28. I Tell Her, I Tell Her Not #3
“Anyone who’s old enough and has the knowledge of it before it was forbidden, or strong enough to have extreme levels of magic and to keep it going?
Most importantly, they have to have the intent to use it for the purpose of enslaving someone.
Since we are talking about the Darkstars here, you need to remember that the caster has to keep the spell activated during the entire time the spiders are working for them.
So, this person is a master at hiding the fact that they are constantly casting or siphoning energy. ”
“So, pretty much any one of our dads?” Zeke throws out.
“Nah,” Ryker is quick to defend. “They don’t have the intent. If they did, don’t you think they would have used it on us to reel us into obeying them?”
“Good point,” Zeke relents.
“Gus?” JP helpfully asks.
“No way!” Moni defends, getting in her brother's face. “There’s not an evil bone in that Sphinx’s body. Besides, he’s a Coffee GOD!” She salutes the coffee cup as she whips out a cup of Java.
“He gave you decaf before the Gauntlet,” JP confesses, raising an eyebrow.
“What?!” Moni shrieks, flashing between the colors red and glitterbomb.
“He’s diabolical.” She stomps her tiny foot on a rock she’s standing on.
“Who could possibly do that to a loyal disciple of the dark ground coffee bean? Who, I ask? Who has the nerve to be that evil? Can he do that? Isn’t he the coffee GOD?
! WHY does he forsaken me?” she cries out, her bark turning a dark blue as she sinks to her knees.
“It’s okay, babe,” Chester scoops her up and presses her tiny body to his chest. “He only did it to help you, I’m sure, and look at you.
You’ve been a badass throughout the Gauntlet so far, saving our asses.
” He tries to soothe her, and it quickly does the trick as her bark starts to brighten closer to green.
“Really?” she asks, sniffling and wiping at her eyes.
“Of course,” Zeke chimes in, giving JP a sharp elbow to the side with the side eye to match. “Bringing those Whispering Death Vines to life was no joke.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Moni perks up as her bark shifts back to her normal greenish brown.
“So if not Gus, or our fathers, who’s been around long enough to know that spell and is powerful enough to pull it off?” Knox asks the question as bluntly as a bulldozer.
I clench my jaw and stare at the ground, not wanting to admit who I think really did it, and I hear the sharp, audible inhale of breath as it pierces the silence.
I steady my own breath before following the sound and finding Rez’s watery eyes pleading with mine.
My mouth opens and closes with no words forming as my shoulders drop in defeat.
“No.” She shakes her head. “It can’t be him.” Her whisper is faint, but we can all hear her in the pregnant silence. “He wouldn’t do that.”
I move to squat before Rez and take her hands into mine, gently squeezing them while dismissing the ache in my chest that’s slowly growing.
“Do you know of any reason why he would? Because I don’t have any for why mine would, and they are the only mages strong enough that I know of.
But Dad is also mated to Lilith and the others, so he wouldn’t be able to hide it Rez,” I try to explain gently, and she shakes her head vehemently, pulling her hands away.
Waves of frustration, anger, sadness, and confusion roll off of her as tears threaten to spill.
“No. It wasn’t him,” she insists as she shakes her head, searching for me to believe her. “He said Elverson hasn’t called on him since his son...” Her voice trails off as her eyes go wide and she looks away.
“Wait. What?” JP growls. “What did you just say?” He stands up and approaches Rez. With the focus taken off of me for the moment, I step back and quickly take out the pain medicine Dr. Steinbeck gave me to apply it to my chest as discreetly as I can.
Lynx shoots up and blocks JP’s approach, putting his hand on JP’s chest, firmly holding him back.
“JP, man. You need to calm down and step back,” Lynx warns as Knox joins Rez and wraps his arms around her, tucking her into his chest.
He whispers something against her hair, and she melts against him as Zeke leads JP back to their seat.
“Is there something you need to share, bestie?” Moni asks before she sips on her Sparks mug.
Rez’s shoulder falls as she lets out a sigh.
“I guess there are a few things that popped up yesterday that I haven’t had a chance to tell you,” she admits with a sniffle.
“Well, there’s no time like the present,” Ryker says, “But can we get the cliff notes. I don’t like the look of that fog rolling in.” He points to the trees about fifty feet away, where there’s a greenish fog crawling our way.
“I agree,” I say, putting my medicine away. “If we stay close, I’ll make sure our bubble stays intact while we’re on the move,” I assure everyone.
“Aww man. I miss Astaroth’s popcorn. This would make for a great storytime,” Zeke whines.
“I agree.” Moni takes a long sip of her drink.
I take one more glance at Rez as her emotions finally calm down. This wasn’t what I was expecting at all, but it seems we need to clear the air, and at least she’s resolved to talk, even though waves of sadness are rippling off of her.
I just hope the information I dropped doesn’t break her.