Spring Rain (11 page)

“Just struggling with my place in the world,
I guess,” she murmured. “I want to be more than Decker’s
counterbalance. It’s amazing, but I want to be me, too.”

“That’s understandable. Have you talked to
him about it?”

“Not yet.” Her gaze lingered in the
direction Decker had gone. “I, um, have a knack for art. I painted
this watercolor but …”

“You’re afraid to show him?”

She nodded. “It’s of him. He kind of has a
bit of self-hatred left, and my skill can’t handle too much
criticism yet. I’m still learning.”

Beck smiled. “Show him, Summer. Decker will
never, ever do anything to harm you. He might be overly honest
about it, but he’ll support you.”

“Yeah. Good advice. I’ll think about how to
tell him I want to carve out my own thing.” Her gaze sharpened and
rested on him. “Speaking of honesty … you’ve been a mess for a
while, Beck. Morgan needs you not to be, though, and so does the
Light. So you have to fix it,” she said wisely, gazing up at him.
“You have to bring her home somehow. You need your counterbalance,
and she needs you. What she’s going through is torture.”

“Yeah,” he agreed thoughtfully. “I know. I’m
just not sure how to make things better with the soul stone in the
mix.” It was more of an instinct than a choice, one that assured
him both that Morgan was meant to be his and that if something
happened to her, he would never regain any sort of peace of
mind.

“Oh, and make sure nothing happens to Noah.
Biji won’t admit it, but she likes him,” Summer added.

“I got that feeling, too.” Beck shifted
towards the direction of Decker, who led the blond haired Noah down
the hallway. “I’m just not sure if I can trust him or not.”

Noah could guess what the Light twin thought
of him by the look on Beck’s face. It was more than the fact that
he was a Dark witchling; it was their past between them, namely
Dawn and how Beck knocked her up then dumped her.

As much as Noah regretted severing ties with
his sister, he was just as angry about someone leaving his sister
in the situation she was in – pregnant, single and vulnerable to
the Dark that had consumed her.

“So, what’re you doing in town?” Beck asked
with forced friendliness.

The Light twin was different than Noah
recalled. Leaner, as if he’d lost a little weight, and wary where
he’d once been open and trusting. There was an edge to him that was
new. It didn’t take much for Noah to figure out what happened after
the incidents in December. He’d been unwittingly drawn into the
lives of the twins and Morgan in a way he wasn’t yet able to
extricate himself. At least, not until he saw his sister removed of
the Dark soul possessing her and Morgan safe.

“Keeping an eye on Morgan, like you
should’ve done,” Noah replied coolly. He had less patience than
normal thanks to one eye that was swollen shut and the accompanying
headache from his run in with Troy the night before. He’d been
knocked out by Dawn’s guys, but not before he managed to drain the
water from Morgan’s bathroom. He hadn’t known what happened until
he, too, woke up in the hospital earlier.

Red crept up Beck’s neck. While Decker was
known as the one to snap at the drop of a pin, Beck appeared ready
to take his brother’s place as the temperamental one. Before Beck
could say or do anything, Morgan’s door whipped open.

“I’m no one’s responsibility!” the fiery
witchling snapped and glared at both of them. The pupils of her
pine-colored eyes danced with fire, and her form was outlined by
tiny orange flames.

Beck rubbed the back of his neck, the
muscles of his jaw ticking, and Noah stayed quiet.

“Any idea where your sister is?” Summer
asked, her earth magick flowing around them in an attempt to keep
everyone calm. She had the same effect on him that she did
everyone, and Noah’s tense stance relaxed. Decker wrapped his arms
around her from behind and rested his chin on her head.

“No,” Noah lied. “I found Morgan by tracking
her phone.”

“Is that legal?” Beck asked.

Noah shrugged. “My dad runs a technology
company. We have connections.”

“You couldn’t do the same for Dawn?”

“No. She’s … just gone.” Noah didn’t know
what his sister had done to prevent Decker from tracking her. It
was not possible in the modern age for her to completely disappear
and not leave an electronic trace, which was how he’d found her
general location. But he couldn’t reveal that to the two men likely
to kill her. “And so is everyone with her. I found Morgan about a
month after she got here. Had to fix some … business concerns at
the company first. Dawn hasn’t tapped into what’s left of her trust
fund or anything.” He cleared his throat and felt his cheeks grow
warm. It was common knowledge his family was teetering on financial
ruin, and alluding to the fact the family funds were frozen was
embarrassing. “I haven’t seen Dawn here but noticed one of her Dark
witchlings follow Morgan home twice this past week.”

“She came into my workplace,” Morgan
murmured. “I wasn’t there. One of the guys told me.”

“So we know she’s here. Decker …” Beck
looked at his twin.

“I know. I should be able to track her or
one of the others.” Decker frowned. “Morgan, I had a thought about
the soul stone. Could I examine it?”

Morgan glanced between them before nodding
reluctantly.

“Hey, Red,” another male voice said from
down the hallway.

Everyone turned to face the human teen who
stopped a short distance away. His gaze swept uneasily over
everyone before settling on Morgan.

“And you are?” Beck asked.

Morgan shot him a look.

“Stu. Morgan’s friend.”

Beck shook his hand. “I’m Beck. Also
Morgan’s friend.”

Morgan eyed Beck and stepped between them.
“Hi, Stu,” she greeted him.

“I heard about your apartment building and
the boss said you didn’t call in. We were worried.”

“That’s sweet. Thanks.” She offered a wan
smile.

Beck was bristling, and Noah bit back a
laugh.

Sensing the tension in those around her,
Morgan left the group and joined Stu, leading him back down the
hallway and talking.

“Ha!” Decker snickered. “The look on your
face, Beck.”

The Master of Light rolled his eyes.

“Maybe before you disappear again, you
should say hi to Biji,” Summer said to Noah.

He ducked his gaze. “She doesn’t want
anything to do with me.” Beautiful, sweet Biji had been horrified
as much by him kissing her as by how he used violence to help her
friends. The Light witchling was too good, too innocent. No matter
how much he’d always been attracted to her, he wasn’t willing to
take the chance she rejected him. He was bad for her and they both
knew it. Better to take away the temptation and avoid her.

“Her fiancé is in town anyway,” Beck
added.

“Her what?” Noah looked at him sharply, not
expecting the jolt those words gave him.

Summer and Beck exchanged a knowing
look.

“Stop messing with him,” Decker said, a
faint smile on his features. “The man said he’s not
interested.”

Noah resisted the urge to speak out. Biji
really was better off without him, and she had admitted to him that
her parents wanted her to marry someone they chose. Besides, he had
to get to his sister before the Master of Dark did and try one more
time to convince Dawn to stop this madness, however fruitless the
effort might prove to be. He had cleaned up her messes more than
once since she became possessed, but he wasn’t yet ready to write
off his sister or the niece she carried.

If he survived another confrontation with
her, if Biji didn’t want to marry her fiancé and could tolerate
being with a Dark witchling …

Don’t be stupid.
There was no way of them working out. Noah pushed
the thoughts out of his mind, even more agitated than he had been
before. His only satisfaction: watching Beck frown as his gaze
followed Morgan and some guy down the hall.

“Chill, Beck.” Decker leaned forward to
punch his brother’s arm.

“Like you don’t get jealous?” Summer asked,
gazing up at him sweetly.

“Good girl,” Beck said to her with a quick
grin. “Now, Noah, let’s talk about you accompanying Morgan.” He
turned his attention to Noah. “You understand Dawn wants her dead
and you might be the only one who can stop that from
happening.”

Noah hesitated. There was a small part of
him that didn’t comprehend how much Dawn had changed in the past
six months or so. He had seen her do horrible things – and still
didn’t want it to be true. “Yes, I do,” he answered, troubled.

“We’ll be checking in with you every
day.”

“Understood. I’ll let you know if I need
help.” Noah rubbed his face, wired and anxious. “Do you think she
can be salvaged?” This he addressed to Decker.

“Don’t ask him,” Beck replied. “Decker has
wanted her dead for months. I’m the reason she’s alive.”

“Because of her baby,” Noah said
stiffly.

“Because I want to believe she’s fallen
under some great evil that might leave her alone one day,” Beck
replied. “Our history and my flaws aside, Noah, as the Master of
Light, I want to help and save people.”

It was hard for Noah to remember the two
boys his age before him were charged with immense responsibility in
managing the Light and Dark forces of the world, along with their
own lives.

“Then do you think she can be saved?” he
asked Beck quietly.

“I don’t know.” Genuine worry creased the
skin beneath Beck’s eyes. “I want to think anyone can be, but the
problem is that we don’t know how to deal with Bartholomew’s hold
on her or the soul stone Morgan carries. If Dawn gets her hands on
it …”

“Darkness,” Decker said, his face
haunted.

They were quiet, the weight of the threat
heavy in each one’s minds.

Noah grappled with the panic building inside
him at the realization he might not be able to save his sister. He
had narrowed down her location to a four-block radius. He needed to
find her fast and try to reason with her one last time. Itching to
leave and track her down, he began to pace.

Morgan returned alone and sat heavily on the
bench.

“You ready?” he prodded.

“Hungry.”

“If your coworker found you, a witchling
can, too. We need to go.”

“I want to take a look at the soul stone
first.” Decker left Summer’s side. His shadows sprang to life, and
Noah inched away from them as they crept towards him, the only
other source of Dark in the vicinity. Decker motioned for Morgan to
follow him into the hospital room.

“Stubborn men,” Summer said, eyes on him.
“Call Biji, Noah.”

“And say what? That I’m still Dark, still
not coming back to Idaho, and still broke?” he retorted.

“I was thinking you could just tell her
you’re okay and you hope she is, too,” Summer replied with a shrug.
“What do you think, Beck?”

“Leave me out of this,” the Master of Light
raised his hands. “I am the last person to give advice about
women.”

“Definitely,” Noah muttered. Still, when he
thought of Biji, he got butterflies of excitement. The air
witchling had been a bright spot in an otherwise dark time of his
life. His family’s circumstances, Dawn’s path to Darkness … Biji
made him feel like there was something good in a world that seemed
so bleak. “I’ll call her, Summer.”

Summer grinned.

Beck was eyeing him as if he suspected Noah
knew where Dawn was. Noah glared back, not about to give an inch to
the person who helped push Dawn over the edge and whose brother
wanted her dead. He wasn’t certain whether or not to believe Beck
could separate his emotions from his duty as a Master with regards
to Dawn. He wanted to believe it possible that Dawn might be
saved.

Even if he himself didn’t think so.

Decker and Morgan emerged from the room.
Morgan was pale, her lips pursed. Noah sensed her weakness; her
magick was calmer than usual, and she looked beat.

“I need to head home,” Decker said. “I gave
her my credit card, so you guys should be covered.”

Noah said nothing. There was a time he’d
refuse it, but he was in no position to turn down money when he had
no way to support two people let alone himself. He’d been living in
a rundown youth hostel for the past month.

“Come on, Noah,” Morgan said without meeting
anyone’s gaze. “Let’s get out of here.”

While he’d never had a reason to dislike
Morgan, Noah liked her more in that moment than he had to date.
She, too, didn’t seem to belong or maybe, seemed far more troubled
than the others. She was more like him than she was the others.

He joined her walking down the hallway.
“We’ll get some food as soon as we can,” he told her.

Morgan’s gaze flickered to him. She appeared
almost haggard now that the others weren’t looking. Accustomed to a
high maintenance mother and sister, Noah was sensitive to the
subtle change in the looks and moods of women. Morgan was
struggling to hang on, either about to cry or pass out.

“I’ll protect you, Morgan,” he said quietly.
“I promise.”

“I can take care of myself,” she
replied.

He said nothing, aware that she was barely
on her feet.

The enormity and importance of his task
didn’t settle upon him until they set foot into the cheerful spring
afternoon. Noah led Morgan towards where he’d parked his
motorcycle, his gaze roving their surroundings.

Whatever the stone did, Dawn had already
demonstrated she was willing to kill to get to it. If he failed,
Morgan died, and probably, so would Dawn and her baby, if the
Masters had to act to stop her. Yet Noah wasn’t willing to give up
on his sister completely either.

I need to talk to her one
last time.
Disturbed by how weak Morgan
was, he gave her his helmet and climbed onto the bike. First things
first, he had to get Morgan settled somewhere safe and far away
from the location where he knew Dawn to be.