The Trouble with Spells

Chapter 18

Chapter 18 

    "His name is Damien Cummings," he whispered softly into my mind, and I knew exactly whom he was talking about.

    "How come his name is different than yours?" I asked aloud.

    "My mom changed ours so it would be harder for him to find us."

    I sat still, pondering this thought for a moment. It had never occurred to me he might be living under an alias. He was my Vance.

    "Vance is my real name," he whispered as he decoded my thoughts. "And I'll always be a Mangum. I'll never take my old name back again."

    "Where'd your mom get the name?"

    His face grew reflective for a moment, as if he were remembering a different time and place.

    "We passed through a small town in Oklahoma once, called Mangum. We were only there for a couple of days, but Mom was charmed by it. The people were so down to earth and very kind to us. Someday she hoped we could live somewhere just like that. I think changing our name to Mangum was a way of reminding herself that places full of good people still exist."

    "What a beautiful memory," I said.

    "Yes," he agreed.

    "You must really miss her."

    "I do, but I understand why she did what she did. I owe her my life. If she hadn't run with me, who knows what kind of disgusting creature I'd be now."

    "She'd be so proud of you if she could see you now. You're such a good, determined man."

    He sighed heavily, and I could see the subject was beginning to wear on him.

    "Let's get some sleep," he said. "You need your rest."

    "I'm not going to break, you know. You don't need to baby me," I replied with a small smile.

    "Well, get used to it, because I'm not going to stop anytime soon," he mumbled into my hair.

    It was the last thing I remembered before I closed my eyes.

    

    The next morning when I awoke, Vance was already gone. I had no idea what time it was since there were no windows in the basement and no clock nearby. I lay in the comfortable bed for several moments taking in the things that happened last night. Finally, I threw the covers back and placed my feet on the floor.

    As soon as I stood, the bed shrank back to its original form and folded itself against the wall.

    "I guess that's one way to get rid of company," I muttered to myself, staring in awe.

    Walking in a circle, I gathered the glowing crystals and carried them to the shelf, replacing them in their proper spots.

    "Good morning, sleepyhead," Vance's voice chuckled in my head. "Or should I say afternoon?"

    "Afternoon? What time is it?"

    "It's noon." He laughed. "I'm upstairs. Milly's feeding me lunch."

    I hurried to meet them, combing my fingers through my hair and rubbing at any dark circles that might be under my eyes.

    "Well, someone was tired!" Grandma laughed as I entered the kitchen.

    "Sorry," I apologized. "I think it was that dark basement. I had no idea what time it was."

    "That's just fine," she replied. "Vance said to let you rest because you tossed and turned all night."