by Marnie Cate
“As I began to ask her questions, she started to leave. At the last moment, she turned around and told me that my magic was safe in the hand of the Goddess. Her final words to me were 'I'm proud of you, Cole. I know you will continue the oath our family took. I love you.' Then she was gone again.”
“Cole, I am sorry that you are finding out everything this way,” I said, trying to comfort him. The guilt I felt over my mother's attack on Cole's home had begun to sink in and even though I did not bring on any of this, I still felt responsible.
Gram interrupted me from further apologizing. “Cole did you take the oath?” There was no way she would let me take responsibility for what had happened. But that did not stop the feeling I had to take ownership for what my mother had done.
“Of course,” Cole answered. “Tonight when you called the elements, I felt a connection…a need to protect. To protect you, to protect the elements, to protect…well to protect everything. I cannot explain it but I didn't question taking the oath. It was more of a feeling of why did it take me so long to do this. Together, we will keep the promises we made and together we will fight against anything and everyone that threatens our gift…even if that means facing Eliza.”
Hugging him tightly, I said, “Cole, I can't ask you to get any more involved in what will happen next. It will not be safe. We don't know what she is capable of doing.”
“Stop, I couldn't be any more involved than I already am. I love you, Mara. I love your family as if they were my own. Soon, they will officially be mine. Together, we will stand against Eliza and whatever she throws at us. We will get Meg back. You and me.”
“And me,” Gram said, as she took both of our hands.
“I will be there too, Caterpillar,” a voice from behind us said. Standing on the bottom step, Elliott stood watching us.
Chapter 27
Elliott walked towards us with his long confident stride. “All of the boxes are unloaded. I put them in your room, Mara.”
Holding his hand out to me, my heart stopped when I saw what was in his hand. “This was on the floor under the loft ladder. I believe that this is yours.”
Taking the small silver cylinder from his hand and trying to act nonchalant, “Thank you. Did you happen to open it?” I said, while cursing myself for not putting it somewhere safer than in my pillowcase. In the chaos of being awoken by the fire, it must have fallen out of the hiding place.
Please, please, please say no. As the words repeated in my head, I hoped he would say no but life was never that simple.
“I did look inside. I understand why you have it and there is nothing I can do to change the decisions that I made in the past but I will do whatever it takes to make it up to you. I will not fail you again.” Elliott asserted. His words seemed so sincere but as much as I wanted to believe him, I was not ready to risk trusting him yet. “If you want we can make the potion right now. I will do whatever is necessary to earn your trust.”
“We have enough time to talk about all of this later. But for now, let's leave Cole and Mara to take care of things here,” Gram said, stopping him.
I was thankful that Gram was not one to dwell on the 'should have' and instead focused on taking action. At the same time, I wanted to run to Elliott and throw my arms around him. Instead, I was comforted by the warm hug of my grandmother.
Hugging her back tightly, I breathed in the familiar scents of vanilla, cinnamon and lavender. She whispered in my ear, “It will be okay, love. Cole needs you right now. I will handle this. You have always been strong and right now is not the time to forget that.”
Releasing her hold on me, she turned to Cole and opened her arms. “A hug for an old lady,” she teased.
Cole welcomed the hug, “I always have a hug available for an old lady but since it is just you here, it will have to do.” I could not make out what Gram said to Cole but whatever it was it made him laugh.
“We will see you at home soon,” Gram said, taking Elliott's arm. “Elliott, we have plenty of things we can take care of at the house.”
I watched as they began their climb up the circular staircase. Once they were out of sight, I turned to Cole and said, “She will keep him busy. Now we can focus on you. We need to find your magic.”
Cole and I began to look through the bookcases. As we searched, I began to feel that we were going about this the wrong way, “What did she say again about your magic?”
“She just said that the magic was always in the Goddess's hands,” he said, with slight frustration.
As I wandered around the room, I played the words repeatedly in my head and a thought finally came to me. Stopping at the water fountain, I called to Cole, “I think I may have found something. Come take a look.”
Cole came over and as he saw the hand of the fountain, he said, “The tree of life - this must be where she has hidden it. This is the first thing tonight that has made sense.”
Taking ahold of the metal tree, he jiggled it. It moved as if it was loose. But, his attempts to pull it free made no impact. He then began twisting it and I could see progress. Giving it a harder twist several more times and one mighty pull, he was able to pop out the tree attached to a large silver cylinder that looked much like the one in my hand.
Cole twisted the top off the cylinder revealing that the container held a light yellow note and a crystal vial that held blue and silver liquid. Unrolling the note, we began to read.
My Dearest Cole,
If you have found this note, either you have been extremely inquisitive or I am no longer with you. Knowing you my child, it is the latter.
I feel confident that you are not alone in your search and you are now ready for answers. When you were young, your connection to the magic, especially Water, was so strong. Over time, I worried more and more that you were too young to control the magic you had. This scared me and I did not feel that I could keep you safe. I took the magic from you knowing one day that it would be restored. Soon you will have everything I took from you back. Such knowledge so quickly will be difficult but I know you will be able to handle it.
Please rely on Mae and Mara. Mara's strong connection to Fire and Mae's connection to Air will be important for what the future holds.
Mae, if you are reading this I have always known about your connection to Air. Your wisdom and extensive knowledge always seemed more powerful than just years of experience. Please take care of my boy and help him understand what our families promised.
If I have never told you this, Cole, I am so glad that you and Mara found each other. I know that you will continue to protect the magic together. Please take care, my love, and always remember the promise first made by my grandmother and I hope will be also made by your children one day.
At night when you see the moon, think of my love for you and know that I am there with you.
Love Always, Mom
As we finished the letter, we both looked at each other with tears glistening in our eyes. “She always told me how much she loved you, Mara,” Cole said.
With a look of determination, he said, “I guess it's now or never.” Handing me the cylinder and the note, he started to take the cap off the crystal vial.
“You probably should take a seat before you drink it. Remember what it did to me and there's no way I can carry you.” I warned.
“You are right,” Cole said, as he sat down in one of the red chairs. Putting the vial to his lips, he toasted, “Cheers.”
After a long drink, Cole handed me back the empty crystal. With a big grin, he said, “I'll see you soon, Mara. I hope I will have all the answers we need when I return.”
Looking at the vial in my hands, I noticed there was a little bit left of the blue liquid. As I watched Cole drift off, I wondered what would happen if I drank the rest of the potion. It was such a small amount I justified it in my thoughts. Going against my better judgment, I decided that there was nothing I could lose by trying.
I tilted the crystal vial back and let the final drop
land on my tongue. The strong berry taste began to fill my senses and the room began to spin. Suddenly, I felt so dizzy that I had to sit down. Unable to make it to the other red chair, I collapsed to the floor and I drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 28
When I woke, it took me a moment to recall what I did and figure out where I was. To my surprise, I had awoken in Cole's house. The house that he had grew up in. The same house that I had watched burn tonight.
As I looked around, everything came into focus and I saw Sarah and Cole in the kitchen. They were decorating cupcakes with a bright white frosting and blue gem-like sprinkles. Cole was putting more frosting in his mouth than on the cupcakes.
Sarah turned to him and said, “Cole, we need to put some of the frosting on the cupcakes too, sweetie.”
“Look how good I am decorating this. I've barely even had any to eat,” he said, holding up one of his creations. The frosting was piled unevenly high with toppling frosting and sprinkles.
“Maybe next time you should just not get as much on your nose.” she said, laughing as she wiped off his face and kissed him on the head.
“What am I going to do with you?” She teased with her brightest smile. Clapping her hands together, she said, “I know. Let's finish up here. I have a surprise for you.”
As they continued to frost cupcakes, I could see where he got his personality. Sarah emitted a strong feeling of warmth and love. It was like a liquid sunshine. They both were so happy. The love they shared made me smile. Cole was truly loved by his mother and he felt it.
When all the cupcakes were frosted, Sarah sang out, “Cole, it's time to share my special surprise with you. Well, actually, it is for River but I wanted you to see if you think she would like it.”
“What is it, Mom?” he cried with an eager grin.
“I made her a special drink. Here would you taste it and tell me what you think,” Sarah held out the blue and silver drink in a small glass tube.
“It's so shiny.” Cole asked with a smile, “Will I like it?” Without waiting for her answer, Cole greedily took a long drink and started to smack his lips.
“Well, it is good but it is blackberry. She would like strawberry much better though. So I think we're going to have to try again, Mom,” he declared.
“Cole, you know you're the one that likes strawberry,” she chided, as she tickled him.
As Cole let out a big yawn, Sarah pulled him into her arms, “Why don't we go sit down and I'll read you a story.”
“Okay,” he sleepily agreed, as he rubbed his eyes. By the time she made it to the living room, Cole was already fast asleep.
Sarah held him in her arms gently rocking him. “I'm sorry. This is the only way I know that will keep you safe. I hope one day you will understand and forgive me.” Watching her hold him, my thoughts drifted to my little sister. Was she safe and warm? Was she scared?
A loud knocking on the door startled me and brought me back to the moment. Sarah called out to the visitor, “Come in.”
The person that entered the house was none other than my mother. Eliza was wearing a pink and white dress and wore her dark red hair loose with a large pink headband. Her makeup was softer and more playful than the last time I saw her. She looked young, vibrant and as always devastatingly beautiful. Looking at her, I understood why she received so much attention. She was beautiful.
“I was just taking Cole up for a nap,” Sarah said, as she kissed her on the cheek. “I will be right back.”
Eliza watched as she climbed the stairs. When she was out of view, Eliza began to look around and began picking up and examining things around the house. When she got to the kitchen, she took her finger and scraped it in the frosting bowl. After she tasted the frosting and gave a sound of approval, she continued her inspection of looking at everything but not finding anything.
When Sarah came back down she asked, “Did you want a cupcake?”
Eliza snapped, “No.” My mother never would allow herself to eat sweets. She was too vain to even gain an ounce of weight and possibly lose her position as the most beautiful woman in Starten.
“The frosting is good though. I will need to get the recipe. Marina is always begging me to make something with her.” She grumbled with exaggerated irritation, “Five began her needy year and I had hoped by six that it would end. I can't bear another year. This phase has to end.” Hearing her words gave me a sinking feeling in my heart.
“So what brings you here today, Eliza? It has been a long time since you've just stopped by to say hello,” Sarah questioned. “It seems the last time I saw you was at Cole's seventh birthday party nine months ago.”
“I know. I have been meaning to come over more often. You just know how it is with children. Marina keeps me so busy,” she explained.
Sarah agreed, “I understand. She is such a darling child and she is definitely smart for her age. They do keep us busy.”
“Oh yes, she is very bright but so demanding,” she pouted and released another dramatic sigh. “She's at home napping. It is always 'Mommy, look at me. Mommy, I need you.' Honestly, this was the first moment of relief I have had from her requests for attention today. I took this opportunity to be free and I thought I'd come talk to you.”
My heart sunk again. Her comments stung like a slap across the face. Was I really that needy as a child? Being away from me was freeing?
Eliza continued, “A mutual friend of ours needs help and I thought that this would be a good time to talk about it.”
“Which mutual friend of ours needs help?” Sarah asked guardedly.
“Don't play dumb, Sarah. You know who I am talking about,” Eliza snapped.
Composing herself, she sweetly began again, “He just needs a small favor and we both are able to provide it. All he needs is for us to create a small, tiny spell that has both water and fire magic.”
“I am not going to help him. He will just use it to hurt someone.” Sarah stated dismissing my mother.
“Don't tell me you believe all of the lies spread about him too,” Eliza said in a soft convincing tone. “You have the wrong idea about him. He has always been so persecuted here just because of his family name.”
Sarah firmly maintained, “Eliza, I will not help Cedric Drygen.”
Taking a new tactic, Eliza put her hand on Sarah's and began, “Sarah it's a small favor and if we help him he will not ask us again for anything. I promise. If you help me just this time, I will never ask you to help him again. All I am asking for is a small spell. It is just a spell to protect him from harm and isn't that what our magic is for? Aren't we supposed to protect people?”
“He needs protection from harm? I find that hard to believe,” Sarah scoffed. “What does he really need it for?”
“Well,” Eliza hesitated. I could see the wheels in her mind turning as she tried to figure out how to convince Sarah to do what she wanted. “It is a protection of sorts. He needs to protect what is rightfully his. All he needs is a small fire and water spell to greatly help him. And if he promises to never ask us again, that sounds like a deal that both of us should take, right? Even better, he will obviously give us anything we need to compensate for the help. Wouldn't you like more than what you have here? He can make our lives so much easier.”
“Eliza, I am happy with my life. There's nothing I need that he can get me,” Sarah insisted. “Aren't you happy with your life? You have Elliott and you have a beautiful, healthy daughter. What more can you need?”
Sighing Eliza sulked, “This place is so small and everything here is so stifling. I need so much more than what this place offers but if you're not willing to help me I guess I have to find another way to help him.”
“Let me think about it, Eliza,” Sarah said, stopping her from leaving in a huff. “I'll tell you tomorrow what I have decided.”
Instantly changing from an angry to an appreciative friend, Eliza gushed, “I knew you would help. Thank you so much, Sarah. You are such a dear friend. But I must go
now. So I will come back tomorrow to make plans. I knew I could count on you.”
As I watch my mother walk out the door, my heart broke again. Watching her leave the house, I began to question myself. Why did I miss my mother when she left? She was never really a mother. My happy memories of childhood were always of something I was doing with my grandparents. Was it just the fact that she had left me?
Gram had taken care of all of my needs as I grew. When I was sad, it was Gram that comforted me. When I was hurt, it was Gram that made me feel better. What was I clinging to besides the idea of the perfect mother?
Pushing back my pity party, I turned my focus back on what was going on around me. I watched as Sarah went into the kitchen and pulled out a small book from one of the kitchen drawers. The cover of the book had red, silver, white and yellow streaks on it. As she began to write in it, I realized it must be her journal. She did not write for long before there was another knock on the door.
Sarah opened the door and to my surprise my grandmother was standing in the doorway holding a basket of produce. Gram was wearing her jean overalls. Her brown hair was in two long braids under a big red hat that she wore to protect her skin from the sun and she was even wearing her work boots. Her dirt digging clothes was what she called this outfit. Coming to see Sarah must have been an impromptu thought. My grandmother would never have gone to visit anyone dressed this way.
“Sarah, can I come in?” Gram called, cheerily, “I brought you some vegetables and fruit that I just picked.”
“Come in, Mae,” Sarah said, inviting her in. “What a nice thought.”
When they were inside Gram looked around and asked quietly, “Are we alone?”