by Diana Nixon
“Wow, looks like one hell of a job to do,” Will said, with his hands on his hips. “How are we supposed to find the right book? I’m sure it can’t be found with the simple finding spells.”
“But it can be found with the help of blood,” Melanie said, surprising me again with her endless knowledge in the sphere of blood magic.
“What exactly would you suggest?” I asked.
“Well, first of all, I will need a few drops of your precious blood, if you don’t mind of course.”
“I do mind actually.” The memory of the recent cut was still too vivid in my head. Besides, Marion wasn’t there with us to save me if anything unexpected happened.
“Okay, then give me something, anything that still keeps the memory of your blood.”
“Like what?”
“Like a knife that you accidentally cut your hand with.”
The one that hurt me while training with Kevin was with me now. Actually, it was always with me. It was made of silver and it was one of my protective amulets that could save me from many things, including people who wanted my death.
“Will it do?” I said, giving the silver knife to Melanie.
“Perfect!” She put it on my father’s table that was made of mahogany and green marble, took a piece of paper and put her hands over the two things.
“Can I ask you a question?” I said.
“What am I going to do now? Don’t worry, I’m not going to start a fire here, or use dark magic.” Then she closed her eyes and whispered a few words that I remembered as a spell of connection. To my surprise, it worked.
As soon as the words were said, a few books from different shelves flew to Melanie and landed on the table in front of her.
She opened her eyes and smiled. “I told you blood is the perfect ingredient for almost any spell. Now, let see what we have here.” She took the first book, but it turned out to be a romance novel that my mother loved to read.
“Why did the spell find only five books?” Will asked, standing near the table.
“Apparently, these are the only books that have some special connection with the owners of this library.”
“Most of them were gifts from family and friends,” I said.
Melanie took the other book into her hands and I immediately recognized it.
“My favorite fairy tales,” I said, smiling. “Mom always read them when I couldn’t fall asleep.” I opened the book and read a quote that was handwritten. “La vérité éclatera au grand jour. Which means There is nothing kept secret that will not come to light.”
“Can I have a look?” Amanda asked.
“Sure.” I gave her the book, wondering what could be so interesting about it.
Suddenly she said, “I had the same book when I was a kid. But the inscription written in mine said something different.”
“Do you remember what it said?” Melanie asked.
Amanda looked at me and frowned, saying, “It said ‘I’m your heart, I’m your twin; I’m the secret and the key.”
Chapter 13
Amanda
“Was the inscription in your book handwritten as well?” Evan asked.
I looked at the book I was still holding in my hands and said, “Yes. In the very same handwriting.”
“How is that possible that the two of us had the same book, signed by the very same person?”
“Do you guys know the author of this book?” Will asked.
“No. I think these are folktales,” I said.
He came closer and took the book from my hands. “I might be seeing things, but I can swear I have seen this handwriting somewhere else before.”
“Where?” Even asked, surprised.
“There was only one thing left after my mother disappeared — a letter that she wrote to me even before I was born. My father had been hiding it for years, but one time, I saw him reading it and got curious. I waited for him to put it into one of the books in his office, and then I read it when he was not at home.”
“Are you sure the handwriting was the same as here?” Evan asked, nodding to the book.
“Yeah.”
“Do you know what your mother’s name was?”
“Maribel.” Will said. “Why?”
“Because, she was the one who gave me the book that Eileen saw in one of my memories,” Evan said. We all stared at him in confusion.
“Wait a second,” I said. “Will is older than you are. And he said his mother disappeared right after his birth. Which means… His father didn’t kill her or make her disappear. Which also means she could still be alive.”
I think we all felt the waves of excitement coming from Will. His aura was shining so brightly, it hurt to look at it. We all knew how much he wanted to know more about his mother, and now he had another chance to believe that he could find her.
“Do you remember what she looked like?” Will asked Evan.
“I’m sorry, man. But Eileen is the only person who saw that memory. I don’t know why I can’t remember it. She said that your mother, if she’s really your mother, had sandy hair and bright-green eyes. But Eileen is sure that she was not a Fairey.”
Will leaned against the table, running both hands through his hair. “Isn’t it weird? I mean my father was a pure-blood Fairey, and if my mom was not a magician or didn’t belong to any of Dever’s founding families, how could I be born a Lord of Mind?”
“Are you saying that the Lords’ parents are always gifted?” I asked.
Will nodded. “At least this is what I know.”
An idea came to my head, but I didn’t rush to share it with the others. First, I needed to talk to Eileen. But there was one more thing that I couldn’t stop thinking about.
“I think I know how to find the book that we are looking for,” I said. Then I turned to Evan. “How about an imaginary trip to Norfield?”
“I’ll follow you anywhere, Sweetheart, you know that,” Evan said, winking. “But first, we need to take Will and Melanie back to Dever.”
We stood in a circle, closed our eyes and sank into the fog created by Evan’s spell that was supposed to bring us back to the reality.
Time always ran faster in the illusions, so when we opened our eyes, the clock on the wall in Evan’s room showed 10:00PM.
“I need to have a word with Eileen,” I said. “It won’t take long, I promise. Then I will come back and we will create another illusion to get to my place in Norfield.”
“So this is going to be a night date?” Evan smiled. “I love the sound of that.”
I felt my cheeks blushing, so I turned around quickly and left, praying Eileen was still awake. I was dying to ask her a few questions.
Fortunately, she and Christian were in our room, reading some books that looked older than Dever itself.
“You are back!” Eileen jumped from the couch and hugged me. “How did it go?”
“Good. We almost found the book.”
“Almost?” Christian asked.
“Well, we need to go somewhere else as well. But before that, I need to talk to Eileen.”
“Should I leave you two alone?” My brother asked.
“Wait, what do you want to talk about?”
I looked at Eileen, hesitating. “It’s about Evan.”
“If it has anything to do with his powers, there’s no need for Christian to leave. I think he knows even more than you do.”
I looked at the two of them, curious. “Don’t think I’m out of my mind or anything, but I think Evan’s problems have something to do with the Lords of Mind.”
Eileen and Christian shared a glance.
“Oh, my God, you do know something, don’t you?”
“Would you like to have a seat?” Christian asked, smiling slightly.
“And try to stay calm, because Evan shouldn’t know anything about what we are going to tell you,” Eileen said.
Then they told me what they knew and I told them about what we’d managed to find out in Paris, and I think now we
had a more or less clear picture of what was going on.
“Okay, so you think it’s better to keep our mouths shut?” I said. “What if he finds out about everything and wants to, I don’t know, suppress his new powers somehow?”
“That’s why we shouldn’t leave him alone,” Eileen said, “And I think it’s a perfect excuse to spend more time with Evan. Don’t you think so?”
I looked at Christian cautiously. I didn’t want him to know about my feelings for Evan. I knew he would get worried, because when it came to my personal life, he was always a little overprotective. Besides, he thought I was still in a relationship with Lucas. Well, in fact, it was true.
“Okay, I’ll see what I can do,” I said, before Eileen could say anything else and before Christian started asking any more unnecessary questions.
I went back to Evan’s, making sure beforehand that the colors of my aura didn’t give away anything that he might call suspicious.
I was a little afraid of traveling into another illusion with Evan. Even when we were in his house and he had a full control over the illusion, I could still feel how fast my feelings for him were getting stronger. And this time, everything was about to be so much more intense…
He opened the door even before I could knock on it. “I thought you changed your mind about going to Norfield,” he said, smiling mischievously. I bet he knew all about my fears. Unfortunately, it wasn’t helping, because knowing Evan, I was sure he would use my weakness for his benefit.
“You know I can’t say no when it comes to helping you,” I said, trying to seem calm, even though, my heart was beating so fast; I was afraid he would hear the sound of its beating in my chest.
“What about other things that I might be in need of?” He asked softly; his breath tickling my neck.
I couldn’t let his charm affect me. At least not now.
“Let’s talk about it after we are done with this mess your precious relatives have left for us to clean up.”
“What if we send my relatives to hell, and think about us instead?” He said, wrapping both hands around my waist. I couldn’t think straight when he was so close.
“Your safety comes first,” I said as I put my palms on his chest, trying to push him away.
“I hate rational thinking, you know?”
I smiled. “I already figured that much. “Now, close your eyes.”
For a second, our gazes stayed locked, then Evan followed my instructions and we both sank into the bright-pink vortex of my illusion. Damn you, stupid magic, I thought to myself. It gave away everything that I felt for Evan, and I was sure he could feel it better than anything else. So much for the freaking self-control…
“Is your mom at home?” Evan asked, as soon as we opened our eyes again. Even though no one could see or hear us while we were hidden by the invisible walls of the illusion, it was still safer to stay out of sight.
“Yes, but she should be asleep by now.” We were in my room now, and I realized how much I missed it. No other place in the world had ever felt so much like home.
“Okay, I think the book is here,” I said, opening one of the drawers where I kept my old books and toys that I for some strange reason didn’t want to get rid of. “Bingo!” I took out the book we needed and gave it to Evan. “See, the handwriting is the same.”
“Yeah.” He barely looked at the book, and I knew why. The silver lines of the bond we shared were now visible, spreading all over the room and our hands, making the pull even harder to resist.
“Fuck, I can’t stand it anymore,” Evan said, dropping the book to the floor.
The next second, his lips were on mine. I couldn’t breathe or move, or even think. It felt so unbelievably good…
Our tongues mingled and I could swear, I had never felt anything more intense before. No other kiss could be compared to what we were sharing now.
I was losing it. But to be honest, I didn’t give a damn. All I wanted now was to get lost in the warmth and love that I could feel in Evan’s every touch. He broke the kiss only for a second, just to look into my eyes again and then gave me another kiss, even more sensual and teasing, if that was even possible, considering that I could barely keep my balance, melting in the magic of the moment.
Only when I felt Evan’s palms slipping under the hem my shirt and pushing it up, I took a step back, unable to find the strength to stop him. My tongue refused to speak.
I shook my head slightly, watching pure fire burning in Evan’s eyes. He knew I was about to break the illusion, but he wouldn’t let me.
Pulling me back to his chest, he brought my lips to his, and I didn’t even notice the moment we moved over to my bed and fell down to the sheets; our bodies and lips locked. My shirt was gone in no time, and so was Evan’s. I think I stopped breathing, mesmerized by the beauty of his body leaning over mine. He didn’t say a word, he bent down and placed a small kiss right under my ear, making the butterflies in my belly go totally wild. He didn’t need any words to make me obey his every wish; I was more than ready for everything he wanted to do next. I didn’t think about anything but his knowing lips and hands working their way down my body. He didn’t need any magic to make people fall for his charm; whatever he said or did radiated so much energy and charisma; no wonder girls couldn’t resist him. Beautiful Mr. Attitude… And now, he was all mine.
I didn’t know where that thought came from, but for the first time ever, I wasn’t afraid to admit that I wanted to be with Evan more than I had ever wanted anything else.
As if reading my mind, he whispered, “I don’t think I ever wanted anyone as much as I want you now.”
“That makes two of us.” I cupped his face in my hands and kissed him again, afraid I would lose the battle with myself and break the illusion too soon.
“I want to make it all right,” Evan said, running one palm down my side. “I don’t want you to regret giving yourself to me. If you will ever let me love you in reality, I will be the happiest man ever.”
Of course, we would never make love in an illusion. Fortunately, we both were too responsible and conscientious to let the moment swallow us. Because we both knew that losing control over the illusion would also lead to staying there forever.
“You sure this is what you want?” I asked, trailing my fingers down his arms. It was simply impossible to resist whatever we felt for each other. I remembered Eileen’s words about my fears; she said we couldn’t change anything. But I still wanted us to have some more time to think about everything. More than anything in the world, I wanted Evan to be happy. And no matter how bad the thought of letting him go hurt, I would do it, even if I knew that he could find happiness with someone else.
“Trust me, Amanda, I would never lie about my feelings for you. I have been through a lot, and the only thing I want now is to find peace that I thought I would never find with anyone. And whatever you make me feel, brings my hopes back; it makes me feel alive again. And I swear, that no other girl has ever been able to make me feel as good as you do. Not even Tara.”
“But you loved her so much.” It wasn’t the best moment to talk about Evan’s ex-girlfriend, but I wanted him to be honest with me, because I didn’t want anything to stand between us, especially a shadow of the love that he lost years ago.
“I did, but this-” He showed me our joined hands with the beautiful silver lines, wrapped around them in an intricate pattern. “I don’t think anything would ever be more beautiful and intense than this.” Then he leaned closer and placed a small kiss on my lips. “I will never stop fighting for what we share.”
“Neither will I.”
“Promise?”
“I promise. Now, shall we get dressed?”
Evan laughed quietly, his laughter vibrating all over my skin.
“Can we stay here for a little longer?”
“Naked?”
“Why not? Or are you freezing already? Shall I warm you up a little?”
“You can give me back my shirt and save
your precious energy for the next time,” I said.
“So there will be the next time? Sounds so damn promising.”
“Of course, it will depend on your behavior, but… I would gladly spend some time with you, Mr. Murray.”
“How about tomorrow night?”
I laughed. “Patience has never been one of your best qualities.”
“You know me too well.”
I looked into his smiling eyes and thought about the time that we wasted, waiting for the damn blood transfusion to work.
“Why didn’t I kiss you sooner?” Evan said, more to himself than to me.
“Did you want to?”
“Many times. But then, you started dating Lucas. I saw how happy you were with him, and I thought it was supposed to be your story with him and not me. But now, I know that I should have never given up on trying to get you back.”
“I would have died if anything had happened to you after the fight with the Dragons.” I remembered the days that I spent thinking about nothing but Evan. Back then, I didn’t know that my feelings meant something more than just friendly worries. Even being with Lucas, I couldn’t stop trying to break through Evan’s mind, dying to know at least a little bit of what was happening to him. I knew he was suffering, and I wanted to take a part of those sufferings away, only I didn’t know how.
“Next time my ass gets into trouble, please be there to help me out of it,” he said. “I think even this time, I survived because deep down inside me, I knew there was something so unbelievably wonderful waiting for my awakening.” He laid down next to me, his arm still wrapped around my waist. “Sooner or later everyone will find out about us.”
And that was the only thing that I didn’t want to talk or think about.
“I know,” I said, leaning closer to his chest. “I just need more time to find a way to talk to Lucas. I know the news will break him, and I so don’t want him to hate me. After all, he has always been there for me, no matter what.”
“You have all the time you need. Well, maybe not forever of course, but long enough to explain things and give him a chance to get used to the idea of you and me being together.”