No time
780 Words
(Jordan POV)
Awareness returned slowly, my vision going from black to gray to color. A furry face stared down at me, nose twitching.
"You need vodka."
"No, Randolph,” I croaked. “I’m pretty sure I don’t.”
Randolph patted my cheeks.
"Well, Patrick doesn’t have chocolate. Which I’m planning to take up with him."
I blinked and realized that I was lying on the bar at the Couldron. No wonder Randolph had recommended vodka.
All around, my friends’ faces came into focus. Friends that had taken me in since a lead led me to London to look for the cure for this rechid. curse. They had given me a safe place to stay and helped me follow leads. no matter were they took me.
“The others are at the scene,” Linc said. “Trying to sort things out.”
I groaned and sat upright, my insides still feeling like I’d been ripped apart. It was a physical pain, kind of.
“How long was I out?”
“Twenty minutes since we brought you back,” said, Linc his eyes dark with concern.
“We?”
“I couldn’t carry you on my own,” Alex explained.
“Thanks.” I looked at Linc. “You?” He nodded.
“You were like a sack of potatoes the whole way back.”
“I’ve been called worse.” I climbed off the bar and sank onto a stool.
“You don’t feel any better, do you?” Alex asked. “Still look like warmed-up porridge.”
I grimaced. “And that’s the worst.”
" Friends tell the truth."
“Thanks, Ralph.” I tried to catch my breath, but it was hard. I shouldn’t be panting. Not now. Not after resting for twenty minutes.
“I don’t have a ton of power,” Alex said, “but I can give it a try.”
“Do it.” I stuck my arm out toward her, hoping her magic would let her get a feel for what the hell was wrong with me.
As Alex rested her fingertips gently on my skin, I could feel the gazes of my friends. The worry radiated from them like the stink from an old gym bag, but nice. Kind of.
While I appreciated that they were concerned, I wasn’t keen on them directing it at me. I’d prefer to pretend everything was normal.
My soul, however, wasn’t in the mood to pretend. Alex rested her fingertips on my arm for the briefest second, then gasped and jerked her hand away. I whipped toward her.
“What is it?” “Um…” She frowned. “You’re kind of…broken.”
“Broken?”
“Something inside you. Like your magic is trying to separate from your body.”
“Damn it, that’s exactly what it feels like.” I grimaced, wishing that I’d been exaggerating things in my head.
“What do I do?”
“Get control of it,” Alex said. “Soon.”
Considering that I’d just thrown a ten-ton trash bin across the street by accident, I could see the value in her words. And the fact that I wasn’t sure I could walk added an extra incentive. The only problem was…
“How? I don’t even know what I am anymore.”
“We need to figure it out,” Linc said.
I frowned, thinking of Raiden and Kyran.
“That’s not the only thing we need to figure out. What was he doing in London?”
“That’s a problem for Raiden to deal with.”
“And me. It’s my fault we are in this mess.”
“Hell, no, it’s not,” Linc said.
“It was my plan.”
“And it was a good plan. But not your fault.” I shrugged.
“Anyway, they’re connected. I know it. The man who
“This has to do with your mothers past, too,” Alex said. “It must. You need to figure out what you are.” Easier said than done. I nodded.
“I know. But first things first, I need to find a pain potion if I’m going to survive this.”
Alex swallowed hard, her eyes dark with worry.
“Yeah, you need to hurry.” I squinted at her.
“What didn’t you tell me?” She drew in an unsteady breath.
“You don’t have a lot of time.”
“What do you mean?” A chill raced down my spine.
“I mean that if you don’t figure this out soon, you’re only going to get worse. Your magic will tear you apart.”
- Writer
