The Lost Heir

by Allison Whitmore

  Isabella punched Colin in the arm, thinking about the possibilities of the year to come. She couldn’t wait. She had new responsibilities in new ways, and she was happy. "So, where's my other gift?" She held her palm out, half-joking. She really didn’t want anything else, but he had mentioned a second present.

  Colin chuckled, walked over to the table, and pulled out a rectangular-shaped gift.

  "How did you get to go first?" Elyse joked.

  Isabella opened it to find an old book. "Oh, thank you," she said, trying to sound enthusiastic.

  "It's a book about us, the empaths, written by someone very important."

  "Joseph Gaut," she said, reading the inside cover where the name was sketched in ink.

  Theophilus came over and looked down at the book. "This was the basis of a lot of my work. Your great-grandmother let me read it if I did so in her personal library," he said, his hand sweeping around the room.

  "Should I keep it here then?"

  Colin shook his head. "Whatever you want. Joseph gave it to Renee and Sinclair as a wedding gift. Now, it's yours."

  “There’s something more to it that you’re not telling me, Colin,” she said, noting the look in his eye.

  He nodded. “Well, it’s got a lot of wisdom in there, wisdom that will help you do things. One of the reasons I needed it was so that I could really make sure that the protectorate over the fire remained strong for all empaths, not just you, regardless of your birthday. We shouldn’t be seeing Jack for a long time now if the enchantment worked. Sorry, I didn’t tell you before. I wanted the book to be a surprise.”

  Wow. Enchantments. “But where is Jack?”

  “Probably on the other side of things—the world that is,” explained Colin. “He has friends there. With the Fire so strong and the enchantments in place, he has nothing here. Pythian is gone, too. But don’t worry that now. Your home, and we’re all safe. That’s what matters.”

  Isabella touched the top of the book delicately. She put her book away, imagining the nights ahead reading under the covers and discovering more about their world. She would keep it safe forever. She hugged Colin then kissed his cheek.

  Her grandmother's gift was a golden cypher, similar to the one she'd taken from Theophilus' shop. It had her initials engraved on the back. As much as she should hate puzzling after her ordeal with Jack, she couldn't. It was what made her tick. Xander gave her a year's worth of platinum movie passes to the multiplex down the road. Lana and Dot gave her a collection of movie scores from her great-grandparents' films, and Elyse gave her a book of poetry that she'd written herself, to Isabella's surprise. The Logan family gave her tickets to the next Lakers game, which slightly deflated Isabella, having hoped for something a little more personal from Seth.

  "He's planning on taking you, ya know?" Micah whispered when no one was looking. "It's the best game of the season."

  "But don't you want to go with him?"

  Micah shrugged. "I'm going, but I'll be sitting with my parents on the other side of the stadium, nosebleed seats and all." He was a good person, she thought, and an even better brother. But she wasn't sure how she felt about going on a date with Seth at all, let alone a date everyone knew about.

  "Maybe he should take Johnna instead," she said, instantly wishing she could take the words back. She didn't own Seth. He could do what he wanted with his lips. Her eyes found him; he sat on the arm of a chair near the owl statue that had made the beds emerge from the floor. He wasn't looking at her, so she imagined he probably regretted the gift. Micah may have spoken out of turn, also. He had only said Seth was planning on taking her. Plans changed all the time.

  Finally, the food arrived, and after a lot of eating and talking, Isabella slumped into a chair near the back of the room for a breather. Before her eyelids grew too heavy, a shadow loomed over her.

  "I think I owe you a dance," said Seth. “And maybe a kiss later.”

  "It's fine. I don't need charity. I saw you with Johnna."

  Seth's smile fell away. "Well, if you don't want to."

  "No, I would, but—"

  "Look, I was only with Johnna because she didn't give me a choice."

  Isabella rolled her eyes. "Yeah, right. It didn't look like you were fighting her off too hard out in the gardens in the middle of the party. You sure work fast."

  "What are you talking about? I didn't go to the gardens with her. I was stuck talking to her crazy friends most of the night. I should have been with you. I wasn't sure if you were mad, and I don't know. But I wasn't with her." He looked serious, but she knew it was him she had seen. Or was it? Her head had been spinning, and Jack had been manipulating her. Seth's eyes continued to search hers with sincerity. "I promise you, Izzy..." He reached over and gripped her hand tightly in his. A strange but familiar warmth enveloped them both. Serenity, solace, and understanding. He kissed her knuckles.

  She smiled, content. She suddenly realized that only Seth could make her feel that way. "I believe you."

  "Iz... you're not alone." He leaned closer and kissed her softly. It was slow and sweet and full of promise. The foreheads touched as Seth whispered, "Okay?"

  Isabella nodded once, heart in her throat. “Okay.”

  They shared another smile before the party erupted back to life around them. If anyone had noticed their interaction, they did not let on.

  An unexpected guest appeared at the top of the stairs. "Happy birthday, Isabella!” cried Mimi. “Though I know it was yesterday, really—but we had to save the world and all. It was really hard for me not to say anything, but those fair folk. My mom has no idea I'm here. Sneaking through the portal could get me in a lot of trouble, but what good is it being a morphling if you can't work your magic?" She looked over at Neeta and Colin. "The Brotherhood leader not in the Underground…? That's not good."

  Colin started to say, "Don't worry, we’ve got eyes everywhere, and—"

  "So, what are you guys doing?" She paid him no attention and came fully into the room. "Playing gin rummy? Or some other weird human game?" Everyone looked at her as if she'd said the sky was about to crash to the earth and sprout spring flowers. "No? Well, whatever you're doing, I want in. You empaths are such a kick."

  Isabella laughed.

  "Time to blow out the candles," Lana announced. Isabella noticed for the first time that the cake had a crown on it.

  "I'm not a little kid, Nano."

  "It represents a lot more than you may think, dear." The diadem crown, of course, thought Isabella. She was sixteen. “In fact, it means you’re a woman in our world.”

  They sang happy birthday, then Isabella pursed her lips and blew out her candles.

  About the Authors

  Allison Whitmore was born in Los Angeles and studied literature and writing at Long Island University. She spent several years teaching English and history after earning her master's degree at Mount St. Mary’s University. She now devotes her time to penning stories, coaching writers, and imagining she’s in the middle of the latest Colin Firth movie. Some of her favorite authors include William Shakespeare, Alice Walker, Edgar Allan Poe, Lewis Carroll, and J.K. Rowling. Outside of writing and reading, Allison loves classic Hollywood films, hiking, and spending time with her family and friends.

  *

  Erin Virginia spent the first years of her life in Tokyo, Japan, before finishing her formative years in a suburb of Chicago. She attributes her wild imagination and her love of reading to her family. Two of her favorite authors of all-time are Mark Twain and J.K. Rowling. She loved working with her two best friends as the three of them created mayhem and magic with The Lost Heir in her new home, Los Angeles.

  *

  Grace Arden was born in Philadelphia. She has always lived in the imaginative world and was fascinated by dark stories she read, ranging from the horror works of R.L Stine and mysteries like Lois Duncan. With her siblings' influence, her likes expanded to her love of Shakespeare, Jane Austen, J.M Barrie, Edgar Allan Poe, Lewis Carroll, T
.S. Elliot and Robert Frost. She is a huge fan of movies, bonfires, astrology, traveling, spirituality, and, most of all, fantasy and ghost stories. Grace plans to empower the world through her looking-glass-mirror perspective on life. She currently resides in Los Angeles.

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you to our parents, siblings, and supportive friends. So many of you have stuck with us through the development of this book, and we love you for it.

  Thank you to our story coach, Joseph W. He's part of the reason the guys in this book are so awesome. You're the best, Joseph.

  Thank you to our fantastic editor, Kathryn Galan, who helped turn our little book into something we can be truly proud of.

  Finally, thank you to Captive Quill Press and Kenya Cooper, our wonderful proofreader, Alison Marcotte, and our dazzling talented, cover designer, Amalia Chitulescu. The Lost Heir has finally come to life because of you.