The Phoenix (The Prophecy #1)

by Jessica McCrory

  “Here’s some water.” Dakota handed her a bottle and sat next to her on the couch. “How are you feeling?” He asked, taking a drink from the glass he had brought for himself.

  “That scotch?” She asked eyeballing his drink.

  “It is.”

  She reached for it and swallowed the contents of it in one drink. It burnt the entire way down to her stomach and she handed him the glass back. She was surprised at the amused expression on his face.

  “Never seen a girl drink before?”

  “Not that amount of scotch at one time.” He had girlfriends who had tried but had always ended up keeled over complaining.

  “Terrenia has something similar to scotch. Gregory and I would have a drink after a long day of training.” Her heart hurt at the memory. He nodded and went to the kitchen to pour another glass. He handed her one and then held the other out.

  “To good men like our dads.”

  She clinked her glass to his and took a drink.

  “I'm sorry he found you.” Dakota said again, not looking at her. “Someone must have leaked your description.”

  “It’s not your fault Dakota, I would have died had you not taken me to the hospital. So I suppose I should thank you for saving my life.”

  He nodded and his jaw tightened. “I thought I had lost you again.”

  She wanted to tell him that he had never lost her the first time, that she had always been there even if she hadn’t been nearby. She wished she had the strength to tell him how much she had missed him, and that she had thought of him every single day. But it seemed as if they kept meeting at the wrong times. The first time it was Mitch who was the reason they had to stay apart. Now Vincent and the Brutes were getting in her way. She couldn’t allow her feelings for Dakota interfere with her mission, she had people counting on her, people who had died for her.

  “What’s for dinner?” She asked changing the subject. If he noticed she was doing it on purpose, he didn’t say anything.

  “You’re going to love it.”

  A slow smile spread across her lips. “Please oh please tell me its meatloaf.”

  “Mrs. Parker, I think this is absolutely the best meatloaf you have ever made.” Anastasia leaned back slightly in her chair and pushed her plate away. She had helped herself to seconds and it somehow had made her feel infinitely better, just as it had always managed to.

  “You are too kind, Anastasia.” She smiled and stood to clear the table.

  “No, please let me get it.” Anastasia stood cautiously.

  “I’ve got it. You’re going to pass out.” Dakota grabbed the plates and headed for the kitchen.

  “I knew I raised him right.” Elizabeth winked. “I'm headed to bed. I am exhausted and need my beauty rest.” She stood and headed for the master bedroom.

  “You don’t need rest to be beautiful, mom.” Dakota smiled and gave her a hug.

  “Aren’t you a charmer.” She hugged him back and then smiled at Anastasia. “Get some rest tonight honey. We are going to check that dressing in the morning.” She said pointing to Anastasia’s stomach.

  As Dakota went into the kitchen to wash the dishes, Anastasia slipped out to sit on the porch. She stared up at the stars in the night sky and imagined Gregory sitting next to her. He had always loved nighttime. Said it was the most magical because most things were at rest.

  She opened her palm and closed her eyes. She focused on the light as Gregory had once told her to do and without an effort at all had conjured up the small ball of light. She stood smiling at it and then lifted her palm in the air to watch it float up and explode into a thousand tiny lights.

  “Well that’s not something you see every day.” She heard Dakota say behind her and she twisted so hard that she winced in pain. “Easy Ana, let’s not tear those stitches out. Mom will kill me.” He eased her back down and sat next to her. “Can you do that again?”

  Anastasia regarded him cautiously and then obliged. He stared amazed at the light in her palm.

  “What is that?”

  “Magic.” She said and smiled. “My biological father was descendent from a long line of sorcerers.”

  “Doesn’t any of this seem crazy to you?” He asked as she released it just as she had the first one.

  “It certainly did at first. For the first few months I was convinced I was going to wake up back at Mitch and Monica’s house. Or in a morgue.” She laughed darkly.

  “I'm sorry I yelled at you.” He said so suddenly it caught her off guard. “Back at my apartment, I had no right. It wasn’t your fault what happened to my dad Ana.”

  “Dakota, it’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not. The last ten years I have been so wrapped up in you that when I finally did see you again, it took me a while to come around. Especially given the circumstances it was under. I mean, seriously, could we not have just bumped into each other in a coffee shop or something?” He laughed lightly and she felt the love she had held onto for him begin to bloom again. This is the Dakota who had held her heart all these years.

  “Wouldn’t that have been nice.” She agreed and looked back at the stars.

  “It’s going to take me some time.” He said suddenly.

  “That’s understandable.”

  “I’m not talking about whether or not I believe you.” He looked at her and in his eyes Anastasia saw the pain. “After everything I’ve seen, I would have to be certifiable to not believe you.”

  “Then what are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about you and me. About getting back to where we were, it’s going to take me time.”

  “Oh, Dakota I-“

  “There is something you need to understand- loving like that, believing with all of your heart that you are meant to be with someone and then having it all ripped away without any warning or explanation, that’s heartbreak Ana, and a pain you couldn’t possibly understand.” He looked away and Anastasia found herself speechless.

  “Dakota, I-”

  “What’s Terrenia like?” He asked changing the subject just as quickly as he had brought it up. “It’s Terrenia, isn’t it?” He added at her surprised look.

  She closed her eyes and did her best to refocus her mind. “Yes, it is. It’s beautiful. Actually this place reminds me of it. I hadn’t realized it but that might have been why I felt so at home there. This was the safest place I had ever known growing up.”

  “Mom told me some of what you told her, about Terrenia anyways. She said that there’s no electricity.”

  Anastasia laughed. “There’s not. No running water either.”

  “How do you-” He started and then held his hand up. “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”

  Anastasia laughed and when she stopped she caught him staring at her.

  “What?” She asked.

  “I missed that sound.”

  She smiled again and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

  “I hardly ever saw you with your hair down when we were growing up. It’s so beautiful.”

  She blushed and stared back towards the trees not wanting to go back to their original conversation.

  “I picked these up for you while I was out cleaning up my apartment. I had mom guess the size for me so if they are wrong it’s her fault.” He smiled and helped her to her feet. “There’s also a toothbrush, hairbrush and some hair bands. Mom told me to toss those in as well.”

  “Thank you, Dakota.”

  They stood staring at each other for a moment.

  He reached foreword and brushed her hair behind her ear just as she had done. “I missed you, Ana.”

  “I missed you, too.” She lightly kissed him on his cheek and turned towards the house before anything else could be said. This wasn’t the time for promises of the future she reminded herself, it was about cleaning up the past and making sure they lived through the present.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  “So give us the rundown. What is going on out there?” Elizabeth asked A
nastasia as the three of them sat drinking coffee the next morning.

  “From what I know the Brutes are here collecting weapons. Vincent has a contact here who has been providing them to him. They are trying to take over Terrenia, and when we were in the cave I overheard him saying they had plans for Seattle as well, possibly the rest of this world along with it.”

  “But how does he plan to take over this world? I know you said Terrenia had no guns, but we have them in abundance. The military is well stocked. How does he plan to succeed here?” Dakota asked her.

  “Honestly, I'm not sure. He is very powerful but Tony suspects as did Gregory, that he has something going on behind the scenes.”

  “Tony?” She tried to ignore the twinge of jealousy she heard in his voice, but she couldn’t deny that it amused her.

  “Tony is Gregory’s best friend, or was anyways. He is the leader of the Fighters and is like another father figure to me.” She added for Dakota’s sake.

  She caught the amused look Elizabeth shot Dakota and she herself smiled.

  “I bet I know who his contact is.” Dakota added changing the subject.

  “Mitch.” Anastasia responded without hesitation. She had given it much thought and it was the only thing that seemed clear to her at the moment. Mitch had been whom he sent Anastasia to live with and he had even been so arrogant as to introduce himself as Mitch’s business partner.

  “That’s what I believe as well. There have been numerous murders within the city lately, and although some of them appear random others leave a blood trail back towards Mitch.”

  “The random ones would be people who saw the Brutes. They were instructed to kill anyone who saw them.” Anastasia said.

  “They got Mitchell the night you arrived.”

  “Oh, Dakota, I’m so sorry.” Elizabeth grabbed her son’s hand in an effort to soothe him.

  “Mitchell?” Anastasia asked confused.

  “He was my partner. I found him the morning you arrived, while I was out. It’s why it took me so long to get back that day, I had been at the precinct all morning.” He rubbed his hands over his eyes.

  They had pulled him off of the case, saying he was to emotionally involved now and sent him on a leave of absence. He couldn’t deny that he had been or that he didn’t need the time off. He had spent the rest of the early afternoon answering questions and briefing the new detectives they had placed on the case.

  “I'm sorry, Dakota. I shouldn’t have been so nonchalant about it. You have to know, I don’t take any death lightly.” Anastasia touched his hand gently. She felt the connection the moment her skin touched his and she quickly pulled it away. She could tell by the look on his face that Dakota had felt it too.

  “I have been hunting them for years now. There are very few weapons that can actually kill one easily. Otherwise, you have to decapitate one to take it down.”

  “What weapons?”

  “They have to be coated with platinum. For some reason, the Brutes cannot tolerate that particular alloy. All weapons in Terrenia are forged from steel and then coated in platinum.”

  “But you can kill one without the platinum?”

  “Yes. If you can manage to injure one fatally, it will eventually die, but will probably take you with it. They are incredibly strong and surprisingly quick for their size. Decapitation is the best method if you don’t have any special weapons.” She offered Elizabeth an understanding smile at her gasp.

  Anastasia pulled the two dirks from her waistband and handed one to Dakota and the other to Elizabeth. “Carry these.”

  Elizabeth eyed the weapon warily. “Maybe I should leave the fighting up to the two of you.”

  “Carry it, mom.” Dakota urged her. “Just in case you need one.”

  She nodded and looked back at Anastasia.

  “This alone won’t kill them, it hurts them and they will slow, but it won’t kill them unless you cause some damage with it.”

  “How many have you killed?” Elizabeth asked her.

  “I honestly have no clue. I killed my first one nine years ago, after it killed my mother.”

  “How’s your side?” Dakota asked her later that afternoon when he found her walking the perimeter of the cabin.

  “I feel fine. Your mom opened the stitches slightly and once I was able to get more of the healing salve inside, it started feeling much better.”

  He nodded and continued walking beside her. “You know had I not seen what I did that night in the alley, I might not have believed you.” He laughed, but she knew there was no humor in it.

  “I can’t blame you. When Gregory first came for me I thought I was dead. Or that I was just dreaming everything.”

  “It’s just a lot to wrap my head around.”

  “It is.” She agreed.

  They continued walking around the cabin and then stopped once they reached the stairs.

  “Do Mitch and Monica still live in the same house?” She asked. She saw the expression that passed over his face, but wasn’t sure what it meant.

  “No. He still owns it but Mitch moved out two months after you disappeared.”

  It took her a moment to realize he hadn’t mentioned Monica. “Did Monica leave him?” Had she finally realized what a monster he was?

  Dakota turned to face her and she saw it in his eyes.

  “Monica’s dead.” She said without him even having to say it. “Mitch?”

  He nodded.

  “I want to go to my old house.”

  “Why in the hell would you want to go back there?”

  “It’s where this all started. Maybe there is some clue as to what’s going on.”

  “What are you looking for? Some note that says ‘here is the entire plan’ and then a numeral list of things he plans on doing?” She could hear the irritation in his voice and knew he was just as afraid to step back in that house as she was.

  “I don’t know. Something.” She knew that she needed to go back for closure, needed to face those demons before she could continue. She turned to look at Dakota and he must have seen the resolution on her face.

  “Fine. But I’m going with you.”

  “We should take Elizabeth too; she doesn’t need to be left out here by herself.”

  “Agreed. But we are waiting until its dark.”

  Anastasia nodded and turned to stare out at the trees. It was time she faced her past.

  She left Dakota standing on the porch and went inside to see Elizabeth going through old photo albums in her bedroom. Her door was open and Anastasia knocked on the jam.

  “Come on in, honey.” She said wiping the tears from her cheeks. “I'm sorry, I haven’t been back here since the summer before George was killed. We had brought Dakota out here to try and cheer him up a bit.” She said as Anastasia came to sit next to her on the bed. “He was never the same after you disappeared.” She gently touched the photo of Dakota and George holding up a large fish they had caught.

  “I wasn’t either. I missed you all so much.”

  Elizabeth nodded and shut the album, lovingly rubbing her hands over the cover. “We always considered you part of the family.”

  “I know.”

  Elizabeth laughed and set the album aside. “George always gave him such a hard time about you.”

  “About me? Why?”

  “Oh, honey. You have to know he had it bad for you.”

  Anastasia’s cheeks flushed.

  “George kept teasing him about how he was afraid to ask you on a date. Both junior and senior proms he had pressed Dakota to ask you but both times he ended up taking some other girl.”

  “He had asked me.” Anastasia admitted. “Or started too anyways before I came up with some excuse as to why I wasn’t going.”

  “Why didn’t you go?” Flabbergasted Elizabeth stood staring at her. “I know you felt the same about him, you two wore it on your sleeve as if it were an accessory.”

  She sighed. “I was planning on leaving right after graduation.
On disappearing into the world somewhere where no one would have been able to find me. I guess I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to leave if I admitted to him and myself how I felt.”

  “Well, that was a stupid reason to deny yourself of something you wanted.” She surprised Anastasia with her statement. She had never heard Elizabeth use the word ‘stupid’.

  “Yes, it was.” She agreed.

  “Well, what about now?” She asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You two are here now, brought back together. Do you truly think it wasn’t meant to be?”

  “Elizabeth there is so much going on right now. I can’t afford to complicate things.”

  “Love isn’t a complication Anastasia, it’s a strength. There is no brighter light than love.”

  Anastasia thought back to what Gregory had said to her about Dakota being her light much in the way Annabelle had been his. She had always known that she loved Dakota, but she just couldn’t see how admitting that now would do anyone any good.

  “Time is too short to refuse yourself something you want. Something that might be good for you.” She added. “If you spend your whole life focused only on what you think you need rather than what you may want, then your life will be worth nothing.” She gently touched Anastasia’s hand. “What’s it all for unless you get something out of it, too?”

  Anastasia nodded and stood. She knew Elizabeth had a point but how could she bring herself to drag Dakota deeper into this? If she were to admit to him how he felt, and if somehow after all this time he still feels the same, then she knew he would follow her into the depths of hell whether she wanted him to or not. Then again, she honestly believed he would now. He had all but told her that he had loved her back when they had been teenagers, was it possible that he still felt the same?

  She turned to look at him when he came into the cottage. Their eyes locked for a moment and she felt the buzzing in her blood. Only this time it wasn’t her magic that was causing it. Sooner or later she was going to have to face what she was feeling. She just prayed that when she did, it would be a strength just as Elizabeth had said and not a weakness as she feared.