Blindspot (Daydream, Colorado Book 1)

by A. M. Rose

  Everyone in the room fell backwards at the violent puff of black smoke that suddenly filled the room.

  Drew began to cough almost immediately, clutching at his chest and gasping for breath. Mason had seen this once before and a chill ran through him.

  “What did you do!” Mason demanded, rubbing Drew on the back frantically trying anything to soothe him. “Drew? Drew? Are you okay?”

  Darian rushed over and laid his large hands both on the front of his chest and the back. Mason saw his tattoos shifting at his shirt sleeves, and after a minute or two, Drew was breathing easier again.

  “What the hell happened?!” Mason demanded again of the witch that was sitting cross legged on the floor, eyes fixed on the smoking bowl with dangerous intensity. “You were supposed to help him.”

  “Whoever made that spell didn’t want him to get help,” Mal said, finally meeting his eyes. “This is…” He shook his head. “This is dark magic.”

  “It came from a grimoire, of course it’s dark!”

  Mal shook his head. “Not everything in a grimoire is dark… look, it doesn’t matter about the semantics. I’m not here to teach you. I’m here to tell you that whoever put that spell on him… they made sure they covered the angles. Some magic can be sensed easily, like yours, for example. I know you have power beyond the usual. Drew… I get nothing from. And not because he was born without magic. There is nothing that indicates he’s even come in contact with magic… which is where the spell really gets its complexity. They not only stopped him from physically telling someone directly or indirectly what they didn’t want him to say, they also made it so whoever tried to figure it out would have… a tough time.”

  “So, what you’re saying is that you can’t do anything?” Drew asked croakily, looking despondent.

  Mason wanted to set the world on fire.

  Mal pulled himself up to his full height. “Now, I didn’t say that, did I. I said it would be tough.”

  Mason saw the spark of hope enter Drew’s eyes. “You think you can reverse it?” he asked.

  "I think I can give a very good attempt at it," Mal said, cryptic as ever.

  "Would it solve the blackouts too?" Mason asked, and Mal turned to look at him.

  "Blackouts?"

  "He feels pain and can't breathe and all that when he tries to say what was done to him, but then also, sometimes he has blackouts, unrelated to talking..."

  "Hm..." Mal fell silent for a moment, eyes going glassy and forehead creasing. "Nothing about a silencing spell should cause blackouts, it could be an unwanted side-effect maybe..."

  He was more muttering to himself than talking to them, and Mason felt his hackles rising with each moment that went by without answers.

  "Well?!" he snapped finally.

  Mal pursed his lips. “I need that grimoire.”

  “Are you okay?” Drew heard Mason ask from the driver’s seat, but he wasn’t sure what to tell him.

  This wasn’t what he was expecting when he walked out of his house that morning. He wasn’t expecting to find Mason and have the chance to talk to him about everything. He didn’t expect for Mason to take charge and set things in motion. Things that would finally give him answers, for better or worse. That he’d know what was wrong with him and if there was a way to fix it. He didn’t know why he didn’t expect it, though. It was Mason. He was always a head through the wall kind of person. If there was even a tiny bit of him that still knew Mason, he shouldn’t have been surprised that he’d want to fix everything someone else had broken.

  “Yeah… I think, I think I’m better than I’ve been in a long while,” he said, pinching the ends of his beard between his fingers and giving it a twirl.

  “How so?” Mason asked carefully.

  “There’s a plan now. There’s… I don’t know, a direction, I guess. It feels good.” He shrugged and Mason nodded, readjusting his hands on the wheel.

  “Did you ever try before? To figure the spell out?” he asked.

  Drew shook his head, turning to look through the window. “I chose to live in a non-magical community for a reason,” he said softly, and even though he couldn’t see Mason, he could feel his eyes on the back of his head.

  “Oh… did I… I didn’t want to push you to do something you didn’t want to do,” Mason said.

  “Yes, you did,” Drew said, turning back and giving Mason a tiny smirk to let him know he held no resentment. Despite it all happening in the blink of an eye, he genuinely was glad it was finally unraveling.

  “Okay fine, I did!” Mason threw his hand in the air. “Not knowing is the worst.”

  “It is… and…” Drew trailed off, not really knowing whether to voice what he wanted to say or not.

  “And?” Mason prompted, and Drew looked away again, knowing he wouldn’t be able to speak if he saw his reaction.

  “I’m glad you’re here…” he said quietly. He heard Mason gasp softly in the silence and felt the slight lurch of the car.

  “I’ve been here the whole time,” Mason said, and even though the words were comforting, his voice sounded clipped somehow. It felt like it was making the air around them colder despite the warmer blowing full blast.

  “I know, I meant…” He ran a hand over his face, not really wanting to lead them into another tense conversation. “Never mind. Just… thank you for doing this. You can drop me off here.”

  They were passing the central park and Drew figured it was better than going home or wandering the streets again. At least the park had some hidden little nooks where he could lay low for a few more hours. Avoid people and their unwelcome attention.

  “I can drive you to your parents’ house,” he heard Mason offer and noticed how even he didn’t call his parent’s house his home anymore.

  “The park is okay,” he insisted and felt the car grind to a sudden stop. Mason turned in his seat towards him and narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

  “Why the park?” he asked, and Drew shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny.

  “It doesn’t have to be the park, just… I don’t want to go back there,” he admitted and had to look away when Mason’s face softened. He didn’t want his pity. He hated feeling like a helpless child. But he was also in tune with himself enough to know he’d give anything to be able to curl up with his head in Mason’s lap while he stroked his hair again. It never failed to make him feel better growing up.

  “It’s still early morning, though. It’s cold,” Mason said, and Drew shrugged.

  “I’ll just walk around; it’ll warm me up.”

  Mason observed him. “Is it that bad at home?”

  “It’s… it’s tense. I told you, they’re trying to make it better by pushing to smooth everything over in a single conversation. And it’s not what I need right now,” he said, afraid he sounded selfish. He was putting his needs above that of his parents who obviously felt guilty and wanted to make things right.

  “What do you need?” Mason asked, and he snapped his eyes back up to find lovely pools of blue looking at him and waiting for his answer. He looked attentive, and Drew felt that whatever answer he chose would be right for Mason.

  “I need to call into work and ask for more time off it seems,” he said the first thing that came to mind.

  “Okay… apart from that?”

  “I need time. And answers. Revenge maybe… although I’m not really vengeful…” He snorted at the last thing he said, convinced he heard Mason mutter, “But I fucking am,” under his breath. “Mostly time, though.”

  “Okay, I’m not sure about time, but we’re searching for your answers. As for revenge…” He cleared his throat. “I’ll get back to you when I’m sure it won’t be possible to trace it back to us.”

  “Trace what back to us?” Drew asked, confused.

  Mason gave him a small wink. “Exactly!”

  Drew chuckled at the devious little smile that blossomed on Mason’s face but fell quiet when that smirk morphed into a blank, distanced look he kn
ew meant a glance into the future. He waited patiently the few short seconds it took Mason to come back to the present, lashes fluttering as he assimilated the information, and greeted him with a gentle smile when he refocused.

  “Glance?” he asked to confirm and Mason nodded.

  “The perfect one actually. We’ll give you one last thing you need,” he said, turning his car back on and starting down the street again.

  “What’s that? Wait… where are we going, the park is that way…” Drew said, looking out the window, then back at Mason who just continued on.

  “We’re meeting Ben and Sage for brunch,” Mason stated, voice sounding like it wouldn’t be the best idea to argue with him about it.

  “You do brunch?” he finally asked, going for light to ease the tension again, and Mason glared at him so strongly Drew was pretty sure he’d melt into the seat.

  “Shut up. No, I don’t.”

  “You just said…”

  “Ben likes brunch, Sage likes Ben. You need food and an excuse to stay out of the house and I just want to eat.”

  “Yeah, that sounds more like it,” Drew said, and they drove the rest of the way to a tiny diner in silence that was starting to resemble something comfortable for the first time since he came back.

  Mason parked his car in front of Daisy’s Diner, and Drew felt himself smile widely at the sight of the familiar hole-in-the-wall place that used to have the best apple pie in the world. He wondered if they still had it as they exited onto the sidewalk.

  “They still have it,” Mason said from next to him.

  He whipped around to find him smirking. “How…?”

  “You were drooling. Wasn’t hard to guess,” he said as he walked a few steps towards the entrance.

  “I wasn’t drooling,” Drew denied, catching up with his tiny steps easily and seeing him roll his eyes.

  “Sure you weren’t. Just… downplay your love for the pie in front of Sage, okay?” he said.

  “What? Why?”

  “He doesn’t like hearing someone else’s food might be better than his.” Mason said matter-of-factly.

  “I haven’t even tried his pie to know,” he said.

  Mason shrugged. “It’s good, but Daisy’s is better. Sage doesn’t know. And he’s not gonna find out today. Got it?” he demanded of him; a stiff finger pointed directly at his face.

  Drew lifted his hands in surrender. “Fine… He didn’t strike me as that scary when I met him,” he said and Mason laughed.

  “It’s not fear. It’s the absolute lack of energy to deal with a three-hour long presentation on why his pie is better and how we’re all wrong. He has posters…” he said with a trace of fondness as they walked into the diner together.

  Drew was pleased to note Daisy’s hadn’t changed that much. It was still bright and oddly decorated, and there was still a group of teenagers in the corner sharing a plate of fries and doing things they shouldn’t be. He shook his head as one girl ran a brush through another girl’s blonde hair, the bristles dying the strands rainbow color as they passed through. On the other side of the table two boys were playing a round of finger football… with a twist. The ‘goalposts’ were some spelled-together utensils, and a fry and the paper that was being used as the football let off a blue trail as soon as it was hit. It clouded up the space between them, and they began using the cheering spells usually reserved for outdoor sports to celebrate their victory… until the waitress appeared to reprimand them.

  “There they are,” Mason said.

  Drew turned his attention back and followed the shorter man’s finger, spotting Sage and Ben already sitting down at a table in the far-right corner.

  They headed that way, passing by the dessert display where the fabled apple pie sat pride of place, a couple of slices already taken out of it. Drew’s stomach rumbled.

  “So, I can’t have pie?” he asked to confirm in a quiet aside. Mason glanced from him to the display and tried to hide a smile that Drew caught anyway. It made him feel as gooey on the inside as that pie was.

  “You can have pie. Just act as if it’s average at best. Extra points if you complain about something. Not sweet enough, crust too thin… anything,” Mason said just as they reached the table.

  “Who’s too thin?” Sage asked, and Mason gave him an exasperated look, pointing both thumbs at himself.

  “Me. I haven’t eaten in hours. I can feel myself perishing.”

  Drew watched him slump into a chair dramatically and smiled at the complete lack of concern on Sage’s face.

  “You’re the last person on earth who’d perish from lack of food,” Sage said, dismissing him completely and turning to him. “Hi, Drew. It’s great you’re joining us.”

  “Yeah, um… I hope that’s okay. Mason basically kidnapped me when he saw you were going to brunch,” he tried to joke, and it seemed to work because Mason gasped in mock offence and glared at him.

  “You probably said you skipped breakfast,” Ben said, sending him a welcoming smile. Drew laughed as he sat in the last empty chair at their table, feeling undeniably relieved at the reception. Next to him, Mason was trying to unwrap himself from the clothes he was wearing while Drew did his best to avoid wayward arms, acutely aware of the space between them.

  “How’d you know?” he asked the handyman, as much for a distraction as interest.

  Ben chuckled. “It’s a mortal sin between these two. Skipping meals, not something you should be doing if you value your life.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said just as a set of menus floated over to them.

  There was silence as they each picked what they wanted to eat. Drew spent half that time staring unseeing at the words in front him as Mason made unconscious humming sounds in the back of his throat as things took his interest. It was far too close to the noises that were burned vividly into his brain, ones that meant heated kisses and sweaty skin and grasping fingers. It was torture.

  “Oh my god, remember the first time I brought you here?” came out of nowhere, making Drew startle and blush like he’d been caught out, before Sage started laughing hysterically. Ben shook his head at his partner. Drew waited for the explanation, but it didn’t seem Sage would be done any time soon, so he turned to Ben.

  “I had just found out magic was a thing in here. We came to Daisy’s, and the menus floated over. I thought we were supposed to tell them what we wanted,” he recited with zero humor in his voice, but him saying it set Sage off even more, and he was doubled over in his chair.

  “You should have seen his face…” he wheezed, hiccupping as he swallowed some air.

  “It’s not that funny,” Ben grumbled.

  “It’s pretty funny,” Mason supplied, and Ben flipped him off casually.

  But one detail stood out to Drew.

  “You said you had just found out about magic?”

  Ben raised a brow, ignoring Sage who was clutching at his arm for balance. “Yup. Found out by accident too,” he said and Drew frowned.

  “I thought…” he started but decided not to finish that sentence. He didn’t want to bring the mood down.

  “You thought he was like you?” Mason asked quietly, and Drew looked at him, nodding softly, knowing he wouldn’t be able to hide what he was thinking.

  Sage’s laughter died out, and they all looked at him. But it wasn’t pity in their eyes. It was understanding, he thought.

  “Yeah… it crossed my mind.”

  “No, sorry. But I am non-magical and living quite happily in Daydream,” Ben said and Drew nodded, just as their waiter approached to take their orders.

  He ran Ben’s words through his mind as he scanned the menu, settling on French toast and scrambled eggs. He cast a questioning look towards Sage before adding apple pie to his order too. He’d find a way to hate it later.

  “How did you two meet, if you don’t mind me asking?” Drew asked Ben after they’d ordered.

  “Don’t ask that,” Mason groaned, thumping his head o
nto the tablemat. He could almost feel Sage sticking his tongue out at him. “You’re gonna set them off, and they’ll be sappy. I can’t handle sappy on an empty stomach.”

  “Like your stomach is ever empty,” Sage bit back. “Don’t listen to him, Drew. Just ask anything you want.”

  Mason decided to remain slumped on the table until the cute little story was done. He had to witness it in person, and then listen to it recounted another fifteen times until the entire town knew how Ben came to be a resident of Daydream. He couldn’t handle the romance. Especially not sitting next to Drew, tingling from every accidental brush of arms and trying to convince his damn heart to finally let go.

  “Just wanted to know how Ben found out about Daydream?” Drew asked again, and Ben launched into the story of how he was invited to fix Sage’s bakery. How he had fallen for Sage the moment he saw him. And all the times Sage and the rest of the town failed to keep magic a secret from him.

  “By the end of the fair, it all just came out. And then when we realized this could be something, Harris allowed me to visit,” Ben summed up, and Mason finally peeled his head off the table, catching his best friend’s stare at his boyfriend. Even his cynical heart had to admit they were cute.

  Because the truth was, Mason’s heart wasn’t really cynical either. He was just so used to being left behind he had a fortress built around it.

  “You live here now though, right?” Drew asked and Ben nodded.

  “I actually moved a few months ago. The day we met was when I finally went to sign a lease for my own office. This town desperately needs a repairman,” he laughed, and Drew returned his smile. But something was obviously bothering him, and Mason hoped he’d say what it was. He didn’t want him sitting there, festering in whatever was making him uncomfortable.

  “And um… the fact that you don’t have magic… is it… okay?” he asked finally, and oh… okay… that was what was eating him up.

  “Daydream is quite friendly,” Ben said and Drew scoffed at that.

  “To you, maybe…” he said quietly. Mason saw Ben and Sage exchange confused looks, and he leaned in towards Drew, conscious of the distance, nose filling immediately with his cologne. The guy hadn’t changed it since they were sixteen and the sensory input was messing with his head.