The Traitor's Crux (The Dark Powers Book 1)

by Jessica Prather

  “Look, we were all a bit off-kilter last night. I’m sure she didn’t mean it. Just go do your thing, learn the magic, and get out. Do a good job and she’ll see how hard you’re working. I’m sure this will blow over and she’ll forget all about it.”

  “I sure hope you’re right,” I say doubtfully.

  “You’ll be fine,” Delia affirms, but I can sense she’s lying.

  ***

  A FEW HOURS LATER, I can definitely see that things aren’t going to get better with Harlow. We’re in the huge gym, painted a deep gray, with mats covering the concrete floors.

  “Go again,” she instructs as I struggle through my last push-up.

  I groan loudly, dropping to my knees, “Harlow, please, can we do something else? I don’t know… magic?”

  She paces around me like a prowling wildcat. “Magic? Is that why we’re here?” she answers, sarcasm seeping in her tone.

  “My point is,” I pant, “I just don’t see what this has to do with magic training.”

  She says nothing, turning her back to me and snapping her fingers.

  “What are you doing?” I pull myself up to my feet, watching in amazement as her hands dance in tiny little movements. The room begins to swirl, slowly transforming itself before our eyes. In a heartbeat, the cave-like training area is filled with equipment: weapons, knickknacks, and a wall of books. I feel an awed breath come loose.

  “Alright, listen up. I’m only going to explain this once. Magic works differently for every person, but you can count on a few key ingredients. The first and most important is physicality,” Harlow begins, her expression unreadable as she turns back towards me, “You have to want it. You need to be aware of your own strength, be in tune with your mind and your muscles. It’s all relative.”

  “Okay—”

  “I wasn’t done. Rule number one: listen. Do not interrupt me, you understand? I’m the teacher here, you’re the student. That means your job is to sit down and shut up. You don’t want to do it? Then you’re out, got it?”

  I say nothing.

  “Good.” Her ice blue eyes drill into mine, “We’re going to be doing physical training every day to get you where you should be. Mediocrity is unacceptable in my eyes. I hate failure, stupidity, and laziness. You will learn magic. You will train. You will listen.”

  I bite my lip nervously as she pulls a chair up across from me.

  “Now let me explain the kind of things we do in here. Every day you’ll train to become a stronger fighter. If you’re weak, your magic will be too. Plain and simple.” She props her elbows on her knees, leaning in, “Before we can go in-depth on magic, I want you studying magic. You need to know its history, its laws.”

  “Magic has laws?”

  “Yes, just like anything else in this world, it has limitations. Magic needs something to feed off of. You can’t just conjure up something out of the blue. That requires a… rare form of magic.”

  I think of the magic that came from me that day in the store. Reed had said I had a special kind of power… is this what he was talking about?

  “What do you mean by rare magic?” I wipe my sweaty hands on my pants, watching Harlow’s face carefully.

  Her lips twists into a crooked smile, “A rare form of magic that only a small percentage of the magic population possesses. It’s the kind of magic that built the barrier and made the camp what it is. It’s also the magic most easily drawn to the darkness.” I swallow as she gets to her feet and leans on the back of the chair. “But, we’ll save the heavy stuff for another day. We’re nearly out of time already.”

  I stand and follow her to the middle of the mat as she explains, “Magic is physicality, but it’s also control. You have to be able to control yourself, your desires and needs. It can go dangerous, and fast, if you’re not careful. So, let’s start with the fun stuff.” Harlow removes the faded baseball cap from her head and throws it to the ground. “You’re going to make this thing move.”

  I watch her hands move up and down as she commands, “Levitate!”

  The hat follows her hand, spinning in circles as if flies, mimicking her hand movements.

  “See? It’s simple. Now, your turn,” she says, dropping the hat and stepping aside to watch. It seems easy enough, so I follow her example.

  I raise my hands clear into the air and yell, “Levitate!”

  Nothing happens.

  “Again,” Harlow demands.

  I take a deep breath, focusing on what I have to do.

  I did magic before; I can do it again. I know I can.

  My hands quake, unsteady, unsure of their own strength. All this power hiding within me. A soft breath escapes my parted lips as my nerves seem to ignite.

  The power wells within me, a timid, fearful thing.

  I thrash it forward with all my might, and—

  Nothing happens.

  Harlow’s smile is a wicked one. “Again.”

  17 A FEW HOURS LATER I sit on my porch, angrily trying to find a levitation spell in one of these grimoires.

  Practice this morning came to a painstaking halt as my magic finally did appear, but in a strange twist of events managed to destroy everything in the room and not even touch the hat.

  Harlow didn’t have to say a word as she silently produced a broom from mid-air and shoved it in my direction. As if it were the best moment of her life, she ran the one-sided commentary the entire time while eating potato chips. Things like, “Missed a spot” or “Look on the bright side. At this rate, you probably can’t embarrass yourself any more than you already have.”

  When I asked the stupid question of why she wouldn’t use her magic, she only laughed and said, “My schedule’s free until lunch. I have the whole morning to fill.”

  Needless to say, training isn’t going the way I want it to.

  I take a sip of my coffee, trying to rid myself of the memory.

  “There she is, our newest witch!” Bryce appears out of nowhere, courtesy of the transportation device, and strides towards the porch. He looks exhausted, but cheery nonetheless. “I just came to drop these books off for you. Harlow chose them for you to study before your next lesson. I didn’t think you’d mind that I offered to take them while she’s in a meeting.”

  “Aren’t the grimoires enough?” I ask, frowning as he sets them down on the little patio table.

  He gives me a sympathetic look. “It’s Harlow. Sometimes it’s better not to argue.”

  “True,” I admit, then a terrible thought comes over me. “Did she uh—did she tell you what happened?”

  “Oh, did she ever.” He laughs, then, as I slam my hand into my forehead, adds hurriedly, “But don’t worry about it. It takes everyone a while to get used to it. I think Har sometimes forgets that we were all beginners at one point.”

  I don’t look up. “Well I took bad to a whole new level. I’m pretty sure I made the biggest fool of myself ever.”

  “I’m sure it wasn’t that bad.”

  “Oh, trust me, it was bad. I’m embarrassed she even had to see it.” I let out a mortified laugh, then point towards the house. “Hey—you want some coffee or tea?”

  Surprisingly, he nods, “Sounds great. Herbal tea, if you have it.”

  He follows me inside, kicking off his shoes at the door and revealing his mismatched socks. I put the tea kettle on the stove while he looks around. He seems to take in every detail of the house, a faint smile on his lips as he glimpses out the window to the backyard. I watch him for a moment, trying to fight the grin that wants so badly to come.

  Somewhere in the past few days he’s let down that leader persona around me. He’s not just the friendly face around camp, greeting everyone by name and asking about their families. He’s given away another hint of the person underneath. And as he turns my way with a happy smile, those eyes shining and bright, my heart skips in my chest.

  I jump at the scream of the tea kettle, thankful for the direction. With my back turned towards Bryce, I remind m
yself why I’m here.

  Don’t get close. He’s going to be arrested. Him and everyone else here—

  “You okay?” He comes up behind me.

  “Of course!” I lie, reaching for a mug and pouring the hot water inside. He holds it up as if to say thank you, then drops the tea packet in to steep.

  “You want to know something?” he asks, now eye-level as I wiggle my way up to sit on the counter.

  “What?” I take a sip, watching him over the brim.

  “I think you’re going to be just fine here… and that comes from the heart,” he says with false seriousness, patting his chest.

  “I’m not so sure about that. I might be the magicless witch here. Then what will become of me?” I ask, only half-joking.

  He clicks his tongue, “Well, I don’t know, Miss Kenadee. I guess we’ll have to keep you, regardless.”

  For a second our eyes meet, and I want nothing but to kiss his lips. I can’t do this. Ever. I clear my throat and we both look away, suddenly immersed in everything but each other.

  Every part of me wishes I could tell him everything. Admit it all right here, right now. But the second that I do, Reed will know. I’m sure of it. Then, there’d be no way to save my family. They’d be gone within minutes.

  “So, uh, how are things in the command center?” I ask softly, breaking the heavy silence, “After last night’s attack, I mean.”

  He grimaces, taking a sip of his tea and wincing at the heat, “Not so good. Everyone’s pretty shaken by it. And the thing is, we can’t figure out how it even happened. You can’t even do those spells under the barrier. It should be physically impossible unless…” He stops himself. Once again, he’s said too much.

  “Unless what?” I push, curious.

  “Never mind. It couldn’t be. Anyway, I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of it and things will go back to normal.”

  “Mhm. You mean this perfect life in this perfect town that you built? No bombs, no Reed… All sunshine and rainbows.”

  He snickers, “On the contrary. We don’t even have resident unicorns here.”

  I punch him teasingly, “You know what I mean. The rest of the country’s torn apart and then there’s this little camp, pretty much left unfazed.”

  He toys with his mug, spinning it with his hands. The ceramic pangs against the countertop and I worry that I offended him. He gives me a solemn glance. “It’s our job to protect everywhere here, Kenadee. We’re so lucky to live comfortably, but if it weren’t for the war in the first place, we wouldn’t be here.”

  “I wasn’t saying—”

  “I know,” he says quickly, “Just hear me out. Our people come first. Reed’s tried to kill us for years, he’s done horrible things. The rest of the country hates us. They want us dead. What other options do we have?”

  “Of course, I’m sorry.” I shake my head, “Ignore what I say, I’m flustered after training this morning. So, tell me, how do you get all this stuff here? All the food and what not?”

  He takes a drink and smiles mischievously, “Well… of some of the not-so-glorious moments, we’ve had to utilize whatever we can. It usually involves mind spells on truck drivers, getting them here instead of Denver…”

  I gape teasingly, “Bryce Coughlin!”

  He holds up his hands, “If you want to get technical, it’s Harlow that does it. I can’t do mind spells!”

  “Why’s that?”

  Just as he’s about to answer, something in his pocket begins to chirp loudly. He sighs deeply and extracts it, a small device that looks almost like my communicator. “Duty calls. Thanks for the tea, but I better take this.”

  “Yeah, go.” I say, though I’m suddenly brimming with curiosity. Why can’t Bryce do this so-called mind spell? I watch him from the corner as he stops, a final thought on his face.

  “Oh, and Kenadee?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Go show Harlow that you can kick butt. I believe in you!” He gives me a roguish wink before disappearing, and I can’t help but laugh.

  For a small beat of a second, the worry fades from my mind, replaced by pure, absolute happiness; like an idiot, I sit and smile to myself.

  18 A WEEK LATER, I RACE through the forest, panting as I try to match Harlow’s long-legged strides. The crisp morning air sets fire to my lungs as I leap over a fallen log, watching hopelessly as the blonde disappears over the hillside. I stop to catch my breath, hands on my knees, and think of how disappointed Markus would be in my performance.

  Footsteps crunch over the leaves that have scattered all over our running trail as Harlow reappears, throwing her hands up in the air. “Tell me, do you try to be this pathetic, or does it come naturally?”

  I laugh humorlessly, “Do you try to be such a bitch all the time, or is that just your personality?”

  To my surprise, she lets out a low chuckle, “Alert the media: she jokes. Now, hurry up if you want to get any training done today. If you beat me back, I won’t even make you do push-ups.”

  “Deal!”

  With a burst of energy, I’m off, leaving a surprised Harlow in the dust. Moments later, I hear her behind me. She’s at my side in an instant, jogging at an easy pace. “I’m impressed—that’s better. Now, go harder; if this is your best, it’s not good enough.”

  I fight to match her pace as camp comes back into my line of vision. Golden light shines through the trees like spilled honey, and except for the two of us, there’s not a single sound in the forest. The trail comes to an end, opening up in the grassy open meadow where the building lies. I push myself further, not quite ready to let the blonde win.

  She sprints into the building with me fresh on her heels. With the training room in sight, I shove forward with a final surge of energy, just barely touching the door first.

  My heart races in my chest with adrenaline as she places her hands on her hips, panting. Her cheeks and the tip of her nose are blushed pink from the cold air as she smiles slightly, “Look at you, new girl. No push-ups today. You finally did something noteworthy.”

  The warm layers I had originally put on for the morning chill now make sweat pour down my back. I take a long sip from my water bottle as she reaches for the baseball cap on her head and waves me forward. “You know what to do.”

  I close my eyes, taking deep, calming breaths. I can hear her quiet footsteps behind me as she paces, observing.

  You’ve got this.

  I collect my thoughts and raise my hand slowly in the air, trying to find the force behind it. When I think I’m ready, I let out a firm, “Levitate!”

  I open one eye. The hat hasn’t budged. Behind me, Harlow snorts.

  “Oh, come on. You need to mean it, new girl. You have to want to move the hat. Every part of you. Again.”

  Frustration bubbles in my chest. Go, Kenadee. Do it.

  I begin again, focusing on the hat, on movement. I try to relax, taking deep breaths and I slowly elevate my hands towards the ceiling.

  Just make it move. That’s all you need to do.

  “Levitate!” I yell, forcing my energy forward towards the hat.

  A shudder goes through the cap, making it pop up a few feet in the air, then spiral back down to the floor, sliding to Harlow’s feet.

  Harlow remains unimpressed. “That was better, but you’re too tense. You don’t want it enough. Relax and go again.”

  “I’m trying!” I complain, “Maybe something’s wrong with it…”

  “Don’t kid yourself. Levitate.” She steps in front of me, and in a swift movement, lifts the hat into the air. It spins in circles, following the flow of her hands.

  She drops her hands to her side, making the hat go cluttering along with them. “Don’t try to give me those bullshit excuses. You know how I feel about them.”

  “Levitate!” I shove my hands into the air, but this time, I don’t get a single movement from the cap. Nothing but stillness.

  “C’mon, new girl, you aren’t that incompetent. All you hav
e to do is pick up the hat. Use your powers. They’re screaming to get out of you. I can tell by just looking at you right now. Getting mad? Getting frustrated? Well, do something about it,” Harlow digs.

  “I’m trying!” I don’t turn to watch her as she paces around me. My heart races and my fingers tick with a sudden anger I can’t seem to calm.

  “Really? Doesn’t look like it. All I see is failure. Do you want to fail?”

  “You’re not helping! You’re supposed to be my teacher!”

  “Don’t try to blame me for your own failures.” She comes closer, this time, by my ear. Taunting, laughing. “You’re the one who isn’t doing it. You’re stopping yourself. You have to want it. So, show me. Show me what you’re going to do to make it happen.”

  I fume, “It’s only been two days. I’m trying my hardest.”

  She laughs, planting herself straight across from me, arms folded across her chest. “Oh, yeah? You know what? I think you are full of it. I think you know it too. You’re not trying—”

  “Not true—”

  “You beat me today, which tells me that it’s not incompetence. Are you lazy? Is that it?”

  “Shut up,” I say through gritted teeth, my fists clenched.

  “You gonna make me? How about I shut up if you show me you can lift that stupid little hat, huh?” She raises a brow, extending a hand towards the hat. Waiting. Slowly, the mocking smile spreads to her lips. “That’s right. You’re too afraid. What is it, newbie? Afraid that you’re a failure? That you’ll fail the mission you were sent here for?”

  She catches me by surprise. I drop my hands, spinning towards her in alarm, “Wh-what are you talking about?”

  I watch in horror as she produces my missing notebook from her bag, dangling it in front of me with an arched eyebrow.

  My silence is her answer. “I’ve been tracking you since you first arrived. I wasn’t about to let Bryce win and put the camp in danger. What did Reed offer you, new girl? It must be pretty good if you’re willing to sacrifice an entire camp of people. Too bad he won’t give you what he promised. He never does. What, he told you that he’ll give you back your brother?”