Earth - A few months later

  Anna

  I stood in the passageway, the door to the vast living area more than half open, and listened while they argued over who should accompany Jalholm, the Unwitting One.

  Strange how my life seems to have almost come full circle – I was the one who sent him here to this world, though I did not know then where it was he went – and now I watched in secret as he planned his return.

  The woman, Pauline, and Kane's son, Tony, sit together on a sofa staring up at Jalholm and Jamie as they stand arguing, while Alex paces back-and-forth on the far side of the room.

  ‘If Alex goes with you, then so do I,’ the one named Jamie yelled, for what was the third time in the last few minutes.

  ‘As I have said… numerous times, Jamie, we cannot all make this journey. It is not a simple thing, not —’

  ‘But you brought us all here… all of us. So why not take us all to this bloody Ellas? Besides, sorry Pauline… and you Tony, I only care about Alex, and if she goes, then so do I.’

  Glimpsing past the door jamb, I could see Jalholm shaking his head, in his one hand he held a travelling rod, his fingers almost white as though he tried to crush the device out of existence.

  ‘Cut it out, Jamie… both of you, stop your arguing,’ Alex said, as she walked forward to stand before them all. ‘Sit down, you two.’ Her voice was quiet, and yet the tone was somehow commanding.

  Jamie almost jumped to obey, and Jalholm only hesitated a moment before sitting.

  This one might teach me a trick or two, I thought.

  ‘Jamie, you keep quiet for a few moments… we all know your opinion on what we should do,’ Alex said, and as she spoke, Jalholm's eyes strayed towards the doorway where I stood.

  I held my breath, not daring to move, but his eyes moved slowly over the door and then back to Alex. Did he somehow sense me? Did he, on some level know that someone or something watched? I stepped back into the passage. I did not need to see what happened, I did not need to hear even. But I had to be here when Jalholm returned – those left behind were in grave danger.

  ‘What about you two?’ Alex asked, and I could only assume that she spoke to Pauline and Tony.

  ‘I will stay,’ Pauline said. ‘Jalholm has already explained how difficult, not to mention dangerous, this will be for him to take another with him, let alone all of us. But that is not my reason… something about what Jamie has told us of the phone and speaking with David, and… I know you do not believe me, Alex, but I did see him, I did. So I am staying because, despite all that you have said about him being sent to Ellas, Jalholm, I believe he is still here… and I mean to find him.’

  ‘I really do not know what is going on, Pauline,’ Alex said. ‘But I'm glad you're staying. And I know that you will get to the bottom of it all. What about you, Tony?’

  Silence followed, and I strained to listen, as I worried that I might not hear what Tony answered – he had remained almost a mute throughout all the other conversations I had overheard, and when he did speak, he was soft-spoken in the extreme. I dare not use magic to enhance my hearing, for if I did, Jalholm would know in an instant. I edged closer towards the door again, keeping clear of the opening, listening intently.

  ‘I had wanted to go with you, Alex. But Pauline make sense. If you let me help you, Pauline, then I want to stay, too. I need to find my dad… I need to tell him how sorry I am for not believing him.’

  ‘Good,’ Alex said. ‘That's settled then. Tony stays with you Pauline. Oh, don't look at me like that. It wasn't a command or anything… it just makes sense that the two of you join forces to sort out what ever the hell is going on here… while Jalholm and I go to Ellas.’

  ‘What?’ Jamie shouted. ‘I'm coming, too—’

  ‘No, Jamie! You are not coming with us. And that's final. You've got the phone back, so you can phone this other David and tell him where we've gone… and you, being the big macho man, can look after Pauline and Tony. Besides, with Jalholm gone, whoever was chasing us, whoever we were warned against, should stop looking.’ Alex's voice grew silent for a moment, but before anyone else spoke, she continued, ‘And find out whoever the hell is pretending to be my sister, Jamie. Do that for me, will you? Please, promise me you'll find out?’ Alex's voice that had sounded so hard to me, now was almost pleading.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  ‘Shit, Alex. Are you sure that I can't —’

  ‘No, Jamie. No, you can't.’

  ‘Okay then,’ Jamie said, his voice sounding resigned, almost broken. ‘And yes, I will find this woman for you, the one that upset you so much.’

  Alex sighed. ‘Thank you, Jamie… so that's settled at last. Just you and me Jalholm. So when do we go? And what do we need to take with us? Guns, weapons of some kind? Food? What about clothes —’

  Jalholm laughed ‘None of those things, Alex. And you are dressed fine as you are. My magic will cloak you as you need to to look… and I am sure that I will be able to provide all else that we need. And as to the when, you have a saying… no time like the present, do you not?’

  ‘Now?’ Jamie said. ‘You can't just up and go, Jal.’

  ‘Hush, Jamie. Jalholm is right, there’s no point in putting this off. Besides, I'm almost wetting myself as it is… if we wait, there's no telling what I'll do.’

  ‘But, Alex… I might never see you again. Don't go. Let Jalholm go alone. You don't need to go.’ I couldn’t see Jamie, but from the tone of his voice, I imagined that he must be on his knees, as he pleaded with Alex to stay. He really does love her, I thought.

  ‘I love you, Alex,’ Jamie blurted. ‘Don't go, please.’

  Stony silence followed for what seemed minutes, but in reality was mere seconds.

  ‘Now, Jamie! You choose now to tell me?’ Alex's voice sounded incredulous.

  Jamie didn't answer, but from what I'd seen of him as I watched them these last months, I could well imagine the colour in his cheeks.

  ‘Well?’ Alex said.

  ‘I… I'm sorry, Alex. I wanted to tell you. I tried to tell you, but… but I was afraid,’ Jamie's voice trailed off, back into that embarrassing silence.

  Another moment passed.

  ‘Afraid?’ Alex said, her voice quiet and yet almost resounding in the silence of the room.

  ‘Yes!’ Jamie blurted. ‘Christ, Alex, don't you remember how you've treated me? How you've constantly pushed me away and… and made me feel like shit?’

  ‘Be calm, Jamie,’ Jalholm said, into the conversation. ‘There is no need—’

  ‘Shut up, Jalholm. This is none of your business,’ Alex said. ‘And as for you, Jamie, I'm sorry for how I treated you, but if it's any consolation…’ Alex paused, and I think all, including me, held their breath.

  ‘What?’ Jamie asked his voice a whisper that I struggled to hear.

  Another long pause.

  ‘I love you, too,’ Alex said, almost as if the words tried to strangle her as they left her mouth. Then, louder she said, ‘There, I've said it… I love you, Jamie.’

  ‘I knew it!’ Pauline said, with what sounded like triumph in her voice. ‘I just knew there was something between you two.’

  ‘And you can shut up, too,’ Alex said. ‘Jamie, we need to talk, but… not now. I'm sorry, but I have to do this. David was my friend and… I just have to go. Don't ask me why, because I don't know… I just know that he needs me… and he's my friend.’

  ‘You love me?’ Jamie said, his voice choked, and somehow I knew that he had tears in his eyes. ‘You really love me?’

  ‘Oh, come here, you big lummox. Yes, I love you.’

  I risked a peek into the room. Alex and Jamie embraced each other, wide grins painted on both the faces. Pauline sat next to Tony, she with a huge smile on her face while Tony looked away from the scene before him. Jalholm stood, his eyes cast downward as if examining his own feet.

  Love, I thought with not a little jealousy. One day perhaps.

  As I again stepped away from the door opening, Alex said, ‘I have to go now, Jamie. So please don't make this any harder than it already is, okay? Please.’

  ‘You love me?’ Jamie said, again. ‘I almost can't believe it.’

  ‘Jamie, snap out of it! I'm going now. Jalholm and I are going now. That's right isn't it, Jalholm?’

  ‘Eh! Why yes, Alex.’

  ‘You will bring her back, Jal? Promise me you will. Promise me, that you’ll keep her safe.’ Jamie pleaded.

  ‘I can bloody well keep myself safe, Jamie. And I promise to come back… I promise to come back to you. So stop this now. Let go of me and… and we'll be on our way,’ Alex said.

  Again there was a moment's pause, and silence filled the air.

  ‘Okay, Jalholm, what do I do?’ Alex asked.

  ‘Come stand by me, Alex. Hold my arm as I hold the rod, you need do nothing else… except, maybe, say your farewells.’

  ‘Yes, Alex. That would be good, we are friends now, don't forget. Jamie’s not the only one who needs a hug,’ Pauline said.

  ‘I don't understand any of this,’ Tony said. ‘I'm staying here to find my dad, and you're going off somewhere else to help him. It doesn't make any sense at all. But take care, Alex. And if you do find my dad, bring him back… or at least tell him that I'm sorry that I didn’t believe him, and how I treated him… how I betrayed him. Tell him that I love him.’

  ‘Don't be so daft, Tony. You didn't betray him. When he spoke of you, it was with nothing but pride. He was glad that you were getting on with your life… he didn't want you to have to share in the horrors that he had seen. He—’

  ‘He spoke to you, of me?’

  ‘Of course he did, Tony. You’re his son… of course he spoke of you. He told me all about you.’

  Another bout of silence followed.

  ‘Thank you, Alex. That means a lot, it really does,’ Tony said, his voice choked.

  ‘Right, enough of the goodbyes,’ Alex said, as she stepped across to Jalholm and looped her arm through his and gripped his hands as he held the rod. ‘Let's get this over with,’ she said, her voice full of bravado.

  Another silence fell, and as the surge of power from Jalholm's rod filled the air, Jamie's voice rang out, ‘I love you, Alex.’

  No answer came. They were gone, and I knew that there was now no time to waste.

  I stepped into the room and, with as much of the hated compulsion as I could exert, I said, ‘You must come with me. Now! Your lives are in great danger. I will answer your questions later. Come, now!

  Shock showed on all the faces, but as I turned to leave through the door I had so recently hidden behind, Jamie, face full of bewilderment, turned to follow, and Pauline and Tony, rose as one and fell in step.