THE FINAL
On the way home, I told them everything that I had found out, and they told me what they knew. Yes, the man I had rescued was Zane. Yes, they knew wizards existed, but they hadn't known that any were here. I heard most of it, but I was tired and worried and I think a little drunk on magic.
“We are The Ordo Hermeticus Fidelis,” Reika explained. “The Order of the Loyal Hermit. An ancient order of magic that has been around for many centuries.”
She said it with real pride, which I thought was kind of strange since she had been so intent on getting the heck out of there. So far as I could tell, the order wasn't very nice. “Didn't seem very hermit-y to me,” I said, remembering the slew of people there.
“We study individually, but practice as a whole. Or at least, we used to before Markus took over as the order’s leader. He...he wants to be worshiped. He ruins what the order ought to be.”
That I could believe. I hadn't known him for very long, fifteen minutes, max, but I got the feeling that Reika was absolutely right. He had the perfect woman on one side and Connie on the other. She was his daughter, Reika told me. I wasn't surprised by that, I had already expected it.
“We aren't bad,” she promised, “We simply believe in the order of magic. That it shouldn't be practiced by just anyone, that you need to earn the right to its power.”
I frowned. “Sounds kinda high-minded to me. Like...classist magic.”
She gave me a look that said I was being stupid. “You can do more with magic than you can with a gun. Do you want everyone in the world to have a gun?”
I didn't have a lot of hard fast rules on the subject of gun control other than 'I don't think bad people should have them.' “That doesn't feel fair,” I finally said. “A gun is just a weapon; its only use is to hurt something. Magic can heal and stuff, too.”
She sighed and rolled her eyes. I could see that this was a conversation she'd had before and didn't want to have again. That was fine. I didn't want to have it either. I had a lot to think about. “The Order is afraid that if you, a practitioner of witchcraft, has the child, then that will flavor the magic that the world receives.”
I sighed. “Ah, this isn't the good vs. evil prophecy; this is the law vs. chaos one. Got it.”
“You are strange.”
There was a chorus of laughter from the men. Even Wei. No, I realized, especially Wei. He loved me. I was absolutely sure of that. His slight chuckle was another man's belly laugh. His small flick of interest was equal to my squeal of fangirl delight. He loved me, and I think he had from the beginning.
“You're also bleeding,” Reika said, pointing to my side.
“Shoot,” I said, remembering the cut I had received. That last gush of adrenaline was fading, and with Reika's words, it was disappearing entirely. “Yeah...I am.”
“Pull over,” Wei said. “I will drive.”
I glanced over my shoulder and then pulled off so that we could switch places. He paused long enough to touch my shoulder. His eyes were like black fire inside his handsome face. His hair was a mess. “You did well.”
I felt a strange flutter in my stomach. Maybe it was adrenaline. Yeah, I was going to blame that. I cleared my throat and nodded before taking a spot next to Alan. His arm went around my shoulders and I took it for the comfort that he intended it to be. Dmitri, who I knew he cared about, was laying across the seat with his head in Alan's lap.
“So,” Alan said, “this changes things.”
“Changes what?” I asked.
“You need to choose your partner,” Wei said from the front seat. “And you need to choose now.”
Oh, right. That....
To Be Continued.....
* * *
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