The Silver Rose (29 page)

“Why, then,” Anton queried, “would you wish to give up that which is your life's blood?”

Why were they encouraging her not to give up her magic when Aden had refused her? Was she missing something important? “I care more for my sisters' wellbeing. I care for Aden. I would not cause him additional pain or anguish.”

“Don't be hasty,” Eleisha attempted to reassure her. “The deadline is — ” she lifted a long chain around her neck to check the timepiece dangling from it, “ — nine or so hours away. A lot can happen between now and then.”

“What about other mortals with a modicum of potential?” Anton suggested. “What about them?”

“Goran has offered to bind with me,” she admitted. The surprise on their faces told her this was news to them. “But I won't add to the burden he already carries because of my sisters' mischief.” Rosa was positive all three were silently communicating to each other as she spoke. “There is nothing remotely romantic between us.”

“Goran is a way out of this mess,” Eleisha encouraged. “Although, it is not ideal.”

“I refused him. My mind is made up.” Rosa couldn't believe she was going to turn down her greatest childhood dream. “I must refuse Marylebone's Call. Aden has suffered enough.”

“The suffering was of his own making,” Leonardo's gruff voice echoed as his eyes took on a faraway look. “He was a foolish young man.” He turned his attention back to Rosa. “He's much wiser now.”

“There's much to be gained from a union with him,” Eleisha encouraged.

“We will not permanently withdraw your magic until the appointed hour,” Anton told her. “But you're missing the point of what we're trying to tell you. Surely you understand what being Called to Marylebone means?”

“That I would become a neophyte. That I would ascend to Mastership, the highest a witch or warlock can go.” The light suddenly clicked on in her bewildered brain. She shot out of her chair, her legs shaking, barely steady enough to hold her upright. “I'm to become immortal! I've been Called!” Her hands flew to cross her sternum as the truth sunk in. Her voice barely a whisper, she turned in a circle as if looking for something. “I have to find Aden!”

Anton stayed her arm. “All in good time. Your willingness to sacrifice everything is a lesson in surrender. To love so unselfishly, to deny yourself a life of happiness, means you have earned the right to know another truth not even Aden is aware of.”

Confounded, Rosa stared into the faces of three of the most amazingly gifted magical beings, wondering what else they were going to reveal. “Will it impact any future decisions I might make?”

Anton pondered her question, but it was Eleisha who replied. “It could.”

Anton tapped his mouth with his finger. “You know, there is another way for the truth to be revealed. To both Aden and Rosa simultaneously.” He fell eerily silent for several long moments. It was abundantly clear to Rosa all three were once again silently communicating with each other.

Anton spoke next. “Leo, what do you think?”

“I think if Rosa fails, although I'm certain she will not, she will live a mortal life without the burden of wishing she had done things differently.”

Anton clapped his hands. “Decision made.”

Eleisha did not look so sure. “The moment you get home, collect the silver rose. You will need it.”

Rosa turned to stare at the woman. “The rose? Take it where?”

“We cannot tell you. Just that you will need the rose for the revelation.”

When Rosa started to ask why, Anton held up a hand. “We cannot tell you anything more.” He glanced at his watch and arched an eyebrow. “You have much to do and so — ”

“Little time. Yes. I know. I swear if I'm successful I'm never going to utter that phrase again. I hate to appear ungrateful, but could you please send me back now?”

“Send yourself back.” Anton shocked Rosa with his suggestion. “Becoming an Master means your powers have increased a thousand-fold.”

“How?” Could she find her way home over such a long distance on her own?

“Anton,” Eleisha admonished. “She's not initiated yet.”

“It's of no consequence,” he circled his index finger in her direction. “Can't you see the power swirling about her?”

“But I'm in danger of flaming out,” Rosa protested. “Any use of magic only makes it worse.”

“All the more reason to bind with Aden as soon as possible,” Leonardo told her.

“Just visualize where you want to go,” Anton said. “Lock the image into your mind and Warlocks' Wonder, you're there. We'll stand by to ensure you come to no harm. Our power will keep you safe until you reach Raven's Creek. After that you're on your own. Nothing to it.”

Nothing to it! Rosa almost snorted. She thought of her yard where Nathan had arrived to Call her to Marylebone. She imagined standing in the center of the lawn just as she had done the night she had revealed her true self to Aden. A rush of wind filled her ears, a rift in the veil opened. A silver ley line expanded in her vision. An intricate network of lines wound their way around the planet, extending out to encompass the earth and beyond. But now was not the time to delight in such beauty. She focused on her home and her vision narrowed until she saw one single ley line that would lead her where she wanted to go. She imagined grass under her feet, breathed in the scent from her roses. Everything went dark, a fierce cold brushed her skin for a second, and then, miraculously, she was home.

It was a pity she could not take the time to relish the surge of power zinging through her. Already, she was beginning to comprehend how so much power could become addictive and all-consuming. It was both dominant and dangerous.

Rosa went immediately to her back door, intent on collecting the rose, only to discover a silver bowl at her door. Attached to it was a note..
Rosa — A scrying bowl imbued with love from me to you. You will never lose your way again. With all my love. Aden.

Rosa hugged the bowl to her chest as Aden's heartfelt words spiraled from his note through her skin into her heart and imprinted themselves there. He truly loved her.

She rushed inside, grabbed the rose and, because she could, translocated herself into the lounge of Lavender Cottage hoping Aden was home. But the house was empty. The lack of energy in the house told her he had not been home for several hours. She crafted a locating spell to find him, but the spell came back unsuccessful. Where was he? Surely he would have returned from the family enclave by now. It was as if he had vanished from Raven's Creek. He would not leave without ensuring Rosa's fate was met one way or the other.

Not wanting to frighten her sisters by appearing suddenly before them, she cut across the back lawn to Beth's to find Alanna and Goran huddled together at the dining table, looking gloomy and downhearted, waiting for what they believed to be the inevitable.

“Where have you been?” Alanna accosted her. “I thought you'd want to spend your last magical hours with us, not running around after a lost cause.”

“Aden is not a lost cause!” Rosa placed the bowl and the rose on the table. “Aden made this for me.” She fingered the bowl's rim, feeling the intensity of Aden's love for her in every molecule. Awe filled her voice. “He loves me.”

Beth too fingered the rim “He really does.”

“But will he bind his magic with yours?” Alanna asked the all-important question.

“He will. I'm sure of it.” She glanced at her watch. She'd been at Marylebone close on two hours! “I've so much to tell you, but first we need to find Aden. Goran. He went home to reconnect with his family. Are you able to connect with him at all? See if he's still there?”

Goran's eyes lit up. “He went home? Truly?” He grinned from ear to ear when she confirmed it with a quick nod. “I'm astonished.”

“Quick, Goran,” Rosa urged. “See if you can find him.”

“I will try,” he told her. He immediately closed his eyes, went outward, looking for Aden with his mind's eye, crossing the world all the way to Cyprus, to the enclave which he had visited many, many times.

Rosa sunk into a chair, her heart in her throat as she waited. Her sisters were confused. They would have to wait for an explanation. Each passing minute became more agonizing than the last.
Come on, Goran. What's taking you so long?
And then his eyes snapped open.

Rosa jumped to her feet. “Well? Where is he?”

“He was there,” he told Rosa. “But he left a couple of hours ago. Aden told them he was returning to Raven's Creek.”

“Surely I would have felt his arrival. Do you think he's shielded himself?”

Goran paced the floor. “I don't know. Why would he do that when there's no longer a need for secrecy?” He spun round, taking a good, hard look at Rosa. She stood still, allowing him to see everything, including her magic as it grew exponentially with each minute. She knew her aura would reveal her new connection to Marylebone. She'd seen it in his, and also that of Leonardo, Anton and Eleisha. His eyes flared. “Warlocks Toenails!” He grinned, rushed forward, picked her up in his arms, and twirled her round in a circle. “This is wonderful!”

“It will be but only if we can find Aden to tell him.” Goran's pleasure was infectious. Rosa placed her hands on his shoulders, joy bubbling away inside her as she laughed. “Put me down before I get dizzy.”

“What the hell is going on?” Alanna asked. “This is no time for laughter.”

“Soon,” Rosa told her as Goran placed her back on terra firma. “First we find Aden. Then I'll explain everything.”

Goran cast a locating spell. Rosa did the same but she knew what Goran would say before he spoke. “I can't feel him anywhere.”

“Licking his wounds,” Alanna suggested. “If he can't stick it out to the end, then he's not worth the trouble.”

“When was the last time you saw him?” Rosa asked Goran again.

“Around mid-day. He was in the best of moods, grinning madly from ear to ear until I mentioned your plan to him.”

Rosa gasped. “You told him?”

Goran nodded. “I thought he should know. I also told him I offered myself to you in his place.”

Rosa paced the room, back and forth, back and forth. “I hope you told him I refused you.”

Goran shrugged. “I'm surprised I'm still standing. He nearly clocked me over the head with his acetylene torch. Keep your aura on,” he told her when he realised just how anxious she was. “I told him you refused me. My heart is broken.”

“You'll get over it,” Rosa muttered. She paced the length of the floor one more time. “I never saw this coming.”

“None of us saw it,” Beth told Rosa. “Calm down or the sacrifice of your magic will not go well.”

“I don't have to give up my magic. I don't have to give Aden up. No sacrifice is needed. Please.” She grabbed Beth's hand, then Alanna's in a tight grip. “Trust me.”

She turned to Goran. “Where would he go? Why can't I find him?”

• • •

Aden had sensed Rosa searching for him. Well, she would find him, but not until he accomplished what he'd set out to do. Certain his decision was the right one, he did not want anyone, especially Rosa, preventing him from this course of action.

There would be no regrets this time around. None whatsoever.

Rosa was Aden's redemption. She had shown him the way home. Home to where the heart of his family waited. This time there had been no recriminations. No judgments. No arguments. Only forgiveness.

The joy in Aden's mother's eyes and the happiness in his father's had revitalized his soul. An all too brief visit, but long enough to build a tentative bridge that still held strong, even with the discord and impending sadness upon revealing his future intent.

Standing in the center of the woods, shielded to everyone bar Marylebone, Aden called Albert to his side. His familiar appeared in a dramatic display of light and sound. Genuine affection filtered through Aden for the tiny but lethal creature who had been his constant companion ever since he had been inducted as the lowliest apprentice Dragon. This would be the last time he would see his little friend. Albert had Clarissa to cuddle up to at night, so he would not miss Aden too much. He hoped.

“I've a message for you,” Aden told Albert. “One you may not wish to carry, but one you must take nonetheless.”

Albert's head nodded up and down, undeterred by Aden's seriousness. He bounced with excitement. “Secrets! Albert loves secrets.”

“You'll not love this one,” Aden gently petted his little friend. “Now Albert, concentrate. This is very, very important. Tell Anton I've had many centuries to learn my craft. I've served Marylebone well. Tell him I'm relinquishing my position at Marylebone. That I'm surrendering my immortality. I would go myself, my little friend, but I fear they will come up with some excuse to keep me there and thwart my plans.”

Albert stopped bouncing. His entire body turned a deathly shade of gray. A large, glistening tear slid down the small dragon's face, falling to the ground where it burned a smoking hole in the grass. “Albert not like this message. Albert not take it.”

“I cannot let Rosa give up such a bright future, my friend. I've had many centuries. I'll still have earth magic. I'll spend a natural lifespan with Rosa at my side. We will bind our earthly magic. We will be happy together.”

Albert quirked his head and asked, a hopeful tone in his voice, “Albert will stay with Aden and Rosa?”

“You will be assigned to another Dragon within Marylebone,” Aden explained gently. “You and Clarissa will make lots of little dragons for Marylebone?”

“Clarissa and I come live with you and Goran.”

“You know that's not possible. Dragons visit the mortal realms but it's better, safer to remain in Marylebone. Dragons are our secret weapon. We don't want the world to know you exist.”