by Deanna Chase
“There’s something you should know.”
My attention focused away from the blank ceiling overhead and fell to Adam. I didn’t like the look on his face at all. “Now you’re scaring me.”
He knocked his head against the wall. “You have a mark. I didn’t say anything before, I guess I was hoping—”
“What mark? I don’t have a mark; I’ve seen my body, Raze.”
“I’ve seen your body, too.” His face became splotchy as it heated with embarrassment.
“Care to elaborate?”
“When I cleaned you I didn’t dress you right away; I put you in the bed and covered you up. It wasn’t until later, after you transformed, that I put clothes on you.” His hand scratched the back of his neck. “I had some underwear, and I didn’t want you waking up naked. Suffice it to say that putting underwear on an unconscious woman is something I’ve never done before, and it’s no easy feat.”
My bottom jaw stuck out. Underwear. I never really thought about where those mystery panties had come from, let alone how they got on me. I had other things on my mind at the time, but now it was sparkling clear.
“Let me just save myself the embarrassment.” As if he could. “You have a mark on your right cheek.”
And I knew he didn’t mean the cheek on my face.
I propelled into the bathroom—the mirror was too high so I lowered my sweats on the right, exposing part of my bare ass as I strained to get a glimpse from over my shoulder. Adam tapped my arm with a handheld mirror, which I snatched away.
“Lower,” he said.
There it was—a mark low on my cheek, nearly where it met my leg on the inner side. It was smaller than Justus’s and different. It looked like a wavy line with two curved patterns intersecting it at one end.
I set the mirror on the sink and pulled my pants back up. There was only one option.
“This—whatever we’re doing here—I can’t do it anymore. I need to know what I am.” My eyes fell on him imploringly.
“I know.” His finger swept a lock of hair from my face.
“Why did you just decide to tell me all of a sudden? You could have kept it to yourself.”
“I had no right to, and there’s something else that concerns me. It’s been on my mind since Justus brought it up that night. On more than one occasion, someone has been following you. I don’t like that someone wants to hurt you and I may not be able to protect you. Maybe you’re safer… with him.”
So I made the call.
Chapter 13
It was dawn on a Thursday when Justus arrived. I sat on the edge of the bed with my bag packed. Adam walked in and sat down beside me; his shirt smelled like clean laundry and sunshine. We were on the heels of winter and I didn’t have a single scrap of warm clothing, so Adam lent me his sweatshirt. The sleeves were rolled up since they were far too long for my arms. I dipped my nose into his heavy scent, deciding I would not wash it.
Adam was my home.
“You call me if you change your mind. I’ll come get you, no questions asked.”
So much had happened in a short period of time and I was forever indebted to him. It was my decision but I didn’t realize how much it was going to hurt to leave Adam, and I was staving off tears.
“If he treats you bad I want to know, I don’t put up with that shit and neither will you. Anyone who raises a hand to you will bleed.”
The softness of his hand stroking over mine swelled a sadness in me something awful.
“I’ve been pretty annoying to live with.”
“Not true.”
“You mean to tell me you’ll miss the cracker crumbs on your sofa, the fact I peel off all the labels from your beer bottles and leave the water running the entire time I’m brushing my teeth? I guess now is the time to confess I’ve also been drinking straight out of the orange juice carton and I ruined two rolls of your film. They’re in the fern pot on the back patio, in case you’re wondering.”
His eyes widened.
“See? Things are already looking up.”
“You brought life into my home, Zoë, you make me laugh. That’s something that I hadn’t done in a long time.”
My arms fell over his shoulders, pulling him close. “Promise you’ll see me again?”
There was a loud pounding at the front door. Adam pulled from my reach and went to answer.
“Is she ready? I don’t have time to linger.” Justus sounded annoyed.
“I want you to listen to what I’m putting down. For whatever reason, Zoë trusts you, and I trust her decision. But I don’t know you, so I don’t fucking trust you. You treat her with respect, and if you lay one goddamned finger on her I’ll break your neck in five places, feel me?”
“I’m ready.” The two men were standing toe-to-toe as I dragged my heavy bag.
Justus tucked his hands indifferently in his fitted leather jacket. He greeted me with a restrained smile. “I’m glad you came to your senses.”
Completely irritated with that greeting, I bumped my shoulder against his arm as I walked past him through the door. Without warning, Justus lifted my bag and strolled toward a gunmetal sports car parked in the driveway. One that hollered “this driver has a big cock.” Not that I wanted to test that theory.
“Nice wheels,” I said, unimpressed.
“This, my dear lady, is an Aston Martin.” He slid his fingers along her polished side as if it were the upper thigh of a woman.
I kicked a rock, dreading the inevitable goodbye. Thoughts plagued my mind. Will I see him again? Will he forget about me? Am I completely crazy for deciding to live with a stranger?
Justus cleared his throat. “Let’s go, Learner.”
Adam’s arm slipped around my waist and Justus gave him a puzzled look. I took a moment to collect my thoughts and turned around. A leaf dropped from one of the taller trees and twirled between us. “Just call me sometime and don’t—”
Adam’s lips pressed against mine unexpectedly. He gathered my hair in a tight fist and held me close. The kiss was slow, lingering, and bittersweet. I was intoxicated by the passion behind it, every slow sweep of the tongue weakening my knees a little more. It wasn’t until I peeked through my lashes that I saw he wasn’t into the kiss as much as I was. Those sultry brown eyes were venomous and locked on something behind me.
A horn blasted, breaking the kiss. Adam grumbled as I curved my neck around to see Justus laughing in the car. His eyes were low and there was a lot of head shaking.
“That wasn’t for me, was it?” I narrowed my eyes at him when he finally severed his gaze. That kiss—which could have single-handedly changed my mind about leaving—was nothing more than territorial pissing. “Don’t ever kiss me again if you don’t mean it.”
He took my wrist and rolled down the sleeves one at a time. “Remember what I said, Z—call me if you need me. He so much as talks down to you and I’ll come. You don’t have any warm clothes, so I packed some extra money in your bag. I want you to buy a jacket and take care of yourself, you hear?”
I nodded and quickly turned away before I had second thoughts.
The bucket seats were tall and I looked around at the fancy interior. Justus slid a clip into the dash, which started the ignition. The car roared like a caged lion and he was about to let it out.
“Your friend is forward with his overzealous invitations.”
“He’s confused,” I grumbled.
“That isn’t confusion, it’s desperation.”
The car rolled back and some warm air drifted through the vents.
“So, where are we going?”
“Sorry, Peaches—no specifics. But it will be a long journey. In fact…” he said, dangling a long strip of fabric, “at some point I will need to blindfold you.”
While his eyes were serious with direction, I caught a slight curve of his mouth. “And that will be an order.”
“Exactly how long is this drive, Mr. I Carry A Blindfold In My Car For Emergencies?”
&nb
sp; “Twenty-six hours, roughly.”
“What?!”
“Human time. In Mage time I can shave that in half.”
“Mage time—that translates to: you were too cheap to buy plane tickets?”
He laughed. “We don’t work magic, Learner, not like that. But we do have a talent for disabling police radar. And my car can go very fast.” To emphasize his point, he slammed the gas pedal down and my head was introduced to the headrest.
By late afternoon, we arrived at a modest-sized gas station. I took a quick break and ran inside for a cherry slushee.
When I returned, he had gassed up the car and bought a bag of junk food. “Resources,” he said. Everything a girl needed to gain five pounds.
“You do realize that I eat real food, right?” I glanced at the trail mix, beef jerky, and potato chips.
“I did not think you would have an appetite after this morning. Are you hungry? We can stop if you want to eat.”
After a half hour of his erratic driving that morning, we had to pull over while I got sick on the side of the road.
“I’m not that hungry, but we can pull over if you want.”
“Not necessary.”
I cleared my throat and looked at him. “You aren’t hungry?”
“No, I am hungry.”
I laughed in disbelief. “So then why don’t you eat?”
“It would not be polite.”
“You know, Justus, you may be hard around the edges, but you’re soft in the middle.” I had a sense about him, something you picked up in the little gestures people made, or comments. Somewhere inside of that rough and tough exterior was a human being. If I was going to live with this man I needed to know there was a human in there, even if he wasn’t.
I sipped my icy drink and the brain freeze hit so fast I palmed my forehead, waiting for it to pass. There was a low, ominous laugh that sounded like the intro to a classic horror movie.
“I hear those are most uncomfortable. So tell me, why would you drink more—glutton for punishment?”
“Haven’t you ever tried one?” He shook his head and I smiled. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Try it. Go on.” I waved the cup in a dare at his face. “I don’t have cooties.”
Justus snatched the cup from my hand and frowned, looking at the sugary concoction undecidedly. Fingers slowly wrapped around the purple straw and his lips pulled in the first taste. I waited eagerly and saw approval on his stony expression. His smile was becoming—not the arrogant one perfected—but a genuine smile.
“What did I tell you? Good, right?”
“You are not dressed appropriate for this climate,” he observed while savoring a little of the juice in his mouth.
“Last trip to the thrift store and they were pushing out the summer clothing. Adam lent me the sweatshirt.”
He grumbled as I tore open a bag of trail mix, fishing for a raisin.
“Where’s your piercing?”
A thick hand rubbed across his jaw and his answer was silence. I had a feeling my comment in the bar had gotten to him. He never wore that piercing again after that night.
“Hmm. Mind if I change the music?”
“Do as you wish, Peaches.”
The annoyance in my gaze was flashing. “Quit calling me Peaches.”
“Yes, on second thought, you aren’t as sweet.”
“Why don’t you just call me Zoë?”
“You are no longer of the human world; that is past. You are Breed, and every Mage born is bestowed a name by their Creator—that is our custom. Until such time you go by Learner, your title.”
“You mean the only one who gets to name me is that monster? And what if he never does, I go the rest of my life being called Learner? Nameless… no identity?” I wrung my hands together angrily.
“Calm yourself, Learner, before you overload the circuits in my car. I knew I should have brought the Honda.”
“What is a Learner?”
“It’s the name for a newly made Mage who requires learning on their abilities—a novice. It is the basic definition for any Mage who is not yet ready for independence. Your independence is largely determined by your knowledge, strength, and ability to acclimate.”
“If we don’t work magic, why are we called a Mage? Isn’t that supposed to be a sorcerer?”
He scoffed at the comparison. “We do not practice alchemy, Learner. Mage is an old name—humans never understood the magic, so through stories they fabricated our gifts. In ancient times we were not so hidden from the human world; we have learned since then the value of secrecy. There are some we trust with truth, but betrayal is not taken lightly.”
The way Justus spoke of humans was odd; it was as if they were aliens he didn’t understand, although he was more than willing to take those aliens to his bed for some probing.
“If the name isn’t correct, why keep it?”
“The word has always been ours,” he said matter-of-factly. “Human definition holds no meaning in our world; you will soon discover that you belong to the Breed. You probably already noticed a difference in how you feel around humans; deep down you know that you do not belong. Over the years we have been called many things: lightwalkers, channelers, even years ago some tried to change it to conductors, but that never quite caught on.”
“I don’t ever want him to claim me, Justus. That means I’ll always be called Learner.
“If he refuses his claim or dies, the Council will name you. If he dies, I will remain your Ghuardian.”
“Like a stepfather?”
He laughed. “Something like that.”
“How much longer?”
Justus shifted in his seat trying to stretch out his thick legs. “Tonight. We’ll be there tonight.”
I twirled the straw of my drink and focused on my feet, trying to keep my attention anywhere but the road. I cocked my head to the side to find him staring at me hopefully.
“What?”
“May I have another taste of your cherry?”
Chapter 14
Night fell. As the car rolled to a stop, I strained my ears but heard nothing.
“You may remove the blindfold.”
“Where are we?” I inquired, pulling it free.
“I’m presenting you to the Council for right of Ghuardianship.”
“Now? Tonight? Thanks for the heads-up,” I said sarcastically. If he had at least told me we weren’t going straight to his house I might have run a comb through my hair.
Justus slicked back his brow with his thumb and scraped his fingers through his short hair a few times, a nervous gesture that wasn’t exactly putting me at ease.
The car lights illuminated the woods in front of us; tall trees stood like dark soldiers guarding a fortress. To the right was a broken wall made of stones that looked a million years old, covered with dying vines. Justus walked around to open my door and the second I got out, he immediately pinned me against the car.
I choked out, “What are you doing?”
His eyes narrowed and scanned through the darkness all around as if he were looking for someone. I trembled, uncertain if we were in danger. His searching eyes—rich and deep with moonlight—slid down to meet my gaze.
“If you’re with me then you will be looked after. It will be my duty to ensure your safety, but you must never let your guard down for even a moment.”
While Adam’s sweatshirt was snug and warm, my bare legs sure felt the sting of northern air and I lengthened the sleeves. Justus shifted out of his jacket, placing it around my shoulders, and when I slipped my arms through the lining of his coat, I actually got a heat flash.
“Damn, you really run on hot,” I muttered.
The only response he gave was: “Follow me.”
I shadowed behind him closely. “What city are we going to live in?”
“Cognito.”
“Really?” I laughed. “I’ve always wanted to go there.”
“You’ll find more Breed in Cognito than any other city in t
he States.”
Cognito was a metropolis that boasted itself as the center of the universe for artists. Supposedly, it had a very diverse crowd, not to mention it was a twenty-four hour city like Vegas. The cost of living was higher and from what I heard the crime rate was pretty bad, so not many people actually wanted to live there.
“Tonight I will present you to the Council. Each territory has a Council of members who work directly under the Mageri. This will make you official. It is not just customary, but it is law. To house a Learner who has not been documented is illegal and they have agreed to consider your case.”
“My case? Am I on trial?”
He sucked at his teeth and replied in a low baritone voice, “In a matter of speaking, you are. You have a unique set of circumstances for coming into the Breed that may not meet their approval. The Council has dominion over all—they will decide your fate.”
“Wait a minute.” A slice of moonlight filtered through a tree and softly outlined his jaw. “What if they don’t approve of my circumstances, do they have the authority to… to kill me?”
He showed no sign of emotion and I began to see the complexity that was Justus. “Yes, Learner, they have all authority. Because our power is within you, they have the right to decide what to do with it. This is serious business, so put your childish jokes aside and speak to them with respect. It is not likely they will put you to death; we do not so hastily discard the life of one of our own. Remember, anything you say could hold weight on the decision they make. Do not speak unless spoken to. Do you understand?”
I nodded and we continued our walk. I thought about how it was like going into a pit of lions while holding a juicy steak. I had fascinating information about my creation that could very well be the nail in my coffin.
In a small clearing, two women and three men were dressed in white robes. Didn’t these people realize what century we lived in? All that ceremonial-looking garb—this wasn’t a séance. I refrained from smiling and let Justus take the lead, placing my hand nervously on his back.
Justus greeted the Council with a bow.
“Bring forward the girl,” the older male in the center demanded.
