Izzy swiftly rose to a sitting position on the couch. She knew better than to expect a silly old spell to bring her answers. The elements were a tool, the goddess not hers to command. She chastised herself for even thinking for a moment that saying some words and presto, she’d know the meaning of it all. Life required work. No one obtained anything worth having by wishing for it. Easy was for losers. She’d kick her own ass if she could reach back and hit it.
Disgusted with herself, Izzy shook her head as she slid her feet down to the floor. She reached over to the table in front of her and gathered hers and Cass’s glass from earlier. She twirled in the direction of the kitchen as she stood then stopped dead in her tracks.
Thoughts tumbled out of her head as she saw him. She just reacted. Hands releasing the glasses she’d collected, allowing them to fall, crash to the floor and sending shards in all directions. Palms out in a defensive pose, her mouth open, Izzy’s scream was soundless at first. Panic paralyzed every muscle including her vocal cords.
“Hello,” the man she’d seen across the street from Agnes’ house stood leaning against the wall. “I wondered how long you were going to ignore me.”
His words didn’t penetrate at first. Izzy couldn’t move her eyes past the wide expanse of his bare chest. Water dripped from his hair ends and raced across his skin. Suddenly, she was thirsty. Eyes following the droplets on their path down his body, her gaze encountered his jeans. Without permission, her eyes continued their meandering. The jeans weren’t technically buttoned, and that gave her pause as her mind emptied for a moment on that thought. A shirt dangled from his fingers where they were fisted at his hip.
“Hello?” She jumped when he spoke again.
Eyes darting up to his, her mouth opened but nothing came out. She liked his accent she decided but couldn’t place it. East European, if she had to take a guess.
She swallowed once and attempted yet again to speak. “Who the hell are you?” She wanted to sound assertive and badass but was afraid it came out more like a squeak. He smirked.
“You rang, I came.” This brought a scowl back to his face. Eyes hooded in displeasure, he glared at her. “You interrupted my shower for this? You are not in danger. I see nothing so urgent that you need to command my presence.”
Izzy reached for her inner bitch and tried to sound braver. “I most certainly did not ‘ring’. Who the hell are you?”
He huffed, “You know exactly who I am, Marked. Don’t play these games with me.”
“You’re a stalker. Is that it? You found out where I lived, you sick bag of garbage, and you’re here to scare me? Do you know who I am? I can annihilate you with one quick blast.”
His deep voice struck low, all of his earlier amusement gone. “Are you threatening me, little one? Do you think your petty little spells and small-town magic are a match for me? I begin to believe you. For all who know me, know not to challenge my wrath.”
His tone should have warned her. Izzy, at any other time, would have stopped and assessed the situation. But, she was too fired up. Her life was in chaos, her mother in and out of jail, friends dying left and right, a madman on the loose, and now this? This was the last straw.
“Do your worst! I am done! Do you hear me? D-O-N-E, Done!”
His eyes narrowed, hands lifted in anger. Sparks of electricity idled in a small electrical light show from his fingertips. “Do not tempt me, little one. You are mine to protect, but that does not mean you can push me too far. You have been warned.”
His voice never raised beyond those low, quiet tones. Yet Izzy heard the menace.
A deafening crash sounded from the front of the house. Her head jerked to see what caused it.
“Izzy! Are you all right?” Sebastian shouted.
Another crack of energy popped to her left! Her head twisted around to see her was gone. The asshole had vanished and she still didn’t know who he was! Izzy sucked air deep through her pursed lips, trying to steady her breathing. Sebastian bounded into the room back-pedaling as his gaze made out the glass on the floor.
“What happened?!” He all but shouted.
In her verbal altercation with whoever he was, she’d forgot about dropping the glasses. Broken glass covered the floor. Tiny pieces and large chunks alike were sprinkled across the hardwood floors in a maze highlighting the earlier disaster.
“You’re cut,” Sebastian noticed a small nick on the top of one of her bare feet. “Why haven’t you fixed this?”
Sebastian’s hands reached out, and he started mumbling under his breath. Glass flew through the air, piece by piece, shard by shard, melding and reshaping the cups back to their original form. After several moments, they resettled back on the coffee table.
“Get on the couch, you don’t have anything on your feet!” He was all business. “I think I got it all, but just in case. Sit, sit. While you do, you can explain what all the screaming was about.”
Izzy stepped backward, mindful where she placed her feet. The glasses, while solid now, appeared to have tiny knicks on the surface as if chips were missing. She wasn’t keen to find those shards with her bare skin.
Sebastian stood, with hands on hips, staring at her.
Izzy fidgeted. She didn’t know what to tell him. How did you explain that a stranger popped into your house, started a fight, and then just zapped away? She didn’t even know who the jerk was! Much less why he came. Sebastian didn’t seem the sort to take that kind of news well. Plus, she and Sebastian weren’t exactly besties.
Izzy decided to play dumb. “What?” she barked out.
“I believe you were going to tell me what was going on here when I arrived?”
As much to waste time as anything, Izzy turned and checked the cushions for any small bits of glass before resuming her seat.
Sebastian cleared his throat and Izzy knew her sabbatical was over. He had moved to the chair next to her. “You’re all right, yes?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Why don’t you start then? Tell me what happened?”
All of a sudden, Izzy didn’t want to tell him. She hadn’t mentioned the stranger before. If she admitted to how they met now, that would only lead to more questions. “There’s nothing to tell. I dropped the glasses by accident and shouted like anyone would do.” She let the exhaustion from her earlier thoughts plus the altercation that followed sound in her voice.
Sebastian nodded, “I see.”
“I’m sorry. You breaking down my door after dropping the glasses has me off kilter. Is something wrong?” Izzy slapped a hand to her forehead. “Is it Agnes? I didn’t even think to ask.”
“No, no. Everything’s fine.” Sebastian was quick to allay her fears. “It’s just. Things, they seem to be escalating. I came over because you and I, we need to talk. About your key. I believe we’re almost out of time and there are things you need to know.”
◆◆◆
Izzy studied Sebastian, wondering if he did know something she didn’t. He appeared calm as he settled on the chair across from her. She, however, was a ball of nerves.
He didn’t say a word, just observed and waited until she cracked and blurted, “You know about my key?”
“Of course I do,” he watched her gravely. “The Council has known who the Marked was for years. We’ve kept your identity safe. You are aware that there are those who want the power you will wield for their own? I believe Gideon is one and that is why he is here. To seek you out and gain your power. ”
“Power? I don’t understand,” Izzy refused to think about how her magic had changed recently. And the gnomes and the sylphs. Something was definitely up, but she wasn’t ready to acknowledge it.
“You need to find a way to get comfortable with all the changes in your life. The ones you’ve experienced so far? Those are child’s play compared to what’s coming. Soon, days from now or at most a week, your body will transform. As you ascend and obtain your powers, you’ll experience an awakening, a rebirth. Your world is about to
expand and with it your knowledge.”
“I’m not following. Rebirth? I’m going to die? And what exactly is the key for anyway?”
“Nothing so dramatic I think. However, what it’s for? That’s anyone’s guess. We do know this legacy goes back a millennium or more. It’s connected to the Book of Thoth. Have you heard of him before?”
Izzy shook her head. “No, that’s not ringing any bells.”
“He was an Egyptian god, known as the wisest of them all. Egyptians believed he was responsible for creating the world by uttering the spell which brought our Creator into existence. He was also a God of Writing with a vast library of books. Once such book in his library was the Book of Thoth, written by his own hand.”
“Your key is somehow connected to that book, those spells. Your family has protected his legacy, passing the key from eldest daughter to eldest daughter, as far back as our records go. It’s not known who was the original keeper, but you are the current one. The last person to reach maturity and hold the position was your great-great-grandmother. None of the others since have made it to the date of ascension when you gain your powers.”
“When is that?”
“On your twenty-fifth birthday.”
“So, if I have the key, then we know for certain my mother is dead.”
“Not necessarily, no. Key holders can pass the key to the next heir of their lineage without consequence.”
“But, I can’t even take it off. There’s no way I could pass it on,” Izzy countered.
“You don’t have a child, do you?”
Izzy listened, her heart breaking at her family’s loss. “So you’re saying this stupid key is why my mother up and disappeared? It’s the reason she left me here? Alone?” If she had been able to rip it off at that moment, she would have.
“We don’t know what happened that night, Isadora. I understand your anger. I do,” Sebastian sympathized. “The Council, all of us, we want to help you. The power you will control will be unlike anything you’ve ever had to manage. We can guide you in your choices.”
“That’s kind of you, Sebastian. Please tell the Council that I appreciate your trying to help. I’m just not ready to make any decisions. My birthday is still over a month away.”
“There are no decisions to make. Not about the key. You are the heir, and its power will be yours. Wanted or not.” He let that sink in. “The birthday you keep referring to, Agnes chose that day for you. Yes? Your real birthday, however. No one knows when that is. Just remember, regardless of the day, the deadline is approaching.”
Izzy didn’t want to discuss it any longer. She glanced around for another topic and then wondered if Agnes was all right, why didn’t she come with him? “Where’s Agnes? You said nothing was wrong, but…”
He drew back, surprised. “Agnes? I think you misunderstood. While Agnes was made aware of your importance to the Council, and she is familiar with the peculiarities of your necklace, she doesn’t know of your legacy.”
“Why? I don’t understand. She was raising me. Why wouldn’t you let her know?”
“It wasn’t our secret to share, Isadora. If you want her to know, it must be you who tells her.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Izzy
Stars shimmered high overhead mesmerizing Izzy with their dance. She listened as the crickets whispered their constant lulling melody. Only the occasional hoot or the scamper of feet from the nearby woods interrupted their song. Izzy laid on her back, arms crossed and folded under her hair to pillow her head, and wished for sleep.
It was past one in the morning. After tossing and turning for hours in her bed, she had given up and sought the peaceful distraction of the night sky. An escape to the outdoors had worked before many times. Her luck, however, seemed to have come to an end tonight.
She sighed. If only Cass had stayed over, instead of going home. She could use her ear right about now. Izzy knew if she could just discuss it with her - everything she’d learned and that had happened - then she could rest.
Cass?
If you’re awake, I need to talk.
The sylph had said, she need only think her need, hadn’t she? Izzy laughed. Her insanity was clearly showing.
Cass, I wish you were here. You wouldn’t believe what all happened after you left. I could really use a friend tonight.
What?!
Cass’ voice carried across the breeze along with her crankiness. Izzy’s eyes, which had momentarily closed, snapped open.
Cass? She whispered her friend’s name. Was she hearing voices? She didn’t even care if the sylphs were playing with her.
Loud and clear, her friend answered. Uh, yeah, duh. Wait, where are you?
Home. Where are you?
At home, where else would I be? Cass’ voice sounded sleepy and irritated.
Izzy winced. Were you asleep?
Yes, why aren’t you? What time is it, anyway?
I don’t know. Izzy shrugged her shoulders despite Cass not being able to see her. I came outside sometime after one.
You’re outside, outside your house?? Why?
Couldn’t sleep.
I didn’t have a problem with that. Cass’ voice held a smug quality. You should try it. Lay down IN A BED, with your head on a pillow. Close your eyes. Oh, that’s nice. Cass’ voice became softer and sounded like it was trailing off.
Wait! Izzy whispered. Now that you’re up, I need to talk.
Izzy didn’t feel too bad. She knew Cass’ voice was her subconscious allowing her to work through her thoughts. Make-believe Cass would understand.
I’m not up. I’m sleeping. Make-believe Cass seemed more petulant than Izzy would have expected for an imaginary friend. Izzy couldn’t help but feel a touch of pride at how realistic-like this Cass was. This ‘Cass’ griped and bitched just like her actual friend, attitude and all.
Seriously? You wake me up and now you don’t have anything to say? I am going back to sleep.
Izzy paused in congratulating herself. Hang on a second, Cass. Is this really you? I mean Cass, my Cass, not my own personal hallucination?
I said it was, didn’t I?
Oh! Oh, snap! But wow, yeah? Okay, wait. This is kind of cool.
I might agree tomorrow. WHEN I’M AWAKE. Not so much right now.
Right. But I need to talk. Please??
This can’t wait? I was dreaming about this guy. He was so yummy and…
Hold that thought. Just for a few minutes? Please?
Fine, make it quick. What do you need to talk about?
After you left, I had a visitor. Well, two actually. But. it’s Sebastian I wanted to talk about.
Sebastian came over? This afternoon? Izzy marveled as she even heard Cass yawning. Ok, I’m sitting up. Hit me.
He said he needed to tell me about my necklace and the key.
Okay, go on. Did he mention anything new?
He said my family has had the necklace for hundreds of years, maybe thousands. I’m supposedly going to gain “great power and knowledge” whatever that is.
Hmm…That would be pretty cool. If you’re going to be a kickass superpower, can I be your sidekick? That sounds like fun. Cass’ voice sounded a lot more awake now.
Sure. Why not?
So, what kind of powers? Will you be able to fly or laser people with your eyes?
Izzy yawned. He didn’t say and I didn’t ask. He didn’t seem to think I’m the ‘key’ per se. Just that the necklace and the pendant are the conduits to passing it down the family line. Oh, and I’m the first one in my family to reach the age to access the books in a long time. Like I get their powers or something.
Huh. What kind of spells I wonder…
No clue. Do you think he’s right? That it’s not me? It’s just the key?
Could be. Mama usually knows her stuff though. So, you said you’re the first to reach the age? Do you think your birthday has already past?
He didn’t seem to think so. But, he said it will probably be soon
. Oh, and he said the Council wants to protect me. Izzy yawned. I told him I would think about it.
That’s weird, Iz. If they’ve known about you all this time and only now want to do something about you. What’s up with that?
Izzy grew quiet. Now that she’d spoke with Cass, she was winding down. Her friend always helped her work through her problems, sometimes without even having to say a word. Izzy literally felt the edges of sleep tucking around her brain like a warm blanket.
Iz?
Hmm…?
Didn’t you say, two visitors?
Oh, yeah. That other guy…
What other guy?
No one important. Just some jerk. You wouldn’t like him.
Jerk, huh? How do you know him?
Don’t worry about him. I’m not. Izzy almost faded off but then remembered something. Cass? Thank you. You’re the bestest friend ever. You know that, right?
Yes. I do. But, you’re sounding sleep. That’s not cool, Iz. I’m awake NOW!
Sorry. Too sleepy. Can’t think. Night, Cass. Thanks again. Sweet dreams.
Bitch, you will pay for this…
◆◆◆
Someone yanked open the shop’s door making its attached bells bounce and jangle. Izzy’s head jerked up at the counter to see Cass storming inside. She strutted in, leading with her chin and attitude, her eyes latched on Izzy instantly.
“Uh oh,” Jasmine whispered under her breath. “Someone’s in trouble.”
“Yeah, I did a bad thing,” Izzy confessed.
“What did you do?” Jasmine asked, still in hushed tones.
“I, uh, I kind of woke her up,” Izzy realized her mistake too late. She couldn’t tell Jasmine what she’d actually done. She fudged a little as she explained. “I called her late last night. Cass likes her sleep.”
“Whoa, she’s this mad over a phone call?”
“You are lucky we are friends, Isadora Wilde! If you had a middle name, I would so be using it right now!”
“You don’t have a middle name? I thought it was required or something?”
Marked: Thoth's Legacy ~ Book One Page 15
