UnEnchanted (18 page)

There was a tinseled park bench with lights
strung around it. A giant gingerbread house stood with life-size
candy, a vine-covered wishing well, and a large stone tower. Mina
sat on the bench and pulled her knees up to her chest. She buried
her face in her knees, gently rocking herself. She wished
desperately that there was a way she could turn back time. Maybe if
her mother had never signed the stupid permission form, she
wouldn’t have gone on the field trip. She wouldn’t have saved
Brody’s life and would never have been noticed by the curse.

She might have made it all the way through
high school without having been attacked by a stranger. With what
Jared said earlier, Mina became all the more skeptical of surviving
this curse, because there was a wolf pack plural, as in more of
those crazy tattooed biker guys after her.

Mina thought she was alone on the stage, but
the sound of a stage lever being pulled made her glance up in
alarm. The stage was flooded with lights as the dance displays lit
up in all of their beauty. They shone, sparkled, and dazzled Mina
speechless. She actually had to cover her eyes to make out the
person who triggered the lights.

A dark form walked out of the shadows and
stood before Mina, tall and handsome. Mina actually shivered when
she looked at Brody, feeling as if her body had gone without water
for days, and here was the answer to her thirst. His blond hair and
blue eyes conveyed a softness to his face above a strong, chiseled
jaw. His hands were in his designer jeans’ pockets as he walked
casually toward her on the bench. She felt as if she was under a
spell, mesmerized by his movements. Closing her eyes, she tried to
block out his glorious being. Maybe if she didn’t see him, he would
disappear.

“
Mina.” Brody’s voice
sounded husky to Mina’s ears.

“
Go away,” she answered
weakly. Her heart thudded in her chest, and it felt like it would
burst.

“
I need to speak to
you.”

“
You’ve done enough
talking. You made your point on the whole situation last
night.”

“
No, I didn’t.” Brody
knelt before her and stroked the back of her feather-soft brown
hair. “Mina, please hear me out.” Brody reached out and wrapped his
hands around her. She was so small that he was able to maneuver her
so that when he sat on the bench, she was tucked across his lap.
She tried to squirm at first, but Brody held onto her, nuzzling her
ear, which made her freeze. “What your mother said last night…well,
it scared me.”

“
I know. It seemed enough
to scare you away.” Mina tried to move away, but Brody nuzzled her
again, making her freeze. It was both an intoxicating feeling and
an overwhelming rush.

“
Not like you think. I
went home, destroyed a few classic guitars, rode my motorcycle
across the county. I ended up in another state, and I still
couldn’t contain my thoughts. You’re all I think about, and last
night I had an uncontrollable rage warring within me. I want to
fight this battle for you, but I know that it's not my fight. You
will tell me what you’re afraid of when you feel ready. Your
mother's right. I have no right to judge your family. I haven't
proven myself yet. And I made it worse by leaving last night the
way I did. I’m sorry—I shouldn't have left.”

Mina’s heart soared to new heights. He
hadn’t run from her because he was ashamed of her or didn’t see a
future with her. He ran because he wanted to protect her. This time
it was Mina who felt protective of Brody. “I’m sorry that I doubted
you,” she said quietly. “You confuse me.”

“
What is there to be
confused about?” Brody asked.

“
I thought for sure you
had ended our friendship or relationship or whatever this is.” Mina
looked into his deep blue eyes and felt herself begin to
drown.

“
So you started to build
up that wall between us again. I can tell. You like to hide behind
that wall, locked inside that tower.” Brody cupped Mina’s face and
whispered softly, “I’m guess I’m going to have to work on tearing
down that wall, brick…” He kissed her eyelids, “…by brick…” He
kissed her pert little nose, “…by brick.” Brody continued to kiss
her cheeks, her chin, and finally her lips.

Mina knew it was coming but was still
startled by the feel of his lips on her mouth. It was glorious,
sweet, and beautiful. Mina felt herself go lightheaded with joy.
When he pulled away from their gentle kiss, she felt saddened by
his parting, until he placed another quick kiss on her lips. “By
brick,” he whispered.

***

The rest of the day at school, Mina floated
along. She had never felt so wonderful, and for now, nothing, not
even Jared, could ruin her mood. He noticed the change in her
behavior and tried to make a comment that would rile her, but she
blew it off. Everything would turn out right, because Brody was
there for her. She could feel it.

Mina was supposed to meet Brody by his
locker after school, and as soon as the bell rang she practically
skipped down the hall toward him. But a rough hand on her elbow
stopped her.

“
What do you think you’re
doing?” She turned and wasn’t the least bit surprised to see Jared
on the other end of her elbow. “Let go of me.” She tried to shake
him off, but Jared squeezed tighter.

“
Come with me and I’ll
tell you what you want to know.”

“
Why?”

He was silent.

“
I can’t,” she said, happy
to blow him off. “Brody’s giving me a ride home. Maybe later?” she
asked, smiling.

It was the wrong thing to say to him,
because his eyes darkened dangerously. “You don’t know who you’re
dealing with here. I was going to help you, tell you information to
help you stay alive, but it seems you’ve picked your model
boyfriend over your life.” He dropped her elbow and strode
away.

Mina waited ten seconds, thinking through
her options, and then chased after Jared into the parking lot. He
must have been expecting her, because he was already astride a
black motorbike. It was sleek, exciting, and dangerous, just like
Jared himself. She hesitated; was this really wise? He was holding
out an extra helmet to her.

“
You knew I would come,
didn’t you?” Mina demanded angrily. “You could have at least let me
tell Brody where I’m going so he doesn’t worry.”

Jared shook his head. “This is a one-time
deal, expiring soon.” He jump-started the bike. “Like now.”

Mina sighed and really wished she had a cell
phone to text Brody that she wasn’t in danger.

But as soon as Jared peeled out of the
parking lot and sped along the road, Mina had to rethink her last
thought, gripping onto Jared’s waist so she wouldn’t fly off the
bike. Maybe she was.

Chapter 16

Jared sped along the interstate, and fifteen
minutes later he was pulling up to Emerald Lake. He turned off the
motorcycle and removed his helmet, laying it on the seat. Turning,
he held out his hand for Mina’s helmet as well.

“
What are we doing here?”
Mina asked, pulling off her backpack.

“
Practicing,” Jared
answered.

“
Practicing
what?”

“
How to stay
alive.”

Mina thought he was joking, but one look at
Jared’s set face, and she knew he wasn’t joking. “Okay. Why now?”
she had to ask.

“
Why not now? Do you have
anything else planned?” Mina started to open her mouth, but Jared
cut her off. “I do, so it’s now or never.”

Annoyed, Mina followed Jared out to the
water’s edge. He stopped by a maple tree and broke off a short
branch. Jared closed his eyes, and the stick began to glow.

Mina’s eyes opened wide, and she stared in
awe. She’d already figured out that he was Fae, but watching him
mold and shape a branch with power was certainly impressive, and
hauntingly beautiful. His eyes closed in concentration; it was
almost as if he was communicating with the branch.

This was real magic, she realized, beautiful
and pure. Mina smiled and looked at Jared. She didn’t see the
annoying boy from school. She saw someone who was ethereal and
glowing with power. The rush of it took her breath away, long
enough for her to forget, for a moment, that she didn’t entirely
trust him.

Mina’s smile only faded when she recognized
the shape he was molding the branch into. It was a weapon, a wooden
sword, much more dangerous-looking than any of Charlie’s. The
beautiful moment passed as Mina realized her mistake. She was miles
from the nearest house, without a phone. She was with a strange boy
who had powers and had just morphed a tree branch into a sword.
Jared had never told her exactly whose side he was on. Once the
wooden blades stopped glowing, she snapped out of her reverie and
took a step away from him.

Jared just looked at her, eyebrows raised,
and handed her the sword.

“
What’s this for?” she
asked, worrying over the answer.

“
It’s a weapon,
dummy.”

“
And what am I supposed to
do with it?”

“
You’re not really that
dull, are you?”

Mina stuck out her tongue in response. She
swung the sword around a few times while Jared began to concentrate
on a second branch.

“
So where do you live?
Never-Never Land?” she joked.

Jared opened one eye to address her, still
concentrating on the branch. “Something like that.”

“
Aren’t the Fae supposed
to be my enemy?”

“
Some of them are. Which
is exactly why I brought you here.”

With the second sword completed, Jared took
off his shoes and stepped toward the water’s edge, motioning for
Mina to do the same.

“
Not happening.” Mina felt
her blood turn cold just looking at the water.

“
It’s either shoes, or I
wish away your clothes,” he threatened. Mina jumped out of her
shoes so fast, she stubbed her big toe on a tree root and had to
waddle out to the lake bed like a wounded duck.

“
Ouch, ouch, ouch!” she
mumbled, shifting from foot to foot. When she reached the water’s
edge, she turned and stared at Jared, rolling her eyes impatiently.
He motioned for her to step deeper into the water.

Next thing she knew, with no warning, Jared
rushed Mina, quickly stabbing at her with the sword. She jumped
backward and barely missed being gutted by the blade. “What the
heck!” she shouted. Jared turned again and swept his foot out,
catching her behind the knee, and she fell backward into the water.
Cold liquid burned her lungs as she inhaled the water. Mina flailed
her arms and got on her knees, and crawled to the edge and began
coughing.

“
Why’d you do that!” she
shouted.

“
Relax, it’s only water,”
he said. “You’re not letting your instincts guide you. Let go of
your fear, and I’ll show you how to do what I just did.”

Once she’d caught her breath, they started
again. He taught her blocks, stabs, and even a few basic flipping
moves. Obviously, most of the time he was flipping her into the
water, and she came up looking like a drowned duck. Finally, Jared
let Mina use a hip throw and throw him into the lake. Mina screamed
and ran around in circles with her hands in the air, chanting her
name and doing a victory dance.

Jared grinned and waded out of the water and
over to their shoes. Carefully, he looked for dead and fallen tree
limbs, and made a fire on the beach, using a lighter. Mina felt a
little disappointed that he couldn’t call up fire on the spot with
magic. But she forgot all about her disappointment when the heat
began to warm her soaked clothes.

Jared sat next to her and began what would
be a very enlightening lesson. “Now, there are various Fae tale
creatures that you will most definitely come across. You’ve already
met one of the wolves.”

“
Don’t you mean fairy tale
people, not creatures? What I saw was a man, not a
wolf.”

“
Don’t let your eyes fool
you. You only see what’s on this plane, not the next.”

“
You mean there’s more
than one?” she asked.

Jared rolled his eyes at her question. “Of
course there is more than one plane. For instance, there is the
physical plane and spiritual plane. Where the physical and
spiritual planes meet and the veil between the two is thinner,
weaker, and constantly moving exists the Fae plane. Never-Never
Land, as you say. This is where the Story itself resides and all of
the Fae Tales originate. The two planes almost never converge, but
when they do, the merging of the spiritual and physical creates
apexes, or gates, for the Fae to cross over. Over the years,
hundreds of Fae have crossed over and have run amok among the human
world.”

“
Do you mean like fairies
and witches?” Mina asked.

“
Your world drew them like
moths to flame. The Grimm brothers realized this. Somehow the
brothers found a gate to the Fae plane and confronted the ruling
Fae, or, as some call them, Fates. The Grimms demanded that the Fae
return to their own plane. Now, the Fae love games more than
anything, and they take great pleasure in toying with
humans.”

“
Well, that much is
obvious,” she said.

“
Touché,” Jared replied,
winking at her. “But the older ones, that’s who you need to worry
about. They love to feed off human emotions and energy. It’s
addicting to them, like the purest kind of drug.

“
You can imagine, these
older beings weren’t about to return to their own world easily. But
the Fae also love stories. So a challenge was issued to the
brothers: If they could complete a list of quests based on their
favorite stories, then the Fae would be drawn back to their own
world and the gates closed forever. If they didn’t, then the gates
would stay open.