“That’s fine by me,” Krystal says. “I’m more than happy to put the past behind us.”
“But am I?” Selene circles around the two of us, and says, “You don’t just try to assassinate a girl for control of the clan, get everyone we care about murdered, fake your death, and expect to get off scot free. No, I’m afraid your debt still must be paid.”
I glance at Krystal, and mutter, “That’s not what you told me happened.”
“It seems Andie here hasn’t told you everything… oh dear. I’m sure you two have a lot to talk about, so I’ll let you get to it. Be seeing you, girls.” Selene pats my cheek, and slowly walks in Alyssa’s direction. We watch as she grabs Alyssa’s hand, and flashes us one last look over her shoulder, before the two of them vanish.
Part Three: The Hunted
Chapter 21
The moment Krystal brings us back to my apartment, I check every room in the house to make sure we’re alone. My mom isn’t home, so I tell Krystal to wait in the living room while I change. I barely even give the door time to close before I start to rip off the clothes I’ve been wearing for the past few days, and change into pajama pants and a tank top. I don’t care how many times it’s been cleaned, I’m sick of wearing the same outfit every day.
When I come back out, Krystal is sitting quietly on the couch, waiting for me. She must have an idea of how angry I am that she’s been lying to me; she won’t look me in the eye, but rather, concentrates on the ground, chewing nervously on the end of her thumb. There are so many things I want to ask, but I decide to start with something small. In as even a voice as I can manage, I ask, “Who’s Andrea?”
Finally, Krystal’s eyes meet mine, and she answers, “That’s me… Or, it used to be. I changed my name after I ‘died’, but before then, I was Andrea Collado.”
“Okay… Well, Andrea, what else have you been hiding from me?”
“Krystal, please. And that’s it.”
“Bullshit! The secrets never stop with you.” Krystal drops her gaze, and doesn’t respond. She knows I’m right. I watch her carefully for a moment, and during the lull in the conversation, I remember another piece of information she’s been hiding from me. It occurred to me once before, how she’s rarely ever been surprised by how quickly I learn whatever spell she throws at me, even though many of them are apparently too complicated for someone without years of experience.“You knew I was a Conduit.”
“I guessed. But even if I had told you, I don’t know enough to-“
“And you were the rebel that tried to bring down your own clan, not Selene?”
“Not exactly, but you have to understand-“
“And you were the one that got everyone you loved killed-“
“Enough!” Krystal walks over to the window, facing away from me as she speaks. “I had my reasons for doing what I did.”
“Well, explain them. I’m all ears.”
“I admit, I lied to you when I said I became the leader of the Caelestia clan. Selene was the one chosen instead, and it stung, but I didn’t mind. She was like a sister to me at the time, and I was happy for her. But then I noticed some of the changes she was making to clan policy… she changed our name to Penumbra, wouldn’t allow any of us to learn hand-to-hand combat, and since she was one of the strongest spellcasters aside from me, ensured that only the person who killed her could become the clan’s new leader. Worst of all, she made it mandatory for all male members of Penumbra to subject themselves to her experiments… including my fiancée, David.
“I noticed the change in him immediately after the first round of tests. He became unstable, emotionally; he would be calm one minute, then violently shift from manic laughter, to anger, to self-loathing, to full-on depression… and then there were his eyes. They would turn red whenever he got lost in his mood swings, and when he snapped out of it, he wouldn’t remember a thing. It was almost as if he were possessed.
“The last night I saw him, David confessed to me that Selene had been trying to create an army of especially resilient spellcasters by injecting the best men our clan had to offer with demon blood. The mixtures were always volatile, and resulted in symptoms like his. And right after his confession… Selene dubbed her experiment a failure, and exterminated every single one of her test subjects.
“That’s when I decided enough was enough. I rounded up a few people who knew the truth, including some of Selene’s family and everyone I held dear, and we laid an ambush for her in the abandoned hospital on Roosevelt Island. The rest of what I told you is true; she brought reinforcements with her, and they were too strong for us to handle.
“Everyone I cared about was slaughtered that night. I was knocked out and trapped under a wall that collapsed over me, and left for dead. When I managed to free myself, I burned everything left of my old life, moved to Brooklyn, and changed my name. I thought I could outrun the past, but… apparently, I didn’t do a good enough job.”
I mull over all the new information in silence, since I don’t know how to respond. Now I can see the situation I’ve been dragged into with more clarity, and yet, I don’t know how to feel about it all; she’d led me to believe that we were the good guys in this scenario, but now I’m not so sure. Likewise, Selene doesn’t necessarily come across as a bad person… if anything, I just get the feeling she’s determined to stay in power by any means necessary. It seems to me that neither of them was in the right. And now I might be caught in the crossfire. Our lives really might be in danger because of Krystal’s actions. I try to keep the anger out of my voice as I ask, “Why did you lie to me about all this?”
“I didn’t want you to see me the way I see myself… I’ve been living with the guilt of my actions for years. I’ve done my best to wipe off the blood on my hands, and move on with my life, and in case you haven’t noticed, I’ve done a shitty job. Every night, their faces haunt me, and I can still remember every cry for help as clearly as I did the night after… It’s nearly driven me insane, and more than once, I’ve considered taking the easy way out.”
Given everything she’s lied about so far, I’m not entirely sure if she’s being genuine or not. If she’s telling the truth, though, it explains why she usually seems unhappy, and why she was so reluctant to take on a student; I could have easily have just become another person for her to lose. “What stopped you?,” I ask as I take her spot on the couch.
Krystal wipes something off her face before turning around to face me again. “Cowardice, mostly. Nick and Landon have also been a huge help, for the past few years at least. They’re the only two people whose lives I haven’t ruined yet.”
“You haven’t ruined mine…”
“No, not entirely. But I did just make it a lot harder.” Krystal leans against the windowsill, and says, “I shouldn’t have gone to the Guardian’s temple today. Now that Selene knows I’m alive, and that you exist, we’re no longer safe. She’ll more than likely send people to kill us. Or to subdue us, so she can take care of us personally.”
“Wonderful… What are we gonna do?”
“For now, we should just try to lay low while we draw up a better plan. Which means I should teach you how not to stand out.”
“What do you mean?”
Krystal explains that experienced spellcasters can sense the energy flowing through others, and they can tell spellcasters apart from normal people by the intensity of their flow. And as a Conduit, my high energy output would do nothing but turn me into an automatic target. Krystal quickly shows me how to stem the flow of my energy to the point where I would seem like a normal person. While I work to get the hang of what she just taught me, she asks, “Do you hate me?”
“No… I don’t hate you. I just need you to open up and tell me shit. You tend to withhold information that would keep me alive.”
“You’re right… I’m sorry.”
“Good.”
Once Krystal’s satisfied that I can make myself appear normal, she announces
that she has to leave. “If we’re gonna keep you safe, we need a better plan than just covering up the fact that you’re a spellcaster,” she says. “I’ll head home and think things over. You just try not to draw attention to yourself.” She starts to open her arms for a hug, but seems to think better of it, and vanishes on the spot.
I head back into my room, and flop down on my bed. I couldn’t have imagined before how much I would miss being home. I’m almost lulled to sleep right then and there by the familiar scent of my room, the clean cotton on my skin, and the sense that I’m safe for the moment. My thoughts are racing too fast for me to fall asleep, however, as I try to wrap my head around all the information I’ve been given in the past half hour or so. There’s a lot to sort through; four months ago, I was a normal teenager with normal things to worry about. Now, I have to deal with a grudge older than I am, and whatever responsibilities will come with the power that’s been forced upon me. To be honest, I don’t feel equipped to deal with any of it. I bury my face in my pillow and try to pretend that late homework is the most pressing matter I have to attend to.
I can’t figure out what to do with myself now that I’m actually home. I consider trying to find Nick, but since he’s rarely on Facebook, and has no cell phone, I can’t imagine that going well. I try to scroll through the contacts on my phone to see if there’s anyone else I can get in touch with, but naturally, after a few days without being charged, the battery has died. I plug in my phone, and try to read a little of Paper Towns, but I keep losing focus, and end up reading the same page three times. I give up on reading, and throw on some jeans and a clean shirt, hoping that taking a walk will help clear my head.
It’s surprisingly dark outside, even though it’s nearly noon, and I can feel the moisture in the air slowly building. Just as I reach for a hoodie and an umbrella, I hear the first drops of rain landing on my windowsill. By the time I make it downstairs, it’s pouring, and people are running to find dry spots to wait out the worst of the storm. I actually kind of like when it rains, so I boldly step out, letting the rain fall on me for a few seconds before opening my umbrella and holding it over myself. I pull my hood up and over my head for good measure, and start walking downtown.
I don’t have an exact idea of where I’m going, content to just let my feet guide me along the rain-slicked city streets. Several interesting stores strike me as possible destinations, but I don’t want to stop. Not yet. About ten blocks from home, I turn to better inspect what’s written on the sign in a window, and notice someone behind me, watching me intently. Someone tall, wearing black jeans, black sneakers, and a black hoodie with the sleeves cut off. He doesn’t look familiar, and I have no interest in becoming acquainted with him, so I turn away from the sign and keep walking. A few seconds later, I hear his sneakers striking the wet pavement behind me.
I’m not scared, surprisingly, or anything short of calm. In fact, I’m almost glad for the chance to test my strength after unlocking the rest of my power. I turn a corner down a mostly deserted street, then break into a sprint, and I can tell from the frenzied footfalls behind me that he’s done the same. I pull my umbrella closed, and keep my eyes on the buildings around me, looking for a secluded spot, but there’s nothing on this block. We end up dashing across the street while there are still cars coming our way, and I narrowly avoid getting hit by a moving van. While the guy chasing me circles the vehicle, I spot a supermarket closed for renovations. It seems empty enough, so I barrel through the wood covering the entrance, pleasantly surprised that it swings open rather than splintering apart.
It’s dark in the abandoned supermarket, but I can still vaguely make out the black mass that materializes in front of me. Rather than stopping, I toss my umbrella to the side and lunge at him going full speed, colliding with his chest and knocking him to the ground. He tries to push me off of him, but I manage to keep him pinned, and land a couple of punches to the face before he blasts me backward with a spell. The moment my back hits the ground, he makes a pulling motion with his hands, and the shelf above me starts toppling over sideways, threatening to crush me under it. I teleport out of harm’s way, but before I can attack, he spins and shoves me back with another spell, and I shatter the glass door of the empty freezer that halts my momentum.
For a moment, we remain still, watching each other. I try to read in his eyes whether he plans to kill or capture me, but I can’t tell which he intends to do. I can’t allow either to happen. I move to launch a small fireball at my attacker to throw him off, but it comes out much larger than intended, and leaves scorch marks on both the floor and ceiling as it hurtles toward him. He vanishes, and reappears at my side, tries to grab me by the hair, but I grab his hand and twist it too far in the wrong direction, and the crack of his wrist breaking echoes across the mostly empty store. I watch as he drops to his knees, holding his wrist and gritting his teeth to avoid screaming, and almost start to feel sorry for the guy. Then I realize that he’s trying to repair his wrist with a spell. Before he can, I deliver a hard kick to his chin, with enough force to knock him onto his back.
Just when I think I’ve won, there’s an odd gust of wind, and I can feel several pairs of eyes on me. Several more people, dressed in black for the most part, now occupy the store, waiting for me to make the first move. Taking on one guy was a walk in the park, but half a dozen might have a different outcome. My original attacker stands up, flexing his newly healed wrist, and completes the circle around me. I do my best to stifle the rising panic, and think of a way to come out of this on top. An idea comes to me just as the circle of people around me begins closing in. Without stopping to wonder if what I’m thinking will work or not, I focus my energy on removing the cement and support beams holding the floor in place. Within seconds, the floor begins to sag, and we fall through to the basement, tiles and dust raining down on us as we land on the concrete below.
The first person to stand becomes my first target. She puts a shield around herself to protect from a potential spell, but I knee her in the stomach instead, dropping an elbow on the back of her neck when she doubles over in pain. I almost miss the sound of shuffling feet behind me, and turn around just in time to deflect a kick aimed at my kidneys. The guy loses balance, and falls over forward, so I take the opportunity to kick him in the face. Two more have gotten up, and rush towards me at the same time instead of individually. I let off another fireball, and they disperse, before regrouping and charging at me again. Three others approach me from behind, and start throwing punches my way as they come in close enough. I do my best to block and dodge most of them, but I take a few hits to the stomach, some to the back, and one lucky blow connects with my jaw. The rest of their group starts closing in on us, and I have to teleport to the other side of the room to avoid getting surrounded.
One of my attackers pulls out what looks like the hilt of a sword, and closes his eyes. Presumably, he’s channeling his energy through the hilt, because a shining, thin red blade extends from it. The others follow suit, their own blades taking on the colors of their individual auras. At this point, I start backing away slowly; I haven’t mastered energy manipulation well enough to form my own blade, nor would I even know how to use it if I could make one. I should have asked Alyssa; I noticed her using a similar weapon while we were fending off the horde of spiders.
Just as I start trying to think of a creative way to fight them off, a gunshot rings throughout the silent room. Six more follow in rapid succession, and one by one, each of the spellcasters slumps to the ground. For a moment, there’s no sign of my savior, then a familiar figure steps out from the shadows, with a pistol in each hand. Krystal scowls at me, and asks, “Didn’t I JUST tell you NOT to draw attention to yourself?”
Chapter 22
I should be relieved to see Krystal, even thankful that she intervened when she did. But somehow, I can’t bring myself to show any gratitude. Instead, I ask, “What the hell did you shoot them for?”
Krystal sighs, and
mutters, “Calm down, Heather,” as she starts walking in my direction.
“Calm down? You just killed a bunch of people, and you want me to calm down?! What is wrong with-“
“I haven’t killed anyone.” Krystal kicks one of the spellcasters on the ground as she passes them, and he lets out a faint groan. “They’re just unconscious, it’s fine.”
“But… how?”
Krystal hands one of her pistols to me, and says, “These guns don’t fire bullets. Instead, you channel some of your energy into them, and the gun fires it in a concentrated burst. The energy passes right through whatever it hits. Doesn’t leave a mark on their skin, puncture their flesh, or rupture any blood vessels. It just causes a shitload of pain, sometimes enough to make the victim pass out. They’re actually based on the same premise as the blades these guys were about to use on you… they’ll hurt, but you won’t suffer any visible damage.”
I look down at the pistol in my hand. Rather than the usual black or pewter finish seen on most guns, the sleek metal is tinted a dark red, nearly the color of blood, and accentuated with silver lining. Engraved into the grip is a pair of silver wings, opened and ready for flight. I glance up at Krystal, and ask, “What’s with the logo?”
“It’s stupid… back when I made these, I named them both Angel’s Kiss, and used that little symbol because I sort of suck at engraving actual words.”
“You made these?”
“Yep. Twenty years ago. I bought and modified a pair of regular guns… it’s a long story.”
“Cool.” I hand the gun back to Krystal, who slides it into a black leather holster around her waist. I sigh, and mutter, “Thanks for saving me… even though I had the situation under control.”
Spellbound (the Spellbound Series Book 1) Page 16