Page 23 of Magic & Mochas
I scowled.“I cannot fathom whyhe’sangry.I’mthe one who has that right, after he betrayed me like that.Or why he continues to pester me.”
“Hmm.Based on our little interaction with Bellatrix, I would guess that he intended to break up with you officially,beforepublicly dating the other witch—to preserve his reputation.”Thorne scoffed.“Once that was no longer an option, I bet he wanted to frameyouas the one who cheated.”
“That…actually makes perfect sense,” I mused.Everything fit.“Though I still can’t believe I never noticed this side of him until it was nearly too late.”
“People change,” Thorne said sadly.“And not always for the better.Just know that Rasmus’ decisions were not your fault.”
I gave him a watery smile.“Thank you.”
Thorne looked to be deep in thought as we finished our meal, but my heart felt much lighter.When we were done, he cleared away our plates, but before he could wash them, I offered, “Allow me.”
Purple magic glimmered in the air as I had the dishes wash and dry themselves and return to their places in the cabinet.
Thorne whistled.“Nowthatis a neat trick.”
“One of my favorites—and most-used.Would you like some coffee with dessert?”I had picked up some celebratory cheesecake earlier this afternoon, in anticipation of officially opening my coffee shop.But it seemed we had something else to celebrate now: the sharing of our stories.
“That would be great.I’ll pull the cheesecake out of the fridge.”He gave me a small smile.
“Then I will be right back.”It took me only a few minutes to pop down to the shop and make a pair of mochas—with extra chocolate and cream.While I did, I heard it start raining, the sound of raindrops pattering on the windows a very pleasant one.
More coffee?Silas asked from his perch.Are you not planning to sleep tonight?
Nope.I’m much too nervous for that,I quipped back.Besides, I’ll have to be up early for the grand opening tomorrow anyways.
By the time I came back, Thorne had moved the candles to the coffee table in front of the small sofa—which had a nice view out the window of the rainy night.
“Here you go,” I said as I handed him a steaming mug and sat down beside him on the sofa.
“Thank you.”He set a slice of cheesecake in front of me, and I wasted no time digging in.“I…wanted to apologize for losing my temper earlier, with Rasmus.I didn’t want you to see me like that.”
He looked over at me all solemnly, but started chuckling when he saw my cheesecake-stuffed cheeks.“I guess I don’t have to wonder what a chipmunk would look like if it had a taste for cheesecake.”
I blushed, and swallowed down my treat.“I have a sweet tooth, alright?”
“Duly noted.”His smile set butterflies loose in my stomach, but I tried to push them down.
“There’s no need to apologize,” I said gently.“Honestly, if you hadn’t shut him up, I would have.”
Thorne ran a hand through his dark hair, and my fingers itched to do the same.I wrapped them around my warm mug instead.I was becoming far too attached.
This was only temporary, after all.I needed to remember that.
“I would have liked to see that,” he said almost ruefully.He took a sip of his mocha—which was more milk than coffee at this point—and began in a halting voice, “Shadowmancers have always been rare.But rarer still are shadowmancers with the power to create shadow soldiers—and they are always used as tools of war.”
I took another sip to disguise my gasp of surprise.I had only ever heard legends of shadowmancersthatpowerful in the age of myth, before the magical races went into hiding.
Thorne grimaced, gazing down into his coffee with haunted eyes.“My parents were thrilled.From the age of eight, I was trained to be a living weapon.I excelled.When I was ten, I went on my first raid.By the time I was twelve, I was out on campaigns more than I was home, and I was bringing in more income than both of my parents combined.And by the time I turned twenty, I couldn’t take it anymore.”
I rested a hand on his shoulder, grieving for a little boy whose childhood had been stolen from him.
“So I disappeared.I created a new identity and everything, and got as far away from my parents as I could.I swore I would never summon my soldiers for someone else’s meaningless war ever again.Once I arrived on the west coast, I took up adventuring—something I had always wanted to try.”His laugh was humorless.
“But because I kept most of my abilities hidden, few parties would hire me.So, when one finally did, I was thrilled.I worked for them for a few months, and I loved exploring the dungeons.Finding hidden treasures and vanquishing monsters was just as amazing as I’d hoped it would be.”
I nodded silently.I had never been in a dungeon myself, but I had certainly enjoyed listening to the stories of those who had.
“But one day, my party triggered a trap unlike anything we had encountered before.Opening a treasure chest summoned a horde of monsters, and the exit door began to close.Just as I was about to summon my soldiers to protect us, the warlock in my party cast a paralysis hex on me.They used me as bait for the monsters so that they could escape.”
