by Trudi Jaye
“There’s every reason why not. That can never happen again,” he says severely.
“It was just a kiss.”
“That’s right. It was just a meaningless kiss. I’m bored and lonely, and you’re the nearest female.” He sneers at me, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “It can’t happen again.” Seth strides over to the bathroom and locks the door behind him.
I stare at the closed door for a while, biting my lip softly. When the shower starts up, I sigh and look back down at the box. It was nice, kissing Seth. Better than nice. Traveling around all the time means I haven’t had much experience with guys. It’s almost a cliché that I should get a crush on the first handsome young SIG Agent who happens to land on my doorstep. I refuse to let him get under my skin. I have more important things to worry about, like how I’m going to survive.
Something glitters at the bottom of the box, and I reach for it, pushing back the mismatched piles of documents and other paraphernalia that Jeff obviously thought would be useful. It’s a delicate gold ring with a small diamond setting glittering under the light from the dusty light bulb over my head. When I look at it through the spell web, it doesn’t even register as a blip.
I tip my head to one side, but I can’t resist; I try the ring on.
It fits so snugly around my finger, it’s like it’s made for me. I’m still admiring it, holding my hand out at arm’s length, when Seth opens the door to the bathroom. He’s wearing the same clothes, but his hair is wet; it’s the only clue he’s taken a shower.
I put my hand down in my lap and look up at him expectantly.
He pulls the blanket from the bottom of the bed, and lays it folded up on the carpet. “I’ll sleep on the floor tonight,” he says, before lying down and facing away from me.
A few minutes ago, I might have been distraught at this treatment, but I’m distracted now by the ring. I feel it thrumming along my veins. I can’t believe it’s not showing up on the spell web. It feels more powerful than anything in the old man’s pawnshop cellar.
I’ve been staring at the ring on my finger for a while when I glance up at the clock on the bedside table. It’s midnight, Seth is snoring next to me, and it’s dark. All of a sudden, the urge to be outside takes over. I have to get out of our tiny room and get into nature. To experience it, to breathe it in. Eddyville is a tiny dot of a town in the middle of the Shawnee National Forest. It’s a freaking nature reserve. I’m going to explore it.
The car keys are on the table, and I grab them on my way past. I hesitate at the table next to the branded notepad, but reason wins out. I scrawl a note saying I’m going to visit nature.
As soon as I’m in the car and driving down the small backroad, surrounded on both sides by trees and nature, I let out a howl. I glance at the ring on my finger, sparkling in the moonlight. I feel bright and alive for the first time in years. Maybe ever.
Up ahead is a sign for a waterfall, and suddenly I’m eager to feel water on my body, just like at Si’s house. It’s only been days, but it feels like years since I was there, hiding away from the world with my two mentors. I didn’t have a care in the world back then, in the good old days.
I push my foot down on the accelerator, and I whip up the narrow, windy roads until I reach the parking lot at the end of the road. I have to walk from here. Pounding along the nature track, I keep my hand out in front of me so I can see the ring. It’s so beautiful.
My foot snags on something and I tumble forward, landing heavily on the forest floor. My heart beating fast, I look back and swear at the tree root clearly sticking up. I need to pay attention. I’ve left Seth sleeping back at the motel, and who knows when he’ll wake up and see my note. I’ve also got the car, our only form of transport. If I break my ankle out here, there’s no one to save me. The darkness pushes down on me for a moment, the night sounds become menacing. But then I hold up my hand, and the diamond twinkles merrily in the moonlight. I smile. Nothing will go wrong. I’ll go for a decadent midnight swim at a waterfall, let myself feel at one with nature, and be back at the motel for breakfast, before Seth even knows I’ve gone.
The path leads up over rocks and tree roots, with the occasional set of stairs to help. Trees curl over me, and I feel like they’re protecting me from the world, holding me tight against their bodies. I feel safe for the first time in days.
I hear the waterfall before I see it. The energy created by water pounding against rocks is unmistakable and I quicken my steps. I burst out into a clearing, and there it is before me. I feel the rise of power and magic inside me. Before I can think about what I’m doing, I start pulling off my clothes. Without even a glance into the depths, I dive naked into the pool. A thought whispers past my brain, that it’s dangerous to dive into a pool I’ve never been in before. But I’m already in the water, and it’s fine. The moon above provides light, and the water surrounding me feels like home. It’s as if the last couple of days have been a dream.
I swim slowly around the pool, and then lie under the waterfall, letting the water beat down on my naked skin. It’s therapeutic and restorative, and by the time I’ve had enough, I feel like I could take on the world. A flicker of gold on my finger catches the moonlight.
It’s telling me to do something, but it’s not clear, the images are vague.
All of a sudden, I’m tired. There’s a patch of ground nearby, covered in moss and leaves. Without thinking, I swim over and pull myself out of the pool. Stretching my arms high, I yawn, then curl up onto my side and go to sleep.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Water is coming, curling and streaming down the small valley, swiping at everything in its path, creating destruction and chaos. It is the king, the one all others must bow to.
It can pull down mighty trees, crush rocks, and destroy the buildings created by the puny humans. It is the master of life. None may survive the wrath of water.
And water is the toy of the dragon. The dragon rules water, as water rules every other element.
I blink awake, rub my eyes, and look around. It’s early morning; there’s a layer of dew on the undergrowth and the birds are singing their wake-up songs. The water beside me is agitated and rough, the waterfall raging slightly higher than I remember from last night. I glance down at my body and blush. I’m still naked. I have been all night, since I curled up in this spot. It’s not like me; I don’t usually sleep buck naked in the middle of an unfamiliar forest. It’s not that I’m shy, it’s just not the safest thing in the world to do. My clothes are where I dropped them, a few feet away, and I pull them on, staring up at the waterfall as I do it.
There’s something wrong. I can feel it. The water is running faster and stronger than it should be. There’s something pushing at it, hurrying it along, like a little whippet at its feet.
I recall dreams of water, with pounding waves that crush everything in their path. Glancing nervously upstream, I know I have to find out what the problem is; I have a horrible suspicion it’s something to do with me.
I don’t have walking shoes on; my current sandals are more for beach wear. But I have no choice. I start up the path at the side of the waterfall, treading carefully on the steep steps. I get to the top and the valley falls away below me, the trees hugging tightly to the water, creating a beautiful hidden wilderness. Further down the valley, I can see a small clearing with a couple of pup tents. It must be the local camping ground.
Upstream, it’s not quite as peaceful. A rumbling noise is obvious up here, and in the distance, I see a huge wave of water pushing its way along the path of the river. It’s massive, not a wave that should be possible given the size of the river. But I can see it.
And I think I created it in my dreams.
I turn back downriver toward the camp ground. I have to warn them, or they’re going to drown before they even wake up. The water is moving so fast, I don’t know how I’m going to get there in time. But I have to try.
I climb down the side of the waterfall and start running al
ong the edge of the river.
“Mei!” It’s Seth. He’s standing at the edge of the clearing, anger thundering across his features.
“No time to yell at me,” I say as I run past. “We have to warn the campers.”
I glance behind me, and he’s still standing, unmoving.
“Hurry! There’s a huge wave coming. They’ll drown if we don’t get them out of here.”
He sighs, and then starts running, easily catching up to me in the undergrowth. “Don’t think this means we won’t have a conversation about what you’re doing out here.”
“How did you find me?”
“Intuition.”
“You’ve got another bug on me?” It’s the only explanation. I know I didn’t give that much information away in my note.
“Turns out my instinct to put a bug on your clothes was right, wasn’t it?”
I open my mouth to argue, but it doesn’t matter. Not at the moment. I have to make it to the campsite before that wave does.
Several minutes later, I’m puffing like we’ve run a marathon, and it doesn’t feel like we’re any closer to the campsite. “We’re not going to make it,” I say.
“How far is the campsite?”
“Maybe another half mile along the river. But look at it,” I say, gesturing to the roiling, tumbling water next to us. It looks like it’s just seen a month of torrential rain and is struggling to escape the banks of the river.
“What if we jump in the river and flow down with it?” Seth suggests.
I look at him and then at the river. It’s a dangerous notion; I can tell the river isn’t going to be easy. But what choice do we have? “Okay, let’s do it.”
“We’ll have to remove some clothes. We’ll get waterlogged and sink to the bottom otherwise.”
I give him a look, but he’s right. I pull off my T-shirt and jeans shorts, and I’m standing there in my bra and undies. “Come on, we have to hurry.” I walk into the water and start swimming downstream without checking to see if Seth has followed me.
He’s right, this way is faster, but it’s also scarier. Rocks pop up from under the water, and I’ve bashed myself against at least two before I learn to stay in the middle and try to flow with the current. I’m pushing my arms through the water as well, trying to make myself move faster. It’ll be my fault if something happens to the people at the campground.
I glance behind me and my heart starts racing. I can see the raging white water wave, not more than five hundred yards behind us. “Hurry, Seth!” I turn back, and this time I’m using my magic to get me through the water. I’ve never done it before, but something inside me knows how to do it, and soon I’m making double the time as the current picks me up and carries me downriver. The tents are in sight when I feel a momentary switch in the direction of the water and air behind me. I turn, and there’s the wave, now twenty yards behind me, gathering all the water around toward it. Seth is almost inside the wave, his body like a toy being tossed in the enormous wall of water.
My fists clench and I put my feet down on the floor of the river. He’s not going to die here. Not another one. Just as Seth is about to be devoured by the wave, I manage to grasp the energy created by the wave and fling his body to the river bank. He scrambles to his feet and runs toward the three small tents that are about to be torn apart by the waves.
I turn back to the giant wave, watching as it tears trees from the ground, moving boulders like they’re pebbles, and I open my arms, lifting them high.
I know water; it’s my element. I might not be able to stop this giant monstrosity, but perhaps I can push it away from the people. The water all around me reacts instantly to my magic, but the wave is too strong, too much a force of its own. It keeps pounding toward me, and toward the tents. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Seth herding the campers out of their tents and as far back into the forest as he can get them.
And then it hits. It’s like a concrete wall has fallen on me. I try to concentrate on forcing its path to the other side of the river, away from the people, but some part of me knows I have to focus on keeping myself alive. I can’t breathe under water, and I’m currently being pushed under a wave the size of a house. I’m being toppled and turned, my body like a tiny stuffed doll in the raging waters. Something heavy hits my head, and the water turns red.
The world feels still and calm, despite the raging river, and when I start to see stars, I’m not surprised.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
My head is pounding like there’s a jackhammer beating at me, but I still don’t open my eyes. I don’t want to see whatever is out there, because I’m pretty convinced it’s going to be bad. I just lie—wherever I am—and soak up the fact that I’m still alive. Barely.
Eventually I give in. There’s only so long that you can deny yourself the knowledge.
Squeezing open my eyes just a tiny bit, I can’t see anything for the ridiculously bright light. I groan and close my eyes again, holding an arm up over my face.
“Mei? Are you awake?” Seth’s voice comes from close by.
I nod slowly, but that just makes the jackhammers start up even harder. “How... How are the people?”
“They’re fine. I got everyone out of the way of the wave. I... I came back for you, and found you beside the river.”
I open my eyes a crack again. There’s a subtext in his voice that I don’t get. “What’s wrong?” I ask, steeling myself for bad news.
His blurry face comes into view in front of me. I’m still lying down, and I think it might be grass under my back. I’m not entirely sure, but it’s soft, whatever it is.
“You... you weren’t breathing. For a long time. I thought you were dead.”
My eyes jack open fully, and I try to sit up. “What are you talking about?”
“You were just lying there. Not breathing. I... I called it in.”
“Who to?” My head is pounding worse now. I don’t know what’s happening, but I know Seth’s gone and told someone where we are.
“My supervisor.”
“The one who probably informed to the Earthbound?”
Seth stands up, pacing agitatedly. “You were dead. It didn’t matter anymore. And I don’t have the phone number for anyone else. I told him to tell your father.”
I try to feel horrified at the news my father is being told of my death, maybe even as I lie here taking it in. But a part of me thinks he deserves it after years of neglect. Bet he regrets not spending more time with me now. “What did they say for you to do?”
“Wait here. That they’d be on their way soon.”
“How long ago was that?”
“About half an hour.”
I look around. “We need to get out of here. Right now.” I look down. I’m wearing only my bra and undies.
Seth nods and helps me up. “I truly thought you were dead, Mei. I still... I don’t understand how you’re not dead.” He pulls me into a tight hug that makes my eyes water.
I can feel his heart beating against my ear, and I close my eyes. The jackhammers subside slightly. “I know. Maybe it can even work to our advantage if they think I’m dead?”
“Maybe. But you’re right. We need to get out of here before the wrong people find us.” He bends down and hands me a bundle; it’s my clothes. I don’t know how he found them, but I’m glad he did. I put them on quickly, and then Seth grabs my hand and pulls me along a trail. My legs are wobbly at first, and I trip a couple of times. Luckily, Seth keeps me on my feet, and we keep moving forward. We emerge into the clearing where the tents were. I gape as I take in the devastation of the campground. Nothing is the same as it was before, trees are uprooted, the ground has shifted, the edge of the river looks like it was ravaged by a large beast, which I guess it was.
“Is it like this the whole way up the river?” I whisper.
“In this section at least. That wave came out of nowhere and just took everything with it. Luckily, it’s a pretty isolated section of the reserve, there w
eren’t many people around. It goes for about another mile down river, and then it just seemed to lose momentum and die away. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
My breathing is sketchy as I try to remember what happened. I was having crazy dreams about water and huge waves. Then I wake up and there’s a massive wave heading my way. Not long after that I lose consciousness and the wave dies off.
I look down at my hand, to the ring.
It’s gone. One part of me screams in frustration, because it had looked lovely on my finger and it had felt so right. But most of me knows the ring is to blame for my actions last night. The way it made me feel is like a lingering taste in my mouth, of honey and some kind of delicious spice. Under its influence, I ran off into the wilderness by myself, and swam naked under the stars. Nothing so very terrible in that—it’s the giant tsunami that swept through the reserve I’m worried about. If anyone had been hurt here today it would have been my fault.
“Is this what you’re looking for?” Seth asks softly. He holds up the ring. It sparkles in the early morning light.
Without thinking I reach out to grab it. Seth pulls his hand back out of reach and I force my arm back down.
“Keep it. It’s not safe,” I mutter. I want it back so badly, I know it can’t be good for me. Or for anyone else.
“What happened, Mei?”
“Come on,” I grind out between clenched teeth. I can’t handle any more guilt. I’m weighed down as it is. “Let’s get out of here.”
We find the car and get going. We’re driving down the long freeway on the north side of the National Forest when we see a row of black SUVs with tinted black windows speeding in the other direction.
“Not a moment too soon,” I murmur.
“They’ll figure out you’re not dead.”
“How?”
“No body. And why would I run?”
“You freaked out and decided to take my body for a decent burial.” The lies come so easily to me. It’s a lifetime of living under a pseudonym. “You need to ring your supervisor and let him know that’s why you’re not there. And then we’re going to ditch that new phone of yours. If they didn’t find us when you linked to your cloud account, they’ll have traced you when you called in.”
