Hidden Magic: An Ancient Magic Novel

by Stephany Wallace

  I took Eisha’s hand and placed it on her stomach then got up towards the back wall. Picking up the bucket I dipped it into the barrel and filled it to the top. Carried it to the hearth and poured the water in the iron pot that sat on the fire. I walked back to the barrel and filled another bucket. Once the pot was full I sat beside it. Her bath water should not take long to heat up. When the water begun to boil, I lifted the pot with the pliers and took it to her bathtub. I poured the hot water inside, and then filled the remaining with cold water until the mixture was nice and warm. My gaze fell on the bed. Eisha’s eyes still glowed which meant she was still held by the vision. Art’s hand was resting on her cheek as he kissed her forehead. I smiled. My brother had always been the affectionate one. He could spend all day cuddled up with mother while Father complained about it, and not have a care.

  I placed the empty pot on the corner and began to walk back but stopped. The back of Art’s fingers traced the edge of her jaw slowly then pushed her hair away from her face. His hand continued down her hair, held a strand and wrapped it around his fingers. He brought them to his nose and inhaled her scent. The gesture was more than a friend caring for another. Understanding swept over me once and for all. I had been so focused on my duty. So deep in my pain that I had failed to see what was right in front of my eyes. My brother was in love with Eisha.

  “No need to fear, Mo Sgòthan. I am here and I will always be here. You are mine, and I am yours.”

  He kissed her forehead once again. His lips lingered on her skin with a need that I now understood. I turned around and walked into the kitchen to give him privacy. His words had been barely a whisper, but they carried the weight of his feelings. He had called her his light, and had pledged to be hers. Would she ever accept him? I was not certain she could, considering the pain she still carried inside.

  I looked out the window and saw the faint colors of the sunset filtering through the trees and bathing our village in a beautiful way.

  “She seems to be well enough brother. Her bath is ready for her when she awakens. I think I will head to my hut and rest. If that is alright with you.”

  I said turning to look at Art. He nodded still holding Eisha close.

  “Thank you. I’ll be here and help her once she wakes up. I’ll let you know if she needs anything.”

  I smiled and nodded, leaving my brother to care for his beloved. The cool mist of the rainforest greeted me once I stepped out the door. I walked silently through village while the storm raged inside me. I was not certain which path I should choose. Could my brother be right? Was it time to let go of Mo meantóir? Finding him had become the only focus of my existence, yet I had exhausted all my abilities without reward. I had vowed to search for him no matter how long my journey was. Yet I had failed to bring him home. Could he have passed? Perhaps his soul had long been welcomed in the Blessed Isles. I stopped in front of my waterfall as my Goddess’ vision appeared to my left. The part of her essence inside me stirred and tugged demanding attention, urging me to go to her. I wanted to be with her more than I allowed myself to acknowledge. Was I forgiven for my faults? Was happiness possible for me after how I had failed my people? I gazed at her dancing form, her smile, and listened to her sing like she had on the beach. My heart responded to the vision. The image of Mo meantóir appeared to my right creating a second path for me. He bent down and dispensed a blessing to nine-year-old me, who kneeled at his feet. Tears damped my eyes when he held my arms pulling me from the floor and brought me into his embrace.

  “Your parents will be in peace, Mo mhac. They are with our ancestors now. Their souls will grace the sky above us until it is time to return into existence. You shall not be sad for their essence will shine bright for you, to guide you. They might not be here any longer Mo mhac, yet I vow to you and your brother this day. You will never be alone. I will be here for you. Always.”

  I wiped my cheeks and stared at the visions.

  In that moment, I felt a familiar essence near. My eyes fell on the rock by the waterfall. Her magnificent form slowly rose and began to saunter towards me. The jaguar’s eyes connected with mine and reached my soul. They searched for an answer I was not capable of giving. The sound of her growl reverberated through the air a second before she began to run at full speed towards me. My heart raced but I dared not move. She jumped from the last rock and flew over me falling on the other side. Her body went through the vision dissipating it into smoke until it disappeared. She stopped and turned. Her powerful glowing eyes met mine. She growled once again then vanished. The decision was made.

  “Please forgive me…”

  *

  BRIANA

  The sound of the files hitting my desk startled me, making me jump in my chair. I was barely able to look at the head of the person that just deposited them on my desk from above the tower. I sighed and thanked whoever it was then turned to my monitor again to finish my notes. It had been almost a full week since I was informed of my case and I had been pulling all the information I could possibly think of from the firm’s library and online. My desk had never been so full. Books, files, and printouts of everything I had encountered, plus my notes of the habitat covered almost every inch of its surface. The only space left, had just been filled by The Leaning Tower of Pisa. But that didn’t spoil my determination. I was going to help win this case if it was the last thing I did. A lot was riding on this. My entire career depended on how well I performed on this case. “Hey I’m a Ginger, I can make this happen.”

  I picked up the pages I printed for my research and opened the file-logging system. I needed to start imputing the case’s information fast, and take them down to the filing clerk before this century was over. An hour later and I was still inputting info. There were about ten more files left to go.

  “Kill me now.”

  I grunted while my fingers typed the name of the defendant into the form. My eyes darted towards the copy room and my heart squeezed. It had been 5 days since I last saw Cyn. I was really starting to get worried. Had my mind let go of him because the monotony of my life was disappearing? I’d like to think he had a hand in it too. Lia and I were having lunch every day now and had spoken on the phone a few nights and even gone to the movies. She was hilarious, we shared the same taste in almost everything and we laughed like crazy when we talked. She was attempting to teach me Spanish and I could already say “Hola Amiga.” I chuckled half-heartedly.

  I was glad to have become her friend but it wasn’t the same without him. I never thought that the day I finally went crazy, would be the day I would never want to be sane again. Cyn was a hallucination, my mind’s desperate attempt to fill the loneliness in my life. I had spent only a few days with him yet it felt as if he had always been part of me. He was part of me. He belonged. The way I felt him, missed him. The strength of this energy between us or whatever it was, it called for him. I needed his presence in my life, even though I couldn’t explain it. It was the only thing that made me doubt he wasn’t real. How could I need a fantasy this much? I was truly crazy, I had to accept that much. Something had changed inside me and now that he was gone I didn’t want to go back to being sane. Not it if it cost me Cyn.

  The ring of the phone startled me. I looked at the handset and reached for it.

  “Miss Anwell speaking, how may I help you today?”

  “Hi Linda, it’s me,” Lia’s voice reached my ear and I smiled.

  “Hey girlie, what’s up?”

  “I just wanted to say I’m sorry for not being able to meet up for lunch today. Felix had me calling clients and doing research all afternoon. Ugh, I can’t stand him. He’s worse up close than he was when I was the receptionist. If it wasn’t for the raise I received when I became his assistant, I would tell them ‘nope, can’t do it. Hasta la vista amigos,’” we chuckled. “Why do we have to work? Can’t we win the lottery or marry a billionaire and move to Fiji or something?”

  “I know right?” I looked at the cold, half eaten deli sandwich
on my desk and sighed. I hadn’t even been hungry. I picked it up and threw it in the trash. “It’s ok girl, I totally understand. I’ve been super busy today too. I’m sorry you have to put up with him so much more now. Felix is one person you do not want to get ‘up close and personal with.’”

  “Oh honey, he’s a douche. He’s already made three passes at me today alone. I think he’s trying to brake some kind of record.”

  “Yeah, he’s probably trying to make the Dimwit Hall of Fame.” We chuckled.

  “Don’t worry girl, I can handle him. I’ll bring lunch tomorrow to make it up to you, ok?

  “Ok.”

  “Awesome. I’ll text you tonight. Bye Linda.”

  “Bye, girlie,” I hung up smiling. She was a good friend.

  I walked into the townhouse and my eyes fell on the window while Grandpa drove off. He had stayed silent during the drive here. He could tell something was bothering me and had enough sense to leave me alone when I was in a weird mood. I threw my purse on the couch and kicked off my shoes. They were killing me. My blazer felt like it was trying to choke me and, “I can’t freaking stand this bra!” I exclaimed as the frustration that had built up during the last few days overwhelmed me. I removed my jacket and threw it on the sofa then reached under my blouse and unhooked my bra. I stopped and took a long deep breath attempting to calm myself, then another… and a last one. Once I was calm, I looked around the empty living room and sighed. I walked to the sofa, grabbed my things and headed up the stairs.

  “A hot bath should do me some good.”

  I grabbed my cherry-blossom pj bottoms, a white tank top and headed for the bathroom. My mind wandered while I turned into a prune in the water. My stress had melted away yet the tightness in my chest wouldn’t ease. Would Cyn come tonight? I closed my eyes and silently begged my subconscious, or whoever had sent him to me that first night.

  “Please… bring him back.”

  Once out of the tub, I dressed in my pj’s and decided to blow dry my hair. I’d do anything to keep my mind busy. I rarely did it because thanks to the length and thickness of it, it took me an hour and a half to get it done. I wasn’t really able to spend the money on a beauty salon, so I had learned to do it myself. Tonight, however, I welcomed the chore.

  I answered a few of Lia’s messages while I dusted and cleaned the night away in the living room. She was watching a superhero movie and complaining about the story even though she loved the acting and effects. I began to clean the coffee table making it shine. It was made of beautiful oak wood. You could see the depth in the streaks of red, through out the veins of the wood. It was the first piece of furniture we had bought when we finally settled here. Grandpa loved it. I’d say almost as much as he loved me. “Nah, I come in second,” I chuckled and finished, placing the remote on it. I sat on the armchair with every intention of binge watching Merlin until I passed out. That reminded me to message Grandpa goodnight. I reached for the remote and froze. The hairs on my arms stood and the electrifying energy ran down my spine. My heart flipped in my chest.

  “He’s here.”

  I whispered suddenly realizing something. Although this was the reaction I had every time he came to me, this time another feeling accompanied it… A million butterfly wings flapped around in my stomach. My breath caught and my pulse raced. I could swear my hands were sweating. It was both terrifying and exhilarating but I couldn’t understand why. What had changed? It took less than a second to grasp an incredibly important detail.

  I didn’t care. Cyn was here.

  I stood from the sofa and rushed upstairs as if my life depended on it. I was almost out of breath when I reached my door. But I wasn’t entirely sure it was from running up here. I hesitated for a split second then swung the door open. There he was. Standing by the window but this time he wasn’t looking at the stars. He was looking straight into my eyes. No. He was looking straight into my soul. Before I could realize what I was doing, I ran to him. His eyes widened at my reaction bringing me back to reality. I stopped in my tracks, barely a few feet from him. Frustrated with myself, I dragged my hands over my face. “What the hell are you doing, Bri? You are going to go right through the window,” I muttered scolding myself.

  This thing I felt with him didn’t make sense. How can I be so attached to him? Feel this way with someone that isn’t even real?

  My chest rose and fell harshly but the oxygen wasn’t coming fast enough. His breathing seemed to follow the same pattern as mine. He took a step towards me. His eyes never leaving mine. There was this look inside them. His beautiful emerald eyes glimmered with… hope.

  “It is alright, my Goddess. I will catch you. I swear in front of my Earth Mother I will always catch you,” He took another step. The hope in his eyes seemed to grow. His lips curved into a half smile and his right dimpled teased my senses.

  “Crap,” I muttered. I was doomed.

  He swallowed then took a deep breath, like he was preparing for something important.

  “I truly regret the time spent away from you. I was trying to keep myself at bay. Trying to convince myself I needed not be here, next to you. To convince my soul that I required neither the smile that grazes your lips, nor your voice in order to feel peace. The only peace I have felt in the last two thousand years. But I have failed. I have no strength to be away from you. So I have come tonight surrendering to this feeling. I have come to offer myself to you. Not as a man but as the shadow of one. One that has lost almost everything that he held dear and has now found a small sliver of hope. A hope that could be my salvation or destroy what is left of me. I have lived in penance for too long. For longer than it should be possible… but you my Goddess, you make me feel like the part of me I had lost, might not entirely be lost. I feel as though there is a chance that man could exist once more, and I would no longer be but a shadow. I stand before you tonight, forsaking everything else and pledging myself to you. I am yours. For better or worse, it is so. This I feel inside me, calling me to you, begging me to find you. It is stronger than anything I have experienced before. We are connected. And I am certain you can feel it too. So I ask of you to please listen to the piece of my essence inside you, because I have surrendered to yours in me. I am here in front of you, made of flesh and bone. I am real, and I need you.”

  Speechless, I watched him offer his hand to me like he had done before. I focused on it while my heart slammed against my chest. My hand trembled at my side, begging me to touch him. There was something about the look in his eyes that said this was it. If I was ever going into this abyss with him, it had to be tonight. It also made me want to jump him. I closed my eyes and felt the energy inside me increase. It tugged and stirred, pulling me to him. Trying to reach him and answer his request.

  Can I do this? Am I brave enough to take this chance? What if I do what he asks and find nothing? What If I reach for him, but he isn’t there? Can I move on from this fantasy? Let go of Cyn?

  My heart squeezed just as I asked myself the question. I already knew the answer. I took a deep breath deciding to clear every thought from my mind and just feel this inside me. Feel him.

  “Please,” he begged.

  My eyes opened to the hopelessness in his voice. The need in his eyes so deep, that it reached into my soul and mixed with mine. The truth was I needed him too…

  “You had me at hello,” I said and placed my trembling hand in his.

  His warm hand closed tightly around mine, and a shockwave of energy that felt like pure lightning, surged through our bodies. I gasped covering my mouth. White light encircled his irises and his eyes began to glow. My vision blurred for an instant making me blink a few times. He held my hand tighter. So did I. The energy that traveled through me began to warm. It turned into a soft caress that ran up and down our bodies until it dulled, but it never went away. It hummed between us. It felt like something had awakened in me. I had no idea what had just happened. I wasn’t sure what it meant, but I didn’t want reasons. I could feel
him. I could feel his skin, his touch. I could feel Cyn. The peace I felt in this moment, with him was sort of overwhelming. I had never felt this way. We stood there, unable to speak. He held my hand and I his, looking into each other’s eyes while the silence surrounded us.