SEARCH FOR THE LOST SOUL (3 page)

“I see it,”
she finally whispered. “What is it?”

“I think
that’s the center of your magic.”

“What?” Her
eyes popped open.

Chris
sighed. “Close your eyes and find that light again. Don’t take your eyes off
it. We’re going to need it.”

“Ok, but you
have to promise me that you’ll explain what you’re talking about.”

“I will, as
soon as you seal off the room.”

She frowned
but obediently closed her eyes. After a moment, she nodded, now that she knew
what she was looking for, it didn’t take her long to find it.

Chris
pondered for a moment before giving her the next set of instructions. “Now, I
want you to concentrate on that spot and think that this room cannot be
penetrated by either magical or electronic means. Can you do that?”

She nodded
but didn’t open her eyes. Several minutes passed as her brow furrowed with
concentration. Finally, she smiled and opened her eyes. “I know something
happened. I felt something leave my body.”

“What?”
Chris asked curiously.

She
reflected for a moment before shaking her head. “It’s not something I can
describe. I don’t have the words. But I definitely felt it.”

Chris felt a
sense of relief now that Gregory could no longer eavesdrop on them. He dropped
his hold on Kelly’s arms.

She
immediately put her arms around his neck. “You promised me a kiss if I did what
you asked.”

He smiled.
“Actually, what I promised was that we would talk about it.”

“I don’t
want to talk about it. I want a kiss.”

He looked
down into her eyes and had to force his mind to remain on the problem they
still faced. “Ok. I’ll make a deal with you. One kiss and then you listen to
what I have to say.”

“Deal.”

He smiled
and bent to kiss her again. After another long kiss, he raised his head
regretfully; he had to admit that he was enjoying this bargaining process. “Are
you ready to listen?”

She sighed.
“Yes.”

He led her
to the bed and sat her on the edge, settling himself beside her, She snuggled
closer to him. “Are we going to do more than kiss?”

He took a
deep breath. “No. Now, you promised to listen.”

She leaned
over and began to blow into his ear.

He jerked
his head away. “Cut that out.”

After a
moment’s thought, he decided that he better stand, at least until after they
finished talking.

He took
another deep breath before looking at her; she was making this very difficult.
“Are you ready to listen?”

She pouted
but nodded.

Chris rolled
his eyes before relating all that had transpired between himself and Gregory.
As she listened, the pout disappeared, replaced with a thoughtful expression.

When he finally
fell silent, she gazed at him for several minutes before speaking. “Are you
telling me that I’m under a spell?”

“Yes.”

She thought
about it for a moment before shaking her head. “I don’t believe it.”

“Think about
it for a minute,” Chris urged. “You said that you felt something leave your
body when you concentrated on that spot of light. Couldn’t that have been
magic?”

She frowned
up at him for a moment but said nothing.

Chris sighed
and decided on another tactic. “Alright, think about how you were acting
yesterday or the day before. Then, consider your actions of the last few
minutes. Have you ever been so forward as to demand kisses from a boy before?”

“If I do,
will you give me another kiss?”

Chris took a
deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh. “I’ll tell you what. If, after we
have reached the conclusion of our talk and you have done all the thinking that
I ask you to, you still want me to kiss you again, I will.”

“Promise.”

“Yes.”

“Ok, I’ll
think about it.” Her brow furrowed as she thought. After a moment, she looked
up at him, a horrified expression on her face. “I’ve been acting like a whore.”

Chris seated
himself next to her and took her hand in his. “No, you haven’t. That’s what
I’ve been trying to tell you. You’re under a spell. I am too.”

“I’m so
ashamed.” She dropped her eyes but not before he saw the tears forming there.

He gently
grasped her chin, raising her face so she had to look at him. “There’s nothing
for you to be ashamed of. You’re under a spell. It’s not your fault.”

“You don’t
think any less of me?”

he shook his
head. “No, I don’t.”

She took a
deep, shuddering breath. “So, how do I break this spell?”

Chris
dropped his hand. Why did she have to ask him? Like he was supposed to know
something about magic. “I don’t know. Maybe you can look inside yourself and
see if you see anything weird.”

“How would I
know if it was weird?”

“I don’t
know but it’s the only thing I know to suggest.”

She sighed
again and closed her eyes, her brow furrowing again as she concentrated. She
stayed in that position for so long that Chris began to fear that something was
wrong but she finally spoke. “I see a black spot.”

Chris
frowned, thinking that they had nothing to lose. “Get rid of it.”

“How?”

“I don’t
know. You’re the one with the magic.”

She fell
silent again. Several minutes passed before she opened her eyes, smiling
shakily at him. “I made it disappear.”

“Do you
still want me to kiss you?”

She looked
away from him but said nothing.

Chris
smiled. “I know that you like me. Gregory told me.”

“He did?”
She didn’t look at him.

“Yes, he
did.” He paused as he tried to decide if he should tell her how he felt about
her. He decided against it. “I want you to know that I don’t feel any different
about you now than I did when we got here.”

She looked
up at him and then quickly away. “You don’t?”

He smiled.
“No. I feel exactly the same.”

“That’s
good,” she said in a small voice.

There was
along silence before he spoke again. “Can I ask you a favor?”

“Yes.”

“Well, I’m
under a spell too. I was wondering if you could remove it.”

She eyed him
thoughtfully. “Do you think that the procedure would be the same?”

“I think it
would be similar.”

“What if I
hurt you?”

He smiled.
“I’m willing to take the chance.”

She eyed him
again before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. Several minutes passed
before she spoke. “I see black spot inside you. It looks like the one that was
inside me.”

“Remove it,
please.”

“Ok.”

A short time
later, she opened her eyes and looked at him. “There. It’s gone. How do you
feel?”

Chris took a
moment to assess his body, his eyes searching her face. He still wanted to kiss
her but the sense of desperation was gone. He was certain that he could now
control himself. He smiled at her. “I feel better. Thank you.”

“You’re
welcome.”

There was
another long silence before she spoke again. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Yes.”

“While you
were under that spell, how were you able to resist me. I mean, I was throwing
myself at you and if the spell was as strong as Gregory seemed to think it was,
it must have been hard. But you were a gentleman. You kept resisting my desire
to be kissed.”

Chris had to
look away from her. Now was the moment of truth. For a moment, he considered
keeping the truth from her but quickly realized that he couldn’t do that. He
didn’t want a lie to stand between them. If she ever found out the truth, she’d
hate him for sure. He sighed; she was going to hate him anyway.

He glanced
at her, then away again. He couldn’t look at her as he told her what he’d done.
He had to swallow hard several times before he was able to relate in a low
voice what he had done to her. He hung his head, feeling deeply ashamed of
himself.

The silence
that ensued when he fell silent stretched on for quite some time before she
reached over and took his hand. “Shall I tell you the same thing that you said
to me?”

He looked up
at her, his eyes searching her face. “What?”

“That you
were under spell and it isn’t your fault.”

It took him
a moment to process the words. “You don’t blame for what I did.”

She shook
her head. “I was under a spell too so I know how it felt. I know how difficult
it must have been for you. Just promise me one thing.”

“Anything.”

She smiled.
“Don’t do it again, ok.”

He smiled
back at her. “I won’t.”

She removed
her hand and they sat side-by-side, silence stretching between them, each lost
in their own thoughts.

Suddenly, a
low buzzing sound filled the room and what Kelly thought was a large fly
appeared in front of her face. She started to bat it away but Chris grabbed her
arm, stopping her.

After a closer
look at the fly, she realized that it was a tiny human being, one with wings.
She stared at it, her mouth hanging open.

The small
man flew in front of her for several minutes before disappearing suddenly. She
turned to look at Chris. “What was that?”

He was
staring at the spot where it had been. “I have no idea.”

“Am I crazy
or is was that a little man?”

“That’s what
it looked like to me.”

She was
shaking her head when a man suddenly appeared next to the wall.

Chris jumped
up, ready to defend Kelly if necessary. He didn’t know what use he would be
with all the magic that seemed to be flying around the room, but he had to try.

He narrowed
his eyes as he looked at the man. “I thought Kelly sealed the room against
magic.”

The man eyed
him, his brown eyes twinkling. “She did. But I was able to override her spell
with the help of several other wizards. Luckily she is unaware of how to use
her power correctly or we would not have been able to do so.”

Chris was
still suspicious. “Why would you do that?”

The man
laughed gently. “Rest easy, Christopher. I am a friend. I have come to rescue
Kelly and take her to a place where she can safely learn to use her magic.”

Chris didn’t
move from his position in front of her. “Why do you have to take her someplace?
Just send her home and train her there.”

He laughed
again. “My boy. You know nothing of the working of magic. She must be in a
place where she can do no harm while she learns. She is powerful and capable of
much damage. Not that she would want to do so but it is inevitable until she
learns control.”

Chris tired
to think of another objection; he definitely didn’t like the idea of this
stranger taking Kelly someplace. He opened his mouth to say something, anything
when the small winged man appeared again.

“Oh, Trevin,
there you are,” said the man.

Kelly pushed
Chris aside, frowning at him. She addressed herself to the man. “What is that?”

The man
smiled at her. “Trevin is a fairy. He has been watching you for most of your
life, making certain that you were safe. It was he that alerted us to the fact
that you had disappeared.”

Kelly
frowned. “Why didn’t you come sooner? We could have used your help.”

“We had no
way of knowing where you were until you used your magic. Only then could we
track you. Trevin was the first one to sense that you had used it. He came in
search of you and, once he found you, he fetched me so that we could rescue
you.”

“And who are
you?” Chris demanded again.

“Ah, forgive
me. In my excitement at finding you, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Loren.
I am a wizard on the council of wizards. There are thirteen of us on the
council. We are a force for good in the world and we have been waiting for you.
For a long time.”

“How do we
know that we can trust you?” Chris demanded.

Loren
laughed gently. “Ah, Christopher. You are the skeptical one. I think that may
be good. But, if it will put your mind to rest, you can accompany us, to make
certain that Kelly is safe.”

“And how do
we know that we’re not just replacing one prison with another?”

Loren
laughed again and turned to look at Kelly. “You have the ability to assess the
truth of what I am saying.”

“I don’t
know how to do that.”

“You possess
a truth seeker inside you. Look inside and find a small blue spot. I know that
you know how to search, otherwise you would not have been able to use your
magic.”