Reckless Magic (36 page)

“
Oh no, not here they don’t.
I suppose those boys have all finished school, except for your
brother,” she patted my knee familiarly. “You know, our numbers
have never been this big. I suppose that means a war is coming
soon,.” Sshe turned her head, and for a moment I imagined I saw a
tear run down her cheek.

“
Was my mother in the
Resistance?” I asked, hoping to glean something from this
sentimental old woman.

“
In her own way she
resisted; I suppose she fought against both sides. You could say
that she made her own path, much like you dear,” she turned to face
me again, searching my eyes for…. something. “Your brother is a
good leader; much like your father and grandfather. One day I am
afraid we will ask too much of you both,”she shifted her eyes away
from mine and to the circle of boys listening intently to Avalon’s
instructions.

“
What happened to them, I
mean my parents?” I asked feeling brave.

“
Your brother is waiting for
you, dear,” she continued to look in the direction of Avalon who
seemed to be still in the middle of conversation. I was about to
ask her my question again, anxious for more information other than
we just look and behave like our parents, but then Avalon was
looking in my direction waving for me to follow him.

“
It was nice to meet you
Angelica,” I stood up, and reached out my hand to shake
hers.

“
Oh, it wasn’t the first
time we have met,” she put her hand in mine and although I couldn’t
recall ever meeting her before, once our flesh met, the magic that
flowed between us was familiar and sweet. Our currents mingled for
a second before she let go of my hand and walked away.

“
Eden, let’s go,” Avalon
yelled at me, a little impatiently.

I walked past him and towards the
truck. I couldn’t remember ever feeling more irritated with him
than at that moment. As far as brothers go, I thought he stood up
to the expectations just fine.

“
I don’t think it's fair you
can’t go,” Jericho matched steps with mine.

“
Oh yeah, why’s that?” I
asked, truly interested, “Everyone else seems dead set against
it.”

“
Funny choice of words,”
Jericho looked at me curiously out of the corner of his eye. “I
think you should be allowed to fight. Clearly you are capable. They
can’t hide you forever, especially with the way the prince
apparently feels about you.”

My cheeks instantly flamed with the
mention of Kiran and his feelings for me. I pressed my cool hands
to my face hoping to calm my nerves. We reached the truck and
Jericho lingered by the passenger side door.

“
Well thank you, I guess,” I
forced myself to look him in the eye and carefully formed my next
question. “Where is the feast anyways? What did Amory call it, the
Judiciary something….” I batted my eyelashes and gave the cutest
confused look I imagined I was capable of.

“
The Judiciary Courts
Citadel,” Jericho smiled shyly, aware that I was flirting with him.
“Romania.”

“
How can we have our own
Citadel without humans wanting to know more about us?” I asked
innocently.

“
The Citadel is not as large
as you are probably imagining it, but it’s also hidden in the
mountains.”

“
It’s like its own town?
Does it have a name?” I pried.

“
Yes, and yes. But that’s
all that you’ll get out of me,” he smiled shyly. He reached past my
waist, bumping my side gently with his arm and pulled the door open
behind me.

I waited for him to walk away before I
struggled awkwardly into the truck cab. No matter how many times I
practiced the tall steps into the passenger’s seat, I could never
seem to accomplish the feat looking like a lady.

“
You better change your
mind,” Avalon grumbled after buckling his seat belt and starting
the engine. I understood that he was referring to joining the
“cause” but I chose to ignore it.

“
Avalon, do you know
anything about our parents?” I asked softly.

“
No,” he replied quickly,
but then took a long pause. “I mean, I know enough to know what
kind of people they were and that they would have wanted us to join
the Resistance,” I caught his not so subtle hint, but chose to
ignore that one too.

“
What kind of people were
they?”

“
Strong…. Smart…. Powerful….
Kind. Just like me,” he quipped.

“
But they didn’t join the
resistance?”

“
Amory tells me, they didn’t
get a chance to.” Avalon’s voice was soft and far off. Let me go
with you. I pled using our mutual telepathy.

“
No,” he said firmly and out
loud.

I shut my mind off to him completely,
angry at his stubbornness and at my own helplessness. I decided I
must ask Kiran for help, I had no other option. Surely he would
want to help Lilly, especially after she fought to save his life.
He would have to help me.

35.

“
Ms. Matthews is there
something you would like to share with the class?” Mr. Lambert
called me out sharply in the middle of English class. I sat up
straight and shook my head in a humiliated and ashamed
“no.”

Mr. Lambert returned to his lecture
and I returned to my plotting, although anything else I attempted
would not be done during first period. I looked over at Kiran who
was now sitting two desks away from me, with Talbott in between. I
had been trying to get his attention for days without any
luck.

Any note I had passed, Talbott
destroyed. Any attempt at suggestive looks, Talbott interceded. Any
outright demands for attention, Talbott deflected. I didn’t know
many bodyguards in general, but I imagined Talbott was really good
at his job.

My perfect posture turned to poor as I
pouted in my desk, arms folded stubbornly across my chest. My last
attempt at the “Pssst. PSSST!” obviously didn’t pan out, and so I
schemed silently, determined to have an audience with the Crowned
Prince almighty.

I refused to let Lilly face trial
alone. She did a great thing by revealing her true identity in a
fight for Kiran’s life and she should have been rewarded, not
punished. Besides all of the talk about execution and judiciary
courts had me nervous. She was innocent as far as I was concerned
and I was bound and determined to enlist Kiran in my
cause.

And if he chose not to help, thereby
destroying any hope I had that he actually had a soul, I would just
have to do it on my own. I had to; I could not in moral conscious
or as a friend to her, let her be found guilty. Kiran’s privileged
life wasn’t the only life I was going to get into the habit of
saving. I at least knew that I liked Lilly, and she liked
me.

Kiran gave me so many mixed signals I
couldn’t even identify my true feelings for him. As soon as I
thought I could not be more head over heels for him, he didn’t talk
to me for weeks on end and then I was confused once
again.

He hadn’t even spoken to me since the
Fall Equinox Dance. In fact, he hadn’t even looked me in the eyes
since then. He went to all of the trouble of getting me to the
dance, and then let a little thing like a midnight battle and
falling from a rooftop get in the way of all the progress we had
just made.

I supposed I should figure out my
facts about this whole trial thing just in case he was another dead
end. I knew the trial would take place on Halloween. I knew that
the trial would take place in Romania. I knew that the trial would
take place in the mountains in Romania; which thanks to Google, I
knew were called the Carpathian Mountains. I knew Lilly would be
the first defendant tried, and would probably not be facing
execution, although I was not very encouraged by that. I knew that
there was some type of festival after the trial took place called
the All Saints Festival; but only Immortals were
invited.

Basically I knew nothing in great
detail, and nothing that got me on location. I needed the exact
location of the Citadel; but more than that, I needed to know where
the trial was going to take place once I got inside the Citadel. I
also needed to know who was representing Lilly so that I could
convince them to let me be a witness. I needed a passport, and I
needed a plane ticket. My heart sunk with despair and I was
convinced more than ever that I needed Kiran’s help.

The bell finally rung, but I chose to
gather my things slowly. I watched Kiran out of the corner of my
eye and noticed him glance in my direction several times before
exiting the classroom in front of Talbott. I decided to pick up my
pace and cut him off in the hallway. Talbott couldn’t block him
from every direction.

“
Ms. Matthews, I would
appreciate a more valiant effort for your attention in my class, if
you please,” Mr. Lambert interrupted my desperate plan with just a
few snide remarks.

“
I’ll do my best,” I mumbled
quickly, and then thought better of it. “I really do enjoy your
class Mr. Lambert. English is one of my favorite subjects,” I threw
on the charm, hoping to convince Mr. Lambert of what we both surely
know was a lie.

“
Then pay attention,” he
retorted sharply before gesturing his arm towards the
door.

I turned quickly on my heel and
hurried out the door, still determined to catch up with Kiran
before Drama. Mrs. Woodsen had us memorizing dramatic prose in
preparation for mid-terms and I wouldn’t have opportunity once we
were inside the classroom doors,

“
You are an enigma,” Kiran’s
silky accent addressed me softly and my own version of a smirk rose
to my lips. “A beautiful phenomenon I have yet to understand. Why
can’t you leave poor Talbott alone? He works so hard to keep you at
bay, and yet day after day you persist. I’m afraid he is
exhausted.”

“
Where is he?” I asked,
afraid I had only seconds with Kiran, before Talbott appeared to
whisk him away.

“
I gave him the day off,”
Kiran’s lips twisted into his smirk, sending butterflies fluttering
about my stomach.

“
You can’t do that,” I
protested coyly, inwardly rejoicing.

“
I can do whatever I want,”
his eyes hardened, and I began to doubt we were talking about the
same thing anymore.

“
Where are you going?” I
asked bluntly as Kiran began to descend the stairs towards the
lobby instead of ascending them towards Drama.

“
We are also taking the day
off today,” I started to protest, but he beckoned me with a nod of
the head and I obeyed.

“
You’re going to get into
trouble for this aren’t you?” I asked, catching up with
him.

“
Probably. But I imagine you
will too,” I couldn’t argue with him there.

We left the English and Arts Building
and I shuddered at the chilly wind. Although we’d had a mild autumn
so far, the wind had turned cold and as we neared the end of
October the temperatures were dropping. Kiran didn’t say anything
but led me towards the back of campus and the student parking
lot.

“
I didn’t drive, so we’ll
have to take your car,” he said matter-of-factly.

“
I didn’t drive either,” I
said, heart dropping into my stomach when I realized I rode with
Avalon like every other morning since he moved in with
us.

I heard Kiran curse under his breath
and then eye the parking lot mischievously. For a moment I thought
he was going to steal something, but he made no move towards any of
the shiny black cars lining the parking lot. He cursed again and
then looked around the campus. He stared at the Gymnasium for
several minutes before seemingly making up his mind.

“
What are the chances?”
Kiran mumbled under his breath before he resumed
walking.

“
That we’re attacked there….
again?” I asked finishing his thought.

“
With you love, one never
knows,” he slowed down his pace a little so that we walked evenly
side by side. His fingers reached out and gently played with the
tips of mine. He hadn’t taken my hand fully, but the gesture was so
sweet and so endearing that it sent electricity buzzing around my
veins; not to mention the magic mingling between our
fingertips.

“
I don’t think they were
after me,” I instantly regretted my comment, afraid of exposing
Avalon.

“
I know that,” he replied
simply. He led me past the gymnasium and down the hill towards the
football field and track. I wondered to myself if anyone used these
facilities. I’d never been to a game here before. Maybe they were
just for show.

“
Lucky for you, I’m always
there to save you,” I turned to give him a playful smile, but he
returned my look with an intense gaze that nearly stunned me. His
aqua blue eyes sparkled, hypnotizing me as if reading my
soul.

“
Why is that?” We stopped
walking and he waited for my answer.

“
I’m beginning to wonder
that myself,” my breathing became shallow and I was afraid I had
said too much. I tried to cover. “Maybe you’re the one that
attracts trouble.”

“
Maybe….” he said
thoughtfully before we resumed walking. I cleared my throat
nervously.