Burning

by Carrillo, K. D.

  Anita elbowed Dean in the gut. "Don't you get any ideas either."

  "How about after we graduate?" he suggested.

  "If we survive college, then we'll talk," she answered.

  "I haven't given up on at least one normal year of college yet," Chloë said, looking at the stars.

  "Chlo?" Anita asked. We could all tell that she knew something was coming.

  I’d assumed when I’d come out and seen her looking at the sky that she was thinking about Leah and Grey. But she was still tense.

  Grey kissed the side of Leah's head. "Why don't you go get something to eat and relax? Until we find a doctor, I don't want you to expose yourself to stress."

  Leah looked at the five of us and headed into the house. She probably thought Grey was being overprotective, and he was, but I would be the same with Chloë. When the door closed, we all turned to look at Chloë.

  She opened her hand and a mist of green, blue, and purple swirled until the end of a peacock feather rested in her hand.

  Chloë

  I watched as they stared at the object I couldn't stop obsessing over. Images of a mountain palace and temples flashed over and over in my mind every time I looked at it.

  "This is an invitation and a warning," I said, still entranced by the feather.

  "Chloë," Finn said, breaking the thrall I was under.

  I flicked my hand and sent it away in a swirling cloud of colorful mist. "There is a group of witches and wizards that have become dissatisfied with the council. Hell, they're probably unhappy with everything," I began, relaying the vision I’d seen in the eye of the feather.

  I continued. "This afternoon, their psychic saw Grey's child in a vision. I received the feather from my great-grandmother. You may know her as Hera." There were so many thoughts in my head that I wasn't surprised to see confusion on their faces. I wasn't explaining it well enough. I wasn't even sure I completely understood everything I’d seen.

  "The queen of the gods?" Anita guessed.

  I nodded. One glance at Grey confirmed that he was figuring out what I was trying, badly, to explain.

  His jaw clenched, and the deadly aura he usually kept hidden emerged full force. "They think this coven, and specifically my child, go against the natural order, don't they? Are you suggesting that they are coming after my family?"

  I shook my head. "Fortunately, they are very curious about your child. They, however, don't like the idea of us creating more powerful races, especially if they don't have the control. They aren't coming for you. They want me."

  Lightning flashed out of the clear night sky. Finn's eyes glowed brighter than I'd ever seen them.

  "Let's not worry about it. After all, I come with my own Zeus," I said, trying to lighten the mood. It didn't work.

  "What are we going to do?" Anita asked.

  "We are going to train. We will infiltrate them and destroy them from the inside," I vowed.

  "It's never going to end, is it?" Anita asked.

  I shrugged. I honestly didn't know. I hoped for peace, to be left alone. I just didn't really believe it would happen.

  "What if they set themselves up as gods before we're ready?" Dean asked.

  "The gods overthrew the Titans and they were cursed and turned into stone," Grey commented.

  "This is going to lead to war," Dean commented.

  Again, I nodded. "I believe you are right."

  "We need to get in front of it this time. We end the threat decisively and show the rest that challenging us is futile. And if we have to, we rule them all," Finn seethed.

  I kissed his cheek. "Spoken like a king."

  "This might be our lives now. And if it is, so be it. As long as we have each other, it will still be a good life."

  I looked at all of them and felt Finn's warmth behind me. This was my family. "I'm not taking orders from the council anymore. My mother wants to be with my father. Trust me. She won't mind. Tomorrow, Grey, you are going to take over the Watchers."

  I took a deep breath and exhaled out the tension. "That's tomorrow. If this is our lives, we have to remember to live. Not wait for tomorrow. Not hold out for the calm in the storm. If we learn nothing else from Bridgett's death, we should learn that even our lives could be short. We have to live now." I looked Finn up and down. "If you'll excuse us, Finn left his dirty laundry on the floor again."

  Dean, Anita, and Grey looked at us with matching puzzled expressions.

  Finn smirked at me and cocked his eyebrow. "Are you picking a fight with me?"

  I bit my bottom lip to keep from laughing. I nodded and slid my hand up his chest. His eyes were all blue flame, showing me that there was more than one way to burn.

  I didn't know what the future held for us. There would probably be more fighting, more treachery, and more obligations to the supernatural world. That was my life. I'd finally accepted it, and now I was going to live it. I couldn't think of a better place to start than in the arms of the man I loved.

  The End