Chapter 11
Somehow, we made it back to the hotel without Justus and Adam killing each other. After Justus made a player’s catch, he divulged a little information that was convincing enough for us to talk with him privately. I was pretty surprised that Adam was agreeable to this, but maybe Justus had some answers I was looking for.
“Get out,” Justus barked at Adam. “This does not involve humans.”
“He stays or you go,” I said. Justus narrowed his eyes and tried to burn a hole in my head with them. I drew the line at excluding Adam.
Reluctantly, Justus found a chair, took a seat, and changed my life with a single word—Mage.
The very first thing he explained was that the word Mage did not have the same definition among Breed as the one I associated with it. Breed—meaning there were actually other species out there that were non-human.
According to Mr. De Gradi, a Mage was a type of Breed that could harness and manipulate energy in various ways. They didn’t work magic or spells, nor were they sorcerers. The simple truth was that a Mage was created from a human upon special selection. The reason he caught me so fast is that a Mage could ride a current of energy and move at impossible speeds at short distances. Some called them lightwalkers, but the common term was Mage and it was an honor to be made.
Some honor. I got the short end of the honor stick, or got beat by it.
“We live among humans, but we are not bound by human laws. Each Breed has its own social order, and we must abide by it. There are consequences for breaking laws, and the one universal rule we never break is to reveal ourselves to humans.” A deliberate glare fell on Adam.
“Why?” I asked. Seemed like a reasonable question, after all we were civilized now.
“Humans fear what they cannot have, and that is not a cliché. It has become much easier in today’s world to not be noticed. Despite their obsession with the paranormal: Vampire bars, animal pattern tattoos or altering their eyes with special contacts—humans want to feel safe. They want to be tucked in each night and know that there are really no monsters under the bed. It is safer to remain as we do and you’ll find there are many cities which are thick with Breed.”
“Like the middle of nowhere Tennessee?” I mocked.
“I travel.”
“Whatever.”
Adam stayed quiet on the sidelines listening as his fingers worried his chin.
“No pun intended, huh?”
“You’ve got quite a mouth on you.”
Adam lifted a finger. “And you better watch yours.”
I held my hand out before Adam started up again. “So what tipped you off that I was like you…a Mage?
Adam scraped his teeth over his bottom lip and I could tell despite the drive he was still pissed off. “Was it when you grabbed her?”
“No” Justus replied. “I saw it in her eyes. The light was there and it is unmistakable. Do not question my intentions, human. You do not play by the same set of rules we do.”
“I’ve never seen anything with her eyes. When she was emotionally charged there was an incident, but that’s all.” Adam shifted in his chair and worked his jaw to the side.
The only thing I gave him was a sour look. Now was seriously not the time.
Justus examined our body language and a smirk lit up his eyes. “Perhaps,” he let slide off his tongue, “she wasn’t charged enough by your encounters.”
Ouch.
Adam looked at me almost accusingly. “What were you two doing?”
But it was Justus who replied back. “Nothing I would recommend her ever doing with you, human.” There was a verbal warning stretching across the room like invisible daggers. “You cannot touch her, and she definitely cannot touch you.”
Adam exploded onto his feet and Justus rose simultaneously. “Are you challenging me? Step outside and we’ll settle this like men. I only brought you here for information. You keep your insults in check or I’ll knock you on your face.”
I just sat back ringside, half-amused by the level of testosterone but equally unsure of how to handle the situation or even, whose side to take. Justus was out of line for playing instigator but I wasn’t ready to kick him out just yet. He knew more about me than even I did.
“Our kind does not mix with yours for a reason. I will say no more in the presence of the human. I must speak with you alone.”
“Adam,” I begged, searching for some kind of understanding. It was then that I saw the look in his eyes—as if I betrayed him. When he left the room without a word, I sunk in the red chair—miserable with guilt.
"Were you not approached to become one of us?”
“Attacked would be a better word.”
My chin rested against my knee as I idly picked at my toenail. Did he think I understood anything he was talking about? I was still trying to get over the fact that he referred to Adam as a human. Sparkler fingers or not, I still thought of myself as human. Justus suddenly grabbed both sides of the chair and shook it.
"Pay attention, you repeatedly try my patience."
“Get out of my face,” I yelled. I wasn’t a fan of space violation, and his car was parked over the line.
"Who is your Creator?" When he stepped back, I looked at him with a measured degree of restraint.
"I don't know."
"Learner, you would be attended by your Creator through your first years. You appear in a human bar and pretend to not know the custom of introduction; did someone put you up to this to gain information? Who is your Creator?"
“I. Don’t. Know.”
“LIAR!” he roared as his body swayed forward like a dog on a tether. “How can you NOT know?”
"Because maybe he’s a rogue, a criminal, ever think of that? Don’t you think it’s possible there are Creators who break your laws? I don’t know why I am what I am, or even how. All I can tell you is that this man sliced my throat and left me for dead in the middle of an open field. I’m sorry if I didn’t have a chance to exchange fucking names!" I screamed back. “So you can take your self-righteous ass to the bank and deposit that. And by the way, you approached me in that bar, not vice versa. So don’t play off like I’m trying to come after you for something.”
Justus swayed with a blank expression. "He hurt you…your Creator?”
Tapping my head in annoyance I said, “Are you listening? He killed me. Dead, as in my heart stopped.” I threw my head back and closed my eyes. “Doesn’t matter, you won’t find him anyhow. He’s probably dead.”
"First of all, you didn’t die. Second of all, how is it possible he would be dead?" Justus stared down his nose at me like a child who was making up a story so they wouldn’t get in trouble.
"Before we take this conversation any further then you need to know one thing—I fucking died. I’m not going to play ring-around-the-rosy about it either, accent it or don’t but quit challenging me on it. If that’s not how a Mage is made then I guess he broke some rules. He’s probably in the cemetery because in the end I heard a loud noise, like a shotgun."
He dropped his arms and turned away. "This is unprecedented."
"Yeah, tell me about it."
Justus finally took a seat by the window.
"After my body changed I started to notice something was off. I shocked Adam with my hands as if they were a pair of CPR paddles.”
"New body?"
I gave my hands a magical wave over myself. “And you said there was no magic involved.”
"You woke up changed…physically?"
"No, I woke up as myself in a body bag full of my own blood.” He cringed when I brought up that juicy little tidbit. “I changed later, I was still unconscious but Adam saw every mesmerizing detail of it."
Justus flew out the door, which thumped against the wall on his exit. A couple of minutes later he returned with Adam tracing his steps.
"Please, sit," Justus said as the door clicked shut. He motioned Adam towards the table who gave me an inquisitive glance before obliging him.
"I would not involve a human in Breed matters as this is not within the law, but you already know more than you should. I need you to tell me what happened to this Learner; she says that you witnessed her body change and I want to know every scrap of fact.”
Thirty minutes later, Adam divulged every detail of my transformation—some of which he never mentioned to me. Hearing it out loud, knowing it was fact made me question the sanity in that room. It didn’t seem possible in a world of science that magic really did exist.
Adam wasn’t without his own questions. “You said juicers steal from humans?”
“Only the strung out ones will attack humans—they’re just a sampler. A human doesn’t hold as much energy and they will die when used up. The high you get from juicing a human is not as gratifying and it requires more to get their fix, which is why there are often multiple attacks. It makes them easy to find, they get sloppy. That’s why most hunt for unprotected Learner’s. A Mage can be used repeatedly as an infinite source of power, and that is very desirable for a juicer.”
“What did you mean by conceal?” I asked.
“It is custom that we do not conceal entirely in a human establishment. We flare, it’s our call mark. Once a Mage picks up the flare of another, you either introduce yourself or face the consequences. I can’t pick it up on one so young since you don’t know how to flare. Until you are properly learned, you must be escorted in public. I’m not interested in learning you. Right now, I need to learn from you. Who is your maker?”
Only this time when he asked the question it was indirect, as if he were asking himself.
“If you say you were killed, then no one has ever created a Mage under these circumstances. It is transference of power, a consensual act. Progeny belong to their Creator’s until they are fit to become independent. You may not realize what that means now, but your life is no longer your own.”
“I don’t belong to anyone. The man who made me has no rights, none whatsoever, after leaving me to die. That, my friend, is what I consider disownment. He relinquished his rights to me the minute that blade touched my neck.”
“Define, belong.” Our heads turned simultaneously to Adam.
His eyes fell on me, weighted with concern. “You will be free of him only upon his death, or official disownment of you. And the latter would be more likely. That can only be made official in front of the Council, otherwise he has fair claim whenever he chooses to take it.”
“Like an unclaimed lottery ticket.” Adam sighed. “You mention a Council so I’m assuming you have your own laws. If what he did was—”
Justus waved his hand up. “We have no laws for what he has done to create her. So with that, I don’t know how much of the law applies. No one dies during the exchange. I do not know how that is even possible. It is a great honor and privilege to be made. I cannot explain the transformation—only the Creator knows the magic; perhaps he has a special gift.”
Justus turned his attention to me. “And that was no gunshot; it was the first spark of your life as a Mage.” His eyebrows pressed down, shrinking the color from his eyes and I saw something in there I didn’t like—pity.
“I don’t want to belong to anyone.” I looked to Adam for support.
Adam ruffled his wavy hair, now a good three inches long and made a decision.
“Zoë stays with me as long as she needs, but she is her own. She didn’t consent to any of this and does not belong to your…kind.”
I should have liked to hear those words but for some reason I was bothered by them. Adam still saw me as different and wanted to keep me from what I was. I didn’t mind the security of his protection, but if his intentions were to shelter me I was going to have a problem with that.
Justus on the other hand was infuriated, and it showed in the accusatory finger-pointing. “If she does not comply with our laws, she will be considered a rogue! Her maker will know her; he can sense his own. Let me put a fright in you—that he may already have watch on her and is deciding this very moment her fate.”
Adam’s face worried as he rubbed his hand across his frown. We both knew that to be true.
“A human could never offer the protection she requires. Eventually, she’ll run into another Mage and will be taken—used. You carry his mark; for better or worse you are his.”
Something flashed across his face. “I will speak to the Council to be placed as your Ghuardian. I will deal with him if he comes to claim you, if the Council learns of the conditions in your making they may be lenient and for him to relinquish his rights.”
“You are marked. We are all marked” Justus rose to his feet and lifted his shirt above the belly button revealing with pride what could have easily resembled a small tattoo. It was an inch long on his stomach in the shape of an unfamiliar symbol. “Upon your making you take the mark of your Creator.”
“Nice tattoo.”
His eyes shrunk into tiny slivers that set those golden lashes aflame. “Why don’t you show me yours? I showed you mine.”
“I just bet you’d like that.”
“Your mark will reveal who your maker is, it is unique to only him and all his progeny carry it.”
“Are you bleeding?” While I noticed the tear in his shirt, I hadn’t been paying attention to the dark stain around it. I guess I thought it was dirt or mud but when I finally saw the smear of red against his skin it became evident he was hurt.
“Yes, but I’ll heal.”
“You’re saying that a Mage heals differently?” Adam asked.
The shirt fell loose and Justus tucked his hands over his waist. “I’m saying we are immortal, human. If the mark is known by the Council, it will identify her Creator.”
“Again, I’m not marked. I think I’ve taken enough showers in the past few weeks to do the whole getting to know me bit." Anger was flaring.
Primarily the reason I was angry was the way Adam was looking at me. I couldn’t tell if it was fear or repulsion, but it struck a chord deep inside.
“I saw your shoulder Zoë, it shouldn’t have healed that fast.”
I placed my feet on the cheat carpet and stood up. “You need to leave.”
“Are you refusing my offer?” His nostrils flared. “Think carefully before you answer.”
“I know it’s hard to believe a girl would turn you down, but yeah, I’m refusing you.” I shot him a defiant look, my fingers digging into my palms, anger bubbling up like a bad case of indigestion.
“You need to be measured.”
“Measured?” Okay, at that point I was yelling a little bit. “Maybe you’re a rogue, what makes you think I could trust you? I have a life to get back to that doesn’t involve playing with your magical wand.”
He widened his stance and folded his arms. “You have no respect.”
“Don’t you dare talk to me about respect,” I fumed, going over each syllable. “You think I owe you respect after what your kind did to me, what I was turned into against my will?”
I walked right up to this man who turned my entire world upside down and pushed him.
“Get. Out.”
Adam went rigid, but he did not interfere. That’s what made me even angrier—because Adam always came to my defense. Now I was alone.
“Holy shit Z, your eyes.” he breathed.
Electrical impulses generated in every fiber of my being. My eyes were locked on Justus, and I was pissed. Justus rested his thumb on my temple and in the flecks of his eyes were tiny flashes of light. He looked surprise and suddenly broke contact dropping his hand.
I could barely stand. I was spinning.
“What did you do to her?” Adam moved to grab me but Justus knocked him to the ground sending one of the chairs flying against the wall. Adam looked ready to knuckle up, but Justus held him firm with his forearm.
“Back off, human! She is a conduit; you cannot touch her when she’s charged. If you do,” he growled in Adam’s face, “you’ll know what it feels like to be a bug in a zapper.”
“Make it stop,” I gasped. It was moving within me like an animal in a cage—growling, thrashing, and snapping.
Justus appeared back in my line of vision. “Look at me, Learner. You must level down.”
My hand was pulled over his wound and drew in a deep breath. Spider webs of thin bluish light, barely visible to the naked eye, threaded between us. There was a connection forming, like a rush of wind down my neck and through my hair. Justus stepped closer—our bodies nearly pressed.
“Release it into me.” His voice was soft, and demanding. “You know what to do, listen to what your body wants to do. It’s leading you.”
His breath touched my face as his lips whispered into my ear. I wasn’t sure what he meant, but my body reacted in a way that felt shockingly natural. A pulse of energy left through my fingers so quickly that once it was released my knees gave. Justus caught me with his right arm and set me on the bed.
I was freezing, and my teeth began to chatter.
Adam was perched against the wall looking at us through his peripheral.
My confusion rose when I looked at Justus. His head was tilted back, eyes hooded and mouth parted as if he were being serviced.
Suddenly his hand came down over my face and caressed my neck. A thumb settled over my throbbing cheek and a flash of white heat penetrated from his touch. Within seconds…the pain simply vanished. He traced the outline of my jaw with his fingers as a lover might.
“I want you to leave.” My head jerked away.
“As you wish, Learner.”
***
I stood in the bathroom pulling a tank top over my head. It was as if all the warm energy had been expelled when I released into Justus, and even after a hot shower, I still felt like ice was running in my veins. Adam was unresponsive. After Justus left, he avoided me.
Completely.
When the door cracked open, Adam was lying on the bed in his black cozy sweats, shirtless with his arms behind his head. He didn’t really have much chest hair; most of it was dark and fine against his tan.
“Hmmm,” he chuckled. “Shorts?”
I glanced down at my boy short panties. “You do the laundry, you should know.” There was an awkward pause.
The air conditioning was cranked on level Siberia. I shivered, tiptoeing to the other side of the bed. Adam stretched out as if he were a cat basking in the sun watching every move I made from the corner of his eye. A gust blew my hair forward and I captured it.
“So how are we going to do this?”
“I prefer to be on top if you don’t mind.” A subtle wink.
“Excuse me?” I gasped.
When he caught my expression his body shook, muscles tightening as he laughed out loud. Snatching the pillow from beneath his head, he covered his face. I’m the girl with all the lines so when the table was turned and I was caught off guard it only peeved me off. I folded my arms and gave him an evil eye powerful enough to reduce the pillowcase to ash.
When he uncovered his face, he peered up at me fluffing the pillow behind his head.
“Covers, I mean. I’m a perfect gentleman so don’t give me your look.” Those eyebrows wiggled mischievously. “Baby doll, I can’t sleep on that hard floor and be functional tomorrow. The bed is large enough so I think you should be able to keep your hands off of me, being that I’m so irresistible to you,” he said wistfully, turning his back to me.
He was irresistible—he just didn’t have a clue.
Tugging the end of the comforter off the bed, I curled up on the floor. The sheets rustled and a voice hung over the bed.
“What are you doing?” he spoke softly. “I swear I won’t lay a finger on you, if you won’t trust me then you can have the bed.”
“No.”
“Then come up, I’m not letting you sleep on the floor,” he said, as his anger began to surface. “Are you mad at me?”
“It’s not too late to back out Adam.” I looked over my shoulder. “You don’t have any obligations to me and I won’t judge you, I won’t even blame you so it’s not something you have to carry on your conscience.”
Adam threw his legs over the bed and scooped me up in his arms.
“I meant what I said—some men stick around. I’m one of those men. You think I’m going to turn my back on you just because of a little static?”
That set me to laughing, a welcomed distraction from the press of his bare chest.
Adam dropped me so I bounced twice and threw a sheet over me, switching out the light. As promised, he took the other side lying on top of the covers.
I made a short groan and rolled over.
“What’s wrong?”
“If you hand me a book I could read to you in this light,” I laughed, staring at the window. The streetlight was right outside the window and streaming in.
A minute later Adam got up and went into the bathroom. After I heard a few noises, the light switched off and Adam moved quietly back into bed. I lay unmoving, pretending I was asleep.
A shadow went across my face and I felt something brush over my eyes. I reached up and saw Adam with a strip of material that looked like a long carefully cut…blindfold? It was one of his T-shirts.
“And what is this for?”
He spoke very softly. “You said you couldn’t sleep. I want you to trust me Zoë.”
Bottom line that’s what it was all about. I’m not sure why it was so important that Adam gain my trust but it was what he had always been seeking. He said it as if he were the kind of man who couldn’t be trusted and he was trying to redeem himself. There was no need.
“I trust you.”
Adam reached around and secured the tie in the back, his thick fingers fumbling with the edges until they were pulled over my eyes comfortably.
“We’re going to take this one day at a time and figure it out, maybe there’s a way to undo what was done. I don’t want you to worry about anything.”
“If I didn’t know better I’d say you’ve done this before.” His fingers hesitated as they adjusted the last bit.
“All good?” he asked. “Not too tight?”
“Yeah, just lead me to the barrel of apples.” I chuckled.
“Zoë, what did you think of what Justus said?”
A thought twisted in me like a root. The way Adam looked at me when he saw what I truly was. “I wouldn’t have believed if him before this happened to me, but I am different and I know what I am now—a freak.”
“You’re not a freak. And if anyone ever says anything like that to you I will personally beat the shit out of them.”
The bed shifted and while I couldn’t see anything, I felt Adam turn his back on me. But in reality, I knew he never would.