by K. F. Breene
“Then we won’t get along.” Daisy stopped beside the stranger. “You’re in my seat.”
“Just get another chair,” Mordecai said, sitting with his pie.
“No. He’s in my seat. That’s rude.” She stared down at him. “Please move.”
“Daisy, have you lost your mind?” I motioned her away. “Just sit somewhere else. Quit antagonizing him.”
“Being afraid is a waste of one’s last minutes. I refuse to give in.” She set her hot chocolate down, crossed her arms, and lifted her chin.
I stared her down, promising pain, until she finally huffed and grabbed another chair. Wood groaned as she slid it across the floor.
“It’s that age,” the woman behind the counter said before chuckling softly.
“Well now. Isn’t this just a happy little family. Where’s the rest of it?” Dylan asked, his gaze rooted on me. He was asking about Kieran and his crew.
“Around. We weren’t given specific information,” I said. “Honestly, I’d decided to leave without letting you know I was here. We were supposed to run into you in the diner. As you can see, we aren’t in the diner. I was going to head out at first light.”
“That right?” He sipped his coffee, and I could tell he didn’t believe a word I said. “How did you find out about me?”
“I’m not allowed to say, but the person isn’t living. I can see and hear spirits, and—”
“I know what you can do,” he whispered, “but you’d do well to lower your voice. There is plenty of room in the mountains to speak plainly. Let’s head out that way.”
Daisy snorted. “About being called stupid…”
I glanced up as an older man with thinning gray hair and a stoop entered the café. He smiled when he saw Dylan, and his smile only grew when he noticed me.
“My goodness, young man, you sure do meet the pretty ones.” He gave me a nod in hello, and nodded at the kids in turn.
Dylan’s soul pulsed brightly, radiantly.
“You like it here,” I said, clasping my fingers. “It has changed you. You’re a better person when you’re here.”
His eyes smoldered blue fire. “I do like it here, yes. I will not jeopardize these people or this town.”
“I get it. I was told about someone with your”—I glanced up at the people talking at the counter—“affinity for hiking. I wasn’t told where you liked to hike, but when you know what to look for, it’s not hard to put things together. I mean…” I put my palm to my chest. “Not for people like me. For people who do this kind of thing for a living.”
“And your Demigod is hoping you’ll sweet-talk me into joining forces?”
“No. My Demigod is very uneasy about this situation, but this spirit told him that I should be the front man. Me and the kids. This news was broken to me on the plane ride here. Being that I’m a gullible jackass, I went for it. That is, until I talked to that woman at the counter.” I explained what she’d said and what I’d decided. “But now things are awkward. I’m not sure where we go from here.”
“Where do we go from here?” He sneered, and somehow that didn’t make him any less handsome. “We don’t go anywhere. You will go into the ground and take these teens with you. Otherwise their blood will be on your hands.”
Daisy giggled. “Way wrong answer, buck-o. Should’ve left us out of it—”
I held up my hand to Daisy, who thankfully listened for once and stopped talking.
“Right.” I leaned my elbows on the table, looking deep into his hateful gaze. “There are three things I will tell you, and your response will set things in motion. Here are the facts. The person that told me about you was the last…” I pointed at myself. “Terrible rock climber.” I lifted my eyebrows to make sure he understood that I was talking about my magic. “We still don’t know how he knew about you. He comes and goes as he pleases in my life. I have zero control over him, but I keep his home base safe. It is very well hidden, at his request, so it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. But he can be called with other objects. If I cease to…sow my wild oats, and he is called by another, your secret is not safe. While I am sowing the oats—”
“Oh my God, stop with that. The people at the counter aren’t listening,” Daisy said, rubbing her temples.
I sighed. “While I’m alive, your secret is safe. Everyone who knows it has a blood oath to Kieran. He will ensure they cannot break their silence. I say walk, and the whole team walks. No questions. You will not be bothered again, and if you are, I will personally show up to help you. I swear that.”
He crossed his arms over his chest. “And what do you think your word is worth to me?”
“I’ll tell you what my word is worth to you.” I leaned forward a little more, knowing the fire that was in his eyes earlier was now raging in mine. I wondered if my soul was pulsing the same deep blacks and reds I felt from his. “Fuck with my kids, and I’ll make this a zombie town, and you can fry your friends as they hunt for your soul. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”
His eyes had widened and a muscle pulsed in his jaw. He might’ve thought I was lying before, but he didn’t think I was lying now.
“Mordecai, finish that pie,” I said. “We have the roof on the Jeep and it has rubber tires. Lightning can’t get us while we’re inside.”
A small crease worked between Dylan’s brow, and suddenly I wondered if that were true.
“One thing,” he said. “Did you want that mark? Be honest. I’ll know if you lie.”
“Truth—it was first applied accidentally in the heat of the moment. The second and subsequent times have been on purpose, and yes, more often than not, I have asked for it.”
“Very loudly sometimes,” Daisy said. “It is so gross. When we were in the old house, we had to wear earplugs. Thank God we’re on separate floors now. So much better.”
“Would you stop?” I asked her, my face flaming. To Dylan I said, “I love him. I wear his mark, and he is connected to me through my soul link. Both connections are permanent.”
Dylan’s stare beat into me, but he didn’t further comment. Silence hung heavy over the table. Nervous tingles spread over my body.
I spread my hands. “What’s the score here? What happens next?”
“You were right about one thing,” Dylan said. “You coming here was selfish.” He took a sip of his coffee, eyeing me over the rim of his paper to-go cup. “I’ve read about you. I find your story hilarious. You didn’t bring the stylist with you, I see.”
I looked down at my jeans and plaid shirt. They weren’t that much different than his.
“I’ve often wondered how different things would’ve been if I hadn’t been brought up in the magical world,” Dylan said, a little more softly than before. “Or if I could meet someone who wasn’t tarnished by the life people like me are forced to endure.”
“What’s the difference? I’ve still ended up here, desperately looking for someone to help me so I don’t get kidnapped, mind-wiped, and used as an assassin.”
“Not to mention forced into the situation this guy survived if Aaron gets you,” Daisy said. “You know, since you’re not Aaron’s blood relation. I heard he’d probably make you his mistress, whether you wanted it or not. That got Jerry all riled up the other day.”
“Stop talking or no more phone,” I said through clenched teeth.
“I’m already on phone restriction.”
“Then no more allowance. No more money. Or nice things.”
“Just tell her you’ll pick out her clothes for a week—that’ll shut her up,” Mordecai said.
Dylan looked slightly bewildered. We could derail anyone.
“Look…” he said.
“Okay, Dylan, see ya later,” the older man said, lifting his hand in goodbye as he headed for the door.
“See ya, Chuck.” Dylan nodded.
“Say goodbye to your pretty friend and her foster kids for me.” Chuck pushed open the door.
“I’m not a kid killer,” Dylan whisp
ered, leaning in so his voice didn’t carry. “When I had the choice, I drew the line at kids. As soon as I got a chance, I walked away from my past life and never looked back. Just…leave. Leave at sunrise, like you said. Don’t leave, however, and I will kill every last one of you. Do I make myself clear?”
Relief such as I’d never known flooded me, because I believed him. His soul was back to pulsing brightly. His shoulders had relaxed. He didn’t want a confrontation any more than I did.
I nodded, allowing myself to smile. The woman behind the counter wandered into the kitchen, but I didn’t increase my volume. “Thank you, and I apologize again for even showing up. I’ll try to figure out how to bind spirits from telling secrets. I don’t know if it’s possible, but I will try.”
Daisy stood when I did, but Mordecai didn’t move so fast.
“If you never looked back, why are you so fervent on keeping up with our world?” Mordecai asked in that soft, solemn way of his. His rational tone was hard to ignore. “Why do you still do magic in the hills, and read about women experiencing the world of magic for the first time?”
“I need to make sure my whereabouts remain hidden,” Dylan said.
Mordecai nodded, as though he took the lie at face value. He didn’t push, or try to talk the other guy around, but that was the thing with Mordecai: he didn’t have to. The way he delivered words sometimes made people think. Time would tell if he’d just planted a seed within Dylan.
Unfortunately, time was the one thing we did not have.
14
Kieran
From Kieran’s vantage point, he could see the Lightning Rod sitting on top of a large rock, looking down over the mountainside through night-vision binoculars. A large canteen sat beside him, holding more of the coffee that now steamed in a white travel mug held in a steady hand. He clearly planned to be there for a while.
Amazingly, the Lightning Rod had found one of only a few vantage points that provided a clear view of the new house, not an easy accomplishment in a wild national park full of trees. That meant this man knew his way around the mountain. He’d clearly spent a lot of time roaming or trying to work his magic away from prying eyes. He had to miss using his ability freely. Any highly trained level five would. But the unspeakable horrors he’d been through probably kept the longing at bay.
It wouldn’t keep the madness at bay, though.
Kieran had seen it with his mother. He’d watched the slow decline of a magical worker unable to use her craft, to release the pressure building inside. This man would blow eventually, and the whole world would watch the fallout in horror.
“Make the first move,” Kieran said into the phone. Jerry, on the other end grunted. He wasn’t much of a talker anyway, but in rock form, he rarely issued more than a grunt.
Kieran had spoken to Alexis soon after dinner. She’d made it home after her heart-to-heart with the Lightning Rod just fine. The rest of her evening had been spent assigning positions to her spirit sentinels. A precaution, not a call to battle. Alexis’s resolve had hardened—they’d leave in the morning and never look back. The Lightning Rod, who’d been through so much already, would be allowed to live in peace.
A decision Kieran had agreed to—except here Dylan sat, looking down on Kieran’s love, within striking range. This section of the mountain was in Chad’s jurisdiction, and he’d been the first to report on the Lightning Rod’s location. Kieran had alerted the team, only to learn Jerry was already on the move, having sensed Dylan’s movements through the rock.
Jerry currently sat directly above the Lightning Rod in plain view. Well, plain view if you realized the odd-looking boulder was actually a large, hunched-down giant. A large pool sat a hundred feet away from him, newly formed from water diverted from mountain streams. Kieran would use that water as a sort of shield, holding it around his body. When lightning hit it, the electrical shock would spread out over the surface, directed toward the ground. He and Jerry had a solid defense in place. The rest of the team had been kept away.
The rock Dylan sat on wiggled. Dylan startled, his coffee sloshing over his hand, but he didn’t seem shocked. Kieran knew what that meant.
Alexis had mentioned that Dylan was keeping tabs on the magical world. He likely knew Kieran had procured the giant. He now knew the giant was powerful enough to wiggle a multiple-ton rock that had probably been there since the beginning of time.
The rock bucked up out of the earth, and Dylan flew into the air. In a shock of sound and light, lightning zipped down around Kieran like raindrops, each bolt small, concise, and with enough of a punch to fry someone from the inside out.
Kieran shielded his eyes, unable to help it. The movement surely gave him away.
Water sailed through the air, surrounding him in an arc before the next blast rained down. Just like before, it was a cluster of smaller bolts, none of them digging down far into the water before spreading out, finding ground, and dispersing.
Dylan hit the dirt beside the rock, his head thunking on the hard ground, but he scrambled up quickly. Light crackled between his fingers, ready to blast out at a moment’s notice, and clouds gathered overhead, carrying much larger charges.
Zeus wasn’t the only one who could affect the weather, though, and while his Demigods were stronger with storms and cloud formations than Poseidon’s, this guy was not a Demigod. He was no match for Kieran.
“I don’t mean to harm you,” Kieran called out, scattering the clouds above. “But you watching my girlfriend is something of a sticking point for me.”
Jerry stood slowly, clearly unaffected by the lightning that had just rained down on him. Dylan flinched and altered his position, now only needing a slight turn of his head to focus on one threat or the other. He’d had good attack and defensive training.
“Clever, with the water,” Dylan said, and Kieran could tell he held no love for Demigods. Not that anyone could blame him. “I partially chose this location because there weren’t large quantities of water readily available.”
“There aren’t…unless you work with someone that can literally move mountains.” Kieran walked to the right, forcing Dylan to take his eyes off Jerry if he wanted to remain focused on Kieran. Dylan wasn’t the only one with training, after all. “Why are you watching Alexis?”
“I didn’t realize her magic could reach this far. Or was it the giant that felt me coming?”
“Hers doesn’t, and he did, but not before Alexis’s army of spirits noticed you getting within striking range. Why are you watching her?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I don’t trust her. Or you. Since when does a Demigod allow the mouse to get away?”
“Who is the mouse, her or you?”
“Both. Either. Aren’t we all mice to a Demigod?”
“I prefer to think of things as a game of chess. To me, you are a pawn, and she’s the queen. My queen. She has decided you will be left to your life. I will gladly honor her wishes.” Kieran held out a hand. “Unless you endanger her or her children. Then I will allow Jerry to play a game of rock, paper, lightning with you.”
“Giants don’t move very fast in rock form,” Dylan said with a smirk.
“Jerry?”
Rocks rolled down from heavens knew where, large and small alike, crowding in around Dylan in perfect formation. They blocked him from bolting in all directions but one—straight back to Jerry.
“He doesn’t move very quickly in that form, no. But trust me, he can magically throw a rock much faster than you can run. He owns this mountain. You’re but a squatter.”
Dylan scanned the rocks gathered in front of him, chest high, then looked over them at Kieran, hate filling his eyes. He didn’t speak. Thunderclouds tried to form overhead, blocked by Kieran. Rage was getting the better of him.
Kieran put up his hands. “As I said, I don’t wish to hurt you. If you remain peaceful, I’ll remain peaceful. We’ll leave tomorrow. You’ll never hear from us again.”
“You expect me to believe a Demigod
who needs me will just walk away?”
“I don’t need you. You’d be an incredible asset, don’t get me wrong, but I can fill that hole in different ways. Look, it’s very simple. I need a team to help protect her. If you don’t want a place on it, then great. Been nice knowing you. We won’t hang around.”
“Yet you just bought that big house on the hill.”
“You guys don’t do Airbnbs up here. That was the next fastest option for what we needed.”
“Must be nice.”
“Watching my mother die slowly at the hands of my father? No, not really. That wasn’t exactly the highlight of my life. Killing my father in vengeance and taking his money and his job? It’s actually a shitty, hollow feeling, if you must know. If I hadn’t met Alexis, I’m pretty sure I’d be the horror you currently think I am. But I did meet Alexis, and she’s taught me that anyone can change their stars. Anyone can turn things around. Anyone can have a second chance.”
Jerry grunted his assent.
Dylan scoffed. “I have my second chance. Guess you’re out of luck.”
“This second chance is going to kill you,” Kieran said softly. He pushed the water away, standing without armor in front of this man who had obvious, unhealed emotional scars. Kieran knew what that was like, and for the first time that he could remember, he felt a deep, profound connection toward a stranger. They hadn’t had the same circumstances or life situations, but they’d both suffered in a magical system beyond their control. Kieran had been saved by Alexis and her misfit family, but this guy still had nobody. He had nothing to fight for. To live for, really, since he was living a lie.
“Is that a threat?” Dylan said, lightning crackling between his fingers.
Kieran put his hands in his pockets. “Alexis has devoted her whole life to helping people. As you probably know, altruism doesn’t come naturally to me, yet I find myself wanting to help you. I know what it’s like for a level-five magical person who can’t use their magic. My mother would stare out at the water and twitch, desperate to be in it, needing to allow her magic to swell and feed on the ocean’s currents. My whole life, she needed the release that was denied to her. You know what I mean. You are using your magic in increments, but the pressure is building. You can feel it, I know you can.” The nearly full moon cast light on Dylan’s falling, knowing expression. Yes, he definitely felt it. What a terrible way to live. “My father was keeping my mother’s skin from her. She couldn’t release any magic, no matter how desperate she got, but you can, and when you blow, this whole town will feel your wrath. By then, though, I’m not sure you’ll care.”