Atlantean. E.N. J.D. Watkins

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      “So if you’re not going to give me any answers,” I thought irritably, “what do you want?”

      “I just wanted to make sure that Victoria keeps her mouth shut.”

      My anger swelled like a tidal wave.

      “What’s it to you?”

      “Everything,” he thought and the sincerity of his voice brought me up short. “Knowing too much too soon is a dangerous thing, especially for you. And your wellbeing is my prime concern.”

      My mind went blank with surprise at this last part.

      No one had ever said anything like that to me before. But as nice as those words were to hear I couldn’t ascertain whether or not there was any truth to them. At least with Victoria I could feel if I was being lied to.

      “You’re going to have to trust me Amadeus.”

      I scowled.

      “Trust doesn’t come easily for me.”

      “I know.”

      I was going to ask how he knew when I stopped myself.

      “Let me guess,” I thought dryly, “Your magic?”

      “Yes.”

      I wondered what else he had the power to do.

      “Much,” he thought, with a touch of amusement in his voice.

      “Like?”

      “I will show you tonight.”

      I frowned.

      I really hated all this secrecy. But it seemed I had no choice but to wait until sundown.

      “Alright,” I sighed, “I will hold off on my questions until tonight.”

      “I’ll meet you at your dorm,” he thought assuredly.

      “You’d better,” I shot back with a little menace.

      He snorted and then was gone. I then quickly brought an end to the song I was playing and opened my eyes.

      I was startled to see that the class was full. An elderly woman stood framed in the doorway. She had been stunned into silence and she wasn’t alone; the whole class was looking at me with a strange sort of awe.

      Was my playing really that good?

      I got to my feet and the elderly woman began clapping followed by the rest of the class. Behind her I could see other adults clapping as well.

      Just how many people had been listening?

      I gave a slight bow and went back to my seat. Whispers and stares followed me the entire way. As soon as I sat down, Nyssa leaned over and whispered in my ear.

      “That was beautiful.”

      Lindsay was speechless. So was Camilla and Stephanie. The elderly woman was making her way to the front of the class. Evidently she was the professor. But I hardly registered this fact. My mind was a million miles away. I was thinking about Victoria, Eli and all the things that were still a mystery to me. I could only hope that some of those mysteries would be solved tonight.

      While I brooded, the time sped by. Class ended with me not taking in a single word. I barely heard the professor when she asked me how long I had been playing piano. I lied and said ten years. I really wanted to be alone so I could ponder all the mysteries that surrounded me. However, the day wasn’t yet over; I still had P.E left. Thankfully, the time passed swiftly.

      There was, however, one drawback: I shared this class with Jason Cole. And from the way he was eyeing me, it was obvious that he wasn’t going to forgive me for taking his girl.

      Still feeling a bit guilty, I tried to apologize to the guy after class. But he threw it back in my face vowing that he would “get even,” whatever that meant.

      Before I knew it the day had come to a close and I was back in my room. Lying on my bed I stared at the ceiling as I waited for Eli to arrive. It wasn’t long before I drifted off to sleep.

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      A tapping on my room window roused me from my nightmare-plagued slumber. I sat up and heard the sound of several crystal tears hitting the floor.

      At least there was no blood this time.

      Sunlight was still flooding my room through the window which told me that I hadn’t been sleeping long. In fact, when I looked at my cell phone I realized with chagrin that I had only been asleep for twenty measly minutes. I looked over to the window to discover the source of the tapping that had woken me and spotted a crow standing on the windowsill. I blinked, and in the time it took me to close and reopen my eyes the crow had vanished—in its place was the haggard figure of Eli.

      Was it my imagination or did he look more sickly?

      I hesitated for a moment unsure of whether or not to let him inside. I was still wary of Eli, but then again, if he wanted to cause me harm, he would have done so already.

      I had no defense against magic.

      So, sighing, I walked over to the window and opened it. Coughing and gasping for breath, Eli tried to pull himself through the window but found that his frail body didn’t have the strength. Seeing that he was in obvious need of assistance, I helped into my room. I had to lay him on my bed because he didn’t even have the strength to stand on his own two feet.

      “Thank you, Amadeus,” Eli said in a hoarse voice, “Sorry for coming so early, but my flamboyant use of magic today has cost me dearly. I have little time left.”

      He spoke as though he were on his deathbed. And truth be told, he did look like a corpse.

      “What happened to your voice?” I asked as I knelt beside my bed.

      For some reason I felt pity for the guy. He seemed to be in a great deal of pain, and I found myself wondering why he didn’t just heal himself with magic.

      “Because using magic is what’s killing me,” he said with a crooked smile, “The more magic I use, the worse my condition gets. And as far as my voice is concerned, I no longer have the power to speak within your mind.”

      “So when you used your magic to converse with me—”

      “My condition worsened severely.”

      I shifted guiltily. I couldn’t shake the feeling that it was my fault Eli was in this state.

      “It was worth it to gain your trust, Amadeus. You have nothing to feel guilty about.”

      These words only served to add to my guilt.

      “Is there anything I can do?”

      “Actually there is, and that is why I’ve come.”

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