by Diana Paz
“They can see us,” Angie cried.
“Do it, damn it,” Kaitlyn yelled. “Take our magic by force so it’s stronger and Journey us, now!”
Julia yanked the last bit of magic from Angie’s core hard enough to make her cry out in pain. They lost their substance, dust falling to the Earth with a mild, poofing noise as the three of them became like the air itself.
The world fell away beneath them. Angie tried to catch the faces of the people as they soared from view, but despite the hyper-clarity of each moment while teleporting, despite feeling as though each second that passed might be taking hours, the truth was, teleporting was virtually instant, and to outsiders they would appear to have vanished from thin air. Only she and the other girls felt the distance speeding beneath them and at the moment.
For a moment she wondered where Julia planned to take them, but relief settled over her as clouds raced by. The three of them seemed to remain motionless… or, were they flying? Was the world itself shifting to the place they needed it to be?
The ocean came into view and a twinge of worry pulled at Angie’s heart. Kaitlyn’s panic dropped over them like a blanket, and Angie sent her a wave of reassurance. Ships. Remember when we checked the threads and did all that research? Julia is correct in sending us toward the ocean. This is where we’re supposed to go.
Kaitlyn didn’t veil her horror. Angie did her best to block out Kaitlyn’s fear and enjoy the strange sensation as their essences moved through space. A great island came into view, but they sped past it. Ships rose and fell, like the ones they had seen in the threads of time. The multitude of masts rising toward the cloudless sky caused a wave of awe to rise within Angie. Another island appeared. Ships filled a dock, some with sails unfurled as they left the harbor. Flags of bright red and gold flew from nearly every mast. If only she knew where they were going.
Julia took them past the docks to a grassy bluff. Everything slowed as she maneuvered them to the ground, timed exactly to the moment their bodies gained substance again. Angie fell to the grass beside Julia’s invisible form. She could barely make out the rise and fall of Julia’s chest, a glassy outline of her friend’s body remained the only indication that she was even there.
“That went… surprisingly well,” Kaitlyn said.
“Can we be visible again, please?” Julia asked.
Kaitlyn sighed and reached for them. Angie took her hand and watched herself shimmer back into existence again.
“Thank you,” Angie said.
Kaitlyn shrugged in response. “So, we’re here,” she said, sitting up and squinting toward the sea. “And we have no idea where ‘here’ is, and no clue where the portal could be.”
“That… sounds about normal,” Julia said.
Angie swallowed tightly through as big a smile as she could muster. “Let the mission begin.”
~ Chapter 13 ~
Kaitlyn
Kaitlyn glanced around. Before she could take stock of their surroundings, a horse whinnied.
“Crap,” Julia whispered. “I thought I took us far from people, but there’s a carriage over there.”
Red swirls curved along the vehicles glossy black frame. Kaitlyn eyed the driver, who stood slowly, his jaw slack in his gaunt face.
“The people in that carriage saw us teleport here,” Angie murmured.
Big deal. With their magic, what the hell did they have to worry about?
The driver’s yellowed eyes stared at them, fear and horror etched into his features. He raised his arm and pointed his finger at them. “Brujas!”
“Rough crowd,” Julia said.
Angie reached for them. “Turn us invisible again.”
“Really. I just made us visible—”
“Do it,” Julia said, her voice nearly a whine. “We’ll figure it out after the locals don’t try burning us at the stake.”
“Kaitlyn snatched their hands. “Vanish,” she said, shimmering them out of sight again. “Dumb asses,” she muttered as Angie ushered them away from the path. “Now what?”
“We should look for the jewels to help Brian,” Julia said.
So predictable, Kaitlyn thought. “I hope you wise up and stop caring about every guy you meet. Start helping yourself. No guy you find is going to be worth the energy you put into him.” Kaitlyn tossed her head, grateful for invisibility so she couldn’t see their judgmental gazes. “Whatever. We’re here. Time is frozen. I want to know about the Jewels of Time. You were about to explain about that, Angie. And no more leaving things out. From now on, whatever you guys know, you share with me. Got it?”
“Aren’t the jewels zapped into another dimension?” Julia asked as they edged around the town.
“Not exactly. According to the books, they always exist somewhere in our world. We relinquished their power to bind Indira, but that was only in that timeline. They materialize again, wherever the Daughters are.”
“In case we need to use them,” Kaitlyn said.
“No,” Angie said. “Their use forbidden.”
Kaitlyn nearly rolled her eyes at that. Why would they exist if not to be used? “So, you’re saying there are definitely Jewels of Time in this time period?”
“Nothing is definite. If the ancient writings are correct, the jewels won’t take the forms we saw before. The Daughters have called the jewels many things. Talismans, charms, amulets,” she sighed audibly. “It’s pretty rare that they even find them at all. Many Daughters wrote about the jewels like they were something they had heard of, but only two of the journals actually mentioned the Daughters seeing them for themselves. And both times…”
When she fell silent, Kaitlyn felt irritation rise in her chest. Angie was sweet, but she was so dramatic about this B.S. “Both times what?”
“Both times they weren’t found in the girls’ own timelines. It was only when they Voyaged to the past. But moreover, finding the jewels caused them to turn on each other,” Angie whispered. “The jewels corrupted them. They are considered too powerful to be used by mortals.”
Kaitlyn remembered the feel of the necklace around her throat. Even before she had discovered it, the jewel had wanted her to find it. It had wanted to be used. But most of all, it had wanted her to find the other jewels and wield their power together.
“We have to find them, for Brian’s sake,” Julia said.
“Just because other Daughters turned evil doesn’t mean we will,” Kaitlyn said. “I already know what it’s like to partner with Indira. I won’t be doing it again.”
“We used them last time and they didn’t corrupt us. Besides, this might be our only chance,” Julia said. “Jewels can only be found in the past, after all.”
Angie remained silent. Kaitlyn narrowed her eyes on the girl’s transparent form. There was something about the way she didn’t answer that Kaitlyn didn’t trust.
“So if we seal the portal first and go back to Brian, we won’t have the power of the jewels,” Julia continued. “We need to find the jewels first.”
Invisible and safe, Kaitlyn allowed a full smile to creep up her lips. With the jewels, they wouldn’t need to be connected to one another to cast their more powerful spells. Helping Brian would be great, but if they could help Brian and keep the jewels this time, lucky them.
“Oh no,” Julia whispered. “Ethan… holy crap.”
Ethan? This again? Kaitlyn felt a prickle of heat in her heart. Their connection made it impossible not to remember what Julia had gone through, and she didn’t think any guy was worth the torture of trying to forget him, no matter how hot he was. “Ditch that guy. Tell him you’re busy. Jesus, he hasn’t talked to you in months and tonight when you’re busy he’s suddenly a needy jerk.”
“You don’t know,” Julia said, her voice hitching, “you don’t know what happened between us.”
“No, but I know he’s been ignoring you,” Kaitlyn said, hardly sure why she even cared but unable to stop herself. Julia was a silly pain in the ass, but she was her Sister of Fate,
or whatever the magical words for it were. She was connected to this bushy-haired fashion nightmare, with her unshaped eyebrows and chipped fingernails. Denying it didn’t make it any less true. She couldn’t bring herself to admit that a bubble-headed nobody was beginning to matter to her, but she wasn’t going to sit back and let the girl go groveling back to Ethan. She released an exasperated breath. “Just… don’t be pathetic. Don’t jump when he calls.”
“It’s kind of hard not to jump,” Julia said, her voice catching, “when he’s in my flippin’ mind.”
“Then tell him we don’t need his sorry ass and we can take care of ourselves,” Kaitlyn snapped, her head still turned aside even as her eyes slid back to the girl’s glass-like outline. “In fact? Block him out the way he did to you. That wall he built? You can do the same thing.”
“Don’t you think I’ve tried?”
“It’s harder than you think,” Angie said, her hair cascading to one side as her heart-shaped face angled softly against her shoulder. “Once you’ve opened your heart to someone, you don’t just turn those feelings off like they’re controlled by a switch. Sometimes those feelings take time to go away. Sometimes they don’t go away at all.”
Kaitlyn swallowed tightly. Unseen, she had no need for a mask. She let Angie’s words sink into her mind.
“We ought to freeze time now,” Angie continued softly. “Much as I dislike the idea of creatures roaming free, we need to find appropriate clothing.”
“Why not just stay invisible?” Kaitlyn asked. Unlike Julia, this was one of her favorite powers.
“Because we’ll need to rummage through clothes and put them on. It will look like things are just floating around if we’re invisible.”
Julia’s translucent arms reached out for them. When Kaitlyn made contact, she was met with Julia’s conflicting emotions churning through their connection. Before she could feel beyond the haze of feelings, Julia froze time. Without being asked, Kaitlyn made them visible again.
“Thanks, guys,” Angie said. She moved closer to Julia, who leaned against the smaller girl. Kaitlyn couldn’t hear what Angie murmured as she slipped her arm around Julia’s shoulder, but the image they made reminded Kaitlyn of a black and white photograph she had seen before, with a pair of little girls holding hands on a swing set. Her stomach churned as the two of them faced her in unison… like she was an outsider.
Once you’ve opened your heart to someone, you don’t just turn those feelings off…
Maybe that was just it. She never opened her heart to anyone, so what did she know?
~ Chapter 14 ~
Julia
Julia accepted Angie’s comfort, her thoughts muddled. What Angie had said was true, but…
Kaitlyn had a point.
Why should she jump just because Ethan was finally back to using their connection? Okay, fine, so his brother had to come first. She understood that. Not to mention the fact that her future-self must have done something terrible in Ethan’s past. But the lesson here was simple: love didn’t conquer all.
Not that she was in love. At least, not this version of herself. If some future-Julia was all dopey-eyed in love with Ethan, was that really her problem? With so many possible futures, why should she worry about what Ethan felt for a future-Julia that might never exist?
For now, she ignored the soft, questioning sensations that skimmed along her mind. She had sent him her own questioning thoughts over the past few months and her only reply had been complete silence. He hadn’t even answered her when she had been stranded at Griffith Park when she had forgotten her mom was working a late shift and her phone had died. She had no idea what anyone’s phone numbers were because she couldn’t turn her phone on—who memorizes phone numbers, anyway? But even then, he hadn’t cared. So why was she thinking of answering him? It was clear he hadn’t wanted to know whether she was alive or dead, before. Why now?
Please answer me.
She bristled, infuriated at herself for allowing his voice to enter into her thoughts. She should build a wall, just like Kaitlyn said. For the first time, she actually wished she could be more like Kaitlyn. If she could throw a wall across her mind as easily as Kaitlyn could, she would never be hurt by anyone again.
But… the bottom line was, she wasn’t Kaitlyn. She was her own self, and she didn’t know how to keep from feeling her emotions. She didn’t know how to keep herself locked away.
What is this? She finally blurted out to Ethan. All these months without a word and now you’re a freakin’ chatterbox? I guess this must be your need to fulfill your duty. Fine, I’ll summon you, okay? You can protect the other girls but leave me and my thoughts alone.
No. No, don’t summon me. It’s Brian. When you froze time… he wasn’t affected. Either the venom or Meliah’s magic changed him somehow.
Julia was stunned into silence. Brian… not affected by her spell?
“What’s wrong?” Angie asked, interrupting Julia’s thoughts. She felt her connection with Ethan dissipate, and she didn’t know whether to feel relieved or sad.
“It’s Brian,” she finally said, facing her friend. “He isn’t time-frozen.”
Angie’s eyes rounded. “He hasn’t turned… Scylla, has he?”
“I don’t think so, but something happened, whether it was because of the Scylla venom or the nymph’s blood, our powers don’t… um… do anything to him,” Julia said. “That’s what Ethan was telling me.”
Angie bit her lip. “Which means, he’ll be stuck in the frozen world until we seal the portal and return.”
Julia didn’t meet the other girls’ eyes. “I should talk to him. Find out what’s happening.”
“Of course,” Angie said, although she glanced around at the frozen world, her fingers twisting against each other.
“I won’t take long,” she said.
Jules? Please don’t break the connection. I need your help. I can’t let my brother turn Scylla.
Tears sprung to her eyes, mortifying her. I didn’t mean to break the connection. I’m not good at it yet.
She rubbed at her eyes and forced herself to get a grip. Telepathy was one thing, but for once she was glad of his stupid wall. If he so much as opened one inch of their connection from his end, he would feel all of her embarrassing hurt. He would know that she used to cry over him, and that she was almost going to cry now. If he was going to start establishing their connection again, she needed to create a wall of her own.
With a slow, deep breath, she envisioned a protective surface. She felt it rise over her mind, smooth as polished crystal and cold as ice, and suddenly she wanted to cry harder than ever. Leaving herself open to him… it had given her hope that maybe things between them would turn out okay. If she built a barrier between them, what if that were the first step in her becoming the future-Julia that was willing to hurt him?
But what if she let herself get all wrapped up in him, and he ditched her all over again?
Kaitlyn’s words mocked her from the back of her mind. Don’t be pathetic.
No. She had to put up her own wall between them. Whatever happened, she couldn’t let him know how bad it made her feel to be rejected by him.
Your pulse is racing. His voice came through softly.
She released a pent-up breath. That was one thing she couldn’t stop from happening. His heartbeat would always echo hers. If her heart stopped, so would his. It was part of his curse… the guarantee that he would always protect her life as his own.
My heart races sometimes, she said, trying for Kaitlyn’s dismissive tone. You must have felt it happen in the past few months.
The silence that followed hurt. Her heart cried out, rebelling against being cold with him, but Kaitlyn’s words tightened like a ribbon around her heart. Her pride had never mattered to her before, but now it did. She wouldn’t be so accessible to Ethan after what he put her through, no matter what his reasons were.
You don’t have to worry about us, she continued. We can manage the mi
ssion without you… other Daughters of Fate didn’t have a Guardian and they did fine.
She was met with more silence, and although they each had their emotional walls built up, she could still watch him, and she couldn’t help herself from wanting to see.
He rose to a sitting position, not breaking their connection even when he opened his eyes. How was he so good at this? It was like he knew everything about the magic.
She kept her own eyes shut, the connection growing slippery as he moved from one room to another. Brian came into view… younger by two years but already his brother’s equal in size. They spoke for a moment before Ethan cocked his head to the side.
Brian thinks I should be with you guys.
But then there would be no way for him to get back. What if his brother needed him? No, it’s okay. Stay with your brother.
But I’m supposed to—
You don’t have to be here, she said, acting as if whether he came or not couldn’t matter to her less. I’ve been managing fine without you up until now, haven’t I?
She waited through more agonizing silence. Her heart grew heavy and swollen, feeling so full that the ribbon of control Kaitlyn had helped her tie nearly snapped. Her lips parted on her next breath. She didn’t care about her pride. She would tell him she missed him. She would say she still thought of him before she fell asleep at night. She would tell him—
Promise me, he said, his voice hesitant and low, if anything bad happens, promise me you’ll summon me. Please?
Something in the way he asked caused her heart to squeeze up so tight it skipped a beat. She bit her lip, knowing he must have felt it happen. Mortification poured over her and she hid behind a more abrasive tone than necessary. I promise, geez. Just, stay with your brother. If he starts turning Scylla, things might go bad. You shouldn’t leave him alone.