by Wendy Knight
Good grief.
He watched her. She could feel his eyes on her, just as she could last night. Probably thinking… well, she had no idea. If she wasn’t so afraid of annoying her brain into pulling the bars up again, she would try to probe… see what she could find. But even getting into Quin’s head wasn’t worth the risk. She’d been afraid of a lot of things in her life, but this new thing she’d started?
It scared her the most.
If her mom were here, she’d know what to do. She’d know a spell or something. But she wasn’t here because she’d taken Destiny’s pain, and they’d sent her into a coma. If only Destiny had been stronger. If she’d hidden the pain better. If she hadn’t cried out for her mom right before Alina had finished the spell, maybe none of this would have happened.
Her heart constricted, suddenly missing her mom so much it felt like she was literally squeezing her heart in her chest. Alina might have been afraid of Winnie, afraid of confrontation, afraid of many things, but it had never stopped her. She would have known what to do. She would have made everything all better.
Destiny drew her knees up to her chest and dropped her forehead against them, hoping Quin with all his intensity, didn’t see the tears escaping down her cheeks. Mama.
And here she was, chasing some stupid prophecy instead of trying to figure out how to save her.
More tears.
“Hey.”
Destiny sniffed and peeked through her hair at Quin, who had moved to sit next to her. “Hi.”
“So, I noticed you only made it to one Krav Maga class, and no offense, but you kind of sucked.”
Scowling, she sat up and pushed her tangled hair out of her face. “It was my first class. Like ever. Shannon said I was phenomenal.”
Quin shrugged, a small smile playing around his lips. He hadn’t brushed his hair lately, either, but it looked stylishly messy instead of homeless. “Yeah, well. If you’re going to go attacking random warlocks, you should probably hit a few more classes.”
Seriously? She stared at him in utter annoyance for several long seconds before she realized what he was doing.
Distraction.
As if he wasn’t distracting enough. He had seen the tears in her eyes. And now he was trying to annoy her into forgetting.
Well, it wasn’t going to work. She scowled and dropped her head back to her knees.
“I could help you.”
“What?” she asked without raising her head.
“Come on. Sit up, we’ll go over some moves.”
Sighing, she tipped her head sideways so he could see her annoyance. “I’m on the verge of losing my mind completely and you’re trying to teach me defense moves so I can fight warlocks who will kill me anyway because they have magic?”
He grinned, devastatingly adorable, and nodded. “Yep.”
This was why she’d avoided him at all costs at school, why she’d worked her tail off to be better at him in every class, and why she’d run herself into the ground at cross country. Because she didn’t believe in love, but this boy was the closest thing she’d ever come to having a crush.
How can you have a crush on someone if love came from a potion?
Fate reappeared, jogging back down the trail. She, of course, looked like a goddess. Platinum hair all glimmering and non-tangled. Clothes clean. Feet not blackened and torn. Oh, and the giant bandage on her chin was conspicuously absent. Only Destiny got to have that fun little accessory.
Luca was studying something on his phone and Quin got up to help him. Fate took his place and plopped down next to her. “You have a brush?” Destiny asked suspiciously.
Fate giggled and handed her bag over. Toothbrush, toothpaste, a brush, face wash. Destiny could have kissed her.
“I didn’t know it would matter so much.” Fate wiggled her eyebrows with a pointed look at Quin and pushed Destiny to her feet.
Destiny stuck her tongue out and started up the trail, but Quin fell into step beside her. “What?” she asked again. So eloquent when this boy was around.
“I just—”
“You’re afraid I’ll take off on my way to the bathroom. I’m not allowed to go anywhere unsupervised, am I?”
“It’s not that—”
“Right.” Destiny shrugged. “It’s just as well. I don’t know when I’ll go crazy again, either.”
“I just have to pee, Destiny. Is that okay with you? We aren’t close enough to be sharing this kind of information.” He stared skyward, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Oh. Sorry.”
He smirked.
They walked in silence until they got to the little square building and each went their designated way. Five minutes later, Destiny felt more human than she could remember feeling, and was just tying her hair back in a thick, but manageable, braid as she walked out.
Quin was leaning against the wall, staring out over the camp area. “This place is unreal.”
“Right? Like being on the moon. If the moon was black.” She squinted up at the sky, where the moon could still be seen toward the west, full and white. Definitely not black.
But Quin didn’t seem to mind. He was still scanning the area, those intense brown eyes seeming to memorize everything. “My mom always wanted to come here.”
“How is she?” Destiny asked quietly.
“She hasn’t changed. Apparently when they said the night would save her, they meant you, not the actual night.”
Destiny raised an eyebrow. “So… I’m supposed to save your mother?”
Quin gave her that lopsided, adorable smile again and her heart fluttered in her chest. Traitorous heart. “Yes. And the world. But Fate gets to help with that part.”
“Wonderful.”
“That’s why I was thinking it would be a good idea to practice up on your Krav Maga. I mean, have you heard about all those girls who have been attacked but fought their attackers off and—”
“Yeah but their attackers didn’t have magic wands.”
“Well… they might think otherwise—”
Destiny rolled her eyes heavenward. “You did not just go there.”
He shrugged, laughing. “I’m a guy. It’s what I do.”
Destiny just shook her head.
“So… just a few moves? I’ll take it easy on you.”
Destiny straightened her spine and glared at him. “Why do you think you need to take it easy on me? I don’t need easy.”
“Because…” Quin said slowly, squinting as if he was trying to read how much trouble he’d just got himself in. “You’re smaller than me?”
“So?”
“And because I’m a football player.”
“So?”
“I play baseball, too. I don’t know if I mentioned that.”
Destiny heaved a sigh. “So does Damien. That does not make you tougher than me. I can swing a bat, too.”
“Really? We’ll have to play sometime. Oh, and also, because I’ve been taking Krav Maga for years. I’ve had more time to practice the technique and more time for Shannon to kick my butt into shape.”
She tipped her head to the side, considering him. “Well, okay. I’ll give you that one.”
His entire face lit up like she’d just handed him a pony. “So you’ll let me teach you?”
“At least until Luca comes back with breakfast. Then we have to go back to saving the world.”
“Deal.”
“And Fate learns, too. Because she won’t let me fight the warlocks alone.”
Quin smiled down at Fate’s bright head in the campground below them, bent over her phone. “Of course.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
FATE REGARDED THEM BOTH DUBIOUSLY. “DESTINY is the one who has a thing against being a damsel in distress. I just use potions to save my butt. Can I skip this?”
“No,” Destiny said firmly. “You have to participate and learn how to defend yourself until Luca gets back with breakfast.”
“Which will be about fifteen minutes,”
Luca informed them from where he sat on the tailgate of Fate’s truck, watching with interest.
“You could come learn, too,” Fate said, pointing at Luca and then pointing at the ground next to her.
Luca laughed and shook his head. “Oh no. I’m going to get breakfast, remember?” He jumped off the truck and grabbed Fate’s keys off the table.
“So you should probably learn extra well so you can save him, too,” Destiny whispered loudly to her sister.
Luca chuckled and Quin nodded. Fate sighed and raised her hands, like Destiny’s. She held her fists wrong, with the thumb over the fingers where she’d break it if she tried to punch anything with it. Destiny had at least learned the right way to make a fist in the first class.
Fate smirked, moving her thumb into place, and Quin realized belatedly that he had his work cut out for him. “So I know you talk to each other in your heads, which is weird, by the way, but I have this suspicion that you’re in my head sometimes, too. Don’t do that.”
“Not in your head,” they both said, smiling innocently.
“Right.” He looked to Luca for help, but Luca was already pulling away. Sighing, he raised his hands, too. “Protect your face. Like this.” He motioned toward his arms and both girls nodded, following suit. Fate snuck a look over at Destiny, who winked at her.
This was going well.
“So this is called a Hammer Fist.” Quin held his hand out. “Instead of punching with your knuckles, you hit with the underside of your hand, where it’s meaty.” He pounded on the side of his hand. “It’s kind of like you’re chopping down, instead of straight out, so gravity helps, too.” He demonstrated, wishing he had someone to practice on.
Both girls paled.
“With pads. Get out of my head.”
Destiny snickered. Fate hid a smile and practiced what he’d just done. A second later, Destiny was, too, and Quin was feeling pretty good about himself as a teacher.
“Destiny, hit me. I need to see how bad it hurts.”
“Wait, what?” Quin started, but too late.
Destiny turned and whacked her sister. Fate howled in pain, rubbing her shoulder. “It hurts!”
“Don’t do that!” Quin said.
“Hit me now,” Destiny said.
“I think she’s bruised enough—” Quin said, but also too late. Fate pounded Destiny, and Destiny wailed. Then they both went back to practicing, tweaking their technique to be more effective after their pounding.
“Okay. Got it. What’s next?” Destiny asked, rubbing her bruises. Quin swallowed, not sure he wanted to teach them anything else. Destiny raised an eyebrow, waiting.
He couldn’t resist that look.
Maybe a knee one, then. That might be safer. Surely they wouldn’t try that out on each other.
Right?
“Okay…” They both snapped back to attention, watching him with shrewd blue eyes. He swallowed hard, palms suddenly clammy. He literally couldn’t remember a time he’d met anyone so gorgeous, and there were two of them. But his eyes, as always, sought Destiny. “Once you hit them with the hammer fist, they’ll double over, like this.” He bent over. “This is perfect for you to bring your knee up and hit them in the face. Put your hands on both shoulders, to bring the body down toward you as you bring your knee up for added pressure.”
Both girls practiced several times. He was just about to breathe easier when Fate said, “Hey Destiny,”
“No!” Quin bellowed. “No trying this on each other!”
Destiny blinked at him. “Then how will we learn?”
Quin ran a hand through his hair. “When you were little, how did you learn spells? Do that.”
They both frowned. “We are.”
He dropped his hand to his side, staring at them in bewilderment. “You used your magic on each other?”
They both nodded, looking for all the world like this was the most normal thing ever.
“Okay well, don’t do that. You’ll just have to practice on air for now,” Quin said.
Destiny and Fate shared a look. Quin should have realized right away what that look meant. But the innocent smiles distracted him. “What if we just do it carefully?”
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously, but he could form no argument. Shrugging, Quin said, “I… guess?”
It was not his best idea.
They were sweaty, bruised, and Quin was slightly bloody, but everyone was still alive when the truck pulled into view. Destiny was instantly sidetracked by the smell of warm muffins and chocolate milk and abandoned them both. Fate soon followed, so Quin gave up, but he felt good about the progress they’d made. They wouldn’t win in a fight, but they would at least not hurt themselves if they were attacked. He hoped. More than anything, he was impressed by their determination. Neither of them shied away from pain or hard work. No matter how many times they knocked themselves or each other down, they got back up and came back for more. If spirit and will were all it took to beat the warlocks, these two would slaughter the whole clan.
Unfortunately, that was not all it took. And if what Luca had told him was true, Destiny was in very real danger. The Coven had let him know the entire warlock force seemed to be migrating north, away from the witches. Luca, and Quin too, were afraid they knew why.
Destiny.
Whether the warlock clan had a seer of their own who knew Destiny held the key to destroying them, or they had tasted her power and wanted the rest of it, they were coming. It was only a matter of time until they caught up to her, especially since she seemed determined to run toward them, not away. Quin understood that both girls were supposed to save the day and all, but they were woefully unprepared. And a couple Krav Maga lessons weren’t going to save them.
****
LUCA DROPPED THE BAG of muffins on the table and dug out cups for the chocolate milk. Destiny happily settled herself at the table, hands clasped in front of her. Muffins were her absolute favorite thing ever. Her mama made them every Sunday. Quin sat next to her, Fate and Luca across from them.
“I hope this is okay. Muffins are my absolute favorite thing ever,” he said, handing Fate a cup.
Destiny froze, eyes wide. She had literally just thought that.
Fate smiled demurely. “We also like muffins.”
“I made sure to get chocolate chip. They’re the best. At least one for each of you.” Luca winked, blue eyes sparkling. Destiny could see why Alina had fallen so hard for him. He was very handsome now — she could imagine how hot he had been back in the day. Plus, he was very kind. And he hadn’t even blinked about chasing her down or sleeping on the ground in a field of lava.
Fate nodded, agreeing with Destiny’s thoughts. “You are my favorite father ever,” Fate said as she devoured her first muffin in three bites.
Luca froze.
Destiny sucked in a breath, watching him out of the corner of her eye. Next to her, Quin also stilled.
Fate didn’t. She happily dove into a second muffin, oblivious. Or at least pretending to be. Except Destiny could see the slight shake to her fingers and knew better.
“I’m happy to be of service,” Luca finally said with a small smile.
Fate winked at Destiny and they resumed eating, safely making it past the first out loud mention of father. In her peripheral vision, Destiny saw Quin give Luca a thumbs up, and he grinned.
“Any word on Mom?” Destiny asked around a mouthful of muffin.
Luca shook his head. “No. Nothing’s changed. Quin’s mother is the same as well.”
They fell into a sad silence, each tormented by their thoughts.
Until Fate squealed. Destiny nearly fell off her bench, grabbing Quin’s arm for balance. She tried to ignore the warmth that spread through her at his touch and instead, glared at Fate. “What the heck?”
But Fate wasn’t listening. She bounced off the bench and jogged to the main road, waving like a crazy person. A white Range Rover rolled around the corner into view.
“Damien!” Fa
te cried, jumping up to bear hug him as soon as he managed to get his seatbelt off. “What are you doing here?”
“You’re here. Things are tense and scary. Thought I better come check it out.” He hugged Fate to him. “You know how I love adventure.”
“Luca, Quin. This is Damien. Damien, this is—”
“Your father?” Damien breathed. The eyes were a dead giveaway.
Fate nodded happily as they shook hands.
Damien’s breath left him in a whoosh, and he smiled crookedly. “Guess I gotta behave now, huh?”
Fate rolled her eyes, punching him lightly in the ribs. “Like my mom would let you get away with anything else!” Fate squealed as Damien shook Luca’s hand.
”Nice to meet you.” Luca eyed Damien with interest.
“So… you’re a cousin? Brother?” Damien asked Quin. “Long lost triplet I didn’t know you had?”
“He’s our Krav Maga teacher.” Fate snickered. “This is Quin, Damien. Remember? I told you about him.”
Damien nodded. “Right.”
“What?” Quin and Destiny asked simultaneously.
“Uhhh… so how was the drive?” Fate led Damien away, toward the bathrooms, which seemed to be their collective mecca.
“Do I need to supervise them or… anything?” Luca frowned, genuinely worried.
Destiny laughed. “No. They’re angels. My mother makes potions for a living. She’s instilled the fear of God into that boy.”
“Oh good. I’m not so good at the supervising.”
Destiny patted him on the arm. It was a little awkward, but a little nice, too. “You’re doing fine.”
“Learning as I go,” Luca said with a shrug.
Destiny sat back down next to Quin, grateful that Luca had stayed so it wasn’t just the two of them. She was suddenly unsure of what to do with her hands.
“I never believed she was dead, you know.” Luca started hesitantly. “Everyone said I was in denial. That I just couldn’t accept it. But I knew she was alive.” He sighed, leaning back. “The places I’ve seen searching for her.”