by Meg Bonney
“Are you okay?” Ren blurted.
“Maddy?” Jason said timidly as he held my other arm.
My knees buckled. Ren and Jason caught me and helped me stand. It was clear that I was not fully recovered.
“Ara, what happened? What did you do?” Ren whipped his head to Ara, sounding livid.
“She didn’t do anything.” I said. “We are leaving. I need to get to that temple.”
“Madison, we are not leaving until you have rested.” Ren turned his gaze back to me.
“We as in Jason and me. Not you, Ren. You have lost enough because
of him.”
“What?” Ren lowered his voice, looking only at my good eye as he spoke. “What did she tell you?”
“Nothing. I just don’t want you to keep wasting your time with me and my problems.”
Ren shot Ara an angry look.
“Jason, are you ready?” I asked, shifting my weight onto Ren.
As he walked away, I caught a glimpse of Jason’s face. He looked upset. In this entire shuffle, I didn’t even think to see if he was okay after everything that went down.
“Jay? I am fine. My eye will be fine. Get the bags so we can leave.” I steadied myself enough to turn and grab a piece of bread that rested on top of the mound of food that Ren had piled on one plate.
“My sword—can you get my sword?” I asked Ren with a giant wad of bread in my mouth.
“Huh?” Ren looked at me like I was crazy.
“I got it.” Jason replied softly. He walked to the other side of the tent and grabbed the bags and my sword. It was in a new scabbard, but the familiar handle still poked out at the top. Jason quickly walked over to me and put the sash over my head, avoiding my eyes.
“Thanks.” I smiled, but he didn’t look at me.
I ran my hand over the deep brown sash that crossed my new orange shirt, holding my new scabbard to my back. It was much more comfortable than the black cord from before.
“Jason?” I took another bite of bread. “I am okay, I promise.”
He finally met my stare. His deep brown eyes were so sad.
Jason sighed. “I am so sorry.”
“It was an accident, Jay.” I smiled with a lump of bread in my cheek. “It will heal.”
“Take the handle,” Jason said softly, gesturing to my sword. I reached back and pulled the sword from the scabbard. I much preferred having my sword strapped to my back like this. A familiar tingle shot through my arm as the blue glow burst outward.
“Better?” Jason asked. I lifted my legs, bending them, rolling my ankles around.
I nodded.
“Ara?” a voice called from outside the tent.
“Come in,” Ara responded.
A young man entered. He was dressed in a sleeveless white shirt and dark pants with boots that laced up his calves, like the ones Ara had handed me. His tousled brown hair fell to his shoulders. He looked like the guys from that Trojan horse movie we watched in Mrs. Carter’s English class.
“Five of them, on the western hill on the Temple Road. The Cloaked. They look like they have a prisoner,” the young man said, motioning outside the tent.
“Thank you,” Ara answered. “I will handle it. Ren, can you grab some rope for their capture?”
Ren nodded but looked flustered, switching his focus from me to Ara and then back to me. “Madison, we must go deal with the Cloaked out there. Can you stay here? I need to speak with you alone, please.” Ren ran his hand through his hair.
“No, we’re leaving. Thank you for everything, Ren. Really,” I said, not looking at him.
“The Cloaked are on the Temple Road. We need to deal with them before anyone can continue,” he said.
“Isn’t there another way to the temple?” Jason asked Ren.
Ren shook his head slightly. “The woods can be dangerous, and there is water on the other side of the road. Unless we plan to swim there, the Temple Road is the only way to the temple.”
“Maddy, you aren’t in any shape to fight. Let’s just stay here. We can come up with a different plan to get to the temple. There must be a reasonable approach,” Jason said more quietly now.
“No! The plan is, fight bad guys, save Aunt Ruth, and defeat the king. And if I have to do it by myself, then that is what I will do. Reasonable approaches left the building a long time ago, guys, about the time the mountain troll showed up to chase us. Or maybe even a little further back, like when I was given a magical glow sword in my house. I am not staying behind. I will never give up on finding Aunt Ruth and bringing her back to Greenrock or bringing justice to those who deserve it. Even if I have to crawl there, I am going.” I attempted a slow steady breath. I could feel my hands trembling with my nerves.
Jason smiled a reluctant smile. “Well, that was dramatic. It’s just so dangerous.”
“I know, Jay.” I looked down, poking the tip of my sword into the sand.
“You don’t suppose that our charm and clever, witty antics will persuade them to move aside without any violence at all, do you?” Jason said with a big fake grin, holding both thumbs up.
“No, I do not think that would be very effective,” Ara chimed in, letting me know that it wasn’t just Ren who was slow to catch on when it came to sarcasm.
Jason smiled at Ara.
“Maddy, I want to find Aunt Ruth, too. I just―I just don’t want you to get hurt more than you already are.” Jason pursed his lips. “Why are you hell-bent on you and me going alone all of a sudden?”
“Because my family has taken enough of Everly. I need to put an end to it. Alone.” I held the sword tighter, and I felt my muscles steady themselves. I bent my knees a little as I met Ren’s stare. “I will help you clear the road, and then Jason and I will head out from there. Thank you, Ara, and thank you, Ren, but I don’t think we will be needing your help. We have disrupted your lives enough.”
Ren looked so hurt for a moment. I didn’t mean to treat him differently, but I also couldn’t ignore what Ara had just told me. I felt like I might crumble into a thousand tiny pieces if I stared into his eyes a second longer.
The room was silent for a moment. I slid the sword into the scabbard on my back and sat to put my new boots on.
Ara held her hand out, something clutched in it. “Madison, here you are,” she said, handing me a pair of fingerless black gloves.
“What are these for?” I questioned.
“So that people don’t know that you are a Magic,” Ara replied. “Otherwise, they might try to capture you, too.”
I slid the gloves on.
“Very Madonna, love them,” Jason whispered. I half smiled back at him.
“Thank you, Ara.”
I walked past Ara and didn’t look back at Ren as I picked up a plate of food and exited the tent, followed by Jason. I shoved another chunk of bread in my mouth. Finally, I could eat in peace. My legs were still a touch on the shaky side. I kept going. I heard Ren and Ara speaking to each other behind me, but they did not follow.
Wow.
I stopped chewing when I stepped outside. Nothing could have prepared me for the beauty of the Jade Village of Everly. The colors were brighter, the air smelled sweet, and the breeze was warm but not hot. The sand was more white than beige. It was beautiful.
“This is incredible,” I said.
In front of us was a sea of perfectly blue glittering water, with waves lightly crashing into the sandy shore. The sky was a lovely shade of pink as the sun beamed through the perfect white clouds. We were standing on a wooden boardwalk that stretched along the entire span of the shoreline as far as I could see. To our right was a large rock formation. That must be where the cavern let out, and I noted a few different openings on the side of the mountain. Next to that was an endless white sand beach. Along the boardwalk, there were other cottage tents much like Ara’s.
On the sand a little farther down the breakwater, a topless woman stood facing the sea, h
er arms resting on the top of her head. She looked more like a French painting than a real person as she slowly swayed to the rhythm of the waves.
It seemed like clothing was not high on the list of essentials for anyone here in the Jade Village. I averted my eyes from the topless lady only to come upon a man and woman lying on the sand a few feet from us. They were kissing passionately, covered only by the sand that clung to their skin. I quickly looked up to the sky.
“Oh, wow.”
Jason chuckled. “Yeah, they’re pretty…uh, free here in Jade.”
I turned to Jason, expecting him to be equally awestruck, but he was just looking at me, grinning.
“That’s right. I forgot we’ve been here a couple days,” I said.
Behind the tent was more sand, then larger houselike structures farther from the boardwalk on a street made of pebbles, and then bright green trees as far as the eye could see.
“Maddy?” he started. “Did something happen between you and Ren? Why don’t you want him to come with?”
I didn’t answer, just sighed a little and continued to eat little red fruits that looked like cherries but tasted like sweet lemons.
“We really need him. You have to see that.”
I still didn’t reply. Telling him about the energy storms would only make Jason worry, and he didn’t need to be doing any more of that on this journey.
“Maddy?” Jason walked in front of me and grabbed my shoulders. He bent his knees to drop himself to my eye level.
I looked back at him for a few moments and decided to tell him at least part of the reason why Ren shouldn’t go with us. “My parents killed his parents and cursed him to be a Porter,” I spat out. “He has lived alone in the woods ever since a Witch from the Rosewood Coven killed his mother and cursed him. And it was all because of an order that my father handed down to take control of the coven’s lands. My mother and father are the reason he lives alone in the woods and everyone hates him. He is a Porter because of them.”
“Oh, Maddy. This isn’t your fault, though. You know that. And we need Ren. If he isn’t mad about that stuff, then you shouldn’t force that on him.”
“These people, who I have yearned to find my whole life, are just monsters. They ruined Ren’s life and they killed his parents.”
“Dude, that sucks.” Jason paused. “Eat something. You’ll feel better.” Jason nudged my plate toward me.
“Okay.” I chewed for a moment. “You sound like your grandmother.”
Jason took a piece of reddish meat from my plate and examined it. “Which one? Italian or Puerto Rican?”
I smiled. “Both.”
“True.” Jason laughed. “Should we be asking what the heck it is we’re eating?”
“Nope. It tastes good, who cares? And it’s helping. My legs don’t feel so wobbly.” I took another bite of a bread that tasted like sourdough and had a really crunchy crust.
“Um, hey, so, Ren asked me if we were a thing. You and me,” I mentioned.
“Oh, ha, well.” Jason smiled. “Did you tell him I was gay?”
I stopped eating for a moment. “Oh, no. I didn’t really think of that. I just said that we are like siblings.”
Jason laughed. “Yeah, even if you were a dude, we would only ever be this.”
I nodded. “This is better.”
“Yeah, it is.”
We both looked back out at the sea again as the waves crashed against the shore.
“How are your sea legs?” he asked.
“Better, actually. I think I just need to move around a bit.” I bent my knees a few times.
“And the eye?” Jason asked hesitantly.
“It will be fine,” I assured him with a smile, setting the nearly empty plate down on the ground behind me. “They said that the Cloaked guys are on the path. Do you have your crossbow?”
Jason chuckled. “Um, no. I think my crossbowing days are over.” He pulled a long, slender club out of a holder on his back.
“Looks like a baseball bat! Perfect!”
“Hell yeah. A bat is much more my speed.” Jason nodded, putting the bat back in the holder on his back.
“Come on!” I motioned for him to follow me.
“Mads, I meant what I said. We need Ren. I know you’re upset, but we should wait for him, and Ara, too. We don’t even know where we are or where to go!” Jason argued.
“No need, amigo. The Temple Road will lead us there, and it’s up that way somewhere. We have our weapons. Let’s just go. We don’t need him,” I insisted, and began to quickly walk down the boardwalk, careful not to look at the couple on the sand. Jason did not follow, but I didn’t turn to confront him. I knew I was being stupid, and I didn’t need him to tell me that.
“Madison?” I heard Ren call behind me, but I did not stop.
I sighed to myself, walking faster down the boardwalk as the wooden planks creaked beneath my feet.
“Madison, please!” I heard more footsteps on the boardwalk behind me as I pressed on.
I quickened my pace as the footsteps grew louder and faster until they were right behind me. Ren took hold of my wrist. I pulled it away quickly and reluctantly turned to face him.
Ren looked concerned. “Madison, Ara told me that she told you about my parents.”
I stepped back and nodded.
“Madison,” Ren said softly.
“Is it true?” I met his gaze. “Did my parents do all of this to you?”
Ren ruffled his hair but did not answer me.
“Is it true?” I asked again.
“Yes,” he said. “But that should not change anything. We still have a mission. We need to free the Magics. That is all I care about.”
I nodded, then spun around and kept walking away from him.
“Madison, you are going to need to offer me some sort of guidance here,” he said loudly. “Why are you so upset?”
I didn’t answer him.
“So what, then? This is the end? After all of this, you are just going to leave for the temple alone, and what? You do not know the way, and even if you find it, what are you going to do when you get there, huh?” Ren moved in front of me.
I pushed past him, and I did not hear his footsteps this time.
“I thought we were in this together now,” he called after me. “You said I could depend on you.”
I stopped, feeling like my insides had just been ripped out. “But you shouldn’t.” I turned around. He walked to where I stood and I lowered my head. “I understand that you want to save the Magics for your father, and it’s the right thing to do, but why would you want to help the people who ruined your life? Aunt Ruth is part of the Rosewood Coven. Why would you want to help her? You can lie to me and say this is just about the ritual and the mission, but Ara told me what you tried to do while I was out.”
Ren looked anguished but didn’t speak.
“Ren, I can’t let you help me, knowing what they did to you.” I looked down. “It feels wrong.”
I turned and kept walking, even more eager to find the Cloaked. I needed a fight. I needed to punch something, and I needed to do it now.
Ren trotted behind me. “Madison.”
I slowed my pace and came to a stop. Ren crossed in front of me again. “Hey, stop.” He looked exhausted. His green irises were even brighter against the bloodshot whites of his eyes, and his once-sparse beard was starting to fill in more, like he hadn’t shaved in days. Turning my head toward the steep hill to the left of the boardwalk, I let out a sigh.
“Ren, I can’t even look at you now. I just can’t do this with you. Everything they did, it changed the entire course of your life. You lost everything because of my family.”
Ren dropped his hand from my shoulder. “So did you,” he said quietly.
CHAPTER 19
“Is everything okay?” Ara said in a cheerful voice behind me.
I didn’t answer as Ren walked to Ara and I cro
ssed my arms.
More footsteps.
Jason stopped and stood next to me but didn’t speak. I closed my eye and listened to the water crash loudly onto the shore to the right of the boardwalk. The sea was louder here, maybe because of the wind, or maybe because I wanted it to be. Either way, I tried to let the sound drown out Ren’s and Ara’s voices.
Sounds of people’s laughter caught my attention and I opened my eye. I turned toward the source. On the other side of the hill, there were more little buildings. Wooden carts lined the path between the buildings, like the farmer’s markets they held in Palm City back home. The people weren’t close enough that I could hear their conversations, but they smiled and laughed like there wasn’t a magical war raging in Everly.
“Madison?” Ara asked behind me. Jason and I spun around to face her and Ren.
“Yes?” I replied, trying not to show my frustration.
“The Cloaked are just up that hill,” Ara informed us. “Ren, Madison? Care to join me in this fight?”
“She can’t fight now,” Jason interjected. “She’s been out for days. Right, Mads?”
“Madison can decide how she feels.” Ara smiled at me. “It’s just a capture, not a kill.”
Ren didn’t say anything. His eyes were fixed on the hilltop.
“She can’t fight now. Ren, don’t you have anything to add?” a frustrated Jason asked Ren, taking a step closer to him so that we were standing in a loose circle on the boardwalk.
Ren looked right at me and answered, “I would never tell her where she can or cannot go.”
I rolled my eyes—or eye. “This is stupid,” I said, then turned and started up the hill, ignoring Jason’s protest. It was sand for about ten feet and then the hill started to fill in with patches of grass, making it easier to climb up the slope. Walking with one eye blacked out made me feel like the ground was closer to my foot than it was, and I stumbled to the side a little.
I adjusted my steps and reached the top. Then I saw them: a few of the Cloaked and a mountain troll pulling a four-wheeled wooden cart behind him by a rope connected to his waist. Seated on the bench of the cart was a captive, their hands bound, a burlap bag over their head. Surely another Magic for my father’s twisted full moon execution party.
