"Brady?" I ask coming fully awake before beginning to sob, "Oh! Brady! I should never have come back here! I am so sorry! It's all my fault... I am so so sorry..."
"Bella," Brady cuts me off gently, "Look around at where we are. We are safe nothing bad is happening. Nothing is your fault. Do you remember what happened yesterday?"
I cringe realizing what truth I almost poured out in my own sorrow. Mitch doesn't know he can't feel the flow of Island's magic or hear its outcry begging me to release it upon the nation whom it feels has disrespected it. I scramble still sleepy to find an alternative explanation for my sorrow and fear.
"But if we're okay and nothing bad is happening then why aren't we moving? Even when we are in port the ship is never this still" I ask fueling my voice with the petulance of childhood hoping Mitch will follow the path I lay with misdirection to avoid lies.
"Bella," Mitch murmurs softly to comfort me "Remember we aren't on the ship anymore. That must have been a rough nightmare. Remember we flew in the hot air balloon and now we are at the castle."
"Oh yeah, A rough nightmare..." I mumble walking a thin line between my words and a lie knowing a misstep could be disastrous to us all, "Brady, I need to leave now. If I'm not on a ship, then they will arrive soon to pick me up... The ship constantly in motion keeps me safe from them so I need to move again. I can't stay." I tremble hating myself for tricking my only loving brother like this. I try to stand hoping that just maybe he won't think though the logic of Kongkea and will let me depart. My sweet brother is too smart for that however
"Bella," he gently grabs my hand guiding me back to the bed and pushing me lightly to sit, "They won't find you here. We are in Kongkea an uncharted island in the middle of the ocean surrounded by the Ikechukwu Island Chain all of which are protected by magic and don't even have GPS coordinates. You remember we talked about this when I told you the stories. I told you if I ever figured out how to fly a hot air balloon, we would take off high into the air, and I would try to bring you home with me. But my brothers took care of the hot air balloon for me."
I hear a little gasp from Mykayla as Brady casually mentions he planned all along to return home with me. I feel sorry for he to some extent, I know what him brining a girl home sounds like it means... but this idiot is honestly just dense and doesn't realize the impression he gives when he says things like that.
"Right, right sorry..." I stammer forcing my body to relax back into sitting on the edge of my bed.
"What were you dreaming about, anyway?" Mitch asks letting go of me and going to sit on the edge of the other bed.
"Same as always, my life before the ships." I murmur. He insists on asking every time even though he gets the same response every time.
"I'm sorry, lay back down and I will play till you are asleep." Mitch coaxes reaching for his guitar just as he does every night after I reject his question. I really don't understand why he insists on playing this game every time, but I feel like I owe him a little something for shutting him out.
"Brady, do you regret bringing me here?" I ask my voice growing soft as I choose to let him in just a little bit by opening up a fear.
"Never, Bella, I will never regret bringing my sister home. You are my treasure and no matter what life throws at us it will always be me and you against it all."
"Okay," I sigh laying down on my side being careful to favor my back and listen as he begins to play. As he always does, he starts with my favorite song that he wrote just for me the night I got his guitar returned to him.
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I rise early barely anywhere closer to rested but knowing we are out of time. Glancing over at the second bed I see Mitch has managed to get a bit of sleep but know it couldn't have been enough. I feel guilt wash over me once again I don't know for sure what time I woke him up with my nightmare last night but anything after dark wouldn't have left enough time to rest before this three am wakeup call.
If only I had figured out a way to get him to leave me behind. If I hadn't come, he could've gotten an amazing nights rest in the bed his brothers designed for him. Instead, he was awakened by my screams throughout the night and now I am about to awaken him once more. I again feel the impulse rising inside of me to run away as I always have and never look back but I am tired and selfish. I need or maybe just desperately want to know what would happen if just this time I stay.
Wearily I stand up and walk over to shake him awake.
"Mitch, time to wake up for practice. Plus, we need to move Mykayla back to the throne room. She fell asleep while eavesdropping in the hall" I call softly warry of being overheard.
"I'm awake," Mitch sighs, "just thinking."
I want to ask him what he is thinking about but the sting of guilt at denying his questions last night hold me silent. Instead, I take a deep breath and decide I can shoulder more to make up for the burden I am.
"Run upstairs to your room and change for training. I can move Mykayla and meet you in the dungeon with our weapons."
"Didn't we talk about moving practice to the ballroom?" he questions while sitting up and rubbing his face obviously trying to hide his fatigue
"The ballroom is designed to carry sound throughout the castle, I think I did quite enough of that last night. Since we don't want our fight to be broadcast the dungeons will be better. I thought the ballroom would be more convenient but I didn't expect quite so many people to be awake in the castle this early" I sigh feeling the stirrings of every guard, cook, and maid in the castle.
"Ah right soundproof dungeons. Duh!" he chuckles, "So what you are really saying is down there I can beat you and no one will hear your humiliated sobbing."
I smile feeling his teasing lifting my melancholy spirits, I never knew a brother could be like this until I met Mitch.
"Yeah right," I smile sarcastically, "In reality its cooler down there so I can beat you without breaking a sweat."
"Nuh uh," he laughs tilting his head back cockily, "I'm definitely winning this one."
I turn to retort, but he is already long gone no doubt trying to beat me down to dungeons. I roll my eyes before pulling my athletic pants and a t-shirt out of my bag to change.
As I finish changing, I hear a moan from the hallway as Mykayla begins to stir. Glancing around I pulled a small vial and syringe out of the hidden compartment I made for our first aid kit yesterday.
Carefully extracting four cc's of the herb's extract, from the vial I inject in into Mykayla's arm as gently as I can. This will knock her out for a couple of hours and hopefully make last night fuzzier in her memories. Once she is out, I scoop her up and carry her out to the throne room where I deposit her on an empty chair assuming Mitch had been on the couch.
Kneeling next to her I brace myself and place my hands on either side of her face simultaneously. I grimace as I feel the rush as all her thoughts and feeling flow through me in one hand and returning through the other. The call of the Island's magic grows stronger as I syphon some of its power to help me. I breathe and begin searching for her memories of last night. I watch the interactions between Mitch and myself through her eyes and feel her jealousy fight to find root in my heart as well but easily push it away. I see her leave the table to leave the room following Mitch and me and redirect the memories of what happened between then and when she and Mitch returned to the table to a hidden corner of her mind. Not gone just forgotten for now. It is getting harder to tell if it is my instincts or the Island's power, that is pushing me to erase her memories entirely but either way I push those ideas away and focus on her memories of awakening last night pushing her to lock those away in her subconscious as well. I sigh in relief once I release my hold on her after making sure, I have not stolen any memories or emotions or left any of my own.
My task complete, I quickly I rush back to my room to collect our weapons and first aid kit before taking off trying to beat Mitch to the dungeons.