Torn Apart

“I thought Solomon said it would take him weeks to find us here!” Colleen exclaimed jumping to her feet followed quickly by Adrian.

“Oh it would,” Caleb agreed, “if I had been tracking you through our bond, but thankfully your friend, who I guess is named Solomon, took my knife with him when he left, as I had hoped one of you would do. It was through my connection to the knife that I found you.”

“Damn!” Adrian exclaimed as he and Colleen backed slowly away from Caleb around the edge of the pool. Caleb followed, matching their pace.

“We’ll leave if you keep following us Caleb, and this time you won’t have any way of tracking us,” Colleen warned him, holding on to Adrian so she wouldn’t slip into the water.

“Oh, you won’t do that,” Caleb laughed, “because if you do, Adrian, I’ll kill our little sister.” Margaret floated out over the water and slowly sunk up to her waist in the water. Colleen and Adrian both knew that Caleb could hold her under there for a long time before either of them could help her. Adrian gave one last look at Colleen and lunged across the water for his sister. As soon as Adrian had left Colleen’s side, Caleb tackled her, sending them both sprawling into the sparkling water of the pool. Colleen closed her eyes and held her breath upon impact, and when she opened them again, she was lying on the floor of a bedroom in the hotel.

“Ah, so you decide to join me in the world of the conscious,” Caleb laughed as she sat up and saw him sitting on the couch across the room from her. Colleen tried to disappear, but she was surprised to find that she couldn’t.

“What, can’t leave? What a pity you want to go so soon, I thought we might enjoy each other’s company for a while. Since I’ve put up a no magic barrier on this room, no one but me can use magic in here, you’ll just have to stay.” Colleen rose to her feet and Caleb got off the couch.

“I thought we had something special Colleen, something wonderful. I might even call it love. What about you? Obviously I was mistaken. You have betrayed me Colleen. You’ve fallen for my brother. I’m terribly hurt. Don’t try the door. It has been locked from the inside, with a password only I know. Don’t look so scared, I’m not going to kill you.”

“Then let me go!” Colleen cried as she dashed past Caleb to try the door to the balcony, it was sealed shut as well.

“I can’t do that Colleen, and you know very well why I can’t. I need that power Colleen, and to get it I have to take you to a very special friend of mine on another world, but I can’t have you escaping when we leave now can I? We need to reform our bond Colleen, and make it stronger.”

Caleb was on her now, pushing her down on the bed. Colleen fought back but he pinned her arms and kneeled over her.

“You’re going to rape me!” she cried in realization, thrashing as wildly as she could and feeling his grip just getting tighter.

“Oh no, that won’t be necessary,” Caleb replied as he kissed her lips, then her neck. Colleen resisted but Caleb wouldn’t let go no matter how hard she pushed. He moved his knees to pin her arm, and slowly unbuttoned his shirt, pulling it completely off.

“Just a little further than this,” he whispered, his lips near her ear. He lowered his torso on top of her and lay there as he kissed her. Colleen was angry as hell. She didn’t want anyone but Adrian to touch her. Colleen waited for the right moment. Caleb sat up and began to unbutton Colleen shirt as well. As soon as he moved his knees and put his hands back on her arms she knew it had come. Caleb was right handed, and his grip with his left was weaker. Colleen was left handed, and a softball player. She swung hard with her fist and punched him square in the nose. Caleb sat up in shock and Colleen punched again. This time Caleb caught her arm and smacked her on the cheek. He had blood running down the side of his face and Colleen smiled to herself. She kneed him hard in the stomach and he relaxed his grip on her long enough for her to stand up. She quickly dashed to the bathroom and locked the door.

“Now Colleen, is this very logical?” asked Caleb standing outside the door, “you know I can use magic in here don’t you? I can appear in that bathroom if I want to, and then what are you going to do? I’d prefer you just came out here and not fight, there is no way for you to win.”

“I hate you!” Colleen called through the door. She lid down to her knees and sobbed quietly with her face in her hand. She could once again feel her bond with Caleb, but it wasn’t the same. She was so terrified of it’s strength that she couldn’t let him touch her again.

“I’ll give you one more chance Colleen, come out, or I’m coming in.” Colleen weighed her options. She chose option number three. She unlocked the door, backed up and kicked the door hard, bringing it crashing down on Caleb. She dashed out and began pounding on the door to the hallway, hoping someone would hear.

“Now that wasn’t very nice,” Caleb said as he grabbed her shoulders from behind. He didn’t appear to have a scratch from the door falling on him. Healing magic.

“Can’t we just be kind to one another and not hurt anyone any more? Truce?” he suggested in a cruel voice as his tight grip on her shoulders implied she had no choice.

“Never,” she hissed as she kicked him, this time a little lower. Even with his healing powers he couldn’t help but feel that one. Colleen punched his face again as he doubled over and she pushed past him to run to the glass door to the balcony. She pulled hard again at the handle but it wouldn’t budge. Caleb rose from the floor with anger in his eyes. Colleen turned to see that he had her practically smashed up against the glass door, his face only centimeters from hers.

“You’ve made me very angry Colleen. I really did still love you, and I hoped you still had some feelings for me.” Caleb’s once angelic face was the most terrifying sight in the world, in all of them, to Colleen. She couldn’t cry, she was so scared, but she couldn’t just stand there either.

“Let me go,” she growled. Every one of her limbs was pinned, but she felt she had to make some kind of effort. She twisted and turned, to no avail.

“I had hoped not to hurt you Colleen, not to have to do this to you, but you really leave me no choice. Caleb threw her to the bed again. Colleen screamed and realized he was no longer on top of her. Adrian had him by the throat.

At the pool, Adrian had tried everything to save his sister. He tried breaking the spell, saving her by just swimming after her and pulling her up, but no matter what he tried he could not help her.

“I’m so sorry Margaret,” he sobbed as he knelt on top of the water, watching his sister splash frantically. He tried again and again as the minutes passed, with every spell he knew and nothing had any effect.

“Oh my gosh!” he exclaimed after his final attempt, “you’re doing it to yourself you rascal, this isn’t Caleb’s doing, it’s yours!” Margaret rose slowly out of the water, laughing to herself.

“That’s right, suicide spells are impossible to break, even by you,” she sneered, floating in the air above his head. Adrian floated up to meet her.

“You’ve been helping him the whole time haven’t you?” Adrian realized his mistake. By assuming Margaret was a hostage Adrian had made a fatal mistake, and allowed Caleb to take Colleen.

“Correct again!” she laughed, summoning a sword and swinging at his head. Adrian was too fast with a weapon though, and he had her swing blocked before it was completed.

“Where did he take her?” Adrian demanded as he managed to get his sword at her throat.

“Oh, around,” she replied sarcastically, “they’re somewhere at the hotel, Caleb just wanted to make sure you two didn’t escape without him re-forming his bond with her.”

“What?” Adrian replied.

“My lips are sealed,” she replied and Adrian hit her hard on the face with his fist.

 

“Are you all right?” Adrian asked stupidly.

“Depends on your definition,” Colleen replied sarcastically, then she remembered the no magic spell.

“Adrian, watch out,” she yelled just in time as a fire ball went whizzing over Adrian’s head, “he has a spell so only he can use magic in here.” Adrian’s eyes got wide as he threw Caleb back as quickly as possible.

“Now I’ll have to kill both of you,” Caleb sighed as he gathered sparks at his fingertips. At that moment, the door swung open and a maid peered in to the room. Colleen noticed just in time to roll across the bed and put her foot in the door before it closed. The opening of the door had caused some sort of temporary lapse in the spell and she had been able to use a bit of magic for speed.

“Colleen, get out while you can,” Adrian called from across the room, he and Caleb had swords drawn, from where Colleen didn’t know. Adrian’s had come from the pool and Caleb had summoned one of his.

“I’m not leaving without you!” Colleen protested.

“You have to. Once you get outside, shut the door and change the spell to absolutely no magic, and I’ll take care of him.”

“I can’t!” Colleen yelled. Caleb was using his magic to push the door closed against her foot.

“I’ll come for you! I swear it on my life!” Adrian called. There was only a crack left in the door. Colleen knew that if she didn’t leave now, they would be trapped in here with Caleb, with his full magic at his disposal and none of theirs available. Colleen turned into a puff of smoke and slid out the door. Once outside it was a simple matter for her to change the spell, and she was tempted to go in again, but she knew it wasn’t an option. If she did, she couldn’t use her magic to leave, and only Caleb knew the combination to get out. Colleen wondered how Adrian planned to escape, and she couldn’t see a way. Even if he killed Caleb he couldn’t leave without the code.

Colleen cried all the way to Solomon and Sam. She couldn’t even find the words to tell them what had happened.

“We must leave, now, leave Caleb’s knife here,” was all she managed before she broke into incoherent sobs again. Solomon and Sam were bewildered and tried to ask her where Adrian was, but this only led her to cry harder. Colleen watched as the world dissolved behind a curtain of tears and new one appeared, blurry as it was.

She had taken them to Sam’s world, one where she thought she’d be safe, and the first place she hoped Adrian would look. Sam realized where they were immediately and carried her all the way to his home. He laid her on a bed in his spare bedroom and left her for the rest of the day. He could tell that something traumatic had happened to her, and she desperately needed to rest.

Colleen cried until the tears could no longer flow from her dry eyes. She could only sigh and moan after that, and stare at the ceiling. She had told him she loved him, and just when the world seemed perfect, Caleb had taken him from her, possibly forever. Colleen hated Caleb as much as she loved Adrian. She refused to eat even the next day when Sam’s wife brought her some food.

“Not until he comes for me,” was her only reply. She could still feel her bond with both boys. Adrian’s bond was full of love and compassion and Caleb’s was full of fear and hate. He had formed a bond all right, and as hard as she tried she couldn’t break it.

By the second day she felt well enough to leave her bed, so she went to the window and stared out of it. Dargel was beautiful, if you looked past the dark military buildings and strict layout. The sky was a wonderfully inviting blue, and the air was very clean. Colleen went to dinner that night, but she couldn’t bring herself to eat. All of the things she used to do to live, she felt were no longer necessary. Not only could her magic sustain her without them, she didn’t really have the will to live any longer, no when Adrian could be giving his life for her at that very moment.

“Why don’t I take you on a tour of the city,” Sam suggested the next day at breakfast.

“I’d like that,” she replied weakly as she followed him to his car. They still had cars on Dargel but they were far advanced to the ones on Earth, so Colleen barely felt the road underneath her as she rode. Sam showed her all the historic sites from the civil war he had described to her, but just the memory of being on Coril with Adrian brought misty tears to her eyes.

“I know you miss him,” Solomon said when he saw her face. He had come along with them and was enjoying the tour much more than Colleen, even taking notes, “but you’ll get over him eventually, I promise.” Colleen doubted that highly. She didn’t think any person without magic could ever understand the bond two magical beings feel when they love each other. She shook her head and directed her eyes out the window.

Colleen was so lonely by her fourth day there that she suddenly decided there was no reason to live. She considered going back home, but without Adrian, she didn’t think she could be happy anywhere. Even the thought of going to Egypt with her parents did nothing to cheer her up. She walked down to the river at sunset, carrying with her a knife from the kitchen. She gazed out at the spectacular view, the huge orange sun setting behind the low buildings of the city as she plunged the knife towards her heart. A hand stopped it just as the point was reaching her chest.

Colleen spun wildly around, hoping for all she was worth to see Adrian standing there, looking down on her with his hazel eyes. Solomon pulled the knife from her hands.

“There’s no need for that just yet,” Solomon assured her as he cast the knife into the water. Colleen heard it splash in to the water behind her.

“You can still feel your bond, can you not?” he asked as he gave her a friendly hug. Colleen felt limp and exhausted, but it was nice to have a friend.

“Yes,” Colleen agreed, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Then he is not dead yet,” Solomon reasoned. Colleen looked up into his eyes and realized he was right. If he died, she would be dead, or at least the bond wouldn’t be there.

“I almost killed him!” she cried as she realized what her dying would have done to him.

“Almost,” said a voice to her left. She heard a thud. Colleen and Solomon turned to see Adrian lying in a heap on the ground.

“Adrian!” Colleen whispered through her tears as she rushed to his side. She turned him over on his back and cradled his head in her lap. His black hair was lying gently across it and his eyes were softly closed. She could see the pain on his face, and the exhaustion in his body as he lay limply in her arms. Colleen laid her hands on his chest and healed him as swiftly as possible. She could feel his magic mixing with hers as she did so, and she realized that he was dying. She pushed her magic harder into his body, willing to use up every ounce to save him, but it wasn’t necessary. He coughed and sat up slowly after only a few moments.

“I love you,” she whispered in his ear as she helped him to his feet. Adrian embraced her, stroking her hair with his fingers and burying his face in it. They stood there for a moment, oblivious to all the world except each other.

“I love you too.”