Under the Burning Stars

by Carrigan Richards

  AMENDS

  Ava rolled over onto her back. She couldn’t sleep and wanted to seek solace in the library but she was afraid to leave her room. The Manor was quiet and she wondered if anyone was on watch in case the Cimmerians decided to attack. She wanted to check on Colden, but she wasn’t allowed near him.

  Careful not to wake Peter, she quietly pushed back the blankets and got out of the bed. She crept out of the room and downstairs to the library.

  There was a low fire in the stone fireplace and Ava moved closer to it, but stopped when she saw someone sitting in one of the chairs beside it. They faced the fire, and Ava didn’t want to face anyone. She turned on her heel to leave.

  “Ava,” Gabriel called.

  She silently cursed, but turned around and met his eyes. The firelight made his face look softer.

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just wanted to grab a book. I’ll leave you alone.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I enjoy your company. And given what happened, you look like you could use some.”

  “Why are you being so nice to me? Don’t you hate me?”

  “No, of course not. I’m upset that you didn’t adhere to my warning and that you lied to me. And worried all of us that night. But we all make mistakes. No one’s perfect.”

  Ava walked closer. “I’m sorry I lied to you. I was just so desperate.”

  “I know. I completely understand. I’ve been there before. You really worried us that night. It was like you completely disappeared. We had no idea where you went. We couldn’t even feel you.”

  “You couldn’t?”

  “No. Not until Savina killed the spirits. It kinda felt like you were dead.” He frowned.

  “I’m sorry I worried you.” She sank into the chair next to him and held her head in her hands. “I’ve betrayed everyone I love. I can’t believe I almost killed him.” The tears returned. She didn’t want to cry in front of Gabriel but she couldn’t control them. It was like they had a mind of their own.

  She felt his hand on her shoulder.

  “Don’t blame yourself.”

  She looked up at him. “Are you serious? This was one hundred percent my fault. I was the stubborn one who wouldn’t stop. You even warned me.”

  “Because of the pain you would endure by seeing your mother. I didn’t think the Cimmerians would use a Necromancer to get to you.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Necromancers never side with Enchanters or Cimmerians.”

  “Well, maybe this one did.”

  “I don’t know. It seems unlikely. What exactly happened?”

  “All I remember is I saw my mom and I asked her a few questions and then she was gone. I woke up at the cabin, trapped inside my body. I couldn’t control it at all. Then I came to the Manor.”

  “Do you remember the thoughts the spirit inside you had?”

  “Not really. Just that they needed to attack.” Ava forced herself to remember what the spirit thought. If they were to attack everyone at the Manor, why didn’t she try to kill Peter? She remembered as soon as the spirit saw Colden, she immediately attacked. Were the spirits trying to find Colden? Why would they want to kill him?

  “What are you thinking?”

  “What if the spirits wanted Colden dead?”

  “Why would they want that?”

  “Maybe not kill him, but weaken him to—. What if they were really after Savina? And were trying to get her away from the Manor so they could attack her?”

  “Or to get her away from the Manor to attack us.”

  The realization on his face matched her feeling. “Oh no. What have I done? They’re going to ambush them. Or us.”

  He shook his head. “Something about that doesn’t make sense though. Didn’t the spirits use your power against him?”

  “Yes.”

  “Almost drowning someone wouldn’t weaken them as much as it did Colden.”

  “He has been ill lately.”

  “But you healed him.”

  “Apparently I didn’t if all it took was that to make him so bad Savina couldn’t even heal him. Maybe I was to attack everyone at the Manor and he was the first one I saw.”

  “You saw Peter first, though.”

  “Have we deduced that the Cimmerians hijacked the Necromancer’s spirit calling?”

  “No. Just speculating. Necromancers are insanely smart and powerful. He would have sensed Cimmerians and halted the whole thing.”

  “But he didn’t. So maybe it was a spirit calling gone bad. Really bad. Perhaps there was another spirit that forced its way into the circle.”

  “The spirits can’t leave the circle though. It’s a barrier. So either the Necromancer forced the spirit inside you or I don’t know.”

  Ava sighed. “He could have been possessed.”

  “The possessed spirit wouldn’t know how to operate a calling.”

  “Well, whatever the reason, it’s my fault that he’s on his death bed. Maybe the spirits weren’t after him specifically but because he is somewhat of an Elder, it was enough to force Savina to go look for a cure.”

  “Possibly.”

  “How would we even know if the Elders got attacked? Or vice versa?”

  “The Elders have very strong powers that link them together. Kinda like our necklaces, but a much stronger connection. We have got to keep training and keep our eyes out.”

  Ava nodded and for a few minutes, they were quiet, lost in their own thoughts.

  “Thank you, Gabe. For being my friend. And for helping me.”

  “You don’t have to thank me.”

  “I just wish I knew why she did it.”

  “Maybe she was faced with a decision and she thought he would never possess your soul because he would eventually die like Corbin did.”

  “What kind of decision could that be? Why would she just assume he would be dead by the time I was old enough.”

  “I don’t know. She could have been a spy.”

  Ava hadn’t thought of that. “Do you know something that I don’t?”

  “No. I’m just saying that it happens.”

  “Is someone here a spy?”

  “No, the Elders would know.”

  “Didn’t you know my mother though?”

  “I only met her briefly. I hadn’t always lived here.”

  “Why have you all been here for so long?”

  “We came to train you all. But we liked being around everyone.” He dropped his gaze and Ava wondered if there was more he wasn’t telling her.

  “Oh. So, what if my mom had been a spy for the Cimmerians? Why go and marry an Ephemeral and have a child? Was it like what Veronica’s husband did?”

  “I really don’t know. I wish I knew the answers.”

  “It’s okay. I should stop obsessing over it.”

  “It’s a part of who you are. Of course, you want to know. But don’t think for a second that what your mom chose for you means you have to follow through. You make your own decisions and ultimately, you’ll know the right one.”

  He was right. “I just wish I had listened to you.”

  “I know, but we have all been desperate at some point in our lives and get consumed by that desperation.”

  “I can be better. I don’t want to be a Cimmerian. But will Savina believe me?”

  His eyebrows furrowed. “Of course she will. She believes in you.”

  “What do you think they’ll do to me?”

  “I really don’t know, Ava. Just know you still have friends who support you.”

  “Thanks,” she said, even though she didn’t deserve his friendship or support.

  They stayed up a few hours longer talking. Gabriel had really become a good friend and the thought of possibly losing him in the war made Ava panic. Losing any of her friends for that matter. And Peter. She couldn’t possibly live without Peter.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  BROKENHEARTED
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br />   Ava had never been afraid to speak to her father. But as she stood before his door, chewing on her lip, her heart raced and she trembled. They hadn’t exchanged words in almost a day, and she needed to see him before he left. She had broken his heart and trust and she knew there was nothing she could do to take back what she did. Colden was a close friend of her father’s. Of everyone.

  She took a deep breath and knocked. Better to get it over with now than later. A few seconds later, he opened the door. His face sobered as soon as he saw her, but then let out a sigh.

  “Can we talk?” she asked.

  “Of course.” He let her in.

  She looked around at the masculine room and realized she had never been in there before. Her stomach dropped at the sight of his open suitcase on the bed. Ava didn’t want her father to leave, even though it was to keep him safe. She turned back to face him. His gray hair was tousled and he wore the face of a stressed man raising a teenage daughter alone. She knew it couldn’t have been easy raising her especially.

  “Dad, I know you hate me, and I’m sorry for what I did. I never meant for anything like that to happen. I just wanted answers about Mom and my heritage.”

  He shook his head. “Ava, let’s get one thing straight.” His eyes held a stern look and his voice reflected that. “No matter what, I will never hate you. You are my daughter and I love you regardless of what your decisions may be.”

  She drew a shaky breath and her chin quivered.

  “I know you didn’t do that on purpose, but you obviously weren’t thinking. That’s what I’m most disappointed about. You had to know that seeing a Necromancer was dangerous. You had to know what the consequences could have been.”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat. “Only what it could have done to me. I did a lot of research and Colden told me how to find one. I thought that if he told me that, it couldn’t be so bad.”

  He furrowed his eyebrows. “Colden told you where to find the Necromancer?”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re telling the truth?”

  “Yes, I swear.”

  “Why would he do that?”

  “He said he felt sorry for me because Savina wouldn’t tell me the truth about Mom.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  Ava silently cursed. How could she possibly tell her father? Would he believe her? Why did she have to be the one to tell him? Her necklace warmed.

  His eyes shifted to her pentacle. “What is it?”

  “Dad, Mom was a.” She paused. There was no easy way to say it. “She was a Cimmerian.”

  The blood from his face drained, and she stiffened, waiting for the yelling.

  “Why would you ever think your mother was such a thing?”

  “It’s true, Dad. Colden told me.”

  “Are you lying?”

  “No. I wish I was.” Her vision blurred.

  Her father stared at her for what seemed like an eternity and then his eyes watered. “I don’t believe it. She would never have lied to me.”

  “It’s true.” Her heart faltered. She hated hurting her father’s feelings, but he needed to know. “Xavier told me she promised my soul to Havok. That’s why I went to the Necromancer. To talk to Mom to see if it was all true.”

  Her father looked as if he would pass out and she helped him into a nearby chair. He grasped her hand tightly. “What-what did she say?” He gave her a look that pleaded with her to tell him none of it was true.

  A tear slid down Ava’s cheek. “She said it was my destiny.”

  His face crumpled and she knew it broke his heart to learn that the only woman he had ever loved betrayed him. The woman he gave up his Ephemeral life for. The woman he shared a child with.

  “Oh, Ava.” He wrapped his arms around her. The last time she saw him cry was the day her mother died. His pain tugged at her heart and it weighed her down. She wished there was something she could do.

  “There’s more, Dad.”

  He looked up and wiped his eyes. “What else is there?”

  “I killed Jonah and Drew. They attacked me and I was just trying to make them stop and I killed them. The Cimmerians have been torturing Thomas, Gillian, and me. Thomas’s dad was a Cimmerian and they keep saying it’s our destiny and everything just got to me. I was obsessed with finding the truth and it got me in the worst trouble of my life.”

  “Oh, Ava.” He gave a look of horror. “I-I don’t know what to say.”

  “I know it’s a lot to process.”

  He stared at her as if he was studying her face. “I am sorry. I should’ve helped you through this more than I have. I know this is a lot to handle and they certainly don’t make it any easier.” He drew her into an embrace and she clutched onto her father with everything she had.

  After an immeasurable amount of time, he pulled back and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “When all of this is over, we’ll talk to Savina and get the truth. I have to be gone by tonight.”

  “Where are you going?”

  He stood and put the last remaining items into his suitcase and then zipped it up. “I don’t know and you can’t know. In case the Cimmerians get inside your head.”

  “I’m working on that. I can change, Dad. I can be a better person. I won’t make any more stupid mistakes.”

  He reached up and touched her cheek. He gave a small smile. “Yes, you will. We all will. But it’s okay as long as we learn from them. I love you, Ava.”

  “I love you, too. I don’t want to say goodbye, Dad. What if I—.”

  “No what ifs. Don’t think like that. Be strong. We will see each other when this is over.”

  “How long will that be?”

  He frowned. “I don’t know.” He pulled her against him and held her as long as he could.

  Then when someone knocked on his door, Ava gripped him tighter and cried harder. She didn’t want to say goodbye to her father. She didn’t know the next time she would see him.

  “I have to go, sweetie,” he said.

  She nodded and let go. She looked up and locked eyes with Gabriel.

  Her father kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes. “I’m so proud of you, Ava. I love you.”

  When she opened her eyes to tell him she loved him, he was gone.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  FRAYED

  There was a hollow feeling in Ava’s heart all day during training. But she used all of her anger into practice. And when they were done for the day, Ava joined her friends in the library. They were tired and no one looked like they had slept well. She couldn’t even imagine how Link, Nicole, Seth, and Peter were feeling at the thought of going to war. Then again, none of them had ever been in a battle except for the older Enchanters.

  “How’s your dad?” Melissa asked.

  “I don’t know. I can’t talk to him or see him.”

  “That really sucks. Every bit of this sucks.”

  Thomas gnawed on his fingernails. “You can say that again.”

  “Do you really have to do that?” Melissa rolled her eyes.

  “Yes,” he said.

  “This is so weird.” Lance shook his head. “It’s like we’re just sitting here waiting.”

  Ava nodded. “We are.”

  Link pulled a chair closer to their table and sat in it backwards. “Yeah, well this is getting old. Instead of just sitting here and waiting, why can’t we just attack them? They’ll never see it coming.”

  “Thank you,” Thomas said. “I’ve been wondering the same for days. I swear, I know Savina is all strong and whatnot, but sometimes I really wonder how smart she is.”

  “Colden said she used to be a little naïve,” Ava said.

  “Used to be? I mean, no offense but come on. You just tell your entire coven to just sit back and wait. Oh, and you and another Elder have to leave to go find some random flower?”

  “I don’t think Savina wants to admit the truth.”

  “Why are you guys being so harsh on Savina?” Pet
er asked.

  Ava sighed. “I guess I’m just frustrated with her. We’re sick of waiting.” She looked around the room to see if she could find Gabriel or Joss. “Where are Gillian and Jeremy?”

  “Gillian’s been hiding,” Melissa said. “I don’t know. She hasn’t really said much or been herself since learning her dad is really her stepdad and her real dad was a Cimmerian.”

  “Wait, what? How did she find out?”

  “She went back and talked to Marcel while you all went to the club.”

  Ava must have been so focused on seeing the Necromancer that she didn’t realize Gillian and Jeremy didn’t come.

  “No offense, but so was my dad and Ava’s mom,” Thomas said. “I think she just needs to grow some balls. I gotta say though, that was pretty damn ballsy of you, Ava.”

  “Thomas,” she warned.

  “What? I’m serious.” He leaned closer. “I gotta know though. What was it like?”

  Melissa punched his arm. “Thomas!”

  “I’m just curious.”

  “Nothing you ever want to experience,” Ava said, and then looked up to see Natalia walking toward their table with a hateful expression on her face.

  Her hazel eyes felt like daggers. “Colden has been asking for you.” It was almost like she shouted at her.

  Ava felt relieved yet fearful. What did he want to say to her? At least he wanted to talk. That was more than she could have asked for.

  “Okay.” She got to her feet and slid her body between the back of Seth’s chair and another table and followed Natalia.

  Natalia stopped right outside Colden’s door and turned to her. “I will be outside this door the whole time. Don’t even think about hurting him.”

  “I’m not going to hurt him. I never meant to.”

  “Whatever.” She opened the door and Ava walked inside.

  “Hello, Ava.” He smiled. His skin was a sickly white and sweat beaded his face. Tears clouded her vision. How could he be so friendly toward her? She had almost killed him.

  “Colden, I’m so sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “Don’t apologize. Come sit.” He offered the chair next to his bed.

  She hesitantly crossed the room and took the seat. “Why aren’t you upset with me?”