Risk (A Mageri World Novel) (12 page)

“I believe you lost something,” an older woman said. She looked to be in her fifties and, based on her energy, wasn’t a Mage. She smiled up at him with the purple grape tucked neatly between her breasts. “Have you ever heard of the game
bobbing for apples?
”

Cheeky lass
. He indulged her with a subtle bow, plunging his tongue between the cleft of her breasts and hearing her giggle hysterically as he freed the grape and munched on it. Simon didn’t need to tap into his gifts to read her emotions; they were written all over her face.

“Where were you thirty years ago, young man?” she asked with a purr.

He leaned in, his mouth close to her ear. “A real lady would ask where I’m going to be thirty minutes from now.”

A blush rose on her cheeks, and he swaggered away with a laugh settling in the back of his throat. He enjoyed seeing a woman her age unafraid to show her naughty side.

Simon stopped beside a statue and peered around the arm. He’d spent most of the evening with Silver’s entourage and hadn’t even noticed that Hannah had also invited Ella to the party—probably as a test to see if Simon’s training was making any progress.

Ella stood amid the crowd in an open room, her long gown made of crushed red satin, the train resting atop the white marble floor. Her lace sleeves were see-through, revealing creamy white skin below the intricate flowery designs. Ella looked like a rose flanked by two thorns—Hannah on one side and Boris on the other. She pretended to be engaged in their conversation, but Simon recognized the listless look in her eyes.

After a curt nod, Hannah turned away and left Ella alone with Boris. He raised his left hand, but Ella’s eyes were transfixed on his mouth as he spoke to her. She looked like a mouse caught in a trap when she put her hand in his and then… danced.

She moved with eloquence and grace—a woman schooled in so many aspects of high society that it contradicted the fact she’d grown up in the modern world. The Ice Queen must have held an etiquette class just after knife throwing.

Silver blocked his view. “What’s wrong?”

“What makes you think anything’s wrong?” he mumbled, trying to look over her shoulder.

“Um, because you’re feeling up Aphrodite?”

He flicked a glance at the statue and noticed he’d been clutching her breast with his right hand. Simon dropped his arm to his side. “And how was your rendezvous with the pussycat?”

“Do I have leaves in my hair?” she asked, half joking, half not. “Who’s the girl dancing? I feel like I’ve seen her before.”

Silver turned around in a deliberate manner, so Simon gripped the top of her head and forced her to look away.

“Stop acting like a ninny. That’s Hannah’s progeny.”

She tapped her chin. “Ohhh, I think I remember her. Wasn’t she the one who took out those men at Novis’s party?” Silver’s expression grew heavy with memories.

“Come on, love. Walk with me.”

He draped his arm across her shoulders and strolled into the next room.

Silver placed her head against his chest and looked up at him. “Who’s that creepy-looking guy she’s dancing with?”

“A worthless twat you should stay away from.”

Justus stepped in front of Silver, his arms folded. “Learner, if I see another drink in your hand, I’m taking you home.”

“I’m mated,” she replied with a hiccup.

“We still live under the same roof, and I’m your Ghuardian. Logan would agree with me on this one.”

“Oh, live a little. You never throw any parties, and immortality can get a little monotonous if you don’t have some fun.” They engaged in a staring match. “Fine. I’ll hit the dessert bar, and then you’ll really be in trouble.”

“Training is still at six in the morning,” he said tersely. “Perhaps it won’t be me who’s regretful.”

She stuck out her tongue and then sauntered across the room.

Justus moved ahead of Simon, leading him outside. Novis hadn’t extended his party outdoors, so they stood by themselves on a dark patio near a tall window, watching the guests inside.

Justus ran a hand over his shaved head. “Levi said that you no longer require his services.”

“Yes, and thanks for that,” Simon retorted. “You could’ve at least sent a Mage for the job.”

“You and I both know that a Chitah is better suited for tracking. What’s Boris doing here?”

Simon plucked a leaf off the shrub beside him. “Pitching a tent and setting up camp. He’s bought property and is in search of a bride.”

“Again?”

Simon scuffed his shoe on the hard concrete below. “That’ll be number five at my last count.”

Which was unusual for a Mage. Most relationships were casual and uncommitted, as the idea of spending an eternity with one person was enough to give any sane man cold feet. Boris was the exception. He’d taken five brides. The first two had left him, and Simon had no idea what had happened with the last three, only that Boris stated their separation was amicable.

“He’s in there dancing with Hannah’s progeny,” Justus added.

“Yes, I saw.”

“I wonder…”

Simon stepped closer. “Something on your mind?”

Justus peered through the glass door at Silver, who was stuffing cookies into her mouth. “Ella’s affliction explains why Hannah’s kept her a secret. She’ll never grant her Learner independence in that condition. That would be a burden on a woman like Hannah. She might be looking to trade her off.”

“As dubious as Boris is, I don’t think he’s the type who would take in a mail-order bride, especially one with an impediment.”

“Perhaps he’s tired of vocal women with a strong opinion. Remember Gretchen? He shriveled at parties when she would talk about his incompetence as a lover.”

“Deservedly so. That’s what happens when you bond with a woman two centuries older than you and treat her like a frumpy maid.”

“Yes, his behavior
was
disagreeable.”

“We’re living in the modern world, Justus. I don’t think the Council can get away with selling off their progeny.”

Justus tucked his hands in his pants pockets. “On the contrary, there are no laws against it. If she is not deemed suitable for independence, then her only options are to live with her Creator or bond with another Mage.”

“Ella would never agree.”

Justus shrugged. “No need to if she doesn’t understand what’s going on.”

“You’re a prat, you know that? Since when did you become a gossipy hen?”

Justus snagged him by the lapel of his vest. “I’m cautioning you, Simon. You must not interfere with the Council’s personal affairs, and I can see you’ve developed an attachment.”

Simon knocked his friend’s arm away. “I only get attached to women below the hip.”

A smile played on Justus’s lips. “If you insist, but Hannah will tear you down. She has power, connections, and money.” He briefly glanced inside when a group of people erupted in laughter. “If you find out why Boris is here, let me know. His name is listed in the HALO book more than once, so I want to make sure he keeps his nose clean now that he’s in our territory.”

That caught Simon’s attention. “You mean the red book? On what grounds?”

Justus averted his eyes. “Not up for discussion.”

Simon rapped his knuckles on the glass, and two women giggled. “Get back inside and find Page before the women in the foyer crash through the doors and try to mount you. Charmers have all the luck.”

“I used to think so,” he said, opening the door. “Some gifts are a curse.”

“It landed you the sexiest brainiac in all Cognito.”

Justus pivoted to face him. “My charm had nothing to do with winning the heart of my woman.”

Page stepped beside him and clutched his arm. “I disagree wholeheartedly, Mr. De Gradi.”

Justus cupped his hand behind her neck and kissed her cheek. “Are you ready to go home,
mon ange
?”

Simon drifted toward the front room where he’d last seen Ella dancing, but she was nowhere in sight. Through the crowd, he spied Boris and Hannah in the midst of a serious conversation, one that left him unsettled.

What if Justus was right?

A
fter a month
of training under Simon, Ella had not only learned a myriad of techniques to overcome her deafness in a fight, but she’d also become quite adept at lip-reading.

More than she let on with Simon. She guessed it probably took most people years to accomplish what she had in weeks, but Ella had always been exceptionally gifted at learning what anyone taught her. She decided it was in her best interest not to reveal the full extent of her talents. It kept his guard down, and he had a tendency of talking out loud about all kinds of things, assuming she didn’t understand. He knew she could read up close, but he didn’t have a clue that she could put several feet between them and follow along. Even when he briefly turned away, she learned to fill in the blanks and keep up with the gist of the conversation.

Simon repeatedly scolded her for flashing during an attack. True, it depleted her energy and made her vulnerable, but Ella had always relied on her powers to compensate for her size. He taught her maneuvers that didn’t require strength, like how to flex her opponent’s limbs to inflict intense pain so she could slip out of their grasp.

The only regrettable change in their training was that Simon didn’t touch her as often to communicate. She missed the sound of his voice, his thoughts, and… the feel of his hand. Those moments of physical contact had become not just a mental link but a form of affection, even if it was only one-sided.

Hannah tugged at Ella’s dress. “He’s nothing but a fool,” she said to herself, not realizing Ella could understand. Hannah often talked to herself in Ella’s presence.

Ella stood still while Hannah examined her dress to relay to the tailor what adjustments were needed. She pulled at the sleeve, dissatisfied with the length.

“I can’t have you living here forever; people are starting to gossip. But I need you to become independent and live on your own. That’s what Mr. Hunt is here for, and hopefully he doesn’t…”

Hannah turned away, and Ella gritted her teeth in frustration.

“…too valuable to me,” she continued. Her eyes steadied on Ella’s, enough to make Ella quickly look down at her sleeve. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were reading my lips. But he told me your progress in that area was painfully slow. I hope he can bring that up to speed; you won’t survive in this world if you can’t communicate with—”

When she turned her head away, Ella lost interest. Days like this made her wish she was outside in the exciting world.

“…a bride indeed.”

Ella’s eyes rounded when she caught those words.

Hannah’s thick brows drew together as she took one last look at Ella’s waistline. “You have more muscle than you did a month ago, so none of your dresses are going to fit right.” With a flick of her wrist, she motioned for Ella to take off the dress.

Flustered, Ella yanked on a pair of leggings that looked like newspaper print with crossword puzzles on them. Needless to say, Hannah hated them. Ella had kept very few things from her old life, but the stretchy pants were one of them.

Hannah placed the dress on a plastic hanger and swiftly left the room.

Ella couldn’t get the word “bride” out of her head. Was Hannah getting married? As if it wasn’t uncomfortable enough living here… having to deal with a master of the house would be a nightmare.

She sat on the bed and put on a pair of flimsy black lace-ups that came above the ankle. The boots were old, tattered, and something she couldn’t bring herself to throw away. They reminded her of the disapproving look her mother had given her when she’d picked them out at the store. All the other girls were wearing them, and even though at the time she had no one to show them off to, it made her feel less different.

Ella turned around, pulling an oversized black shirt over her head. When she glanced up, she stumbled backward, her heart racing.

Simon peered at her through the window, standing on the outside ledge with his arms stretched out and gripping the wall. He had a smug grin on his face and winked when she angrily swung open the casement window.

He jumped inside and admired her outfit. “Aren’t we looking casual today?”

She gripped his hand.
Why can’t you ring the doorbell like a normal person?

“Now where’s the fun in that, love?” He let go of her hand and leaned in as if speaking to her privately. “Plus, I’d have to deal with the Ice Queen, and I’m not in the mood. Shall we?”

Ella folded her arms.

“If you’re going to be a skilled Mage, you need to learn more than back handsprings and flashing maneuvers. You never know when you’ll be in a situation where you’ll have to climb out a window or swim through an alligator-infested swamp. Don’t ask.”

She looked down at her clothes. Ella never went out in public looking this sloppy.

His eyes scanned her body. “You’re more dressed than a salad.”

Simon stepped onto the outside ledge and turned to face her, using the tips of his toes to walk. The ledge must have been no more than three inches wide, and Ella’s stomach dropped when he moved out of sight. She peered out the window and watched him shuffle to her left until he was across from a large tree. He bent his knees and then pushed off the wall, doing an aerial twist. Ella gasped when he gripped a branch and swung from it, dangling so far from the ground that if he let go, he’d surely break his legs. He hooked his leg over it and shimmied down to the trunk, standing on a lower branch and waving at her to follow.

He’s crazy
, she thought to herself.

Simon smiled wide and then pointed at the ledge.

What’s wrong with stairs and doors?
she asked herself while climbing onto the ledge and gripping the flat wall with her fingertips.
One step at a time… If he can do it, I can do it… Oh, shit!
She almost lost her footing and dug her fingers into a shallow groove on the wall, throwing all her weight forward. With her heart racing a mile a minute, she carefully peered over her shoulder.

Landing two stories below wouldn’t kill her, but it would still hurt. Simon was trying to teach her to overcome her fear of pain; easier said than done. A broken nose was one thing; a compound fracture and a shattered spine was something else entirely. She reached the spot where Simon had vaulted off the wall, but the tree seemed too far, and there was no way she could match the distance.

Ella glared beneath her armpit at him.

“Don’t think about it. Just do it,” he said, patting the branch above him.

She hesitated, and when she second-guessed herself and tried to measure the distance again, she lost her footing and fell.

A split second later, her feet landed safely on the branch above Simon. She gripped a higher limb and looked down, noticing all kinds of profanities rolling off his tongue as he looked up at her—words she’d never heard before.

When they climbed down and dropped to the grass, he gripped her hands. “You’re a Jumper!”

A what?

“Jumper. It means instead of flashing around like the rest of us, you can concentrate that energy to move short distances—like teleportation. Don’t you know what you are?”

She shrugged, uncertain of how to answer. Hannah had never explained her gift, only that she shouldn’t use it. Nor had she given it a name.

“Bloody hell, that was brilliant! I’ve heard about Jumpers but never actually seen one in action.”

What you almost saw in action was me smashing against the ground like a bug on a windshield
.

“That would have been a bloody shame. We’re doing that again, just so you know, and I won’t tolerate cheating.”

How can I cheat?

“By using your gifts as a Mage. Hurry up before the Ice Queen sees us.” He ran across the lawn, still holding her hand.

Where are we going?

He looked over his shoulder at her. “I want to test your lip-reading skills in a social situation.”

Wait, I’m not sure about this
.

Simon was a step ahead, and while she couldn’t see his mouth anymore, she still heard every word through his thoughts.

“Don’t get your knickers in a twist. They’re just some friends of mine. I told them you’re supremely shy and that Hannah’s progeny isn’t allowed to speak without her Creator present. That should get you off the hook.”

And they bought it?

He mentally snorted. “When it comes to Hannah, nothing would surprise them. I want you to engage and interact with them, as if you were a hearing person. This will require you to pay attention to people who aren’t even speaking to you. Novis is out of town, and Sunny invited everyone over for lunch. Damn, I should have worn my running shoes…”

D
uring their drive
, Ella wondered what Simon’s friends were like and whether or not she’d fit in. She recognized Novis’s mansion as they drove up and went through the security checkpoints, so that made her nervous. Novis was friendly, but she’d only spoken to him once or twice in her early years as a Mage.

Ella had adopted the role of a shy girl for this visit, bowing respectfully as Simon introduced her to several people. She smiled and watched their lips, nodding when they said it was a pleasure to meet her. They weren’t at all the kind of people she imagined him hanging out with.

She enjoyed the looks they gave Simon, especially the blonde whose eyes narrowed at his leather pants. Ella liked his style, so it was interesting that he was friends with people who were so different, so… normal.

Sunny was warm and friendly, and Ella could immediately tell by her dull energy that she was a human. Many trusted humans worked in their world, but she’d never actually seen one living with a Mage—especially since she had children. They were fun to watch, scurrying in and out of the kitchen while everyone ate lunch. The kitchen island was covered with platters of sandwiches, cheese, pickles, chips, and blueberries. The little girl grabbed a handful of the berries when her mother wasn’t looking and tiptoed after her twin brother in the other room.

“How do you two know each other?” Kane asked.

Simon took a bite of his sandwich and answered him. Ella shifted in her chair, irritated when he smiled at her. He was intentionally making this hard for her by eating and talking at the same time.

Everyone nodded, accepting whatever answer he gave.

From what Ella gathered, Kane and Sunny were close, but not lovers. She sensed he was Breed, so they must have been good friends. A pretty brunette was with him, but she quickly took the children outside when she noticed blueberry stains on the little girl’s fingers and in her twin brother’s hair.

“How do you like living with Hannah?” Silver asked.

Ella shrugged and nodded her reply. The buff guy that Simon had met at the bar was there, and he tapped Silver on the shoulder. She guessed that he was her Creator, because Ella had seen that same scolding glance on her own Creator’s face when she’d done something inappropriate.

Simon had a point about reading people. Instead of pretending to understand, she was now engaged in the conversations—laughing in all the right spots. And not just because everyone else was laughing, but because she
finally
understood what they were saying.

It restored her confidence that she could be a part of society again instead of hiding in corners and avoiding conversation.

Silver’s Creator toted around a little girl with wispy blond hair. He behaved in a fatherly way toward her, and she clung to him, which was odd considering he was a Mage. Just like at the bar, Ella felt an unexplainable attraction toward him. It went away when she put distance between them.

Hours later, Ella cleared the table and helped Kane’s girlfriend wash dishes—Ella washed and she dried. Every so often, Ella would hand her a plate and Caroline would give her a peculiar stare, turning the dish slowly in her hands. The third time she did it, Ella stepped away. Caroline wasn’t a Mage, and you could never be too careful about other Breeds.

Despite Ella’s silence, everyone accepted her. They were inclusive—asking her to join them outside for a glass of lemonade or showing her photographs of the children from a picture album.

Eventually, Ella grew tired of reading lips, so she decided to take a walk around the mansion and have a moment to herself. She missed the cozy feel of a small house, and a home of this magnitude felt more like a museum with all its artifacts. Still, the paintings fascinated her, and this Mage had them in spades.

* * *

S
imon concentrated
, slowly tapping the plastic lever when the white marbles moved toward his hippo. Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, Knox was slamming his palm down on his lever, making his hippo lurch like it was caught in a seizure. It made a terrible racket as the balls scattered about. Simon took his time, slowly extending his hippo’s neck until a group of marbles would slide within reach.

“You’ll never win by getting impatient,” he said to Knox. “See how you’re scaring all the marbles away from you? They’re practically rolling into my mouth.”

“You’re a doo-doo head,” Knox fired back. He reached out with his chubby hand and scooped the marbles into his hippo’s mouth.