The Magic Wakes

by Charity Bradford

  “Stay with me,” and she slept again.

  Landry crawled into the bed beside her, holding her close. Relief and exhaustion fought for control, but all he wanted to do was listen to her breathe. He held her, gently entered her dreams and watched as she relived the unbinding spell.

  He saw things he had missed that day. The swirl of the energy pulsing through the circle, the threads connecting the mages to the Dragumon. From Talia’s point of view, he soared through the city and crashed down with the agony of the Dragumon’s death as they were ripped apart at the cellular level. He watched as she cut the threads tying them to Sendek.

  Talia cried in her sleep, and he wept with her. He shared each sensation, each emotion that flowed through her. The pain, loss, guilt, and the anger. He concentrated on sending his love and admiration in to replace the nightmare. When her breathing eased and the battle was over, he allowed himself to sleep as well.

  When Talia woke again, it was slowly, but her eyes opened easily. Her body was stiff and weak, but it obeyed her command. Landry lay beside her, sleeping peacefully. His face thin and covered in stubble. Right there, Talia made a promise not to leave him alone ever again.

  I’ve been so selfish. She pushed a lock of hair off his forehead.

  She carefully crawled out from under his arm and noticed her pajamas. The warmth rushed to her face. Maybe it was best not to think about that. She gathered some clothes and headed to the shower.

  Landry sat on the couch waiting for her when she came out. He had placed a bowl of fruit on the table alongside her favorite juice.

  “Thank you for bringing me home. It was what I needed. I . . .” Talia stopped as the heat warmed her cheeks. She couldn’t get past the pajamas. She ducked her head and let her hair fall forward, hiding her face. “I wanted to thank you for taking care of me. It was considerate of you to. . .”

  She glanced at him, sitting before her, and bit her lip. Landry reached up and pulled her down to the couch. At first, his kiss was gentle, but it grew more insistent. As soon as she melted into him, he stopped.

  “Thank you for staying with me. If you had given up, I might not have made it back.”

  “Why did you lock me out? I could have helped you from the beginning. I wanted to.” The hurt in his voice made her ache. She reached up to rest her palm on his face, feeling the roughness of the stubble.

  “I was afraid of disappointing you, losing you. I didn’t want you to see the monster I am. Their deaths were horrible, painful, and I did that. Worse, I wanted them dead.”

  Landry folded his arms around her—the protective shield she longed for most.

  “You didn’t act alone. I just wish,” he paused while his fingers drew circles on her back, “I just wish you would have trusted me to stay with you.”

  Talia buried her face in his chest. “I’m sorry, so sorry. I should have trusted you.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “I’ve always kept everyone out. Made sure I was alone. Maybe I didn’t trust myself. Those first meetings with you hurt and angered me more than anything ever before. Emotionally, you brought me to life. Woke me up and kept me off balance ever since.”

  “I keep you off balance?”

  Talia looked up at him. Just the sight of his eyes turned her insides to liquid. “Can you feel that?”

  He cocked his head to the side as if listening and the corners of his mouth tilted up. “Mmm, yes.”

  He bent down and kissed her forehead. The tremor ran through her and he chuckled.

  “Maybe you should apologize?” Talia grinned as his eyes widened.

  He pulled her closer. “I won’t apologize for keeping you off balance, but I will say I’m sorry for my behavior when we met. You scared the hell out of me. I didn’t want to be attracted to you. Plus, I thought you worked for the Signum, and I had plenty of reasons to hate them.”

  “Your father?”

  “Yes. I guess that’s out of my hands now. I really am sorry.” His fingers slipped under her hair at the back and massaged her neck. “Will you let me make—”

  She placed a finger on his lips then leaned in close, pushing him back into the corner of the couch.

  “I found that in spite of how angry you made me, I waited for you to show up again. And that scared me. You should know that I’m not scared of you anymore.” She pressed her lips to his and it was quite some time before either of them talked again.

  Chapter 37

  Over the next few days, Talia took Landry to all of her favorite spots in the forest. The peace and tranquility of the little hill was exactly what they needed after days of running from death. They lost themselves in each other.

  They wished it could last forever, but the pull to return to Joharadin grew with each day. Landry checked the web news several times a day. Waiting, watching. They never talked about what he expected to find, but they knew the peace couldn’t last for long. The war with the Dragumon may have only lasted a few days, but the repercussions would ripple through Sendek for years.

  “Landry.” Talia spoke softly, but he clicked the view screen off and turned to her.

  “Sorry. Do you want to go for a walk or something?” He ran his fingers through his hair in that way she now associated with frustration.

  “No. Let’s talk about it. Does the responsibility have to fall on us?”

  A small line formed between his brows. He exhaled and the line smoothed once more, and he patted the seat beside him.

  “Yes. Because of who you are, but don’t worry. You won’t have to do it alone. I have an idea.”

  After hours of discussion, Landry convinced Talia that most of the new mages would follow her lead. That they already thought of her as their natural leader. They could use that to their advantage, set up a code of accepted behavior, and head off most of the problems that might arise.

  “There’s one more thing we haven’t talked about.” Talia hesitated while she searched his face. He wasn’t in her head, so she didn’t know if he knew of the decision she had made.

  “Shh. I know what you need to do. I knew it the night Jaron died, and I’m going with you. There’s nothing to discuss.”

  The breath she held pushed its way out and her shoulders relaxed. “How did you know before me?”

  “That night I sensed the unease in the air, the fear that ran through all those mages when word of Jaron’s death reached them. It worried me, but when they saw you it changed. They knew without being told. I knew you would eventually see it too, and like every good leader you would do what you needed to help your people.”

  Talia laughed. “I don’t have any people.”

  “You do now.” He smoothed her hair away from her forehead and tucked an end behind her ear.

  “I don’t think I want this.”

  “If you did, I’d be worried. Now, forget about it for a while. We need to get back to Joharadin and fill Stefan in on the plan.” Landry squeezed her hands as she looked at her feet. “He’s going to love you. Don’t worry so much.”

  She wanted to believe him, but she knew Landry was the only family Stefan had left. And she planned to take him away. For good.

  They returned to Joharadin the next day for King Frederick’s memorial service, followed by Stefan’s coronation. The ceremony and celebrations took days. The only thing that kept Talia calm in the midst of all the people was the sight of Landry in his full regalia.

  Her eyes found him the moment he entered the room and followed him everywhere he went. He stood tall in the navy blue suit with a red stripe on the side of the pants. The jacket, covered in ribbons and medals, accentuated his shoulders. This was his world. He moved about it with ease, and something hard and cold formed in the pit of Talia’s stomach. As much as she wanted to be with Landry, she would never feel comfortable here.

  Talia found President Cahal at one of the ceremonies. Relief washed through her and she realized how much she liked the man. She wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.


  “Well, that’s the nicest surprise of the day, my dear.” The skin around his eyes wrinkled as the grin filled his face.

  “I’m glad you made it out safely.” Talia stepped back a respectable distance, and Cahal filled her in on how the SEF evacuated everyone successfully before the invasion.

  Landry slipped through the crowd to stand by her side, placing his hand lightly at her elbow. The tremor of electricity that shivered through her at his touch still surprised her. She hoped she’d never grow used to it.

  Landry bent his head closer. “Marry me?” he whispered.

  She put her face into his shoulder and inhaled. “Yes.”

  “Are you busy tonight? Stefan is free and the palace chapel is available.”

  Her body drifted toward his. Everyone else in the room faded to the background.

  Talia never thought she would marry. A tremor of fear flickered through her mind, but she focused on Landry’s eyes and it dissipated. There was room for love and happiness in this new world.

  I’ll be there if you will.

  I’ll be there.

  They stood there, full of emotions and no words, until someone pulled Landry away to introduce another visiting dignitary.

  Banners of deep blue and red with the Algodova crest fluttered in the breeze from the open windows. The scent of flowers filled the air, and the candles bathed everything in a soft glow. Only three people attended the marriage ceremony other than the bride and groom. Talia thought it would hurt to get married without her family, but Landry’s eyes held her attention and it was enough.

  President Cahal gave her away and it surprised her how much that touched her. From the first day they met, he had looked past Talia’s strangeness and treated her kindly. Now he stood in her father’s place, leading her toward Landry.

  The Lieutenant stood on one side of Landry, and Stefan, now king, stood on the other side. She glanced at Stefan. His smile appeared pasted on. Was it habit from the three-day coronation? Or was he still uncomfortable with Talia? After all, she represented this new magical world.

  Talia couldn’t blame Stefan for being worried. She was a part of the new world and it made her uneasy. She pushed her worries to the back of her mind and returned her gaze to Landry, determined to concentrate on this one moment designed for them.

  Cahal placed her hands in Landry’s with as much tenderness as her own father would have, kissed her cheek and stepped back.

  About time. Landry’s lips turned up and Talia’s cheeks warmed.

  Sorry. I’ll pay attention.

  “Love is the union of souls. When one heart cries out and another answers, they become one. Stronger than two alone. You stand together, hand in hand. Hearts bound together through understanding and a willingness to sacrifice all for the other.” Stefan paused and the smile finally relaxed enough to look natural. “In light of recent events, I want to point out that love is still the strongest magic.”

  Talia didn’t realize she was crying until Landry wiped his thumb across her cheek.

  Before she knew it, they had reached the end of the ceremony and the traditional giving of gifts. Landry took a small box from the Lieutenant. He opened it and pulled out a gold and silver linked chain. The pendant heart held amethyst and sapphire halves wrapped around each other.

  “Talia, as a token of my love and devotion, I give back what you lost.” Landry placed the necklace around her neck.

  A lump closed her throat as the weight of the necklace settled just above her breast in the same spot as her mother’s necklace. Talia’s fingers knew the way, reaching for the reassuring stones. Swallowing and blinking back the tears, she turned to Cahal and took the flat package he held out.

  “Landry, as a token of my love and devotion, I give you the gift of family. Past and future.”

  Landry opened the wrapping and uncovered the intricately carved frame. One side held a picture of his parents on their wedding day, the other side was blank.

  “All we need is a picture of today,” Talia said.

  “How did you find this?”

  “I’m good at research.” Relief flooded through Talia as she saw the joy in his eyes.

  Stefan reached out, took one of each of their hands, and placed them together.

  “As King of Algodova, I proclaim you husband and wife. Now let’s get some dinner!”

  Everyone laughed. Talia turned to walk back down the aisle, but Landry pulled her back to him.

  “Mrs. Sutton, our great king forgot one little detail that makes all this official.” He winked at Stefan.

  Talia’s whole body warmed from the fire in his eyes. “And what’s that?”

  “This.” He pulled her close, lifted her chin, and kissed her.

  About the Author

  Charity Bradford has been a voracious reader ever since her 5th grade teacher introduced her to the world of books with Where the Red Fern Grows and Summer of the Monkeys. By the time she was a teen she knew that one day her name would be on the cover of her own book. She lives in Northwest Arkansas with her hubby, four children, and a puppy named Chewy that looks like an Ewok. All these people in her life keep her on her toes, constantly reminding her that imagination still makes the world go round. She firmly believes that a smile can solve most problems. The Magic Wakes is her first novel.