Karizma
Chapter 13: Ryleigh

Ryleigh rested her forehead against the porcelain wall in the shower as the cold water cascaded down her back. Her muscles ached and fatigue attempted to paralyze her. Her magic ascended while she was working last night, and it took so much more energy than she had anticipated to keep it under control. Her cloak threatened to rip apart and reveal her existence, which furthered her diligence at working to repair it. Her body burned so intensely with the ascension of her magic, of coming into the full extent of her powers. Her magic hummed beneath her skin like cicadas, her skin burning like the hot desert sun that the cicadas would sing to.

Ryleigh inhaled deeply. She had somehow not spontaneously combusted when she was working the table last night, and for that she was thankful. Her skin felt like the hot desert sun, but, so far, it was not emitting the same affects. She exhaled, as if pushing the heat out of her body and into the shower. She had hoped that a cold shower would assist in calming her skin, but she felt the water attempt to boil as it settled upon it. She growled and flicked her magic behind her. The shower shut off instantly, and she slammed her forehead into the porcelain shower wall. She felt a small trickle of blood begin to run down her forehead, and she laughed. Of course, the blood cools me down, she thought.

Ryleigh had believed that her ancestors had not mastered the cloaking spell, but she wondered if they had and simply did not have the strength to hold it. It would be so easy to drop the spell, to allow her magic to breathe. The spell made her newly ascended magic suffocate within her. She wondered if her ancestors had mastered the spell prior to turning twenty-three, and then succumbed to the agony of the cloak’s suffocation and relinquished it. It would make sense, she realized. She remembered fragments of her mother, and, if she remembered right, her mother was older than twenty-three when she died. Fuck, the pain that she must have been in, Ryleigh thought. The pain that all of them must have been in to properly train their children.

A knock at the door forced Ryleigh to heave suddenly. She barely had the physical strength to function; she was not in the best condition to entertain guests. She knew that Bailey was not home yet; if she had been, Bailey would be with her right now. Bailey would have responded immediately to the shift in Ryleigh’s magic. But she listened and she is staying away, Ryleigh thought with relief. The one good thing that is coming out of my ascension is also the one bad thing. To keep Bailey safe, Ryleigh needed to keep her distance from her sister.

Ryleigh’s magic stretched out of the shower and grasped her silk robe. Her magic gently slid the robe on to her body and tied the sash. She exhaled as the robe did not disintegrate from the contact with her skin. She felt childish relying on her magic for such menial tasks, but she needed her magic’s help. And it’s not like my magic isn’t screaming to be used, she thought. Her magic pulled back the shower curtain and carefully lifted her out of the shower. Her feet touched the tile beneath her, and she gasped. It was like she was jolted awake, as if the ground brought her out of a dreamworld of pain and lava.

The visitor rapped against the front door again. “Just a sec!” Ryleigh snapped. She slowly moved one foot forward, and then the other. She felt like she was walking through an endless vat of mollasses, pushing all of her energy into each step. She had been running on fumes during her shift and for her journey home, but, as soon as she stepped through her front door, the exhaustion took hold. Her magic had been protecting her, making sure that she reached her safe haven where she could relax. She finally reached the front door and gripped the doorknob tightly to steady herself. She slowly opened the front door.

“What are you doing here?” Ryleigh asked in surprise.

“What happened to you?” Kristopher asked. His auburn eyes flared in response to her magic.

“It’s nothing—”

“Don’t give me that shit, Ryleigh,” Kristopher growled. He scooped her into his arms and kicked the door closed behind him as he entered her apartment. Ryleigh immediately relaxed in his arms, thankful to no longer be responsible for making her limbs move. Kristopher gently laid her down on her couch and knelt on the ground in front of her. “Who hurt you?”

“No one did,” Ryleigh smiled softly. “It’s nothing I can’t handle, it just hurts like hell.”

“Ryleigh, something happened to you last night. I felt it at the club,” Kristopher said through gritted teeth.

“Please,” Ryleigh begged suddenly. “Please, stop.” She felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes, and she inhaled shakily. She was slightly surprised that he did not realize why her magic flared so intensely. “Please, just let it go.”

“I can’t,” Kristopher whispered as his eyes softened. He cupped her face gently as he stared down at her. “You’re in pain. I want to help you.”

“You can’t help me. I need to manage this on my own.”

“Manage what?”

“Please, don’t,” Ryleigh begged again. She pushed herself into a sitting position on the couch. “Just go home, okay? I told you that I needed today for myself. I need to rest.”

“Ryleigh…”

“Please, just go. I’ll be fine,” she added with a small smile.

Kristopher stood up and tensely walked toward the front door. Ryleigh squeezed her eyes shut to contain the tears that were threatening to fall. It’s for the best, she reminded herself. If he knew who I truly was, he would either have to kill me or face his kind for me. He would kill me, she thought. I would not be worth his protection, and I wouldn’t want it if I was. She knew that him protecting her could result in his own life being threatened, and she refused to put him in danger. She knew that a vampire could take care of himself, but she was not worth him needing to fight his own kind.

Ryleigh’s eyes shot open as the lock on her front door clicked. She turned her head and found Kristopher in her kitchen. He was filling a glass full of water in the sink. He brought it over to her and knelt before her again. “I can’t just leave,” he whispered. She took the glass from him and drank it greedily. She handed him the glass and looked at him curiously. “Something is wrong with you.”

“That’s the thing, Kristopher. Nothing is wrong with me. This is who I am, just…enhanced. You shouldn’t stay here.”

“Ryleigh—”

“Just go!” She yelled suddenly, and Kristopher’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry,” she added in a whisper. “I just don’t want to hurt you.”

“You can never hurt me,” Kristopher said.

“Please—” but Kristopher’s lips crashed against hers to silence her protests. His hands cupped her face tenderly as he kissed her. Ryleigh felt tears fall against her cheeks and she pulled away. “Please, Kristopher,” she whispered. “Don’t make me hurt you.”

“Ryleigh, you won’t hurt me.”

“You don’t know—”

“I know that I care about you,” he interrupted. “More than I’ve cared about anyone in a very long time.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“You’re right. A vampire shouldn’t care for a witch,” Kristopher whispered. “But I can’t help that I do.” His thumbs stroked her cheeks gently as he wiped her tears away. “And I think you feel the same.”

“Kristopher…”

“If I’m wrong, I will walk out that door and leave you alone. But something tells me that you want this, too. This moment, this experiment, whatever the hell this is.”

“I can’t.”

“Do you care for me?” Kristopher asked softly. “That is the only thing that matters right now. I’m here for you, because you’re in pain and I care for you. But my staying with you is up to you. If you care for me, I will stay with you.”

Ryleigh inhaled sharply and closed her eyes. Kristopher’s thumbs continued to caress her cheeks, to reassure her that he meant his words. She opened her eyes and studied his auburn eyes with her emerald ones. She somehow managed to replace the one vampire that was genuine, that she could not seem to resist. He has me under his spell, she thought cheekily. She placed her hands on top of his. “Yes, Kristopher,” she whispered slowly. “I care about you.” Kristopher crashed his lips against hers again and kissed her.