Chapter 11
“There was a time, ages ago now, when magic was accepted as a part of everyday life. Those who could use magic and control it, were highly regarded, and their services were sought after by the wealthy and the elite. Magicians, as they were called, often attended childbed and deathbed alike, as they had remarkable healing powers. Of course, their talents could also be put to use in a number of other ways as well. Some built great structures or created beautiful art, some used their powers to gather wealth and prestige, while others still preferred to live simply and stay close to nature. You see, nature is where magicians derived their power, which they held within themselves in their Second Heart.”
“This sounds like a fairy tale,” Vi interrupted rudely. She slouched down low in the couch with her arms across her chest.
Eleanor looked at her keenly. “Poor manners do not become you, Violet. Don’t let your envy turn you nasty.”
Vi sat up straight in her seat, defensively looking toward Meredith. “I’m always like this, aren’t I, Mere?”
Meredith shrugged, secretly thinking that Eleanor had touched a nerve in her friend. “Go on,” she urged quietly. To reassure Vi, Meredith reached over and took her hand, giving it a small squeeze.
“It has been many years since I have heard of the manifestation of a Second Heart, and it has never happened in someone as old as you are.” Eleanor chuckled at Meredith’s affronted expression. “That’s not to say you’re old, it’s just that it usually would happen around the age of eight or so.”
“So what happened?” Meredith asked impatiently. “Why did magic go from being commonplace to not existing?”
“Well, in short, someone decided to take all the magic for himself.”
“How?” Meredith pressed.
“Will you let me tell the damn story my own way?” Eleanor barked irritably.
“Sorry,” Meredith mumbled, pressing her lips together into a line. Vi giggled softly beside her.
Eleanor waited until she was sure that there would be silence before resuming. “The magician’s name was Aleric, and he had been living at the court of Lord Ulrich d’Eresby when he was dismissed after failing to save the Lady of the house during childbirth. Perhaps being cast out made him snap--I don’t know. Shortly after that, a rumor began to spread about magicians being murdered in cold blood. Some magicians chose to disbelieve the rumor, while others, wiser ones, went into hiding. After a time, it became certain that the rumors were true, but by then it was too late to do much about it. Aleric had become too powerful.”
Seeing that Meredith wouldn’t interrupt again, Vi boldly asked, “But how?”
Eleanor cast her a wearied expression, but answered her question. “There is a way to absorb magic from another magician, which is brutal and vile. It takes a truly cold heart to consider it.” She closed her eyes briefly, drawing a deep breath, as if haunted by the images in her mind. At last she said, “Aleric would cut out the other magician’s Second Heart. As the still-beating organ died in his hands, he could absorb its power into his own Second Heart.”
“That’s horrible,” Meredith exclaimed, instinctively placing a protective hand over her abdomen.
Eleanor agreed, “It was a terrible way to die.” She paused to take a steadying sip of her tea, looking blankly into space. Then, collecting herself, she went on, “It was in this way that Aleric was able to gather inside himself more power than any one person should ever possess.”
“So then when he died, did all the magic just die with him?” Vi asked, leaning forward in her seat.
“No, when a magician dies, the magic is given back into the Earth for safekeeping until another magician emerges.”
“Emerges?” Meredith asked, confused.
“Well, I don’t want to say born, because as I said, the Second Heart usually comes in at around age eight. Or in your case, later. You were not a magician last week, but this week you are. You have emerged as a magician. Matured, grown, developed. Call it what you will.”
Vi chimed in, “Wait, so then why haven’t any magicians ‘emerged’ since this Aleric guy came on the scene?”
Understanding, Meredith said, “Because Aleric didn’t die.”
Eleanor nodded, pleased that Meredith had come to the correct conclusion. “Aleric used his power to unnaturally prolong his own life for over a few thousand years. He’s held the magic within himself, until now.”
“Oh my God. The fires. The rain. Everything. That’s because the magic was going back into the Earth,” Vi said, agape.
“Yes, and at such a high volume, it was bound to make a splash,” Eleanor said with a dry smile.
“So what’s happening to me is connected to all these natural disasters,” Meredith said to herself, allowing the information to sink in. Then she asked, “So will other magicians besides me be emerging, too?”
Eleanor nodded again. “I would imagine so.”
Meredith’s eyes widened as her face paled. “Dr. Wells told me that there was another patient in Phoenix that she was going to go take care of. If she removes the Second Heart, like she would have with me, then he’ll die!”
The corners of Eleanor’s mouth tightened as she considered how to respond. The silence stretched on until finally she uttered, “Yes.”
“But we have to help him!” Meredith protested, standing up.
Eleanor’s face took on a look of profound sadness as she said, “Sit back down and I’ll explain to you just why we can’t do that.”
Siding with Meredith, Vi asked, “Can’t or won’t?”
To Meredith, Eleanor said, “Next time, leave your mouthy friend at home. Now sit down.”
Meredith reluctantly did as she was told. She crossed her arms over her chest, frowning, as she slumped onto the sofa.
“There is more of the story to tell, and I would prefer not to be interrupted again,” Eleanor said brusquely. She reminded Meredith of her strict, no-nonsense high school science teacher. “Now, you may find this hard to believe, but Aleric and I don’t exactly send each other Christmas cards every year. So, I don’t know why, after all this time, the magic that Aleric hoarded has been released.”
“Because he died, obviously,” Vi said.
Eleanor sent her a withering look. “This is a man who had the cunning and the cruelty to kill hundreds of people for his own gain, and then to use his abilities to live for thousands of years in order to amass even more power still. And you think he would just die?” She laughed without humor, swirling her tea around in the mug she held in her hand.
Meredith scrutinized Eleanor’s face, feeling as though the older woman was hiding something. “But you do think something happened,” she pressed.
Eleanor watched the tea splash around in her cup for a few moments before responding. “Immortality doesn’t exist. Aleric’s been hanging around for a very, very long time now, and his body might have failed him at last. All the magic in the world would not be able to sustain him forever.”
“I thought you said he wouldn’t die,” Vi asked earnestly.
“I said he wouldn’t just die. If you had built up a legacy over countless years and felt yourself to be dying at long last, what would you do?”
“He found a protégé,” Meredith surmised. “Someone to take over and carry on his life’s work, whatever it was.”
Vi nodded, impressed. “It’s what I would do.”
“Good,” Eleanor said, satisfied. “So now you understand why you must keep your newfound abilities an absolute secret. If, indeed, there is a protégé, he or she will likely be seeking to restore as much power to him- or herself as possible.”
Meredith felt her heart sink as she remembered the gaggle of reporters who were looking for her at the hospital. “They’ll target anyone who went to the hospital with stomach pains, won’t they?”
“That is the primary reason why I felt that I should work at a hospital myself. I wanted to have immediate access to anyone who might emerge as a magician,
” Eleanor said.
“Oh my God, Dr. Sparling was hanging around all evening, barely letting you out of her sight!” Vi gasped. “What if she is the protégé?”
“Maybe,” Eleanor conceded. “At the very least, I think it is likely that whoever it is will have people, knowingly or not, keeping an eye out for any unusual medical cases.”
Meredith was overcome with an acute sense of exposure as she considered all the paperwork she filled out at the hospital with her name and contact information on it. “What am I supposed to do?” she asked miserably. “The hospital has all my information. They even know where I go to school, because I have student health insurance. If someone wants to find me, they won’t have to look very hard.”
“I can help you there,” Eleanor said with a smug smile. She nodded at her purse that rested on the counter in the kitchen. Slowly, the handbag rose into the air and floated over to where Eleanor sat on the sofa. She reached up and caught it in her hands, setting it on her lap.
While the purse moved through the air, Meredith felt something, almost as if the air had shifted in the room. She and Vi watched in fascination, still unable to fully believe what their eyes were telling them. Eleanor caught them staring, and quipped to Vi, “It certainly can’t do any harm to remind you what I can do. Perhaps it will quiet that incessantly running mouth of yours.” She smiled to show that she was teasing, and then to Meredith she said, “You can feel the magic, can’t you?”
Meredith nodded slightly. “I think so. If that’s what I felt. Almost like a breeze, but not. Something else. It’s weird.”
“Your Second Heart gives you the sense that allows you to feel it when someone uses magic. It’s almost like sound. Bigger magic makes a bigger ‘sound’, and of course, proximity plays a role as well. As you grow into your new abilities, you’ll be able to recognize and better understand what you are sensing.” She unzipped her purse and dug around inside. She pulled out a bundle of folded up papers and tossed them to Meredith.
Meredith recognized them as the papers she had filled out at the hospital, her own handwriting staring up at her from the top of the page. “You stole these?”
Eleanor rolled her eyes and didn’t answer. Instead, she said, “Unfortunately, most of your information was also inputted into our computer system as well, and that’s not as easy to get rid of.”
“Can’t you just ‘magic’ it away?” Vi asked flippantly.
“Do you have any idea how obnoxious you are?” Eleanor returned with a shake of her head.
“Give it time, you’ll eventually find me endearing.” Vi smiled brightly, completely unperturbed by Eleanor’s obvious dislike.
Eleanor raised her eyebrows thoughtfully. “I doubt that, but I’ve learned to never rule out even the most unlikely of things.” Turning back to Meredith she said, “I was able to delete your information from the nurse’s station. However, it is still retrievable, if someone smarter than me cared to try. I don’t know enough about computers to completely eradicate your data.”
Meredith’s eyebrows drew together slightly. “Regardless of Vi’s tone, she did have a point. What about magic? Can’t you use it to make the information go away for good?”
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that. To use magic, you must have a thorough knowledge of the inner-workings of your subject. That is why, historically, magicians were also great scholars. Otherwise, you’d be shooting blind, so to speak.”
“Oh,” Meredith said, deflated. “Can’t you just make the computer tech spill a cup of coffee on the mainframe or something?”
Eleanor laughed heartily. “Oh dear, you watch too many movies.” She wiped a tear from her eye and said more seriously, “You need to operate on the assumption that people will find out who you are. All I did was slow them down a bit.”
“So you think I should go into hiding or something?” Meredith asked. She felt oddly detached from her situation, as if it were some other Meredith whose life was in danger. It couldn’t be her; she was just a normal girl who wanted to take care of sick animals. That’s all.
Eleanor spoke carefully, understanding that Meredith was taking a lot in. She didn’t want to overwhelm her, as so much was at stake. “It might be wise for now, until we can decide how to proceed. In addition, I am going to give you something that you must promise to keep on you at all times.”
“What is it?” Vi asked, her eyes alight with curiosity.
“You’ve got the patience of a teenaged boy on prom night,” Eleanor said dryly. She set her purse aside and stood up. “I’ll just go get it.”
While Eleanor was out of the room, Vi regarded Meredith carefully. “How you holding up, kid?”
Meredith met her friend’s eyes, unsure how to answer. “Half of me doesn’t believe it. The other half wants to run for the hills.” She chuckled in an attempt to relieve the tension that coiled up inside her, but the laugh didn’t reach her eyes. She whispered, “I think Eleanor is keeping something from us.”
Vi’s gaze sharpened. “I got that vibe, too.”
“What do you think it is?”
Eleanor returned to the room before Vi could respond. She resumed her seat on the sofa opposite Meredith and Vi, resting a small wooden box on her knee. She opened it, revealing a silver necklace almost exactly like the one she wore around her own neck. The red, acorn-sized stone glimmered softly in the lamplight from inside the felt-lined box.
Eleanor kept her eyes on the necklace as she lifted it gently from the box, allowing the stone to dangle in front of Meredith and Vi. “This is a thaelis. It will hide you from those who would try to find you via magical means.” She lifted her eyes to meet Meredith’s, brows arched. “It wouldn’t do you much good if you were to bump into each other on the street, but at least now they can’t cheat.” She smiled and gently handed the necklace to Meredith.
“Is that how you were able to find me and Vi in the storm? With magic?” Meredith asked as she took the necklace. It was heavier than she expected, and the red stone felt warm and smooth in her hand.
“Yes.”
“Does the necklace you wear hide you from Aleric?”
Eleanor considered how to answer the question. “Yes,” she said after a pause. “Among other things. A thaelis is special in that it can be imbued with a variety of different properties.”
Meredith stared at the red stone in the necklace, feeling a power radiating from it. She wondered if Vi would be able to feel anything at all, or if it was her Second Heart that allowed her to do so, like it had with the purse.
“What makes something a thaelis? Does it have to be a necklace? Or could it be like, a shoe or something?” Vi asked curiously.
Without raising her eyes, Meredith answered, “It’s the stone.”
“Yes, you can feel its power,” Eleanor answered sagely. “The stone is the thaelis. It could be a necklace, a bracelet, whatever. You could carry it in your pocket if you dared, though I wouldn’t recommend it. These stones are very rare and extremely valuable, and you don’t want to lose it. As long as you have it on you, it will protect you.”
Meredith hesitated to put the necklace on. “What else does it do? You said, ‘among other things’. I don’t care what else yours does, because I figure that’s personal, but what else does this one do?”
Eleanor looked surprised at the question. “Well, uh,” she stammered, “I’m not sure if I could enumerate all of its properties offhand, since it’s been around for a very long while, but it will give you a measure of protection against physical harm and sickness and things like that.”
Meredith frowned. “I don’t want to wear it unless I know what all it does.” She set the necklace down on the coffee table to emphasize her point, resting her hands in her lap. From the corner of her eye, she saw Vi smother a smirk behind her hand.
Eleanor’s eyebrows drew together in frustration. She hadn’t expected Meredith to give her any resistance. She picked up the necklace and held it out for Meredith again. “I
really cannot tell you what spells have been worked into this thaelis, but I can promise you that none were meant to do the wearer any harm. Further, you are in more danger from others than you are from me or this necklace.”
Meredith met Eleanor’s eyes cautiously, wishing she could read Eleanor’s mind and learn what the older woman was hiding. However, the earnest look in her eyes convinced Meredith that Eleanor was trying to help her, even if she wasn’t telling them everything she knew. Finally Meredith reached out and took the necklace, slipping it over her head and tucking the stone under her shirt. As the red stone came into contact with her skin, she felt its warmth seep into her and spread throughout her body.
“Good,” Eleanor said, satisfied. “Now we need to decide where you are to go.”
“We can’t just stay here?” Vi asked. Meredith was wondering the same thing.
Eleanor looked sad as she answered. “I don’t think it would be wise. If Aleric--or his protégé--found one of us, then he would effectively find both of us. We can’t risk staying together.”
Meredith blanched. She felt like Eleanor was her only lifeline into understanding her new status as a magician. “But what am I supposed to do? You told me I can’t ignore my powers, but you won’t stick around to teach me about them?”
“Of course I will. This is the twenty-first century. Have you heard of a telephone?” Eleanor scoffed. “You’ll get one of those throwaway phones and I’ll do the same. We’ll be able to talk to each other, and I will help you figure things out. For now though, you need to go where strangers won’t know to look for you.”
“Tonight?” Meredith pushed.
Eleanor sighed heavily, wearied by the late hour and the many questions from the women. “No, not tonight. You two can sleep on the couches out here while you think about where you will hide out. Now I am going to bed, and you two should, too. It’s been a long day.”