Becky was livid and I knew she would never let me live this one down. She would take swift and brutal retaliatory measures. She wouldn’t waste her time trying to embarrass me in front of the rest of the school. That was pointless. I feared she would go after the people I cared about and would try to ruin my friendship with Jace and Rachel. I spent the entire class mired in apprehension.
Rachel caught me in the hall before second period. “Hey, don’t worry about Becky. We’ll stay one step ahead of her in whatever she plans. Right now, the only thing she’ll do is say something to your aunt and try to get you in trouble with your mom.”
I gave her a weird look, not quite certain how she came by her information, but suspecting.
“I have my ways. I won’t let her mess with my friend.” She patted me on the shoulder, smiled, and then turned and headed down the hall to her second period class.
I stared after Rachel, barely able to speak. Having endured a lonely existence all through middle and high school, I was now fortunate enough to have two very loyal friends—Jace, the guy I’d once hoped to marry, and Rachel, my cousin’s former best friend. My gaze followed Rachel as she progressed down the hallway. She paused in front of Becky and held up her cell-phone. I could hear her saying, “click, click,” from down the hallway. I wondered what that was all about.
As the day progressed, people watched me with new interest. Some looks expressed admiration for my bravery at standing up to Becky. Other people, I suspected, merely looked at me out of curiosity, like one looks at a horrific car crash.
On the way home, Jace laughed and congratulated me on taking Becky down. “Seriously, Alisa,” Jace said in a more serious tone. “I’m proud of you for standing up to her. I know that’s huge for you. And don’t worry about her trying to get even with you. Rachel and I will protect you.”
I told him I would call him later and ran into my house. Before I could do homework, have a snack, or do anything else, I had to check my email. I hoped I wouldn’t turn into one of those internet junkies you see on talk shows who spends nineteen hours a day logged on to social networking sites, eating cold ravioli out of a can while sitting in front of the computer. While waiting for the computer to start up, I changed my clothes. With shaking hands, I clicked on the latest email from Bryce.
Alisa,
It’s been another cold, exhausting day. In case you were wondering… yes, Hell really does freeze over. I know because I am there and it is numbingly cold. I’m looking forward to another summer in the hot Georgia sun, and right now that seems eons away. I spend a lot of time fantasizing about less dangerous jobs like race car driving or firefighting.
How about you? What do you dream about doing?
I often wonder what Jace will decide to do. To the best of my knowledge, he has no immediate goals for college or any sort of career when he graduates. Maybe you know him better than I do these days. We were never close and any interaction between us has been confined to arguments. We’re both very competitive, in case you hadn’t noticed.
When I come home, I’ll try to be a good boy and get along with him. I thought letting him use my truck was a nice gesture, although I hope it is as much to your benefit as it is his. I don’t like the idea of you walking home from school. I gotta go. I’ll write you later.
Miss you,
Bryce
He missed me? Bryce missed me. Chills wracked my body. What should I write? I sat for a while, trying to come up with a clever and humorous response. It was difficult after the day I’d had.
I still felt anxious about Becky, my first cousin and sworn enemy. Family wasn’t supposed to be like this. In a perfect world, the two of us would be inseparable, sharing secrets and having sleepovers. I could never understand why she hated me so. I’d spent my whole life comparing myself to her and wondering why I wasn’t good enough for her to like me. I think I’d finally come to the realization that she was the problem.
I typed out an extended email to Bryce, hopefully something that would raise his spirits. I couldn’t imagine the dangers he faced in warrior training. Did they track Hunters and Demons, or was the training confined to the classrooms at WTB? I thought about asking him, but I didn’t want to bring up unpleasant topics.
It worried me that he sounded so downtrodden. I’d gotten the impression he wasn’t sharing his thoughts and concerns with his parents. As soon as I hit the send button on my latest email, I heard my dad’s truck pull into the driveway. Time to get serious about finishing my homework.
Around five, I clomped down the stairs, said hi to my dad, and tackled dinner. I tried to help out in the kitchen when I could. After all, I was the only member of the household who didn’t work. My life was easy, as my mom constantly pointed out. Apparently, I was supposed to be experiencing the best years of my life. If that were the case, I was surely headed for disappointment and unhappiness going forward.
I could tell my mom was in a foul mood the second she walked in the door. The way she shut the door a little harder than usual, her clipped, brisk walk across the hardwood floor, her brief hello to my dad as she headed toward the kitchen, were bad omens indeed. I knew instinctively that her anger would be directed toward me and longed for days past when I was simply a quiet disappointment. I started shaking when she came into the kitchen.
“I just spoke with your Aunt Leanne,” Mom bit out. “Apparently, Becky is inconsolable. Leanne said you insulted and embarrassed your cousin in front of the whole school. Becky is so upset she won’t stop crying. I’ve never heard Leanne sound so angry. How could you do such a thing to your own cousin?”
To my horror, I started crying before I could even begin to defend myself. Tears of anger spilled down my cheeks, and before I knew it, I was gasping for air. I couldn’t believe the unfairness of the whole situation. After everything Becky had done to me, I was the one getting in trouble.
“I told you she hated me,” I choked out. “She’s lying. She said something to me first, and I insulted her back…” I was doubled over from the intensity of my sobs, and my mom just stood there watching me.
“I don’t believe…” Her words were cut off abruptly when Daddy walked into the kitchen.
Looking thunderous, he declared, “Jan, that’s enough. Whose side are you on here? Are you gonna believe that conniving little niece of yours over your own daughter?” He said this in his usual slow, southern drawl. He would never raise his voice to a lady, but I could tell how angry he was nonetheless.
“Now, everyone needs to calm down. Alisa, you didn’t do anything wrong, so don’t worry about it. Becky got what was coming, and if she’s upset, then I say that’s her problem. Jan, why don’t you go upstairs and take a hot bath? You can call Leanne later and straighten things out. But if I find out you apologized to her over any of this, I’m going over there myself.” Daddy gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheek. “This food can wait until tomorrow, Alisa. Cover it and put it in the fridge. You can drive me over to Lakeview. You need to log some more driving hours before Saturday.”
I stored the uneaten dinner without looking at my mom. I was afraid to make eye contact. “Your father’s right,” she said softly. “I’m sorry, Alisa. It wasn’t fair for me to attack you without even getting your side of the story. You’re my daughter and I’m always on your side.” She hugged me as I started crying again. “I’ll finish up in here. You’d better go with your dad before he gets involved in one of his games.”
***
When I received my beautiful, laminated driver’s license that Saturday, I was ecstatic. For some reason, I couldn’t wait to tell Bryce. Even before I called Jace, I ran upstairs to my computer and sent Bryce a celebratory email.
My mom let me use her car the rest of the day, so I spent my time driving around town, past the farms, feeling independent and invincible. Every moment I was away from home, a little piece of me wished I were in my bedroom in front of the computer, waiting for Bryce’s next email.
Chapter Eightee
n
Rachel
I spent four weeks listening to the thoughts in Becky’s head and it was enough to drive a person straight to the loony bin. The first time I listened in on her thoughts, I actually had to pull back and take one of my migraine pills. Her mind was so full of bitterness and hatred, I couldn’t believe I’d never realized before what a horrible person she was. Inside her wholesome, All-American, cheerleading shell, lurked the soul of a sociopath.
Becky only had two types of thoughts: those about herself and those against others. Seventy percent of what I found in her depraved little mind centered on clothes, hair, and herself. The other thirty percent involved which girl was getting too full of herself and needed a reality check. Or which guy was getting too focused on his girlfriend and needed some distraction from Becky. I was shocked to discover how much plotting and scheming went on inside a brain I’d always assumed was virtually empty.
As Alisa had been pre-warned about Becky’s initial attack, a juvenile attempt to turn her own mother against her, she was able to not only survive, but to come out ahead. Although Becky’s plot did not exactly backfire, my nemesis was almost forced to realize the world did not revolve around her. Manipulations are no match for a parent’s love for their own child.
Becky, as expected, set out to systematically ruin Alisa’s reputation. Alisa didn’t really have any friends other than me and Jace, which rendered that plan utterly pointless. She spread rumors that Alisa and Jace were messing around behind my back. Other than giving the haters something to talk about for a few days, this accomplished nothing. Trying to damage the friendship between the three of us may have worked if one of the intended victims didn’t read minds. Becky was completely frustrated and enraged by her inability to hurt Alisa. She even considered physically attacking her cousin, assuming that Alisa was weaker and destined to lose. I almost wished she would try it. Alisa’s dedication to Abe’s training guaranteed she would wipe the floor with her cousin. Becky, of course, didn’t consider this idea for very long. A master manipulator, she preferred a less direct attack.
I filled Jace and Alisa in on Becky’s vengeful thoughts, no longer caring if they knew my secret. If Alisa worried about me reading her mind, she never brought it up. I thought about the pictures of Becky I’d been saving in my cell phone—those could ruin her. But the idea of causing harm to another human being sent shards of pain through my skull. My developing Empathy made it impossible for me to cause physical or emotional harm to another person. Too bad.
Jace wanted to use Becky’s mind against her, to pick out her secrets and mastermind a plot to destroy her. Or use Persuasion to get her to do something humiliating and out of character. I forbade him to act against her in that way.
“Look, there has to be rules,” I tried to explain to Jace, while Alisa listened silently. “This is all new to me and I’m making it up as I go, but some moral law must govern how I use my abilities. I don’t want to start a slippery slide down the path of evil.”
“Becky already is evil. You have to fight fire with fire,” he argued.
“That’s great for Becky, but I don’t want to be evil. I don’t listen in on someone else’s thoughts without their permission.” I felt a little guilty saying this in such a sanctimonious manner since I’d done just that on a few occasions. “I made an exception in this case because it’s to protect a friend. If it’s a choice between protecting someone I care about and sticking to my own made up rules, I’m always going to choose the first option. I will not, however, sift through her brain at will, pulling out her secrets and using them against her. And I certainly won’t try to plant ideas in her head, even though I would probably be doing the world a favor.”
“How does that work? I mean getting thoughts out of someone’s head?” Alisa interrupted before Jace and I could continue our argument. She seemed curious, but fearful as well. Maybe there was something in her mind she didn’t want me to see.
“Well, at first when I looked inside someone’s head, I picked up random thoughts, stuff I really didn’t want to hear. Now I push a question into Becky’s head and that enables me to focus on what I want to know. I can filter out things I don’t want to know about, or things that are none of my business. I guess none of it’s my business, but you see what I mean. I basically zero in on any thoughts that have to do with you and try to block out sleazy thoughts about Justin or her incessant worries about clothes.”
I asked Jace silently if I could explain to Alisa how our link worked. He gave me the go ahead, so I went on with my explanation. I figured it would be good practice, seeing as how I would need to spill my guts to Jerica sometime real soon. She needed to know what she was dealing with before she could train me properly. At least that was what Jace kept telling me.
“It’s different with me and Jace. We have a connection between us that allows us to speak back and forth with no effort whatsoever. We have conversations in our minds the same way people speak out loud. We don’t dig through each other’s minds at will, although I guess we could. I ask him a question or make a comment, and he responds. It works that way whether we’re in the same room or miles apart.”
“Can you do that with Jerica and Abe?” Alisa asked. “The mind communication, I mean.”
“No, I can only communicate with Jace. We’ve never talked to Abe and Jerica about our mind reading, but I’m sure Jerica suspects. I have to come clean with them soon. I’m already starting to feel panicked about putting off my training for so long.” That was true. What Jerica said to me hit home. I could be endangering Jace by leaving myself unprotected. I didn’t want to put him in the position of having to defend me. “I’m thinking of talking to Jerica on Saturday, and I’d like you and Jace to be there for moral support.”
“My mom isn’t that scary,” Jace said, exasperated.
“Really, Jace? Because you’ve been holding out too. I wonder what she’ll say about that.” A look of panic flickered across his face as he realized for the first time that he would be in deeper trouble than I would.
***
During those long days of mentally stalking Becky, not only had I neglected to begin training with the Alexanders, but I’d also failed to keep myself in shape. I’d gained ten pounds over the holidays and hadn’t exercised since cheerleading ended in the fall. I enjoyed hanging out with Jace, watching movies, and holding hands, and it was beginning to show on my backside. I wasn’t a vain person, honestly. But softball season was coming up in a few weeks, and I didn’t think I’d be able to run the bases without getting out of breath. And besides, training with Abe would require a certain level of physical fitness. It was time to get in shape.
I called Alisa on Friday evening and told her about my plan to wake up at the crack of dawn to go running. I asked her if she would be interested in joining me. To my surprise, she agreed, asking if I thought it would be a good idea for her to try out for softball as well. I wholeheartedly encouraged her to do so. It was high time she put herself out there and started displaying some confidence.
Jace’s response wasn’t quite so positive. He said he wasn’t doing anything that interrupted his sleep. He also reminded me he hadn’t gained any weight over the holidays. In contrast, he’d actually hit a growth spurt and seemed to build muscle effortlessly. This was not what I’d wanted to hear. I put up a block, abruptly ending our mental conversation, set my alarm, and went to sleep.
***
Re’Vel called to me in my dreams, begging me to come to him. Following his voice into the forest clearing, I ran to his side the moment I saw him. My heart leapt with joy to be near him once again.
“If you stay with me, you can live forever. I’ll make you my Queen.”
My laughter floated along the breeze, teasing him as I spun away just beyond his reach. “We’ll always be together in my dreams. Every time I fall asleep, I’ll be waiting for you to find me.”
“It isn’t enough. I want you all the time,” he insisted.
“Then com
e and get me,” I taunted, flittering so close to him, the silken hem of my nightgown grazed his long legs.
“I’ll be there before you know it. Tell the Alexanders to teach you Transport so we can travel together,” he said.
“I don’t know what that is.” I frowned and stopped my joyful spinning.
“The ability to move distances great or small in the fraction of a second. You have the power, but not the training. The Alexanders hold you back,” he claimed. “Only I can help you. It is I who protects your home. My spells keep you safe.”
“But Jerica’s been trying to help…”
“You see how they lie to you to keep you in line? They aren’t doing all they can to protect you. And the older boy is dangerous. I don’t trust him near you. He’s brought a known Shifter into his home. Bryce isn’t far from following the dark path,” Re’Vel said, placing his arm around my waist.
“But the Alexanders are my friends…”
“I’m your only friend,” he said, holding me tenderly.
Spellbound (Spellbringers Book 1) Page 16
