“Oh,” I said, wishing I knew where he had gone so I could go to him.
“He’ll be fine, Meredith. He just needs some time.”
I nodded. “So how are you feeling?”
“Good.” She smiled softly. “I wish that there was a way to tell my parents that I was okay, though. I can’t imagine what they are going through... or went through. Ugh, this time travel stuff is so confusing.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, I know exactly what you mean and don’t worry, we’ll find a way to get you home.”
“So, it was Collin that rescued me from Jude?” Abby asked, changing the subject.
“Yeah.” I smiled.
Just then Daniel and Jackie came in announcing that they were calling it a night. When they both walked down the hall and into Daniel’s bedroom together, Abby and I couldn’t help but laugh. I had no idea they were a couple, but I guess the more I thought about it, I should’ve noticed it.
“I’m going to visit with Collin, I haven’t had a chance to thank him, yet,” Abby said, rising from the couch. “Meredith, you should get some rest, you look exhausted.”
“Yeah, I know, but I think I’ll wait up for Blake to come back.”
After she left, I sat there and waited for Blake to return. After an hour or so, though, I could barely keep my eyes open. I shuffled my tired body to the spare bedroom Daniel had pointed out to me and I collapsed on to the bed, not even bothering to pull the sheets back. I was so relieved the moment my head hit the pillow that I hardly remember anything past that point.
Sometime later, I can’t even be sure when, I woke to an arm wrapping around me and pulling me tight.
“Meredith,” Blake whispered.
“Hmmm,” I mumbled.
“Will you come with me? I have something to show you.”
“Now?” I muttered, shifting and trying to get more comfortable. I really didn’t want to move from my comfy spot.
“Yes. I know you’re tired, but it has to be now.”
“You sure it can’t wait until tomorrow?” I asked again, hoping he was wrong and it could wait. I was just so tired.
“No, I’m sorry, but it can’t.”
As much as my body wanted to say thanks, but no thanks, my heart spoke up, answering for me. I knew that he was still reeling from what had happened earlier. “Okay,” I said, pulling myself up. I drug my tired body out of the bed and followed Blake down the hall. Before leaving, I asked him to wait just a minute; I wanted to stop by Collin’s room to see how he was doing.
I knocked lightly on the door and heard Abby’s voice speak up in a soft whisper, telling me to come in. Abby smiled as I entered and I looked over to see that Collin was sleeping. “He’s doing fine, Meredith. We’ve been up talking and before he fell asleep, he filled me in on what he’s been teaching you.”
“Yeah, I can’t wait to tell you about all of his techniques.” I smiled.
“Well, as much as I hate that I wasn’t there for you, I can’t wait to see what all you’ve learned.”
“Yeah, he was a good teacher, but I really missed my old one,” I said, smiling at her. It was just a few days ago that I thought I would never see her again, that a hundred years of time would always separate us. Then, when Blake found me and told me she was missing, I was terrified that something bad had happened to her. Now, she was sitting right in front of me, alive and well.
Blake grabbed my hand and gave it a light squeeze. “We need to go, Meredith. There’s not much time.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you,” Abby said. “We’ll talk more in the morning.” She glanced at Blake and then back to me, a huge smile spreading across her face. “Enjoy your surprise.”
The look they exchanged piqued my interest even more. It seemed that whatever Blake was up to, Abby had known about it. Blake pulled me out the front door, telling me that I would have to fly quickly. On the way over, he didn’t speak a word and my curiosity grew by the second. What could we possibly have to do that couldn’t wait just a few hours?
We landed on the outside of town, in the middle of an open field. The sun was rising over the hills in front of us, casting a bright orange glow across our faces. It was a beautiful sight.
“Close your eyes,” Blake said, his eyes bright.
“Really? You know I don’t like surprises.”
A smile tugged at his lips. “I know, but you’ll love this one, I promise.”
I rolled my eyes before closing them and waited. Blake guided me a few steps forward, then stopped and turned me to the left. “Blake, what’s going on?” I asked, my tone sounding a little irritated. It wasn’t that I was angry at him, but all I really wanted to do was sleep.
Then, out of nowhere, I began to sense a powerful energy around me. It was an energy I’d never felt before, and with all that had happened, it caused my nerves to spike. I was just about to open my eyes, when Blake’s voice stopped me.
“Keep them closed, please. Just a couple more seconds.”
I kept them closed, not able to deny the pleading in his voice.
“Okay, you can open them now,” he whispered.
When I opened them, I practically fainted at the sight before me. My mouth hung open and I wondered how this could be real.
“Mom?” I gasped.
“Yes, Meredith, it’s me.” My mother smiled as she began to walk towards me.
When we were just inches apart, my arms flew around her and I couldn’t hold back my emotions when I felt her arms come around and embrace me.
“I’ve missed you so much,” I said, choking back the tears.
“I’ve missed you, too,” she whispered against my hair.
I held her tight and couldn’t help wondering how this miracle was even happening. “Is this even real?”
She laughed softly, squeezing me tighter to her. “It’s real. Blake was very persistent and wouldn’t take no for an answer. He felt like I should be the one to explain everything to you... and he’s right. With all that’s happened over the last few months, you deserve an explanation, and it should come from me.”
Reluctantly, I pulled back just a little to look at her face, a part of me not believing this was real. As I looked into her eyes, she took a piece of loose hair that hung in my face and tucked it behind my ear like she used to do when I was a child. “I’m so sorry for what you’ve had to endure over these last couple months.” She shook her head and looked at me with a thoughtful expression. “The council is sorry, too. We failed you—I failed you. When you were younger, I worked so hard to try and protect you, but in the end, I feel like all I did was cause more problems. When you turned eighteen and we realized the danger you were in, the council and I decided to send the Harpers to you. After looking at all the candidates, we felt like they were suited best for the situation. When they went back to their time, the council believed the threat that Isaac and Alex had posed was gone with them. It wasn’t until the night you came to me and asked me for my help that I decided to go against the council’s wishes and send you back to 1905 myself. I just couldn’t bear seeing you upset, losing more people that you loved, knowing that you had come to care for the Harpers. When the rest of the council found out what I’d done, there were some who were on my side and some that were against me. There had never been a case where the council was so divided. After weeks of deliberation, a decision was made to send you back to your time, saying that it was necessary in order to keep the balance of magic intact, and that the Astoria needed to be in her own time. We had every intention of assigning a new teacher and protector for you, but things quickly spun out of our control. It was just a few days later when we realized that Jude had been crossing time and searching for an Astoria... trying to take their power. We didn’t realize what he was doing until it was too late and that poor Astoria lost their life. When that happened we began to track him more closely and we saw that he had Abby and was still looking for you. It was then that the council decided to send Blake back to you
for protection, realizing that we had made a mistake. ” She glanced over to Blake and nodded. “It’s nice to see you again Blake.”
I swallowed hard and my eyes grew wide. They had met? But how? When? Before I could ask my mother any questions, she continued her explanation.
“At that point, the council finally realized that the magical world was not the same as it once was—that it had evolved and grown out of our control. So in order for us to keep the control in balance, we knew that our rules needed to change. When the decision was made to send Blake to you, I personally came to ask for his help; wanting to apologize for separating the two of you in the first place. Before I sent him back to you that day in the train station, he made me promise that once this was all over, I would be the one to explain it all to you. He said that you deserved to know the truth and thought it was appropriate that it come from me. Of course, the council was against it, but after hearing me out, they finally agreed to let us have this time together.”
For a moment, all I could do was stare at her. The things she had told me made all the sense in the world, but they were still second to the fact that my mother, who I hadn’t seen in over ten years, was standing before me. I wanted to ask her how it was possible. I wanted to know if this was the last time I would see her, and how long she could stay, but the only thing I could do was hug her and tell her how much I missed and loved her. Because if this was the last time I would see her, I didn’t want to waste the time in asking questions. So I told her those things over and over and hugged her as hard as I possibly could.
“It’s just about time for me to go. The council has been generous and allowed us more time than they originally granted, but I want you to know that you won’t be separated from the Harpers again. The council and I have discussed it and we agree that you and the Harpers will all be free to cross time as you wish. So now you won’t have to choose between your family here and your family in 1905.” She smiled. “Please give Rose and Patricia a hug for me. I will always be in debt to them for what they have done for you. Also, please tell Jackie that I love her and I’m sorry we couldn’t have worked things out when I was still here, but I’m glad that the two of you have found each other.” She kissed me on my cheek. “And Meredith, all I want from you, is for you to be happy. After all the hardships you’ve been through in your life, you deserve it.”
I didn’t want to cry, I didn’t want the last image of my mother to be a blur through my tear-soaked eyes, but I couldn’t hold it back. This had been the most wonderful, unexpected moment of my life. We embraced for one last long minute, but before I knew it, she was gone and I was standing there, hugging empty air. Blake was at my side and I pulled him to me, finishing my crying into his chest.
Instead of going back to Collin’s, I asked Blake if we could stay here a little longer. I wanted to prolong this moment for as long as I could. Once my crying stopped, I wasn’t able to wash the smile off my face or say thank you enough to the guy sitting beside me. Without him, I wouldn’t have had those few minutes with my mother.
“What are you thinking about?” Blake asked me. We were lying in the middle of the field, both of us staring up towards the sky, watching the puffs of clouds float by.
“Just about all that’s happened over the last few days. I’m glad that everyone I love is okay; it’s just that... I wish I could’ve saved that Astoria.”
“You can’t save everyone, Meredith.” Blake reached over and grabbed my hand, giving it a squeeze.
“Yeah, I know. I just can’t stop thinking about it.”
“It’s difficult for you, isn’t’ it?” he asked.
“What?” I let my head fall to the side in order to see him better.
“To give yourself any credit... To realize what you did yesterday was nothing short of amazing... and to see yourself the way everyone else sees you.”
I sighed and rolled onto my side, still facing him. “Anyone would have done the same thing if they were in my position.”
He shook his head. “You’re wrong, but I guess that’s what makes you so amazing.” He brushed the hair away from my face. “I’ll just have to remind you every day how brave, strong and beautiful you are; otherwise, you’ll never believe it.”
“Please do,” I said jokingly, giving him a nudge. I don’t think I could ever get tired of him describing all the things he loved about me.
“So are you almost ready to fly back?” he asked.
“Yeah, I hope Collin’s awake and feeling better.”
“If you’re too tired, I can carry you. I know the last few days have been tough on you.” He glanced over at me, his smile and his dimple warmed my insides. Being in his arms sounded really good right now, but now that I knew I could fly, I wanted to do it on my own.
“I am exhausted, but I think I’ll be fine. You’ll just have to promise to catch me if I fall asleep mid-flight and start to take a nosedive.”
When he pulled me up, he didn’t just pull me up to a standing position. He pulled me up against his body, wrapped his arms around me and kissed me lightly on the lips. “I’ll always be there to catch you if you fall, Meredith. Always.”
4 months later...
After a long day, my favorite place to be sitting was at the top of the Tower Bridge, overlooking the river. Not only was it the most beautiful place at sunset, but it was peaceful and allowed me some time to think. Today, it was easy for me to relax and reflect on all the things I had to be thankful for. So many things had changed over the last few months. Changed for the better.
After a lot of discussion between Abby, Blake and I, we decided to make London our home. Jackie was kind enough to offer us a place to stay in an old family home that sat on the edge of town. It was a fixer upper to say the least, but it was far away from the city and sat on a few acres of land, and not to mention, it would be perfect for training. Luckily, Blake had experience with building and renovating homes. He had helped his dad build their house back in 1905 and had also helped remodel it when they crossed into my time and found it in less than desirable condition. Collin offered to help out and I secretly wondered if he was just being extra nice, or if it was because he wanted an excuse to see Abby every day.
At first, I was surprised that Abby decided to move to London, to this time and be separated from her parents. However, the council kept true to their promise and allowed all the Harpers and I to perform the time crossing spell whenever we wanted, so she wasn’t completely separated from them, I guess.
The council also kept true to their promise of amending the rules in the magical world in order to make it a safer place for witches. They agreed that their biggest downfall was that magic had grown so much and it was out of their hands; not allowing them to monitor everything that was happening.
So after meeting with a few designated witches from each part of the world—and hearing their thoughts and worries—the council began to change a few things. They started by creating a couple new divisions and would add more as needed. So on top of teachers, protectors, and guardians, the watcher division was created in order to monitor the time crossing spell; in hopes of cutting down, if not alleviating, the witches who used the spell without the council’s permission.
Also, after hearing many complaints from those of us who practiced clean magic, the council agreed that witches should be able to create their own spells as long as they were approved by the appointed regulator for their area. The regulator would monitor and control each witch under their care and make sure that no dark magic was being created.
Collin was thrilled when he was appointed as the regulator for the London area. When the council first found out that I had used a spell that was created by Collin in order to defeat Jude, and not one that had been approved by them, I feared that Collin was going to be punished or be accused of practicing dark magic. However, with all that had happened, the council was pretty open minded about it all and decided to reward him rather than punish him.
So now, not only was h
e a teacher, but he would also be responsible for monitoring the witches in the area and help them create spells of their own. I think that the council was trying to reward him for not only his bravery with what went down with Jude, but also his brains since he was the one who created the energy transfer spell. It was, after all, that spell that saved me and countless others from Jude that day.
The moment Collin found out about his new position, he and Abby immediately began going over plans to build a small school behind our new house on the edge of town. Abby could continue to teach me there and Collin would be able to teach and monitor his students as they experimented with magic—away from the city and the non-magical people.
At first, I wasn’t thrilled at the idea of having a magic school right behind us, but the more I thought about it, the more the idea grew on me. The best thing, I figured, was that I would only have to walk a few steps to school each morning, leaving me more time to spend with Blake; and I had to admit, that sounded pretty nice.
The wind was beginning to pick up and a chill ran over me, causing goose bumps to rise on my skin. Just as I was thinking I should be heading back to the house, a quick flash crossed my line of vision, making me flinch back.
“There you are,” Abby said, landing beside me, totally out of breath. “I’ve been searching everywhere for you.”
“Geez, Abby, a little warning would be nice. You scared me to death coming up on me like that,” I said, grabbing my chest.
“What do you want me to do, fly around with bells on?” she asked, sounding offended.
I laughed and shook my head at her, still holding my hand over my pounding chest.
“Wow, I see why you love it up here so much.” She smiled, looking out over the river. “This place is pretty spectacular and very relaxing.”
It was relaxing, I thought to myself.
“Mother and Father are coming over for dinner tonight and I wanted to see if you would help me cook.”
Crest (Book #2,Swift Series) Page 17
