“Not that it matters at this point,” said Ivan. “But how did you get the book? And why did everyone leave?”
“Everyone just took off. Couldn’t tell ya why,” she lied, winking at Timothy.
He was getting good at keeping secrets, too. Ivan stopped and cast her a seriously frown. She said nothing more, just shrugged. He shook his head and dropped the subject.
Soon, they arrived back at the old mill. Uncle Eddy wasn’t there so she left a message with Timothy, who set immediately to deliver it.
“Be careful, Timothy. Don’t talk to any strangers.” Meghan had an enormous desire to get Ivan home, and checked out by the doctor. And to check on Colin, whose voice she had not heard since the beginning of the battle. What terrible timing it had been.
“You go along without me,” said Ivan unexpectedly when they entered Bedgewood Harbor.
“But you’re hurt,” she argued.
“And what will I say happened to me?”
“You fell.”
“I have a friend I can see. Don’t worry. Go and check on your brother, tell him you got his precious book back.” He was not exactly smug, but not exactly nice either. He strode off in a direction of town she had never been to. Part of her wanted to follow him. She hoped Ivan could be trusted. He was probably pissed that she didn’t tell him the truth about what had happened.
“He knows what he knows,” she resigned, continuing to the hospital.
Meghan had hoped that the voice she had heard during the battle meant that Colin had come out of his coma. To her dismay, his condition had not changed.
“I thought for sure I heard you, Colin. I got the book back, so don’t worry. Get better, okay.” She kissed his forehead and headed home.
Her legs and brain were jelly. She needed a hot bath. Some sleep. For her brain to just shut down for a few hours. Maybe a heavy dose of something sweet.
She followed Nona back to the Mochrie house and stumbled indoors.
“There you are,” said Sheila. “I was hoping you would show soon. Not good to overdo it just because you’re feeling better.”
Meghan almost laughed. I’ll try to remember that, she told herself.
Sheila made a funny face and wrinkled her nose as Meghan walked passed her. Skunk rags. She didn’t have the energy to make up an excuse. These clothes might not be wearable again.
It was good to be home, even if it wasn’t truly home. She bathed, ate, and sat downstairs, dozing while waiting for either Ivan or Jae to come home. Hours passed, and neither returned home that night.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Colin’s nothingness turned to darkness. Then to light. Then to a dream. A gray colorless dream. He was standing in a forest of tree trunks. The trees were so tall he could not see the tops of them. And the trunks were so wide it took many steps to walk around them.
Silver hair rounded the tree just ahead of him. He picked up his pace trying to catch up with the girl. He went around and around, at least three times he thought, before suddenly she was there, in front of him. She reached out and grasped his hand.
“You’re shaking,” he whispered.
“I don’t have long. They will discover I’ve gone.”
“What do you mean?” asked Colin, gravely concerned for his dream girl.
She inhaled quickly, her frame popping out of the woods. He called out but there was no reply. He ran around and around the tree trunk again, almost running into her when she popped back in front of him.
“They knew,” she said frantically. “Somehow, the last time you found me. They knew someone had found me.”
She vanished again, this time, popping in behind him.
He whirled around, grabbing onto her shoulders in attempts to keep her there. It didn’t work.
“I need your help,” she whispered, disappearing again.
Colin hurried around the tree trunk, hoping she would return. She did.
“Who are you?”
“Catrina,” she replied. “And I need your help, Colin Jacoby, as much as you will need mine. You are the only one that can help me…”
“How can I help you?” he begged to know. His hand fell through her body; it took on a ghostly form.
Her eyes opened wide. “Please, don’t forget about me.” Quite viciously, her gray ghostly frame flew upwards into the nothingness, which pulled backwards like a veil being yanked away.
Colin shouted and reached for her, but his dream changed. The gray dream world disappeared. He did not feel so heavy or lost. Air moved across his face.
“I’m waking up,” he realized.
#
A voice echoed in Meghan’s head, waking her. She was slumped over in a chair. The voice echoed again, this time discernibly. She bolted upright.
“Colin!”
“I’m awake! They’ve sent someone to tell you. Knew I’d get to you first though.”
“You’re really awake?” she questioned, grabbing her coat.
“Yep, really awake.”
“Going to wake everyone, they’ve all been so worried. I’ll be there quick as I can… Big Bro.”
“Big Bro,” he snorted.
“You are my big brother, technically speaking.”
“What the heck happened while I was out?” he questioned.
“Short version, I got the book back. I’ll tell you all about it later.” She bounded up the stairs, wanting to shout that Colin was awake, but first, sent a leaf to Uncle Eddy.
“Colin is awake. Everything great! Will contact you soon.”
She entered the bedroom where Mireya still slept and woke her gently.
“What’s up?” she asked groggily.
“Colin’s awake!”
Mireya jumped up and down in her bed.
“Yes! Thank goodness, that’s over. I’ll wake Mom and Dad.” Mireya ran downstairs to her parents’ room.
Meghan knocked lightly on Ivan’s door, but there was no answer. She wondered where he had gone. She put it out of her mind, hightailing it down the stairs, just as a knock pounded on the front door. She answered it before anyone else had the chance, realizing it would be the messenger from the hospital.
Oliver Stamm delivered the message on behalf of his father, the doctor. She acted as though she was hearing the information for the first time and thanked him.
“What wonderful news,” said Sheila, emerging from her bedroom. “And right before Christmas.”
Meghan, Sheila, and Mireya traipsed through the snow, which made progress slow. Halfway there, they ran into Jae. He looked as though he had not slept, but had a smile on his face just the same.
“Dad and I were on our way home when we got news that Colin was awake. I was on my way to make sure you knew.”
“Yes, we found out a few minutes ago,” replied his mother, fixing his untidy hair. “Why didn’t you come home last night? I hope your father isn’t working you too hard,” she said as they walked.
“We worked late and fell asleep at the office. Sorry, we should have sent a message.” Jae held his mother’s arm, keeping her steady over an ice patch as they reached the hospital entrance.
Doctor Stamm’s tall silhouette leaned over Colin, along with Irving Mochrie, giving him a thorough exam. Meghan ran to her brother’s bed and hugged him until he could not breathe. She ignored the fact that the doctor and Colin were mid conversation.
“My son Oliver tells me you are quite talented, Mr. Jacoby. I’m afraid my boy is always a bit distracted, loves to daydream too much.”
“From what I’ve seen of Oliver, he does a great job,” said Colin. The doctor smiled and left his side, giving him a clean bill of health. The doctor and Irving stepped outside of the room to speak.
“Don’t ever, ever, do that to me again,” Meghan demanded. Silently, she sent, “When I thought you were dead… it was like… it was like part of me died.”
Colin blushed, unused to this kind of attention from his sister.
“I promise to try to never get attacked
again,” he sent back to her. She bit her lip to hold back a laugh.
“How long will he have to stay?” Meghan asked Dr. Stamm when he came back into the room. The doctor mulled it over.
“Normally after such an ordeal, at least a week. But, seeing as Christmas is almost here, maybe a few days will suffice, as long as he promises to rest.”
“Thank you, doctor,” she said, relieved.
“This will be a blessed Christmas,” said a teary-eyed Sheila. Jae sat down for a minute and fell asleep almost instantly.
“Irving, you’re working the boy too hard,” Meghan overheard Sheila say.
“It’s best this way, Sheila. We’ll discuss it later.”
A messenger arrived, with a letter from Juliska Blackwell, addressed to Colin.
Dear Mr. Jacoby,
I am thrilled to hear that you are recovering. First, let me apologize for this occurrence. The actions taken against you will not be tolerated. Unfortunately, we have not yet caught the perpetrator, but the Balaton continue their efforts. We will keep you posted as any new developments arise.
Now that you are awake, if there is any information you can provide us to assist our efforts, please speak to any Balaton or member of the Viancourt. Otherwise, I wish you a speedy recovery in time for the holiday.
Deeply sorry again,
Juliska Nandalia Blackwell.
Colin contorted his face in confusion. Juliska Blackwell’s words seemed genuine. Perhaps he had misjudged her, truly being jealous over the attention given his sister.
“Banon Blackwell will not rest until they have caught whoever did this,” insisted Irving Mochrie.
Meghan secretly knew that it was not likely to happen.
That evening, after returning home, Meghan found a package on her pillow. She took off the leaf attached.
“Meghan,” the leaf spoke in Juliska’s voice. “I had poor Hollee digging through trunk after trunk looking for this book. I was beginning to think I had left it behind somewhere. This is something a dear friend once gave me, and I wish to pass it on to you. I hope it helps, and as always, my door is always open.”
Meghan opened the package. The Firemancer’s Pocket Guide. Meghan spent the evening skimming through it, enthralled. With each page, she began to realize that being a Firemancer meant more than just having horrible or uncontrollable visions. She could learn to summon visions at her leisure, though there was no guarantee of what she’d see. Or she could show other people what she was seeing. She could even learn to control the element that allowed her to see: Fire. She sent a heartfelt letter to Juliska, thanking her.
A sense of contentment blanketed Meghan.
Yes, they still had many unanswered questions. Just who was this young man and his Catawitch? He called her Elisha. But what did they want with Colin’s book? And who the heck was the bird-human? Whoever this was, they’d saved her life. And on top of all this, they so desperately wanted to find out if Uncle Arnon was alive. Even with all this looming at the forefront of her mind, something told her she and Colin were exactly where they needed to be.
Over the next three days, Meghan studied the book, and sent continual updates to Uncle Eddy about Colin’s progress. At the end of the third day, Colin was released from the hospital. The Mochries arranged for a heated carriage to bring him home. Once home, they sat Colin in a cozy chair next to the fireplace, where he happily watched Meghan, Mireya, and Jae decorate the Christmas tree.
That evening, Sheila and Mireya stepped out to deliver some last minute Christmas gifts, leaving Meghan, Colin, and Jae alone, at last.
“I’ve been dying to hear what happened,” said Colin.
Jae concurred.
“I’ve been thinking about how to explain it all,” she said intently. “When it comes down to it, I don’t think you can fully understand what happened, without having been there.”
Her serious tone intrigued the boys.
“I’m going to try something,” she told them. Her eyes lit up and she motioned for the boys to join her close to the fireplace. “I did some research the last couple of days, while you were in the hospital, Colin. So far, to be perfectly honest, being a Firemancer has kind of sucked. I keep having visions I don’t want to see.”
Meghan left out the part that Jae was at the forefront of those visions.
“Anyway, I did some reading and discovered something that makes being a Firemancer pretty darn cool.”
Colin smirked. His sister, reading? He had a faint thought, wondering if he might still be in a coma.
She heard him and frowned. Then grinned and pinched him.
He winced. “Nope. Very awake.”
Jae laughed at them.
“Okay. Here goes,” whispered Meghan.
To Colin and Jae’s astonishment, she stuck her hand in the fire, swirling the flames.
“That is so wrong,” shuddered Jae.
“I know, right?” she answered him. “It doesn’t hurt at all, and yet I can’t get used to it either.” She continued swirling the flames until an image appeared.
The boys gasped. It was Meghan at the old mill, with Uncle Eddy. She transferred her memories into the fire, replaying it for the boys to see and hear. It took a great deal of focus to keep unwanted visions from surfacing, but she did it without them seeing anything but the memory she was showing them.
After seeing the bird-human and the Magicante bring Ivan back to life, the boys sat in the same awed reverence that Meghan had, a few days prior.
“Wow,” muttered Jae. “The bird is a shapeshifter. Unbelievable!”
“And the timing! One more second, and I would’ve been a goner, no question,” insisted Meghan. “I have no idea who that kid and his Catawitch are, but they are… scary. And good at magic.”
“Not as good as the bird-human,” noted Jae.
“I think it just surprised him, to be honest,” said Meghan. “Probably didn’t expect that any more than I did.”
“And Ivan?” Colin blew out a low whistle. “It’s just all so unbelievable. I mean, I’m finally getting used to the idea of magic existing, and now I don’t even know what to think.”
“I’ve known about magic my entire life,” said Jae, “But even I have never seen magic that can bring someone back from the dead.”
“Speaking about that,” interrupted Meghan. “You may have caught it, but I did not tell Ivan he died. I think until we figure out whether we can trust him or not, it’s just better that way.”
The boys agreed.
“I think it’s time for Uncle Eddy to tell us what’s going on,” Colin blurted out suddenly.
“No more stalling,” agreed his sister. “Let’s go tomorrow, we’ll sneak away.”
“I’m supposed to stay inside,” reminded Colin.
“We’ll go in one of those heated carriages. I’ll say it’s my Christmas present to you.”
“Speaking of Christmas, I’ve got some last minute shopping to finish,” said Jae, in a sudden urgent hurry to leave the room.
“I guess I’ve got a bit of holiday stuff to finish up, too,” sighed Meghan.
“I never had a chance to go shopping. I don’t have anything to give anyone,” Colin said sadly.
“I shopped for both of us, Big Bro,” she said. “I’ll bring them down and you can help me wrap, that way, you’ll see what we got everyone.”
“Okay,” he agreed, still somber.
“What?” she asked.
“I don’t have anything for you.”
“I already got my Christmas wish, Colin. You’re alive, and awake. Believe me, I don’t need anything else right now.”
“Who has done what with my sister?” Silently, he added, Give her a few weeks, she’ll be back to normal.
“I heard that,” she chided lightheartedly.
He shrugged it off. “For now, I’ll take what I can get.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Christmas morning arrived and a light snow fell, blanketing everything in a fresh
coating of fluffy white. Sometime during the night, Ivan had finally returned. He nodded politely to Meghan, but did not speak of the events that had taken place.
A few hours before dinner, a carriage arrived. Meghan announced that as a gift to her brother she had arranged a carriage ride around the village. Luck was with them as Mireya was busy with her mother. However, luck ran out quickly as Ivan jumped up, snatching a coat.
“Is it all right?” he asked. His gaze said he wasn’t taking no for an answer.
“Sure,” answered Meghan nervously. Once inside the carriage she asked, “How’s your head?”
“I gather it’s safe to talk,” he said, glancing at Jae.
“It’s safe,” confirmed Jae.
“I figured as much. I didn’t mean to tag along, but I wanted to ask a question.”
“Shoot,” replied Meghan.
“What’s so great about that book that someone would attempt to kill Colin for it?”
“That’s actually why we’re going into Grimble,” she said, wishing she had not allowed him to ask his question so easily.
“Grimble?” he questioned.
“Yes,” she said.
Colin took over. “We’re going to visit a dead relative.”
“I knew you had to be visiting someone,” he nodded as if to congratulate himself on being correct.
“How did you end up at the mud huts, anyway?” asked Meghan. This was a question she had been dying to ask Ivan. He leaned back, smiling pompously.
“As I said before, I thought it was an outside job. Especially since you two were spending so much time in Grimble. Then, I got help with that hunch when I came across Nona. She nearly knocked me over one day trying to get out of the wagon. I assumed you would be with her, but she was alone.”
“She does that a lot, disappears for hours,” said Meghan.
Ivan continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “I decided to follow her and she led me to the gully where the compound was located. I staked them out, in attempts to investigate whether they had anything to do with Colin’s attack. Which is what I was doing, when we, uh, crawled into each other.”
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