JOHN  I felt trapped in my room, but I didn't feel like facing any of my family downstairs. I didn't know what to say, other than what seemed like the obvious. That I didn't want to be here. That Ezra hadn't kidnapped me. That I hadn't been in danger when they'd 'rescued' me. But that wasn't going to do any sort of good. Not now.Standing at my window, I looked over my plants on the sill, nudging them with my magic, caring for them as I had the plants at Ez's place all summer. From the way Frankie had acted, I was beginning to think my family thought I was traumatized. If they only knew the half of it. It may have made trying to explain things to them a little simpler.There was a soft knock on my door and I looked towards it as it opened. Chelle poked her head in. "Hey, dinner's ready-"I turned back to my plants. "No, thanks. I'm not hungry.""Oh," she said. "Why not come down anyway? We could talk about what you missed

EZRA  The chair protested as I leaned back. I sat at the dining room table with Avery, Hunter, and the twins. Tessa and Anissa were talking to Avery in soft tones at the at the end of the table. I smiled a little as Avery bit back a yawn.It was getting late, but none of us seemed ready to sleep. Hunter especially. I glanced at him over the rough farmhouse table as he continued to fidget with his fork, but he hadn't touched any of his food.Leaning forward again to rest on my elbows on the table, I put my face in my hands. This hurry-up and wait mentality ate at me and my resolve. I needed to be doing something. Anything. But what was left that we hadn't done already?The wind picked up, coming through the opened windows bringing the smell of rain with it. Thunder rumbled in the distance."How did you and John meet? I don't think he told me," Hunter asked, drawing my attention back to him.I laughed. "We were colle

JOHN  The swirling vertigo of traveling through the portal almost did me in. My stomach revolted, threatening to turn itself inside out and leave me heaving. For a brief moment, I was thankful that it was empty.My arm burned and the fire from the wound was spreading, consuming me. I clutched the dart in my hand, remembering that I'd pulled it from my arm as soon as I could, but obviously, I wasn't quick enough."Ezra!"Avery's shout cut through my thoughts. I forced myself to look up. We were through the portal, the Stanwood house a blur in the background, but I recognized it from the few times I visited with Ez over the summer.Another set of hands lifted my injured arm causing me to gasp, my vision all but blacking out completely."What happen?!" Hunter said next to me. His hands carefully transferred my weight from Ezra's side to his. The clean linen scent of his shirt a comfort that I wasn't expecting.

JOHN  I opened my eyes and found the ceiling above me familiar, but I had trouble placing it. My body ached, all the way down to my bones, and to the point that I was afraid to move. I rolled my head to the side, casting a lazy glance around the room I was in, and quickly realized that I wasn't at Ezra's. Tamner was grinding something in a stone bowl on the other side of the fire, his form wavering the heat. Noise from next to me caused me to turn, and I found Hunter sitting, his back leaning against the rough packed dirt wall. A pose I'd seen Ezra in so many times when we were last here with Poe. Hunter's eyes were closed, dark circles under them standing out in the light from the fire. "He worries for your health," Tamner said softly, coming closer to me with the stone bowl. "First he sleep since you came. Day before last." I turned back to Tamner. "That long?"

JOHN  I sat in Tamner's hut, digging through my backpack. Avery had been kind enough to hold onto it for me, making sure to bring it through the portal with everyone else's. I thought briefly of opening one of the packets of dried fruit but decided against it. I'd save it for later.It had taken two more days of rest before Ezra and the others were ready to leave. I, on the other hand, was still weak and unsteady on my feet. I wouldn't mention it to them, though. I didn't want to hold them back, and I was anxious to get moving despite my weakness."Here," Tamner said, ducking in from outside. The old man held a tall staff, similar to the one that Suon had given Ez the last time we left the village. Of course, he knew I was wobbly on my feet. He may be old and have a hard time with English, but nothing got past him. "Use this to stay up. Keep balance."The length was cut from dark wood, like ebony, with a portion of the top wrapp