~ Chapter Three ~ #2
“Let me guess; you and… what… your grandfather are Witches or something?” Regan snarked with a throaty laugh.
If any truth lay in what Lutin had said, then why wouldn’t he help him?
There had to be a point to all this, and if bringing back Max wasn’t the point, then what was?
“And you refuse to help me. What good are you?”
“Now hold on.” Lutin’s voice rose. “I’m trying to explain.”
Regan crossed his arms harder in front of him. “Are you a Witch or something else? Something useless?”
“I’m going to let that slide, cause I can see the hurt and confusion, but watch yourself, little man.” Lutin inhaled deeply and exhaled. “Now there is only me… and I suppose you can say I fall into the ‘or something’ category.”
“Bullshit. I met your kooky granddad yesterday. And you look completely human.”
“Don’t let your eyes deceive you.” Lutin stood away from the table. A sparkle emanated from all around him. Within seconds, his whole body shifted from the uniquely handsome guy in thirties to the old man he saw yesterday.
The old man, Lutin, glanced around. “s’plains the weather.
Not so much a Sparky but a Storm. Damnedest thing I’ve seen.
” He smiled with his empty mouth as he held his cane.
“Pulled this image from your mind.” The crackly older voice said as a shimmer of light started to surround the man again and in short order Lutin, the younger version, smiled at him and bowed. “Ta-da.”
Regan watched, frozen in place. Were his ears and eyes working? He couldn’t be hearing or seeing Lutin’s performance. He’s dreaming. Or he might be sick. None of this is real.
Maybe I fell and hit my head.
If he hadn’t been sitting, then he would have fallen over for sure.
After several silent moments, heat built up from his gut and moved to his heart, which began to ache.
He recalled all the stories he read in Max’s journal.
No, this is insane. He’d put a stop to this nonsense.
Without a word, he finally stood, walked to the counter, and put his empty glass in the sink.
He peeked over at Lutin watching him, then left the kitchen.
He made his way to the back bedroom and grabbed Max’s book off the walnut desk, bringing the purple and gold journal back to the kitchen and dropping the book in front of Lutin.
“Explain this,” Regan demanded, tapping the book with his pointer finger.
“Explain what?” Lutin asked. “It’s Max’s journal. I think by now you’ve read the pages enough times to understand.”
“If you’re all powerful, then what’s this all about? I have to be here for a reason. And why can’t that reason be to bring Max back? To fix this?”
Lutin closed his eyes, taking several moments before speaking. “I can’t fix anything.”
“Cause this book, your light trick, everything is all bullshit. What the hell’s a Heredity Witch? And what did Max mean about me being an Elemental Witch? That’s all crazy. This has to be, what, some kind of fantasy book in the making?”
“You know that’s not true.” Lutin’s gaze narrowed on the journal. “Max had many talents but putting pen to paper was not one of them.”
“This has to be bullshit. Or some kind of cruel joke. Set up by you, but why? Why would you do this? There are no such things as Witches.” Regan wanted so much for this to be a prank or something else, but even as he spoke, he knew what he read and he knew what Lutin told him was the truth.
“And yet here we are.”
Regan glared at the book and Lutin. His heart began to pound as his neck and cheeks heated.
His palms grew damp. “If you can do all this stuff, then bring back Max. Prove it. Prove you’re a-a Witch or whatever.
That little light show before was probably a hologram or some VR shit. Now go back and save him?—”
“Regan. I can’t.” Lutin sighed, his tone and voice level if not slightly softer, reflecting hints of sorrow. “It’s been two years he’s gone.”
“No. No!” Regan shouted. His heart beat in his ears and he felt his pulse, an out of control current, move to his toes and back again. “If magic is real, then you can bring him back. Or I can. You have to show me.” His voice rose as he forced himself to meet Lutin’s spiteful gaze.
“It doesn’t work that way.” Lutin reached out a hand. “I’m sorry.”
The lights in the kitchen flickered.
“No!” Regan growled. The pain and hurt of two years held by a mental dam began to break and flood out of him.
“I love him! He wasn’t supposed to die in a stupid car wreck by a drunk driver.
That wasn’t how our story was supposed to end.
Our life together is in this book. I read everything he said about us.
He laid out our lives and this… this isn’t what was supposed to happen. Bring. Him. Back!”
The kitchen sink began to rattle.
Lutin stood. “Regan, calm down. You need to breathe. You need to?—”
“No!” Regan shouted, all the hurt and emotion bursting from him. No one understood his pain. He and Max were endgame. They were supposed to grow old together. They were each other’s person and now he was alone. “Bring me my Max. Now!” he thundered.
The kitchen exploded into a hail of white sparks as the overhead lights burst. Electrical sparks streamed down around them. At the counter, the sink faucet erupted in a torrent of water.
“Holy fuck!” Lutin jumped and pulled Regan out of the kitchen, faster than Regan could observe. One moment he stood shouting in the kitchen, the next they were in the family room, watching the chaos in the kitchen continue to erupt.
Regan quaked as he watched the faucet sputter and the lights blink out. He started laughing and crying, allowing Lutin to hold him away from the chaos. The tears streamed down Regan’s cheeks as he stood watching the insanity. All the currents of every emotion he had poured from him.
The scene in front of them was both humorous and terrifying.
What happened? Did he do that? Did Lutin?
Is the house old and everything blew at once like when Max passed away and he had to redo the water heater and get someone, from work, to come out and check the electrical?
This was madness. He was insane for entertaining any of this story.
And yet here he was. What could explain all this?
Lutin moved from Regan’s side and stepped closer to the kitchen.
With an inhale, Lutin closed his eyes and raised his hands.
The words uttered by Lutin were unknown to Regan but slowly the water and the sparks stopped.
The lights didn’t turn on again but at least the sparks and water stopped their onslaught.
Within moments, the kitchen had quieted and a mess remained. Lutin stopped and dropped to his knees.
Regan broke from his trance-like hysterics and helped the man to his feet. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine… I need a moment. Countering elements and Elementals takes a lot out of me.” Lutin wiped at his nose, blood smearing on his hand.
“You’re bleeding.” Without thought, Regan jumped into action and rushed to the kitchen, finding a paper towel for Lutin to use. “Here.” He handed the paper towel over to Lutin, then helped him to the couch to sit for a moment.
“Thank you.”
“Do you need anything?” Regan fussed over Lutin. “Can I get you something? What can I do for you?” He noted how Lutin’s green eyes seemed dull and he appeared more drawn and worn-out.
“I’m fine.” Lutin swabbed his nose, cleaning up any remaining blood. “See? The bleeding stopped.”
“What happened?”
“Well, you got upset and boom.” Lutin motioned an explosion with his hands. “And I bet this isn’t the first time something like this has happened…”
“I did that?” Regan glanced at the kitchen, seeing the water on the floor and the glass from the lights that he somehow missed when he went in there.
“Well, you and your Elementals.” Lutin rested his head back, facing the celling. “They respond to your emotions, it would seem.”
“That’s not possible.”
“And yet, here we are.” Lutin met Regan’s gaze. “Don’t believe me? Okay, then explain what happened.”
“I… I…”
“The universe is a fickle bitch and I can tell you in all my years I’ve never seen a Witch who can touch both electrics and water. They are diametrically opposed as you should know being in construction. And you’ve never been trained. Sheesh.”
“What about Max?”
“I know you loved him.” Lutin’s tone softened. “Trust me when I tell you he loved you with everything he had. If there was any way to bring him back, or to stop what happened, I wouldn’t have rested till he returned, but the universe doesn’t work like that. So, you have two choices to make.”
“What’s that?” Regan fidgeted with his hands as he spoke. “I don’t think I can do this.”
“First, you have to find a way to move on. Even the Victorians stopped their mourning after two years—well, most of the time. And that was almost two hundred years ago.” Lutin’s tone remained soft. “Second, you have to learn to control your powers.”
“And how do I do that?” Regan pointed to the kitchen. “You saw what happened. And I don’t even know if I believe any of this. Maybe this is a dream.”
Lutin reached out and pinched Regan’s arm. Instant pain ran like a red-hot poker from the spot Lutin pinched. “What the hell?”
Lutin removed his hand. “Did that hurt?”
“What do you think?” Regan shifted slightly away from Lutin.
“Hey, some people are into that, so the pinch could have gone either way.”
“Yes, it hurt.” Regan rubbed his arm where Lutin pinched him.
“Well, now you know we’re not in a dream.” Lutin smirked. “Now, as for your emotional state, only you know what you need to move on and start living again. As for controlling your abilities, that’s something I think I can help you with, but first, what say we go on a field trip?”
“What? No.” Regan stood. “I have to clean up this mess. I planned on driving up to Kings Beach to see the other house. I can’t up and go on a field trip . I have things to do. And none of my plans involved magic or whatever this is.”
Lutin sighed. “Humans.” He stood. “Let me show you the world you are a part of now.” Lutin walked into the kitchen and, with a few gestures of his hands, the kitchen returned to its former state as if nothing had happened.
Regan moved in and walked around the kitchen. He checked the switch and turned the lights on, then moved to the sink and tried the faucet. “How?”
“Magic.” Lutin wiggled his fingers and moved into the living room.
“I thought you were out of energy or whatever?” Regan followed him.
“This is basic stuff. I’m fine now.” Lutin smirked back at him. “I only needed a moment.”
“Can you teach me that?”
“No.” He tilted his head. “Maybe. It’ll depend on your Elementals.”
“This is nuts.”
“I can work with nuts.” Lutin grinned, chuckling as he pointed toward the door. “You ready?”
“You mean now?” Regan felt his pockets. “Don’t I need my keys and all that?
I can’t just poof and go away.” He glanced around the living room.
There was so much he didn’t understand, but he couldn’t deny his eyes and part of him grew excited to learn about this new world and all that lay before him.
Why didn’t Max ever tell me about this?
Lutin motioned his right hand and arm in a circular gesture at the front door. “Nah, we won’t be gone long. Plus, my way of travel is faster than your Jeep or even an airplane.” He winked at Regan and reached out his hand.