Shade woke at first light. The events of the night rushed through her cloudy mind as she stretched and rubbed her face. She felt sedated, wanting to roll back into the warm, soft blankets of her bed. She sighed, feeling the anxiety of everything relentlessly tugging at her thoughts. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and her feet tapped the cool wooden floors. The morning chill sent a shudder through her as she rubbed her arms. It was starting to get colder, much more quickly than it usually did. Shade groaned. She hated winter more than anything. The warmer climate of summer suited her well. She wouldn’t mind the blazing heat all year long if it were up to her.
Standing, she shuffled to the bathroom next to her room in the hall, throwing some clothes into her arms on the way. After an exhilarating hot shower, she felt more awake and focused, ready to face any problems. Exiting the bathroom, she stared down the hall toward the room where Soap was staying for now. It was Dylan’s old room, but it was their only guest room. A sting of pain seared into her chest as the thought of him tore into her. She wanted to see his gleaming grey eyes and run her fingers through his soft, thick black hair. She wondered where he was and what he was doing. The weeks had turned into months, and each day she was away from him was harder than the last.
She sighed as she pulled her wet locks back into a pony-tale. At that moment, Soap came out of his room. His hair was ruffled just a bit, but he was still as handsome as ever. Shade envied the faery’s ability to look gorgeous, even at five-thirty in the morning.
“Hey beautiful, sleep well?” He scratched his head and ran his hands through his hair. He wore it loose while he slept, and she liked how it framed his shoulders in a satiny spill. His green eyes stared back at her, filled with adoration and love. She smiled back at him, feeling her face burn with his eyes dancing along her features.
“Yep, but I couldn’t sleep anymore. There’s just too much on my mind. Did you? Sleep good, I mean?” She cleared her throat, diverting her eyes down to the mirror on the far wall.
“Yeah, pretty good. You sure you’re okay?” He reached out and brushed the back of his hand down her cheek, sending a shudder through her.
“Yes, I’m fine. Just not liking the cold mornings.” She rubbed her arms, shaking his disarming touch away. She liked it well enough, but it took over her concentration to the point of distraction.
Soap took it for a shiver and embraced her, letting the radiating, luxurious heat fill her in the cold hallway. She almost pulled away but let his arms melt into her a she enjoyed the warmth that pushed the cold away. Shade sighed. She felt content to be hugged tightly. Closing her eyes, she pressed her cheek against his chest, feeling the calm thump of his heart under his shirt. She felt him kiss her forehead gently as she inhaled his woodsy-pine scent. She wondered if all the fey smelled faintly of a forest full of pine and honeysuckle. Dylan had the same scent, with a slight smoky tinge to it. She sighed, letting Soap squeeze her one more time before pulling back out of his warm embrace. He reluctantly loosened his grip and smiled at her. Grinning back, she felt a rush of scarlet rush to her face. His gleaming eyes made her swoon every time. She shook off the giddiness and turned toward the other end of the hall, toward the living room.
She could feel Soap, his eyes on her as she left and heard his soft steps pad off toward the bathroom. Once in the living room, she plopping herself down on the couch and finally caught her breath. Her heart was racing, and her mind was euphoric from Soap’s hug. There was surely something about him that she couldn’t pinpoint that made her swoon. He either radiated some type of love magic or she was just more attracted to him since he’d been around more. She didn’t know and still wasn’t sure what to think of it.
“Coffee?” Jade stood at the doorway to the kitchen observing her daughter with beady, dark eyes. She examined Shade’s pink cheeks as a slight grin played on the edges of her lips. Shade rolled her eyes disapprovingly at her mother and then nodded in response to her question. Jade set a cup of steaming coffee on the coffee table and sat in the armchair next to the couch. She sipped her own cup, slowly blowing the heat of the drink away.
“Having a good morning?” Jade inquired. Shade frowned and busied herself by sipping the hot beverage. She muttered an “uh-huh” back to her mother. She hated being spotted looking all giddy from Soap’s effects on her, let alone telling her mother anything about her dating life.
“I know I can trust you with a boy in the house, but I remind you that I will not tolerate any funny business. You know better than that already, and I expect nothing to change around here. All the rules are to be followed as usual.” Jade spoke softly, her voice low even though she could hear the shower on as Soap bumped around the bathroom. Shade sighed while nodding in agreement but feeling even more embarrassed from the mother-daughter talk than anything else.
The coffee warmed her insides almost as much as Soap’s embrace but left her feeling less euphoric. She finished her cup and tossed it into the sink while looking out the kitchen window. Shade spotted Benton in the backyard chatting with Anna. Anna was enthralled with his new abilities and was watching him light candles that she had lined up on the picnic table that they used for afternoon lunches in the spring and summer.
Shade scowled, wondering if it was their mother who had told Benton he could show off his magic to their siblings. James was also watching but sat hypnotized on the bench as the candles flickered on and off with every wave of Benton’s hand. They giggled and laughed, enjoying his little tricks in the cool morning. Shade didn’t think it was a good idea. Anna and James were young and very impressionable. Well, maybe James more than Anna. Anna was almost sixteen. James was just six.
Shade looked away and began rummaging through the cupboards for breakfast. She grabbed some cereal and milk from the fridge. As she ate, she wondered what her mother had in mind for them to do since the war was definitely going to come their way. She knew that they would be making a trip to gather supplies like water, food, batteries and other stuff. Faery War Survival 101 was now in session.
Yay, thought Shade, hope we live through this one.
Soap waltzed in just then and plopped down in front of her. A big toothy smile met her eyes. She laughed, finding it funny that he could always find a way to make her smile.
“What’s up?” Shade said, stuffing another spoonful of cereal into her mouth. She watched his face turn serious, concern bubbling beneath the emerald sea of his eyes. She stopped chewing. A slight panic welled up in her as she continued to stare at him. “Soap? What’s wrong?”
“Do you think Evangeline really cares what happens to you? Or us, for that matter? I don’t trust her. She gave me a real bad feeling last night. Didn’t you feel it, Shade?” He shook his head as he took a deep breath. “I don’t know. I think that she might set a trap for you. You must be very vigilant from now on. She could strike in any way possible.” His hands slid across the table to envelope hers. Her cereal lay mushy in her long-forgotten bowl. She stared down at their hands and thought about his words.
“Yeah. I don’t think I can trust her just yet,” Shade said. “She seemed genuine enough, but who knows? I just want my family safe. Whatever her agenda may be, I want to be ready.” Rinsing her bowl in the sink, she leaned on the counter and watched Soap as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
“When we go to the store today, I think it’s a good idea for you to stay here. I can go with Jade to get the supplies.” His eyes avoided her as he fetched the milk and sugar to stir into his drink.
“What? But I’m supposed to go with her today. Who decided this?”
“I did.” Jade walked in and stood before her, her face serious but her eyes betraying her exhaustion. “I agree with Soap, you need to stay here where it’s safe. We’ll get everything. You can watch your brothers and sister while we’re gone.”
“But…,” Shade stammered.
“No buts. I mean it, Shade. You stay put.” Jade nodded toward Soap, who chugged down the last of his coffee and
followed her out of the kitchen. He glanced back, winking at Shade before disappearing around the corner.
Shade’s fury filled her inside as she bit her lip. Darn! This is so unfair! She stomped her foot but sighed, realizing how futile it all was. She knew they were right. She just couldn’t stand being cooped up in the house anymore, not after running around in Faerie and trekking across its vast lands. Staying indoors seemed to make her more restless than ever before. She headed out the back door to see what Benton was teaching her siblings. She might as well make sure he wasn’t corrupting their young minds.
“Shade! Guess what? I have fire powers, too!” Anna ran up to her wearing a gleaming smile that squeezed her eyes into small slits. Shade returned a grin, wondering what the heck Anna was talking about.
“What do you mean?” Shade stumbled as her sister grabbed her hand and yanked her forward toward the table. Benton gave her nod and a wicked smile. Shade gulped, hoping she wasn’t about to witness something she was going to wish she didn’t know.
“Benny? Tell her I can do it just like you can.”
“Do what, Anna?” Shade sat down on the bench, watching them intently as they glanced at each other.
“Can I?” Anna asked Benton. He nodded and continued to smile. Shade pressed her lips together as she squirmed in her seat.
“Okay, Shade, you have to see what I can do! Watch!” Anna held out her hand toward the unlit candles. She gave her flick of her wrist, and the candles danced to life, igniting in a slight flare before settling into the normal height of a burning wick.
“Did you see that?” Anna jumped and squealed in excitement. Benton looked pretty smug and proud, as though watching an apprentice achieve their first lesson. Shade stood up suddenly, wide-eyed and almost speechless.
“Wh-what was that? You can do it, too? She’s a Fire Witch, too?” Shade looked at her brother, who sat quiet and still as he watched her reaction.
“Yes, Shade. Anna can do it. She’s my sister, too, you know. We do share the same genes.” His smirk made Shade want to whack him on the head. She restrained herself as she willed her anger away.
“Okay, does Mom know this? Because if she doesn’t, all hell is gonna break loose.” Shade crossed her arms, feeling more ignored with every word as Anna and Benton shrugged their shoulders and turned back to what they were doing. “I mean it, guys. She needs to know right now. She’s gonna flip if she finds out some other way.”
Anna frowned, rolled her eyes at her sister and sighed. “I know that. I’m not a child anymore, in case you haven’t noticed. And yes, Mom knows. She knows everything now. I wouldn’t worry about that!” She flicked her hand again and the candles whooshed, expiring with tendrils of smoke floating away into the sky. Shade couldn’t help but feel a tad left out. Her siblings were full humans, even with their special powers, and she wasn’t.
She shook her head, sitting back down on the bench. She watched as Anna continued to make balls of fire and light float around like enormous fireflies. She couldn’t resist wanting to reach out and touch one. Instead, she concentrated on making sure none of the balls of fire hit James, who was standing way too close to Benton and Anna.
She watched them until her eyeballs dried out. Blinking, she sat back, letting herself relax just a bit as she fumbled with her ampule of Santiran Water around her neck. She watched them drop some of the flaming balls onto the dead grass, fire flaring up instantly. Shade jumped to her feet, searching for the hose that lay snaked across the lawn to douse the flames. She turned the spout on and sent a spray as far as it would reach, hitting the flames with a blast of water. The flames hissed and died, leaving shadows on the blackened earth and dead grass.
One fireball flared up some of the drier brush near the edge of the lawn, sending Benton scrambling as it lit up, angrily eating the kindling as it hurried toward the house.
“Crap! I can’t control it, it’s too wild now!” Benton yelled out as he waved his arms frantically, calming some of the flames but unable to keep up as new spots flared up. Anna grabbed the hose as Shade handed it to her.
If Mom was here, she could douse it, thought Shade as she ran closer, racking her brain for what to do. Fingering her necklace, she gasped. The ampule of course!
Shade grasped her amulet of Santiran Water. She could feel the magic seep out into her. She held her hands up, gathering the water spraying from the hose and began to send it spraying along the bottom of the raging fire. The flames fought back, angrily bursting up into the air and grabbing onto more dried grass and brush. The heat burned and the water dissipated into columns of steam. Shade breathed in again. She closed her eyes, trying to pull water from not only the hose but the air and clouds above, too. She could feel the air shift as she willed a storm to gather and begin to dump its cooling downpour over the fire and them.
Clouds of steam continued to hiss and float away as the flames calmed and withered under the heavy rain. Shade finally opened her eyes, watching the sheets of water pour down onto the scorched earth. Breathing hard, she let the cool water ease the sudden exhaustion that flowed through her bones. This was the most water she had ever wielded, more than the light drizzles of rain she had conjured up before. She collapsed down onto her hands and knees, feeling a drip of warm, oozing blood from her nose trickle down her lips and chin.
“Shade! Are you okay? Shoot, shoot, shoot!” Benton knelt down next to her, their clothes already soaked through. His dark hair clung to his face in matted, drenched curls. Shade nodded as she looked at him, wiping her nose on her shirt. He helped her stand on her wobbly feet. Her head swam as the world seemed to spin. Her eyes rolled back as she blinked, fighting unconsciousness. Only the cool splashing of the rain kept her awake, reminding her to keep her eyes open.
“Hold on, Sis. Let’s get you to the house.” Anna took her other arm and helped Benton as they practically dragged her back into the house. Shade managed a glance toward where the fire had eaten its path. Small tendrils of smoke were all that were left its rage. The tinkering of rain on the roof filled her ears as the rain continued its pounding.
“Grab some blankets and towels, Anna! James, help her, and hurry up before I put Shade on the couch.” Shade heard more than she saw. Her vision wavered in and out. Shadows and light flickered as she tried to regain focus.
I’m gonna be sick!
“Um, bring her a bucket too!” Benton plopped her down on the soft towels Anna had laid over some blankets. Shade’s clothes stuck to her like a second skin, feeling cold and making her shiver. She rolled over as Benton fitted a bucket in her hands.
The wave of nausea subsided as she breathed in hard. She let Anna take the bucket from her and rolled back into the warm bliss of blankets that were now wrapped around her. Shade let the darkness fill her vision until nothing but quiet and black cocooned her.