Authors: Leah Cook
CHAPTER 12
Sunday I decided to test out my water skills away from the house, I left my phone at the house and took Phoenix with me, telling my parents I was going for a walk. We walked around the lake until I found a spot that couldn’t be seen from the road. I let Phoenix off his lead and he went to the water and put a foot it. Immediately he jumped back and barked at the water, then ran back to me. I gave him a reassuring pat and told him to go for it. He ran at the water and jumped full pelt into the lake.
I laughed and came to the edge of the water and sat down watching Phoenix swimming happily in the reeds.
I took a deep breath, filling my lungs and then blew it out slowly to relax myself and crossed my legs. I stared at the water, watching it ripple at the edge of the lake, the water was so clear and calming.
For a while nothing happened, and I dropped my concentration when Phoenix bounded back to the shore and shook off the water from his coat in front of me. I laughed and played with him for a few minutes.
“I wonder…” I said to myself and reached for Phoenix. I calmed him and patted him until he lent his head on my legs and snuggled in. I held my hands above him and concentrated on the water that still clung to his fur. I stared at him, holding my hands still and trying to will the heat through my body. Within a few minutes I felt it running through me faster than it had before. I concentrated on the water droplets, silently willing the heat in my hands to move them.
I felt the pulse burst within me and watched almost in slow motion as the water repelled off him. Concentrating, I held the water between him and my hands, and then tried flicking them towards the lake. A few drops landed noisily in the lake, rippling the calm surface. I repeated the action until all the water I’d pulled from his fur was back in the lake. After a minute, he was fluffy and dry and sound asleep.
I gently picked him up and put him on the grass next to me once again focusing my concentration on the lake. I didn’t want to lose the feeling of control that I had in my fingers. I leant forward and held my hands above the water about thirty centimetres and then waved them slightly left. Nothing happened. I tried again feeling the heat pulsing in my hands and watched as the water moved slightly to the left. I smiled, and moved my concentration to the right, and watched as it moved to the right in a larger wave. Lowering my hands I relaxed and felt the now familiar pulse fade from my body. I noticed that it never felt like it was gone completely, it was always waiting on the edge of my mind.
I sat back feeling slightly drained but happy that I’d managed to figure something out by myself. Although I still didn’t really know what ‘this’ was yet. Easing myself down, I laid back in the grass with my hands behind my head and wondered what else I could do.
I opened my eyes and realised I’d nodded off, sitting up I realised that Phoenix wasn’t where he had been sleeping.
“Phoenix!” I stood up, cupping my hands around my mouth calling him loudly. “PHOENIX!”
I heard a quiet bark, and spun towards the lake, he was out in the middle, trying to swim towards me. I could see that he was struggling and kept going under. Kicking my shoes off I ran into the water and started swimming towards him.
“It’s okay, Phoenix!” I called as I swam. I couldn’t hear him barking anymore. I stopped to get my bearings treading water for a few seconds. I had always had trouble swimming in a straight line. I watched as he fought to stay above the water. I started swimming, keeping my eyes on him so I would be able to see if he went under.
I almost reached him when he went under, his legs unable to swim anymore. I swam harder, fighting the urge to stop and catch my breath. Diving under I grabbed hold of him by the scruff of his neck and pulled, expecting to be able to heave him straight up to the surface. My lungs started to complain about the lack of oxygen. Ignoring it I pulled again, and was met with the same resistance, like someone was holding him under the water. As my lungs burned, I stared through the murky water, and knew I only had one more chance to save him. I pushed down the water with everything in me, holding him tighter and heaved. I felt him release and finally dragged him to the surface. I gulped in air my lungs burning and my vision slightly blurred. I kept Phoenix’s head out of water, he didn’t have the energy to lift it himself. He wasn’t moving and his breathing was shallow.
“RUBY!” I heard a voice yelling, but couldn’t tell where it was coming from. “RUBY!”
Looking around, I saw a lone figure on the opposite side of the lake where I had been. It looked like Mikayla, but as I bobbed in the water, I couldn’t quite make them out.
I swam back towards the shore, noticing that Scott had wadded in up to his waist.
“Hey,” I said as I passed a now shaking Phoenix to him and waded the rest of the way out. I plonked down on the shore and heaved in mouthfuls of air, trying to catch my breath.
“What the hell were you doing out there?” Scott’s eyes burned with anger, not the concern I had expected.
“Just taking a swim.” I answered sarcastically, pulling Phoenix out of his arms. “What’s with the attitude?”
He seemed to study me for a minute before sitting down behind me and wrapped me in his arms. “I didn’t know what you were doing, but you were so far out…I…I was.” He swallowed. “I was scared, Ruby.”
“Did you think I was suicidal or just drowning?” I felt my anger flare, unsure of whether it was because he either thought I was an idiot who couldn’t swim or if it was because he might have thought I was suicidal.
“I didn’t really think that far ahead, Ruby.” He sighed. “I just couldn’t believe that you were all the way out there. What happened?”
“I fell asleep and Phoenix decided that he would go for a swim by himself. He would have drowned if I hadn’t have gone in after him! I couldn’t let that happen.” I desperately wanted to see if I could dry the dog off, but I wasn’t ready to let Scott in on what I had discovered. “Is Mikayla with you?”
“She was with me when I got the text from your mum to see if I knew where you were. I dropped her off outside the school and she went home from there. Why?”
“I thought I saw her over there that’s all.” I pointed across the lake. “When I was out there grabbing Phoenix.”
“I doubt it, but you never know. Let’s get him checked over by the vet, he still hasn’t quite got his bounce back has he?” Scott stood up, Phoenix tilted his head towards him and his tail wagged once feebly.
I felt bad that it hadn’t been my first thought, to get him checked, and I was annoyed that it had taken Scott so long to mention it. I stood up and cradled Phoenix in my arms, he whimpered softly.
Half an hour later we sat outside the vet surgery, having decided that he needed to stay for observation, the vet told me he would ring later and let me know if he needed to stay longer.
I put my head in my hands and cried. I’d let him down. I should have put him back on the lead or not gone to sleep, or both…just
something
. Not that I’d meant to but still, I was supposed to be responsible for him. I thought of how I was going to explain this one to my parents and groaned through my tears.
To his credit, Scott just put his arm around me and let me cry into the curve of his chest until I stopped. I hated how much I had cried since moving to Primfield. I hadn’t really been much of a crier before then. I pulled myself together and prepared myself for my parent’s inevitable spiel about not being ready for the responsibility of owning a dog.
“Hey, how did you know I was at the lake?” I asked Scott standing up and brushing myself off.
“Your mum, she sent a text, asking me if I knew where you were. She said you’d been gone for a while and you hadn’t taken your phone. She was just getting worried that’s all.” Scott stood up to meet me. “I figured you’d gone for a walk because you’d taken Phoenix with you. So I decided to head to the lake and that’s when I saw your shoes on the ground. The rest you know.”
“What time is it? Why was she so worried? I’d only been gone an hour or so.” I didn’t wear a watch so I relied on my phone to keep me time wise.
“Ruby, its three o’clock in the afternoon.”
“Oh my God! No wonder she was worried, you’d better take me home.” I scurried into Scott’s car, still damp from the lake.
“I sent her a text to let her know where we were when we first arrived.” Scott said as he got in and started the car.
Silently I thanked him with a small smile, I was lucky to have him. When we got to the house, I kissed his cheek and went inside, I didn’t say anything else. After I went in the house I heard him pull slowly away.
“Hi.” I said as I went to the fridge and grabbed a drink. “Can we talk about this in a minute? I’d really rather have a shower and get changed first.”
“Ruby, you’re not in trouble.” My father said from across the bench. “We were just worried. You don’t usually go for walks for that long. It wasn’t just a couple of hours, it was five hours by the time your mother got the message from Scott telling us that you were at the vets.”
I looked at him absorbing what he was saying, but still unsure where all that time had gone.
“How is he honey, Phoenix?” My mother brought her arms around me and brought me into a tight embrace. Again I fought against the tears that threatened to spill over.
“The vet said he might have taken on a lot of water into his lungs because he wasn’t breathing as well as he should have been, so he’s giving him some oxygen and is going to watch him for a while. He will let me know if he will need to stay in overnight.” I looked up and pulled out of my mother’s warm embrace. “Don’t worry, I’ll clean out my bank accounts if I have to, to pay the bill.”
My father actually smiled at that. Smiled! Who would have thought? “Ruby, we bought you the dog, we pay for his food and even if you don’t believe it, I’ve actually come to like him. I don’t expect you to pay for it, in fact, we’re proud of you for saving him.”
“You are? You do? You like him?” I stared at my father, incredulous at what he’d just shared. “But you hate dogs!”
“Ruby, I’ve seen more of you in the short time we’ve been here than I did the whole last year. I’m honoured to say that you have grown into an amazing young woman with a clear head on your shoulders. We love you and we couldn’t have asked for more.” He came around the bench and gave me a quick cuddle, ruffled my hair and left the room without another word. I was still staring after him when my mother quietly spoke.
“He’s finally seeing what he’s missed out on all these years honey. He’s trying to make it up to you.” She said softly.
I gulped down some more water and then realised I was shaking, my still damp clothes and the shock of what had happened was finally catching up with me. I headed upstairs for a hot bath and felt the tension leave me as I soaked.
The vet rang before dinner and told me that Phoenix was doing better but he still wanted to keep a close eye on him until morning. I gave him my mother’s number as I would be at school when he was going to call in the morning. I felt better knowing that he was showing improvement but I still wanted him home with me where he belonged.
Dinner was full of conversation about our lives, my mother tried to avoid talking about her garden with me, but I knew she’d have to come clean at some point. I was hoping she would fill in some more of the blanks that I hadn’t yet figured out.
I sat in the lounge and watched TV with my parents for a while before excusing myself for bed. I flipped open my laptop and jumped on Facebook. It had been a while and I wanted to see what was happening with my old friends. I tried logging in several times before realising that my account had been blocked. I sent an email off to find out what had happened and turned it off.
I didn’t read my emails, not wanting there to be anything from my self-professed
friend
. The other part of me was worried that there wouldn’t be something from him.
Gratefully I fell asleep almost immediately and slept until the sun shone through my open curtains in the morning.
CHAPTER 13
The next two weeks went past in a blur of assignments and homework. I spent time at the lake without Phoenix, trying to see what else I could do with water. I could now put my hands into the lake completely up to my elbow without getting wet, the water simply moving around me, out of my way. I was able to get the water to move within seconds of willing it, I could almost feel the heat pulsing the second I thought about asking it to move the water.
My mother had still refused to speak to me about her gardening ability. I’m still not even sure what to call it. She could make things grow, and I could move water, but I wanted to know how the two things connected.
I had also managed to keep my temper reigned in, not wanting to spark any more fires, falling lamp posts or knife attacks. I would need somewhere safe to try and see if I could control it. I wondered if I should confide in Scott. He had been a little off at school whenever Mikayla had been around, I figured they had probably had a fight. Mikayla had been the same, quiet yet controlled and intense. I was yet to get a straight answer from someone as to why she was so feared. Even the teachers and admin staff seemed afraid of her and I was still confused as to how they got away with not wearing the uniform. Were the school staff really
that
scared of her?
Phoenix had recovered quickly from our trip to the lake, when we went for walks he steered clear of the lake completely, and pulled on his lead if I tried to coax him over for a closer look. I didn’t want him to be scared of water, but I understood his hesitation. I just needed to give him some time.
Krystal’s parents had contacted me, thanking me for going to the funeral and asking if I could come over for a visit sometime. I told them I was busy with end of term exams coming up and assignments but I would go during the holidays. They didn’t give me a clue as to why they wanted to see me just that they needed to talk to me. I told Scott one night after youth group and he had asked me if I was going to go, I’d been honest and he almost seemed relieved that I wasn’t rushing over there.
I had also found the courage to ask my father if I could go on the youth group camping trip. Showing him the permission form which explicitly said that there are strict rules in place when it came to sleeping arrangements and alcohol and drug use. Girls and boys were separated in to two camps only coming into contact during the day for selected activities. There was also a no tolerance rule for alcohol and drug use, and anyone found to be using either substance would be sent home immediately.
He gave me the standard I’ll think about it approach. Which in the past had always meant no, now though I wasn’t sure what his answer would be. He said he would talk to his boss and ask about the reputation of previous camps. I wasn’t sure if there had been any so I left it at that and hoped he would at least consider it. I left him the form, kissed him on the cheek and hadn’t mentioned it since.
The last week of term and everyone in school was restless. More people played up in class, especially once all the assignments where handed in. The teachers were even more relaxed than usual, letting us out early for lunch on some of the warmer days. I felt like my life was different in a good way now. With my water ability and my mother’s gardening ability and having Scott in my life, as well as Mikayla, and my father being home more. Everything was finally starting to settle down. Chaotic at the best of times, but definitely better. I’d almost forgotten about my life in the city, my friendship with Claire and even Jake.
Thursday night over dinner my parents handed me the completed permission form, signed and dated. I gaped at it, not quite believing that it was real.
“Are you guys serious?” I jumped up and kissed them both on the cheek. “You’re not going to fall apart in the three days I’m away are you? Because I know how much you’ll miss me.”
“Ruby, we’re so proud of you,” my father began. “We know how hard you’re working to get good grades at school and you’ve never been late for your curfew. Even if we have changed it on you without warning.”
My mother reached for his hand and squeezed it, I loved watching the unseen words pass between them. “You’ve more than earned our trust honey. We want you to go and have fun and enjoy yourself.”
“You talked to Mikayla and Scott’s Uncle and he vouched for it, didn’t he?” I smiled, not really caring how they came to their decision but that it had been made in my favour. “Oh my God! Wait until…Mikayla hears that I can go. She’s been giving me such a hard time about it.” In truth I meant Scott, but I didn’t want to give them any idea that I wanted more than anything to spend the days with him.
“Well you better go and pack honey, don’t forget your sunscreen and I’ll send your father out to the garage for a sleeping bag.” She started clearing the table and I took it as a sign that the conversation was finished. I ran up the stairs to grab my phone tripping on the top stair and only just managing to save myself from face planted the carpet.
I messaged only two words to Scott ‘
I’m going!
’ And waited impatiently for his reply.
‘
I’ll be able to cuddle you all night.
’ He sent back almost instantly and my entire body heated at the idea.
My heart rate increased and I started to breathe just slightly shallower from the reply and the thought of spending the night with him. I don’t know how long I stared at my phone, but I dropped it, startled, when it started to ring, it was Scott.
“Hi,” was all I managed.
“Hey gorgeous, I didn’t get a reply and just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“Are you in bed?” I asked. He sounded completely relaxed, like he was just drifting off to sleep or waking up.
“On top of it, but I’d rather be on top of you.” I could hear the smile on his face, knowing his dimples would be dancing on his face.
“I…well…um…” I blushed hard and I was glad it wasn’t a video call.
“Stop blushing, I can’t believe you’re still not used to me talking to you like that.” His voice was so husky. I hadn’t known I could get turned on by the sound of someone’s voice until I’d met Scott.
“I thought the camp was segregated into girls and boys…” I trailed off not really sure if I wanted to know.
“Well it is…mostly. You’ll understand tomorrow night. I have to go. See ya babe,” and without waiting for a reply he hung up.
I stared at the phone and wondered if Scott had any idea of what he’d just done to me. My head was reeling at the thought of spending the night with him. There was no way I could lay next to him and not give in to the passion and the tension that had grown between us.
Then I felt guilty, my father’s speech about how hard I had worked to earn their trust came back to me. Despite the guilt I couldn’t back out now. I wanted to see what went on at the camp. I had begun to notice a few little oddities at the meetings on Friday nights that I wasn’t sure about. The prayers had become more prominent and I still hadn’t asked who it was we were praying to, except that the name we used was the
Great Star
. I had meant to do a search on it at the library, but every time I thought of it I got caught up with something else. Reaching for my laptop I was about to turn it on when my father came in, knocking gently.
“Here you go Ruby. I thought I’d better do it before I forgot.” He handed me the sleeping bag he had in his hands. “Oh, and before you ask, I did check it for spiders, I unzipped it and everything.”
I smiled at him. “Thanks Dad. You know I really have noticed you around more. I think I kind of like it actually, and I know it makes mum happy when you’re home.” I gave him a little peck on the cheek and watched as his face flamed red. At least I knew where the blushing came from. “Hey, has mum always been interested in gardening?”
“I guess so.” He paused, thinking for a moment, “at least as long as I’ve known her. She was only a couple of years older than you when we met. She grew the flowers that we used for our wedding, they were spectacular I tell you. Why the sudden interest?”
“Oh, just an idea I had for mother’s day.” I almost choked, realising how easy the lie slipped out. These little lies seemed to be coming out easier and easier. Looking at me a little quizzically, my father left the room so I could start packing.
I had that nagging feeling like I was about to do something. When I couldn’t remember I grabbed a bag and packed some clothes into it. Only concentrating when it came to my underwear selection. After all, I didn’t want to pack anything that would make Scott run a mile. After I’d packed I got my things ready for school the next day and changed for bed. A sweet goodnight message from Scott left me smiling as I climbed in.
There was a quiet knock on the door before my mother came in looking slightly nervous.
“Honey, can we have that chat?”
“Sure, I’ve been wondering when you were going to do this,” I answered as I sat up in my bed. “I was starting to wonder if you were just going to ignore it.” I moved Phoenix, leaving her space to sit next to me on the bed. She sat down and placed her hand on my leg. “I was hoping you would though.”
“I know, I just wasn’t sure if I would ever even need to have this conversation with you, I was hoping it would never come up. It’s not something that is always passed on to the next generation.” She sighed, trying to find the right words before she sighed heavily. Taking in a deep breath she held my hand and began. “As you already know I can make things grow. But it’s more than that too…I can make them grow faster. I discovered it about your age, when my parents had asked me to take over the gardening when my father got sick.”
“Just before he died?” I asked.
She nodded slowly before continuing. “It wasn’t something I could explain, at first it only happened when I was upset. I tended to let my grief out when I was in the garden. It was away from the house and I didn’t want to upset my parents with my own pain. Eventually my grandmother found me in the garden and watched me take a seed and grow into a seedling. She didn’t seem surprised at what she saw. Then she sat down with me and told me about the generations of my family that could do what I could do. Over a few months she taught me about nature, about my ability and how important it was to protect it. Then one day she just disappeared, and we never heard from her again.”
I felt my own silent tears stream down my face, my mother’s pain clear on her own face as well. She swallowed and continued her voice wavering as she spoke.
“It’s handed down but, there are more people with different skills, abilities, powers, whatever you want to call it. It’s all related, earth, water, fire and air. It was once known by its Latin name as
elementum magicae
which means…”
“Elemental magic,” I finished the sentence for her, she nodded and continued.
“As much as she taught me, there were still so much that I didn’t understand and that I
still
don’t understand. She never got to tell me what it all meant or how it’s all connected. I didn’t even know if I would pass it on to you. She did tell me that sometimes it skipped generations though.” She turned her face to me, lifting my chin so that our eyes met. “I do know, however, that there are others out there that can steal this ability, through killing those with abilities, but I’m not sure how the magic actually crosses into them.” She seemed to want to tell me more, but hesitated before asking, “Ruby, the incident with the knife…have you had anything else like that happen? Anything that might seem even the slightest out of place.”
I looked in to her eyes, seeing the fear that she held for me and for my future. So I lied to her. “No, that was it. I’m sure it was nothing.”
“I’m sorry for not coming to you sooner, but I needed some time to gather my thoughts and work out what I remembered from my grandmother. I wish she had been able to tell me more before she disappeared, I always wondered if someone had taken her ability by force.”
“I think I understand, and thank you for coming clean with me. I promise I’ll keep it to myself. Does Dad know?” I held her hand in my own to comfort us both.
“No. I never felt there was a right time, and he never noticed what grew and when. It’s been easy to hide…until now that is. Just one more thing, it’s not just growing things, I can move other things that are related to the earth, dirt, trees...pretty much anything.”
I smiled and she leaned in and hugged me, telling me I could go to her if I had any more questions. I had so many, but I knew she would eventually catch on that I was asking for my own benefit and I wasn’t ready to share them with her. The fear in her face when she’d asked about the knife had me wondering what she’d left out from her story.
After she left I lay awake, trying to think of something else other than Scott’s arms wrapped around me in less than twenty four hours. Something else other than the information my mother had finally shared. Did I hold the water element within me? Like she did with her earth ability? I knew I would have to tell her eventually about my newly acquired water ability. But I still wasn’t sure what it was or if it was even the same thing.