Birthright

by A. P. Jensen

Chapter Eight

  Jordan unstuck her cheek from the floor, raised her head and blinked. The peach colored room was coated in a layer of ice. William stood ten feet away, still as a statue. His hair, brows and eyelashes were brushed white with frost. His black eyes glittered with the promise of retribution. Jordan didn’t waste time trying to figure out how the peach colored room turned into a freezer or how William turned into a living, breathing ice statue. This was her chance to escape.

  Jordan forced herself up and limped towards the door that led out into the maze of Haven’s hallways. As she reached for the doorknob, she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. She dove out of the way as a large Ming vase hurtled towards her head. The vase whistled past and crashed into the door. The air began to hum as couches, vases, desks, bookshelves and other objects in the room began to shift. William couldn’t move his body, but he could manipulate everything in the room. Her body shook with lingering fear and fatigue. She didn’t have the strength left to fight. Helplessness filled her, an emotion she loathed because it was how she felt as a child and she vowed she would never let herself feel that way again. She would not be weak.

  Jordan forced herself to meet William’s eyes across the distance. She couldn’t remember what it felt like to be whole, couldn’t remember what it felt like not to be in pain. Hatred, determination and fury kindled to life and she looked around the room for a weapon.

  In the back of the room was a mid-sized pond with a fountain of water in the middle. The steady streams of water were frozen in place, jagged icicles over three feet long. Jordan stumbled as fast as she could towards the pond and skidded on the frozen pool. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she gripped a frozen stream of water and tugged. Desperation gave her strength and she let out a muffled scream of frustration as she cut her hands on the uneven bits of ice. There was a splintering sound as a piece broke off.

  Jordan turned towards William with a foot long ice pick in her hand. Everything that wasn’t nailed to the floor now floated in midair, waiting for her next move. Through bobbing objects, their eyes met and she tightened her grip around the now pink icicle. Jordan saw William’s hands twitch at his sides and knew she had only seconds left to make her move.

  She rushed forward and dodged a chair, then dropped to her knees to stop herself from being clobbered by a desk. Jordan let out a scream as a couch tackled and pinned her to the ground. Jordan fell face first and struggled, but the weight of the couch was so heavy, she could barely breathe. Her ribs protested.

  She pounded the floor with her free hand and managed to keep a tight grip on her weapon. The ice was melting. Her skin dripped as she forced her face an inch off the floor. William now stood in a shallow pool of water and Jordan’s heart tripped in panic when she heard the gurgle and splash of the fountain behind her. She saw William’s hands clench into a fist and prayed for strength. The heat of her hand created grooves on the chunk of ice in her numb hand and she suspected it was shrinking in size, but she didn’t dare let it go. She wouldn’t let him get his hands on her. Jordan let rage rule over all other emotion. The couch above her shuddered and let out an earsplitting pop like a firework. Sawdust rained down like a fine mist over Jordan.

  Adrenaline pumped through her as she leapt up. She stalked forward and got a firm grip on her makeshift dagger and aimed for his heart. His hand whipped out and stopped the tip of ice inches from his chest.

  A cruel smile curled his lips. “Time’s up.”

  Jordan jerked upright in the tub and let out a stifled scream before she clamped a hand over her mouth. She shivered uncontrollably as sobs piled up in her throat. She refused to utter them aloud, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. She wrapped the covers as tightly as she could around herself, but they failed to ward off the sudden cold. Her teeth chattered so loud, she was sure she would wake the whole house.

  She rocked from side to side, making sure the blankets covered every inch of her. The nightmare rebuffed any effort to make herself warm, as if the very thought of him pushed her towards death. In desperation, she forced herself to rise and climb out of the tub. She winced when her feet touched the tile floor. She hauled the blankets out and turned on the faucets, pushing the knob towards scalding hot. She stoppered the tub and put her face over the steam, hoping the warmth would somehow travel to her frozen heart.

  Jordan stripped off her clothes and tumbled into the inch high water. The water was too hot, but she didn’t care- anything to banish the chill that had her in its grasp. The water wasn’t high enough to reach her ankles, so she scooted beneath the high faucet so water cascaded down her narrow, hunched back. She breathed deeply, trying to shake her memories.

  The shivering slowly eased. She felt fragile, a being on the verge of breaking into a million fragments and becoming nothing. She raised her head to glance around the bathroom in all its glory and shook her head. She didn’t belong here, didn’t belong anywhere, so where did that leave her? She’d never found a place she felt safe; where she knew in her bones she belonged. Was there such a place for her?

  What little pride she possessed, whatever she had once been was gone. William changed her into an animal that would do whatever it took to survive, even kill. She let out a moan of fear as her mind replayed the memory, the elation and relief she felt as she aimed for his heart and then the crushing terror when he stopped her. William Stan turned her into a killer…

  Jordan unwrapped a bar of soap and feverishly attacked her skin. She scrubbed until she was covered in soapsuds and her skin was red from the water and her ministrations. Water lapped around her waist.

  Her senses quivered on an alert status that urged her to fight or take flight. She shuddered beneath the hot water and wished Levi was here with her. He’d been her rock in the past months and now she was alone again where no one understood her nightmares. As the splash of water drowned out all sound, she closed her eyes and let herself drift. Her chest ached from the broken soul tie. She was ridiculously weak, taking at least eight naps a day and incapable of walking longer than ten minutes.

  The bathroom filled with steam and the shower stall and mirror fogged up. Moonlight filtered in from a high window above the tub, letting in silver light. She spent so much time in the darkness that the lack of light was comforting rather than alarming. She drifted in warmth, body slowly accepting the heat of the water. Her jaw ached from clenching her teeth and her muscles protested her rigid posture. She drifted between memories and the present and choked when she inhaled water. Spluttering, she realized the water level was chin deep. Clumsily, she reached up and turned the faucet. The flow of water stopped and Jordan sat, hair floating on the surface like black seaweed. She sat silently, body warm, but insides still chilled.

  Hours later, Jordan watched the sun rise from the yellow room she secretly dubbed “the princess room.” She dragged an armchair in front of the glass and watched light illuminate the world. Sunlight hit the yellow curtains and made the room cozy and warm. With the height and angles the room offered, she was able to see the lay of the land. The stream ran on either side of the house and connected into a perfect half circle. The land was flat except for a hill in the distance that curved around a glittering lake. Tall trees scattered here and there over the pasture, but they grew thickly along the stream and lakeside. To the right, about ten feet from the stream was Heath’s house, which wasn’t lit this early in the morning.

  Jordan’s hands trembled in her lap as she resisted the urge to go downstairs and look for pills. The pills not only dulled her power, it kept emotions and nightmares away. Her power, that clawing need, had yet to return and she secretly prayed it wouldn’t. The thought of dealing with her power again made her blood run cold.

  Morning beckoned and she answered its call. She walked past the bed that had yet to be used. Jordan used as little as possible in the room, still not believing that the clothes and toiletries were hers. She was half convinced this was all a big mistake and that someone from Ha
ven or a cop would come through the door and take her.

  Jordan opened the bedroom door and paused, listening. She could hear the distant crooning of birds and nothing else. Despite the early hour, the house was filled with light, courtesy of the glass walls. She paused in the kitchen and glanced at the new chandelier and doors that had been replaced. She stepped onto the wraparound porch and closed the door quietly behind her. She folded her arms across her chest, fingers twisting in the soft material of her flannel shirt. She surveyed the backyard closely to make sure nothing was out of place.

  She took a deep breath. The air was so clean, so fresh. She could smell sweet flowers, the grass and something else she couldn’t put her finger on. The air was moist and soothing on her skin after the harsh dryness of Nevada. This place was a balm to her shattered nerves and she couldn’t explain the sense of comfort the landscape offered. Most of the trees soared over the house and the trunks were so large, she couldn’t wrap her arms around them.

  Wide steps led down to the pasture and in the far distance, the calm glittering water of the lake beckoned, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to make it. She made a compromise and decided that she could make it to the stream. Every day, she tried to walk longer and further. She needed her strength back. She stuffed her feet into soft, red leather boots and paused to admire them for a second. Grass crunched beneath her boots as she moved like a ninety year old, occasionally pressing on her aching chest where the pain blossomed and became unbearable when she pushed herself too hard.

  Dew drops fell on her head as she passed beneath the branches of towering trees. She couldn’t figure out why the air smelled so sweet here, like flowers and goodness. Squirrels chattered above and electric blue dragonflies hovered over the ground as she made slow progress towards the stream. Sweat dotted her brow and she had to lean against a tree for support by the time she made it to the bridge.

  She watched the lazy running water and tried to get her breath back. The first days after Mr. Parker left, she spent most of her time in the bedroom or on the porch, taking in her surroundings. She never dreamed she would end up in a place like this- beautiful and far from civilization with no confinement or noise. Kelly told her to explore and roam the grounds, but to keep close to the house until she was stronger. After Haven, where even her baths were monitored, it was difficult to think she could do as she wished.

  Weariness tugged her down constantly, but she was afraid to sleep. She had too many demons waiting for her to close her eyes. She was lucky to get two hours of undisturbed sleep a night. Instead, she spent most of her time outside. She enjoyed walking and staring up at the sky. She hadn’t seen the sky for over two years when she was in Haven. It was a blessing she wouldn’t take for granted.

  Heath’s front door opened. He jumped off the porch and walked towards the stream. He had on his usual attire- flannel shirt, work boots and jeans. Even across the distance, his orange eyes glinted. He stopped on the other side of the bridge and looked at her.

  “Can you make it across?” he called over the sound of water.

  She hesitated before she pushed off the tree and started forward. Jordan let her body move with the sway of the bridge and held on to the thick rope rails as she slowly made her way across. When she reached the other side, she rubbed her chest with a fist and tried to control her wheezing.

  “You’re pushing yourself too hard,” Heath commented, walking towards his house at the same snail place as Jordan.

  “I’m fine,” she said through clenched teeth.

  She’d grown used to Heath. He was at the house most mornings for breakfast and when she wandered on property, he was always nearby. At first, she felt threatened and uneasy, but after several days of him keeping his distance, she relaxed. Today was the first time he approached her.

  “Did I trip an alarm? Is that how you knew where I was?” Jordan asked to distract herself from the pain.

  “I’m a light sleeper and I’m responsible for you while Donovan’s gone.”

  “Responsible for me? Why?”

  “There are a lot of people that would love to make a score against Donovan. Until you get your power back, you’re weaker than those without magic.”

  They finally reached his house, which had a wooden rocking chair and no railing on the porch. Jordan sat heavily. Heath disappeared inside and came back with a beer mug filled with ice water. She gulped it down and looked back at Mr. Parker and Kelly’s house. The tinted glass made it impossible to see inside and it was strange seeing it from this angle. On the other hand, she was a lot closer to the flat-topped hill and lake.

  “No sign of your power?” Heath asked, sitting beside her.

  “No.” She didn’t hide her relief.

  Heath let out a low chuckle. “One day you might be grateful for it.”

  “You haven’t seen what I can do.”

  She looked down at her hands and had a flashback of her hand clutching a makeshift dagger and aiming for William’s heart. He can’t touch you anymore, she told herself. What would it take for her to believe she was free of him?

  “We all have the ability to do bad with our power, just as normal people are capable of doing evil,” Heath said.

  “What can you do with your power?” she asked, voice loud in the morning quiet.

  He held out a hand, palm up. Purple fire engulfed his arm up to the elbow. Jordan stiffened, but didn’t pull away. She watched Heath’s eyes and saw the calm control he exerted over the flames.

  “Fire is my specialty, but I can handle the earth element as well.”

  They both watched fire move over his skin, searching for something to consume.

  “Being linked to fire is a strange thing. Most of the time, fire destroys everything in its path, but when fire burns land, things grow back more beautiful than before. Fire can forge beauty.”

  Heath closed his hand and the fire winked out of existence. They looked at one another, measuring and waiting for questions.

  “What do you mean, you’re linked to the earth?” Jordan asked.

  “There are four elements we draw our power from. Fire, earth, air and water. Most people are drawn to one of the elements, sometimes two. It depends on their bloodline.”

  Jordan frowned. She thought of her nightmare the night before- waking to find she somehow turned William and everything in the room into an icebox. So, she had the water element? Mr. Parker froze the pool, so maybe she got it from him. Did her mom have power?

  “Come, I want to show you something,” Heath said and headed into the house.

  She couldn’t help being curious. She rose and walked like a drunk up the three steps and through the front door. The house consisted of one large living room and three bedrooms. Through the first door, Jordan glimpsed Heath’s unmade bed. The second was a small bathroom and the third door was closed. Heath’s kitchen was a counter with a sink. The living area had a long couch and a huge TV on the wall.

  Heath walked to the closed door and beckoned. Jordan crossed the living room and stepped into a strange workshop. Everything in the room was made of tinted glass. There was a long worktable and rolling chair. Shelves across the room were lined with vases filled with glittering stones and jewels.

  “This is where I make glass,” Heath explained.

  She stared at him. “Glass? You built the house?”

  He nodded, sat on the chair and wheeled towards his desk. He opened a drawer and pulled out a long silver chain. Jordan went rigid and tried to back out of the room. Heath focused on her.

  “What is it?”

  “What are you going to do with that?” She fingered the fine scars on her neck.

  “I’m going to give it to you,” Heath said, bewildered.

  “No thanks.”

  He dropped the chain on the desk. “Am I missing something here?”

  “In-in Haven they’d punish us by putting necklaces on us like that,” she shuddered and looked away from the chain. “The necklace chokes yo
u until you pass out.”

  Heath’s eyes began to glow. “This chain doesn’t do anything like that. I would never give you something that would harm you.”

  Jordan didn’t say anything.

  “Time will tell.”

  He wheeled towards ten metal drums against the wall and pulled off the lids. Each one was filled with different colored sand. Heath cupped a handful of the fine grains and let it drift through his hands, breathing deeply.

  “Ever been to Hawaii?”

  Jordan snorted in response.

  “The sand from there is like nothing I’ve ever used. It’s what makes my glass indestructible.”

  “Indestructible?”

  “Watch.”

  Heath took a pinch of green, black and white sand and tossed it into a glass pot. He wheeled to another shelf stacked with glass vases filled with stones of all colors.

  “There’s every type of jewel known to man in these vases.”

  Heath glanced back at Jordan. When he didn’t get much of a reaction, he raised his brow. “Not a material girl, huh?”

  She shot him a baleful look and his mouth twitched. He picked out a vase filled with colorful rice grains. They sparkled in the light.

  “This vase has everything,” Heath explained and took two colorful pinches and tossed it in the pot with sand. “Come, Jordan.”

  She eyed him suspiciously. “Why?”

  He juggled the pot, mixing the sand and stones. “My glass is indestructible. We don’t know what state your power will be in when it returns. You could end up weaker or stronger than before. Until you learn to control yourself, you’re going to need help.”

  Fear made her take a step forward. She had absolutely no control of her power, had no idea how to harness it. “How can you help?”

  He gestured around. “My glass. You can channel your power into the glass and it will absorb your power.”

  “What do I have to do?” she asked, taking the pot.

  “Put your hand in the pot.” He rolled his eyes when she hesitated. “They need to get to know you. The glass has to be tuned to you.”

  “They?”

  “The sand and stones,” he said impatiently.

  She put her hand in the pot and brushed her hands through the warm sand and relaxed. She fingered the small grains of stones. Heath rose and pushed her onto the chair. He leaned back against his desk and crossed his ankles.

  “I don’t know what you’ve been through or where you’ve been. I can’t explain everything, but I can tell you what I know,” Heath said. “People that have the fire element are called Darsana. Our history is filled with war. We’ve breathed life into every weapon known to man. Destruction has been our way of life and I thought I would follow the same path.”

  Jordan listened and let the sand slip through her fingers.

  “I did for a while. I became a warrior straight out of The Academy. I became head of security for some of the most important men in our world, but,” Heath stopped and cleared his throat. “My wife and daughter were murdered. I was so busy protecting others, I left my family wide open. I left my position and our world and moved to Hawaii.”

  Heath’s hands began to crackle with flames. He placed his hands on the desk. Even as she watched, the glass flared red and yellow. The flames disappeared from Heath’s hands and he continued to talk as if nothing happened.

  “I was sitting on the beach, trying to deal with the hand life dealt me and the sand began to melt around me. Waves crashed on shore, cooling the sand and after a couple hours, I realized there were chunks of glass around me. I picked one up and all the anger, grief and pain I felt drained out of me. I dropped the glass and ran.”

  Jordan shifted uncomfortably in her seat. That he would reveal his own nightmare to her evoked emotions she didn’t want to feel. She didn’t want to become attached to any of these people, didn’t want to get to know them.

  “Day after day, the same thing happened. I was so angry and just for my own satisfaction, I wanted to see the glass splinter and it wouldn’t,” Heath ran a hand through his hair. “Other Darsana have tried to copy me, but it comes out like normal glass, fragile and breakable. Kelly thinks I pour the protection I wanted to give my family into the glass. The emotion I pour into the sand is what makes it indestructible.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Everything happens for a reason,” Heath said, but his hands crackled with blue flame and once more, the glass beneath him absorbed his power. “It happened a long time ago.”

  “It doesn’t mean you forget,” Jordan murmured.

  “No, it doesn’t. Donovan and I were friends in school. When I went to Hawaii, he came to see me and told me he had property in Texas I could look after. I’ve been here ever since.”

  “So, the house,” Jordan ventured, “does the same thing as your desk?”

  “Yup. Donovan has a bad temper, so he uses the house a lot. Kelly does too every now and then. The pool room is a good place to go when you need to let everything out.”

  She grasped a handful of sand and sprinkled it in a pattern over the bottom of the pot. “I had to drive for a day in the sand. There were no roads.”

  “When you escaped from Haven?”

  She nodded and wrote her name in the sand before shaking the pot to erase it. “It was so hot. I thought we were going in circles. I was so afraid he would find me.” She tried to rid herself of the feel of William’s power within her, taking over every part of her- mind, body, and soul.

  “We?” Heath repeated.

  Jordan raised her head and looked at him. “Levi. We escaped together.”

  “Where is he?”

  Jordan clenched a handful of sand and tried to banish the sense of loss. “I don’t know.”

  Heath waited for her to continue, but when she didn’t, he said, “Kelly likes having you here.”

  It was a blatant change in subject.

  “I know,” Jordan said.

  Kelly made breakfast every morning, pampered Jordan and wanted everything to be perfect when it already was.

  “She’s a natural mother. She can’t help herself,” Heath said.

  Jordan thought of her own mother and pushed those thoughts away. She didn’t have the energy or inclination to deal with those memories now.

  “Alrighty, then. Hand it over,” Heath said.

  Jordan blinked in surprise as he whipped the pot of sand out of her grasp.

  “This is going to take a while.”

  “I don’t mind.”

  “Alright, stay back and put these on.”

  He tossed her a pair of his Oakley’s and waited for her to put them on before he cupped his hands beneath the pot and began to heat it with his hands. Blue flames engulfed the glass pot. The heat was so extreme, Jordan backed into the living room. Through the sunglass lenses, the flames glittered. She was surprised the room didn’t catch on fire.

  Half an hour later, Heath reached into the pot and pulled out a hissing white mass. Over the glasses, Heath’s brows rose. He threw the gooey ball on his worktable.

  “What shape do you want?” he yelled over his shoulder.

  Jordan walked cautiously back into the workroom. Heat lingered, but it wasn’t as intense. She peered over his shoulder. Heath was massaging what looked like sticky candy. Jordan winced even though the heat didn’t affect his hands.

  “You want a heart? Star? Seahorse?”

  Jordan glanced up and saw his broad smile.

  “Angel?” he asked innocently.

  “Circle,” Jordan said firmly.

  “You got it.”

  He rummaged in his drawer and pulled out a steel circle cookie cutter. He folded the clear liquid like dough, pulling on the ends and folding them on top of each other. He flipped it and continued the process. Once he was satisfied, he flattened it and used the cookie cutter to make it into a perfect circle.

  He scooped it onto a spatula and flipped it several times like a pancake bef
ore he walked past her into the kitchen and ran it under water. Steam fogged up the windows. Heath held the circle up to the light and iridescent colors sparkled. He walked back to the workroom and pulled out several tools and a piece of silver. Ten minutes later, he threaded the circle pendant onto the silver chain and held it out to Jordan.

  She took the chain and was surprised how light the pendant was. It was the size of a half dollar and cool to the touch. It was a quarter of an inch thick with a small silver clasp at the top. She rubbed her thumb over the flat surface, but there were no streaks left behind.

  “This is amazing,” Jordan murmured, awed.

  “It’ll be more amazing when your power comes back and you can see what it can do.” Heath’s shirt was soaked with sweat and he looked exhausted.

  She shifted awkwardly. “Thanks.”

  “It’s the least I can do.” He sat on the chair and looked at the pendant with a pensive expression. “I’ve never seen one like that before.”

  “What?”

  “A clear one.”

  “What do they usually look like?”

  “They’re usually colored. Your dad’s is black.”

  She shrugged. “I’m not surprised.”

  He grinned. “You’re gonna keep your daddy on his toes, eh? I can’t wait to see this.”

  “Do you use the same ingredients every time you make a pendant?”

  “Yeah. Sand absorbs every element. When you handle the sand, it absorbs your feelings and gets a sense of who you are. When I heat the sand, it captures your essence and now it’s tuned specifically to you.”

  “That’s weird,” Jordan said.

  “We better get back to the house.”

  She couldn’t put the chain over her neck. She remembered another necklace cut through her skin and the feel of warm blood dribbling down her neck. She shivered and wrapped the necklace many times around her wrist with the pendant dangling. Heath didn’t comment. She found herself touching and examining the pendant all the way back to the house. She had to stop once they reached the bridge and Heath seemed to need the break as well.

  When they walked up the back porch, they both caught a whiff of cooking butter. Jordan’s mouth watered. Kelly pulled steaming cornbread out of the fridge and beamed when she saw them. She had on a cowboy hat with tiny shells around the top.

  “Morning!” she said. “I hope you don’t mind me borrowing this from your closet, Jordan, I couldn’t resist.”

  “No. No problem,” Jordan said hastily.

  “Heath wants coffee. Jordan, what do you want to drink?” Kelly called from inside the fridge.

  “Juice.”

  “You like guava?”

  “Never tried it,” Jordan said and a thick pink juice was plunked down in front of her with an omelet.

  Jordan wasn’t quite sure how the fridge worked yet. She looked in several times and hadn’t seen a thing, but when Kelly opened the doors, it dispensed fully cooked hot meals or cold beverages.

  “Oh!” Kelly squealed, seeing the pendant on Jordan’s wrist. “Let’s see.”

  Jordan unwrapped it and handed it over. Kelly held the pendant up to the light and then peered into it as if she could see something.

  “Very nice. Thanks, Heath,” Kelly said.

  As Heath and Kelly fell into their routine of chatting over breakfast, Jordan ate and listened to the rhythm of their voices. She wondered where Mr. Parker was and if he found Haven. When would he come back? She looked out the windows and wondered where Levi was and if he survived.