Wary Is Her Love_An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure

by Judith Berens

  Alison smiled as she watched Emma’s soul excitedly dancing with David’s as the energy from the magic in the room glimmered and sparkled around them. She thought it was one of the best nights they’d had so far. It was something she would remember for a long time.

  When the song ended Ethan clapped his hands, gathering everyone at the foot of the stage. The members of the Entrepreneurs Club climbed onto the stage, giving the band a break. Peter grabbed the cart that had been positioned to the side and wheeled it over. Grace and David stood up there excitedly, and Ethan took the mic.

  “Okay, so just a quick pause in the music. David, Grace, Peter, and I are part of the Entrepreneurs Club, and we have been working all semester on a really cool project.”

  Peter uncovered the cart, picked up four phones, and handed them out to his teammates. Ethan picked up a small chip and held it up to the audience.

  “So, this looks like any other chip, right? Wrong. This little chip here not only holds an incredible number of technological advances, but it also has an unlimited supply of magical energy that pulls like a magnet from whatever kemana you are closest to at the time. Right now, it is pulling magic from Ruby Falls and that huge red stone in the center of the underground city.”

  Ethan stepped to the side and let Grace take the mic. “We started to brainstorm ways it could be used that not only interested us, but would interest the world, and that was when David got a video call from his mom.”

  “She’s doing well,” David leaned in to add. Everyone laughed.

  Grace held up her phone and clicked the On button. The others followed suit and held theirs up to the crowd as well. “This chip mixes technology and magic in a way that will allow you to connect virtually any phone no matter the provider, make, or model, as long as it has video capability. It will put you into a magical grouping that only your friends can see, and is always live unless you turn it off in your settings.”

  David stepped up to the mic. “This can be used in many situations, from social to professional. Colleges can connect with their teachers. People can stay connected and find out about events as they happen.”

  “We still have some work to do to get it just right, but we wanted you to be the first to see it,” Ethan shouted. “It’s the future of connectivity.

  The students clapped and cheered, impressed by what they had created. Even Kathleen was impressed, and opted not to give Ethan a hard time even though she really wanted to. When they had cleared the stage, the band came back up and rocked old-school tunes for a change.

  The party was a blast and lasted until the early morning. By the time they dragged themselves off the dance floor, bow ties had been undone, jackets were off, and girls were carrying their shoes in their hands. The guys left the girls at the top of the stairs, and Tanner stole one last kiss from Alison under the mistletoe before heading off to bed. The whole thing had been a huge success; another awesome night with an amazing group of people.

  30

  Izzie and Alison walked back from Horace’s cottage, having left a gift on his porch—a little something extra they had picked up to go with the gloves. Alison took a deep breath of the cold air. She was sad to be leaving but happy to be able to see her dad and Aunt Shay. Izzie clung tightly to Alison’s arm, her teeth chattering.

  “I’m gonna miss you guys,” Izzie told her. “But I think we are actually going to have the rest of the family at Mara’s house for Christmas, so it won’t be so tiresome and boring.”

  “Does that mean the troll is coming?” Alison giggled.

  “Heck yes, and Mara said he will teach me some bad-ass card games.”

  “Oooh, we’ll have to figure out a way to teach me how to play them. Maybe magically imprint the cards or something like you did with my necklace.”

  “We can figure something out, I’m sure. Do they make braille playing cards?”

  “I doubt it.” Alison giggled. “Though they make just about everything these days, so I could be wrong. I just feel like they would be incredibly heavy.”

  Izzie covered her mouth. Alison lifted an eyebrow, looking at her energy. Izzie was trying not to laugh.

  “What is it?”

  “I was just picturing all of us sitting around a table with thick metal playing cards like we were the Flintstones, but then I realized it was probably a horrible thing to laugh about.”

  Alison was silent for a moment, which worried Izzie, but then broke out in laughter. “Oh, my God, who would be Bam Bam?”

  “Aya, most definitely.” Izzie giggled, then let out a deep sigh. “Will you call me while you are gone?”

  “Of course, I will. This would be the perfect time for that new invention the club came up with. We could be together for the holidays, even the boring parts, and still be in the places we need to be.”

  “We will have to work on that for summer vacation.”

  “Most definitely.”

  In the foyer of the mansion, they tapped their boots off and joined the others, who were watching Alison’s luggage and waiting for her to get back from the walk with Izzie. Ethan jumped down from the stairs and put his arms out.

  “Group hug!”

  They all laughed and came together in a big hug in the middle of the floor.

  “All right, let’s get this show on the road.” Kathleen clapped. “I got presents to wrap, presents to receive, and eclairs to make with my mother. Izzie, you staying or coming along?”

  “I’m coming to see you guys off.” She smiled, looking at Luke.

  “This is where I leave you guys, then.” Tanner bowed.

  Everyone booed and hugged Tanner before filing outside. Alison stood in front of him, staring lovingly at his glimmering soul. She kissed him on the cheek.

  “I’ll see you real soon,” he whispered. “And whenever you miss me, just give that coin a rub, and I will know.”

  “Then I will keep it in my hand the whole time.” She laughed.

  Tanner kissed her cheek and she waved, then picked up her suitcase and walked out to meet the others. They boarded the bus and talked excitedly about their Christmas plans as they headed toward the Starbucks. Kathleen was jealous that Izzie got to spend Christmas with Yumfuck, but Izzie promised to video-message her with him while they were there.

  They went through the fake magical wall in the Starbucks, waved goodbye to some of the other students, and headed down to the platform. The trains arrived one at a time. Each took another one of the group off to their destination. When it was just Alison and Izzie on the platform, Alison gave her a huge hug and squeezed her hands.

  “We’ll be back before you know it. Don’t drink too much eggnog.”

  “I’ll try.” She laughed.

  Alison climbed onto the train and took a seat by the window as the rest of the crowd boarded. Izzie’s energy had streaks of blue sadness running through it. Alison smiled and waved at her, hoping she would at least try to have a good vacation. One day she’d talk Izzie into coming with her to Los Angeles. They’d have a blast out there, and she knew Brownstone and Shay would love her and find her powers interesting.

  Part of Alison wondered why Mara was so strict about the places Izzie could go. She treated the girl like she was in some sort of danger or something. From what Izzie knew, she was only the headmistress’ ward because there had to be a guardian for her to attend the school and the orphanage couldn’t be it. Then again, Alison had been there long enough to know what was known wasn’t always the whole truth, and also that it would come out in the end. She hoped for Izzie’s sake that it would be a good truth, not any more hurt or confusion. They had both been through too much to have more dropped on them.

  She took a deep breath and tilted her head to the side, noticing a dark energy pass behind Izzie. It didn’t seem to be a person, because she couldn’t detect a soul, not even a dark one. It was more of a magical energy mist. She started to point behind her friend, but the train whooshed out and then she was too far away to catch Izzie’s attention.
Besides, it had already passed her, and Izzie wouldn’t be able to see the energy anyway. She shrugged and hoped that what she had just seen wouldn’t return.

  As the train whooshed away, Izzie put her hand in the air and waved, then smiled and crossed her arms. Suddenly she felt a chill on her neck that ran straight down her spine. She wriggled her shoulders and looked around, trying to see where it had come from.

  The feeling she had been getting sporadically over the last couple of months slammed into her. She wobbled and braced herself on the column next to her, then hung her head and rubbed her temples. Her stomach was churning, and heat bounced around in her chest. More energy slammed through her, and her head flew back, and her pupils turned dark-grey.

  She was having another memory or vision or whatever they were. She stood in a dark alley, not much younger than she was now. Streaks of dark magic whizzed by her head and she fought back, returning the fire. There were explosions in the background, and in front of her was a group of men she couldn’t quite make out. Whoever they were, they were incredibly powerful, and she had obviously done something to tick them off enough for them to be trying to kill her. To her right and left were the same two people, the man and the woman, both fighting hard. The man held his arm, and blood dripped through his fingers. They felt familiar, but at the same time, they weren’t.

  As she turned toward the battle, a fireball flew toward her face, blocking her sight. She put up her arms in the vision and braced for impact, but before it plowed into her, she jolted back to reality. Izzie let out a deep breath and her pupils cleared. She was still standing on the platform and was now surrounded by commuters waiting to catch the next train. She rubbed the sweat off her forehead, trying not to look crazy. Everyone was so focused on their phones or tablets that no one had noticed the fit that Izzie had just had. She rubbed her chest until the tightness left and leaned against the column again.

  Izzie stood there for quite a while, gathering herself and trying to get the nauseous feeling to leave her stomach. By the time the next train took off, she finally felt in control enough to leave. She pushed off from the column and steadied herself before heading for the stairs. She looked back at the column and the crowd and shook her head.

  “What the hell was that?”

  Alison changed trains just five minutes away and sat back in her seat, knowing it wouldn’t take long to get from there to Los Angeles. It was a straight shot, with only three stops on the route. She pulled her bookbag into her lap and took out Tanner’s coin. She held it in her palm and closed her eyes, thinking about him.

  “I miss you already,” she whispered.

  “I miss you too,” Tanner replied. His voice was distant, as if it were carried on the wind.

  She opened her eyes and looked down at the coin. A small smile moved across her lips. It was like a cell phone, except it was connected through touch and you couldn’t have a full conversation. She liked it because it enabled her to feel his energy and have him feel hers. They worked so well together that she missed that energy whenever she wasn’t around him.

  She felt like it was silly to feel that strongly for someone. She’d never had a boyfriend before, so she had no idea what was normal. She supposed that love was different for everyone. Some people were overwhelmed with emotions, while others were just content to be together. She could only go with her gut instinct with him and hope it led her down the right path.

  A bell dinged above her head, and an automated voice announced, “Next stop, Los Angeles. Station Three.”

  That was Alison’s stop. It was the same place she had gotten on the train at the beginning of the year. She dropped the coin inside a small brown velvet pouch, then pulled the strings tight and tucked it safely into her bookbag. By the time she was done the train had begun to slow down, finally coming to a full stop at the station. Alison grabbed her suitcase and followed the others out, stepping to the side and looking around for Shay and Brownstone’s souls. She thought for a moment that she had gone to the wrong station. She was about to pull out her phone to call them when she heard Shay yelling her name.

  She looked up and found their energies hovering next to each other at the top of the first flight of steps. Alison smiled and raced up the stairs, throwing her arms around Brownstone and Shay at the same time. They hugged her tightly, glad to see her safe. Brownstone took her suitcase, and Shay grabbed her hand.

  “Welcome home, Alison,” the bounty hunter said.

  “Thanks, Dad!”

  James Brownstone Series

  Did you know that James Brownstone had his own series? Grab book one, Feared by Hell at Amazon.

  Available at Amazon

  Author Notes - Martha Carr

  Written July 30, 2018

  This is the night before Michael and I released the first book in the Leira Chronicles… one year ago. We had just spent months creating a new universe – the Oriceran Universe complete with amazing artwork and we were all anticipation without knowing how it would all turn out.

  What a difference a year makes.

  Forty-six books, including Wary is Her Love released on our first birthday, and two short Troll stories later we are just beginning to rock and roll. We’ve learned a lot along the way like art can be very, very expensive and ask for help, often and from as many talented people as you can find.

  Or keep a well-honed sense of humor for when things head south right before a book comes out or even when a book is coming out, or my favorite – even when the wrong book is sent out with the right cover. Breathe, make some phone calls, make a joke or two, let all the fans know and keep going.

  But what was the biggest thing I learned this year? Dreams really do come true and if it takes thirty years it’s all the sweeter. This was the year I finally became a bestselling author with a wild and wonderful enormous crowd of BEST FANS EVER who can get a book in the morning, read it and review it by the afternoon and send me a message that evening asking when the next one is coming out… Love you all and the stickers and the mugs and the pictures.

  Another BIG THANK YOU is for Michael Anderle who asked me if I wanted to write a series with him (he claims) and I heard UNIVERSE (which I still say is what he said) and apparently when I started creating a universe didn’t say, what the hell? Instead he quickly invited two writers to join us and I turned around with two of my own. So, thank you to A.L. Knorr, S.M. Boyce, Flint Maxwell and Sarah Noffke for agreeing to join in the fun before we even had a web site and could only describe what we were about to do. Have I mentioned writers are wonderfully crazy?

  Favorite funny moment you don’t know about… Michael Anderle and I were talking on Zoom, which means our computers were connected and we had a window into each other’s houses. We work long hours and some weeks it’s 24/7. During one of those weeks, after one of those talks somehow both of us forgot to shut off the connection. Hours later I sat down and wondered why I was still staring at Anderle’s living room… wait for it… just as Anderle strolled by drinking a Coke! He stays on brand even when he thinks no one is watching. I had to stop laughing long enough to yell to him like someone stuck in the World In Between to get his attention.

  There are also so many people behind the scenes of the Oriceran Universe that you never get to see who do so much to help us get these books to you. BIG THANK YOU to all of the clever people who help to do covers, check copy, keep calendars, post announcements, send out newsletters like Stephen Campbell, the Zen Master who’s the man behind the curtain or Jami Crumpton who makes sure you get to see a newsletter or posts on social media. Or our JIT team, the folks who read the books two days before they go live, looking for and suggesting fixes for mistakes that inevitably find their way into all books. The list of people who play an important part goes on and on.

  Okay, and here we are a year later and probably appropriately right at the moment I’m sitting in a hotel room – my old house has sold – and I’m waiting for the new house I’ve been building to finally be ready. I have a
bout three weeks to go – and yes, Anderle, you will touch the upgrades. The bathroom tile has texture, dude. It’s my dream house with an amazing office to write a lot more books, give away a lot more stickers, hatch a lot more cool things to do for you guys and just keep going. What a life! Thank you for making this one of the best years of my life. More adventures to follow.

  Author Notes - Michael Anderle

  July 30, 2018

  First, THANK YOU for reading this book! That you went through the story and Martha’s Notes to read mine is a real honor and I appreciate you taking your time to read these musings.

  It has been a freaking WONDERFUL ride into this new area of publishing called, “Young Adult.”

  I have to admit, it’s kind of scary. Why? Because I don’t remember that age very well.

  Martha gets the credit for the focus of this series because…well, she likes it. We were talking about crafting a series for young adults (you know, two silly authors talking long distance).

  One (me) is in the Aria Casino and Hotel, the other is probably pole dancing or something.)

 

  MA: “So, we want to try something different.”

  MC: “Yeah, but what?”

  MA: (which seems so plebeian at the moment.)

  MC: “You love this stuff, why don’t we go against JK Rowling?”

  MA: “Just to confirm we are on the same wavelength, would that be multi-billionaire JK Rowling?”