“Is this just from timewalking?” Diana asked, examining me from afar like I was some sort of scared animal.
“She traveled into the past. That in itself is enough to throw someone for a loop,” Morgan agreed. “In fact, the further you stray from your period of origin, the more time messes with you. And then . . . we saw some unusual activities in our travels.”
“A lion!” I blurted. My voice was unnaturally loud and embarrassingly wobbly. “We went back to the Roman Colosseum! We fought surrounded by gladiators! And lions!”
“We only came up against one lion,” Morgan said. “And like I said, love, you did well. Most people who timewalk vomit or pass out on their first few times. You clearly have the stomach for it,andyou remained cognizant. And mostly kept a cool head when those gladiators came after us.”
“Gladiators cameafter you?!” Alex sucked in a long inhale. “You need to start from the beginning.”
Morgan told the entire story, giving me what I felt was a bit too much credit. When she finished, my friends were staring at her, blinking.
Her partner, however, burst into laughter. “Morgan, you must be easier on the girl. Why not timewalk back to a pleasant field, or somewhere nice? Stroll through a peaceful village? Or even take her to a celebration? Why did you need to take her to the Colosseum of all places?”
My ancestor shrugged. “To be fair, I assumed she would deposit us in the stands. Once again, I was reminded to assume nothing. However, it was a good moment of instruction. These thingswillhappen when she timewalks. And when they do, she needs to know how to work under pressure. If she can timewalk with gladiators at her back and a lion about to rip her face off, she can face the demons. And anything else.” There was a tone of pride in her voice.
Even though I didn’t feel like I deserved it, what Morgan said was true. Ihadtimewalked. I’d gotten us thereandback. No doubt Morgan could do it more quickly and smoothly, but she hadn’t needed to.
I turned to look at my mentor hovering over my shoulder. “People saw us use magic. Humans. Are we going to show up in history books?”
Again, Merlin laughed and his blue eyes crinkled at the corners into familiar lines. “If everything that supernaturals did showed up in history books, there wouldn’t be any pages left for what the humans themselves accomplish.”
“Still . . .” I trailed off, nervous about the idea.
He waved a weathered hand. “More likely than not, nothing will come of it. But, since much in the future is weighing on your abilities, I’ll send word to a friend of mine. She’s a powerful mind witch—capable of modifying memories. When she can stop by, Morgan will take a trip back to Rome.” He winked at his paramour. “In fact, maybe we’ll all go.”
A girlish laugh tinkled from Morgan. “I’m going to hold you to that.” She took a seat next to Merlin.
Hunter waved to Eva, beckoning her back to the table. She glanced at me, as if afraid that if she left my side, I’d fall apart.
“I’m okay,” I assured her. My trembling had lessened substantially, and my breath was coming easier. “Finish your meal. I’m going to eat too.” My stomach gave an audible growl, as if supporting that choice.
Alex moved only to get me a bowl of stew and come sit at my side. When we were both settled, he eyed me. “It was clearly traumatizing, but how do you feel about time traveling all by yourself?”
“Proud, but not ready to go that far again yet.” I spoke loud enough so Morgan would hear.
In response, my ancestor chuckled. “Duly noted. However, you know better than anyone that there’s no time to waste, love. We’re going to get you some rest and try again tomorrow.” Her hand fluttered to land on Merlin’s arm as her eyes pierced me. “But yes, next time we’ll travel to a safer era. We’ll practiceonlytimewalking for the next few days, making sure we cover as many variables as we can.”
The legendary witch paused, her gaze shifting between Eva and me. “And when you’re ready, we’ll take a much more important trip.”
CHAPTERSEVEN
Over the next five days, I practiced timewalking to a dozen periods in human history. Ultimately, none of the others were as terrifying or jarring as our trip to ancient Rome—thank the universe for that. But safe? I think not. Safer,maybe, but not safe.
Morgan and I had walked the streets of Paris right before the French Revolution broke out. The tension in the air had been undeniable, and resentment and dissent burned in the eyes of everyone I passed.
In another era, we popped in and out of shops where everyone was gossiping about an invention by a man named Gutenberg. Some hated the printing press that would revolutionize the world, and were vocal about it. Others saw only opportunity.
During my favorite trip, we visited England under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. While there, we snacked on the candied violets the queen loved, and rubbed shoulders with the likes of Shakespeare, Sir Walter Raleigh, and, to my great delight, the renown witch and seer Ursula Shipton.
Along the way, we picked up outfits that would fit Eva’s petite frame, in case we returned. Additionally, everywhere we went, Morgan searched for a black witch, and once, we actually found one. Unfortunately, she wasn’t very powerful, which was a letdown.
After speaking with Mother Shipton, who suggested a few strong black witches she’d seen in her visions, we arrived back at M&M’s cottage to drop off the outfits we’d purchased.
We stayed the night, and I soaked up every moment with my friends, telling them of my journeys, while Morgan conferred with Merlin as to where we should go next. Everyone went to bed that night with a belly full of stew, happy to be together. But when I woke the next day, my timewalking mentor had disappeared.
“Where’s Morgan?” I asked Merlin, who sat at the table, poring over a book with Alex. The famed wizard had recently deemed my boyfriend strong enough to leave our group shack. Alex was taking full advantage of the privilege, rising early and soaking up every ounce of knowledge from Merlin.
“My love awoke at dawn and said only that she was going exploring,” Merlin replied, looking totally unbothered.
