Tired of hearing the same story about Mark’s text messages, I told J I needed fresh air. Heading out the back door, I lost myself in the woodsy area behind her house. The trees swayed in a rhythm that seemed to speak to me. The birds chirped a familiar tune. I felt like I was an important piece in the puzzle of nature while strolling along the path. I ducked under limbs and stepped over sticks, hurrying through the clump. Just when I could barely see Juniper’s backyard, a movement to my left caught my attention.
Five feet away, hidden behind a tree, was a large raccoon. His masked eyes studied me curiously as he sat on his hind legs. He appeared to be a little person. I stopped and watched him. We stood silently, regarding each other with intensity. It wasn’t odd to see raccoons around at all hours of the day in Arrow Rock. They seemed to always be out exploring the area, but it was strange for one to be so close to a human and not run. In all encounters I’d had before, they ran from me as fast as their tiny legs would take them. After a few long minutes, he seemed to nod his head and went on his way. I watched him scurry into a thicket.
I sat on the nearest rock. Sharp angles protruded into my skin, but I didn’t mind. Something weird was going on with the animals in this town. They all seemed to want to be around me. While I did love animals, now that they were so intent on reciprocating, it was scary.
I got lost in my thoughts and wasted too much time on that rock. Juniper called wondering where I was. She was still worried about me because of the Aiden incident last night. I reluctantly stood and started my journey back to her house. She was waiting for me on the back porch, looking fierce with her hands on her hips and a glare on her face. “You were in the woods the whole time?”
I nodded.
“I thought you were going on a short walk! I was worried,” she yelled, waving her hands around in the air.
“I was…I was watching a raccoon.”
“A raccoon?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but it was watching me first, so I stopped to share in the staring,” I said, trying to play it off as humorous.
She laughed and bopped down the steps to link arms. She led me up the stairs to the house. “You are crazy, Liv. It wasn’t watching you. Anyway, I remember something from when I took Mark to Anna’s today. I think her grandson was there, and he is c-u-t-e,” she said, lifting her eyebrows up and down.
I laughed at her expression and pushed her away. “Stop. Not you, too.”
“Oh, come on, Liv. He is seriously hot.”
“No. Now, let’s talk about something else. Why did Mark bail on you, again?” I hadn’t entirely been listening earlier and now felt bad about it.
Her expression turned sour and I could almost see the fumes coming out of her ears. “Something to do with his mom. I think. I wasn’t really paying attention.”
“Oh, I’m sure you weren’t,” I accused with a giggle. “If it counts for anything, I still think he likes you, J. Maybe something really did come up.” I rested a hand on her shoulder.
She looked at me with the beginnings of tears in her eyes. “What if he doesn’t?” she asked quietly.
“Then it’s his loss. Now, come on. We need to practice our makeup for the dance next week.” I pulled her to her room, dancing and making funny faces to cheer her up along the way. After the pampering and primping got underway, Juniper’s mood brightened. We laughed and gossiped the afternoon away. Juniper was a whirlwind of emotions, her moods going up and down without warning sometimes. She felt deeply, her empathy apparent for all around her. As long as I could remember, she’d cared for everyone and cried over everything imaginable. I adored her for it, but at times it was exhausting.
She overanalyzed where I didn’t. She wondered about things I wouldn’t give a second thought to, like Mark needing to help his mother. This is why I didn’t tell her what was happening, or about my dreams. She would read more into it than was there, or perhaps she’d see them exactly for what they were.
The truth can be a hard pill to swallow, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for it.
SCOTT
I’d put Markus Lowe’s number in my phone before I left work. I wasn’t sure what to say, but I knew I had to contact him. I spoke with Grandma after he and Livvie’s friend left. She seemed to be as anxious as I was about contacting him. She didn’t voice it, but she was extremely worried about the CC.
I sat on my couch with my feet propped on the end table. There were school books strewn around the floor and sorcery books on the coffee table. My phone lay beside them, taunting me. I wanted to call this other sorcerer, but I didn’t know how accepting he would be. Clenching my eyes, I drummed my fingers against my forehead. Finally, my heart won the war, and I grabbed my phone. I tapped my foot in anxiety while the line rang. Five rings and still not an answer. After the sixth I was about to hang up when I heard the phone connect.
“Hello?” a male voice said.
“Hello, is this Markus Lowe?” I asked.
“Yes, it is.”
“Hey. My name is Scott Tabors. I work at Anna’s dress shop…” I said cautiously. Awkward didn’t begin to describe how I felt in this moment.
“Oh, yeah, the other sorcerer.”
“Yeah, that’s me. I wanted to ask if you were from the area. I don’t meet many of our kind,” I said.
“Yep, I am. And please, my friends call me Mark.”
“Ok, I’ll call you Mark then. I’m wondering if you have encountered any other sorcerers besides me or my family?” I asked him. Might as well cut right to the chase, right?
He was silent for too long.
“Mark?”
“Dude…I’m not sure how to put this. But…there’s this kid at school…he seems to have a red aura.”
Groaning, I tried to process what he had told me. We’d seen the same thing.
“The Crimson Calamitous,” we said in unison.
We sat in silence. My mind was reeling while I processed the information about another sorcerer coming in contact with this evil. “Does he seem to be after something?” I asked Mark.
“Not really anything in particular. He does seem to have interest in my friend, Olivia, though.” His conveyed the worry I felt.
Livvie.
“All right, man. Thanks. I just wanted to call and see if you knew anything about this. I’m not sure if we should be worried or not.”
“I know, dude. I am worried, but I’m not sure why. I’ll keep in touch if anything suspicious happens.”
“Thanks, Mark. Maybe you should keep an eye on your friend. I’d imagine being the interest of the CC wouldn’t be a good thing,” I suggested. Livvie must be kept safe at all costs.
“I will. I worry for her, but I’ll defend her if needed. She’s been a good friend to me,” he relayed.
Sighing in relief, I said, “All right, thanks, man. I’ll call you when we get your tux in.”
He chuckled, “Ok. I’ll let you know if anything happens. Can’t hurt to be in this together. If the legends are true, we’ll need a lot of help.”
“That’s the truth,” I mumbled. “Bye.”
I disconnected and sat clenching my fists. The CC was definitely planning something in Arrow Rock, and it was up to me to figure out how to save the town. I must protect Livvie.
OLIVIA
Sunday mornings were always the same with my parents. My dad sat at the kitchen table with his left leg in the fourth chair while he read the newspaper. My mother cozied next to him with a cup of coffee in her right hand and a health magazine in the left. They didn’t talk. They didn’t ask about my week. They didn’t ask about school. They did their own thing.
I shuffled my bunny slippers down the hallway from my room to the kitchen. I pushed the door open and made my way to the refrigerator. I glanced back at them to see if they had even noticed my entrance. Nope. Inhaling deeply, I grasped at the cup nearest to me and barely got ahold of it. I poured myself half a glass of juice and walked to the table. They still didn’t acknowledge me. “Good m
orning, parentlings.” Sitting the cup in front of me, I waited.
My mother glanced up and smiled. “Good morning, darling.” Then she went back to reading her magazine.
I tapped my slippers while contemplating my next move. Striking as quickly as I could, I grabbed her magazine and his newspaper in one swoop.
“Olivia…”
“What are you doing?”
“Listen. I need to talk to both of you. It’s serious. Why aren’t you ever around anymore?” I asked.
My mother glanced at my father, a silent discussion passing between their eyes. “Dear,” my father started, “we told you we were busy with work. That’s all. I’m sorry.”
“Something is going on. Weird stuff. Do you two know about it?”
My mother’s eyes widened, and she looked down quickly. My father cleared his throat and slid his leg back to the linoleum. “No, Olivia. We can’t talk about anything that may be happening to you.”
My eyes narrowed, and my mouth fell open in shock. “What…?”
“Just…know we are here for you, baby,” my mother said in her sweetest voice.
I shook my head in confusion. “No, it doesn’t sound like you are, considering you can’t talk about it.” I air-quoted the words he’d said, spat them back at him. What was wrong with these two? Why were they acting this way?
“We’re sorry, but we can’t,” my father said. He placed both hands on the table.
“You’re serious? I tell you weird things are taking place, not even going into detail, and you immediately say we can’t talk about it? What kind of parents are you?” I asked.
My mother’s eyes welled up with big tears. She reached for my father’s hand, and they sat there, not saying a word. Not denying that something was occurring with me. My chair made a loud screeching noise as I slid it back and kicked it before walking away from the table. In my anger, I somehow knocked my juice over and ruined their papers. Not that I cared at this point. I stood at the doorway, with my hands on my hips, and my body shook with anger. “I can’t even talk to either of you right now. I don’t know what’s happening to me. I can’t believe you won’t help me.” I couldn’t stop the tears that started falling. I wasn’t even given a chance to explain what was going on before being shut down. Mom had no problems asking about my health every other day, but was no help when I actually went to her with a problem.
“We love you,” my mother called as I rushed out of the kitchen. Her words echoed around me, a reminder of how alone I truly was.
SCOTT
Between researching the descendants of Devlin Hart—and getting nowhere— and keeping track of the CC, I hardly had time to study for finals. Santos was a lifesaver. He went above and beyond the brotherly role and dove head first into the descendant research for me. I wasn’t sure I could wait until October to be with my Livvie. And with Aiden lurking around, our time could run out much faster than expected.
The thought sent shivers down my spine.
The odd thing about this “Aiden” character was how he wasn’t hiding the fact that he’s a sorcerer. He knew Mark was aware of who he was, yet he still came around. There was something really weird about this evil being. His confidence was unusually high, but it was often the case for especially powerful magical beings. Our only hope was his cocky attitude would give us the key we needed to destroy him.
Lately, I had been researching legends on sorcery. Humans wrote all kinds of fun stories about us they thought were folklore. Most were actually our history, only humanized a little. Grasping at anything I could, I wanted to absorb all information about the CC before I faced him. It could be any moment, any second, really. No one knew his plan, other than his love for Delana that was fueling his quest. Turning to human folklore was probably absurd, but any extra intelligence at this point was welcomed.
There was one in particular about an evil sorcerer. His lover had been murdered, and in his devastation, the loss of his soul mate killed him. The evil sorcerer had a red aura. Humans knew about sorcerers having auras, but couldn’t see them, thus hiding our identities. This story was definitely about the CC. Only the humans got it wrong. He hadn’t been killed. In fact, he seemed as strong as ever. He sensed me espying easily enough. Between the legends of sorcery and the folklore, I was beginning to think I had his story.
He and Delana fell in love, and the two sorcerers held the world at their fingertips. The darkness in them both ran rampant, and soon it controlled their decisions. One bad choice led to another, and eventually Delana was destroyed for her behavior. The CC, who was never named other than his title, sought revenge. Using every ounce of power he held, he murdered those responsible and then some. He was on a rampage, his grief feeding his power until he’d grown stronger than any other. Centuries had passed, and still he wanted his love back. How losing his mate didn’t kill him, I didn’t know. Perhaps they weren’t true heart mates, or maybe he was powerful enough to counteract it.
Either way, he must be stopped. No matter what his plans for Livvie, I wouldn’t allow him to hurt her. Delana might be resurrected someday, but not at my love’s sacrifice.
Flipping through, I read the rest of the stories. I wasn’t sure how I thought the other human legends would help me, but it was worth a shot to look them up. It was interesting to see our history interpreted. I couldn’t burden my family with more stress about the whole situation. Sebastian still wasn’t cooperating. Sadie and Santos were my rocks, though. They were helping me and Grandma in amazing ways. Sadie was actually getting ready to help me with a big stressor shortly. I only needed to finish getting the supplies ready while she completed the potions and charms needed.
OLIVIA
The doorbell rang when I was sitting on the couch working on history homework. It was late Sunday afternoon, and my parents were away at dinner, per usual. They hadn’t told me to expect anyone, though. Things had been tense since our argument, the three of us tiptoeing around each other. I stayed in my room, and they didn’t try to explain anything. I declined their invitation to dinner. I didn’t really want to go anywhere with them, because I didn’t want to be around them.
I opened the door to a girl close to my age. She had long, dark brown hair, big brown eyes, and she was very petite. She looked familiar, but I couldn’t place where I knew her from. “Yes? Can I help you?”
“Yeah, my name is Sadie. You don’t know me, but I believe you know my brother. He visits you in your dreams?” Her bluntness was shocking.
Well, this was surprising. “Uh…why don’t you come in?”
She sashayed through the door like she owned the place. For someone my age, she exuded a surprising amount of confidence. She was wearing tight jeans with holes in the knees and heels that made her taller than me. A fitted tank top with a vest and at least a dozen necklaces completed the ensemble. Her hair was loose and wavy, making her look like she just stepped off a runway. “Please, come and sit down. Would you like anything, something to drink? We have water, juice, and I think a few soft drinks…”
“No, thank you. I don’t have time for small talk. My brother found out some disturbing news today, and I’m here to make sure you stay safe. I have some protection charms to place around your house. Also, I’ll put some wards outside, if that’s ok with you. No one will be able to see them. Only magical beings will know they are there.”
Wow, she sure was bossy. “Uh..sure. Can you tell me what this is about?”
“No. I don’t want to scare you or anything. We’re just taking precautions.”
Scare me? Yeah, she succeeded at that already. “Ok. Go ahead. Is there anything I need to do?”
She handed me a beautiful ring. It was silver with a light pink stone. It was delicate and fit my finger perfectly. “Yes, wear this at all times. It’s a personalized protection charm. It will help you if you get into any trouble. It’ll activate so we can come to protect you.”
Umm…cool. “Ok. That’s neat. This ring is beautiful…”
&nbs
p; “My brother figured you would like it,” she said with a huge smile on her face. The resemblance was evident now that I knew who she was. The same hair color, the same dark eyes, though hers were a tiny bit lighter. Their noses were similar, but their smiles were almost identical, aside from the dimple on her left cheek that he lacked.
Since she was his sister…she could tell me more about him. “Yeah…your brother. I sure would like to know more about him. I’m interested in learning anything I can…like maybe his name?”
She giggled and said, “Nope. I’m under strict orders not tell you anything. He wants to woo you himself.” She strutted through the house, inspecting every room as we talked.
Well, it was worth a shot. This guy seemed pretty romantic. “Ooook. I guess I can’t argue with that. Well, how about you? Are we allowed to get to know each other?”
“Oh, yeah, I’m Sadie. I’m fifteen, and I’m a better sorcerer than my brothers. I excel at protection charms. It’s why I’m here. I don’t mean to sound over-confident. It’s just the way it is.” Her face lit up while she spoke. This chick was smart. I wished I could have confidence like that.
“Well, I only have one sibling and he’s not around much, so by default I’m smarter than him, too,” I said with a laugh.
“Oh, definitely.”
I’d never been a fan of awkward silence, but what else was there to be said? I really wanted her to enlighten me about Mr. Sexy, but that obviously was not going to happen. I glanced at the clock and noticed it was after seven. “Hey, I’m about to cook dinner. Do you want to stay?”
She pondered the question, looking unsure. “You know what? Why not? My brother never said I couldn’t hang out with you.”
Now that the easy part was accomplished, I only needed to trick her into telling me something. “Well, let’s go. It’s right through here,” I said as I led her through our long hallway.
The White Aura Page 9
