by Kaitlyn Hoyt
“Again. This time start fighting back.” He doesn’t give me much time to recover. Conner moves back as Bragden runs toward me. I jump out of the way and prepare myself for his advances. I successfully block his oncoming attacks. Bragden fights predominately with his right side, so I aim to stop that. Ducking one of his punches, I lift my foot and put all of my weight into my step. Aim low. I bring my foot down on his foot, then reach back and kick him in the shin. When he bends over, I spin around to gain momentum and kick his right shoulder. He stumbles back, but doesn’t fall. As he regains his balance, his eyes narrow at me and a look of concentration crosses his expression. This just got serious.
I am aware of everyone around me. I see Liam, Natalie, and Colton in the corner attempting to spar, but watching us instead. I see David and Emma standing off to the side with Logan and Larkin, not even bothering to try and train. I hear footsteps behind me as Bragden starts walking for me again. Conner is about to join in. Quickly, I do a back handspring off to the side, so I am no longer in the middle of the floor. Off to the side, I am able to see both guys as they come toward me.
I run at Conner first. He isn’t expecting me to make the first move. I jump kick him in the chest. As he stumbles backward, I turn around and deflect Bragden’s blows. Hearing movement behind me, I duck at the last second, and Conner’s fist hits Bragden in the chest. While down, I lean back and hit Bragden in the shin again—the same spot as last time. He hisses and momentarily forgets to get back into a defensive stance. I swing around again, like the first time, and kick him in the middle of his chest. He falls backward and stays there, so I face Conner again. As I’m turning, his fist connects with my stomach.
I fall backward but quickly go into a back summersault and recover. I hear someone gasp behind me. Dang it, that hurt. Ignoring the pain, I assess my surroundings again. Bragden is standing off to the side, watching. He’s not joining back in thankfully.
I haven’t trained much with Conner yet. Like David did initially, he usually stands behind me and tells me ways to correct my stance or move, so I’m not as familiar with his fighting style. After deflecting the next couple of punches, I start to notice a pattern. He uses his right arm twice and then his left once. He isn’t as strong as Bragden; he relies on speed instead of strength. When he moves to punch me with his right hand, I stop it. Grabbing onto his wrist, I pull him forward and twist my body, so my back is to his chest. Keeping a grip on his right wrist, I swing my left elbow back and hit him in the solar plexus. He grunts and bends over, winded. With my left foot, I back kick him in the shin and let go of his wrist. When he doubles over, I spin around and kick his right shoulder with the base of my foot, knocking him on his back.
When he doesn’t get back up right away, I realize that the fight is over. I reach down and help Conner up. “Sorry,” I say when I see his wince.
Bragden runs up to me and picks me up. “I told you you could do it!”
When he puts me back on the ground, I am instantly knocked off my feet again as Emma barrels into me. “That was amazing. You’re totally my hero now!” She gets off of me and jumps up. Reaching a hand out, she says, “Oh and sorry for tackling you again.”
“That’s okay. I’m good down here actually,” I tell her. Since I am no longer moving, I realize how much pain I am actually in. My stomach and shoulder are throbbing, and my forearms are numb from blocking their hits. I close my eyes and use my arm to block out the bright lights in the room. “Goodness gracious guys, did you have to use me as a punching bag?” My voice comes out more winded than I wanted it to.
Bragden and Conner mumble their apologies. I hear the others making their way over to us. Bragden sits down next to me. “So, in order to make you believe in yourself, I have to make you angry.” I try laughing, but it comes out all wrong. I am still trying to catch my breath. Sparring with two large guys takes a lot out of a girl.
Someone grabs onto my arm. I open my eyes and find Logan standing over me. The throbbing in my stomach and shoulder fades while feeling returns to my arms. I smile at him and sit up in a seated position. Colton stops right beside me. Looking down at me, he asks, “Are you okay?” I hop up and look around the room.
“Yep, now I want to electrocute something.”
“You want to what?” Colton asks me. I laugh at the expression on his face. I realize that it is a strange sentence, but I want to use my magic.
“I said that I want to electrocute something. I’m pumped up now and want to use my magic.”
Colton walks up behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. I lean back against him as he says, “You should rest a little, Ry. You’re tired.” I open my mouth to argue with him. “Don’t argue with me. I can tell that you’re tired. You can work on your magic later.” He starts walking backward, pulling me with him.
“Hmph, you suck,” I whisper to him jokingly.
“But you love me.”
“Yeah, yeah,” I say as I call my magic to me. I may not get to train with it today, but that doesn’t mean I can’t use it right now. I surprise him when I shock him in the chest like I’ve done so many times with Bragden. He stares at me with wide eyes, and I start skipping backward out of the training room.
Bragden starts laughing. “Now, you know what it’s like!” I grin at him and wait for him to come after me. When he turns around and faces me again, I see the coy smile that I was waiting for. I turn around and run out of the room. I hear his footsteps following me as I run through the forest. I enter the backyard and run up the stairs and wait on the porch. I don’t see Colton, but that doesn’t mean anything.
A couple seconds later, something barrels into me. I take a couple steps backward before I’m spun around and pressed against Colton’s invisible chest. I laugh as he whispers in my ear, “Gotcha.” I look down and see that I am now invisible too. He bends down and flings me over his shoulder. I scream as Colton opens the backdoor and walks inside.
“Put me down!” I say through my laughter. He ignores me and runs up the stairs. It still shocks me that all these guys are able to easily support my weight. He makes it to the top of the stairs and casually walks into our room. I am still hitting his back, trying to get him to put me down. When the door is closed, he releases me and becomes visible.
I am still smiling when he reaches out and crushes me to him. That isn’t the reaction I was expecting to get after shocking him, but I’ll take it. I lean into him and kiss him back. The arms around my waist tighten as he picks me up, bringing me up to his height. When I wrap my legs around his waist for leverage, he deepens the kiss. One of his hands is placed on my lower back while another lightly pulls my hair.
What happened to taking it slow? As if reading my mind, Colton pulls back and rests his forehead against mine. I unwind my legs from his waist and let him place me back on the ground. Resting my hand on his chest, I smile as I feel his racing heartbeat.
“Don’t worry so much, Ry,” Colton tells me. “Everything will play out like it should.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because I have faith in you,” he whispers to me, his voice so full of love. I lean back and look into his eyes and see the truth behind his words. I’m going to do whatever I have to do to make sure that look stays in his eyes.
Ten minutes later, I get out of the shower and run a towel through my wet hair. I can hear Colton in the bedroom rummaging through his drawers. I quickly get dressed and check my reflection in the mirror. I look…eh, I really don’t care. I’m not really trying to impress anyone. I already have the only person I’d want to impress. I slowly open the door. When I make sure that Colton is completely dressed, I walk out of the bathroom and find him sitting on the edge of the bed waiting for me.
I call my magic to me and trail my finger across his chest. When he feels the shock again, he jumps up and grins evilly at me. I run out of the room laughing. Instead of heading toward the stairs like he’s expecting, I run down the hallway, stop at the end, and watch as he
moves toward the stairs. He looks over the railing, down into the living room, searching for me. Not finding me downstairs, he turns around. When he sees me, I stand my ground and start laughing as he comes toward me. He is expecting me to do something. When he is a couple feet in front of me, I throw up a shield around me. I can’t help but giggle as he bounces off of it. He is smiling at me, shaking his head. Narrowing his eyes, he gives me a look that says challenge accepted.
I drop the shield, and he comes toward me again. Grabbing me around the waist, he starts tickling me. I lean forward, laughing, desperately trying to get away from his hands. “Mercy!” I yell when I can’t breathe anymore. When he lets go of me, I step away from him, narrow my eyes, and concentrate on my magic. When I see the little cloud forming above his head, I jump up and run toward the stairs.
Instead of going down like a normal person, I jump over the railing, flipping down to the first floor. Calling my magic to me, I ask it to slow my fall. I feel the pressure beneath my feet as my magic slows my descent. My feet hit the ground, and I put my arms out to balance myself.
When I don’t fall, I look up and see Colton leaning over the banister railing. I start laughing, surprised at my own actions. “Oh my gosh, that was so cool!” I squeal and look into the living room. Everyone is watching me. I bite my lip to hide my smile and casually walk past everyone and sit on the couch.
“What was that about?” Liam asks me.
I turn toward the stairs and watch as a very wet Colton comes down, shaking his head at me with each step. “He tickled me.” I call wind to me and dry him off. When I pull my magic back, Colton turns toward me, giving me that coy smile. I scoot closer to Liam on the couch as Colton makes his way over to me. When I can’t go any farther, I throw up a shield around me.
“I won’t tickle you,” Colton says.
“Do you promise?”
“Yes, I promise I won’t tickle you.” He is standing at the edge of the couch, staring down at me waiting for me to pull my magic back.
“Do you pinky promise?”
“How can I pinky promise you if you have a shield up?” he asks me. Hmm, good question. My soulmate is smart.
“Do you metaphorically pinky promise?” I ask. David and Bragden start laughing at me. “You can never be too safe!”
“I metaphorically pinky promise that I won’t tickle you,” he says.
“Because I told you, I have eighteen years to make up for. You can’t get me back during this time. It’s a rule.”
“Who made up these rules?”
“I did. That makes it official. Ryanne official. It doesn’t get much higher than that.” I point at David. “No short jokes!”
“Are you reading my mind?” questions David.
“No, I just know you.” I turn back to Colton.
“Ryanne, I’m not going to tickle you,” he tells me through a smile. I slowly pull the shield back and let him sit beside me. He keeps his hands out where I can see them as he sits down. I eye him suspiciously before I scoot closer to him again. Colton wraps his arm around me and pulls me into his side. I smile up at him as I rest my head on his chest.
“Aww, I want that,” Natalie says and looks toward Emma. Emma smiles and nods while watching Colton and I. Why are they watching us?
“Want what?” I ask Natalie.
“What you guys have. That playful but completely serious relationship you two share. I’ve never had a relationship like that.” Conner scoffs when she mentions her previous relationships.
“What’s wrong, Conner?” I ask him.
“He’s angry about my last relationship,” Natalie answers for him.
“If that’s what you call it,” Conner says under his breath.
“What happened?” Emma asks. I can tell that Natalie is uncomfortable with the direction this conversation has turned.
“He…um…he hit me, a couple times actually. I tried to break up with him after the first time, but he threatened me. Conner and my dad had to threaten him before he finally left me alone.”
I look over at Liam. He is clenching his fists against his leg. Natalie won’t see it from where she is sitting, but I can see it. “Oh my gosh. I’m sorry, Natalie.”
“Oh, it’s fine. It happened a while ago.”
“We’re not very good when it comes to guys, are we?” Emma asks. Natalie and I both turn and look at her. “Well, I was cheated on, Natalie was abused, and Ryanne got attacked by the same guy who is now working with Dravin.”
“Hmm, I bet it’s a mage thing,” Natalie says jokingly. I am about to tell her that I wasn’t a mage when it happened, but I feel the pull again, and everything goes black.
Chapter Fifteen
Colton
No girl should go through what any of these girls have already gone through. They were all treated poorly by men before, and they don’t deserve that. No one does. I am glad that Ryanne has these two as her friends. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Ryanne open her mouth to say something but then tenses in my arms; her words left unspoken.
“You okay?” I ask her as she starts falling forward.
I tighten my grip around her shoulder and prop her back against me. Her head falls to the side. I try moving her into a more comfortable position, but her head just rolls back. The room is silent because we all know what is happening. There is nothing we can do. We just have to wait—wait and see what this vision brings.
A couple minutes later, Ryanne gasps and sits up. She looks around the room and jumps up. “What time is it?”
David looks at his watch. “Almost 9:00, why?”
She jumps over my legs and runs up the stairs. What did she see? I stand up and am about to head upstairs when she comes back downstairs, hopping on one foot as she tries to put her shoe on. “Larkin, I need you to take me to Jane’s. Like right now!” Larkin stands up and walks over to her. “Then, I need you to come back here and get Colton and Liam.”
“What’s going on?” I ask her, but she ignores my question.
“Larkin,” she jumps in place, “I need to go now!” Larkin reaches out and grabs her arm and transports her out of the room. Liam and I get up and grab our shoes. I finish tying mine when Larkin transports back into the room.
“Bragden and Logan, get ready. We need more people,” he says.
“You just left her there?” I yell. Larkin ignores my question and grabs Liam and me. We are transported to Jane’s house. I’d only been here one other time, but this time is different. I can hear yelling in the backyard. Liam and I run around the house as Larkin transports away again.
Ryanne is standing in the middle of the yard, fighting off two men. There is already one guy lying on the ground. I can tell that she is using her magic because every time she touches one of the guys, they grunt in pain. I run toward the guy at her back, swing back and punch him right in the jaw— the way that Tom taught me when I was younger. His eyes roll into the back of his head, and I let him fall to the ground.
“What’s going on?” I ask her as she elbows the man in the stomach. He grunts and tries to punch her. She ducks and swings her leg out and kicks him the neck. As he falls, Liam walks behind him and hits the pressure point in his neck, knocking him unconscious.
“In less than a minute around ten guys are going to come out of the trees and start attacking. They’re here to kill Jane and Ross.” She looks toward the house. “Dravin decided that she is a target again. He’s trying to get me to react.” She turns around and faces the forest.
On cue, men start piling out.
She pushes her magic out and creates a giant shield. The men run straight into it and immediately fall back. If we weren’t about to fight all of them, I might have found that comical. “I’ll keep this up until Larkin comes back. I can’t keep it up for too long, especially if they start fighting it.”
All at once, the men start pushing themselves back up. Together, they begin pounding on the invisible barrier, and Ryanne grimaces and staggers back a little from t
he force. I reach out to steady her. She is going to tire out too quickly if she has to keep this up for long.
“We’re here!” Larkin says. I turn around and find everyone coming into the backyard. Liam curses when he sees Natalie walking beside Emma. He looks over to his brother. Without actually speaking, his brother knows what he is asking. Bragden walks over and stands beside Natalie.
“I can’t hold it much longer!” Ryanne shouts.
“Drop the shield, Ryanne,” I tell her. I move her behind me as she drops the shield. Instantly, all the men run toward us. She takes a couple steps forward, so she is beside me.
“I’m beside you, Colton. Not behind you. We’re in this together,” she says while watching the men come forward. I can feel her magic moving around us. As Liam and I take a defensive stance, she continues to stare. I glance over at her as she leans forward a little. The first row of men all gasp and fall. Ryanne smiles slightly and gets into position. David and Logan stop beside Liam and me.
Ryanne runs straight for the man in the middle and does an aerial cartwheel. He stops dead in his tracks, stunned. She lands in front of him and swings her leg up, kicking him in the jaw. He falls to the ground. She then turns to her left and starts attacking the next man. Wow, that is hot.
David hits me in the arm, breaking me out of my trance right as a man stops in front of me. I deflect his blow and start fighting him. I am able to easily defeat him. I turn to the next guy. Liam is fighting alongside Ryanne, but she seems to be holding her own. She’s taken out the most people.
