Cursed: Out of Ash and Flame by E.C. Farrell (epub e ink reader .txt) ๐
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- Author: E.C. Farrell
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I glare around the perimeter. Very few dogs and their owners trot through the park, and most head toward their cars. Paranoia pulls at my gut. After headphones girl, I donโt trust the looks of anyone within our near vicinity.
โDo you see her?โ I ask Max.
โNo,โ Max says, running a hand along his jaw as we approach the benches near the fountain.
It bubbles at the center of a wide lake. The wind scatters droplets of water from its spray across the rippling surface. A small group of ducks paddle quickly toward a cluster of bushes on the other side. Even these creatures put me on edge, my mind conjuring up images of them shifting into human form to attack.
I rub my bare arms as the wind kicks strands of hair across my face. โDo you think she lied to Brynn?โ
โI donโt know.โ Max shoves his hands into his pockets. โShe is really good at that.โ
A nearby voice โ oddly musical in its tone and tempo โ makes Max and me flinch. โWhat a way to speak of your mother.โ
Out of pure instinct, I grip Maxโs wrist as I look toward the source of the statement. The water a few feet off the bank lifts slowly. It arcs over us to form a shimmering orb, cutting off the wind and all other sound. I cringe as it then dissipates, leaving behind the same enclosed feeling, almost like weโre in a bubble.
Again, the water in front of us transforms, coalescing into the iridescent form of a woman. Thick, long hair floats around her, smooth like sea grass, and her smile reveals pearl-like teeth. Max inches closer to me, pressing his hand into mine. His mouth twists into a disgusted sneer as my own emotions catch up, now sprinting past the shock of this truly odd situation.
I look back at the woman made of water, fury and disappointment burning through my veins. โAline Avila?โ
The woman winks. โYou requested a meeting. This is the best I can do under the circumstances.โ
Max swears. โThe best you can do? We havenโt seen each other in four years and you show up as a water projection?โ
I dig into my memory, trying to come up with everything I know about water spirits taking this form, trying to remember if thereโs any way to trap her. Unfortunately, unless I can get out of the neutralizing spell, none of my magic will work. Then again, I am pretty fast ...
Aline pouts. โI did send a gargoyle out to protect you.โ
โTo put me right back where I was before.โ Max throws his free hand into the air. โHiding and running might be fine for you, but itโs not for me.โ
โIโm sorry,โ she says. โI know it isnโt fair. That harpy shouldnโt be going after you at all. She wants justice, yet she does violence to it herself.โ
Max spits out what sounds like a string of curses in Portuguese.
โWatch your language,โ Aline says. โI didnโt raise you to speak in such a way.โ
โYou barely raised me at all.โ Max scoffs.
โHang on.โ Tightening my grip on Maxโs arm, I fight to keep my voice even in spite of my growing irritation. โYouโre the one linked to the disappearance of Irisโ brother. If you clear a few things up it might solve this whole mess and save your sonโs life. We know you didnโt kill him, so talking to Iris about what happened shouldnโt be a problem.โ
Aline glides a little closer, her expression still smooth, almost serene. โAre you not a bounty hunter, young phoenix? You should know better than anyone how complicated truth is. Would you have me suffer for a decision he made himself?โ
A new layer of musicality laces through her words. Warmth rolls out from the center of my chest and across my skin as the beauty of her features intensifies. All my frustration and anger fade, slipping below the surface as a deep desire to agree with everything she says swells above it.
โIt is complicated,โ I say in a breathy whisper.
Max pinches my arm so hard I yelp.
โWhy...โ That pleasant feeling from his momโs magic evaporates and I scowl. She must have a unique neutralizing spell, one that only allows her magic through. โNo. This isnโt a complicated question. Joel Smith committed suicide after you broke up with him. If you had nothing to do with that, then you should want to help his sister try to find closure.โ
Aline glares at Max. โThere are many unforgivable things in this world, filho, but going against your own mother...โ She shakes her head. โI offered you a way out of all this. Go with Brynn back to your people or turn yourself in to Iris Smith. Youโre grown now, so that is your choice, but do not expect me to do something against my own self-interest.โ
In an instant, her form loses its shape, splashing back into the water before I can react, taking both her neutralizing spell, and our last hope, along with her.
18.
WITH A GROWL OF FRUSTRATION, Max tries to dive into the water after her. I claw at his arm, barely restraining him, my shoes sliding on the damp grass. As much as I want to do the same thing, thereโs no way weโll be able to follow her. At least not that way.
Max thrashes against me, but only for a moment before sinking into a crouch, elbows on his knees. โI donโt know why Iโm surprised,โ he says, hardly loud enough to even be called a mumble.
I shove my nails through my hair, digging them into my scalp, using this small amount of pain to try and ground myself. โIโm sorry, Max.โ
Rage fogs my brain. Aline Avila works out of the same handbook my dad does; her solution is the only solution, take it or leave it.
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