Curses and Ash

Four

That's right, darling. They convinced you I was a demon, and you believed them. When you held my lifeless body, I felt very little remorse inside you. Guilt, yes, for what you had done, but you were relieved when you thought I was dead.

"How should I have felt?" Her voice came out with a hiss. "You taunted me! You lured me into your bedroom and then attacked me! I had to defend myself." She shook her head. "You of all people should have known, once I unleashed my magick, I couldn't turn back."

"Halen, the food is here!" Dax shouted from the other side of the door.

She jumped, clutching the towel tighter, and shifted the conversation to her thoughts. I have a Guardian, don't forget.

Dax knocked three times.

Yes, that is unfortunate. I have a plan for him.

Don't touch him! She slammed her free fist on the counter.

"Are you all right in there?" Dax's voice rose.

Best to keep our conversation a secret.

I can trust Dax.

Can you? How well do you know your Guardian?

"Halen?" Dax's knock turned to heavy pounding.

"I'm good. I'll be out in a minute." When she caught her reflection, Asair was gone. For now, anyway.

She quickly towel-dried her hair and changed while Asair's words lingered in her mind. She had just met Dax, but he had devoted his life to the Tari. Sure, he may have kept a few secrets, but Dax's lies protected all of them. Asair was playing another one of his games. This time, she wasn't falling for his tricks.

Dax's pounding grew louder. When she opened the door, he all but shouted at her. "You can't do that! I need to know what's going on with you at all times."

"Relax." She patted his chest and ducked under his arm. His hovering not only made her claustrophobic, but she had to be extra cautious in guarding her secret. She would tell him about Asair if she had to, but first, she needed to speak to her mom. If her mom could purge Asair, then Dax wouldn't need to know the truth.

She followed the scent of delicious french fries into the other room. Tage and Ezra hovered over the cart, shoveling food in their mouths.

"Care to join us at the apocalypse buffet?" Ezra waved his hand over the cart.

Tage elbowed him.

Halen snagged a french fry off one plate. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a flickering orange glow. At once, she dropped the fry. Waving her hand, she aimed.

Dax caught her wrist mid-swing.

"Tage's spell." He lowered her arm.

A rock spire jutted from the center of the glass coffee table; the fiery glow cast shadows along the wall. "I thought it was a fire. Sorry, I almost put out the protection spell."

Tage's gaze darted to the table and then to Dax. She nibbled her bagel without saying a word.

"Why don't you eat?" Dax stepped beside Halen.

Okay... They were giving off some pretty strange vibes. Normally, she would pry, but her secret was bigger. The less she pushed Tage, the better. "Any word from my mom or your dad?" she asked Dax.

"No, not yet. No news is good news—right?"

"Definitely," Ezra said, dipping several fries in ketchup. "Because the news sucks big-time right now." He nodded toward the television, where the news anchor sat behind his desk, stiff as a mannequin.