Pure Magic (Ballad of the Seer, Book One)

Chapter 28 - Lost and Found

"What are you doing?" Duncan asked. There was a hint of amusement in his voice.

Lily looked over at him, sitting in the window seat, in her bedroom. The light from the windows made it look like his tawny hair was glowing, giving the illusion that he had a halo. It was almost hard to be annoyed at him, but somehow she managed. She glared. "I'm trying to concentrate. And it isn't easy with you talking every two minutes."

"Why do you need to concentrate?"

Lily sighed. "Ms. Birch said that I should try meditating. She thinks it'll help me get a better understanding of myself and help me tap into that power."

He rolled his eyes. "You said it yourself, you need a strong emotional reaction to trigger it. Meditating isn't going to do anything but make you bored."

"Do you have any better ideas?" Lily asked, annoyed.

He smiled mischievously. "I can think of a few things." He moved to sit beside her on the floor. She turned to face forward and closed her eyes again. She felt her hair slide across her shoulder as he pushed it to the other side. His lips softly kissed her collarbone. A jolt of electricity ran through her whole body at his touch. She tried to hide how much he affected her. She bit her lip to keep from smiling. "Stop it." she said, without any conviction, at all.

Duncan's lips moved up her neck. With two fingers, he pulled her face towards him. She opened her eyes to his beautiful green eyes. He smiled for a moment, before leaning in for a real kiss. When their lips met it was just like the first time. She instantly felt the warmth of his love for her, and she knew he would be feeling the same. Nothing could ever separate them.

Lily's eyes opened. For a moment she expected Duncan to still be there with her. Until she remembered what had happened. Her heart sank.

She sat up and found Jack sitting at the foot of her bed.

Jack reached out to hold her hand. "I'm so sorry, Lily."

Jack's sorrow multiplied her own, leaving her sobbing uncontrollably. Jack scooted forward and put his arms around her. She cried on his shoulder for several minutes. When the tears subsided she hugged him. "Thanks for letting me blubber on your shoulder."

"Anytime."

The door opened and Jack jumped up off the bed. Lily remembered how he used to do that when they were dating, whenever her parents would come into her room. Clearly some habits were hard to break.

It was only Dianna. "What happened to you?" she asked, plopping down on the foot of the bed. She then turned to stare at Jack. She looked back at Lily with a raised brow.

"It's a long story." Lily said. "The important thing is that warlocks have Duncan, and I have no clue how to get him back before they hurt him. Or worse."

Dianna got a strange look on her face. "Um, pause and rewind that. He knows your secret?" She pointed to Jack.

"I do," Jack answered. "You know her secret, too?" he asked Dianna.

Dianna ignored him, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why did you tell him?"

"I didn't exactly. He kinda figured it out." Lily realized that neither of them knew the whole story. Not even Duncan knew everything. She supposed this was as good a time as any to come clean and bring them up to speed. She started by telling Dianna about Jack's condition.

Dianna's eye shot to Jack. "Is that why we found you naked in the road?"

"Yeah," Jack nodded. "When did you find out?"