“You’re okay!” Garon screamed.
“Shh,” Simon whispered. “No need to yell.”
Garon looked puzzled. “I wasn’t yelling, Simon. Hey, why are you wearing Dad’s sunglasses? It’s nighttime.”
It didn’t seem like it was dark out to Simon. He glanced around and realized the only light was coming from a small lamp on the dresser. It nearly blinded him when he looked directly at it, so he closed his eyes and wondered what the hell was wrong with him.
More pounding footsteps sounded on the stairs, and Simon thought if he’d ever wondered what a herd of elephants sounded like, he was getting a pretty good idea at the moment. Gray rushed into the room, followed by Aunt Maggie and Cormac. “Simon!” Gray shouted.
Simon held up his hand in a plea for quiet. Garon helped him out. “Dad, shh. Simon says we’re all screaming, even though we aren’t. And he’s wearing your sunglasses too. I think he’s broken or something.”
Simon thought he might be as well. He stood up and put his hand on his head to stop the throbbing. Gray came over to him and leaned their foreheads together. “You okay?”
“I’m not sure. Everything seems very extreme right now. My senses are overloaded or something.” He felt a tingle of magic when he finished speaking and realized it was Gray using his alpha abilities to help.
Simon felt the magic inside him respond with a jolt. He jerked away and gasped for breath. “Holy crap.”
Gray looked hurt by Simon’s rejection, and Simon wanted to go to him, but he was afraid of what would happen if he did. His body seemed to want to take Gray’s magic in a way it hadn’t before. He leaned over and put his hands on his knees. Someone had changed his clothes, and he now wore a T-shirt and his favorite pajama pants, the bright orange ones covered in bacon that said, “Bacon Makes Everything Better.”
Normally he didn’t notice the pattern, but this time he winced and had to look away. He didn’t know how anyone could stand looking at them and wondered how he’d never noticed how dizzying they were.
Cormac stepped up to Simon’s side. “Simon, can you center yourself?”
He forced himself to look up at Cormac as he answered. “I don’t know. I’m not very good at it.”
“Try.”
Simon nodded and concentrated. In a snap, his magic felt more stable, and he opened his eyes in surprise. Everything appeared normal now, not like he was standing outside in the brightest sunlight. “That’s better. Weird, that’s the fastest I’ve ever been able to control my magic. Master Tho—” He stopped, remembering the fate of his former mentor.
“Yes,” Cormac said, “we do need to talk about thatmasterof yours.”
Gray moved up next to Simon, and Simon reached out to pull him closer. When his magic didn’t latch onto Gray’s, Simon grinned and wrapped an arm around Gray’s waist. Gray smiled and hugged Simon against him. “I’d sure like to know what happened,” Gray said.
“Me too.”
“Me three!” Garon laughed. He went back over to Simon, and Simon draped an arm over his shoulders.
“I think there’s a lot we need to figure out.”
Cormac nodded. “The first of which is how Thomas was able to steal your magic, Simon.”
“What? What do you mean? How could he have stolen my magic?”
“I don’t know, but I think that’s what happened. When he died, the magic he stole from you came back to you in a rush.”
Simon concentrated for a moment on the power inside him. He looked around at the others in shock. “I think you’re right. I feel, well, normal, but better somehow. Whole. This doesn’t make sense.”
Gray rubbed his hand along Simon’s waist. “And that’s not all. Thomas had pack magic inside him as well. It’s how I was able to slow him down. I recognized it and called to him as alpha.”
“But how?” Simon asked.
Cormac shook his head and paced back and forth. “None of it makes sense.”
“Sure it does,” Aunt Maggie added. “He stole it. Just like he stole the demon’s magic and Simon’s magic. He was after all three types, and he got them.”
“I’m not sure it’s that simple,” Cormac said. “He must have been draining Simon’s magic for a long time to get that much power from him. And what about the demon? How was he able to exploit an Other?”
She scoffed. “It doesn’t always have to be complicated. And we may never find out more, although if I know my nephew, he’ll be finding out what he can. We should be thankful you all made it home safely and that Simon is free of that… that….”
