 1905, or would my mom or the Council transport me back to my time? Just the thought of being separated from him again sent a shiver of fear through me, causing me to wrap my arms around him as tight as I possibly could, wanting to be as close to him as possible.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“As long as I have you,” I raised my head and pressed my lips to his.
THE END
Meredith’s story doesn’t end here. . . .
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www.heatherlondon.com