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“I guess that makes sense. As much sense as anything makes around here.” Frowning, she looked up at the sky. It was afternoon, now, and she wondered how long they’d be walking before they came across someone or something. And if they’d be friendly. The last few times she had bumped into the locals hadn’t gone well, to put things mildly. “But why me?”
He went quiet for a moment as he thought over his response. “You’ve already been touched by the power of the island. Even if your elemental powers were borrowed, they were still yours for that time. It doesn’t like to let go of the people it collects.” He ran a hand over his head, ruffling his scruffy hair. “It’s why you stand a decent chance at tapping into its magic. You’ve already been connected once.”
That gave her some hope, small as it might be. Maybe she could become some kind of badass sorceress. Then, once she could handle herself, she’d kick in Mordred’s door and tell him exactly how much of an asshole he had been.
The thought of Mordred ruined her mood. Her heart ached. She missed him—she wished—she just wished. Wished that he hadn’t sent her away. Wished that she had been brave enough to tell him how she felt to his face.
Wished that he loved her back.
God, she loved him. She wanted to stay with him, to stay by his side. As much as she missed her parents, she didn’t want to be without him.
But if he felt the same way, he wouldn’t have tried to send her back to Earth. No, he probably believed that she was back in Kansas with Eod and that they’d never see each other again. Which seemed to be what he wanted.
And that hurt.
As if sensing her line of thought, Doc patted her on the shoulder. “There, there.”
“Seriously?”
“What?”
“That’s the best you’ve got?” She arched an eyebrow at him.
“Look—” He pointed a finger at her face. “It’s not my job to do feelings. I don’t do the squishy whatever-the-fuck you idiots have going on.”
“What is your job, anyway?” Eod bounced up to her with a stick in his mouth, wagging his tail happily. She pulled it from his mouth and lobbed it as hard as she could up the path, sending him tearing after it.
“I don’t know.” Doc barked a laugh. “But it ain’t that.”
Great. She was surrounded by sociopaths and emotionally stunted man-children. Rubbing a hand over her face, she sighed. “How do I learn magic?”
“Don’t know.”
“What?” She blinked. “I thought you said you could teach me.”
“Don’t look at me like that. I never technically agreed to help you with magic.” He planted his hands on his hips.
“But—”
“I never said yes. Technically. You just inferred a yes. And that’s on you.” When her shoulders slumped, he grumbled, “Look. Okay. Fine. I’ll try to help you, but here’s the thing—I don’t know how you’ll tap into it. It’s different for everybody. You have to figure out how to wield it on your own, then I’ll help you learn to control it. Before it melts your face.”
“Melts my—seriously?” She grimaced. That didn’t sound like fun in the slightest. Of all the ways to go, face-melting seemed pretty terrible. Or at least it looked like it in the movies.
“Only partially joking. I once watched someone immolate from the inside out.” He made a bleh noise. “And it somehow smells worse that way.”
“That was way more info than I needed, thanks.”
Eod came out of the woods carrying a stick that was far too large for him, looking pleased as punch, his tail wagging behind him.
“Just trying to give you an idea of what you’re signing yourself up for. We’re going to a place where the magic is stronger, to give you a better chance of digging into it. But first, a stop at an inn. I need a fucking nap.” Doc’s tone made it sound like this was all perfectly normal.
Not that they were going to try to teach her how to use magic that may or may not melt her face off and/or set her on fire from the inside out. “If you see me melting in the near future, would you warn me?”
Eod dropped the enormous stick to rush ahead and start snuffling underneath a tree that had fallen across the path.
Doc hopped over it without a problem and didn’t even look back to offer her a hand. “No. Sorry. Can’t.”
She rolled her eyes again and hopped over the tree. “Can’t, or won’t?”
