Page 59 of Crossing Between

I winced as another bolt of energy shot from my fingertips, ricocheting off the metal-reinforced wall of Varon's private gym and dissipating harmlessly against the ceiling.

Well, mostly harmlessly. A small scorch mark joined the constellation of similar marks that had appeared over the last few days of training.

"Sorry about your ceiling," I muttered to no one in particular, though I knew through our bond that Varon was amused rather than annoyed.

It had been three days since we completed the soul bond, and I was still adjusting to the constant awareness of three other people in my head.

Not thoughts exactly, it wasn't like mind reading, but emotions, sensations, a general sense of their well-being, and proximity.

Right now, Varon was across town at a meeting with Bradley, his focus sharp and businesslike despite the thread of anticipation for tonight thrumming between us.

Elias was downtown, his concentration intense as he followed a lead on our case.

And Kenji was somewhere close, his energy bright and curious.

"Focus, Zoey," Quilith's melodious voice cut through my wandering thoughts. They stood across from me, their hair floating slightly as if underwater. "Your power seeks to express itself. You must learn to direct it rather than merely containing it."

I huffed, blowing a strand of sweat-dampened hair from my forehead. "Easy for you to say. You've had centuries to practice."

Quilith's lips curved into that enigmatic smile that made me want to simultaneously hug them and throttle them. "And yet, even after all those centuries, I still cannot do what you do naturally."

I rolled my shoulders, trying to ease the tension that had built there.

Since the ritual, my magic had been different.

More potent. Less willing to stay dormant.

It bubbled beneath my skin like champagne, eager to overflow at the slightest provocation.

Which was exactly why Quilith had insisted on these daily training sessions.

"Let's try again," they glided across the polished wood floor of the gym without seeming to take steps. "Reach for that thread of power and visualize it as a stream. Not a flood, not a trickle, but a steady flow you can direct."

I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep breath. I could feel it inside me, that core of energy that pulsed in time with my heartbeat. Before, it had been like a pilot light, something I had to consciously fan into flame. Now it was a bonfire, crackling and spitting sparks with a life of its own.

I reached for it mentally, trying to imagine it as Quilith suggested, as a stream I could channel rather than a wildfire I needed to contain. For a moment, it worked. I felt the power respond, flowing through me like liquid light.

Then the gym door banged open, and Kenji's voice boomed across the space. "You are not going to believe what I just found!"

My concentration shattered. The energy I'd been carefully channeling surged, searching for an outlet. I felt it leap from me, arcing through the air toward the doorway where Kenji stood.

"Shit!" I yelped, throwing my hands up instinctively to recall the magic.

Too late. Whatever spell I'd inadvertently cast shot past Kenji and out the doorway. There was a moment of confused silence, then Kenji's eyes widened.

"Holy fuck," he breathed, looking at something beyond the doorway. "Did you just...? I think you just..."

He disappeared from view, reappearing moments later with something small and furry cradled in his massive hands. A squirrel. A very alive, very freaked-out squirrel that was trying to scramble up his arm.

"Whoa there, little buddy," Kenji crooned, somehow managing to keep hold of the panicking animal. "It's okay. Nobody's going to hurt you."

I stared at the squirrel, a cold weight settling in my stomach. "Was that...did I just...?"

"Bring back a dead squirrel? Yeah, I think so," Kenji confirmed, his tone somewhere between impressed and unsettled.

"It was definitely dead on the path outside.

I was coming to tell you about the weird energy surge I felt from you when," he gestured with his chin toward the trembling rodent, "zap. Not dead anymore."

I felt the blood drain from my face. "I resurrected a squirrel. By accident."

Through our bond, I could feel Kenji's mixture of awe and concern. The squirrel had stopped trying to escape and was now chittering angrily at him, tiny paws pressed against his restraining fingers.

"What do I do with it?" I asked, looking helplessly between Kenji and Quilith. "I can't just...I didn't mean to."

Quilith moved to my side, their otherworldly presence somehow comforting despite the situation. "What you choose to do now is your decision, Zoey," their voice was gentle. "The creature is alive again. It has its essence once more, its own path to follow."

"But it was dead," a note of distress crept into my voice. "It was its time, and I interfered. That can't be right."

The squirrel had calmed somewhat, peering out from between Kenji's fingers with bright, alert eyes that seemed too knowing. Was it my imagination, or did it look directly at me with some kind of recognition?

Kenji approached slowly, holding the squirrel out for my inspection. "It seems fine," he offered. "Not zombie-like or anything. Just a regular squirrel that happens to have gotten a second chance."

I reached out hesitantly, then pulled my hand back. The implications of what I'd done were starting to sink in. Soulbinders could manipulate souls, I knew that. But casually resurrecting the dead? Without intention or effort? That was a whole different level of power and it terrified me.

"I don't want this." I wrapped my arms around myself. Through our bond, I felt a pulse of reassurance from Kenji. "I don't want to be raising dead things everywhere I go. What if this happens with a person?"

"It won't," Quilith assured me, though I noticed they didn't explain why they were so certain. "Your power responds to your will, even when that will is subconscious. You must have sensed the squirrel's essence lingering and instinctively reached for it."

"I didn't even know it was there!" I protested.

The squirrel chittered again, more quietly this time, as if commenting on our conversation. It no longer seemed frightened, just watchful. Waiting.

I sighed deeply, feeling overwhelmed. "It doesn' t seem right to keep it here, regardless. It's a wild animal. It should be outside." I looked at Kenji. "Can you please release it? Somewhere safe?"

Kenji nodded, his face softening with understanding. Through our bond, I felt his warm support and lack of judgment. "Sure thing. There's a nice little wooded area behind the property. It'll be happy there."

As he turned to leave, I caught his arm. "Kenji, thank you. For not freaking out about this."

He flashed me that roguish grin that always made my heart flutter. "Are you kidding? My girlfriend can bring things back from the dead. That's metal as hell."

Despite everything, I laughed. The tension in my shoulders eased slightly as I watched him head outside with the squirrel. Through our connection, I could track his movement, feel his gentleness as he set the creature free in a patch of sunlight beneath an oak tree.

When he was gone, I turned back to Quilith, who was watching me with that inscrutable expression.

"Is this what being a Soulbinder means?" I was unable to keep the note of accusation from my voice. "Randomly bringing dead things back to life?"

"It is one aspect of your gift," they were maddeningly calm. "Every choice you make has consequences, Zoey. Every power you wield changes the balance in ways you cannot always predict. But I have faith in your decisions, even when you do not."

I snorted. "Great. That's so helpful." I ran a hand through my hair in frustration. "How am I supposed to fight an Essencefeaster when I can't even control a simple energy channeling exercise? How am I going to win against something that powerful?"

Quilith shook their head. "You will know when the time comes."

"I swear to god, Quilith, sometimes I want to smack you," I threw my hands up in exasperation.

To my surprise, they threw their head back and laughed, the sound like crystal bells chiming.

"You would not be the first, dear Zoey. Nor, I suspect, the last." Their expression sobered, though amusement still danced in their eyes.

"Trust yourself as I trust you. The power within you knows its purpose. "

I wished I could share their confidence. As Kenji returned to the gym, his presence in my mind a comforting warmth, I couldn't shake the image of the squirrel's eyes, or the nagging fear of what other consequences my growing powers might bring.