by Sam Burns
“That is often the way of such tests. They only seem difficult before you pass them.”
“So let me get this straight.” Jesse looked around the circle of them, one side of his mouth pulled down in a dubious expression. “We’ve got to do some kind of cartoon ‘finding strength in ourselves’ crap, and we’ll suddenly find a magical artifact?”
“It is both not that simple, and simpler than that,” Oak told him.
Devon had to work not to laugh at the expression of indignant outrage on Jesse’s face. “Jess, Oak is saying that it’s not like a video game. This thing, these tests, they’re coming to us naturally. And when we pass them, the object will too.”
“Precisely so,” Oak said, then paused and frowned. “However, the object will be revealed whether you pass or not. None of you will be the reason for that revelation.” Oak stared at Fletcher as they said that, and something about the exchange made Devon shiver. Fletcher did too. Fletcher’s experience with magical objects so far had been rather fraught.
“So. Magic thing we need, magic personality tests, and good luck? That’s the whole story?” Jesse’s tone was still dubious, but Devon didn’t think he didn’t believe. He was just pointing out, in the most Jesse-like way, that the situation felt like something from a fairy tale.
“Summer will come no matter what we do,” Oak told them. “The seasons do not slow because we wish for more time. It will rain, and you will need the object to protect our harbor.”
“The thorn,” Isla said.
Oak turned to her in surprise.
“Uncle Hector, after his brain broke. He said the thorn was in Rowan Harbor, and that it shined like a beacon.”
Oak looked up at the sky, closing their eyes and going very still for a moment. Then they nodded. “Yes. But I made a promise, and I may not speak of it. All I can tell you is that you must prepare.”
“And pass tests,” Isla said. “I’ve always been pretty good at tests.”
Fletcher sighed, and his shoulders slumped. “Not me. I barely graduated high school.”
Jesse threw an arm around him. “Different kind of test, man. And you’re probably good at this kind.” Fletcher pushed him, which started a shoving match.
Isla rolled her eyes at their antics and pointed them in the direction of the path. “Come on, you two clowns. Let’s go see if the Half Moon is still open and get burgers. I’m starved.”
Cassidy hesitated, looking from Oak to the others, then Devon. Finally, she inclined her head to Oak, said, “Nice to meet you,” and followed the others. “Wait up, guys, I want cake!”
“They are frightened,” Oak said observationally.
Devon looked back at his retreating friends. “Yeah, they are. But they trust you. If you say they can do it, they think they can do it.”
“Do you?”
“I can only offer to try. You know I’ll try, right?”
Oak nodded and smiled at him. “You always try. You excel at it. I believe that you will succeed.”
“The thorn is a weapon, isn’t it?”
Oak’s eyes flitted away. “We skirt the edges of a promise I made, Rose-sprout.”
Devon had never considered himself a person who caught subtlety, but the reversion to Oak’s original nickname for him caught his attention. “A promise you made to Rose.”
Oak met his eyes and nodded again.
“She should be here dealing with this, not you. Not us.”
“She is not like you and I, Devon. This is our place. We were born here, belong here, and will do anything necessary for this place.” Oak motioned to Devon’s retreating friends. “They are of this place also, even those not born here. They are the future of our harbor. Rose is only its past.”
He wasn’t sure, but Devon thought that perhaps he was starting to understand. He reached out and hugged Oak, who seemed surprised, but practically melted into him, hugging him tight for a long time before letting go.
The blizzard was over, but Oak had been right about the snow. A bigger storm was heading for Rowan Harbor. The man who had sent the troll and wanted to wipe their town off the map. A magical object that was drawing, or had already drawn, unwanted attention to them. He didn’t even know if the two were related—only that they were out there. And no one could keep summer from coming.
<<<<>>>>
Afterword
At the end of this book, Devon and Wade’s story isn’t over. Jesse’s and Fletcher’s stories aren’t finished, either. The Rowan Harbor Cycle is a trilogy of trilogies: nine total books. Each main character will have his own book in each trilogy. You’ll get a happy-for-now in the short term, and those happily-ever-afters are coming, I promise.
Sign up for the email list to receive updates on the latest releases, access to exclusive content, and the chance to enter free book giveaways!
Sign up for the mailing list here!
If you enjoyed the book, please leave a review to help other people find it.
About the Author
Sam is an author of LGBTQIA+ fiction, mostly light-hearted romances. Hopefully this one fulfilled the romance quota, since it seems to have missed light-hearted by a mile or two. Most of her books include a little violence, a fair amount of swearing, and maybe a sex scene or two.
She is a full-time writer who lives in the Midwest with her husband and cat. Someday, she’d like to be a full-time writer who lives near the ocean with her husband and a pet fox. No trolls invited.
For more information:
www.burnswrites.com
[email protected]
