Book of Love (38 page)

Max had an arm leaning against one of the
corbels, his long, lean body relaxed. “Come here and I’ll show
you.” His voice had returned to the same sweet tone I’d grown used
to. Perhaps he’d noticed my need for space and had decided to
respect that.

He glanced at me, motioning me with his
hand. I stepped toward him, noting that what he’d done was in fact
a good way to break the awkwardness that had grown between us. My
footsteps echoed over the sound of crackling flames, and as I got
closer, the warmth of it was a welcomed relief on my chilled
hands.

I stood a distance from him, afraid that his
touch would seduce me into submission. He was rubbing the tips of
his fingers together, focusing with intensity.

His lips moved. “It’s magick. Have you ever
seen this kind of magick?”

I watched his hand as he continued rubbing
his fingers. Suddenly a spark flew into the air, growing into a
small fireball. He cupped the fire in his palm, containing it as it
tried to escape. My mouth fell open, mesmerized by the transparent
flames dancing within his control. There was no smoke rising from
it, and no smell, either.

“
That’s amazing! How’d you
do that?” I stepped closer.

He looked nostalgic. “The alchemist taught
me. He was gifted with the power of sorcery. But in truth, this is
just plain physics.”

“
Sorcery and physics?” I
laughed. “Seems a little juxtaposed, don’t you think?”

He smiled, still playing with the fire in
his hand. “In theory, it’s possible to manifest anything you want.
You just have to know how.”

I thought about the fourth period physics
class I’d taken fourth quarter of last year. I’d failed, so to me,
it made no sense at all.

His eyes met mine, flashing with amusement,
knowing about my failure in science.

“
Is it something I could
learn?” I asked. My eyes were locked on the flames in his hands and
my heart was jealous to try it, especially now that I knew all that
science nonsense actually meant something.

“
It is. Like I said, this
particular trick is just science, but also a science that wouldn’t
exist without Pandora’s magick.” He stepped toward me as the flames
in his hand went out. He took my hand, and I was shocked to find
that the flames had at last made his touch warm. He turned my hand
over, exposing my palm.

“
You’re going to teach me
right now?” I didn’t fight against his grasp, knowing it was
useless.

“
Sure, why not? You have a
pretty good grip on the idea of magick—though your science skills
aren’t all that great.” He winked at me.

I blushed, still doubting that I could
accomplish anything at all.

“
Close your eyes.” He
looked at me expectantly.

I shut them, hearing his other hand move. I
recoiled slightly as he touched my face, still fearful of our
pending attraction.

“
Relax, Jane,” he
whispered.

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to
forget the fears I had about commitment, and focus on the magick I
was about to learn.

“
Concentrate on the feeling
of my hand, and the things I’m telling you. Think of the fire. Now
see the word. Repeat it over and over until you find it almost
palpable.”

I concentrated on his hand, feeling
something seep into my skin and then my mind. Bright colors swirled
in my head. The word ‘fire’ was written there, spelled out in a
swirl of flames. Suddenly, it seemed so logical—so obvious as
though it should have been something I’d known all along.

Max let go of my face, and then my hand. I
opened my eyes, the feeling of the flames leaving my mental vision
as they went out. “See. Piece of cake.” He smiled.

I chuckled. “We’ll see when I actually do it
by myself.”

He watched me. “Then try.”

I looked at my hand, knowing what to do, but
feeling foolish for trying. I brought my middle finger and thumb
together until they barely touched. I began to rub them in a
circular motion, slow at first, and then faster. My heart began to
pound as an immense amount of heat and energy flowed down my arm,
concentrating on my finger tips. I kept rubbing, and then there was
a spark. I couldn’t help but let my lips spread from ear to ear as
the flame grew, finally big enough to sit in my palm.

“
See, piece of cake,” he
repeated.

I laughed, watching the
flames dance, trying to contain it.
“Ouch!”
I suddenly felt burned as I
shook my hand, putting the flame out.

Max was laughing. “It takes practice.”

I looked at my hand, seeing a blister form
on my finger. “I guess it does.”

“
It’s a bit easier when
you’re cold like I am. My body isn’t exactly ninety eight degrees
to begin with.”

I exhaled, sucking on my finger. His smile
stayed on his face as he turned back to the flames in the
fireplace.

“
So, is there more?” I let
my hand sink to my side, touching the blister against the cool
fabric of my coat.

“
You mean more magick like
that?”

“
Yeah.”

Max nodded. “There’s much more. Magick
doesn’t have to be something you’re born with; it can be learned.
At least some of it, remember? The most important thing is that you
have the ability to learn it, which clearly you do.”

“
Oh.” I grinned, feeling
special.

Max shook his head. “You are special.” He
tried to warm his hands in the flames of the fire, holding them
much closer than I could ever handle. “I promise to teach you.
Someone in your position could really benefit from knowing.”

“
Who taught you, just the
alchemist?” I pressed.

He pulled his hands away from the fire,
touching my face and trailing warmth down the length of my jaw. He
took a moment to himself, enjoying the happy thoughts in my mind.
“Yes, the alchemist. He gave my mother a lot of books, which as I
told you, was dangerous if anyone in the magickal world found out.
My mother always told my father they were remedies, but naturally
he knew better, and so did I. The library was full of them. I
learned a lot from those books.”

I tried to imagine this library. “But they
all burned, didn’t they?”

He tilted his head. “Most did, but some were
protected in a few metal boxes and are now in Erik’s collection, or
still here. We left a lot behind. They’re plenty safe, though. The
house is invisible to humans.” He smiled. “You see, after our
death, it was the alchemist that took Erik in. He knew about me,
and Greg, and I tried to visit as often as I could. He became a
second father to me.”

“
Where is the alchemist
now?”

“
Not all of us with magick
live forever. The alchemist lived longer than most humans, but only
by a few years. He invented a way to live forever, but chose not to
indulge in it. He liked the idea of dying one day. He believed it
made his life here richer and the experience better felt. He also
looked forward to seeing my mother one day.”

I knew what the alchemist meant, and I
agreed with him. “When did he die?”

Max was still watching the flames, “About
twenty five years ago. I know he died of a broken heart, but at the
same time, he knew my mother was there on the other side, waiting
for him. He was happy to go in the end. I was the angel that led
him across.”

“So, you didn’t mind that your mother and he
had an affair?”

He shook his head. “Why would I? Everyone
deserves to experience true love, no matter how that happens to
come to them. You can’t ignore your soul-mate.” He looked at me
then, a look so deep, so full of meaning, that I couldn’t help but
feel what he had. If life was short—or long—either way, I wanted to
feel love, too. What I was denying with Max was something most
fight for all their lives, dream of and yet never get to have. I
was being selfish by ignoring it.

“
Why didn’t Greg come after
him? I thought he hated the fact of the affair.”

Max nodded. “He did, but he felt guilty for
nearly killing Erik. Erik begged Greg to let the alchemist live.
Greg knew the alchemist was the only other person Erik felt
comfortable with, and he wasn’t naïve in knowing what the
orphanages here were like. For the first and last time in Greg’s
life, he showed a bit of mercy.”

I wanted to cry as he told me the story. Max
drew nearer, sensing my sadness. He hooked his arm behind my back,
pulling me against his chest. “I’ve lived a long life—a cold life.
I’m sorry about what I said earlier. I just—”

I leaned back, pressing my fingers to his
lips and stopping him. “It’s okay, Max. I understand. Just relax.
I’m here for you no matter what, okay? I can promise you that.” If
he was going to be here for me, he deserved to have me here for
him, no matter what form that was.

He grasped my wrist, lowering my hand from
his lips as he leaned in, kissing me softly. I shut my eyes,
allowing myself to enjoy it, allowing the warm feeling he had
introduced me to envelope my body.

I heard a loud bang
upstairs, jolting Max and I out of our moment as my heart surged.
“What was
that?”
I asked, wondering if that meant Greg and Emily were
back.

Wes:

“
Blast!”
I cursed as my leg
bumped into a stack of charred books. They crashed to the ground,
rumbling the sound across the house as the smell of soot filled my
nostrils.

I looked down at the pile I’d knocked over,
finding the dust now cleared from a few of the burned covers. I
squinted, trying to read one cover that had been severely mutilated
by fire. A book called Magick Basics was on the top of the
mess.

“
Magick
Basics?”
I whispered. I knelt down,
grabbing the book and running my hand over the cover to remove some
more of the deep rooted soot. The subtitle read:
Modern Sorcery of the Eighteenth
Century
. I snorted, thinking that nothing
about it seemed at all modern.

I opened the book, the pages delicate and
about ready to fall apart. There were etchings of various
techniques, chemical elements, and demonstrations.

“
Cool,”
I mumbled.

It was then that I heard someone coming up
the stairs. I quickly knelt to try and straighten the books, afraid
to anger Max. Max and Jane entered the room.

“
What was that?” Jane
sounded exasperated.

I rolled my eyes. “Calm down. I just knocked
over a few of these old books.”

Jane looked annoyed, crossing her arms
against her chest.

“
Max. What is this stuff?”
I looked at him, and then looked at the blackened room around us.
There were a few remnants of carved wood paneling on the stone
walls, but most of it had been burned away. There was little to no
furniture in the space—just splinters of what it once was, and bits
of metal and nails that hadn’t burn with the rest of it.

He looked at Jane, giving
her a look I didn’t quite understand. He glanced back at me, and
that was when I felt it. There was so much despair surrounding him,
fear, and also a sense of death. I realized then just what this
room was—it was the place where he had
died.

“
Oh…” I murmured, suddenly
feeling bad for even stepping foot inside this room.

I thought about the day Emily had brought me
here. To her, this place was a refuge. I began to wonder if she’d
ever gone inside, or if she simply liked to sit in the car as we
had, or on the porch. I looked back at Max, seeing that he was
watching Jane as she searched the room. It was as though the
saddest song was playing in his head—a melody for Jane, a melody of
love. I felt the same thing he had for her, but his feelings had an
added assurance, making even me see that he was connected to her in
a way I never would be.

I felt an itch of hatred wash over me, but
it was uninvited. I wasn’t angry about Max and Jane, not in the way
I felt now. This hatred was different. Where was it coming from?
And why could I not shake it? Why did I want to hate him when it
was clear that he was doing all the right things, and with what
seemed a true heart?

“
We’re supposed to be
enemies,” Max answered the question for me, his eyes still watching
Jane.

I tilted my head, surprised by his attention
to me when it seemed all his attention was on her. “Really?” I
found that fact interesting. “Why?”

Max walked to a nearby stack of debris,
grabbing a book from under a tarnished silver platter and tossing
it toward me. I caught it, twisting the cover to face me. Max
placed his hands in his pockets, looking calm.

I read the cover:
Nature of a Shape Shifter
. I opened to the front, scanning the contents until I found
the chapter titled:
Natural
Enemies.

I flipped to the page,
reading aloud, “Pixies…
Pixies?”

Max’s eyes grew wide. “Evil little things.
They’re annoying on principal alone. I think everyone just about
hates them.”

I continued to list under my breath.
“Faerie, Pegasus, and…” I ran my hand down the rather long list,
finding it just about listed everything. “And… yeah, Angels.” I
nodded, letting one laugh leave my chest. “Makes sense, I
suppose.”

Max leaned back on his heels. “This doesn’t
mean we can’t be friends, it just takes work is all. Two of my best
friends in high school were like you. Obviously that was before I
died.”