"Oh ay! Don't be throwing your judgments this way. You," he pointed at Cormac, "just left for months." He pointed at me next. "You never left, you were just drunk."
Both of us turned, shamed into silence.
"I thought so." Burrom crossed his arms across his chest as he stood next to us.
"Don't push it." Cormac said as he looked back to Burrom. "You'll go under again one day, and I'll find out where you're buried and plant a goddamn park bench right over your ass."
"You wouldn't!"
"With a colorful flower box full of daises right beside it."
"Thank you for coming," I said loudly to the crowd, cutting off any more arguments between Cormac and Burrom. "I know that what you have signed up for is frightening, but I will not ask for more than you can handle." I'm so going to hell for that whopper. "I'd like to start by everyone taking a piece of paper here," I held up a stack of sheets in my hand, "and writing down any skills you might have. Anything at all that might be useful. If you aren't sure if it's useful, write it down anyway."
They all quickly took paper and the pencils I offered and got to work listing their abilities. After everyone was leaning against a wall or a back filling out their sheet, I called Crash, who was milling around with some of his men, over to me.
Cormac and Burrom, who'd gone back to trying to one up each other, Cormac threatening tea roses now with Burrom countering with an orgy right in the hall, turned their attention back to me as he approached. They both took a step forward, now standing together as they eyed up Crash's approach. Well, I just found one thing they could work together on, I guess.
"What's up?" he said, the words were casual but they held a warmth that had me smiling back.
"I'd like you to head up firearms training."
"I'd be happy to."
"I didn't recognize most of the guys you brought with you. Do you have some men that can help?"
The conversation was feeling a bit awkward with the two nonspeaking participants hovering nearby but Crash didn't seem to mind.
"All my people are good with a firearm, but I've got some really great snipers in the bunch. As we figure out the skill levels and aptitudes, we'll pull out the ones with promise for some extra training." He turned to Burrom and Cormac, "You two good with that?"
They both made a couple of "hmphs," but grudgingly nodded.
Burrom walked away, Cormac didn't leave my side. Crash gracefully exited, rattling something off about needing to speak with someone.
Cormac stood behind my shoulder as I watched everyone finishing up their sheets. "I don't like him here."
"I don't believe he's the one that told the senator."
"But we don't know what part he played."
"You're right. But maybe sometimes people deserve a second chance." I knew I desperately wanted one in order to fix everything I'd help destroy.
"Does that go for everybody?"
"Everyone that promises to change their ways."
"So you're digging in, then?"
I glanced over my shoulder. "I thought that was pretty clear."
"So, are you making this a challenge?" He leaned down as his hand rested on my hip. "'Cause you know how I react to a challenge."
Before I could think up an interesting retort, people were handing me back their sheets and Cormac was gone.
Chapter Twenty
Indestructible
We'd been training for days with no word from the owls and no idea of what exactly was coming. I'd finally managed to sneak out to clear my head.
I'd been avoiding Cormac since the other day. He hadn't been kidding about taking up the challenge. I swear every corner I turned, he was there waiting. I slept in the bed, I woke up with his body surrounding me. If I slept on the couch, I still woke up in the bed with him surrounding me.
If he couldn't break down my resolve with words, he was going to do it with actions and he had a lot to work with. I was starting to wonder myself what the point of holding out was, but then I remembered the three months of agony. I needed the promise.
I walked down the strip hoping no one had seen me slip out. Cormac would have had a fit with everything going on if he knew I was out here alone. But that was the point. I needed to be alone.
Then I saw him, the giant from right before the accident. He wasn't huge now, but the size of a common man. He stood, shimmering, a block away, there but not really. He didn't say anything, just stood looking at me for a moment before he turned and started to walk away.
I followed but not too closely, keeping my senses wide open for a trap.
"Come, I will not hurt you." It sounded as if it came from right next to me, but that was impossible. I couldn't tell if the voice was in my head or floating in the air for anyone to hear.
"How do I know?" I said, not loud enough that the man up ahead should've been able to hear.
"I will not hurt you."
It sounded like the truth but the voice was also not coming from a body so how reliable was it? "And I'm supposed to believe that because?"
I paused in the street, watching the figure get further away. Six months ago, I would have chased the phantom figure down, without thought to the consequences, but now I couldn't.
The senator loomed large in my mind. As much as I tried to prepare everyone and stack the cards in our favor, deep inside I was afraid that in the end, it would come down to the senator and me. I might be the last thing standing between a chance at a free life or mass enslavement. I didn't know who this creature was, but I couldn't succumb to curiosity, not if I wanted redemption.
I watched as the last glimpse of the man disappeared and felt the heaviness of regret fall upon me. I yearned for the days when my life was my own. With a deep sigh, I took my first steps back toward the castle.
***
I heard Cormac enter the room but didn't open my eyes. I was waiting for a sleep that refused to come and I wasn't ready to give up on it.
I heard him shedding his clothes before his weight shifted the bed, and he slipped under the covers with me. I didn't argue when he pulled me from the edge of the bed to the center, close to him. I told myself it was only because it was cold and he was warm, nothing else. I decided not to think any further on an excuse that might prove flimsy. His arm circled my waist, holding me tightly as one leg curled over mine.
"I've got to tell you something," he whispered in my ear.
A tickle of apprehension ran through me and I kissed the idea of a good sleep goodbye.
"Tell me," I said when he seemed to be hesitating.
He took a deep breath. His cheek resting so close by mine his exhale tingled my ear. "You thought I left you completely alone for three months."
"You didn't?"
"No. Not the way you think I did."
"Were you somewhere close?" My face was scowling in confusion. He hadn't left? Why would he have pretended?
"No, I wasn't close but I would've known if you needed me."
"How?"
"Before I explain, I want you to realize, it doesn't really change anything."
He had both arms snuggly wrapped around me now and I was starting to think it had nothing to do with warmth and everything to do with self-preservation, his to be exact.
"What did you do?"
"We might be married."
"No we’re not. You destroyed the contract. I saw it. I even kept it." I still didn't know what had compelled me to pick up that burnt carcass and then save it.
"I did destroy it. But things aren't quite as easy to terminate, anymore."
"Did you burn the contract or not?"
"I did." His arms got a hair tighter. "But it grew back."
"It grew back? I'm the one that has it. How would you even know that?"
"When I had your stuff brought up here when you moved in, I was trying to help you unpack when I found it on the bottom, underneath your things."
"You didn't unpack for me though." I never unpacked that bag, no matter where I mov
ed. It remained in the back of the closet. It was still untouched, even now, with things I couldn't bear to look at but couldn't part with either. The contract was buried underneath a bracelet Lacey had given me, a book of Monet prints and a birthday card from the Harveys, all remnants of the life I'd once had.
"I stopped after I saw that."
"What does that contract mean? What does being married to you in that way entail and how does that have anything to do with you not leaving?"
"It means I can sense when your life is in imminent danger. It doesn't act like a beacon or anything, but I'll know there is a problem. So while I was away, I knew you were okay. Up until that night I found you, anyway."
"Is that why you came back?"
"I would've been back anyway. The contract only allows a certain amount of separation."
"What does that mean? You would've been forced back here anyway?"
"Eventually."
"How long did you know?"
"Does that matter?"
"It's what matters more than anything. You kept this from me on purpose."
I tried to push at his arms to get some space but he wouldn't budge. "Let. Me. Go."
"No. I'm not letting you run from me because you're afraid of commitment."
"That's not why I'm mad. You knew this and you didn't tell me? I sat here, devastated that I'd never see you again, and you weren't worried because you knew! Don't you think I was entitled to that information? Now, get off of me." I moved my head forward and then crashed the back of my head into his face. It startled him enough to let me break his hold.
I didn't answer as I walked into the closet to find that one bag. There, on the bottom just where I'd put it, was the contract, completely unharmed. I tucked it back in my bag for reasons I wasn't sure of myself.
"Where are you going?" he asked, holding his now bleeding nose.
"I'm leaving. But, unlike the explanation I got, you know I'll be back!"
"Where?"
In a mockingly familiar way, I uttered the same non-explanation he had given me the night I left. "I just need to go."
I yanked my favorite sweatshirt over my head and walked out.
***
I heard laughter within as I pounded on Burrom's door minutes later. Burrom's floor was now being called the den of inequity by most of the castle.
"Hey! What's up?" he said as he greeted me. This time at least he had pants on, if not a shirt.
I wasn’t sure if I had smoke leaking out of my ears but he instantly grew serious. "What's wrong?"
"Get rid of your chickies. I need to talk."
"Yeah, hang on."
He opened the door wider but I rested against the wall outside his room while he cleared out. Five women of various shapes and sizes, but all attractive, left the room.
"All clear," he said, holding the door open even wider and waving his hand in a grand gesture.
"Do you really need that many?" I said as I walked past him and plopped onto his couch.
"I tried to downsize. Really did." He shut the door and swaggered over to sit on the other couch. "If anyone is to blame, it's you. You really packed a punch when you sealed that ground." He reclined back then eyed me up. "You're clearly out of sorts."
"Did you know?"
"Know?"
"The marriage, and don't play stupid." My voice was deadly serious.
His mouth formed a silent "ooh" as his eyes grew large. He'd known. Thinking back to some of the comments he'd made in the past, I knew he would.
"I don't want to get in the middle of this shit."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"It was only a suspicion based on my own contracts being stubbornly resistant to destruction, ever since the shattering. The timing of his return was also very coincidental, but I never knew for sure."
I didn't say anything, just sat there trying to sort it all out in my head.
"In his defense, he probably did destroy the contract. Things are really crazy, right now. You don't know what is going to happen when you dip into the magical stream these days."
"He should have told me." Months of not knowing if I'd ever see him again, wondering if he was dead, it all could've been avoided.
"Really, Jo? He was probably afraid of this."
"Do you think the contract is the only reason he came back?"
"Ahhh, now we come to the heart of the problem. And the old insecurities rear their head."
"It's a valid point."
"If the guy didn't have it so bad for you, it might be."
"Is my old room still available?"
"Don't be an idiot, Jo."
"He lied to me. Am I not allowed to take a night to myself?"
"Your old room has been repurposed."
"Someone took it?"
"More along the lines of storage, but we had to move the furniture out to make enough room for our supplies."
When I raised an eyebrow, he threw his hands in the air. "It's not like we could put our stuff in the main hall. Take my bed. I've got a few others I can share."
"Thanks." I pushed to my feet before I fell asleep on his couch.
"And you might want to avail yourself of the clean sheets in the closet," he said right before he made his exit.
I made as little contact with the used sheets as possible while changing them out. Bed remade, all my fear of not being able to fall asleep disappeared. I crashed as soon as I hit the bed.
I woke quickly a couple hours later when I felt strong arms lifting me from the bed in the darkness.
"It's me," Cormac said. "Go back to sleep."
"What are you doing?" I asked groggily but rested my head on his shoulder, too tired to fight.
"Bringing you back to our place. If you're mad, fine. I get that. I gave you an entire two hours away. Now you have to come back."
"You had three months," I said on a yawn, but I was too tired to argue anymore.
"Give it a rest, for now. You can fight with me tomorrow."
Chapter Twenty-One
Can't Fight the Numbers
It was the first real day of training. Cormac and I had been tiptoeing around each other since our fight a few days ago. Nothing was different, except the fact that I knew, but that seemed to be enough to put an awkward silence between us.
I understood his unease. He knew I was upset about him withholding something that important from me. He didn't get how much pain he might have saved me if there had been some guarantee of his return. I needed some time to work through the anger. So, for now, we were uneasy roommates.
I knew he felt guilty when he gave up the fake sleep act and relinquished the bedroom to me. I still found him on the couch every night.
This was going to be the most time we'd spent together in days. Crash had taken some of the humans to the roof for target practice. Burrom was teaching anyone that had a modicum of magic how to use it. That left Cormac and I to start on physical combat training. I was there for a couple of purposes. One, there were a lot of changed in our group of fifty that felt more at ease with me.
The other, and slightly more embarrassing, reason was that I could use a little fine-tuning myself. Unless I was channeling magic, I was abysmal at hand-to-hand combat when I came up against someone I couldn't zap.
We'd cleared the tables from breakfast service. Mats, rescued from the ruins of a nearby gym, covered the stone floor near where I stood, between Sharon and Katie. I'd been trying to rename Sharon "Ghost" for her ability to disappear, but I was having a hard time making the nickname stick.
Colleen edged up next to me, insisting on participating even with her cast, as we all waited for Cormac to start doing whatever it was that would turn our little group into a mean killing machine. I looked around at the bewildered stares and decided I'd settle for the equivalent of disgruntled holiday shoppers on Black Friday.
"So, Phantom, what's new with you?" I said as I looked at Sharon.
She nodded her head and didn't respond. I looked at Colleen a
nd Katie, who both shook their heads as well.
"No good," Colleen said. "That's even worse than ghost."
"You guys have no taste."
They didn't have a chance to defend themselves as Cormac stepped into the middle of the room and cleared his throat, signaling he was ready to start.
"Thank you all for coming." He spun around slowly, making eye contact with the people that stood in a semi circle around him. "Today, we are going to learn some basic moves. I'll demonstrate first. Next, I want everyone to pair up and try the moves out on each other."
He was wearing a snug black t-shirt with athletic pants and he circled around, looking for his first training partner. Then he waggled his finger at me. I couldn't refuse to walk to the center, but I gave him a look as I did that made it clear I wasn't happy about his choice.
When he dropped to the ground, I knew I really wasn't going to like what came next. Lying on the ground, he looked up. "Straddle me."
Sometimes it was so hard to remain professional, but I needed everyone to take this training seriously, even if I was struggling. Who knew, it might save their lives, or someone else's, really soon.
"Now, try and strike me," he said loud enough for the whole room to hear.
I took a swing, knowing what was coming next but forced into a position where I'd have to just ride it out. I swung, knowing that I was doomed to miss.
He caught my arm in a grip that was impossible to move and I was on my back the next second.
"But she's not even half your size," someone called from the group.
"Thank you!" I chimed from the floor underneath Cormac. The group let out a chuckle and Cormac got to his feet, pulling me up with him.
"When the senator arrives, and we go to war, no one is going to match you up according to size. There is a good chance you will be outmatched and outweighed. There is no fair in war." He wiped his hands on his thighs. "I want everyone to spread out and find a partner. Take the same position we just did and try to unseat them."
I latched on to Colleen quickly, before he decided I should be partnered with him again.
Redemption: Alchemy Series Book #4 Page 16
