Page 18 of Tricky Magic
Her uncle was sitting up in a small bed with several pillows propping him up. She didn’t deserve the smile that crossed his face as she threw herself at him.
“I’m so sorry,” she cried into the warm blanket that covered his lap.
“Za, I’m fine.” He placed his hands around her cheeks, gently forcing her to look into his eyes. “It was an accident.”
“It shouldn’t have happened.”
“Well, it did, and crying about it won’t fix anything.” His voice was steady and stern as he searched her face.
He was completely healed already, and there was no trace of the gash he’d gotten when he hit the wall. The thought made her chest cave, and tears escaped her eyes.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“So I’ve heard.” He patted the spot next to him. “Sit, tell me what happened.”
Taking a deep breath, she told her uncle everything. Ellea started with Sybil’s vision, then her own, and then she filled him in on the details he may have missed about Isaac.
“It felt too real. When he placed his hand on my shoulder, it brought me back there. Then when he said ‘your powers combined with mine,’ I instantly thought of Mom and Dad, and it snapped something in me.”
“Did you ever think to explain your fears to him?” Felix asked.
“No; they are mine, and no one should be burdened with them. It is bad enough you, Billy, and Nana have to put up with me,” Ellea said quietly. “Plus, I was already over him.”
“We don’t put up with you; we love you and want you to be free from what your parents created. These fears are genuine, and you are allowed to have them. It is how you deal with them that matters.” Placing a hand on her chin, he forced her to see the truth in his eyes.
“I understand. It sounds easy, but it’s hard,” Ellea said as her bottom lip shook. “My life has been spent looking for ways to change, ways to control this monster that I am destined to become, and I’m tired of it. I’m so tired of being stuck on the path my parents paved.”
“I don’t think you are on a path at all. I think you are standing still, straddling the line of what our people expect you to be and what your magic naturally wants you to be,” he answered. He paused a moment before saying, “The fear your parents created is constantly at your back and you have not taken a moment to look forward.”
“Looking forward is a field of destruction with my parents at my side,” Ellea said coldly.
“No. That is only one vision. Have you ever thought that your fear is what is driving you toward that outcome?” Felix asked. “What if you embraced things as they are and started living your life, not worrying about what is in the past or the future that isn’t here yet?”
“It sounds so simple when you say it. But it’s not.” The mysterious man from her dream came to the front of her mind. Could she have what he was implying, freedom from fear and control of her magic?
A quick knock came before Luke poked his head in.
“We have a problem,” he said quietly as he slipped into the room. “Isaac’s dad is here with a couple council members.”
Ellea went to ask about her nana, but he shook his head.
“Not your nana. They look pissed, and I think you need to leave.”
Ellea’s eyes went wide as she looked at her uncle.
“Go, Zaza. You need a break, anyway. Go to our cabin, and I’ll come and get you when things quiet down. I don’t blame you for anything, but I don’t know what Isaac said to the council.”
She was half-tempted to let them take her; she deserved it.
Glenover sounds perfect. Maybe I’ll meet a wild mountain man to entertain me.
“Aiden is distracting them. If you’re going to go—”
“Go,” her uncle cut in.
“I love you,” she said, swiftly kissing him on the cheek.
She quickly wrapped her arms around Luke, and he kissed the top of her head.
