She remembered looking him up on the internet when she had been ten trying to see if there was anything she might be able to learn about him that would help him to like her, to want her around. She had been confused when she found nothing. There had been no records of him attending school, no court win he had always bragged about. In fact, the first mention of him wasn’t until six months after her birthday.
It had seemed then as if he had come out of nowhere. Now she realized, he had. He must have struck some sort of deal that placed him where he was. She knew they hadn’t moved next door to Dakota’s family until after she had been six months old. Dakota’s mother had told her that much.
Her thoughts came back to Terrenia, when she had first arrived. Annabelle had told her that Mitch had been no father to her. That a father was someone who should bring love to your heart, not fear. She remembered the little comments here and there that they had made and the fact that she did indeed resemble Annabelle. She and Gregory had the same blue eyes while both Monica and Mitch had brown. How had she missed it? Even the genetic markers were there. She had just been to set on her past to notice what was around her.
She looked up at him. He was regarding her with a wary stare as if he were afraid she might scream and run away. How he could ever think she would was beyond her. His confession had brought her more happiness then she had ever thought possible. She wasn’t related to an abusive monster and she had been wanted when she was born.
“I'm your daughter.”
Gregory smiled widely and Anastasia took a moment to memorize it. It was the first real smile she had seen on his face since Annabelle’s death.
“Yes, you are.”
“Annabelle was my mother.”
“Yes.”
Tears filled Anastasia’s eyes. “I'm your daughter.” She repeated. “I had been wanted.”
“More then you will ever know, Anastasia. I'm so sorry I didn’t get to you sooner. I took my magic slowly, I knew its depths and that I could have so easily turned in my search for you. Annabelle convinced me that if I turned you were lost anyways.” Tears began streaming down his face as he walked towards her.
Anastasia ran to him and wrapped her arms around him. “I'm glad you didn’t turn.”
“Me too, my dear Anastasia.”
The revelation hit her like a ton of bricks, although on some level she wasn’t surprised. She had been loved by parents who had wanted her, who had believed she could do anything in the world if she wanted too. She hadn’t been born to a cruel man nor did she have his blood running through her veins.
Her heart began to ache for Annabelle, a mother who she hadn’t known long enough, and she felt the anger follow closely behind the pain, for a man who had stolen her childhood away. She embraced her father and thanked God for blessing her with another chance to get to know him.
“Focus, Anastasia.” Gregory said calmly.
Anastasia sat cross-legged on the floor of the training room, her eyes closed tightly. After the revelation that she was Gregory’s daughter had set in, they had begun trying to tap into her magic.
“You have to be easy about it, don’t think too hard just let it come.”
“You aren’t worried I will turn dark?”
Gregory laughed lightly. “No, Anastasia, that is the last thing I am worried about. It’s not the sensing of one’s magic that will turn them dark, it’s when you begin practicing the more advanced magic that there’s a risk. Besides, I don’t think there’s a dark bone in your body.”
“Isn’t that what everyone believes? That they are the ones who won’t turn.”
“We will cross that bridge when we come to it. I just want you to find a way to access it without having to be taunted.”
“Okay.” She tuned everything around her out and did her best to focus on the task at hand. Her mind drifted back to her childhood. How different it would have been had she not been taken as a baby. She would have had a happy one she knew. Gregory and Annabelle would have been wonderful parents to grow up with. Mitch and Monica had always been so cruel to her. Monica had been more passive than Mitch, but she had always felt more as a means to an end than a family member to them. At least now she knew why.
She was focused on Mitch and then suddenly it was there. She could feel something, the closest word she could find that described what she was feeling was potential. She knew she had it now.
“I feel something.”
“Fantastic. Hold your hand out, palm up.”
She did as he said and kept the focus on the part of her she had never known existed.
“Think about light, Anastasia.”
She thought about the day she had come to Terrenia, and about how she had seen Gregory holding the ball of light in his hands much to Brady’s delight.
“Astounding.” She heard Gregory whisper and she opened her eyes.
A huge smile crossed across her face. She was holding a ball of light the size of softball in the palm of her hand.
“I did it!”
“You did wonderfully, Anastasia! I didn’t even get it the first try. It took me weeks to master that, and I had known my entire life what was inside of me.”
She studied the light and then did as she had seen Gregory do and closed her palm. The light expanded and then burst into tiny pieces. She laughed as they fell around her and then disappeared onto the ground.
She saw the pride reflected in Gregory’s eyes and her heart nearly burst with happiness.
“Fantastic.” His eyes were wide in awe and he studied her closely. “You are amazing Anastasia; your mother would be very proud of you.”
“Thank you.” Her eyes filled and she smiled at him.
“Let’s try something else.”
Later that evening they sat on the stairs together staring out at the night.
“So the night I attacked Maximus, I used magic?”
“The night he provoked you,” He corrected. “You used magic.”
“How?” She wondered aloud.
“He pushed you, and you did it without realizing it. It’s almost a fight or flight instinct at first. That’s how I figured out I had magic as well.”
She looked at him wanting him to continue. “My brother came into his magic about a year before I did. Unlike me, he didn’t fear it. Our mother had also possessed the power, but she had always avoided using it and passed down the stories of those who had lost their souls to the darkness. It scared me, but Vincent never was bothered by it.” He ran his hand through his hair. “He started bullying me. Beat me up enough times and eventually I snapped. I almost killed him and he laughed about it. That’s when I swore it off that is until you were taken.
That night he came to tell us what he had done. ‘I didn’t kill her’ he assured us. As if that would make what he did excusable. He told me that he wouldn’t return you, that if I wanted you back then I would have to use my magic to find you. He found humor in the irony that the very reason I refused it was the reason I would need it. I flew into a rage and very nearly took the house down with me.” He looked up to the sky and smiled. “Annabelle brought me back. She was suddenly the only thing I could think of, and I remembered how happy she was the day we found out we were pregnant with you. That’s when I focused and I knew that if I lost myself, you two would be gone from me as well.” He turned to face her. “The seer told us that you would be more powerful than we could ever imagine. If you even for a moment begin to believe that the power is too much, you have to find a way to come back.”
“Dakota brought me back the night I fought with Maximus. It was so strange, he just popped into my head and it helped me to refocus. Otherwise, I might have killed him before I even realized it.”
“You love him.”
“Dakota?”
“Yes, it’s the only reason he would have come into your mind at that moment. He is your light as Annabelle was mine.”
She nodded absently. He had been her light growing up, the only reason she hadn’t lo
st her mind growing up in that house. It would make sense that he would be the one to keep her grounded now.
“Gregory, Anastasia.” Tony came towards them from the direction of the village, three Fighters behind him. Anastasia jumped up. The last time they had come to see Gregory was when Brutes had attacked.
“Tony what is it?” Anastasia heard the fear in Gregory’s voice.
“Sebastian and Alastair.”
“What about them?”
“They were killed.” Tony looked at Anastasia and then back at Gregory as if asking for permission to continue.
He stood and walked down the stairs. “She’s fine, go ahead. Killed how?”
“It looks like a Brute did it, only they were found in Maximus’ bedroom. His mother found them. It’s bad Gregory, and there’s something else. Maximus and Brady are both missing.”
“Oh God.” Anastasia stood and came down to stand next to Gregory. “We have to go find them!”
“Anastasia, I need you to stay-”
“Gregory,” Tony said hesitantly, “We could use her. She is quick with a sword and another pair of eyes will help. We will send her with Patrick and Leo.” He motioned to the two Fighters who stood behind him. “With it being dark, we could definitely use the extra help.” He urged him.
Gregory stood silently for a moment contemplating what he had said. “Very well.” He finally agreed. “You three check the fence for any way they could have gotten in. Stay out of the trees.” He warned. “Tony and I will go to the village and grab more Fighters. We will check the forest. Anastasia, stay safe.”
“I will.” She turned and ran back towards the village with the two Fighters on her heels.
“I don’t see any way they could have gotten in.” Patrick grumbled as they walked the fence.
“It’s strange.” She agreed. They had nearly walked the entire perimeter and there were no signs of Brutes. No footprints, broken twigs or any damage to the fence.
A scream tore through the night and Anastasia’s hand shot to her sword.
Patrick and Leo unsheathed theirs as well, and all three turned towards the tree line. The scream sounded again and she bolted for the trees. “Its Brady!” Fear gripped her heart and she plunged into the darkness.
“We were told to stay out of the trees!” Patrick yelled for her.
“We can’t let them kill him!” Leo yelled back at him.
They ran through the trees, the branches pulling at her as she raced towards the sound of the screams. She burst into the clearing and she felt the panic set in. All she could see was an unconscious Brady was tied to a tree across from her, everything else was a blur that didn’t matter. It took her a moment to gather control of herself and when she could see that he was still breathing a wave of relief washed over her. When her mind finally got around to taking in the rest of the picture, the fear was quickly replaced with anger. Her entire body began to vibrate with it.
“It took you long enough.” Maximus stood to the left of Brady, wiping blood off of his knife. She saw the cuts on Brady’s arm and her hand clenched around the hilt of her sword.
“You son of a bitch.”
“Not all that inaccurate actually.” He smiled and stepped in front of Brady. “This is all your fault you know, just as Annabelle was.”
“I thought you would have learned your lesson about taunting me after our last encounter.” She circled around him trying to get towards Brady.
“I have much better back up this time.” He motioned behind her and she turned for the first time to see that four Brutes flanked her. Neither Patrick nor Leo were there and she prayed they had only gotten lost in the trees.
“Is that why you killed them?” She asked hoping to buy them some time for either Patrick or Leo to catch up or for Gregory and the other Fighters to find them. “Because Sebastian and Alastair let you get your ass kicked by a girl?”
“It wasn’t a fair fight!” He yelled, lunging towards her but then pulling back. “They couldn’t keep their noses out of my business.”
“So they didn’t want to join your Brute loving psychopathic club.”
He grinned at her and she wondered how she had never seen the madness in his eyes. The coldness had always been there, but she would have never predicted he would have been a traitor or that he would have been capable of something to monstrous as hurting an innocent child.
She heard the rustling directly behind her and she launched into an attack as two of the four Brutes jumped towards her. She felt the satisfaction as one fell onto her sword but before she could pull it out of its chest, the other three were on her. She kicked and punched but she was no match for the three of them.
She tried to dig down and access her magic, anything that could help her but all she felt was fear, for Brady and for herself.
The Brutes held her arms and Maximus came to stand in front of her. She felt his fist across her face and then again in her stomach. He laughed and continued to hit her.
“You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to knock you down a few pegs!” He was breathing heavily and she felt her rib crack under his fist. She cried out in pain and her vision began to waver.
Suddenly she heard a deep growl and the assault stopped.
“Get it you morons!” She heard Maximus yell and then heard the grunts of the Brutes as they fell to the ground.
She did the best she could to pull herself towards Brady, but she could only make out shapes. She could have sworn she saw something that looked like a large cat attacking the Brutes.
“This isn’t over!” She heard Maximus yell and then she felt soft fur underneath her arm. It was lifting her and she could feel the bunched muscles beneath her beaten body.
“I need to get to Brady.” She told it. “Please, I need to help him.”
“Anastasia!” She heard Gregory yell and she smiled lightly. They had found them. Brady would be okay now.
“Get Brady!” She heard Tony yell and knew he must have been directing the other Fighters.
“What happened Anastasia?" Gregory knelt beside her. “Thank you.” He said to her rescuer.
“It was Maximus.” She choked out. “He killed Alastair and Sebastian.” She was wheezing and she was fighting for consciousness.
She heard him yell in fury. “We need to get them back to the village.”
“Let’s go.” She heard Tony say.
“Patrick and Leo?” She asked hopefully.
“We didn’t find them. Let’s get you back to the village. You’re in bad shape.”
CHAPTER NINE
Anastasia opened her eyes slowly and squinted when the light hit them. She could see that she was in her room, and that it was daylight, but her entire body ached. She pulled herself up into a sitting position and then placed her feet on the floor.
She took a deep breath and stood. The pain wasn’t unbearable so she walked towards the mirror. Her face was still black and blue in some places, but although they were bloodshot, her eyes were no longer swollen shut. She limped to the door and very nearly tripped when she opened it.
She squealed and jumped back, wincing with pain from the quick movement. A large cat slept directly outside of her door. The cat was black except for a few lines of brown that seemed to outline spots. It yawned and stretched lazily. When it looked up at her its eyes were a fierce green, the color of emeralds.
“I think that cat would have slept on your bed had I let it, she hasn’t left your side since the attack.” Gregory stood in the kitchen holding a mug of steaming liquid. “How are you feeling?” He asked cautiously, moving towards her.
“Like I was hit by a bus, and then it backed over me.”
“I’ve seen those busses, and I think that’s a fairly accurate statement. You could have died Anastasia. Had it not been for her, we probably wouldn’t have gotten there in time.”
“Then I feel I must say a thank you.” She started to kneel but the cat stood. Anastasia watched in awe as she stretched out. She knew she wa
s large, but the cat was nearly the size of a full-grown male lion.
“I’ve never seen one in person before, only sketches.” Gregory said. “She’s a Terrenia Feline. They are a bit larger here than in your Seattle.” He laughed. “But they are very rare, and very few have ever seen them.”
“She’s beautiful.” Anastasia ran her hands through the cats’ thick black hair and she began to purr.
“She’s yours, or rather you’re hers.” Gregory laughed. “I'm not quite sure how that works.”
“I'm going to call you Kaley.” She smiled and Kaley rubbed against her. She knew the cat must weigh at least four hundred pounds.
“She’s not even full grown, I would estimate she is only about a year old.”
Anastasia’s jaw dropped. “How big do they get?”
“The largest one ever seen was estimated at twelve-hundred pounds and over seven feet when standing on its hind legs.”
“Oh wow.”
“She took out two Brute’s by the time we got there. Maximus was gone already.”
“Brady?” Her heart jumped, why hadn’t she asked before!
“He’s fine. Has a few cuts and bruises, but he’s been here every day to check on you.”
“Every day? How long have I been out?"
“Four days.”
Four days? She thought to herself, how had she slept that long. “Any sign of Patrick and Leo?” She asked hopefully.
“Not any. We’ve searched, they are just gone.”
“I'm so sorry, Gregory, I should have listened and stayed out of the trees.”
“Anastasia, you saved Brady. While I wished you would have listened, or come and gotten us first, I can’t deny the fact that I might have had to tell a mother that her young son was not coming home,”
“But Leo and Patrick,” She interrupted.
“Knew the risks of being a Fighter. They put their lives on the line each time they marched into battle against those monsters. What has been done cannot be undone, and would you have done it any differently knowing the outcome? Could you have chosen in favor of losing Brady?”
The Phoenix (The Prophecy #1) Page 6