Two Halves Box Set

by Marta Szemik

  William sat on the front porch of our rebuilt cabin. When he saw us, he closed the book he’d been reading and narrowed his brows. “You’re all wet. What happened?” William darted inside and returned with a towel in his hand. He held it wide and wrapped me into his arms.

  “Don’t ask. I don’t even understand what happened.”

  Xander laughed. “She followed me again and got her dose of punishment.”

  “Shut up!” I scolded. I didn’t want Xander to be the one to tell William about our almost kiss.

  “And so you threw her in a lake?” William coaxed.

  “No, she took care of that herself.” Xander folded his arms at his front, obviously waiting for me to own up to what happened.

  William returned his attention to me. “You’re shivering.” He rubbed my arms.

  I tightened my jaw, trying to stop the jittering teeth. I wasn’t ready to share what I’d heard in my head. The hope that I’d imagined it was too much to ask for: but I was sure Xela had invaded my mind. Xander probably thought my shakes were for a different reason. “Perhaps I’m a little cold,” I fibbed, biting my lip. “I need Eric. Now.” The towel fell to the grass.

  I felt William’s gaze burn into my back as I stomped away; he’d know something was wrong.

  “What’s the matter?” William called to my back. Then he growled, “What the hell happened, Xander?”

  “Nothing.” Xander raised his arms in innocence.

  “This doesn’t look like nothing to me.”

  I turned back in time to see William pointing to me, feverish anger burning his face.

  “She tried to kiss me,” Xander blurted.

  “What! Why?” William stalked toward Xander

  Xander shrugged and took a step back. “It’s complicated.”

  I rolled my eyes. Everything lately was complicated to Xander.

  “Not when you’re talking about kissing my wife, shifter,” William hissed at my best friend. A couple more steps and he’d be at Xander’s throat.

  “William, it’s not Xander’s fault, and it’s not about the kiss,” I interjected.

  He spun to look at me. Pain washed over his eyes. “So there was a kiss?”

  “No.”

  “Almost,” Xander whispered.

  William’s gaze found Xander again before he ran back to my side.

  I threw a dirty look at my best friend. You’d better shut it if you don’t want a fight! Aloud I said, “It was Xela’s stupid magic trick. Where are the kids?” I perked my ears, trying to hear their faint laughter.

  “At the lake with our parents. I warned you not to get close to the witch. Sarah, what’s going on?” He touched my shoulder as I stepped onto the porch.

  “I don’t know yet. I think Xela’s messing with Xander. I’ll be back in a moment.”

  I dashed to our bedroom and opened my jewelry box where my ruby ring nestled. The gem shined as I held it between my fingers, examining its shape against the lamp light. It was the same. No one had stolen it. My only affirmation of my identity rested in my palm. This ring had helped me trick Xela into revealing herself in my body. The ruby showed others who it truly belonged to; no one could mistake me for someone else when I wore it.

  I came back outside. “I have to talk to Eric. Everything is fine,” I added as I met William’s concerned gaze.

  Xander stretched his legs out on the patio chair.

  “And you’ll tell me whatever ‘is fine’ when you’re ready?”

  “Yes.” The ring slipped onto my finger. It fit the same way it had the first time I wore it, conforming to it perfectly. I closed my eyes, then opened them. “Who do you see?”

  “You.”

  “Good.” I exhaled.

  William narrowed his brows. “She’s not going to steal your body again. Never.”

  He stepped forward and took me by my shoulders. My husband pulled me in to his chest, and I closed my eyes, inhaling his sweet musk. The comfort of William’s embrace slowed my pulse, my heartbeat adjusting to run in sync with his calm thumps. The beating in our chest always remained the same, and this constant in my life soothed my worries. My gaze shifted higher. I missed seeing the love on William’s face when he wasn’t preoccupied with work.

  In my head, I heard, “Never say never!” followed by bellowing laughter.

  I jumped back. “Eric! Mira!”

  “He can’t hear you. He’s bending,” William said.

  “Xander, can you get them? I need Eric as soon as possible, and I cannot leave here,” I pleaded, hearing giggling, and turned toward my returning children.

  “Done.” Xander tilted his head back to look skyward. He squeaked in Harlow’s tongue—one of his gifts as a shapeshifter that I admired. A moment later, a similar sound resonated from above the canopy. Xander’s falcon could find Mira and Eric, hopefully quickly.

  “Let me know when they’re here.”

  He nodded.

  With a smile on my face, I rushed toward the end of the path to greet my kids. Crystal crushed into me when I crouched; Ayer jumped into William’s arms.

  “What’s wrong, Mama?” She placed her hands on my face.

  “You’re so good at that.” I kissed her forehead.

  “Where are you going?” she asked.

  I opened my mouth, then shut it again, confused. “What do you mean? I’m not going anywhere.”

  Ayer came to my side and touched my face. “Don’t be shcared, Mama. She won’t hurt you.”

  “Who?”

  “The lady with the black hair,” Crystal answered.

  I stood and held my breath. Everyone stared at the twins, including my in-laws and my father who neared the end of the path. The ruffling leaves in the treetops above the clearing seemed loud.

  Xander stepped forward.

  Fearing what I’d hear, I asked. “You’ve seen her?”

  “No, but I know.” My daughter smiled.

  “How do you know?” Xander asked. “Was she old? Wrinkled on her face? Messy hair?”

  “No, she was booful.”

  Xander’s expression mirrored the one I’d seen in the cave—a younger version of my best friend in happier times and I wondered whether his connection to Xela had more depth than he ever cared to share.

  “But you haven’t seen her?” he asked with almost frozen lips.

  “No, I just know,” Crystal answered. “Who is she?”

  Xander’s breathing became shallow, and he turned around, running his fingers through his hair, seemingly lost in thought.

  I crouched, taking the kids’ hands into mine. “Do you remember when we talked about bad people?”

  “Demons and seekers,” Ayer supplied, then cocked his head to the right. “I’m not shcared.”

  Willow fluffed the towels, hanging them on the porch railing. My father and Atram sat on the steps, watching their grandchildren with intent. Both had kept busy letting the air out of a blown-up mattress.

  “I know, baby. I just need you to always be on the lookout, and if you see someone odd, you need to let us know.”

  “Don’t worry, Mama. Look, we can do this!” Ayer pulled his hand free and glanced at Crystal as if in confirmation. The children took a step back, and red flames shot out of their palms, rocketing toward the forest. The flames impacted a tree. William raised his arms to catch its trunk before it fell on the house.

  “When did this happen?” I whirled toward my husband.

  “This morning.” William grinned with pride.

  “What does this mean? Is the red flame a power from the underworld?”

  Crystal took my hand and my nerves calmed. “It’s okay, Mama.”

  “Let’s not jump to conclusions.” Willow knelt beside the kids. “Are you guys hungry?”

  Before she could take them inside for snacks, wind gusted through the clearing. The air spun, opening a vortex in the middle of the field. Freshly mown grass flew in circles, and I smelled lavender and lilac. When the whirling stopped and the
dust settled, Eric was walking toward us, hand in hand with Mira.

  The twins ran up and knocked Mira and Eric to the ground. They rolled together on the grass, tickling one another and giggling so joyously. I laughed as well. My twins and the siblings didn’t have to speak to understand one another. I wished I could communicate with my children the way the siblings did, without having to speak. I only had that ability with Eric. The siblings and Eric exposed the children to all the magic and power they knew. My best friends’ unconditional love and devotion in training Crystal and Ayer would never be forgotten. For their own protection, my twins had to know and understand who they were and their role in this world, even when we weren’t sure of it ourselves.

  “Whoa! Who took down that tree?” Eric exclaimed. Then he rustled Ayer’s hair.

  “Me, me!” The twins bounced up and down, their hands up, each trying to be louder than the other.

  Eric held his own hand just above his head. The twins had no problem reaching it to give him a high five.

  “Want to see, Auntie Mira? Want to see?” A blue flame materialized in Crystal’s hand.

  “Perhaps we can find a tree farther away from the house?” Eric extinguished the flame in her hand with his palm.

  “Are we ready for snacks yet?” Willow tried again.

  “Why don’t we pack for tomorrow, too.” William nodded to his mom. “Once the blood donation papers are signed at the prison, we can concentrate on these two little bugs.” He rubbed Ayer’s head, the way Eric had done a minute ago.

  “We’re no boogs. I hate boogs,” Crystal complained.

  “I know. You have your mama to thank for that.” William laughed and motioned the kids toward their grandparents. “Snack time.”

  “Yeah!” The kids dashed inside to devour pudding while we stood in a circle in the clearing, arms crossed.

  “Sarah, you knew the kids would need to master the use of darker powers.” William put his arm around me.

  Flustered, I crossed my arms at my front. “They’re three years old!” I spat, feeling as if I were about to assume Xander’s green shade indicative of angry frustration. I didn’t want them to master the underworld.

  “We don’t know when they’re supposed to begin their work, but it could be anytime. They need to be ready,” William said.

  “They’re three!” I felt the pressure of my fangs on my lower lip. “I don’t think it’s time yet.”

  “Sarah, you’re forgetting although they look like normal kids, they’re not human children. They probably won’t age like human children, just like you. You wanted to talk to me?” Eric shifted the subject.

  “Yes, later.” My gaze focused on the ground. I needed privacy for what I was going to share with Eric, especially with Xander hanging over my shoulder.

  “Whatever she tells you, Eric, I hope you can help, because she hasn’t been herself today.” William stared at me with concerned eyes as he spoke. I recognized the look. My husband knew I wanted to speak with Eric about something I couldn’t tell anyone else. But that was only because I didn’t understand why Xela invaded my mind and I didn’t want to worry them.

  I avoided his gaze. “It’s not funny,” I grumbled.

  “It wasn’t meant to be, honey. I want to help, and you won’t let me.”

  “I don’t know what it is I need help with. Yet.” I found his pleading expression but couldn’t find the strength to explain Xela to my husband, and I headed toward the cabin.

  William followed me. “I hope our life will be clearer once the prophecy is fulfilled.”

  “To hell with the prophecy!” I growled, turning back from the porch.

  “Mama, what’s hell?” I heard Crystal call from inside the cabin, then William’s father, Atram, hushed them and offered another spoonful of pudding.

  I threw my hands up, looking to William for support.

  “Let’s eat first, talk later,” Mira suggested.

  William continued to watch me, then Eric, and me again. His cheek twitched. I thought I saw him turn to a vampire for a moment, and I rubbed my eyes. I waited for an opportunity to sweep Eric away. If I tried to talk to him in my mind, William would notice. Guilt swept through me as I realized I was going to share private information for the first time with someone other than William, but I had to know I hadn’t imagined what I’d heard—in my head, and from the kids.

  We sat at a dinner table set for ten. The aroma of tomato sauce and parmesan cheese wafted through the cabin, but nothing tasted right. A bitter film covered my tongue, and no matter how many sips of juice I took, it wouldn’t wash away. The idea that Xela could get inside my mind bothered me. My need to figure out why grew stronger. I looked at the ruby ring still on my finger; I didn’t want to take it off. The stone was my only affirmation of who I was. The events from four years ago haunted me at night, but today, for the first time in four years, my enemies haunted my mind during the day.

  I’d kept my guard up while raising the twins. It had proven challenging, especially since everyone around me seemed cooler and more likable than a mother who made new rules to protect her kids. But I loved them more than anything. I’d die for them.

  “I love you, Mama.” Crystal kissed my cheek, as if she understood what I’d been feeling. She touched my hand, soothing my angst.

  Ayer jumped down from his seat beside his sister and came to my other side for a squeeze. He pressed his cheek against my bare arm. “We’ll love you no matter who you awe,” he added.

  “I love you too, but I’m a half-breed vampire. You know that, right?”

  They nodded and looked into each other’s eyes as if they knew some mystery I didn’t. My twins had a way of knowing the future before it happened, but the way they shared it through ambiguous words mystified me, reminding me of aged warlocks.

  “You will fix everything.” Crystal smiled.

  “What’s everything?” I asked.

  “Soon,” she whispered, then hopped off her chair and trotted over to the rock wall near their bedroom William had built them for their first birthday. The twins began climbing, tilting their heads back toward the vaulted ceiling with its exposed beams.

  I moved my spaghetti around the plate.

  “You’re not eating.” William noted. The concern from his face transferred into his voice in a low tone.

  I turned to my left, whispering to my husband, “I think time is up.”

  “For what?” He narrowed his brows.

  My whisper caught my father’s attention at the end of the table, but he didn’t stir. He kept his gaze locked with Atram’s at the other end of the table. I had everyone’s attention, but I guessed no one wanted to step on my toes today.

  “It’s been too quiet. Things aren’t right. I can feel it in my bones.” I joined my hands to crack my fingers.

  “Has anything odd happened today?” Eric asked from across the table. One of Mira’s hands was on his lap, under the tablecloth, the way it has always been when they sat side by side.

  My family’s answers came one after another: “No,” “Nope,” “All okay.”

  “Are you kidding me?” I rose abruptly and walked over to put some dishes in the kitchen sink.

  “What?” they asked in unison.

  “Something is off. The kids are gaining greater and stronger powers and . . .”

  “What?” William asked.

  I looked up at the kids, both near the ceiling at the top of the wall now.

  “Sarah’s right.” Eric’s hush drafted chills up my spine.

  “You know something?” Mira turned toward him.

  He shook a warning with his head. “He’s on the move,” Eric said before wiping his mouth with a napkin. “The souls are scattering, looking for a place to hide.”

  We avoided using Aseret’s name in front of the children and wanted to ensure he had no connection to them, or as little as we could control.

  “The mark on the children is beginning to imprint. You can’t see it yet, but their w
rists heat up more than the norm. They will be imprinted soon, just like we have.” He held out his wrist, where the water mark glowed at his will.

  “Please tell me they’ll be marked with the water mark.” I shut my eyes.

  “Nothing is ever guaranteed Sarah,” he whispered.

  “Are you saying it could be the sphere? My children could be connected to the underworld?” I felt my brows rise.

  “Don’t jump to any conclusions, Sarah. All I know is that once the children get their mark, they’ll be able to bind Aseret,” he said calmly. “When you come back from the prison tomorrow, it will be time to test the children’s strength.”

  “They’re three!”

  “They’re more than three, Sarah,” he said solemnly.

  I stared at him a moment. “What does that mean?”

  “We will see tomorrow. Those are my instructions. Now, I think you and I need to talk.” He raised his brows.

  He knows!

  I do, I heard him say in my head. At times like these, when the children stared from me to William with their round eyes, I was thankful I could still communicate with Eric telepathically. It was the only way I knew how to protect their innocence. It didn’t matter how many times my father and William’s parents tried to distract them, my three-year-olds were brighter than many adults. And William could read my face as well as I could read his, so anything I shared with Eric through my mind, he’d know.

  “Let’s go to the pond,” Eric said.

  “I’ll be back soon.” I kissed William on his cheek, then jumped up the climbing wall to hug Crystal and Ayer.

  William followed me. “Don’t shut me out,” he whispered, holding onto the beam with one hand to hover just above me.

  I vaulted to the floor and began clearing the table. “I won’t. I love you.”

  “I love you too.”

  “Leave these.” Willow took the dishes out of my hands. “Go.”

  Eric had already left.

  “Thank you, Willow.”

  “He loves you and only you,” she whispered as if to clear any possible doubts.

  I smiled. “I know, Mom. I know.”