“Hey Linda! Guess what? We are going to be roomies in Arizona! I booked the rooms with the company card Felix gave me and got a suite for the two of us. I hope you don’t mind. Also, our flight leaves at 10:30am so tell grandpa not to worry I’ll be picking you up tomorrow at 8:00am. I know we are only going to be there for two days but I hope we get time to at least go sightseeing in the evening.”
I shook my head. This was the worst timing ever. I still hadn’t had the chance to talk to Grandpa about the trip, and we were leaving in the morning.
“Thanks girl, I’m super excited! See you in the morning.” I pressed send and threw the phone on the bed just as Grandpa knocked. I sat down on the bed, resigned.
“Sweetheart, I just wanted to let you know I made you dinner. You haven’t eaten anything since Friday night and you need to feed yourself. You don’t have to eat with me if you don’t want to, but I need you to please eat, my little Bee.”
My eyes watered. Grandpa had always been a caretaker. I stood and walked to the door opening it. “I’ll eat with you, Grandpa,” my answer was simple but it meant so much. He nodded and the tears spilled from his eyes. I couldn’t stop myself from crying. I hugged him tight. I hated to see him hurt, especially because of me. His arms tightened around me.
“I’m so sorry my little Bee. I never meant to hurt you. I just didn’t know what else to do. I didn’t,” he stopped when his voice broke.
“I know Grandpa. But you have to understand. It is not easy to find out we come from an ancient race that everyone thinks is dead. That we have powers, that until a couple of months ago I only read about in my stories. My name isn’t even my real name and I’m immortal,” I pulled back from the hug and looked into his eyes. Tears overflowing. “You lied to me. Kept all this from me for years and I can’t even say with certainty that you ever planned on telling me the truth,” his gaze was pained but he didn’t answer. “I guess you can’t either.”
“I’m truly sorry,” he lowered his head and wiped the tears off his face.
I wanted this nightmare to end.
“I am too. I know you didn’t mean to hurt me, you only meant to protect me. Eventually I’ll understand. I just need time to make sense of it all. It’s a lot to deal with.”
He leaned in and kissed my cheek then wiped the tears off his face. I held my braid and dabbed at my cheeks.
“You are drying your tears with your hair?”
I shrugged. “It’s already wet.”
The smallest smile curved his lips. Mine too. I still wasn’t ready to forgive him but I was grateful for the light moment. We both needed it. I followed him down the stairs.
We ate in silence. My thoughts shifted between what I had learned and the trip. I had to tell him. Once finished, I took our empty plates from the table and took them to the sink. I washed them while he stood by the door. Taking a deep breath, I placed them in the dishwasher to dry and turned to face him.
“I’m traveling tomorrow morning to Arizona for work. I have a big case there that needs my attention and the owner of the firm and his brother asked me to be second chair. We’ll only be there for two days. We return on Wednesday morning,” I could see the panic in his face. I continued. “Lia will pick me up in the morning and bring me back on Wednesday. I just wanted to let you know.”
He shook his head adamantly. “No, you can’t go. You shouldn’t travel. They never specified you needed to travel in your contract. Why do they need you to travel now?”
I sighed.
Grandpa had read the contract about ten times before I was able to sign it. “I know it wasn’t in my contract but this is a big case and it’s an incredible opportunity. This is what I studied for. It’s my career. I can’t afford to turn it down. It will only be two days Grandpa. I’m going with Lia.”
“No. You can’t go. I forbid it,” he raised his voice, to make his point.
I took a deep breath and tried to contain my temper. I understood his fears but he was in no position to dictate my life anymore.
“I need to go Grandpa. This trip comes at a good time because I need space. I need to be able to think clearly. This will be a distraction, allow me to focus on something other than this new reality. Being here right now is just too painful. I need time… please understand. I have to go.” I walked passed him and into the living room.
“Brina please…”
I stopped on the first step of the stairs. “My name is Briana,” I said without looking back and continued my way up.
After brushing my teeth, I entered my room and locked the door behind me. Placing my phone on the nightstand I pulled the covers back and got in bed. My eyes went to the stars visible through the window. Night had fallen and the sky was beautifully alight with them. I wondered where Cyn was. Why hadn’t he come to see me yet? Was he having second thoughts about us after what happened? No. I couldn’t think like that. I couldn’t afford to. He loved me just like I loved him. He would be here with me if he could. Something must have happened to keep him away. I just hoped everything was fine. I needed him. I ached for him. The connection stirred inside me, begging for him to be here. But he wasn’t, and there was nothing I could do. As an afterthought I remembered I hadn’t packed. But I didn’t actually care. My eyes closed and I fell back into deep, peaceful sleep.
*
I sat on the plane, my temple rested on the window. The clouds outside seemed to occupy every inch around the plane, hiding us. The day was gray matching my mood to a T. If this was any other day I would be incredibly excited to be taking my very first flight. Or would probably be freaking out and holding the arm rests as if my life depended on it. Today however, I was battling a different emotion. I closed my eyes and tried hard not to feel anything, but Grandpa’s expression when I left the house this morning was hard to forget. Lia returned from the bathroom at the same time the flight attendant brought our drinks. A Mimosa for her, and a glass of orange juice for me. The firm was paying for expenses even though we were in coach. Felix, Marcus and Victor were in first class. Lia had not stopped complaining since we took off, about an hour ago. There was another hour left on our trip to Tucson, Arizona. Fortunately for her, I was only half listening.
“Alright that is enough. My Ex-boyfriend was a better listener than you are right now and he was deaf. We literally communicated through sign language. Come on. Spill, what the hell has made you so upset? Tell me what Mr. Cynfully Delicious did so I can start hating him, because right now I kind of want to hit on him and I haven’t even met the guy!”
I chuckled and she winked at me, opening her chips. She began to unceremoniously stuff her face. How the hell did she have that body with the amount of food she ate?
“Talk!” She demanded. Her cheeks full of chips.
I would have laughed if I wasn’t so freaking nervous. I gazed at her, feeling the anxiety rise. I needed to talk to someone that might understand. See things the way I do. A mortal. It felt totally weird to even think like that. I trusted Lia, that wasn’t even a question. The question was, would she believe me? The way I saw it there was a high probability considering she read auras and highly believed in energies, past lives and the healing touch. She basically believed in Druids she just didn’t know it yet.
“I’m an Immortal.”
Lia choked on the chips and frantically reached for the mimosa. I patted her back wincing. In retrospect, I probably shouldn’t have blurred it out like that. I just needed to say it before fear changed my mind. She took my orange juice too. I signaled to the flight attendant and asked for water. All while poor Lia rested her head on the seat and tried to take deep breaths. As soon as we got the water I handed it to her. She drank half the bottle in one gulp. After she calmed down she turned to face me and grabbed my hand.
“Start. From. The. Beginning.” She asked me with a weird look in her eyes. I swallowed.
Crapola, I think I broke her.
I nodded and decided to tell her the full truth.
“It al
l started the day I met Cyn…”
I proceeded to tell her everything. The trips, the stones, and the tragic death my parents had suffered. I told her about Grandpa being the High Priest and why he had kept me isolated my whole life. Well as far as I knew. I had a feeling I still didn’t know the full story. I poured my fears and feelings into the conversation including the stressful scene this morning with Grandpa as I attempted to leave. By the time I finished, the tears were freely flowing. She looked at me with a thoughtful expression for a while. The minutes stretched while I agonized over what her answer would be. She took a deep breath.
“Well the way I see it, I have two choices at the moment. Either hug you or call the Looney bin for an emergency pick up.” She stopped and frowned looking intently into my watery eyes. She shook her head, “But the details in your story… They are too specific for me to believe that you are lying or crazy. You either truly believe that what you are telling me is actually true, or it simply is. Of course you might be manipulating me but what the hell,” she hugged me and I held on tightly to her. I cried. “Wow.” She whispered in my ear. I’m so sorry Linda,” she pulled back and looked around making sure we weren’t being heard. “Is Cyn really a Druid?
I nodded taking a napkin to dab at my cheeks.
“Does he have a brother or a cousin?”
We chuckled. I loved Lia. She was a true friend. I sniffed and grabbed another napkin. “He has a brother.”
She smiled then looked at me concerned. “We have a lot to figure out about what you just told me. It’s going to take a bit for me to finish processing this, but for what I see you are in the same boat.” She looked at me from head to toe and added, “Well at least that explains your outfit.”
I nodded blowing my nose. I had grabbed the first thing I saw this morning. Black yoga pants, a gray t-shirt and a black hoodie. Tennis shoes completed my spectacular outfit, while she was wearing a beautiful, light grey skirt suit.
She sighed. “Ok Linda, it’s ok. We’ll go through this together. You are not alone ok? You have me.”
She smiled and I was grateful to have found a friend like her. The voice of the flight attendant sounded through the speakers advising the descent of the plane. We had arrived.
We took our carry ons and walked out of the plane. It wasn’t long before Marcus, Victor and Felix joined us.
“I hope the flight was pleasant. Our drivers will be here shortly. We will go to the hotel where we will meet with our associates and you will be able to rest and change for tonight’s dinner.” Marcus’ deep voice gave me goose bumps and I frowned. I still hadn’t gotten used to dealing with him. I think in the eight months I had been working at the firm, I had probably seen him maybe three times. The man had a strange presence. He wasn’t really tall like his son but he had an imposing stance. He ensued power and leadership. You could tell he didn’t follow anyone’s wishes but his own. He was the kind of man that made others stop, and listen to him. He could be scary when he wanted to be. He could totally play the head of the Italian Mafia in a film. Lia and I exchanged a look.
“Yes of course. The flight was lovely, thank you,” Lia answered.
“That sounds perfect, Thank you Mr. Cornelli,” I added offering a smile, although I knew the jab about changing had totally been for me.
We walked out of the airport, and waited. Two black Range Rovers with tinted windows arrived. The drivers got down and walked around to take our luggage. I frowned looking at them. They looked more like private security. Lia looked at me, her eyes reflecting the same thought.
“Rich people are so weird,” she whispered and we climbed in.
Marcus and the others got in the First Range rover while we got into the second one. It was nice inside. I had never been in such a luxurious car. It was black leather and chrome. The dashboard and door panels were made of dark mahogany wood and it definitely had special additions to it. The center console extended all the way to the back seats, and it included what looked like a mini bar. There was a wine bottle and two glasses. It even had weird little tables that popped up from the sides. There was high technology in this model too. It had two of those DVD players that people usually hung from the headrest of the passenger seat so the kids could watch movies in the back. They were off though, but they must have been connected to the power outlet because a blue light blinked on them.
“What are you doing?” I asked startled when I heard Lia open the wine.
“What? They put it here for a reason. It was already opened and everything. The bottle is obviously for us. We might as well enjoy.”
I glanced at the driver. He was looking at us with a murderous look. I winced and looked at Lia who was already sipping the wine.
“Mmm want some?”
I shook my head. “No, thank you. I’ve never had wine before, I don’t want to make a fool of myself. Don’t have too much, you don’t want to be drunk by the time we get to the hotel,” I turned towards the window and began looking at the scenery while she gulped the wine.
When we arrived at the hotel more men in black uniforms were waiting for us out side. They took our luggage and we entered. In the lobby, two more men dressed in really expensive suits greeted Marcus and Victor.
“It’s about time we met partner. It’s a pleasure to have you here. It seemed like we were waiting forever to finally have this opportunity,” the man said patting Marcus’ back in a manly hug. My eyes fell on his hand while they hugged. He had a huge gold ring on his middle finger with a strange symbol on it. It was similar to one I had noticed on Victor’s hand before on a few occasions. I never thought much of it. Had they graduated together? It seemed improbable because of the age difference between them, unless they shared the same Alma Matter. I thought I saw leaves with something crisscrossed on it but his hand moved and I lost sight of it. He glanced at us briefly and his eyes returned to Marcus.
“The pleasure is mine Cassius. This meeting was a long time coming. But we have finally prevailed. You know my brother Victor,” the man shook Victor’s hand smiling then looked at Felix. “And my Son Felix. He’s the new addition to the organization and my pride and joy.”
Cassius’ smile widened and frankly it was quite creepy. He was tall and had a thick and heavy body. His black and gray hair was combed back and slick with gel. He was dressed in an expensive black suit with a royal blue shirt. “It is pleasure to meet the son of Marcus. Welcome to the organization. I have heard great things about you. That there is much potential in you. I hope you can prove that to me on this case. We are highly looking forward to seeing what you can do.”
I frowned. I got that Felix was the Son of the owner but why was he making such a fuss? He was supposed to be assisting me in this case. I was second chair. I glanced at Lia and noticed her squinting while looking at the top of the man’s head. She was trying to see his aura. My gaze returned to him and frankly I was a little insulted no one had even bothered to introduce us by now.
“Hi Mr. Cassius, my name is Briana Anwell and this is Amelia Brown. I’ll be second chair in this case. It is a pleasure to meet you and I look forward to working with you Sir,” I said confidently extending my hand to him. At the same time Lia grabbed my other arm and pulled, preventing me from touching him. The look he gave me was cold and condescending. He watched my still extended hand then my face and for a moment I swore I saw pure hate in his eyes. It actually made me shudder. I lowered my hand when he ignored me and looked towards Felix again.
“This is Julius, my right hand,” he motioned to the man that had been standing next to him in silence. The man was tall and thin. A black suit and turtleneck completed his tasteful yet simple outfit. He had a full head of gray hair and it was a bit on the longer side. Same gold ring. They shook hands but the man didn’t speak.
“Yep these people should have been in The Sopranos” I mumbled low enough that only Lia could hear. She was right next to me and chuckled. A man walked out of the reception desk and came to us. He nodded respectf
ully towards Marcus and Cassius then handed Lia and I our room keys. I was grateful.
“If you don’t mind we’d like to go to our room now. Will you need us soon?” Lia asked Marcus. Felix answered.
“Don’t worry sweetheart I will personally escort you to your rooms,” he took the key cards from Lia’s hand and began to walk towards the elevators. The drivers/security guards immediately took after him with our luggage.
I tried hard not to groan, while we smiled at Marcus and the others, then began our way to the elevators. That was the most uncomfortable ride I had ever taken. Between the unnerving security’s presence and Felix’ strange nervous glances towards us, I was getting creeped out. He opened the door for us and Lia and I got into the room. She went straight to the wall-to-wall window. So did I, the view of the Huachuca Mountains was breathtaking from here. They looked so close.
“OMG this is amazing! She squealed in delight.
The room was luxurious, and spacious. I walked to the desk taking a bottle of water from the tray and took a big sip. I was dehydrated from the trip. I hadn’t even had the orange juice because I made poor Lia choke half to death on the plane. I noticed the man place the luggage down while Felix talked non-stop. I took another sip of water and tried to tune him out. Even his voice was annoying. It wasn’t until I heard a loud thump that I turned around. I opened my mouth to scream but Felix’s hand stopped me as he put his mouth over it. My eyes widen with terror. Lia was lying on the floor unconscious. Blood trickled from her temple onto the white plush carpet. I tried to break Felix’s hold but one of his men held my arms from behind. His grip was so tight that it was cutting off my circulation. My heart began to slam against my chest. What the hell was happening?
“What Carrot curls, you didn’t see this coming? Well, that was kind of the point.”
He smirked right before he raised his arm, gun in hand, and hit me on the temple. Everything went black as my body felt limp. The last image my mind processed was a gold ring on his middle finger.
Hidden Magic: An Ancient Magic Novel Page 34
