“He’s right,” I said, looking at my family. These guys had been through hell and back, we all had. “It’s not fair to make them listen to this. Come back in a couple of days, and we’ll sort it.”
They started to protest, but Reid cleared his throat. “When have you ever gotten anything out of her by force? Just give her this.” He held up his phone. “Not letting it out of my sight. Call anytime you get worried.” He turned to me, though his words were directed at them. “Until then, I’ll keep her safe.”
They ignored him and focused on me instead. Their mouths opened ready to argue some more, but I stopped them cold. “It’s not up for debate. Leave now, and we’ll talk later.” I said that last part a little lower, to soften the blow.
They didn’t like it, proven by the fact that they still protested a bit, but eventually, I was able to usher them out the door. “Now,” I said, turning back to my guests after the last car had pulled away. “Let’s get cleaned up.”
Chapter 22
My house was too small to hold them all, so the next day I took them to the home that Brad and Melinda had left me. It was still pretty much the same as the last time I’d been here, a little dusty, but other than that, still nice, if not a little quaint.
“You own this house?” Vonda asked, looking from the kitchen to the living room.
She and Todd had not stopped calling all night, and I saw my parents’ number on Reid’s phone at least six times. It had been a coordinated effort by them all, of that I had no doubt.
To help put everyone’s mind at ease, I’d called my brother and sister over to help with the cleanup so that Iago, Trout, and Coen could move in.
None of us were healed yet, so we still needed a little time to rest before we went looking for Iago’s sister.
I’d told them that it would be at least two weeks before we could move out again, depending on how I felt at the end of said weeks.
Iago seemed confident that his sister was too valuable to be killed, but I knew he was anxious to get to her.
For now, we all stood in Brad and Melinda’s living room, as I explained a little more about my world. “This is money.” I plopped some of the cash that Brad and Melinda had left me on the table.
Trout picked it up and raised a brow like he thought I was trying to pull a fast one on him. “This is paper.”
I rolled my eyes. “This can’t be the only world you’ve been to with paper money?”
Iago smiled. “And he’s skeptical of them too.”
They were messing with me, at least I thought they were anyway.
Reid had been through the house checking it out, and when he came back into the living room, he looked at our three guests. “Forgot to tell you, there’s only two bedrooms. One of you will have to take the couch.”
“Reid,” I said, as Coen laughed, and Iago shook his head.
“Iago and I share a room,” Trout said, arms folded in front of him.
Reid didn’t blink. “Well, I guess you’ve got enough space then. First order of business, buy some new clothes. At this rate, I won’t have any left.”
He’d had to make a quick dash home to get himself cleaned up, as well as bring new digs for the three of them. Coen, who’d had a little money on him when we’d found him, had given a small bag of it to Reid, telling him he could use it on the next world we entered.
“It’s not like we didn’t pay you for your clothes,” Coen said, eyes roaming around the small house.
“We’re going shopping,” Reid said. He pointed to my brother. “You and me are taking them shopping, for clothes and anything else they may need.”
Coen clicked his tongue. “Yeah, well, I’m not staying in a Yango house, Alisa, so what are you going to do with me?”
I felt a headache coming on, and I looked at him, hoping he was joking, but he seemed deadly serious.
“Well, I guess you can come stay with me,” my brother said, pretending to be put upon. “If you’re willing to help out in the restaurant. You’ll be paid a fair wage don’t worry about that.” He gave Coen an assessing look. “Though, probably not what you’re used to. Still, a job’s a job, and you don’t want to burn through this,” he pointed to the pile of cash on the table, “too fast.”
I’d counted over five hundred thousand dollars before I’d stopped, giving them two hundred thousand, and putting the rest away, not something one could merely blow through in an afternoon, but with these three who knew?
Coen turned to Trout and Iago. “I’m staying with Todd.”
Neither seemed to care. Iago, I think, was just worried about his sister. I knew the two weeks were a hard pill to swallow, but if we were up against anything like we’d faced on Litvan, it was best to be at our full strength.
We hadn’t found Brad, Melinda, or even Kyla yet, but I was satisfied that we’d at least figured out who they were and where they were from.
Also, Reid and I now had a better understanding of the porter and what it could do, not to mention we’d learned a bit more about our powers, and how to better move through different dimensions.
I’d take this as a learning experience because I knew we still had a long road ahead of us. We had help though, and I felt better knowing that we’d teamed up with people who knew the Yangos firsthand and were willing to fight them.
So, no, we weren’t done yet. We just needed to learn how to work better as a team.
I sorted through some of the cleaning supplies I’d brought and held up a bottle of pine cleaner and bleach. “Okay. Let’s get started.”
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Other Titles by N. R. Hairston
Magic and Mischief Series
A Magical Reckoning, Book One
A Symptom of Magic, Book Two
Chronicles of Magic and Mischief (Novellas set in the Magic and Mischief world):
Cursed Magic, Book One
World Breaker
Rogue Magic, Book One
World Breaker Beginnings (Novellas set before events in World Breaker, though you don’t have to read one to read the other.) Read this series for free when you join my mailing list, here.
Rebel Magic
Stolen Magic
Crooked Magic
Rise of the Dragons
Fire and Ash, Book one
Smoke and Flame, Book Two
Dust and Cinder, Book Three
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to my beta readers, and editors for making this book what it is. Thank You!
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About the Author
N.R. Hairston resides in Southern Virginia with her family. She enjoys writing, reading, cooking, and spending time with her loved ones.
Please be on the lookout for upcoming books by N. R. Hairston.
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