Page 93 of Firebird

They were quiet for a little while. They stared into the distance, possibly watching the curves of the desert sands.

“Even if there is no other woman, it is still next to impossible for me to leave Rama.”

“Aha!” my father teased. “You said next to impossible. It means that there is a tiny possibility that you will come.

My mother did not smile, however.

“Doro, I am part of the Touch,” she confessed.

I tried to remember if my mother had ever mentioned it in my presence. Perhaps not?

“I have heard of the Touch,” my father was playing at being nonchalant, but his back had gone rigid. Whatever they knew about the Coven was horrible.

“They will not just let me go. I am serving as both a medium to them, too. They want to keep using my powers.”

“But is it not enough for them to hold together and share whatever powers they have?”

The vision wavered a little, like the undulating waves rising from the hot desert sand. Rowan seemed to be in distress. I could not see her as the vision blocked everything, but I caressed her hand with mine. I squeezed her tiny hand, drawing some of the heat she was getting from it. My mother’s spirit was emitting too much energy.

“They believe they need me.”

“You are a demigoddess, are you not? It is either join them or be hunted down?”

“They hate demigods and fire stealers.”

“But why?”

“I do not know, Doro.”

Suddenly, Aruna’s voice broke through the vision.

“Let go of Queen Erani’s spirit, child. You are burning up.”

I tried to take as much as I could from Rowan. I was hungry and needed to feed. Feeding on a medium, fire stealer, and member of the Touch seemed like the best way to break my fast.

Rowan screamed. The veil of vision that covered the room broke. It tore little by little as if she was struggling to let go of my mother’s spirit. My mother was holding on, clutching. Trying to tell her story.

Then, the vision was completely shredded.

The coolness of the room made way for the heat of reality. Our minds were back to humid Tarkus, where the air could stifle.

I immediately turned to Rowan, who looked small and frightened in her chair.

“Your mother, Queen Erani, was from the Touch. The Touch never forgets transgressions. If she was a demigoddess and a medium, it means that the Coven had never been opposed to demigods.”

“Until they leave,” I offered.

“Yes.”

Of course, we were not completely confident with our conclusions, but Rowan and I now had a shaky connection. She was starting to see me in a different light, and I was beginning to see the possible reasons she had been lost from the rest of her family.

“Your family may have tried to save you, Rowan. You said you were a foundling. It looked like The Touch was after my mother’s family or those with powers like yours And hers,” my voice trailed off.

“Since your grandfather had two wives, it was only your grandmother’s line that had sparked the ire of The Touch,” Aruna said, making her own conclusion.

“So, the lack of communication with my mother’s family….”

“Might not have been by choice, King Metheus. It might have been by necessity.”

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